Lessons to Learn from The Battle of Badr

The Battle of Badr took place on the 17th Ramadan. The Muslims were outnumbered 313 to 1000. Although they were outnumbered, they were blessed with victory! What lessons can we learn from this great battle?

• The Prophet’s ﷺ assurance of the victory he would be granted at Badr was based on his trust in the promise that Allah had given him. It is a certainty that Allah never breaks His promises; in fact, He may have revealed to him ﷺ the fact that he would be given victory in this battle. However, the act of stretching forth one’s palms heavenward in heartfelt supplication is an expression of the servitude to Allah and reverence for Him for which human beings were created. If we want to be victorious, we too should spend our nights supplicating to Allah.

• No one has ever drawn near to Allah by virtue of anything more sublime than humble worship, nor has anyone merited an answer to prayer more than he who comes before Almighty Allah clothed in a spirit of submission and adoration. Similarly, all the various misfortunes and ordeals which threaten or befall us in this life are nothing but means by which Allah reminds us of our identity as His servants; such difficulties cause us to direct our hopes and thoughts anew to the greatness of Allah, may He be praised and exalted, and His unlimited power: fleeing to Him for refuge, laying before Him our weakness and vulnerability, and seeking His protection from all trials and temptations. When we allow this realisation to be reflected in our conduct, we have arrived at the spiritual place where Allah has commanded all of us to stand and remain.

• Consider carefully about the outcomes of the power-hungry and arrogant. The result of humble veneration and obedience to Almighty Allah was a firmly established power and glory to which the entire world was brought into submission. Whereas the outcome of tyranny and presumptuousness was a grave filled with perdition and shame, prepared for the lords of worldly power in the very place where they were planning to sip wine and listen to the music of their slave girls. This is a divine law which reveals itself in the universe whenever heartfelt devotion to Allah encounters tyranny and egotistical pride.

• It is true, of course, that the descent of the angels to fight with the Muslims at Badr was indeed for the purpose of giving them reassurance. It was a perceptible response to the fervency of their plea for help – help which was needed in view of the fact that they were going into battle for the sake of Allah for the very first time, and were about to confront a fighting force which was three times their size in terms of both manpower and equipment. At the same time, however, it was not the angels themselves, but Allah alone who gave them the victory. In order to make this fact clear, Almighty Allah explains the angels’ descent, saying, “Allah made this only as a glad tiding, and that your hearts would thereby be set at rest – since no victory can come from any save Allah. Verily, Allah is Al-Mighty, All-Wise!” (Qur’an :8 10).