Futuhusham_-_The_Islamic_Conquest_of_Syria_-_Al_Waqidi

Futuhusham
come into your hands. Take your family and court and move to
Constantinople. Do good unto your subjects and God will be good unto you.
~
Have mercy and mercy will be shown unto you. Be humble unto God and he
will elevate you, for He dislikes the haughty ones.
I had implemented a scheme to bring their general, Khdlid, to me. I tested
and bribed him but he did not respond. I saw him to be firm on the Truth. I
had planned to kill him, but then feared the results of treachery for these
people have only been victorious by following justice and truth. Greetings!
He then folded the letter and despatched it.
Bannes remained inactive for seven days after the initial confrontation. He neither
attacked the Muslims, nor did the Muslims attack the Romans. AbU 'Ubaydah ~
therefore sent a spy to investigate what was keeping the Romans back. The spy was
absent for a day and night. Upon returning he told AbU 'Ubaydah ~ that Bannes had
written to Heraclius and was awaiting his reply.
Khalid ~ then said, " The only reason he is hesitating is because fear has entered his
heart. So let us attack him."
AbU 'Ubaydah ~ : Do not hurry, for haste is from the Devil.
43) A spy in the Muslim camp
AbU 'Ubaydah ~ was a soft man in battle who preferred leniency. On the other hand,
Bannes resolved to fight on the eighth day. He saw his men's eagerness for battle and
was pleased at their zeal. He called a Christian Lakhmi and said, "Go and spy on the
'Arabs for me."
The Lakhmi entered the Muslim camp and roamed about for a day and night. No
Muslim troubled him and were all at peace. They were doing nothing besides seeing to
their personal needs, reading Quran, performing Salah and remembering Allah. There
was no transgression or oppression amongst them. None wronged another. He went to
AbU 'Ubaydah's ~ place and found him to be the most delicate of all 'Arabs. Sometimes
he sat on the ground and at other times he slept thereon. At the time of Salah he would
arise and perform wugu with the utmost care. After the athiin was called out he would
lead the Muslims in Salah. The Lakhmi saw that the Muslims prayed exactly as he did
and so said, "This is absolute obedience. They will soon be victorious."
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