Why the Muslims Fled to Abyssinia

Several lessons follow from this account. Number one: what were the reasons for this hijrah? How could the Muslims flee their land and go to Abyssinia — how could they leave the best place on the face of the earth, Makkah, and go somewhere else? The first reason is to flee persecution. They were being tortured in Makkah. So the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) allowed them to leave, to flee from this persecution, so that they would free themselves from this physical pain. That is the first reason. Ibn Hazm says: when the number of Muslims increased and the persecution increased, Allah allowed them to migrate.

The second reason is to safeguard their faith. Not everyone will be able to handle the torturing. Some people would give up their īmān. Not everyone has the strength of Bilāl; not everyone can resist what Khubayb went through. So if a person fears for the safety of their religion, they should go somewhere else. And the Prophet (peace be upon him) says, lā yudhillu al-muʾminu nafsah — the believer shouldn't humiliate himself — yaʿriḍu nafsahu ʿalā mā lā yaṭīqu min al-balāʾ, by facing harm which he isn't able to handle. So if it is too much for a person to handle, then they shouldn't put themselves in that difficult situation.

An example illustrates what this concept means: there was once a man who came to the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) with a piece of gold the size of an egg, and he gave it to the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) and said, "This is ṣadaqah, and it is all what I have." The Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) was upset, and said, "One of you would come and give up all of their wealth, and then after that they would come and ask me for assistance." So the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) didn't want this person to give up all of his money and then ask for help. One should keep one's money, giving what one is able to give, but keep some for oneself. Why does one come and say, "This is all what I have"? But then we know that Abū Bakr al-Ṣiddīq (may Allah be pleased with him), at one point in time, gave up all of his wealth to the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him), and the Messenger of Allah praised that. How come the response of the Messenger of Allah was different? The Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) knew, in the situation of Abū Bakr, that he could handle the situation. He could give up all of his wealth, and he wouldn't get down to the level of begging. He would be able to take care of himself. However, not everyone is like Abū Bakr. So for other people, they shouldn't put themselves in that difficult situation that they're not able to handle. A person gives up everything in that moment of high emotion, but after that, when things calm down, they start rethinking and saying, "Oh, what have I done? I've given up all of my money. What can I do now?" So not everybody will be able to handle what is going on in Makkah; therefore the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) told them to leave and safeguard their religion. Ibn Isḥāq says the Muslims then left towards Abyssinia fearing for their faith.