Life-of-Muhammad

58Life of Muhammad safinger, when the two boys dashed into the enemy rankswith the speed of an eagle, making straight for theirchosen target. The attack was sudden. The soldiers andguards were stupefied. They attacked the boys. One ofthe boys lost an arm. But they remained unnerved andunbeaten. They attacked Abu Jahl, with such violencethat the great commander fell to the ground, mortallywounded. From the spirited determination of these twoboys, one can judge how deeply the followers of theProphet sa , both old and young, had been stirred by thecruel persecution to which they and the Prophet sa hadbeen subjected. We only read about them in history, butyet are deeply stirred. The people of Medina heard ofthese cruelties from eye-witnesses. The feelings theymust have had, can well be imagined. They heard ofMeccan cruelties on the one hand and of theforbearance of the Prophet sa on the other. No wondertheir determination mounted high to avenge the wrongsdone to the Prophet sa and to the Muslims of Mecca. Theylooked only for an opportunity to tell the Meccantormentors that if the Muslims did not retaliate, it wasnot because they were powerless; it was because theyhad not been permitted by God to do so. Howdetermined this small Muslim force was to die fightingcan be gauged from another incident. Battle had not yetbeen joined when Abu Jahl sent a Bedouin chief to theMuslim side to report on their numbers. This chiefreturned and reported that the Muslims were threehundred or more. Abu Jahl and his followers were glad.They thought the Muslims easy prey. "But," said theBedouin chief, "my advice to you is—Don't fight thesemen, because every one of them seems determined todie! I have seen not men but death mounted on camels"(Tabari and Hisham). The Bedouin chief was right—those who are prepared to die do not easily die.