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THE
BATTLE OF BADR
The
Quraysh always felt their trade route to Syria under serious
threat because of the Muslim concentration in Madina. They
first threatened the Madinans, in a letter addressed to ‘Adbullah
ibn Ubayy ibn Salul, to kill their males and enslave their
females unless they expelled God’s Messenger from Madina.
The Prophet, upon him be peace and blessings, put a timely end
to the mischief which Ibn Ubayy inclined to cause. Besides,
when Sa‘d ibn Mu’adh went to Makka to perform minor
pilgrimage (Umrah), he was stopped at the entrance of the Ka’ba
and prevented from performing circumambulation. Also, the
Makkans quite regularly sent invading parties. In such
circumstances, the Muslims were left no choice but to gain and
consolidate control over that trade route in order to force
the Quraysh and other tribes unfriendly to the Muslims to
reconsider their hostile policy. It was also time for the
Prophet, upon him be peace and blessings, to give a lesson to
the Quraysh and the tribes allied to them, as well as the Jews
and hypocrites in Madina, that it was impossible for them to
bar the spread of Islam, let alone eradicate it from the
hearts of people and the surface of the earth. The front or
pact of polytheism and unbelief would undoubtedly surrender to
the light of Islam.
It was,
at last, at the beginning of 624, two years after the Hijra
that a large caravan of the Quraysh, escorted by no more than
40 security guards en route to Makka from Syria, arrived at a
place within reach of the Muslims. Fearing that the Muslims
would attack their caravan, Abu Sufyan, the leader of the
caravan, rushed a messenger to Makka and sought help and
reinforcements.
This
caused an uproar through Makka. The leading chiefs of the
Quraysh decided to wage war on the Prophet, upon him be peace
and blessings, and about 1000 fighters moved out of Makka with
much pomp and show. They had decided to deal a crushing blow
to the rising power of the Muslims. They also wanted, as
always, to terrorize the neighbouring tribes so as to ensure
the safety of their trading caravans in the future.
God’s
Messenger, upon him be peace and blessings, who always kept
himself abreast of developments which had any bearing on his
mission, realized that if an effective step was not taken
right then, the preaching of Islam might suffer a blow from
which it might be very difficult for it to recover. Had the
Quraysh taken the initiative and launched an attack on Madina,
it might have put an end to the existence of the small Muslim
community in that town. Even if the Quraysh restricted
themselves to taking their caravan to Makka safely by dint of
their military strength, this would have adversely affected
the political and military prestige of the Muslims. Once their
prestige had been undermined, their lives, property and honour
would have been jeopardized.
Having
decided to use the resources available to him, the Prophet,
upon him be peace and blessings, left Madina. Although he may
have been intent upon a decisive battle with the Quraysh, most
of the Muslims desired to capture the caravan. In order to
inform his Companions of the situation, the Prophet gathered
them and told them that the trading caravan of the Quraysh was
in the north whereas the invading Quraysh army was in the
south and moving towards Madina. He also informed them that
God had promised the Muslims that they would be able to seize
any of the two parties they wished (al-Anfal, 8.7) Now
it was for them to make the choice whether they wished to
attack the trading caravan or the approaching army. Aware of
the Prophet’s intention, Miqdad ibn ‘Amr, one of the
Emigrants, replied as follows:
O
Messenger of God! Proceed as God has commanded you to.
We are with you wherever you go, even as far as Bark al-Ghimad.
We shall not say as the Children of Israel said to
Moses: ‘Go forth, you and your Lord, and fight, We
shall remain here sitting!’ We rather say: ‘Go
forth, you and your Lord, and fight, and we shall fight
on your side as long as the eyelid of any one of us
keeps moving.’1
Until
the Battle of Badr, God’s Messenger had not sought help from
the Helpers in military expeditions. This was the first
occasion when the Helpers would prove their commitment to
support Islam. Without addressing them directly, God’s
Messenger, upon him be peace and blessings, again put the same
two alternatives before his audience. Realizing that God’s
Messenger aimed to ascertain the views of the Helpers on the
question, Sa‘d ibn Mu‘adh rose and spoke as follows:
O
Messenger of God! I think your question is directed to
the Helpers. We have believed in you, affirmed the
veracity of your claim to be the Messenger of God, and
borne witness to the truth of your teachings. We took
the oath of allegiance to you that we would hear and
obey you. O Messenger of God! Do as you wish! By the One
Who has sent you with the truth, if you were to take us
to the sea and plunge into it, none of us should remain
behind. So take us along to the battlefield with God’s
blessings.2
The
decision was given in favor of fighting. This was also the
decree of God:
God
promised you that one of the two hosts would be yours,
and you wished that the one with no power should be
yours. But God willed to establish the truth through His
words and to annihilate the unbelievers to the last
remnant, that He might prove the truth to be true and
falsify falsehood, even if the sinful are averse. (al-Anfal,
8.7-8)
The
Makkan army consisted of 1000 fighters, including 600 soldiers
in coats of mail, and 200 cavalry. They were accompanied by
singers and dancers. Whenever the army halted, dancing and
drinking parties were held. Also the army arrogantly vaunted
its military power and numerical strength before the tribes
and localities which fell on the way, and boasted of its
invincibility.3 What was even worse was that they
were not fighting for any lofty ideal. They aimed to defeat
the forces of belief, truth, justice and good morals.
