Story Of The Murder of Asim (Radi'Allahu Anhu) & Khubaib And Their (Radi'Allahu Anhuma) Friends :

Story Of The Murder of Asim (Radi'Allahu Anhu) & Khubaib And Their (Radi'Allahu Anhuma) Friends :

Abu Hurairah (Radi'Allahu Anhu) narrated, "The Messenger of ALLAH (Sallallahu Alayhi Wasallam) sent a reconnaissance on a vigilance mission. Asim Ibn Thabit (Radi'Allahu Anhu) who was the grandfather of Asim Ibn Umar Ibn Khattab (Radi'Allahu Anhu), was appointed its Ansar (Commander). They set out and reached a place between Usfan & Makkah. The people of Banu Lihyan, a clan of Hudhail tribe, were informed about them.

They sent one hundred archers to follow them. The archers chased them until they reached the place where the Muslims had encamped. There they saw the stones of the dates, which the Muslims had brought with them from Madinah. They said to each other : 'These are the dates of Yathrib (Madinah).' They followed their footstep until they succeeded to catch them. When they came nearer to Asim and his fellows, they climbed a hillock. The unbelievers surrounded them and said, 'We promise not to kill even a person amongst you if you got down.' 'Asim replied, 'As far as I am concerned I will not come down under the protection of an Unbeliever. O ALLAH! Inform Thy Prophet about us.' They fought with them. The Unbelivers killed Asim and his seven fellows by arrows. Khubaib, Zaid and a third person were left. The unbelievers promised not to kill them. Therefore, they came down. The Unbelievers overpowered them and tied them with the strings of the bows. The third man said, 'This is first betrayal from you.' He refused to go with them. The Unbelievers pulled him but he did not accompany them. In the last they killed him, and carried Khubaib (Radi'Allahu Anhu) & Zaid (Radi'Allahu Anhu) with them and sold both of them in Makkah. Khubaib (Radi'Allahu Anhu) was bought by the people of Harith Ibn Amir Ibn Naufal. Khubaib had killed Harith Ibn Amir in the battle of Badr. He lived with them as a captive until they decide to kill him. During his captivity he borrowed a razor to shave his under-naval hair. One of the girls of Banu Harith gave that to him. She forgot her baby in the prison cell. The baby moved closer to him. He made the baby sit over his thigh. On seeing that the girl became afraid. Khubaib (Radi'Allahu Anhu) recognized her feelings as he was having the razor in his hand. He asked her, 'Do you fear that I would kill him? I will never commit such an act - In sha ALLAH (ALLAH - willing).' The girl later on remarked, i never saw a gentle prisoner like Khubaib. I saw him eating fresh grapes, although fresh grapes were not available in Makkah during those days; and he was tied in the chains. Surely that was a providence given by ALLAH.' Afterwards the polytheists carried him out of the limits of the Haram in order to kill him. He asked them to give him leave for performing two Rak'ats of Salat. After performing the Salat he came back to them and said, 'If you did not think that I was performing long Salat due to the fear of the death, I would have prolonged it. He was the first person to introduce the performance of two rak'ats of the Salat at the time of one's death (by killing). (After the Salat) he recited the following couplets :

"I don't care, when I am being killed as a Muslim, on which side I am being knocked down for the sake of ALLAH.

All this is for the sake of ALLAH; if He wishes, He will bless for each and every joint (of my body) which is being separated."

Afterwards Uqbah Ibn Harith stood up and killed him. The people of Quraish sent some persons to bring some parts of the dead body of Asim (Radi'Allahu Anhu) to them so that they would recognize that. Asim (Radi'Allahu Anhu) had killed a great leader of the Quraish in the battle of Badr. ALLAH sent swarms of bees which shadowed the dead body of Asim like a cloud, due to which they could not do anything and ALLAH saved his dead body from them." [Transmitted By Bukhari; Baihaqi vol-9, pg-145; Al-Isti'ab vol-3, pg-132; Abu Na'im; Al-Hilliyah vol-1, pg-112]

The Couplets recited by Asim (Radi'Allahu Anhu) at the time of his death and protection of his dead body from the Polytheists :

1. I do not have any weakness and I am a good archer; the string of my bow is strong.
2. Broad and wide arrows come out of my bow; verily the death is a fact and the life has to come to an end.
3. The fate destined by ALLAH will surely come into existence, and a man will certainly return to that. May my mother miss me, if I do not fight with you.

He also recited :

My name is Abu Sulaiman and I have the sharp arrow made by (the famous person) Muq'ad. It is very sharp like the flaming fire.

I do not tremble due to cowardliness and fear when the war spreads, for I have a strong shield made up of Oxen's skin.

I have believed in (all that which has been brought by) Muhammad.

He further recited :

I am Abu Sulaiman. An (expert) archer like me has determined (to fight). Surely my nation (tribe) is a (great and) honourable nation.

Then he fought with the polytheists until he was martyred. His two fellows were also martyred. When Asim (Radi'Allahu Anhu) was martyred, the people of Hudhail tried to carry his head so that they would sell that to Salafah, daughter of Sa'ad Ibn Suhail. She has vowed to drink wine in his skull if she got that, for Asim (Radi'Allahu Anhu) had killed her son in the battle of Uhud. But the swarm of the bees came in their way. They said to each other : 'Let us wait until the evening. When the bees will go out, we will take it.' But soon after that ALLAH sent flood in which the corpse of Asim (Radi'Allahu Anhu) was washed away. Asim (Radi'Allahu Anhu) had given a promise to ALLAH neither to touch any polytheist nor a polytheist would touch him. ALLAH fulfilled his promise. When Umar (Radi'Allahu Anhu) was informed that the bees protected his body he remarked; 'ALLAH (always) protects a Believer. Asim (Radi'Allahu Anhu) had vowed neither to touch a polytheist nor a polytheist would touch him during his life. ALLAH also caused that so after his death as He caused that during his life.' [In Beirut edition it is Shudid which is correct]