The Life of the Prophet Muhammad by Ibn Kathir - Volume 3 of 4

THE LIFE OF THE PROPHET MUHAMMAD
and made life seem good to him and death hateful, making life on earth attractive
to hi. He (Zayd) said, "Now that the faith is firmly planted in the hearts of the
believers, would you make life on earth seem good to me?" He then advanced
until he was martyred.' The Messenger of God (SAAS) then performed the
prayer for him and said, 'Ask forgiveness for hi; he has entered paradise as a
martyr."'
Al-Wzqidi stated that Muhammad b. Salih related to him, from ',%vim b.
'Amr b. Qatada, that the Messenger of God (SAAS) said, "When Zayd was
killed, Jacfar b. Abii Tdih took the banner. Satan then came to him and made life
seem good to hi, death hateful, and he made life attractive to him. But Jacfar
said, 'Now, when faith has become fm in the hearts of the believers, would you
have me wish for life?' He then advanced until he was martyred. The Messenger
of God (SAAS) then spoke the prayer for him. He said, 'Seek forgiveness for
your brother; he is a martyr and has entered paradise. He is flying in heaven with
wings of sapphire, going wherever he wishes there.'"
He went on, "'Abd All& h. Rawaha then took the banner and was martyred.
He then entered heaven mu'tarid, 'indirectly'. This upset the an@r and someone
asked, 'Messenger of God, why "indirectly"?' He replied, 'When he suffered
wounds, he drew back. But he criticized hiself, regained his courage, was
martyred and entered paradise.'
"His people were much relieved by this."
Al-Waqidi stated that 'Abd Allah b. al-Huith h. al-Fudayl quoted his father as
saying, "When Khdid b. al-Walid took up the banner, the Messenger of God
(SAAS) said, 'Now the fighting is fierce."'
Al-Waqidi also stated, "Al-'Igf b. Khalid related to me as follows, 'Ibn
Raw*a having been killed in the evening, malid b. al-Walid spent that night
(without engaging the enemy). Next morning, he attacked, having placed his
vanguard at the rear and exchanged the forces of the left and right flanks. The
enemy were no longer familiar with their banners and disposition and, believing
them to have been reinforced, were frightened and retreated in disarray. And so
they suffered a defeat as no enemy had inflicted upon them before."'
This accords with the account given by Miisa b. Wqha, may God be pleased
with hi, in his work on the military campaigns. He stated, after recounting the
'umrat al-fIudayb?yya, "The Messenger of God (SAAS) went to Medina and
remained there for six months. He then despatched an army to Mu'ta, appointing
Zayd b. Haritha as their commander. He ordered, 'If he is struck down, then
command is to go to Jacfar b. Aba Tdib. IfJacfar is struck down, then 'Ahd All&
b. Rawaha is to be their commander.' They travelled on until they encountered
Ibn Abii Sabra al-Ghassmi at Mu'ta, where there was a large force of Christian
Arabs and Byzantines, including men of Tanakh and Bahra'. Ibn Aha Sabra
closed the gate of the fortress against the Muslims for three days. The armies
then clashed on a red field, where the fighting was intense. Zayd b. Hsitha took