In the previous episode, we discussed why the Battle of Badr began. The Quraysh sent a large army against the Muslims at Badr. They wanted to celebrate their victory in various ways for three nights at Badr.
In this regard, Allah Almighty says in the Quran:
And do not be like those who came forth from their homes insolently and to be seen by people and avert [them] from the way of Allah. And Allah is encompassing of what they do.
(Quran 8:47)
On the other hand, the Muslims came to attack the caravan but they had no idea that the Quraysh would send a large force to counterattack.
The Prophet (peace be upon him) consulted with his companions and they agreed to fight. It was not possible to send additional troops from Medina because of the distance and the time. So they set out for Badr with whatever they had. The Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) was always keeping an eye on the intelligence reports of the Quraysh’s movements on the way to Badr. After approaching Badr, the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) spoke to an old Bedouin, keeping his identity a secret. The Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) learned from the man the location of the Quraysh by stratagem.
Then the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) sent his companions to find out more about the position of the Quraysh and they brought two men from the Quraysh. At first they denied it, but after being beaten, they said that they were from the Quraysh. Then the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) himself asked him where the Quraysh were, and they replied, “The Quraysh are behind that sand dune you see in the distance.”
The number of soldiers in the Quraysh army at the Battle of Badr was 950. On the other hand, the Muslim army numbered a little over 300 soldiers. In this battle, the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) carried two flags, one in the hand of Ali (may Allaah be pleased with him) and the other in the hand of an Ansar. The entire Muslim army had only two horses. And there were about 70 camels. Finally, the Muslim army arrived at the edge of Badr. The Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) was wondering from which direction it would be most advantageous to attack. Finally he determined a place to attack.
Then Hubat proposed the question of why he should fight from in front of the well, and he argued that if the well was behind, the Muslim army would have a supply of water. The Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) liked his proposal and chose the place accordingly. This small incident shows how good the relationship between the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) and his companions was.
Now let us discuss the positions of the two parties on the battlefield. In this regard, Allah Almighty says:
Remember] when you were on the near side of the valley, and they were on the farther side, and the caravan was lower [in position] than you. If you had made an appointment [to meet], you would have missed the appointment. But [it was] so that Allah might accomplish a matter already destined – that those who perished [through disbelief] would perish upon evidence and those who lived [in faith] would live upon evidence; and indeed, Allah is Hearing and Knowing.
(Quran 8:42)
In this verse, Allah Almighty presents a picture of the position of the two armies. The soil in the valley where the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) was staying became so hard due to the water that he had no problem walking on it. On the other hand, in the valley where the Quraysh were staying, the soil became completely soft due to the rain and became slippery. The same rain hardened the soil for the Muslims and made it wet for the Quraysh. This was a reward from God.
Another reward from Allah is protection from the evil schemes of Satan. On the morning of the battle, some Muslims were awakened by a bad dream. Then Satan suggested to them how they would fight in an unclean state. But Allah purified them by sending water in that situation.
[Remember] when He overwhelmed you with drowsiness [giving] security from Him and sent down upon you from the sky, rain by which to purify you and remove from you the evil [suggestions] of Satan and to make steadfast your hearts and plant firmly thereby your feet.
(Quran 8:11)
The companions slept peacefully on the night before the battle. On the other hand, the Prophet (peace be upon him) stood under a tree all night praying to Allah. The previous night, the Prophet (peace be upon him) had a dream and through the dream, Allah was the companion of his mind.
Allah mentioned this dream in the Quran:
[Remember, O Muhammad], when Allah showed them to you in your dream as few; and if He had shown them to you as many, you [believers] would have lost courage and would have disputed in the matter [of whether to fight], but Allah saved [you from that]. Indeed, He is Knowing of that within the breasts.
(Quran 8:43)
Allah helped the Muslims through rain and dreams. On the other hand, the Quraysh army boasted about this battle, but they had no interest in it. Many leaders of the Quraysh abstained from this war. But due to Abu Jahl’s encouragement, no leader could refrain from fighting and instead joined the war.
Allah says about the Quraysh:
If you [disbelievers] seek the victory – the defeat has come to you. And if you desist [from hostilities], it is best for you; but if you return [to war], We will return, and never will you be availed by your [large] company at all, even if it should increase; and [that is] because Allah is with the believers.
(Quran 8:19)
Abu Jahl prayed to Allah against the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him): “O Allah, this man wants to destroy our previous religion, so destroy him.” Allah Almighty declared his request as victorious in this verse. In fact, Allah has referred to their defeat as victory here.
There were some people among the Quraysh who opposed this war until the last moment. There was a man named Utbah, whom we mentioned earlier.
But the sad thing is that the one who opposed the Udba war was forced to participate in the war and was killed.
Some incidents of the Quraysh leaders going to war made them fearful and terrified. For example, the people of the Banu Hasen tribe have dreams that frighten them. Although the Muslim army was small in number, they were not lacking in enthusiasm, as their plans show. They were eager to fight.
For example, when the Muslims were standing near the well, Sa’d went to the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) with a proposal. He wanted to build a tent for the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) at a safe distance from the enemies and to keep a camel so that if for some reason the Muslims retreated, the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) could return safely to Medina. The Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) was very pleased with his advice and prayed for him.
This tent can be called the headquarters of Muslims. The tent was set up on a hill so that the battlefield could be easily seen from there.
The next morning, the Prophet (peace be upon him) saw the Quraysh leaving their position and gathering in a sandy area behind the mountain.
The Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) saw them and said, “O Allah, the Quraysh have come down today with their arrogance and pride, and they are in great need of your promised help to prove your Messenger a liar. O Allah, scatter them.”
Allah Almighty accepted this prayer of the Prophet and we will know how in the next episode, Insha Allah.
Before we conclude today’s episode of the Battle of Badr, we will discuss some things. Allah Almighty says in the Quran that:
[Remember] when you were on the near side of the valley, and they were on the farther side, and the caravan was lower [in position] than you. If you had made an appointment [to meet], you would have missed the appointment. But [it was] so that Allah might accomplish a matter already destined – that those who perished [through disbelief] would perish upon evidence and those who lived [in faith] would live upon evidence; and indeed, Allah is Hearing and Knowing.
(Quran 8:42)
One thing to note here is that the infidels did not want to fight the Muslims and the Muslims did not promise to fight the infidels. But Allah wanted the Muslims to face the Quraysh. Abu Sufyan did not want to fight, and even some of the Quraysh did not want to fight because they knew they were going to fight the Prophet of Allah.
On the other hand, some Muslims did not want to fight because they had left their homes to attack the caravan, not to fight.
There were two groups among the disbelievers: the first group were those who believed in war and the second group were those who were endowed with knowledge and wisdom. When the conflict between Muslims and infidels began, the opinions of this second group were defeated by the evil tactics of the first group. And at the end of the day this extremist group started to lead.
There is no conscience or intelligence in the minds of the disbelievers regarding Tawheed, for example, when the Muslims killed Abu Sufyan’s first son and later arrested his second son, he was asked to pay a ransom and release his son, but he did not do so.
Rather, what he did was arrest and imprison one of the pilgrims who had arrived in Mecca. When the family of the imprisoned man complained to the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him), the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) released Abu Sufyan’s son and set Abu Sufyan and the man free.
Finally, we learn another lesson from this incident: the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) consulted with his companions on every matter, big or small. He listened to their opinions and asked them what their attitude was. As we saw in the last episode, the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) gave importance to the opinions of the Ansar when it came to whether or not to go to war.
