Islam: A Guide for Jews and Christians - Electric Scotland

76 t CHAPTER FOUR
forces to the west of Medina at Badr Wells. It was an astonishing
success for the outmanned Muslims, so astonishing that the Quran
later cited it as an example of divine intervention on behalf of
Islam (3:13). The spoils were rich enough for the Muslims to quarrel
about their disposition and a good part of sura 8, “The Spoils,”
is given over to the topic. The non-Muslims at Medina must have
taken note of both the military success of the venture and the newfound
wealth of the Muslims among them.
The battle at Badr Wells was a casus belli not between the Quraysh
and the Muslims but between Mecca and Medina. Most of
what we know about violence in pre-Islamic times has to do with
Bedouin trials of honor, whereas the celebrated “battle days of the
Arabs” were mostly about tribal fracases over watering holes and
pasturage grounds. We know nothing of one town making war on
another as was the case here. The Quraysh made two attacks on
the unwalled oasis of Medina. The first, in March 625, is enshrined
in Muslim mythology as the Battle of Uhud—there is a
small hill of that name north of the town—when three thousand
Meccans marched on the town. By all rights it should have been a
Quraysh victory. The casualty figures were the reverse of what
happened at Badr. Many Muslims were killed, but not Muhammad.
He was wounded—struck by a thrown stone—but survived
unrepentant and undeterred. The Quran apparently offers a
lengthy explanation (3:120–199) of what happened and why, including
the assurance that God had once again sent his angels into
battle, three thousand of them, with many more in reserve if necessary
(3:124–125).
The Quraysh lay relatively quiet for two years; enthusiasm for
an anti-Muslim crusade must have been waning at Mecca. Then in
March 627 they made one final attempt on Medina. According to
our sources, the attack was prompted by the Medina Jews, who
were suffering growing ills at Muslim hands. Whatever the case,
this was no pitched battle like Uhud, where the Muslims came out
of the oasis and fought, but rather a siege. The Muslims stayed
within their Medina oasis forts and apparently covered some of
the open ways into the town by digging a trench or ditch. Not all
were keen for the project, if Quran 24: 62 refers to it, but the effort