Najashi

Ethiopian ruler of the Kingdom of Aksum

For the Twelver Shi'ite rijāl scholar (c. 982–1058), see Ahmad ibn Ali al-Najashi.

Nagasi

Negus

1314 manuscript illustration by Rashid ad-Din.

King of Aksum
Reign| 614–630
Predecessor| Israel or Ioel (unsure)
Successor| 'Akla Wedem (unsure)

Born| Ashama[1][2]
Around 560 C.E.[citation needed]
Kingdom of Axum
Died| 630(630-00-00) (aged 69–70)[2]
Negash, Kingdom of Axum
(present-day Ethiopia)
Father| Abjar
Religion| Islam

Aṣ-ḥamah also spelt as Aṣ-ḥama (Tigrinya: ንጉስ, Arabic: أَصْحَمَة), was the Negus (Arabic: ٱلنَّجَاشِيّ, romanized: An-Najāshī) ruler of the Kingdom of Aksum who reigned from 614–630 C.E..[1] It is agreed by Muslim scholars that Najashi gave shelter to Muslim emigrants from Mecca, around 615–616 at Axum.[3][4]

## Reign

[edit]

The Najashi reigned for almost 17 years from 614–630 CE.[citation needed] Nothing much is known about his personal life and reign[2] rather than during his reign, Muslims migrated to Abyssinia and met the Najashi. According to a story recorded by the Muslim biographer Ibn Ishaq (c. 704–767), Muhammad's cousin, Ja'far ibn Abi Talib, told Najashi about the persecution they had faced at the hands of the Arab tribe of Quraysh. Najashi asked if they had with them anything which had come from God. Ja'far then recited a passage from Surat Maryam in the Quran, regarding Jesus in Islam and Maryam. When the Najashi heard it, he wept and exclaimed:

> Verily, this (Quran) and what Isa brought (Gospel) has come from the same source of light.

> — Najashi

According to Ibn Ishaq, Najashi then affirmed that he would never give up the Muslims. In fact, he converted to Islam before he went out to the Abyssinians who accused him of abandoning the state religion/their beliefs. He then asked what their beliefs were. Once they explained the Christian doctrine to him, he replied:[4]

> This is exactly what I believe.

> — Negus

The Negus put his hand upon a parchment which was on his breast when he gave that reply. The parchment affirmed Allah's oneness and that Jesus was merely a slave of Allah and a Prophet. The Abyssinians were content and went away.

He died in 630 CE. Some Muslim sources indicate that the Islamic prophet Muhammad prayed an absentee funeral prayer[5] (Arabic: صَلَاة الْغَائِب‎, romanized: Ṣalāt al-Ġāʾib) in Al-Baqi Cemetery, Madinah[2] which is performed upon a dead Muslim if they die in a place with no Muslims to pray for the dead.[6]

## See also

[edit]

* Armah
* Saifu
* List of mosques in Africa
* Al Nejashi Mosque in Negash, Ethiopia
* Mosque of the Companions in Massawa, Eritrea

## References

[edit]

1. ^ a b al-Bukhari 2013, pp. 174, 179.
2. ^ a b c d Öztürk 2006, pp. 476–477.
3. ^ M. Elfasi; Ivan Hrbek (1988). Africa from the Seventh to the Eleventh Century. UNESCO. p. 560\. ISBN 978-9-2310-1709-4.
4. ^ a b Ibn Ishāq (2004). Sīratu Rasūlillāh. Oxford University Press. pp. 150–153.
5. ^ Sahih Muslim, Chapter 11:The Book of Prayer - Funerals, No.951-953.
6. ^ al-Bukhari 2013, p. 179.

## Sources

[edit]

* al-Bukhari, Imam (2013). Sahih al-Bukhari: The Early Years of Islam》Chapter:THE BEGINNINGS OF ISLAM; Section:XIV THE DEATH OF THE NEGUS. Translated by Muhammad Asad. The Other Press. pp. 174, 179. ISBN 978-967-506-298-8. Retrieved 21 August 2020.
* Öztürk, Levent (2006). "NECÂŞÎ ASHAME". TDV Encyclopedia of Islam, Vol. 32 (el-Münci̇d – Nasi̇h) (in Turkish). Istanbul: Turkiye Diyanet Foundation, Centre for Islamic Studies. pp. 476–477. ISBN 978-975-389-454-8.

## Further reading

[edit]

* Atkins, Brian; Juel-Jensen, Bent (1988). "The Gold Coinage of Aksum: Further Analyses of Specific Gravity, A Contribution to Chronology". Numismatic Chronicle (148).
* Hussein Ahmed, "Aksum In Muslim Historical Traditions", Journal of Ethiopian Studies, 29 (1996), pp. 47–66
* W. Raven, "Some early Islamic texts on the negus of Abyssinia", Journal of Semitic Studies, 22 (1988), pp. 197–218

*[c.]: circa