The Life & Character of the Seal of Prophets (sa) - Volume II — Page 104
Seal of the Prophets - Volume II 104 to his companions who unanimously affirmed that, “We happily present ourselves for this service. ” 1 Then, this party proceeded to Nakhlah. Sa‘d bin Abī Waqqāṣ ra and ‘Utbah bin Ghazwān ra lost their camels en-route, and were separated from their companions. Despite their best efforts, they were unable to relocate their companions. The party was now left with only six people. On this occasion, Mr. Margolius has written that Sa‘d bin Abī Waqqāṣ ra and ‘Utbah ra intentionally let their camels loose and used this as an excuse to remain behind. Each and every life event of these devotees of Islām, who were ready to sacrifice their lives, is a testimony to their valour and devotion. One of them was martyred at the hands of the disbelievers in the campaign of B‘ir-e-Ma‘ūnah, while the other distinctly participated in many dangerous battles and ultimately became the victor of Iraq. Therefore, to doubt the sincerity of such people, especially when that doubt is founded on self-concocted notions, is the work of Mr. Margolius alone. It is ironic that in his book Mr. Margolius claims that he has written this book being completely free from prejudice. In any case, this is a side issue. This small community reached Nakhlah and became engaged in their work. With the thought of concealing their classified mission, some of them shaved their heads, so that travellers, etc. , would not be alarmed in any way, and so that they would consider them as being such people who had come with the intention of ‘Umrah. However, they had only just arrived there, when suddenly a small caravan of the Quraish also happened to arrive, which was travelling from Ṭā’if to Makkah, and both parties encountered each other. The Muslims consulted one another as to what should be done. The Holy Prophet sa had sent them for the purpose of secretly obtaining intelligence, but on the other hand, war had begun with the Quraish. Both opponents were before one another and naturally there was a risk that now, since the people from the caravan of the Quraish had spotted the Muslims, their covert intelligence mission would no longer remain secret. Another predicament was that some Muslims thought that it was perhaps the last day of Rajab , 2 i. e. , a sacred month in which fighting was prohibited as per the ancient Arabian custom. Others 1 * As-Sīratun-Nabawiyyah, By Abū Muḥammad ‘Abdul-Mālik bin Hishām, p. 413, Bihī / Faḍḍubnu Jaḥsh Kitāban-Nabiyyi sa. . . . . , Dārul-Kutubil-‘Ilmiyyah, Beirut, Lebanon, First Edition (2001) * Tārīkhur-Rusuli Wal-Mulūk (Tārīkhuṭ-Ṭabarī), By Abū Ja‘far Muḥammad bin Jarīr Aṭ-Ṭabarī, Volume 3, p. 14, Sariyyatu ‘Abdillāhibni Jaḥsh, Dārul-Fikr, Beirut, Lebanon, Second Edition (2002) 2 The seventh month of the Islāmic Calendar [Publishers]