Sayyida Maymunah bint al-Harith (may Allah be pleased with her), the wife of the Prophet (peace be upon him), says: Once the Prophet (peace be upon him) spent the night with me, then he got up and began to perform ablution for prayer. I heard him say at his place of ablution, "Labbayk, labbayk" three times and "Nusrat, nusrat" three times, meaning, "I am present, I am present, you have been helped, you have been helped," three times. When he left, I said, "O Messenger of Allah! I heard you saying at your place of ablution: 'I am present, I am present' three times, 'You have been helped, you have been helped' three times, as if you were talking to someone. Was there anyone with you at that time?" He replied, "The poet of Banu Ka'b was calling me and saying that Quraysh had helped Banu Bakr against them." Then the Prophet (peace be upon him) went out and ordered Sayyida Aisha (may Allah be pleased with her) to prepare herself and not to inform anyone. She says: At that time, Sayyiduna Abu Bakr (may Allah be pleased with him) came and said, "Daughter, what is this preparation for?" She said, "By Allah! I do not know." Sayyiduna Abu Bakr (may Allah be pleased with him) said, "By Allah! This is not the time for war with the Romans, so where is the Prophet (peace be upon him) intending to go?" She said, "By Allah, I do not know." She says that then we stayed for three days, the Prophet (peace be upon him) led the people in the morning prayer, and we heard a poet reciting, saying: "O my Lord! I beseech Muhammad (peace be upon him), who was the old ally of us and our father. We gave birth to you and you were a child, then we became Muslims and we never withdrew our hand from you, Quraysh has broken its promise with you and has violated its firm covenant with you. They say: You cannot call anyone. So strengthen our help, may Allah guide you, and call upon the servants of Allah and help us, among whom are the Prophets and Messengers of Allah who have unsheathed their swords. If they are humiliated, their faces will change." The Prophet (peace be upon him) said: "You will be helped, you will be helped," three times. Then the Prophet (peace be upon him) went out, and when he reached Ruhā', he saw a rising cloud and said: "This cloud has risen for the help of Banu Ka'b." A man from Banu 'Adi bin 'Amr, who was the brother of Banu Ka'b bin 'Amr, stood up and said: "O Messenger of Allah! Will Banu 'Adi also be helped?" The Prophet (peace be upon him) said: "May your chest be covered with dust, 'Adi is Ka'b and Ka'b is 'Adi." So this man was present on this journey. Then the Prophet (peace be upon him) prayed: "O Allah! Conceal our news from them until we attack them suddenly." Then the Prophet (peace be upon him) set out until he camped at Marr. Abu Sufyan bin Harb, Hakim bin Hizam, and Budayl bin Warqa' also set out until they too reached Marr. Abu Sufyan saw burning fires and said: "Budayl! These are the fires of Banu Ka'b, your family." He said: "War has thrown him towards you and is inciting him." That night, the people of Muzaynah caught them and were responsible for guarding them. They asked the people of Muzaynah to take them to Abbas bin Abdul Muttalib, so they took them to him. They sought protection from Sayyiduna Abbas (may Allah be pleased with him) to secure safety from the Prophet (peace be upon him). So he took them to the Prophet (peace be upon him) and sought protection for them. The Prophet (peace be upon him) said: "Whoever you have granted protection, we have also granted protection, except only Abu Sufyan is excluded from this." Sayyiduna Abbas (may Allah be pleased with him) said: "O Messenger of Allah! Do not restrict me." The Prophet (peace be upon him) said: "Whoever you have granted safety is safe." Then Sayyiduna Abbas (may Allah be pleased with him) went and brought them to the Prophet (peace be upon him). Abu Sufyan said: "We want to leave." Sayyiduna Abbas (may Allah be pleased with him) said: "Wait until it is light." The Prophet (peace be upon him) got up and began to perform ablution, and the Muslims began to collect the water from his ablution and sprinkle it on their faces. Abu Sufyan said: "O Abu al-Fadl (the kunyah of Sayyiduna Abbas, may Allah be pleased with him)! The kingdom of your nephew has greatly increased." Sayyiduna Abbas (may Allah be pleased with him) said: "This is not kingship, it is Prophethood, and it is to this that people are inclined."