Part of Ramadan events and lessons (series completed)
· Lesson 27 of 31
Ramadan events and lessons | Episode (27) | Battle of Shaqhab
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In the name of Allah, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful.
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Abridged Book
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Ramadan
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Events and Lessons
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The Battle of Shaqhab
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The Time
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On Saturday
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the second of Ramadan
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in the year seven hundred and two
0:24
Hijri.
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The Battle of Ain Jalut was not
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decisive in eradicating the Tatars
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from the lands of Sham,
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and a lesson for them.
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A military and psychological lesson
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lessened the intensity of their aggression
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and made them reconsider
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and reorganize their affairs
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anew,
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and correct their excessive confidence
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in their strength and numbers.
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Indeed, the Tatars remained,
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wounded from the Battle of Ain Jalut,
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for a period.
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Then they attacked the lands of Sham once again,
1:00
thinking that they
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could this time
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satisfy the Muslims
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and quench their hearts' anger towards them.
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So they prepared a large
1:10
force during the days
1:12
of Ghazan, grandson of Hulegu,
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who sent his commander
1:16
Qutlugh Shah.
1:18
He allied with the Crusaders
1:20
and marched with his army
1:22
into the lands of Islam again.
1:24
So the decisive battle
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occurred at Shaqhab.
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The location of the battle
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and its time.
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This battle is called
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the Battle of Shaqhab
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or Marj al-Saffar,
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because it took place in a location
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called Shaqhab,
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beneath Mount Ghabaqib,
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and it is on the northern side
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Marj al-Saffar
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and Shaqhab, a place near
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Damascus, on the border of
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the Hauran region.
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It is approximately
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37 kilometers from Damascus,
2:00
roughly.
2:02
It began on Saturday,
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the second of Ramadan,
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in the year 700
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Hijri.
2:10
It lasted for three days,
2:12
from the afternoon of Saturday
2:14
until the morning of Monday,
2:16
the fourth of Ramadan.
2:19
Before the battle,
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it was the custom of the Tatars
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to inflict upon the Muslims
2:25
psychological warfare before they reached
2:27
them,
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by sending threats that
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instilled terror in the ranks of the people
2:33
so they would surrender their cities.
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Then the Tatars would advance,
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and whoever fled, fled.
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They would kill and capture,
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and take captive whoever remained,
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and burn whatever was before them,
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green and dry alike.
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This is what instilled
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fear of them in the hearts of the people
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at that time.
2:53
And in this engagement,
2:55
the role of the devoted scholars emerged
2:57
in strengthening the people,
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encouraging them
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and rallying them to fight their enemies.
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Amidst the wave of panic
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that afflicted the people,
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Imam Taqi al-Din
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Ibn Taymiyyah, may Allah have mercy on him,
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played a witnessed role
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in dispelling the people's fear
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of the Tatars, and rallying
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their ranks, and mobilizing them
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to the battlefield,
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and engaging in the fight himself.
3:23
He also undertook
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He was tasked with urging the Sultan and the Emirs
3:27
to confront the Tatars
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and promised them victory.
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He swore allegiance to him to that effect.
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Also,
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he had a great stance
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in dispelling doubts about fighting
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these Tatars,
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who were outwardly professing Islam
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falsely and deceitfully, adhering to the law of
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the Yassa.
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And we do not forget the wise fiqh
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in his fatwa to the Islamic army
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regarding the permissibility of breaking the fast in Ramadan
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to strengthen them.
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This was among the great deeds
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that had a significant impact
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in the victory of the Muslims
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at that time.
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This event occurred during the reign of the Caliph
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Al-Mustakfi Billah
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and Sultan Al-Nasir
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Muhammad ibn Qalawun,
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and they were residing in Egypt.
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News had reached them
4:16
of the Tatars' resolve
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to devastate the lands of Sham.
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Al-Nasir answered the call
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and personally attended the battle.
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Ibn Kathir said:
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"On the eighteenth,
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a large contingent arrived
4:30
of the Egyptian army,
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including Emir Rukn al-Din
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Baybars al-Jashankir,
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and Emir Husam al-Din
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Lajin, known as
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Al-Astadar Al-Mansuri,
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and Emir Saif al-Din
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Kiray Al-Mansuri.
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Then another contingent arrived after them,
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including
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Badr al-Din, the Master of Arms,
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and Aybak al-Khazindar.
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This bolstered spirits
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and reassured many people.
