~Shawwal, a few weeks after the deaths of Khadijah RA and Abu Talib (c. 620 CE) · 2 BH
Details differ across the sources
Accounts differ on whether the Prophet ﷺ left Ta'if immediately after the three brothers' rejection or remained about a week preaching to the common people before the mob attack; the more authentic reports support the week-long stay.
In Shawwal, a few weeks after the deaths of Khadijah RA and Abu Talib, the Prophet ﷺ lost his last protection in Makkah. His uncle Abu Lahab had briefly offered to protect him, then withdrew the offer. For the first time, the Prophet ﷺ began looking for another city where the message could take root. He chose Ta'if, the nearest major city to Makkah. To avoid attracting attention, he and Zayd ibn Harithah RA made the journey on foot.
Ta'if was ruled jointly by three brothers of the tribe of Thaqif: Abd Yalil, Mas'ud and Habib, the sons of Amr. The Prophet ﷺ met them privately and invited them to Islam. Each of them rejected him with mockery. He asked them at least not to tell the Quraysh about his visit.
According to the more authentic reports, he did not leave at once. He stayed about a week, preaching to the ordinary people in Ta'if's marketplace. No one accepted, though one person showed some interest. When the leaders heard of this, they grew alarmed. They sent a mob to stone the Prophet ﷺ and Zayd and drive them out of the city. The Prophet ﷺ bled until his sandals were soaked with blood. Zayd tried to shield him and was injured from head to toe. The mob kept pelting them until they reached Qarn al-Manazil, also called Qarn al-Tha'alib, outside the city.
Outcome: The leaders of Ta'if rejected the Prophet ﷺ and a mob drove him out. He waited outside Makkah for about ten days, then re-entered the city under the protection of Mut'im ibn Adi. Ta'if itself accepted Islam peacefully years later, after the Battle of Hunayn.
Years later, Aisha RA asked the Prophet ﷺ whether any day had been harder for him than the Day of Uhud. He ﷺ replied, "Yes. Indeed, your people have hurt me a lot. And the worst I got was on the Day of Aqaba." By this he meant the day at Ta'if. Uhud was worse physically, but Ta'if was worse psychologically. He told her only a few details, because he did not want her pity. He said that he walked in grief and did not notice where he was until he reached Qarn al-Tha'alib. The episode shows that a believer may feel shock after a trauma but must then regain composure. It also shows that the Prophet ﷺ did not seek sympathy by dwelling on his own suffering.
The Year of Sorrow to the Night Journey·Chapter 4 of 9Ta'if
See the whole storyOther events recorded in 2 BH. Their order within the year is not established; use the storyline above for the sequence.
Has Allah not found anyone better than you?
One of three mocking replies to the Prophet ﷺ's presentation of Islam.
If Allah has sent you as a prophet, I might as well tear down the curtains of the Ka'bah, in remorse.
One of three mocking replies to the Prophet ﷺ's presentation of Islam.
Very well, if you have rejected my Message, then at least do not tell the Quraysh of my visit.
Said as he ﷺ stood to leave, after the three brothers mocked him.
I cannot speak to you, because if you really are a prophet, then you are too holy for me. And if you are a liar, then you are too beneath my dignity that I respond to you.
One of three mocking replies to the Prophet ﷺ's presentation of Islam.
Was there any day more difficult for you than the Day of Uhud?
Yes. Indeed, your people have hurt me a lot. And the worst I got was on the Day of Aqaba. On that day, I presented myself to Abd Yalil, Mas'ud, and Habib the sons of Amr, and they didn't respond the way I wanted them to. So I found myself in grief and sadness. And I didn't notice where I was until I reached Qarn al-Tha'alib.
وَقَالُوا لَوْلَا نُزِّلَ هَٰذَا الْقُرْآنُ عَلَىٰ رَجُلٍ مِّنَ الْقَرْيَتَيْنِ عَظِيمٍ
“And they said, "Why was this Quran not sent down upon a great man from [one of] the two major cities (Makkah or Ta'if)?"”
Cited as background on why Ta'if, alongside Makkah, was known as one of the "two great cities."