The Investment of Medina Pt 1
"The investment of Medina, which took place in April 627, towards the end of the fifth year of the Hijrah, marked the last effort of the Meccans to break the power of Muhammad. The previous year they had failed to meet the Prophet at Badr, but now they were goaded into action by the dislodged Jewish leaders of the Banu'n-Nadir and others of their co-religionists, who feared that the remnants of their colonies in Arabia might soon be overwhelmed; particularly active among them were Huyy Ibn Akhtab, Kinanah Ibn ar-Rabi' and Sallam Ibn Abi'l-Huqayq. Some twenty of these Jewish leaders travelled to Mecca and foregathered with a number of prominent Quray****es in the House of Ka'bah, where they made a pact to fight Muhammad to the bitter end. Next they visited the intractable Ghatafan and promised them a good share of the date crop of Khaybar, should they join an expedition against Muhammad. The Ghatafan readily agreed to fall in with their plans. Further alliances were sought and made with the Banu-Asad, the Banu-Murrah, the Banu-Ashja', the Banu-Aslam and the Banu-Sulaym.
Abu-Sufyan came out of Mecca with four thousand men, and as he led the Meccans towards Medina contingents from various tribes came to join his army, until together they numbered ten thousand. The strength of the confederates was staggering. Had Muhammad marched out of Medina to engage them in battle, it is likely the confederates would have won the day. As it was, time was too short for the Prophet to seek aid from friendly clans and He had to rely entirely on the resources of His own city. He took counsel with His followers. 'Abdu'llah Ibn Ubayy, who was 94 present, gave the same advice he had given before the battle of Uhud, and this time Muhammad complied with it. He decided not to leave Medina, but to stay within and fortify the city against attack. Next, Salman the Persian presented a scheme for defence. Persians, he said, dig moats or trenches around their towns to check the advance of an enemy. For the Arabs this was a novel idea, but they speedily got down to the task. Muhammad Himself worked along with His followers. Implements were borrowed from the Banu-Qurayzah. That side of Medina which was flanked by this Jewish settlement was left unguarded, because Muhammad counted on the Jews to observe strict neutrality.
It was the month of Ramadan and, although it was springtime, under the circumstances of hard physical labour fasting was onerous. One day the Prophet, enfeebled and exhausted, was lying prone in the mosque, when He was informed by Salman that in a part of the trench they had come upon a stone which resisted all their efforts. Bara' Ibn 'Azib of the Ansar, who at the time was no more than fifteen years old, has related that the Prophet came, took a pickaxe and, with three strokes, demolished the stone. According to Ibn-Hisham, Muhammad told Salman that, at the first stroke, He was given dominion over Yemen; at the second, Syria and the lands beyond in the West were opened up to Him; and at the third, He reached out to the kingdoms of the East. His followers, He promised, would achieve these wonders after Him, and would conquer these realms. Dissemblers, hearing that, chuckled and said: 'Listen to this man I He is cornered in Yathrib, is digging a ditch to take refuge behind, but boasts of mastery over Yemen and the dominions of Kisra (Chosroes) and Qaysar (Caesar).'
Even as the Dissemblers scoffed and sneered at the Prophet, in this period of rising doubt and uncertainty, He was revealing the following: 'Say, "O God, the Lord of the Kingdom! Thou givest the Kingdom to whomsoever Thou willest, and Thou takest away the Kingdom from whomsoever Thou willest; and Thou exaltest whomsoever Thou willest, and Thou abasest whomsoever Thou willest. In Thy hands Thou holdest that which is good. Verily, Thou holdest dominion over all things."' (Surah iii, 26: Al-'Imran -- 'The House of 'Imran'.)
(H.M. Balyuzi, Muhammad and the Course of Islam, p. 93)"
