Noaman bin Muqqarin Al-Mazni
Noaman heard about the Prophet's (pbuh) message and announced his decision
to turn over to Islam and 10 of his brothers joined him the next morning!
Noaman was member of the Al-Mazeena tribe that lived on the outskirts of Yathrib on the road that led out of the city to Makkah. He was first among those who embraced Islam on the invitation of Prophet Muhammad, peace be upon him. When he heard about the Prophet's message, he announced his decision to turn over to Islam and 10 of his brothers joined him the next morning. Another 400 youth, who were veteran fighters of the tribe, also joined the group soon after. This provided a tremendous boost to the neo-Muslim society and the occasion led to revelation of some verses of the Quran.
Prior to the Battle of Qadissiya which delivered Iran to the Islamic fold, a delegation of the Islamic government was sent to the emperor of Iran to invite him to Islam by Saad bin Abi Waqqas. Waqqas appointed Noaman as the leader who also acted as the chief spokesman of the Islamic government. Noaman told the emperor: "We invite you to Islam which we find a code of life superior to all others. It rescues you from all the evils. If you fashion the administration of your sultanate in accordance with Islam, we will not interfere in your affairs. If you accept Islam, we will leave the book of Allah with you in order that you deduce the commandments of Allah. But if you refuse, we will impose jizyah on you and you will be protected by us. If you refuse jizyah, you can consider yourselves on war with us".
The plainspeak by Noaman infuriated the Iranian emperor. He ridiculed them all and said, "I would have dealt sternly with you, had I not been bound by International convention to respect the rights of the ambassadors. He then ordered his men to expel the delegation out of the boundaries of the Iranian sultanate and asked them to leave them out of the frontiers in a situation in which a bag of soil is kept on the neck of the most respected of the members of the delegation. They were asked to identify this member. Asim bin Umar accepted to carry the bag. The emperor also warned them against the war and said he would bury them and their leader in the trenches of Qadissiya if they ever thought of war.
Not long after this incident, Muslims and the Iranians fought the war at Qadissiya. Trenches were indeed filled with bodies. But all these bodies belonged to Iranians.
But soon the Iranians came back to avenge their defeat and collected a huge army of 1.5 lakh people at Nahavand. Caliph Umar appointed Noaman to lead the Muslim armies. Noaman was a veteran warrior and was an extremely agile and swift marksman. On reaching the outskirts of Nahavand, Noaman dispatched a reconnaissance to inspect the Iranian preparations. The team found to its horror that all its horses had stopped in their track. It was soon discovered that the Iranians had laid nails on all the routes leading to Nahavand to block the entry of the infantry and the cavalry. Soon Noaman was informed about the unpredictable situation. Noaman ordered the entire Muslim army to set up fires all around them soon after dusk fell. He ordered them to pretend as if the Muslim army was on retreat and was depressed with the new situation. This, he imagined, would entice them into an attack which would require them to remove the nails themselves and proceed.
He was right in his guess. The fires were mistaken as a sign of retreat by the Muslim army. Iranians came to attack. The Noaman's army launched a powerful assault. Noaman himself had taken a convoy of his cavalry to another side. They all plunged headlong with a sudden thrust against the enemy. The Iranians were not ready for this push by the Muslims. They were taken by surprise, routed and chased and killed in large numbers. During the battle, Noaman's horse slipped on the blood and died. Noaman too died due to the fall. His brother who was nearby soon came to the spot, covered his body with a chador and himself took up the standard of the army.
The Muslims emerged victorious. As people came searching for their leader Noaman, his brother removed the chador to show them the body of Noaman. Noaman had fallen martyr but delivered the much needed victory.
(Abridged and translated by
Maqbool Ahmed Siraj
from Suwarum min Hayathus Sahaba
authored by
Dr. Abdur Rahman Rafat Pasha).
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Food for Thought
Are we fostering in our children a sense of pride in our Deen?
By Sahar El-Shafie
Many Muslim families debate whether to send their children to public schools or Islamic schools. Whatever the parents choose for their children, parents must always remember that whatever environment they choose for their children, they must do their best to guide them.
Some parents feel that simply having their children attend Islamic schools relieves them of their duties as parents. Of course, this is not true. Yet, there are far too many parents who subscribe to this way of thinking. As a teacher in the public school system, I also see the problems of having a Muslim child attend a school where the values of the school don't necessarily match that of the child's Islamic upbringing. So what are we to do?
The answer, I feel, lies in our ability to parent as well as in helping build our children's own Islamic identity. Parents often wonder what it takes to raise their children in the society, which doesn't have the sense of Halal and Haram that we Muslims do. But what are we teaching our children at home that helps them to deal with such issues?
Are we fostering in our children a sense of pride in our Deen? We are so busy trying to make ends meet in our day-to-day struggle to survive that our children's Islamic upbringing is being neglected.
As parents we want our children to be successful doctors, lawyers and engineers. How many of us want our children to be good Muslims as well as successful professionals today? I see too many Muslim children who try to hide their Islam in the public school setting. The challenge lies in our ability to keep our Islamic identity in a non-Muslim society, as well as help our children to develop a Muslim identity of their own.
From personal experience, I have found out that we need to be with good practising Muslims if we are to develop a Muslim identity. The same is true for our children.
Be active in your local Muslim community.
Be a part of the solution to your community's problems.
Organize and support youth groups that foster your children's strong sense of Islamic identity.
Get together with other Muslim families and organize group activities for the children like group outings, camps, picnics, etc.
Also, have a knowledgeable family member give them Quranic as well as Islamic lessons to help them further develop their knowledge of their Deen. Most of all, be a friend to your child. Listen to his or her problems and help him to solve them Islamically.
Make your child active in finding the solution to their problem. Don't try to shelter your child from the harshness of reality.
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ISLAMIC MANNERS
The Art of Listening
By Shaykh AbdulFattah Abu Ghudda
If a person starts telling you, whether in private or public, something that you already knew very well, you should pretend as if you do not know it. Do not rush to reveal your knowledge or to interfere with the speech. Instead, show your attention and concentration. The honourable Imam Ata ibn Abi Rabah said: “A young man would tell me something that I may have heard before he was born. Nevertheless, I would listen to him as if I had never heard it before.”
Khalid ibn Safwan al-Tamimi, who frequented the courts of two Khalifahs: Umar ibn Abdul Aziz and Hisham ibn Abdul Malik, said: “If a person tells you something you have heard before, or news that you already learned, do not interrupt him to exhibit your knowledge to those present. This is rude and ill mannered.” The honorable Imam Abdullah ibn Wahab al-Qurashi al-Masri, a companion of Imam Malik, Al-Laith ibn Sad and Al-Thawri, said: “Sometimes a person would tell me a story that I have heard before his parents had wed. Yet, I listened as if I have never heard it before.” Ibrahim ibn al-Junaid said: “A wise man said to his son: ‘Learn the art of listening as you learn the art of speaking.’ Listening well means maintaining eye contact, allowing the speaker to finish the speech, and restraining your urge to interrupt his speech. Al-Hafiz al-Khatib al-Baghdadi said in a poem:
Never interrupt a talk Though you know it inside out.
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