Rukana bin Abd-i Yazid, was an unrivaled wrestler from among the polytheists who had never been defeated. Unfortunately, Rukana, who could easily throw down all of his opponents, somehow did not want to have the honor of being a true wrestler by overcoming the severe resentment and enmity he felt towards our Holy Prophet (PBUH.) One day, this famous wrestler encountered our Holy Prophet (PBUH) on one of the valleys of Mecca. His eyes were raging with sparks of anger. Allah’s Apostle (PBUH) asked, “O Rukana, are you not afraid of Allah, to whom I call you to testify?” Rukana answered, “If you prove that your words are true then I will submit to you.” Our Holy Prophet (PBUH) again asked, “If I knock you to the ground, then will you believe what I say is true?” Rukana replied, “O Muhammad, if you are able to defeat me, then I will believe you.”

Upon this, the Master of the Universe (PBUH) said, “Rise, let us wrestle.” As soon as the haughty Rukana rose, he found himself on the ground. He did not realize what had happened; he was confused. He immediately rose once more and offered our Holy Prophet (PBUH) another match. Allah’s Apostle (PBUH) accepted and Rukana found himself on the ground for the second time. Rukana, whose confusion and amazement had increased, offered our Holy Prophet (PBUH) to wrestle once more. Our Holy Prophet (PBUH) again accepted and effortlessly pushed him to the ground. Rukana who had promised, “If you are able to defeat me then I will believe you”, continued disbelieving despite having been defeated for the third time and said, “O Muhammad, you are undoubtedly a magician. To tell you the truth, I am bewildered by this wrestling match.” In this way, he tried to pass off the miracle he had seen as a magic spell.

Another miracle

This time, Rukana, who continued disbelieving, witnessed another miracle of our Holy Prophet (PBUH). When he said, “To tell you the truth, I am bewildered by this wrestling match” Allah’s Apostle (PBUH) replied, “There are many others to be bewildered about. If you would like, I can show you another. Fear Allah, accept my invitation.” Rukana asked, “What is it, this bewildering thing?” “Let me call this gum tree here. You’ll see that it’ll come to me.” Rukana replied, “Alright, call it to come forth.” Allah’s Apostle (PBUH) commanded the gum tree, “By courtesy of Allah, come to me!” in front of the unruly polytheist. The gum tree adhered to the order; it cleaved the ground as it came forth and stood before the Master of the Universe (PBUH.) Rukana’s heart was still closed although his eyes were wide open. He continued to stubbornly disbelieve and said, “Honestly, I have never seen a spell as big as the one I have seen today in my entire life.” Afterwards, he requested that our Holy Prophet (PBUH) command the gum tree to go back to its spot. The Holy Prophet (PBUH) ordered, “By courtesy of Allah, go back.” The tree immediately went back to its spot.

Afterwards, our Holy Prophet (PBUH) again invited Rukana to become a Muslim. However, he persisted disbelieving and did not accept the invitation. Upon this, the last words of Allah’s Apostle (PBUH) were: “Shame on you!”

Rukana returned amongst the community in a state of amazement and bewilderment and after he explained what he had seen, he said, “O Sons of Abd Manaf, you can cast a spell upon the entire world with your clansman. By God, I have never seen a more skilled magician than him.” 1 Those who continued to be stubborn in not accepting the truth, despite everything, always tried belittling Islam with accusations so as to comfort themselves. However, they only belittled themselves each time.

According to a narration, Rukana became a Muslim around the time of the conquest of Mecca. 2 Yes, as it can be seen in the example, the trees knew our Holy Prophet (PBUH); they testified to his prophethood and listened to his commands. In that case, would those who call themselves human yet do not recognize our Holy Prophet (PBUH) as Allah’s Apostle and do not testify to him not hold less importance and worth than a dry tree and be deserving of hellfire?

1. Ibn Hisham, Sirah: 2/31; Balazuri, Ansab: 1/155; Ibn Hajar, Isaba: 1/506
2. Ibn Abdi'l-Barr, Istiab: 1/51