This document provides information about a book titled "The Glorious Caliphate" including the author, publisher, printer, edition details, price, and distributors. It discusses the succession after the death of the Prophet Muhammad and the reigns of the first four caliphs - Abu Bakr, Umar, Uthman, and Ali. It aims to present an unbiased account of their leadership and the establishment of Islam in Arabia and surrounding regions during their caliphates. The introduction emphasizes the need to examine this history with impartiality and avoid prejudice or excessive praise/criticism of the individual caliphs.

2. By
^thar Husain
Publisher
Zia-ul-Quran Publications
Lahore, Karachi- Pakistan

3. All»M^ese"ed
Title
Author
Publisher
Printer
Code
Edition
Price
.• TheGlorious Caliphate
: Athar Husain
:Zia-ul-Quran Publications, Lahore.
:Jamal-ul-Quran Printers, Lahore.
: 1E41
:June2002
: Rs. 225/-
Distributors
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Ph:-+92-42-7221953 Fax:- 7238010
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Tel:- 0115-911 7222 Fax:- 0115-911 7220
LIFE AND
'■%eve^-7flS'affl
Advent ofthe P"*'
Prophet’s illness succ<
Election of Abu Bakr
2, Abu Bakr
Early life
Physcial features
Conversion to Islam
Loyalty and Devotion to the Faith
Hijarat to Abyssinia
Migration to Madinah
The new Chapter of Islam
Battle ofBadr
Battle ofUhad
Battle of Trenches
Treaty of al-Hudebiya
Expedition to Khaibar
QthPr PYnprlifirxi-m J <-L _ F» , . 1 -r »
Expedition to Tabouk
3. Commencement of the Caliphate
Abu Bakr’s Inaugural Address
'n’™on throughout Arabia
Attack on Madinah
ibB!?*» andZubian
®*ofYei aSeXPe*»"
Ca“Pai«n »fBahrain
^'WofOman
:essor
21
23
25
26
29
29
30
30
31
33
34
35
35
36
36
37
expedition to Khaibar 37
Other expeditions and the Battle of Hunain 37
38
39
39
39
42
42
43
43
44
45
46

4. _,in YeniW
"'ar""h,R’",buBakr
pilgnniagei
Hisillness
< Personal life
4’P Modeofh'^
Disposit'on de
His integrity a"0
His generosity
Family life
Sense ofJustice and Fairpl y
Literal}' acumen ,
Compilation ofthe Qur an
Conclusion
46
47
47
52
57
57
61
61
62
63
63
63
64
64
65
66
67
67
69
141 . ,
‘Umar's conversion to Islam
Early life
FromHijratto Khalifat
Accession to the Caliphate
Rebellion in the Muslim occupied territory
ofIraq
Battle ofBowaib
Changes at the Persain court
The Battle of Cadesiya
The Is1 day called Arwath
The second day called Aghwath
The third dad called Ghimas
69
70
72
74
75
77
78
79
81
82
82
The night ofClangour
Preoccupation of Hira and Capture of
Madinah
The siege of Damascus
Battle ofFahl
83
85
86
87
■ n in
CamPalg • Palestine
Ca"’£ andons syr'a
K2"fMes°r""a
Conquest ofEgyP
War’s assassination
b The Battles in Retrospect
7. personal lift
Humility
His solicitude for others
Fear of God
Equality
Toleration
Soundness ofjudgement
Other traits
Recitude
8. ‘Uthman
Early Life
Participation in battles
Accession to the Caliphate
Declaration of State Policy
Military conquests
Byzantine Sector
Abi Sa^1011 °f Amr bm 31'Aas
^contentment in other sectors
Discontent and sedition
^ses of discontent
91 Personal lif^011 attack uPon Madinah
Simplicity
94
95
98
99
100
103
106
110
111
112
113
114
114
115
116
117
118
118
120
122
125
127
128
128
132
133
136
146
154

5. s
173
173
175
177
180
182
182
183
184
185
186
187
187
187
Sjstem ofGovernment
Khilafat-e-Rashida
Election ofAbu Bakr
^cession of‘Umar
^onof‘Uthman
,C|'11 Administration
Fortitude and piitie,RI'
pear ofGod
Religious life
l(’'’Al,RattleofBadr
XagewithFauma
Battle ofUhad
Gazua-e-Ahzab
Battle ofKhaibar
n. Accession to Caliphate
Rebellion at Basra
Battle ofSiffin Th?nrratic
Emergence ofKharejites or Theocratic
Faction
t Decision ofthe Umpires
F Sedition ofKharejites
Trouble in Egypt
Assassination of ‘Ali
12. Personal Life
Austerity and simplicity
Generosity
Valour and Courage
Treatment with Enemies
Justice
Learning
Religious life
Appearance
Part II
as°SIMt,on and performs
191
212
212
215
217
221
9
| paries of®>tVofOtficials
''^’"""council
15. Eww®''Opportunity
‘Ushr or tithe
Kharaj or Land tax
Jizyah or Poll tax
ofSawainr of Flocks and Herd
The spoils of war
Mines
Assessment of Kharaj
‘Ushr
Ushore or duty on imported goods
16. Judicial System
Institution of Muftis
General Administration and Police
17. Public Works
Canal Abi Musa
Canal Ma’akal
Canal Sa;ad
Canal Amirul Mominin
Buildings
Religious buildings
Military buildings
office buildi„gs
Outposts
Jound>ng ofcities
Fustat
is m Mosul
'“"^System
Ma«le A„.ay
221
222
224
226
230
230
236
236
237
239
241
245
245
246
248
252
253
259
263
265
266
266
266
266
266
267
267
268
268
268
269
269
270
270
271
272

6. 10
Recruitment ofsoldiers 272
WeaponsofMar 273
Armsand equipment 273
Participation in Bam by Women 274
Instructions to Commanders 274
IntelligenceandSpying 281
19. Summing up 284
Bibliography 29j

7. «o^'oN the ^erC1
thebeneV°lent
thena^e°f Alla1" f the °d
ln eudyot , life afld
:°Pe 1 nnoiotment aS
^ofh' ^,ve endeavour
and reform* worW and
to bring aboun confmed
me nted to esta ’ ^rabia. The
.............. -
words: nnVind’ Lol I am the
,.Say (0 MrJra'nmadV ° m he messenger of)
He quickeneth and He giveth death. (Vll. lb«)
It also announced from beforehand the fruition of
his Call and completion of his Apostolic work and
predicted its triumph to emphasize that his struggle was not
a mere flash in the midst of encircling gloom but a lamp
which was, ultimately, to illumine the whole world. The
Qur’an left no one in doubt that the sacred faith proclaimed
- ” 'he "ear f",Ure’ ~e aU “Us
-uch the’disWie^^ Perfect His
crs are averse. He

8. lask and enable
1 «"h d*e
nlth lha« Hc niay g,vc
much the
JZ-* ’
*‘*B**’* truths and unambiguous
Mindlessness of the
and space, it.s
■*•■*•"* al1 >’|hcT n1Cn a'ld CarI,Cr
I** framed a fixed and limited
Af***- * m dXri. I ita *e rest of mankind
— on of the natural law of
s< eu- •
» but a messenger, messengers (the
. , pdxsCd assay before him. Will it
tr ttaL *ha he dteth of is slam, you will turn back
Oh-144)
Tbou will die. and Io! They will die.”
XXXIX30)
b ; propositions are so clear and emphatic that
k oik rcjr.es in the Qur‘5n and claims to be a
Mus r ae ... them :n question. The Prophet's mission
*» no: it enc mt* hi< fife; it must go on, without an
iniOTpxfc. aha tin death
at *.* * •dWawwn fact that when the Prophet
Jk world Islam had not spread even over the
u., . ' •-"■■■. a part of the
10 lhe «“ lra"ia"
8.”»« E«prc » the prov,nces °f lhe
apponaw,h for the dr^i sam YeI to find an
........- - 7^'?/ J huge 'Active and
moral, cultural,
fdl then an extensive
, verify the ""'Afferent
peoples an .nd admm151”"', Arabia which co F'
circumstance5 a" confin»of*" ide world was still
aTcTcky01^ tbe Of
indulgence of noblemen, hypocr y other
the monopolists of fait 1 an * Man ^ad
LiMiJs) Nowhere was the spirit of man tree w
no opportunity to work out his destiny. Knowledge an
learning were confined to exclusive classes. Humanity had
just heard the tidings of deliverance from idolatory,
polytheism and superstition, and of freedom from the
eternal servitude of fellowmen. It had only seen a glimpse
of the bondage and worship of One God and of success and
felicity in both the worlds. The experiment of the creed of
monotheism and human dignity had been made only in a
SS2^tof,heProphe,,sdea,harrived
« and enable mo”’’‘° ahead his
blessing he had brought to th >men ° Partake of the
?ey k"e« him m L 'Sphere5 of his X had been
......
lan> than
N

9. . honourable and
lnshort.no
V',b< „ the Prophet s
mde towards them
l%s>^’wbc,te,"y
b.htv Then, again.
'^nS'ha! followed, the
^fe’ made by his
conque ■ wonderful
oft* preaching
' --J, and asceticism.
' -7.' <** ' Xe and self-denial,
■'?. ■ :x .....i,h<
_. with unrelenting
: ’X-spons,^
»«d ettccW
• empire.
' , . ..... . .nMAMMM-
„.K>«iei» occupy (as roreordamed
office arc known a, KIu<II<h-RiM<<
m Caliphs) «i the Islamic usage. Hie
.... ties the fulfilment of the religious
tefonunve zi— — . a
£>.■ •. ■• ■ - ■- <■ '-■ ■' n-uaiu ... ..... —- .
.^.. . ... ;'.!1V prophet himself, a miracle
w I
nuii.i £IMJ
per.s*-.- auc tme lokjut and to remove misunder-
suncitiii.' :< c : a distinct service to the
Wiiki ivitiuic ir.4m;g to the life of the Prophet,
tiideni. kt.r , companions and the faithful
' '. .■ mg and action and
ttw iir.pm ... ei.i giiitmmcni and awareness to which they
moral
MlOC*
tn 3K V’-’
WK HgK -g:
( .. ,.,; • . ' £'SIUR> UK 1UI.U—'— ------ - f
administrative duties o
Kr<,r anx a> such ue regard it. historically, as a
lmpHj0eth»dind Mo.implishment of his mission. To
. ’ emenL to present it in its correct
s of,tlC
ale^b'P
>7 flhcaP°
,Kd^,reS'' , Iteted °"
.... '........ asfesfe#-* ’
messenfe d w uiak th 8 2)
^'’"“IcnP^^mamf^- (L? f ,jphS of
the intetpW »L" cd by what was ttWP t0 |10ld
„ot remain unaff k for the CP app|y the
or Kufa, noi ‘ • at the same d ■ t|me to
the same opinion, situations that arose during
same solutions to t Muslims displaye
time. The loyalty and lrust 11 . Bakr) and Umar)
the reigns of the first ™° “d and came out tOumphant in
and the way Islam forg reigns of the last
“ "X mal due I reasons analysed in
two (‘Uthman and Al), Y . .. , , x mass
the present book; Hazrat 'All, specially, had to pass
through most difficult times; the victorious advance of
Islam was halted and, from the political and material point
of view, no further progress or growth could be achieved
during his caliphate. Yet, in spite of all this, no unbiased
student of history can fail to observe that the same spirit
was at work in all the four of them and their outlook was
basically identical. There was absolutely no difference
-g tor so far as the strict observance of the laws of
Islam, whole-hearted treading of the nath i j j S 0
Prophet and earnest desire to fiilfd 6 d°Wn by the
willingness to do

10. 1,u'r” a Hizrat Abu Bal^r'.l"“ the Abyssinian, and to
bad refused to pay
H Stem action aga®' |ates; this was the spirit
Zakat and gone the1 rePself.denial and asceticism
[h3t manifested >n * Mnd in his relentless
of Hazrat ‘Umar, ne in {he appomtment
enforcement °f;? XtnXd officers of the realm;
and dismissal o h'g^ firm refusa| of
the same spirit a to relinquish his office
XX-XS^smcrder to protect h.s
” tch bat been admirably brought out tn this book);
4e same spirit, again, ran through the unwavenng
decisions of Hazrat ‘Ali, the fourth Caliph, and shone
brilliantly in his resolve to take up arms against the deniers
of the basic principles of the institution of Caliphate and
firm refusal to follow the example of the un-Islamic and
imperialistic powers, in his unstinted emulation of the
asceticism of the holy Prophet and the preceding Caliphs
and emphatic unwillingness to yield to unjust demands and
unfair pressures to the point of sacrificing his life. The four
virtuous and rightly guided Caliphs thus appear to be the
symbols of the same reality, the manifestations of the same
pint and the pilgrims to the same shrine. Whatever the
an/freedomi ™on (whlch’ of course, is a sign of life
there was nit c^’31 °bserver wil1 affirm that
them. 3 trace of rivalry or contradiction among
is °ot an easy task. He Cahphs and their reigns
fr°m prejudice as well ^°Just’ce to it who is free
excessive adulation and is not
^ConS^-^cess, victone
the regards catena inence can
others. One whoj g^ of of the
:&«&-s£SS!S-
“'*' redWfXb“h ag -rtedness, a broad
Ahl-i-Sunnat. Together with large system
vision and deep scholarship, are needed so t Y
of government under the Caliphate and its policies and
reforms can be critically examined and properly assessed.
Over and above all this, one should possess a facile pen and
elegance of contemporary style of writing. When the study
is attempted in the English language the writer’s difficulties
become greater because those who are to read it are,
generally, unacquainted with the terms and elementary
ws set up Xhtch Xu,' netted ” °f State
in the modem sense. °cratlc nor wholly
H"* ‘CXaS th" 'eanied friend. Syed Ath
command of p ., thls work yea Athar
XerX *in^ fled to 4^
He has

