There was unrest amongst the unbelievers, the Jews and hypocrites of Medina for each concealed either their own tribal or racial grudge. When news that Abu Sufyan, and his caravan −− which included a member from each branch of the Koraysh tribe −− had set out on its return journey from Syria laden with merchandise, the Prophet (sa) called the Muslims together and informed them of his intent to attack so that the Muslims might have at least some of their former wealth restored to them. Shortly after this, the Prophet (sa) sent Talha and Sa'id, Zayd's son to reconnoiter the area near the coastal village of Hawra that lies approximately one hundred miles from Medina. At Hawra, Talha and Sa'id were met by the chief of Juhaynah who took them under his protection and concealed them in his home until Abu Sufyan's caravan has passed by.
THE CONSPIRACY OF THE UNBELIEVERS AND JEWS
Despite their alliance, the unbelievers and Jews of Medina conspired against the Prophet (sa) and sent word to Abu Sufyan informing him that he could expect to be attacked. Abu Sufyan was alarmed and hired Damdam, Amr Al Ghifari's son to hasten on to Mecca to rally the Koraysh to come out and join him in defense of the caravan as he feared the attack to be imminent.
NEW REACHES MECCA
Damdam did not spare his camel as he sped onto Mecca at break−neck pace. In order to draw immediate attention to the urgency of the matter when Damdam reached the valley of Mecca he severely mutilated his camel, slitting its ears and cutting of its nose, then he turned his saddle backwards, tore his shirt and screamed the news at the top of his voice as he entered the City. The alarm soon spread through every quarter of Mecca, for they knew the caravan was richly laden and also, each tribe had one of their own accompanying it. Abu Jahl immediately called the Koraysh chieftains, its warriors, and in fact all men able to fight, to prepare themselves and met him in the precincts of Ka'ba. Utba, Rabia's son was appointed their Commander−in−Chief, and the combined Koraysh army looked formidable. There were no less than nine−hundred and fifty armed soldiers, seven hundred camels and three horses with more than adequate provisions to feed themselves. The tribe of Adi, however, decided not to partake in the forthcoming hostilities and remained behind. Two other people also declined, they were Abu Lahab and Ummaya, Khalf's son. Abu Lahab told Al−As, Hisham's son, that if he were to go in his place he would release him from the substantial debt of the four thousand dirhams he owed him. Al−As accepted his offer as he had no other way in which to repay the debt. As for Ummaya, he was elderly and rather corpulent, so he decided not to go. However, his honor was challenged by Ukba, Abu Mu'ayt's son who sought him out near the Ka'ba with a vessel of burning scented wood and insulted him by saying, "Perfume yourself with this −− you belong with the women!" Outraged, Ummaya got up saying, "May Allah curse you and what you have brought!" and rode off to join the others who had already set off to engage the Prophet (sa). Meanwhile Abu Sufyan force−marched his caravan by day and night along the coastal route. As for the tribes closely related to the Prophet (sa) the tribes of Hashim and Muttalib, they too had reluctantly joined with the Koraysh. Talib took command of both tribes, whilst Abbas and Hakim, Lady Khadijah's nephew from the tribe of Asad accompanied them. Before leaving Abbas took his wife, Umm Fadl to one−side and told her how he wished his wealth to be distributed in the event of his death and named Abdullah, Kutham, and Ubaydullah as his heirs.
THE FIRST STAGE OF THE PROPHET'S MARCH
The Prophet (sa) decided not to wait for Talha and Sa'id to return, but to press on, and appointed two standard bearers, one from the Ansar and the other from the Muhajir. On 12th Ramadan, with the exception of eight Muslims, who for valid reasons remained in Medina, the Prophet (sa) together with 311 Muhajirs and Ansars set off in search of Abu Sufyan's caravan. The army was ill equipped and provisions less than adequate due to their circumstances but they trusted Allah and His Prophet (sa) so their spirits were high. Between them they had but seventy−two mounts −− seventy camels and two horses −− which they took turns to ride, sometimes they rode two or three at a time. Among those that remained behind was Othman, husband of the Prophet's daughter, Lady Rukiyyah. Lady Rukiyyah had been taken seriously so compassionately the Prophet (sa) told Othman that he should remain at her side. In his absence he appointed Amru, Ummu Makhtum's son to act as their leader as the hypocrites and Jews could no longer be trusted to remain loyal.