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However, the people
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were in a great state of panic
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from the lands of Aleppo, Hama, and Homs
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and those surrounding areas.
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The Aleppine army retreated,
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and the army from Hama [retreated] to Homs.
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Then they feared that they would be surprised
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by the Tatars.
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So they came and encamped in the Marj
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on Sunday, the twenty-fifth of Sha'ban.
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And the Tatars arrived
5:20
at Homs and Baalbek,
5:22
and wrought great corruption in those lands.
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The people were agitated,
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greatly agitated,
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and feared intensely.
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The city was in turmoil
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due to the delay in the Sultan's arrival
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with the rest of the army.
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The people said,
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"The Syrian army has no strength
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with these Egyptians
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to face the Tatars, due to their vast numbers."
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"Their only course of action
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is to retreat from them, stage by stage."
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And people spread rumors.
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So the commanders gathered
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on the aforementioned Sunday
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in the Green Field,
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and pledged to confront the enemy.
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They emboldened themselves,
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and a proclamation was made throughout the city,
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that no one should depart from it.
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So the people settled down.
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The judges sat in the mosque,
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and a group of jurists
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and the common folk swore allegiance to fight.
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And Sheikh
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Taqi al-Din Ibn Taymiyyah proceeded
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to the army that had arrived from Hama.
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He met with them in al-Qutayfah,
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and informed them
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of the pact made by
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the commanders and the people to confront the enemy.
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They agreed to this,
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and swore allegiance with them.
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And Sheikh Taqi al-Din
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Ibn Taymiyyah was swearing
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to the commanders and the people,
6:36
"You shall, in this encounter,
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They were victorious over the Tatars.
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The emirs would say to him,
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"Say, 'If Allah wills.'"
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And he would say, "If Allah wills."
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This was a confirmation, not a mere statement.
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He used to interpret in this regard
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certain verses from the Book of Allah,
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including His saying, exalted is He:
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"That is so, for whoever has retaliated
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“That (is so). And whoso hath retaliated with the like of that which he was made to suffer and then hath (again) been wronged, Allah will succour him. Lo! Allah verily is Mild, Forgiving.” (22:60)
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and then transgressed against him
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after that, Allah will surely support him.
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Indeed, Allah is Pardoning
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and Forgiving."
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People have discussed the manner
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of fighting these Tatars,
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in a way that is
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because they profess Islam
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and are not rebels against the ruler.
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For they were not
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in obedience to him at any time
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and then they disobeyed him.
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So Sheikh Taqi al-Din said,
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"These are of the same kind as the Khawarij.
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They believed that they
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were more deserving of authority.
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And these claim that they
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are more deserving of establishing the truth than the Muslims.
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And they criticize
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the Muslims for what they are involved in,
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namely sins and injustice,
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while they themselves are involved
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in something far greater than that,
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many times over.
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So the scholars and the people understood
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this point.
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And he used to say to the people,
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"If you see me on that side,
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with a copy of the Qur'an on my head,
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then kill me."
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So the people were emboldened in fighting the Tatars,
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and their hearts grew stronger,
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and their intentions.
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Praise be to Allah.
8:08
On Wednesday,
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the twenty-eighth of Sha'ban,
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the Syrian armies marched out
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and encamped on the bridges
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on the side of al-Kiswa.
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And the judges were with them.
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So the people became divided into two groups regarding them.
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One group said:
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"They only marched
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to choose a location for the battle.
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For indeed, the place they are heading towards
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has abundant water,
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so they will not be able to fight effectively there."
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And another group said:
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"They only marched in that direction
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to flee and to join
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the Sultan."
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Then, on Thursday night,
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they marched towards the area of
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Al-Kiswa, which strengthened
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people's suspicions of their flight.
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And the Tatars had already reached
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Qara.
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And it was said that they reached
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Al-Qutayfah, causing the people
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great distress.
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And there were no villages left around the city.
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And the citadel was filled,
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and the houses,
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streets,
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and pathways became crowded.
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And the people were agitated.
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Sheikh Taqi al-Din
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Ibn Taymiyyah went out on Thursday morning
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of the aforementioned month
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through the Bab al-Nasr gate with great difficulty.
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A group accompanied him
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to witness the battle himself,
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along with those with him.
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So they thought he was only leaving
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to flee.
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Consequently, he faced blame from some people.
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They said, "You prevented us
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from fleeing,
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and now you yourself are fleeing the city."
