Postby Dudaaye » Wed Oct 10, 2007 9:26 pm
7 - Ibn Abi Shaybah has narrated in his Musannaf (5/338) that Mu`adh ibn `Afra' asked the Messenger
of Allah, "What makes Allah laugh upon His slave?" The reply: "[The servant] immersing himself into
the enemy without armour." Mu`adh then took off his armour and fought until he was killed.
This hadith is a clear evidence for the virtue of Jihad operations in which it is most likely that one will
die, and it indicates that Jihad has some special rules which permit what may normally be prohibited.
8 - Ibn Abi Shaybah has extracted (5/289) [and similarly Tirmidhi (2491 and 2492, the latter narration
he classified as sahih) and Nasa'i (1597 and 2523), and Ahmad (20,393), as well as Tabarani (in al-Kabir,
with a hasan chain) and Ibn al-Mubarak (in Kitab al-Jihad, 1/84)], "Three [categories of
people] Allah loves,…" and among them is "a man who was in a dispatchment and met the enemy, and
they were defeated, but he faced them with his chest until he was killed or victorious." Al-Hakim also
narrated it, and said it is sahih.
9 - Ahmad narrated in his Musnad (6/22) from Ibn Mas`ud that the Prophet said, "Our Sustainer
marvels at two men: a man who stirs from his bed … to salah … and a man who fights in the path of
Allah, and his companions are defeated, and he realizes what awaits him in defeat and what awaits
him in returning [to combat], but he returns [to combat] until his blood is spilled. Allah says, "Look
at My servant who went back [to combat] hopeful and anxious for what is with Me, until his blood
was spilled."
Ahmad Shakir said,: its chain is sahih. Haythami said in Majma` al-Zawa'id: Ahmad ad Abu Ya`la
narrated it, as did Tabarani in al-Kabir, and its isnad is hasan. Abu Dawud and Al-Hakim narrated it in
abbreviated form, and Al-Hakim authenticated it. Ibn al-Nahhas said: even if there were only this
single authentic hadith, it would suffice us as evidence for the virtue of plunging [into the enemy
ranks].
10 - Muslim has narrated from Abu Hurayrah, "Among the best of lives for people is a man who clasps
the reins of his horse in the path of Allah, rushing on its back; whenever he hears a cry [of battle] or
advancement towards the enemy, he hurries to it, seeking death and being slain with eagerness."
This indicates that seeking to be killed and pursuing martyrdom are legitimate and praiseworthy acts.
11 - Bayhaqi has narrated in Al-Sunan al-Kubra (9/100) with a sahih chain from Mujahid that the
Prophet sent out `Abdullah ibn Mas`ud and Khabbab as one dispatchment, and Dihyah as a
dispatchment on his own.
This indicates that regardless of the level of risk in a Jihad operation, it remains permissible by default,
and the greater the risk, the greater the reward.
12 - Bukhari and Muslim have narrated that Talhah shielded the Prophet from arrows in the Battle of
Uhud, and his hand was crippled thereby.
13 - Bukhari and Muslim have reported that Salamah ibn al-Akwa` was asked, "For what did you
pledge allegiance to the Prophet on the Day of Hudaybiyyah?" He said, "For death."
14- Many have reported from Muhammad ibn Thabit ibn Qays Ibn Shimas, when the Muslims were
disclosed on the Day of Yamamah, Salim, the freed-slave of Abu Hudhayfah, said, "This is not how
we used to act with the Messenger of Allah." Then, he dug a trench for himself, and stood in it carrying
the flag, and fought until he was killed as a martyr on the Day of Yamamah.
This and the next report indicate that steadfastness is desirable, even if it leads to death, and Salim
attributed this type of action to the [days of] the Messenger of Allah.
15 - Ibn Jareer Tabari has narrated in his Tarikh (2/151) that in the Battle of Mu'tah, Ja`far ibn Abi
Talib took the flag and fought until he became immersed in the fighting, whereupon he turned to a
light-colored horse he had and wounded it [so he could not escape], then he fought until he was killed.
Hence, JA`far was the first Muslim to wound his horse [in this manner].
16 - Muslim has narrated that a man heard a Sahabi saying, when the enemy was near, "The
Messenger of Allah said : The doors of Heaven are under the shade of the swords." The man, upon
hearing this, got up and asked for verification of the hadith. When it was confirmed, he turned to his
companions, gave them the greeting of salam, broke and discarded the scabbard of his sword and then
advanced to the enemy with his sword, striking them until he was killed.
[The original study in Arabic contains 40 narrations, but for brevity we have omitted the remainder].
Verdicts of Scholars Concerning one who Attacks the Enemy Alone
Having established the permissibility of plunging into the enemy and attacking alone even when death
is certain, we proceed and say that the martyrdom operations are derived from this principle, realizing
that the prohibition of suicide relates to deficiency or absence of faith. However, the former
generations did not have knowledge of martyrdom operations in their current-day form, for these
evolved with the changes in techniques of warfare, and hence they did not specifically address them.
However, they did address similar issues, such as that of attacking the enemy single-handed and
frightening them with one's own death being certain. They also deduced general principles under
which the martyrdom operations fall, and in doing so they relied on evidences such as those we have
mentioned in the previous section.