Ar-Raheeq Al-Makhtum (The Sealed Nectar). Excellent Biography of Prophet Muhammad ﷺ Episode 121

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Ar-Raheeq Al-Makhtum (The Sealed Nectar).

Excellent Biography of Prophet Muhammad ﷺ

Episode 121

BANI LIHYAN INVASION

Bani Lihyan had acted treacherously towards ten of the Prophet’s Companions and had them hanged. Their habitation being situated deep in the heart of Hijaz on the borders of Makkah, and due to deep-seated blood-revenge between the Muslims on the one hand, and Quraish and the Arabians on the other, the Prophet (Peace be upon him) deemed it unwise to penetrate deep and 

come close to the greatest enemy, Quraish. However, when the power of the allied Confederates 

collapsed and they began to slacken and resign to the current unfavourable balance of power, the 

Messenger of Allâh (Peace be upon him) seized this rare opportunity and decided that it was time to 

take revenge on Bani Lihyan. He set out in Rabi‘ Al-Awwal or Jumada Al-Ula in the year six Hijri at 

the head of two hundred Muslim fighters and made a feint of heading for Syria, then soon changed 

route towards Batn Gharran, the scene of his Companions’ tragedy, and invoked Allâh’s mercy on 

them. News of his march reached Bani Lihyan, who immediately fled to the mountain tops nearby 

and thus remained out of his reach. On his way back, the Prophet (Peace be upon him) despatched 

a group of ten horsemen to a place called Kura‘ Al-Ghamim, in the vicinity of the habitation of 

Quraish in order to indirectly confirm his growing military power. All these skirmishes took fourteen 

days, after which he left back for home. 

EXPEDITIONS AND DELEGATIONS CONTINUED

1. A platoon led by ‘Ukasha bin Al-Mihsan was despatched to a place called Al-Ghamir 

inhabited by Bani Asad in the year six Hijri. The enemy immediately fled leaving behind 

them two hundred camels which were taken to Madinah. 

1. A platoon led by Muhammad bin Maslamah set out towards the habitation of Bani Tha‘labah 

in Dhil Qassa. But a hundred men of the enemies ambushed and killed all of them except 

Muhammad bin Maslamah who managed to escape but badly wounded. 

2. In retaliation against Bani Tha‘labah, Abu ‘Ubaidah bin Al-Jarrah, at the head of forty men, 

was despatched to Dhil Qassa. They walked that night and took the enemy by surprise in 

the morning. Again, they fled to the mountains except one who was injured, and later 

embraced Islam. A lot of booty fell to their lot in that particular incident. 

3. A platoon, under the leadership of Zaid bin Haritha, was sent to Al-Jumum, the habitation of 

Bani Saleem, in the same year. A woman from Bani Muzaina showed them the way to the 

enemy’s camp. There the Muslims took some captives and gained a lot of booty. Later on, 

the Messenger of Allâh (Peace be upon him) granted the woman her freedom and married 

her to one of his followers. 

4. Zaid bin Haritha, in Jumada Al-Ula 6 Hijri, at the head of a hundred and seventy horsemen, 

set out to a place called Al-‘Ais, intercepted a caravan of Quraish led by Abul-‘As, the 

Prophet’s relative and looted their camels. Abul-‘As escaped and took refuge in Zainab’s (his 

wife and the Prophet’s daughter) house. He begged her to ask the Prophet (Peace be upon 

him) for the restitution of his wealth. The Prophet (Peace be upon him) recommended, but 

without coercion, that the people do that. They immediately gave the man back all his 

wealth. He went back to Makkah, gave over the trusts to those entitled to them, embraced 

Islam and emigrated to Madinah where the Prophet (Peace b e upon him) reunited him with 

his wife, Zainab, after three and a half years of their first marriage contract. The verse 

relating to prohibition of marriage between women Muslims and disbelievers had not been 

revealed then. 

5. In Jumada Ath-Thania, the same year, Zaid at the head of fifteen men raided Bani Tha‘labah 

and captured twenty of their camels but the people had fled. 

6. In Rajab of the same year, Zaid, at the head of twelve men, set out to a place called Wadi 

Al-Qura in a reconnaissance mission to explore the movements of the enemy. The people 

there attacked the Muslims, killed nine of them, while the rest including Zaid bin Haritha 

managed to escape. 

7. The invasion of Al-Khabt (diluted yoghurt) took place in the year eight Hijri i.e. before Al-

Hudaibiyah Treaty. Abu ‘Ubaidah bin Al-Jarrah led three hundred horsemen to observe a 

caravan belonging to Quraish. Because of the inadequacy of food supplies, they began to 

starve so much that they had Khabt (diluted yoghurt), hence the appellation “The Army of 

Al-Khabt”. One of the men slaughtered nine camels at three times, three each time at 

different stages of the mission. Abu ‘Ubaidah, the leader of the campaign prohibited him 

from doing so. The sea was generous and presented them with an animal called Al-‘Anbar

(sperm-whale) so rich in fat that they subsisted on it for half a month. When they came 

back home, they narrated the story to the Prophet (Peace be upon him) , who commented that it was provision granted by Allâh, and asked them to share him some of its meat. • This campaign came chronologically prior to Al-Hudaibiyah Treaty because of and after 

which the Muslims stopped intercepting Quraishi caravans.