Issue #2 2009

Jaffar al TayyarJafar ibne Abu-Talib, also known as Jafar al-Tayyar was the son of Abu-Talib and the grandson of Abdul-Muttalib. Abdul-Muttalib was the grandfather of Prophet Mohammed (PBUH). Jafar al-Tayar was 10 years older than his brother Imam Ali (AS) and was about 20 years younger than Prophet Mohammed (PBUH). Jafar al-Tayar was raised by his uncle Abbas and stayed with him till he got married to Asma binte Umays.

Quraish was the dominant tribe of Mecca upon the appearance of the religion of Islam. It was the tribe to which the Prophet Muhammad (PBUH) belonged, as well as the tribe that led the initial opposition to his message. Quraish restricted the freedom and started to harrass the ones who followed Islam and torture the ones in Makkah. As a result, Jafar al-Tayar on the request of Prophet Mohammed (PBUH) immigrated to Ethiopia along with a small group of eighty Sahabas. Jafar al-Tayar spent 10 years in Ethiopia. Jafar al-Tayar had three children whom they named Abdullah married Zaynab binte Ali (their sons were martyred in the battle of Karbala).

In the seventh year of the Hijra, Jafar al-Tayar and his family left Abyssinia with a group of Muslims and headed for Medina. On their arrival at Medina, Prophet Mohammad (PBUH) was returning from the Battle of Khaybar and on seeing Jafar al-Tayar, he was very happy and said, "I don't know which event is more cheerful - Jafar's coming or the Conquest of Khaybar!"

Battle of Mautah In the battle of Mautah, which happened in the eight year of the Hijra, Prophet Mohammed (PBUH) mobilized an army of 3000 to confront Byzantine forces in Syria, because a Byzantine governor had treacherously killed one of his emissaries. Prophet Mohammed had sent a messenger to the ruler of Busra, a town in Sham, but the messenger was captured and executed in the land of Mautah.

The news of advance of the Muslim army reached the Romans and they quickly established an army which was composed of the Romans and the allied Arab tribes. The number of their forces was two hundred thousand soldiers. The armies gathered at the land of al-Balqaa. Hercules, the Emperor of Rome, gave the general leadership to his brother Theodore.

Prophet Mohammed (PBUH) appointed Jafar ibn Abu Talib as commander of the army and gave the following instructions: "If Ja’far is

The Battle of Mautah

2:154 Wala taqooloo liman yuqtalu fee sabeeli Allahi amwatun bal ahyaon walakin la tashAAuroona

In This Issue

• Jafar al-Tayar• Battle of Mautah• Crossword• Wafat Bibi Fatima

(S) puzzle solution• Featured Cartoon

wounded or killed, Zayd ibne Harithah would take over the command. If Zayd is killed or wounded, then your commander would be Abdullah ibn Rawahah. If Abdullah ibn Rawahah is killed, then let the Muslims choose for themselves a commander." Seeing the huge numbers of Romans, some of the soldiers in the Muslim army hesitated and demanded that a messenger be sent to the Prophet (s) to inform him of the situation; either he will order our return or increase our numbers. Abdullah ibn Rawahah exhorted them to be strong. He said, ‘We have never fought our enemies relying on our numbers or weapons or horses; instead we always relied on our Deen with which Allah has honored us. Move forward! Fight! Surely by Allah, on the day of Badr we only had two horses. (Don’t hesitate) Our destiny will be one of two good things: Either victory over them

which is ultimately the promise of Allah and His Prophet for us, which cannot be false, or it will be Martyrdom! On hearing these inspiring words, people were energized.

As Jafar al-Tayar spurred his horse on, he called out: "How wonderful is Paradise as it draws near! How pleasant and cool is its drink! Punishment for the Byzantines is not far away!" Jafar al-Tayar carried the banner of Islam and fought vigorously.

As the fighting intensified and the Romans surrounded the Muslim army, Jafar al-Tayar jumped off his horse and engaged the enemy in a fierce battle. He confronted them bravely, and his firmness struck fear in their hearts. The Romans gradually intensified their attacks because of their large numbers. Jafar al-Tayar lost his right arm and held the standard in his left while continuing to fight. Tragically, after

sometime, his left arm was severed too and he held the flag close to his chest until he was killed. His body contained seventy two wounds from lances, swords and arrows all centered around his chest. When the soldiers of Islam came back to their homeland, they began telling their families about Jafar al-Tayar's heroic actions and those who were martyred.

One of them said: We've seen 90 wounds in Jafar's body. Another said: I've seen him when his right hand had been cut off. The third said: I've seen him when his left hand had been cut off. He had fallen over the ground and his wounds bled. Our Prophet Mohammad (PBUH) said: Jibreel has told me that Allah has granted Jafar two wings to fly with in the Paradise. Prophet Mohammed (PBUH) went to condoling Asma, the great

Martyr's wife.

The Holy Prophet (PBUH) came into Jafar al-Tayar's house asking ‘Where are the children of Ja’far?’ Asma brought them to the Prophet (s) who hugged them and then his eyes filled with tears and he began crying. Asma felt that something had happened to her husband, and asked if the Prophet (s) had received any news about Ja’far. ‘Yes’ he said, ‘He has become a martyr today’. Asma stood up crying impatiently, and the women gathered to mourn with her. The Prophet (PBUH) advised her to bear the loss for Allah, and left the house. He went to his daughter Fatima al-Zahra (SA) and said ‘For someone like Ja’far, the mourners should mourn’, and asked her to prepare some food for the family of Ja’far, because a disaster had befallen them.

THE ROMAN EMPEROR ORDERS THE EXECUTION OF THE MESSENGER

JAFAR AL-TAYAR IN THE BATTLE OF MAUTAH

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