The Miracles of the Battle of Tabook
Wednesday 07/04/2010
During the Battle of Tabook, there were many miracles that Allah The Almighty granted His Prophet,
, as support for him and to prove his truthfulness as well as to alleviate the hardship and suffering that the Muslims faced on their way to the land of the Romans. Historians mentioned ten of these miracles, some of which were related to the unseen, while others were tangible miracles that the Companions, may Allah be pleased with them, witnessed. Some of these miracles were:
Rainfall by Virtue of His Blessed Supplication
During this Battle, the Muslims set out in extremely hot weather and did not have enough water. This caused them to suffer from extreme thirst and so they searched for water all around them but found no trace of it. Many of them were forced to slaughter their camels and squeeze their bowels to extract water. On seeing the state of the Muslims, Abu Bakr, may Allah be pleased with him, rushed to the Prophet,
, and said, “O Messenger of Allah, indeed Allah always answers your supplication. Supplicate to Allah The Almighty for us.”The Prophet,
, asked: “Do you want me to do that?”Abu Bakr replied,“Yes.”The Prophet,
, then raised his hands supplicating to Allah The Almighty. No sooner had he brought his hands down than the clouds gathered from all around and it became dark. After that, heavy rain started to pour. The people quenched their thirst, watered their animals and filled their containers. When they departed from the location where this had occurred, they found that the clouds had not gone beyond their camp. [Ibn Khuzaymah in his Saheeh]
Knowing the Whereabouts of His Lost She-Camel
On the way to Tabook, the Muslim army rested in a place where the Prophet,
, lost his she-camel, so he sent some of his Companions to search for it. When they could not find it, one of the hypocrites said, “Does he not claim that he is a Prophet and conveys to you the revelation from Allah The Almighty? How can that be true when he does not even know the whereabouts of his she-camel?” Allah The Almighty informed His Prophet,
, about what this hypocrite had said. The Prophet,
, then called his Companions and told them about what had happened, and then said: “By Allah, indeed I do not know except what Allah The Almighty has taught me, and He has informed me of its whereabouts. It is in a valley in the area of such and such, and its rein got caught in a tree. Therefore, go there and return it to me.” The Companions, may Allah be pleased with them, went to that place, found the she-camel and brought it back to the Prophet,
.
The Increase of Water in Tabook and the Prophecy that It Will Become Gardens
On the way to Tabook, the Prophet,
, told those who were with him that they would reach a spring of water in Tabook. He asked them to leave it and not touch it. When they reached the spring, two men rushed to it and took some water from it, and so its water decreased.
When the Prophet,
, knew about what they had done, he became angry and asked his Companions to bring him some water from that location. They took a small amount of the water with their hands. The Prophet,
, took it and washed his hands and face with it, then, returned it to the spring. Then, the water started gushing from the spring such that the people could quench their thirst. Then, the Prophet,
, turned to Mu‘aath ibn Jabal, may Allah be pleased with him, and said:“O Mu‘aath, if you live a long life, you will see this place full of gardens.” [Muslim] This was a great miracle where the Prophet,
, prophesied that this barren land would become green within a short period of time. The prophecy of the Prophet,
, was fulfilled and the area of Tabook became well-known for its abundant trees and fruit.
