Jihad (Struggle, effort, endeavour) - Part 4

[Guest guest]

('Jihad' - Struggle, effort, endeavour. [Muhammad Prophet For Our Time Glossary

pg. 217].)

 

 

Jihad - Part 3

 

(p.133) Unlike the Quraysh, the [Medan] Aws and Khazraj were practiced soldiers,

after years of tribal warfare in Yathrib [called 'Medina' after the hijrah or

migration]. (p.134) But even so, the odds were overwhelmingly against them and

all the Muslims hoped that they would not have to fight.

 

For two days, the two armies gazed bleakly at one another from opposite ends of

the valley. The Quraysh looked impressive in their white tunics and glittering

armor and despite Sa'd's stirring words, some of the Muslims wanted to retreat.

There was great fear in the camp. The Prophet tried to rouse their spirits. He

told them that in a dream God had promised to send a thousand angels to fight

alongside them. [11] But while the Quraysh were feasting and drinking, certain

that the Muslims would surrender, Muhammad was making practical preparations. He

lined up his troops in close formation and positioned his men by the wells,

depriving the Quraysh of water and forcing them, when the time came, to advance

uphill, fighting with the sun in their eyes. But when he looked at the huge

Meccan army, he wept. " O Allah, " he prayed, " If this band that is with me

perishes, there will be no one after me to worship You; all the believers will

abandon the true religion. " [12] He realized that this battle would be decisive.

If the Muslims allowed the Quraysh to force them back to Medina, the ummah

[community] would make no lasting impact on Arabia. Something of his determined

resolve must have been conveyed to his men. The Qur'an describes the great peace

that descended upon the soldiers at this frightening moment. There was a sudden

rainstorm, which seemed a good omen. [13]

 

Meanwhile the Quraysh [Muhammad's 'born' tribe] became more alarmed. The chiefs

had dispatched a spy to report on the enemy troops. (p.135) He was aghast to see

the grim resolution on the faces of the Muslims and begged the Quraysh not to

fight. He had " seen camels carrying Death--the camels of Yathrib laden with

certain death. " Not one of the Muslims would die before he had killed at least

one of the Meccans, and, the spy concluded despairingly, how could the Quraysh

live with themselves after that? They would constantly be looking into the face

of a neighbor who had killed one of their kinsfolk. But Abu Jahl [the most

virulent opponent of Muhammad] was beyond reason and accused him of cowardice--a

jibe that no Arab could ignore. He then turned to the brother of the man slain

by the Muslim raiders at Nakhlah [oasis S.E. of Mecca], who emitted a savage war

cry. Immediately, said Ibn Ishaq, " war was kindled and all was marred and the

folk held stubbornly to their evil course. " [14] The Quraysh began to advance

slowly over the sand dunes. Observing the command of the Qur'an, Muhammad

refused to strike first, and even after the battle commenced, he seemed

reluctant to unleash his men until Abu Bakr [his close and trusted friend] told

him to leave his prayers and engage his troops, because God would certainly give

them victory.

 

In the fierce skirmish that followed, the Quraysh soon found that they were

getting the worst of it. They fought with careless bravado, as though this was a

knightly tournament, and had no concerted strategy. But the Muslims did have a

disciplined plan. They began by bombarding the enemy with arrows, drawing their

swords for hand-to-hand combat only at the last minute. By midday, the Quraysh

had fled in disarray, leaving some fifty of their leading men, including Abu

Jahl himself, dead on the field. There were only fourteen Muslim casualties.

 

(p.136) Jubilantly, the Muslims began to round up the prisoners and draw their

swords. In tribal warfare, there was no quarter for the vanquished. Casualties

were mutilated and captives were either slain or tortured. Muhammad immediately

ordered his troops to desist. A revelation came down to ensure that the

prisoners of war must either be released or ransomed. [15] Even in war, Muslims

would abjure the savage customs of the past.

 

Muhammad (Prophet For Our Time)

Chapter 4, 'Jihad', p. 133-136

Karen Armstrong

Harper Perennial - London, New York, Toronto and Sydney

ISBN-13 978-0-00-723248-2

ISBN-10 0-00-723248-9

 

Notes:

 

[11] Qur'an 8:5-9

 

[12] Muhammad Ibn Jarir at-Tabari, 'Ta'rikh ar-Rasul wa'l Muluk', in Fatima

Mernissi, 'Women in Islam: An Historical and Theological Enquiry', trans. Mary

Jo Lakeland (Oxford, 1991), 90.

 

[13] Qur'an 8:8.

 

[14] Ibn Ishaq, 'Sirat Rasul Allah', 442, in Guillaume, 'Life of Muhammad'.

 

[15] Qur'an 47:5.