William Muir

“ Such, then, was the magnificent province lying between the Desert and mountain range of Persia—the cradle of civilization and the arts—which now attracted the Muslim arms. The first to oppose them was Hormuz, Satrap of the Delta, a tyrant hated by his Arab subjects. To him, as master of the tribes gathering in front, Khalid addressed a letter in the haughty type of Muslim summons: "Accept the Faith and thou art safe; else pay tribute, thou and thy people; which if thou refusest, thou shalt have thyself to blame. A people is already on thee, loving death even as thou lovest life2." ”

“ The people, in breathless expectation, crowded round the pavilion as the umpires issued from it. "Let them know," said 'Amr to his fellow, "that we are agreed." Abu Musa advanced, and with voice loud and clear, said: "We are agreed upon a decision such as, we trust, will reconcile the people, and reunite the empire." "He speaketh true," said 'Amr: "step forth, O Abu Musa, and pronounce thy judgment." Then spoke Abu Musa: "Ye people! we have considered the matter well. We see no other course for peace and concord, but to depose 'Ali and Mu'awiya, both one and other. ”

“ Many leapt into the deep swift stream, but few reached the other shore. At this eventful moment Al-Muthanna rushed to the front. Backed by a few heroic spirits, among them a Christian chief of the Beni Tai, he seized the banner and, planting himself between the enemy and the bewildered Arabs, called out that he would hold the ground till all had passed over. Then he chided the author of the calamity, and commanded the bridge to be restored. "Destroy not your own selves," he cried; "retire in order, and I will defend you." ”

“ And ever, at the marvellous tale of cities conquered; of rapine rich beyond compute; of maidens parted on the very field of battle "to every man a damsel or two"; and at the sight of the royal fifth set forth in splendour as it reached Medina;—fresh tribes arose and went. Onward and still onward, like swarms from the hive, or flights of locusts darkening the land, tribe after tribe issued forth and hastening northward, spread in great masses to the East and to the West.
Discredit still attaching to apostasy. ”

“ Ibn Muljam loved a maid of the Beni Taym, who having on that fatal day lost father, brother, and other relatives was roused thereby to a savage ardour. "Bring me," said the damsel to her lover, "the head of 'Ali as my dower; if thou escapest alive, thou shalt have me as thy guerdon here; if thou perish, thou shalt enjoy better than me above." So she introduced him to two accomplices, who, burning with the same spirit of revenge as Ibn Muljam, were to lie in wait on either side of the door leading into the crowded Mosque. ”

“ The Byzantine army, it is true, had Bedawi auxiliaries as numerous, perhaps, as the whole Muslim army. But their spirit widely differed. The fealty of the Syrian Arab was lax and loose. Christian in name, the yoke of his faith sat lightly on him. Indeed, throughout the empire, Christianity was eaten up of strife and rancour. With reinforcements came a troop of Monks and Bishops, who, bearing banners, waving gold crosses, and shouting that the faith was in jeopardy, sought thus to rouse the passion of the army. The passion roused was often but the scowl of hatred. ”

“ Ibn al-'Abbas replied, "but innocent of the craft of war; and hath not the Prophet himself said, What is war but a game of deception?" "That is true," responded 'Ali, "but I will have none of Mu'awiya." "Then," said Ibn al-'Abbas, "thou hadst better depart to thy property at Yenbo', and close the gates of thy stronghold there behind thee; for everywhere the Bedawin are hounding along; and if thou makest others thine enemies, these will surely find thee out, and lay the blood of 'Othman at thy door." " Come," said 'Ali, trying another line, "thou shalt go forth thyself to Syria. ”

“ Meeting 'Omar in the marketplace, he cried out, "Commander of the Faithful! right me of my wrong, for verily Al-Moghira hath assessed me heavily." "At how much ?" asked the Caliph. "At two dirhems a day." " And what is thy trade?" "A carpenter and worker in iron," he said. "It is not much," replied 'Omar, "for a clever artificer like thee. I am told that thou couldest design for me a mill driven by the wind." "It is true." "Come then," continued the Caliph, "and make me such a mill that shall be driven by the wind." ”

“ Yet to this unscrupulous agent—well named The Sword of God—was due, more than to any other, the survival and the triumph of Islam. But Abu Bekr was not wanting in firmness when stern occasion called; for example, the despatch of Usama's army when Medina lay defenceless and all around was dark showed a boldness and steadfastness of purpose that, more than anything else, helped to roll back the tide of rebellion and apostasy.
Faith in Mohammad, secret of his strength. ”

“ Al-Kufa, and Mu'awiya, his point for the present gained, to Damascus. As 'Ali entered Al-Kufa, he heard wailing on every side. A chief man, whom he bade to pacify the mourners, answered: "O Caliph, it is not as if but two or three had been slain; of this clan alone hard by, an hundred and four score lie buried at Siffin. There is not a house but the women are weeping in it for their dead." ”

“ It was a struggle for life. At first there was a pause, as the light faded away; and Sa'd, fearing lest the vast host should overlap his rear, sent parties to watch the fords. There had as yet been hardly time for even momentary repose when, early in the night, it occurred to some of the Arab leaders to rally their tribes with the view of harassing the enemy. The movement, made at the first without Sa'd's cognisance, drew on a general engagement in the dark. The screams of the combatants and din of arms made The Night of Clangour1, as it is called, without parallel in the annals of Islam. ”

