When the Quraish saw that the Muslims were leaving Makkah Mukarramah and were now residing in Madinah Munawwarah with peace and safety, then they held a counsel in which they decided to assassinate Rasulullah (sallallahu ‘alaihi wasallam) in order to prevent him from performing hijrah and establishing a secure base in Madinah Munawwarah. Before concluding their council, the decision was taken to assassinate Rasulullah (sallallahu ‘alaihi wasallam) that very night.
Thus, the time arrived for Rasulullah (sallallahu ‘alaihi wasallam) to perform hijrah, and Allah Ta‘ala granted him permission to leave for Madinah Munawwarah.
The Quraish feared that if one person assassinated Rasulullah (sallallahu ‘alaihi wasallam), then he would face retaliation from the family of Rasulullah (sallallahu ‘alaihi wasallam), the Banu Haashim. Thus, they decided that they would form a group of people, consisting of one member from each clan, and this group would collectively kill Rasulullah (sallallahu ‘alaihi wasallam). In this manner, the blame and responsibility would be shared between all the clans and the Banu Haashim would be powerless to retaliate.
That night, this group of disbelievers gathered outside the door of the home of Rasulullah (sallallahu ‘alaihi wasallam) and waited for him to emerge so that they could kill him. Hazrat Jibreel (‘alaihis salaam) came to Rasulullah (sallallahu ‘alaihi wasallam) and told him that he should not sleep in his bed that night. Hence, Rasulullah (sallallahu ‘alaihi wasallam) instructed Hazrat ‘Ali (radhiyallahu ‘anhu) to take his place in his house and sleep in his bed.
Rasulullah (sallallahu ‘alaihi wasallam) had a green shawl which he would generally wear when sleeping at night. He gave this green shawl to Hazrat ‘Ali (radhiyallahu ‘anhu) and instructed him to wear it. Rasulullah (sallallahu ‘alaihi wasallam) told him that while he was wearing the shawl, the disbelievers would not be able to harm him.
The reason for Rasulullah (sallallahu ‘alaihi wasallam) instructing Hazrat ‘Ali (radhiyallahu ‘anhu) to spend the night on his bed, wearing his green shawl, was so that when the Quraish peeped into the home, they would think that the person sleeping on the bed was Rasulullah (sallallahu ‘alaihi wasallam). In this manner, they would not realize that Rasulullah (sallallahu ‘alaihi wasallam) had actually departed, and Rasulullah (sallallahu ‘alaihi wasallam) would have a chance to get away from Makkah Mukarramah before they began to pursue him.
Furthermore, on account of the unparalleled honesty and trustworthiness of Rasulullah (sallallahu ‘alaihi wasallam), many people had entrusted him with amaanaat for safekeeping. Hence, Rasulullah (sallallahu ‘alaihi wasallam) instructed Hazrat ‘Ali (radhiyallahu ‘anhu) to first return all the amaanaat to the respective owners and thereafter perform hijrah and join him in Madinah Munawwarah.
(Usdul Ghaabah 3/285, Sharhuz Zurqaani 2/87-97, Rowdul Unf 2/306-309)
(To be continued)