Dhāt al-Salāsil

There were some sarāyā that occurred in that year. There is a sariyyah led by ʿAmr ibn al-ʿĀṣ, and this was the first appointment for ʿAmr ibn al-ʿĀṣ. ʿAmr ibn al-ʿĀṣ had become Muslim with Khālid ibn al-Walīd, so he had only recently embraced Islam. The Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him), very soon after their Islam, put them in these positions of leadership, because they were capable men. Khālid ibn al-Walīd and ʿAmr ibn al-ʿĀṣ were born leaders; they had the capability, and the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) recognised it in them and immediately started giving them this authority to promote the religion of Allah (ʿazza wa jall).

This battle was called Dhāt al-Salāsil because of the area in which it occurred, near a well, or a river, or a source of water, called Dhāt al-Salāsil. ʿAmr ibn al-ʿĀṣ was sent into the land of Balī. This is an Arab tribe; they were his maternal uncles, so the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) sent him to them. However, they gathered a force to fight, and because of the numbers of this force ʿAmr ibn al-ʿĀṣ asked for reinforcements. The Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) sent him Abū ʿUbaydah among some of the Muhājirūn. When the reinforcements arrived, ʿAmr ibn al-ʿĀṣ said: I am the amīr. The Muhājirūn said: no, Abū ʿUbaydah is the amīr. ʿAmr ibn al-ʿĀṣ said: no, I am the amīr, because the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) appointed me to lead, and you have just come as reinforcements. Abū ʿUbaydah, rather than argue over this issue, said: the last advice the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) gave me was: agree with each other and do not disagree with each other. Abū ʿUbaydah was a very soft and lenient man. He said: you are the leader.

At night-time ʿAmr ibn al-ʿĀṣ had a wet dream, iḥtilām. When he woke up it was very cold, and rather than bathing — and that is the requirement — he just made wuḍūʾ. The Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) was told about that when they returned. ʿAmr ibn al-ʿĀṣ said: I feared for my safety — this water is going to kill me; it was very cold — so I took precautions for my safety, and that is why I just made wuḍūʾ. The Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) smiled and did not say anything (Abū Dāwūd 334–335). So some scholars use this as evidence that if there is risk, and the water is too cold and the weather is too cold, one can make tayammum, or make wuḍūʾ, rather than bathing, even though the requirement is ghusl. This is the sariyyah of Dhāt al-Salāsil.