Anfaal (windfalls, bounties) is the plural of Nafl—something over and above that which is expected, required or owed. It is called Soorah Al-Anfaal implying the Soorah in which Anfaal have been mentioned.
Background
This Soorah was revealed in Madeenah immediately after the battle of Badr. To understand its message, its thrust and its beauty, one needs to keep the incident of the battle and the circumstances surrounding the battle in view.
Like other messengers in the past, such as Moosa (Moses) and ‘Eesa (Jesus) ‘alayhissmusalaam, Muhammad sall Allaahu ‘alayhi wa sallam the Messenger was assigned the mission to invite people to Islam, and establish a society of believers where Islam was fully practised in all aspects and spheres of life, whether pertaining to individuals or collectively to society. For that purpose, the Messenger sall Allaahu ‘alayhi wa sallam presented various rational and logical signs, arguments and evidence in an effort to convince the people of the Truth about the oneness and uniqueness of Allaah Subhaanahu wa Ta’aala and the need for people to submit to Him completely. Some people opened their minds, and using their intellect and common sense, became Muslims. The majority of the Makkans, however, refused to open their minds to reflect upon the rational ideas that were being presented to them. Instead, they violently and aggressively opposed the mission of the Messenger sall Allaahu ‘alayhi wa sallam and persecuted and terrorized those who believed in him. Along with logic and admonition, they were warned of the punishment from Allaah Subhaanahu wa Ta’aala in this world and in the Hereafter. To drive the point home about the inevitability of the punishment, they were given many examples of the nations who had opposed the messengers in the past and were destroyed. Instead of heeding the message, they plotted to kill the Messenger. That is when Allaah Subhaanahu wa Ta’aala allowed him to migrate to Yathrib where people were more willing to listen to the Islamic message with open hearts and minds.
The people of Yathrib pledged to accept the Messenger sall Allaahu ‘alayhi wa sallam as their guide and leader and to protect him from his enemies even if the whole world turned against them and they were required to make huge sacrifices for that purpose. The Makkans decided to kill him before he had a chance to leave for Yathrib. The night his house was surrounded for that purpose, he was able to escape and reach Yathrib safely with the help of Allaah Subhaanahu wa Ta’aala. The people of Yathrib welcomed him and celebrated his arrival with festivities. Then, people started calling Yathrib “Madeenatun-Nabi” – the city of the Prophet; which was shortened over time to Al-Madeenah (the City).
When Prophet Muhammad sall Allaahu ‘alayhi wa sallam managed to reach Madeenah safely and was fervently welcomed, the Makkan chiefs were extremely dismayed by his safe exit from Makkah and by his unprecedented welcome in Madeenah. Also, the news of the spread of Islam in Madeenah was very disconcerting to the Makkans. They felt belittled by the Prophet’s success. The chiefs of Quraish met to consult on how to deal with the Prophet now that he was out of their reach, leading a growing body of the believers. Their enmity to Muhammad’s sall Allaahu ‘alayhi wa sallam noble mission and their frustration at his success had driven them crazy. They immediately set upon thinking of the different ways to dismantle the society the Prophet had started to build. While the Prophet sall Allaahu ‘alayhi wa sallam was busy promoting human excellence and developing a loving society, the Makkans were preoccupied with hatching plots to destroy his mission. They wanted to attack Madeenah and annihilate the Muslims but were worried about the backlash from other Arabian tribes because they had no legitimate reason to justify their attack. The Prophet or any of his followers did not owe the Makkans anything. The Makkans had no financial or blood claim against any of the Muslims. How could they find a reason to attack them or to kill them? An attack without an excuse would destroy the good reputation of the Quraish in the whole of Arabia and would give them a bad name that they attacked to kill their own people without a valid claim against them.
Aboo Jahl, however, came up with an idea. The Aows and Khazraj, after their devastating war, were considering to coronate ‘Abdullaah bin Ubayy as their king. Muhammad’s sall Allaahu ‘alayhi wa sallam migration had dashed his hopes of becoming a king. Naturally, he could not have been happy to lose this opportunity. As he still had a fair amount of support in Madeenah among the remaining idolaters (polytheists) , they (Makkans) should exploit his psychological condition and use him and his people for their purpose. The suggestion was adopted with the understanding that if it failed, Madeenah would be attacked and the fledgling state completely crushed.