UMAIR, THE SON OF ABI WAKKAS
A mile or so outside Medina, the Prophet (sa) called his army to a halt and discovered that in their anxiousness to support him, several youngsters had joined them. Out of kindness he told them they must return as it was no place for boys so young. Amongst them was a boy named Umair, Abi Wakas's son who cried inconsolably when he was told to return, and so the Prophet (sa) took pity on him and allowed him to accompany them. Umair stopped his crying and a great big smile spread over his face as his elder brother, Sa'ad, hung a sword around his neck.
TWO TRIESMEN FROM JUHAYNAH
The Prophet (sa) gave the order to proceed and so they continued their march southward and then turned towards Badr that lay further down the coast from Hawra. The Prophet's intention was to reach Badr before Abu Sufyan and intercept him there. In the meantime, he sent two of his allies from the Bedouin tribe of Juhaynah, who were familiar with the area, to look for the caravan and bring news whilst he and his small army rested. Just outside Badr lies a water−well at the foot of a hill. Upon reaching the hill, the tribesmen of Juhaynah went down to replenish their water supply and let their camels drink. At the well two girls were talking as they drew water, one girl was overheard saying to the other: "The caravan will arrive either tomorrow or the next day. I will work for them so that I can repay the money I owe to you." It was the news they had been hoping for, so they hastened back to the Prophet's camp to tell him.
ABU SUFYAN AT THE WELL OF BADR
The quickest route to Mecca lay through Badr so Abu Sufyan rode on in advance of the caravan to make sure that it was safe for it to proceed in that direction. He reached the well only a short time after the scouts had left and came across a man from the village who had come to draw water. Abu Sufyan asked if he had seen any strangers recently whereupon the villager told him that the only strangers he had seen were two men who had come over the hill and stopped to draw some water. Abu Sufyan was always on the alert for any signs and furtively glanced around for some camel's dung. He retraced the camel's hoof prints up the hill and found what he was searching for and examined it quickly. As he broke the dung in half his heart started to pound as he saw some date stones and undigested date fiber then cried out: "By Allah, its the food of Yathrib!" His worst fear was confirmed. He knew the Prophet's army could not be far away whereupon he returned with great haste to this caravan camped further up the coast.
THE RETURN OF THE SCOUTS
By now the scouts of Juhaynah had returned to the Prophet (sa) and told him that the caravan's arrival was imminent at Badr. It was good news for they thought themselves to have the upper hand and would be able to overcome them in a surprise attack.
