Narrated by Sayyiduna Abdullah bin Abbas, may Allah be pleased with him, that the Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings be upon him, said: The best companion is four, the best detachment is of four hundred individuals, the best army is of four thousand, and an army of twelve thousand will not be defeated merely due to small numbers.

It is narrated from Sayyiduna Harith bin Hissan Bakri, may Allah be pleased with him, who says: We came to Madinah Munawwarah and saw that the Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings be upon him, was seated on the pulpit. Sayyiduna Bilal, may Allah be pleased with him, was standing before him holding a sword, and several black flags were visible. I asked: What are these flags? They said: Sayyiduna Amr bin Aas, may Allah be pleased with him, has returned from a battle.

(Second narration) It is narrated from Sayyiduna Harith (may Allah be pleased with him) himself, he says: I entered the mosque, it was packed with people and a black flag was waving. I asked: What has happened to the people today? They said: The Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him and his family) wants to send Sayyiduna Amr ibn al-As (may Allah be pleased with him) for jihad somewhere.

Yunus bin Ubaid says: Muhammad bin Qasim sent me to Sayyiduna Bara’ bin Azib (may Allah be pleased with him), so that I could ask him about the flag of the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him), what it was like. He said: It was square in shape and striped black in color.