The days of Ramadan were now complete and the joyous congregation of Muslims was able to offer their thanksgiving at their beloved Ka'ba, it was indeed one of the most happiest times they had ever experienced.

Outside Mecca all was not well. The Hawazin were greatly alarmed when they learned of the destruction of the temple of al uzza at Nakhlah, which was the sister shrine to their own idol of al lat, and had amassed an army of twenty thousand in the valley of Awtas, just north of Ta'if.

The tribes now joining forces with the Hawazin were those of Thakif from Ta'if, Nasr, Jusham and that of Sa' d Bakr's son -- from which Halima, the foster mother of the Prophet (sa) hailed -- commanded by Malik from the tribe of Nasr who was in his own right a distinguished warrior. The Prophet (sa) was aware of the impending danger and called upon his army to rearm.

Its numbers were swelled by a further two thousand from the Koraysh amongst whom were Suhail and Safwan, neither of whom had as yet converted but wished to fight in defense of their property and City. The Prophet (sa) had been told that Safwan possessed a hundred coats of mail together with many kinds of weapons, so he asked whether he might borrow them. Safwan asked, "Muhammad, is it a case of give or else I will take?" "No," replied the Prophet (sa), "it is a loan to be returned." Safwan was satisfied, as he knew the Prophet (sa) to be a man of his word whereupon he added to the loan a sufficient number of camels to transport the armor and weapons.

The concept of waiting for the Hawazin to march on Mecca was not a matter for consideration on account of the inevitable blood shed which would occur on sanctified ground, so, the order to prepare for the march was given. Before setting out on their campaign, the Prophet (sa) appointed a man from the tribe of Shams to take charge of Mecca in his absence and left Muadh, Jabal's son, who, despite his tender years, was very well versed in Islam, to teach the new converts.

Meanwhile, Malik ignored the advice of the elders of the tribes and commanded that not only should their forces march against the Prophet (sa), but that their women, children and livestock should follow at the rear so as to give their menfolk more reason to fight with all their might.

The Scouts

As the Prophet (sa) approached the enemy, Malik sent three scouts to assess the situation and bring him word. When the scouts returned Malik was greatly disturbed by their appearance. The scouts could scarcely speak and their limbs had become either dislocated or shook uncontrollably in sheer terror.

After a time one managed to speak with a voice that trembled saying, "We saw white men riding piebald horses, then, suddenly we were stricken like this!" Then another spoke in a voice equal to that of his companion saying, "We are not fighting against humans, but people from Heaven. It is our advice that you withdraw; if you do not, as soon as the army see them they too will become like us!"

Malik refused to pay attention to their warning and rebuked them sharply saying, "Shame upon you, you are the cowards of the army!" However, he ordered the men to be taken away out of the sight of the others so that the rest of the army would not and ask questions.

Then, Malik turned to those around him and said, "Who amongst you is courageous?" A man stepped forward whereupon he was sent to assess the situation. A while later, the man returned in exactly the same condition as the three earlier scouts, and related the terrifying sight he had seen, but Malik was not to be deterred and once again refused to heed his impassioned warning.

The Valley of Hunain

Ravines surround the valley of Hunain, some of which are large with wide entrances and from the top of these ravines it was easy to monitor the movement of the Prophet's army without the risk of being seen. Night had now fallen so Malik gave the command to march to the valley as he knew the Prophet (sa) and his army would have to pass through it. When Malik and his army reached the nearest part of the valley, which was where the road slopped down into the valley, he called for his army to halt.

He then issued orders for his cavalry to take up positions upon the top of the ravine and on its opposite slope, then, he told them that once he gave the signal they were to swoop down and massacre the Prophet's army. As for the remainder of his army they were commanded to take up their positions upon the road near the top of the pass. The Prophet (sa) and his army spent that night not far from the other end of the valley. Before dawn the following morning he and his men offered the dawn prayer then the Prophet (sa) spoke to them telling them that victory would be theirs if they were steadfast. As the light of dawn appeared the sky was overcast and so they were able to begin their descent through the valley under the cover of relative darkness.

The army of the Prophet (sa) marched in a similar formation to the one it had taken before their entrance to Mecca with Khalid, the Sword of Islam, leading the tribe of Sulaym accompanied by some others. However, this time Khalid was followed by the new converts whilst the Prophet (sa) followed riding Duldul in the middle of the Muhajir and Ansars accompanied by more family members than before. Amongst them were his cousins Abu Sufyan and Abdullah; his uncle Abbas and his sons Fadl and Kitham; as well as the two sons of Abu Lahab. The rear of the army was brought up by those who had not yet converted to Islam.

They had almost finished their descent when, in the half-light of the dawn, their gaze fell upon the resting army of the Hawazin positioned on the opposite side of the slope above which were their women, children and auxiliary mounts, who, in the hazy light of dawn appeared as additional warriors. Before the army could take a safe stand, Malik spotted them and gave the signal to attack.

The attack came swiftly as the Hawazin emerged from all directions and swept down upon Khalid and his men before he had chance to summon the tribe of Sulaym to take a stand. Many of the Sulaym lay martyred on the battlefield whilst the survivors fled into the midst of the Koraysh causing them to scatter and seek safety upon the slope from which they had just descended.

Chaos prevailed as camels and horses stampeded and blocked the narrow entrance, however, the Prophet (sa) was able to withdraw to his right and together with a small band of men took a firm, courageous stand. Amongst those who took the stand were his relatives, Omar, Abu Bakr, some of the Muhajir and Ansar, and Abu Sufyan who stood at his side and held tightly to the ring of Duldul's bridle.

During the confusion the unconverted Koraysh were heard to mutter against the Prophet (sa) whereupon Safwan spoke harshly to them in defense of the Prophet (sa) saying, "If I must have some one over me, let it be a man from the Koraysh rather than a man from the Hawazin!"

