Expedition of the Valley of Nakhla

The Holy Prophet (sa) sent Hazrat Abdullah (ra) bin Jahsh on an expedition to the Valley of Nakhlah. The following account is recorded in the [Islamic] literature:

“One day, after performing the Ishaa prayer, the Holy Prophet (sa) said to Hazrat Abdullah (ra) bin Jahsh, “Come armed in the morning as I wish to send you somewhere.”

Hence, when the Holy Prophet (sa) completed the Fajr [dawn] prayer, he found Hazrat Abdullah (ra) bin Jahsh waiting at his door equipped with his bow and arrow and also a spear and shield.

The Holy Prophet (sa) called for Hazrat Ubai bin Ka’b (ra) and instructed him to write a letter. After the letter had been written, he called for Hazrat Abdullah (ra) bin Jahsh and whilst giving him the letter, the Holy Prophet (sa) told him that he was appointing him as the leader of the expedition.

From historical accounts we find that initially the Holy Prophet (sa) appointed Hazrat Ubaida bin Harith (ra) as the leader of this expedition. However, when he returned home in order to prepare himself, his children came to the Holy Prophet (sa) and began to cry. Upon this, the Holy Prophet (sa) sent Hazrat Abdullah (ra) bin Jahsh in his place as their leader. At the time of his departure, the Holy Prophet (sa) gave him the title of Amir-ul-Mu’mineen [leader of the faithful]. In Sirat-ul-Halbiya it is written that Hazrat Abdullah (ra) bin Jahsh was thus the first fortunate companion to have received the title of Amir-ul-Mu’mineen in the Islamic era.

(Al-Sirat-ul-Halbiya, Vol.3, pg.217, Sariyyat-ul-Abdullah bin Jahsh ilan Batne Nakhla, Darul Kutb-ul-Ilmiyah, 2002, Beirut.)

Under the commentary of the verse:

یَسۡـَٔلُوۡنَکَ عَنِ الشَّہۡرِ الۡحَرَامِ قِتَالٍ فِیۡہِ

[They ask thee about fighting in the Sacred Month…Ch.2, V.218]

Hazrat Musleh-e-Maud (ra) has mentioned this incident in these words that even after the Holy Prophet (sa) had migrated from Mecca to Medina, the severity of the hostility from the Meccans did not subside. They began to threaten the people of Medina that since they had given refuge to their people, there was only one option; either kill all of them or expel them from Medina. Otherwise, they would vow to attack Medina and kill all of them and also capture their women. Moreover, this was not limited to mere threats, in fact they began to make preparations in order to attack Medina.

In those days, the circumstances were such that the Holy Prophet (sa) would at times stay awake the entire night. Similarly, the companions would sleep equipped with their weapons, lest the enemy would suddenly launch an attack on them in the darkness of the night. In these circumstances, on the one hand, the Holy Prophet (sa) started to make treaties with the tribes living in the surroundings of Medina so that they would support Muslims if such circumstances arose.

On the other hand, as a result of the news that the Quraish were making preparations for an attack, the Holy Prophet (sa) sent Hazrat Abdullah (ra) bin Jahsh to Nakhla with twelve men. He gave him a letter and instructed him to open it after two days. Hazrat Abdullah (ra) bin Jahsh opened it after two days and it stated that they should remain in Nakhla and gather information about the circumstances of the Quraish and report back. Incidentally, during that same period a small caravan of the Quraish passed by, which was returning from trade in Syria. Hazrat Abdullah (ra) bin Jahsh through a personal initiative attacked them, as a result of which one person from among the disbelievers, Amr bin Al-Hazrami was killed, and two people were taken as captives and the Muslims also seized their possessions. When they returned to Medina and informed the Holy Prophet (sa) of this incident, he expressed great displeasure and said that he had not permitted them to fight and he also refused to accept any of the items they had captured from them.

Ibn Jarir has taken the narration of Hazrat Ibn Abbas (ra) and written, “The mistake Hazrat Abdullah (ra) bin Jahsh and his companions made was that they believed that the month of Rajab had not yet commenced, even though it had already begun. They believed that it was the thirtieth of Jumada Al-Thani and that the month of Rajab had not yet started. In any case, the idolaters started to raise a hue and cry at the fact that Amr bin Al-Hazrami was killed at the hands of Muslims and that Muslims no longer respected the sanctity of the sacred months, in which all forms of war were forbidden.”