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But he did not respond to them.
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And the city was left without
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a ruler.
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Thieves and ruffians began to roam
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through it and the people's gardens,
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destroying and looting
9:50
whatever they could.
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And they were cutting apricots before their season.
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And likewise, the remaining ones who...
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and wheat and barley
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and all other vegetables
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And We place a barrier between people and their desires.
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The report of the army
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The routes to the covering (of the Ka'bah) were cut off.
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And a sense of desolation spread over the land.
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and settled communities
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...and people have no other concern than
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Ascending to the minarets
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They look right and left.
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And towards the direction of the covering.
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Then they say
10:20
We saw dust
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They fear it might be from the Tatars.
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and they marvel at
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The report of the army, despite its large numbers.
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Where did they go?
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And they do not know what he did.
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Allah, by them.
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And hopes were cut off.
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And the people persisted in supplication.
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and supplication
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And in prayers, and in every state.
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That was on a Thursday.
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The twenty-ninth of Sha'ban.
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And people were in
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Fear and terror beyond description.
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From him (may Allah be pleased with him).
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However, relief from that situation came.
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Soon, but
10:56
They do not know.
10:58
As narrated in the hadith of Abu Razeen.
11:00
Allah is amazed
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...from despairing of His servants.
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And his jealousy intensified.
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He looks upon you, despairing and dejected.
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He would then continue to laugh.
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He knows that your private parts
11:12
It is near.
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When the end of this day arrived
11:17
The Amir Fakhr al-Din arrived.
11:19
He made me despair of the bequest.
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One of the emirs of Damascus
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So give glad tidings to the people of good.
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This refers to the Sultan having arrived.
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And it has been gathered
11:29
The Egyptian and Syrian armies
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And He sent me
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Reveal whether anyone has approached the city.
11:35
from the Tatars
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He found the matter to be as he wished.
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None of them had knocked on it.
11:41
This is because the Tatars
11:43
They turned back from Damascus towards the region of
11:45
The Egyptian armies
11:47
They did not occupy themselves with the city.
11:49
Rather, they said, "If we are overcome..."
11:51
The land belongs to us.
11:53
and we were overcome
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Therefore, we have no need for it.
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And a call was made throughout the land.
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To comfort hearts.
12:01
And the Sultan has arrived.
12:03
The people were reassured and calmed.
12:05
Their hearts
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The month was confirmed on the night of Friday.
12:09
The judge, Taqi al-Din,
12:11
Al-Hanbali, for the sky
12:13
It was cloudy.
12:15
The lamps were hung.
12:17
And I prayed the Tarawih prayers.
12:19
The people rejoiced at the arrival of the month of Ramadan.
12:21
And the people became on Friday
12:23
in severe distress and fear
12:25
Certainly, because they
12:27
They do not know the news of the people.
12:29
While they were in that state
12:31
When the Amir came
12:33
Sayf al-Din Qurl al-'Adili
12:35
So the deputy of the citadel gathered with us.
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Then he returned quickly.
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and no one understood what
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It was reported by him.
12:43
And people fell into rumors and falsehoods.
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The encounter
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The one who bleeds in Shaqhab.
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The two armies met at Shaqab.
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And it revolved between them
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A fierce battle raged.
12:56
The scale
12:58
at its beginning, for the benefit of the Tatars.
13:00
But the Muslims
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They remained steadfast despite the many casualties.
13:04
until He granted them power
13:06
Allah from the necks of the Tatars.
13:08
During these three days,
13:10
they killed some of them,
13:12
took others captive, and seized whatever spoils they wished.
13:14
For it was reported
13:16
that the Tatars arrived with fifty thousand men,
13:18
led by Qutlugh Shah, the deputy of Ghazan.
13:20
So the army
13:22
donned their armor entirely.
13:24
And they agreed to fight
13:26
the Tatars at Shaqhab,
13:28
beneath Mount Ghabaqib.
13:30
When the arrangements were complete,
13:32
the Tatar divisions advanced,
13:34
like pieces of the night.
13:36
And this was at the time of Dhuhr on
13:38
Saturday, the second of Ramadan
13:40
of that year.
13:42
Qutlugh Shah advanced with those accompanying him,
13:44
from the vanguard.
13:46
They engaged the right flank,
13:48
but the right flank held firm against them,
13:50
and they fought them with the fiercest of battles.
13:52
Then many from the right flank were killed.
