Ka'b ibn al-Ashraf
Encyclopedia
Ka'b ibn al-Ashraf (died 624) was a chief of the Jewish tribe of Banu Nadir
and a poet, who plotted with Quraysh
and a group of Jews to fight against Muslims and assassinate the Islamic prophet Muhammad
. He was assassinated by Muslims on the order of Muhammad
before he could carry out his plans. Ka'b ibn al-Ashraf was born to a Jewish-Arab mother from the Banu Nadir tribe and a Arab
father, and he followed his mother's religion.
According to Ibn Ishaq, Muhammad called upon his followers to kill Ka'b because the latter "had gone to Mecca after Badr and inveighed against Muhammad. He also composed verses in which he bewailed the victims of Quraysh who had been killed at Badr. Shortly afterwards he returned to Medina and composed amatory verses of an insulting nature about the Muslim women." Other historiographical sources state that the reason for killing of Ka'b was that he had plotted with a group of Jews to kill Muhammad. The writings of the later commentators such as al-Zamakhshari, al-Tabarsi, al-Razi and al-Baydawi provide another distinct report according to which Ka'b was killed because Gabriel had informed Muhammad about a treaty signed by himself and Aba Sufyan creating an alliance between the Quraysh and forty Jews against Muhammad during Ka'b's visit to Mecca (According to Professor Uri Rubin
, some allusions to the existence of an anti-Muslim treaty between Quraysh and Ibn al-Ashraf may be found in the earlier sources).
n notables of the Quraysh tribe who had been captured after the Muslim
victory in the Battle of Badr
in March 624. The traditional Muslim biography of Muhammad reports Ka'b as saying "...if Muhammad has indeed struck down those people, then it were better to be buried in the earth than to walk upon it!"
Ka'b ibn al-Ashraf rode to the Quraish at Mecca, in order to lament the loss at Badr and to incite them to take up arms to regain lost honour, noting the statement of Muhammad: "He (Ka'b) has openly assumed enmity to us and speaks evil of us and he has gone over to the polytheists (who were at war with Muslims) and has made them gather against us for fighting". Some sources suggest that during his visit to Mecca, Ka'b concluded a treaty with Abu Sufyan, stipulating cooperation between the Quraysh and Jews against Muhammad.
Upon returning to Medina, Ka'b also wrote erotic poetry about Muslim women, which Muhammad and his followers found offensive.
Muhammad called upon his followers to kill Ka'b, and Muhammad ibn Maslama offered his services, collecting four others, including a foster-brother of Ka'b. By pretending to have turned against Muhammad, they enticed Ka'b out of his fortress on a moonlight night for what was supposed to be negotiations of Ka'b's sale of food to them. After Ka'b walked out of his fortress to meet Muhammad ibn Maslama and his companions, they attacked Ka'b and killed him in spite of his vigorous resistance.
A number of reasons are given for the assassination. One reason is that al-Ashraf had tried to provoke the Quraysh against Muhammad, and later composed verses insulting Muslim women. Another reason is his attempt to assassinate Muhammad. According to Norman Stillman
, Muhammad was acting in accordance with the norms of the Arab society of that period which demanded retaliation for a slight to a group's honor.
The Jews were terrified at the assassination of Ka'b ibn al-Ashraf, and as a Muslim biographer of Muhammad put it "...there was not a Jew who did not fear for his life". After defeat by the Quraish at the Mount Uhud
in March, 625, the Banu Nadir challenged Muhammad as the leader of Medina. In the same year, Huyayy ibn Akhtab
of Banu Nadir tribe refused to pay blood money for the murder of two Muslims and Ibn Ubayy planned along with allied nomads to attack Muhammad. The Nadir, then postponed the contribution until later that day. Muhammad besieged the Banu Nadir and ordered the tribe to leave Medina within 10 days. The tribe at first decided to comply, but certain people from Medina who were not Believers offered to help Banu al-Nadir fight the Muslims. Huyayy ibn Akhtab
, despite opposition from within the tribe, decided to fight, a fight which ended with their surrender although they were allowed to leave and take what possessions they could carry on their camels, with the exception of their weapons which they had to leave behind.
