Sayyiduna Anas bin Malik (may Allah be pleased with him) narrates that the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "How many weak and downtrodden people there are, possessing only two worn-out garments, yet if they were to swear an oath by Allah (relying on Him for something), Allah would certainly fulfil their oath; al-Bara' bin Malik is one of them." Then, when al-Bara' (may Allah be pleased with him) confronted an army of the polytheists, and the polytheists had inflicted heavy losses on the Muslims, the Companions said: O Bara'! The Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) said that if you swear an oath by Allah, He will fulfil it; so swear an oath by your Lord (that we will be granted victory). So al-Bara' (may Allah be pleased with him) said: "O my Lord! I swear an oath by You that You will make them turn their backs to us (that is, grant us victory)." Then, when they met at Qantarah al-Sus (the bridge of al-Sus), and there again the Muslims suffered severely, the people said again: O Bara'! Swear an oath by your Lord. Al-Bara' (may Allah be pleased with him) supplicated: "O my Lord! I swear an oath by You that You will make them turn their backs to us, and that You will join me with my Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) (that is, grant me martyrdom)." So the enemy was defeated, and al-Bara' (may Allah be pleased with him) was martyred. This hadith has a sahih (authentic) chain of narration, but the two Shaykhs (Bukhari and Muslim) did not record it.

Sayyiduna Anas bin Malik (may Allah be pleased with him) narrates that on the day of the Battle of al-Aqabah in Persia, when the people had scattered, al-Bara' bin Malik (may Allah be pleased with him) stood up and mounted his horse while it was limping (from injury). Then he said to his companions: "What a bad habit you have given your adversaries over you (that they are prevailing over you)!" Then he launched a full attack on the enemy, until Allah granted the Muslims victory, and al-Bara' (may Allah be pleased with him) was martyred that day. Musa bin Harun said: Al-Bara' bin Malik was martyred at Tustar (in Persia) in the year 21 AH. Mention of the virtues of al-Nu'man bin Muqarrin al-Muzani (may Allah be pleased with him).