Al-Miqdad ibn Amr al-Bahrani (), better known as al-Miqdad ibn al-Aswad al-Kindi () or simply Miqdad, was one of the
companions of the Islamic
prophet Muhammad
In Islam, Muhammad () is venerated as the Seal of the Prophets who transmitted the Quran, eternal word of God () from the Angels in Islam, angel Gabriel () to humans and jinn. Muslims believe that the Quran, the central religious text of Isl ...
. His
kunya was Abu Ma'bad (). Miqdad was born in
South Arabia
South Arabia (), or Greater Yemen, is a historical region that consists of the southern region of the Arabian Peninsula in West Asia, mainly centered in what is now the Republic of Yemen, yet it has also historically included Najran, Jazan, ...
. He became fugitive in his hometown and ran to Mecca, where he served Aswad al-Kindi. Miqdad managed to gain favor of his master, who in turn adopted him as his son.
Miqdad later embraced Islam and became one of the early converts of Islam before he migrated to Medina due to persecution by the Meccan polytheists. Miqdad stopped using 'Ibn Aswad' as his name and used his real bloodline
nisba from his father, 'Ibn Amr', after Qur'anic verse was revealed to forbid one to abolish his own bloodline. In Medina, Miqdad was known in history as the first Muslim horsemen, Miqdad participated in all military operations under Muhammad.
After the death of Muhammad, Miqdad continued to serve Islam under the
Rashidun
The Rashidun () are the first four caliphs () who led the Muslim community following the death of Muhammad: Abu Bakr (), Umar (), Uthman (), and Ali ().
The reign of these caliphs, called the Rashidun Caliphate (632–661), is considered i ...
, where he was involved heavily in the
Muslim conquest of the Levant
The Muslim conquest of the Levant (; ), or Arab conquest of Syria, was a 634–638 CE invasion of Byzantine Syria by the Rashidun Caliphate. A part of the wider Arab–Byzantine wars, the Levant was brought under Arab Muslim rule and develope ...
and later
Muslim conquest of Egypt
The Arab conquest of Egypt, led by the army of Amr ibn al-As, took place between 639 and 642 AD and was overseen by the Rashidun Caliphate. It ended the seven-century-long Roman Egypt, Roman period in Egypt that had begun in 30 BC and, more broa ...
. Miqdad's funeral prayer was led by the caliph.
Miqdad was recorded as dark and hairy, with a dyed beard, wide eyes and a hooked nose.
He was known as an excellent archer.
Miqdad was known to have had a very large stomach, to the point that once he sat nearby a huge golden chest, and people remarked that the build of Miqdad was larger than the goldensmith chest.
Biography
Miqdad was born in
Hadhramaut
Hadhramaut ( ; ) is a geographic region in the southern part of the Arabian Peninsula which includes the Yemeni governorates of Hadhramaut, Shabwah and Mahrah, Dhofar in southwestern Oman, and Sharurah in the Najran Province of Saudi A ...
,
Yemen
Yemen, officially the Republic of Yemen, is a country in West Asia. Located in South Arabia, southern Arabia, it borders Saudi Arabia to Saudi Arabia–Yemen border, the north, Oman to Oman–Yemen border, the northeast, the south-eastern part ...
to Amr
al-Bahrani. He left for
Mecca
Mecca, officially Makkah al-Mukarramah, is the capital of Mecca Province in the Hejaz region of western Saudi Arabia; it is the Holiest sites in Islam, holiest city in Islam. It is inland from Jeddah on the Red Sea, in a narrow valley above ...
after an incident between him and one of the fellow tribesmen namely Abu Shammar ibn Hajar al-Kindi
caused him to become fugitive and run away from his home to Mecca.
In Mecca, he served a man named al-Aswad ibn Abd al-Yaghuts al-Kindi, who several times impressed his master and caused al-Aswad to grant favor on him and later adopted him as son, thus caused Miqdad to be more known as al-Miqdad ibn Aswad al-Kindi rather than al-Miqdad ibn Amr.
Under Muhammad
When Muhammad began the religion of Islam, Miqdad was among the first seven people who converted although he hid his new faith from Aswad ibn Abd al-Yaghuts.
He later performed
the migration to Medina with fellow Muslims to escape the persecutions from the
Quraysh
The Quraysh () are an Tribes of Arabia, Arab tribe who controlled Mecca before the rise of Islam. Their members were divided into ten main clans, most notably including the Banu Hashim, into which Islam's founding prophet Muhammad was born. By ...
.
When the Muslims migrated to Medina, Miqdad and
Utba ibn Ghazwan pretended to follow the Meccan polytheists in their effort to chase the Muslims.
