Utbah ibn Ghazwan - Biographies of the Companions (Sahabah)

Umar ibn al-Kattab, the head of the rapidly expanding Muslim State
went to bed early just afterthe Salat al-Isha. He wanted to have a
rest and feel refreshed forhis nightly tour of inspection of the
capital city which he often did incognito. Before he could/all asleep
however, the post from the outlying regions of the State arrived
informing him that the Persian forces confronting the Muslims were
proving especially difficult to subdue. They were able to send in
reinforcements and supplies from many places to relieve theirarmies on
the point of defeat. The letter urged Umar to send reinforcements and
in particular it said:
"The city of al-Ubullah must be considered one of the most important
sources providing men and material to the Persian forces under
attack."
Umar decided then to despatch an army to take the city of al-Ubullah
and cut off its line of supplies to the Persian armies. His main
problem was that he had so few men left with him in the city. That was
because young men, men of maturity and even old men had gone out on
campaigns far and wide in the path of God, fi sabilillah.
In these circumstances he determined to follow the strategy which he
knew and which was well-tried that is, to mobilize a small force and
place it under the leadership of a strong and able commander. He
considered, one after another the names of the individuals who were
still with him, to see who was the most suitable commander. Finally,
he exclaimed himself: "I have foundhim. Yes I have found him."
He then went back to bed: The person he had in mind was a well-known
mujahid who had fought at Badr, Uhud, al-Khandaq and other battles.
Hehad also fought in the terrible battles of Yamamah and emerged
unscathed. He was in fact one of the first to accept Islam. He went on
the first hijrahto Abyssinia but had returned tostay with the Prophet
in Makkah.He then went on hijrah to Madinah. This tall and imposing
companion of the Prophet was known for his exceptional skill inthe use
of spears and arrows.
When morning came, Umar called his attendants and said:"Call Utbah ibn
Ghazwan for me," Umar managed to put together an army of just over
three hundred men and he appointed Utbah as their commander with the
promise that he would send reinforcements to him as soon as possible.
When the army was assembled in ranks ready to depart, Umar al-Faruq
stood before them bidding them farewell and giving instructions to his
commander, Utbah. He said:"Utbah, I am sending you to the land of
al-Ubullah. It is one of the major fortresses of the enemy and I pray
that God helps you to take it. When you reach the city, invite its
inhabitants to the worship of God. If they respond to you, accept them
(as Muslims). If they refuse, then take from them the jizyah.. If they
refuse to pay the jizyah then fight them... And fear God, O Utbah, in
the discharge of yourduties. Beware of letting yourself become too
haughty or arrogant for this will corrupt your hereafter. Know that
you were a companion of the Messenger of God, may God bless him and
grant him peace. God honoured you through him after your being
insignificant. Hestrengthened you through him after you were weak. You
have become a commander with authority and a leader who mustbe obeyed.
What a great blessing if this does not make you vain and deceive you
and lead you to Jahannam. May God protect you and me from it."
With this chastening advice and prayer, Utbah and his army set off.
Several women were in the army including his wife and the wives and
sisters of other men. Eventually they reached a place called Qasbaa
not very far from al-Ubullah. It was called Qasbaa because of the
abundance of reed-like stalks which grew there.
At that point the army was absolutely famished. They had nothing to
eat. When hunger gripped them, Utbah ordered some of his men to go and
search the land for something toeat. One of the men told the story of
their search of food:
"While we were searching for something to eat, we entered a thicket
and, lo and behold there were two large baskets. In one there were
dates and in the other small white grains coveredwith a yellow husk.
We dragged the baskets with the grain and said: "This is poison which
the enemy has prepared for you. Don't go near it all."
We went for the dates and began eating from it. While we were busy
eating the dates, a horse which had broken loose from its tether went
up to the basket of grain and began eating from it. By God, we
seriously thought of slaughtering it before it should die (from the
alleged poison) and benefit from its meat. However, its owner came up
to us and said: "Leave it. I shall lookafter it for the night and if I
feel that it is going to die, I will slaughter it."
In the morning we found the horse quite healthy with no signof ill
effects. My sister then said: 'Yaa akhi, I have heard my fathersaying:
Poison does not harm (food) if it is placed on fire and cooked well.'
We then took some of the grain,placed it in a pot and put it on a
fire. After a short while my sistercalled out: 'Come and see how it
has become red and the husks have begun to separate leaving white
