By S.K. Husain*
ISLAMIC history is replete with battles that were fought for the cause of Islam and for establishing Allah’s sovereignty on this earth. These battles were fought mainly during the time of the Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) in Arabia when the enemies of Islam were out to destroy Allah’s Deen because it threatened their paganistic and hypocritical ways of life and sought to establish the true concept of God and justice on this earth.
When the Holy Prophet, who was sent by Allah as a mercy to mankind, started to propagate Islam among the Pagans of Makkah, he had to face a lot of hardships at the hands of his own tribesmen, the Quraish. But he continued to invite the people of Makkah towards truth, peace and the Oneness of Allah. The stone-hearted Pagans of Makkah in turn gave him immense trouble and pain with their bad words and deeds. The Companions of the Holy Prophet also had to face the worst kind of persecution. But the Holy Prophet continued his mission against all odds in Makkah for 13 years and tolerated all kinds of difficulties, problems and even persecution.
The more he strove to spread the Message of Allah among his people the more resistance and repression he and his Companions, who had heeded his call, faced. They were evicted from their homes and their property was looted and seized for the simple reason that they believed in Allah and obeyed His Apostle. Although only a handful of people embraced Islam during the Holy Prophet’s stay in Makkah, he and his Companions continued their struggle ceaselessly.
Finally, Allah commanded the Holy Prophet to migrate to Madinah, which is 450 km north of Makkah in Saudi Arabia and continue his mission there. The Holy Prophet emigrated with his close friend Abu Bakr to Madinah. His Companions followed him, leaving all their property and the near and dear ones behind. But the pagans of Makkah persisted even after the Holy Prophet and his Companions migrated to Madinah.
In Madinah, this small group of Makkan Muslims, with their friends (called Ansars) there, organised themselves into a God-fearing community. But they were constantly in danger of being attacked by the Pagan enemies in alliance with some disaffected elements, such as the Jews and Hypocrites. The machinations of these enemies of Islam and Muslims did not leave these peace-loving people alone in Madinah also and added to their woes.
Finally, a battle was imposed on the Muslims in less than two years after their migration to Madinah on the plains of Badr, which was till then an unfamiliar place 150km southwest of Madinah. This battle is known as the Battle of Badr. It was fought on the 17th of Ramadan in 2 Hijri.
This was, in fact, the first battle between Islam and paganism and is of crucial importance in that it not only led to the triumph of Truth over Falsehood. It also changed the balance of power existing at that time in the Arabian Peninsula in favour of Islam, thus turning the course of the history of the entire world. The outcome of the battle, on the one hand, paved the way for the establishment of a large Islamic society and, on the other, ultimately helped in the spread of Islam’s message of peace, human brotherhood and subservience to One God Allah in every part of the world.
The Makkans’ plan was to gather all the resources they could and, with an overwhelming force, crush and annihilate the Holy Prophet and his followers. The chieftains of the Quraish of Makkah, smarting from an unsuccessful attempt to kill the Holy Prophet during the last year of his stay in Makkah — a plan which caused his Divinely ordained migration to Madinah — were desperately looking for an opportunity to wage a war on the Muslims who had gathered in Madinah.
The opportunity was provided in Shaaban 2 AH by the mischief of a messenger of Abu Sufyan, a chieftain of Makkah who had banned the believers from visiting the Holy Kaabah and plotted to kill the Holy Prophet. Abu Sufyan was leading a richly laden caravan from Syria to Makkah. Abu Sufyan had sent his messenger to Makkah to get an armed escort from there for the safe passage of his caravan through the outskirts of Madinah. But his messenger created such a scene in Makkah that it infuriated the Makkan chieftains, so much so that they immediately declared a “war-like” situation in Makkah and decided to lead an army toward Madinah.
Their aim was not only to provide an escort to the caravan and bring it safely but also to eliminate what they perceived as the constant threat to their caravan’s route by crushing the newly gathered Muslim forces in Madinah. For this purpose, a large army was formed. Its purpose was to destroy the Islamic movement and silence the voice of the messenger of peace and thus try to prove his declarations of being the Prophet of Allah false.