Against
the force of the Makkan army, the Muslim army was made up of
313 fighters. Of these, 86 were Emigrants and the rest, the
Helpers. Such was the scarcity of resources that only two or
three Muslims had horses. The number of camels was no more
than 70 so that three or four persons took turns on each
camel. God’s Messenger himself took turns with two persons.
When they asked him to ride the camel to exclude themselves
from the turns, God’s Messenger, upon him be peace and
blessings, answered: You are no better in strength than me.
Concerning the reward, I am not in less need of it than you.4
The
Muslim soldiers were fully devoted to the cause of Islam and
were fired with the zeal to sacrifice their lives for their
cause. In order to accomplish what He had already decreed, God
made the Makkan army appear as small in number in the dream
God’s Messenger had, just as He made the number of the
Muslims appear smaller in the eyes of the Makkans (al-Anfal,
8.44).
The two
armies finally encountered each other at Badr. The Makkan army
outnumbered the Muslims by three to one. Moreover, the Muslims
were scantily equipped. However, they would fight for the most
sublime of causes, to establish God’s religion based on
belief, good morals and justice. They were deeply convinced of
the truth of this cause and accordingly ready to sacrifice
their lives. They had reached the battlefield earlier than
their opponents and been positioned around the wells. Apart
from that, the heavy downpour which had come the previous
night, was to the advantage of the Muslims. It had provided
them with an abundant water supply which they quickly stored
in large reservoirs. Rain had also compacted the loose sand in
the upper part of the valley where they had pitched their
tents. This helped the Muslims plant their feet firmly and
facilitated their movement. But in the lower part of the
valley, where the Quraysh army was stationed, the ground had
turned marshy. In addition to all those Divine blessings, God
brought on them drowsiness and gave them a feeling of peace
and security (al-Anfal, 8.11).
God’s
Messenger, upon him be peace and blessings, positioned his
army in the upper part of the valley overlooking the whole of
the battlefield, and divided them into three parts, one centre
and two flanks. The central force consisted of the leading
figures among the Emigrants and Helpers, who were foremost in
devotion to God’s Messenger. Mus‘ab ibn ‘Umayr was
carrying the standard of God’s Messenger. Mus‘ab belonged
to one of the richest families of Makka. He had accepted Islam
as an adolescent. He was very handsome, and when he used to go
out, before his conversion, in silken clothes, the Makkan
girls used to stare at him from the windows of their houses.
However, after he embraced Islam, he became a whole-hearted
follower of God’s Messenger. He sacrificed whatever he had
in the way of God and finally died a martyr at the Battle of
Uhud, during which he was again the standard-bearer of the
Prophet, upon him be peace and blessings. When he lost his
right arm, he took the standard in his left hand, and when a
blow of an enemy sword took it away too, he was left with a
‘head’ to protect God’s Messenger, before whom he was
finally martyred.5
The
flanks were commanded by ‘Ali and Sa‘d ibn Mu‘adh. ‘Ali
was famous for his courage and deep devotion to God’s
Messenger. He was only nine or ten years old when he answered
God’s Messenger, ‘I will help you’, when the Messenger
gathered his kinsmen to call them to Islam at the outset of
his mission and asked them: ‘Who among you will help me in
this affair?’6 Again, on the night of the Prophet’s
Emigration, he slept on the Prophet’s bed in order that God’s
Messenger, upon him be peace and blessings, might be able to
leave Makka in safety.7 Those who surrounded the
house of the Prophet had thought that it was God’s Messenger
who was sleeping in the bed and waited until daybreak. By the
time they rushed into the house only to find ‘Ali in the
Prophet’s bed, God’s Messenger had already reached the
Cave of Thawr outside Makka. ‘Ali was a man wholly dedicated
to the cause of God.
