Lessons From the Pledge of al-ʿAqabah

One lesson here is that Kaʿb ibn Mālik states that when they left Madīnah — qad ṣallaynā wa faqihnā, he said, "we have already learned our prayers and understood our religion" — this happened before the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) made hijrah. So for anyone who delays their learning until somehow they can travel overseas and go and study with a shaykh, or get admission to an Islamic college, that is just finding excuses for oneself. One needs to study and learn now. Kaʿb ibn Mālik said, "We already learned our prayers and we understood our religion," even though the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) was not there yet. It is true that they had a teacher with them, Muṣʿab ibn ʿUmayr, but this statement carries a message in it: they were ready, they were learning. One should not put off one's learning; one should study Islam, spend time to learn the religion of Allah, and try to get the best out of the situation. If one has a shaykh to teach, that is the best. No shaykh? Find somebody who is more learned than oneself. Cannot find that? Take a book and study. But it should not be given up, should not be put off, because one might never get the time when one is free to do it. Procrastination is no excuse. On the Day of Judgment, Ibn al-Qayyim says, if one goes through the āyāt of the Qurʾān, one finds that the majority of the screaming of the people of Hellfire in the Qurʾān is because of their procrastination, because they delayed. Their sayings are narrated in the verses of the Qurʾān: "O Allah, take us back to this world so that we can believe." "O Allah, take us back to this world so that we can give." "O Allah, take us back, it's too late." So it should not be put off.

Another lesson: when the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) asked al-Anṣār his terms of the agreement, and they said, "What will we get back? What are we getting in exchange?", the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) told them, "Paradise." In Islamic work, one should be working for the sake of Allah, to please Allah, the Almighty and Majestic — that should be the objective, not to get fame, not to make money, not for the socialising aspect of it. Intentions should be purified every time, consistently, making sure that everything is done for the sake of Allah. This religion needs sacrifice, and if one is waiting for an exchange, waiting for a payback in this world, one might not get it. This is a religion that demands giving it everything, because what is received in exchange is Paradise, which is more valuable than anything that could be given. And it is said: what Allah is offering is very expensive; what Allah is offering is Paradise. The price has to be paid.

A further lesson: the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) was very clear in what he was asking others in conveying the message. The Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) made it very clear to al-Anṣār that what they were getting into was risky, that what they were getting into was a struggle. The Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) did not promise them wealth, did not promise them power. The Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) told them that they needed to protect him, that they might be attacked. So Muslims need to prepare themselves and realise that this is not an easy walk. It is not a walk in the park. To establish the religion of Allah is a struggle, and it demands a lot of sacrifice, and preparation is needed for that. ʿUmar ibn al-Khaṭṭāb said, ikhshawshinū fa-inna al-niʿmata lā tadūm — roughen up, because bounties might not continue forever, easy life might not go on for good. So preparation and readiness are needed.

One more lesson: after the second pledge of al-ʿAqabah — remembering again, the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) met with more than seventy, and there were some others, maybe, who were Muslim and did not come — the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him), immediately after taking the pledge of allegiance, asked them to appoint twelve nuqabāʾ, twelve leaders. He divided them into small groups and appointed leaders over them. This shows that this is an organised religion. And now, since there was a group living away from the organisational structure of the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him), he wanted them to have their own organisational structure. So he immediately divided the seventy into groups and appointed twelve leaders among them, and these were the nuqabāʾ who would report back to the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) and receive his instructions. So this is also another lesson to learn: the need to be organised in a manageable fashion.