This is a brief Biography of Khalid bin Waleed Radhi’Allāhu’anhu; we ask Allāh to benefit us thereby.
64. Khalid bin Waleed رضي الله عنه The Sword of Allah
His Pedigree
He was Khalid bin Al-Waleed bin Mughirah, the sword of Allah and the knight of Islam, the master, the Imām and the great leader and commander of the Mujāhidin, Abū Sulayman, Al Quraishi, Al-Makhzoomi, Al-Makki, the nephew of the Mother of Believers, Maymunah bint Al-Harith.
He migrated as a Muslim in the month of Safar in the 8th year of Hijrah. Thereafter, he went on numerous Jihād missions. He participated in the battle of Mu’tah where three commanders of the Prophet (ﷺ) were martyred – his friend, Zayd, his cousin, Jā’far, the possessor of two wings, and Ibn Rawāhah. He bore arms against the enemy and obtained victories. The Prophet (ﷺ) nicknamed him: The Sword of Allah.
He participated in the Conquest of Makkah and Hunayn and commanded a couple of other battles in the days of the Prophet (ﷺ). He waged war against the apostates and Musailimah. He conquered Iraq and covered the distance between the borders of Iraq and Syria in five nights along with his warriors. He participated in the battles of Shām. There is no space in his body the length of a hand span except that there are scars (of wounds sustained) from previous wars.
His virtues are plentiful indeed. Abu Bakr As-Siddiq appointed him the overall commander over many other commanders. He laid siege on Damascus and conquered it in conjunction with Abu Ubaydah.
He lived for only sixty years and killed many notorious warriors and yet died right on his bed. May the cowards never find pleasure. [See: Siyar Aalam An-Nubalā. (1/366,367)] He died at Hims and this is the most popular opinion among the majority.
Historical events in his life
The First Event: After the Conquest of Makkah
When Allah’s Messenger (ﷺ) conquered Makkah in the year of “the Conquest,” he dispatched Khalid to Al-Lāt and Uzzah (the two big idols). When Khalid arrived to Al-Uzzah, he said:
“O Uzzah, for you is disbelief and dispraise. I have seen that Allah has despised you!”
Qatadah narrated that the Prophet (ﷺ) sent Khalid to Al Uzzah located at Al-Hawazin and its custodians were Banu Sulaim. He said: “Proceed for a woman will appear to you with deep black complexion, long hair, with two large breasts and short in stature being spurred (with poetry):
O Uzzah, in a manner that is unprecedented, be prepared For Khalid, jettison your veil and be prepared For if you do not kill a man like Khalid You will be displaced and cut short in haste.
Khalid pounced upon her and killed her and said: “Uzzah is no more so there will be no Uzzah after today!” [See: Ibn Hisham (2/436-437).]
Second Event: His Encounter With Hurmuz
Humayd bin Muneeb narrated: “May grandfather, Anas, said: No one had a worse enmity for the Arabs than Hurmuz. When we were through (with fighting) Musailimah, we went toward Basrah where we met Hurmuz (at Kāzimah). Khalid stepped forward and killed him. His spoils of war were carried to As-Siddiq. His cap alone was worth one hundred thousand dirhams!!
The Third Event: The Day of Mu’tah
Come along with us as Khalid bin Waleed narrates how he became the commander of the Muslims after the martyrdom of the three commanders. Khalid said: “You should have seen me on the day (of the battle of) Mu’tah; nine swords were broken in my hand, and nothing was left in my hand except a Yemenite sword of mine!” (Sahih: Reported by Al-Bukhari (4265)
On that day, the Prophet (ﷺ) said about Khalid: “Then the flag was taken by a Sword amongst the Swords of Allah (i.e. Khalid) and Allah made them (i.e. the Muslims) victorious.” [Sahih: Reported by Al-Bukhari (413) and others.]
He led the army back to Madinah and averted a catastrophic loss.
The Fourth Event
When Abu Bakr marched forth against the apostates, Khalid was his standard bearer. When the people pressured Abu Bakr to stay behind, he appointed Khalid in his place and returned to Madinah. Khalid used to say: “I do not know from which of two days should I flee? From the day Allah wished to guide me to shahādah or the day in which Allah wished to guide me to my honor.”
The Fifth Event
After both Ikrimah bin Abi Jahl and Shurahbil were frustrated in their attack against the apostates, Khalid advanced against the apostates. One night, from the camp of Musailimah, a detachment with the strength of between thirty to forty horsemen commanded by Majā’ah bin Marārah Al-Hanafi made forays into the ranks of the Muslims. They were routed and the companions of Majā’ah were killed.
The two armies met in Aqrabāi and the battle that ensued was vicious in an unprecedented manner. The Muslims were hard pressed, and Banu Hanifah entered the tent of Khalid.
However, the Muslims countered the attack and beat them back. Khalid said: “O people, distinguish yourselves, we are well acquainted with the affliction of the living, and we are well acquainted with where we are coming from.”
There was victory after much exertion and effort by the helpers of the religion of Allah. The Muslims numbering thirteen thousand men won a resounding victory over the men of Musailimah numbering about forty thousand fighting men or more. In the Battle of Yamāmah, fourteen thousand men of Banu Hanifah were killed while only three hundred and sixty were martyred from the ranks of the Muhājirūn and the Ansār.
Three hundred were also killed from the Tabi’ūn (followers of the Companions) and five hundred reciters of the Qur’an also fell. In sum, the number of Muslims that died in the battle numbered only one thousand one hundred and the ratio of the dead Muslims to those of the Kuffār was 6 to 100. This is one of the most wonderful victories (in human history).
May Allāh سُبْحَانَهُ وَتَعَالَى be pleased with them and they with Him.