Hence, Hazrat Musleh-e-Maud (ra) states:

“God Almighty addresses this allegation in this very verse by stating that although God Almighty is most displeased by fighting in these months and is a sin in the sight of God Almighty, however it is even more displeasing to Him that people are hindered from the path of God Almighty; to stop them from professing the unity of God Almighty; to disregard the sanctity of the Al-Haram Mosque and to expel people from their homes simply because they believe in the One God. They may have thought of this one aspect. However, they have not reflected on the severity of their own sins and the displeasing deeds they have committed by rejecting God and His Messenger (sa), disregarding the sanctity of the Al-Haram Mosque and by expelling the people from their homes. When they themselves are guilty of such abhorrent acts, how can they then raise allegations against Muslims? They have merely committed an inadvertent mistake, whereas the Meccans have been actively and intentionally committing these acts.”

(Tafsir-e-Kabir, Vol.2, pp. 474-47 – Ch.2, V.218).

Elaborating on a Hadith [tradition of the Holy Prophet (sa)] of Bukhari, Hazrat Sayyid Zain-ul-Abideen Waliullah Shah Sahib (ra) has mentioned the positive outcome of the expedition of Abdullah (ra) bin Jahsh. Elaborating on this, he has written:

“The accounts inform us that this expedition was completely successful with regards to the purpose it had been sent out for. By taking captives, they gained concrete and precise information of the schemes and movement of the Quraish of Mecca. The incident related to the caravan of Hazrami was something that was unintentional and incidental. The opinion of some historians, who have mentioned that some members of this expedition thought of avenging and returning the captured possessions of the Muhajireen [Muslims who migrated from Mecca to Medina] is incorrect. Rather, the primary objective of this expedition was merely to obtain, through this delegation of Hazrami, sound and precise information of the real purpose of the caravan under the leadership of Abu Sufyan bin Harb and the schemes of war made by the Quraish of Mecca. This was precisely what had been conveyed to them in secrecy and therefore, they did not let this opportunity of capturing this small caravan go to waste. It is a far-fetched idea to believe that they were actually sent in order to obtain information about the schemes of war made by the Quraish of Mecca, however they sufficed with simply looting this caravan and returning to the Holy Prophet (sa).”

“Hazrat Abdullah bin Jahsh (ra) was a companion of a very lofty status. He was also the paternal cousin of the Holy Prophet (sa). The Holy Prophet (sa) had appointed an extremely reliable and trustworthy person for this expedition. When the Holy Prophet (sa) learnt of the plans of war being made by the Quraish of Mecca, he also started making preparations and he did so in a most discreet manner.”

(Sahih Al-Bukhari Tarjuma Wa Sharah, Hazrat Sayyid Zain-ul-Abideen Waliullah Shah Sahib, Vol.8, pg. 15, Kitabul Maghazi, Baab Qisa Ghazwa Badr, Zia-ul-Islam Press, Rabwah).

He further writes:

“Even though in the narrations related to war we find that the Holy Prophet (sa) expressed displeasure towards Hazrat Abdullah (ra) bin Jahsh and his companions, however this admonishment was appropriate and justified as their expedition created circumstances which could have been the cause of discord. Nonetheless, at times certain actions which apparently seem to be mistakes, are in fact carried out in accordance with Divine will and some insignificant incidents bear magnificent results. Thus, it was quite possible that the expedition led by Abdullah (ra) bin Jahsh would have never been sent and the events would not have unfolded in the manner they did. Similarly, the caravan led by Abu Sufyan would have reached Mecca without any hindrance and the Quraish would have attacked the Muslims with full preparation, which would have been really difficult for the ill-equipped companions of the Holy Prophet (sa). However, the incident caused by Abdullah (ra) bin Jahsh enraged the arrogant Quraish leaders. They hastily assembled an army of a thousand soldiers and arrived at Badr in a state of conceited rage to save their convoy. Little did they know that their fates had been sealed at that very place. On the other hand, it was equally possible that if the companions had known they would be facing a fully equipped army, some of them may have shown hesitation. Thus, this act of secrecy served as a disguise, known as camouflage today.”

(Sahih Al-Bukhari Tarjuma Wa Sharah, Hazrat Sayyid Zain-ul-Abideen Waliullah Shah Sahib, Vol.8, pg. 17, Kitabul Maghazi, Baab Qisa Ghazwa Badr, Zia-ul-Islam Press, Rabwah).