It is truly a vision. A Prophet will emerge from the descendants of Ghalib ibn Fihr.

From your people, O Abdul Muttalib, then he went to Shaq.

He said the same to him, and what Shaf said.

The rule of Dhu Yazan will end with a Messenger sent with truth and justice among the people of religion and virtue.

The rule will remain among his people until the Day of Judgment.

The king said: And what is the Day of Judgment?

Shaq said: The Day when children will turn gray.

And on that Day, there will be calls from the heavens, which will be heard by both the living and the dead.

And on that Day, people will be gathered for the appointed time.

The king said: Is what you say true?

He said: Yes, by the Lord of the heavens and the earth and all that is between them, the Exalted and the Lowly.

What I have told you is only the truth, so do not doubt it.

The vision of the split has come true.

And here is Abraha approaching it.

And is this news widespread in Yemen? Yes, O master of Mecca, both the common people and the elite know it.

And they spread it from time to time, until King Nasr ibn Rabi'ah,

It affected him, so he sent his family to Iraq.

And he wrote to the king of Persia about them, so he settled them in al-Hirah, and they have been its kings until now.

It is a tremendous and amazing topic.

O Lady of Mecca, after longing for you.

I have come with trade to repay my debt to you.

And news that I don't think will make you happy.

What upsets you? I didn't want to reveal it.

Rather, speak, O Dhu Nafar, for I am Abdul Muttalib and secrets are entrusted to me.

And we, the family of the House, are not shaken by any turmoil.

Abraha. What about Abraha? O master of Mecca.

I ask your permission, my guest.

O Abu al-Harith.

What do you want? I have my Himyarite guest with me.

The topic of Ruqayyah with tinofel. Did you review it?

Yes, Abu al-Harith. So what did she say? She said.

Her brother Waraqa. That young man devoted to worship and monotheism? What did he say?

Ruqayya said: He encouraged her to marry Abdullah.

That shining light on my forehead, because her brother told her that a Prophet would emerge from this umma, and his birth was near.

That is why she wanted Abdullah as a husband, but when he married Amina.

He left, and that light was gone, so he proposed to her but she refused.

Abdullah is away on business in the region of al-Sham, and his absence makes me suffer.

That may happen. I feel that the time of birth is near, O Abdul Muttalib.

Send someone to inform the women of Banu Zuhra and Banu Hashim.

I urge you by Allah, do not leave her alone.

Send someone to stay with her. Send Baraka. Baraka is young, so what can she do?

She can keep her company, stay with her, and help her with her needs. Baraka, Baraka.

Will you go to the house of Abdullah and Amina?

I love Abdullah and Amina.

I will go to her. May Allah bless you. You are my gift to Abdullah, so stay with her.

I am late for my guest.

I don't think Abraha will leave us like this, and what's strange is that he seemed friendly.

What does he want? Will he really do it and invade Mecca?

Lady of Mecca.

I don't want to scare you, but I fear for you and the people of this city.

He is our director, and you know that Khath'am does not honor the sanctuary.

Say, O Dhu Nafar, there is something you want to say.

O Abdul Muttalib, keep this matter from me.

But I think Abraha will only invade your lands. What did you say?

I did not hear, O master of Mecca, I did not hear, O master of Al-Batha.

And what will you do for him?

He built the Qulays, an amazing structure, a marvel of architecture in Sana'a.

He wants to divert the pilgrimage of the Arabs to it, so that Sana'a becomes the marketplace for all the Arabs.

There are benefits in that which are not hidden from you.

Can we stop the Arabs if they choose to go to his house of worship in Sana'a?

People come by choice, not by force.

I have asked myself these questions. Why?

And how did you answer yourself? He will destroy the Kaaba.

What? By Allah, if he does it.

I would fight him with whoever among the Arabs goes out with me.

How much time is needed?

Gather the army and prepare to march to Mecca.

A little over ten days. How much time do we need?

To travel from Yemen to Mecca.

About a month, give or take a little.

Which of the Arabs would dare to confront us on our way?

None of the Arabs would dare to face you or oppose you, my master. I am only marching to destroy this house that they venerate.

