Hadith 4139

حَدَّثَنَا مَحْمُودٌ , حَدَّثَنَا عَبْدُ الرَّزَّاقِ , أَخْبَرَنَا مَعْمَرٌ , عَنْ الزُّهْرِيِّ , عَنْ أَبِي سَلَمَةَ , عَنْ جَابِرِ بْنِ عَبْدِ اللَّهِ , قَالَ : غَزَوْنَا مَعَ رَسُولِ اللَّهِ صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ غَزْوَةَ نَجْدٍ , فَلَمَّا أَدْرَكَتْهُ الْقَائِلَةُ وَهُوَ فِي وَادٍ كَثِيرِ الْعِضَاهِ فَنَزَلَ تَحْتَ شَجَرَةٍ وَاسْتَظَلَّ بِهَا , وَعَلَّقَ سَيْفَهُ فَتَفَرَّقَ النَّاسُ فِي الشَّجَرِ يَسْتَظِلُّونَ , وَبَيْنَا نَحْنُ كَذَلِكَ إِذْ دَعَانَا رَسُولُ اللَّهِ صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ , فَجِئْنَا فَإِذَا أَعْرَابِيٌّ قَاعِدٌ بَيْنَ يَدَيْهِ , فَقَالَ : " إِنَّ هَذَا أَتَانِي وَأَنَا نَائِمٌ فَاخْتَرَطَ سَيْفِي , فَاسْتَيْقَظْتُ وَهُوَ قَائِمٌ عَلَى رَأْسِي مُخْتَرِطٌ صَلْتًا , قَالَ : مَنْ يَمْنَعُكَ مِنِّي ؟ قُلْتُ : اللَّهُ , فَشَامَهُ ثُمَّ قَعَدَ فَهُوَ هَذَا " , قَالَ : وَلَمْ يُعَاقِبْهُ رَسُولُ اللَّهِ صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ .
Narrated Jabir bin `Abdullah: We took part in the Ghazwa of Najd along with Allah's Apostle and when the time for the afternoon rest approached while he was in a valley with plenty of thorny trees, he dismounted under a tree and rested in its shade and hung his sword (on it). The people dispersed amongst the trees in order to have shade. While we were in this state, Allah's Apostle called us and we came and found a bedouin sitting in front of him. The Prophet said, "This (Bedouin) came to me while I was asleep, and he took my sword stealthily. I woke up while he was standing by my head, holding my sword without its sheath. He said, 'Who will save you from me?' I replied, 'Allah.' So he sheathed it (i.e. the sword) and sat down, and here he is." But Allah's Apostle did not punish him.
Hadith Reference صحيح البخاري / كتاب المغازي / 4139
Hadith Grading محدثین: أحاديث صحيح البخاريّ كلّها صحيحة
Explanation & Benefits
Shaykh Abdul Sattar al-Hammad
Hadith Commentary:
1.
According to one narration, this Bedouin asked the Messenger of Allah (sallallahu alayhi wa sallam) three times, "Who will protect you from me?" The Messenger of Allah (sallallahu alayhi wa sallam) replied each time, "Allah will protect me."
(Sahih al-Bukhari, Kitab al-Jihad wa'l-Siyar, Hadith: 2910)
This means that Allah, the Exalted, granted His Messenger (sallallahu alayhi wa sallam) special protection; otherwise, why would the Bedouin need to ask repeatedly when the Messenger of Allah (sallallahu alayhi wa sallam) was sitting before him unarmed?
But when the Bedouin realized that killing him was not within his power, he surrendered himself to the Prophet (sallallahu alayhi wa sallam).
(Fath al-Bari: 7/534)
2.
This incident occurred around the time of the Battle of Banu Mustaliq; for this reason, it has been mentioned here, otherwise, in essence, it has no direct connection to the Battle of Banu Mustaliq.
And Allah knows best.
Source: Hidayat al-Qari: Commentary on Sahih Bukhari, Urdu, Page: 4139
Maulana Dawood Raz
Hadith Commentary:
This hadith has already been mentioned above. Here, Imam Bukhari rahimahullah has brought this hadith to establish that if military personnel, while traveling during the day, wish to take a midday rest (qaylulah) in the wilderness, they may search for a shady tree according to their preference and may separate from their leader to rest. This is not contrary to the etiquettes of warfare.
Source: Sahih Bukhari: Commentary by Maulana Dawood Raz, Page: 2913
Shaykh Abdul Sattar al-Hammad
Hadith Commentary:
1.
It is understood from this hadith that at that time, arrangements for your (the Prophet's sallallahu alayhi wa sallam) protection were not made.
After this incident, when you took measures for your protection, the verse was revealed:
﴿وَاللَّـهُ يَعْصِمُكَ مِنَ النَّاسِ﴾ "Allah will protect you from the people." (Al-Ma'idah: 5/67)
After this, you discontinued the protective measures and relied solely on divine protection.
2.
Imam Bukhari rahimahullah's purpose is to show that if military personnel, while traveling somewhere at noon, wish to take a midday nap (qaylulah) in the wilderness, they may search for a shady tree according to their preference and may separate from their leader for rest, and this is not contrary to the etiquettes of war.
Source: Hidayat al-Qari: Commentary on Sahih Bukhari, Urdu, Page: 2913
Maulana Dawood Raz
Hadith Commentary:

