Episode 9: Life of Abu Bakr
Tulayha’s Apostasy:
In the ninth year of Hijrah, Tulayha ibn Khuwaylid and some members of the tribe of Banu Asad came to Madinah and accepted Islam during the lifetime of the Prophet Muhammad ﷺ.
Shortly before the passing of the Prophet, Tulayha left Islam and started claiming that he, himself, was a prophet.
The Jews encouraged him to go around and tell people that he is a prophet of Allah, as they knew that he was not a prophet but they still encouraged him in order to cause division between the Arabs and the Muslims.
The Prophet Muhammad’s Response:
When the Prophet Muhammad ﷺ heard that Tulayha was claiming to be a prophet, he sent Dirar ibn al-Azwar (who was also from Banu Asad) with an army to go and confront Tulayha.
When Dirar and his army were on their way to fight Tulayha, the news reached them that the Prophet Muhammad ﷺ had passed away.
The army of Dirar ibn al-Azwar divided into two groups, some of them remained firm upon Islam and stayed with Dirar. However, a number of them became apostates and joined Tulayha.
The tribe of Ghatafan and a number of people from the tribe of Hawazin also joined Tulayha ibn Khuwaylid.
Dirar ibn al-Azwar knew that his army was not strong enough to face Tulayha, so his army came back to Madinah.
Abu Bakr’s Decision:
Abu Bakr realised that Tulayha ibn Khuwaylid was one of the most dangerous threats upon the apostates.
Because of this, he sent the strongest general, Khalid ibn al-Walid as commander of the army to go and fight Tulayha.
Adiy ibn Hatim’s Role:
Amongst the army of Khalid was Adiy ibn Hatim, who was from the tribe of Tayy, the tribe that had left Islam and joined Tulayha.
Adiy was in a good position to go and talk to his people and he asked Khalid ibn al-Walid to give him permission to talk to his people to try and convince them to come back to Islam.
Khalid agreed to this and gave him permission and Adi ibn Hatim then confronted his people and eventually, he convinced the tribe of Tayy to leave Tulayha and come back to Islam.
The tribe of Tayy accepted these words from Adiy and rejoined Islam and they now joined the army of Khalid ibn al-Walid.
When Adiy ibn Hatim saw that he was successful in convincing the tribe of Tayy, he asked Khalid ibn al-Walid for permission to speak to another tribe who had left Islam.
Khalid gave Adiy ibn Hatim permission to speak to the tribe and they also left Tulayha and came back to Islam.
The Muslim army was now increasing and the army of Tulayha was weakening.
The Battle Against Tulayha ibn Khuwaylid:
There were casualties from both sides but from the Muslims, two great companions of the Prophet were killed.
Thabit ibn al-Aqram, who participated in every battle that the Prophet Muhammad ﷺ led, from Badr to Tabuk, was killed in this battle against Tulayha.
Ukasha ibn al-Mihsan, who was one of the early Muslims, was also martyred in this battle.
Khalid ibn Walid had the upper hand and Tulayha eventually knew that he was going to lose this battle so he got two horses, one for himself and one for his wife and he abandoned his army.
Tulayha ibn Khuwaylid was the commander of this army and once he fled, the army retreated.
Victory for the Muslims:
Khalid ibn Walid and the Muslims were victorious in this battle and the threat of the false prophet, Tulayha was finished.
Tulayha ibn Khuwaylid’s Repentance:
Later on, Tulayha ibn Khuwaylid repented and became a Muslim again.
After he re-entered Islam, he was too ashamed to even look at the face of Abu Bakr.
Umar ibn al-Khattab Confronts Tulayha During His Caliph:
During the Caliphate of Umar ibn al-Khattab, Tulayha came for Umrah.
Umar said to Tulayha: you are the person who killed Thabit and Ukasha. Tulayha replied: Allah honoured them with my hand and they got the honour of becoming martyrs.
Umar ibn al-Khattab then said: Wallahi, I will never have love for you!
The Ghatafan’s Female Leader:
The tribe of Ghatafan retreated and they still did not immediately come back to Islam.
Instead, they selected a new leader for themselves and this leader was a woman named Sulma bint Malik.
Khalid ibn al-Walid Kills Sulma bint Malik:
Khalid ibn al-Walid and the Muslim army went after the Ghatafan, who tried their best to protect their leader, Sulma.
Khalid and the Muslim army killed one hundred men who were defending her and eventually, they were able to penetrate through the enemy army.
They encountered Sulma bint Malik and Khalid ibn al-Walid killed her.
Some of the Tribes Return to Islam:
After this incident, the tribe of Ghatafan came back to Islam.
Some of the other tribes witnessed what had happened to the army of Tulayha ibn Khuwaylid and the tribe of Ghatafan so they decided to surrender and come back to Islam.
The Betrayal of Fuja’ah:
One of the members of the tribe of Banu Sulaym, Fuja’ah went to Abu Bakr and said: I am still a Muslim. My tribe has left Islam and apostated but I am still a Muslim so I want you to support me and provide me with supplies so I can and fight the apostates from within my own tribe.
Abu Bakr believed that this man was honest and he gave him a small army under Fuja’ah’s command and the plan was to go to the Banu Sulaym and fight the apostates.
When Fuja’ah reached Banu Sulaym, he apostated himself and left Islam.
By doing this, he betrayed Abu Bakr and he started killing the Muslims.
Abu Bakr’s Response:
When Abu Bakr heard about this betrayal, he sent Turayfa ibn Hajir with his army to go and capture Fuja’ah.
The Muslims were able to capture him and they sent him back to Abu Bakr.
Abu Bakr wanted to make an example out of Fuja’ah and he ordered for a fire to be lit and firewood to be placed in the fire. He then ordered for Fuja’ah to be thrown into the fire alive, as an example that if anyone who commits treason, they will be punished severely.
Fuja’ah was then thrown into the fire where he was destroyed. The tribe of Banu Sulaym witnessed what happened and they got so scared that they surrendered and came back to Islam.