11. 20, u factually correct and erudite
presented a yvn- fycet of the lives of these
exposition touching counting the splendid
Hlustnous * . jcsocietytlie author does not feel
achievementsot ^^aknesses and pointing out the
sh- 01 TThkthat took place during those days. These
^Siifc >H alri,“K ”fh“",a" nature’
Xt to »' ” “ imn™ne- Mr.
Husam has wisely made no attempt to conceal such
mcidents or to minimise their importance. He has boldly
discussedthem in the light ofhistoiy. These happenings do
notdetract from thegreatness ofthe illustrious Caliphs but
add to their gloryby underlining how they did not flinch
from thecallofdutyorabandon theirprinciples in the face
ofheaviestodds.
.As far as I know it is the first book by a Muslim
rntertoappearin English on this subject. It is hoped that it
will be wannly received by Muslims and non-Muslims
alike and the ruling classes of various countries, who are
responsible for the security and well-being of vast
multitudes ofmen, will be particularly benefited by study
ofthis book.
May Allay grant us all the good fortune to emulate
and entertain respect forthe noble specimens of humanity!
Dafra-I-Shah Ilmullah,
Rae Bareli
ABUL HASAN ‘ALINADWI
February 28,1974
1''toEng|lshbyDr.M.AsifKidwai
...............
In a dark Penod ° ained of what were weak
squalor and de“'“"mpression, “P1010!”" an rights had
^SrfmigMP^^jStions and hedonic
ceased to be recogntsed, *n Muhammad the
cults flourished in many~P ’ on Monday the 12
Prophet of Islam, (peac 29th August, 570
Rab i-ul-Awwal (corresponding o the
a.d.) at Makkah in the desert country of Arab .
From the earliest times, the people of Arabia have
been divided into two classes—(1) the dwellers of the cities
and the dwellers of the desert—the bedouins. The dwellers
of the cities, particularly the South Arabians had risen to
prominence as a maritime people linking India with Africa.
Along the trade routes to the north had sprung up cities two
of which Petra and Palmyra had acquired renown. The life
Of the people in this area also could not escape the
universal trend of decadence Drinkina ramkr ,
other social evils and wea!” J’lrad d &
'ity life and lack of any central 71 h d ?SS'Pated the
atarchy. For the Bedouins the d n h°nty had Pr<>dUCed
* "fheir HyeZo edt deSd°fthete«.time
8 ,nst "it foes depend!nturous life.
d Won their

12. 22 < aeainst forbidding and
, h qnd **•£ ^urectulness.tenac.ty
intlCpid>ty. A1 uP°n '"J as he does even now, m
exacting e"'-"'in" bedouin h^’ a fanlily and every
and cndumnee. Rented . const,tuted a
tents- E'r0 lan Agr°uPofLZ of the individual to
clan with the tribe, every
?,Xd dose 3ffin^^ufficient and independent
he X a unit by itself1 age was the focal
competition Pjbes and every tribe
point of COnfl,Cl X 3 legit'^te object of brigandage
Ssid^^^^ofthe tribe was determined by
and plunder. The supen V was the fierce
its fighting prowess. d the on]y authority
?!^lZ«i«'"»b“i-i,in«i"asociety
S<h '*• ’ “i*' ,he “ g”eral and
idouin in particular, was a bom libertine. Subordination to
any central authority or coalition of the tribes into a nation
had never been attempted before. Lawlessness and cruelty
prevailed and frequent outbursts of fratricidal wars left a
long trail of hatred, vendetta and insecurity. It is not that
the pre-Islamic Arabs were barbarians. Notwithstanding
tiieir cruel and predatory habits, they possessed, to a high
degree, such virtues as generosity, hospitality and respect
for the plighted word. As an enemy the bedouin might be
dreadful but as a friend he was loyal and generous. Be he a
“>'«** of the desert, every Arab
reganfed te lith...... Of bese- eloquence was
The betoi-’sof
J' lar8ely ido1 "orshippers.
DracfStldns'fol|°wed their * num')er °f Jews and
Pract,ce of thelr foiled hXWn?lgi0ns whlch the
ased t0 have much of an
™ nf Abraha111
23 elision 01 ..v like
fd ® ow" were ^"Xpretrie
every tnbe> Kaaba ltselt . in a Sup tjme of
*sl,BPut Sre Mattei" G„d to be in*°* ** ideas had
Vague ^ained here an
Advent of Prophet environments.
The child Muhammad grew of the day.
He kept himselfa)oof f™m d s except that he had no
Not much is known of hisearlymay to
formal education, that he had often to go into
tend the flocks of his uncle, was decorou
behaved and was loved and respected by all those who
came into contact with him. He earned such a fame tor
uprightness, integrity and sincerity that the Makkans began
to call him al-Ameen (the trusted). He entered into several
business partnerships and always acted with great integrity
in his dealings with his partners. Even as a youth, he felt
greatly perturbed over the immorality of the people Their
ignorance and superstitions, their obscene rites and with al I
tar desert virtues, their lawlessness and cruelty and th
frequent outbursts of fratrini'Aoi ueny and the
Iran. Often he used to repair to the? Saddened his
»'M"»tH,raforprayerr n^ 0".ellness °f a cave on
“ questions surg“ "Cdltatl(>"’t« find answers
"assuraed the

13. u ■ hand of followers
,Heandll'SinMakkah and to
i ne^'utfnd "fat the history of
fPn* of ^thdf 10 Achievements of the
h.id • '"'M.i’.i'1 ted a very notable
^’V^lly^Apanion5 attacks; but the
^h,S U?o&ceM^ advancing from
M^^Af l^erS’Aree years almost the
S'SSi*S5S “,-'?*S
dXlwdmgtosalvauon
mankindwthe p He announced*" liverse was created
• *' SK 1 dnless and uninhibited
that all
-i,»« « «”* X and * 0^ Criteri°n °!
tX was righteousness, and
Z"«"’0“”'«Ss Maker without requtnng
every man could app ap distinctions and
„«®». H' "p d race, sex and creeds and
^esbBdoneetat. jbeMOT and man.
bridged the gulf man had c women and struck a
Be^ecrftyelngbMdstaMSt women (
deadly blow at slavery. He not only eitectea
revolution but changed the concept and way
broadened the thought ofhis countrymen and widened inc
sympathies. He taught them purity of life and straig
forwardness of conduct. He impressed upon them
seriousness of life and struck at the very root of socia
corruption. He stimulated their moral qualities of prudence
and restraint and breathed into them catholic charity and
fear of God. The result was that all the social evils and
'ices fell like so many chains and powerfully influenced
the course of human history thereafter. Indulgence and
issipation gave way to righteousness and austerity-
?unce, greed and striving for power and wealth were
d®,itu,es' delivered to
prophet’s ffl»ess of God having bee" lai(J firm
„J-tte"s » ■ public
event to the Great Mosque and addressed <he c » the
thus “God offered to one from among
choice ofhis earth or that which is nigh unto Him. And h
has chosen that which is nigh unto God.” Abu Bakr realised
the significance of these words and with tears rolling down
his cheeks he said, “We would rather sacrifice our lives and
those of our parents.”1
When his condition deteriorated and he could not
lead the congregational prayers, he directed that Abu Bakr
Prophet to absolve her father from lmpIored the
for- she pleaded, “He is an old reSp°nsible duty,
He ls an old man of tender heart who
Tabari I Vnl in —’
' ■paEel’2a"J’'*,«</ imsawvol
* vo1- IV, page 27.

14. »’• - put ,
el* ’" tizen* °r
„ n of ,bC
TM * ? „,eees.
divided po*ci —The ~ur'ieoftheProphet as nv-.
fall ir»fl one 'uccessor. and on one
■owW Knowledge no master but
-*« to be cast, and
, Mondav. the 12*
Moottg* ,M1 him)
T hr burned Co the
o fare. kt**ed his
n (he hvc* of my
i Mcred wax your
tasted of the death
And now you will
* hold upon his
(l0 hrtint m ..ould have died
"‘.1 l.tllllt'tl "lilt
ftl|-,-iTf w. am -a btwibe hat died I swear by Allah
%■jp.1st ^aar to Allah like Moses who
-Jtvb inspifr of the fact
he I* anfK .Qa •«• «r dead '
“ - - these word* “0 people'
*** .-rtipr.- M^rnaad let him know that
■ uorac »i>om> worshipped) God.
' ' ,rL dieth not He then
■*teat ° "* ' i Muhammad is no
‘ ' - e.rt J .. .
Ms Amur m I: killed will you (urn
' w um back upon his
- - 'Z',u ■' '** 1 "•Ujc
5<w ivivc
M* fc# VTly
hci«‘ WM’^ *
>k h< C<I
* • the
,fGod and you
thinking of
i. ft? ♦r'
I»I1»> • 1 t
tjwci.
_ a 1 - -B
-The f
ih''" ''
J"? !•*<-*"« ’
P-T* xbolur..nd
■*' „ M OM«H p nine fore-
T«k>«W u niicc They *crc JU -I -umar burned to the p legion ot
i M»du|ll,n'wCrC l Iwr still you arC ,
I Muhlpnn .re few •" and to let us have
I
™-:s:x-SSS-■**-
Kpommmt. .nd Io none but them would Arabia yield
obedience.” The Ansars said that whenever the Prophet
tent a Muhfijir on any mission, he had also sent an Ansir
with him so there should be one chief from the Ansirs and
| one from the Muhljmn ‘Away with you!’ exclaimed
Invar. -two (chiefs) cannot stand together; and even Sa’ad
I agreed that to divide the power would be to weaken it ’
W Bdu stepped forwud and pomling towards
’'•A med both once -1S u “ y0Ur chief?
**f‘ buktaj. w already. at the
*** funh thj He • tau an our chief.
-------- ____ they struck their
*1"’ Sb *d__ r .
:'f *tliu.mu " R8'*l
,c**k«.|uge3.

15. Bukhan; Muslims: Suyuti-TMM Khulafa, page 69, 70
Ameer Ah-The Spirit ofIslam, page 126
Ameer All—The Spirit ofIslam, page 126
:s Their example was
advanced to
token of 3 " after gr°11' t e authority
h>* ’"‘others a’^lS*ll'’5 day the general
*"‘t, >»«* “'-, „n thef* thus homage waS
t* S M* >» * "cOedged as the
^^Hd^* adof,heS,a"
done to W * f oftl* Pr°p d sUmar as
•Calipb’ °f death Ab* ®akr ha tie appointment was
Before h's,d viceaerency and Pp luding the
•»* as Result of mortal
accepted 1 j’- ‘Umar die panatic. He had,
House n*r»» * by electoral committee
,n,tmes 1Sdeath»PF»n’eli®„' to select his
*wr'Tsh »«"' a scendant of
‘”sl!"n; A choice fell»" U’ . was installed
K 0" ~'s
’ Cahph «!«> * s*8 ° assins,'AH, another son-m-
29
2
*WB*
'Kan",al' erosity so ab“”^,j« (the generous)-
and his 8e”eL’he true and « year of
epithets of S*«' n„d a half years ai» the
genealogy unites, in his f ‘ better taown by
the Kunniyat of Ummul Khair.
Early life
Not much is known of his childhood and
adolescence. Like the rest of the Arab aristocracy, he could
read and write. On the Quraish genealogy he was
considered an authority. All chroniclers are agreed that
even before conversion to Islam, he had.led a chaste life
ftnKathir-ra/izib.
ij^a’ad-^ar.
suyuti—rarifc/iu/jC/ii
m/aA page 32.

