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He
was thin and wiry with so little flesh on his bones that it was
painful to look at him. Yet in single-handed combat he defeated
and killed many opponents and in the thick of battle he was an
outstanding fighter against the disblievers. He was so courageous
and daring that `Umar once wrote to his governors throughout the
Islamic state that they should not appoint him to lead any army
out of fear that he would have them all killed by his daring
exploits. This man was Al-Bara’ ibn Malik Al-Ansari, the brother
of Anas ibn Malik, the personal aide of the Prophet (peace and
blessings be upon him).
If
the tales of Al-Bara’s heroism were to be told in detail, pages
and pages could be written. But let one example suffice.
This
particular story begins only hours after the death of the noble
Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him), when many Arab tribes
took to leaving the religion of God in large numbers, just as they
had entered it in large numbers. Within a short space of time only
the people of Makkah, Madinah, Ta’if and scattered communities
here and there, whose commitment to Islam was unwavering, remained
within the religion.
Abu
Bakr As-Siddiq, the successor to the Prophet (peace and blessings
be upon him), stood firm against this blind and destructive
movement. From the Muhajirun (Immigrants) and Ansar (Helpers), he
mobilized eleven armies, each under a separate commander, and
dispatched them to various parts of the Arab Peninsula. Their
purpose was to make the apostates return to the path of guidance
and truth and to confront the leaders of the rebellion.
The
strongest group of apostates and the greatest in number were the
Banu Hanifah, among whom Musaylamah the Imposter arose, claiming
that he was a prophet. Musaylamah managed to mobilize forty
thousand of the best fighters among his people. Most of these,
however, followed him for the sake of tribal loyalty and not
because they believed in him. One of them, in fact, said, “I
testify that Musaylamah is an imposter and that Muhammad is true,
but the imposter of Rabi`ah (Musaylamah) is dearer to us than the
true man of Mudar (Muhammad).”
Musaylamah
routed the first army sent against him under the leadership of
`Ikrimah ibn Abi Jahl. Abu Bakr dispatched another army against
Musaylamah led by Khalid ibn Al-Walid. This army included the
cream of the Companions from both the Ansar and the Muhajirun. In
the front ranks of this army was Al-Bara’ ibn Malik and a group
of the most valiant Muslims.
The
two armies met in the territory of the Banu Hanifah at Yamamah in
Najd. Before long, the scale of battle tilted in favor of
Musaylamah and his men. The Muslim armies began to retreat from
their positions. Musaylamah’s forces even stormed the tent of
Khalid ibn Al-Walid and drove him from his position. They would
have killed his wife if one of them had not granted her
protection.
At
that point, the Muslims realized in what a perilous situation they
were. They were also conscious of the fact that if they were
annihilated by Musaylamah, Islam would not be able to stand as a
religion and Allah, the One God with Whom there is no partner,
would not be worshiped in the Arabian Peninsula after that.
Khalid
mustered his forces once more and began reorganizing them. He
separated the Muhajirun and the Ansar and kept men from different
tribes apart. Each was put under the leadership of one of its own
members so that the losses of each group in the battle might be
known.
The
battle raged. There was much destruction and death. The Muslims
had not experienced anything like this in all the wars they had
fought before. Musaylamah’s men remained firm amidst the tumult,
as firm as immovable mountains although many of them had fallen.
The
Muslims displayed tremendous feats of heroism. Thabit ibn Qays,
the standard bearer of the Ansar, dug a pit and planted himself in
it and fought until he was killed. The pit he dug turned out to be
his grave. Zayd ibn Al-Khattab, brother of `Umar ibn Al-Khattab,
called out to the Muslims, “Men, bite with your teeth, strike
the enemy, and press on. By Allah, I shall not speak to you after
this until either Musaylamah is defeated or I meet Allah.” He
then charged against the enemy and continued fighting until he was
killed. Salim, the freed slave of Abu Hudhaifah and standard
bearer of the Muhajirun, displayed unexpected valor. His people
feared that he would show weakness or be too terrified to fight.
To them he said, “If you manage to overtake me, what a miserable
bearer of the Qur’an I shall be.” He then valiantly plunged
into the enemy ranks and eventually fell as a martyr.
The
bravery of all these, however, wanes in front of the heroism of
Al-Bara’ ibn Malik (may Allah be pleased with him and with them
all). As the battle grew fiercer and fiercer, Khalid turned to
Al-Bara’ and said, “Charge, young man of the Ansar.”
Al-Bara’ turned to his men and said, “O Ansar, let not anyone
of you think of returning to Madinah. There is no Madinah for you
after this day. There is only Allah, then Paradise.”
He
and the Ansar then launched their attack against the disbelievers,
breaking their ranks and dealing telling blows against them until
eventually they began to withdraw. They sought refuge in a garden,
which later became known in history as The Garden of Death because
of the many killed there on that day. The garden was surrounded by
high walls. Musaylamah and thousands of his men entered and closed
the gates behind them and fortified themselves.
From
their new positions they began to rain down arrows on the Muslims.
The
valiant Al-Bara’ went forward and addressed his company: “Put
me on a shield. Raise the shield on spears and hurl me into the
garden near the gate. Either I will die a martyr or I will open
the gate for you.”
The
thin and wiry Al-Bara’ was soon sitting on a shield. A number of
spears raised the shield and he was thrown into the Garden of
Death among the multitude of Musaylamah’s men. He descended on
them like a thunderbolt and continued to fight them in front of
the gate. Many fell to his sword and he himself sustained numerous
wounds before he could open the gate.
The
Muslims charged into the Garden of Death through the gates and
over the walls. Fighting was bitter and at close quarters, and
hundreds were killed. Finally the Muslims came upon Musaylamah and
he was killed.
Al-Bara’
was taken in a litter to Madinah. Khalid ibn Al-Walid spent a
month looking after him and tending his wounds. Eventually his
condition improved. Through him the Muslims had gained victory
over Musaylamah.
Al-Bara’
continued to long for the martyrdom which had eluded him at the
Garden of Death. He went on fighting in battle after battle hoping
to attain his aim. This came at the battle for Tustar in Persia.
Source:
http://www.youngmuslims.ca
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