If we succeed in that. You will succeed in that, my master, you will succeed.

If we succeed in that, the Arabs will submit to us, and we will connect our kingdom with the kingdom of Byzantium in the Levant.

We must achieve that. This is what we ultimately aim for.

Oh Arabs, a house made of stones and idols made of stones.

They turn it into a temple.

And some of them are made of dates, my lord. Roofs made of dates.

Yes, my lord, yes. And when the Bedouin gets hungry, he eats it. They eat their gods.

And you say they venerate this house, my lord.

They honor it with the utmost respect, but the story about the dates happened with some Bedouins outside this house.

So they say: This is the House of Allah, His Prophet Ibrahim was commanded to build it.

And for that reason, they sanctify it and offer sacrifices to it, and it is a sacred land.

A sacred land? How? Everything around it for a distance of a farsakh is sacred: no fighting, no quarrels, no immorality, and no wickedness.

In fact, they say that a man and a woman committed immorality in it, so Allah transformed them into two stones called Isaf and Na’ila.

What are you saying, Ibn Maqsood? They are idols.

And they are idol worshippers. No one worships idols anymore except the Arabs. The entire Roman Empire is Christian.

And Christianity has started to spread, and I don't think there's anything stopping its spread except the destruction of this House.

How much will Byzantium envy this, as we place a barrier of Arab Christians in front of Khosrow Anushirwan and the Persian Empire.

Come on, let's hurry up and move.

What?

My family, I see you are sad. How is Hamza? Hamza is fine.

Especially since Thuwayba is nursing. That's not why I'm sad. Why are you sad? Amina. What's wrong with Amina?

I went to visit her and found her crying. She misses Abdullah while he is traveling.

I will go to check on her.

Hamza.

Welcome, light of my eyes. Beloved daughter of your father, O Talib.

Fatima, I was told to go to my brother Abdullah's house. Yes.

And I checked on Amina. Does she need anything? No.

My uncle Abdul Muttalib sent Baraka to them to serve them.

Baraka, and what does this little girl do for them?

My uncle sent her to stay at Abdullah's house.

I have not seen anyone as happy as Baraka. She cooks, kneads dough, and carries water.

This little black girl is intelligent and active.

She takes care of all of Amina's affairs.

May she be blessed, Fatima, may she be blessed.

I disagree with you, son of Jud'an.

Abu Talib, people of Quraysh.

We are the people of the Sacred Sanctuary, and this places responsibilities on us that it does not place on other Arabs.

Your lineage, your lineage. I protect those who seek your protection, I fulfill your vows, and I honor your guests.

And if it were up to me, I would cut off the hand of the thief.

And I would forbid zina, which has spread among the Arabs, among Kinana, and among Quraysh.

And I do not approve of people making tawaf around the House while naked.

O Abdul Muttalib, O master of Mecca.

It is a custom that no one denies.

I am Abdul Muttalib ibn Hashim, and I reject it.

O people of Quraysh, revive the buried girls. By Allah, my daughters are dearer to my heart than my sons.

Woe to you, how can you accept burying them alive when they are in their childhood like gentle breezes, and when they grow up, they take care of your affairs.

And they bear children, and when you grow old, you will find no one to show you compassion except your daughters.

By Allah, it is not from chivalry at all that a person finds a helpless girl with no power or strength.

Beware, beware of marrying those forbidden to you by kinship.

For I do not accept it, nor do I approve of it.

O people of Quraysh, O leaders of Mecca, O people of Quraysh, O leaders of Mecca, O people of Quraysh.

O leaders of Mecca, O people of Quraysh, O leaders of Mecca.

I have come with news from Yathrib: your brother Abdullah has passed away.

Abraha al-Ashram has moved with his army, Nufayl. I have learned of this. A massive, overwhelming army. He has announced that he is heading to Mecca to destroy the Sacred House.

By the Lord of the Kaaba, there is no honor for the Arabs if they let al-Ashram, the usurper king of Yemen, pass through Tihama and do not defeat his army in the valleys and deserts.

