Explanation of the words of Imam al-Nawawi (may Allah have mercy on him) regarding what he quoted: "
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The Shaykh : In the name of Allah, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful.
The author (may Allah have mercy on him) stated, as he quoted from Anas ibn Malik (may Allah be pleased with him): I will take it , and none of them raised a hand to say ‘I will take it’ until he rushed forward
In this hadith, Anas says that the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) was at the Battle of Uhud. The Battle of Uhud is one of the major battles in which the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) fought personally. Uhud is a mountain near Madinah. The cause of the battle was that when Quraysh were defeated on the Day of Badr by the killing of their leaders and elders, they wanted to take revenge from the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him). They came to Madinah intending to attack the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him). The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) consulted his companions when he learned of their arrival. Some of them advised him to stay in Madinah, saying that if they entered the city, it would be possible to shoot them with arrows while they were fortified in the houses. Others, especially the young ones and those who had not been present at the Battle of Badr, advised him to go out to meet them. The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) entered his house and put on his armor, meaning the armor of war, then he went out. He ordered them to go out to meet them at Uhud. They met at Uhud, and the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) arranged his companions in an orderly row, in the best possible manner. He placed archers on the mountain who were skilled in shooting arrows; they were fifty men. He appointed Abdullah ibn Jubayr (may Allah be pleased with him) as their commander and said to them: ‘Do not leave your place. Stay in your place, whether the victory is for us or against us.’ When the two lines met, the polytheists fled, praise be to Allah. They fled and turned their backs, and the Muslims began to collect the spoils of war. The archers on the mountain said: ‘Come down, come down, so we can take the spoils and gather them.’ Their commander reminded them of the saying of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) to stay in their place, whether the outcome was for the Muslims or against them. But they (may Allah be pleased with them) thought that the matter was over because they saw the polytheists turning their backs. So they came down, and only a small group remained. When the cavalry of Quraysh saw that the mountain was empty of archers, they turned back and attacked the Muslims from behind. Then they mixed with the Muslims, and what happened was by the decree of the Almighty, the Wise (Exalted and Majestic is He). Seventy men from the Muslims were martyred, among them Hamzah ibn Abd al-Muttalib (may Allah be pleased with him), the uncle of the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him), the Lion of Allah and the Lion of His Messenger. They were martyred. When the Muslims were struck by this great calamity, they said: ‘How is this? How are we defeated while the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) is with us? We are the soldiers of Allah, and they have the devils with them, and they are the soldiers of the devils.’ So Allah (Mighty and Majestic) said to them:[Ali 'Imran 3:165] You are the cause, because you disobeyed, as Allah the Exalted said: [Ali 'Imran 3:152] meaning that what you dislike happened. So what happened occurred due to great wisdoms that Allah the Exalted mentioned in Surat al-Imran, and al-Hafiz Ibn al-Qayyim (may Allah have mercy on him) spoke about them well in the book *Zad al-Ma'ad*, explaining the great wisdoms of this battle, in a way I have not seen like it.
The important point is that the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) took a sword and said to his companions: ‘Who will take this sword?’ They all said: ‘We will take it.’ They raised their hands and extended them, saying: ‘I, I.’ He said: The people hesitated. They did not know what its right was. They feared that its right was very great and they would not be able to fulfill it. They also feared that they would be unable to fulfill it, and thus they would have taken this sword on a pledge from the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) and then not kept it. But Allah guided Abu Dujana (may Allah be pleased with him) to take it with its right, which is to strike with it until it breaks. He took it with its right. He took it with its right (may Allah be pleased with him) and fought with it, splitting the skulls of the polytheists (may Allah be pleased with him).
In this is evidence that it is recommended for a person to rush to do good and not delay, and to seek help from Allah the Exalted. When he seeks help from Allah and has a good opinion of Him, Allah will help him. Many people may consider an act of worship to be excessive or see it as great, and they are intimidated by it, so they turn back on their heels. But it is said to the person: Seek help from Allah, rely on Allah. When you seek help from Allah and rely on Him and enter into what pleases Him the Exalted, then be happy with good, and know that Allah the Exalted will help you, as Allah the Exalted said:[At-Talaq 65:3]
In this is also evidence of the good care of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) for his Ummah, because he did not single out any specific person for the sword, but he made the matter open to the general public. And thus it is recommended for a person whom Allah has entrusted with a group of people not to show favoritism to anyone, and not to act in a way that he thinks is favoritism. Because if he shows favoritism to someone or acts in a way that he thinks is favoritism, division will arise among the people, and this affects the group. Yes, if one person among the people has a distinction that does not exist in others, and the person singles him out for something, but he clarifies to the group that he singled him out for this distinction that does not exist in others, then there is no harm in that. And success is from Allah.
The author (may Allah have mercy on him) stated, as he quoted from Anas ibn Malik (may Allah be pleased with him):
That the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) took a sword on the day of Uhud and said: ‘Who will take this sword?’ The people extended their hands, all of them saying: ‘I, I.’
