The Commentary of Al-Qasidah — Page 61
The commentary of al-Qa si dah 61 Then the Holy Prophet sa spurred his mule forward into the narrow pass along which the enemy was shooting arrows from both sides. In this fearful and formidable situation the Holy Prophet sa was reciting a couplet: I am the prophet, not a liar! I am the son of ‘Abdul-Mu tt alib. ( S a hih ul-Bukh a r i , Kit a bul-Jih a di Was-Siyar, B a bu Man Q a da D a bbata Ghairih i Fil- H arb, H ad i th no. 2864) In such a predicament, when the enemy is gaining ground and their victory is apparent, even the bravest of the brave lose their senses in desperation. It is not that they fear death, but that they have a greater fear of imprisonment. They dread submitting to the enemy, and seek all avenues of refuge from the battlefield. They would much rather prefer death before surrendering to their foes. In World War II, when the Russians invaded Berlin, Adolf Hitler committed suicide. Similarly, Ali Muhammad B a b, who claimed to be better than the Holy Prophet sa , discovered that he was going to be killed. He told his friends that my enemies will kill me tomorrow degradingly. Therefore, one of you should kill me because I prefer to be killed by a friend over foe. On the other hand, the Holy Prophet sa not only refrained from wanting to leave the battlefield, but continued advancing and was reciting couplets to arouse the emotion of his soldiers. Apparently, he wanted to communicate to his enemies that they should not mistake the Muslim army’s retreat as proof that he was not a