—the fortunes alternate. You will certainly find among the slain some who have been mutilated; I did not order it, nor does it distress me.”

He then began to chant:

“Exalt Hubal! Exalt Hubal!”

The Messenger of Allah ﷺ said, “Will you not answer him?”
They asked, “O Messenger of Allah, what should we say?”
He replied, “Say: ‘Allah is higher and more majestic.’ ”

Abū Sufyān said, “We have al-ʿUzzā, whereas you have no ʿUzzā.”
The Messenger of Allah ﷺ said, “Will you not answer him?”
They asked, “O Messenger of Allah, what should we say?”
He said, “Say: ‘Allah is our Protector, and you have no protector.’ ”

Al-Bukhārī [1] relates this ḥadīth through Zuhayr—Zuhayr ibn Muʿāwiyah [2]—in abridged form; his longer recension has already been cited through the chain of Isrāʾīl from Abū Isḥāq.

Imām Aḥmad [3] said: ‘Affān narrated to us; Ḥammād ibn Salamah narrated to us; it was reported to me by Thābit and ʿAlī ibn Zayd, from Anas ibn Mālik: When the idolaters pressed upon the Prophet ﷺ while he was accompanied by seven men of the Anṣār and two men of Quraysh, he said, “Who will drive them away from us—and he shall be my companion in Paradise?” A man of the Anṣār stepped forward, fought, and was killed. They pressed again and he said, “Who will drive them away from us—and he shall be my companion in Paradise?” This continued until the seven were slain. The Messenger of Allah ﷺ then said to his two Qurashī companions, “We have not done justice by our companions.” ’

Muslim [4] transmitted the same report from Hudbah ibn Khālid, from Ḥammād ibn Salamah.

Al-Bayhaqī, in Dalāʾil al-Nubuwwah [5], narrates with his chain from ʿUmārah ibn Ghaziyyah, from Abū al-Zubayr, from Jābir: On the Day of Uḥud the people fled from around the Messenger of Allah ﷺ, leaving with him eleven men of the Anṣār and Ṭalḥah ibn ʿUbaydullāh as he was ascending the mountain. The idolaters caught up with them and he said, “Is there no one to hold these off?” Ṭalḥah said, “I will, O Messenger of Allah.” The Prophet ﷺ replied, “Stay where you are, O Ṭalḥah.”

A man of the Anṣār said, “Then I will, O Messenger of Allah,” and he fought until he was killed while the Prophet ﷺ and those who remained with him continued to climb. The enemy advanced again, and the Prophet ﷺ said, “Is there no one to hold these off?” Ṭalḥah repeated his offer, and the Prophet ﷺ repeated his instruction. Another man of the Anṣār said, “Then I will, O Messenger of Allah,” and the Prophet gave him leave. He fought as bravely as the first and was killed, while the Messenger of Allah ﷺ and his Companions kept climbing.

This pattern continued: each time the Prophet ﷺ asked as before, Ṭalḥah volunteered and the Prophet restrained him, permitting instead another Anṣārī to fight, until none remained with him but Ṭalḥah ibn ʿUbaydullāh. The idolaters then converged upon them, and the Messenger of Allah ﷺ said, “Who will deal with these, O Ṭalḥah?” Ṭalḥah replied, “I will,” and he fought with the courage of all who had gone before him. His fingers were severed, and he exclaimed, “Hiss!”

The Messenger of Allah ﷺ said, “Had you said, ‘In the name of Allah,’ or mentioned the name of Allah …”