The Details of the Battle of Buwaib
Hazrat Umar (ra) sent a Muslim army towards Iraq and Hazrat Musanna (ra) also gathered an army at the border of Iraq. When Rustam learnt of this, he sent an army under the command of Mehran in order to fight against the Muslims. Hirah is a city at a distance of three miles from Kufa and Buwaib is located close by. Buwaib is a stream which comes out from the Euphrates River and is also near Kufa. Both armies formed their positions at this place. This battle was fought during the month of Ramadan. The city of Kufa was later populated near this area.
The Persian army’s general, Mehran, stated, “Should we cross the river or will you cross it and come here?” Hazrat Musanna (ra) replied, “You should cross it.” In the previous battle, the Muslims had crossed the river, therefore, this time, they were wise and told the Persian army to cross it.
Hazrat Musanna (ra) organised his army, formed its ranks and appointed experienced leaders to each of its divisions. He then mounted his famous horse, Shamus, and inspected the ranks of the Muslim army. He stopped at each flag and gave them instructions regarding the battle and passionately encouraged them in the following words, “I am hopeful that today, [the honour of] the Arabs will not be tarnished at your hands. By God! Today, I desire for myself whatever I consider desirous for an ordinary man from among you.” In other words, they were all equal.
The courageous [army of] Muslims passionately hearkened to the call of their beloved leader. And why would they not? He always treated them fairly, whether through his words or actions and always supported them, whether in times of ease or difficulty. It was impossible for anyone to criticise anything he did.
(Tarikh al-Tabari, Vol. 2, p. 372, Dar-ul-Kutub al-Ilmiyyah, Beirut, 2012) (Tarikhe-e-Islam Bi Ahde Hazrat Umar (ra), Thesis by Syed Mir Mahmood Ahmad Nasir Sahib, pp. 23-24) (Mu‘jam-ul-Buldan, Vol. 2, p. 376) (Mu‘jam-ul-Buldan, Vol. 1, p. 607)
Hazrat Musanna (ra) instructed the army that he would say “Allahu Akbar” [Allah is the greatest] three times and they should remain ready and prepared to attack the enemy as soon as they heard him repeat it a fourth time.
When Hazrat Musanna (ra) raised the first slogan of “Allahu Akbar”, the Persian army quickly launched an attack. As a result of this, the Muslims were also quick in launching their attack and some individuals from the tribe of Banu Ijal left their ranks and advanced for battle after only the first call of “Allahu Akbar”. This caused disorder in the ranks.
Hazrat Musanna (ra) sent a person to them with the message that “the leader of the army conveys his greetings, and says that today, do not humiliate the Muslims.” Thereafter, that tribe returned to its position.
Then, after an intense battle, the Persians began clamouring. It is stated that the number of Persians killed in this battle was 100,000. Mehran, who was a general of the Persian army, was also killed in this battle. This battle is also known as “Yaum al-Aashaar” because in this battle, there were a hundred such people who killed 10 people each.
Upon suffering defeat, the Persian army retreated to the bridge in order to cross the river and return to their safe area. However, Hazrat Musanna (ra) took his envoy and chased after them and surrounded them before they could cross the bridge. He broke the bridge, killing many Persian soldiers. Later, Hazrat Musanna (ra) would express regret saying, “Why did I chase after those who were already defeated? I should not have done so.” He would say, “I made a great mistake, it did not behove me to attack those who could not defend themselves. I will never do this again.”
Then he advised the Muslims, “O Muslims, you too should never commit such a deed. Do not follow me in this regard.” He stated that he had made the mistake of chasing after those who were fleeing; and this should not have happened. These are true Islamic morals.
During this battle, many great stalwarts of the Muslim army, such as Khalid bin Hilal and Mas‘ud bin Haritha were also martyred. Hazrat Musanna (ra) led the funeral prayers of the martyrs and said, “By God, my sadness and grief are lightened by the fact that these people took part in this battle and they conducted themselves with great bravery and courage and they remained steadfast. They were never frightened or worried in any way whatsoever. This fact also lightens [the burden of] my grief that martyrdom acts as an expiation for sins.”
While mentioning this battle, historians record an incident which shines light on the bravery and courage of Muslim women. At a distance from the battleground in Qawadis, there was a camp for women and children. Upon the conclusion of the battle, when a division of the Muslim army reached the camp on their speeding horses, the Muslim women mistook them to be from the enemy’s army which had come to attack them. They quickly surrounded the children and furiously began striking them with stones and sticks. When the soldiers drew nearer, they realised that these were Muslims.
The leader of this group of soldiers was Amr bin Abd al-Masih and upon this, he stated, “This action behoves the women of Allah’s army.” The Battle of Buwaib came to an end; however, it left behind a deep-rooted impact. Iran had never before faced such loss of life. One of the results of this battle was that most Muslims in the surrounding areas of Iraq gained firm footing. Their hold from southern Iraq to the Tigris River became firm and after a few smaller battles, the Muslims once again took hold of the surrounding areas which they previously had to leave. The Persian army saw strength in them, which is why they retreated to the far end of the Tigris River. After this victory, the Muslims spread to various parts of Iraq.
(Tarikh al-Tabari, Vol. 2, pp. 373-374, Dar-ul-Kutub al-Ilmiyyah, Beirut, 2012) (Sirat Al-Amir-ul-Momineen Umar bin Khattab, Salabi, pp. 361-363, Dar-ul-Marifah, Beirut, 2007) (Al-Farooq, Shibli Naumani, pp. 82-84, Idaarah Islamiyyat, 2004) (Al-Kamil Fi Al-Tarikh, Vol. 2, p. 288-291, Dar-ul-Kutub al-Ilmiyyah, Beirut, 2006) (Tarikh Al-Tabari, Vol. 2, pp. 237-238, 240-241, Nafees Academy, Karachi 2004) (Tarikh-e-Islam Bi Ahde Hazrat Umar (ra), Thesis by Syed Mir Mahmood Ahmad Nasir Sahib, pp. 28-29)