The march from Medina to Uhud

The road out to Uhud: from Medina through the pass of farewell to al-Shaykhan, where the Prophet ﷺ reviewed his army, and then, at dawn the next day, to the foot of Mount Uhud, where Abdullah ibn Ubayy withdrew with a third of the army ¹.

The army mustered after the afternoon prayer on Friday, the sixth of Shawwal of the 3rd year AH. The Prophet set out wearing two coats of mail, and the army moved north, passing the pass of farewell ². Then it reached a place called al-Shaykhan, where he reviewed the army and spent the night, and set fifty guards to go round the camp ³.

Before dawn the army set out at night, and when it reached al-Shawt it prayed the dawn prayer, being close to the enemy, who could see them and whom they could see ³. Then it took a short road to Uhud, passing the lava field and farms of Banu Harith, leaving Mecca's army to the west. It passed the walled garden of Mirba' ibn Qayzi, and descended to the mountain's slope on the side of the valley facing Medina, so that the enemy's army came between it and Medina ⁴.

On the way, Abdullah ibn Ubayy rebelled and withdrew with three hundred fighters. He said that he did not know why people were getting themselves killed, and that the Prophet had set aside his own opinion and obeyed the opinion of others. The book holds that the withdrawal was not for this reason alone, but to cause confusion in the army in full view of the enemy ⁵. Abdullah ibn Haram tried to turn them back, but they did not return ⁶.

As for the Jewish company which the Prophet saw at the pass of farewell, he turned it back, because he would not seek help from the people of disbelief against the people of polytheism. So says the book, in a note on Ibn Sa'd ^{3 7}.