The Great Battle of
Badr took place on the seventeenth of Ramadan, two
years after the Hijra. This was the first battle
that the believers ever engaged in with the
disbelievers, and it is, by far, the most famous and
most renown, becuase of the several extraordinary
events that occured during it. Rasoolullah (saws)
had encouraged the Muslims to oppose the Quraish
caravan which was returning to Mecca from Sham. The
Muslims went out with 300 and some soldiers not
intending to meet a caravan of about 40 men, not
intending to fight but only to overpower them. The
caravan escaped, but Abu Sufyan had already sent
word to Quraish to come and protect it. The Quraish
marched with enormous army of 1000 men, six hundred
wearing shields, 100 horses, and 700 camels, and
luxurious provisions to last for several days. The
disbelievers wanted to make this a victory that
would put fear into the hearts of all the Arabs.
They wanted to crush the Muslims once and for all
and the odds were overwhelmingly in their favor.
Imagine that the believers with their small army
(including only 2 horses), going out with the intent
of meeting a mere 40 unarmed man and instead meeting
a well- prepared army of *3 times* their size....
Rasoolullah (saws) could have easily ordered the
believers to fight and they wouldn't have hesitated
to comply, but, he (saws) wanted to emphasize to his
followers that they should fight out of conviction
and iman and to teach us a lesson in the process. He
gathered his followers to conduct shura
(consultation). Many of the muhajireen ( the Muslims
who emigrated from Mecca to Medinah) spoke up, using
the most eloquent of words to describe their
dedication. But there was one of the sahabah whom
all the others envied for his statement to
Rasoolullah (saws). He, Miqdad ibn al Aswad, rose up
in front of the crowd and said, 'Ya Rasoolullah! We
will not say to you like Bani Israel said to Musa,
'Go you and your Lord and fight, we are here sitting
(waiting).' (surat al maa'idah). Go by Allah's
blessing and we are with you!" And so
Rasoolullah (saws) was very pleased, but in his
greeat wisdom, he waited silently, and some among
the Muslims knew what he intended. So far only the
muhajiroon had given their consent, but it was the
Ansar (the Muslims who lived in Medinah and welcomed
the Muslims into their city) who had the most to
loose in this stake and it was not a part of the
pledge (that Rasoolullah had taken from the Ansar at
‘Aqabah) for the Ansar to fight with the Muslims
in foreign territory. So, the great leader of the
Ansar, Sa'd ibn Mu'adh spoke up, "Ya
Rasoolullah! Maybe you mean us." Rasoolullah
(saws) responded in the affirmative. Sa'd proceeded
to give a beautiful speech in which he said, among
many things: "O Messenger of Allah, we have
believed in you and we believe that you are saying
the truth. We give you, based on that, our covenant
to listen to and obey you.....By Allah, the One Who
sent you with the truth, if you were to enter the
sea, we would rush into it with you and not one of
us would stay behind...May Allah show you in our
actions what will satisfy your eyes. So march with
us, putting our trust in Allah's blessings."
Rasoolullah (saws) was very pleased by this and
said, “Forward and be of cheer, for Allah has
promised me one of the two (the caravan or the
battle), and by Allah, it is as if I now saw the
enemy lying prostrate.” The Muslims marched
forward and encamped at the nearest spring of Badr
(closest to Medinah, which is north of Mecca). One
of the companions, Al-Hubab ibn Mundhir, asked
Rasoolullah (saws), “ Has Allah inspired you to
choose this very spot or is it stratagem of war and
the product of consultation?” Rasoolullah (saws)
said, “It is the product of stratagem of war and
consultation.” So Al-Hubab suggested that the
Muslims encamp further south on the nearest water
well, make a basin of water for themselves, and
destroy the other wells to thereby restrict to
Quraish’s access to the water. Rasoolullah (saws)
approved of his plan and carried it out.[*] Then,
Sa’d ibn Mu’adh suggested that a trellis or hut
be built for Rasoolullah (saws) as a protection for
him and to serve as a headquarters for the army.
