Eventual Demise in Result of Eating a Morsel of Poisoned Meat

During the Battle of Khaybar, Hazrat Bishr (ra) also ate the poisoned goat meat alongside the Holy Prophet (sa), which was given to them as a gift by a Jewish woman. When Hazrat Bishr (ra) swallowed a piece of the meat, he had not yet moved from his place when all of a sudden, his facial complexion changed and became like telasaan – a cloth which was predominately black in colour. The pain was so severe, that for an entire year he was unable to turn over in bed without assistance and eventually, he passed away in this painful state. It is also stated [in other narrations] that the poison was so deadly that he had not yet moved from his place when after a short while of eating the meat, he passed away.

(al-Tabaqaat-ul-Kubra li ibn Sa‘d, Vol. 3, p. 291, Dar Ihyaa al-Turath al-Arabi, Beirut, 1996)

When Hazrat Bishr bin Bara (ra) passed away, his mother was severely grief stricken. She went to the Holy Prophet (sa) and said, “O Messenger of Allah (sa), the death of Bishr (ra) will destroy the Banu Salamah! Those destined to die from among the Banu Salamah will indeed pass away, however, will the deceased recognise one another? ([meaning that] owing to the impact of this action of the enemy, the Banu Salamah will be greatly affected, [so] will the deceased recognise one another) And is there any way of sending greetings to Bishr?” The Holy Prophet (sa) replied, “O Umme Bishr! Indeed, they will recognise one another. I swear by Him Who holds my life in His hands, just as birds recognise one another in the trees, in the same manner the inhabitants of paradise will recognise one another.”

(Subul al-Hudaa Wa al-Rashaad, Vol. 3, p. 132, Fi Tanbihaat Alaa Ba’d fawa’id Tata’aluq bi Qissati al-Mi’raj, Dar-ul-Kutub al-Ilmiyyah, Beirut, 1993)

This meant that they would be able to recognise one another and that she would be able to send her greetings to him with those who are close to their death.

In another narration it is stated that after hearing this response from the Holy Prophet (sa), whenever a person from among the Banu Salamah neared their end, the mother of Hazrat Bishr (ra) would go to that person and say, “O such and such, peace be upon you,” to which they would reply in kind. She would then say, “Please convey my greetings to Bishr (ra).

(Mirqaatul Mafaatih Sharh Mishkaat al-Masaabih, Vol. 4, p. 99, Kitabul Jana‘iz, Bab Ma Yuqalu ‘Inda Man Hadarahu al-Maut, Dar-ul-Kutub al-Ilmiyyah, Beirut, 2003)

Whenever a person from among the Banu Salamah would near their death, she would go to them and ask them to convey her greetings. Earlier, while referring to the statement that “Bishr’s death would destroy the Banu Salamah, therefore would the deceased be able to recognise one another?”, it may seem as if Hazrat Bishr’s (ra) mother was the enemy, however this is not the case, rather it was a particular style of expressing her grief. Therefore, as a result of this enormous grief, she asked if the deceased would recognise one another and whether her greetings could be conveyed to Bishr (ra). The Holy Prophet (sa) replied in the affirmative, and as a result, she would visit every person who was nearing death to convey her greetings to Bishr (ra) in Paradise.

In one narration, the sister of Hazrat Bishr (ra) visited the Holy Prophet (sa) close to the time of his demise. The Holy Prophet (sa) said to her, “The morsel that I ate along with your brother at Khaybar has severed my insides.”

(al-Sirat al-Halabiyyah, Vol. 3, p. 82, Bab Dhikr Maghaziyah, Ghazwah Khaybar, Dar-ul-Kutub al-Ilmiyyah, Beirut, 2002)

Explaining this incident in detail, Hazrat Musleh Maud (ra) states:

“A Jewish woman asked the Companions (ra) what part of an animal the Holy Prophet (sa) preferred to eat. She was told that he preferred the shoulder of lamb or goat. The woman slaughtered a goat and made cutlets on hot stones. Then she mixed with them a deadly poison, especially in pieces cut from the shoulder, believing the Holy Prophet (sa) would prefer them. The Holy Prophet (sa) was returning to his tent after having led the evening prayers in congregation. He saw this woman waiting for him near his tent and asked, ‘Is there anything I can do for you?’

“She said, ‘Yes, Abul-Qasim, you can accept a present from me.’ The Holy Prophet (sa) asked a Companion to take whatever the woman had brought. When the Holy Prophet (sa) sat down to eat his meal, this present of roasted meat was also laid before him. The Holy Prophet (sa) took a morsel. A companion, Bashir bin Bara bin Ma‘rur (ra) also took a morsel.” Some books of history state the name as Bishr bin Bara, whereas in other places it is recorded as Bashir bin Bara. Hazrat Musleh Maud (ra) has mentioned the name Bashir bin Bara, i.e. the same Bishr bin Bara (ra).

“The other Companions present at the meal stretched their hands to eat the meat. But the Holy Prophet(sa) stopped them saying, ‘My hand has informed me that the meat has been poisoned.’”

This did not mean that he had received a revelation, rather this is an expression used by the Arabs, which meant that upon tasting the meat, the Holy Prophet (sa) thought that it was poisoned. Therefore, this is the meaning of the aforementioned phrase and the Holy Prophet (sa) used it as an expression. The meaning of “his hand informing him” was that upon tasting the meat, the Holy Prophet (sa) realised that the meat had been poisoned. The subsequent quote [in regard to the incident] would shed further light on the matter. Hazrat Musleh Maud (ra) has elaborated on this stating that the Holy Quran has made mention of a wall in the time of Prophet Moses (as). It is stated that “the wall wished for it to fall down”, however, this simply referred to the fact that the condition of the wall was such that it appeared that the wall would collapse at any moment. Thus, even in this incident this statement was in fact an expression.

Hazrat Musleh Maud (ra) then further says, “Bashir (ra), i.e. Bishr bin Bara, then said, ‘I swear by God, Who has granted you honour, I too thought the morsel was poisoned. I wished to spit out the morsel, however I thought that if I did so, then perhaps you may dislike my action and it may disturb you while you are eating.’” (He said that he too was hesitant about the food and thought there was something suspicious with it). “‘Seeing you take a morsel, I also took one, but I soon began to wish you had not taken yours as I suspected that it may have been poisoned.’ Soon afterwards Bashir (ra) became ill and, according to some reports, died there in Khaybar. According to other reports he died after remaining ill for some time.

“The Holy Prophet (sa) then took a piece of the meat and gave it to a dog, but it too died shortly after eating the meat. The Holy Prophet (sa) then sent for the woman and asked her if she had poisoned the meat. The woman asked the Holy Prophet (sa) how he ever got to know about it. The Prophet (sa) was holding a piece of the goat in his hand, and said, ‘My hand told me this,’ The woman then realised that the Holy Prophet (sa) had discovered the truth. The woman admitted what she had done. The Holy Prophet (sa) asked, ‘What made you commit such a heinous act?’ She replied, ‘My people were at war with you and my relations were killed in this battle, I decided to poison you, believing that if you were an impostor, you would die and we should be safe, but if you were a Prophet, God would save you.’ Hearing this explanation, the Holy Prophet (sa) forgave the woman. Otherwise she would surely have been given the death penalty. This incident shows that the Holy Prophet (sa) was ever ready to forgive those who attacked him and his followers, and punished only when punishment was necessary, when it was feared the guilty one would continue to cause mischief and strife.”

(Dibacha Tafsir-ul-Quran, Anwarul Ulum, Vol. 20, pp. 327-329)