“ The wild Bedawin entered the tent of Khalid, and, but for the chivalry of her captive, who conjured his countrymen to spare a lady of noble birth, Leila would have perished by their swords. "Go, fight against men," Maja'a cried, "and leave this woman," on which they cut the tent-ropes and departed. There was danger for Islam at the moment. Defeat would have been disastrous; indeed, the Faith could hardly have survived. But now the spirit of the Muslims was aroused. To stimulate rivalry between the Bedawin and City Arabs of his force, Khalid made them to fight apart. ”

“ A nation composed thus of ennobled soldiery, pampered, factious and turbulent, formed too often a dangerous element of sedition and intrigue. But, nevertheless, it was the real backbone of Islam, the secret of conquest, the stay of the Caliphate. Crowded harims multiplied the race with marvellous rapidity. The progeny of the Arab sire (whatever the mother) was kept sedulously distinct, so as never to mingle with the conquered races. ”

“ When news of the disaster reached Heraclius at Antioch, he bade a last farewell to Syria "Farewell Syria, my fair province. Thou art an enemy's now"; and quitted Antioch for Constantinople.
The loss on the Muslim side was also considerable, but it was as nothing compared to what they gained by this battle. Many of the "Companions" lost their lives, and many bore the marks of wounds received there to their graves; but now Khalid could declare that "Syria sat as quiet as a camel." They could now for the first time call Syria their own. ”

“ On Al-Medain being threatened, Yezdejird had despatched his family, with the regalia and treasure, to Holwan in the hilly country to the north: and now he contemplated flight himself in the same direction. The heart of Persia had sunk hopelessly; for otherwise the deep and rapid Tigris still formed ample defence against sudden assault. Indeed, the Arabs thought so themselves; for they were occupied many weeks in search of boats, which had all been removed from the western bank. Unexpectedly, a deserter apprised Sa'd of a place where the river could be swum or forded. ”

“ Recognising the sacred words to bear a meaning that had never struck him before, 'Omar was speechless. "My limbs trembled," he would say when speaking of that memorable hour, "and I knew of a certainty that Mohammad was dead indeed."
Men of Medina meet to elect a chief.
The assembly in the court of the Mosque had now quieted down, when a messenger ran up breathless with a report that the men of Medina had assembled to choose a ruler from amongst themselves. The moment was critical. The unity of the Faith was at stake. A divided power would fall to pieces, and all might be lost. ”

“ Encircled with harrowing detail, it never fails to rouse horror and indignation to the utmost pitch. The fond believer forgets that Al-Hosein, leader of the band, having broken his allegiance, and yielded himself to a treasonable, though impotent, design upon the throne, was committing an offence that endangered society, and demanded swift suppression. He can see nought but the cruel and ruthless hand that slew with few exceptions all in whose veins flowed their Prophet's sacred blood. ”

“ But nature is not to be for ever thus pent up; the rebound too often comes; and in casting off its shackles, humanity not seldom bursts likewise through the barriers of the Faith. The gay youth of Islam, cloyed with the dull delights of the sequestered harim, were tempted thus when abroad to evade the restrictions of their creed, and seek in the cup, in music, games, and dissipation, the excitement which the young and lighthearted will demand. ”

“ Abu Lu'lu'a, a slave promises to make him a windmill.
A Persian slave, Abu Lu'lu'a, had been brought by Al-Moghira from Al-'Irak. Made prisoner in his youth by the Greeks, he had early embraced Christianity; and now, taken by the Muslims, his fate was to endure a second captivity as Al-Moghira's slave. When the crowd of prisoners was marched into Medina from the battle of Nihavend, said to have been Abu Lu'lu'a's birthplace, the sight opened springs of tenderness long pent up; and, stroking the heads of the little ones, he exclaimed: "Verily, 'Omar hath consumed my bowels!" ”

“ Something dreadful which Mohammad had spoken about the barking of the dogs of Al-Hau'ab, flashed across her memory. "Carry me back," she cried; and, making her camel kneel, she hastily alighted from her litter. "Alas and alas!" she continued, "for I heard the Prophet say, reproaching us, as he sat surrouded by his wives one day 'O that I knew which amongst you it is at whom the dogs of Al-Hau'ab will bark!' It is me! it is me! ”

“ He followed the army to Syria, and there, honoured for the office he had so long discharged at Medina, lived in retirement. The Chief citizens of Damascus now petitioned 'Omar that on this last occasion, Bilal should be asked once more to perform the Call to Prayer. The aged man consented, and as from the top of the Great Mosque the well-known voice arose clear and loud with the accustomed cry, the whole assembly, recalling vividly the Prophet at daily prayers, was melted into tears, and strong warriors with 'Omar at their head, lifted up their voices and sobbed aloud. ”

“ They had forgotten how narrow was the issue which the umpires had to decide. The Bedawin and democrats were fighting not for one Caliph or the other, but against the pretensions of Koreish at large. It was this that nerved them to the sanguinary conflict. "If the Syrians conquer," cried one their chiefs, "ye are undone. Again ye will be ground down by tyrants like unto the minions of Othman. They will seize upon the conquests of Islam as if, forsooth, they were theirs by inheritance, instead of won by our swords. We shall lose our grasp both of this world and the next." ”