Mark of a Hero Khalid ibn Waleed by

Mark of a Hero: Khalid ibn Waleed

By Shaykh Yasir Qadhi

Opening

The person that has been assigned to me today is a person that every single young Muslim grows up hearing about. And that is none other than Khalid ibn al-Walid. Khalid ibn al-Walid, the greatest general that the ummah has ever seen. The greatest military genius after the Prophet Muhammad (صلى الله عليه وسلم) that the world has ever witnessed.

And I only have around 20 minutes or so to discuss the life and times of this great and legendary man. And so I'll try to summarize what I think are some of the most important facts that we need to be aware of about Khalid ibn al-Walid.

Early Life and Background

A lot of us don't realize that Khalid ibn al-Walid did not begin his life as a military warrior. In fact, his life was more akin to growing up as a prince. Why? Because his father was the chieftain of one of the tribes of the Quraysh.

Now a lot of you are really confused about Quraysh and Banu Hashim and whatnot. This is something you need to understand. Quraysh is one large tribe. It's composed of lots of sub-tribes. Quraysh is one of the largest tribes at the time and it's composed of many sub-tribes. The most famous sub-tribe is that of the Banu Hashim. And that's where the Prophet (صلى الله عليه وسلم) and his ancestry comes from, Banu Hashim.

But there were other sub-tribes as well. Of them is the sub-tribe of Banu Abdadar from which the Umayyad dynasty came. And of them is the sub-tribe of the Banu Mahzum from which Khalid ibn al- Walid came.

So there's three main sub-tribes. There's lots of others. There's three main ones. The Banu Hashim, the Banu Abdadar, and the Banu Mahzum. And each of these had their leaders. So the leader of the Banu Hashim was Abu Talib. And when Abu Talib died, it was Abu Lahab. The leader of the Banu Abdashams was Abu Sufyan. Abu Sufyan whose ancestry and whose children became the Umayyad dynasty.

This is Abu Sufyan. And then the leader of the Banu Mahzum was the father of Khalid ibn al-Walid. And his name was al-Walid ibn al-Mughira. So al-Walid ibn al-Mughira, the father of Khalid, is the chief of the tribe. Which means he's the wealthiest, the most prestigious, the most influential. So he's one of the leaders of the city of Mecca.

Khalid's Father: Al-Walid ibn al-Mughira

And in fact al-Walid ibn al-Mughira, Allah revealed many verses in the Qur'an about al-Walid ibn al- Mughira. Allah revealed a number of verses specifically for the father of Khalid ibn al-Walid.

And before I even get there, again this is for information sake that you should know. When you look at the opponents of the Prophet (صلى الله عليه وسلم) generally speaking they can be divided into two camps.

Two Categories of Enemies

The enemies of the Rasul (صلى الله عليه وسلم) can be divided into two camps. The first group are those who even though they were his enemies, they were in some sense still noble. And they didn't stoop to, let's say, cheap tactics. They didn't resort to mockery or sarcasm. Yes they disagreed, but they retained nobility within them. And the best example in this category is Abu Sufyan. Abu Sufyan was a noble opponent. He was an enemy. He hated the Prophet (صلى الله عليه وسلم) in the beginning, eventually accepted Islam. But he never stooped to cheap tactics. He never smeared the Prophet (صلى الله عليه وسلم). He never slandered. He didn't go to that level. He wasn't of those who would mock when the Prophet (صلى الله عليه وسلم) would pass by. He wouldn't raise his eyes. He wouldn't make sarcastic comments. There's an element of dignity and nobility.

The second group of enemies were those who did resort to such tactics. And foremost amongst them is Umayyah ibn Khalaf and Ubayy. Umayyah ibn Khalaf and Ubayy and his brother Al-Waleed. Not this Waleed, another Waleed. These four or five, including Abu Jahl of course is the most famous example. These group of people, not only did they oppose the Prophet (صلى الله عليه وسلم), they resorted to tactics that are simply demeaning. For example, this group was the one who said, let us throw a dead animal onto the Prophet (صلى الله عليه وسلم) when he's in prayer. Go to the trash, go to the garbage, pick up a dead animal, throw it on the Prophet (صلى الله عليه وسلم) when he's praying. This group, whenever he would pass by, they would make some sarcastic remarks. They would joke about him. They would spread slanders and evil about him.

