Jabir said, "Some of the Jews greeted the Prophet, may Allah bless
him and grant him peace, by saying, 'Poison be upon you (as-Samu 'alaykum)'
and the Prophet replied, 'And on you.' 'A'isha, may Allah be pleased with
her, said angrily, 'Didn't you hear what they said?' The Prophet replied,
'Yes, and I answered them. What I said about them will be accepted and
what they said about me will not be accepted.'"
'Abdullah ibn 'Abbas related that Abu Sufyan ibn Harb sent him
to Heraclius, the Byzantine Emperor, and he called for the letter of the
Messenger of Allah which Dihya had brought to the governor of Busra, who
in turn passed it on to Heraclius. He read it out, saying, 'In the name
of Allah, the Merciful, the Compassionate, from Muhammad, the slave of
Allah and His Messenger, to Heraclius, ruler of the Byzantines. Peace be
upon the one who follows guidance. I call you to Islam. If you become Muslim,
you will be safe and Allah will double your reward. If you turn away, then
you incur the wrong action of your subjects. "O People of the Book!
Come to a proposition which is the same for us and you (to His
words) Bear witness that we are Muslims."
(3:54)'"
Usama ibn Zayd related that one day the Prophet, may Allah bless
him and grant him peace, was riding on a donkey on a straw saddle covered
by a blanket from Fadak. Usama ibn Zayd was riding behind him. He was on
his way to visit Sa'd ibn 'Ubada. He passed by a meeting which included
'Abdullah ibn Ubayy ibn Salul - before the enemy of Allah had become
Muslim. The gathering contained a mixture of Muslims, associaters and idolaters.
He greeted them.
