When the Devotees Sacrificed Themselves for the Messenger of Allah ﷺ
At that moment, one of the Companions said:
«“Now that the Messenger of Allah ﷺ has been killed, what is the point of our fighting?”»
Some of the Companions رضي الله عنهم responded:
«“If the Messenger of Allah ﷺ has been martyred, then will you not fight for the religion of your Prophet, so that you may appear before your Lord as martyrs?”»
Hazrat Thabit ibn Wadah رضي الله عنه called out:
«“O group of Ansar! If Muhammad ﷺ has been martyred, then Allah Almighty is alive; He cannot die. Fight for your religion, and Allah Almighty will grant you victory and success.”»
As soon as they heard this, a group of the Ansar attacked the detachment of the polytheists in which Khalid ibn al-Walid, ‘Ikrimah ibn Abu Jahl, ‘Amr ibn al-‘As, and Dirar ibn al-Khattab were present. All four of them were formidable warriors.
In response to the Ansar’s attack, Khalid ibn al-Walid launched a counterattack against them. In this counterattack, Ibn Wadah رضي الله عنه and his companions were martyred.
In the midst of the confusion, some people had turned back toward Madinah. Umm Ayman رضي الله عنها came across them on their way. She said:
«“O Muslims! What is this? Are you turning your backs and going away?”»
Hearing this, they turned back and attacked the polytheists.
On the other side, because the Muslims had become scattered, a group of the polytheists attacked the Prophet ﷺ.
Even at this extremely difficult moment, the Prophet ﷺ remained steadfast and firmly held his position. In this state, he was calling out to his Companions رضي الله عنهم:
«“O so-and-so! Come toward me. O so-and-so! Come toward me. I am the Messenger of Allah.”»
Arrows were raining down upon the Prophet ﷺ from every direction. In this situation, Allah Almighty protected him ﷺ from those arrows.
At this critical moment, a group of the Companions رضي الله عنهم remained gathered around the Prophet ﷺ. This group was stopping the continuous attacks of the polytheists and sacrificing themselves for the Prophet ﷺ like moths sacrificing themselves for a flame.
Among them was Hazrat Abu Talhah رضي الله عنه. He was stopping the enemy’s attacks with his shield. He was an excellent archer, with extremely accurate aim. He was continuously shooting arrows at the enemy while saying:
«“May my life be sacrificed for you; may my face become a shield for you.”»
Whenever the Prophet ﷺ saw arrows in the quiver of any Muslim, he would say to him:
«“Empty your quiver in front of Abu Talhah.”»
Hazrat Abu Talhah رضي الله عنه shot so many arrows that day that three bows broke in his hands.
Whenever the Messenger of Allah ﷺ raised his head to look toward the enemy, Hazrat Abu Talhah رضي الله عنه would call out:
«“O Messenger of Allah! Do not raise your head, lest an arrow strike you.”»
He would then himself come directly in front of the Messenger of Allah ﷺ, standing on his toes so that the Prophet ﷺ would remain protected, saying in effect:
«“If an arrow is to strike, let it strike me.”»
During this time, the bow that the Prophet ﷺ had with him was called Qatum. One end of the bow had broken, and only a handspan of its string remained in the blessed hand of the Prophet ﷺ.
Hazrat ‘Ukkashah ibn Mihsan رضي الله عنه took the bow from the Prophet ﷺ in order to tie its string, but the string had become too short.
He said:
«“O Messenger of Allah! The string has become too short, so it cannot be tied.”»
The Messenger of Allah ﷺ said:
«“Pull it; it will become long enough.”»
‘Ukkashah رضي الله عنه says:
«“By Allah! I pulled the string, and it stretched until it became so long that it reached both ends of the bow. I even made two or three loops at one end and then tied a knot in it.”»
At that time, the Companions رضي الله عنهم who were around the Prophet ﷺ fought the enemy with tremendous courage.
Among them was Hazrat Sa‘d ibn Abi Waqqas رضي الله عنه. He too was an outstanding archer.
He says that the Prophet ﷺ would pick up arrows one after another and hand them to him, saying:
«“O Sa‘d! Keep shooting arrows. May my parents be sacrificed for you.”»
He says:
«“Among the arrows I received from the blessed hand of the Messenger of Allah ﷺ was one that did not have an arrowhead—the sharp pointed part—on its tip.»
«“The Prophet ﷺ also noticed that the arrow had no arrowhead, yet he said:»
«‘Shoot this very arrow.’»
«“Hazrat Sa‘d رضي الله عنه then supplicated:»
«‘O Allah! This is Your arrow, so make it enter the chest of the enemy.’»
«“At the same time, the Messenger of Allah ﷺ was praying:»
«‘O Allah! Accept Sa‘d’s supplication. O Allah! Make his archery accurate.’”»
Then the quiver of Hazrat Sa‘d ibn Abi Waqqas رضي الله عنه became empty; his arrows had run out.
The Prophet ﷺ then turned his own quiver upside down in front of him, and Hazrat Sa‘d رضي الله عنه began shooting arrows again.
It is said that Hazrat Sa‘d ibn Abi Waqqas رضي الله عنه was Mustajab al-Da‘wat, meaning that his supplications were accepted.
Once someone asked Hazrat Sa‘d ibn Abi Waqqas رضي الله عنه:
«“Why are your supplications accepted so quickly?”»
He replied:
«“Throughout my life, I never brought a single morsel to my mouth without knowing where it had come from.”»
That is, he always ate lawful food.
Regarding this, the Prophet ﷺ said:
«“By the One in Whose control is my life, whenever a servant puts a forbidden morsel into his stomach, none of his supplications are accepted for forty days.”»
The wording of a Hadith on this subject is:
«“How can the supplications of a person be accepted whose earnings are unlawful, whose drink is unlawful, and whose clothing is unlawful?”»
That day, Hazrat Sa‘d رضي الله عنه shot one thousand arrows.
For every arrow, the Messenger of Allah ﷺ would say to him:
«“Keep shooting; may my parents be sacrificed for you.”»
Hazrat ‘Ali رضي الله عنه says:
«“I never heard the Prophet ﷺ say this expression—‘May my parents be sacrificed for you’—to anyone other than Sa‘d.”»
Hazrat Sa‘d رضي الله عنه was related to the Messenger of Allah ﷺ as a maternal uncle. Therefore, the Prophet ﷺ would also say about him:
«“This Sa‘d is my maternal uncle. Let someone show me another uncle like him.”»
That day, besides Hazrat Sa‘d رضي الله عنه, Hazrat Sahl ibn Hunayf رضي الله عنه also shot arrows. He was among those who remained close to the Prophet ﷺ during that critical moment.
The wife of Hazrat Zayd ibn ‘Asim رضي الله عنه, Hazrat Umm ‘Umarah رضي الله عنها, was giving water to the fighters that day. When the tide of the battle turned and the Muslims’ victory changed into defeat, she continued giving water to the wounded even at that time.