They thanked that insight when they later saw how Allah’s Messenger (PBUH) was supported by Allah and how the whole peninsula came under his leadership. Many unexpected blessings and spoils were bestowed upon them while he became more modest, more austere, and more devout, until he met Allah at the appointed time, lying upon a simple mat that left marks on his body.
They saw him when his standards filled the horizon in victorious splendor, stepping down from the pulpit to face the people, weeping as he said, “Whoever’s back I have struck, here is my back—let him take his retaliation. Whoever’s wealth I have taken, here is my wealth—let him take from it.”
The believers saw him when his uncle al-Abbas asked him for one of the positions that ordinary Muslims were being given, and he gently declined, saying, “Truly, uncle, we do not give this position to one who asks for it or to one who is eager for it.”
They saw him not only sharing in the hardships and hunger that struck the people, but establishing for himself and his household an unfailing principle: to be the first to feel hunger when people went hungry, and the last to satisfy his hunger when people were starving. Yes, the early believers became even more grateful for the insight that had guided them before events unfolded, and they thanked Allah, Who had directed them to faith.
They also saw that his life itself was the strongest proof of the truth of the Messenger (PBUH) when he said to them, “I am Allah’s Messenger to you.” His life was truly eminent. Its purity and greatness were the clearest evidence of the truthfulness of this great teacher and noble Messenger (PBUH). His level of excellence never declined or fell, but remained steadfast from cradle to grave. Throughout his life, and especially after reaching maturity, it was as clear as daylight that the man who lived this life and carried this message was not seeking wealth, property, or kingship. When those things were offered to him on a golden platter in exchange for abandoning his call, he refused them all and lived until his last breath devoted to Allah, repentant and pure.
He never departed from the purposes of his great mission, even the width of a hair, and never broke a promise to Allah, whether in worship or in jihad.
No sooner did the latter part of the night begin than he would rise, perform ablution, and stand as he was accustomed to do, invoking Allah, praying, and weeping.
Mountains of wealth passed through his hands, yet he did not change. He never took from it more than the poorest of Muslims would take. When he died, he left nothing of worldly riches—only his armor, held in pledge.
Through his call, the lands of the world drew nearer, and most of the kings of the earth stood in awe before the message by which he invited them to Islam. Yet not an atom of boastfulness or arrogance touched him, even from afar. When he saw people approaching him in fear and trembling out of awe, he said to them, “Be at ease. My mother used to eat dried meat in Makkah.”
When all the enemies of his faith lowered their weapons and bowed their heads, awaiting his judgment, and while ten thousand swords of the Muslims gleamed on the hills of Makkah on the Day of Conquest, he simply said to his former enemies, “Go, for you are free.”
Even at the height of the victory for which he had devoted his life, he deprived himself of its worldly delights. He walked in the victory procession on the Day of Conquest with his head bowed so low that people could scarcely see his face. He repeated words of praise and thanks to Allah in a quiet voice, wet with tears, humbly raising his words to his Lord until he reached the Ka‘bah. There he faced the idols and dealt with them as he did, saying, “Truth has come, and falsehood has vanished; indeed, falsehood is ever bound to vanish” (17:81).
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