The painful occurrence of the Aṣḥābur-Rajī‘ has already been mentioned in the accounts of 4 A.H. On this occasion, 10 innocent Muslims who had been sent for peaceful preaching were ruthlessly murdered by deceit. At the root of this entire mischief was the hand of the Banū Liḥyān, which at the time resided between Makkah and Madīnah, in the Valley of Ghurān. Naturally, the Holy Prophet(sa) was deeply saddened by this event, and since the behaviour of the Banū Liḥyān still remained hostile and mischievous and the danger that they would become the cause of future mischief against the Muslims still existed, the Holy Prophet(sa) thought it administratively appropriate to somewhat reprimand them, at least so that the Muslims would be safe from any further mischief. With this thought, the Holy Prophet(sa) left Madīnah in the month of Jamādi’ul-Ūlā in 6 A.H. with a party of 200 companions.1 In the beginning, with the thought that the purpose of this journey remain secret, lest the Banū Liḥyān receive news and become alerted, the Holy Prophet(sa) travelled north and after covering some ground he re-routed to the south.2 However, despite this caution, somehow the enemy had received news and were pre-alerted. Before the Holy Prophet(sa) could reach the Valley of Ghurān the people of the Banū Liḥyān had dispersed, disappearing into the mountains.3
Upon reaching his destination, the Holy Prophet(sa) stayed there for some time. It is narrated that during this journey when the Holy Prophet(sa) reached the place where his companions were martyred, a deeply emotional state overcame him and the Holy Prophet(sa) wept and prayed for these martyrs.4 Then the Holy Prophet(sa) moved forward to ‘Usfān at a distance of five to six miles towards Makkah and sent various parties in different directions. Ḥaḍrat Abū Bakr(ra) was also the leader of one of these parties, which was sent in the direction of Makkah. However, none of these parties were faced with the need to fight and following an absence of a few days, the Holy Prophet(sa) returned to Madīnah.5
1 As-Sīratun-Nabawiyyah, By Abū Muḥammad ‘Abdul-Mālik bin Hishām, p. 663, Ghazwatu Banī Liḥyān, Dārul-Kutubil-‘Ilmiyyah, Beirut, Lebanon, First Edition (2001)
Tārīkhur-Rusuli Wal-Mulūk (Tārīkhuṭ-Ṭabarī), By Abū Ja‘far Muḥammad bin Jarīr Aṭ-Ṭabarī, Volume 3, p. 112, Dhikrul-Aḥdāthillati Fī Sanati Sittim-Minal-Hijrah/Ghazwatu Banī Liḥyān, Dārul-Fikr, Beirut, Lebanon, Second Edition (2002) (Publishers)
Aṭ-Ṭabaqātul-Kubrā, By Muḥammad bin Sa‘d, Volume 2, p. 289, Ghazwatu Rasūlillāhi(sa) Banī Liḥyān, Dāru Iḥyā’it-Turāthil-‘Arabī, Beirut, Lebanon, First Edition (1996) Note: Ibni Sa‘d has stated that the date of this Battle was Rabī‘ul-Awwal, And Allāh knows best.
2 Aṭ-Ṭabaqātul-Kubrā, By Muḥammad bin Sa‘d, Volume 2, p. 289, Ghazwatu Rasūlillāhi(sa) Banī Liḥyān, Dāru Iḥyā’it-Turāthil-‘Arabī, Beirut, Lebanon, First Edition (1996)
As-Sīratun-Nabawiyyah, By Abū Muḥammad ‘Abdul-Mālik bin Hishām, p. 663, Ghazwatu Banī Liḥyān, Dārul-Kutubil-‘Ilmiyyah, Beirut, Lebanon, First Edition (2001)
3 As-Sīratun-Nabawiyyah, By Abū Muḥammad ‘Abdul-Mālik bin Hishām, p. 663, Ghazwatu Banī Liḥyān, Dārul-Kutubil-‘Ilmiyyah, Beirut, Lebanon, First Edition (2001)
4 Aṭ-Ṭabaqātul-Kubrā, By Muḥammad bin Sa‘d, Volume 2, p. 289, Ghazwatu Rasūlillāhi(sa) Banī Liḥyān, Dāru Iḥyā’it-Turāthil-‘Arabī, Beirut, Lebanon, First Edition (1996)
5 As-Sīratun-Nabawiyyah, By Abū Muḥammad ‘Abdul-Mālik bin Hishām, p. 663, Ghazwatu Banī Liḥyān, Dārul-Kutubil-‘Ilmiyyah, Beirut, Lebanon, First Edition (2001)
Aṭ-Ṭabaqātul-Kubrā, By Muḥammad bin Sa‘d, Volume 2, p. 289, Ghazwatu Rasūlillāhi(sa) Banī Liḥyān, Dāru Iḥyā’it-Turāthil-‘Arabī, Beirut, Lebanon, First Edition (1996)
Tārīkhur-Rusuli Wal-Mulūk (Tārīkhuṭ-Ṭabarī), By Abū Ja‘far Muḥammad bin Jarīr Aṭ-Ṭabarī, Volume 3, p. 112, Dhikrul-Aḥdāthillati Fī Sanati Sittim-Minal-Hijrah/Ghazwatu Banī Liḥyān, Dārul-Fikr, Beirut, Lebanon, Second Edition (2002) (Publishers)