I was brought before the Prophet (SAW) on the Day of Uhud when I Was fourteen years old, but he did not give me permission (to fight). I was afterwards brought to him on the Day of al-Khandaq (the Battle of Trench) when I was fifteen years of age, and he gave me permission (to fight). [Agreed upon].

When God's messenger returned from the battle of the Trench, put off his armour and bathed, Gabriel came to him when he was shaking the dust off his head and said, "You have put off your armour, but I swear by God that I have not done so. Go out to them." The Prophet asked where he was to go and he indicated that it was to the B. Quraiza so the Prophet went out to them. (Bukhari and Muslim.) In a version by Bukhari Anas said: I can imagine myself looking at the dust rising in the street of the B. Ghanm, the cavalcade of Gabriel when God's messenger went to the B. Quraiza.

On the day of the battle of Al-Khandaq (the Trench), we were digging the trench when a very hard boulder came in our way. The Companions went to Messenger of Allah (PBUH) and told him about it. He said, "I will go down the trench to see it." He stood up and it was noticed that he had tied a stone over his stomach due to intense hunger. We had not tasted anything for three days. He took up a spade and struck the hard rock with it and it turned into sand. I sought his permission to go home, (after reaching home I) said to my wife, "I have seen the Prophet (PBUH) in a state that I am unable to endure. Have you got anything in the house?" She said, "I have a small quantity of barley and a lamb." I slaughtered the lamb, ground the barley and put the meat in the cooking pot. Then I went to the Prophet (PBUH). In the meantime the flour had been kneaded and the meat in the pot was nearly cooked. I said to him, "O Messenger of Allah, I have some food, will you come along with one or two Companions?" He asked, "How many men should go there?" I told him the number. He said, "It will be better if they are more in number. Tell your wife not to remove the pot from the hearth nor the bread from the oven till I arrive." Then he said to the Muhajirun and the Ansar: "Let us go (to eat)." They all rose (and went with him). I went to my wife and said, "Bless you, the Prophet (PBUH), the Muhajirun, the Ansar and the whole company are coming." She said, "Did he (PBUH) ask you?" I replied in the affirmative. (When they arrived) Messenger of Allah (PBUH) said to his Companions, "Enter, but do not crowd in." Then he started breaking up the bread and putting meat on it. He would take from the pot and the oven then would cover them up, approach his Companions and hand it over to them. He would then go back and uncover the pot and the oven. He continued to break up the bread and put meat on it till all had eaten to their fill and still some of the food remained. Then he said to my wife, "Eat from it, and send it as a present, for the people have been afflicted with severe hunger."

[Al-Bukhari and Muslim].

Another narration is: Jabir said: When the trench was being dug, I noticed the signs of hunger on the face of the Prophet (PBUH). I returned to my wife and said to her, "Have you got anything in the house? I have seen the signs of severe hunger on the face of Messenger of Allah (PBUH)." She brought out a bag which contained a Sa' (a measure that equals approximately 3kg.) of barley. We had a lamb which was reared in the home. I slaughtered the lamb and she ground the flour for baking bread. I then cut the meat and put it in the cooking pot. When I was returning to Messenger of Allah (PBUH), my wife said to me, "Do not embarass me before Messenger of Allah (PBUH) and his Companions." (She said this because she thought that the food would not be enough for everyone, for how can very little food cater for a thousand people?) When I came to him, I said to him in a low tone, "O Messenger of Allah (PBUH), we have slaughtered a small lamb and have ground a Sa' of barley. Please accompany me with a few of your Companions." Thereupon he (PBUH) announced in a loud voice, "O people of the Trench, Jabir has arranged a feast for you, so all of you are welcome." And addressing me he said, "Do not take the pot off the fire, nor bake the kneaded flour till I arrive." So I came home and he came ahead of the people. My wife said, "It will be a matter of disgrace for you (because there is not enough food)." I said, "I did only what you told me." She brought out the kneaded flour and Messenger of Allah (PBUH) spat into it, and invoked the blessing of Allah on it, and then he spat into the cooking pot and invoked the blessing of Allah on it. Then he said, "Call another woman to help bake bread and let her take out from the cooking pot, but do not take it off the fire." There were about a thousand guests. All of them ate till they left the food and went off. Our pot still bubbled as before and the dough was being baked as before.

