His Sense of Honour

During the Battle of Uhud, when the situation changed and the Muslims suffered great losses, at that time, Abu Sufyan called out three times – this incident is in relation to Hazrat Umar (ra)’s sense of honour – “Is Muhammad among you?” The Holy Prophet (sa) instructed the companions not to reply. Abu Sufyan then called out three times and asked, “Is the son of Abu Quhafah among you?” He then asked three times, “Is Ibn al-Khattab among you?” Thereafter, he returned to his men and stated, “All of these people have been slain.” Upon hearing this, Hazrat Umar (ra) was unable to restrain himself and stated, “O enemy of Allah! By God, you have spoken a lie! Those whom you have named are all alive and there is a great share of misfortune destined for you.” Abu Sufyan replied, “Consider this day to be a recompense for Badr. And battle is like a pail, at times, it rises and at times it falls.”

(Sahih al-Bukhari, Kitab-ul-Jihad, Hadith 3039)