Ukaydir and the Bulls

When the army reached the land of the Romans, al-Shām, the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) sent Khālid ibn al-Walīd to Ukaydir of Dūmat al-Jandal, the king of Dūmat al-Jandal. The Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) told Khālid ibn al-Walīd to capture him and bring him. And Ukaydir was living in a very strong fortress in Dūmat al-Jandal. So the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) told Khālid ibn al-Walīd: you will find him hunting bulls; you will find him hunting. Ukaydir used to go out hunting: he would go out on horseback with a large group of his men, and they would travel and spend long periods searching for the bulls. It was not an easy thing, and he used to train his horses specifically for it. So the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) sent Khālid ibn al-Walīd with a number of Muslims to capture him and bring him.

And it was a full-moon night, and Ukaydir was with his wife on the roof of his palace. And, subḥān Allāh, they saw the bulls come right up to the gates of the fortress, and they were rubbing their horns on the walls, or on the gates, of the fort. And that was something unbelievable; they had never seen that before: he would have to travel a long distance to find them, and here they were, right next to him. So his wife said to him: have you ever seen anything like this? He said: never. She said: is this something one would pass up? He said: no. And he immediately went down and told his servants to prepare his horses, and he took with him a few of his followers, along with his brother, and they rushed out of the fortress to hunt down these bulls. And they were routed by Khālid ibn al-Walīd: they were surrounded, and Ukaydir's brother fought and was killed, and Ukaydir and the rest surrendered, and they were captured by Khālid ibn al-Walīd and brought to the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him). He agreed to the terms of paying the jizyah, and went back.