In the Footsteps of the Prophet: Lessons from the Life of Muhammad

A t HOI1Ir, Ot'tr Thtn^183

witb such ardor that Malik's soldiers were to tally astonished; they could

not have expected such a sudden and massive counterattack. Among the

Muslims was a \voman, Um Sular m ar-Rumaysa, who took part in the

fighting with her husband and who showed a determination shared byall.^6

It \vas now their enemies' turn to b e compelled to draw back, then run

away, with tht: fvtuslim trOops following them. Malik evenrually found

refuge in the city of Taif with the Banu T haqif, while o thers had [0 hide

in the mountains. They had lost many men and suffered a bitter defeat

aftcr a most unexpected and extrao rdinary reversal. Revelation was later

to remind the bdievers of the different factual, emotional, and spiritual

aspects o f that fight:

Assuredly God helped yo u in many battlefields, and rremembtrJ on the day

of Hunayn: your great numbers elated you, but they availed you nothing.

Tht land, VllISt as it is, co nstraincd yo u, and you tu rned back in [Ctrtl!.t. But

God poured His calm (/ahnah, His Spirit] on the Messenger and on the

belicvers.^7

Although many men had been killed, the victory was total, and the

spoils gath ered were considerable. For the surrender the Prophet placed

the women and children together and o rdered them to be guarded and fed

in the best possible m anner. He also had the mountS and riches guardt:d

without immt:diately distributing them. Wasting no time, he mobilized his

men to go to Taif, where ~hlik had sought refuge; this seemed to be the

last serio us stro nghold of resistance in the region. Th e Banu Thaqif, how-

ever, were well equipped \\~th food and weapons; the Muslim army

besieged their fortress, but it soon b ecame clear that they would not be

able to force them out by this means. After two weeks, the f\{uslims decid-

ed to break camp and go back to Jiranah, where the Hunayn prisoners and

booty were kept.

Spoils of War

the women and children who had been captured had been placed in a vast

enclosure, sheltered from the sun, and properly fed uncil the Prophet'S

return. \'(Ihen he came back and saw dlat most of the captives were rather