Part 39

It is noteworthy that though Madinah, where *Umar resided, and Iraq, where the battle took place, were in fact thousands of miles apart, “Umar was practically in constant contact with the leader of Muslim troops. Al-Qadissiyah was regarded as the gate to the whole of Persia in those days, hence comes the special significance of that battle in particular. ~Umar sent a message to Sa’ d asking him to wage war against the Persians. He advised him to position his troops between urban and nomadic areas, to launch the attack first and not to be intimidated by their multitudes for they were a nation of deception. ~Umar further advised him to hold himself accountable for all he does and to offer his army sound counselling. Moreover, “Umar asked the leader of his troops to report to him all that takes place in detail. ~ Umar wished to be able to visualize the whole arena. Sa*d therefore wrote him describing the surrounding landscape so that ~ Umar was truly able to picture it in his mind. He also informed him that the Persians had selected Rostom and the likes of him to lead the enemy troops.

When Sa*d stationed Muslim troops at Al-Qadissiyah, he learnt that Rostom was to lead the Persian army in war, that amounted to eighty thousand or a hundred and twenty thousand soldiers, followed by another eighty thousand along with thirty three elephants. Nonetheless, the Commander of the Faithful wrote to Sa’d reassuringly and said: "Do not be troubled by

whatever you learn about them or whatever they prepare for war. Seek the Lord's aid and depend solely on Him. Send over to Rostom men of wisdom and sound judgment to invite him to embrace Islam. Calling unto them only causes them to grow weaker. Report to me daily."

In the enemies camp, though, the situation was not as promising as it looked. Rostom was not too eager to battle with Muslims. Things did not bode well. The Persian army leader was aman who believed in the power of and was well-versed in the stars. Besides, he dreamed that an angel descended from heaven, sealed the Persians’ sword then handed it to the Prophet, peace and blessings be upon him, who, in turn, handed it to “Umar. Rostom therefore did not think they had much of a chance. That is why he kept postponing attacking the Muslims, hoping Sa*d would be bored and decide to depart for he was confident victory would not be on their side that time.

It was therefore crystal clear to both sides that war was the only option they had left. The battle of Al-Qadissiyah was, in every sense, the most serious and certainly most significant

of the Muslims' battle in Iraq. Incapacitated by an 232

"Before this we wrote in the Psalms, after the Message (given to Moses): my servants the righteous, shall inherit the earth." (Al-Anbiyaa’: 105)

He then recited all verses of Jihad to spur Muslims. Sa*d cried at the top of his voice, "Allah is the Greatest" once, twice, three times, and at the fourth cry, war broke out. Fierce fighting continued for four days in a row during which Arabian horses were intimidated by Persian elephants. However, the Companions of the Prophet heroically managed to kill the elephants and gouge out their eyes. Further, Divine Providence backed Muslims’ admirable intrepidity. At sunset, a violent storm blew plucking up the tents of the Persians. Rostom thereupon jumped on his riding animal and fled. However, the Muslims pursued him and_ took his life. The death of Rostom pulled the curtain down on the battle of Al-Qadissiyah, in which

Muslims were deservedly victorious. Muslims then marched straight to the city of Al-Madaa'in, where the estrade of the Khosrau_ was. The booty Muslims collected after this battle was incredibly enormous. One fifth of it was sent to the Commander of the Faithful.

Eaten up with worry and apprehension, ~Umar Ibn AlKhe taab, may Allah be pleased with him, used to stand outside Madinah and ask travellers about the battle taking place at AlQadissiyah. While standing there one day, ~Umar spotted a traveller on his riding animal waving from afar. When ~ Umar asked him about the battle, the man replied: " Allah has granted Muslims victory and they collected unimaginable booty." The man continued to talk not knowing who he was speaking to, and ~Umar kept walking next to the man's riding animal. When they approached Madinah, people saluted ~Umar addressing him as the Commander of the Faithful. Only then did he realize that he was talking to the Caliph. So he said: “May Allah have Mercy on you, Commander of the Faithful! Why did you not tell me you are the Caliph?" ~ Umar replied, "That is all right, brother."