And what about Khath'am? The tribe that the Bedouins trusted, I will surely mobilize them and strike him from where he does not expect.

I was pointing out that Khath'am does not see the sanctuary as the Arabs do. They do not see what the Arabs see, that's one thing, but for this tyrant to go and destroy it is something else.

But what about Mudar? The allies of Quraysh, and they venerate the sanctuary, and what do the Arab tribes think?

If they are loyal to Quraysh and the Sacred House, will they leave Abraha?

Let him do as he wishes, nothing is more dreadful to them than the destruction of the Sacred House.

Did you sense that from them, or are you just guessing?

Rather, I guess based on my knowledge of them and how much they value the Sacred House.

Which of the Arabs could join Abraha al-Ashram?

Their mercenaries, some of their outlaws, Banu al-Harith ibn Ka'b in Najran, and a few scattered groups here and there, only for looting and plundering.

Didn't you send word to the master of Mecca, your friend Abdul Muttalib? I don't think Abraha's army will reach 'Asir without the news reaching him.

How sad I am for you, oh.

I am worried about you.

Do not leave Amina alone, mother.

Do not leave her alone.

Sadness and grief are squeezing her heart, and this harms both the mother and the unborn child.

Sit down. Do not leave her alone. And you think we will never do that. And you think we will not do it.

Peace be upon you, my brother.

Peace be upon you. Sit down, Asad, sit down.

I did not come to sit, Abdul Muttalib.

But it is a grave matter, in fact, it is a terrible matter, my brother.

And is there any matter more serious than the death of Abdullah?

Tell me, my uncle, what is it?

The Abyssinians and Wara bin Talib. The Abyssinians.

What about them? They are coming towards us, led by Abraha, with a massive army.

They want to destroy the Sacred House. A messenger from Dhu Nafar al-Himyari.

He sent him to you with this letter.

The city of Far al-Himyari to Abdul Muttalib ibn Hashim, the leader of Mecca.

Abraha is coming to you with a massive army.

And with him is the elephant, wanting to destroy the Kaaba.

The Kaaba.

O Lord of the Kaaba, protect Your House.

O people of Himyar, this is Abraha al-Ashram and his army heading to Mecca to destroy its Kaaba. We may not be able to defeat him.

But let it not be said that Abraha al-Ashram came from Yemen to Mecca, destroyed its Kaaba, and no one from Yemen stood up to him.

What do you think, Danfar? I think we should attack the flanks of the army from behind and head into the desert.

Then we attack the rear of the army with a swift strike, and whoever reaches the lands of Hatim and the lands of Banu Abd al-Madan.

Until he meets his fate at our hands, and if he arrives, he will be exhausted. If any of you can strike him with a precise arrow, let him do so.

If Amr kills Abraha, the army might fall apart, retreat, and the sanctuary will be saved.

That was Ibn Maqsood.

Who are those who dare to challenge our mighty army like this?

I do not know, my lord, but I suspect they are a group from Hajar who sought refuge with one of their chiefs.

And they are attacking us, hoping that we will retreat from our goal.

A foolish wish. That anyone could turn me back in this world from what I have resolved to do, to destroy this house of the Arabs. But listen, Aswad.

I am the brother of truth. These attackers are my main concern. Let them feel secure until you catch them off guard.

I want them either killed or captured.

I want their leader alive before me. As you command, my master.

Welcome, leaders of Quraysh. I have gathered you today to ask.

Have you heard what I have heard?

This is a trial we are being tested with, so what do you suggest?

An enormous army, we have no power against it.

And we leave them to raid Mecca, violate its sanctities, take its women, destroy its houses, capture the children, and kill the men.

No, by the Lord of the Kaaba, no, by the Lord of the Kaaba, this will never happen.

The right word is what Asad ibn Hashim said: we will die defending the Sacred House of Allah.

Lady of Mecca, the Sacred House is not ours alone.

But we are the people of the Sanctuary, Abu al-Walid. Let Abu al-Walid finish his speech, Harb.

Continue, Abu al-Walid. I think we should send to the Arab tribes.

So they send their horsemen quickly, and we all join together in fighting the Ashram and his army.

