The Book of Jihad

Muhammad ibn Abd al-Ala informed us; he said: al-Mutamir narrated to us; he said: I heard Khalid—meaning Ibn Zayd, Abu Abd al-Rahman al-Shami—relate from Shurahbil ibn al-Simt, from Amr ibn Absah, who said: I said: Amr ibn Absah, relate to us a hadith you heard from the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him), without forgetting or omitting anything. He said: I heard the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) say: Whoever shoots an arrow in the cause of Allah and it reaches the enemy, whether it misses or hits, will have a reward equal to freeing a slave. Whoever frees a Muslim slave, each of the slave’s limbs will ransom a corresponding limb from the Fire of Hell. And whoever grows a gray hair in the cause of Allah will have it as a light for him on the Day of Resurrection.

Amr ibn Uthman ibn Said informed us, from al-Walid, from Ibn Jabir, from Abu Sallam al-Aswad, from Khalid ibn Yazid, from Uqbah ibn Amir, from the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him), who said: Allah, Mighty and Majestic, will admit three people to Paradise by means of a single arrow: the one who makes it, seeking good through its making; the one who shoots it; and the one who hands it to the archer.

Muhammad ibn Mansur informed us; he said: Sufyan narrated to us, from Abu al-Zinad, from al-Araj, from Abu Hurayrah, from the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him), who said: No one is wounded in the cause of Allah—and Allah knows best who is truly wounded in His cause—except that he will come on the Day of Resurrection with his wound pouring blood. Its color will be the color of blood, and its scent the scent of musk.

Hannad ibn al-Sari informed us, from Ibn al-Mubarak, from Mamar, from al-Zuhri, from Abd Allah ibn Thalabah, who said: The Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) said: Shroud them in their blood, for no wound received for the sake of Allah will come on the Day of Resurrection without bleeding. Its color will be the color of blood, and its scent the scent of musk.

Amr ibn Sawwad informed us; he said: Ibn Wahb reported to us; he said: Yahya ibn Ayyub reported to me—and he mentioned another narrator before him—from Umarah ibn Ghaziyyah, from Abu al-Zubayr, from Jabir ibn Abd Allah, who said: On the day of Uhud, when the people retreated, the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) was in one place with twelve men from the Ansar, among whom was Talhah ibn Ubayd Allah. The polytheists caught up with them, so the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) turned and said: Who will face these people? Talhah said: I will. The Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) said: Stay where you are. A man from the Ansar said: I will, Messenger of Allah. He said: You go. The man fought until he was killed. Then he turned and saw the polytheists, and said: Who will face these people? Talhah said: I will. He said: Stay where you are. A man from the Ansar said: I will. He said: You go. The man fought until he was killed. The Messenger kept saying this, and a man from the Ansar would go out to face them and fight as the previous man had fought, until he was killed. This continued until only the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) and Talhah ibn Ubayd Allah remained. The Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) said: Who will face these people? Talhah said: I will. Talhah fought as the eleven had fought, until his hand was struck and his fingers were cut off. He cried: Ah! The Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) said: Had you said, In the name of Allah, the angels would have lifted you up while the people looked on. Then Allah turned the polytheists back.

Amr ibn Sawwad informed us; he said: Ibn Wahb reported to us; he said: Yunus reported to us, from Ibn Shihab, who said: Abd al-Rahman and Abd Allah, the two sons of Kab ibn Malik, informed me that Salamah ibn al-Akwa said: On the day of Khaybar, my brother fought fiercely alongside the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him), but his sword turned back on him and killed him. The Companions of the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) discussed the matter and were uncertain about him, saying: A man died by his own weapon. Salamah said: The Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) returned from Khaybar, and I said: Messenger of Allah, will you permit me to recite battle verse about you? He gave me permission. Umar ibn al-Khattab, may Allah be pleased with him, said: Be mindful of what you say. I said: By Allah, were it not for Allah, we would not have been guided, given charity, or prayed. The Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) said: You have spoken truly. Then I recited: Send down tranquility upon us, make our feet firm when we meet; the polytheists have surely transgressed against us. When I finished my verses, the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) asked: Who said this? I said: My brother. He said: May Allah have mercy on him. I said: Messenger of Allah, by Allah, some people are reluctant to pray over him, saying that a man died by his own weapon. The Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) said: He died striving, a fighter. Ibn Shihab said: Then I asked a son of Salamah ibn al-Akwa, who related the same from his father, except that when I said, Some people are reluctant to pray over him, the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) replied: They lie. He died striving, a fighter, and he has a double reward. He pointed with his two fingers.

