The Companions

of the battle of
Uhud

By Shaheer Nabi

Essay for Islamic college of Advanced studies (London)

Semester 1, Year 1

Date: 08.01.2010

Word: 2263
Table of content

Introduction 3-4

Defining the Companions 5-6

Companions of the Battle of Uhud 7-8

Conclusion 9

Bibliography 10
Introduction
The battle of Uhud is an important event in Muslim history. It is crucial for
us to look at this topic in depth in order to understand the rise of the
Muslims, but because of certain restrictions, this essay will look profoundly
at the companions of this incident.

It is of crucial importance that the companions of Prophet Muhammad are

examined from a neutral and interrogative manner. This must be done in order
for later Muslims and non-Muslims to really understand the company around the
Prophet, and to understand the inner belief of the companions.

Before we go on to discuss what defines a companion and the actions of the

companions in the battle of Uhud, we need to have a little background
information about the battle itself.

The battle took place in 625 A.D (3 A.H.). Abu Sufyan, who at that time was the
main leader of the Quraysh, assembled an army of 3000 men (Watt 1964: 136).
Abu Sufyan ordered some of the men to take their women along, in order to
influence the soldiers to fight more passionately (Subhani 1984:403). The leader
of the Quraysh didn’t stop at this; he also brought the main idol god, Hubbal1.
The Prophet received a letter from Abbas2, about the plans of the Quraysh. This
made the Prophet able to mobilize a defense army of 700 men (Al-Majlisi 1997:
251).

The Muslims camped in front of the mountain of Uhud, and the Prophet
positioned 50 archers at the left flank, because it was an open ground and
defenseless in case of an ambush. The Quraysh came and positioned
themselves facing the Muslims, and had their backs towards Medina. The
battle began and the Muslims were progressively taking charge of the
1
This was done in order to affect the mentality even more. To make the soldiers fight for
their god, as the Muslims were doing.
2
He was the prophet’s uncle, and lived in Mecca at this time. This action perhaps shows
that he had faith, but had not declared it openly.
situation. The Muslims looked like the winning party, even though they
experienced setbacks, like the death of the Prophet’s Uncle, Hamza3
(Ramadan, 2007: 124). When the Quraysh backed up even more, the
Muslim archers that were appointed to protect the left flank, saw that the
Quraysh were leaving behind war spoils. This made the archers believe
that victory was imminent and therefore they wanted a share in the booty
as well.

Even though the Prophet had given strict orders not to abandon the open
ground, most of the archers left their positions in order to collect some
spoils for themselves. Khalid bin Walid, one of the generals of the Quraysh
army, saw the chance for ambush and attacked the Muslim army from
behind. At this moment three different types of people were revealed. The
first type was those who only thought of themselves and fled the battle
scene. The other type was those who returned to the battle, but were
mixed with the enemy to the degree that some of them were killed by
mistake (Al-Mubarakpuri 2008: 314). The last group was those who stood
firm against the idolaters.

This was not the end of it, suddenly someone cried: “Muhammad is slain!”
(Lings 1991: 186). This was not a fact, but because of the earlier ambush
attack, even more Muslims decided to run away, and the Prophet
Muhammad was badly hurt. Only a few companions remained to defend
the Prophet. This evidently led to the defeat of the Muslims.

Now that a summary of the battle has been given from different sources,
we will define the companions according to Qur’an and intellect, and
thereby assess them in accordance with the battle of Uhud.

Defining the Companions

It is of utmost importance that we define the companions of the Prophet.
Some schools would say that a companion is someone who just saw the

3
He was a great warrior for the Muslims. He was killed by an Abyssinian slave, Wahshi, by
the orders of Hind, Abu Sufyan’s wife. Hind mutilated the body of Hamza, and chewed on
his liver.
Prophet. Another school would say that someone who can be proven to
really believe in Islam is a companion. Due to these differences, it is
difficult to understand who really was a companion, especially in a battle
like Uhud. Therefore we will only use the intellect and the Qur’an to give a
picture of what defines a companion.

We must first look at what Nifaq is. It means to hide something inwardly,
but showing something different on the outside, e.g. hypocrisy
(http://books.themajlis.net/node/281, 07.des. 05:25).

