‘Abdullah ibn Hudhafah al-Sahmi

“It is the duty of every Muslim to kiss the head of ‘Abdullah ibn Hudhafah—and I shall be the first to do so.”
— ʿUmar ibn al-Khattab, may Allah be pleased with him.

The hero of our story is a man from among the Companions of the Prophetﷺ—ʿAbdullah ibn Hudhafah al-Sahmi.

History could have passed by this man as it had passed by millions of Arabs before him, without paying him any attention or taking note of his name. But Islam—this great religion—granted ʿAbdullah ibn Hudhafah the opportunity to stand before the two greatest rulers of his time: Khosrow, the King of Persia, and Caesar, the Emperor of Rome. With each of them, he had an encounter that time has never forgotten, and history continues to recount.

His Story with Khosrow, King of Persia, was in the sixth year after the Hijrah when the Prophet ﷺ resolved to send letters to the rulers of foreign lands, inviting them to Islam. He carefully chose a group of his Companions to carry out this mission, fully aware of the challenges it entailed.

These messengers were to travel to distant lands they had never seen before, where they neither spoke the language nor knew the customs of the people. They would stand before mighty kings, calling them to abandon their ancestral religions, forsake their worldly power and authority, and enter a faith followed by people who, until recently, had been among their subjects.

It was a dangerous journey—one from which the traveler might never return. If he did, it would be as if he had been given a new life.

The Prophet ﷺ gathered his Companions, stood before them, praised Allah, testified to His Oneness, and said:

“I intend to send some of you as envoys to the rulers of foreign lands. Do not dispute with me as the Children of Israel disputed with Jesus, the son of Mary.”

The Companions replied: “O Messenger of Allah, we will carry out your command. Send us wherever you will.”

The Prophet ﷺ chose six men for this mission. Among them was ʿAbdullah ibn Hudhafah al-Sahmi, whom he entrusted with delivering his letter to Khosrow, the King of Persia.

ʿAbdullah prepared for the journey, bid farewell to his wife and children, mounted his camel, and set off. He traveled alone across deserts and mountains, with nothing but Allah as his companion, until he reached the lands of Persia.

He requested an audience with the king, informing his court of the message he carried. Khosrow ordered that his royal court be adorned and summoned the nobles of Persia to attend the session. Once they had gathered, he permitted ʿAbdullah to enter.

The Companion walked into the grand court of Persia, dressed in his simple desert cloak, draped in his coarse tribal mantle. He bore the humility of an Arab in appearance but carried the dignity of a Muslim in his heart. His posture was upright, his head held high, and his chest filled with the pride of faith.

Khosrow, seated on his throne, motioned to one of his attendants to take the letter from ʿAbdullah’s hand. But ʿAbdullah said firmly:

“No. The Messenger of Allah ﷺ commanded me to hand this letter to you personally, and I will not disobey his command.”

Khosrow signaled his men to allow ʿAbdullah to approach. He stepped forward and placed the letter directly into the king’s hands.

The Persian ruler then called for an Arab scribe from among his subjects in al-Hirah and ordered him to open and read the letter aloud. The scribe unfolded it and began:

“In the name of Allah, the All-Merciful, the Bestower of mercy. From Muhammad, the Messenger of Allah, to Khosrow, the Great King of Persia. Peace be upon those who follow guidance…”

At these opening words, Khosrow’s face turned red with rage. His veins bulged with fury. How dare this man—the Prophet— mention himself first?!

Without reading further, Khosrow snatched the letter from the scribe’s hand, tore it into pieces, and shouted:

“How dare he write this to me?! He is my servant!”

Then he commanded that ʿAbdullah be expelled from his court.

ʿAbdullah ibn Hudhafah left the royal palace, uncertain of his fate. Would they execute him, or would he be allowed to return home?

But he said to himself: “By Allah, I do not care what happens now, as long as I have delivered the message of the Messenger of Allah ﷺ.” Then, he mounted his camel and began his journey back.

After Khosrow’s anger had subsided, he ordered his men to bring ʿAbdullah back. But by then, he had already departed and could not be found. Khosrow sent riders to track him on the road to the Island of the Arab, but ʿAbdullah had outpaced them.

When he finally reached the Prophet ﷺ, he informed him of what had transpired— how Khosrow had torn up the letter— the Prophet ﷺ only said:

“May Allah tear his kingdom apart.”

Khosrow sent a letter to his governor in Yemen, Badhan, commanding him:

“Send two strong men to this man who has emerged in the Hijaz and order them to bring him to me at once.”

Badhan immediately dispatched two of his best men to the Messenger of Allah ﷺ, carrying a letter in which Badhan ordered the Prophet ﷺ to accompany them without delay to meet Khosrow. He also instructed them to investigate the Prophet’s affairs and report back with any findings.

The two envoys traveled swiftly until they reached Ta’if, where they met some Qurayshi merchants. They asked them about Muhammad ﷺ, and the merchants replied, “He is in Yathrib.” The merchants then continued on to Mecca, overjoyed by the news. They eagerly informed Quraysh, saying:

“Rejoice! Khosrow has taken action against Muhammad and will spare you his trouble.”

Meanwhile, the envoys continued their journey toward Medina. Upon arrival, they met the Prophet ﷺ and handed him Badhan’s letter.

“The King of Kings, Khosrow, has commanded our ruler Badhan to send for you,” they said. “We have come to take you to him. If you comply, he will speak with you in a way that benefits you and will restrain his harm from reaching you. But if you refuse, then you already know his might, his wrath, and his power to destroy you and your people.”