The battle of Al-Qadissiyah was of considerable repercussions across the Arab Peninsula. Many Arabs were filled with anticipation and apprehension as fighting flared between Muslims and Persians since the survival or downfall of their kingdoms hinged on the destiny of the Persian empire. Hence, each city dispatched people to bring them news of the battle. Yet, when the Muslims became victorious, the jinns were the first to break the news even to the furthest corners of the Arab lands.

Lured by the victory they strove to attain, Muslims pursued the remaining vanquished Persians eastwards. They were convinced that their atheist enemies were no stronger than

a bleeding lion licking his wounds, and no longer able to put up any resistance. They therefore sought to finish the job by crushing them once and for all. They thus conquered the Persian capital, Al-Madaa'in, after a battle between the two armies. Seeing that his army was dealt one heavy blow after the other, the Persian King, Khosrau Yazdagird, fled the city. His estrade was turned into a small mosque wherein Allah was praised and glorified.

After the Persian capital had been conquered and annexed to the Muslim state, “Umar Ibn Al-Khattaab felt there was no need for Muslims to proceed with fighting as the borders between the Muslims and the Persians were then fully secured and there was nothing for the former to fear anymore. However, in the eyes of the Persians, they had lost the battle, but the war was far from being over. They were full of rage and felt humiliated at having been brought to their knees by some desert-dwellers who drowned in a_ sea of ignorance. They were simply clueless as to how such roughhewn, coarse beings managed to conquer a nation such as themselves, so civilised and advanced. Filled with bitter indignation, they were determined to retrieve what they had lost to the Arabs whom they loathed. What the Persians were not aware of was that the enemies they fought against were not the same ignorant wild Arabs who sank in chaos and lawlessness. They did not know that they were up against people who believed in One God, Whom they worshipped solely with all devotion. Their waywardness and ignorance were replaced with steadfast faith and refined manners. Their hearts were imbued with the moral principles of altruism, sacrifice, straightforwardness and renunciation of worldly gains. The Persians did not know they were crossing swords with dauntless warriors who would engage in fighting seeking none but either of two goals: victory or martyrdom. They

were not conscious of the fact that Muslims were under the command of a pious Caliph whose heart was filled with fear of Allah and who, unlike their haughty rulers, viewed himself as a humble servant of his Lord, whose job was to spread Islam and invite more and more people to worship the One Creator. There was probably no worse enemy they could ever have fought.

The battle of Al-Qadissiyah was followed by another at Galoolaa', a small town near Baghdad, wherein the Muslims were again victorious. The Persians were again grieviously defeated at Nahawand, another town south of Hamadan. This particular battle is known in history as "the mother of conquests", since it led to the conquering of the entire of Persia later on and to Muslims’ capturing of Khosrau's treasures. The battle of Nahawand took place in the year 21 AH.

At that point, the Commander of the Faithful thought the Muslim state had expanded to incorporate lands and nations that were previously soaked in atheistism and ignorance thanks to the series of battles they fought and won. With the sun of Islam now beaming down on the Arab Peninsula, in Syria and Iraq, “Umar was of the view that Muslims ought to end wars and focus on securing the lands they conquered. He believed that Muslims no longer had reason to worry about Islam. They managed to guard themselves against the Persians. Besides, the two cities, Al-Basrah and Al-Kufah, which Muslims populated offered an invaluable service to the then budding Muslim state. They provided protection to conquered lands behind them and a succor to those in front. Nonetheless, thw Muslims’ problems were not over yet. The Persian Khosrau was literally a thorn in the flesh. He was constantly fleeing from one city to another as Muslims proceeded to conquer Persian cities, every time gathering masses to fight the Muslims hoping to put an end to the worst nightmare of his life. In short, Yazdagird was a pathetic source of nuisance that Muslims hardly had time for.