However, as they caught up with a group of Muslim Muhajirs who escaped Mecca, Miqdad and Utbah immediately broke up with the Meccan and instead joined the Muslims in their escape to Medina.
One source says that in the battle of Badr Miqdad was the only Muslim who rode a horse, the others were on camels or on foot. Miqdad commanded the left flank of the Muslim army during this battle.
Another source says that at least three Muslims were on horseback: Miqdad,
Zubayr ibn al-Awwam
Al-Zubayr ibn al-Awwam ibn Khuwaylid al-Asadi (; ) was an Arab Muslim commander in the service of the Islamic prophet Muhammad and the caliphs Abu Bakr () and Umar () who played a leading role in the Ridda Wars, Ridda wars against rebel tribes in ...
, and Marthad ibn abi Marthad.
Before the battle Miqdad said to Muhammad:
There is a hadith that says that after the battle of Badr, Miqdad and Zubayr both received double the normal soldier's spoils of war for riding horses.
Later, in the battle of Uhud, he was said to have been an archer Later in the
battle of Dhu Qarad when Banu Ghatafan under Abdurrahman al-Faraji came to raid Medina, he along with Akhram and
Abu Qatadah fought against Abdurrahman al-Faraji. Akhram died in this battle but Miqdad and Abu Qatada manage to win the battle and caused the army of Abdurrahman to flee.
This is also stated in Waqidi Kitabul Maghazi
Miqdad was in all of Muhammad's battles.
[Ziriklī, al-Aʿlām, vol. 7, p. 282.]
He married Duba'ah bint Zubayr, one of Muhammad's relatives.
During the Caliphate of Umar
During the
first siege of Emesa Miqdad participated as commander of
Bali tribe division.
Miqdad was known to have participated in this siege under
Abu Ubaidah ibn al-Jarrah
ʿĀmir ibn ʿAbd Allāh ibn al-Jarrāḥ (; 583–639), better known as Abū ʿUbayda () was a Muslim commander and one of the Companions of the Prophet. He is mostly known for being one of the ten to whom Paradise was promised. He was comm ...
.
During the campaign in Levant, Miqdad also served as Quran reciter of the army of
Rashidun caliph
The Rashidun Caliphate () is a title given for the reigns of first caliphs (lit. "successors") — Abu Bakr, Umar, Uthman, and Ali collectively — believed to represent the perfect Islam and governance who led the Muslim community and po ...
Abu Bakr
Abd Allah ibn Abi Quhafa (23 August 634), better known by his ''Kunya (Arabic), kunya'' Abu Bakr, was a senior Sahaba, companion, the closest friend, and father-in-law of Muhammad. He served as the first caliph of the Rashidun Caliphate, ruli ...
This tradition was recorded to be continued on to the time of caliph Umar in
battle of Yarmouk
The Battle of the Yarmuk (also spelled Yarmouk; ) was a major battle between the army of the Byzantine Empire and the Arab Muslim forces of the Rashidun Caliphate. The battle consisted of a series of engagements that lasted for six days in Aug ...
, where Miqdad was tasked by
Khalid bin al-Walid
Khalid ibn al-Walid ibn al-Mughira al-Makhzumi (; died 642) was a 7th-century Arabs, Arab military commander. He initially led campaigns against Muhammad on behalf of the Quraysh. He later became a Muslim and spent the remainder of his career ...
to recite Quranic verses from
Al-Anfal
Al-Anfal (, ; The Spoils of War, Earnings, Savings, Profits) is the eighth chapter (sūrah) of the Quran, with 75 verses ( āyāt). Regarding the timing and contextual background of the revelation ('' asbāb al-nuzūl''), it is a " Medinan ...
to the rear guards which were led by
Said ibn Zayd to boost their morale before the battle
Miqdad then was sent by caliph Umar to Egypt during the
Muslim conquest of Egypt
The Arab conquest of Egypt, led by the army of Amr ibn al-As, took place between 639 and 642 AD and was overseen by the Rashidun Caliphate. It ended the seven-century-long Roman Egypt, Roman period in Egypt that had begun in 30 BC and, more broa ...
to aid '
Amr ibn al As as the latter asked for reinforcements, where caliph Umar praised Miqdad in his letter to Amr that Miqdad being equal to 1,000 soldiers in strength
According to Waqidi, during Miqdad's campaign aiding Amr, the Rashidun under Miqdad pacified several areas in al-Gharbia region, starting from Kafr Tanah (area in modern day
Dakahlia Governorate), and
Tennis
Tennis is a List of racket sports, racket sport that is played either individually against a single opponent (singles (tennis), singles) or between two teams of two players each (doubles (tennis), doubles). Each player uses a tennis racket st ...
