In the same year, Musaylimah the Liar claimed he was a prophet. His name was Musaylimah ibn Thumamah. He had approached the Prophet (peace be upon him) with a delegation from Banu Haneefah, one of the delegations that went to the Prophet (peace be upon him) in 9 A.H. The Banu Haneefah delegation was composed of just over ten people, one of whom was Musaylimah the Liar. When the delegation approached the Prophet in the mosque, they embraced Islam. The group had left Musaylimah with their goods. After the Prophet (peace be upon him) gave them gifts, they mentioned Musaylimah, saying, “We left our companion to look after some of our goods.” So the Prophet ordered that a gift be given to him, saying, <You are not better than him (to not give him a gift too),> that is, even though he is left to look after your supplies, this does not mean he is lower than you. Therefore, when they returned to Musaylimah, he said, “He (the Prophet) said that as he knows I would have this matter (i.e., become a prophet).” Due to these words, Musaylimah (may Allah ruin him) clung to the idea of claiming prophethood. When they left the Prophet and arrived at Yamamah, Musaylimah apostatized from Islam and started to claim he was a prophet. He said, “Allah has made me a partner in this matter (prophethood).” Most of the people in his city followed him. He made up a collection of verses for them, trying to copy the Quran. He made alcohol and adultery permissible for them, and told them they did not have to pray [The Prophet’s Biography by Ibn Katheer]. Such ideas pleased some of the people of his city, so they followed him. Musaylimah the Liar did not stop at this, but his pride and misguidance made him like the idea that he was a partner with the Prophet (peace be upon him) with regards to the message. Consequently, he (Allah’s enemy) sent a message to the Prophet, saying, “From Musaylimah, the Messenger of Allah, to Muhammad, the Messenger of Allah. To proceed: I have become a partner with you in this matter (prophethood), so half the earth (should) belong to us (Banu Haneefah) and half to the Quraish. But Quraish are people who exceed their bounds.” Two men brought this message to the Prophet. After they had read the message to the Prophet (peace be upon him), he asked them, <‘What do you say about this matter?’ They replied, ‘We agree with what is stated.’ The Prophet (peace be upon him) replied, ‘But, by Allah, if it were not for the fact that messengers should not be killed, I would have cut off your heads.’ The Prophet (peace be upon him) then sent a reply to Musaylimah, saying, ‘In the Name of Allah, the Most Merciful, the Most Compassionate. From Muhammad, the Messenger of Allah, to Musaylimah the Liar. Peace be on those who follow correct guidance. To proceed: The land belongs to Allah, Who gives it to whoever He wants of His slaves. And the best end is for those who fear Allah.’> This happened at the end of 10 A.H. [The Prophet’s Biography by Ibn Hesham]. Musaylimah the Liar kept causing trials with his false claims until he was killed in the Yamamah battle during the caliphate of Abu Bakr As-Siddeeq (may Allah be pleased with him). Wahshi, the one who had killed Hamza, killed Musaylimah to make up for having killed Hamza (before he embraced Islam). Wahshi understood this point as when he killed Musaylimah the Liar, he said, “I killed the best of people, i.e., the chief of the martyrs, Hamzah ibn Abdul-Muttalib, and killed the worst of people, Musaylimah the Liar” [Summarized from Muhammad, the Messenger of Allah by Argon].
