ABSTRACT
Yaman, who was an Ethiopian and of the ChIistian religion, having built a magnificent church at Sanaa, with a design to draw the Arabs to go in pilgrimage thither, instead of visiting the temple of Makkah, the Quraish, observing the devotion and concourse of the pilgrims at the Kaabah began considerably to diruinish, sent one Nufail, as he is named by some, of the tribe of Kinanah, who, getting into the aforesaid church by night, defiled the altar and walls thereof with his excrements. At this profanation Abraba being highly incensed, vowed the destruction of the Kaabah, and accordingly set out against Makkah at the head of a considerable army, wherein were several elephants, which he had obtained of the king of Ethiopia, their number being, as some say, thirteen, though otbers mention but one. The Makkans, at the approach of' so considerable a host, retired to the neighbouring mountains, being unable to defend their Clty or temple; but God himself undertook the protection of both. For when Abraha drew near to Makkah, and would have entered it, the elephant on which he rode, which was a very large one, and named Mahmud, refused to sdvance any nigher to the town, but knelt down whenever they endeavoured to force him that way, though he would rise and march briskly enough if they turned him towards any other quarter: and while matters were in this posture, on a sudden a large flock of birds, like swallows, came flying from the sea-coast, every one of which carried three stones, one in each foot, and one in its bill ; and these stones they threw down upon the heads of Abraha's men, certainly killing every one they struck. Then Goil sent a flood, which swept the dead bodies, and some of those who had not been struck with the stones, into the sea: the rest fled towards Yaman, but perished by the way; none of them reaching Sanaa, except only Abraha himself, who died soon after his arrival there, being struck with a sort of plague or putrefaction, so that his body opened and his limbs rotted off by piecemea1. It is said that one of Abraha's army, named Abu YaqsUm, escaped over the Red Sea into Ethiopia, and going directly to the king-, told him the tragical story; and upon that prince's askinb him what sort of birds they were that had occasioned such a destruction, the man pointed to one of them, which had followed him all the way, and was at that time hovering directly over his head, when immediately the bird let fall the stone, and struck him dead at the king's feet."-Sale, Baidluiwi, Zllma~hshari, Jalalwldin. .
