Thursday, August 16, 2012

they decided to draw lots, which was the custom of Quraysh when deciding important matters. 'Abd al-Muttalib told each son to get an arrow and write his own name upon it and then to bring it to him. By doing so, he took them to the Ka'bah where there was a man whose special task was to cast arrows and pick one from among them. This man solemnly proceeded to do this. On the chosen arrow, the name of 'Abd Allah, the youngest and favorite son of 'Abd al-Muttalib, was written. The father, therefore, took his son near the Ka'bah and prepared to sacrifice him.
Many of the Quraysh leaders were present and they became very angry because 'Abd Allah was very young and much loved by everyone. They tried to think of a way to save his life. "Do not do so! Go to the wise old woman of Yathrib and ask her for advice!", someone suggested. 'Abd al-Muttalib, thus, took his son and went to see what she could do.
  Some of the Meccans went with them. "How much is the ransom in your tribe?", the woman asked. They told her, 'Ten camels', for at that time if one man killed another, his family would have to give ten camels to the dead man's family in order to keep the peace among them. So the woman told them to go back to the Ka'bah and draw lots between 'Abd Allah and ten camels. If the camels were chosen, they were to be killed and the meat given to the poor. If 'Abd Allah was picked then ten more camels were to be added and the lots drawn again and again until they finally fell on the camels.
'Abd al-Muttalib returned to the Ka'bah with his son and the people of Mecca. There they started to draw lots between 'Abd Allah and the camels, starting with ten camels. 'Abd al-Muttalib prayed to Allah to spare his son and everyone waited in silence for the result. The choice fell on 'Abd Allah, so his father added ten more camels. Again the choice fell on 'Abd Allah, so they did the same thing again and again,

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