THE RESOLVE OF THE MUHJAIR AND ANSAR
Hopes were high when news arrived that a large army of Koraysh had set out from Mecca to support Abu Sufyan. The Prophet (sa) wasted no time and called the Muhajir and Ansar together to tell them the news. Abu Bakr and Omar represented the Muhajir and Omar acted as their spokesman. Omar told the Prophet (sa) that they were of one voice −− they should advance. Then, one of the latest migrants, Mikdad, from the tribe of Zuhra got up and spoke saying, "O Messenger of Allah, do what Allah has directed. We will not be like the Children of Israel who said to Moses: Go with your Lord and fight, we shall wait here. Rather, we say, 'Go with your Lord and fight, we will fight with you to the right and to the left, in front and behind!'" When the Prophet (sa) heard these faithful words, his face shone knowing well the strength of the Muhajir's faith. Then, Sa'ad. Mu'adh's son of the Ansar stood up and said, "O Messenger of Allah, we believe you and we believe what you have brought us. We bear witness that what you have brought is the truth. We have given you our oath to hear and obey. Do whatsoever you wish, we are with you. By Him who sent you with the truth, if you ask us to cross the sea and plunged yourself into it, we would do the same −− no man amongst us would not do so. We are not against meeting our enemy tomorrow, we have fought before and are to relied upon. Allah willing, our courage will bring coolness to your eyes, so lead us with the blessing of Allah!" There was great rejoicing, the Ansars and Muhajirs were united in their resolve, yet only a matter of a few years prior to this, such unification would have been absolutely unthinkable. The Prophet (sa) was greatly pleased by their united response and told them to be of good heart, because Allah, the Most High had promised him success over one of the two parties, and that even as he spoke it was as if he could see their enemy lying prostrate. The Prophet (sa) together with his small army of companions marched on toward Badr. Less than a day's march away, the Prophet (sa) called for a halt and he and Abu Bakr rode on for a while until they came across an elderly Bedouin. Abu Bakr asked the Bedouin if he had any news, but the Bedouin was cunning and asked to which party they belonged; that of Muhammad, or that of the Koraysh. Abu Bakr told the man that if he told him the whereabouts of each party he would tell him where they were from. The old Bedouin knew well the paths of the desert and told him that in his opinion as Muhammad's party had left Yathrib on 12th Ramadan, they should by now have reached such and such a place −− his estimation was correct −− and that the Koraysh should be very near the place in which they were standing. Then the man asked Abu Bakr where he and his companion were from, Abu Bakr could not afford to trust this wily old Bedouin, so he replied with a clever conundrum saying that they were from "Ma", which is Arabic for water, as man is created from water. The Bedouin was satisfied with his answer and supposed he referred to Iraq on account of its two rivers. Prophet Muhammad (sa) and Abu Bakr returned to their camp and when night fell, the Prophet (sa) sent for Ali, Zubair, and Sa'ad together with their companions and told them to go to the well and see if anyone there had news of their enemies, or if they had drawn water from the well.\
THE FIRST PRISONERS
When they reached the well, they found two men from the Koraysh filling their containers with water and loading them onto the backs of their camels. One of the men was a slave belonging to the children of Al Hajjaj, the other was Arid Abu Yasar, from the children of Al−As. Stealthily, Ali, Zubair, Sa'ad and the others overcame them and took them back to the Prophet (sa) as prisoners. When they reached the camp, the Prophet (sa) was occupied in his prayer so a crowd gathered around the prisoners and started questioning them. The prisoners told them that they were only Koraysh water−men, whereupon their inquisitors started to beat them hoping that they had lied and were from the caravan. It became clear to the water−men that their captors wanted to hear them say that they were Abu Sufyan's men so the retracted their first claim and told them what they wanted to hear. After the Prophet (sa) concluded his prayer, he came out and told his companions that they should not have treated their prisoners in that way, and informed them that their prisoners were indeed from the Koraysh and not from Abu Sufyan. When the Prophet (sa) asked them where the Koraysh were camped they told him, without coercion, pointing to the hill of Akankal, that their camp lay on its slopes on the other side. He asked the size of the army, but the men were unable to estimate its number but said there were many. Wisely, the Prophet (sa) then asked how many camels were slaughtered each day to feed them and was told nine or maybe ten. From this the Prophet (sa) was able to deduce their numbers must be within the range of nine−hundred to a thousand. Then he asked the prisoners for the names of their leaders and learned that the brothers Utba and Shayba were amongst them together with Abu Jahl, Abu'l Bakhtari, Hakim, Nawfal, Al Harith, son of Amir, Tu'mauma, Al Nadr, Zama'a, Ummaya, Nabih, Munabbih, Suhail, and Amr Abu Wudd's son. The Prophet (sa) then turned to his followers and said, "Mecca has thrown to you pieces of its liver!" And from this they understood that they would fight against the chief enemies of Islam.
