The stroke that saved Islam from Arab-Israelite plot

It is the day when Muslims in the time of Prophet Mohammad (SAWA) triumphed in a crucial battle that was imposed upon them in Medina and known to this day as the Battle of Khandaq or the Trench. Thanks to the valour of the Prophet’s cousin, Imam Ali (AS), a joint force of Arabs and Israelites was defeated and fled.

 “The stroke of Ali on the Day of Khandaq is superior to the worship of both mankind and jinn.”

Thus said Prophet Mohammad (SAWA) this day – the 17^th of Shawwal, in 5 AH –exactly 1432 lunar years ago, when his dear cousin and son-in-law, Imam Ali (AS) emerged unscathed from the cloud of dust after a life-and-death combat with the now fallen champion of the Arabs, Amr ibn Abduwad, who as the ‘embodiment of infidelity”, was also the representative of the Israelites in a joint bid to obliterate Islam.

Why did the Messenger of Mercy hail the stroke of the “Dhu’l-Fiqar”, the twin-bladed sword of his cousin and son-in-law, as better than the acts of worship of all creatures – acts that include prayers, fasting, supplications, piety, jihad, martyrdom, recitation of the holy Qur’an, philanthropy, exploring human and rational sciences, and doing of everything good?

Were all those companions that had gathered around the Prophet of Peace for the past 18 years of his mission and endured persecution and displacement from their homes, and in future after his passing away, would establish the caliphate to spread Muslim rule over large parts of Asia, Africa, and Europe, insignificant creatures? Does it mean they and their whole life in the service of Islam were nothing compared to this single act of the person whom he had groomed since childhood – years before divine revelation dawned upon him and years before he personally knew anyone of these companions?       

Was the “Mercy unto the creation” swayed by bonds of blood and kinship to express such a seemingly biased statement – recorded diligently by all compilers of hadith, whether Sunni or Shi’ite?  

It is outright blasphemy to entertain such thoughts or raise questions about Prophet Mohammad (SAWA), regarding whom the Almighty Creator says to the doubting disciples in the opening ayahs of Surah Najm:

“Your companion has neither gone astray, nor gone amiss. Nor does he speak out of [his own] desire; it is just a revelation that is revealed [to him].”

It is also worth noting that God Almighty Who has immortalized in the holy Qur’an the chaotic situation of the neo-Muslims and the ideas of apostasy that flashed across the minds of most of the Prophet’s Sahaba or companions at the sight of the formidable force of Arabs and Israelites besieging Medina during the crucial events of the Battle of Khandaq, has also made it crystal clear in this same Surah titled al-Ahzaab (or The Confederates) in ayah 21:

 “In the Prophet of Allah there is certainly for you a good exemplar, for those who look forward to Allah and the Last Day, and remember Allah greatly.”

It is outside the scope of this brief radio programme to go into details of the Battle of Khandaq – so-called because of the ditch dug around the vulnerable parts of Medina as a barrier to invasion, on the suggestions of the Prophet’s Iranian Companion, Salman Farisi.  

Therefore, in order to better understand the dynamism of Islam, the wisdom of the words of Prophet Mohammad (SAWA), and the peerless personality of his divinely-decreed vicegerent, Imam Ali (AS), here are some ayahs of Surah Ahzaab – from 10 to 20 – regarding the weak of faith Muslims and the hypocrites amongst them, as well as the faithful whom the Lord Most High has eulogized.

“When they came at you from above and below you, and when the eyes rolled [with fear] and the hearts leapt to the throats, and you entertained misgivings about Allah.”

“And when the hypocrites were saying, as well as those in whose hearts is a sickness, ‘Allah and His Prophet did not promise us [anything] except delusion.’     

And when a group of them said: ‘O people of Yathreb! [This is] not a place for you, so go back!’And a group of them sought the Prophet’s permission, saying, ‘Our homes lie exposed [to the enemy],’ although they were not exposed. They only sought to flee.”

“Had they been invaded from its flanks and had they been asked to apostatize, they would have done so with only a mild hesitation; though they had certainly pledged to Allah before that they would not turn their backs [to flee], and pledges given to Allah are accountable. Say, ‘Flight will not avail you should you flee from death or from being killed, and then you will be let to enjoy only for a little while.’”

“Allah knows those of you who discourage others, and those who say to their brethren, ‘Come to us!’ and they take little part in the battle; grudging you [their help]. So when there is panic, you see them observing you, their eyes rolling, like someone fainting at death. Then, when the panic is over, they scald you with [their] sharp tongues in their greed for riches. They never have had faith. So Allah has made their works fail, and that is easy for Allah. They suppose the confederates have not left yet, and were the confederates to come [again], they would wish they were in the desert with the Bedouins asking about your news, and if they were with you they would fight but a little.” (18, 19, 20)

This vivid description by God Almighty is not of the pagans and enemies of Islam. It is the state of affairs of the weak-of-faith Muslims and of the hypocrites amongst the Prophet’s companions, which no Muslim can dispute. In the following two ayahs of Surah Azaab, that is 22 and 23, the One and Only Creator then praises the faithful who stood their ground, and it is obvious as to whom the reference here is.      

“But when the faithful saw the confederates, they said, ‘This is what Allah and His Prophet had promised us, and Allah and His Prophet were true.’ And it only increased them in faith and submission.”

“Among the faithful are men who fulfill what they have pledged to Allah. Of them are some who have fulfilled their pledge, and of them are some who still wait, and they have not changed in the least.”

Imam Ali (AS) who has said in explicit words that ayah 23 directly refers to him, took the field on the command of the Prophet and after inviting Amr ibn Abduwad to Islam and receiving a negative reply, sent him to the netherworld, but not before allowing him to renew the life-and-death combat because the cowardly representative of the Arab-Israelite force, when hurled to the ground, had dared to spit at him.

That was among the reasons the Prophet had hailed his cousin’s selfless feat that was solely for the sake of God and without personal emotions involved in the combat, as superior to the worship of the two worlds, since he knew the plot of the 5^th column amongst his companions, in case of Amr’s triumph, was to hand him over to the Arab-Israelite confederates to obliterate Islam. Through the Prophet and the Imam, God made defeated the joint plot of the Arabs and Israelites, as the holy Qur’an says:

“Allah sent back the faithless in their rage, without their attaining any advantage, and Allah spared the faithful of fighting, and Allah is All-Strong, All-Mighty.”

AS/SS