31 October 2010

31 October 2010

Seerah of Muhammed*

*: May the peace blessings & Mercy of Allah be upon him

TMQ: Translation to the nearest meaning of the Qur’an

The Day before Badr

The Caravan Escapes

Abu Sufyan was very alert scouting the area near the wells of Badr and he asked the people there if they saw somebody here who seemed foreign. Abu Sufyan went to where their camels were and he then held some of the camel manure in his hand and he crushed it and this was the food of the camels in Medina. He rushed towards the coast changing his course thus was able to evade the Muslims and sends a letter back to Mecca saying: You came out to do battle in order to protect your caravan, people and wealth. Allah has now saved these, so go back.

But Abu Jahl said: By Allah we will not turn around until we reach Badr. We sill stays there three days, slaughter some camels eat well, drink whine, and entertainers will play music for us. The Bedouin will get to hear of our journey and our gathering there and they will respect us for it. Let us proceed ahead.

Allah says: 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. TMQ (Sural Al-Anfal) 8:47

A Second Shura about fighting

The Prophet* realised that the caravan is trying to get away and instead of facing around 40 men with the caravan they might have to face an army of a thousand men. The Prophet* held a shura and asked the companions what they think. Abu Bakr Siddiq (ra) stood and spoke, Umar (ra) did the same, then Maqdad said something and in response: ‘O Messenger of Allah go forth to what Allah has commanded you to do and we are not going to say like the children of Israel told Musa (as): Go and fight with your Lord we are going to stay here. But we will fight in front of you, behind you, on your right, and to your left. And we will say ‘go forth and fight with your Lord, we will fight with you’. On hearing this the face of The Prophet* lit up, shined and then he stood up.

Some of the troops were not prepared to fight a war because they had left Medina with the intention to raid a caravan, though they were armed, they were not mentally prepared to face an army. That is why some were reluctant and inside their heart they wished they could just raid the caravan. Allah knows what is in the hearts of people: (A historian can only write what he observes he can never know about the thoughts or feelings of people).

[It is] just as when your Lord brought you out of your home [for the battle of Badr] in truth, while indeed, a party among the believers were unwilling (TMQ 8:5)

This was because fighting is something disliked and this was their first time, some of them may not have had to face an enemy before.

Fighting has been enjoined upon you while it is hateful to you. But perhaps you hate a thing and it is good for you; and perhaps you love a thing and it is bad for you. And Allah Knows, while you know not. (TMQ 2:216)

Arguing with you concerning the truth after it had become clear, as if they were being driven toward death while they were looking on. Remember, O believers], when Allah promised you one of the two groups - that it would be yours - and you wished that the unarmed one would be yours. But Allah intended to establish the truth by His words and to eliminate the disbelievers That He should establish the truth and abolish falsehood, even if the criminals disliked it. (TMQ 8: 6-7)

Preparing for the battle

The Prophet* stopped near Badr by an old man and inquired about, Quraish and about Muhammad and his Companions and what he had heard about them. The old man said, “I won't tell you before you tell me which party you belong to”. The Prophet* said, "If you tell us we will tell you." The man said, "Should this be for that?" Yes, he replied. The man said, “I have heard that Muhammad and his Companions went out on such-and-such a day. If that is true, today they are in such-and-such a place; and I heard that Quraish went out in such-and-such a day, and if this is true, today they are in such-and-such a place.” Meaning the one in which they actually were. “When he had finished he said, ‘Of whom are you?’ the Prophet* said, “We are from Mar."

The Prophet* returned to his Companions and he sent Ali Ibn Abi Talib, Az-zubair and Sa'd Ibn Abi Waqqas with a number of his Companions in quest for news. They arrested a servant belonging to the army of the Quraish. They asked him who he belongs to; he responded that he belonged to the army of Quraish, so they then beat him up and asked him about the location of Abu Sufyan, but the servant did not know where Abu Sufyan was. The sahabah then asked asked him who he knows about. He said that he knows the whereabouts of Abu Jahl, Abu Ummayya bin Khalaf, Utba bin Rabi’a and some other prominent members of the army of Quraish. They then would start beating him up to know about Abu Sufyan, so the man would agree to give information about Abu Sufyan, when the beating stopped he would then say that he doesn’t know. Having completed his Prayer, the Prophet* said, "When he told you the truth, you beat him: and when he lied, you leave him alone.” The Prophet* interrogated himself because the sahabah were not asking the right questions. The Messenger of Allah (saw) asked him how many are they, and he said, "Many," The Prophet* wanted then asked them how many camels do they slaughter every day, so the man said one day they would slaughter 10 camels and the next day they would slaughter nine, the Messenger of Allah (saw) said, 'The people are between nine hundred and a thousand.”

Just over 300

The muhajirun were 86 in number, Al-Aus were 61, and Al-Khazraj were a 170. In Bukhari Al-Baraa bin Aazib (ra) said: We the companions of The Prophet*, when we would talk about the battle of Badr, we would say that ‘the number of people who participated in the Battle of Badr is equal to the number of people who participated with Talut, after they passed the trial of the river. And the only ones who passed were the believers; we were al little over 310.’”

