Ghazwah of Buhran – Rabi‘ul-Awwal 3 A.H. — Seal of the Prophets Vol. 2
Introduction
In this discourse from The Life & Character of the Seal of the Prophets (Volume 2), Hazrat Mirza Bashir Ahmad (ra) details the historical events and scholarly insights surrounding Ghazwah of Buhran – Rabi‘ul-Awwal 3 A.H..
Book Series: The Life & Character of the Seal of the Prophets (Volume 2)
Author: Hazrat Mirza Bashir Ahmad (ra)
Section: VII – Commencement of War with the Tribes of Najd and the Jews, the Marriage of Hadrat Fatimah and Hafsah, and a Few Miscellaneous Incidents
Pages: Book pp. 294–296 (PDF pp. 318–320)
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Historical Account
The preparations underway for the two attacks to be made by the Banū Sulaim and Banū Ghaṭafān have already been described previously. It has also been mentioned as to how by the Grace of God, the instant and timely strategy of the Holy Prophetsa protected the Muslims from the evil of these blood-thirsty tribes. However, how can one in whose heart the fire of enmity burns sit at rest. Much time had not passed since the Ghazwah of Dhī ‘Amr, that is to say, in late Rabī‘ul-Awwal 3 A.H., the Holy Prophetsa received the horrific news that the Banū Sulaim were once again regrouping in a very large number at Buḥrān, with the intention of launching a sudden attack upon Madīnah, and that a party of the Quraish was also accompanying them. With no other choice, the Holy Prophetsa set out from Madīnah once again with a group of Companions. However, as was their habit, these wild beasts of Arabia, who lay in ambush to strike their prey suddenly and in a state of inattention, dispersed upon receiving news of the imminent arrival of the Holy Prophetsa. After a stay
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of a few days, the Holy Prophetsa returned.
The fact that the Banū Sulaim and Banū Ghaṭafān would gather again and again with the intention of launching a sudden attack upon Madīnah clearly demonstrated that these barbaric and warlike tribes of the Arabian desert were very deadly enemies of Islām. Day and night, they would remain preoccupied in order to find some opportunity by which the Muslims would be utterly destroyed. Just attempt to visualize the vulnerable state of the Muslims at the time, as to how their days were passing in that era. On the one hand, there were the Quraish of Makkah who had become blinded due to their enmity of Islām and due to their spirit of revenge for the Battle of Badr. Clinging to the drapes of the Ka‘bah, they took vows that they would not rest until the Muslims had been annihilated. On the other hand were these blood-thirsty wild beasts of the Arabian desert, who were restless to drink the blood of the Muslims due to their being incited by the Quraish and their own animosity towards Islām. As such, take note of how many times within the course of a few months after Badr, the Holy Prophetsa was compelled to travel personally in order to safeguard himself from the deadly motives of the barbaric tribes of Arabia. As Sir William Muir has described, these were days of scorching heat as well, and not to mention, this heat was of the Arabian desert. If it were not for the special succour of God, and if the vigilance of the Holy Prophetsa had not kept the Muslims constantly watchful and alert, and if the Holy Prophetsa had not employed strategies to scatter the force of the enemy prior to their launching a sudden attack at night, the Muslims would have surely been destroyed and ruined in those days; and these were only external threats. As far as internal threats were concerned, they were no less either. Even in Madīnah itself, there existed a group known as the hypocrites, who lived among the Muslims as their own, and it would definitely be no exaggeration to refer to them as a snake in the grass. In addition to them were the treacherous and habitual conspirators in the form of the Jewish people, whose enmity had reached the furthest limits in its depth and breadth. Goodness Gracious! What a time of adversity this was for the Muslims!! Let us hear it in their own words. Ubayy bin Ka‘b, a renowned Companion relates:
ُكَانُوْا لَا یَبِیْتُوْنَ اِلَّا بِالسِّ لَاحِ وَلَا یُصْ بِحُ وْنَ اِلَّا فِیْهِ فَقَالُوْا تَرَوْنَ اَنَّا نَعِیْشُ حَ تّٰی نَبِیْت
اٰمِنِیْنَ مُطْ مَئِنِّیْنَ لَا نَخَ افُ اِلَّا اللّٰهَ
Meaning, In that era, the state of the Companions was such that they would not even put off their arms at night and during the day they would walk around armed in case of a sudden attack. They would say to each other let us see if we live till such a time when we might be able to sleep in peace and security at night without any fear except the fear of God.”
[Lubābun-Nuqūli Fī Asbābin-Nuzūl, By Imām Jalāluddīn As-Suyūṭī, p. 174, Sūratun-Nūr, Verse No. 55, Dārul-Kutubil-‘Arabiyy, Lebanon, Beirut, First Edition (2003)]
What difficulty and helplessness, and what a longing for a life of peace and security is hidden in these words. Every just individual can measure this for himself.
Sariyyah of Zaid bin Ḥārithahra Towards Qaradah –
Jamādiyul-Ākhirah 3 A.H.
After the Muslims had become somewhat free from the attacks of the Banū Sulaim and Banū Ghaṭafān, they were compelled to go forth from their homeland to put down another threat. Until now, for their trade ventures in the north, the Quraish would generally travel to Syria from the coastal route of Ḥijāz. However, they had now abandoned this route, because as mentioned above, the tribes of this region had become allies of the Muslims; hence there was less prospect for the Quraish to spur mischief. As a matter of fact, in these circumstances, they began to consider this coastal route to be a threat for themselves. In any case, they had now abandoned this route and begun to travel from the route of Najd, which led to Iraq. The tribes of Sulaim and Ghaṭafān, who were allies of the Quraish and were deadly enemies of the Muslims inhabited the close proximity of this region. As such, in the month of Jamādiyul-Ākhirah, the Holy Prophetsa received intelligence that a trade caravan of the Quraish of Makkah was to pass by this route of Najd. It is obvious that if the movement of caravans belonging to the Quraish to and from the coastal region was a cause of threat for the Muslims, there passing by the route of Najd was equally, rather, even more dangerous. The reason being that unlike the coastal route, this new route was inhabited by allies of the Quraish, who like the Quraish, were thirsty for the blood of the Muslims. It was very easy for the Quraish to join forces with them and launch a sudden attack upon Madīnah
Book Series: The Life & Character of the Seal of the Prophets (Volume 2)
Section: VII – Commencement of War with the Tribes of Najd and the Jews, the Marriage of Hadrat Fatimah and Hafsah, and a Few Miscellaneous Incidents | Navigation: « Previous: [Marriage of Ummi Kulthum (ra) – Rabi‘ul-Awwal 3 A.H.] | Next: [Sariyyah of Zaid bin Harithah (ra) Towards Qaradah – Jamadiyul-Akhirah 3 A.H.] »