grains.'
We placed the white grains in a large bowl and Utbah said to us:
'Mention the name of Allah on it and eat it.' We ate and found it
exceedingly delicious and good. We learnt after that the grain was
called rice."
The army of Utbah then went onto the fortified city of al-Ubullah on
the banks of the River Euphrates. The Persians used al-Ubullah as a
massive arms depot. There were several fortresses in the city from
whichtowers sprang. These were usedas observation posts to detect any
hostile movements outside the city.
The city appeared to be impregnable. What chance had Utbah of taking
it with such a small force armed with only swords and spears? A direct
assault was obviously futile and so Utbah had to resort to some
stratagem.
Utbah had flags prepared which he had hung on spears. These hegave to
the women and ordered them to march behind the army.His instructions
to them then were: "When we get near to the city, raise the dust
behind us so that the entire atmosphere is filled with it."
As they neared al-Ubullah, a Persian force came out to confront them,
they saw the Muslims boldly advancing, the flags fluttering behind
them andthe dust which was being churned up and which filled the air
around. They thought that the Muslims in front of the flags were
merely the vanguard of theadvancing army, a strong and numerous army.
They felt they would be no match for such a foe. They lost heart and
prepared to evacuate the city. Picking up whatever valuables they
could, they rushed to boats anchored on the river and abandoned their
well-fortified city.
Utbah entered al-Ubullah without losing any of his men. From this base
he managed to bring surrounding towns and villages under Muslim
control. When news spread of Utbah's successes, and of the richness
ofthe land he had occupied, many people flocked to the region in
search of wealth and easy living.
Uqbah noted that many Muslims now inclined towards a soft life and
followed the ways and customs of the region and that this weakened
their determination to continue struggling.
He wrote to Umar ibn al-Khattabasking for permission to build the
garrison town of Basrah. He described the locations he had chosen for
the city and Umar gave his assent. Basrah lay between the desert and
the ports of the Gulf and from this base expeditions were launched
further east. The positioning of the town was for maximum military
effectiveness (not merely to support an army of occupation).
Utbah himself planned the city and built its first great masjid which
was a simple enclosure, roofed over at one end and suitable for mass
assemblies. From the mosque, Utbah and hismen went out on military
campaigns. These men eventually settled on the land and built houses.
Utbah himself however did not build a house for himself but continued
to live in a tent of cloth. He had seen how preoccupation with worldly
possessions had caused many people to forget themselves andtheir real
purpose in life. He had seen how men who not long ago knew no food
better than rice boiled in their husks, getting accustomed to
sophisticated Persian patisserie like fasludhanj and lawzinaj made
with refined flour, butter, honey and nuts of various kinds to the
point where they hankered after these things.
Utbah was afraid that his din would be affected by his dunya and he
was concerned about his hereafter. He called men to the masjid of
Basrah and addressed them thus: "O people! The dunyawill come to an
end and you willbe carried from it to an abode which will not wane or
disappear. Go to it with the best of your deeds. I look back and see
myself among the early Muslims with the Messenger of Allah may God
bless him and grant him peace. We had no food then apart from the
leaves of trees and our lips would fester. One day I found a burdah.I
tore it in two and shared it with Sad ibn Abi Waqqas. I madean aazar
with one half and he did the same with the other half. Here we are
today. There is not one of us but he is an amir of one of the garrison
towns. I seek Allah's protection lest I become great in my own
estimation and little in the sight of Allah.." With these words Utbah
appointed someone else to stand in his place, and bade farewell to the
people of Basrah.
It was the season of pilgrimage and he left to perform the Hajj. He
then travelled to Madinah andthere he asked Umar to relieve him of the
responsibility of governing the city. Umar refused. He could not
easily dispense with a governor of the quality of Utbah and said to
him:
"You place your trusts and your responsibilities on my neck and then
you abandon me to myself. No, by God, I shall never relieve you." So
Umar prevailed upon him and commanded him to return to Basrah, Utbah
knew that he had to obey the Amir al-Muminin but he did so with a
heavy heart. He mounted his camel and on his way he prayed:
"O Lord, do not send me back to Basrah. O Lord, do not send me back to
Basrah." He had not gone far from Madinah when hiscamel stumbled.
Utbah fell and the injuries he sustained proved to be fatal.

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And Allah Knows the Best!

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