Abu 'Afak

Abu 'Afak (Arabic: أبو عفك‎, died c. 624) was a Jewish poet who lived in the Hijaz region (today Saudi Arabia). Abu 'Afak did not convert to Islam and was vocal about his opposition to Muhammad. He became a significant political enemy of Muhammad.

As an elderly man, Abu 'Afak Arwan wrote a politically charged poem against Muhammad and his followers that is preserved in the Sira. Muhammad then allegedly called for Abu 'Afak's death, and Salim ibn Umayr killed him. The affair was recorded by Ibn Ishaq in "Sirat Rasul Allah" (The Life of the Prophet of God), the oldest biography of Muhammad, but wasn't backed up with a chain of narrators. There was no Isnad for this event. Therefore, this story is rejected by the majority of Muslims, as there is no evidence of this happening.

Sources

Ibn Ishaq's account

The following is an excerpt from Alfred Guillaume's translation of Ibn Ishaq's prophetic biography, chapter "Salim b. Umayr's expedition to kill Abu Afak".

The apostle [Muhammad] said, "Who will deal with this rascal for me?" Whereupon Salim b. Umayr, brother of B. Amr b. Auf, one of the "weepers", went forth and killed him. Umama b. Muzayriya said concerning that:

Afak

Coordinates: 32°03′45″N 45°14′34″E / 32.06250°N 45.24278°E / 32.06250; 45.24278

Afak (Arabic: عفك‎) is a town in Al Diwaniyah Governorate, Iraq. It is 25 km northeast of Al Diwaniyah and 170 km south of Baghdad.

References

Şafak

Şafak is a Turkish form of the Iranian name Shafaq (شفق). Notable people with the name include:

Given name:

Surname:

See also