They sought to take you captive or kill you or banish you.

They sought to take you captive or kill you or banish you. They devised plans-but Allah too made a plan and Allah is the best planner. (Surah al-Anfal, 8:30). The Prophet was ordered by Allah to proceed to Yathrib. However, it was not an easy task to get rid of the cruel hands of the idolaters, especially when they were on the look-out for him and the distance between Makkah and Yathrib was also long.

In case he had not left Makkah after proper planning it was probable that the Makkans might have overtaken and arrested him and had shed his blood before he could join his friends. The historians and biographers have given different versions about the migration of the Prophet and the differences between them about the particulars of the incident are unusual.

The writer of Seerah-i Halabi has succeeded to some extent in making the different narratives compatible with one another, but has failed to eliminate the contradictions in some cases.

The thing which deserves attention is that most of the Sunni and Shi'ah traditionalists have put the Prophet's migration in such a way that one concludes that it was a miraculous feat to get rid of the enemy, whereas a careful study of the incident reveals that the Prophet's escape was the result of his foresight, careful planning and the precautionary measures taken by him; and Allah had willed to provide him safety through natural channels and not by means of miraculous acts.

The thing which bears testmony to this view is that the Prophet availed of natural causes and rational means (like making Ali sleep in his own bed and concealing himself in the cave etc. and thus ensured his safety. The Archangel Jibreel Informs The Prophet The Archangel Jibreel informed the Prophet about the wicked plan of the unbelievers and asked him to migrate.

The Prophet ordered Ali to sleep in his bed, and pass through the terrible ordeal for the safety of Islam, so that the unbelievers might not think that the Prophet had left, but should remain under the impression that he was in the house. Thus Ali remained contented with remaining in the house, so that he himself could move freely through the streets of Makkah and in its precincts.

The advantage underlying this plan was that the enemies kept guarding the Prophet's house only, and he himself gained time to move to a place of safety. Now we should see as to who offers to sleep in the Prophet's bed and to sacrifice his own life for him?