That is a good opinion, Mughira, but the march of Abraha,

The whole peninsula has been shaken by it, yet no one has come to us.

O Abdul Muttalib, speak, cousin.

I think we should gather Quraysh and its allies and confront Abraha.

Speak, Abdul Muttalib, your decisive opinion.

Leaders of Quraysh, this is a calamity that has befallen us.

And I do not think that any of the Arabs will help us in this affliction.

You might find some Arabs who will be angered for the sake of the Haram.

And you may find others who will attack the army of Abraha.

But I have learned that the army is massive.

We have no power against it, so let us call upon the Lord of the House to protect His House.

No, rather we will fight them even if we are all killed.

Circumambulate the House and supplicate to its Lord to defeat Abraha as He defeated the tyrants before him.

O Lord of the Kaaba. At Your service, O Lord of the House. Protect Your House, O Lord of the Kaaba.

Dhu Nafar al-Himyari.

The royal army attacks Abraha.

Why, Nafar? This is a grave matter you are about to undertake, O king.

It is the Sacred House that the Arabs venerate. This is the House of Allah.

And He will not accept that His House be destroyed. What do you think I will do to you, O Dhanfar? I do not know, my lord, but I am only one man.

If you spare me, I might benefit you. Woe to you, O Dhu Nafar.

They tried to scare me, and the king was Abraha.

Chain Dhu Nafar in iron.

Bring him with us, so he can see with his own eyes how I will destroy this House once and for all.

I am not trying to scare you, my lord, but to warn you.

No one has ever attacked this sacred House.

Except that the Lord of this House destroyed him. Take him.

Go to what I have commanded you.

Man, where are you going? Are you fleeing from the army of Abraha?

Lady of Mecca! Lady of Mecca!

Say, "I will surrender my sword on one condition: that the king spares my life and the lives of my servants and family." This matter is up to the king.

No problem, no problem, but on the condition that you join the army.

And if you, Nufayl, will be our guide to Mecca. So, what do you say?

O people of Quraysh.

This is a trial we are being tested with.

And now the army of Kabarha has approached Mecca.

On the way, a group from Himyar confronted him, led by Dhu Nafar.

Nufayl ibn Habib also confronted them.

And some sons of Banu Abd al-Madan, and if we gathered everyone capable of carrying arms in the villages,

of Quraysh, Khuza'ah, Kinana, and the Ahabish, we would only reach a few thousand. So what do you think?

What did the Arab tribes reply to you, O leader of the people? The Arabs, as they said, have no power against this army.

Does that mean we are alone facing Abraha's army? Yes, we are alone.

Say, Abdul Muttalib, say that Mecca does not act without your opinion.

Waraqa, you are a man of knowledge and wisdom, perhaps you can benefit us with it.

Lady of Mecca.

If Quraysh wishes to be destroyed, let them face Abraha.

And I do not think he is coming to fight you.

He has only one purpose, which is to destroy the Sacred House of Allah.

So that he would divert the Arab pilgrims to his church, al-Qullays, in Sana'a.

And it is named after the martyr of Najran who was killed by Dhu Nuwas.

What is he aiming for by destroying the Sacred House?

There is no doubt that those around him from the people of Yemen warned him that the Kaaba is the House of Allah, that it is a place that cannot be violated, and whoever dares to attack it, Allah will destroy him.

And I do not think, O master of Mecca, that he is unaware of this, but he is a man from the Christians, and with him is al-Aswad ibn Makhsud.

He is from the Christians of Najran, and the Romans are pushing him to take this step, hoping that he will take control of the Hijaz.

So his kingdom would be connected to the kingdom of the Romans, and his and the Romans' rule would extend from Aden and Abyan to Tihama and the Hijaz, up to the Levant.

He sees no obstacle before him except Mecca and this House. How did you know about this, Waraqa?

O people of Quraysh, you are a people of trade.

You travel and interact with other nations, and you know the conflicts and ambitions of kings.

Abraha came to support the people of Hijaz.

So how can he support them if he does not destroy their sacred House?

You have spoken the truth, Waraqa. What Abraha came for is a great matter.