The Prophet ﷺ smiled and said, “Return to where your saddlebags today and come back to me tomorrow.”

The next day, the two men returned and asked, “Have you prepared yourself to come with us to meet Khosrow?”

The Prophet ﷺ replied, “You will not meet Khosrow after today. Allah has killed him—his own son, Sheroe, assassinated him on such-and-such a night of such-and-such a month.”

The envoys were stunned, their faces filled with disbelief.

“Do you realize what you are saying? Should we report this to Badhan?” they asked.

“Yes,” the Prophet ﷺ said. “Tell him that Khosrow’s kingdom will soon crumble. And if he embraces Islam, I will grant him authority over his people under my leadership.”

The two envoys left and returned to Badhan, conveying the Prophet’s words. Badhan said:

“If what Muhammad has said is true, then he is indeed a prophet. If not, we will deal with him as we see fit.”

Shortly after, a letter arrived from Sheroe himself. In it, he wrote:

“I have killed Khosrow—not for any reason but to avenge our people. He slaughtered our nobles, enslaved our women, and seized our wealth. When this letter reaches you, pledge your allegiance to me and ensure obedience from those under your rule.”

As soon as Badhan read the letter, he cast it aside and declared his acceptance of Islam. With him, many Persians in Yemen also embraced Islam.

Years later, during the caliphate of ʿUmar ibn al-Khattab (may Allah be pleased with him), ʿAbdullah ibn Hudhafah experienced another extraordinary encounter—this time with Caesar, the Emperor of Rome.

In the year 19 AH, ʿUmar dispatched an army to fight the Romans, and ʿAbdullah was among the soldiers. The Romans emperor had received reports about the Muslim  warriors—their unshakable faith, deep-rooted convictions, and willingness to sacrifice everything for Allah and His Messenger ﷺ.

He gave his men a command:

“If you capture any of them alive, bring them to me.”

By Allah’s decree, ʿAbdullah ibn Hudhafah was taken prisoner and brought before Caesar. The emperor studied him for a long moment before speaking:

“I have a proposition for you.”

“What is it?” ʿAbdullah asked.

“If you renounce Islam and embrace Christianity, I will release you and honor you.”

ʿAbdullah, unwavering in his faith, replied firmly:

“Never! I would rather die a thousand times than abandon my religion.”

Caesar, impressed by his resolve, said:

“I see you are a man of great courage. If you accept my offer, I will make you my partner in rulership, and you will share my empire with me.”

Despite his chains, ʿAbdullah smiled and replied:

“By Allah, if you gave me everything you own and everything the Arabs possess in exchange for abandoning the religion of Muhammad ﷺ for even a single blink of an eye, I would not accept it.”

Caesar said:

“Then I will have you killed.”

“Do as you wish,” ʿAbdullah replied.

Caesar ordered that ʿAbdullah be crucified. As he hung on the cross, the emperor commanded his archers:

“Shoot near his hands.”

As arrows struck close to his fingers, Caesar again urged him to convert—but ʿAbdullah refused.

“Shoot near his feet,” the emperor ordered.

Arrows pierced the wood beside his legs, yet he remained steadfast.

At that moment, Caesar ordered his men to stop firing arrows. He then commanded that ʿAbdullah be taken down from the cross.

The emperor had a large cauldron brought forth, filled with oil, and set over a raging fire until it boiled furiously. Then, he ordered that one of the Muslim prisoners be thrown into it. As soon as the man was cast into the pot, his flesh melted away, and his bones surfaced, stripped clean.

Turning once more to ʿAbdullah, Caesar invited him again to accept Christianity—but ʿAbdullah’s resolve only grew stronger.

Seeing his unshakable defiance, Caesar finally ordered that ʿAbdullah be thrown into the same boiling cauldron. As he was being taken toward it, tears welled up in his eyes.

The emperor’s men noticed this and quickly informed their ruler:

“He has wept!”

Thinking that ʿAbdullah had finally given in to fear, Caesar ordered him to be brought back and placed before him once more.

“So, have you now changed your mind?” Caesar asked. “Will you accept Christianity?”

“Never,” ʿAbdullah firmly replied.

The emperor was puzzled. “Then tell me—what made you weep?”

ʿAbdullah answered: “I wept because I thought to myself: ‘Right now, you will be thrown into this cauldron, and your soul will depart. Yet how I wish I had as many lives as there are hairs on my body so that I could sacrifice them all, one by one, in the path of Allah!’”

So the tyrant made an offer:

“Would you be willing to kiss my head, and in return, I will set you free?”

ʿAbdullah asked, “And what about the other Muslim captives?”

Caesar replied, “I will release them as well.”

ʿAbdullah thought to himself, “He is an enemy of Allah, but if I kiss his head, he will free all the Muslim prisoners—there is no harm in that.”

So he stepped forward and kissed the emperor’s head. True to his word, Caesar gathered all the Muslim captives and handed them over to ʿAbdullah.

When ʿAbdullah returned to Medina and informed ʿUmar ibn al-Khattab of what had happened, ʿUmar was overjoyed by the news.

Looking at the freed prisoners, ʿUmar declared:

“It is the duty of every Muslim to kiss the head of ‘Abdullah ibn Hudhafah—and I shall be the first to do so.”

• Suwar min Hayat al-Sahabah (Scenes from the Lives of the Companions) | Abdul Rahman Ra’fat al-Basha