Technically, it is property taken from a non-Muslim on account of his unbelief, without any fighting.

• Jizyah: derived from jazāʾ (recompense). It is the annual tribute collected from the ahl al-dhimmah in a state of humbled submission, in lieu of putting them to death and while permitting them to reside in our lands.

• Ḥiṣn (fortress): one says ḥaṣuna al-makān ḥiṣnā (“the place became well fortified”), hence it is ḥaṣīn (secure). A ḥiṣn is an impregnable position; plural ḥuṣūn. The adjective ḥaṣīn means firmly secured and unassailable.

• The dhimmah of Allah and His Prophet: here dhimmah denotes a treaty of peace and truce. The prohibition against granting it indiscriminately exists so that someone unfamiliar with its sanctity will not violate it, and so that any member of the army lacking discernment will not infringe upon its inviolability.

• Tukhfirū: pronounced with ḍamma on the initial tāʾ, a silent khāʾ, a kasrah on the fāʾ, followed by a rāʾ. The verb akhfartu al-rajul means “I broke his covenant,” whereas khafartuhu means “I guaranteed his safety and protected him.”

Lessons derived from the hadith

1. This sound and noble hadith gives the finest portrayal of jihad in the path of Allah—directly from its original Lawgiver, may Allah bless him and grant him peace. It reveals that those Islamic campaigns were marked by justice and fairness, adorned with mercy, aimed at charity and benevolence, and firmly committed to covenants and treaties. They are therefore the very opposite of what the enemies of Islam allege—harshness, brutality, and similar accusations—claims born either of ignorance and blind imitation or of enmity and spite.

2. The Prophet ﷺ never dispatched a commander at the head of a detachment without first counselling him and his troops about the rulings, etiquette, and virtues they were obliged—or expected—to observe during their expedition.

3. Because the Companions ﵃ placed great trust in their Prophet ﷺ and were deeply convinced of the wisdom and immense benefit of his counsel, they carried it out exactly as he prescribed, with eagerness and delight, embodying the Almighty’s words, “So take whatever the Messenger gives you, and refrain from whatever he forbids you” (Qur’an 59:7), and His statement, “Those who oppose his command should beware lest a trial befall them, or…” (Qur’an 24:63).