Sirat Ibn Hisham 227
The Hums according to Quraysh
حَدِيثُ الْحُمْسِ [ الْحُمْسُ عِنْدَ قُرَيْشٍ ] قَالَ ابْنُ إسْحَاقَ: وَقَدْ كَانَتْ قُرَيْشٌ - لَا أَدْرِي أَقَبْلَ الْفِيلِ أَمْ بَعْدَهُ - ابْتَدَعَتْ رَأْيَ الْحُمْسِ رَأْيًا رَأَوْهُ وَأَدَارُوهُ؛ فَقَالُوا: نَحْنُ بَنُو إبْرَاهِيمَ وَأَهْلُ الْحُرْمَةِ، وَوُلَاةُ الْبَيْتِ، وَقُطَّانُ مَكَّةَ وَسَاكِنُهَا، فَلَيْسَ لِأَحَدٍ مِنْ الْعَرَبِ مِثْلُ حَقِّنَا، وَلَا مِثْلُ مَنْزِلَتِنَا، وَلَا تَعْرِفُ لَهُ الْعَرَبُ مِثْلَ مَا تَعْرِفُ لَنَا، فَلَا تُعَظِّمُوا شَيْئًا مِنْ الْحِلِّ كَمَا تُعَظِّمُونَ الْحَرَمَ، فَإِنَّكُمْ إنْ فَعَلْتُمْ ذَلِكَ اسْتَخَفَّتْ الْعَرَبُ بِحُرْمَتِكُمْ، وَقَالُوا قَدْ عَظَّمُوا مِنْ الْحِلِّ مِثْلَ مَا عَظَّمُوا مِنْ الْحَرَمِ. فَتَرَكُوا الْوُقُوفَ عَلَى عَرَفَةَ، وَالْإِفَاضَةَ مِنْهَا، وَهُمْ يَعْرِفُونَ وَيُقِرُّونَ أَنَّهَا مِنْ الْمَشَاعِرِ وَالْحَجِّ وَدِينِ إبْرَاهِيمَ ﷺ، وَيَرَوْنَ لِسَائِرِ الْعَرَبِ أَنْ يَقِفُوا عَلَيْهَا، وَأَنْ يُفِيضُوا مِنْهَا، إلَّا أَنَّهُمْ قَالُوا: نَحْنُ أَهْلُ الْحَرَمِ، فَلَيْسَ يَنْبَغِي لَنَا أَنْ نَخْرُجَ مِنْ الْحُرْمَةِ وَلَا نُعَظِّمُ غَيْرَهَا كَمَا نُعَظِّمُهَا نَحْنُ الْحُمْسُ، وَالْحُمْسُ أَهْلُ الْحَرَمِ، ثُمَّ جَعَلُوا لِمِنْ وُلِدُوا مِنْ الْعَرَبِ مِنْ سَاكِنِ الْحِلِّ وَالْحَرَمِ مِثْلَ الَّذِي لَهُمْ، بِوِلَادَتِهِمْ إيَّاهُمْ، يَحِلُّ لَهُمْ مَا يَحِلُّ لَهُمْ، وَيَحْرُمُ عَلَيْهِمْ مَا يَحْرُمُ عَلَيْهِمْ.
Translation
✧ The account of al-Ḥums (al-Ḥums among Quraysh). Ibn Isḥāq said: Quraysh—I do not know whether before the Elephant or after it—instituted the doctrine of the Ḥums, an opinion they adopted and put into effect. They said: “We are the sons of Ibrāhīm, the people of the sacred precinct, the guardians of the House, the residents and inhabitants of Makkah. No one among the Arabs has a right like ours, nor a status like ours, nor do the Arabs acknowledge for anyone the like of what they acknowledge for us. Therefore, do not venerate anything of the profane territory as you venerate the sacred precinct, for if you do that, the Arabs will make light of your sanctity and say, ‘They have venerated the profane territory just as they have venerated the sacred precinct.’” So they abandoned standing at ʿArafah and the ifāḍah from it, although they knew and acknowledged that it was one of the rites of the pilgrimage and the religion of Ibrāhīm ﷺ. They considered it proper for the rest of the Arabs to stand there and to make the ifāḍah from it, but they said: “We are the people of the sacred precinct; it is not fitting for us to leave the sacred area or to venerate anything other than it as we venerate it. We are the Ḥums, and the Ḥums are the people of the sacred precinct.” Then they made for those born of the Arabs among the dwellers of the profane territory and the sacred precinct the same as what belonged to them by virtue of their birth; what was lawful for them was lawful for them, and what was forbidden to them was forbidden to them.
Grades by grader
No grade is recorded for this wording.