Sayyidina Al-Qaqa’a bin Amru Al-Tameemy

Location: Medinat al-Manzala (The City of Manzala) – Daqahleyya

Shaykh al-Qaqa’a, the brother of ‘Aasim, (may God be pleased with him) was known to be a spirited warrior. Abu Bakr al-Sideeq (may God be pleased with him) narrates that the voice of Qaqa’a on the battlefield was ‘more effective than one thousand men’. He was a man (may God be pleased with him) remaining firm with valor in the face of great challenges whilst fighting the Persians at the battle of al-Qadisiya.

Sayf transmitted from Amru bin Tamam from his father that al-Qaqa’a bin Amru said:

“The Emissary of Godﷺ said to me once “what have you prepared for Jihad?” I replied “obedience to Allah and his messenger as well as [preparing] my horse.” He replied “that is the target!” and he began chanting “Sayfun lee Qaqa’a” (A sword for Qaqa’a).

When Sayyid Umar bin al-Khattab (may God be pleased with him) wrote to Sayyid Saad bin Abee Waqqas (may God be pleased with him) asking him “which warrior proved to be the fiercest in the battle of al-Qadisiya?” Sayyid Saad replied, “I did not see the likes of al-Qaqa’a bin Amru.” When Sayyid Khalid bin Waleed requested aid from Sayyid Abu Bakr al-Sideeq while he was sieging al-Heera, he sent him Qaqa’a bin Amru and said (may God be pleased with him) “no army is defeated when there are the likes of Qaqa’a in their ranks.”

After being victorious at the battle of Madayin al-Qaqa’a was granted the spoils of war of the Persian emperor Kosros. Among the ordinances he obtained were the armor of Heracules and Khaqan and the harnesses and swords of Nouman and Kosros. These precious spoils were sent by Sayyid Saad to Sayyid Umar bin al-Khattab (may God be pleased with them and with us) to redistribute.

al-Qaqa’a was one of the noble men whom Abu Bakr (may God be pleased with him) sent forward in the Battle of the Apostates. By order of Abu Bakr he sought out the apostate Alqama Bin Alatha in battle and slayed him. His presence was equally significant in the battles of Iraq, the Levant and Egypt. Wherever he went, he became a legend.

One of these legendary stories was in the battle of Dhat al-Salasil when the Persian leader going by the name of Hormuz challenged Khalid ibn al-Waleed to a duel after he had already secretly prepared a plan to assassinate him. The duel took off intensively after Khalid accepted. However, when Khalid came close to winning the duel a group of Hormuz’s assassins cornered him and nearly captured him. But all of sudden al-Qaqa’a, who had been secretly following the assassin’s movements thundered through their ranks dispersing them, which gave Khalid the opportunity to get back into the duel and eventually overcome his opponent.

During the conquest of Egypt al-Qaqa’a enjoyed a high position given to him by Amru bin al-A’as, whom he esteemed highly and whom prayed for his increased goodness, blessing and victory at any occasion. At one such occasion Bin al-A’as said to him “may God bless you in your Manzila (place of rest i.e. home). To which God, as history shows, replied in the most befitting way, as al-Qaqa’a was later on hosted with great hospitality and generosity in the Egyptian city that carried the name of al-Manzala.