8-38 Say to those who disbelieve, if they desist, that which is past will be forgiven them; and if they return, then the example of those of old has already gone.a
قُل لِلَّذينَ كَفَروا إِن يَنتَهوا يُغفَر لَهُم ما قَد سَلَفَ وَإِن يَعودوا فَقَد مَضَت سُنَّتُ الأَوَّلينَ (۳۸)
8-38a: This section shows that the Muslim confrontation with the enemy at Badr happened only at the behest of Allah. Otherwise had they known about the strength of the disbelievers they would not have had the courage to do so. This happened so that Allah may furnish a positive proof of the truth of Islam and to give a clear judgment between truth and falsehood.
سُنَّتُ – It means custom, practice, convention, way. سُنَّتُ الأَوَّلينَ means the way in which Allah dealt previously with rebellious people . The meaning is not the way established by previous generations but the way that Allah established against them, that is that just as He punished them for their rebellion, He will punish the disbelievers as well.
8-39 And fight with them until there is no more persecution, and all religions are for Allah. But if they desist, then surely Allah is Seer of what they do.
وَقاتِلوهُم حَتّىٰ لا تَكونَ فِتنَةٌ وَيَكونَ الدّينُ كُلُّهُ لِلَّهِ ۚ فَإِنِ انتَهَوا فَإِنَّ اللَّهَ بِما يَعمَلونَ بَصيرٌ (۳۹)
8-39a: This topic has been discussed in detail in 2-193a. What is worthy of reflection here are the words الدّينُ كُلُّهُ, which also occur in: لِيُظهِرَهُ عَلَى الدّينِ كُلِّهِ (prevail over all religions) (48:28). The words الدّينِ كُلِّهِ mean all religions. The meaning that all religions are for Allah is that man is free to adopt any religion they want and should not be forced to accept any particular religion. This is in accordance with what is stated elsewhere while discussing Islamic wars that if permission to wage defensive wars was not given, then cloisters, churches, synagogues and mosques would have been pulled down (22:40). Thus, the protection of all religions has been given both in this verse and in 22:40 as the purpose of Islamic wars.
8-40 And if they turn back, then know that Allah is your Patron. Most excellent the Patron and most excellent the Helper!
وَإِن تَوَلَّوا فَاعلَموا أَنَّ اللَّهَ مَولاكُم ۚ نِعمَ المَولىٰ وَنِعمَ النَّصيرُ (۴۰)
8-41 And know that whatever you acquire in war, a fifth of it is for Allah and for the Messenger and for the near of kin and the orphans and the needy and the wayfarer,a if you believe in Allah and in that which We revealed to Our servant, on the day of Discrimination, the day on which the two parties met. And Allah is Possessor of power over all things.b
وَاعلَموا أَنَّما غَنِمتُم مِن شَيءٍ فَأَنَّ لِلَّهِ خُمُسَهُ وَلِلرَّسولِ وَلِذِي القُربىٰ وَاليَتامىٰ وَالمَساكينِ وَابنِ السَّبيلِ إِن كُنتُم آمَنتُم بِاللَّهِ وَما أَنزَلنا عَلىٰ عَبدِنا يَومَ الفُرقانِ يَومَ التَقَى الجَمعانِ ۗ وَاللَّهُ عَلىٰ كُلِّ شَيءٍ قَديرٌ (۴۱)
8-41a: غَنِمتُم – The meaning of غَنِم is الفوز بالشئ that is to obtain something. Raghib states that غَنۡم is actually غنم that is to obtain goats as a result of a victory. The meaning of the word then expanded to include everything that is obtained as booty by defeating an enemy. Its meaning as loot is not correct.
Distribution of spoils of war: One-fifth of the spoils of war are for Allah, which means that it should be spent in the way of Allah. Thus one-fifth of the spoils are put in the state treasury or بیت المال to be spent for the general needs of the Muslim community and the rest is distributed among the soldiers or used to pay their salaries. Further details are provided for the expenditures to be made from the spoils in the state treasury. Five categories are given, namely the Messenger, near of kin, orphans, needy and the wayfarer. It has been said that the funds should be distributed equally for the use of each category, but this does not seem to be correct. Imam Malik opines that it is not necessary to distribute the amount equally and the Imam can use his discretion to spend more where he considers necessary. The Holy Prophet took a minimal amount for himself and spent the rest on the common needs of the Muslim community. How much the Holy Prophet took for his own use is apparent from the following incident. When the Holy Prophet returned after the victory at Khyber and married lady Saffiya, the guests at his wedding brought their own food which consisted of dates and ground barley. This was the time when he was king of Arabia and all he had in his house was a mat made from date palm and an earthen vessel for holding water. When his wives asked him for an allowance to ease the burden of their life, they were told that if they wanted the provisions of this world, he would give it to them, but they would have no place in his household. When his daughter Fatima asked him to give her a slave woman to help her with grinding the grain, he refused the request and asked her to repeat thirty three times after each prayer: صبحان اللّٰه و الحمد للّٰه اللّٰه اکبر . Months would pass without a cooked meal in his house and the household would just make do with dates. In a hadith, the Holy Prophet says about the one-fifth share from the spoils of war: والخمس مردود فیکم that is, the one-fifth that is for me is also returned back to you.
ذوی القربیٰ – This term is taken to mean the near of kin of the Holy Prophet, but this does not mean that this share be distributed also to the well-to-do among them. Caliph Abu Bakr ruled that this share is only for the Prophet’s kin who were needy and if one of them left a widow, she should be married, and if one of them did not have a servant, he should be provided one. The reason for specifically mentioning the Prophet’s kin in this verse is that the charity that was given to the state treasury was forbidden to be disbursed to the Prophet’s relatives, and the only thing permissible was to help them from this source. In fact, ذوی القربیٰ has been taken to mean those who were near to the Prophet in assisting and helping him and not near to him in kinship. Thus, what they received was because of the assistance that they furnished the Prophet and not because of their kinship.
