The Life & Character of the Seal of Prophets (sa) – Volume III — Page 120
Seal of the Prophets - Volume III 120 When the Holy Prophet sa reached Dhul-Ḥalīfah, which is situated approximately 6 miles from Madīnah en-route to Makkah 1 , he ordered everyone to stop. After offering the Ẓuhr prayer, he instructed that the sacrificial camels which equalled 70 in number, be marked and that the companions assume the special attire of the pilgrims known as Iḥrām. The Holy Prophet sa also assumed the Iḥrām himself as well. 2 Then, in order to ensure that the Quraish were not up to mischief, the Holy Prophet sa sent ahead a messenger named Busr bin Sufyān from the Khuzā‘ah tribe, who lived near Makkah and slowly proceeded towards Makkah. 3 Moreover, as further caution the Holy Prophet sa appointed a cavalry of 20 riders under the command of ‘Abbād bin Bishr, to travel ahead of the larger body of Muslims. 4 After a journey of a few days, when the Holy Prophet sa neared a place called ‘Usfān, which is situated at approximately two day’s journey on the road to Makkah, the messenger of the Holy Prophet sa informed him that that Quraish were furious and firmly determined to stop him 5 to the extent that in the expression of their rage and barbarity, they had put on cheetah skins and were fully bent on war, in order to stop the Muslims in all instances. It was also ascertained that the Quraish had sent forth a cavalry unit of a few daring riders under the command of Khālid bin Walīd who had not yet become Muslim, and that this cavalry had reached near the Muslims and that ‘Ikrimah bin Abī Jahl was also a part of it. When the Holy Prophet sa heard this news, he instructed the companions to divert from the known route to Makkah and proceed from the right in order to prevent conflict. So, the Muslims began to move forward from a very difficult 1 * Sharḥul-‘Allāmatiz-Zarqānī ‘Alal-Mawāhibil-Ladunniyyah, By Allāmah Shihābuddīn Al-Qusṭalānī, Volume 3, p. 173, Amrul-Ḥudaibiyyah, Dārul-Kutubil-‘Ilmiyyah, Beirut, Lebanon, First Edition (1996) * Mu‘jamul-Buldān, By Shihābuddīn Abī ‘Abdillāh Yāqūtubnu ‘Abdillāh, Volume 2, p. 177, Under Al-Ḥulaifātu/Al-Hulaifatu, Dāru Iḥyā’it-Turāthil-‘Arabī, Beirut, Lebanon 2 Aṭ-Ṭabaqātul-Kubrā, By Muḥammad bin Sa‘d, Volume 2, p. 297, Ghazwatu Rasūlillāhi sa Al- Ḥudaibiyyata, Dāru Iḥyā’it-Turāthil-‘Arabī, Beirut, Lebanon, First Edition (1996) 3 As-Sīratun-Nabawiyyah, By Abū Muḥammad ‘Abdul-Mālik bin Hishām, pp. 681-682, Amrul- Ḥudaibiyyati Fī Ākhiri Sanati Sittin/Wa Dhikri Bai‘atir-Riḍwāni. . . , Dārul-Kutubil-‘Ilmiyyah, Beirut, Lebanon, First Edition (2001) 4 * Aṭ-Ṭabaqātul-Kubrā, By Muḥammad bin Sa‘d, Volume 2, p. 297, Ghazwatu Rasūlillāhi sa Al- Ḥudaibiyyata, Dāru Iḥyā’it-Turāthil-‘Arabī, Beirut, Lebanon, First Edition (1996) * Tārīkhul-Khamīs Fī Aḥwāli Anfasi Nafīs, By Ḥusain bin Muḥammad bin Ḥasan, Volume 2, p. 16, Ghazwatul-Ḥudaibiyyah, Mu’assasatu Sha‘bān, Beirut 5 * Ṣaḥīḥul-Bukhārī, Kitābul-Maghāzī, Bābu Ghazwatil-Ḥudaibiyyah, Ḥadīth No. 4178-4179 * As-Sīratun-Nabawiyyah, By Abū Muḥammad ‘Abdul-Mālik bin Hishām, pp. 681-682, Amrul- Ḥudaibiyyati Fī Ākhiri Sanati Sittin/Wa Dhikri Bai‘atir-Riḍwāni. . . , Dārul-Kutubil-‘Ilmiyyah, Beirut, Lebanon, First Edition (2001) (Publishers)