Fidaiyun min Asr al-Rasul
- Author died
- 1433 AH
- Editions
- Dar al-Diya' lil-Nashr wa-al-Tawzi'
Fidaiyun min Asr al-Rasul (Commandos from the Era of the Messenger) is a biographical and historical work by the contemporary Islamic writer Ahmad al-Jada (d. 1433 AH / 2012 CE), examining special operations and military sacrifice among the Companions of the Prophet Muhammad ﷺ.
Background and Purpose
The first edition of the book appeared in 1979 CE (1399 AH) with an opening essay entitled Madkhal ("Introduction"). Al-Jada stated that his motivation for writing was to counter the ideological confusion among Muslim youth who adopted imported models of guerrilla warfare and guerrilla icons associated with secularism, socialism, and Marxism—such as Che Guevara, Vo Nguyen Giap, Fidel Castro, Vladimir Lenin, Mao Zedong, and Karl Marx. He argued that true sacrifice (fida') and military success for the Muslim community must be rooted exclusively in Islamic principles and modeled upon the Prophet ﷺ and his Companions.
Structure and Content
The initial edition detailed the covert operations and complete biographies of three Companions. In the fourth edition, signed by the author in Amman in Dhu al-Qi'da 1404 AH (August 1984 CE), al-Jada added three additional chapters covering three more Companions, bringing the total number of profiled figures to six.
The book begins with an overview of the martial traditions of early Muslim fighters during the Prophetic era, including:
- Battle slogans (shi'arat al-harb): Distinguishing passcodes used during engagements, such as Ahad, Ahad at the Battle of Badr; Amit, Amit at the Battle of Uhud; the Quranic phrase حم لا ينصرون at the Battle of the Trench; Ya Mansur, amit amit during the expeditions of Banu al-Mustaliq and Khaybar; and separate group slogans during the Conquest of Mecca (Ya Bani Abd al-Rahman for the Emigrants, Ya Bani Abd Allah for the Khazraj, and Ya Bani Ubayd Allah for the Aws).
- Battle cries and chants (hutafat): Including the general cry Allahu Akbar, the Prophet's exhortation Ya khayl Allah irkabi ("O steeds of God, mount!"), and the poetry chanted during the digging of the Trench.
The main chapters provide chronological biographical coverage—from birth to death—and in-depth narrative accounts of key covert missions and engagements undertaken by prominent Companions, such as:
- Abdullah ibn Unays: His participation alongside Abdullah ibn Atik in the targeted mission against Sallam ibn Abi al-Huqayq (Abu Rafi') at Khaybar, the confrontation with al-Yusayr ibn Rizam, and his mission against Sufyan ibn Khalid al-Hudhali.
- Muhammad ibn Maslama: His leadership of the night patrol and guard guarding Medina and the Prophet ﷺ, his role in various special expeditions, and his withdrawal from civil strife (fitna) following the assassination of Caliph Uthman ibn Affan.
- Amr ibn Umayya al-Damri: Noted for his reconnaissance and emissary missions for the Prophet ﷺ.
Publication History
The work went through multiple editions in close succession. The fifth edition was published in a single volume by Dar al-Diya' lil-Nashr wa-al-Tawzi' in Amman, Jordan, in 1407 AH / 1987 CE.
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