يَومَ الفُرقانِ – The Day of Discrimination is the Day of Badr because truth and falsehood were differentiated on that day as has been stated by Mujahid and other commentators. This is also manifest from calling it التقی الجمعٰن. What was revealed on that day? All those things that became the means of differentiating truth from falsehood, that is the signs of Allah, the assistance of Allah, the angels etcetera.
8-42 When you were on the nearer side (of the valley) and they were on the farther side, while the caravan was in a lower place than you. And if you had tried to make a mutual appointment, you would certainly have broken away from the appointment, but — in order that Allah might bring about a matter which had to be done; that he who perished by clear argument might perish, and he who lived by clear argument might live. And surely Allah is Hearing, Knowing:a
إِذ أَنتُم بِالعُدوَةِ الدُّنيا وَهُم بِالعُدوَةِ القُصوىٰ وَالرَّكبُ أَسفَلَ مِنكُم ۚ وَلَو تَواعَدتُم لَاختَلَفتُم فِي الميعادِ ۙ وَلٰكِن لِيَقضِيَ اللَّهُ أَمرًا كانَ مَفعولًا لِيَهلِكَ مَن هَلَكَ عَن بَيِّنَةٍ وَيَحيىٰ مَن حَيَّ عَن بَيِّنَةٍ ۗ وَإِنَّ اللَّهَ لَسَميعٌ عَليمٌ (۴۲)
8-42a: العُدوَةِ – عدو is derived from transgression. عُدوَةِ is bank, side, slope (of a valley).
دُّنيا – It is the feminine gender of ادنیٰ and by near is meant near to Madinah.
قُصوىٰ – It is the feminine gender of قصیٰ and قَصِیّ means far off, distant, remote. Other places where the word is used in the Quran are: مَكانًا قَصِيًّا (a remote place) (19:22); المَسجِدِ الأَقصَى (Remote Mosque); مِن أَقصَى المَدينَةِ (from the remote part of the city) (36:20 and 28:20). What is meant here is the side remote from Madinah.
الرَّكبُ – It is the caravan that was returning from Syria under the leadership of Abu Sufyan. الرَّكبُ is the plural of راکب (riding, travelling, going (by)).
أَسفَلَ – It means lower and in the present context it means towards the shore of the sea because that side is lower.
اختَلَفتُم فِي الميعادِ – The reference is to the Muslims. The meaning is that if the battle had been the result of an appointment, the Muslims would have failed to keep the appointment if they had known the strength of the disbelievers and because of their own perceived weakness. This would have prevented them from coming out to confront the enemy, but the whole expedition was put together in an emergency and they did not know the strength of the enemy.
مَفعولًا – It means was done. The purport is that this was a matter decreed by Allah and it was necessary for it to be done. There is a reference here to those prophecies that were made in the Quran many years earlier and which contained a promise that there will be a confrontation between the Muslims and the disbelievers in which the latter would be defeated.
Why was the Battle of Badr called فُرقانِ (Discriminator): This verse first mentions the state of the two armies. The Muslim army was at the edge of the valley nearer to Madinah and the disbelievers on the farther edge. This is significant because it shows that the Muslims marched out of Madinah well after the Makkan army was marching towards them. The reason for the battle is given that the prophecies may be fulfilled that had been made earlier. The result of the battle is stated to be to provide proof positive of the truth of Islam so that those who die in the battle and those who survive of the enemy, and also the living nation, that is the Muslims, should see this manifest testimony,. So, the Battle of Badr was the Discriminator not because the Muslims won, and the disbelievers lost but because everything happened in the manner that had been predicted and published many years before and which was known to the disbelievers and the Muslims.
8-43 When Allah showed them to thee in thy dream as few — and if He had shown them to thee as many, you would certainly have become weak-hearted and you would have disputed about the matter, but Allah saved (you). Surely He is Knower of what is in the breasts.a
إِذ يُريكَهُمُ اللَّهُ في مَنامِكَ قَليلًا ۖ وَلَو أَراكَهُم كَثيرًا لَفَشِلتُم وَلَتَنازَعتُم فِي الأَمرِ وَلٰكِنَّ اللَّهَ سَلَّمَ ۗ إِنَّهُ عَليمٌ بِذاتِ الصُّدورِ (۴۳)
8-43a: The Holy Prophet was shown the enemy as few in his dream because the enemy was going to be routed. The wisdom in this was that the Muslims as a result stayed strong hearted.
8-44 And when He showed them to you, when you met, as few in your eyes, and He made you to appear few in their eyes, in order that Allah might bring about a matter which had to be done. And to Allah are all affairs returned.a
وَإِذ يُريكُموهُم إِذِ التَقَيتُم في أَعيُنِكُم قَليلًا وَيُقَلِّلُكُم في أَعيُنِهِم لِيَقضِيَ اللَّهُ أَمرًا كانَ مَفعولًا ۗ وَإِلَى اللَّهِ تُرجَعُ الأُمورُ (۴۴)
8-44a: This is a different event. When the Muslims and the disbelievers confronted each other in the battlefield, the Muslims saw the disbelievers to be less than their actual number. Specifically, they saw them as twice their number whereas they were three times their number. See 3-13b. This increased the confidence of the Muslim soldiers. The Muslims being few in number in the eyes of the disbelievers is in accordance with the facts.
Bayan-ul-Quran 