Sirat Ibn Hisham 31
Ibn al-Thāmir and his call to Christianity in Najrān
[ ابْنُ الثَّامِرِ وَدَعْوَتُهُ إلَى النَّصْرَانِيَّةِ بِنَجْرَانَ ] فَجَعَلَ عَبْدُ اللَّهِ بْنُ الثَّامِرِ إذَا دَخَلَ نَجْرَانَ لَمْ يَلْقَ أَحَدًا بِهِ ضُرٌّ إلَّا قَالَ ( لَهُ ) يَا عَبْدَ اللَّهِ، أَتُوَحِّدُ اللَّهَ وَتَدْخُلُ فِي دِينِي وَأَدْعُو اللَّهَ فَيُعَافِيكَ مِمَّا أَنْتَ فِيهِ مِنْ الْبَلَاءِ ؟ فَيَقُولُ: نَعَمْ، فَيُوَحِّدُ اللَّهَ وَيُسْلِمُ، وَيَدْعُو لَهُ فَيُشْفَى. حَتَّى لَمْ يَبْقَ بِنَجْرَانَ أَحَدٌ بِهِ ضُرٌّ إلَّا أَتَاهُ فَاتَّبَعَهُ عَلَى أَمْرِهِ، وَدَعَا لَهُ فَعُوفِيَ حَتَّى رُفِعَ شَأْنُهُ إلَى مَلِكِ نَجْرَانَ، فَدَعَاهُ فَقَالَ ( لَهُ ): أَفْسَدْتَ عَلَيَّ أَهْلَ قَرْيَتِي، وَخَالَفْتَ دِينِي وَدِينَ آبَائِي، لَأُمَثِّلَنَّ بِكَ، قَالَ: لَا تَقْدِرُ عَلَى ذَلِكَ. قَالَ: فَجَعَلَ يُرْسِلُ بِهِ إلَى الْجَبَلِ الطَّوِيلِ فَيُطْرَحُ عَلَى رَأْسِهِ فَيَقَعُ إلَى الْأَرْضِ لَيْسَ بِهِ بَأْسٌ، وَجَعَلَ يَبْعَثُ بِهِ إلَى مِيَاهٍ بِنَجْرَانَ، بُحُورٍ لَا يَقَعُ فِيهَا شَيْءٌ إلَّا هَلَكَ، فَيُلْقَى فِيهَا فَيَخْرُجُ لَيْسَ بِهِ بَأْسٌ. فَلَمَّا غَلَبَهُ قَالَ لَهُ عَبْدُ اللَّهِ بْنُ الثَّامِرِ: إنَّكَ وَاَللَّهِ لَنْ تَقْدِرَ عَلَى قَتْلِي حَتَّى تُوَحِّدَ اللَّهَ فَتُؤْمِنَ بِمَا آمَنْتُ بِهِ، فَإِنَّكَ إنْ فَعَلْتَ ذَلِكَ سُلِّطْتَ عَلَيَّ فَقَتَلْتنِي. قَالَ: فَوَحَّدَ اللَّهَ تَعَالَى ذَلِكَ الْمَلِكُ، وَشَهِدَ شَهَادَةَ عَبْدِ اللَّهِ بْنِ الثَّامِرِ، ثُمَّ ضَرَبَهُ بِعَصَا فِي يَدِهِ فَشَجَّهُ شَجَّةً غَيْرَ كَبِيرَةٍ، فَقَتَلَهُ، ثُمَّ هَلَكَ الْمَلِكُ مَكَانَهُ ؟ وَاسْتَجْمَعَ أَهْلُ نَجْرَانَ عَلَى دِينِ عَبْدِ اللَّهِ بْنِ الثَّامِرِ، وَكَانَ عَلَى مَا جَاءَ بِهِ عِيسَى ابْنُ مَرْيَمَ مِنْ الْإِنْجِيلِ وَحُكْمِهِ، ثُمَّ أَصَابَهُمْ مِثْلُ مَا أَصَابَ أَهْلَ دِينِهِمْ مِنْ الْأَحْدَاثِ، فَمِنْ هُنَالِكَ كَانَ أَصْلُ النَّصْرَانِيَّةِ بِنَجْرَانَ، وَاَللَّهُ أَعْلَمُ بِذَلِكَ. قَالَ ابْنُ إسْحَاقَ: فَهَذَا حَدِيثُ مُحَمَّدِ بْنِ كَعْبٍ الْقُرَظِيِّ، وَبَعْضِ أَهْلِ نَجْرَانَ عَنْ عَبْدِ اللَّهِ بْنِ الثَّامِرِ، وَاَللَّهُ أَعْلَمُ أَيُّ ذَلِكَ كَانَ
Translation
✧ [Ibn al-Thāmir and his call to Christianity in Najrān] ʿAbd Allāh b. al-Thāmir used, when he entered Najrān, not to meet anyone afflicted with harm without saying to him: "O servant of Allah, will you declare Allah's oneness and enter my religion, and I will call upon Allah, and He will heal you from the affliction you are in?" He would say: "Yes." So he would declare Allah's oneness and submit, and he would call upon Allah for him, and he would be cured. This continued until there remained in Najrān no one afflicted with harm who did not come to him and follow him in his affair, and he would call upon Allah for him, and he would be healed, until his standing was raised to the king of Najrān. He summoned him and said to him: "You have corrupted the people of my town against me and opposed my religion and the religion of my forefathers. I will surely make an example of you." He said: "You will not be able to do that." He said: Then he began to send him to the tall mountain, and he would be thrown down on his head, yet he would land on the ground without any harm. And he began to send him to waters in Najrān—deep pools into which nothing falls without perishing—and he would be cast into them, yet he would come out without any harm. When he had overcome him, ʿAbd Allāh b. al-Thāmir said to him: "By Allah, you will never be able to kill me until you declare Allah's oneness and believe in what I believe. For if you do that, you will be given power over me, and you will kill me." He said: So that king declared the oneness of Allah, exalted is He, and bore witness to the testimony of ʿAbd Allāh b. al-Thāmir; then he struck him with a staff in his hand and inflicted on him a wound, not a large one, and killed him. Then the king perished on the spot. And the people of Najrān gathered together upon the religion of ʿAbd Allāh b. al-Thāmir, which was in accordance with what ʿĪsā b. Maryam brought of the Gospel and its ordinances. Then there befell them the like of what befell the people of their religion of the calamities. Hence was the origin of Christianity in Najrān, and Allah knows best concerning that. Ibn Isḥāq said: This is the account of Muḥammad b. Kaʿb al-Quraẓī and some of the people of Najrān, from ʿAbd Allāh b. al-Thāmir, and Allah knows best which of that occurred.
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