The Majestic Quran

The Outcomes of the Battle of Badr This chapter effectively draws out the important lessons to be learnt from this first military encounter between Muslims and Makkans. Interestingly, the Quran spiritualises war as a brutal and materialistic activity. It begins by describing the virtues of believers: trust, steadfastness and honesty. Then demonstrates that victory can be achieved against the odds, including the odds of victory against an enemy army many times larger, as well as teaching that believers should be willing to make peace. The question of the spoils of war is raised, and it instructs that spoils should not be the prime purpose of war, as they tended to be during the Jahiliya, or Age of Ignorance. Instead, there must be a higher objective: justice and peace for all. The Battle of Badr marked a turning point in the life of the Muslims, who had been persecuted till that point. So aptly the chapter calls the event yawm al-furqan , “The day of separation”, truth is now clearly separate from falsehood. The victory was not just in worldly terms, but also in a spiritual and moral sense. So it marked the beginning of a new era for Muslims, the result delivered a shattering blow to the pride of the Makkans. It boosted the Muslims’ morale and credibility in the sight of the Arabs, offering conclusive proof of the words: “Power and might belong to God.” This functioned as an indicator of the truthfulness of the message of Islam, and the Muslims began to understand more clearly the socio-political dimension of the religious order that the Messenger r was proclaiming. As Asad put it: The spirit of passive sacrifice, so characteristic of their earlier days, received its complement in the idea of sacrifice through action. The doctrine of action as the most fundamental, creative element of life was, perhaps for the first time in the history of man, consciously realized not only by a few select