Page 106 - The Vision of Islam

Seerah as a Movement

when he reached Roha, he realized his mistake, and made plans
to turn once again on the Muslims’ stronghold. But even at this
time of utter disarray, the Prophet’s information system was still
working very effectively. He heard about Abu Sufyan’s intention
and decided to go out to meet him. Immediately he reassembled
his shaken army and set off towards Makkah. Contrary to his
normal practice, which was to maintain a veil of the utmost secrecy
over military manoeuvres, this expedition was given a fanfare of
publicity. When the Muslims reached Hamra al-Asad, eight miles
from Madinah, Abu Sufyan heard of the pursuit. Thinking that
fresh reinforcements must have arrived, he gave up his idea of
attacking Madinah and returned to Makkah. The Prophet turned
back to Madinah once he was sure of the withdrawal of Abu
Sufyan’s army.
One year after the Battle of Mutah, which occurred in the
month of Jumada al-Awwal, 8 a.h., the Byzantine emperor started
gathering his forces on the Syrian border. The Ghassanids, along
with other Roman allies among Arab tribes in the region, followed
the emperor’s lead. In response, the Prophet advanced to Tabuk
with an army of 30,000. The expedition to Tabuk was really a
military pre-emptive strike designed to awe the enemy, so that
they would lose heart and abandon their hostile intentions. When
the Prophet reached Tabuk, he heard that Caesar was no longer
advancing to meet the Muslims but, instead, was beginning to
withdraw his forces from the frontier. There was now no question
of a battle, and Caesar’s very withdrawal had assured the Prophet
of a moral victory, which he decided to turn to his own political
advantage. During his 20-day stay in Tabuk, he established contact
with the neighbouring Arab tribes, who were at that time under
Roman influence. The Christian chieftain of Daumat al-Jandal,
Ukaidir ibn Abdul Malik Kindi, Yohanna ibn Ruya from Ayla,
along with Christians of Maqna, Jarba and Azruh, agreed to pay
jizya, a tax paid by non-Muslim states as a sign of submission to the
Muslim rule, and to buy protection and freedom to practice their
religion and culture.
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