Shall We Head for Their Families?

Now the man sent on reconnaissance, Bishr ibn Sufyān, came back to the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) and told him that Quraysh had actually marched out and were preparing for war. The Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) said, ashīrū ʿalayya ayyuhā al-nās: men, give me your advice. Do you think I should head for the children and families of those who wish to keep us from al-Kaʿbah?

Quraysh held a very high status in Arabia among the Arab tribes, because they were the custodians of al-Kaʿbah. But it was a known tradition, common knowledge among the people, that no one should prevent anyone from ḥajj and ʿumrah. Quraysh were now trying to prevent Muḥammad (peace be upon him) and the Muslims from entering Makkah, and this was unheard of; it is something that one does not do. So the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) was asking the Companions: should we head for the children and families of those? Who are "those"? Here the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) was talking about the tribes who had allied themselves with Quraysh in this horrible mission of preventing the Muslims from entering al-Kaʿbah. Because Bishr, when he came to the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him), said, inna Qurayshan qad jamaʿū laka jumūʿan, wa jamaʿū laka al-Aḥābīsh: Quraysh have mobilised themselves, and they have also mobilised al-Aḥābīsh. Al-Aḥābīsh were a confederation of tribes, three or more tribes that had allied themselves with Quraysh.

And the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) was saying: how about we attack the families and children of these other tribes? Then they would have to go back and protect their families, while we move on towards Quraysh. By this we would break the alliance and split up their army. Abū Bakr (may Allah be pleased with him) answered and gave his opinion. He said: O Messenger of Allah, you have come out to visit al-Kaʿbah, not intending to do battle or to make war against anyone; proceed to it, and we will fight anybody who blocks our way. This was the opinion of Abū Bakr (may Allah be pleased with him), and the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) agreed with him, and therefore the plan to attack these kuffār in their homes was stopped. The Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) said: then proceed onwards, in the name of Allah.

Quraysh had sent out a force of two hundred men led by Khālid ibn al-Walīd and ʿIkrimah ibn Abī Jahl. When the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) received that piece of information, he announced to his army: who will take us by a path that goes around them? So a man from Aslam offered to guide them by a back road, so to speak. It was very rough and difficult terrain, but eventually they made it to the plain of al-Ḥudaybiyah, which is to the south of Makkah, only a day's walk from the holy city. When Khālid ibn al-Walīd received the information that the Muslims had gone around him, he rushed back towards Quraysh, and now Quraysh knew that the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) was only a day's distance from them.