Conquest of the Syrian City of Maab
Hazrat Abu Ubaidah (ra) conquered the Syrian city of Maab, whose inhabitants entered into a peace treaty on the condition of paying the Jizya. Thereafter, Hazrat Abu Ubaidah (ra) turned towards the direction of Jabiyah and found that a large army of the Byzantines was ready for combat. Upon this, Hazrat Abu Ubaidah (ra) requested Hazrat Abu Bakr (ra) for further reinforcements.
Hazrat Abu Bakr (ra) then instructed Hazrat Khalid bin Waleed (ra) – who was already sent for an expedition to Iraq – to leave half his army under the command of Hazrat Musanna bin Harith (ra) and go to assist Hazrat Abu Ubaidah (ra). Hazrat Abu Bakr (ra) then wrote a letter to Hazrat Abu Ubaidah (ra) saying, “I have appointed Khalid (ra) as the commander. I am fully aware that you are better and of a higher rank than him.” The entire contents of the letter are as follows, “From the servant of Allah, Ateek bin Abi Qahafah to Abu Ubaidah bin Jarrah (ra)”. Ateek was the actual name of Hazrat Abu Bakr (ra) and Abu Qahafah was his father’s name. “May the peace of Allah be upon you. I have assigned Khalid (ra) as the commander of the army sent to Syria. Do not oppose him, listen to him and obey him. I have appointed you to oversee the matters. I am aware that you occupy a higher rank than him; however, I feel that he (i.e. Hazrat Khalid bin Waleed (ra)) is more skilled in the art of warfare than you. May Allah keep us both on the right path.”
This is the letter Hazrat Abu Bakr (ra) wrote. Hazrat Khalid bin Waleed (ra) wrote the following letter to Hazrat Abu Ubaidah from Hira, a city in Iraq, “May the peace of Allah be upon you. Hazrat Abu Bakr (ra) has ordered for me to depart for Syria and ordered me to take command of the armies. By God! I never made this request, nor have I ever desired for such a position. Your position will remain unchanged. I will never disobey you and I will not make a decision without consulting you. You are the leader of the Muslims. We can never deny your eminence nor can we withhold from seeking your guidance.”
(Roshan Sitare, Ghulam Bari Saif, Vol. 2, pp. 19-21) (Asharah Mubasharah, Bashir Sajid, p. 804, al-Badr Publications Urdu Bazar, Lahore, 2000) (Sheikh Shah Moinuddin Ahmad Nadvi, Siyar al-Sahabah, Vol. 2 [Karachi, Pakistan: Dar al-Isha‘ah Urdu Bazar] pp. 457, 459) (Farhang-e-Sirat, p. 110, Zawar Academy Publications, Karachi, 2003)
Such was the level of humility and obedience shown by both companions, which is the hallmark of a believer.