Increase of Food
The people suffered from famine due to the small amount of provision they had with them and the remoteness of the location. Therefore, some of the Companions, may Allah be pleased with them, asked the Prophet,
, for permission to slaughter their camels and eat the meat. He,
, permitted them to do so. However, ‘Umar ibn Al-Khattaab, may Allah be pleased with him, came to the Prophet,
, and explained that this would decrease the amount of riding camels. He further suggested to the Prophet,
, that he order people to collect their small amounts of food and to ask Allah The Almighty to bless this food. Some men brought handfuls of dates, others brought small pieces of bread while others brought handfuls of corn, until a small amount of food was collected. Then, the Prophet,
, supplicated to Allah The Almighty to bless their food. They then took food in their containers and they left no container in the camp without it being filled, and they ate until they all were satisfied and there was still extra food. The Prophet,
, then said: “I testify that none is truly worthy of worship but Allah and I am the Messenger of Allah. Every slave that meets Allah The Almighty with these words, without having any doubt in them, will be admitted by Him into Paradise.”[Muslim]
Prophesizing the Actions of the King of Kindah
When the Muslims reached Tabook, they found no trace of the Roman army or its allied tribes. Therefore, the Prophet,
, sent Khaalid ibn Al-Waleed, may Allah be pleased with him, to Dawmat Al-Jandal and told him that he would find its leader, Ukaydir ibn ‘Abdul-Malik, hunting antelopes. That night, Ukaydir stood with his wife on the roof of their palace and saw antelopes approaching the palace until they touched the doors with their horns. Ukaydir was astonished at what he saw, and asked his wife, “Have you ever seen anything like this?” She answered, “By Allah I have not.” He went down and prepared his horse and then set out with some of his household to hunt. When Khaalid ibn Al-Waleed, may Allah be pleased with him, saw him he pursued him until he captured him and then he took him to the Prophet,
. Then, Ukaydir agreed to pay the Jizyah (non-Muslim poll-tax) to the Prophet,
, and he,
, set him free. [Al-Bayhaqi]
His Informing of the Storm
The Prophet,
, informed the people in Tabook that there would be a storm and he warned them about it and told them to be cautious so as not to be harmed. He,
, also ordered them to tie their camels and horses well and not to go out at that time. When night came the storm blew and a Muslim man left the place, so the storm carried him away and threw him at the mountain of Tayyi’. [Muslim]
His Informing of the Death of Abu Tharr
Abu Tharr Al-Ghifaari, may Allah be pleased with him, was among the people who later caught up with the army in the Battle of Tabook. When the Prophet,
, saw him coming alone towards the army, he said: “May Allah have mercy upon Abu Tharr; he walks alone, will die alone, and will be resurrected alone.” After many years and during the caliphate of ‘Uthmaan ibn ‘Affaan, may Allah be pleased with him, Abu Tharr, may Allah be pleased with him, moved to live in an area called Ar-Rabathah. When he was about to die he asked his wife and servant to give him a Ghusl (ritual bathing), shroud him, and place him in the path of the Muslims so that may be someone would find and bury him. ‘Abdullaah ibn Mas’ood, may Allah be pleased with him, with a group of people from Koofah passed by him and upon discovering who he was, began crying as he remembered the prophecy of the Prophet,
. He said, “The Prophet
spoke the truth.” Then, he buried him with his own hands.
His Supplication for the Riding Animals of the Muslims and Prophesizing that His Companions Would Travel in Ships
The riding animals of the Muslims were exhausted during this Battle and the Companions, may Allah be pleased with them, complained about this to the Prophet,
. When they approached a narrow strait, the Prophet,
, stood before it and asked the Muslims to pass before him. He,
, blew at the backs of the camels, and said: “O Allah make people be carried on them in Your cause. Make people be carried on the strong and the weak, on the wet and the dry, and on land and sea.” Thereupon, their riding animals regained their energy and ran quickly, to the extent that it became difficult for the Companions, may Allah be pleased with them all, to control them.
This supplication also includes the informing of a matter of the unseen, which is that the Companions, may Allah be pleased with them, would use ships in Jihaad and fighting. Fadhaalah ibn ‘Ubayd, may Allah be pleased with him, referred to this by saying,“When we were at Ash-Shaam (greater Syria) we carried out battles at sea. When I saw the ships and what was boarded upon them, I understood the supplication of the Prophet
.” [Ahmad]
These were some of the miracles of Tabook that were considered the final and most wonderful miracles that the Companions, may Allah be pleased with them, witnessed during battles. These miracles remain witnesses of the truthfulness of his prophethood and the greatness of his message.