Life-of-Muhammad

Life of Muhammad sa 181the courtyard and went forward to embrace and kissher. But the wife raised her hands and pushed himback. The astonished husband looked at his wife andsaid, "Is this the treatment for one who comes homeafter a long time?""Are you not ashamed?" said the wife. "The Prophet saof God should go on dangerous expeditions, and youshould be making love to your wife? Your first duty is togo to the battle-field. We shall see about the rest." It issaid the Companion went out of the house at once,tightened the girths of his mount and galloped after theProphet sa . At a distance of about three days' journey heovertook the Muslim army. The disbelievers and thehypocrites had probably thought that the Prophet saacting upon rumours, invented and spread by them,would spring upon the Syrian armies without a thought.They forgot that the Prophet sa was concerned to set anexample to generations of followers for all time to come.When the Prophet sa neared Syria, he stopped and senthis men in different directions to report on the state ofaffairs. The men returned and reported there were noSyrian concentrations anywhere. The Prophet sa decidedto return, but stayed for a few days during which hesigned agreements with some of the tribes on theborder. There was no war and no fighting. The journeytook the Prophet sa about two months and a half. Whenthe hypocrites at Medina found that their scheme forinciting war between Muslims and Syrians had failedand that the Prophet sa was returning safe and sound,they began to fear that their intrigue had been exposed.They were afraid of the punishment which was now theirdue. But they did not halt their sinister plans. Theyequipped a party and posted it on the two sides of anarrow pass some distance from Medina. The pass wasso narrow that only a single file could go through it.When the Prophet sa and the Muslim army approachedthe spot, he had a warning by revelation that the enemywas in ambush on both sides of the narrow pass. TheProphet sa ordered his Companions to reconnoitre. When