.
Then Miqdad continued his march leading forty horsemen which included
Dhiraar ibn al-Azwar.
Then as they reached
Damietta
Damietta ( ' ) is a harbor, port city and the capital of the Damietta Governorate in Egypt. It is located at the Damietta branch, an eastern distributary of the Nile Delta, from the Mediterranean Sea, and about north of Cairo. It was a Cath ...
, Miqdad found the city was fortified by a man named al-Hammuk, an uncle of
Al-Muqawqis.
Al-Hammuk fortified the city and closed the gates, as Miqdad besieged the city.
As Damietta subdued, Miqdad were appointed to govern the city.
The siege continued until the defender of Damietta, Shata, the son of Hammuk, agreed to surrender and converted to Islam. As Shata now converted to Islam, Miqdad now appointed him to lead the army to conquer the province of Sah, the fortresses in
Ashmoun,
Lake Burullus, and Dumayra.
However, Shata later fell in battle during the capture of Tina castle.
Later, during the siege of
Oxyrhynchus
Oxyrhynchus ( ; , ; ; ), also known by its modern name Al-Bahnasa (), is a city in Middle Egypt located about 160 km south-southwest of Cairo in Minya Governorate. It is also an important archaeological site. Since the late 19th century, t ...
in south of Egypt, Miqdad,
Zubayr ibn al-Awwam
Al-Zubayr ibn al-Awwam ibn Khuwaylid al-Asadi (; ) was an Arab Muslim commander in the service of the Islamic prophet Muhammad and the caliphs Abu Bakr () and Umar () who played a leading role in the Ridda Wars, Ridda wars against rebel tribes in ...
, Dhiraar ibn al-Azwar and others, leading about 10,000
Companions of the Prophet
The Companions of the Prophet () were the Muslim disciples and followers of the Islamic prophet Muhammad who saw or met him during his lifetime. The companions played a major role in Muslim battles, society, hadith narration, and governance ...
, with 70 among them were veterans of battle of Badr.
They besieged the city for 4 months as Miqdad leading 200 horsemen, while Zubayr ibn Al-Awwam lead 300 horsemen, then Dhiraar,
Abdullah ibn Umar, and
Uqba ibn Amir al-Juhani each leading 200 horsemen.
the Byzantines and their Copt allies showering the Rashidun army, until the overcame the defenders, as Dhiraar, the first emerge, came out from the battle with his entire body covered in blood, while confessed he has slayed about 160 Byzantine soldiers during the battle.
Then, the city of Oxyrhyncuhus was renamed into "al-Bahnasa" after being subdued by Rashidun army.
At some point during Umar's reign, when Miqdad in Medina, along with Zubayr, and the caliph's son,
Abdullah ibn Umar, went to Khaybar to collect their profit share as they have shareholding of the properties and plantations in Khaybar, which were managed and worked by the Jewish tribes of Khaybar, who had been subdued during the time of Muhammad.
However, the Jews in Khaybar refused and instead hurt Abdullah ibn Umar, who suffered broken hand from their harassment.
This prompted caliph Umar to expel the entire Jewish tribe from Khaybar, as now the properties in Khaybar were fully owned by the Muslim overlords.
During the Caliphate of Uthman
After the death of caliph
Umar
Umar ibn al-Khattab (; ), also spelled Omar, was the second Rashidun caliph, ruling from August 634 until his assassination in 644. He succeeded Abu Bakr () and is regarded as a senior companion and father-in-law of the Islamic prophet Mu ...
, Miqdad pledge his allegiance to
Uthman
Uthman ibn Affan (17 June 656) was the third caliph of the Rashidun Caliphate, ruling from 644 until his assassination in 656. Uthman, a second cousin, son-in-law, and notable companion of the Islamic Prophet Muhammad, played a major role ...
who had just ascended as caliph.
During the reign of caliph Uthman, Miqdad participated in
further conquest of Africa where Miqdad was sent along with Abdullah bin Al-Zubayr, Abdullah bin Amr bin Al-Aas, Abdullah bin Abbas, as well as Abu Dhar Al-Ghafari, Miswar bin Makhrama to face the Byzantine army under Gregory in the
battle of Sufetula.
