THE JOURNEY OF A LIFETIME WITH PROPHET MUHAMMAD THE PROPHET OF ALLAH 066 THE ENCOUNTER AT HUNAIN by Khadeijah A. Stephens Copyright © 1984-2012 by Allah.com Muhammad.com Mosque.com Khadeijah A. Stephens Bismillah Ir Rahman Ir Raheem The Encounter at Hunain Mecca had been opened and the days of Ramadan were now complete and the joyous congregation of Muslims were able to offer their thanksgiving at their beloved Ka’bah, it was indeed one of the happiest times they had ever experienced. The Hawazin Outside Mecca all was not well. The Hawazin were greatly alarmed when they learned of the destruction of the temple of Al-Uzza at Nakhlah, which was the sister shrine to their own idol of Al-Lat, and had amassed an army of twenty thousand in the valley of Awtas, just north of Ta'if. The tribes now joining forces with the Hawazin were those of Thakif from Ta'if, Nasr, Jusham and that of Sa'ad Bakr's son -- from which Halima, the foster mother of the Prophet (salla Allahu alihi wa sallam) hailed -- commanded by Malik from the tribe of Nasr who was in his own right a distinguished warrior. The Prophet (salla Allahu alihi wa sallam) was aware of the impending danger and called upon his army to rearm. Its numbers were swelled by a further two thousand from the Koraysh amongst whom were Suhayl and Safwan, neither of whom had as yet converted but wished to fight in defense of their property and City. The Prophet (salla Allahu alihi wa sallam) had been told that Safwan possessed a hundred coats of mail together with many kinds of weapons, so he asked whether he might borrow them. Safwan asked, "Muhammad, is it a case of give willingly or else I will seize?" "No," replied the Prophet (salla Allahu alihi wa sallam), "it is a loan to be returned." Safwan was satisfied, as he knew the Prophet (salla Allahu alihi wa sallam) to be a man of his word whereupon he added to the loan a sufficient number of camels to transport the armor and weapons. The Prophet (salla Allahu alihi wa sallam) had spent nineteen days in Mecca and it was now 10th Shawwal 8H and the concept of waiting for the Hawazin to march on Mecca was not a matter for consideration on account of the inevitable blood shed which would occur on sanctified ground, so, the order to prepare for the march was given. Before setting out on their campaign, the Prophet (salla Allahu alihi wa sallam) appointed a man from the tribe of Sham to take charge of Mecca in his absence and left Muadh, Jabal's son, who, despite his tender years, was very well versed in Islam, to teach the new converts. Meanwhile, Malik from the tribe of Hawazin chose to ignore the advice Duraid who was well versed in warfare and the elders of the hostile tribes. Malik commanded that not only should their forces march against the Prophet (salla Allahu alihi wa sallam), but that their women, children and livestock should follow at the rear so as to give their men-folk more reason to fight with all their might. The Scouts As the Prophet (salla Allahu alihi wa sallam) approached the enemy, Malik sent three scouts to assess the situation and bring him word. When the scouts returned Malik was greatly disturbed by their appearance. The scouts could scarcely speak and their limbs had become either dislocated or shook uncontrollably out of sheer terror. After a time one managed to speak with a voice that trembled saying, "We saw white men riding piebald horses, then, suddenly we were stricken like this!" Then another spoke in a voice equal to that of his companion saying, "We are not fighting against humans, but people from Heaven. It is our advice you withdraw; if you do not, as soon as the army see them they too will become like us!" Malik refused to pay attention to their warning and rebuked them sharply saying, "Shame upon you, you are the cowards of the army!" However, he ordered the men to be taken away out of the sight of the others so that the rest of the army would not and ask questions. Then, Malik turned to those around him and said, "Who amongst you is courageous?" A man stepped forward whereupon he was sent to assess the situation. A while later, the man returned in exactly the same condition as the three earlier scouts, and related the terrifying sight he had seen, but Malik was not to be deterred and once again refused to heed the man’s impassioned warning. The Valley of Hunain Ravines surround the valley of Hunain, some of which are large with wide entrances and from the top of these ravines it was easy to monitor the movement of the Prophet's army without the risk of being seen. Night had now fallen so Malik gave the command to march to the valley as he knew the Prophet (salla Allahu alihi wa sallam) and his army would have to pass through it. When Malik and his army reached the