Introduction to the Study of The Holy Quran — Page 142
142 Prophet. They could not have been more than twenty in all. The Meccan army attacked this ring fiercely. One by one, the Muslims in the ring fell under the blows of Meccan swordsmen. From the hill, the archers sent volleys of arrows. At that time, Talhah, one of the Quraysh and the Muhajirin (Meccan Muslims who had taken refuge in Medina), saw that the enemy arrows were all directed to the face of the Prophet. He stretched out his hand and held it up against the Prophet’s face. Arrow after arrow struck Talhah’s hand, yet it did not drop, although with each shot it was pierced through. Ultimately it was completely mutilated. Talhah lost his hand and for the rest of life went about with a stump. In the time of the Fourth Khalifah of Islam when internal dissensions had raised their head, Talhah was tauntingly described by an enemy as the handless Talhah. A friend of Talhah replied, "Handless, yea, but do you know where he lost his hand? At the Battle of Uhud, in which he raised his hand to shield the Prophet’s face from the enemy’s arrows. " Long after the Battle of Uhud friends of Talhah asked him, "Did not your hand smart under the arrow shots and the pain make you cry?" Talhah replied, "It made me smart, and it almost made me cry, but I resisted both because I knew that if my hand shook but slightly, it would expose the Prophet’s face to the volley of enemy arrows. " The few men who were left with the Prophet could not have stood the army which they faced. A party of the enemy advanced forward and pushed them off. The Prophet then stood alone like a wall, and soon a stone struck his forehead and made a deep gash in it. Another blow drove the rings of his helmet into his cheeks. When the arrows were falling thick and fast and the Prophet was wounded he prayed, "My God, forgive my people for they know not what they are doing. " 160 The Prophet fell on the dead, the dead who had lost their lives in his defence. Other Muslims came forward to defend the Prophet from more attacks. They also fell dead. The Prophet lay unconscious among these dead bodies. When the enemy saw this, they took him for dead. They withdrew in the certainty of victory, and proceeded to line up again. Among the Muslims who had been defending the Prophet and who had been pushed by the avalanche of enemy forces, was ‘Umar. The battlefield had now cleared. ‘Umar who saw this, became certain that the Prophet was dead. ‘Umar was a brave man. He proved it again and again; best of all, in fighting simultaneously the great Empires of Rome and Iran. He was never known to blench under difficulties. This ‘Umar sat on a stone with drooping spirits, crying like a child. In the meantime another Muslim, Anas bin Nadr by name, came wandering along in the belief that the Muslims had won. He had seen them overpower the enemy but, having had nothing to eat since the night before, had withdrawn from the battlefield, with some dates in his hand. As soon as he saw ‘Umar crying, he stood amazed and asked, ''‘Umar, what is the matter with you that instead of rejoicing over a magnificent victory won by the Muslims, you are crying?'' ‘Umar replied, "Anas, you do not know what has happened. You only saw the first part of the battle. You do not know that the enemy captured the strategic point