Participation in the Battle of Uhud
Prior to the Battle of Uhud, on a Friday evening, Hazrat Sa‘d (ra) bin Mu‘az, Hazrat Usaid (ra) bin Huzair and Hazrat Sa‘d (ra) bin Ubadah stood guard outside the door of the Holy Prophet (sa) in Masjid-e-Nabawi until Fajr. When the Holy Prophet (sa) was about to leave from Medina, he mounted his horse, placed his bow on his shoulder and grabbed hold of his spear. Hazrat Sa‘d (ra) bin Mu‘az and Hazrat Sa‘d (ra) bin Ubadah began to ride ahead of the Holy Prophet (sa). Both of these companions were wearing their armour, while the rest of the people were on the right and left of the Holy Prophet (sa).
(Al-Tabaqaat-ul-Kubra li ibn Sa‘d, Vol. 2, pp. 28-30, Ghazwah Rasulillah (sa) Uhud, Dar-ul-Kutub al-Ilmiyyah, Beirut, 1990)
Whilst describing the conditions at the time of the Battle of Uhud, Hazrat Mirza Bashir Ahmad Sahib (ra) writes:
“After observing the Asr Salat, the Holy Prophet (sa) set out from Medina with a large community of the companions (ra). The chieftains of the Aus and Khazraj tribe, Sa‘d (ra) bin Mu‘az and Sa‘d (ra) bin Ubadah proceeded along, running slowly, just ahead of the mount of the Holy Prophet (sa), and the rest of the companions (ra) moved forward-positioned to the right, left and behind the Holy Prophet (sa).”
(Sirat Khatamun-Nabiyyin, Hazrat Mirza Bashir Ahmad (ra), p. 486)
Hazrat Sa‘d (ra) bin Ubadah was among those companions(ra) who stood resolutely with the Holy Prophet (sa) during the Battle of Uhud.
(Subul al-Hudaa Wa al-Rashaad, Vol. 4, p. 197, Dhikri Thubaat Rasulillah (sa), Dar-ul-Kutub al-Ilmiyyah, Beirut, 1993)
When the Holy Prophet (sa) returned to Medina from the Battle of Uhud and dismounted his horse, he was supported by Hazrat Sa‘d (ra) bin Mu‘az and Hazrat Sa‘d (ra) bin Ubadah to his house.
(Subul al-Hudaa Wa al-Rashaad, Vol. 4, p. 229, Bab Ghazwah Uhud, Dhikri Raheel Rasulillah (sa) ilaa al-Madinah, Dar-ul-Kutub al-Ilmiyyah, Beirut, 1993)
The Holy Prophet (sa) had sustained injuries, therefore when he dismounted his horse, he took the support of these two companions. Hazrat Jabir (ra) bin Abdullah relates that during the Ghazwah of Hamra-ul-Asad, their main provisions for food were dates. The Ghazwah of Hamra-ul-Asad took place in Shawwal, 3 AH. When the Holy Prophet (sa) returned from the Battle of Uhud, the Quraish stopped at Rauha, which is situated approximately 36 miles from Medina. Whilst here, the Quraish thought that since the Muslims had suffered greatly, therefore they should return and launch a sudden attack on Medina. Owing to the loss suffered by the Muslims, they would not be able to fight back. Subsequently, when the Holy Prophet (sa) learnt about their intentions, he decided to set out and pursue the Quraish and reached Hamra-ul-Asad. Hamra-ul-Asad is approximately eight miles from Medina towards the direction of Dhul-Hulaifah. When the army of Quraish learnt that the Holy Prophet (sa) was approaching, they quickly ran towards Mecca. When they found out that instead of showing weakness, the Muslims were in fact coming to attack them, they ran away. The narrator of this tradition states that Hazat Sa‘d (ra) bin Ubadah brought 30 camels and dates to Hamra-ul-Asad, which was more than sufficient for their needs. Among the camels he brought, two or sometimes three camels would be slaughtered daily which they would all eat from.
(Subul al-Hudaa Wa al-Rashaad, Vol. 4, p. 310, Bab 14, Fi Ghazwah Hamra al-Asad, Dar-ul-Kutub al-Ilmiyyah, Beirut, 1993) (Farhang Sirat, p. 106, Zawwar Academy Publications, Karachi, 2003) (Sirat Khatamun-Nabiyyin, Hazrat Mirza Bashir Ahmad(ra), p. 354) (Sharh Zurqani Alaa al-Mawahib al-Deeniyyah, Vol. 2, p. 464, Ghazwah Hamra al-Asad, Darul Kutub al-Ilmiyyah, Beirut, 1996)