أن النبي صلى الله عليه وسلم أخذ سيفا يوم أحد فقال من يأخذ هذا السيف فبسط القوم أيديهم كلهم يقول أنا أناThen he said (peace and blessings be upon him): ‘Who will take it with its right?’ The people hesitated.
ثم قال صلى الله عليه وسلم من يأخذه بحقه فأحجم القومAbu Dujana (may Allah be pleased with him) said: ‘I will take it with its right.’ So he split the skulls of the polytheists with it.
أبو دجانة رضي الله عنه فقال أنا آخذه بحقه ففلق به هام المشركينIn this hadith, Anas says that the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) was at the Battle of Uhud. The Battle of Uhud is one of the major battles in which the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) fought personally. Uhud is a mountain near Madinah. The cause of the battle was that when Quraysh were defeated on the Day of Badr by the killing of their leaders and elders, they wanted to take revenge from the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him). They came to Madinah intending to attack the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him). The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) consulted his companions when he learned of their arrival. Some of them advised him to stay in Madinah, saying that if they entered the city, it would be possible to shoot them with arrows while they were fortified in the houses. Others, especially the young ones and those who had not been present at the Battle of Badr, advised him to go out to meet them. The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) entered his house and put on his armor, meaning the armor of war, then he went out. He ordered them to go out to meet them at Uhud. They met at Uhud, and the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) arranged his companions in an orderly row, in the best possible manner. He placed archers on the mountain who were skilled in shooting arrows; they were fifty men. He appointed Abdullah ibn Jubayr (may Allah be pleased with him) as their commander and said to them: ‘Do not leave your place. Stay in your place, whether the victory is for us or against us.’ When the two lines met, the polytheists fled, praise be to Allah. They fled and turned their backs, and the Muslims began to collect the spoils of war. The archers on the mountain said: ‘Come down, come down, so we can take the spoils and gather them.’ Their commander reminded them of the saying of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) to stay in their place, whether the outcome was for the Muslims or against them. But they (may Allah be pleased with them) thought that the matter was over because they saw the polytheists turning their backs. So they came down, and only a small group remained. When the cavalry of Quraysh saw that the mountain was empty of archers, they turned back and attacked the Muslims from behind. Then they mixed with the Muslims, and what happened was by the decree of the Almighty, the Wise (Exalted and Majestic is He). Seventy men from the Muslims were martyred, among them Hamzah ibn Abd al-Muttalib (may Allah be pleased with him), the uncle of the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him), the Lion of Allah and the Lion of His Messenger. They were martyred. When the Muslims were struck by this great calamity, they said: ‘How is this? How are we defeated while the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) is with us? We are the soldiers of Allah, and they have the devils with them, and they are the soldiers of the devils.’ So Allah (Mighty and Majestic) said to them:
Why [is it that] when a [single] disaster struck you [on the day of Uhud], although you had struck [the enemy in the battle of Badr] with one twice as great, you said, "From where is this?" Say, "It is from yourselves."
أولما أصابتكم مصيبة قد أصبتم مثليها قلنا أنّى هذا قل هو من عند أنفسكمuntil [the time] when you lost courage and fell to disputing about the order [given by the Prophet] and disobeyed after He had shown you that which you love
حتى إذا فشلتم وتنازعتم في الأمر وعصيتم من بعد ما أراكم ما تحبونThe important point is that the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) took a sword and said to his companions: ‘Who will take this sword?’ They all said: ‘We will take it.’ They raised their hands and extended them, saying: ‘I, I.’ He said:
Who will take it with its right?
من يأخذه بحقهHe said: ‘I will take it with its right.’
فقال أنا آخذه بحقهIn this is evidence that it is recommended for a person to rush to do good and not delay, and to seek help from Allah the Exalted. When he seeks help from Allah and has a good opinion of Him, Allah will help him. Many people may consider an act of worship to be excessive or see it as great, and they are intimidated by it, so they turn back on their heels. But it is said to the person: Seek help from Allah, rely on Allah. When you seek help from Allah and rely on Him and enter into what pleases Him the Exalted, then be happy with good, and know that Allah the Exalted will help you, as Allah the Exalted said:
And whoever relies upon Allah - then He is sufficient for him.
ومن يتوكل على الله فهو حسبهIn this is also evidence of the good care of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) for his Ummah, because he did not single out any specific person for the sword, but he made the matter open to the general public. And thus it is recommended for a person whom Allah has entrusted with a group of people not to show favoritism to anyone, and not to act in a way that he thinks is favoritism. Because if he shows favoritism to someone or acts in a way that he thinks is favoritism, division will arise among the people, and this affects the group. Yes, if one person among the people has a distinction that does not exist in others, and the person singles him out for something, but he clarifies to the group that he singled him out for this distinction that does not exist in others, then there is no harm in that. And success is from Allah.