Ubaydullah ibn Said informed us; he said: Yahya—meaning Ibn Said al-Qattan—narrated to us, from Yahya—meaning Ibn Said al-Ansari—who said: Dhakwan, Abu Salih, narrated to me, from Abu Hurayrah, from the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him), who said: Were it not that I would burden my community, I would never stay behind an expedition. But they cannot find mounts, I have nothing on which to carry them, and it would burden them to stay behind me. I would love to be killed in the cause of Allah, then brought back to life, then killed, then brought back to life, then killed—three times.

Amr ibn Uthman ibn Said informed us; he said: My father narrated to us, from Shuayb, from al-Zuhri, who said: Said ibn al-Musayyab narrated to me, from Abu Hurayrah, who said: I heard the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) say: By the One in whose hand is my soul, were it not that some men among the believers would be distressed at staying behind me, and that I have no mounts on which to carry them, I would never stay behind an expedition that goes out to fight in the cause of Allah. By the One in whose hand is my soul, I would love to be killed in the cause of Allah, then brought back to life, then killed, then brought back to life, then killed.

Amr ibn Uthman informed us; he said: Baqiyyah narrated to us, from Buhayr ibn Sad, from Khalid ibn Madan, from Jubayr ibn Nufayr, from Ibn Abi Umayrah, that the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) said: No Muslim soul taken by its Lord would wish to return to you, even if it were given the world and all that is in it—except the martyr. Ibn Abi Umayrah said: The Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) said: To be killed in the cause of Allah is dearer to me than possessing all the people of tents and settled dwellings.

Muhammad ibn Mansur informed us; he said: Sufyan narrated to us, from Amr, who said: I heard Jabir say: On the day of Uhud, a man said: What do you think—if I am killed in the cause of Allah, where will I be? He said: In Paradise. The man tossed the dates from his hand, then fought until he was killed.

Muhammad ibn Bashshar informed us; he said: Abu Asim narrated to us; he said: Muhammad ibn Ajlan narrated to us, from Said al-Maqburi, from Abu Hurayrah, who said: A man came to the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) while he was delivering a sermon from the pulpit and said: What do you think—if I fight in the cause of Allah, patient and seeking reward, advancing without retreating, will Allah erase my sins? He said: Yes. Then he paused for a while and asked: Where is the questioner from a little while ago? The man said: Here I am. He asked: What did you say? The man said: What do you think—if I am killed in the cause of Allah, patient and seeking reward, advancing without retreating, will Allah erase my sins? He said: Yes, except for debt. Jibril has just told me this.

Muhammad ibn Salamah and al-Harith ibn Miskin reported to us, by recitation to al-Harith while I listened, from Ibn al-Qasim, who said: Malik narrated to me, from Yahya ibn Said, from Said ibn Abi Said, from Abd Allah ibn Abi Qatadah, from his father, who said: A man came to the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) and said: Messenger of Allah, what do you think—if I am killed in the cause of Allah, patient and seeking reward, advancing without retreating, will Allah erase my sins? The Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) said: Yes. When the man turned away, the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) called him—or ordered that he be called—and asked: How did you put it? The man repeated his words, and the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) said: Yes, except for debt. Gabriel, peace be upon him, told me that.

