Sermon on Martyrdom and the Veteran (Ghazi)

A person can earn many titles in this world — through study, through wealth, through reputation. But there is one rank above them all, a rank purchased not with effort but with the life itself: the rank of the martyr (shahid) and the veteran (ghazi). This sermon traces the place of martyrdom in the Qur'an, the virtue of the veteran, the three juridical categories of the martyr, and the spirit by which generations of believers have entrusted us with the lands and the faith we now hold.

What Is a Martyr? What Is a Veteran?

The Arabic word shahid shares its root with shahadah, "to witness." A martyr is so named because Allah bears witness in Heaven that this servant will be received living, provided for, and admitted to Paradise. The veteran — ghazi — is one who fought on the path of Allah and in defence of his land, longed for martyrdom, and yet survived. Because the intention of the veteran was the same as the intention of the martyr, his rank is close to that of the martyrs themselves.

The Prophet (peace be upon him) explained how this rank can be reached even without a literal battlefield death:

Whoever sincerely asks Allah for martyrdom, Allah will grant him the rank of the martyrs, even if he dies in his bed.

— Sahih Muslim, al-Imarah, no.

This hadith locates the secret of martyrdom not only in the act of dying but in the sincerity of a life lived in willingness to die for the truth. A believer who carries that intention until his final breath is admitted into the ranks of the martyrs — even if the battlefield never arrives.

The Qur'anic Verses on the Virtue of the Martyr

Why does a believer long for martyrdom? Because no other deed reaches this rank. It is won only at the price of one's life. In Surah At-Tawbah, Allah places this struggle above even the most honoured services of the sanctuary:

۞أَجَعَلۡتُمۡ سِقَايَةَ ٱلۡحَآجِّ وَعِمَارَةَ ٱلۡمَسۡجِدِ ٱلۡحَرَامِ كَمَنۡ ءَامَنَ بِٱللَّهِ وَٱلۡيَوۡمِ ٱلۡأٓخِرِ وَجَٰهَدَ فِي سَبِيلِ ٱللَّهِۚ لَا يَسۡتَوُۥنَ عِندَ ٱللَّهِۗ وَٱللَّهُ لَا يَهۡدِي ٱلۡقَوۡمَ ٱلظَّٰلِمِينَ

Do you consider giving water to the pilgrims and the maintenance of the Sacred Mosque equal to the one who believes in Allah and the Last Day and strives in the path of Allah? They are not equal in the sight of Allah.

— Surah At-Tawbah 9:19

The verse was revealed after a Friday dispute near the Prophet's pulpit: one Companion praised the merit of giving the pilgrims water, another the merit of caring for the Ka'bah, while a third said that fighting in the path of Allah outweighed both. Umar (may Allah be pleased with him) silenced the noise and brought the matter to the Prophet, whereupon Allah Himself ruled on the question.

Surah As-Saff frames the same struggle as a commerce that rescues the soul from punishment:

يَٰٓأَيُّهَا ٱلَّذِينَ ءَامَنُواْ هَلۡ أَدُلُّكُمۡ عَلَىٰ تِجَٰرَةࣲ تُنجِيكُم مِّنۡ عَذَابٍ أَلِيمࣲ

O you who believe, shall I direct you to a trade that will save you from a painful punishment?

— Surah As-Saff 61:10

تُؤۡمِنُونَ بِٱللَّهِ وَرَسُولِهِۦ وَتُجَٰهِدُونَ فِي سَبِيلِ ٱللَّهِ بِأَمۡوَٰلِكُمۡ وَأَنفُسِكُمۡۚ ذَٰلِكُمۡ خَيۡرࣱ لَّكُمۡ إِن كُنتُمۡ تَعۡلَمُونَ

You believe in Allah and His Messenger and strive in His path with your wealth and your lives. That is better for you, if only you knew.

— Surah As-Saff 61:11

In Surah At-Tawbah, the transaction is finalised in unmistakable terms:

۞إِنَّ ٱللَّهَ ٱشۡتَرَىٰ مِنَ ٱلۡمُؤۡمِنِينَ أَنفُسَهُمۡ وَأَمۡوَٰلَهُم بِأَنَّ لَهُمُ ٱلۡجَنَّةَۚ يُقَٰتِلُونَ فِي سَبِيلِ ٱللَّهِ فَيَقۡتُلُونَ وَيُقۡتَلُونَۖ

Indeed, Allah has purchased from the believers their lives and their wealth in exchange for Paradise. They fight in the path of Allah; they slay and are slain.

— Surah At-Tawbah 9:111

The believer's life is, in the Qur'anic vision, a commodity already sold. The buyer is Allah; the price is Paradise; the medium of exchange is the most precious thing the believer holds.