13:54
So they were reached
13:56
by the commanders from the center
13:58
and from the left flank,
14:00
and they continued in the fight
14:02
until they repelled the Tatars
14:04
from the Muslims.
14:06
The fighting continued between the Tatars
14:08
and the Muslims until
14:10
each of the two groups
14:12
ceased fighting.
14:14
And he who was with him went up to a mountain
14:16
nearby,
14:18
and ascended it,
14:20
believing in his heart that he had won,
14:22
and that Qutlugh Shah was in pursuit
14:24
of the fleeing Muslims.
14:26
When he ascended the mountain,
14:28
he saw the plain and the rough terrain
14:30
entirely filled with armies,
14:32
and the Sultan's left flank holding firm,
14:34
and its banners fluttering.
14:36
So Qutlugh Shah was astonished
14:38
and bewildered.
14:40
He remained in his place,
14:42
and those who were behind
14:44
the defeated from the Sultan's right flank
14:46
and with them were several
14:48
Muslims who had been
14:50
captured. At that point,
14:52
Qutlūshāh gathered his men
14:54
and consulted them about what
14:56
to do. Then the Sultan's
14:58
kettle drums and trumpets
15:00
advanced, shaking
15:02
the earth and unsettling hearts
15:04
with their sound.
15:06
Būlāy did not stand firm,
15:08
and he departed from Qutlūshāh's direction
15:10
with about twenty thousand
15:12
Tatars.
15:14
He descended from the mountain after sunset,
15:16
and passed by Rabā.
15:18
The Sultan and the rest of
15:20
his armies spent the night on horseback,
15:22
with drums beating.
15:24
Those who had been defeated were pursuing them
15:26
little by little,
15:28
and they were aiming to strike
15:30
the Sultan's drums and trumpets.
15:32
The Sultan's army surrounded the mountain on which
15:34
the Tatars had spent the night.
15:36
Qutlūshāh, along with those with him,
15:38
was making arrangements.
15:40
They descended on foot
15:42
and on horseback and fought
15:44
the armies.
15:46
The Sultan's Mamluks, led by their commanders,
15:48
advanced against Qutlūshāh
15:50
and Jūbān.
15:52
They engaged in a great battle with them,
15:54
sometimes
15:56
shooting arrows at them,
15:58
and at other times confronting them
16:00
with lances.
16:02
The emirs also engaged
16:04
in fighting those in their sector,
16:06
taking turns in the battle,
16:08
one emir after another.
16:10
The Sultan's Mamluks persisted
16:12
in the fight,
16:14
and on that day they displayed
16:16
a level of courage and horsemanship
16:18
that cannot be described,
16:20
So much so that some of them were killed beneath it.
16:22
The three types of horses
16:24
And the rulers did not adorn themselves with that.
16:26
Until Sunday noon.
16:28
Qutluh Shah ascended.
16:30
The mountain
16:32
And about [number] from his army were killed
16:34
A man
16:36
Many were wounded, and their thirst intensified.
16:38
It so happened that some of
16:40
He was taken captive by the Tatars.
16:42
He fled and went down to the Sultan.
16:44
and to make him recognize that the Tatars
16:46
They have unanimously agreed on the descent.
16:48
in the magic, to confront
16:50
The Sultan's armies
16:52
And they were in severe thirst.
16:54
The opinion then necessitated
16:56
for Allah to grant them relief upon their arrival.
16:58
and the army will ride
17:00
I turned my back on them.
17:02
When they spent the night in that state
17:04
They awoke on Monday morning.
17:06
The Tatars rode out in the fourth [year].
17:08
of the day
17:10
They descended from the mountain, and no one bothered them.
17:12
They have one
17:14
They marched to the river and plunged into it.
17:16
At that point, they mounted them.
17:18
Allah's trials for the Muslims
17:20
And Allah, the Most High, supported them.
17:22
with His victory
17:24
until they reaped the heads of the Tatars
17:26
concerning their bodies
17:28
And they drew their swords against them.
17:30
killed and captured
17:32
until the afternoon prayer
17:34
They returned to the Sultan.
17:36
Recognize Him through this great victory.
17:38
And the rulers continued
17:40
and the rest of the armies are in pursuit.
17:42
The Tatars to the two villages
17:44
The Tatar horses grew weary.
17:46
Their souls grew weak.
17:48
They laid down their weapons.
17:50
They surrendered to be killed.
