In the name of Allah, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful.
Muhammad is the Messenger of Allah.
*The Abridgment of the Prophetic Biography (Seerah)*
Authored by Sheikh Musa ibn Rashid al-'Azimi,
May Allah preserve him.
The size of the Muslim army
that gathered under the command of the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him):
The two Sheikhs [al-Bukhari and Muslim] narrated in their *Sahih*s
on the authority of Ka'b ibn Malik (may Allah be pleased with him) that he said:
"The Muslims with the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) were numerous,
and no written register could contain them all."
In another narration in *Sahih Muslim*,
Ka'b (may Allah be pleased with him) said:
"And the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) set out on the expedition
with a vast multitude of people,
exceeding ten thousand,
and no written register could record them all."
Al-Hafiz [Ibn Hajar] stated in *Fath al-Bari*:
"Al-Hakim reported in *al-Iklil* from the hadith of Mu'adh (may Allah be pleased with him) that he said:
'We set out with the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) on the Expedition of Tabuk,
and we numbered more than thirty thousand.'"
Ibn Ishaq affirmed this number with certainty,
and al-Waqidi transmitted it through another connected chain of transmission.
The appointment of Muhammad ibn Maslamah (may Allah be pleased with him) as deputy:
Ibn Sa'd stated in his *Tabaqat*:
"The Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) appointed Muhammad ibn Maslamah (may Allah be pleased with him) as his deputy over Medina,
which is more established in our view than the opinion of those who mentioned someone else."
The Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) leaving 'Ali (may Allah be pleased with him) behind in charge of his family:
The Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) left 'Ali ibn Abi Talib (may Allah be pleased with him) behind in charge of his household,
so 'Ali ibn Abi Talib did not witness the Expedition of Tabuk.
The two Sheikhs narrated in their *Sahih*s on the authority of Sa'd ibn Abi Waqqas (may Allah be pleased with him) that he said:
"The Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) left 'Ali ibn Abi Talib behind during the Expedition of Tabuk,
so 'Ali said, 'O Messenger of Allah, are you leaving me behind among the women and children?'
The Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) replied:
'Are you not pleased to be to me as Aaron was to Moses,
except that there will be no prophet after me?'"
In another narration in the *Musnad* of Imam Ahmad with an authentic chain of transmission,
on the authority of Sa'd (may Allah be pleased with him), he said:
"'Ali went out with the Prophet (peace be upon him)
until he reached Thaniyyat al-Wada',
and 'Ali (may Allah be pleased with him) was weeping, saying:
'Are you leaving me behind with those who stay back?'
So the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) said:
'Are you not pleased to be to me as Aaron was to Moses,
except regarding prophethood?'"
Imam al-Nawawi said:
"This hadith establishes a virtue for 'Ali (may Allah be pleased with him),
yet it contains no indication that he was superior to others or even equal to them,
nor does it contain proof of his succeeding the Prophet in leadership afterward;
because the Prophet (peace be upon him)
only said this to 'Ali (may Allah be pleased with him)
when he appointed him as his deputy over Medina during the Expedition of Tabuk.
This is further supported by the fact that Aaron (peace be upon him), to whom he was compared,
was not a successor after Moses (peace be upon him);
rather, he passed away during the lifetime of Moses (peace be upon him),
approximately forty years before Moses passed away,
according to what is well known among the scholars of historical accounts and chronicles."
The departure of the Messenger (peace be upon him)
and his passing by the dwellings of Thamud:
The Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) departed
from the Prophetic city of Medina with his mighty army heading toward Tabuk.
On their way, they passed by the dwellings of Thamud,
so the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) spurred on his mount
and encamped near the dwellings of Thamud.
The two Sheikhs narrated in their *Sahih*s
on the authority of 'Abdullah ibn 'Umar (may Allah be pleased with them both) that he said:
"When the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) passed by al-Hijr,
he said: 'Do not enter the dwellings of those who wronged themselves,
lest there befall you what befell them,
unless you enter weeping.'
Then he covered his head and quickened his pace
until he crossed the valley."
The Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) also commanded them
not to drink from its wells nor to draw water from them.
For the two Sheikhs narrated in their *Sahih*s
from 'Abdullah ibn 'Umar (may Allah be pleased with them both) that he said:
"When the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him)
encamped at al-Hijr during the Expedition of Tabuk,
he ordered them not to drink from its wells
nor to draw water from them.
They said, 'We have already kneaded dough with its water and drawn from it.'
So he ordered them to throw away that dough
and to pour out that water."
