The Battle of Uhud and the Education of Muslims
Badly defeated in the Battle of Badr, the Quraish of Makkah were burning with vengeance. The Quraysh leaders could not rest until due revenge was taken. They could not accept either the death of their brave warriors Abu Jahel and Utba on the one hand, or being beaten by the Muslims on the other hand. So the Quraysh quickly got busy organizing another war. 3rd year of Hijri. Shawwal month. The polytheists of Quraish marched towards Medina to avenge the defeat of Badr. Ohud Hill is about four miles away from Medina. The Quraish army encamped at the foot of Mount Ohud. An army of their warriors marched towards Ohud. The battle that took place at this time is known as the 'Battle of Ohud'.
Despite being outnumbered, the Muslims were initially successful and the Meccan soldiers were forced to retreat. A misstep on the part of the Muslim forces, when victory was so close, turned the tide of the battle. Muhammad (pbuh) instructed the Muslim archers not to move from their positions regardless of the outcome. But after they left the position, Khalid bin Walid, one of the commanders of the Meccan forces, got an opportunity to attack the Muslims, resulting in chaos among the Muslims. During this time many Muslims were killed. Muhammad (pbuh) himself was injured. The Muslims retreated towards Mount Ohud. The Makkan army then returned to Makkah.
Within a year of the Battle of Badr, preparations for the Battle of Ohud were completed. On March 11, 625, a Meccan army of 3,000 men marched towards Medina under the command of Abu Sufyan. This force was accompanied by 3,000 camels and 200 horses. Abu Sufyan's wife Hind bint Utbah and 15 women from Makkah also came to the battlefield. The Quraysh leaders believed that women would be more motivated to fight to the death to protect their honor if they were present. Instead of attacking Madinah directly, they crossed the Akiq valley near the city and encamped a little to the right at Aynayn near Ohud. Hind bint Utbah proposed that the grave of Muhammad's mother be destroyed. But the leaders did not agree to the proposal thinking that its consequences could be dire.
The news of the Quraysh expedition reached Muhammad (pbuh). After that various measures were taken to prevent sudden attacks in different parts of Madinah. Meetings were held to take concrete steps for the war. In this, Muhammad (PBUH) told about a dream he had seen.
He said, 'I swear by Allah, I have seen a good thing. I see how many cows are being slaughtered. Also notice that the head of my sword has some brittleness. And see that I have put my hand into a protective armor.'
As an explanation, he said, "Some of the Companions will be killed, the fragility of the sword means that one of his family will be martyred, and the protected armor means the city of Madinah."
However, there was a difference of opinion among the Muslims about the steps. Some, including Muhammad (pbuh), were to resist from within the city. Because Madinah was a fortified city and could easily be attacked if the enemy was near, and the women could throw bricks from the rooftops. On the other hand, some companions including Hamza Ibn Abdul Muttalib gave a different opinion. Their claim was that by defending from within the city in this way, the enemy's morale would increase and if they advanced and fought in the open, they would not dare to attack easily in the future.
As a result, it was decided to go outside Madinah and face the enemy. The total strength of the Muslim forces was 1,000. Of these, 100 were armored and 50 were cavalry. Muhammad (pbuh) divided the Muslim army into three groups. These are, Muhajir army, Aus army and Khazraj army. The commanders of these three forces were Mus'ab Ibn Umayr, Usaid Ibn Huzair and Hubab Ibn Munzir respectively.
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