Expeditions Between Uhud and Khandaq (Second Badr & Dhat al-Riqa)

Two ghazawat in which no battle actually took place, yet each mattered: Badr al-Maw’id (the appointment Quraysh made at Uhud and then broke) and Ghazwa Dhat al-Riqa (the setting for the revelation of Salat al-Khawf, a failed assassination, and the beloved story of Jabir’s camel).

Date

Both placed in Sha’ban 4 AH by Ibn Ishaq. (For Dhat al-Riqa’s dating dispute, see below.)

Background

At the close of Uhud, Abu Sufyan had called out, “We will meet again one year from now at Badr!” Uhud was in 3 AH, so the appointment fell in Sha’ban 4 AH.

What happened — Badr al-Maw’id (Second Badr)

The Prophet ﷺ marched with ~1,500 Companions, made Ali the flag-bearer, and camped at Badr for over a week awaiting the Quraysh. The Quraysh did gather ~2,000 men and left Makkah, but, half-hearted, turned back with the excuse that it was a year of drought — “we need to take care of our families.” No fighting occurred. The episode showed the balance of power shifting: the Muslims growing stronger, the Quraysh weaker.

What happened — Ghazwa Dhat al-Riqa

A campaign against Ghatafan, a large northern Bedouin tribe reputed for raiding, who were thought to be preparing a pre-emptive raid. The Prophet ﷺ led 700 men; the two sides sat in eyesight for a week or two, and Ghatafan chose not to engage. But four things occurred:

Revelation of Salat al-Khawf. Allah revealed the procedure of the fear-prayer, prayed in shifts — the imam prays the full salah while one group prays and another stands guard, armed, then they switch (Salat al-Khawf, Q 4:102).
Ghawrath ibn al-Harith’s assassination attempt. On the hot return march the army scattered for shade and slept; a Ghatafani, Ghawrath ibn al-Harith, took the sleeping Prophet’s ﷺ sword and unsheathed it. In one report he asked, “Who will protect you from me?” — the Prophet ﷺ answered, “Allah,” and the sword fell from his trembling hand. The Prophet ﷺ took it up and asked him the same; Ghawrath begged mercy, was forgiven, and went home saying “I have come back from the best of all mankind.” (Narrated by Jabir in Bukhari.)
Abbad ibn Bishr’s salah. Standing night-watch with Ammar ibn Yasir, Abbad ibn Bishr (ra) prayed while an enemy fired arrows into him; he pulled each out and kept praying — reciting (it is said) Surah Yusuf — not breaking until he nearly fainted: “were it not for the duty the Prophet ﷺ gave me, I would rather have died than stop my salah.”
The story of Jabir’s camel. See below.

The story of Jabir ibn Abdillah (ra)

Straggling behind on the weakest camel, grieving his father’s death at Uhud, his debts, and seven sisters, young Jabir (16–17) was drawn out by the Prophet ﷺ. Learning Jabir had married an older widow to help raise his sisters, the Prophet ﷺ approved: “You have done right.” He then rode Jabir’s old camel, said “Bismillah,” struck it, and it became the fastest camel Jabir ever saw. He haggled to buy it (starting at a dirham, up to 40) — then, after paying via Bilal with extra, gave the camel back: “Did you think I would cheat you of your camel? Take the money and take your camel!” — a gift disguised so Jabir would not feel it as charity. Ibn Hajar said over 100 benefits can be drawn from this hadith.

Participants

The Prophet ﷺ; Ali (flag-bearer at Second Badr); Ghawrath ibn al-Harith; Abbad ibn Bishr; Ammar ibn Yasir; Jabir ibn Abdillah (Muslims / episodes). Quraysh under Abu Sufyan; Ghatafan (opponents).

Outcome & significance

Neither ghazwa produced a battle, yet both advanced the mission: the Quraysh’s no-show confirmed Muslim ascendancy, and Dhat al-Riqa gave the ummah the legislation of Salat al-Khawf and lasting lessons in trust in Allah, love of salah, and the Prophet’s ﷺ tender care for individuals.

Lessons

Trust in Allah’s protection (“Allah” in answer to Ghawrath’s threat) and mercy even to a would-be assassin.
The sweetness of the Quran and salah in Abbad ibn Bishr.
The Prophet’s ﷺ fatherly care for the weakest straggler; fiqh of buying and selling from Jabir’s camel (bargaining, saying “no” to a senior, adding conditions to a contract).

Reliability (schema §5)

The dating of Dhat al-Riqa is disputed: Ibn Ishaq places it here in Sha’ban 4 AH; Bukhari places it after Khaybar (7 AH). Evidence exists both ways; a key argument for 4 AH is Jabir’s statement that he married right after Uhud and the Prophet ﷺ did not yet know he was married. The Ghawrath and Jabir narrations are in Bukhari.

Cross-references

Muhammad ﷺ · The Battle of Badr · The Battle of Uhud · The Battle of Khandaq (al-Ahzab) · Khaybar · Quraysh · Abu Sufyan ibn Harb (ra) · Ali ibn Abi Talib (ra) · Salat al-Khawf (The Prayer of Fear) · Jabir ibn Abdillah (ra) · Ammar ibn Yasir & the Family of Yasir (ra) · Bilal ibn Rabah (ra) · Seerah Timeline

Sources

S008 — Yasir Qadhi Seerah EP 051–060. Draws on Q 4:102 and its context, Sahih Bukhari (Jabir on Ghawrath and on the camel), Ibn Ishaq (dating of Dhat al-Riqa), and the report of Abbad ibn Bishr’s night-watch.