‘Ali told that God’s Messenger had in his hand an Arab bow, and on seeing a man with a Persian bow in his hand he said, “What is this? Throw it away. Keep* to this and such like, and to spears with shafts, for God will help you to support the religion with them and establish you in the land.”
* This verb is in the plural, indicating that, after the man is told to throw away the bow he is carrying, a general command is given to the people.
Musa b. ‘Ubaida, client of Muhammad b. al-Qasim, told that Muhammad b. al-Qasim sent him to al-Bara’ b. ‘Azib to ask him about God’s Messenger’s standard, and he said it was black and square, being made of a woollen rug.