16. Jostled Syria and Yemen i”
u .n he took -n up sale and purchase of
S^l^'t^hetaameone of the
dnpen ,!n ^XXl magnates of Makkah. He was
„« SIW ■" Mdpnrdence andlns “msel
As a tribal chief, he
ws sought in »",n^. v3rdine blood money in murder
camed au^lconfidence ofthe people that ifany
*7« s“ °ne ,he
PhysicalFeaturesAbu Bakrwas a man ofdelicate frame and medium
heiditandhad a stoopinggait. His face was thin with clear
cut'profile: his complexion was fair, eyes deep-set and
black his forehead lofty and nose aquiline. Altogether, he
•as a handsome man. His hair had become prematurely
grey andhe used to dye them red.3 He used to wear loose
c.c±es and a turban and carried a white woollen cloth on
hisshoulders.
one else, the
Conversion to Islam
From their childhood Prophet Muhammad and Abu
Bakr were intimate friends and had qccasionally gone
together on commercial journeys. Abu Bakr was himself
dissatisfied with pagan rites and customs. He had watched
his friend at close quarters and was so convinced of his
truthfulness that when Muhammad declared his
propbethood, he had no hesitation in accepting Islam. There
is <1 difference of opinion among the authorities as to who
IX 6 1WJ° em*)race Some say it was Abu Bakr;
1 v,dS first t0 accept Islam, while others
4sr-v°L6pa®e3i3
. page 'aUthonty Educed by Suyuti in Tarikhul-
3' -nt Ab»
..... ■
SjSsSj
f«* ”1 (be <^ited words
apostle ofG , wjth me Abfl Bakr) ,
tX”*1 DeV0,i’" “ ^Cause
Fronl '"adedCaTthe power
Bakr'S?fed His Apo* He TP biWv that be possessed
£”^X^^swealtba,,d
and directed all hi single cauSe.
property to the prom conversion, Abu
stood me in such good stead as that of Abu Bakr, U
hearing it Abu Bakr wept and said that both his person and
his property were at the absolute disposal of the Prophet. In
later years, the Prophet asked for donations from the
companions for the Tabuk expedition. ‘Umar states that he
resolved to surpass Abu Bakr at least this once and
accordingly laid half ofhis wealth at the feet of the great
Master. Shortly after Abu Bakr appeard on the scene with
wnte’M‘'>eauthontyofIbn‘Abb5s,
2 Suyuti—;

17. ’* , |ie was more indebted
nhat <°n°St him with his person,
*?S?B**>^** li',,lliSdaUgh,erto
his accepting Islam, he had
hin' >, first fc*^ 0 n The lot of the slaves
J’X^^^X waspitiable.They were
Ab0 Bakr
<”** S«’"fcein8'he"-
...... hld mel with such hostility that
n'n^£fci pr* teJ 11 inSeCreCy' S° did
X'wtr-)”—einre,ela,1°n'
A mH onenlv what thou art
with God.
The Prophet now started preaching openly. He
declared the Oneness of God in the Ka’aba. He was
mobbed by the Quraish and beaten unconscious. Abu Bakr
came to his rescue. Forcing his way through the crowd he
reprimanded them thus: ‘"May God punish you for this.
Will you kill him simply because he believes in one God?”2
Undaunted by the hostility of the Quraish, Abu Bakr
himselfstarted preaching openly. The Quraish surrounded
him and beat him so severely that he received a number of
grievous injuries on his head and had become unconscious.
His life was saved on the intervention of Banu Taim. On
ofSp' consciousness his first thought went to the safety
20f S’“ ^e Prophet was. The
welfare ofa person' a” be'ng solicitious about the
°'VD llfe but Abu Rat' ? ,h°m be had endangered his
mother wanted to oiv v y brushed them aside. His
h,m s°mething to eat but, as a
vlJ-Page 129

19. x ,,p i man nt vmit Chllbte
hi,,, t„ «v-)a S -yi(
............. I"”’™' 7’PM^Iiily
(WO,«,MA'.«ship. M Ills W|I«S|,|,5 hi9 ? a;
w, I! Al ,h< ui'ln I" riorslii,, |,w ■ "Hish , %tvi
am «■>. too nulling lor him „tlri 'y i„ > * J1
'I’"|"I 'I’ll bnkt built a ■ f,l|'
.lIiiu.hi to his house. the Mai<1'"’BUut.'X.'X
C. . i ihmhmmnh who advised Ahn Ct % . V
U1 " ' the reni?kr t .
pi.mmtvi' ot prelection and safety, r ’ ; 1-
fet me the protection of God ‘do n b
'*>enl“ Mifi
Mtgtrtihm in MmHnah bhh^rr|.
i-
Islam had taken roots and start
icn slowly. The animosity of(h,cHl
Pivprnmm and they intensified their M*kka n?g%
Muslims li became so unbcarabi. rXe
despatched all the Muslims excent t|.”n of?
Madmah. lot himself and bis tWn r ’ ar,d A? ’Xi'
the dome command. When it can,p’pUlcnants ? ^kr,’
informed Abb Bakr and in secret they
depart in the darkness of night ‘All de Pfenar f er> hc
-he house u. blu,T ,|,e Mukkan, X M
assassinate the Prophet. At the arinni < had Plan ge°f
......I M"I B-tkr leb Mnkkoh TX ,'i 2" ho« -he '»
thtuuves concealed themselves in iiX days thcT"
Mount Him lor the Makkans were Vfc of Xur”',’
eoinradcslnp bus been referred to pursu‘> T
secund of the two when they were l,„, QurX "Th
X Makkuns were scmu
a Party of
hmi. Vol, I Chapter llijiat.
kfT
j'rik
4b of the cave ■
. the mouth o* . . . - t. A’v
a “A Prophet o. V
Mi 54 a, r«^ ”» Pr"r'
X" - •GnC'C not. ■«! . ... -,e w,-c
.ten. ...,c 4ff; AWn ‘ ■
d”1 ..ith05 ,0 a-d readied Mad-a' 0” ■.
il* ’.?
»* ’ fM„terofW’m
I*"' -he nu^on of «* Prophe' ?
*■’* Centered upon a 'ba-*C' ' *
at**'-- - ' '■'
W f'C Madinian tribes of Aus and Kham; ■ad. I"
tr> awepted Mam. A pact had been entered into
3pd ^e’ ws fhe foundations of the Islamic State had
with eBut now onwards. Islam had to face die larger
been 1 f concerted action and the onslaught of organised
launched with vigour and determination tv
afITlieS ate it. The Prophet and his companions defended
eXte with all their might and fervour and ultimately made
'^victorious that its sway extended to the whole of
^.Says-heQur'in:
“And the first to lead the way of Muhajirin and the
Ansar and those who followed them in goodness.
Allah is well pleased with them and they are w ell
pleased with Him. and He hath made ready tor them
gardens underneath which rivers flow w herein the
will abide tor ever. That is the supreme triumph."
Battle of Badr A.H. 2
Hardly had the Muslims settled down at Madmah
when they had to fight a pitched battle with the Makkans at
Badr. They were outnumbered by three to one and 'the
enemy ranks had the advantage of superiontv of arms The
IX 1 ?S0 bleak tta theheartsof** O'OSI 'Ilham
IrembledJn his agnation the Prophet cried out "O Lord1 I
teeeeh Thee to fulfi! the pronuse Thou has, g.v™ m t

20. 36 4 nf Muslims to perish,
earth.” Abu Bakr
, a, ifThou sb-1" ofshipp^ ° of Allah’- Be of good
0 le,il not h -o prop111- crificed over you.
^ypy^^^ce and surely He
*' ? «lofthe ene"W>be rou,ed
• The Muslims gained a
^’Srf**' ba
„f the battle was that ranged
' ‘ A rt* r ‘“TaiW of *r c,0Se rctat'°."S: ye'
Ae Muslin* werefflan? Bakfs son Abdur
JmS® hld 1“ rank. On seeing hint, Abo
” fc.jS>ed MW. what about my
Bir rebuked h""' . . replied the son, Except the
.W W r ”*e’s««d to amend the errors of
anew, the charger, and th Rehman accepted
SSSSSSSSS--
Battle ofl'hadA.H.3
The battle of Uhad was a much bigger encounter
which the Muslims had to face three years after. In this
battle, the Muslims had to suffer a virtual defeat. But they
had. nevertheless, given a valiant account of themselves.
Abu Bakr. too. had played a heroic role in it.
Battle ofthe Trenches A.H. 5
In the year A.H.5 the Makkans, assisted by the
Jewish tribes of Banu Ghatfan and Banu Asad marched
upon Madinah with an army of ten thousand soldiers. The
^Ot a moat UP on the unprotected side of
a in dn(^ ^pt iris forces in security. Abu Bakr
f of the
. a cont’ngen
die perform
" 1400 M®l>m® f -u
“ p* E,e!eteUin«:"li0”S
>s “£X the M“S'X
f«« “E® was sent to b
lt"iSegian«frombiST
;-XXst-"'rf-d;,n-
,Allah was well pleased
§et ord"
";5:§E5
kn°wn’ 1 L
them;but
ordered. tree,
J in the Qur’an-
with the believers when
■Anaii , thee beneath the tree,
they swore allegiance unto the
faX-X^^ButAMBakrp^
him up. Abu Bakr was one of the distinguished signator
to the truce on behalf of the Muslims.
Expedition to Khaibar
In A.H. 7, Muslims marched upon Khaibar to
chastise the Jews. On the first day, Abu Bakr was
commissioned to launch the attack upon their fortress The
command was changed every day till the fortress overtaken
Ab8 Bakr had led the
Kalas n - - Lue
i
0""rElP'«»ns and the Battle ofHunain
—— ■ ■ ext’ artlI> page 179

21. 39
3
-,s hce after the fall of
«.«*• JiuM***
>’’kWK T<w.l- Mad.®" lhat Hera JS
rvoedi'i00*0 s came to ftjU war upon the
E P a H 9. ne"‘. m launch 3 f defence and
^^^Centtoperfonn
*•" leader of
In AK9: Le Abu Bakr was aPP Mina that
the annual P’1^ = authorised to jn Haj
te ««■ “iiUld be *« d “’*e *e Ka’aba
hmfeSrth»«'* ,|wedtoc««mbulatetrr
nor would any one
naked.
raliPhat6
tOf^eC
,menee^t0
,d‘1'eS8^t CaliPh
SS ‘“hii P=»P'e
rhe old Pan';;inent.
Sard 1 of <J'>-erl . -x
“"VaHyour^ ‘
■iOm^^ers
.missro»edln my ■
t0 conceal it, 1S
'9
Abti
;irstca.,-><’bf^.n
C^h’ ;?ip^ot
0*" ’e*g 8yo* 1 "eed a’fimistake.coun^ thftll
* ^>-s< Missioned » ^lsight, the
help. truth to a Pers, t ;s treason- ln J ish to
tdlthe, to conceal it, * atld to both 1 if
nghbo your obedience. Ptophet had ordered
Shortly before h's d“ h’sJria under the command
fc despatch Of an expe > « V of h]S envoy
of Osama to seek repar camping at Jorf,
Insurrection throughout Arabia
The news of Prophet’s fatal illness and death had
spread like a wild fire. While Madinah remained steadfast
in its loyalty to the Islamic State, news of insurrection and,
what is worse, of a resolution by the newly converted tribes
to forsake the faith started pouring in from all sides. The
turbulent spirit of many a tribe which had acquiesced to
*shm amis was chafing for independence. Their
“hordination. The new conv Union and
—rhabits of SLdXi^

22. ;(v enforced by Islam,
40 ....
nf niorslity -■
, .he strict mles o' their passions and
n01 ? 'mJ who|esonie were willing to conform to
"h,ch P ^eir customs- Son^ pt paynient of Zakat or
X^n’an<lI1ien(S o''s ers claiming prophethood had
e r^r-tax. A fe«J"£ of the prophet. They could
sprung up even m '' 1 wjfh the passing away of the
make no head them gjye free play t0 their
^ ^mnple was followed by others.
amh"'°n hd to be put down and the danger
? T Tnceless Even senior companions, including
c a7,he a™^'°.
i, i, a total Calm and unmoved Abu Bakr
replied “Were the city surrounded by packs of ravenous
wives, and I was left solitary and alone, the force shall go;
not a word from my Master’s lips shall fall to the ground.”1
Seeing that he was adamant, “Umar urged the Caliph to at
least place the command ofthe force in the hands of some
more experienced general for Osama was but a youth. To
this the Caliph gave a stem reply: “Thy mother be
• childless. 0 son ofKhattab.' Shall the Prophet of the Lord
appoint a man to the command, and I, deposing him,
appoint another in his place?'” while despatching the army,
the Caliph gave it the following instructions:—
wisefr0?tL4at?T°ideSttreachei^- DePart not in ^y
4ou kill anv chT mUtilate none’ neither shaI1
free wherein k e ^re’ and cut not down
- » to". Slay no, any
may eat ofthe meat which th g needfa) sustenance. Ye
UP‘° “ ^r vesselsJ men of the land shall bring
>> making mention thereon of the
v°l. II, page461
page462. 6
heads, if
‘Not so ,
41 nks* ilhsb
. Anatl’e""ted- dmay,4e
rofM^themU”""0 fthe Lo<d' a"
ft* c')0 thet°rce”"“%e tno'"lte?’ ,|,ee'. ''s,ot S°-j
'ThdfcXSXeb^nt0
Madinah. A ch .. Apostasy and dtsa t
*;XSch^
Xeeksm— Prophet g°ne’
■' h.2the
The very boldness of the Caliph in despatching t
army to Syria deterred a number of bedouin tribes from
launching attack upon Madinah. They reasoned that if the
Caliph was not confident ofhis strength at home, he would
not have sent away his army. The imposter Toleiha sent
some men to foment disaffection among the tribes of ‘Abs
and Zubian living in the nearby desert. These tribes,
however, vacillated between the claims of the pretender
and the Prophet and they thought of a compromise They
M l deputation to the. Caliph to assure him of their

23. 42 ,expediency dictatedI u expct..- .
,n< «1h’'^‘hut die tether of a tithed
some |f n- ''1lhh(fr tl,e same’ was the blunt
seen for
2ss#>*
uwk* M,dinah . upon Madinah, Abu Bakr
Fereseeing under the command of
ptf* 3,1 J Ziir. Talha. ‘Abdullah ibn Mas
jxh chiefmen 35 Mth the army- three days had
•Ji !ud S um tribes attempted a surprise attack.
^"fceiewr pulsed by the pickets. Fearing a
i the Caliph rode out in person the next
"SX imle band in regular fonnation and drove
al ™e skirmish was small
its effect «as great- spirit ofthe Muslims rose and
Kislova! tubesVere disheartened. Abu Bakr’s implicit
fothin Godandhis resolve to follow in the footsteps of his
pea master, his prudence and firmness paved the way to
I success. Writes Sir William Muir, ‘But for him, Islam
«cJd have melted away in compromise with the bedouin
mbes. or. mighthavepenshed in the throes ofits birth. ’1
Expedition against Bani Abs and Zubian
In wo months time, and some say after forty days
Mad,nah ™s reiieved
W B- J”pcrso” a" “Pedition
Kfca W dm f 'V °' wbile retreating to
Wt wa* 'he of their tribes,
"ere killed or taken C encounterl many of
""^“*‘'a™XpXd^:zing
y Caliphate.
dinah aI1<^
ni„sttl,eAP»^’ f danger the
Actionaga disappearing inconstafthe apostateS
gXdk*aSS'S“ent to Yemen;
*alid’rSldaB MoseilanW Mohajtr w and -Amr
W3S W Bahrein’ Hozeifa and ‘Arfaja j 0 sent through
S^'-“TaXebellious tribes to
—*for readmission ,n,°the f0 ’
Khalid bin Walid’s expedition
In the story of early Caliphate, Khalid occupies a
position of prominence next only to the Caliphs A dashing
soldier and brave even to rashness, his courage was
tempered with a cool and ever-ready judgement. His
conduct on the battlefields, which decided the fate of the
Persian Empire and of the Byzantine rule in Syria, must
rank him as one of the greatest generals of the world. Over
and again, he cast the dice in crisis where loss would have
ta destrucdon io Islam, but always with consummate
™>y he advanced against Toleiha °f Madlnian
* tribe of Ban, Ta“ We R he taCkled
M «re supporting Tole’iha A fr"' f and Ban>
VI' were Still loyal and , ,few of them including
?" tnbe. The whole tribe f? emissa™s of Khalid
l"® «h loot) h' “ Submitte|l to Khalid u “ t0
wth «>*
Khalld
A"* “f^C3l.phate.pa6c2,
■

