58. WHAT HAS BEEN SAID REGARDING THE LINEAGE OF QURAISH
What Has Been Said Regarding the Lineage of Quraish, Its Origins and Its Virtues – and They Are Banu An-Nadr ibn Kinanah
Ibn Hisham said, “An-Nadr is Quraish and the one who is descended from him is a Quraishite; those who are not descended from him are not Quraishites. Abu ‘Ubaid and Ibn ‘Abdul-Barr said, “The opinion of the majority is that he is An-Nadr Ibn Kinanah, based on the hadeeth of Al-Ash‘ath Ibn Qais.” I say: This is what was cited by Hisham Ibn Muhammad ibn As-Sa’ib Al-Kalbi and Abu ‘Ubaidah Ma‘mar Ibn Al-Muthanna and it is the opinion of Ash-Shafi‘i (may Allah be pleased with him). Abu ‘Umar’s preferred opinion was that he was Fihr Ibn Malik and he cited as evidence that there is no one today who claims descent from Quraish except that he traces his lineage from Fihr Ibn Malik.”
And Al-Bukhari narrated on the authority of Kulaib Ibn Wa’il that he said, “I said to the stepdaughter of the Prophet (Peace and Blessings of Allah be upon him) (i.e. Zainab Bint Abi Salamah), “Tell me about the Prophet, did he belong to the tribe of Mudar?” She replied, “Yes, he belonged to the tribe of Mudar and was from the offspring of An-Nadr Ibn Kinanah.”
And At-Tabarani said, “on the authority of Al-Jufsheesh Al-Kindi that he said, ‘A people from Kindah came to the Messenger of Allah (Peace and Blessings of Allah be upon him) and they said, You are from us,’ and they claimed him (as one of them). But he said, ‘No, we are Banu An-Nadr Ibn Kinanah; we do not follow our mother and we do not deny our father’.”
And Imam Ahmad narrated on the authority of Muslim from Al-Haisam Ibn Al-Ash‘ath Ibn Qais (May Allah be pleased with him) that he said, “I went to the Messenger of Allah (Peace and Blessings of Allah be upon him) with a delegation from Kindah and I said, “O, Messenger of Allah! We claim that you are from us.’ But the Messenger of Allah (Peace and Blessings of Allah be upon him) said, ‘We are Banu An-Nadr ibn Kinanah; we do not follow our mother and we do not deny our father.” Al-Ash‘ath ibn Qais said, ‘By Allah, I do not hear anyone denying that Quraish are from An-Nadr except that I inflict on him a flogging.’ And this is the decisive proof in this matter, so no regard should be paid to those who contradict it. And Allah knows better. A person from Quraish is known as a Qurashi or a Quraishi. Al-Jawhari said, This is a comparison; the poet said:
Every Quraishi is honorable,
He hastens to answer the call of the caller and he is generous.
He said, “If one intends by Quraish the clan, then it will be inflected (i.e. Quraishun), but if one intends by it the tribe, then it will be uninflected (i.e. Quraishu). The poet said regarding its being uninflected:
And Quraish’s support sufficed them against their problems.
And Muslim narrated in his Saheeh, on the authority of Wathilah Ibn Al-Asqa‘ that he said, “The Messenger of Allah (Peace and Blessings of Allah be upon him) said, “Verily, Allah chose Kinanah from the sons of Isma‘eel, He chose Quraishan from Kinanah, He chose Hashim from Quraishin and He chose me from Banu Hashim.”
Ibn Ishaq said, “A person whose integrity I do not doubt informed me that ‘Umar Ibn Al-Khattab said to some men, among whom were men from Banu Murrah, “If you wish to refer to your lineages, then do so.” Ibn Ishaq said, “They were eminent people among Ghatafan and they were masters and leaders of them, a people possessing fame amongst all of Ghatafan and Qais. They held fast to their lineage and they said, “Whenever their lineage was mentioned, they would say, “We do not disavow or reject them and it is the dearest lineage to us.”