The Martyr Is Not Dead — He Lives

The Qur'an does not merely promise the martyr a reward; it forbids the believers from even calling him dead:

وَلَا تَقُولُواْ لِمَن يُقۡتَلُ فِي سَبِيلِ ٱللَّهِ أَمۡوَٰتُۢۚ بَلۡ أَحۡيَآءࣱ وَلَٰكِن لَّا تَشۡعُرُونَ

Do not say of those who are slain in the path of Allah, "They are dead." Rather, they are alive — but you do not perceive it.

— Surah Al-Baqarah 2:154

Surah Al-Imran expands on this truth at greater length:

وَلَا تَحۡسَبَنَّ ٱلَّذِينَ قُتِلُواْ فِي سَبِيلِ ٱللَّهِ أَمۡوَٰتَۢاۚ بَلۡ أَحۡيَآءٌ عِندَ رَبِّهِمۡ يُرۡزَقُونَ

Do not consider those slain in the path of Allah dead. Rather they are alive with their Lord, being provided for.

— Surah Al-Imran 3:169

فَرِحِينَ بِمَآ ءَاتَىٰهُمُ ٱللَّهُ مِن فَضۡلِهِۦ وَيَسۡتَبۡشِرُونَ بِٱلَّذِينَ لَمۡ يَلۡحَقُواْ بِهِم مِّنۡ خَلۡفِهِمۡ أَلَّا خَوۡفٌ عَلَيۡهِمۡ وَلَا هُمۡ يَحۡزَنُونَ

They rejoice in what Allah has bestowed upon them of His bounty, and they bring glad tidings to those left behind who have not yet joined them — that no fear will come upon them nor will they grieve.

— Surah Al-Imran 3:170

The martyr's life is a life beyond our perception. He dwells in the Barzakh — the intermediary realm — under a special grace of Allah. The Prophet (peace be upon him) said that no one admitted to Paradise would wish to return to this world — except the martyr, who, on account of the honour shown to him, would wish to come back and be martyred again and again:

No one who enters Paradise would ever wish to return to this world, even if everything on earth were his — except the martyr, who, because of the honour he sees, would wish to return and be martyred ten times over.

— Sahih al-Bukhari, al-Jihad, no.

The Prophet himself, more than once, voiced this wish. He swore: "By Him in whose hand my soul rests, I would love to be killed in the path of Allah, then brought back to life, then killed again, then brought back, then killed again."

The Three Categories of the Martyr

The scholars of Islam classified martyrs into three categories on the basis of the legal rulings of this world (washing, shrouding, funeral) and their standing with Allah in the next.

1. The martyr of both this world and the next. Those slain in battle with the enemy or with bandits; those found on the battlefield with marks of having been killed; the Muslim killed in an unjust attack; the one slain defending his property, life, religion, or honour. The Prophet (peace be upon him) said:

Whoever is killed defending his wealth is a martyr. Whoever is killed defending his life is a martyr. Whoever is killed defending his religion is a martyr.

— Sahih al-Bukhari, al-Mazalim, no.

This martyr is not washed; his bloodied clothes serve as his shroud. The funeral prayer is offered and he is buried as he is. Only items not in the nature of a shroud — coats, shoes, and the like — are removed.

2. The martyr of the next world only. One who is wounded in battle but does not die immediately — receives treatment, eats, drinks, sleeps, or is moved from the field and dies elsewhere. He receives the reward of the martyr in the next world, yet in this world he is washed, shrouded, and prayed over as any other deceased Muslim. The same category includes those who drown, those killed by fire, those buried beneath a collapsed building, those who die in pursuit of a lawful livelihood for their families, and those who die in the pursuit of sacred knowledge. The Prophet said:

The martyrs are five: the one who dies of plague, the one who dies of a stomach illness, the one who drowns, the one who is crushed by a fallen wall, and the one slain in the path of Allah.

— Sahih al-Bukhari, at-Tibb, no.

3. The martyr only by outward judgment. One who does not believe inwardly but stands with the Muslims in battle and is killed there. He is treated as a martyr in the legal sense — buried in his clothes without washing — but his standing with Allah is known only to Allah, since his true intention is hidden. From this category the scholars derived the principle that intention, not appearance, governs the value of the deed. The Prophet's words: "Deeds are only by intentions."

Stories — Faces of Martyrdom in Islamic History

Sumayyah — The First Martyr of Islam

In the earliest years of Islam in Mecca, before any battle or migration, Sumayyah — mother of Ammar ibn Yasir — was tortured along with her husband Yasir and her family by the Meccan polytheists. Under the desert sun, dressed in iron mail, they were beaten and burned. Abu Jahl pressed Sumayyah to renounce her faith; she refused.

In the end Abu Jahl himself killed the old woman with a violent thrust. With her death, Sumayyah became the first martyr of Islam. The Prophet (peace be upon him), seeing the Yasir family in torment, told them: "Patience, O family of Yasir! Your promised place is Paradise."

The meaning of this episode is historic. Islam shed its first martyr before any battlefield opened — not by the sword in war but by the body of an elderly woman who would not deny her Lord. The door of martyrdom, in Islam, was opened by faith itself before it was opened by jihad.