Quraish’s Threat of an All-out War
To incite ‘Abdullaah and to provide him a good excuse, an ambassador was sent to him from the Quraish with the following message:
“You have given refuge to our man. You must fight with him and throw him out of your city. Otherwise, we swear by God, that we will attack you with our full force, kill your males, and enslave your women.”
‘Abdullaah received the message, called a secret meeting of his supporters and told them about his intention of going along with the Quraish and taking action to force Muhammad sall-Allaahu ‘alayhi wa sallam to leave Madeenah. His supporters agreed. Although it was a secret gathering, Allaah Subhaanahu wa Ta’aala informed Prophet Muhammad sall Allaahu ‘alayhi wa sallam about it and he rushed to the meeting place. He arrived there just in time when the decision to throw the Muslims out was being considered. His sudden and unexpected entry flabbergasted everyone present. He brought them to their senses by explaining the game the Quraish were playing with them; i.e., If ‘Abdullaah and his group fought with the Muslims, they would be fighting against their own kith and kin (Muslims from Aows and Khazraj). The loss of lives from both sides would be their own loss. The Quraish would be the only beneficiaries at their cost. Then, why kill each other at the behest of a third party? He told them:
“The threat from the Quraish is clouding your judgment. You cannot be trapped more than you want to fall into the trap yourselves by intending to fight your own sons and brothers.”
The people assembled in that meeting realized the truth of what Muhammad sall Allaahu ‘alayhi wa sallam had said and decided not to fall into the Quraish’s trap. Their inaction to drive Muslims away made the Quraish’s threat of attack instantly applicable. Thus, the indirect declaration of war by the most powerful of the Arab tribes (the Quraish) against a small community of Madeenah came into effect.
Declaration of Territorial closures
The Ansaar were being pressured in multiple ways to abandon the Prophet. In addition to the threats of direct attack, social and economic isolation and the usurpation of their right to pilgrimage were used as pressure tactics. Sa‘d bin Mu‘aadz, a Muslim leader of Ansaar went for pilgrimage to the Holy Ka’bah as a guest of his long time friend, Umayyah bin Khalf, a prominent Makkan chief. Aboo Jahl told Sa‘d, “Had you not been a guest of Umayyah, you would not have gone back alive. How dare you provide refuge to Muhammad and then expect that we will allow you pilgrimage to the Ka’bah?” This threat from Aboo Jahl had broken the well-entrenched Arab tradition of open access to the Holy Ka’bah for every friend and foe. It meant that, from then on, the Muslims were banned from the pilgrimage to the Holy Ka’bah. If any Muslim ventured for it, he would be killed. Sa’d responded to Aboo Jahl’s threat by saying, “If you stop us from the pilgrimage, we will stop you from something that will be tougher for you to bear, i.e., your trade route through Madeenah (to Syria ).” This exchange of threats between the two leaders was the de facto declaration that both parties were banned from each other’s territories and that they were essentially in a state of cold war.
Terrorism let loose on Madeenah
After the failure of the Quraish’s plot to incite a fight between the residents of Madeenah through ‘Abdullaah bin Ubayy and his followers, the Makkan chiefs decided to attack Madeenah and settle the issue once and for all. They sent a harshly worded threat to the Muhaajireen:
“Don’t deceive yourselves assuming you have gone beyond our reach to Yathrib. We will come out there right into your homes, uproot you completely and annihilate you utterly.”
They started actively planning the war and arranging for its financing. A big fund-raising drive was carried out to which Makkans contributed generously. The funds thus raised were invested in a trade caravan so that the profit from the trade could be used to finance the war. This caravan was to be led by Aboo Sufyaan and was destined for Syria to pass through the territory of Madeenah which the Makkans had no right to enter or pass through as per earlier declarations.
In the meantime, they started sending gangs of raiders to attack and rob the farmers and shepherds in the suburban areas around Madeenah. They even began sending expeditions containing 200-300 troops led by notable chiefs. The objectives of these incursions were multi fold: To destabilize the Islamic state as much as possible; to terrorize the people of Madeenah; to scare them out of asserting their authority over the trade route; and, to incite the Muslims to react so that a justification for an all-out war could be created.
The Makkan aggressions and their declared intention of destroying the Muslims robbed the people in Madeenah of their peace and relaxation. Every night there was a possibility of attack. People were sleeping with their weapons so that in case of a surprise attack, they could react quickly. Because of the constant threat of an attack always looming over this small city, the hypocrites had a heyday in spreading rumours and waging psychological warfare.