The Prophet* had banners, flags, slogans, and battle cries; this was all to encourage the soldiers to fight. The banner for the army during the Battle of Badr was white and it was handed to Musab ibn Umair. The Prophet* also had two black flags; one of them was called Al-Uqab, this was standard it was carried by Ali ibn abi Talib and the other black flag was given to one of the Ansar.

The entire army had only two horses one was with Zaubair and the other with Al-Maqdad bin Amr (ra). The Muslims had 70 camels; each camel as shared by three people. The Prophet* shared his camel with Ali Ibn Abi Talib and Marthad Ibn Abi Marthab.

Is this Wahy or Tactics?

When The Prophet* chose the location of the army Al-Habbab bin Al-Mundhir (ra) (one of the ansar) said: O Messenger of Allah! Is this the place about which Allah revealed to you, that; we should not advance beyond or stop before, or is this a question of opinion in warfare tactics?

The Prophet* told him that it is a matter of warfare tactics. Al-Mundhir suggested that the army should go ahead till they get to the well of Badr and stop there, stop up the wells beyond it, and construct a cistern so that they would have plenty of water; then they could fight their enemy who would have nothing to drink. The Prophet* agreed that this was an excellent plan and they acted accordingly.

The night before battle

The night before the battle started The Prophet* saw a dream that the army of Quraish very few in number than what it really was.

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. (TMQ 8:43)

The following morning it rained, though it was not a rainy season. Ibn Ishaq said that the valley was soft brown; the water from the sky dampened the earth for The Prophet* and his force but did not impede their progress but the Quraish had such rain fall upon them that they could not move ahead.

Also some of the Muslims woke up in a state of impurity. So to spare the Muslims of this uncomfortable feeling, Allah sent down water to cleanse them. This was spiritual cleaning in addition to the Earth becoming firm for them to march over.

 [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. (TMQ 8:11)

Ali ibn abi Talib said about the night before the battle that all of the Muslim army was asleep; this sleep was a blessing from Allah as mentioned in the ayat ‘He overwhelmed you with drowsiness’. Hence, some scholars say that sleeping before a battle is a sign of Iman, while sleeping during salah is a sign of hypocrisy

Ali ibn abi Talib said that the only one who was awake that night was The Prophet*.

[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. (TMQ 8:42)


Dhikr (Zikr) of Allah
Autumn is a special time of year and very beautiful - especially with all the leaves turning different colours. In ancient Britain the pre-Christian religions (pagans) believed it to be a special time of year too and had major festivals (such as Samhain) marking the transition into the colder winter. The Christians adopted this festival and remodelled it for a celebration of their saints - All Saints Day (hallows) and the night before was the Eve of Hallows. Hence, we find today people celebrating this event still - unaware of its pagan origins. Even some Muslims partake in the same celebrations.

Just over month after Ramadhan we should still be focussing on how best to worship Allah - in a consistent manner. And the richness of Autumn provides lots of opportunities for Muslims to Praise & Glorify Allah. We do it formally in our Salat (prayers) like in Sajood, Rukuh or standing up from Rukuh - but we should also do it outside of prayer time.

The other creation of Allah (mountains, trees, ocean, birds etc) all glorify and praise Allah continuously. How this happens we cannot always understand or comprehend. Just as we may work out the mechanism of what creates thunder & lightning - we may not understand the language of the clouds and how they communicate and praise Allah. Just as an alien or other creature studying Muslims as they say 'Alhamdulillah' may work out the mechanism of how the sound is produced but fail to undestand what is being said.

We should remember Allah often and be thankful to Allah for all His Bounties and Mercies. We should be praising & glorifying Allah morning and evening. Allah says in the Qur'an:
"Therefore remember Me (by praying, glorifying). I will remember you, and be grateful to Me (for My countless Favours on you) and never be ungreateful to Me" TMQ 2:152

The Prophet* said: "Two words/phrases are light for the tongue but heavy in the scale and are dear to Ar-Rahman: Glorified & Praised be Allah [SubhanAllah Wa-bi Hamdi] and Glorified be Allah, The Almighty [SubhanAllah-il Azeem]". He also asked: "Are any of you capable of gaining a thousand good deeds everyday?" nad the companions asked how this could be done. The Prophet* replied "If one glorifies Allah a hundred times (saying SubhanAllah) - then one thousand good deeds will be registered to him."

Part of this glorification is the realisation that not a single leaf falls from a tree without the permission and knowledge of Allah. Indeed, Allah is worthy of All Praise. And we should remember Him as often as we can.

News Topic:

Indonesian Events ~ Earthquake, Tsumani & Volcano 

The Muslims of Indonesia, the modern country with the most Muslims living there, are being tested very much at the moment. As Muslims living far away - we should not be ignorant or uncaring of the plight of fellow Muslims. Indeed, we should be aware of all the less fortunate or oppressed people in earth. There are many things we can do - and the least of them is to remember them in our prayers and to ask Allah to make their lives easier. Also, we should not forget their plight even if it is not being mentioned on the news - because it take many years for communities to recover.