24. dfo^san'
—Tarikh.page 1749
°fToleihaYfleda
>y "'I•'Jani A^ole -^Oyeina was
hich had been
at^Tunder Oyeina and
^^''■L'lfesC3^'sth't'v0°tliera on expression of
To't?and se>" were P^^ater on, when Bam
'* ■“
P^^rthenoor-®1-
parent of*eP fl u
Battle ofVernama E" 0 '' -aina where lived the
able to build up a «®s clajming a share in t e
k audacity to »nte to the Ppn^ may exercise
k .rophethood and sugge g The proposal was
the Prophet
” answered with contempt domain of
ofGodtothe liar Moseilama. The world is
GodandHewillgiveitsinheritance to whom He wi .
the (successful) end is for the righteous.
This Moseilama had mamed a woman by the name
ofSajjah who had also declared herself a prophetess. Her
story is interesting. She had come down with some force
fromMesopotamia with the intention of attacking Madinah.
She got suppon from Bani Taghiib but Bani Temim refused
to acknowledge her as a prophetess. She turned her fury
against thembut Was discomfited in the combat and had to
seek terms. Moseilama sent a message to her to come and
ted tbeir
tliarri^e' had b6e”t a h&stX jefeat-
^ind for°a^ lar?serf0rc^
takenback in the fold of Islam.
Campaign of Bahrein
On the west coast of the Persain Gulf lie the desert
tracts of Hejer and Bahrein. They were peopled by the
several branches of Bani Rabia family, principal of which
was Bani Bakr. Their chieftain Munzir had accepted Islam
and in token of suzerainty had agreed to entertain a
Resident from Madinah. Munzir died shortly after the death
of the Prophet and the province rose in rebellion. The
Resident ‘Ala’ had hastened to Madinah and there he was
As he P^sed
cont’ngents from Bani Hanifa Temim Jce ^as jomed by
ta^>«,Subra,t,ed“mXant* rtnbes«ho
had blockaded^
bV huM ‘A1a’ reached to

25. ____ , (tWt* «tttt
.,. *’ *" < ■' .
***
* ,,<*•*
<*»* w* *
** * -l***
at***,.****
***'*•*„«*■'**
VMW* * W ****■'
*** . rt» <** "«<’
«» *J **** , ....■»/ to Mohr*
’ u. *«rfi •»’ *’m>■w-*' — ■ ,r& ^‘' ■
!»**• ? 7 MB ,.-«-•••• ........
-**- * VC,W”
(
fcwaw» « • '**"
... .»
.aaff; fraiB •* *M*»MCWted I •>’ «h«»< <
a .. .. « «* W U* «« ‘AM AtfhOth and
* & ***» **■«> Hn»w IhMln* •rul
ifchu's >'i *>* 0»»'-b® ; -./• a> hi> iiortriuinl *dii
> « jm* I. :u ha (4m: hllMTVCI platted
**»•’ ** ■&•».. »- . .use and I rlo/r tied tat
*■ •.:■ h Uu.1* t,*nt whanUM? han*
-
......... *»B if aMurfl had hhumJ lauo
Mfa* ^.s. ,w 1K,}M-lcS(k Huth
• -Z^ **" '* ’'** ***» u Maanudj Whciv.
-m .V. UC,;“£,U «« tu!t.Jvc® t*> the
—.ail
f af* •
W* *
m*r <h«
, h«'- •* Hi Amt had
. -ewwowv'T •< h» < oun
, ftmt-mc* tvv«»lted 7>»,
y. <•«<•»» < tiff’ fa i/h
•™- antaffM Hw tHx-l* m
He **5
and
I “■"'S ■■■*1 '>.■•>** "j*» ’t* lh • *•**.
I <7* •*• c*f* Ttj
tf?r!?dXs?St£
O-J** ”' < ar Sa”* *■ X * . Iknf0*-
„.■■••. '•" . ■ • ■ . the
■„ i-hrid** w* 1 furtl*r
On W north o' fe, the two n«" lhe
I the I T* . (,m,„ bu|f The upper
■.aJ'XXa*' ««“"•••** “Z^Tmkxo. tone, -d the tower pan as
«»L. wto tano The Mab> called it Iraq Arab B>
..t the* mers stood mans flourishing citiesI Muicni inech. noi tai from modem Mosul, *hich *as
■ tr mi of Atfynan Kings. and Madiin. the capital of
■ Nhm wMM|Bk wen satuBed on the Iigns as does
K MMte mtmpotaofthe Caliphs ofthe Middle Ages
« tta luphram wot s.ioaied anc*tu Bibskm, Hira
I "* trims, to the earn
—b llNuliUutU, ac> iKf Loufs’r uhvS ,u
■ * ***•C^r-awThe lufntI

26. totem’s force and
^soonreclaimed
47
gisin^’'’
°* XS* a"d.‘l““«^T^s1S^Wre™1,®dCOTh'
beOX the Prophet's d^ P Calip t0 Hozeifa
*»ri*,?it*- th'y'n8age‘i the rebels at
LhindsasGovemorofOmanand
X *■ adva"ced "■J0,n
.WinthecampaignaginstHadhramaut and Yemen.
I RestorationofpeaceinYemen
InYemenAswadhad. in the lifetime ofthe Prophet,
declaredhimselfaprophet He was assassinated by three of
his couraes-an Arab chiefQais ibn ‘Abd Yaghuth and
mo ministers of Persian descent, Feroze Dailme and
Dldweili.AbuBahappointed Feroze as his lieutenant with
(X-' and Dadweih to help him. Qais, however, plotted
5?'n®both-D5dweih was killed and Fefoze fled for
ieeap--r v''in5e'however’ ‘^ma was advancing from
‘“WMuhajir but th' n?adekenb hadjoined forces
hy!OmdthetaSk hopeless. Both
Session of rm?™ sent to Madinah where,
for8,vc",he
P ed>ly restored in Yemen.
I ad golie
M* ’r’51e»111his ent on
** “tom S^»>UX5OW of t0J‘!knma. and
$2* *» te MS *** was restored in the south
^^S-^letelyte-esUhltsbed.
"’r'"onl north of Hajar lies Ctafe* and
hundred miles before reaching the Persian Gulf. The uppe
portion of the region enclosed by these rivers was known as
Mesopotamia in ancient times and the lower part as
Babylonia and Chaldaea. The Arabs called it Iraq Arab. By
the two sides of these rivers stood many flourishing cities.
Ancient Nineveh, not far from modem Mosul, which was
Je seat of Assyrian Kings, and Mada’in, the capital of
/Treigns’ were situated on the Tigris as does
h«t>. Kitkessia and Rakka. BeyondX T Baby'°n’ H'ra’
Zagros mountains lies thp 1^riS’ ko east
“'“taq'Ajam. ’ ““ ‘he C01W which the Arabs
r'
II

27. 4S „ Empire and the latter by
1 hv theRon-Ldiea. the Fellaheen, was
had^nann^: ^ntO Dehkans, the landlords
thePeR,^«erelorded^ hv’tlie Persian court. The
upon Persia.
3nd ci H»a "etv :in north-east Arabia brought
Lakhnl „in ofthe insu^ntt "h the wandering tribes of
^^^rithenorthwerefoHowedby
i«”Jch*LX ’*s soug“ "7 T
soon the Muslim army was
ftto jti'mlh the great Persian Empire.
**d“a*X to queued the rising in
“’n X pressed a letter to him which has
■From Abu Bakr, the servant of the Lord and Caliph
of the Prophet (Peace on him) to Khalid bin Walid, his
companion. .Ansars and Muhajirin and their sincere
Mowers, with salutations. I praise God besides whom
there is none worthy ofworship. All praise to Him who has
fulfilled His promise, helped His servant, bestowed honour
upon His friends and disgraced His enemies. He alone has
given victory to the guided people. Verily, there is none
besides Him worthy ofworship.
Allah hath promised such of you as believe
and do good works that He will surely make them to
---eeduhe present rulers) in the earth even as He
W caused those who were before them to succeed
frZ!'3nd thLa‘He wil1 sure*y establish for them
will giveT He hath aPProved for them, and
^eysenieeyl'nTeJchange.safety after their fear,
unto Me Thnw l ey ascribe nothing as partner
fc»tS“*dlsW« henceforth they are
(Q.24 : 55)
j He wiH not
,.............
“"''Xulhl the covenant that^
illt0 with Cod and obseivt y great hardships, tot
yW ITetXa«e h"d you ntay have
:::^n^^Godwlii
bestow His kindness upon you. He say •
“Go forth, (equipped) lightly or heavily and
strive with your wealth and your lives in the way o
Allah ! That is best for you ifye but know.”
(Q.9: 41)
“I direct Khalid bin Walid to march to Iraq and not
to leave it till further commanded. All his companions
should also accompany him. Let there be no slackness in
this. This is a course of action wherein God will reward
amply evetyone who will willingly join this right™ d
Wnse and strive sincerely They should § U§
lraq till further orders Mav C a u d S° StaV ln
'«« fa the good this world b™8 to fruition our
— ye will.”1 a d the good in the"^Ar. Fare ye win'
fr<™ier—one und*™? ast’ly ^Patched to th
ljt joined by e/’ cornmand of Khalid llottb'
hanna the otb d who was
Other’ u"der the
"a*“-^«.pM70 47|

28. , Satrap of the delta,
, uotifli* 2- "<■ advanced with a
■''^Pe^Pr’Sin1s at Hafir.
MofnasU,0U..... Ilies met, Hormuz challenged
u^n the two am treacherously posted an
pfTTiv had been w*--- w ,
toie»2scalled‘thebattle ofthe Chains.
The retreating Persian army re-assembled at Madzar
receiving reinforcements from the Persian king. It again
>e battle to the Muslims but lost heavily.
The Persian king now realized the gravity of the
danger. He raised a great levy of the Arab tribe Bani Bakr
rd other loyal clans. Theyjoined the imperial forces under
the command of Bahman and camped at Walaja. Khalid
advanced to meet this force. The battle was fiercely
coniesed but ultimately Khalid routed the enemy.
.... ‘J^^,enpapement soon followed at Allis, half
generalship m °b°lla' Here again the suPerior
and fled. 31 preva’'ed and the Persian army broke
Bcdou>ns and thePrc^ dnfeats disheartened both the
:r'Jublesome.andoccunP butthe former had proved so
a Position in the desert pastures
leear|y Caliphate, naee 72
,i,eycou,.. My m"°y h'f^"nd his communication with Arabia, that Khalid
reducingthe whole tract west ofthe Euphrates
theBedouins with its capital city ofHira. For
’-^red rapidly along the bank of
and Hira cpaitulated
/ entercu i treaty whereby they
tribute to the Islamic state. The chief
'—h were despatched by
ratified the treaty and
' value should
■ Un their part the Muslims
at Hira and
He left the
51
could so materially-Unn with Arabia,
- - t pop
ofHira v of
■ bank,r0"nd l’,s uv‘'’ thewl
rear3,10 reducing tlie
,Jved° Redoutns
Euphrates- The entered ,nto a
the treaty anu
to the Caliph- Abu Bakt tJ shoUld
.be Musi-
“*^opr»-- tth'^fr0ma,,aCk' Hjra and
Mid established his headquarters H
peasantry remained untouched, for AbO Bakr had strictly
enjoined that the occupiers of the soil, the Fellaheen,
should be left undisturbed in their possession and their
rights should be scrupulously respected. The Dehkans
began to pledge allegiance on protection being guaranteed.
In Mesopotamia and the outskirts of the desert, a number of
Persians detachments were posted at Anbar, Ain tamar and
other places within a short distance of Hira. They were
*«0„e by one and they capitulated withoJS
Meanwhile the second Muslim army under lyaz
was battling unsuccessfully against its enemy at Duma,
'lyaz sent a message to Khalid for assistance to which the
Seatgeneral replied in martial verse :
'Wait but a moment, my friend,
And a legion shall appear,
Cohort upon cohort following,
'"“»«»-*n ra|sotthe Early Caliphate, page 78.

