Mission to Yemen

Khalid b Walid's mission to Yemen

After the Conquest of Makkah, the tribes around Makkah and Madina accepted Islam. It was now the turn of the remoter parts of Arabia to be introduced to Islam. The Holy Prophet sent missions to various parts of Arabia. One of such missions under Khalid b Walid was sent to Yemen to invite the Yemenites to Islam. Khalid b Walid was a soldier and a swordsman, but not a scholar or a preacher. He was a late convert to Islam, and in spite of his enthusiasm did not have that depth in the understanding of Islam which could attract others to Islam. The Yemenites were proud of their ancient civilization and culture, and could not believe that anyone from the interior of Arabia, always regarded by them as a backward area, could be a source of enlightenment for them. The Jews and the Christians had their high powered missions in Yemen. Some of the people of Yemen were Christians and some of them were Jews. The Christian priests and the Jewish Rabbis had a strong hold on the people of Yemen and in spite of his best efforts for over six months, Khalid bin Walid was not able to make any headway in Yemen. The Holy Prophet recalled Khalid b Walid from Yemen.

The mission of Ali

The Holy Prophet thereafter commissioned Ali to proceed to Yemen. A force of three hundred soldiers assembled at Quba outside Madina. The Holy Prophet tied the turban on the head of Ali with his own hands, and handed him the standard. The Holy Prophet prayed to God to enlighten the mind of Ali, to make his tongue eloquent, to make his talk impressive, and to make his conduct a source of attraction for others. Although Ali proceeded to Yemen at the head of a force, he was commanded not to use force. The force was only meant for defense in the case of any attack. It was a voyage of enlightenment. People were to be converted to Islam not by an appeal to arms but by an appeal to their hearts.

Strategy of Ali

On reaching Yemen, Ali realized that the people of Yemen were very much under the influence of the Christian priests and Jewish Rabbis, and unless such priests and Rabbis were effectively tackled, there was little likelihood of any success with the common men. The Christian priests and Jewish Rabbis were proud of their religious knowledge. They challenged Ali to a debate. Ali was used to fighting duels with his adversaries in the case of battles, now he had to fight an intellectual duel. The first challenge came from a Christian priest renowned for his learning and piety. A public debate was held. The Christian priest advanced arguments in favor of the perfection of Christianity, and of Jesus Christ being the son of God. It was observed that in such circumstances there could be no question of another faith. Ali smashed these arguments one by one. He quoted from the Christian scriptures wherein Jesus Christ had himself spoken of the advent of a prophet after him. Ali took pains to explain that Islam acknowledged Jesus Christ as a prophet, but did not regard him as a son of God. He maintained that Islam was a perfected form of all previous religions. The debate lasted for several days and at last Ka'ab admitted the superiority of Islam and was converted to Islam. With his conversion many Christians were also converted to Islam.

The Jewish Rabbis felt concerned at the success of Islam. They challenged Ali to a public debate. This debate lasted for several days, and ended in the victory for Islam. Some of the Jewish Rabbis accepted Islam, and following them many Jews accepted Islam. Thereafter Ali spread his men throughout the length and breadth of Yemen to carry the message of Islam to the people. When the people came to know that their priests and rabbis had accepted Islam, they lost the will to resist Islam and accepted the new faith willingly. Within a few months most of the people in Yemen were converted to Islam. These people came to look to Ali as a great hero.