Then he mentioned their poems regarding their claim of descent from Lu’ayy. He added, “They followed a practice known as al-basl, which was the designation of eight months in each year as sacred months; and the other Arabs accepted this from them and they would guarantee their safety in them.” I say: Rabee‘ah and Mudar accepted the sanctity of only four months in the year: Dhul-Qa‘dah, Dhul-Hijjah, Muharram – and Rabee‘ah and Mudar disagreed as to the fourth, but it is Rajab. Mudar said that it is the month that is between Jumada and Sha‘ban, while Rabee‘ah said that it is the month between Sha‘ban and Shawwal. And it has been confirmed in the Saheehain on the authority of Abu Bakrah (May Allah be pleased with him) that the Messenger of Allah (Peace and Blessings of Allah be upon him) said in the sermon that he delivered in his Farewell Pilgrimage: “The division of time has turned to its original form which was current when Allah created the heavens and the earths. The year is of twelve months, out of which four months are sacred: Three are in succession Dhul-Qa‘dah, Dhul-Hijjah and Muharram, and (the fourth is) Rajab of (the tribe of) Mudar which comes between Jumada Ath-Thaniyah and Sha‘ban.” This lends more weight to the saying of Mudar, as opposed to that of Rabee‘ah; and Allah, Most High, says {Verily, the number of months with Allah is twelve months (in a year), so was it ordained by Allah on the Day when He created the heavens and the Earth; of them four are sacred, (i.e. the 1st, the 7th, the 11th and the 12th months of the Islamic calendar).} (Soorah At-Tawbah 9:36). This is a reply to Banu ‘Awf Ibn Lu’ayy and their designation of eight sacred months, for they increased thereby what Allah had ordained and included in it that which is not from it. As for the saying of the Prophet (Peace and Blessings of Allah be upon him) in the hadeeth: “Three are in succession,” it is a reply to the people of An-Nasi’, who used to defer the sanctity of Muharram until Safar. As for his saying: “and (the fourth is) Rajab of (the tribe of) Mudar,” it is a reply to Rabee‘ah.
THE STORY OF QUSAYY IBN KILAB
Qusayy was a master and leader among his people, a man whose commands were obeyed and who was venerated (by them). What is meant is that he gathered Quraish from their dispersed locations throughout the Arabian Gulf. He sought support from those Arab clans who obeyed him in his war against Khuza‘ah, their expulsion from the Sacred House and the handing over of it to Qusayy. There was much fighting and bloodshed between them, then they called for a ruling and they sought that ruling from Ya‘mur Ibn ‘Awf Ibn Ka‘b Ibn ‘Amir Ibn Laith Ibn Bakr Ibn ‘Abd Manat ibn Kinanah. Ya‘mur subsequently ruled that Qusayy had more right than Khuza‘ah to take responsibility for the House. He also ruled that Qusayy was not responsible for the bloodshed inflicted by him on Khuza‘ah and Banu Bakr, while Khuza‘ah and Banu Bakr were obligated to pay bloodwit for the bloodshed that they had inflicted on Quraish, Kinanah and Qudha’ah. Finally, the area of Makkah, including the Ka‘bah was to be vacated for Qusayy and his people. Thenceforth, Ya‘mur became known as Ash-Shaddakh (the Crusher).
Ibn Ishaq said, “So Qusayy took over the custodianship of the Ka‘bah and the affairs of Makkah and he gathered his people from their homes and made them take up residence in Makkah. He also became ruler of his people and of Makkah. But he confirmed the Arabs in what they were following, for he considered that it was the true religion and that it did not require any alteration. He confirmed the family of Safwan, ‘Adwan, An-Nasa`ah and Murrah Ibn ‘Awf in what they were doing and the matter remained thus until the advent of Islam, by which Allah destroyed all of that.” ibn Ishaq said, “Qusayy was the first of Banu Ka‘b to become the ruler of Makkah, obeyed by all of his people. He was responsible for Al-Hijabah, As-Siqayah, Ar-Rifadah, An-Nadwah and Al-Liwa`. He divided Makkah into four regions which he then allocated to Quraish as their homes.”
