142 In fhi FootstepJ 0/ tht ProP~1\,,\fhen the Believers saw the Confederate forces, they said: "This is what
God and His 1Iessenger had promised us, and God and l-iis Messenger
told us what was true," And it only added to their faith aod their zeal in
obcilicncc.^24At the heart of the turmoil, the P rophet had been most upset at not
being able to perform the various prayers at their appointed times. T hat
consciousness of discipline in prayer never left the Messenger; he was
scrupulous about his daily religious worship. "Prayer is enjoined on be-
lievers at stated times.,,2:'i Neglecting the time o f a prayer had touched his
heart and bred deep resentment ab~inst th ose who had compelled him to
such a lapse. All his Companio ns had v,.;tnesscd, in all the circum stances
of his life, that seemingly surprising blend of infinite generosity of heart,
unambiguous determination in adversity, and strict management o f time.
At another time Ibn Abbas was to report seeing the Prophet join the two
afternoon prayers and the two evening prayers for no obvious reason, and
1 .fuslim scholars have recognized the lawfulness of such arrangements on
a jou rney or in an exceptional situation, but the reaching that remains, in
the light of the P rophet's life, is the need for striCt respect of prayer, which
is both a reminder of a privileged relationship with the One and the expe-
rience of that rdationship.26 T his is what the Q uran confirms when it tdls
o f God's ca\1 to lI.loses: "Verily, J am G od: there is no god but 1: so worship
Me [only], and establish regular prayer for My rem embrance.,,2 7
A TrickThe Muslims were in senous difficuJty, but as the days went by the
Confederates also found themselves in a difficult position, since they did
not have much food left and the nights were bitterly cold. The Prophet
tried to negotiate the defection of nvo Ghatafan clans by offering them a
third of Medina's date crop; they informed his envoy that they wanted
half, but the Prophet kept to his offer and they eventually accepted.
Before sending Uthman to seal the deal, the Prophet consulted the lead -
ers of the two main :Medina clans, the Aws and the Khazraj, becau se of
their knowledge of the neighboring clans. They asked whether his action
was the result of Revelation or personal choice. \X'hen they heard that it