Battle of Mu'ta: Difference between revisions

The '''Battle of Muta''' (Arabic: مؤته) was one of the major [[sariya]]s (military expeditions) in the early Islamic period in 8 A.H. (629) between the Islamic army and the Roman army. The commanders of the Islamic army were, respectively, [[Ja'far b. Abi Talib]], [[Zayd b. Haritha]], and [['Abdullah b. Rawaha]], all of whom were martyred in this war. After the martyrdom of all of their commanders, and because of the greater number of Roman soldiers, Muslims retreated to [[Medina]] under the leadership of [[Khalid b. Walid]].

==The conditions of Mu'ta==

[[Mu'ta]] is a village near [[Balqa']] on the boundaries of [[Sham]] (or [[Levant]]), located in the south of Balqa', which is located, in turn, in the south of [[Damascus]]. Today it is a town in the [[Karak]] governorate in [[Jordan]], located in [[Moab]].

On the cause of the battle, [[Wafidi]] writes: [[the Prophet (s)]] sent [[Harith b. 'Umayr al-Azadi al-Lahabi]] with a letter to the king of [[Bosra]]. On his way to Bosra, he was captured and killed in [[Mu'ta]] by the orders of the ruler of Mu'ta, [[Shurahbil b. 'Amr al-Ghassani]]. He was the only emissary of the Prophet (s) who was killed. The Prophet (s) heard the news and mobilized people. It seems that he asked them to gather in an army camp without having chosen a commander yet.

When the Prophet (s) said his noon prayers, he was seated and his [[Sahaba]] (companions) gathered around him. According to [[Aban b. 'Uthman al-Bijli al-Kufi]], [[Imam al-Sadiq (a)]] said that the Prophet (s) appointed [[Ja'far b. Abi Talib]] as the commander, and in case he is killed, he would be succeeded by [[Zayd b. Haritha]] and then [['Abdullah b. Rawaha]]. The Prophet (s) said that if 'Abdullah b. Rawaha is also hurt, then the Muslims should elect a commander then. Then the Prophet (s) gave a white flag to the army of 3000 soldiers.

The Muslims went out of [[Medina]] and they camped in [[Wadi al-Qura]]. The enemy learned about their path. The ruler of [[Mu'ta]], [[Shurahbil b. 'Amr al-Ghassani al-Azadi]], the murderer of [[Harith b. 'Umayr al-Azadi al-Lahabi]], gathered his army and equipment, and then he sent the pioneers of his army to fight the Muslims under the commandership of his brother, Sadus, who was killed in the fight. Shurahbil sent another brother of his, Wabar b. 'Amr, to command the army. But he feared the army of Muslims and refuged to the fort. The Muslims went further and camped in [[Ma'an]] which was a territory of [[Sham]] (or [[Levant]]).

The Muslims moved forward until they arrived in Balqa' near the village of Musharif, where the army of [[Heraclius]] resided, consisting of Romans and Arabs. From there the Muslims went to another village in the area of Balqa', called [[Mu'ta]]. The enemy approached them until they encountered in Mu'ta. The Muslims were prepared and stood in lines. They elected [[Qutba b. Qutada al-'Udhri]] as the commander of the right army and [['Ibaya b. Malik al-Ansari]] as the commander of the left army.

[[Waqidi]] has narrated from [[Abu Hurayra]] saying that: "when we encountered the unbelievers in Mu'ta, we saw things that we had never seen before. Their number was very great with a lot of weapons and armaments, animals, silk and god that were mesmerizing. [[Thabit b. Aqdam]] told me: what is wrong with you, Abur Hurayra? It seems as if you have seen a great number of people. I said: yes. He said: if you were in the [[battle of Badr]], you could see that we did not win the war by virtue of our number".

There is a [[hadith]] in which [[Imam al-Sadiq (a)]] says: "When polytheists and Muslims encountered in Mu'ta, [[Ja'far b. Abi Talib]] was on a horse; he got off the horse and then slaughtered it, and he was the first Muslim who slaughtered his horse".

In his [[al-Khara'ij wa l-jara'ih]], [[Rawandi]] cites a hadith from [[Jabir b. 'Abdullah al-Ansari]] saying that: when the battle of Mu'ta was happening, the Prophet (s) said his morning prayers and then went on his [[minbar]] and said: your brothers have gone on a fight with the polytheists. He then talked about the events of the battle until he said: now [[Ja'far b. Abi Talib]] has taken the flag to fight. He then said: now his right arm is amputated and he has taken the flag with his left arm. He then said: now his left arm has also been amputated and he is holding the flag with his chests. He then said: now Ja'far is martyred and the flag fell on the ground. Now 'Abdullah b. Rawaha has taken the flag. He then said: now 'Abdullah is martyred and [[Khalid b. Walid]] has taken the flag … the Muslims are returning, and some polytheists have been killed. Then the Prophet (s) mentioned the names of Muslims who were martyred in Mu'ta. He then went to Ja'far's house and called his little son, [['Abdullah b. Ja'far]], seated him on his lap and cuddled him.

[[Waqidi]] cites a hadith from [[Abu Sa'id al-Khidri]] according to which [[Khalid b. Walid]] and the rest of the defeated army moved to [[Medina]]. When people of Medina learned that the defeated army of [[Mu'ta]] has arrived near Medina, they went to visit them in [[Jaraf]], reproaching them by saying: "have you escaped the fight on the path of God?". Ibn Is'haq has cited from 'Urwa that when the army arrived near [[Medina]], the Muslims went to visit them. However, some people reproached them by saying: "O' fugitives! Have you escaped the fight on the path of God?" but the Prophet (s) told them: "these are not fugitives. And if God wills, they are brave attackers who can attack the enemy once again".

According to Waqidi, people of [[Medina]] visited the fighters of Mu'ta with scorn, and some of the fighters were not welcome even in their houses. When they knocked on the doors of their own houses, their households did not open the doors, telling them: "have you returned with all your companions?" But the Prophet (s) told them that: "you have retreated to attack the enemy once again".

==Martyrs of the Battle of Mu'ta==

In addition to [[Ja'far b. Abi Talib]], [[Zayd b. Haritha]] and [['Abdullah b. Rawaha al-Khazraji]], some other people from [[Quraysh]] were also martyred in Mu'ta, including: [[Mas'ud b. Aswad al-'Udwi]] and [[Wahab b. Sa'd b. Abi Sarh]], the bother of [['Abdullah b. Sa'd]]. And some people of [[Banu Najjar]] from the [[Khazraj]] tribe were martyred, including: [[Suraqa b. 'Amr]], [[Jabir b. 'Amr]] and his brother, [[Abu Kilab]] or Kulayb, [['Amr b. Sa'd]] and his brother [['Amir b. Sa'd]] and [[Harith b. Nu'man b. Assaf]] or Yassaf.

The Battle of Mu'ta was an operation by Muslims in order to identity the fighting styles of the Roman armies and their allies, and the information that Muslims gained from this battle was very helpful in their future wars. Thus the loss of this battle for Muslims is nothing in comparison with their gains. They were successful in the identification of the fighting styles, organizations and the warfare of Roman armies and their allies, which was key to the Muslims' victories in their future battles.