KHALID IBN AL-WALID

story is a rather perplexing one. He was the deadly enemy of Muslims in the Battle of Uhud and the deadly enemy of the enemies of Islam in the remaining Muslim battles.

Let us then begin with that part of his life which he himself loved most. Let us begin from that glorious moment when his heart was affected by Allah and his spirit was blessed by the Most Merciful. Thus, it overflowed with devotion to His religion, His Prophet SAW and to a memorable martyrdom in the way of the truth. This martyrdom enabled him to erase the burdens of his association with falsehood in the past.

One day, he sat alone in deep thought concerning that new religion that was gaining momentum and gaining ground every day. He wished that Allah, the All-Knower of what is hidden and unseen, would guide him to the right path. His blessed heart was revived by the glad tidings of certainty. Therefore, he said to himself, 'By Allah, it is crystal clear now. This man is indeed a Prophet, so how long shall I procrastinate. By Allah, I will go and submit myself to Islam.'

Let us hear him narrate his blessed visit to the Prophet SAW and his journey from Mecca to Medina to join the ranks of the believers:

I hoped to find an escort, and I ran into Uthman Ibn Talhah and when I told him about my intention, he agreed to escort me. We travelled shortly before daybreak and as we reached the plain, we ran into Amr Ibn Al-Aas.

After we had exchanged greetings, he asked us about our destination, and when we told him, it turned out that he himself was going to the same place to submit himself to Islam. The three of us arrived at Medina on the first day of Safar in the eighth year. As soon as I laid my eyes on the Prophet SAW, I said, 'Peace be upon the Prophet,' so he greeted me with a bright face. Immediately, I submitted myself to Islam and bore witness to the truth. Finally, the Prophet SAW said, 'I knew that you have an open mind and I prayed that it would lead you to safety.' I took my oath of allegiance to the Prophet SAW then asked him, 'Please ask Allah's forgiveness for me for all the wrongdoings I have committed to hinder men from the path of Allah.' The Prophet SAW said, 'Islam erases all the wrongdoings committed before it.' Yet I pleaded with him, 'Please pray for me. Finally, he supplicated Allah, 'O Allah, forgive Khalid for all the wrongdoings he committed before he embraced lslam.' Then Amr Ibn Al-Aas and Uthman Ibn Talhah stepped forward and submitted themselves to Islam and gave their oath of allegiance to the Prophet SAW.

Notice these words 'Please ask Allah's forgiveness for me for all the wrongdoings I have committed in the past to hinder men from the path of Allah.' Now, whoever has the perception and insight to read between the lines will find the true meaning of these words of Khalid, who became the sword of Allah and the hero of Islam. When we come across various incidents in the course of his life story, these words are our key to understanding and elucidation.

Let us accompany Khalid, who had just embraced Islam, and watch the Quraish's great warrior who had always had the reins of leadership. Let us see the subtlest of Arabs in the art of attack and retreat as he turned his back on the idols of his ancestors and the glory of his people and welcomed, along with the Prophet and the Muslims, the advent of a new world that Allah had destined to rise under the standard of Muhammad and the slogan of monotheism.

Do you know the story of the three martyrs of the Battle of Mu'tah? They were Zaid Ibn Harithah, Ja'far Ibn Abi Talib and Abd Allah Ibn Rawahah. They were the heroes of the Battle of Mu'tah in Syria, in which the Romans mobilised 200,000 warriors. Nevertheless, the Muslims achieved unprecedented victory.

Do you know the glorious, sad words with which the Prophet SAW announced the sad news of the death of the three commanders of the battle? 'Zaid Ibn Harithah took the standard and fought holding it until he died as a martyr; then Ja'far took it and fought clinging to it until he won martyrdom; and finally, Abd Allah Ibn Rawaahah gripped it and held it fast until he won martyrdom.'

This is only part of the Prophet's SAW speech, and this is the rest of the story: 'Then it was gripped by a sword of the swords of Allah and he fought until he achieved victory.'

Who was the sword of the swords of Allah? It was Khalid Ibn Al-Walid, who threw himself into the battlefield as if he were an ordinary soldier under the three commanders whom the Prophet SAW assigned. The first commander was Zaid Ibn Harithah, the second was Ja'far Ibn Abi Talib, and the third was 'Abd Allah Ibn Rawaahah. They won martyrdom in the same order on the vicious battlefield.

After the last commander had won martyrdom, Thabit Ibn Aqram took the standard with his right hand and raised it high amidst the Muslim army. His purpose was to stop any potential disarray inside the lines. Thabit then carried the standard and hastened towards Khalid Ibn Al-Walid and said, 'Take the standard, Abu Sulaiman.' Khalid thought that he did not deserve to take it since he had newly embraced Islam. He had no right to preside over an army that included the Ansaar and Muhajirun who had preceded him in embracing Islam.

These qualities of decorum, modesty, and gratitude were becoming of Khalid's worthiness. He said, 'I will not dare to hold it. Go on, hold it, for you deserve it better than me. First, you are older. Second, you witnessed the Battle of Bad.' Thabit answered, 'Come on, take it, you know the art of fighting far better than me. By Allah, I only held it to give it to you.' Then he called on the Muslims, 'Do you vote for Khalid's command?' They readily answered, 'Yes, we do!'

At that moment, the great warrior mounted his horse and thrust the standard forward with his right hand as if he were knocking on closed doors that had been closed for too long and whose time had finally come to be flung wide open. So this act was to lead the hero to a long but passable road on which he would leap during the Prophet's life and after his death until destiny brought his ingenuity to its inevitable end.

Although Khalid was in charge of the army command, hardly any military expertise could change the already determined outcome of the battle, turning defeat into victory or turning victory into defeat. The only thing that a genius could manage to do was to prevent more casualties or damage in the Muslim army from occurring and end the battle with the remainder of the army intact. Sometimes a great commander must resort to that kind of preventive retreat measure that will prevent the annihilation of the rest of his striking force on the battlefield. However, such a retreat was potentially impossible, yet if the saying, 'Nothing stands in the way of a fearless heart' is true, there was no one more fearless and ingenious than Khalid.

Instantly, The Sword of Allah flung himself into the vast battlefield. His eyes were as sharp as a hawk's. His mind worked quickly, turning over all the potentialities in his mind. While the fierce fight raged, Khalid quickly split his army into groups, with each assigned a certain task. He used his incredible expertise and outstanding craftiness to open a wide space within the Roman army through which the whole Muslim army retreated intact. This narrow escape was credited to the ingenuity of a Muslim hero. In this battle, the Prophet gave Khalid the great epithet 'The Sword of Allah'.