Abu Sa'id al-Khudri said that at the battle of the Trench [The siege of Medina in 5 A. H.] they asked God’s messenger whether there was anything they could repeat, for their hearts were in their mouths.* He replied that there was; they should say, “O God, cover our danger points(1) and give security from fears.” He said that God then sent a wind in the faces of His enemies and God routed them by the wind. *Literally, ‘For the hearts had reached the windpipes.’ 1. The word is 'aurat used in a similar prayer on p. 510. There it was translated 'faults'. Another meaning refers to places on a frontier, etc., which give openings to an enemy, and so are places where caution is necessary. This seems more suitable in the present context. Cf. Mirqat, iii, 134. Ahmad transmitted it.

Abu Huraira told that Abu Jahl said, "Does Muhammad rub his face in the dust among you?" and that when he was told that he did he said, "I swear by al-Lat and al-`Uzza that if I see him do that I will tramp on his neck." He then came to God's messenger when he was praying with the purpose of tramping on his neck, but all of a sudden, he was sitting back on his heels and warding off something with his hands. He was asked what was the matter with him and replied, "Between him and me there are a trench of fire, something which causes terror, and wings." God's messenger said, "If he had come near me the angels would have snatched him limb by limb." Muslim transmitted it.

I found him saying his prayer, so I sat down waiting for him to finish his prayer when I heard a stir in the bundles (of wood) lying in a comer of the house. I looked towards it and found a snake. I jumped up in order to kill it, but he (Abu Sa'id Khudri) made a gesture that I should sit down. So I sat down and as he finished (the prayer) he pointed to a room in the house and said: Do you see this room? I said: Yes. He said: There was a young man amongst us who had been newly wedded. We went with Allah's Messenger (may peace be upon him) (to participate in the Battle) of Trench when a young man in the midday used to seek permission from Allah's Messenger (may peace be upon him) to return to his family. One day he sought permission from him and Allah's Messenger (may peace be upon him) (after granting him the permission) said to him: Carry your weapons with you for I fear the tribe of Quraiza (may harm you). The man carried the weapons and then came back and found his wife standing between the two doors. He bent towards her smitten by jealousy and made a dash towards her with a spear in order to stab her. She said: Keep your spear away and enter the house until you see that which has made me come out. He entered and found a big snake coiled on the bedding. He darted with the spear and pierced it and then went out having fixed it in the house, but the snake quivered and attacked him and no one knew which of them died first, the snake or the young man. We came to Allah's Apostle (may peace be upon him) and made a mention to him and said: Supplicate to Allah that that (man) may be brought back to life. Thereupon he said: Ask forgiveness for your companion and then said: There are in Medina jinns who have accepted Islam, so when you see any one of them, pronounce a warning to it for three days, and if they appear before you after that, then kill it for that is a devil.

“Sa'd [Ibn Abi Waqqas] said: ‘I had seen the Prophet (Allah bless him and give him peace) laugh at the Battle of the Trench, so hard that his molar teeth became apparent.’ I said: ‘How was his laughter?’ He said: ‘There was a man holding a shield while Sa'd was shooting, and the man was saying such-and-such and such-and-such, with the shield covering his forehead. Sa'd therefore aimed an arrow at him and shot it when he raised his head, so it did not miss this part of him — meaning his forehead — and the man toppled over and kicked up his foot. The Prophet (Allah bless him and give him peace) then laughed so much that his molar teeth became apparent.’ I asked: ‘What made him laugh?’ He replied: ‘What he did to the man!”