29. t -a but theY
"* Sl“'"”Ldesertofover 30° miles
10 cde Pfrceva|. in
‘lrt of his ann)’r,rliPd his promise. Instructing
f,’S . O* ftrthw side Of
* in ,he rear and
Dunia. Khal'f!
complyrout ‘ ljd and the greater part of his
> 3bSenCe mia encouraged the Persians and their
for«ftoni‘Mesopo thejr offensive operations. Khalid
.Arab allies to re>um crushed t0 combined
■iTe «ami Persian garrisons and the bedouins at
Khahd would have attacked Madai’n but he was
X b, fc p»"c>’ ”f A“ Bakf- ™e enem>-
hZ" been subdued. Khalid resolved to make the annual
pilgrimage to Makkah incognito, unknown even to the
Cahph. With a small escort but without a guide Khalid
traversed the tortuous desert rout with marvellous speed
and daring. His task accomplished, he came back to his
post in the same lighting manner.
W arwith theRomans
While fighting was going on in Iraq, the north-west
border ofArabia was no less active. The country, west of
Chaldaea and .Mesopotamia at that time formed part of the
Empire ^ut- Iraq, both Palestine and Syria were
Ronrn tlPe°Ple °f the Arab race- In Palestine, the
Caesarea. J- iTT Stron^ §amsoned places such as
W situated the rm ince °f J°rdan (Ordun) in which
Ptolema'S) and Sur S’"? Lt0WnS °f Acre <ancient
called Syna by the Pr urtber north l‘es the country
historical cities nf *0 $bam the Arabs with
* Hems’Alepp0 and
> dnd ethnically, the provinces
’*p“*wS tfied0U,at”SM of °'”?rto
„ tribes and they different Kiwi border t0
5 ariXCaliph “ffenXsteps unless
clan, was desp, t ibes but to take no Syrian tribes,
<d'fS£ "P 1|K GhaSSantaBalca lUtaW bin Sa‘id
jX ”Xa 'X He def«* d a R°ma”. X"
X » ,h nhe Dead sea and threw back the
, ,|,e eastern shore of tl , j position, he asked
sent through Ans bin Malik to the people of Yemen is
reproduced here.
“From the Caliph of the Prophet (peace be on him)
to all Muslim men and women of Yemen. Salutations to
those whom this letter is read over. I praise Allah besides
Whom there is none worthy of worship. God has made
Jihad incumbent upon Muslims and has commanded that
?fer?ey?e in ease or in hardened strait, they should
"*"W With sincerity ana L hey have splendidly
embi LnCevlty ’n the enterprise thfu'01^6 with
rewards' Either Y°U Wil1 not be^denirJ Musllms have
victory and you wid die a *ed One of the tu
WeL d Spoils of war v death 0
......
en)lesofGod

30. 54 ^ree of the book of the
he faith ^'^your religion, enlighten
> cle^-°j the string •
>’our the pahent and ' fighting trim, the Caliph
L Mush"’ Lnr bin ‘Aas and Walid
" nh m under‘lkn,1a bY these reinforcements,
aid Enlb01djelien far into the enemy territory
m advanced »0 ^feat at MaraJ al-Soffar.
Kh511d4lbn ufteranig"0111'11 hPa four battalions under
C** d'T,ChWelid) Y=zrd, son of Abu
‘-^-'’'''’‘TbeSnmnd of .be fourth
X The Caliph was
il,». « actin, for the Musi,ms were
conscious ofthe gravity f same time, with the
fichtina wars. at one and ; lncfuded m these
■potentates of the East an on of the Prophet,
Yr d iThn tbe battle of Badr.
onehundiedofwhom had taken P of Jorf
.As fc bnuades««leaving the «W>”8 |eader
, he walked a little distance byI e SI nai-iirlit without
and eoimselled him 4ns, 'Profession is naugn
action. The merit ofa work depended! on the P“fP° f
™ta. The reward set forth in the Book of the Lord for
such as fight in His way, is great. Set this over bef
and before thy men. But when thou haranguest them,
bnef, for in the multitude of words the foremost wor
lost in the hmdermost. So striving, ye will obtain the prize,
riches and glory in the present life, and in the life to come,
viz: salvation.’"
Marching through Balca, Abu ‘Obaidah advanced
to Jabia 'Amr bin ‘Aas advancing upon lower Palestine
threatened Gaza and Jerusalem. Abu ‘Obaidah advanced
°Wards Damascus; Yezid defeating a Roman force
426-
Dfthe Early Caliphate, page 96.
of Cons’
.a tlie
55 .. ove’AvhelnLttali°n
Shora'lbl The f°UI bforCe of
, B<>* aMa''dTibe"|e>flen<edbfa mighty
01 J*ey «ete S“n was 38a"]?The Roman
W< ,0.000 a'’d'I hed as W uate. TW of
.<’ P no me»"Lar j’had ”<*" *° a Its
*»“’sf««waS„I evwafter' was aO,ossaLjal
rf*' „ consta",n'op depe"denC f , hting maW1
its European <W supp|y of ff‘ ninsula »*
fits a',’fed the spac>°us tl,jdcd w>th
«*^ed. " S hV three seas , “ne, Egypt,
" set A«. enco* X Phoe»ieia.aad f’ether with the
"* ’“",“”rf'd>e'suno«nda'h '»at,0"S; Jp of territory
...........
Carthage. , iarge army to
The Roman Emperm despa generais. who
crush and expel the intrude . (Q „
-till now opera.,ng m separate areas
thpir forces to meet this army an ,
recommended by the Caliph. 'Draw ye all together, he
commanded, ‘by the banks of Yermuk. Ye are the Lord s
host, and shall surely put the enemy to flight. Such as you
shall not be discomfited by reason of the fewness of your
numbers. Tens of thousand are smitten in battle because of
their sins. Wherefore, do ye eschew sin. Let every man
stand close by his feilow. So shall the Lord give you the
W . Seeing that the combined Muslim forces were no
=:=s==t-t:txs
lyU11Phate,page98

31. 56 r rces leaving the other
. rhistOtCC3' |
. .irwitb''3U°?ofMothanna.
this theatre oi * cOlllman desert Uy like a red
balf'nlraQ „nse of a ^d?e Syrian battle fields.
'aSieXp n Khalid and th Tamar and
Sea ofsand bet"Hira. he c»?e d°* nd taking up the less
Proceeding the desert d on the
then. ’nrtead,otn;er rQUte on the no The penlous
arduous but right aero*d in a matter of
bold venwre 0vaterieSs tract wasP forces had t0 depend
j0UrneyFTdays at stretch he andhthe storage within the
weeks, F - jer suppb , t Q to engage in
foT X came'5- their way was
S'® i small encounters. At At was slam
XSty^ TaghUbt
and his force wiped Muslim force to their grea
crossed their arms with t h haRed at Tadmor
detriment. Crossing the d > Re then marched on
^hich yielded after a slight re opposition. With
t0 Hauran which also ga Damascus and
k dramatic suddenness he appeal of June or
■r joined the combined Muslim army the mucb
| °ly 634. The united Muslim forces defeated
F larger Byzantine army at Al-Ajnadayn b tween
and Gaza at the end of Jamadi I a h 12 (July 6 )■
The chronological sequence of the battles _
early days of the Caliphate, i. e„ the closing■d^s haS
Bakr and the beginning years of ‘Umar’s Calip
been confusing and given differently by different au
Thus Sir William Muir in his Annals of the Early Ca ip
has placed the important battle of Yarmuk in a.h. 13 in
time of Abu Bakr and the battle of Al-Ajnadayn in the tim
of Umar in ah 15. He has further stated that the siege 0
Damascus had started in the time of Abu Bakr, but it xva
aladliuri Fatoohus Sham, page 116, reproduced from Khulafa e
^^een, Darul Musannafin.
57
jwhen'U"”'
e««c“®d has «
5 Cl^tf accW“’tiheti1’’e of K^armieS
rf^ves a „ 13>» h£ss of Mus’1® ole took
K»* «, tookp'3'e ”dl„g of suc ® battle of Ya"Ljdayn
biSdeath-be15 lbnls’haq s aU‘mant, rey the year
Macei° aH' u 13. „ baS also g'v qccottfd
’“ftf.TW »®i0^en redi^
r*',,i eofV»rm“ltaS A chtonole^ has f the Sources,
the battle° , their chi f-dqUe of |a
the conquests n scholars—I tylem°ire .
‘(feed by EoroPt" 37-113; De G°eJa. Miednlkoff,
fctwse”. op. foe Leden, I900’ , Annale, ("■
<7by Sbibli
*2 tP accepted view . one g
* *t0 ,he
important and fortified city of Damascus.
Pilgrimage of Abu Bakr
In the first year of the Caliphate, Abu Bakr was so
occupied with the turmoil in Arabia that he could not
proceed to Makkah for the annual pilgrimage and had
appointed the Governor of Makkah to deputise for him.
Next year he went to Makkah to lead the pilgrimage.
His illness

32. 58 f his successor to be
. the Questi°n °vhom he had earlier
t he "antcd ,as ‘dniar ones and who had led
neM f His choice ?jud2einciV' Xd been his constant
«««“"'U fittest person but was
compan10", . t -Umar was Bakr rephed, This is
Mio To this, M> r hearted when himself
inclined to sOft all ^at thou sayest. I have
■>* ause rC e wiH forego mud anyone he would
the ma^ 1 . |Y if1 were angy h would be
±K^lfrX“eSoe and said,
-uttanln Jet than that which doth
Wh*.f ‘ *^ “afflongstuS all.’ Ta!ha
Tht,t fl If« tave suffered S° "T
b^vvever differed and sad us tQ temper hiS
from ‘IW ,hen Lu art gone to the Lord,
seventy, what mH t be wn tQ care of s0
there to answer for han g L d >When I meet my
| WLand'dictated to him an ordinance appointing
F ‘Umar as his successor. While it was being written, ne
fainted and ‘Uthman himself completed the document an
put in the name of ‘Umar. On recovering, he bade Uthman
to read it and expressed his complete satisfaction with it.
He desired that the ordinance should be read to all that had
assembled in the Great Mosque and himself addressed them
thus. ‘Are ye satisfied with him whom I have appointed
over you. ’It is none of my own kin, but ‘Umar, son of
khattab. Verily, 1 have done my best to choose the fittest,
hereupon, ye will obey him loyally.’ The people
^ered with one voice,‘Yes, we will obey.’1
59 a his ft'en^ ‘He ha*
■ „n s’0'561"5 He repl‘ed’j1dvice. he
*'hp*sU° fcamels but®whic11 Lsofl'fe- 1Pth herds °f
...onedayhe^^
Md *» ever SP° ’ he wanders and
^"TX’eller *resoever
Evff„^eth; , „w of death, from
*’e,tE«eptingon’y<hepat
Misnoretum.’ from a heathen poet
When some onerecite “then the agony o
ht« displeased “No^^foCran, is what thou
toth shall come m truth Thrs,
■'=Ss:=“=-
called ‘Umar and addressed him earnestly, Command a
levy for Mothanna. Tarry not. If I die, as I think, this day
wait not till the evening; if I linger till night, wait not till
the morning. Let not sorrow for me divert you from the
service of Islam and the business of your Lord. Ye saw
•tat I did When the Prophet (PBUH) died (and there could
'gmat'r sorrow for mankind than that); truly if grief
«* »f rebellion had surX Idl'd badly) the
''•'Umar,whe„the L ' h ed “ the And, list
“•R«lV011|,,Re42

33. 61
60
proper garrison thereof. and fittest to administer it.’” He
then counselled ‘Umar to temper hardness and severity
with mildness and moderation. He breathed his last with
these word; "Lord, make me to die a true believer. Take nie
to join the blessed ones on high!
Abu Bakr died on August 22 A.D. 634. According
to his wishes the two garments that he was putting On
formed his shroud for. he had said, 'new clothes befit the
living but old the mouldering body.’" He was, laid to
near the foot ofthe grave ofthe Prophet (PBUH).
4
Personal Life
rest
1SirWilliamMuir—ArmaisoflheEarlyCaliphate,
‘IbnSa'ad—Tabaqat
Page 114
’"’"'CZ months after his installation as *e “
ainl of Islam, AW Bakr lived with his wife Habiba at
Sl-Sunh. a suburb of Madinah in a dwelling made of pal
trunks. For transacting the business of the State, he used to
walk or ride to the ‘Great Mosque’ in Madinah every day.
As the affairs of the State took more and more of his time,
he shifted his residence to his apartment in the Mosque. His
dress was always the most ordinary and his meals scanty.
He attended to his household work and saw no indignity in
and milking „ot on|y Ms ow|]
'ta ofhis neighbours.1 To the end his living
was austere but always dimified a, k , " ”
tepanem of simplicity and fr^ .-I’ ““rt,he fol'owed
*t(PBUH). He shunned allToJf d°Wn by ,he
no guards or servitors f and sPien*>ur and
obswied i„ rCgard t0 a7 T Edward Gibbon has ,
^V^-“"0-askt00,0wf
°eclinP ndFa,,0^eRge89-
K°n’anpni .
P,re>VolVn
’ Page
JSC.
r
i

