even my own children and relatives(1) have deserted me, and only a handful of my men are still with me. However tough they may be,(2) they will hold out for no more than an hour—two at the most.

“Envoys from the Umayyads keep coming to negotiate, promising me whatever worldly wealth I wish if I will lay down my arms and pledge allegiance to ʿAbd al-Malik ibn Marwān. What do you think?”

Her voice rose and she said,

“The matter is yours, ʿAbd Allāh; you know yourself best.

If you believe you are upon the truth and are summoning people to the truth, then be patient and fight on, just as your companions who were slain beneath your banner remained patient.

But if it is this world you seek, what a wretched slave you are—you have ruined yourself and ruined your men.”

He replied, “Yet I am certain that I will be killed today, without a doubt.”