nearest part of the valley, which was where the road slopped down into the valley, he called for his army to halt. He then issued orders for his cavalry to conceal themselves and take up positions upon the top of the ravine and on its opposite slope, then, he told them that once he gave the signal they were to hurl rocks down upon the Prophet’s army and fight man-to-man and massacre his army. As for the remainder of Malik’s army they were commanded to take up their positions upon the road near the top of the pass. It was now the 20th Shawwal 8H and the Prophet (salla Allahu alihi wa sallam) and his army spent the night not far from the other end of the valley. Before dawn the following morning he and his men offered the dawn prayer then the Prophet (salla Allahu alihi wa sallam) spoke to them telling them that victory would be theirs if they were steadfast. As the light of dawn appeared the sky was overcast and so they were able to begin their descent through the valley under the cover of relative darkness. The Muslim army marched in a similar formation to the one it had taken before their entrance to Mecca with Khalid, the Sword of Islam, leading the tribe of Sulaym accompanied by some others. However, this time Khalid was followed by the new converts whilst the Prophet (salla Allahu alihi wa sallam) followed riding Duldul or a mule in the middle of the Muhajirin and Ansar accompanied by more family members than before. Amongst them were his cousins Abu Sufyan and Abdullah; his uncle Al-Abbas and his sons Fadl and Kitham; as well as the two sons of Abu Lahab. The rear of the army was brought up by those who had not yet converted to Islam. They had almost finished their descent when, in the half-light of the dawn, their gaze fell upon the resting army of the Hawazin positioned on the opposite side of the slope above which were their women, children and auxiliary mounts. Before the army could find a safe place from which they could defend themselves, Malik spotted them and gave the signal to attack. The attack came swiftly as the Hawazin emerged from all directions and swept down upon Khalid and his men before he had chance to summon the tribe of Sulaym to take a stand. Many of the Sulaym lay martyred on the battlefield whilst the survivors fled into the midst of the Koraysh causing them to scatter and seek safety upon the slope from which they had just descended. Chaos prevailed as camels and horses stampeded and blocked the narrow entrance, however, the Prophet (salla Allahu alihi wa sallam) was able to withdraw to his right and together with a small band of men took a firm, courageous stand. Amongst those who took the stand were his relatives, Omar, Abu Bakr, some of the Muhajirin and Ansar, and Abu Sufyan who stood at his side and held tightly to the reins of the Prophet’s mount whilst Al-Abbas, trying to restrain Duldul held tightly to the bridle. During the confusion the unconverted Koraysh were heard to mutter against the Prophet (salla Allahu alihi wa sallam) whereupon Safwan spoke harshly to them in defense of the Prophet (salla Allahu alihi wa sallam) saying, "If I must have some one over me, let it be a man from the Koraysh rather than a man from the Hawazin!" The Prophet (salla Allahu alihi wa sallam) called upon the others to rally around him but in all the upheaval his words were drowned by the noise as swords clashed, mounts stampeded, and the cries of war filled the air. Al-Abbas had an exceptionally loud voice and took up the call shouting to the Companions who had given their allegiance at Samurah: "Where are the Companions of Samurah!" The Ansar did likewise and the cry rang out, "O people of the Ansar, children of Harith!" There was an immediate response as their cries returned, "Labbayk! -- Obedient to you!" and those who had fled returned to stand alongside the Prophet (salla Allahu alihi wa sallam). Omar's son said, "I have never seen anyone more courageous, generous or more pleasing than the Messenger of Allah (salla Allahu alihi was sallam)." The Pebbles that Exalted Allah The fighting had reached its climax and the Prophet (salla Allahu alihi wa sallam) supplicated to Allah saying, "O Allah, I ask of You Your promise." Then he asked for some pebbles to be brought to him. The pebbles were gathered and given to the Prophet (salla Allahu alihi wa sallam) and as he held them in his blessed hands, the pebbles exalted Allah in human speech. As he threw them in the face of the enemy he said, "By the Lord of Muhammad, they will be defeated" and the ferocity abated as the unbelievers fled. This was yet another gift of Allah to His Prophet (salla Allahu alihi wa sallam). Shayba, Son of Othman Al-Juhani During the encounter at Badr, Hamza engaged and killed Othman Al-Juhani and