Banu Nadir
The Banu Nadir were a Jewish tribe who lived in northern Arabia until the 7th century at the oasis of Yathrib . The tribe challenged Muhammad as the leader of Medina. and planned along with allied nomads to attack Muhammad and were expelled from Medina as a result. The Banu Nadir then planned the...
and a poet, who plotted with Quraysh
Quraysh
The Quraysh or Quraish were a powerful merchant tribe that controlled Mecca and its Kaaba upon the appearance of the religion of Islam.Muhammad was born into the Banu Hashim clan of the Quraysh tribe.-Early history:...
and a group of Jews to fight against Muslims and assassinate the Islamic prophet Muhammad
Muhammad
Muhammad |ligature]] at U+FDF4 ;Arabic pronunciation varies regionally; the first vowel ranges from ~~; the second and the last vowel: ~~~. There are dialects which have no stress. In Egypt, it is pronounced not in religious contexts...
. He was assassinated by Muslims on the order of Muhammad
Muhammad
Muhammad |ligature]] at U+FDF4 ;Arabic pronunciation varies regionally; the first vowel ranges from ~~; the second and the last vowel: ~~~. There are dialects which have no stress. In Egypt, it is pronounced not in religious contexts...
before he could carry out his plans. Ka'b ibn al-Ashraf was born to a Jewish-Arab mother from the Banu Nadir tribe and a Arab
Arab
Arab people, also known as Arabs , are a panethnicity primarily living in the Arab world, which is located in Western Asia and North Africa. They are identified as such on one or more of genealogical, linguistic, or cultural grounds, with tribal affiliations, and intra-tribal relationships playing...
father, and he followed his mother's religion.
According to Ibn Ishaq, Muhammad called upon his followers to kill Ka'b because the latter "had gone to Mecca after Badr and inveighed against Muhammad. He also composed verses in which he bewailed the victims of Quraysh who had been killed at Badr. Shortly afterwards he returned to Medina and composed amatory verses of an insulting nature about the Muslim women." Other historiographical sources state that the reason for killing of Ka'b was that he had plotted with a group of Jews to kill Muhammad. The writings of the later commentators such as al-Zamakhshari, al-Tabarsi, al-Razi and al-Baydawi provide another distinct report according to which Ka'b was killed because Gabriel had informed Muhammad about a treaty signed by himself and Aba Sufyan creating an alliance between the Quraysh and forty Jews against Muhammad during Ka'b's visit to Mecca (According to Professor Uri Rubin
Uri Rubin
Uri Rubin a Professor in the Department of Arabic and Islamic Studies at the Tel-Aviv University in Israel. His areas of research are early Islam, with special emphasis on Qur'an, Qur'an Exegesis , and early Islamic tradition .Prof...
, some allusions to the existence of an anti-Muslim treaty between Quraysh and Ibn al-Ashraf may be found in the earlier sources).
Interactions with Muhammad
Ka'b was infuriated at Muhammad's execution of a number of MeccaMecca
Mecca is a city in the Hijaz and the capital of Makkah province in Saudi Arabia. The city is located inland from Jeddah in a narrow valley at a height of above sea level...
n notables of the Quraysh tribe who had been captured after the Muslim
Muslim
A Muslim, also spelled Moslem, is an adherent of Islam, a monotheistic, Abrahamic religion based on the Quran, which Muslims consider the verbatim word of God as revealed to prophet Muhammad. "Muslim" is the Arabic term for "submitter" .Muslims believe that God is one and incomparable...
victory in the Battle of Badr
Battle of Badr
The Battle of Badr , fought Saturday, March 13, 624 AD in the Hejaz region of western Arabia , was a key battle in the early days of Islam and a turning point in Muhammad's struggle with his opponents among the Quraish in Mecca...
in March 624. The traditional Muslim biography of Muhammad reports Ka'b as saying "...if Muhammad has indeed struck down those people, then it were better to be buried in the earth than to walk upon it!"
Ka'b ibn al-Ashraf rode to the Quraish at Mecca, in order to lament the loss at Badr and to incite them to take up arms to regain lost honour, noting the statement of Muhammad: "He (Ka'b) has openly assumed enmity to us and speaks evil of us and he has gone over to the polytheists (who were at war with Muslims) and has made them gather against us for fighting". Some sources suggest that during his visit to Mecca, Ka'b concluded a treaty with Abu Sufyan, stipulating cooperation between the Quraysh and Jews against Muhammad.
Upon returning to Medina, Ka'b also wrote erotic poetry about Muslim women, which Muhammad and his followers found offensive.
