So much devo tedness excited the pity even of those men of blood...

So much devo tedness excited the pity even of those men of blood, and Ali was left unharmed." Ali's Devotion Ali's devotion to the Prophet without fear of running the risk of losing his own life was much appreciated by the All-knowing Judge of man, the merciful God, who sent down the angels Gabriel and Michael to guard him from the murderous mob; and informed the Prophet on his way to Medina of His approval of Ali's resignation to His Will, with the words contained in Verse 20$ of Sura II of the Quran.

"And of men there is one who selleth his soul for the sake of seeking the pleasure of God; and God is gracious unto His servants." Men of understanding and intelligence will ever admire Ali till the end of time for the tranquillity of mind displayed by him in the midst of this terrible struggle between life and death. Also, they will marvel at the Prophet's wise selection of Ali for this night's dramatic performance.

Something in Ali's bearing, his intensely personal heroism, some magnetic quality of his demeanour, must have been responsible for his survival on this occasion. The mob held back and we know that Ali stayed behind in Mecca for some days to return the properties left in trust by the Holy Prophet to their rightful owners as directed.

Ali hastened to Medina Having satisfactorily accomplished these responsibilities entrusted to him and having arranged for the safe departure of the Prophet's family members to Medina, Ali hastened forward on foot to Medina, travelling only in the night and hiding himself in the day, lest he should fall into the hands of the Quraish. He reached Qoba three days after the arrival of the Prophet, with his feet sorely lacerated and bleeding.

The Prophet, overjoyed at seeing him, received him with open arms, and finding him tired and exhausted, shed tears manifesting his fondness and affection for him; he subsequently applied the moisture of his mouth to the wounds of Ali's feet with his own hands and prayed for him. This produced instantaneous relief. The converts at Qoba desired the Prophet to lay the foundation stone of a mosque for them.

The Prophet asked some of his companions to ride on his camel and to make a circuit round the place. It was his intention to build a mosque in the place where the camel stopped. Some of his companions mounted on the back of the camel, but it refused to budge. Then the Prophet asked Ali, his vicegerent, to make the attempt.