Later, Miqdad , Shaddad ibn Aws and
Ubadah ibn al-Samit joined the first caliphate naval armada built by
Muawiyah to the Conquest of
Arwad
Arwad (; ), the classical antiquity, classical Aradus, is a town in Syria on an eponymous List of islands of Syria, island in the Mediterranean Sea. It is the administrative center of the Arwad nahiyah, Subdistrict (''nahiyah''), of which it is ...
island in the offshore of
Tartus
Tartus ( / ALA-LC: ''Ṭarṭūs''; known in the County of Tripoli as Tortosa and also transliterated from French language, French Tartous) is a major port city on the Mediterranean coast of Syria. It is the second largest port city in Syria (af ...
.
The mariners that conquered the island of Arwad under Muawiyah later continued their venture to the island of
Cyprus
Cyprus (), officially the Republic of Cyprus, is an island country in the eastern Mediterranean Sea. Situated in West Asia, its cultural identity and geopolitical orientation are overwhelmingly Southeast European. Cyprus is the List of isl ...
.
several authorities reported Miqdad was also among this naval enterprise to Cyprus.
They departed from
Acre
The acre ( ) is a Unit of measurement, unit of land area used in the Imperial units, British imperial and the United States customary units#Area, United States customary systems. It is traditionally defined as the area of one Chain (unit), ch ...
.
According to
Mahmud Shakir, the armada of Miqdad, Mu'awiyah, and Ubadah met with the naval forces from Africa which were led by
Abdallah ibn Sa'd, who arrived in Cyprus before them.
Then they joined their forces until they subdued the island of Cyprus from Byzantine garrisons.
The Rashidun naval forces pacified almost every Byzantine garrison; which is supported by the evidence of two Greek inscriptions in the Cypriot village of Solois that cite the occurrence of first and second conquest of Cyprus, with around fifty small raids occurred in between. The entire island of Cyprus surrendered for the first time after their capital,
Salamis, was surrounded and besieged for an unspecified time.
[Ali Sallabi">]
Before the canonization of
Quran
The Quran, also Romanization, romanized Qur'an or Koran, is the central religious text of Islam, believed by Muslims to be a Waḥy, revelation directly from God in Islam, God (''Allah, Allāh''). It is organized in 114 chapters (, ) which ...
codex into
one Mushaf under jurisdiction of caliph Uthman, the
Qira'at
In Islam, (pl. ; ) refers to the ways or fashions that the Quran, the holy book of Islam, is recited. More technically, the term designates the different linguistic, lexical, phonetic, morphological and syntactical forms permitted with rec ...
of Miqdad is the one which was adhered by Muslims in
Levant
The Levant ( ) is the subregion that borders the Eastern Mediterranean, Eastern Mediterranean sea to the west, and forms the core of West Asia and the political term, Middle East, ''Middle East''. In its narrowest sense, which is in use toda ...
,
particularly in
Homs
Homs ( ; ), known in pre-Islamic times as Emesa ( ; ), is a city in western Syria and the capital of the Homs Governorate. It is Metres above sea level, above sea level and is located north of Damascus. Located on the Orontes River, Homs is ...
During his stay in Homs, Miqdad teaching Qur'an in the city.
Later life and death
It is recorded that a Christian slave of his once stated that he would make an incision into Miqdad's abdominal area and remove all the fat and then re-stitch the wound. However, this procedure resulted in contracting an infection which got worse until Miqdad succumbed to illness.
As he was dying, Miqdad asked Zubayr ibn al-Awwam to manage and sell one of his estates which was left to his two children.
Hasan ibn Ali
Hasan ibn Ali (; 2 April 670) was an Alids, Alid political and religious leader. The eldest son of Ali and Fatima and a grandson of the Islamic prophet Muhammad, Hasan briefly ruled as Rashidun caliphate, Rashidun caliph from January 661 unt ...
and
Husayn ibn Ali
Husayn ibn Ali (; 11 January 626 – 10 October 680 Common Era, CE) was a social, political and religious leader in early medieval Arabia. The grandson of the Islamic prophet Muhammad and an Alids, Alid (the son of Ali ibn Abu Talib ibn Abd a ...
, each getting 18,000 dirhams from the endowment, while from the remainder he also asked Zubayr to give each of
Muhammad's wives
A total of eleven women are confirmed as having been married to Muhammad, the founder of Islam. As a sign of respect, Muslims refer to each of these wives with the title ''"Umm al-Mu'minin"'' (, ), which is derived from of the Quran.
Muhammad' ...
7,000 dirhams.
Miqdad died in 33
AH in
Damascus
Damascus ( , ; ) is the capital and List of largest cities in the Levant region by population, largest city of Syria. It is the oldest capital in the world and, according to some, the fourth Holiest sites in Islam, holiest city in Islam. Kno ...
and is buried there.