34. **hf hm1
,.*. ”*' ' Arnibin Amnd
***
. ?,•* *"**' ' . ... them «‘ collector* of
. • '< "■•'l ....... f,nd‘
*T ,Tv u-rr .nd r""’dcK h,m With
'’.' ■ • "■ Lieven drcam of God
^1;.r,r,.. ** ; "',r" Iran Him and doubles his
■" ''"vr^r of mankind lies piety.
■wW'”* 'r ' l<r<j and there is no room lor
,. ; r ' 'v .. . . .. it brook any negligence
publishment of religion or
- _,l(l|( i not • lai I n<•■ • < >i
fcs*r»
W^ar* ‘**w*
IM***
j* ... ... ... mild and gentle in disposition.
lwr! • ttu MM.on-' of lir < liarac lei
ta . ■ Wk showered praises on him
,. ... . .. .... i-x. Hi would say, '() ( md. you
ieftp* UK v.r 2® tmsell And I know myself
'■ ■ •• - < at mt ’ Pardon my sins and do
’■ - ■ -..... '■....* of their undue praises.’’He
• ' - : between I’rophethood and
' " ‘ - ■ -".mcsMon he stated. “The
MMoent and he was guided by
~ ordinary man. If you find
I deviate, then correct
tt, . . ' / : ' : : ‘Ol III w.r hou e Cl .
a* r of Ins firmness in
• i..: .. d,Xi> - expedition against the
,£ ■ ?"-r. : ' rbwl kl con’pronnse u ith
‘‘i “•cfiipiiofi from payment of poor
. lPosMSy.
10cru5h r
' j rcbcll’nn
drediwde „ . nh he asked h's
rib ’"d ffice ofthe Ca 'ph‘ m patrimony
0" s,wk of '"tether tehad heen
approached, his conscience ‘ . fhis |anded property
of the Caliphate devolved upon me, I have contented
myself with the simplest food and apparel. Of the things
belonging to the State. 1 have none except a black slave, a
camel and an old sheet. When 1 am gone send them to
I mar and shake off the burden.”2
His generosity
He was one of the richest merchants of Makkah but
I ■ lilt cause of Islam, particularly in freeing slaves and •
«'"! costs of military eipeditions h. d 'n
''■“iso much so that there Spenl al1 hls
k*ed from acule priva||ons pen°ds m his life when
family life
Page 139

35. r
ut
62
i The rule of conduct that hc b
was Abu Bakr- as he advise tQ 4
for!'’A-tqba while deputing them r K
-In seclusion or in company, fear <*H As S
l’*“v for one who fears Him and Pr0A1-
Lstenance from a source he would not eVen A
forgives the sins of one who fears Him .. Abi A
recompense. Verily in the service of £1 djx
You are in the path of the Lord and theA M liA h"
excesses or shortcomings, nor does it bro ,'s r'b r ‘ IbA
in matters wherein lie establishment rie , * /•
protection of the Caliphate. Therefore u, °f cell8A?1
negligence overtake you.” n°t slap^*n
Disposition
He was singularly mild and Ren).
Humility and modesty were the keynot /. e 'n dis
He felt embarrassed when people shower h's ch°Sit>%
or showed exaggerated respect. He worn i pra'Ses^er'
know me better than I know myself Say> ‘O c °n hip.
better than what they think of me i p.,A ’ A'A
not call me to account because of their'"" IT|y sim '11yself
drew a sharp distinction between "'p'Uc '^isA d°
Imamate. Immediately upon his success r°Phc,1*od "e
Prophet (PBUH) was Innocent XXXXA
Dwtne revelations. 1 am but an ordinary * ^'ded
me on the right path, follow me if i ‘ >f you ,-by
me- in matters of state or rel 'i
resolute and firm. We have seen evidence A A
the matter of despatch of Osama's exped, ," "r'"nes* m
advice ot almost every one. his refusal " aSatnst the
Ashdmg tribes seeking exemption' An p’XX Ar
VoLVtpageSl^
page 2083.
^e-Rashedeen„ pageSg.
Afejneo. Vol. 1. page20.
63
.tinn that he took to crush apostasy,
♦he s<ern
.t*! 1 d rebellion-
A and rectitude
' JHteg • the office of the Caliph, he asked his
I11 Qn aSSU?linto take a stock of his private patrimony
.Mer determined later on whether he had been
^atitC0U noverished in the service of the state. For his
5°ficliedorinl? that of his family he depended upon his
£ $tenance anbut finding that it interfered with the affairs
>d,se’ he cave it up and consented to take 6000
statC’annum from the State revenue. As his end
his conscience was so troubled over this
jpPr°ache that he directed that a part of his landed property
a"°"ldto refund what he had taken from the State.1 On his
hbedhe said to ‘Ayesha, “Ever since the responsibility
de3the Caliphate devolved upon me, I have contented
01 elf with the simplest food and apparel. Of the things
pongingtothe State-1 have none excePl a black slave, a
;jnie[ and an old sheet. When I am gone send them to
Tmarand shake off the burden.’’2
Hh generosity
He was one ot the richest merchants of Makkah but
m the cause of Islam, particularly m freeing slaves and in
meeting costs ot military expeditions, he sDent m i
wealth; so much so that there were periods ini i / .
he suffered from acme privations h'S ‘"c when
Family life
He had wedded four wives at Hiff
rA *h0 "* m«>her of his 'r“‘ i.1"*:?' They
XXXX' Wh0
:tSi‘4ra'^"-Vol.llI.pagei39.
s<>n ‘Abdullah and

36. who begot his
1M ><* *' H,b'b"
ouiif y1
Re«P’“5lift , mring the day and spent whole
. , . "^.Heusedtoget in^nsely
u ,nora^andn'cd J and in reading the Qur’an
' "Ti in «v>n?hlS T eves He was ever mindful of
JU «* ria# «,l,w81,‘ °f h u end; So
JcH«u#»’n^fcS»l>riq“c,of,he s'8hlng '
nucbsoiiuib"3-- hjn procured by means
He Xet'lvTawfiil. Once he partook of meals
which were 1,01 st" ' Rllt when he learnt that it had not
^X^hevom-teditout.
Attachment to the Prophet
•Ayesha states that while they were living at
Makkah. his father used to visit the Prophet (PBUH) every
nxMnine and evening and was his chief confidant. The
same attachment continued in Madinah. After his
appointment as Caliph he used to say, ‘Call me not the
Caliph ofthe Lord. I am but the Caliph of the Prophet of
the Lord.’ His strength lay in his implicit faith in the
Prophet (PBUH). In decision of any affair, he was ever
rryUi of what the Prophet (PBUH) had commanded or
■- the Prophet (PBUH) would have done in the
of the case. To him the word of the Prophet
WCUmna 2 a" T'"8 Weflt t0 the length °f
same Master Tre of the beloved daughter of the
Inher,iance. ln an'r 2'Td her rigbt’ uPon the basis of
of •>» father. aJ rT and some other property
!PB^Hiad saI(j “v 2 pointed out that the Prophet
U||l be for almC’T6 ShaH be my heiri that which 1
i* 1PBUH) shal| n °w’therefore, the family of the
alter no ° ?,ofthese la^, for by the
“ "tie of that which he hath
■ that thy
65 art certain th*
“If thou an . wOrd d
„ added he, ni accept thy except
"notdeviated»"e.1'ilirS“
tSe’ofthe^*^'
JU*' and b# had
Ofhis children he ove reference to others,
given her some landed. Xs spirit and when his death
This troubled his conscien daughter, to
Klt^b’dvSStherestofthe
^^ou^notWHingUteoneyet
unborn.”
The tithes that were received in the State treasury,
were spent on the poor or on arms and equipage. The spoils
of war, the gold and silver received from the mines, were
all distributed as soon as they came or on the following
morning. ‘All shared alike, the recent convert and the
mule and female, bond and free. As a claimant on
C Muslim treasury, every believer was his brothers’ eaual
■" lhe “Ta
H' •iH grant the reward of suchY' J'’3’ 'S f°r1lle Lord-
10 come. These uifc h k haVe excelled in the
presentiifc.0 h® 8tfc are but an accident of the

37. ,he days "hen apostasy had overtaken some pa„s
, Arabia a songstress m Yemen used to satrnze the
pX (PBUH) and another to r.dtcule the Muslims in
1 °P nn;. The Governor, Muhajir; had their hands cut off
p" °ut T,’ ,hf Califh
• he approved the punishment of the first, for said he,
‘•Crime against a Prophet (PBUH) is not the same thing as a
crime aeainst a common man; and, indeed, had the case
been first referred to me, I should, as a warning to others,
have directed her execution.” But he strongly disapproved
the mutilation of the other ‘for if she was a Muslim, a mere
warning would have been sufficient but if a dhimmi, she
needed" no punishment for abusing Muslims when the
greater sin of living in polytheism was being ignored.’ He
cautioned Muhajir, ‘This is your first error, otherwise you
would have suffered for it. Beware of mutilation. It is a sin
abhorrent. It is only reluctantly permissible in retaliation.’1
In judicial matters he was ever guided by the Qur’anic
injunctions or the commandments of the Prophet. If he
found them silent on any point he would consult others and
where that, too, did not help, he would resort to reasoning
and conjecture though with considerable misgivings. Ibn
Sireen says that on one such occasion he said, ‘If my
decision is correct, the guidance is from the Lord. If I am
wrong, the error is mine and God may forgive me.’2
Literary acumen
1 Suyuli— Tcirikhul Kliulafa', page 96. -g
2 Ibn Sa ’ad—Tabaqat, page 26, Khulfa ’-e-Rashedeen, page
iKP/i Th°ugh he had received no formal education, he
After thJkmP°Se ■POems before his conversion to Islam-
also an o™ "lnterested °nly in didactic ppetry. He was
XX °f 3 hlgh Order- A sample of'his oratory is
are those beautiful, radiant and youthful
d to evoke admiration? Where are those
founded cities and citadels? Where are
and heroes who used to trounce
e tirrie enfeebled and
W*’° St°°d
J^He-d also correctly interpret dreams.
Compilation of the Qur an
In the expeditions against apostates and rebels,
more particularly in the battle of Yemama, a large number
of companions who remembered the Qur’an by heart were
killed. Till then the Qur’an was recorded on separate pieces
of different writing material as palm bark, leather, bones,
stones and a rough type of paper. ‘Umar felt the necessity
of collecting the sacred text, ‘lest any part should be lost
taf and persuaded Abu Bakr deputed the Prophet’s
Zard bin Tahabit to record the n„r'J •
volume. Says Hafiz Ihn h-v ^ur an ln one
stated that Qur’an is preserved1' G°d has
r UU[ and sent to
Conclusion
*nll,sonly;fi*, s rei® lasted for tw
fchiwem'nts w"° years and three
..........
CUr,tyt°aland

38. *1^
68
■, emotion and insecurity. The apostates and
seething 'Wh com' verts who were trying to regain their
the'wenngnew e(j ways of life, were
earlier wanton < isiam and obliged t0 yield tQ
back t0 r p snurious prophets and pretenders who had
regulat,ons-T- /of apostasy and rebellion were either
kindled Jnr made to see the folly of their profane claims.
tribal principalities and mutually hostile clans were
feed into a nation. With trust in God and faith in his
X.on he took up the challenge posed by such mighty
powers as the Persian and Roman Empires. Engaging them,
at one and the same time, in unequal battles he gave them
decisive blows and paved the way for expansion of Islam to
the world.
In personal life he was a saint. Ibn ‘Abbas has
summed up his character in stating, “May God shower His
blessings on Abu Bakr. By God, he used to reflect in the
Qur’an, kept himself aloof from all weaknesses and vices
and forbade evil. He was a saint of the highest order, a God
fearing person who prayed for whole nights and fasted
during the days. In matters of justice and in advocating
goodness he was firm. Whatever the circumstance he might
be placed in, he was ever grateful to God and remembered
Him morning and evening. He excelled his compatriots in
moeration, continence, piety, goodness, self-control and
God^u^r 3?d 'n contentment over the bounties of
his sovprp- 1X6 2 s’mp'e’ P* ous and sublime life and used
the good ofThePpeople.tO P”6 °f Iskm
Sahaba, page 46.
69
‘Uiflar
Islam’3 victor;
Caliphate was
seven years, of
out of his house
countenance and
f lslat1"1 ^aS
•s access a"d h’S
‘t]mal S jied its SU a '
twenty” ■ sityfor
Jam caused Ch0 edited of W drawn to
was ‘Umar. No rmuiablishment o s a ■ entertaming such high
suggested to him “ wn house t0 order for
ambitions he might try to bri g rplioion of
his sister and brother-in-law had abandoned the religion o
their ancestors and accepted the new faith. Stung by the
taunt and the shocking news, he directed his steps to the
house ofhis brother-in-law where Khabbab was reciting a
verse ofthe Qur’an. Hearing him approach silence fell on
'heassembly. Khabbab hid himselfin a comer ofthe house
andlhe sister concealed the parchment on which the verse
X™” askfd thera 10 bTing out ,he parchment
threw down his brot^1
121, on the authority offt„Sa ‘ad

