The Expedition of Banu al-Mustaliq

A near-bloodless pre-emptive raid by the Prophet ﷺ on the tribe of Banu al-Mustaliq at the water-pool of al-Muraysi’ south of Madinah, most likely Monday 2 Sha’ban 5 AH — significant not for its brief fighting but for the three events it triggered on the way home: the marriage to Juwayriyya, the revelation of Surah al-Munafiqun, and the Slander of Aisha (rha).

Date

Heavily disputed. Ibn Ishaq, al-Tabari, and Ibn al-Athir place it in Sha’ban 6 AH (most seerah books follow Ibn Ishaq); Ibn Sa’d, al-Zuhri, Ibn Hajar, and Ibn Kathir say 5 AH. Yasir Qadhi takes 5 AH as strongest: the Slander that followed features a decisive statement from Sa’d ibn Mu’adh, who died shortly after Khandaq (Shawwal 5 AH) and so could not have been alive in 6 AH. (A counter-conflict — Zaynab bint Jahsh, who married the Prophet ﷺ only at the end of 5 AH, is also named in the reports — is resolved by treating her mention as her being his cousin, or as a narrator’s slip.) The “4 AH” opinion likely reflects an older count that began numbering one year after the Hijra.

Background

Banu al-Mustaliq lived beside the pool of Muraysi’, only a day or two south of Madinah, and kept the great idol Manat. They had sided with the Quraysh at Uhud and their land served as a Qurayshi safety-zone. After Uhud, word came that their chief al-Harith ibn Abi Dirar was preparing a surprise raid on the Muslims (driven, like other small tribes, by economic strain). The Prophet ﷺ first verified the rumour: he sent Buraydah ibn al-Husayb disguised as a Bedouin, who won al-Harith’s trust by offering to join the raid “for a share of the booty,” then slipped away by night to report.

What happened

The Prophet ﷺ rallied over 700 Companions (30 fully mounted and armed) and struck at dawn just after Fajr in complete surprise — the tribe was drawing water and the children out playing. They surrendered almost at once. Because a major battle was impossible and victory guaranteed, many munafiqun joined this expedition (including Abdullah ibn Ubayy) — the largest concentration of hypocrites in any campaign, which set the stage for the troubles on the return.

Participants

The Prophet ﷺ; ~700 Companions; Buraydah ibn al-Husayb (the scout); al-Harith ibn Abi Dirar and Banu al-Mustaliq; the munafiqun under Abdullah ibn Ubayy; Juwayriyya bint al-Harith (the chief’s daughter, taken captive then married). Aisha (rha) (Aisha bint Abi Bakr (rha)) accompanied the Prophet ﷺ by lot — permissible here because victory was certain.

Outcome & significance

A “walkover”: only a handful of Banu al-Mustaliq died and not a single Muslim fell in combat. Spoils were ~2,000 camels, ~5,000 sheep, and ~1,000 captives (mostly women and children). The one Muslim death was accidental — an Ansari mistook the Muhajir Hisham ibn Subaba for an enemy and killed him. Hisham’s brother Miqyas ibn Subaba then feigned Islam, collected the 100-camel blood-money from the Prophet ﷺ, murdered the Ansari killer that same night, and fled to Makkah with the camels — an act of treachery for which he was among those denied amnesty at the Conquest of Makkah (8 AH). The expedition’s lasting weight lies in its three consequences: the marriage to Juwayriyya (which led her whole tribe to Islam), Surah al-Munafiqun (Q 63), and the Slander of Aisha (rha).

Lessons

Verify before acting (Buraydah’s reconnaissance); a guaranteed victory drew out the munafiqun, whom Allah then exposed; and the greatest trials of this arc came not from the enemy in the field but from the hypocrisy carried home in the ranks.

Cross-references

Muhammad ﷺ · Madinah (Yathrib) · Mecca · Quraysh · The Battle of Uhud · The Battle of Khandaq (al-Ahzab) · Juwayriyya bint al-Harith (rha) · The Slander of Aisha (rha) · Abdullah ibn Ubayy ibn Salul · Sa'd ibn Mu'adh (ra) · Aisha bint Abi Bakr (rha) · Nifaq (Hypocrisy) · Seerah Timeline

Sources

• S008 — Yasir Qadhi Seerah EP 051–060 (esp. EP 054–055). Classical basis: Ibn Ishaq/Ibn Hisham (Sirat Rasul Allah), Ibn Sa’d (Tabaqat), al-Tabari (Tarikh); the dating discussion draws on al-Zuhri, Ibn Hajar, and Ibn Kathir. The return events are in Sahih Bukhari and Muslim.
• Quran: al-Munafiqun (Q 63) tied to this expedition; the idol Manat (cf. Q 53:20).