Rasoolullah (saws) and Abu Bakr stayed in the hut
while Sa’d ibn Mu’adh and a group of his men
guarded it. Rasoolullah (saws) spent the whole nigh
preceeding the battle in prayer and supplication evn
thought he (saws) knew that Allah (swt) had promised
him victory. It was out of his (saws) love for and
worship and submission to Allah (swt) that he did
this. And it was said that this is the highest form
of ‘ibadah knowns as “‘ain al yaqeen”, a
state of being completely dependant and submissive
to Allah (swt), which distinguished him (in
superiority) from Abu Bakr As siddiq (ra) who only
had “ ‘ilm al yaqeen”, the certainty of the
promise. Unusally, that same night, the night when
tensions were mounting for one of the biggest events
in history, the night before the battle that would
signify the progress or defeat of Islam, instead of
being nervous, worried and unable to sleep, the
Muslim army enjoyed a sound and refreshing sleep.
That night was the night of the 17th of Ramadan, the
year 2 A.H. This was a Divine favor which Allah (swt)
mentioned in the Quran: “(Remember) when He
covered you with a slumber as a security from Him,
and He caused rain to descend on you from the sky,
to clean you thereby and to remove from you the Rijz
(whispering, evil suggestions, etc.) of Satan, and
to strengthen your hearts, and make your feet firm
thereby.” [8:11] The seond favor from Allah (swt)
mentioned in this verse is the rain that Allah (swt)
sent upon the believers that very night. The place
where the Muslims were to encamp was made of sandy
ground which was hard to walk on becuase one’s
feet could easily sink in it. Allah (swt) sent the
rain to make the ground firm under their feet and
sent the sleep to make their hearts firm. The next
morning, Rasoolullah (saw) was still asleep when
Quraish was very closely approaching. Abu Bakr (ra)
was very hesitant to wake the noble Messenger
(saws), but was forced to do so becuase Quraish were
approahcing quickly. The Muslims were arranged in
ranks. When the two parties appoached closer and
were visible to each other, Rasoolullah (saws) began
supplicating, “O Allah! The conceited and haughty
Quraishites are already here and defying You and and
belying Your Messenger. O Allah! I m waiting for
Your victory which You have promised me. I beseech
You Allah to defeat them.” He (saws) then gave
strict orders that his men would not start fighting
until he gave them his final word. He recommended
that they use their arrows sparingly [1] and never
resort to swords unless the enemies came too close.
[2] The Quraish were haught and arrogant and
confident in their superior number, weapons, and
provisions but it is Allah (swt) who would decide
the matter: “(O disbelievers) if you ask for a
judgement, now has the judgement come unto you and
if you cease (to do wrong) , it will be better for
you, and If you return (to the attack), so shall we
return, and your forces will be of no avail to you,
however numerous it be, and verily, Allah is with
the believers.” [8:19] The battle began with a
confronation between three men from each side:
-- Hamza (Rasoolullah’s
uncle)vs.‘Utbah ibn Rabi’a
-- Ali (Rasoolullah’s cousin)vs.Al-Waleed ibn
‘Utbah
-- ‘Ubaidah ibn al Harith vs. Shaybah ibn Rabi’a
In the former two
cases, Hamza and Ali killed their opponents, but
‘Ubaidah (despite killing his opponent) was
severely wounded and died about four or five days
later. The fighting intensified, and many more duels
broke out. In the midst of all of this, Rasoolullah
(saws) continued to supplicate his Lord. He (saws)
said, “O Allah! Should this group (of Muslims) be
defeated today, You will no longer be
worshipped.”Abu Bakr witnessed this incessant
supplication so He said to Rasoolullah (saws), “O
Rasoolullah, you have cried out enough to your Lord.
He will surely fulfill what He has promised you.”
