|
Khalid looked at the boulder-strewn
valley which led to the spur, and then at the steep slope of the
spur itself. He had misgivings about the manoeuvre, for he knew
that in this sort of terrain his cavalry would be at a serious disadvantage.
But he hoped that some opportunity might present itself, as it had
done soon after the initial defeat of the Quraish. Khalid was an
irrepressible optimist. He began to move his squadron towards the
spur.
The Prophet saw this movement and prayed:
"O Lord, let not those men get here." 1
Thereupon Umar took a group of Muslims and moved some distance down
the slope to face the Quraish cavalry. As Khalid came up with his
squadron, he saw Umar and other Muslims waiting for him on higher
ground. Khalid realised that the situation was hopeless-that not
only was his enemy better placed, but his own cavalry would be unable
to manoeuvre in this difficult terrain. He withdrew. And this was
the last tactical manoeuvre in the Battle of Uhud.
Abu Sufyan and Khalid, among many others,
now saw a sight which they would never forget and of which they
did not approve. The battlefield where the Muslim martyrs lay was
invaded by Hind and the Quraish women. Hind found the body of Hamza
and, knife in hand, fell upon it.
Hind was a large, heavily built woman and
had no difficulty in mutilating the corpse. She cut open the belly
and pulled out Hamza's liver. Slicing off a piece of it she put
it in her mouth; and she swallowed it! She then cut off Hamza's
nose and ears, and made the other women do the same to many of the
other corpses.
The Savage now approached Hind. She turned
to him, took off all her ornaments and gave them to him. "And
when we get to Makkah," she said, "I shall give
you 10 dinars." 2 Having disposed
of her own jewellery, she made a necklace and anklets of the ears
and noses of the martyrs who had been mutilated, and she put on
these grisly ornaments! Having done so, this extraordinary woman
sang:
We have repaid you for the day of Badr-
One bloody day after another.
I could not bear the loss of Utbah,
Or of my uncle, my brother, my son.
Now my heart is cooled, my vow fulfilled;
And the savage has driven the pain from my heart.
The savage shall I thank as long as I live,
Until my bones turn to nothing in my grave. 3
Soon after this gruesome drama had been
enacted, Abu Sufyan walked up the valley. He was still hoping that
Muhammad might be dead; that Khalid had made a mistake. He climbed
on to a large rock some distance from the Prophet's position and
shouted, "Is Muhammad among you?" The Prophet motioned
to his Companions to remain silent. Abu Sufyan repeated the question
twice, but there was no reply.
Then thrice Abu Sufyan asked, "Is
Abu Bakr among you?" And thrice he asked, "Is Umar
among you?" There was noting but silence from the spur.
Abu Sufyan now turned towards the Quraish,
who stood not far from him, and shouted, "These three are
dead. They will trouble you no more." At this Umar could
no longer restrain himself and roared at Abu Sufyan, "You
lie, O Enemy of Allah! Those whom you have counted are alive, and
there are enough of us left to punish you severely."
Abu Sufyan's response was loud and contemptuous
laughter. He knew that the Muslims were in no condition at the moment
to punish anybody. But he called to Umar, "May Allah protect
you, O Son of Al Khattab! Is Muhammad really alive?"
1. Ibn Hisham: Vol. 2, p. 86.
2. Waqidi:
Maghazi, p. 222.
3. Ibn Hisham:
Vol. 2, p. 91.
| 