God’s
Messenger, upon him be peace and blessings, had not neglected
to take all the necessary precautions and perfect all the
preparations for the war. He had mobilized all the resources
available to him and chosen his best and most qualified men as
commanders. He had stationed his army at the upper part of the
valley and pitched his tent at a place from where he would be
able to see the whole of the battlefield and have all his
commands conveyed to his soldiers instantaneously. And, as the
final prerequisite, for the desired result, he outstretched
his arms and prayed with great earnestness and humility:
O
God! Here are the Quraysh who in their vainglory seek to
deny and cry lies against Your Messenger. O God! Support
us with the help You promised me. O God! Were this small
group of Muslims to perish, none in the whole earth
would remain to worship You.8
After
the prayer, he threw a handful of dust at the enemy saying: May
their faces be scorched!9
The
Battle of Badr was a severe test for all the Muslims. They
would either gain the victory or be martyred. They were not to
flee the battlefield. Although they were not forbidden to
retreat in orderly fashion under strong pressure from the
enemy provided the retreat was resorted to as a stratagem of
war - for example, seeking reinforcements or regrouping with
another party in the rear (al-Anfal, 8.15) - any
disorderly flight because of cowardice and defeatism was
strictly forbidden. That kind of retreat takes place because
the deserter holds his life dearer than his cause, and such
cowardice has been characterized as one of the major deadly
sins.
The
battle began. In the first frontline of the Quraysh were ‘Utba
ibn Rabi‘a and his brother, Shayba, and his son, Walid. They
challenged the Muslims to single combat. Three young men of
the Helpers went forward against them. ‘We will not fight
with the farmers and spherherds of Madina,’ ‘Utba shouted
out of an arrogance which would cause their perishing. This
was, in fact, what God’s Messenger expected. He ordered ‘Ali,
Hamza and ‘Ubayda ibn Harith to go forth for single combat.
Hamza, may God be pleased with him, advanced against ‘Utba
and killed him. ‘Ali killed Walid with two blows. ‘Ubayda,
who was old, marched against Shayba. They exchanged blows, and
the sharp edge of Shayba’s sword struck ‘Ubayda’s knee
and cut it. However Hamza and ‘Ali rescued him from Shayba.
They killed Shayba and carried ‘Ubayda away.10
The
Quraysh were shocked at the beginning of the war. The belief
and sincerity of the Muslims won them God’s help. The
Quraysh, who had exulted in their power, suffered a decisive
defeat at the hands of the ill-equipped Muslims. Seventy of
the Quraysh were killed. The two young brothers, ‘Awf and Mu‘awwidh,
from the Helpers, together with ‘Adbullah ibn Mas‘ud,
killed Abu Jahl, who had been described by God’s Messenger
as the Pharaoh of the Muslim Ummah.11 Almost all
the leaders of the Quraysh, including Abu Jahl, Walid ibn
Mughira, ‘Utba ibn Rabi‘ah, ‘As ibn Sa‘id, Umayyah ibn
Khalaf, and Nawfal ibn Khuwaylid were killed. Prior to the
battle, God’s Messenger, upon him be peace and blessings,
had indicated the spots where they were killed, saying: ‘Utba
will be killed here; Abu Jahl here, Umayyah ibn Khalaf here,
and so on.12
Another
seventy of the Quraysh were taken as war prisoners. God
granted the Muslims permission to accept ransom for them. God’s
Messenger released some of them in return for ransom, and the
others who knew how to read and write, on the condition that
they should teach the unlettered Muslims how to read and
write.
Such
treatment of the captives proved very beneficial for the
Muslims. For those people who had expected execution welcomed
the chance to pay ransom and paid it. Second, the rate of
literacy in Madina was very low, and, in order to propagate
Islam, the Muslims had to know how to read and write. Besides,
the Muslims had to be culturally superior to the polytheists.
Third, those who were kept in Madina to teach the Muslims how
to read and write would be able to learn Islam better than
before and find the opportunity to be in close contact with
the Muslims. This was certain to soften their hearts toward
Islam and accelerate their conversion, together with that of
their families. Fourth, the families and relatives of those
captives had despaired of their lives. But, when they saw them
before them unexpectedly, their enmity to Islam was
considerably lessened or broken.
The
decisive victory gained at Badr made Islam a force to reckon
with across all of Arabia, and many hardened hearts were
inclined to accept the message of Islam.
1. I. Sa‘d, 3.162.
2. Muslim, “Kitab al-Jihad wa l-Siyar,”
30; Waqidi, Maghazi, 1.48-9.
3. Tabari, Tarikh al-Umam wa l-Muluk, 2.430.
4. I. Hanbal, 1.411, 418.
5. I. Sa‘d, 3.120.
6. I. Hanbal, 1.159.
7. I. Hisham, 2.127.
8. I. Hisham, 1.621.
9. I. Hisham, 1.668; I. Hanbal, 1.368.
10. I. Hisham, 2.277.
11. I. Hisham, 2.280-7; I. Kathir, 3.350.
12. Abu Dawud, 2.53; Muslim, 5.170.
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