by Tahmina Sattar

Created on: July 05, 2009

Bilal Habashi the first muezzin of Islam was so named as he was from the Habash area, now known as Ethiopia. His life story resonates courage and consistency in a revolutionary time for the Arabs.

He had been amongst the slaves owned by Umaya ibn Khalaf, a member of the leading tribe of Arabia - the Quraish. This man became infamous in history due to his cruelty towards the new Muslims especially his slave Bilal.

Islam had been practiced undercover when Bilal chanced upon knowledge about this new religion which preached equality and worship of One Creator- Allah. He had heard about the prophet of Islam, Muhammad. Muhammad was also from the Quraish tribe and was known amongst his community as"Al-Amin"(the truthful one). This newfound belief led Bilal to being severely punished by his master who hated this new upstart religion.

The torture of Bilal is famous in the history of Islam as it depicted the religious ostracism the new Muslims faced. Umaya ibn Khalaf used to leave Bilal in the middle of the desert, in soaring temperatures, with huge stones placed upon his chest. Bilal Habashi refused under all this duress to give up his beliefs. Even as he was whipped and beaten he would not stop believing in one god. This defiance against his slave master, who may have owned his body, proved ultimately that nobody could own ones mind or ones thought.

Hearing of his plight another companion of the prophet Muhammad, Abu Bakr Siddiqui, came to his aid and bought his freedom for the price of nine dinars. Umaya felt he had won- and he reportedly told Abu Bakr that he would have gladly sold Bilal for one dinar. Abu Bakr replied that he would have paid one hundred dinars. This describes the high place and value of Bilal Habashi, the Ethiopian slave, amongst the early Arab Muslims. His status nor his colour bore any importance amongst them but the strength of his character and his unyielding adherence to his belief.

When the muslims emigrated to Medina from to leave the persecution of Meccans in the year 622, Bilal Habashi was called upon to be the first muezzin in Islam. The strong soulful voice of Bilal was ideal to project the Adhan to the community, calling the muslims dutifully to prayer five times a day.

Bilal Habashi continued to be a valued member amongst the Sahaba, the companions, of the prophet Muhammad. He joined in many battles and fate was such that he eventually killed his former slave owner- Umaya ibn Khalaf!

After the death of the prophet Muhammad in year 632, Bilal found it difficult to continue his job as the muezzin. He would burst out crying due to his emotional ties to the prophet. He left Medina and is reported to have participated in further conquests before settling in Syria.

He died some time in the year 640. There in a Damascus graveyard known as Bab Sagheer, is a grave disputed to be the final burial place of a resilient man, loved and admired by Muslims for his constancy to Islam and courage displayed as a minority amongst minorities. Bilal, the first muezzin of Islam .

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