The Holy Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) had not any one equal to him in bravery and perseverance. He passed through very hard and complicated situation in his life. He started his life as an orphan, which is considered to be very difficult stage in someone’s life. He faced severe hatred and persecution from his adversaries. He became fugitive and migrated in a very helpless condition. He had a great responsibility being a prophet and head of the state, but he handled all the situations with great courage and bravery. He remained at forefront in all the circumstances, guiding his followers. The Prophet of Islam was the best and the bravest amongst his people.
At one time Medina was full of rumors that the Romans were preparing a large army for its invasion. During that time, one night sounds of an uproar came from the desert. The Muslims hurried out of their homes and some of them gathered in the mosque and waited for the Holy Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) to appear and to give them directions to meet the emergency. Meanwhile they saw the Holy Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) on a horse coming back from the direction of the sounds. It is recorded in Hadith, narrated by Hazrat Anas, in the following words:
Once the people of Medina got terrified at night, so they went in the direction of the noise (that terrified them). The Prophet met them (on his way back) after he had found out the truth. He was riding an unsaddled horse belonging to Abu Talha and a sword was hanging by his neck, and he was saying, “Don’t be afraid! Don’t be afraid!” He further said, “I found it (the horse) very fast,” or said, “This horse is very fast.” (Sahih Bukhari)
The Holy Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him), whether be alone or in the heat of the battle in the company of his companions, he never ever showed any cowardness. Even in the life threatening situations he remained firm, bold and courageous.
Hazrat Jabir bin Abdullah narrates an incident which throws flood of light upon the bravery of the Holy Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) of Islam:
“That I proceeded in the company of Allah’s Apostle towards Najd to participate in a ghazwa (battle). When Allah’s Apostle returned, I too returned with him. Midday came upon us while we were in a valley having many thorny trees. Allah’s Apostle and others dismounted and dispersed to rest in the shade of the trees. Allah’s Apostle rested under a tree and hung his sword on it. We all took a nap and suddenly we heard Allah’s Apostle calling us. We woke up to see a Bedouin with him. The Prophet said, “This Bedouin took out my sword while I was sleeping and when I woke up, I found the unsheathed sword in his hand and he challenged me saying, “Who will save you from me?” I said thrice, “Allah!” The Prophet did not punish him but sat down.” (Sahih Bukhari)
What boldness?
During the battle of Hunain, the Muslims passed through a very critical situation. There was a time during that battle that there were only fifteen companions left in the battlefield with the Holy Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him), and there were over five thousand soldiers of the enemies surrounding him. In that dangerous situation, Holy Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) challenged his opponents and defeated them. History is unable to produce such a single incident in the human life. Abu Ishaq narrates the boldness of the Holy Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) during the battle of Hunain, in the following words:
A man asked Al-Bara, “O Abu Umara! Did you all flee on the day of the battle of Hunain?” He replied, “No, by Allah! Allah’s Apostle did not flee, but his young unarmed companions ran away. It happened because the archers of the tribe of Hawazin and Bani Nasr, whose arrows hardly missed a target, attacked so rapidly and unexpectedly, that the Muslims could not resist that. But later when they were called by the Holy Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him), they all returned to the Holy Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) while he was riding his white mule. The Prophet dismounted and invoked Allah for victory; then he said, ‘I am the Prophet, without a lie; I am the son of Abdul-Muttalib,’ and then he arranged his companions in rows.” (Sahih Bukhari)Shield for the Believers
Regarding his bravery, Ali ibn Abi Talib, one of the bravest young men in the Islamic nation said:
In the heat of battle, when the passions burned strongest, we would seek shelter behind the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him), for there was none closer to the enemy than him, and you had seen me on the day of the battle of Uhud, taking shelter behind the Prophet of Allah (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) and he was the closest among us to the enemy. (Abu Dawud)
Hazrat Mirza Ghulam Ahmad, the founder of the Ahmadiyya Muslim community, the Messiah and the Mahdi (peace be upon him) of the age has praised the Holly Prophet in the following words:
That Prophet is superior to all other Prophets who is the great instructor of the world, that is to say, he at whose hands the great corruption of the world was reformed and who re-established on the earth the Unity of God which had been lost and had disappeared. He overcame all false religions by proof and argument and removed the doubts of every misguided one. He provided the true means of salvation by teaching the right principles for which it was not necessary to crucify an innocent person, or to remove God from His true and eternal station and to put Him in the womb of a woman. Thus, his beneficence and his grace exceed those of everyone else and his rank is higher than all. History points out, and the heavenly Book is a witness, and those who have eyes are able to observe, that the Prophet who is thus established as superior to all other Prophets is Muhammad, the chosen one (peace and blessings of Allah be on him). (Barahin-e-Ahmadiyya, Vol. 1, p. 97, footnote 6)
Then again The Promised Messiah (peace be upon him) says:
It is worthy of note how steadfastly the Holy Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) adhered to his claim of Prophethood right till the end, despite thousands of dangers and hundreds of thousands of opponents and obstructers and threateners. For years, he endured misfortunes and hardships, which increased daily and rendered success apparently hopeless, and by enduring which patiently he had not in mind the achievement of any worldly purpose. On the contrary, by putting forward his claim of Prophethood, he lost what he had and purchased a hundred thousand contentions and invited a thousand calamities to overtake him. He was expelled from his home, was pursued by slayers, lost his home and all it contained and was poisoned several times. Those who were his well-wishers began to wish him ill and those who were his friends turned into enemies. For a long period, he had to bear hardships, to be steadfast under which was not possible for a cunning impostor.
When after a long time Islam became supreme, the Holy Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) collected no wealth for himself, nor did he raise any structure, nor did he seek any means of comfort or luxury, nor did he derive any personal benefit from anything. Whatever came to hand was spent in taking care of the poor, the orphans, the widows and those burdened with debt. He never ate his fill. He was so straightforward that by his plain speaking and his preaching of the Unity of God, he made enemies of all the peoples of the world who were sunk in paganism. He converted his own people into enemies first of all, by forbidding them idol worship. He upset the Jews for he stopped them from indulging in diverse types of creature worship and exaltation of their divines and from misconduct. He stopped them from denying and insulting Jesus, which caused them great heart burning, and they became his bitter enemies, and began to cast about for means of destroying him. In the same way, he annoyed the Christians for he denied the godhead of Jesus and his being the son of God, and denied his being the crucified savior. The fire worshippers and the star worshippers were also annoyed with him for they were also forbidden to worship their deities. The Unity of God was proclaimed as the sole means of attaining salvation. Were these the ways of winning the world? (Barahin-e-Ahmadiyya, Vol. 1, pp. 108-109)
Then the Promised Messiah (peace be upon him) describes the bravery and steadfastness of the Holy Prophet of Islam (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) in the following words:
The Holy Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) was straightforward and was ready to lay down his life for God, and turned wholly away from any hope or fear of people, and put his trust wholly in God, and being devoted to the will and pleasure of God, he cared not what calamities he would have to endure through preaching the Unity of God and what hardships might be inflicted upon him by the pagans. He endured every hardship and carried out the commandments of his Lord, and fulfilled all the conditions called for by his preaching and admonition, and attached no importance to any threat that was held out to him. I say truly that of all the Prophets there was none who put his full trust in God on all occasions of danger and went on preaching against paganism and creature worship despite all his enemies and was so steadfast and persevering as the Holy Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him). (Barahin-e-Ahmadiyya, Vol. 1, pp. 111-112)