The companion who fought hard at Uhud to compensate for his absence in Badr

My uncle Anas b. al-Nadr was absent from the battle of Badr, so he said, “O Messenger of Allah, I was absent from the first battle in which you fought the polytheists. If Allah lets me witness fighting the polytheists, Allah will surely see what I will do.”

Then, when it was the day of Uhud and the Muslims were driven back, he said, “O Allah, I apologize to You for what these have done”—meaning his companions—“and I dissociate myself before You from what these have done”—meaning the polytheists. Then he advanced, and Sa‘d ibn Mu‘adh met him. He said, “O Sa‘d ibn Mu‘adh, (to) Paradise—by the Lord of al-Nadr! I can smell its fragrance from before Uhud.” Sa‘d said, “O Messenger of Allah, I could not do what he did.”

Anas said, “We found on him more than eighty wounds: sword strikes, spear thrusts, or arrow shots. We found him killed, and the polytheists had mutilated him. No one recognized him except his sister, by his fingertips.” Anas said, “We used to think—or we supposed—that this verse was revealed about him and those like him: ‘Among the believers are men who have been true to what they pledged to Allah…’ to the end of the verse.”

He also said that his sister—whose name was al-Rubayyi‘—broke a woman’s incisor tooth, so the Messenger of Allah ﷺ ordered qisas (a retaliatory penalty). Anas said, “O Messenger of Allah, by the One who sent you with the truth, her incisor shall not be broken.” So they accepted compensation and left the penalty. Then the Messenger of Allah ﷺ said, “Indeed among Allah’s servants are those who, if they were to swear an oath by Allah, He would fulfill it for them.”

غَابَ عَمِّي أَنَسُ بْنُ النَّضْرِ عَنْ قِتَالِ بَدْرٍ فَقَالَ: يَا رَسُولَ اللَّهِ غِبْتُ عَنْ أَوَّلِ قِتَالٍ قَاتَلْتَ الْمُشْرِكِينَ لَئِنِ اللَّهُ أَشْهَدَنِي قِتَالَ الْمُشْرِكِينَ لَيَرَيَنَّ اللَّهُ مَا أَصْنَعُ.

فَلَمَّا كَانَ يَوْمُ أُحُدٍ وَانْكَشَفَ الْمُسْلِمُونَ قَالَ: اللَّهُمَّ إِنِّي أَعْتَذِرُ إِلَيْكَ مِمَّا صَنَعَ هَؤُلاَءِ يَعْنِي أَصْحَابَهُ وَأَبْرَأُ إِلَيْكَ مِمَّا صَنَعَ هَؤُلاَءِ - يَعْنِي الْمُشْرِكِينَ - ثُمَّ تَقَدَّمَ فَاسْتَقْبَلَهُ سَعْدُ بْنُ مُعَاذٍ. فَقَالَ: يَا سَعْدُ بْنَ مُعَاذٍ الْجَنَّةَ وَرَبِّ النَّضْرِ إِنِّي أَجِدُ رِيحَهَا مِنْ دُونِ أُحُدٍ. قَالَ سَعْدٌ: فَمَا اسْتَطَعْتُ يَا رَسُولَ اللَّهِ مَا صَنَعَ.

قَالَ أَنَسٌ: فَوَجَدْنَا بِهِ بِضْعًا وَثَمَانِينَ ضَرْبَةً بِالسَّيْفِ أَوْ طَعْنَةً بِرُمْحٍ أَوْ رَمْيَةً بِسَهْمٍ وَوَجَدْنَاهُ قَدْ قُتِلَ وَقَدْ مَثَّلَ بِهِ الْمُشْرِكُونَ فَمَا عَرَفَهُ أَحَدٌ إِلاَّ أُخْتُهُ بِبَنَانِهِ. قَالَ أَنَسٌ: كُنَّا نَرَى أَوْ نَظُنُّ أَنَّ هَذِهِ الآيَةَ نَزَلَتْ فِيهِ وَفِي أَشْبَاهِهِ {مِنَ الْمُؤْمِنِينَ رِجَالٌ صَدَقُوا مَا عَاهَدُوا اللَّهَ عَلَيْهِ } إِلَى آخِرِ الآيَةِ

وَقَالَ إِنَّ أُخْتَهُ وَهْىَ تُسَمَّى الرُّبَيِّعَ كَسَرَتْ ثَنِيَّةَ امْرَأَةٍ فَأَمَرَ رَسُولُ اللَّهِ ﷺ بِالْقِصَاصِ فَقَالَ أَنَسٌ يَا رَسُولَ اللَّهِ وَالَّذِي بَعَثَكَ بِالْحَقِّ لاَ تُكْسَرُ ثَنِيَّتُهَا فَرَضُوا بِالأَرْشِ وَتَرَكُوا الْقِصَاصَ فَقَالَ رَسُولُ اللَّهِ ﷺ: «إِنَّ مِنْ عِبَادِ اللَّهِ مَنْ لَوْ أَقْسَمَ عَلَى اللَّهِ لأَبَرَّهُ»