He came so that the kingdom from the Sea of Oman to al-Sham would be a barrier against the Persians.

In this way, the Roman kingdom would connect to the Indian Ocean, so they would be safe from the Arabs and become their allies.

And their land would be a place of rest, trade, and a route for their caravans.

And this cannot be achieved except by destroying the House.

Converting the Arabs to Christianity.

So what do you think, should we fight him or make peace with him?

Should we leave Mecca? And how can we abandon the Sacred House?

By Allah, we will mourn it until the end of time.

But let us resort to strategy and appeasement.

Perhaps the Lord of this House will grant us a way out.

Rather, we think we should leave the matter to you.

You are the master of Mecca, the foremost among us.

And all the Arabs respect you.

And there is no doubt that Abraha knows this.

So perhaps you will find a way out for us from this distress.

When he approaches Mecca, O people of Quraysh.

I do not think the Lord of the Kaaba will let Abraha destroy His ancient House.

Make tawaf, and ask the Lord of the Kaaba to protect Mecca and its people.

And the House and the sanctuary, and I will try to turn Abraha away from you as much as I can.

O Lord of the Kaaba, protect Your House.

O Lord of the Kaaba, protect Mecca.

Exalt Hubal. Protect us, O Hubal.

So call upon the Lord of the House alone.

Bring me Zayn Nafr and Nufayl ibn Habib.

O Hanata, my master's command. How long until we reach Mecca? In a little more than ten days we will reach Ukaz, and from there to Nakhla.

It is behind Mecca.

Remove his chains.

What do you want from me, O great king? Listen, Zainafar, you try to frighten me with this House and its people.

Tell me about my people. My lord, they are merchants, not people of war.

Even their land is sacred for them.

No sword is drawn there, and no one fights there.

Except for those who were outcasts or troublemakers, and this is something the Arabs have been accustomed to since ancient times.

The Arabs have a deep-rooted love for them in their hearts.

Because they are the people of this House, they do not transgress.

Nor is anyone allowed to transgress against them, and it is one of the gravest sins to insult a woman from Quraysh, and in general.

They are respected among all Arabs because they are the people of this House.

Is it true, Zanfar, that the Arabs believe that anyone who tries to harm the Kaaba.

Does He destroy him with it? Yes, my master.

And this happened to Amr ibn Luhayy.

He brought idols from the Levant and placed them in the Kaaba.

He brought an idol called Hubal and put it inside the Kaaba, causing changes.

Those who know say he altered the religion of Ibrahim.

As a result, his tribe Jurhum was expelled and scattered throughout the entire Hijaz.

The Arabs also narrate that Sa'd Abu Karb.

He wanted to destroy the Sacred House, but the Lord of the House destroyed him.

And a strange incident happened to him.

Tell me the story of King Abu Karb, O Danfer.

I am eager to hear it. The Arabs narrate, O King,

that King Abu Karb, who used to worship idols, wanted to invade the Hijaz, so he came as an invader and passed by the tribe of Hudhayl.

They said to him: O king, we are just poor people.

But shall we not guide you to a house filled with jewels and emeralds? You can take what is in it and destroy it.

It is a house in Mecca called the Kaaba.

So Abu Karb came to Mecca as an invader to destroy the House.

He was met by two scholars, and they said to him,

O king, the Hudhayl only wanted your destruction and the destruction of your army.

Because they knew of the destruction that befell any king who intended harm to this House.

O king, by Allah, we do not know of any house that Allah has taken for Himself on earth other than this one.

If you do what they have commanded you, you and those with you will surely be destroyed.

Abu Karib said to the two rabbis: So what do you advise me to place at it when I arrive there?

The Hadrami said to him: Place on it what its people place on it.

Circumambulate it and honor it.

Then show it respect and shave your head there.

And humble yourself there until you leave it.

He said to them, "So why don't you do that yourselves?"

He replied to him, "By Allah, it is the house of our father Ibrahim."

But its people have kept us away from it.

By what they placed around it of idols, and by the blood they spilled there.

So Abu Karb recognized their sincerity and the truth of their words.

