Marwiyyat Ghazwat Hunayn wa Hisar al-Taif

Marwiyyat Ghazwat Hunayn wa Hisar al-Taif (Narrations of the Battle of Hunayn and the Siege of al-Ta'if) is a specialized hadith and historical study by Ibrahim bin Ibrahim Quraybi, examining the prophetic reports concerning the Battle of Hunayn and the subsequent Siege of Ta'if (8 AH) Nataij al-Buhuth wa Khawa…+1. Originally prepared as a doctoral dissertation following the author's earlier work on the expedition of Banu al-Mustaliq, it was published by the Scientific Council and the Center for Scientific Research at the Islamic University of Madinah Marwiyyat Ghazwat Hunayn …+1.

Purpose and Scope

The work seeks to assemble and critically examine the fragmented narrations pertaining to the Battle of Hunayn and the Siege of al-Ta'if scattered across primary hadith and historical sources Nataij al-Buhuth wa Khawa…+1. Quraybi highlighted several motivations for singling out this campaign, including the high density and divergence of its narrations, its historical position as the decisive final confrontation against pagan tribal confederations in the Arabian Peninsula, and the extensive military, theological, and legal rulings (ahkam) embedded in its events Marwiyyat Ghazwat Hunayn …+1.

Structure

The book is organized into an introduction, a preliminary section, three main parts (abwab), and a conclusion:

• Preliminary Section (al-Tamhid): Covers two background subjects: the genealogy, geography, and pre-Islamic relations of the tribes of Hawazin and Thaqif with Quraysh, followed by Muslim military movements immediately preceding Hunayn, namely the missions to destroy the idols of al-'Uzza and Manat, and Khalid ibn al-Walid's expedition to Banu Jadhimah Marwiyyat Ghazwat Hunayn ….
• Part One (al-Bab al-Awwal): Focuses on the Battle of Hunayn across four chapters:
  1. Preliminaries of the Battle: The causes of the conflict and preparations Marwiyyat Ghazwat Hunayn ….
  2. The March to Hunayn: The date of departure, appointment of the governor over Mecca, army size, enemy preparations, prophetic tidings of victory, remnants of pre-Islamic habits, and reports regarding the statement that they would not be defeated due to small numbers Marwiyyat Ghazwat Hunayn ….
  3. Description of the Engagement: Causes of the initial Muslim retreat, dubious reactions during the retreat, the steadfast companions who stood with the Prophet ﷺ, and factors leading to the ultimate Muslim victory Marwiyyat Ghazwat Hunayn ….
  4. Casualties and Spoils: Losses suffered by the polytheists and casualties among the Muslims Marwiyyat Ghazwat Hunayn ….
• Part Two (al-Bab al-Thani): Traces the pursuit of retreating polytheists and subsequent events across four chapters:
  1. Pursuit toward Nakhlah and Awtas: The detachment to Nakhlah, the expedition of Awtas, and the incidents involving al-Shayma' and Bijad Marwiyyat Ghazwat Hunayn ….
  2. The Campaign of al-Ta'if: The siege, military instructions issued during it, casualties on both sides, and the lifting of the siege to return to al-Ji'ranah Marwiyyat Ghazwat Hunayn ….
  3. Division of Spoils: Legal definitions distinguishing ghanimah, fay', and nafl; interactions with Bedouins; the objection of Dhu al-Khuwaysirah al-Tamimi; the wisdom behind distributing spoils to specific individuals; and the reaction of the Ansar alongside the Prophet's ﷺ address to them Marwiyyat Ghazwat Hunayn ….
  4. Outcomes for Hawazin and Thaqif: The arrival of the Hawazin delegation at al-Ji'ranah accepting Islam, and Thaqif's subsequent delegation to Madinah Marwiyyat Ghazwat Hunayn ….
• Part Three (al-Bab al-Thalith): Outlines seventeen major legal rulings deduced from the campaign, including rules governing the cohabitation with captive women following istibra', coitus interruptus (azl) at Awtas, temporary marriage (mut'ah), preventing effeminate men (mukhannathun) from entering women's private quarters, the prohibition against killing non-combatant women and the weak, valid excuses for missing congregational prayer, teaching the call to prayer (adhan) to Abu Mahdhurah, executing legal penalties (hudud) in enemy territory (dar al-harb), seeking assistance from non-Muslims, liability for borrowed items (ariyyah), fulfillment of pre-conversion vows upon accepting Islam, the right of a warrior to the personal spoils (salab) of an enemy he killed, prohibition of misappropriating spoils (ghulul), gifts given to reconcile hearts (al-mu'allafah qulubuhum), restrictions on pilgrims in ihram, and the Prophet's ﷺ performance of 'Umrah from al-Ji'ranah Marwiyyat Ghazwat Hunayn ….
• Conclusion (al-Khatimah): Summarizes the analytical and historical findings reached in the study Nataij al-Buhuth wa Khawa…+1.

Method

Quraybi adhered to the methodology of hadith scholars (muhaddithun) in evaluating textual reports through the principles of al-jarh wa-al-ta'dil (narrator criticism) Marwiyyat Ghazwat Hunayn …. For narrations contained within the Six Books of Hadith (al-Kutub al-Sittah), he typically opened chapters with them and organized subsequent reports chronologically by the death dates of their authorities Marwiyyat Ghazwat Hunayn …. He refrained from providing biographical evaluations for transmitters appearing in Sahih al-Bukhari and Sahih Muslim, treating their reliability as established, while thoroughly analyzing the chains of transmission (isnad) of reports outside the two Sahihs to grade them as authentic (sahih), fair (hasan), or weak (da'if) Marwiyyat Ghazwat Hunayn …. Biographical determinations relied primarily on Ibn Hajar al-Asqalani's Taqrib al-Tahdhib and Tahdhib al-Tahdhib, turning to broader biographical dictionaries for unlisted or contested narrators Marwiyyat Ghazwat Hunayn …. All recorded traditions were assigned sequential reference numbers alongside complete citations of their source variants Marwiyyat Ghazwat Hunayn ….