Plague of Amwas and Muslims

The most infamous plague in early Islam was that of the Emmaus Plague (طاعون عمواس) which was one of the recurrences of the earlier Plague of Justinian. This plague occurred in two waves, and affected the conquering armies of the Companions in Syria as they fought the Byzantine Romans in 18 AH/640 CE.

Over 25,000 Muslims lost their lives, including some of the most famous such as Muadh b. Jabal and Abū Ubayda Āmir b. al-Jarrāh.

We learn – as in the Annals of Ibn Kathīr (see attached) – that the first wave took many of the senior companions. Then, Amr b. al-As took charge and he advised the Companions to scatter amongst the valleys and hills and not be congregated together. He informed them that plagues are like fires: they cause more havoc when spread in densely populated areas, and they don’t spread when people are far apart.

Another Companion stood up to challenge this, angry because this tactic seemed cowardly and didn’t make sense. He said to Amr: “I am a person who accompanied the Prophet (SAW), and I testify by Allah that you’re wrong!! In fact I say you are more misguided than my donkey!!” Amr, despite being the leader and despite the public humiliation, replied: “I shall not dignify that with a response, nor shall I punish you.”

And the people followed his policy, and it was effective. When Umar b. al-Khattab was informed, he did not find this policy to be incorrect.

This shows:
– social isolation was known to the early Companions and it worked for them.
– it is understandable that some people will get overwhelmed and react emotionally. The true leader needs to ignore such emotions and do what is best for the community regardless of feelings. Feelings don’t save lives; policies do.
– while it is not narrated what they did with Friday prayers, it is reasonable to assume that the prayers were suspended if all of the Muslims were scattered amongst the surrounding hills and valleys for a few months.

And Allah knows best.
Yasir Qadhi