If you notice, if you categorize the groups into these two, it is amazing and it's a point of benefit to learn that none of the people of the first category were eventually guided to Islam. Those who opposed him at a demeaning level, those who would mock and be sarcastic, those who would taunt him, none of them were guided to Islam. All of them met their fate, mostly in the Battle of Badr and some before and after. The Battle of Badr when every one of these stalwarts, every one of these opponents met their death. Of course the most famous is Abu Jahl as you know.

The second category of people, by and large, Allah (جل جلاله) guided them to Islam. And this shows that those who had manners, akhlaq, even though they were opponents, they had an element of sincerity. They had an element of nobility in them. So even as an opponent, they didn't resort to cheap tactics. And

that shows that they had some good in them. And because they had some good in them, Allah (جل جلاله) eventually guided most of them to Islam.

And of course the primary example here is Abu Sufyan and his son Muawiyah, and Jubayr ibn Mut'im and Suhayl ibn Amr. These are the people, yes they were enemies in the beginning. But because they had a little bit of nobility, eventually Allah (جل جلاله) guided them to Islam.

Al-Walid's Character

Now why do I begin my talk with these two categories? I wanna point out that of course this is a spectrum. It's not, you can't categorize somebody easily into one of two. And there's a spectrum here, and a few people fell kinda in the middle of this spectrum. And of those who fell in the middle of this spectrum, was the father of Khalid, al-Waleed ibn al-Mughirah.

Al-Waleed ibn al-Mughirah never went to that level that Abu Jahl did. He never stooped to that level. Nonetheless, he had in him pride. He didn't resort to sarcasm, no, that was too cheap. But he had in him kibr, arrogance. Pride of what? Of his ancestry. We are from the tribe of Banu Mahzum. We are the leaders of the Quraysh.

There was rivalry between the Hashemites, between the Umayyads, between the Banu Mahzum. So each one is rivaling for the greatest, the biggest Qurayshi if you like, the greatest Qurayshi tribe. So he's the leader of one of the sub-tribes, and he had in him that prestige, that I am the leader of Banu Mahzum, how can I follow a Hashemite prophet? How can the prophecy have come to another sub-tribe? It wasn't that he resorted to slander, it was that his arrogance got the better of him.

And he was one of those who said, why was the Qur'an revealed to somebody from the Banu Hashem? Why wasn't it revealed to one of the two great men? He considered himself the greatest man in Makkah. Khalid's father, he considers himself the greatest man in Makkah. And he said the second best tribe is the tribe of Thaqif in Ta'if. So he said, why didn't Allah choose me or the leader of Ta'if? And Allah revealed in the Qur'an:

"Why didn't Allah reveal this Qur'an to one of the great men of these two cities?" Meaning Ta'if and Makkah. He's the first great man. If anybody thinks he's a great man, he's got an ego problem. And Khalid's father had this. He goes, I'm a great man. Why would Allah choose this youngster? Of course, Khalid's father is probably around 30 years older than the Prophet (صلى الله عليه وسلم). And so he's thinking, why would Allah choose this man from the Hashemite when I am here? So Allah revealed in the Qur'an, they said, they meaning Khalid's father. They said, why wasn't the Qur'an given to one of the two great men?

The Compromise Attempts

Another incident that shows the nature of al-Walid ibn al-Mughirah, Khalid's father. Another incident that shows his nature is that he was one of those who when the Prophet (صلى الله عليه وسلم) began preaching, he wanted to negotiate with him a peace treaty. And he went to him multiple times. He goes, look, you're dividing our community up. You're saying things that are blasphemous. Let's try to reach a compromise.

So one of the compromises he said was, let's alternate religions. One day I'll follow your religion, one day you follow our religion. Right? Let's reach a compromise. Now you detect a sense of, no matter how foolish it sounds, nobility. Because he doesn't want war, he doesn't want bloodshed. He goes, let's compromise. One day we'll all worship Allah, and then tomorrow you worship our idols. Allah revealed which surah? All of you know this surah. Allah revealed which surah?