In another narration in the two *Sahih*s,
Ibn 'Umar (may Allah be pleased with them both) said:
"The Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) commanded them
to pour out the water they had drawn
and to feed the dough to the camels."
Imam Ibn al-Qayyim said: "Among the rulings is
that the water found in the wells of Thamud
is not permissible to drink, cook with,
knead dough with, or use for ritual purification.
However, it is permissible to water livestock
from the well of the she-camel,
which remained well-known and preserved
up to the time of the Prophet (peace be upon him);
people continued to recognize it
century after century down to our present time,
so no travelers stop to draw water at any well other than it.
It is well-cased, firmly constructed,
spacious on all sides,
displaying evident signs of antiquity,
and cannot be mistaken for any other."
The Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) continued
his journey toward Tabuk,
and the people's need for water became severe.
The Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) raised
his hands toward the sky,
and Allah, Glorified be He, sent down rain upon them.
Ibn Hibban narrated in his *Sahih*
and al-Hakim in his *Mustadrak* with an authentic chain of transmission
on the authority of Ibn 'Abbas (may Allah be pleased with them both) that:
It was said to 'Umar ibn al-Khattab (may Allah be pleased with him):
"Tell us about the Expedition of Hardship (al-'Usrah)."
He (may Allah be pleased with him) said:
"We set out for Tabuk in intense, scorching heat,
and we halted at a station where we were stricken by such thirst
that we thought our necks
would sever from dehydration. A man
would go out in search of water
and not return until we thought his neck would break,
to the extent that a man would slaughter his camel,
squeeze its entrails, and drink the fluid,
placing the remainder over his liver."
Abu Bakr (may Allah be pleased with him) said:
"O Messenger of Allah, Allah has accustomed you
to answered prayers for good, so supplicate for us."
The Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) asked:
"Would you like that?" He replied, "Yes."
He said: "So he raised his hands,
and did not lower them until
a cloud overshadowed them and poured down rain,
so they filled all their vessels.
Then we went out to look,
and we found that the rain had not extended beyond the encampment."
Imam Muslim narrated in his *Sahih*
on the authority of Abu Hurayrah (may Allah be pleased with him),
or on the authority of Abu Sa'id al-Khudri (may Allah be pleased with him),
who said: "During the Expedition of Tabuk,
the people said, 'O Messenger of Allah,
if only you would permit us to slaughter our water-carrying camels
so that we may eat and use their fat for oil.'
The Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) said:
'Do so.'
Then 'Umar (may Allah be pleased with him) came and said:
'O Messenger of Allah,
if you do that, our mounts will become scarce.
Instead, instruct them to bring whatever leftover provisions they have,
and then pray to Allah to bless them over it;
perhaps Allah will bring about blessing through that.'
The Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) said:
'Yes.'
He called for a leather mat and spread it out,
then asked for the remnants of their provisions.
One man would come with a handful of corn,
another would come with a handful of dates,
and another with a piece of bread,
until there gathered upon the mat
a very small amount.
The Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) supplicated
over it for blessings,
and then said:
'Fill your vessels.'
So they filled their vessels,
until they had not left in the entire camp
a single container without filling it.
They ate until they were fully satisfied,
and there was still food left over.
The Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) then said:
'I bear witness that there is no deity worthy of worship except Allah,
and that I am the Messenger of Allah;
no servant meets Allah with these two testimonies, harboring no doubt,
without being admitted to Paradise.'"
Al-Hafiz Ibn Kathir said:
"From this, the superior virtue of the Companions of Muhammad (peace be upon him),
may Allah be pleased with them,
over the companions of all other prophets becomes manifest
in their patience, steadfastness, and lack of obstinate demands.
Whenever they accompanied him on his travels and military expeditions,
including the year of Tabuk
amidst that scorching heat, severe hardship, and exhaustion,
they never demanded miraculous disruptions of natural laws
nor the sudden creation of resources,
even though that was easy for the Messenger (peace be upon him).
Rather, only when hunger overwhelmed them
did they ask him to multiply their food;
so they gathered what little was with them,
which amounted to roughly the resting space of a goat,
and he supplicated to Allah over it
and commanded them, so they filled every single container they had.
Likewise, when they were in desperate need of water,
he asked Allah Almighty,
and a cloud came and rained down upon them,
so they drank, watered the camels,
and filled their water skins;
then they looked and saw that it had not passed beyond the camp.
This represents the pinnacle of proper adherence:
submitting to the decree of Allah
by following the Messenger, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him.
An abridgment
of the Prophetic biography (Seerah).
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