Ihyaaud Deen An Effort to Revive Deen in Totality
On the day after Rasulullah (sallallahu ‘alaihi wasallam) was blessed with prophethood, he was performing salaah with Hazrat Khadijah (radhiyallahu ‘anha) when Hazrat ‘Ali (radhiyallahu ‘anhu) saw them and asked, “What is this?” Rasulullah (sallallahu ‘alaihi wasallam) replied, “This is the deen of Allah Ta‘ala. The prophets of Allah Ta‘ala brought this very same deen to the world. I am inviting you to Allah Ta‘ala; to worship Him alone and renounce (the idols of) Laat and ‘Uzza.”
Hazrat ‘Ali (radhiyallahu ‘anhu) replied, “This is something utterly new which I have never heard before. Until I do not mention this to my father, Abu Taalib, I cannot make any decision.” Since Rasulullah (sallallahu ‘alaihi wasallam) was reluctant for his secret to be revealed to anyone, he said, “O ‘Ali! If you do not wish to embrace Islam, don’t mention it to anyone else.”
Not even a night had passed when the desire to accept Islam entered the heart of Hazrat ‘Ali (radhiyallahu ‘anhu). The next morning, he presented himself before Rasulullah (sallallahu ‘alaihi wasallam) saying, “What are you inviting towards?” Rasulullah (sallallahu ‘alaihi wasallam) replied, “Bear testimony that Allah Ta‘ala is the only deity worthy of worship. Renounce Laat and ‘Uzza and express your aversion and disassociation from idolatry.”
Hazrat ‘Ali (radhiyallahu ‘anhu) then embraced Islam. For quite some time thereafter (some narrations mention that it was for one year), he concealed his Islam from his father, Abu Taalib.
After Hazrat ‘Ali (radhiyallahu ‘anhu), the freed slave of Rasulullah (sallallahu ‘alaihi wasallam), Hazrat Zaid bin Haarithah (radhiyallahu ‘anhu), embraced Islam and performed salaah with him.
(Extracted from Seeratul Mustafa 1/155-156)