Ibn Ishaq narrated in al-Maghazi that the disbelievers said to that Bedouin, whose name was Du’thoor, “At this moment, Muhammad (sallallahu alayhi wa sallam) is alone and it is a good opportunity.” So he took your (sallallahu alayhi wa sallam) sword and stood by your head and said, “Now who will save you?” You (sallallahu alayhi wa sallam) replied, “My savior is Allah.” As soon as you (sallallahu alayhi wa sallam) said this, Jibril (alayhis salam) immediately arrived and struck that Bedouin on his chest, causing the sword to fall from his hand. You (sallallahu alayhi wa sallam) then picked it up and said, “Now who will save you?” He replied, “No one.”
Source: Sahih Bukhari: Commentary by Maulana Dawood Raz, Page: 2910
Shaykh Abdul Sattar al-Hammad
Hadith Commentary:

According to a narration in Sahih al-Bukhari, the name of the person who drew a sword against the Messenger of Allah (sallallahu alayhi wa sallam) was Ghawrath ibn al-Harith.
(Sahih al-Bukhari, al-Maghazi, Hadith: 4136)


In the narration of Imam Bayhaqi (rahimahullah), it is mentioned that upon hearing the reply of the Messenger of Allah (sallallahu alayhi wa sallam), the sword fell from the hand of that Bedouin. The Messenger of Allah (sallallahu alayhi wa sallam) picked it up and said:
“Now who will save you from me?”
He replied:
“I hope for good treatment from you.”
The Prophet (sallallahu alayhi wa sallam) said:
“Will you accept Islam?”
He said:
“I will not accept Islam, but I promise you that I will not fight against you, nor will I support those who fight against you.”
So the Prophet (sallallahu alayhi wa sallam) let him go.
After that, he went to his people and said:
“I have come from the best of mankind.”
(Dala’il al-Nubuwwah lil-Bayhaqi: 3/456)


The purpose of this hadith is that Muslims should not be heedless regarding their weapons; however, if the circumstances are not so severe, a mujahid may keep his weaponry nearby and rest himself.
And Allah knows best.
Source: Hidayat al-Qari: Commentary on Sahih Bukhari, Urdu, Page: 2910
Shaykh Maulana Abdul Aziz Alvi
Hadith Commentary: Benefits and Issues: (1)
In this hadith, the incident involving the polytheist named Ghawrath bin Harith is mentioned in extreme brevity. The full incident is as follows: When the Prophet (sallallahu alayhi wa sallam) said, "Allah, the Exalted, will protect me," the sword fell from his hand, and according to Ibn Ishaq, Jibril (alayhis salam) pushed him, causing the sword to fall. The Prophet (sallallahu alayhi wa sallam) picked up the sword, questioned him, and said, "Now who will protect you from me?" He replied, "Be a good captor," because no one can save except you. The Prophet (sallallahu alayhi wa sallam) said, "Do you bear witness that there is no deity except Allah and that I am the Messenger of Allah?" He said, "I promise that I will not fight against you, nor will I support those who fight against you." After this, the Prophet (sallallahu alayhi wa sallam) called his companions, and when they arrived, they saw a Bedouin sitting with the Prophet (sallallahu alayhi wa sallam). The Prophet (sallallahu alayhi wa sallam) informed his companions of the incident, and then let him go. He returned and informed his people of the incident and praised the Prophet (sallallahu alayhi wa sallam). Later, he became a Muslim.

(2)
From this hadith, it is understood that the Prophet (sallallahu alayhi wa sallam) led each group in two separate units (rak‘ahs) of prayer. In this way, the second set of two units was supererogatory (nafl) for the Prophet (sallallahu alayhi wa sallam), but obligatory (fard) for the second group. Thus, it is established that it is permissible to perform an obligatory prayer behind someone who is performing a supererogatory prayer.

(3)
The author has described as many forms of prayer as there are, and all forms are permissible according to the situation and context. Prayer should be performed in whatever way is possible; it must not be abandoned. Imam Malik rahimahullah and Imam Shafi‘i rahimahullah preferred the method from the hadith of Sahl bin Abi Hathmah radi Allahu anhu. Imam Ahmad rahimahullah preferred the hadith of Ibn Jubayr rahimahullah, and Imam Abu Hanifah rahimahullah preferred the method of Jabir radi Allahu anhu, i.e., hadith number 308.
Source: Tuhfat al-Muslim: Commentary on Sahih Muslim, Page: 1949
Shaykh Maulana Abdul Aziz Alvi
Hadith Commentary:
Vocabulary of the Hadith:
(1)
Salta:
To draw a sword from its sheath.
(2)
Shama as-saif:
To put the sword back into its sheath.
Source: Tuhfat al-Muslim: Commentary on Sahih Muslim, Page: 5950