The Beginning of the Battle of Uhud
The place where the Muslim army had camped was called Shawt. The Prophet ﷺ offered the Fajr prayer there. At that time, Abdullah ibn Ubayy ibn Salul was also with the army. He was a hypocrite. Three hundred young men were with him, and all of them were hypocrites.
When they reached this place, Abdullah ibn Ubayy said:
«“You did not accept my advice and instead accepted the advice of these inexperienced young men. In fact, their advice is not advice at all. Now you will realize for yourselves what our opinion was worth. Why should we give our lives for no reason? Therefore, companions, let us go back.”»
Thus, these people turned back. Now only seven hundred Companions remained with the Prophet ﷺ.
On that day, the Muslims had only two horses. One belonged to the Prophet ﷺ, and the other belonged to Abu Burdah رضي الله عنه.
After setting out from Shawt, the Prophet ﷺ camped in the valley of Uhud. When choosing the place for the camp, the Prophet ﷺ made sure that the mountain remained behind him.
The night was spent at that place. Then Bilal رضي الله عنه gave the morning Adhan. The Companions رضي الله عنهم formed their rows, and the Prophet ﷺ led them in prayer.
After the prayer, the Prophet ﷺ delivered a sermon to the Muslims. In it, he spoke about Jihad. In addition to Jihad, the Prophet ﷺ also advised them about earning lawful sustenance and said:
«“Jibril (عليه السلام) has conveyed this revelation into my heart: no person will die until he has received every single particle of the sustenance allotted to him, even if it takes some time to reach him; there can be no reduction in it. Therefore, fear your Lord and seek sustenance through righteous means. It should never happen that, because sustenance is delayed, you begin to disobey Allah.”»
The Prophet ﷺ also said:
«“The relationship of one believer with another believer is like the relationship between the head and the body. If the head suffers pain, the whole body trembles with pain….”»
After this, the two armies stood face to face.
On the right and left sides of the army of the polytheists were Khalid ibn al-Walid and ‘Ikrimah. At that time, neither of them had yet accepted Islam.
The Prophet ﷺ gave Zubayr ibn al-‘Awwam رضي الله عنه command of a detachment and said:
«“You are to remain facing Khalid ibn al-Walid, and do not move until I give you permission.”»
Then the Prophet ﷺ appointed ‘Abdullah ibn Jubayr رضي الله عنه as commander of a detachment of fifty archers and stationed them at the pass that was behind the Muslims.
The reason for stationing fifty archers at this pass was to prevent the enemy from attacking from the rear.
The Messenger of Allah ﷺ said to these fifty archers:
«“Keep the enemy’s cavalry away from us by shooting arrows at them. Do not let them come from behind and attack us. Whether we achieve victory or suffer defeat, you must not leave your position.”»
After this, the Messenger of Allah ﷺ took out a sword and said:
«“Who will take this sword from me and fulfill its right?….”»
Several Companions stood up and rushed toward the Prophet ﷺ, but he did not give the sword to them. ‘Ali رضي الله عنه was also among them.
The Prophet ﷺ said to these Companions:
«“Sit down.”»
Zubayr ibn al-‘Awwam رضي الله عنه also tried three times to take the sword, but each time the Prophet ﷺ refused.
Finally, Abu Dujanah رضي الله عنه stood up from among the gathering of the Companions and said:
«“I will fulfill the right of this sword.”»
The Prophet ﷺ gave the sword to him.
Abu Dujanah رضي الله عنه was extremely brave. During battle, he would walk with a proud and confident gait.
When the Prophet ﷺ saw him walking proudly between the two armies, he said:
«“This is a manner of walking that Allah Almighty dislikes, except on an occasion such as this.”»
That is, such a manner of walking is permissible when facing the enemy, so that it becomes clear that such a person has no fear whatsoever of the enemy, nor does he care about the enemy’s weapons and military equipment.
Then the two armies came very close to one another.
At that moment, a man from the army of the polytheists came forward riding a camel and challenged the Muslims to single combat. He called out three times.
Then Zubayr ibn al-‘Awwam رضي الله عنه came out from the Muslim ranks toward him.
At that time, Zubayr رضي الله عنه was on foot, whereas the enemy was riding a camel. As soon as Zubayr رضي الله عنه reached him, he suddenly leaped powerfully and rose to the same height as the rider. At the same time, he grabbed his neck….
The two began wrestling while on the camel.
Seeing them struggle, the Prophet ﷺ said:
«“The one who falls down first will be the one who is killed.”»
Suddenly, the polytheist fell down. Then Zubayr رضي الله عنه fell upon him. As soon as he landed, he immediately struck him with his sword, and he was sent to Hell.
The Prophet ﷺ praised Zubayr رضي الله عنه in these words:
«“Every prophet has a Hawari (that is, a special companion), and my Hawari is Zubayr.”»
Then the Prophet ﷺ said:
«“If Zubayr had not come out to face this polytheist, I would have gone out myself.”»
After this, another man came out from the ranks of the polytheists. His name was Talhah ibn Abu Talhah. He belonged to the Banu ‘Abd al-Dar tribe. He was carrying the standard.
He now challenged the Muslims to single combat. He also called out to the Muslims several times.
Then ‘Ali رضي الله عنه came out from the Muslim ranks and stood before him.
The two began fighting. Each struck at the other with his sword.
One of ‘Ali’s رضي الله عنه blows struck his leg. His leg was cut, and he fell badly. His clothing became displaced, leaving him exposed.
He cried out:
«“My brother, I beg you, by Allah, have mercy on me.”»