and Ṭalḥa ibn ʿUbayd Allāh was with him as he climbed the mountain. The polytheists caught up with them, and he said, “Will no one hold these people back?” Ṭalḥa answered, “I will, O Messenger of Allah!” He replied, “Stay where you are, Ṭalḥa.” Then a man from the Anṣār said, “Then I will, O Messenger of Allah!” He fought on the Prophet’s behalf while the Messenger of Allah ﷺ and those with him continued to climb, until that Anṣārī was killed and the enemy reached them again. He said, “Will no one hold these people back?” Ṭalḥa repeated his offer, and the Messenger of Allah ﷺ responded as before. Another man from the Anṣār said, “I will, O Messenger of Allah!” He was given permission and fought while the Messenger of Allah ﷺ and his companions kept ascending, and he too was killed. The enemy caught up once more, and the Messenger of Allah ﷺ kept asking the same question while Ṭalḥa kept saying, “I will.” Each time the Prophet held him back, granting leave instead to another Anṣārī, until none remained with him but Ṭalḥa. The two of them were then surrounded, and the Prophet ﷺ said, “Who will deal with these people?” Ṭalḥa replied, “I will.” He fought with the valor of all who had gone before him, and his fingers were struck; he exclaimed, “Ouch!” The Messenger of Allah ﷺ said, “Had you said, ‘In the name of Allah,’ or mentioned the name of Allah, the angels would have lifted you up before the people’s eyes until they carried you into the highest reaches of the sky.” Then the Messenger of Allah ﷺ reached his companions, who were gathered together.

ʿAbd al-Wārith narrated: ʿAbd al-ʿAzīz told us from Anas who said: When the Day of Uḥud came, the people fled from the Messenger of Allah ﷺ, while Abū Ṭalḥa stood in front of him shielding him with a small buckler. Abū Ṭalḥa was a skilled archer with a powerful draw; that day he broke two or three bows. A man would pass by with a quiver full of arrows and pour them out for Abū Ṭalḥa. The Prophet of Allah ﷺ would raise his head to observe the enemy, and Abū Ṭalḥa would say, “O Prophet of Allah! May my father and mother be your ransom—do not expose yourself; an arrow from the enemy might strike you. My neck is in place of yours.” I even saw ʿĀʾishah bint Abī Bakr and Umm Sulaym