The first Religious asylum in Islamic History
The Graduates of Muhammad School, (1) Jaafar
Jaafar was Muhammad’s cousin
Jaafar was the son of Abu Talib (the uncle of the prophet Muhammad).
Abu Talib was a poor man and had to support a big family; that is why Jaafar was raised by his uncle, Abbas.
When he became a young man, Jaafar left his uncle Abbas and got married to Asmaa.
Jaafar and Asmaa were among the very first persons to embrace Islam, and as a result they both suffered greatly at the hands of the Quraish.
Quraish was the tribe to which the prophet Muhammad belonged. Quraish was the dominant tribe of Mecca upon the appearance of Islam; however, it was the tribe that led the initial antagonism to the spread of Islam among the Arabs.
The Quraish restricted the Muslims’ movements and freedom. Day by day, the pressure that Quraish put on the Muslims has worsened until they could not bear it anymore.
That is why Jaafar went to the Prophet Muhammad and took his permission to immigrate to Ethiopia along with a small group of Muslims.
This was one of the Religious asylums in Islamic History
At this time, the Negus, the Emperor of Ethiopia, was a very just Christian King. The Ethiopian people used to love and respect him very much. The custom of the people to show their respect to the Negus was to prostrate themselves to him.
Jaafar and Asmaa settled down in this new land under the protection of the Negus, and for the first time since they had become Muslims they knew the meaning of freedom and could worship Allah without any hindrances.
However, Quraish would not let them enjoy freedom and peace for long; soon they