Qutaybah informed us; he said: al-Layth narrated to us, from Said ibn Abi Said, from Abd Allah ibn Abi Qatadah, from Abu Qatadah, who heard him relate from the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) that he stood among them and said: Striving in the cause of Allah and faith in Allah are the best of deeds. A man stood and said: Messenger of Allah, what do you think—if I am killed in the cause of Allah, will Allah erase my sins? The Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) said: Yes, if you are killed in the cause of Allah while patient and seeking reward, advancing without retreating—except for debt, for Gabriel, peace be upon him, told me that.

Abd al-Jabbar ibn al-Ala informed us; he said: Sufyan narrated to us, from Amr, who heard Muhammad ibn Qays, from Abd Allah ibn Abi Qatadah, from his father, who said: A man came to the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) while he was on the pulpit and said: Messenger of Allah, what do you think—if I strike with my sword in the cause of Allah, patient and seeking reward, advancing without retreating until I am killed, will Allah erase my sins? He said: Yes. When the man turned away, he called him back and said: This is Gabriel, who says: Unless you have a debt.

Harun ibn Muhammad ibn Bakkar informed us; he said: Muhammad ibn Isa—namely, the son of al-Qasim ibn Sumay—narrated to us; he said: Zayd ibn Waqid narrated to us, from Kathir ibn Murrah, that Ubadah ibn al-Samit related to them that the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) said: No soul on earth that dies with good stored for it with Allah would wish to return to you and possess the world, except one who was killed in Allah’s cause; he would wish to return and be killed once again.

Abu Bakr ibn Nafi informed us; he said: Bahz narrated to us; he said: Hammad narrated to us, from Thabit, from Anas, who said: The Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) said: A man from among the people of Paradise will be brought, and Allah, Mighty and Majestic, will say: Son of Adam, how did you find your dwelling? He will say: My Lord, it is the finest dwelling. He will say: Ask and wish for whatever you want. He will say: I ask You to return me to the world so that I may be killed in Your cause ten times, because of what he sees of the virtue of martyrdom.

Imran ibn Yazid informed us; he said: Hatim ibn Ismail narrated to us, from Muhammad ibn Ajlan, from al-Qaqa ibn Hakim, from Abu Salih, from Abu Hurayrah, that the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) said: A martyr feels the pain of being killed only as one of you feels a pinch.

Yunus ibn Abd al-Ala informed us; he said: Ibn Wahb narrated to us; he said: Abd al-Rahman ibn Shurayh narrated to me that Sahl ibn Abi Umamah ibn Sahl ibn Hunayf related to him, from his father, from his grandfather, that the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) said: Whoever sincerely asks Allah, Mighty and Majestic, for martyrdom, Allah will bring him to the ranks of the martyrs, even if he dies in his bed.

Yunus ibn Abd al-Ala informed us; he said: Ibn Wahb narrated to us; he said: Abd al-Rahman ibn Shurayh narrated to me, from Abd Allah ibn Thalabah al-Hadrami, who heard Ibn Hujayrah relate from Uqbah ibn Amir that the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) said: There are five: whoever dies from one of them is a martyr. One killed in the cause of Allah is a martyr; one who drowns in the cause of Allah is a martyr; one who dies of an abdominal illness in the cause of Allah is a martyr; one who dies of plague in the cause of Allah is a martyr; and a woman who dies in childbirth in the cause of Allah is a martyr.

Amr ibn Uthman reported to me; he said: Baqiyyah narrated to us; he said: Buhayr narrated to us, from Khalid, from Ibn Abi Bilal, from al-Irbad ibn Sariyah, that the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) said: The martyrs and those who died in their beds will dispute before our Lord concerning those who die of plague. The martyrs will say: They are our brothers; they were killed just as we were killed. Those who died in their beds will say: They are our brothers; they died in their beds just as we died in ours. Our Lord will say: Look at their wounds. If their wounds resemble the wounds of those who were killed, then they are among them and with them. And their wounds did indeed resemble their wounds.