The Crown of the Battles

First there is a brief treatment of the Battle of Badr, followed by the Battle of Uḥud, which is treated at great length. Allah (swt) speaks of the Battle of Badr because it was the first battle in Islam, one might say — the first time the Muslims had to take up arms and fight the enemy. It was the first occasion on which they were required to do so. Allah (swt) speaks of it because the Ghazwat Badr, the Battle of Badr, is considered the crown of all the battles. It was the first; it was an enormous boost of energy and of courage to the Muslims, since they were few in the face of about three times their number, and they won — and for the first time ever. They were ill-equipped, and the other side far better equipped; so the effect on morale was extraordinary. What happens here is that Allah (swt) speaks of the Prophet (peace be upon him) and of how he was assisted at that time: how Allah (swt) assisted them with three thousand angels who came down. Then, in another verse, Allah (swt) says that He can assist you with five thousand angels who will come down. SubḥānAllāh, it was an extraordinary battle.

This is not the place to go into the whole story of the battle. It is something that ought to be looked up in a sīrah book, whether Sīrat al-Muṣṭafā of Mawlānā Idrīs Kāndhlawī, or Muhammad by Martin Lings, which is very good. There are a few problematic places in it, but otherwise it is one of the really well-written books. Every Muslim would do well, in the course of his life, to read at least a few — at the least, one biography of the Prophet (peace be upon him) every few years. There is also The Prophet of Mercy, published by Turath, which is a very good book too. There are many of them; and a book of sīrah should be read.

A great deal of unseen assistance was provided in this battle by Allah (swt), together with the valour and boldness shown by the Ṣaḥābah, that small company of Ṣaḥābah, mashāʾAllāh. That is immense; and these are the lessons to be drawn from it. First: conquest — or, one might say, victory, winning a battle and overcoming one's enemy — is not always a matter of how much one has, how many weapons, how much individual strength, how much equipment. This battle shows that one of the greatest conditions in the sight of Allah (swt) is that He wishes to see one's faith, one's yaqīn, one's steadfastness, and the doing of things in the right way. Second: when people — when Muslims — are steadfast, and hold fast to the rope of Allah, and stay together, nothing can overcome them. As has been said, a glance at history shows that most of our defeats have come through being split, or because of our own people.

As has been said, Ghazwat Badr is mentioned here only in passing. All of this begins from:

Verse 121, and it continues. Allah (swt) then simply reiterates the injunction "do not consume interest" — it is mentioned once more — and "fear the Hellfire"; and then Allah (swt) turns to the Battle of Uḥud.