Because of Walid's compromise, Allah is saying, there is no compromise for Tawheed. I can't be a Muslim for a day, and a Christian or an idol worshiper for the next day. There is no compromise.

Another, and again I'm just showing you this to understand the household that Khalid is being raised up in.

The Council of Quraysh

This is his father, one of the chieftains of Quraysh. Yet another compromise, or this isn't a compromise, this is an agreement. Khalid's father, Al-Walid Ibn Al-Mughira, convened a council of all of the leaders of Quraysh, who had rejected the Prophet (صلى الله عليه وسلم). And he said, look, we need to take a firm stance here. We don't agree with his message, we need to have a unified voice. What are we gonna say? What should we say about this person?

One person said, let us say that Muhammad (صلى الله عليه وسلم) has gone mad, he's gone crazy. Al-Walid Ibn Al-Mughira said, we all know the symptoms of a madman, he's clearly not a madman. Somebody else said, let's say that he's a fortune teller, he's a kahan, he's a sorcerer. Al-Walid said, we all know what fortune tellers are like, he's not a fortune teller. Somebody else said, let's say he's a magician, he's a sahir. So Al-Walid said, we all know what magicians are like, he's not a magician. Somebody said, let's say he's a liar. Al-Walid said, we've known him for 40 years, he's never told a lie.

Notice there's an element of truth in all that Al-Walid is saying. He's not stooping to that level. Then his people said to Al-Walid, look, you are our leader, you're in charge, you tell us what we should do. So he said, let me think a few days. Let me think a few days, give me some time.

He went into his house, and he paced back and forth in a frown, scowling. Nobody witnessed this other than Allah. And Allah told us in the Qur'an, his privacy in his house, what he was doing. He's walking back

and forth in deep thought. And then he said to his people, look, the only thing I can think of is to say that, this is some type of magic. Some type of magic. I know it's not the best, but we have no other alternative.

Allah revealed in the Qur'an an entire surah talking about this incident. Which surah is that? Surah Al- Muddathir, very good. Surah Al-Muddathir, where Allah says:

"Leave me alone with him whom I created alone. And I gave him money, and I gave him sons."

This is a reference to Khalid ibn Walid and his brothers. In Surah Al-Muddathir, Allah is referencing Khalid ibn Walid. I gave him sons. One of his sons is Khalid. So you can say that Allah mentions Khalid indirectly in the Qur'an. Khalid ibn Walid.

So Allah says in the Qur'an about him:

"He kept on walking around, he had a scowl on his face, and then he said: The Qur'an is some type of magic that has an effect."

And again we can go on and on. But one interesting point again about Al-Walid ibn Al-Mughirah.

The Incident with Ibn Umm Maktum

Al-Walid ibn Al-Mughirah was that person whom the Prophet (صلى الله عليه وسلم) was deeply engaged in conversation with, hoping that he'd become a Muslim, he could see in him some good. So the Prophet (صلى الله عليه وسلم) was really close in his opinion. Because only Allah knew ilm al-ghaib. In his opinion, the Prophet (صلى الله عليه وسلم) was so close to convincing Al-Walid to accept Islam.

When sticks were heard in the background, tap, tap, tap, tap. A blind man walking. And he heard the Prophet (صلى الله عليه وسلم) preaching. And so he was overjoyed, he's a Muslim, he's a new Muslim. He comes tapping quickly to the Prophet (صلى الله عليه وسلم). And he asked some questions. And this is now Al-Walid. And the blind man is not even a Qurashi. He's a servant, he's a mawla. He doesn't have royal blood. And Al-Walid scoffs and sneers. These are your followers? Thanks, but no thanks. And he walks away.