Muhammad called upon his followers to kill Ka'b, and Muhammad ibn Maslama offered his services, collecting four others, including a foster-brother of Ka'b. By pretending to have turned against Muhammad, they enticed Ka'b out of his fortress on a moonlight night for what was supposed to be negotiations of Ka'b's sale of food to them. After Ka'b walked out of his fortress to meet Muhammad ibn Maslama and his companions, they attacked Ka'b and killed him in spite of his vigorous resistance.
A number of reasons are given for the assassination. One reason is that al-Ashraf had tried to provoke the Quraysh against Muhammad, and later composed verses insulting Muslim women. Another reason is his attempt to assassinate Muhammad. According to Norman Stillman
Norman Stillman
Norman Arthur Stillman, also Noam , b. 1945, is the Schusterman-Josey Professor and Chair of Judaic History at the University of Oklahoma. He specializes in the intersection of Jewish and Islamic culture and history, and in Oriental and Sephardi Jewry, with special interest in the Jewish...
, Muhammad was acting in accordance with the norms of the Arab society of that period which demanded retaliation for a slight to a group's honor.
The Jews were terrified at the assassination of Ka'b ibn al-Ashraf, and as a Muslim biographer of Muhammad put it "...there was not a Jew who did not fear for his life". After defeat by the Quraish at the Mount Uhud
Battle of Uhud
The Battle of Uhud was fought on March 19, 625 at the valley located in front of Mount Uhud, in what is now northwestern Arabia. It occurred between a force from the Muslim community of Medina led by the Islamic prophet Muhammad, and a force led by Abu Sufyan ibn Harb from Mecca, the town from...
in March, 625, the Banu Nadir challenged Muhammad as the leader of Medina. In the same year, Huyayy ibn Akhtab
Huyayy ibn Akhtab
Huyayy ibn Akhtab was a chief of the Banu al-Nadir, a Jewish tribe of pre-Islamic Arabia.-Family:Huyayy ibn Akhtab had a daughter with Barra bint Samawal: Safiyya bint Huyayy. Barra bint Samawal was from distinguished Arabian Jewish family...
of Banu Nadir tribe refused to pay blood money for the murder of two Muslims and Ibn Ubayy planned along with allied nomads to attack Muhammad. The Nadir, then postponed the contribution until later that day. Muhammad besieged the Banu Nadir and ordered the tribe to leave Medina within 10 days. The tribe at first decided to comply, but certain people from Medina who were not Believers offered to help Banu al-Nadir fight the Muslims. Huyayy ibn Akhtab
Huyayy ibn Akhtab
Huyayy ibn Akhtab was a chief of the Banu al-Nadir, a Jewish tribe of pre-Islamic Arabia.-Family:Huyayy ibn Akhtab had a daughter with Barra bint Samawal: Safiyya bint Huyayy. Barra bint Samawal was from distinguished Arabian Jewish family...
, despite opposition from within the tribe, decided to fight, a fight which ended with their surrender although they were allowed to leave and take what possessions they could carry on their camels, with the exception of their weapons which they had to leave behind.
See also
- Non-Muslim interactants with Muslims during Muhammad's eraNon-Muslim interactants with Muslims during Muhammad's eraThis is a list of the non-Muslim interactants with Muslims during Muhammad's era. In Islam, the Ṣaḥābah were the companions of the Islamic prophet Muhammad. This form is plural; the singular is Ṣaḥābi...
- Asma bint MarwanAsma bint MarwanʻAṣmāʼ bint Marwān was a female member of the Ummayad clan who lived in Medina in 7th century Arabia.The story of her death by command of the Islamic prophet Muhammad, after she bitterly opposed him with poetry and provoked other pagans to commit violence against him, can be found in the sīra...
- Abu 'AfakAbu 'AfakAbu 'Afak was a Jewish poet who lived in the Hijaz region . Abu 'Afak did not convert to Islam and was vocal about his opposition to Muhammad...
- Huyayy ibn AkhtabHuyayy ibn AkhtabHuyayy ibn Akhtab was a chief of the Banu al-Nadir, a Jewish tribe of pre-Islamic Arabia.-Family:Huyayy ibn Akhtab had a daughter with Barra bint Samawal: Safiyya bint Huyayy. Barra bint Samawal was from distinguished Arabian Jewish family...
- Ka'b ibn AsadKa'b ibn AsadKaʿb ibn Asʿad was the leader of the Jewish tribe of the Banu Qurayza of Yathrib. After the Battle of the Trench, in which the Muslim forces were betrayed by the Banu Qurayza, the Muslim forces under Muhammad turned on the Banu Qurayza, besieged them in their citadel, and upon surrender executed...
- Al-Kawthar