I say: Custodianship of the House became established as the right of Quraish, while Khuza‘ah were dispossessed of it because of the heresies they introduced there, such as their worship of idols, their erection of them around the Ka‘bah, the animals they sacrificed to them, the humility they displayed toward them, the help they sought from them and the sustenance they requested from them. Qusayy apportioned the valleys of Makkah to the tribes of Quraish and he settled a group of them in its outskirts. All matters pertaining to leadership were in the hands of Qusayy Ibn Kilab, such as the maintenance and custodianship of the House and leadership in all military matters. He built a house for the resolution of disputes, which he called Dar An-Nadwah. When a problem arose, the leaders of all the tribes would meet therein and they would resolve it. But no military covenants or marriage contracts were enacted except in Dar An-Nadwah. The door of this meeting place was opposite the Sacred Mosque. Then this meeting place became the responsibility of Hakeem Ibn Hizam, after Banu ‘Abdud-Dar and he sold it during the era of Mu‘awiyah (May Allah be pleased with him) for a hundred thousand dirhams. Mu‘awiyah (May Allah be pleased with him) rebuked him for selling it, saying, “You have sold the honor of your people for a hundred thousand?” He replied, “By Allah, honor this day is only in piety. I purchased it in the Jahiliyyah for a skin of wine and look now, I have sold it for a hundred thousand dirhams and I call upon you to bear witness that its price is given in charity in Allah’s Cause. So which of us is deceived?” This was mentioned by Ad-Daraqutni in his discussion of the narrators in Al-Muwatta’.
The responsibility for providing water to the pilgrims was in the hands of Qusayy and they would not drink except from his water basins. Zamzam was at that time lost and had been like that since the time of Jurhum and knowledge of it had been forgotten and they were unable to find its location.
Ibn Ishaq said, “This was because Qusayy obliged them to do so; he said to them, “O, people of Quraish! You are Allah’s neighbors, the people of Makkah and the people of the Sacred Precincts and the pilgrims are Allah’s guests and the visitors to His House and they are most worthy of hospitality. So prepare for them food and drink during the days of Hajj until they leave you.” So they did this, and every year they would pay a tax from their wealth to him and he would use it to prepare food for the people during the days of Mina. Matters continued thus during the Jahiliyyah until the advent of Islam. Then matters continued in Islam and they have remained like this until this day, and that is the food which is prepared by the Sultan every year for the people until the Hajj is completed.”
I say: Then this ended after Ibn Ishaq’s time. Later, a group from Bait Al-Mal (the Treasury) were ordered to carry food and drink to people traveling to Makkah to perform Hajj. This is a good deed for reasons too numerous to be mentioned, but it should really be the sole responsibility of Bait Al-Mal, because they have the resources to do it. And it would be better if it were taken from the Jews and Christians, because they do not perform pilgrimage to the Ancient House; and it has been stated in the hadeeth, “Whoever is able to perform Hajj and does not do so, then let him die if he wishes as a Jew or a Christian.”
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Then, when Qusayy became old, he passed the matter of these responsibilities which had been in his hands, such as the leadership of Quraish, Ar-rifadah, As-siqayah, Al-hijabah, Al-liwa’ and an-nadwah, to his son, ‘Abdud-Dar, who was his eldest son. He selected him to bear all of these responsibilities because his other brothers, ‘Abd Manaf, ‘Abdul-‘Uzza and ‘Abd had been honored during their father’s lifetime and had achieved their greatest potential and so Qusayy wanted ‘Abdud-Dar to attain the same level of leadership as they had. His brothers did not dispute this, but after they had passed away, their sons fell into dispute regarding it. They said, “Qusayy only chose ‘Abdud-Dar for this responsibility because he wanted to bring him up to the same level as his brothers, but we deserve what our fathers deserved.” The sons of ‘Abdud-Dar said, “This is a matter that was decided for us by Qusayy, so we have more right to it.” So they disagreed profoundly and the clans of Quraish divided into two groups, one of them pledged their loyalty to ‘Abdud-Dar and entered into an alliance with him, while the other group pledged their loyalty to Banu ‘Abd Manaf and made an alliance with them. To signify this, they placed their hands in a bowl of perfume, then when they stood up, they wiped their hands on the corners of the Ka‘bah, for which reason the alliance became known as the Alliance of the Perfumers. Among the tribes of Quraish who did so were Banu Asad Ibn ‘Abdul-‘Uzza Ibn Qusayy, Banu Zuhrah, Banu Taim and Banul-Harith ibn Fihr. With Banu ‘Abdud-Dar were Banu Makhzoom, Banu Sahm, Banu Jumah and Banu ‘Adiyy. Banu ‘Amir ibn Lu’ayy and Muharib ibn Fihr abstained and did not side with either group. Then they held peace talks and agreed that Ar-Rifadah and As-Siqayah should be the responsibility of Banu ‘Abd Manaf and that Al-Hijabah, Al-Liwa’ and An-Nadwah should remain in the hands of Banu ‘Abdud-Dar, and the matter was settled in this way and continued thus.
By Ibn Katheer
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