Muhammad: Seal of the Prophets — Page 295
MUHAMMAD : SEAL OF THE PROPHETS 295 Ujainah bin Hathan Fazari, under whom each of the tribes had its own commander. Banu Suleim were commanded by Sufyan bin Abd Shams, and Banu Asad, by their chief Tulaihah bin Khuweilid. This great army was well equipped, well armed and well provisioned. It started its march towards Medina at the end of February or beginning of March 627. It was not possible to keep the movements of such a large host secret, and also, the Holy Prophet’s intelligence system was well organized, so that, as soon as this army began to move from Mecca, the Holy Prophet received intimation of it, and he summoned his Companions for consultation. Salman Farisi, who was a sincere Iranian Muslim and was knowledgeable in Iranian tactics and strategy, suggested that in the situation with which the Muslims were faced, the best way of securing themselves would be by diggi ng a long and wide trench around that part of Medina which was unprotected and was vulnerable. This was a new idea altogether which had not been known among the Arabs, but the Holy Prophet, peace be on him, on learning that it was successfully followed in warfare among non - Arabs, decided to adopt it and commanded that a wide trench should be dug for the safeguarding of Medina along the side that was open and vulnerable. Under his own supervision, he had the lines of the trench marked out and allotted the di gging of each length of fifteen feet to parties of ten Muslims. A friendly difference arose whether Salman himself, who was the originator of the idea of digging the trench, and, despite his age, was a strong and diligent man, should be allotted as an outs ider to Emigrants, or, having arrived in Medina before the Hijra, should be counted among