A FEELING OF SAFETY
After Abu Sufyan had discovered date stones in the camel's dung he decided to take the longer coastal route to Mecca felling confident that he had escaped the attack. He now felt a sense of security and sent word to his fellow chieftains saying, "You came out to save your caravan, your tribesmen and your merchandise, but Allah has delivered us, therefore return." Strange as it may seem, despite all the idols worshipped in Ka'ba, the Koraysh preferred to swear by Allah even though they thought Him to be too remote to worship directly. When Abu Jahl heard these words he rallied his men saying, "By Allah, we will not return until we have been to Badr! We will spend three days there feasting, slaughtering camels, drinking wine and the girls will play for us. When the other Arab tribes hear of us they will from hence forth hold us high in their esteem −− come on!"
\
TALIB, AL AKHNAS AND THE TRIBE OF ZUHRA
When Al Akhnas, Sharik's son, an ally of the tribe of Zuhra heard Abu Jahl's intent, he said to his allies, "Allah has saved you, your property and your tribesmen, Makhrama, Nawfal's son, your only reason for coming was to protect them, should you be charged with cowardice blame it on me! There is no point going to war with this man without profit as Abu Jahl would have us do!" The tribe of Zuhra heeded Al Akhnas's words and together they returned to Mecca. Talib, the son of Abu Talib, and uncle of the Prophet (sa) had reluctantly ridden out with the Koraysh hating the thought of fighting against his nephew so he had supplicated, "O Allah, it is not my desire to join the Koraysh in their way, but if it should be, let me be plundered and not the plunderer, and be the conquered and not the conqueror." Some of the Koraysh realized what was in Talib's heart and informed him that they knew, so he and some others with similar feelings also returned to Mecca.
THE WELLS OF YALYAL
The Prophet (sa) ordered his followers to break camp and march on to the well near Badr before their enemy had chance to reach it. As they commenced their march rain began to fall and they gave thanks to Allah because it is both a blessing and purification. The sands of Yalyal were always soft, but the rain now made them firm and so the Muslims crossed the valley in comparative ease. The rain helped the Muslims, however, it was a hindrance to the Koraysh army for they had to climb the hill of Akankal that lay to the left of the Prophet (sa) and his companions on the opposite side of the valley of Badr. When the Prophet (sa) reached one of the many wells he called a halt. Hubab, Al Mundhir's son, an Ansar, approached and asked, "O Messenger of Allah, is this the place which Allah has made known to you from which we should neither advance nor retreat, or is it a matter of opinion; a strategy of war?" The Prophet (sa) replied that it was a matter of opinion whereupon Hubab said that in his opinion it was not the best place to establish themselves. He advised the Prophet (sa) that it would be much better to march on to one of the larger wells, closer to the Koraysh, and that once they had situated themselves, to send groups out to locate the remaining wells and plug them so that the Koraysh would be deprived of water. He also advised that a reservoir should be dug to contain water from the well. The Prophet (sa) was grateful for his suggestion and approved the plan, and so when they reached a larger well no time was lost carrying out Hubbub's plan. Sa’ad, Mu'adh's son was concerned for the Prophet's safety so he went to him saying, "O Messenger of Allah, let us erect a shelter for you and keep your camels in readiness next to it. If Allah gives us strength when we meet the enemy we will be victorious, but if it is not written, you can ride and rejoin those we left behind. They love you as much as we do and would never have remained behind if they had known there was going to be an encounter. Allah will protect you, and they will give you good advice and fight at your side." The Prophet (sa) thanked him for his thoughtfulness, praised him and then supplicated for blessings upon him and so a shelter was built from palm branches.
