Battle of Hunain

Battle of Hunain

After the conquest of Mecca, the Muslims stayed in the city for two weeks when the news soon broke out that a big army had been mobilized in the valley of Hunain to attack Mecca and to undo the victory of the Muslims. The leading tribes among them were the Thaqeef, Hawazin, Banu Sa'ad and Banu Jashm, all fierce warriors, jealous of their independence and proud of their warlike traditions. This time Prophet (PBUH) assembled a force of 12,000 warriors, which included 2000 non-Muslim Meccans. This new army was the largest force ever assembled in Arabia to that date. As its various formations marched out of the city gate, in full panoply of war, Abu Bakr who was watching, was much impressed, and exclaimed: “We cannot be defeated this time because of lack of numbers.”

In order to reach the fertile valley of Taif, they had to pass through a narrow defile, called Hunain. When the first column constituting the Muslim vanguard, commanded by Khalid Bin Walid, entered the valley of Hunayn in the south-east of Makkah, the enemy was already lying in ambush, ready to greet it with his missile weapons. The pass was narrow, the road was very rough, and the Muslims were advancing apparently unaware of the enemy's presence. It was just before dawn when all of a sudden, the Hawazin launched their attack. Hawazin sharp-shooters, securely hidden; sent forth a murderous rain of arrows, causing havoc among the Muslims ranks, who took to a wild flight. Soon every man was running and it was not long before Prophet (PBUH) was left alone with a handful of his faithful followers around him. Among them were his relatives, and other prominent companions; they were Hazrat Ali, Abu Sufyan and his brother, Rubiya, Hazrat Abdullah ibn Masood, and Hazrat Abbas (the uncle of Prophet(PBUH))  and few others. The Prophet asked his uncle, Abbas, to call the fleeing Muslims. Abbas had a very powerful voice, and he shouted: “O ye Muhajireen and O ye Ansar! O ye victors of Badr and O ye men of the Tree of Fealty! Where are you going? The Messenger of God is here. Come back to him.”

The voice of Abbas boomed in the narrow valley and almost everyone heard it, and it proved effective in checking the flight of the Muslims.

The Ansar were the first to halt, and to return to the battle. Inspired by their example, others also rallied. Soon they were able to regroup. A fierce skirmish took place. At first, the issue appeared uncertain but then the Muslims began to press the enemy. Once they recovered their morale, they went on the offensive. The enemy still fought bravely but was hampered in his mobility by the vast number of women and children they had had brought with them, which was mainly the part of war strategy of their leader Malik Bin Auf. The Muslims pressed their advantage and then it was the Bedouins who were running in all directions.

This is called the battle of Hunain, in which the enemies lost seventy of their bravest. Six thousand captives including women and children, forty thousand sheeps and goats, four thousand ounces of silver and twenty four thousand camels formed the booty of Hunain. Holy Quran mentions this battle by name, while saying, ‘’ Assuredly Allah did help you in many battlefields and on the Day of Hunayn…. But Allah did pour His calm on the Messenger and on the Believers, and sent down forces which you saw not’’

Returning from Taif, Muhammad halted at Je'raanah, a place beyond the outskirts of Mecca, where the entire booty of Hunain had been collected for distribution. In the division of the spoils, a large proportion fell to the share of the newly converted Meccans than to the people of Medina. Some of the Medinite Ansars looked upon this as an act of partiality and thus, there were whispers of dissatisfaction. However Prophet(PBUH) assured them by saying, ‘’ O' men of Ansar, why you disturb your hearts because of the things of this life? Would you not prefer that the other people return to their homes with the goats and camels, while you go back to your homes with me in your midst?" On hearing his words, the Ansar wept and said that they wanted only Muhammad and nothing else.