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It is needless to speak about the connection of the faith
of Islam with the presence of the Messenger
for he is the
one who received the revelation
carried the message and
faced what no other person faced. He is the only man
whose qualities qualified him to receive the revelation.
As the faith of Islam was dependent on the person of
the Holy Messenger in its commencement and continuity
during the period of the Prophethood
we find that the continuity of Islam during that period was connected strongly
and positively with three small groups who protected the
life of the Messenger and offered great sacrifices in his
defense.
The Hashimites
The first of these small groups was the clan
of Hashim.
This clan had offered what no other Meccan clan offered
during the years the Holy Prophet spent between the beginning of his Prophethood and the beginning of his Hijra.
This group was privileged with the honor of defending
the Holy Prophet during those years. No other Meccan
clan shared this honor. The rest of the clans had chosen
to take a hostile attitude towards the prophet
his message
and his clan. That hostile attitude threatened the Messenger and the members of his clan constantly with serious
dangers.
Thus
it would be justifiable to say that the presence of
the rest of the Meccan clans in relation to the development
of the message during that period was not only incidental
but also a negative force for those clans did not offer as
groups any assistance to the Messenger; in fact they impeded progress.
Some men and women related to these Meccan clans
had believed in the Messenger and offered some sacrifices
for him and his message
but they did that as individuals.
The groups to which those persons belonged had taken
hostile attitudes towards the Messenger and persecuted
those individuals because they deviated from their hostile
line.
Had Omayad Makhzoom Zuhra Jumah and the rest
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