The Battle of Hunayn and the Spoils of War
Another name for the Battle of Hunayn is the Battle of Hawazin. Hunayn is the name of a valley 30 miles from Mecca and is situated between Mecca and Ta‘if. The Battle of Hunayn took place after the Conquest of Mecca in Shawal 8 AH. The Holy Prophet (sa) distributed the spoils gained from this war among the Muhajireen. The Ansar felt this in their hearts. Regarding this, there is a detailed narration found in Musnad Ahmad bin Hanbal, which states: “Hazrat Abu Saeed Khudri (ra) relates that when the Holy Prophet (sa) distributed the spoils among the Quraish and other Arab tribes, there was nothing left to give to the Ansar. They felt aggrieved at this and would speak amongst themselves regarding this, to the extent that someone even said that the Holy Prophet (sa) would soon return to his tribe and that he has forgotten the Ansar and only granted [the spoils of war] to the Muhajireen. Hazrat Sa‘d (ra) bin Ubadah presented himself before the Holy Prophet (sa) and said, ‘O Messenger (sa) of Allah! The Ansar feel something in their hearts about this…’” i.e., with regard to the spoils of war that were distributed amongst the various Arab tribes and the Ansar did not receive anything therefrom.
“The Holy Prophet (sa) asked him, ‘O Sa‘d (ra)! With regard to this, which side are you on; clarify your position on the matter?’ He replied, ‘O Messenger (sa) of Allah! I am merely an ordinary member of my tribe. I have no status or rank.’ The Holy Prophet (sa) said, ‘Gather your tribe in such and such area’ (i.e., he was instructed to gather his people in an open plain). Thus, Hazrat Sa‘d (ra) left and gathered the Ansar in the specified location. Some Muhajireen also joined them and Hazrat Sa‘d (ra) permitted them to come, but some other individuals wished to enter, however Hazrat Sa‘d (ra) stopped them from entering. When everyone had gathered together, Hazrat Sa‘d (ra) went to the Holy Prophet (sa) and informed him that the Ansar had all gathered together.”
The narrator further says: “The Holy Prophet (sa) came and after praising God Almighty, he said, ‘O ye Ansar, whatever is the matter? I am receiving reports that you are aggrieved at not receiving anything from the spoils of war. Before I came to you, were you not in a state of misguidance? God Almighty bestowed guidance upon you. Were you not destitute before God Almighty granted you affluence? Were you not enemies of each other until the time God Almighty instilled love for one another in your hearts?’ They replied, ‘Indeed, for God and His Messenger (sa) are greater and more benevolent.’ The Holy Prophet (sa) then said, ‘O ye Ansar! Why do you not answer the questions I presented before you?’ The Ansar replied, ‘O Messenger (sa) of Allah! How can we reply when all benevolence and blessings are from God Almighty and His Messenger (sa)?’ The Holy Prophet (sa) then said, ‘By God! You could have said – and you would have been truthful in your statement if you had said – that I came to you when I had been rejected by all others and then you accepted me; and that all of my own people had abandoned me, but you all assisted me. I came to you since my people had abandoned me and then you granted me protection. Since you were a large tribe, I entered into an agreement with you.’ The Holy Prophet (sa) then stated, ‘O ye Ansar! Did you feel dismay over an insignificant piece of worldly wealth that I granted to others but not to you? I granted to them in order to comfort their hearts, so that they may accept Islam and so they can become firm in their faith, but I entrusted you with your faith in Islam. O ye Ansar! Does it not please you that other people will return to their homes having acquired sheep, goats and camels, yet you will return home alongside the Messenger (sa) of Allah?’ The Holy Prophet (sa) further said, ‘I swear by the One Who holds the life of Muhammad in His Mighty Hand! Were it not for the migration, I would have been one of the Ansar. If all the people choose one valley in which to pass by, and the Ansar choose another, I would always adopt the one chosen by the Ansar. O Allah! Have mercy on the Ansar, and upon the sons of the Ansar and also the grandsons of the Ansar.’”
The narrator then states:
“Upon hearing this, all the Ansar that were present began to weep, to the extent that their beards became wet from their tears. They then said that they were content with how the Messenger (sa) of Allah distributed the spoils of war, i.e., they were happy, however the Holy Prophet (sa) had distributed the wealth and that the Holy Prophet (sa) was sufficient enough for them. The Holy Prophet (sa) then left and the people also dispersed.”
(Musnad Ahmad bin Hanbal, Vol. 4, pp. 192-193, Musnad Abi Saeed al-Khudri, Alamul Kutub, Beirut, 1998) (Atlas Sirat Nabwi (sa), pp. 408-409, Darul Islam, al-Riyad 1424A.H.) (al-Sirat al-Halabiyyah, Vol. 3, p. 163, 175, Bab Ghazwah al-Ta’if, Dar-ul-Kutub al-Ilmiyyah, Beirut, 2002)