Misbah-uz-Zulam, Roots of the Karbala’ Tragedy

The Greater Battle Of Badr

It is well known that the Battle of Badr is equal to the Battle of Bridge of the time of Constantine.

This battle was fought within 100 years after Christ between the Christians and their enemies. If Constantine had been defeated, the success of Christianity would not have been possible. In the same way, if the Battle of Badr had ended in the defeat of Muslims, Islam could have been finished. We should know that no religion could be established without struggle and war. Establishment and popularity of a religion is only possible by armed struggle and war.

Although Jesus Christ himself did not wage any war, it is well known that his religion spread in the world on the strength of the sword. Millions have perished in the wars that led to the dominance of Christianity. It is also well known that the Prophet undertook all military expeditions as the last resort. The conditions were such that there was no course open, except to undertake a war.

In this very Battle of Badr, we see that the infidels of Mecca were the first to mobilize an army. Do you suppose the Holy Prophet (S) could have allowed the infidels to enter Medina and destroy Islam? So if he had not confronted them, what else could he have done? This battle was the natural response. If such a situation arises even today, everyone will advocate that facing the enemies in battle is a necessary thing.

The infidels of Mecca were inimical to the Holy Prophet (S) to such an extent that while he was in Mecca, they tortured him and even when he fled to Medina, they left no option to pursue and destroy him. They attacked again and again. Still the enemies of Islam blame Islam in this regard. They blame the Prophet for having taken recourse to war and causing bloodshed!

Now readers are requested to study the Battle of Badr carefully and decide for themselves the true causes; also how the Battle of Badr was fought and what feats the sword of Ali (a.s.) performed in this battle? History mentions that when the Meccan army arrayed itself against the Muslims, three warriors emerged from within the ranks of Meccans and challenged the Muslims.

There was no response from the Muslim side except Ali, Hamza and Abu Ubaidah bin Harith bin Abdul Muttalib, who were all Hashemites. These three people first praised the Bani Hashim and performed great feats of bravery. With them, the other Helpers (Ansar) and other people of the Muslim army also participated in the battle and performed great feats of valor. Seventy infidels were killed and seventy taken captives and of the seventy killed, thirty-six were killed by Ali (a.s.) alone. Most of the others were sent to Hell by the sword of Hamza. The name of each of the slained ones is recorded in books of history.

In brief, the Battle of Badr is that on which depended the future of Islam. If Islam had been defeated, it would have been destroyed completely. Then neither had there been Islam after this nor had there been Caliphs of the Holy Prophet (S). Umar and Abu Bakr were present in this battle but no historical statement proves any of their contribution. As for Abu Bakr, Suyuti writes that he was in the company of the Prophet, defending him. The fact is that Abu Bakr was not a man of battlefields.

As for Umar, he also did not play any active role because in that case he would have to confront his maternal uncle, Abu Jahl. In such a situation, it was the sword of Ali (a.s.) and none else that strengthened the roots of Islam during the time of the Prophet and continued to do so in the future too. Finally, Islam became such a strong tree that even the Choesroe and Caesar of Rome could not subdue it.