The Prophet (sa) called upon the others to rally around him but in all the upheaval his words were drowned by the noise as swords clashed, mounts stampeded, and the cries of war filled the air. Abbas had an exceptionally loud voice and took up the call shouting: "Companions of the Tree! Companions of the Acacia!"

There was an immediate response from the Muhajir and Ansar as their cries returned, "Labbayk! -- Obedient to you!" The small band of men that numbered approximately one-hundred engaged their enemy and for a moment held them at bay whilst Abbas continued to call the army to regroup and many of those who fled returned to stand alongside the Prophet (sa).

The Pebbles That Exalted Allah

There was a momentary lull whilst the enemy prepared itself for a further attack whilst the Prophet (sa) supplicated to Allah saying, "O Allah, I ask of You Your promise." Then he asked for some pebbles to be brought to him. The pebbles were gathered and given to the Prophet (sa) and as he held them in his blessed hands, the pebbles exalted Allah in human speech, and as at the hostilities of Badr, he threw them in the face of the enemy.

Shayba, Son of Uthman Al Juhani

During the encounter at Badr, Hamza engaged and killed Othman al Juhani and his brother. From that time onward Shayba’s hatred for the Prophet (sa) knew no boundaries, his hatred was intense. Shayba was intent on revenge and the opportunity was soon to be realized as Shayba crept up upon the Prophet (sa) with his sword in readiness to strike. However, before he could reach the Prophet (sa) a blazing flame, faster than lightening appeared before him and he turned to run.

The Prophet (sa) was aware of the circumstances and called out to Shayba in a calming voice and ask him to come to him. Trembling, Shayba approached the Prophet (sa) whereupon the Prophet (sa) smiled and placed his hand upon his chest. When he removed his hand Shayba’s hatred had completely disappeared and the Prophet (sa) had become the most loved of all people to him. Then the Prophet (sa) spoke saying, “Draw near and fight.” Shayba plunged in to fighting and was heard to say, “If I had met my father, I would have engaged him in combat rather than the Prophet (sa).”

The Miracle of Hunain

It was the turning point of the hostilities, Allah heard the supplication of His Prophet (sa) and sent invisible warriors against the enemy. It was a miraculous turn in the events. Malik continued to fight as best he could but was forced to retreat with part of the army from Thakif to their walled city of Ta'if.

As for the majority of the Hawazin, they were forced to flee as far away as Naklah. Many had sustained heavy casualties whilst others returned to their camp at Awtas. When the Prophet (sa) learned of this he sent a detachment against them so that they were forced to flee to the surrounding hills.

Victory was theirs with very little loss of life on the Muslim side after the initial encounter. Amongst those who were martyred was Osama's elder brother, Ayman, who fell as he stood by the Prophet (sa). Concerning the Encounter of Hunain Allah sent down the verses:

"Allah has helped you on many a battlefield. In the Battle of Hunain, when your numbers were pleasing you they availed you nothing; the earth, for all its vastness, seemed to close in upon you and you turned your backs and fled. Then, Allah caused His tranquility (sechina) to descend upon His Messenger and the believers; He sent legions you did not see and sternly punished the unbelievers. Such is the recompense of the unbelievers." (Koran 9:25-26)

As for the Hawazin women and children, they were taken captive. Amongst the spoils of war were large flocks of sheep, camels and goats as well as four thousand ounces of silver. These, the Prophet (sa) now placed in the capable hands of Budayl whom he instructed to take to Jiranah, a valley some ten miles outside of Mecca.

Shayma, the Foster Sister of the Prophet (sa)

Amongst those taken captive was an elderly woman who asked to be taken to the Prophet (sa). When she was asked why she wanted to see him she said that her name was Shayma, the foster-sister of the Prophet (sa). It had been a very long time since the Prophet (sa) had seen Shayma and at first he did not recognize her but when she introduced herself to him and recalled some childhood stories, he had a rug spread out and invited her to sit with him as he endearingly inquired about her mother Halima and father Harith.

As Shayma told the Prophet (sa) that both had passed away tears welled up in his eyes. They talked together for a while and the Prophet (sa) asked if she wished to return to her tribe or stay with him. Shayma replied that she wanted to embrace Islam but wished to return to her tribe. Before Shayma took leave of the Prophet (sa) he gave her a handsome gift and told her he would give her more later on upon his return from Ta'if.

The Siege of Ta'if

Ta'if was a city fortified by strong walls from which well trained archers had the advantage of protection. Its fertile land abounded with orchards so Ta'if was capable of self-support when it came to providing food for its citizens.

Always Free the Slaves.

As the Prophet's army approached the walled city they were met by volleys of arrows, that were returned with equal ferocity. One day during the siege, the Prophet (sa) instructed a herald to cry out that any slave belonging to the Thakif who wished to join them as Muslims would be set free and soon after the word had been passed among them, approximately twenty slaves slipped away from the city to embrace Islam.

Three weeks had passed since the beginning of the siege and there was no progress, then, one night the Prophet (sa) saw a vision in which he was given a bowl of butter to which a rooster came, pecked and split it. The following day Abu Bakr went to the Prophet (sa) and said, "I do not think you will gain what you desire," and the Prophet (sa) agreed with him, then instructed his army to break camp and return to Jiranah.

Whilst they were in the midst of breaking camp some asked the Prophet (sa) to curse the inhabitants of Ta'if but the Prophet (sa) did not reply, rather, he raised his hands and supplicated for them saying, "O Allah, guide the Thakif and bring them to us" for he always wanted good for people, even his adversaries. Very few casualties were sustained during the siege, however, amongst the martyred was Lady Umm Salamah's half-brother, the newly converted Abdullah, who was also the cousin of the Prophet (sa).