39. 70
, .hhourine him- The sister intervened but
law and began beu off (hat dashmg against
she was soprofusely. Thoroughly
floor her heao s < ‘Uniar do your worst. We are
roused she de i.mi and we assert that there .g
not g°ing10 11 ,q Muhanimad (peace be on him) is His
god but G°o ‘ , ‘Umar was shaken and desired that
^"X^'read ro h.n. When be heard To! ,,
I am Allah There is no God save Me; so serve Me
Establish worship for My remembrance’, his mind was
made up Accompanied by Khabbab he went to Arqam’s
house where the Prophet (PBUH) was staying. In his
excitement he had forgotten to sheath the sword. The
Prophet (PBUH) enquired of him the reason for the drawn
sword. ‘Umar was ashamed and said he had come solely
for the purpose of embracing Islam. A full throated cry of
•God is Great' by ail those present greeted the statement.1 It
was the sixth year of the Prophethood. Till now the
hostility ofthe Quraish had limited the number of adherents
to fifty one—forty males and eleven females—and imposed
the necessity of excercising caution to the extent of saying
prayers in private only. ‘Umar’s entry in the fold changed
the situation entirely. Characteristic of his boldness and
courage, he publicly announced his conversion to Islam,
said his praters in the Ka ‘aba and defied the opposition of
the Quraish. For the public declaration he received the title
ofFarooq from the Prophet (PBUH).3
Early life
comnan^6 Gmar> like that of all the
havePknnuS’m ‘n the mist of time- Who could
n that the child bom of Khattab son of Nufail
swrdrZmfX9'page32-
reproduced by tbn ’page 120- °n the authority of Ibn ‘Abbas
7/
dnuehterofHasham bin Mughira forty y^-
rise to such heights of glory?
itm figure and belonged to the tribe of
Sens'd to serve as the envoy of Quraish m the
/deiitimes. When the child grew up his father assigned to
hinl the task of taking out his camels for grazing. On
reaching the age of adolescence he busied himself in
acquiringthe arts ofwrestling, riding, fencing, oratory and
genealogy. Baladhuri writes in Al-ashraf that ‘Umar
acquired considerable fame in wrestling and used to
participate in the annual contests at ‘Ukaz. He was a great
^ni'and used to mount n horse without the aid ofstirrups and to ride on its bare hnek 01
seventeen men ofQuraish whn m ? W3S °ne
"•> thp davs
i'
- of trafe
iioned in his book **® d“ idely m Iran and Syna
teig.or.nce 'Umar tad « well known figure
XZ"'appo‘». ban as their ennssary
whenever disputes with other tribes arose.
By the thirteenth year of the Prophethood, the
persecution of Muslims at the hands of Quraish had
become so intense that the Prophet advised general
migration of Muslims to Madi'nah. Even ‘Umar was forced
to migrate but not before circumambulating the Ka ‘aba
seven times, saying his prayers in its precincts and
c allenging the Quraish to come to grips with him if they
iorSh ,6ab,n'AbdulMunzirinQ“ba.a
^‘Khuhfi.
Ja ■ Page

40. 72
From
Like Abu
sen-ice ofIslam- ’
Hiirat to K|,ilafat
Bakr ‘Umar had dedicated his life to the
' holding its cause no sacrifice was to0
, m the life time of the Prophet he zealously
great for him. ■ ba(tles which Islam had to face and
participated in valour. During the caliphate of
SeX'h^*aOs«'sexped itionbU1.heCa,lph
had n OSM.-S permission to relieve htn, for be,ng
il hie at Madinah for advice in the crisis that was
S v n« He gave whole hearted support and sane counsel
to Abu Bakr in every step that he took to put down apostasy
and rebellion. In short, he was associated with every
important event in the progress of Islam.
After the battle of Badr, the Prophet had consulted
his companions about the disposal of the prisoners of war.
Among them were some relation of ‘Umar but in matters of
State and religion he was so unswayed by personal feelings
that he advocated the beheading of the captives. The advice
of Abu Bakr that the pnsoners be released on ransom,
however, prevailed.
In A.H. 3 ‘Umar’s widowed daughter, Hafsa, was
married to the Prophet (PBUH).
In the 6,h year of the Hijra, the treaty of Hudaibiya
"as concluded with the Makkans. While it was being
M Mded’ Umar cons‘dered some of the terms that the
,a ans were insisting upon as disadvantageous and
shnda'0^ t0,lslam- Tlle terms were that the Muslims
that a Ml ' atyear without performing the pilgrimage,
Pagan falling t0 IVla^a*1 would be detained but a
Theadvantat'Hf ° of MusIims should be returned.
Muslims and° ^Ssat*on war for ten years between the
^'derations and L pQUTSh outweighed all other
advantage that m TOpdet s foresight saw the ultimate
d accrue thereby. Later on, revelation
the
ha'
prt
Jims »
that it
xvivcs,
.nd Um-ne
he
73 f r Mas
as« **** Vi
i the featy > iniuncti011
* * l> f* ^"wives.
k-ulsoom v i-^iady Jamil3’A u 8
"*" dlMUthe conquest of hands of *e
After a their allegianee on th fnrward and,
MT(PB* The women had also com
faltycn the hands O ,h.t vear when the Muslims
In the battle of Hunain y sumrise attack of
•ere initially swept off their fee steadfastly
SbXXbet (PBUH) helping thereby to turn
the tide ofevents and to register a signal victory.
In A.H. 9 the Prophet asked for donations for the
Tabouk expedition. ‘Umar contributed half of whatever
wealth he had.
‘Abdullah ibn Mas‘ud has stated that in four matters
Umar excelled others, namely (i) his suggestion about the
captives of war of Badr turned out to be in accord with the
Quranic verse that was revealed soon after- Uit u j •th
that the Prophet’s wives should T • a^vise<^
gelation confirmed this later- ti'A tn6 m PUr(^a^ and
ld specifically pra d(or hi ’ j'"’ ,he Pr0Phet (PBUH)
to pledge allegiancetoX nT and (lv) he was
,f* the fa1’*”'1 " ca" be XiT5 'UCCessi»n
^'on Umar-s advice ad°Pted by the
Ja ’Page 127

41. 74
„ since his 3“eP‘anCe°f?l^m’ ‘Um«
I" , msled companions of the Prophet, i„
oncofth;-,'and he supported and upheld the
fart, his ncl*' ” ’' . idefatigable energy, dynamism,
„ ....
■ M 13 Abu Bakr died and Umar succeeded
In A- d Caiiph He was immediately called upon
him 3S ‘h.e Skions and to assert his dynamic personality.
take'lhasdbeen made earlier that Mothanna, the general
entl°n nd of the Muslim force in Iraq, had come to
-”1 pe-.l)y request the Caliph for
reinforcements and the dying Caliph had advised hrs
successor designate to give foremost attention to it. Umar
forthwith busied himself with the task of raising a fresh
levy. People were coming from all directions to pledge
their fealty to him. For three days he addressed them to
enlist but without any success. The people thought that
without Khalid defeat of a mighty empire like the Persians
might not be possible. On the fourth day the Caliph
harangued them in a stirring speech and Mothanna put
heart in them by saying, ‘0 brethren of the faith ! We have
already taken measure of the Magians. They are not much
of warriors. We have already wrested from them several
large districts ofIraq and the whole of Ajam acknowledges
our bravery. Abu ‘Obeid of Thakif was the first to come
orv-ard, A thousand followed suit. Abu ‘Obeid was
thar°tl?te^ COmmander force. Some one pointed out
volunteer?'6^ many comPan*ons of the Prophet among the
the Calinh t? tdem s^ou^ take the command but
doth 0 nown the suggestion by -y-g’ ‘
were the first to r i|mpanions c°nsist but in this, that they
^backwardan/ the ProPhet (PBUH). But now
as be ready fOr tkP k.C°,me not to help of the Lord. Such
rden’ whether it be light or whether it
rclaim.V^. forth-
pthebette tiiat first
W enl,S“nS
.d territory «flratl .
. ,heMu*» CC“P , from W. thl,ngf
«* lli0” . bsence of Mothan?fter a go«d dea‘ °f
DUI"'d8fcretbe MuSlimsthere. Afterai and
lai worsened be||ion in whic , VM a daughter ot
l>l«*d ®d. tteir lives. the aid of the
seized '»e the inroads
*„ed general Rustam-I> eff authorlty upon
of Muslim arms, she co hePnob|es and instigated
Rustam. He rellied round h ma ten.itory (Q nse
te landlords of the Musi J columns from
SZ!::eun^Xo^e upon H.ra and the
other under Narsi to occupy Kaskar between the Euphra es
and the Tigris. Unable to meet the two pronged attack
Mothanna abandoned Hira and fell back on Khaffan on the
desert border to await the arrival of Abu ‘Obeid. Abu
‘Obeid appeared with his army and taking the command of
the combined forces he advanced upon Namarick where
Jaban was camping. The Persian force was defeated and put
o flight. Jaban was captured while trying to escane but
exchange°for^ ransom him in
People clamoured that he should k W3S recognised
e s< and quarter 2ivPri k 1 are one bodv ’
.......

42. %
ohcd routed the second
J*"* **° hild cnmc »"
■ . ' . ' ■ " ■’ .................... .............. ..
!hf tnbU'C
RiNam despatched a still
SW ’ ' 1' nulled general Bahman who
^’r elephants and the great banner of
-•■■■ ” 's'? * anther skins and regarded as the
rtx for1unc. Bahman camped at
’ fwm Babylon, where a boat bridge
the option to Abu ‘Obcid to
.. ...... lot the cni’a.i’cmviil Ahn
' . - hm against then quitting the
but m the flush of recent victory, he
'/ .....■ 10 lei the enemy take the first
j?’. .,. ; 0! valour. On crossing over, they found to
tstr »«!»-. tnat the ground on the opposite bank was too
... manoeuvre The Persian force marched in
1- Huge war elephants with their tingling
v. formed its advance guard. That Arab
sexc« fix approach of monsters they had never
■ - m - . . •*: < was thrown in confusion,
r 'Otad jumped down from his horse and exhorted his
“ ■ de likewise. Bravely they attacked the
oeptu^ a fo« and cuttingthe bands ofthe howdahs they
a Btl whichever side the elephants
4ey nmpled rows after rows of the soldiers.
M e*eP* lant' the leader of the herd,
but w’tb a m>ghty blow of his
rul- ,T ;cr teasi crushed him under its
Obeid's brother P‘cked UP
Ok dta ’ 1C dcasI 10 meet the same end.
i!‘r; ■<Y’‘lhdard bearers thus lost their
X si^td c.u« J; back ln constemation. Crying
totN« .Jltt Glc as their chiefs had died or
iffil Wif cut adrift the first boat
havingclosed, panic »v.
the river to escape the
>site shore of the swift
'* fhe debacle. With
atbayand one of
this time the rout
- as 4000
k(’unfle L nna was |C‘ ah retnorse inn£ t'nie
gssr
trite Mrfm X‘°f
Tafflini. M, gujaila brougl ‘Obeid
tamed to join the neW stered up a considerable
MtwHe, Mottarn’j (ribe> Beni Namr, responded
force in Iraq. Even a Cl g00n news
to his invitation to throw in their 1 •
came that a 12,000 strong imperial force under tn
command of Mehran was on the march against t em.
Mothanna advanced to meet it at Bowaib on the western
bank of the Euphrates. When the two armies confronted
each other, Mothanna exhorted his men to acquit
themselves with valour, ‘Your valour this day will be a
P^erb in the mouths of all. None shall give way amongst
"1 sad he Wd?e n° glOfy f°r mySelf bUt the S10rV Of
* whZr"and fearM dm *e petsi®
6 the baUle was ra» Mothanna rode upto
:—-

43. 78
n-m Nanir and said to him, Though
t)1c chief of the Bin us Come now> and as j
Chnsnan.yean.’O'K Together they charged. The
charce. charge ye'' bear the thrust of the powerful
Persian Centre <ou {he whole Persian army
attack and cave *a- ^ade for the bridge. But Mothanna
began falling ba- ‘ {thejr retreat and in desperation
reached there■ h: ]ves agajn on the Muslim ranks.
the^'an; San? brother, Mas’ud, was mortally
M nded'but even while dying he urged his men, ‘Exalt
"Xners high. Beni Bakr. The lord will exalt you. nry
men- and let not my fall disturb you. Amr, the Christian
Sain, met a similar fate. Though greatly outnumbered
dte Muslims beat back this desperate charge. A youth of the
Bam Taghlib. another Christian tribe, slew Mehran and
riding back on his richly caprisoned horse shouted in
triumph. T am of the Bani Taghlib. I am he that hath slain
Mehran.’ The disaster of the Persians was now complete
and an appalling number of them were put to sword. The
chroniclers Tabari and Deenwari say that the carnage far
exceeded any before and for ages the bones of the dead
bleached upon the plain. Detachments of the Muslim troops
scoured the country and driving away Persian garrisons
thev reached within sight of the walls of Madai’n. Lower
Mesopotamia and the delta were thus re-occupied.
Changes at the Persian Court
defeat of £ Per:>ian court was shaken to the core at the utter
'"evitable unle^thelS C°1IapSe °f the empire W3S
removed and Yezdo ° £ queen was rep!aced. She was
and 16 according tn n 3 y0Ut11 of 21 according to Tabari
w'th energy he set benwaT was placed upon the throne.
the gamsons and stro^L r.eplen’s*1’ng his army, refitting
0 and reviving the flagging
Ear,y Caliphate, page 137
. tothe caliph-
phe ° 01-ted the situation persians. A
Motharina report'ment with the it
sot e chief
(•“"“S'ws dissuaded fron’.do'®oted warrior and
in perS°n Sa ‘ad bin Abi Waqqas, commander
Companions Sa au appomted cor
maternal uncle Mothanna, Jarir an
of the combined fences He was J0ined
levies. Sa‘ad set out with an y recantant
^coniingenis ledbyTole.ha a,c|a,ms had
prophets, who giving up thei p qberaf
become staunch believers. The troops halted at Sherat,
fifteen to twenty miles south of Hira. Here Moanna, brother
of Mothanna, brought the sad news of his brother s death.
That great general had received serious injuries in the battle
of the Bridge from which he did not completely recover.
Thus ended the heroic chapter of one of the great generals
of the world about whom Muir has stated, ‘Among the
generals who contributed to the triumph of Islam, he was
skill,’ y d t0 hlm m V1gour or strategic
eWment that he waTke^’ lmportance to this
ahead and 3 battlefield and a 6rrain of
»nd‘ht PUins ofe1"Caanip at C’des.ya wi^ed Sa‘ad to

