1 of 2 · 6 AH · after the Hudaybiyyah period · The Prophet's Mosque, Madinah
Thumamah ibn Uthal رضي الله عنه
Tied to the Pillar
The Prophet ﷺ sent a cavalry detachment toward Najd. They returned with a man from Banu Hanifah whom they did not recognise. He was Thumamah ibn Uthal, chief of Yamamah. They tied him to one of the pillars of the mosque.
The Prophet ﷺ came out and asked him, "What do you have, Thumamah?" He answered, "Good, Muhammad. If you kill me, you kill one who has blood owed; if you pardon me, you pardon one who is grateful; and if you want wealth, ask and you will be given what you wish." The Prophet ﷺ left him.
This went on for three days, the same question and the same answer each time. The Prophet ﷺ was giving him time to see who Muslims were, to see them pray, to hear the Qur'an, and to watch a community that did not humiliate its prisoner.
Even a captive deserves dignity and time; mercy can change a heart that force would only harden.
How do you treat people who are at your mercy?
- Sahih al-Bukhari 4372 Sahih · in the two Sahihs
- Sahih al-Bukhari 462 Sahih · in the two Sahihs
- Sahih Muslim 1764 Sahih · in the two Sahihs
What the hadith grades mean
- Sahih (authentic): an unbroken chain of trustworthy, precise narrators, free of hidden flaws or contradiction. It is acted upon.
- Hasan (good): like sahih, but a narrator's precision is slightly lighter. It is also accepted and acted upon. "Hasan sahih" means it reaches sahih by its routes.
- Da'if (weak): a break in the chain or a narrator who is not reliable enough. It is not used to establish beliefs or rulings.
- Very weak (munkar, matruk): a seriously flawed chain or a narrator accused of lying. It is not relied on at all.
- Mawdu' (fabricated): falsely attributed to the Prophet ﷺ. It may not be narrated as his words except to warn against it.
- The two Sahihs: every hadith with a full chain in Sahih al-Bukhari and Sahih Muslim is accepted as sahih by the scholars of hadith.
- Historical report: biographies and histories (Ibn Ishaq, Ibn Sa'd, al-Tabari) record events with chains that are often incomplete. They are used for the story, not for rulings.
- Hadith scholars grade a narration; the four madhhabs do not. Where a hadith carries a ruling, the page shows which schools act on it.
Create a free account to keep your place as you go. Create a free account · Sign in