So the Prophet (صلى الله عليه وسلم) had the bait. It was so close. He thought he had, he literally caught him on the hook. Gonna pull him in. And here comes Ibn Ummi Maktum. And so he can't help but feel a little bit frustrated. And a little bit hurt and exasperated. I was so close. You had to come now. And so he frowned and he turned away. And Allah revealed from above the seven heavens:

(Quran 80:1-6)

Abu Sufyan's Desperation

Abu Sufyan, in desperation, pulls his sword out. Meaning, I'm gonna kill you. I cannot allow you to convert to Islam. This is just too much of a disaster for me. And at this point in time, Ikrimah shifts his loyalties. And he says, would you kill him for this? I mean, would you kill him? Sure we don't agree, but you're gonna kill him because he wants to change his religion?

And when Khalid saw the situation was so tense, that same night he did not sleep in his house. And he took his horse, he took his weaponry, and he rode out in the middle of the desert to run away from Mecca and to flee to Medina to accept Islam.

The Conversion Journey

And on the way there, there's only one main highway, let's say. In those days, they had their ways to get from Mecca to Medina. On the way there, he met one person, and then a third person. You meet three people, all of them have the exact same intention. And that is, they wanna secretly convert to Islam.

And these three people, were the last three people to convert before the conquest of Mecca. And this is important, why? Because Allah says in the Quran:

"The two are not the same. Those who accepted Islam before the conquest, versus those who accepted Islam after the conquest. They have two different levels."

Those who accepted Islam before the conquest of Mecca have a higher level. And those who accepted it after the conquest do not have that level. So Allah wanted to confer that honor on a final group of three people.

They weren't as high up as Abu Bakr, as Umar, as Uthman, and Ali, but they weren't as well like the other category, and that is, after the conquest. The final three people who converted before the conquest of Mecca, number one, Khalid ibn al-Walid. Number two, Amr ibn al-As. The famous politician as we call him, Amr ibn al-As. And number three, Uthman ibn Talha. These were the three people who converted before the conquest of Mecca.

Early Muslim Career

And it was in the same year, it was in the same year, that the Prophet (صلى الله عليه وسلم) assigned him battle roles. Immediately. The Prophet (صلى الله عليه وسلم) sent him out on expeditions. However, in the beginning, he didn't give him positions of leadership. Why? He wants to test the waters. He wants to see, are you a real convert or not, right? Because this is the son of al-Walid ibn al-Mughira. I mean Allah has revealed five, six verses in the Qur'an about him. This is the son of al-Walid. Let me test, is he truly a true Muslim or not? So the Prophet (صلى الله عليه وسلم) sent him out just in a few months after his conversion.

Not as a leader but simply as a foot soldier. Simply as somebody, a private in the army. In the battle of Mu'tah.

The Battle of Mu'tah

In the battle of Mu'tah. In the battle of Mu'tah, the Prophet (صلى الله عليه وسلم) assigned three commanders, one after the other. And he said if the first commander dies, you take the second. If the second dies, you take on to the third. And he didn't assume that the third would die. The battle of Mu'tah was a really difficult battle. It was neither a victory nor a loss. It was similar to Uhud but perhaps not as severe as Uhud. It was not a victory for the Muslims but neither was it a loss.

The battle of Mu'tah was a very, very dire situation. And all three of those whom the Prophet (صلى الله عليه وسلم) appointed died one after the other. And when the third one died, there was no leader that the Prophet (صلى الله عليه وسلم) had appointed. And so the Sahaba looked amongst themselves and they saw the warrior Khalid ibn al-Walid. And so they said, you need to be our leader. He said, I cannot do that. The Prophet (صلى الله عليه وسلم) didn't appoint me. They said, we have no choice. The three whom the Prophet (صلى الله عليه وسلم) appointed, they're all gone.

So they unanimously elected him to become their leader. And so Khalid immediately regrouped the army. He immediately split them up into different contingents and he managed to save the bulk of the army even though they were facing imminent destruction. It was gonna be a complete, if you like, victory for the other side. This was the Romans. So they were not used to battling with the Romans, the techniques, the armor, the weapons. Everything was a hundred notches more than they were used to. And so Khalid managed to save the remnants of the army and bring them back. It was neither a pure victory for the Romans, nor was it a victory for the Muslims.

