- Al-Ahnaf Ibn Qays
Al-Ahnaf Ibn Qays Ibn Mu'awyiah was a well-known Muslim general who lived during the time of
Muhammad . [Al-Ahnaf is not considered a "Sahaba " because he did not meet Muhammad. However, it is accurate to refer to him as a "taba'een "] He hailed from theArab tribe of Banu Tameem and was born of two noble parents. His father named him ad-Dhahhak, but everybody called him "al-Ahnaf" (the clubfooted), because of a defect in his feet.Early life
In the early years of
Islam , Muhammad sent a missionary to the people of Banu Sa'd from the tribe of Banu Tameem. They informed him that no decisions could be made until they knew Al-Ahnaf's opinion. Al-Ahnaf listened and questioned the missionary until he and his entire tribe accepted Islam. Al-Ahnaf never met Muhammad because he remained with his people during Muhammad's lifetime. After Muhammad's death in632 , many tribes reneged but al-Ahnaf and his people remained Muslims. When he heard aboutMusaylimah 's claim of prophecy, al-Ahnaf went with his uncle to meet him. After listening to Musaylimah, he returned to his people and discouraged them from hearing his falsehood.During the Caliphate of Umar
When
Umar ibn al-Khattab became caliph in634 , the Muslim conquests outside theArabian Peninsula increased, and Al-Ahnaf encouraged his people to participate. When thePersians surrounded a Muslim division lead by al-'Alaa ibn al-Hadrami, inIraq , Umar ordered Utabah ibn Ghazwan to go to their rescue. Utbah sent a force of 12,000, most of them form theBanu Tamim , and among them was al-Ahnaf who played a major role in breaking the siege.In
639 al-Ahnaf came back toMedina bringing news of the conquest ofTustar , and informingUmar of affairs inPersia . After listening to him, Umar said; Al-Ahnaf replied:Umar gave him permission to pursue
Yazdgerd III , and put al-Ahnaf at the head of an army to complete the conquest ofKhurasan in the last stages of its annexation. Al-Ahnaf followed the Persian leaderYazdgerd III until he barricaded himself in the town of Marwir-Rawdh.Yazdgerd III wrote to the Turkish and Chinese rulers seeking help. Al-Ahnaf sent for reinforcement fromKufa and finally captured Marwir-Rawdah, completing the conquest ofKhurasan .Towns beyond Khurasan signed peace agreements with al-Ahnaf. He then sent a letter to
Umar informing him of the conquest, but added thatYazdgerd III had escaped and fled toBalkh . Umar forbade him to continue deeper into Persia, but ordered him to consolidate Islam in the conquered lands. Al-Ahnaf obeyed the orders but kept an eye onYazdgerd III ‘s moves. When he later learned that the Turks joined the Persians and were both approaching, he rallied his army and camped outside the town. With an army that was only a fraction of the enemy's, he managed to defeat the Persians, killing their leader, while the Turks retreated to their land.Yazdgerd III then fled eastward from one district to another, until at last he was killed by a local miller for his purse atMerv ,Turkmenistan in651 .During and After the "Fitna"
Al-Ahnaf returned to
Basra after the campaigns in Persia and remained serving Islam, until the time of the caliphAli ibn Abi Talib (d.660 ) when the Muslims were split into two warring parties. Al-Ahnaf isolated himself from this trial and sent a message to Ali saying: "I will restrain ten thousand swords from fighting you." WhenMuawiyah became caliph in661 , al-Ahnaf visited him and warned him strongly against fighting the Muslims or engaging in any "Fitna" (trial). When he left, the caliph's sister said angrily: "Who was that man who warned and threatened you?" He replied:Al-Ahnaf spent the rest of his life in
Kufa where he died at the age of seventy.Notes
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