However, Tabari recorded that Miqdad was buried in al-Jurf, a place three miles west of Medina where the caliph Uthman led the ritual prayer of his death.
Scholarship legacy
Hadith that is transmitted by Miqdad became guidance rulings for Muslim scholars to formulate Sharia
Sharia, Sharī'ah, Shari'a, or Shariah () is a body of religious law that forms a part of the Islamic tradition based on Islamic holy books, scriptures of Islam, particularly the Quran, Qur'an and hadith. In Islamic terminology ''sharīʿah'' ...
laws. Shafiʽi school
The Shafi'i school or Shafi'i Madhhab () or Shafi'i is one of the four major schools of fiqh (Islamic jurisprudence), belonging to the Ahl al-Hadith tradition within Sunni Islam. It was founded by the Muslim scholar, jurist, and traditionist al ...
Madhhab scholars cite the Hadith from Ali for the rule of war to take physical action against enemy of the State, based on when Miqdad and Zubayr were brought together with Ali on the instruction from Muhammad to pursue and capture Meccan polytheist spy who are on the way to inform the enemy regarding Muslims strategy. This ruling were codified in Kitab al-Umm
The ''Kitāb al-Umm'' (Arabic: كـتـاب الأم) is the first exhaustive compendium of Islamic code of law that is used as an authoritative guide by the Shafi'i school of ''fiqh'' (Islamic jurisprudence) within the Sunni branch of Islam. The ...
which is authored by Al-Shafi'i
Al-Shafi'i (; ;767–820 CE) was a Muslim scholar, jurist, muhaddith, traditionist, theologian, ascetic, and eponym of the Shafi'i school of Sunni Islamic jurisprudence. He is known to be the first to write a book upon the principles ...
.
Ibn Hajar al-Asqalani
Ibn Ḥajar al-ʿAsqalānī (; 18 February 1372 – 2 February 1449), or simply ibn Ḥajar, was a classic Islamic scholar "whose life work constitutes the final summation of the science of hadith." He authored some 150 works on hadith, history, ...
recorded in his book regarding the rulings from hadith, Fath al-Bari
() is a commentary on , the first of the Six Books of Sunni Islam, authored by Egyptian Islamic scholar Ibn Hajar al-Asqalani (initiated by ibn Rajab). Considered his magnum opus, it is a widely celebrated hadith commentary.
Ibn Rajab commen ...
, the Sunnah
is the body of traditions and practices of the Islamic prophet Muhammad that constitute a model for Muslims to follow. The sunnah is what all the Muslims of Muhammad's time supposedly saw, followed, and passed on to the next generations. Diff ...
which is practiced by Miqdad to throw mud or dust towards the face of flatterers or sychophants. The practice and encouragement of such conduct were also listed by Muhammad al-Bukhari
Abū ʿAbd Allāh Muḥammad ibn Ismāʿīl ibn Ibrāhīm al-Juʿfī al-Bukhārī (; 21 July 810 – 1 September 870) was a 9th-century Persian Muslim '' muhaddith'' who is widely regarded as the most important ''hadith'' scholar in the histor ...
in his book regarding ethics and manners towards peoples who gave praise excessively, which being responded with mud thrown by Miqdad.
In modern time, Muğdat Mosque was built a large mosque in Mersin
Mersin () is a large city and port on the Mediterranean Sea, Mediterranean coast of Mediterranean Region, Turkey, southern Turkey. It is the provincial capital of the Mersin Province (formerly İçel). It is made up of four district governorates ...
, Turkey
Turkey, officially the Republic of Türkiye, is a country mainly located in Anatolia in West Asia, with a relatively small part called East Thrace in Southeast Europe. It borders the Black Sea to the north; Georgia (country), Georgia, Armen ...
in honor of Miqdad as early Sahabah.
See also
* Aswad (name)
* Sunni view of the Sahaba
* Muğdat Mosque
*Muslim conquest of the Levant
The Muslim conquest of the Levant (; ), or Arab conquest of Syria, was a 634–638 CE invasion of Byzantine Syria by the Rashidun Caliphate. A part of the wider Arab–Byzantine wars, the Levant was brought under Arab Muslim rule and develope ...
Notes
References
Bibliography
*
Further reading
al-Miḳdād b. ʿAmr
{{Authority control
Muhajirun
Sahabah who participated in the battle of Badr
Sahabah who participated in the battle of Uhud
Sahabah hadith narrators
Generals of the Rashidun Caliphate
People of the Muslim conquest of the Levant
Muslim conquest of Egypt
Arab people of the Arab–Byzantine wars
People from the Rashidun Caliphate
Arab generals
Year of birth missing
652 deaths
Kinda