Earning the Title "Saif Allah al-Maslul"

And when he returned, this was that point in time when the Prophet (صلى الله عليه وسلم) crowned him with his famous title. And he said, you are the unsheathed sword of Allah. Sayfullahil Maslul. You are the sword of Allah that Allah has unsheathed. Even though this particular incident, Khalid did not win, but he displayed a military genius that allowed the majority of the army to return home. And thus was officially launched the career of the greatest military commander in the history of Islam.

After this point in time, his conquest and his battles reads like a stellar list of all of the greatest battles of Islam. From the conquest of Mecca, the Prophet (صلى الله عليه وسلم) appointed him as the leader. To the attack of Ta'if, to the incident of Hunayn.

Under Abu Bakr's Leadership

And then after the death of the Prophet (صلى الله عليه وسلم) Khalid was the main warrior, the main leader, whom Abu Bakr unleashed. He was called Abu Bakr's right hand man. Abu Bakr unleashed him against the wars of Rida. And he was the main person who was in charge of the wars of Rida. And he unified the early republic, if you like, or the early state of Islam.

The Battle of Yarmouk

And then of course the greatest battle that Khalid is known for. The greatest battle was the battle of Yarmouk. Was the battle of Yarmouk. And through the battle of Yarmouk and all of those similar battles, Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala opened up the Byzantine Empire for the Ummah. The Byzantine Empire, i.e. the Roman Empire, the strongest empire at the time. Khalid ibn al-Walid was that military commander who was leading the very first and the greatest victory. And after the battle of Yarmouk, it was just a domino, falling one after the other.

Damascus, Syria, Palestine, all of it, you know, after this, it opened up the way for the Muslims. Syria, Palestine, Jordan, when did all of these lands come under the territory of the Muslims? In the time of Khalid ibn al-Walid and Umar ibn al-Khattab as the Khalifa. It was Khalid ibn al-Walid whom Allah Azza wa Jal chose to have this great honor to.

And Yarmouk, if you like, was the culmination. And if you study the story of Khalid, it is as if Allah was preparing him for Yarmouk slowly but surely for the last 25 years. Allah was preparing him for that great battle. And we don't have time to talk about the details of that battle. Suffice to point out that the Byzantine Empire was the mightiest empire in the world. And it was the most well equipped. And it had the most military might. And it was Khalid through his tactics by the blessings of Allah who managed to inflict. It was a given.

The leaders of the Byzantine Empire were joking that this is what you've sent us? You're worried that this group is gonna inflict a disaster on us? It was a joke that the Arab Bedouins could defeat them. And were it not for Allah and then Allah choosing Khalid ibn al-Walid, it would have been impossible for that type of unprepared army and unschooled and untrained in the ways of western wars. And not wearing the armors, the sophisticated armors that they had.

Nonetheless, it was Khalid's tactics and Khalid's dint and determination that Allah azza wa jalla blessed the ummah through. And Khalid became so legendary that truth be told, people's tawheed began to be a little bit shaken. Meaning, they began to view Khalid as a good luck charm. They began to view Khalid as some type of mystical powers. Because he never seemed to suffer any fate and any defeat. And so there was just this aura around Khalid that was in fact against the principles of Islam.

Umar's Wisdom

So when Umar heard of this, he realized that tawheed is more important than military conquest. That la ilaha illallah, that removing paganism and superstition is more important than this. And so when he heard that the people were beginning to put Khalid in this supernatural position, in this mystical aura, he sent a letter to the army where he said, Allah azza wa jalla is the one who gives victory and battles win or won, not Khalid ibn al-Walid.

From now on, Khalid will be a soldier in the army and no longer a military commander. And this shows us Umar's understanding of la ilaha illallah. Umar did not want any type of superstition, any type of paganism to creep back in. And he wanted to make sure that the ummah realized that our success is dependent on Allah and not on Khalid ibn al-Walid. And indeed, after this, the armies continue to be successful. And this shows us Umar's understanding as we said, of la ilaha illallah.