his brother. From that time onward Shayba’s hatred for the Prophet (salla Allahu alihi wa sallam) knew no boundaries, his hatred was intense. Shayba was intent on revenge and the opportunity was soon to be realized as he crept up upon the Prophet (salla Allahu alihi wa sallam) with his sword in readiness to strike. However, before he could reach the Prophet (salla Allahu alihi wa sallam) a blazing flame, faster than lightening appeared before him and he turned to run. The Prophet (salla Allahu alihi wa sallam) was aware of the circumstances and called out to Shayba in a calming voice and ask him to come to him. Trembling, Shayba approached the Prophet (salla Allahu alihi wa sallam) whereupon the Prophet (salla Allahu alihi wa sallam) smiled and placed his hand upon his chest. When he removed his hand Shayba’s hatred had completely disappeared and the Prophet (salla Allahu alihi wa sallam) had become the most loved of all people to him. Then the Prophet (salla Allahu alihi wa sallam) spoke saying, “Draw near and fight.” Shayba plunged in to fighting and was heard to say, “If I had met my father, I would have engaged him in combat rather than the Prophet (salla Allahu alihi wa sallam).” Aidh Amr's Son Aidh Amr's son fought valiantly against the enemy and sustained a wound. He made his way to the Prophet (salla Allahu alihi was sallam) with blood dripping from his face. As soon as the Prophet (salla Allahu alihi was sallam) saw his condition, he had compassion upon him and wiped away the blood from his face and as he did he supplicated to Allah and Aidh recovered. From that time onward Aidh had a blaze on his head, similar to that of a horse. The Miracle of Hunain It was the turning point of the hostilities. Allah heard the supplication of His Prophet (salla Allahu alihi wa sallam) and sent invisible warriors against the enemy. It was a miraculous turn in the events. Malik continued to fight as best he could but was forced to retreat with part of the army from Thakif to their walled city of Ta'if. As for the majority of the Hawazin, they were forced to flee as far away as Nakhlah. Many had sustained heavy casualties whilst others returned to their camp at Awtas. When the Prophet (salla Allahu alihi wa sallam) learned of this he sent a detachment against them so that they were forced to flee to the surrounding hills. Victory belonged to the Muslims with very little loss of life on the Muslim side after the initial encounter. Amongst those who were martyred was Osama's elder brother, Ayman, who fell as he stood by the Prophet (salla Allahu alihi wa sallam). Concerning the Encounter of Hunain Allah sent down the verses: "Allah has helped you on many a battlefield. In the Battle of Hunain, when your numbers were pleasing you they availed you nothing; the earth, for all its vastness, seemed to close in upon you and you turned your backs and fled. Then, Allah caused His tranquility (sechina) to descend upon His Messenger and the believers; He sent legions you did not see and sternly punished the unbelievers. Such is the recompense of the unbelievers." Koran 9:25-26 As for the Hawazin women and children, they were taken captive. Amongst the spoils of war were very large flocks of sheep, herds of camels and goats as well as four thousand ounces of silver. These, the Prophet (salla Allahu alihi wa sallam) now placed in the capable hands of Masood son of Amr Al-Ghifari whom he instructed to take to Al-Ja’ranah, a valley some ten miles outside of Mecca. Shayma, Foster Sister of the Prophet Amongst those taken captive was Shayma whose mother was Halima the foster mother of the Prophet (salla Allahu alihi wa sallam) who asked to be taken to him. When she was asked why she wanted to see the Prophet (salla Allahu alihi wa sallam) she said that her name was Shayma, the foster-sister of the Prophet (salla Allahu alihi wa sallam). It had been a very long time since the Prophet (salla Allahu alihi wa sallam) had seen Shayma. At first he did not recognize her but when she introduced herself to him and recalled some childhood stories, he honored her and had a rug spread out and invited her to sit with him as he endearingly inquired about her family and said, “You are welcome and your request is granted, you will be given whatever you wish.” Shayma, replied, “I ask to intercede for my people.” The Prophet (salla Allahu alihi wa sallam) then said, “I am indebted to you as are the tribe of Hashim.” Whereupon he gave her all his share of the spoils of war gained during the encounter of Hunain. The Encounter at Hunain 066 Back Cover Subtitles The Hawazin The Scouts The Valley of Hunain The Pebbles that Exalted Allah Shayba, Son of Othman Al-Juhani Aidh Amr's Son The Miracle of Hunain Shayma, Foster Sister of the Prophet