Examples of self-sacrifice in the life of the Ashab Al-Qiram (the prophet's (saas) companions)

1) Talha ibn Ubayd-Allah was one of the Companions, one of the first people to have the honor of becoming Muslims, after Abu Bakr and Uthman, as followers of our Prophet (saas), who was tortured as a result and demonstrated great heroism in defending the Messenger of Allah (saas) at the Battle of Uhud. Talha ibn Ubayd-Allah caught the arrows fired at our Prophet (saas) by a sharpshooter called Malik ibn Zubayr in order to protect him; his fingers were cut to shreds and he was left one-handed.  He received some eighty injuries in this battle, suffering spear, sword and arrow wounds all over his body, though he never left the Messenger of Allah’s (saas) side, but always sought to defend him. When he gained consciousness, the first concern of Talha ibn Ubayd-Allah, who fainted from loss of blood when Abu Bakr and Sa'ad Ibn Abi Wakkas reached the Messenger of Allah (saas) was about the Messenger of Allah (saas) rather than himself. 

2) Another example of the elevated self-sacrifice displayed by the Ashab al-Qiram is that because of their love of Allah, fervent faith and devotion to the Messenger of Allah (saas) even those companions who were still children or those who were very weak because of old age wished to join our Prophet (saas) in battle. Abu Sa'id al-Khudri, who was too young to participate in the Battle of Badr, asked the Prophet’s (saas) permission to take part in the Battle of Uhud, but remained in Medina together with other very young people like himself, at the order of the Messenger of Allah (saas). 

3) With his joyous faith and eagerness to win the approval of Allah, Amr Ibn al-Jamuh, who was very old and also crippled in one foot, also asked our Prophet (saas) for permission to take part in the Battle of Uhud, and was martyred in it.  Abu Talha, who fought alongside the Messenger of Allah (saas) until his death, and then with Abu Bakr and Umar until their deaths, was determined to fight alongside the Muslims one more time, despite his advanced age, and was martyred in the sea during the course of the battle.

4) In addition to children and the very old, another group who were prominent in terms of purity, courage and self-sacrifice in the time of our Prophet (saas) were devout female believers. One of these exemplary women was Um Umara Nasiba Bint Kaab. At one particularly bloody moment in the Battle of Uhud, in which she took part by distributing water and bandaging wounds, she utterly unselfishly fought against someone who attacked the Messenger of Allah (saas):

Nasiba bint Kaab, who swore the oath of allegiance to the Messenger of Allah (saas) at Aqaba, vowing to “protect the Messenger of Allah (saas) as they protected themselves, women and children," saw at one point that the fighting was turning against the Muslims and that the enemy had concentrated around the Messenger of Allah (saas); grabbing a sword she rushed to the defense of our Prophet (saas).  Nasiba bint Kaab was one of the people who surrounded the Prophet (saas), alongside other of his companions, using their bodies as shields in order to protect him, and she received many wounds.
 

5) One of those exemplary Muslims who always considered the security of our Prophet (saas) before that of themselves, their clans or their families was Iqrima ibn Abi Jahl. Iqrima ibn Abi Jahl, the son of Abu Jahl who was known for his hatred and enmity toward Muslims, took part in the Battle of Yarmouk against the Byzantines in the time of caliphate of Abu Bakr. The self-sacrifice displayed toward one another by Al Haris Ibn Hisham, Suhayl Ibn Amr and Iqrima Ibn Abu Jahl, who were severely wounded in the fight, is narrated as follows:

In the Battle of Yarmouk, Harith Ibn Hisham, Iqrima Ibn Abi Jahl and Suhayl Ibn Amr all fell to the ground severely wounded. Harith Ibn Hisham asked for water to drink. One of the soldiers brought water to him. When he saw that Iqrima was looking at him, he said, “Take this water to Iqrima.” As Iqrima received the water he saw that Suhayl was looking at him, and he declined the water, saying, “Give it to Suhayl."  But Suhayl died before the water could reach him. At that the water-bearer ran to Iqrima, but Iqrima had also died. He ran over to Harith, but he had expired, too. 

6) The courage and altruistic moral values of Musa al-Ash'ari are described as follows:

Abu Musa al-Ash'ari relates: We were fighting alongside our Prophet (saas). There were six of us. And we had a camel. We rode it in turn. Our feet were ripped to shreds. Both my feet were swollen and I had lost my toenails. We therefore wrapped my feet up in bits of cloth. That is why that battler is known as "Zat ur Riqa" (The Battle of the Rags.) ⁽¹⁾

7) After losing his right arm to a sword thrust at the Battle of Uhud, Mus'ab Ibn Umayr held. When a second sword thrust caused him to lose his left arm, too, he acted as a shield for our Prophet (saas). He was eventually martyred as the result of a spear thrust while defending our Prophet (saas). 
1- Muhammad Yusuf Kandahlavi, Hayat al-Sahabe, The Islamic Life of the Prophet Muhammad and His Companions, Vol. 1, Sentez Publications, Essential Works Series: 2/1, p. 295 (Kanz al-Ummal, V/310; Abu Nuaym, Hilya , I/260)



1- Muhammad Yusuf Kandahlavi, Hayat al-Sahabe, The Islamic Life of the Prophet Muhammad and His Companions, Vol. 1, Sentez Publications, Essential Works Series: 2/1, p. 295 (Kanz al-Ummal, V/310; Abu Nuaym, Hilya , I/260)

Great Hadith Collection, Jam'ul Fevaid, İz Publications, Vol. 3, Yeni Şafak, p. 332 (Rudani. From Abu Musa (ra) (This hadith is narrated by Bukhari (chapter 31/2, V, 52) and Muslim (149, p. 1449) from an original account by Abu Usama an Bureyd ibn Abdillah b.e. Burda an Abi Burda an Abi Musa.)