Then he—may Allah have mercy on him—said: “With regard to a single combatant charging into the enemy ranks, Muhammad ibn al-Hasan states in al-Siyar al-Kabir that even if a man were to attack a thousand soldiers by himself there is no harm in it, provided he hopes either to survive or to inflict damage. If he expects neither survival nor harm, I dislike it, for he would be exposing himself to destruction without benefiting the Muslims. A man should only do this when he hopes for escape or for some benefit to the Muslims. If he has no hope of escape or harm, yet his action emboldens the Muslims so that they follow his example, kill, and injure the enemy, there is no objection, God willing. Indeed, were he personally to hope for harm to befall the enemy without expecting to survive, I would see no problem in his charge; similarly, if he hopes that others will harm the enemy because his assault spurs them on, there is no objection, and I hope he will be rewarded. It is disapproved only when the act yields absolutely no benefit in any respect. Even if he neither hopes for survival nor for injury, but his deed terrorises the enemy, there is still no objection, because that is the best kind of harm and benefits the Muslims. All the scenarios outlined by Muhammad are sound and no alternative view is permissible. In this light one should understand those who interpreted the hadith of Abu Ayyub to mean that he “threw himself into destruction” by charging the enemy when they saw no benefit in it. Thus a man should not destroy himself when no advantage accrues to the religion or to the Muslims. But if losing one’s life brings benefit to the religion, that is a lofty station for which Allah praised the Companions of the Prophet (peace be upon him) in His words: “Indeed Allah has purchased from the believers their lives and their wealth in exchange for Paradise; they fight in the way of Allah, kill and are killed …” (Quran 9:111); and in His words: “Do not think of those who are killed in the way of Allah as dead; rather, they are alive with their Lord, being provided for” (3:169); and in His words: “Among the people is he who sells his own self seeking the pleasure of Allah” (2:207), along with similar verses in which Allah praises those who sacrifice themselves for His sake.” (Ahkam al-Qur’an, 3/360). (1) The Maliki scholar al-Qurtubi—may Allah have mercy on him—said: “Scholars differ concerning a man who plunges into battle and charges the enemy alone. Al-Qasim ibn Mukhaimara, al-Qasim ibn Muhammad, and ‘Abd al-Malik from among our scholars maintain that there is no harm in a lone man’s attacking a massive army if he possesses the strength and his intention is purely for Allah; but if he lacks the strength, that constitutes self-destruction. Others have said that if he seeks martyrdom and his intention is sincere, let him charge, for his aim is to take down at least one of them, and that is evident in…”