After the Prophet (PBUH) announced the Call publicly, Quraish faced Him by different means

Edited and Translated by Mohamed Salami

After the Prophet (PBUH) announced the Call publicly, Quraish faced Him by different means, as discrediting Him and disregarding His message, but its reaction did not reach the extent of confronting Him and putting an end to His Call.

However, the Prophet's insistence on His Call, blasting Quraish's gods, ridiculing their idols and creeds as well as the increase of the number of the Muslims and the expansion of the Prophet's activity pushed the polytheists to sense a real danger that threatened their interests, so they unanimously agreed on facing the Prophet and facing His Call.

They started to mull the suitable ways to face the Prophet, excluding the military options which was not easy for the following reasons:

First: The Polytheists were not prepared for the military encounter as Abu Taleb and all the members of Hashem's family (Bani Hashem) as well as their allies, what may inflame a devastating civil war in Mecca.

Second: The Muslims belonged to different tribes, so it was not easy to face them violently.

Third: Getting involved in a war against the Prophet may strengthen His Position and contribute to spreading His Call as Bani Hashem had allies outside Mecca, what made the polytheists unable to predict the outcomes of the war.


Quraish Holds Negotiations with the Prophet (PBUH)

Quraish decided to hold negotiations and compromises with Abu Taleb and the Prophet (PBUH) in order to eradicate His Call through peaceful means. However, the historians assert that all the polytheists' attempts failed because they collided with Prophet's solid position which rejected compromises at the expense of the belief and the principle.

In the first stage, the noblemen and the leaders of Quraish met Abu Taleb and asked him to either prevent the Prophet from carrying out his activities or to let them fight Him, claiming that He "insulted their gods, stultified their dreams and misled their sons. Then, Abu Taleb responded kindly, so they left him.


Later on, the Prophet continued calling on people to embrace Islam, neglecting Qurash's movements. Quraish, as a result, held a new round of negotiations, yet it adopted a strict stance towards the Prophet. The negotiators told Abu Taleb, that either the Prophet halts His activities or the polytheists fight him whatever the results would be. Then, Abu Taleb intelligently realized their plight promised them to tell his Nephew what they told him.

Abu Taleb informed the Prophet about what the polytheists said, yet He promised to keep His Call whatever the sacrifices would be. Abu Taleb also supported his Nephew and predicted their victory.

Quraish Asks Abu Taleb to Hand it His Nephew

As Islam started to expand widely and Prophet Mohammad (PBUH) continued spreading His Message, the polytheists started a third round of negotiations with Abu Taleb, yet in a different manner.

They asked Abu Taleb to hand them his Nephew in return of granting him Amara bin al-Walid Khaled bin al-Walid's brother) whom they described as the most handsome youth in Quraish's tribe in order to adopt him.

Abu Taleb rejected categorically the polytheists' offer, leading them to a new failure as Abu Taleb and Prophet Mohammad (PBUH) refused all compromises and stuck to Islam and its teachings.