The Boycott of Banu Hashim

A total social, economic, and marital embargo imposed by Quraysh on Banu Hashim & Banu al-Muttalib to force them to surrender the Prophet Muhammad ﷺ. It lasted about 2½–3 years (7th–10th year of the da’wah).

Background (EP 018)

Alarmed by the flight to Abyssinia and the conversions of Hamzah and Umar, the Quraysh demanded Abu Talib hand over his nephew — offering blood-money and a non-Qurayshi executioner — or face a boycott. He refused. The two clans withdrew to the Valley of Abu Talib outside Mecca.

What happened

A written pact (sahifa) — no buying, selling, marriage, or social contact with the two clans — was hung inside the Ka’bah. For 2½–3 years the clans (mostly still pagan, out of kinship loyalty) endured near-starvation, eating leaves; only Abu Lahab defected to the Quraysh. Sympathisers like Mut’im ibn Adi and Hakim ibn Hizam smuggled in food. The Prophet ﷺ still preached to pilgrims each Hajj season.

How it ended

Three things converged:

1. A famine in Mecca (after the Prophet’s ﷺ du’a) softened opinion;
2. A group of conscientious Qurayshis (Hisham ibn Amr, Zuhayr, Mut’im, al-Bukhturi) publicly moved to annul the pact;
3. The decisive sign: the Prophet ﷺ foretold that Allah had sent termites to eat the document, sparing only “In the name of Allah.” Abu Talib staked everything on it; the sahifa was opened and found exactly as foretold — nullifying the boycott.

Significance

A testament to kinship loyalty (non-Muslim relatives suffered for the Prophet ﷺ) and a sign of prophethood (the termites). Its end preceded the Year of Sorrow by mere weeks. During it Abu Talib composed the famed Lamiyyah poem.

Cross-references

Abu Talib · Muhammad ﷺ · Quraysh · Abu Jahal (Amr ibn Hisham) · Mut'im ibn Adi · The Year of Sorrow ('Am al-Huzn) · The Migrations to Abyssinia

Sources

• S004 — Yasir Qadhi Seerah EP 018 (the Boycott and its end).