The Makkan army, well-armed and well-equipped, numbered over 1,000 and had among its leaders some of the most experienced warriors of Arabia, including Abu Jahl, the inveterate foe and persecutor of Islam. At least 600 of them had armour and 100 were on horses. They left fully prepared and with great pomp and show. Their arrogance was evident from the wealth spent to prepare the army for the attack on a virtually unarmed and small group of people.
The Muslim group consisted of only 313 men. They were mostly unarmed as only 60 of them had armour. There were only 70 camels and two horses. But this force of apparently weak people was led by the Holy Prophet and was fighting for the cause of Islam. Against all odds, the Muslims secured a brilliant victory by Allah’s Will and many of the enemy leaders, including Abu Jahl, were killed. Among the unbelievers, 70 people, including 20 top chieftains of the Makkan tribes, were killed while among the Muslims, 14 were martyred.
But this victory for the Muslims, who were fighting for the True message of Allah, over their enemies who wanted to crush them so that their own false beliefs and foul practices could continue on this earth was not possible without the miraculous help of Allah. Without His Divine help, it was inconceivable for such a small and ill-equipped force as the Muslim group to defeat the large and well-armed force of the enemy. But their strong faith in Allah, their steadfastness, enthusiasm and discipline won them Divine help. Enemy prisoners stated that the enemy ranks saw the Muslim force to be many times larger than it was.
Referring to this contention, the Holy Quran says: “(O Prophet) Say to those who reject Faith: ‘Soon will you be vanquished and gathered together to Hell-an evil bed indeed (to lie on). There has already been for you a Sign in the two enemies that met (in combat): One was fighting in the Cause of Allah, the other resisting Allah; these saw with their own eyes twice their number. But Allah does support with His aid whom He pleases. In this is a warning for such as have eyes to see’.” (Surah Aal-i-Imran, Ayaat12-13).
The Battle of Badr was a turning point in the history of Islam. The standard of Truth was established, never to be lowered again. It was a battle between Truth and Falsehood: the circumstances in which the Holy Prophet and his Companions were forced to migrate from Makkah to Madinah had been created by the Makkans themselves and the decision of the Quraish elders to eliminate the Holy Prophet itself a declaration of war.
Before the confrontation, a big group of Muslims wanted to attack the caravan of Abu Sufyan instead of taking on the Makkan army. But Allah’s Will was against it; He wanted the confrontation and war between Truth and Falsehood, and that the Muslims should come face to face with their enemies, the Pagans of Makkah, so that He could prove what Truth is. Allah wanted one group of the enemy to be killed and the other to be taken captive, to neutralise the power and lower the false dignity and pride of the Quraish. Thus, Allah wanted to raise the banner of Islam.
Referring to this, the Holy Quran says: “Behold! Allah promised you one of the two (enemy) parties, that it should be yours: you wished that the one unarmed should be yours, but Allah willed to justify the Truth according to His words and to cut off the roots of the unbelievers; that He might justify Truth and prove falsehood false, distasteful though it be to those in guilt.” (Surah Al-Anfal, Ayaat 7-8).
In this battle, fathers fought against their sons and brothers against their own brothers. The believers’ main aim was to obey the Holy Prophet, which they believed would take them to Paradise. The believers loved death more than their lives for the sake of their Holy Prophet, for they knew that if they died fighting, they would achieve martyrdom.
Today also, if Muslims are not successful and are fearing any kind of disaster or failure in any field of human endeavour, the reason is clearly given in the Holy Quran. It says: “Hold on to whatever the Messenger gives you and whatever he forbids you to abstain therefrom.” (Ayah al-Hashr, Ayat 7) The world has violated this ordinance and misfortunes and chastisement have overtaken us. The Holy Quran warns further: “So let those who go against the Messenger’s order beware, lest some afflictions befall them, or a painful torment be inflicted on them.” (Surah An-Nur, Ayat 63)
As the humble companions of the Holy Prophet obeyed Allah and His Prophet, Allah provided this success. If the Muslim Ummah religiously, sincerely and faithfully thinks of this Battle of Badr and follows the teachings of the Holy Quran and the Holy Prophet, is united and offers sacrifices for the cause of what the Holy Prophet had taught and wished, it is sure to regain world leadership. Let us pray to Allah to strengthen the faith of Muslims and grant them success. Aameen.
*The author is a veteran journalist based in Singapore.