We have to uprightly say that not all companions were good and not all
were bad. Often companions had differences between themselves and
therefore logically we must assume that some were right, and other was
wrong. Moments after the death of the Prophet, some of the companions
got together to discuss the succession at Saqeefa. During this event the
Muhajirun4 opposed the Ansar5. At the battle of Jamal6 and Siffin7, a group
of the companions fought against another group of companions. From this
we understand that differences have occurred and only by an in-depth
research of the companions can we decide which one of them were true
believers.

Several verses from the Qur’an give us a very good starting point. There is
an entire chapter in the Qur’an dedicated to the hypocrites, Al-Munfiqun8.
The first verse of this chapter says:

“When the Hypocrites come to thee, they say, "We bear witness that
thou art indeed the Apostle of God." Yea, God knoweth that thou art
indeed His Apostle, and God beareth witness that the Hypocrites are
indeed liars.”
(http://www.jannah.org/qurantrans/quran63.html)

4
i.e. The Immigrants, those companions who fled from Mecca to Medina, during the Hijri.
5
i.e. the Helpers, those who lived in Medina and helped the immigrants from Mecca.
6
The battle of the Camel 656 A.D. where Aisha (the prophets widowed wife) opposed Ali
ibn Abi Talib (the prophets cousin, and the rightly guided caliph).
7
This battle took place in 657 A.D. between Ali ibn Abi Talib and Muawiah ibn Abu Sufyan.
This event is one of the reasons of the parting between Shia and Sunni.
8
Chapter 63, The Hypocrites.
This verse clearly shows that some of the people and companions that
came to meet the Prophet Muhammad, were actually hypocrites, and only
showed their belief externally. Likewise there are several other verses,
which we must look at to gain a wider understanding of the companions.

Qur’an chapter 9, verse 101:

“Certain of the desert Arabs round about you are hypocrites (…)
twice shall We punish them: and in addition shall they be sent to a
grievous penalty.”

Qur’an chapter 48, verse 29:

“Muhammad is the Messenger of God; and those who are with him
are strong against Unbelievers, (but) compassionate amongst each
other (…).”

These verses clearly show that even God made differences between the
companions. He even gave us guide lines9 on how to differentiate between
the hypocrites and the Muslims.

Lastly a verse about the companions of Uhud, Qur’an chapter 3, verse

153:

“Behold! ye were climbing up the high ground, without even casting

aside glance at any one, and the Apostle in your rear was calling you
back. There did God give you one distress after another by way of
requital, to teach you not to grieve for (the booty) that had escaped
you and for (the ill) that had befallen you. For God is well aware of
all that ye do.”

All the Qur’an quotes has been taken from

http://www.jannah.org/qurantrans/ (07.dec. 06:00).

The companions of the battle of Uhud

9
Verse 29 in chapter 48 clearly gives us guide lines on how to assess a companion.
Looking at the summary of the battle of Uhud, and comparing it to the
definition of the companions we can understand that there are 3 types of
companions. The first type is those who have excessive belief in the
message of the Prophet, both outwardly and inwardly. The second would
be those who accepted the faith, but at critical moments would leave the
Prophet in harm, for their own sake. Last, but most importantly we have
the Hypocrites, who never believed in Islam, and was only looking to
exploit it.

We will now look at some specific events and persons during the battle of
Uhud, and hopefully in the end draw a common conclusion.

One important incident that clearly shows the intention of some of the
companions and shows that they were hypocrites is found in The Sealed
Nectar (Al-Mubarakpuri 2008: 298):

“‘Abdullah bin Ubai — the hypocrite — rebelled against the Muslims.

One-third of the army withdrew with him — that is to say three
hundred fighters. He said, "We do not know why we shall kill
ourselves."

Another incident that shows the courage and the real faith of the
companions is of two women as Tariq Ramadan quotes from Ibn Hisham
(Ramadan 2007: 123-124):

“Um Sulaym and especially an Ansar women called Nusaybah bint

Kab, who had initially come to carry water and aid the wounded, and
who eventually stepped into the battle, took a sword and fought the
Quraysh.”