Immediate was the
response of Allah (swt), Who sent down angels from
the heavens for the help and assistance of
Rasoolullah (saw) and his companions. The Quran
marks this miraculous occurance: “I will help you
with a thousand of the angels each behind the other
(following one another) in succession.” Quran
[8:9] Rasoolullah (saws), in his hut, dozed off a
little and then raised his head joyfully crying and
said, “O Abu Bakr! glad tidings are there for you.
Allah’s victory has approached. By Allah, I can
see Jibreel on his mare in the thick of a
sandstorm.” Then he came out of the hut and
exclaimed: “sayuhzamul jam’u wa
yuwwalloonad-dubur” Quran [54:45] (Their multitude
will be put to flight, and they will show their
backs.) This is in fact one of the miracles of the
Quran becuase this verse was revealed in Mecca
before any of these events at Badr had taken place.
Omar (ra), upon hearing Rasoolullah (saws) proclaim
this verse on this occasion said, “When this verse
was first revealed, I asked Rasoolullah what it
means. What multitude? What deafeat? And Rasoolullah
(saws) didn’t answer me. But when I saw him recite
it on that occasion, I then understood.” Then
Rasoolullah (saws) took a handful of dust and cast
it at the enemy and said : Confusion seize their
faces!” As he flung the dust, a violent sandstorm
blew like furnace blast into the eyes of the enemy.
About this, Allah says: “And you (i.e. Muhammad
-saws) threw not when you did throw, but Allah
threw.” [8:17] It was at this point that
Rasoolullah (saws) gave orders to launch a full
counter-attack. He incited the believers reciting
the following verse: “And be quick for forgiveness
from your Lord, and for Paradise as wide as are the
heavens and earth.” [3:133] The spirit of the
Muslims was at it peak and they fought with the
untmost courage and bravery severly wounding the
Quraish army, killing many of their men and
instilling fear in their hearts. The Muslims did not
know that Allah’s help was about to descend upon
them. They only knew the odds that were apparent to
both sides: 100 against 300, 700 camels against 70
camels, 100 horses against 2, enourmous provisions
against none, an intent and preparation for war
against an unprepared group of believers. Still,
despite all odds, they had trust in Allah (swt) and
His Messenger and they were willing and even hoping
to give their lives of this dunya for the
ever-lasting abode of Jannah. Because of their
devotion Allah (swt) sent His help and victory.
In addition to
sending down angels, Allah (swt) also brought
another miraculous occurence to ensure the Muslim
victory. Allah says: "“(And remember) When
Allah showed them to you (Muhammad) as few in your
dream, if He had shown them to you as many, you
would have surely have disputed in making a
decision. But Allah saved (you). Certainly, He is
the AllKnower of what is in the breasts.'” [8:43]
And indeed, Allah (swt) did fulfill His promise:
“And (remember) when you met (the army of the
disbelievers on the Day of the battle of Badr), He
showed them to you as few in your eyes and He made
you appear as few in their eyes, so that Allah might
accomplish a matter already ordained (in His
Knowledge), and to Allah return all matters (for
decision).” [8:44] Many of the disbelievers were
killed in this battle, the most noteworthy of which
was Abu Jahl, the archenemy of Islam. When
Rasoolullah (saws) set out to look at his corpse, he
(saws) said, "“This is the Pharaoh of this
nation."” And so the Muslims defeated the
disbelievers in a humiliating defeat by the Help of
Allah (swt). Indeed Allah, again, fulfilled His
promise, "“Their multitude will be put to
flight, and they will show their backs”"
[54:45] The disbelievers, with all their might,
turned their backs and ran away from the Muslims in
disgrace and utter humiliation. Allahu Akbar wa
lillah al Hamd.
[*] I the book by
Dr. al Sibai, Sh. Jamal Zarabozo says that this
story was not narrated through authentic chains,
although it is mentioned in several famous books of
seerah (with reliable authors) who were silent about
its authenticity. Allahu a`lam.
[1] Sahih al-Bukhari,
2/568
[2] Abu Daud, 2/13
