Ibn al-Qayyim's Lessons From Tabūk

Here are some of the benefits Ibn al-Qayyim mentions in his book Zād al-Maʿād. He says: faṣlun fī al-ishārati ilā baʿḍi mā taḍammanathu hādhihi al-ghazwatu min al-fiqhi wa al-fawāʾid — a chapter on some of the benefits to be learned from this ghazwah. He says: idhā istanfara al-imāmu al-jaysha lazimahum al-nafīr — if the imām mobilises the army, then it is binding on them to respond. And he says: inna al-imāma idhā istanfara al-jaysha lazimahum al-nafīru wa lam yajuz li-aḥadin al-takhallufu illā bi-idhnih — if the imām mobilises the army, then it is mandatory on them to come, and no one may stay behind except with his permission. Wa lā yushtaraṭu fī wujūbi al-nafīri taʿyīnu kulli wāḥid: and he says that a general mobilisation is sufficient to make it obligatory; he does not have to mention each one by name. And then he says: wa hādhā aḥadu al-mawāḍiʿi al-thalāthati allatī yaṣīru fīhā al-jihādu farḍa ʿayn — and this is one of the three situations in which jihād becomes farḍ ʿayn. He said: the second is when the enemy invades the Muslim land, and the third is when the two armies meet.

The next benefit: wujūbu al-jihādi bi-al-māl — it is mandatory to support fighting fī sabīl Allāh with wealth. He says: wujūbu al-jihādi bi-al-māli kamā yajibu bi-al-nafs, wa hādhā iḥdā al-riwāyatayni ʿan Aḥmad, wa hiya al-ṣawābu alladhī lā rayba fīh. He said: and this is one of the two narrations from Imām Aḥmad; and he said there is no doubt about it: it is mandatory to support fighting fī sabīl Allāh with your wealth. And he says that it is more important than fighting in person: wa al-jihādu bi-al-māli shaqīquhu, wa al-amru bihi ahammu wa ākadu min al-jihādi bi-al-nafs. And then he mentions the hadith of the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him): whoever equips a fighter has fought (al-Bukhārī 2843). And he goes on to mention that whoever has financial ability, that is what he should do. Lā yuʿdharu al-ʿājizu bi-māliyyatihi ḥattā yabdhula juhdah. He said: the one who is incapable of fighting is not excused until he does his best — because he said that those who stayed behind tried their best: they came to the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) and said, support us, finance us, we want to go out; and they were eagerly trying to do so, because when they were told that the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) had nothing to support them with, they left with tears flowing from their eyes. So he said that you need to do your best.

Lā yajūzu al-shurbu wa lā al-ṭabkhu wa lā al-ʿajnu wa lā al-ṭahāratu min ābāri Thamūd. He said: it is not allowed to drink, or cook, or make dough, or make wuḍūʾ from the wells of Thamūd. And he said that the reason — and he mentioned it in another place — is that they are a people upon whom Allah brought down His wrath. Wa minhā anna man marra bi-diyāri al-maghḍūbi ʿalayhim wa al-muʿadhdhabīna lam yanbaghi lahu an yadkhulahā wa lā yuqīma bihā, bal yusriʿu al-sayra wa yataqannaʿu bi-thawbihi ḥattā yujāwizahā. He says: when you pass by the places, or the dwellings, of the people whom Allah has punished, you should not enter them, and you should not stay there; you should try to pass by as fast as possible, and you should cover your face with your clothes until you are past them. You should try to avoid them as much as possible — unless you are going to enter weeping and learn the lessons.

Jawāzu al-jamʿi bayna al-ṣalātayni fī al-safar: it is allowed to combine prayers when travelling, because the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) combined them when he was going to Tabūk. Idhā baʿatha al-imāmu sariyyatan fa-ghanimat, kāna mā ḥaṣala min dhālika lahā baʿda takhmīsih: if the leader of the army sends out a small group, and they win some spoils of war, then what they have won belongs to them, after they give twenty per cent of it to the amīr of the Muslims, according to the rules of ghanīmah. So he says that it is not divided among the whole army; it is given to those who were sent out.

Faṣlun fī taḥrīqi amkinati al-maʿṣiyati wa hadmihā: places of sin should be burned down, and the evidence for that is what the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) did with the Masjid of Ḍirār. He said: this was a masjid where people were going to pray and mention the name of Allah; nevertheless, the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) told the Companions to burn it to the ground. He said: so what about the places of sin? And he mentions, for example, places of prostitution, and places where alcohol is sold. And he gives an example: he says that ʿUmar ibn al-Khaṭṭāb ordered that a village be burned down because they were selling alcohol. So these are some of the lessons Ibn al-Qayyim has mentioned from Ghazwat Tabūk. In shāʾ Allāh, the story of Kaʿb ibn Mālik (may Allah be pleased with him) comes next.