In the name of Allah, the entirely Merciful, the especially Merciful.
Muhammad is the Messenger of Allah.
An Abridgment of the Prophetic Biography (Seerah),
Authored by Sheikh Musa Al-Rashid Al-'Azimi,
May Allah preserve him.
The Battle of Hunayn.
The Battle of Hunayn took place in Shawwal in the eighth year of the Hijrah.
Al-Hafiz Ibn Hajar stated in *Fath al-Bari*:
"The scholars of military expeditions said:
The Prophet, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, set out for Hunayn
When six nights had passed in Shawwal;
And it was also said:
When two nights remained of Ramadan."
Some scholars harmonized between these accounts,
Explaining that he began preparing and dispatching troops in late Ramadan,
Commenced the march on the sixth of Shawwal,
And arrived there on the tenth.
Imam Ibn al-Qayyim remarked:
"Allah, Glorified is He, inaugurated the military subjugation of the pagan Arabs
With the Battle of Badr,
And sealed their campaigns with the Battle of Hunayn.
The first struck fear into their hearts and broke their edge,
While the second exhausted their remaining strength,
Depleted their arrows, and humbled their collective might,
Leaving them no alternative but to enter the religion of Allah."
The Cause of the Battle.
When the tribe of Hawazin heard of the Messenger of Allah, peace be upon him,
And how Allah had granted him the conquest of Makkah,
Malik ibn 'Awf al-Nasri rallied them.
Alongside Hawazin, the entire tribe of Thaqif rallied to him,
As well as the entirety of Nasr and Jusham,
Sa'd ibn Bakr,
And several groups from Banu Hilal.
Among Banu Jusham was Durayd ibn al-Simmah,
A very elderly man
Brought along solely for the auspicious blessing of his counsel
And his vast expertise in warfare,
For he was a seasoned veteran.
Supreme command over the people was entrusted to Malik ibn 'Awf al-Nasri,
And they resolved to fight the Prophet, peace be upon him.
When he determined to advance toward the Messenger of Allah, peace be upon him,
He commanded the people to bring along their wealth, women, and children.
When he encamped at Awtas,
The masses gathered around him.
The Prophet, peace be upon him, Dispatched 'Abdullah ibn Abi Hadrad, may Allah be pleased with him.
When the Messenger of Allah, peace be upon him, heard of their mobilization,
He sent 'Abdullah ibn Abi Hadrad, may Allah be pleased with him, to them
To bring back intelligence concerning them.
Al-Hakim in *Al-Mustadrak* and Al-Bayhaqi in *Dala'il al-Nubuwwah* narrated with a good chain
On the authority of Jabir ibn 'Abdullah, may Allah be pleased with both of them, who said:
"Malik ibn 'Awf al-Nasri gathered
Banu Nasr, Jusham,
Sa'd ibn Bakr,
Disparate clans from Banu Hilal,
And some from Banu 'Umar ibn 'Asim ibn 'Awf ibn 'Amir;
And Thaqif came out in their entirety, including the confederates (al-Ahlaf) and Banu Malik.
Then he marched them toward the Messenger of Allah, peace be upon him,
Bringing with them their wealth, women, and children.
When the Messenger of Allah, peace be upon him, learned of their movements,
He dispatched 'Abdullah ibn Abi Hadrad al-Aslami, may Allah be pleased with him,
Instructing him:
'Go and infiltrate their ranks,
Until you obtain reliable intelligence about them for us.'
So he infiltrated them,
Remained among them for a day or two,
And then returned and conveyed the news to him."
The Prophet's Departure for Hunayn.
The Messenger of Allah, peace be upon him, marched out of Makkah al-Mukarramah
After concluding its conquest,
Restoring order to its affairs,
Accepting the submission of the general populace, and granting them amnesty;
He set forth to confront Hawazin and their allies.
The Messenger of Allah, peace be upon him, marched against them
At the head of the ten thousand who had accompanied him during the conquest,
Along with two thousand of the pardoned captives (*Tulaqa'*) from the people of Makkah,
Most of whom were newly converted to Islam,
Faith not yet having firmly taken root in their hearts.
