Bayhaqi 12930 — A detachment that sets out from an army in enemy

Ibn Abi Dhi'b (may Allah have mercy on him) said: It has reached us that Sayyiduna Habib bin Maslamah (may Allah be pleased with him) fought a campaign against the Romans. They seized a man and suspected him (of spying). He told them that he was a spy, and informed them that the king of the Romans was behind this mountain with an army. He said to his companions: Give me your counsel. Some said: We think it best that you stay here until the rest of the people join you. Others said that you should return to your main body and not advance against them, for we do not have the strength to face them. He said: I make a covenant with Allah that I will not break my pledge; rather, I will be right in their midst. When the day advanced, they (the Romans) had spread over the land. So he charged himself and also urged on his companions, and the enemy was defeated and they obtained spoils. Then those people who had not been present at the fighting joined them and said: We too are your partners in the spoils. But those who had been present at the fighting said: You have no share, because you were not present at the fighting. And Sayyiduna Abdullah bin al-Zubayr (may Allah be pleased with them both) said: Those who were present were with Habib; you have no share. So they wrote about this matter to Sayyiduna Mu'awiyah (may Allah be pleased with him), and he wrote that the spoils should be distributed among them all. The narrator said: I think that Sayyiduna Mu'awiyah (may Allah be pleased with him) had written to Sayyiduna Umar (may Allah be pleased with him), and that Sayyiduna Umar (may Allah be pleased with him) had given this reply.