Ghazwah of Buḥrān - Rabī‘ul-Awwal 3 A.H.

The preparations underway for the two attacks to be made by the Banū Sulaim and Banū Ghaṭafān have already been described previously. It has also been mentioned as to how by the Grace of God, the instant and timely strategy of the Holy Prophet(sa) protected the Muslims from the evil of these blood-thirsty tribes. However, how can one in whose heart the fire of enmity burns sit at rest. Much time had not passed since the Ghazwah of Dhī ‘Amr, that is to say, in late Rabī‘ul-Awwal 3 A.H.,1 the Holy Prophet(sa) received the horrific news that the Banū Sulaim were once again regrouping in a very large number at Buḥrān, with the intention of launching a sudden attack upon Madīnah,2 and that a party of the Quraish was also accompanying them.3 With no other choice, the Holy Prophet(sa) set out from Madīnah once again with a group of Companions. However, as was their habit, these wild beasts of Arabia, who lay in ambush to strike their prey suddenly and in a state of inattention, dispersed upon receiving news of the imminent arrival of the Holy Prophet(sa). After a stay of a few days, the Holy Prophet(sa) returned.

The fact that the Banū Sulaim and Banū Ghaṭafān would gather again and again with the intention of launching a sudden attack upon Madīnah clearly demonstrated that these barbaric and warlike tribes of the Arabian desert were very deadly enemies of Islām. Day and night, they would remain preoccupied in order to find some opportunity by which the Muslims would be utterly destroyed. Just attempt to visualize the vulnerable state of the Muslims at the time, as to how their days were passing in that era. On the one hand, there were the Quraish of Makkah who had become blinded due to their enmity of Islām and due to their spirit of revenge for the Battle of Badr. Clinging to the drapes of the Ka‘bah, they took vows that they would not rest until the Muslims had been annihilated. On the other hand were these blood-thirsty wild beasts of the Arabian desert, who were restless to drink the blood of the Muslims due to their being incited by the Quraish and their own animosity towards Islām. As such, take note of how many times within the course of a few months after Badr, the Holy Prophet(sa) was compelled to travel personally in order to safeguard himself from the deadly motives of the barbaric tribes of Arabia. As Sir William Muir has described, these were days of scorching heat as well, and not to mention, this heat was of the Arabian desert. If it were not for the special succour of God, and if the vigilance of the Holy Prophet(sa) had not kept the Muslims constantly watchful and alert, and if the Holy Prophet(sa) had not employed strategies to scatter the force of the enemy prior to their launching a sudden attack at night, the Muslims would have surely been destroyed and ruined in those days; and these were only external threats. As far as internal threats were concerned, they were no less either. Even in Madīnah itself, there existed a group known as the hypocrites, who lived among the Muslims as their own, and it would definitely be no exaggeration to refer to them as a snake in the grass. In addition to them were the treacherous and habitual conspirators in the form of the Jewish people, whose enmity had reached the furthest limits in its depth and breadth. Goodness Gracious! What a time of adversity this was for the Muslims!! Let us hear it in their own words. Ubayy bin Ka‘b, a renowned Companion relates:

Meaning, In that era, the state of the Companions was such that they would not even put off their arms at night and during the day they would walk around armed in case of a sudden attack. They would say to each other let us see if we live till such a time when we might be able to sleep in peace and security at night without any fear except the fear of God.”4

What difficulty and helplessness, and what a longing for a life of peace and security is hidden in these words. Every just individual can measure this for himself.