Several Makkan chieftains also accompanied him on this expedition,
Such as Safwan ibn Umayyah,
Who was still a polytheist at the time,
Suhayl ibn 'Amr, and others.
The two Shaykhs [Al-Bukhari and Muslim] narrated in their Sahih collections
On the authority of Anas ibn Malik, may Allah be pleased with him, who said:
"On the day of Hunayn,
Hawazin and Ghatafan advanced bringing their dependents and livestock,
While the Prophet, peace be upon him, had ten thousand men with him that day,
Along with the pardoned captives."
The Messenger of Allah, peace be upon him,
Feared that the Muslims might be deceived by their sheer numbers and become conceited over their multitude,
And that indeed transpired, as explicitly attested by the text of the Qur'an,
Where Allah the Exalted says:
“Allah hath given you victory on many fields and on the day of Huneyn, when ye exulted in your multitude but it availed you naught, and the earth, vast as it is, was straitened for you; then ye turned back in flight;” (9:25)
“Allah hath given you victory on many fields and on the day of Huneyn, when ye exulted in your multitude but it availed you naught, and the earth, vast as it is, was straitened for you; then ye turned back in flight;” (9:25)
So the Messenger of Allah, peace be upon him, wished to clarify to them
That numbers alone avail them nothing against the decree of Allah,
By citing a parable of what befell an earlier prophet with his people.
Imam Ahmad recorded in his *Musnad* with an authentic chain
On the authority of Suhayb, may Allah be pleased with him, who said:
"The Messenger of Allah, peace be upon him, would move his lips during the campaign of Hunayn
In a manner he had never done prior to that.
Then the Prophet, peace be upon him, said:
'A prophet among those before you was filled with admiration for his community,
And declared: Nothing can ever vanquish them!
So Allah revealed to him: Give them the choice between one of three things:
Either that I unleash upon them an enemy from another people who will subjugate them,
Or famine, or pestilence.
They said: As for being killed or facing famine,
We have no endurance for them; rather, let it be death (pestilence).
Consequently, seventy thousand perished within three days.'
Suhayb said: The Messenger of Allah, peace be upon him, then added:
'So now I say: O Allah, by Your aid alone I maneuver, by Your aid I charge, and by Your aid I fight.'"
The Tree of Dhat Anwat.
The Messenger of Allah, peace be upon him, passed,
While on his route to Hunayn,
By a tree belonging to the polytheists known as Dhat Anwat.
Imam Ahmad and Al-Tirmidhi recorded with an authentic chain
On the authority of Abu Waqid al-Laythi, may Allah be pleased with him, who said:
"We departed from Makkah with the Messenger of Allah, peace be upon him, toward Hunayn.
He said: The disbelievers had a lote tree at which they would gather in veneration
And upon which they would hang their weapons,
Named Dhat Anwat.
As we passed by a magnificent, lush lote tree,
We said: 'O Messenger of Allah!
Make for us a Dhat Anwat!'
The Messenger of Allah, peace be upon him, replied:
'By the One in Whose hand is my soul, you have spoken just as the people of Moses spoke:
“And We brought the Children of Israel across the sea, and they came unto a people who were given up to idols which they had. They said: O Moses! Make for us a god even as they have gods. He said: Lo! ye are a folk who know not.” (7:138)
“And We brought the Children of Israel across the sea, and they came unto a people who were given up to idols which they had. They said: O Moses! Make for us a god even as they have gods. He said: Lo! ye are a folk who know not.” (7:138)
Truly, these are the ingrained ways of old!
You shall certainly follow the ways of those before you, tradition by tradition.'"
An Abridgment of the Prophetic Biography.
Though humanity's longing for one another may endure,
The boundless yearning for you knows no measure.
May Allah shower blessings upon you whenever the call to prayer is raised,
And whenever lips move to utter the remembrance of the Everlasting.