This very much shows that some companions clearly deserve to be put
into the first category. It is important to note that the Prophet never asked
or instructed women to fight. It is crucial to mention the importance of Ali
ibn Abi Talib in this battle, because it shows that he had no doubt in the
message of the Prophet, and was ready to sacrifice his life10. Professor
Masud-ul-Hasan wrote in his book (Hasan 1998: 57):

“After the death [by Ali] of six warriors [standard bearers] from
among the Quraish (…), no other warriors of the Quraish could dare
challenge a duel with the Muslims”

Professor Masud-ul-Hasan further writes (Hasan 1998: 58):

“For his [Ali’s] marvelous bravery, the Holy Prophet conferred on

Hadrat Ali the appellation. “Asad Allah,” the lion of God.”

This proves the point of large diversity between the companions; logically
assessed some of them were trustworthy, but not all. There is one more
incident which is mentioned by most of the authors, but with minor
changes. It is quoted in The Message from Ibn Hisham11, vol 2, page 83
(Subhani 1984: 421):

“Anas bin Nazr, the uncle of Anas bin Malik says: (…) I saw a group
of Muhajirs and Ansars, including Umar bin Khattab and Talhah bin
Ubaydullah Taymi, who were sitting in a corner and were anxious for
themselves. I said (…): ‘Why are you sitting here?’ They replied, ‘The
Prophet has been killed and it is, therefore, no use fighting’. I said
to them: ‘If the Prophet has been killed it is no use living. Get up and
meet martyrdom in the same path in which he has been killed’.”

Clearly we see that even some of the more prominent companions had
problems expressing their belief on the inside. Anyhow, this is not enough
proof to put the likes of, Umar bin Khattab12 in the group of the hypocrites.
A more in-depth study of each companion has to take place, from a
neutral perspective.

Conclusion
10
People like Ali, and Hamza clearly deserves a place amongst the highest and most
important companions. Most sources would agree with this point.
11
Ibn Hisham, being one of the earliest sources, it would be nothing but just to quote it
from there.
12
Second khalifa of the muslims.
Before I state my opinion about the companions of the battle of Uhud, a
quote from the Qur’an is needed, chapter 3, verse 128:

“Not for thee, (but for God), is the decision: Whether He turns in
mercy to them, or punishes them; for they are indeed wrong-doers.”
(http://www.jannah.org/qurantrans/quran3.html, 07.dec. 22:40)

This verse shows that if the companions, which forsake the Prophet at a
crucial time, sincerely repented, God would show them mercy.

The opinion I find to be must suitable for this incident and its companions,
is that not only did some of them forsake the Prophet and God, but they
also showed their inner belief about Islam, by running away or fighting till
death. We cannot, from only researching one incident, judge people. The
verse of Qur’an quoted above also indicates that the decision lies with God
alone. We must anyhow read and judge people according to Qur’an and
intellect, because these companions are the ones who narrated the
religion after the Prophet. At last I must say that surely all companions
were not sincere in belief, and we must after our research, put them into
one of the three groups, so we know whom we can follow and whom we
cannot.

Bibliography
Al-Majlisi, Muhammad Baqir; 1997, Hiyat al-Qulub, Trans: Rev. Merrick,
Ansaryian Publications, Qum.
Al-Mubarakpuri, Safi-ur-Rahman; 2008, The Sealed Nectar, published by
Darussalam, 2nd edition, Riyadh.

Lings, Martin; 1991, Muhammad; his life based on the earliest

sources, published by The Islamic Texts Society, 4th edition, Cambridge.

Ramadan, Tariq; 2007, The Messenger; The Meanings of the Life of

Muhammad, published by the Penguin Group, London.

Subhani, Jafar; 1984, The Message, Ansaryian Publications, Qum.

Ul-Hasan, Masud; 1998, Hadrat Ali Murtada (R.A), published by Kitab

Bhavan, New Delhi.

Watt, W. Montgomery; 1964, Muhammad; Prophet and Statesman,

published by Oxford University Press, London.

Websites:

http://www.jannah.org/qurantrans/ , accessed: 07.dec. 06:00.

http://books.themajlis.net/node/281, accessed: 07.des. 05:25.