Muhammad a Prophet For all Humanity
8. Rising above Events
~ 178 ~
Tribal chieftains had set up states in the inner
regions of the Arabian Peninsula, but they too
enjoyed no real independence. The overall
dominance of Rome and Persia meant that the only
way these chieftains could preserve some measure
of autonomy was by ruling as vassals for these
imperial powers. On the borders of Syria lay the
state of Ghasasina Arabiya subject to the Roman
Empire was ruled by Harith ibn Abi Shimr
Ghassani at the time of the Prophet Muhammad’s
mission. Then there was Busra which, besides being
under the political control of the Romans, had also
been subjected to Roman cultural influence, with
many of its inhabitants accepting Christianity.
On the Iraq border lay the state of Hirah ‘Arabiyah
which was subject to Iran. There were also several
states bordering the Persian Gulf, in which the
influence of their Persian neighbour was strongly
felt. Foremost among them was Bahrayn, ruled by
Mundhir ibn Sawa, where many of the inhabitants
had accepted the Zoroastrian religion. Two other
states to have come under Persian influence in this
way were ‘Amman, ruled by the two sons of
Jalandi—Jaifar and ‘Abd-and Yamamah, ruled by