Khalid's Death

Khalid entered in the 21st year of the hijrah. On his bed. Not in the army, not in the battlefield. And it is said that when somebody came to visit him, he began crying. And he said, look at my body. And he pulled up his sleeves. And he pulled up his thawb. He said, look at my body, look at my arm, look at my back. You will not find one inch, one finger, except that there are scars. And there are marks of war. And yet here I am dying like a coward on the bed.

He was hurt that he didn't die the death of a shaheed. He said, I spent my life fighting. I spent my life waging jihad. And yet here I die like a coward on the bed. And he was hurt and traumatized. But one of the visitors explained to him the wisdom why he had to die on his bed. And he said to him, Ya Khalid, the Prophet (صلى الله عليه وسلم) called you Allah's unsheathed sword. Sayfullahil Maslul. And it is not befitting that this sword be broken in a battle. Because it is the sword of Allah.

It is not befitting that Allah's sword be broken in a battle. Because that's defeat for Allah's sword. And the only way that Allah's sword is going to be broken if you like is by a natural, simple, beautiful death. i.e. the sword retires and it's not broken. So Allah chose you to do what he did. And you became Sayfullah. And now Allah wants to retire you. Allah wants to put the sword back in. So he's taking you away in this manner.

And this is a beautiful gem, a beautiful wisdom of why Khalid ibn Walid died on his deathbed even though he was the greatest warrior in the history of our ummah.

Lessons and Conclusion

To conclude, the main point I want to derive for us here in this audience. Of course there's lots of wisdom in the stories of Khalid. But the main point that I want to derive is the fact that Khalid ibn Walid at one point in his life had a sword unleashed walking around in the battle of Uhud trying to kill the greatest human being who ever lived. Trying to murder him. And yet this person, this same person Allah chose him. And Allah Azzawajal blessed him with Iman. And he became not just the best, the best of the best.

How do we gain anything from here? Brothers and sisters, don't look at the past and what you did and what you have done. Don't look at who you are now. Look at what you can become. Wallahi none of us can ever do something as bad as what Khalid was trying to do. None of us can ever do something as evil as what Khalid was trying to do. And that is to kill the messenger of Allah.

Isn't that true? Isn't that true? You cannot do a sin more evil than that. Surely, if Allah could guide Khalid in that manner and if Allah could choose him, and if Allah could make him who he was, well then surely you and I, surely all of us sitting here, whatever our sins, whatever our past, whatever we've done in the past, if we have that sincerity, if we have that trust in Allah like Khalid did, that he wanted to embrace Islam, flee from Mecca and go to Medina, if we turn to Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala, Allah will turn to us.

If he could choose somebody like Khalid, surely me and you can also be chosen. And we can also go, not to the heights of Khalid, because he had with him the prophet of Allah, but at least we have those footsteps. At least we have that parable, that example is there. And therefore brothers and sisters, to conclude I point out, never lose hope in Allah's mercy.

Never lose hope in Allah's mercy. Never be pessimistic about who you are and what you can become. Never. Because Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala can choose anybody for anything. And if he could choose Khalid ibn al-Waleed, the one who killed the archers on the Mount of Uhud, the one who killed many Muslims in his life, the one who tried to kill the prophet Muhammad (صلى الله عليه وسلم) the only human being who successfully attacked the Muslims ever in the history of the ummah. The only human being who successfully led a campaign against the army of the prophet Muhammad (صلى الله عليه وسلم).

If Allah could choose him, and bless him, and guide him, and make him somebody who had such a profound legacy, well then wallahi me and you, we can also have that type of choosing. If we turn to Allah, as the prophet (صلى الله عليه وسلم) said, whoever comes one hand span closer to Allah, Allah comes one arm's length closer to him. And whoever comes walking to Allah, Allah comes running towards him.

So let us make our own decision and our own determination that we will choose Allah and the religion of Allah. And let us turn to Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala and let us think long term like Khalid ibn Walid did, and let us ask ourselves, what can I do? And what legacy can I leave for this great ummah of the prophet (صلى الله عليه وسلم) Muhammad?

"Those who strive in our way, we will guide them to our paths."

وجزاكم الله خيراً والسلام عليكم ورحمة الله وبركاته

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