"When the Prophet (PBUH) commanded them to dig the trench (Al-Khandaq), there was a rock in their way preventing them from digging. The Messenger of Allah (PBUH) stood, picked up a pickaxe, put his Rida' (upper garment) at the edge of the ditch and said: 'And the Word of your Lord has been fulfilled in truth and in justice. None can change His Words. And He is the All-Hearer, the All-Knower.' [1] One-third of the rock broke off while Salman Al-Farisi was standing there watching, and there was a flash of light when the Messenger of Allah (PBUH)struck (the rock). Then he struck it again and said: 'And the Word of your Lord has been fulfilled in truth and in justice. Nonce can change His Words. Ans He is the All-Hearer, the All-Knower' And another third of the rock broke off and there was another flash of light, which Salman saw. Then he struck (the rock) a third time and said: 'And the Word of your Lord has been fulfilled in truth and in justice. None can change His Words. And He is the All-Hearer, the All-Knower.' The last third fell, and the Messenger of Allah (PBUH) came out, picked up his Rida' and sat down. Salman said: 'O Messenger of Allah, Each time you struck the rock there was a flash of light.' The Messenger of Allah (PBUH) said to him: 'O Salman, did you see that?' He said: 'Yes, by the One Who sent you with the truth, O Messenger of Allah.' He said: 'When I struck the first blow, the cities of Kisra and their environs were shown to me, and many other cities, and I saw them with my own eyes.' Those of his Companions who were present said: 'O Messenger of Allah, pray to Allah to grant us victory and to give us their land as spoils of war, and to destroy their lands at our hands.' So the Messenger of Allah (PBUH) prayed for that. (Then he said:) 'Then I struck the second blow and the cities of Caesar and their environs were shown to me, and I saw them with my own eyes.' They said: 'O Messenger of Allah, pray to Allah to grant us victory and to give us their lands as spoils of war, and to destroy their lands at our hands.' So the Messenger of Allah (PBUH) prayed for that. (Then he said:) 'Then I struck the third blow and the cities of Ethiopia were shown to me, and the villages around them, and I saw them with my own eyes.' But the Messenger of Allah (PBUH) said at that point: 'Leave the Ethiopians alone so long as they leave you alone, and leave the Turks alone so long as they leave you alone.'" [1] An-An'am 6:115.

We went in to visit Abu Sa'id al-Khudri, and while we were sitting we heard a movement under his couch. When we had looked and found a snake in it I jumped up to kill it, but Abu Sa'id who was engaged in prayer made a gesture to me indicating that I should sit down, so I sat down. When he finished he pointed to a room in the house and asked if I saw it, and when I said I did he told me that a servant of theirs who had recently been married had occupied it. They went out with God’s messenger to the Trench, and that young man was asking permission from God’s messenger to leave after staying half the day and would return to his wife. One day when he asked God's messenger’s permission he told him to carry his weapons with him as he feared Quraiza might do him harm. The man took his weapons and returned, and finding his wife standing between the two doors he was smitten with jealousy and made to pierce her with his lance, but she told him to put away his lance and enter the house to see what had made her come out. He entered and found a huge snake coiled on the bedding, so he made for it with the lance and pierced it with it and then went out and fixed it in the ground in the house, but the snake quivered and attacked him, and no one knew which of them died first, the snake or the young man. They went to God's messenger and mentioned that incident to him, asking him to supplicate God to restore him to life for them, but he replied, "Ask forgiveness for your friend." Then he said, "These houses have resident jinn, so when you see one of them give it a warning three times. 1 If it goes away, well and good; otherwise kill it, for it is an infidel.'' He then told them to go and bury their friend. A version reports him as saying, ''In Medina there are jinn who have accepted Islam, so when you see one of them pronounce a warning to it for three days and if it appears to you after that kill it, for it is only a devil." 1. Hiarrijiu ‘alaiha thalithan. The verb means to make things difficult. This phrase is explained as meaning that one should tell the snake three times that it will be in difficulties if it returns, and that it must not blame one if, after this warning, it is driven away and killed. Muslim transmitted it.

