The Battle of Mu’tah

After completing the Umrah, when the Noble Prophet ﷺ returned to Madinah Munawwarah, a serious incident took place.

“Where are you going? Are you one of Muhammad’s ﷺ messengers?”

He replied:

“Yes! I am the messenger of Muhammad ﷺ.”

As soon as he heard this, Sharhabil had him bound with ropes and then killed him.

He was the first of the messengers of the Messenger of Allah ﷺ to be martyred.

The Messenger of Allah ﷺ was deeply grieved by this incident. He immediately prepared an army of the Companions رضي الله عنهم. Its number was three thousand.

The Noble Prophet ﷺ commanded these people to fight the Roman forces and appointed Hazrat Zayd ibn Harithah رضي الله عنه as the commander of the army.

When this army was ready to depart, the Noble Prophet ﷺ said:

“If Zayd ibn Harithah is martyred, then Ja‘far ibn Abi Talib will be the commander of the army in his place. If Ja‘far ibn Abi Talib is also martyred, then ‘Abdullah ibn Rawahah will take his place. And if ‘Abdullah ibn Rawahah is also martyred, then the Muslims should choose as their commander whoever they agree upon.”

When the Prophet ﷺ gave these instructions, a Jewish man was also present there and was listening to everything. He said:

“If he is truly a Prophet, then I swear that all the men whose names he has mentioned will be martyred.”

Hazrat Zayd ibn Harithah رضي الله عنه heard this and said:

“I testify that the Messenger of Allah ﷺ is indeed a true Prophet.”

The Prophet ﷺ prepared a white flag and gave it to Zayd ibn Harithah رضي الله عنه. Then he advised the Mujahideen:

“When you reach the place where al-Harith ibn ‘Umayr was killed, first invite those people to Islam. If they accept the invitation, then that is fine. Otherwise, seek Allah Almighty’s help against them and fight them.”

As the army was departing, the Muslims said:

“May Allah be your companion, may He help you, and may He bring you back among us with goodness and happiness.”

When the army set out, the Prophet ﷺ accompanied them as far as the place of Thaniyyat al-Wada‘ to bid them farewell. When they reached there, he advised them:

“I advise you to remain conscious of Allah. I ask Allah to grant well-being to all the Muslims who are with you. Proceed in the name of Allah and go to the land of Syria and fight Allah’s enemies and your enemies there.

There you will find people living in places of worship and monasteries who have withdrawn from worldly affairs. Do not engage with them. Do not raise your sword against any woman or child. Do not cut down trees, and do not demolish buildings.”

The ordinary Muslims also said to them as they departed:

“May Allah protect you and bring you back with the spoils of war.”

With these prayers, the army departed and reached the land of Syria, where they made camp.

At that time, the Companions رضي الله عنهم learned that the Roman Emperor, Heraclius, was prepared to confront them with an army of two hundred thousand soldiers. In addition to this, the Christian Arab tribes had also come from all directions and joined Heraclius’s army, and their number was also close to one hundred thousand.

Thus, the total number of the opposing army reached approximately three hundred thousand. They also possessed countless horses, weapons, and military equipment.

In comparison, the total number of Muslims was only three thousand, and they had very little military equipment.

After learning these details, the Muslim army remained where it was. They stayed there for two nights and consulted one another, because it seemed almost impossible even to think about three thousand men confronting such a huge enemy force.

Naturally, the Companions رضي الله عنهم were worried upon hearing this. Someone suggested:

“We should stay here and inform the Messenger of Allah ﷺ, so that he may send us reinforcements or order us to return.”

Upon this, Hazrat ‘Abdullah ibn Rawahah رضي الله عنه said passionately:

“People! You are trying to save your lives for the very purpose for which you left your homeland. You set out in search of martyrdom.

We do not fight our enemies on the basis of numbers, nor do we fight on the basis of strength. We fight only for the sake of the religion.

Through this religion, Allah Almighty has honored us. Now, either we will achieve victory or we will be blessed with martyrdom.”

Hearing these passionate words, the Companions exclaimed:

“By Allah! Ibn Rawahah has spoken absolutely correctly.”

After this, the army moved forward until they reached the place of Mu’tah. At the same place, the Roman army also came before the Muslims.

Hazrat Zayd ibn Harithah رضي الله عنه took the flag of the Messenger of Allah ﷺ in his hand and advanced toward the enemy.

The Companions رضي الله عنهم, under his leadership, attacked the Roman army. The Muslims launched a powerful attack.

On the other side, the Romans were, after all, three hundred thousand in number. They also launched a full-scale attack.

Swords began striking against swords. Spears and arrows began flying. The cries of the wounded could be heard, while the sounds of horses neighing and camels calling echoed throughout the battlefield.

In this situation, Zayd ibn Harithah رضي الله عنه was fighting while holding the flag and continuously advancing forward.

He was overcome by an indescribable state of enthusiasm and courage. Many Romans met their end at his hands.

Finally, while fighting, he was martyred.

At that very moment, Hazrat Ja‘far رضي الله عنه took the flag.

He was riding a red-colored horse. The Muslims now began fighting under his leadership.

He fought with such extraordinary bravery that it is beyond description.

While fighting, one of his arms was severed. He took hold of the flag with his left hand.

A short while later, someone struck his left arm, and that arm was also severed.

He continued holding the flag supported against his body, and in this state he attained martyrdom.

At that time, Hazrat ‘Abdullah ibn Rawahah رضي الله عنه came forward and took the flag.

He considered it better to fight on foot rather than on horseback and began confronting the enemy.

He too fought with great courage until he was martyred.

Now the Muslims and the Christians had entered one another’s ranks, and fierce fighting was taking place.

Since the number of the disbelievers was extremely large while the Muslims numbered only three thousand, there was no comparison between their numbers.

Under these circumstances, some Muslims began considering retreat.

At that very moment, Hazrat ‘Uqbah ibn ‘Amir رضي الله عنه called out:

“People! If a person is martyred after receiving a wound in the chest, that is better for him than dying after receiving a wound in the back.”

In these circumstances, Hazrat Thabit ibn Arqam رضي الله عنه stepped forward, picked up the fallen flag, and called out loudly:

“Muslims! Choose someone from among yourselves as your commander, so that the flag can be handed over to him.”

Many Companions called out:

“You are the right person for this.”

Hearing this, he said:

“But I do not consider myself capable of doing so.”

Under these circumstances, everyone’s attention turned toward Hazrat Khalid ibn al-Walid رضي الله عنه.

Everyone agreed to appoint him as the commander.

It is also said that Hazrat Thabit ibn Arqam رضي الله عنه himself handed the flag to him and said:

“You know the principles and art of warfare better than I do.”

Hazrat Khalid ibn al-Walid رضي الله عنه replied:

“No! Compared with me, you are more deserving of this flag because you are among those who participated in the Battle of Badr.”

Finally, everyone agreed upon Hazrat Khalid ibn al-Walid رضي الله عنه.

The battle now began under the leadership of Hazrat Khalid ibn al-Walid رضي الله عنه.