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The Massacre of the Banu Qurayzah: Difference between revisions
The Massacre of the Banu Qurayzah (view source)
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The battle over, Muhammad and his men put their entrenching tools and weapons down to head home. According to the sira, though, Allah had other plans. The angel [[Jibra'il]] appeared to Muhammad just as he had put down his weapon, and informed him that the battle was not yet over for the Jews of the Banu Qurayzah still needed to be dealt with due to the aforementioned treachery. Muhammad inform his men that they were not to pray the 'asr prayer until they reached the Banu Qurayzah compound, id est go there quickly. The Muslims lay siege to it for differing amounts of time depending on the source. The Banu Qurayzah were told to surrender and accept Islam, something they swore they would never do. Despairing of their position, according to ibn Ishaq, they discussed three options: killing themselves (perhaps, modern commentators have added, in emulation of their religious forbearers as Masada in Palestine), killing their wives and children and engaging in a banzai-style attack against the numerically superior Muslim forces, or surrendering unconditionally to Muhammad and entrusting their fate to his hands. | The battle over, Muhammad and his men put their entrenching tools and weapons down to head home. According to the sira, though, Allah had other plans. The angel [[Jibra'il]] appeared to Muhammad just as he had put down his weapon, and informed him that the battle was not yet over for the Jews of the Banu Qurayzah still needed to be dealt with due to the aforementioned treachery. Muhammad inform his men that they were not to pray the 'asr prayer until they reached the Banu Qurayzah compound, id est go there quickly. The Muslims lay siege to it for differing amounts of time depending on the source. The Banu Qurayzah were told to surrender and accept Islam, something they swore they would never do. Despairing of their position, according to ibn Ishaq, they discussed three options: killing themselves (perhaps, modern commentators have added, in emulation of their religious forbearers as Masada in Palestine), killing their wives and children and engaging in a banzai-style attack against the numerically superior Muslim forces, or surrendering unconditionally to Muhammad and entrusting their fate to his hands. | ||
The Jews of the Banu Qurayzah chose the latter option. The tribe of 'Aws, allies of the Banu Qurayrzah from the time of [[jahilliyah]], asked for mercy for them from the prophet. The prophet, not wanting to cause dissension in his ranks (oaths and alliances of loyalties were very important in tribal Arab society, as in the absence of courts and established governments the only guaranty of security and justice which could be obtained was the promise of protection from allies in the case of murder, family fueds or war), entrusted the fate of the Banu Qurayzah to a trusted elder shaykh of the 'Aws, Sa‘d bin Mu‘adh. Once he had ascertained that both the Banu Qurayzah and the prophet would abide by his judgement, whatever it be, he gave it without hesitation: the men of the Banu Qurayzah were to be executed to the last, while the women and children should be sold into slavery. ibn Mu‘adh justified this decision as being from the Torah of the Jews itself. ibn Ishaq does not cite the verse and chapter from the Bible but this is usually taken as a reference to the book of Deuteronomy: | The Jews of the Banu Qurayzah chose the latter option. The tribe of 'Aws, allies of the Banu Qurayrzah from the time of [[jahilliyah]], asked for mercy for them from the prophet. The prophet, not wanting to cause dissension in his ranks (oaths and alliances of loyalties were very important in tribal Arab society, as in the absence of courts and established governments the only guaranty of security and justice which could be obtained was the promise of protection from allies in the case of murder, family fueds or war), entrusted the fate of the Banu Qurayzah to a trusted elder shaykh of the 'Aws, Sa‘d bin Mu‘adh. Once he had ascertained that both the Banu Qurayzah and the prophet would abide by his judgement, whatever it be, he gave it without hesitation: the men of the Banu Qurayzah were to be executed to the last, while the women and children should be sold into slavery. ibn Mu‘adh justified this decision as being from the Torah of the Jews itself. ibn Ishaq does not cite the verse and chapter from the Bible but this is usually taken as a reference to the book of Deuteronomy 20:12-14: | ||
[[Quote]] וְאִם לֹ֤א תַשְׁלִים֙ עִמָּ֔ךְ וְעָשְׂתָ֥ה עִמְּךָ֖ מִלְחָמָ֑ה וְצַרְתָּ֖ עָלֶֽיהָ וּנְתָנָ֛הּ יְהוָ֥ה אֱלֹהֶ֖יךָ בְּיָדֶ֑ךָ וְהִכִּיתָ֥ אֶת כָּל זְכוּרָ֖הּ לְפִי חָֽרֶב רַ֣ק הַ֠נָּשִׁים וְהַטַּ֨ף וְהַבְּהֵמָ֜ה וְכֹל֩ אֲשֶׁ֨ר יִהְיֶ֥ה בָעִ֛יר כָּל־ שְׁלָלָ֖הּ תָּבֹ֣ז לָ֑ךְ וְאָֽכַלְתָּ֙ אֶת שְׁלַ֣ל אֹיְבֶ֔יךָ אֲשֶׁ֥ר נָתַ֛ן יְהוָ֥ה אֱלֹהֶ֖יךָ לָֽךְ | |||
But if the city makes no peace with you, but makes war against you, then you shall besiege it; and when the Lord your God gives it into your hand you shall put all its males to the sword, but the women and the little ones, the cattle, and everything else in the city, all its spoil, you shall take as booty for yourselves; and you shall enjoy the spoil of your enemies, which the Lord your God has given you. [[/Quote]] | |||
==Qur'anic Tasfir== | ==Qur'anic Tasfir== | ||