Ar-Raheeq Al-Makhtum (The Sealed Nectar).* Excellent Biography of Prophet Muhammad ﷺ Episode 75

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*Ar-Raheeq Al-Makhtum (The Sealed Nectar).*

Excellent Biography of Prophet Muhammad ﷺ

Episode 75

*SOME SIGNIFICANT INSTANCES OF DEVOTION IN THE BATTLE OF BADR*

1. The Prophet (Peace be upon him) advised his companions to preserve the lives of Banu 

Hashim who had gone out to Badr with the polytheists unwillingly because they had feared the censure of their people. Among them, he named Al-‘Abbas bin ‘Abdul Muttalib and Abu 

Bukhtari bin Hisham. He ordered the Muslims to capture, but not to kill them. Abu Hudhaifah 

bin ‘Utbah showed great surprise and commented saying: “We kill our fathers, children, brothers and members of our clan, and then come to spare Al-‘Abbas? By Allâh! If I see him I will surely strike him with my sword.” On hearing these words, the Messenger of Allâh 

(Peace be upon him), addressing ‘Umar bin Al-Khattab, said “Is it fair that the face of the 

Messenger’s uncle be struck with sword?” ‘Umar got indignant and threatened to kill Abu 

Hudhaifah; the latter later said that extreme fear had taken firm grip of him and felt that 

nothing except martyrdom could expiate for his mistake. He was actually killed later on 

during Al-Yamamah events. 

2. Abu Al-Bukhtari bin Hisham had already done his best to restrain his people, the Makkans, from committing any act of folly against the Prophet (Peace be upon him) while the latter was still in Makkah. He also neither hurt nor was reported to have uttered anything repugnant with regard to the Prophet (Peace be upon him). He had as well been among the 

people who tried to invalidate the boycott alliance taken against Banu Hashim and Banu 

‘Abdul Muttalib. 

• Here, however, in the battle of Badr he insisted on fighting unless his compatriot was 

spared. Al-Mujdhir bin Ziyad Al-Balwi, with whom he was engaged in combat, replied that 

the other was not included in the Prophet ’s recommendation. The combat went o n to end in Al-Bukhtari’s death.

3. ‘Abdur-Rahman bin ‘Awf and Omaiyah bin Khalaf had been close friends during the pre-

Islamic era. When the battle of Badr ended, ‘Abdur-Rahman saw Omaiyah and his son 

among the captives. He threw away the armour he had as spoils, and walked with them 

both. Bilal, the Prophet’s caller for prayer, saw Omaiyah and soon all the torture he had 

been put to at the hand of this man dawned upon him, and swore he would have revenge on 

Omaiyah. ‘Abdur-Rahman tried to ease the tension and address embarrassing situation 

amicably but with no success. The Muslims gathered around and struck Omaiyah’s son with 

swords. At this point, ‘Abdur-Rahman called upon his old friend to run for his life but he was 

put to swords from different people and lay down dead. ‘Abdur-Rahman, completely helpless 

and resigned said: May Allâh have mercy on Bilal, for he deprived me of the spoils, and I 

have been stricken by the death of my two captives. 

4. On the moral level, the battle of Badr was an inescapable conflict between the forces of 

good and those of evil. In this context, ‘Umar bin Al-Khattab did not spare the life of any 

polytheist even his uncle on the maternal side Al-‘As bin Hisham bin Al-Mugheerah. 

5. Abu Bakr shouted at his son ‘Abdur-Rahman, still a polytheist and fighting with them, 

“Where is my wealth, you wicked boy?” The son answered that it was gone with the wind. 

6. When the battle ended, the Muslims began to hold some polytheists in captivity. The 

Prophet (Peace be upon him) looked into the face of Sa‘d bin Mu‘adh, the Head of the 

Prophet’s guards, and understood that he was hateful to taking the enemy elements as 

prisoners. Sa‘d agreed to what the Prophet (Peace be upon him) said and added that it was 

the first victory for the Muslims over the forces of polytheism, and he had more liking for 

slaying them than sparing their lives. 

7. On the day of Badr, the sword of ‘Ukashah bin Mihsan Al-Asdi broke down so the Prophet 

(Peace be upon him) gave him a log of wood which he shook and it immediately turned into 

a long strong white sword. ‘Ukashah went on using that same sword in most of the Islamic 

conquests until he died in the process of the apostasy wars. 

8. When the war activities had been concluded, Mus‘ab bin ‘Umair Al-‘Abdari saw his brother, 

still a polytheist, being handcuffed by a Ansari. Mus‘ab recommended that the Helper tighten 

the knot for the prisoner’s mother was wealthy enough to ransom her son. ‘Abu ‘Aziz, 

Mus‘ab’s brother, tried to appeal to his brother through the family ties, but the latter firmly 

replied that the Helper was more eligible for brotherhood than him. 

9. When the Prophet (Peace be upon him) ordered that the corpses of the polytheists be 

dropped into an empty well, Abu Hudhaifah bin ‘Utbah looked sadly at his dead father, who 

fought on the side of the polytheists. The Prophet (Peace be upon him) noticed that and 

asked him about it. Hudhaifah said that he had never held the least doubt that his father 

met his fate deservedly, but added that he wished he had been guided to the path of Islam, 

and that is why he felt sad. The Prophet (Peace be upon him) whispered in his ears some 

comforting words. 

The outcome of the battle was as aforementioned an ignominious rout for the polytheists and a 

manifest victory for the Muslims. Fourteen Muslims were killed, of whom six were from the 

Emigrants and eight from the Helpers. The polytheists sustained heavy casualties, seventy were 

killed and a like number taken prisoners. Many of the principal men of Makkah, and some of 

Muhammad ’s bitterest opponents, were among the slain. Chief of these was Abu Jahl. 

On the third day, the Messenger of Allâh (Peace be upon him) went out to look at the slain 

polytheists, and said: 

• “What an evil tribe you were as regards your Prophet, you belied me but the others have 

believed; you let me down while the others have supported me; you expelled m, whereas 

the others have sheltered me.” 

He stood over the bodies of twenty-four leaders of Quraish who had been thrown into one of the 

wells, and started to call them by name and by the names of their fathers, saying: “Would it not 

have been much better for you if you had obeyed Allâh and His Messenger? Behold, we have found 

that our Lord’s promise do come true; did you (also) find that the promises of your Lord came true?” Thereupon, ‘Umar bin Al-Khattab said: “O Messenger of Allâh! Why you speak to bodies that have no souls in them?” The Prophet (Peace be upon him) answered: “By Him in Whose hand is Muhammad ’s soul! You do not hear better what I am saying than they do.”