The Three Who Were Left Behind

Now another account. There were, as described above, three pure and good Muslims — true Muslims — who had stayed behind and had not gone upon this journey. The journey is told remarkably by one of the three. They were Hilāl ibn Umayyah, Murārah ibn al-Rabīʿ and Kaʿb ibn Mālik. Kaʿb ibn Mālik was a man of great eloquence and a very fine writer, and he tells the whole story in truly beautiful prose, which has passed into the books of classical Arabic to be studied. Read it once and — subḥānAllāh — it is a story that can bring one to tears in places, that can take one by surprise, that carries one along; a remarkable story, telling the very thoughts of his heart.

In substance he says this: that when the decision was taken, when the call went out that they were to go upon this campaign — and this particular expedition was one in which, he says, the Prophet (peace be upon him) made it entirely plain where they were going. There was no tawriyah, he says: in other battles he would tell them they were going one way when in truth they were going elsewhere by another route, to put men off the scent; but in this one it was made very clear how far they were going and where. And he says: "I was never better off than at that time. But the difficulty was that I had my crops also; they were ready to be taken; and I thought: I am quick, I have swift animals, I shall simply catch them up." The time came and he had not fully made ready, he says; and then at last they left, and he thought: no matter, I shall catch them up — a day, two days — and so it slipped away, until he heard that the Prophet (peace be upon him) was now returning. And what was he to do then?

When the Prophet (peace be upon him) did return, he says: "I used to go to the bazaar, and the only people I would see were no true believers; I saw only men upon whom there rested a suspicion — a suspicion of being munāfiq — and that made me feel wretched. Now the Prophet (peace be upon him) is returning, and I am turning over everything I might say to him, every excuse I can think of." And then the munāfiqīn began to go up, and the Prophet (peace be upon him) began to accept and let them go; and he resolved: "No, I cannot do this. I care nothing for the consequences; I shall tell the absolute truth, whatever comes of it." And so he did: he goes up to the Prophet (peace be upon him), tells him the truth, and the Prophet (peace be upon him) says: as for you, we shall see. Everyone else, all the munāfiqīn who came, he let go — very well, whatever it may be, leave it to Allah; he let them go. But to him he says: we shall see.