Authored by: Hafiz Muhammad Anwar Zahid حفظه الله
It is narrated from ‘Aqīl bin Abī Tālib that once the disbelievers of Quraysh came to Abu Talib and said:
“O Abu Talib, your nephew causes us discomfort in our gatherings. Please forbid him from this.”
So Abu Talib sent his son ‘Aqīl to bring the Messenger of Allah ﷺ. ‘Aqīl says:
“I went to fetch him; he was in a small house. I brought him along, and it was intensely hot. The Prophet ﷺ walked in the shade to avoid the sun.”
When the Prophet ﷺ reached Abu Talib, Abu Talib said to him:
“These are your cousins; they are complaining that you harm them in their gatherings and in their mosque. So refrain from causing them harm.”
Upon hearing this, the Messenger of Allah ﷺ raised his eyes toward the sky and then addressed the Quraysh:
“Do you see this sun?”
They replied, “Yes.”
The Prophet ﷺ then said:
“It is no more within my power to stop calling you to the truth than for you to bring a spark out of this sun.”
At this, Abu Talib said:
“My nephew has spoken no falsehood, so you may leave now.”
[Al-Mustadrak by Al-Ḥākim, Vol. 3, p. 577, Ḥadīth no. 4667]
Referenced in: Al-Sīrah al-Nabawiyyah 1/160
In another version, the wording is as follows:
“O Uncle! If they place the sun in my right hand and the moon in my left to make me abandon this call, I will never abandon it.”
See: Al-Albānī's comments in
Fiqh al-Sīrah, p. 105, 114 and
Silsilat al-Aḥādīth al-Ḍa‘īfah, Vol. 2, p. 311
❖ “Even If You Place the Sun in My Right Hand and the Moon in My Left…”
It is narrated from ‘Aqīl bin Abī Tālib that once the disbelievers of Quraysh came to Abu Talib and said:
“O Abu Talib, your nephew causes us discomfort in our gatherings. Please forbid him from this.”
So Abu Talib sent his son ‘Aqīl to bring the Messenger of Allah ﷺ. ‘Aqīl says:
“I went to fetch him; he was in a small house. I brought him along, and it was intensely hot. The Prophet ﷺ walked in the shade to avoid the sun.”
When the Prophet ﷺ reached Abu Talib, Abu Talib said to him:
“These are your cousins; they are complaining that you harm them in their gatherings and in their mosque. So refrain from causing them harm.”
Upon hearing this, the Messenger of Allah ﷺ raised his eyes toward the sky and then addressed the Quraysh:
“Do you see this sun?”
They replied, “Yes.”
The Prophet ﷺ then said:
“It is no more within my power to stop calling you to the truth than for you to bring a spark out of this sun.”
At this, Abu Talib said:
“My nephew has spoken no falsehood, so you may leave now.”
[Al-Mustadrak by Al-Ḥākim, Vol. 3, p. 577, Ḥadīth no. 4667] Authentication of This Narration
Referenced in: Al-Sīrah al-Nabawiyyah 1/160
- The chain of transmission is weak.
- The narrator Ṭalḥah ibn Yaḥyā is criticized in hadith scholarship.
❖ Alternate Version of the Narration
In another version, the wording is as follows:
“O Uncle! If they place the sun in my right hand and the moon in my left to make me abandon this call, I will never abandon it.”
Authentication of the Alternate Version
- This version is found in Tafsīr Ibn Jarīr, but with a Mu‘ḍal (severely disconnected) chain.
- Shaykh Al-Albānī declared this narration weak.
See: Al-Albānī's comments inFiqh al-Sīrah, p. 105, 114 and
Silsilat al-Aḥādīth al-Ḍa‘īfah, Vol. 2, p. 311