So he brought the group from Hudhayl closer, and cut off their hands and feet.

Then he went to the Kaaba and performed tawaf around the Sacred House.

He sacrificed there, shaved his head, and stayed in Mecca for six days, sacrificing for the people and feeding its residents.

Then he covered the House with a cloth and other coverings.

According to what has reached us, he was the first to cover the House.

He entrusted it to the rulers of Jurhum and ordered it to be purified.

He commanded that no blood, dead animal, or mutilated body be brought near it.

It is the sanctuary, and he made for it a door and a key.

People have always advised their children to honor the sanctuary.

They even composed poetry, speeches, and proverbs about it.

One of their poetesses said: My son, do not commit injustice in Mecca, neither to the great nor the small.

And protect its sacred things with intention, and do not be deceived by delusion.

I will destroy the Kaaba.

The end has come, my son, and.

What does Ibn al-Hayban want? He came to us from al-Sham, and he was a blessing among us.

We used to ask Allah for rain through him, and it would fall. O Jews, O Banu Qurayza, al-Nadir, and Qaynuqa.

How did you find my conduct among you since I came from al-Sham? An honest conduct. We used to ask Allah for rain through you, and it would pour down.

O Jews, do not be deceived by the fact that I am speaking among you.

My soul has been announced to me.

O assembly of Jews, do you think anything other than this drove me out of al-Sham, the land of wine and leavened bread?

To Yathrib and this desert, the land of misery and hunger. You know best, Ibn al-Hayban.

So listen and understand, for I only came to this town.

I am waiting for the coming of a Prophet whose time has arrived, and this town, Yathrib, is his place of migration.

So I hoped he would be sent and I would follow him, and now his time has come upon you.

So do not let anyone beat you to him, O assembly of Jews. Have I conveyed the message? Yes, you have conveyed it to us.

Have I conveyed the message, O assembly of Jews?

Do not forget the advice of Ibn al-Hayban.

My lord the king. Speak, Aswad.

Perhaps the reports about the sanctity of this Medina have frightened you, my lord.

They are nothing but myths told by the people of Mecca to prevent kings from destroying it, for it is a gathering place of idols and statues.

You are a foolish black man, my lord.

These are matters of the king. The king does not bring his army from Yemen through these deadly deserts just to turn back because of a story meant to scare him by some man here or there.

I have only come for this House, and to divert the needs of the Arabs to the church of al-Qullays.

And so that their markets, their selling and buying, will be under my rule.

And so they will have no place to gather and honor, then I will confine them to the religion of the Messiah, and we will be a barrier against Persia.

Listen, O Aswad. I am listening, my lord.

And all my life, I led my horsemen and attacked the pilgrims and those performing 'umrah to Mecca. I killed some of them and looted their caravans while reciting poetry.

O horse, rush with me when you hear the talbiyah.

And nothing is more beloved to my heart than forcing the Arabs to enter into Christianity. So if we destroy this House,

which the Arabs venerate without anything happening,

then its value will diminish in their eyes and the status of al-Qullays will grow, and you know this, Aswad.

Nothing binds people to the king like the brotherhood of religion. If they enter our religion, they will enter our kingdom. And know, Aswad,

that when we expelled the Jews from Yemen and eliminated Dhu Nuwas the Jew,

We were only destroying a pillar of the Persians, the only one in Yemen, and al-‘Amri will never destroy this house.

And we will break the strength of its people in Mecca until the Arabs come to us willingly, so be reassured.

For I did not bring this mighty army to return disappointed.

This is a great matter for Christianity, Byzantium, and for Abraha.

His rule and his people, I will subdue for you and for them the necks of the Arabs.

Abraha had wisdom and insight, so instead of entering into an endless war with them, I will say to them: I came to destroy this House.

As revenge for what the Canaanite did in al-Qullays, and as revenge.

The Khuza'i whom I tried to appoint as king over the Arabs, but the Canaanites killed him.

And they will realize that they have no power against my army.

Who is their leader? A man called Abdul Muttalib, and they are all united behind him.

I want him brought before me. That's an order.