the Battle of Badr; yet no one who stayed behind on that occasion was blamed, for the Messenger of Allah ﷺ and the Muslims had set out only to intercept the Quraysh caravan(1) until Allah, Exalted is He, brought them together with their enemy without any prior appointment.

Indeed, I was present with the Messenger of Allah ﷺ on the Night of al-ʿAqabah when we pledged our allegiance to Islam, and I would not trade that night for having been at Badr, even though Badr is better known among the people.

As for my own circumstances when I failed to accompany the Messenger of Allah ﷺ on the Expedition of Tabūk, never before had I been stronger or better provided for than I was on that campaign. By Allah, I had never possessed two riding animals before, yet I had acquired two for that expedition.

The Messenger of Allah ﷺ never undertook a campaign without concealing his real objective(2)—until this expedition. He marched out in the fiercest heat, toward a far-off journey across a barren desert(3) and against a large enemy force. Therefore he made the matter plain to the Muslims so that they could make full preparations for the campaign(4), telling them exactly where he intended to go. The Muslims with the Messenger of Allah were many, and no written register kept their names together (meaning the administrative dīwān).

Kaʿb said: Hardly any man wished to stay behind without thinking that his absence would go unnoticed unless a revelation from Allah concerning him were sent down. The Messenger of Allah ﷺ set out on that expedition when the fruits were ripe and the shade inviting, and I was naturally drawn to them(5).

The Messenger of Allah ﷺ and the Muslims with him began their preparations, and I would go out intending to prepare with them, but I would return having accomplished nothing, saying to myself, “I can do that whenever I wish.” This kept on until the matter became earnest(6); the Messenger of Allah ﷺ departed early in the morning with the Muslims while I had still done nothing about my equipment. The next morning I went out again and returned without having achieved anything. It went on like this until they had advanced quickly and the expedition was lost to me(7). I resolved to mount up and catch them—if only I had done so!—but it was not decreed for me.