The Martyrs of Badr and Ubaydah ibn al-Harith

At the Battle of Badr in the second year of Hijrah, fourteen of the Muslims fell as martyrs. Among them was Ubaydah ibn al-Harith, a cousin of the Prophet (peace be upon him).

At the opening of the battle in the traditional duels, Ubaydah faced Utbah, one of the Meccan chieftains. He was struck so severely that his leg was nearly severed. As the Muslims returned to Medina, Ubaydah died at a place called Safra'. The Prophet stood over him and offered prayers for this brave Companion who had given his life before he could see the victory.

The martyrs of Badr were the first to fall on a Muslim battlefield. Allah granted them an honour preserved across the centuries in verses recited and remembered by the believers.

Hamzah and the Martyrs of Uhud

The Battle of Uhud in the third year of Hijrah was both the saddest and one of the most defining moments of martyrdom in early Islamic history. The Prophet's uncle Hamzah ibn Abd al-Muttalib was killed by a spear thrown by a slave named Wahshi. His blessed body was mutilated. When the Prophet (peace be upon him) saw his uncle's body, he could not hold back his tears and said: "A calamity like this will never strike me again." Allah granted Hamzah the title Sayyid al-Shuhada' — the Master of the Martyrs.

In the same battle Mus'ab ibn Umayr fell. He had been one of the earliest emissaries of Islam to Medina. He bore the Muslim standard. One arm was cut off — he took the standard with the other. That arm was cut off too — he held the standard with his teeth and at last fell to the ground. Mus'ab had been the son of one of Mecca's wealthiest families; at Uhud he had become so poor that the cloak used for his shroud was too short — when it covered his head his feet showed; when it covered his feet his head showed. The Prophet ordered that his head be covered and idhkhir grass placed over his feet.

Seventy Companions fell as martyrs at Uhud. The Prophet buried them without washing, with their blood upon them, two or three to a grave, and said: "I will be a witness over them on the Day of Resurrection."

The Battle of Yarmuk and the Water of the Wounded

Under the caliphate of Umar, in the 15th year of Hijrah, the Muslims faced the Byzantine army at Yarmuk. Thousands fell as martyrs. After the battle, walking among the wounded, a Companion brought water to a brother dying of thirst. As he raised the cup to drink, a moan came from a wounded man nearby. He waved the water away: "His need is greater."

The water was carried to the second man, who pointed in turn to a third. The cup passed from hand to hand. When at last they returned to the first, he had been martyred; the second too; the third — none of them received the drink before death received them.

This account is preserved of Ikrimah ibn Abi Jahl, al-Harith ibn Hisham, and Ayyash ibn Abi Rabi'ah, and stands in the tradition as the symbol of ithar — the believer's preference for his brother over himself. Martyrdom is a school that teaches, even in the last moments of life, the discipline of caring first for one's brother.

The Homeland, the Martyr, and Our Responsibility

Without martyrs there is no homeland. A homeland is not only a piece of land — it is land for which a sacred life has been given. The proverb is well known: "A soil becomes a homeland only when someone is willing to die for it."

From the Battle of Manzikert in 1071, which opened Anatolia, through the conquest of Constantinople in 1453, to the victory at Dumlupınar on 30 August 1922, generation after generation of believers entrusted this land to those who followed. What drove every one of those battles was the believer's desire to attain the reward promised to the martyrs by Allah Himself.

What is asked of us is to keep what was entrusted: to build, to protect, and to pass on this trust without diminishment to the generations that come after. To fail in this is to fail the homeland and to wound the souls of those who paid for it.

Putting the Spirit of Martyrdom Into Practice With VAAZ

The dua archive in the VAAZ app gathers supplications of mercy for the martyrs and veterans of every generation. Within the 99 Beautiful Names of Allah collection, the name Ash-Shahid — "the All-Witnessing" — illuminates the etymological depth of shahadah and how testimony, witnessing, and self-giving converge in the life of the believer.

For the foundational dimension of faith on which martyrdom rests, see the Sermon on the Pillars of Faith; for narratives of sacrifice from the lives of the early Muslims, see the Sermon on the Companions.

References

1. The Noble Qur'an, Surah Al-Baqarah 2:154.
2. The Noble Qur'an, Surah Al-Imran 3:169-171.
3. The Noble Qur'an, Surah At-Tawbah 9:19.
4. The Noble Qur'an, Surah At-Tawbah 9:111.
5. The Noble Qur'an, Surah As-Saff 61:10-13.
6. Sahih al-Bukhari, Book of al-Jihad and Book of al-Mazalim — narrations on martyrdom.
7. Sahih Muslim, Book of al-Imarah — sincere wish for martyrdom.
8. Ibn Hisham, as-Sirah an-Nabawiyyah — narratives of Badr, Uhud, and Sumayyah.
9. al-Tabari, Tarikh al-Umam wa al-Muluk — account of Yarmuk and ithar.
10. Diyanet İşleri Başkanlığı, Sermons and Guidance Services (Turkey).

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