HOURS BEFORE THE ENCOUNTER
It was the night of Friday, 17th of Ramadan and as the three hundred and thirteen believers settled themselves for the night, Allah in His Mercy sent down upon them a blessed, peaceful sleep so that when they awoke to offer their prayer in the morning they felt totally refreshed and prepared for conflict. Meanwhile in the other camp, the Koraysh army with their large, well equipped army stirred and struggled as made their way with their camels to the top of Akankal. By the time the Koraysh reached the top of the hill the sun had already risen and they were visible to the Prophet (sa). Upon seeing the army, the Prophet (sa) supplicated saying, "O Allah, the Koraysh are here. In arrogance and pride they come, opposing You and belieing your Messenger. O Lord, give to us Your help which You have promised. O Lord, destroy them this day." Not long after, the Prophet (sa) chanced to see Utba, Rabia's son, riding a red camel and said to his companions, "If there is any good at all with any one of them, it will be with this man riding the red camel. If they obey him they will take the right path." The Koraysh also had sight of the believers and were surprised to find they were so few and thought perhaps there may be another force concealed somewhere to the rear. When they reached the valley the Koraysh made their camp and sent Umair on horseback to estimate their numbers and see if there were in fact any concealed reinforcements. When Umair returned he proclaimed, "O men of Koraysh, I have seen camels carrying death. These men have no defense or refuge, they have only their swords, but I do not think any man of them will be killed before he has first killed one of us. Even if each party were to kill the other in equal numbers what good will there be left in life after this, what will you do!" Upon hearing Umair, Hakim, from the tribe of Asad, nephew of Lady Khadijah went straight to Utba, the father of Waleed with the men of Abdu Shams. Utba had consented to join the Koraysh against the believers on account of his dead kinsmen, the brother of Amir Al Hadrami, killed at Nakhlah during the Sacred Month. When Hakim found Utba he said. "You are the greatest man, the lord of the Koraysh, and one who is obeyed. Would you like men to remember you with praise for all time?" Utba asked, "How could this be?" "Lead them back, the Koraysh demand nothing more than blood from Muhammad for the blood of your ally, Hadrami,' replied Hakim. Hakim's words appealed to Utba and he agreed whilst encouraging him also to speak with Abu Jahl but he had for many years opposed the Prophet (sa) and was the most anxious among them to wage war against him. Utba spoke to his people saying, "O men of Koraysh, there is nothing to gain fighting Muhammad and his companions. If you defeat them each man among you will always look with despise at another who has killed either his uncle, a cousin or kinsmen. Therefore, turn back and leave Muhammad to the rest of the Arabs. If they kill him you have your desire, on the other hand, if they do not you will have shown self−restraint towards him." When Hakim found Abu Jahl he was oiling his coat of mail and conveyed the message to him. Abu Jahl was infuriated and addressed the army saying, "By Allah, we will not turn back until it is decided between us and Muhammad." Then he called Utba a coward, afraid of death for himself and his son Abu Hudhayfah who was a Muslim. To add fuel to the fire Abu Jahl called upon Amir, the brother of the deceased Amr and challenged him not to let this opportunity to revenge his brother's death slip from him. Emotions ran high and Amir in a state of traditional distress tore his clothes as he screamed at the top of his voice, "Woe for Amr, woe for Amr," which incited the army still further to fight. Utba's words had fallen on deaf ears, nothing would stop them now. When he heard that Abu Jahl had accused him of cowardice his pride was challenged, so he searched for a helmet to prove him wrong, but was unable to find one large enough, so he wound a piece of cloth around his head to protect him −− the final preparations for the conflict were now underway.
ABDULLAH, SON OF UMMAYA JOINS THE PROPHET (sa)
Abdullah, Ummaya's son, was a Muslim, However, his father, the chief of the tribe of Jummah, torturer of Bilal, had brought pressure to bear upon his son that prevented him from joining the Prophet (sa), and his brothers−in−law, Abu Sabra and Abu Hudhayfah in Medina. Ummaya had forced his son to join him the march, however, the opportunity to escape to the Prophet (sa) was soon to present itself as his father, and every other soldier were busy with their preparations for the hostilities. Unnoticed, Abdullah managed to slip away and made his way to the camp of the Prophet (sa). As soon as he reached it he made straight for the Prophet (sa) and as they greeted each other immense joy spread over both their faces. Sometime later, several other Koraysh tribesmen dared to make their way to the reservoir the believers had made and drink from it. When the believers saw this they drew the matter to the attention of the Prophet (sa) who told them to let them take their fill. With the exception of Hakim, Lady Khadijah's nephew, all who drank its water were killed in conflict that day.
0 comments:
Post a Comment