Excerpt from 'The Message':
The two armies faced each other at a place called Sharaf. However, on account of some military considerations, a part of the Muslim army retreated and encamped in Mota. Ja'far bin Abu Talib, who was the chief commander of the army, divided it into three divisions and appointed a commander for each division. Single combats commenced. It was now necessary for Ja'far to hold the standard in his hand and guide his soldiers in making the attack and simultaneously being engaged in fighting and defence.
His bravery and steadfastness in the cause of his objective is quite apparent from the epic verses which he recited while attacking the enemy. He said: 'I am happy that the promised Paradise has become nearer - the same pure Paradise which contains cold beverages. On the contrary the destruction of Rome is also near. It is the nation, which has been guilty of blasphemy according to the creed of monotheism and whose contacts and connections with us have been severed. I am determined to strike a blow on them as and when I face them.'
The chief commander of Islam put up a courageous fight against the enemies. However, when he found himself encircled by them and realized that his martyrdom was certain, he, in order that the enemies might not utilize his horse and also they might know that he had now severed his ties with the world, dismounted his horse and struck it a blow which made it incapable of movement, and then he continued to fight.
In the meantime his right hand was cut off. In order that the standard of the Prophet might not fall on the ground he held it in his left hand and when his left hand was also cut off he held it in his arms. Eventually, after having sustained eighty wounds he fell down and breathed his last.