'I have grown old, so send me a young boy in order to teach him magic.' The king sent him a young boy to serve the purpose. And on his way (to the magician) the young boy met a monk to whom he listened to and liked it. It became his habit that on his way to the magician, he would meet the monk and sit there and would come to the magician (late). The magician used to beat him because of this delay. He complained about this to the monk who said to him: 'When you feel afraid of the magician, say: Members of my family detained me. And when you fear your family, say: The magician detained me.' It so happened that there came a huge beast and it blocked the way of the people, and the young boy said: 'I will know today whether the magician or the monk is better.' He picked up a stone and said: 'O Allah, if the way of the monk is dearer to You than the way of the magician, bring about death to the animal so that the people be able to move about freely.' He threw that stone at it and killed it and the people began to move about freely. He then came to the monk and told him the story. The monk said: 'Son, today you are superior to me. You have come to a stage where I feel that you would be soon put to a trial, and in case you are put to a trial, do not reveal me.' That young boy began to heal those born blind and the lepers and he, in fact, began to cure people from all kinds of illnesses. When a courtier of the king who had gone blind heard about him, he came to him with numerous gifts and said, 'If you cure me, all these things will be yours.' He said, 'I myself do not cure anyone. It is Allah, the Exalted, Alone Who cures; and if you affirm faith in Allah, I shall also supplicate to Allah to cure you.' This courtier affirmed his faith in Allah and Allah cured him. He came to the king and sat by his side as he used to sit before. The king said to him, 'Who restored your eyesight?' He said, 'My Rubb.' Thereupon he said, 'Do you have another lord besides me?' He said, 'My Rubb and your Rubb is Allah.' So the king kept torturing him untill he revealed the young boy. The young boy was thus summoned and the king said to him, 'O boy, it has been conveyed to me that you have become so much proficient in your magic that you cure the blind and the lepers and you do such and such.' Thereupon he said, 'I do not cure anyone; it is Allah Alone Who cures,' and the king took hold of him and began to torture him until he revealed of the monk. The monk was summoned and it was said to him: 'You should turn back from your religion.' But he refused. The king sent for a saw, placed it in the middle of his head and cut him into two parts that fell down. Then the courtier of the king was brought forward and it was said to him: 'Turn back from your religion.' He, too, refused, and the saw was placed in the midst of his head and he was torn into two parts. Then the boy was sent for and it was said to him: 'Turn back from your religion.' He refused. The king then handed him over to a group of his courtiers, and said to them: 'Take him to such and such mountain; make him climb up that mountain and when you reach its peak ask him to renounce his Faith. If he refuses to do so, push him to his death.' So they took him and made him climb up the mountain and he said: 'O Allah, save me from them in any way you like,' and the mountain began to shake and they all fell down (dead) and that young boy came walking to the king. The king said to him, 'What happened to your companions?' He said, 'Allah has saved me from them.' He again handed him to some of his courtiers and said: 'Take him and carry him in a boat and when you reach the middle of the sea, ask him to renounce his religion. If he does not renounce his religion throw him (into the water).' So they took him and he said: 'O Allah, save me from them.' The boat turned upside down and they all drowned except the young boy who came walking to the king. The king said to him, 'What happened to your companions?' He said, 'Allah has saved me from them,' and he said to the king: 'You cannot kill me until you do what I command you to do.' The king asked, 'What is that?' He said, 'Gather all people in one place and tie me up to the trunk of a tree, then take an arrow from my quiver and say: With the Name of Allah, the Rubb of the boy; then shoot me. If you do that you will be able to kill me.' 'The king called the people in an open field and tied the young boy to the trunk of a tree. He took out an arrow from his quiver, fixed in the bow and said, 'With the Name of Allah, the Rubb of the young boy,' he then shot the arrow and it hit the boy's temple. The young boy placed his hand upon the temple where the arrow had hit him and died. The people then said: 'We believe in the Rubb of this young boy.' The king was told: 'Do you see what you were afraid of, by Allah it has taken place; all people have believed.' The king then commanded that trenches be dug and fire lit in them, and said: 'He who would not turn back from his (the young boy's) religion, throw him in the fire' or 'he would be ordered to jump into it.' They did so till a woman came with her child. She felt hesitant in jumping into the fire. The child said to her: 'O mother! Endure (this ordeal) for you are on the Right Path".

[Muslim].