Meeting the Messenger of Allah

The Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) and Abū Bakr saw these two women running in the streets screaming. "What's wrong with you?" They said, "That heretic over there." The Messenger of Allah asked, "What's the matter with him?" They said, "He spoke a word that fills the mouth" — in other words, something that is unspeakable, very bad words.

The Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) and Abū Bakr went to meet this man, Abū Dharr (may Allah be pleased with him), and they started the conversation. The Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) asked Abū Dharr, "Where are you from?" He said, "I am from Ghifār" — anā min Ghifār. The Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) placed his hand on his forehead. Abū Dharr said the Messenger of Allah was surprised and amazed to see somebody from Ghifār coming to Makkah in search of the truth — from Ghifār, these people who raid caravans, the ones who don't follow any rules or any customs — and he is searching for the truth in Makkah, while the people of Makkah, the ones who are considered to be the religious authority of Arabia, are rejecting the message.

Abū Dharr said, "I felt that he might have disliked that I mentioned that I'm from Ghifār, so I extended my hand to pull his hand from his forehead." Abū Dharr said, "Abū Bakr slammed my hand and told me, 'Put your hand down.'" And then the conversation continued, and Abū Dharr ended up embracing Islam. The Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) told Abū Dharr, uktum īmānaka — keep your īmān secret.