44. v daird to accept Islam betoie launching an
to invite iezos* Singly Sa ‘ad sent twenty emissaries to
attack on him. ■ ^Hg. Their simple dress and rude
the court ot tne with the splendour of tfa
weaP°nS -ht as they entered the precincts of the palace,
champing of the beaut.fial steeds, and the
die prancm^ thg nders> struck awe
thThe^s of the king and his effeminate nobles. The king
demanded of them how they dared to invade his territory.
The Arab spokesmen told him of their Prophet and the
salient features oftheir religion and invited him to accept it.
‘Embrace the Faith,' they said, and thou shalt be even as
one of us; or, if thou wilt, pay tribute and come under our
protection, which things, if thou shall refuse, the days of
thy kingdom are numbered.’ The king rejected the proposal
contemptuously. The Arabs replied, ‘Thou has chosen the
sword; and between us shall the sword decide.’ At this the
King got so infuriated that he said, ‘If it were not that ye
are ambassadors, ye should have been put to death, all of
you. Bring hither a clod of earth and let the mightiest
among them bear it as a burden from out the city gates.’
The Arabs took it as a good omen and ‘Aasim galloped
with the basket to Sa'ad and exclaimed, ‘Rejoice ! O Sa‘ad,
for, lo, the Lord hath given thee of the soil of Persia. ’
Even though Rustam had under him an army of
1.20,000 he hesitated to attack. He had by now ample
experience of Muslim arms and thought it more prudent to
pay a waiting game to weary down his enemies. To
° ° th Im ^abs started making a series of raids
drove aJi Jbey attacked the castles of nobles and
teaching the & i^ °PpeoP^e w'th the dual purpose of
and offtinushiLT^^ 8°ing back on their allegiance
appealed to Yezdgird army' The harassed People
combat no longer si *7 dlrected Rustam to delay the
his massive armv y and unw>lhngly he moved with
y nd took four months to reach Cadesiya
p Sa
I ts on the oppo^ ^d^
ipitcb his tc'^1I10itring P3'11^ enemy can^ but single
To'eiha hotly P^edand carried
^rsuers one after emissary
- three battalions--
Rustam ro.rs .ta'iedei'’J Jen elephants and the flanks,
**“aShed H euza had six elephants each. Sa ad
?h “ • d cou|(J not come to
hattie front the ramparts o a
X'S was sending down hisunstmct.ons to
tis commanders on pieces of paper. The battle lasted fo
three days and each day was given a name because ot some
peculiar feature thereof or events enacted therein.
The Is' day called Arwath
As usual the battle started with individual combats
in which ‘prodigies of valour’ were performed particularly
y Antribn M ‘ade Karib, ‘Aasim and Ghalib. The latter
Xxi“xHT^rracap,ive'The
J"*nee in favour of the Persians ffl T Wer<! ‘‘“i"8
‘'"““It his band ofarchers OnTk Aaslm a,,a<*ed
I'1' howdahs were hot f Y °"e a" ,he occupants
i>Witb,10;Xd°™ *"d the girths of the
' 8a"°Ped t0 the

45. 82
C -nhorse and performed ‘marvels of bravery ’
field on Sa ao * the night he came back to takP
'tTg ad. was the spirit of the Muslims,
free by «u*
The Second day called A8h»M or Day of Succour
The Caliph had directed a part of the forces
operation in Syria to proceed to Iraq. The gallant hero
o aoa ‘a had hastened with one thousand men in advance
ofthe main body of 5000 under the command of his brother
Hashim As the fighting began on the second day Q‘aqa‘a
appeared on the scene. Arranging his column in ten
squadrons, each following the other at some distance, he
magnified the look of the reinforcements and they seemed
to be coming on unendingly. Q'aqa’a challenged the enemy
to individual combat. Bahman Jadoweih, the hero of the
batter of Bridge, advanced to be cut down to pieces. Q ‘aq
‘a fought so valiantly that he alone accounted for thirty
dead. He and his band wrought havoc in the enemy ranks.
The fighting was so fierce that by the evening 3000
Muslims and 10,000 Persians lay dead or wounded on the
field.
The Third day called Ghimas or Day of concussion
In the morning the Muslims buried their dead and
their women tended the wounded. The casualties among the
Persians were so large that they let the dead bodies lie
unburied on the battle field. As the fighting was resumed,
as im came up with the main body of Syrian forces and
hmarTktr,lght int0 the enemy ranks. The Persians had
MuS ? 2elephants- They seated confusion in the
Assisted*!™ r'l^ 3C*a 3 undert0°k to remove the menace,
boldly cha2 Hashim and a band of followers he
,ances they blind* h0IL tW° leaders of the herd. With their
trunk of one Th the elephants and Q ‘aqa ‘a slashed the
e tnfuriated beasts darted towards the
0 kby^Zy'^
r .ro* “r for after a short lull
T-Xeams of combatants and
b* u Zgh” ,he “ght ,hffemns.™nThe
”nl Z «p”e the bank on which was pitched
‘"’’''i rf Rustam A whirlwind blew away its
‘C ” • RuZ tried to flee by jumping mto
EtZ overtaken by a valiant Arab who cut off
: bishead and hoisted it on his lance. The Persians were too
mauled and dismayed to resist any longer and their
i slaughter began. Firuzan and Harmuzan managed to escape
I mih their broken columns but Jalenus was killed and the
I remnants of his column were swept away in the river. For
miles the plain was littered with the dead bodies of
Sustaining a loss of about 8500 men themselves
M.sl. utterly vanquished an army four times theii
l * «« Z Ze ,heh S' EaCh S01di«
; themselves“g X W,h° . had Particularly
LZ^’^PiaZerZ On Rus,ani’s
ncllly overlai<l With I.01""1’ the great
W T cWed ZohZ and valued

46. 84
has wrought, and in view of all the fighting yet t0
Thou wilt break his heart thus.
The Persians had made such vast preparations a
their defeat was so crushing that it sealed Persia’s fal
Analysing the causes of their defeat Sir William Muir saVs
‘The battle of Cadesiya reveals the secret. On one side
there was but a lukewarm, servile following; on the other
an indomitable spirit that nerved every heart and aim; and
after long weary hours of the fighting enabled the Muslims
to deliver the final and decisive charge. The result was that
the vast host on which the last efforts of the empire had
been spent, was totally discomfited and the military' power
of the empire never again gathered itself into formidable
shape.’
The issue was being watched all over the country.
Yezdgird had posted men all the way from the battle field
to Madai’n, within earshot of one another, to constantly
relay news of the war to him. In Madinah, the Caliph was
coming out of the gates of the city every morning in the
hope that he might meet a messenger bringing the news. At
last a courier came on camel back and to ‘Umar’s query
replied, ‘The Lord hath discomfited the Persian host
Umar followed the courier on foot and gathered from him
the general outline of the battle. Thus engaged in
conversation the two entered the gates of the city. Thc j
courier found to his consternation that every' one greeted I
his companion as ‘Ameer-ul-Mominin’. Ashamed he cried
out/C) Commander of the Faithful I why didst thou not tell
^e- ‘It is all right, my brother,’ was the Caliph’s reply-
uci^ was the unpretending mien of one who at tha*
Chosroes’WaS ®Feater ^an either the Kaiser or
85
and C‘P>Un °rM:“ISI n <AH 13
f vilerbis steal victory at Cadesiya, Sa ad had no
LCU1Vin reoccupying Hira. The Persian troops, which
^assembledatBirs Nimrud, could not put up much of
.^stance. Soon Babylon passed away from their hands
jj]Sa 'ad made it his base of operation. His lieutenants
^bimandZohra fanned out to re-occupy the whole ofthe
Wand to drive away the Persians to the capital city of
tltiiin. Saad then advanced to occupy Bahar Sair a
^iofMadarn. The capital citywas built on both bankstitheover Tigris. The west?™ vuuks
™sie&butthe eastern part com ' nearer Slde fel1 after
'rea'sure" toX-V''1' h,s
^’himself ^n e norr^ and wae ni niOre Unified
y L M eurrnf n'° 'lie nV. en
nares tn * a/)d? treaw °^ether 5 °sely
'"Cz:
I

47. „dZoWfan the p«sian ,nv Bahar SaiB
84
has wrought, and in view of all the fighting yet to
Thou wilt break his heart thus’. c°nie?
The Persians had made such vast preparati0
their defeat was so crushing that it sealed Persia’s5/1”1
Analysing the causes of their defeat Sir William Muir
’The'battle of Cadesiya reveals the secret. On oneX
there was but a lukewarm, servile following; on the oth
an indomitable spirit that nerved every heart and aim-
after long weary hours of the fighting enabled the Muslims
to deliver the final and decisive charge. The result was that
the vast host on which the last efforts of the empire had
been spent, was totally discomfited and the military p0Wer
of the empire never again gathered itself into formidable
shape.’
The issue was being watched all over the country.
Yezdgird had posted men all the way from the battle field
to Madai’n, within earshot of one another, to constantly
relay news of the war to him. In Madinah, the Caliph was
coming out of the gates of the city every morning in the
hope that he might meet a messenger bringing the news. At
last a courier came on camel back and to ‘Umar’s query
replied, ‘The Lord hath discomfited the Persian host.’
‘Umar followed the courier on foot and gathered from him
the general outline of the battle. Thus engaged in
conversation the two entered the gates of the city. The
courier found to his consternation that every one greeted
his companion as ‘Ameer-ul-Mominin’. Ashamed he crie
out, ‘O Commander of the Faithful ! why didst thou not te
me?’ ‘It is all right, my brother,’ was the Caliph s reph
‘Such was the unpretending mien of one who at t a
moment was greater than either the Kaiser or t e
Chosroes.’
nihurbotM^..driverTigris. The western
siegebutthe eastern part containing
aprotected by the deep and swift 7
'harts. While retreating
” ” xl
/'P t victora* persian much
if) his Srea Hira- T1 ,id no1 Put Xir hands
^^eoccupy^Criid/;11’^ from thX>nants
l — -a Tigris flowing m
and swift gr eastem
his treasures to the more fortified
family and the bulk of h planning to flee the
unofHolwan in the north and wa p decided
cityhimself. When news of this reached Sa ad he decidea
t0 cross the Tigris at all cost. Upstream they discovered a
place where the river could be forded but the difficulty was
that the river was in flood and the stream was swift.
Undaunted by these hurdles six hundred cavalry men
headed by their leader ‘Aasim plunged into the river and
Rencountered the rapid current and drove away a
? r their wa>
k>l* army leaped iJo the °PPos|te shore,
*»4ey ho50 and closely
;;ridd“f™™’>etl?rer°8ether’ th«
I as if it had been
oss-all gamed the farther

48. tht* nmc the PrrMftns had evacuated
entering it. the victorious army performed *
Pni« such a vaM booty fell in their hand
-oldtet of the MXty thousand Mrong arm
d'.thatm and tho«.c who had particular!} dv.
41
’nt (
t.
< th]
and those who had particularly di
themselves got even more One-fifth was de- . Lji|
Madinah the '.hare of the State along with some '
gifts including a seventy cubits long and sixty cubmu
banqueting carpet of (he king. The carpet was design^
garden, ‘the ground of wrought golden and the walk
silver. green meadows were represented by Cmer
running rivulets by pearls; trees, flowers, and frum
diamonds, rubies and othci precious stones.’
l or sake of continuity we have described event* ■
the eastern sector two years in advance of the happenings
Syria With Sa ’ad firmly established at Madafn, we mu,
now revert to fourteenth year A ll and take up the thread,
ot events in the Byzantine sector.
I he Siege of Damascus (A.II. 14)
The siege of' Damascus hail been laid by the Musliir
forces in the time of the first Caliph Abu Bakr. It lasted io1
seventy days according to Tabari and six months according
to WSqidi. Abu Bakr died in this period and the siege v*
continued under the order of the new Caliph. The Roman.'
had vainly hoped that the severity of winter w ould fon.e the
Muslims to retire. Heraclius tried to provide assistant
the besieged garrison but a force despatched by him
intercepted by a Muslim column under dzul Kel JJ*
another detachment prevented any assistance reavhi.-r
city from the side of Palestine. The Muslim ,0Iv^K.|r1
however, finding the city defences impregnable 1
wall was twenty feet high and fifteen feet broad an
fifteen feet wide moat running round the walls ga' .
protection In the early hours of one morning, KJh 1
band of daring followers including Q aqS a-
d
th«
£ up’-’V c.ty
^ro,',hc
rt* 1*1’ L H* ° nb ,dah wh°
to A* 10 The I* 0
'"'Tils "es,en' ^The R>’"u,nS
‘Ti e ofthe '“LX one-half
n1K< ,„t to surrt,1U ...vpre
tr,butc SP°’
ude a captive.
strength With
■‘“^rtSXhe^^fur,her
- Hems but lh‘ fal'P troops in the rear,
tag as Uwe „ s Ab0 ‘Obaidah
Governor of Damascus, m w
swp towards Jordan. The Roman forces had
FCICU at BeisSn and they were joined by the column
which had been prevented from effecting a junction with
HiVO* ’
link of I *
Abu -
Hcndiuv .
gjuuxe as
Laving Yezid as
ittraced his steps
Uttered at I
|Il
te Damascus gamson. The Muslim troops encamped at a
| ana.: to»n called Fahl at a short distance from BeisSn. The
taws breached the canal running in between the two
X* Z effort to the
hetarfm en?'S failed-
b/,th—ejected by
^oftnhtte by them Excha ' ,aC“ptance of Warn or
A tierce battle then en f ° emissaries proved
issSE? *
Aba -0ba . 5 dmong th R 1Ufshwith
’ ' ' 4iheir sought m • ^Orftans u,
e K°ntans