ألم ترني من بعد هم هممته — Abutaleb

Did you not see me, after a resolve I had formed,

To part from a freeborn youth of noble fathers—

From Ahmad—when I readied my mount

With my saddle, having bidden him farewell in peace?

Then, when he wept, while the pale camels sped off with us,

And he had grasped with both hands the loop of a rein,

I remembered his father, then let a tear well up,

Flowing freely from both eyes in a stream.

So I said, 'Travel, rightly guided, among paternal uncles

Who support you in hardship and are no base men.'

And he came with the caravan whose riders set out,

Their hearts set on Syria, though not Syrian in origin.

When we descended into the land of Bosra, they peered eagerly

At us, looking from atop great houses.

Then Bahira came at that moment, gathering

Fine drink and food for us.

Then, when he saw them, he said, 'Gather your companions.'

So we said, 'We have gathered the people, except for a boy,

An orphan.' He said, 'Call him; our food

Is for him rather than you, commoner and leader alike.'

And he swore a truthful oath: 'Our provisions

Are plentiful for him today, and not forbidden.

So, were it not for what you reported about Muhammad,

You would not have been honored by us today.'

And a band of riders approached, seeking the one seen

By Bahira with his own eyes amid the tents.

So he sprang up toward them, fearing their violence,

And they were men of both aggression and violence:

Daris and Hammam; and among them was

Zarir, and none of the company was asleep.

So they came, intent on killing Muhammad,

But he turned them away from him with skillful argument,

Through his interpretation of the Torah, until they became certain.

And he said to them, 'You have sought the most formidable goal.

Do you seek to kill the Prophet Muhammad?

You have been singled out, in ill fortune, for prolonged punishment.

And indeed, the One who chooses him protects him from it;

He will shield him from you—from every rabble's plot.'

So that is among his signs and proofs;

And clear daylight is not like darkness.