17:52
and the armies kill them
17:54
without any resistance
17:56
even the lowest of the common people and the youths
17:58
killed many of them
18:00
and they captured at that time
18:02
spoils of war
18:04
and one soldier from the army would kill
18:06
twenty of the Tatars
18:08
or more
18:10
then the nomadic tribes of the land
18:12
betrayed the Tatars and began their treachery
18:14
so they would bring
18:16
two or three
18:18
up to a large number of Tatars
18:20
as if they were guiding them
18:22
to a nearby path
18:24
a desert plain, and they would deliver them
18:26
to the wilderness
18:28
and leave them there
18:30
so they would die of thirst
18:32
and some they led around
18:34
and brought them to the Ghouta of Damascus
18:36
so the general populace of Damascus came out to them
18:38
the general populace of Damascus
18:40
and killed many of them
18:42
and on Monday
18:44
the fourth of the month
18:46
the people returned from the Kiswah
18:48
to Damascus
18:50
and they gave the people glad tidings of victory
18:52
and Ibn Kathir said
18:54
and they remained in what they were upon
18:56
of fear and hardship
18:58
so they saw from the minarets
19:00
blackness and dust
19:02
from the direction of the army and the enemy
19:04
so it was strongly suspected that the battle
19:06
was on this day
19:08
so they implored Allah, the Mighty and Majestic
19:10
with supplication in the mosques and the city
19:12
and the women came out
19:14
and the children onto the rooftops
19:16
and they uncovered their heads
19:18
and the city cried out with a great cry
19:20
and it happened at that time
19:22
at that time a great, heavy rain fell
19:24
then the people calmed down
19:26
and when it was after noon
19:28
a notice was read in the congregational mosque
19:30
stating that
19:32
In the second hour
19:34
...of this Saturday's daylight.
19:36
The armies of Sham convened.
19:38
and Egyptian with the Sultan
19:40
in the meadow of Safar
19:42
And in it is the request for prayer from the people.
19:44
and the command to guard the fortress
19:46
and caution regarding the walls
19:48
So let people be
19:50
and the one who gives the call to prayer and the land.
19:52
The day has passed.
19:54
It was a tremendously unsettling day.
19:56
And the people awoke on Sunday
19:58
They speak with a broken [spirit/will].
20:00
The Tatars
20:02
And the people went out towards the area of Al-Kiswah.
20:04
They returned, and with them
20:06
something from earnings
20:08
And with them were prominent leaders.
20:10
The Tatars
20:12
And the oppression of the Tatars grew stronger.
20:14
And it increases little by little.
20:16
until the entire matter became clear
20:18
But when people have
20:20
From the intensity of the fear
20:22
And the abundance of Tatars does not mean they are truthful.
20:24
The results of the battle
20:27
This was
20:30
The overwhelming victory
20:32
It was a decisive blow against the Tatar's lineage.
20:34
Those who have not returned since then
20:36
with major campaigns
20:38
to the lands of ash-Sham
20:40
The people then found relief from their evil.
20:42
The widespread
20:44
Rather, they openly declared their Islam.
20:46
After a period of time
20:48
by the age of their Islam
20:50
So, to Allah be all praise for their embracing Islam.
20:52
And to Allah belongs all praise.
20:54
...for the well-being of the lands of Islam.
20:56
from their harm
20:58
But among the matters that call for
21:00
It is astonishing.
21:02
The Mongol Tatar people
21:04
that which was done to the world
21:06
Islamic, from the categories
21:08
The annihilation and the brutal punishment that was inflicted.
21:10
returns to the religion
21:12
those who were subjugated by them
21:14
and whom they swept over
21:16
one of the facts that many do not know
21:18
is that the Tatars
21:20
have a great merit
21:22
in spreading Islam in regions
21:24
that Muslims had not reached
21:26
before them.
21:28
They ruled them and conquered countries,
21:30
so they became among the best
21:32
of people in their adherence to Islam,
21:34
even up to our
21:36
present time.
21:38
Our Muslim brothers in Turkestan
21:40
are from the descendants of the Tatars.
21:42
And what has happened
21:44
to them now in terms of persecution by the Chinese
21:46
Buddhists
21:48
and they are steadfast in their religion,
21:50
patient in their trials,
21:52
is nothing but proof of the strength
21:54
of their Islam.
21:56
We ask Allah to relieve them.
21:58
Ramadan:
22:02
events and lessons.