One night, a rumour was spread that Madeenah had been attacked. The people of Madeenah came out of their homes, worried and trying to find out what the case was. They saw a person coming in on a bare horseback. It was Muhammad sall Allaahu ‘alayhi wa sallam himself. He assured the people that there was no danger that night. Hearing the first word about the attack, he had taken it upon himself to get out and determine if the city was really under attack. He had gone out to survey the city outskirts. Among all the people in Madeenah, he was open to the highest degree of danger. But, he was such a brave and fearless person that even the most dangerous of circumstances would not deter him from doing what was needed. People, overawed by his bravery and fearlessness, felt relaxed on his assurance and went home to sleep.
Such rumours were becoming a common occurrence. But the only reason rumours persisted was because there was, in fact, a real danger of an attack at any time. The Prophet would himself spend nights keeping watch. Sometimes, he would appoint someone else to keep the watch, so that he could have some rest. He had also established an intelligence network to keep him informed of any significant movements of the enemy. Because he had a few followers or sympathizers in almost every tribe around Makkah and Madeenah, they could help by keeping him informed of the developments in their areas. His best source, however, was Allaah Subhaanahu wa Ta’aala Himself to provide him with any critical news through Jibreel.
Madeenah’s Response
So far, the Muslims had not been allowed to respond to or retaliate to any cruelty, terrorism or persecution they were subjected to. At this juncture, in Dzul-Hijjah, the 12th month of the calendar, about 8 months after Hijrah, Allaah Subhaanahu wa Ta’aala revealed the following verses of the Holy Qur-aan to allow the Muslims to fight back:
“Permission (to fight) is granted to those who are being attacked because they have been wronged (persecuted) . And Allaah indeed has the power to help them. They are those who have been unjustly expelled from their homes merely because they believed Allaah to be their only Lord. (Allaah allows people to fight against aggression because) had He not arranged to check aggressors by means of other people, the monasteries, churches, synagogues and mosques wherein Allaah is often worshipped would all have been destroyed by aggressors. Allaah shall certainly help those who help His cause. He is all-powerful All-Mighty.” (Al-Hajj 22:39-40)
Now that the Muslims were permitted to defend themselves against the Makkan aggressions, the people had to be trained to fight in an organized manner. Also, the Makkans’ progress in preparation of war had to be monitored so that Muslims were not taken by surprise. It was known that the Makkan war machine would be financed by the profits of the trade, hence monitoring of the trade caravans to both Syria (North) and Yemen (South) was also needed to gauge their readiness and to estimate the timing of their attack. In addition, the following work needed to be done:
· Expanding the influence of the federation and enhance its security through treaties with different tribes in the neighbouring areas and build close relationships and friendships with them.
· Putting Makkan trade caravans practically on notice that their passing through the Islamic state’s territory can be stopped according to the declaration made by Sa‘d in reaction to Aboo Jahl’s ban on Muslims’ pilgrimage to Makkah. As this trade was the main source of their prosperity, the danger of losing access to the trade route could sway them away from attacking Muslims.
· Making the state’s authority accepted by making its presence felt as well as establish its ability to reach out and implement its authority on all of its territory, including trade routes.
· Establishing law and order in the federated territory and its vicinity including enforcing the law and order on the Bedouins living around Madeenah so that they ceased their raids.
· Establishing a network of informants to keep the Prophet informed of the enemy movements and other developments relating to the security of the state.
· Monitoring the area and its borders to prevent Makkan infiltrations and to defend the citizens and their property from their raids.
For all of the above-mentioned purposes, the following missions were undertaken:
1. In the 2nd month (Safar) of the year 2 AH, about 10 months after Hijrah, the Prophet went on his first diplomatic expedition as the head of the state with 60 Muhaajireen to the shore of the Red Sea and entered into a written treaty with the Banoo Dhamrah tribe wherein the Prophet promised peace and protection for that tribe as well as help in case they were attacked by an enemy. They, in return, had promised to help and support the Muslims whenever called upon to do so. This treaty effectively made them part of the federation of Madeenah. This extended the Prophet’s sall Allaahu ‘alayhi wa sallam authority and control effectively over the trade route area. He stayed in that area for fifteen days. During the same journey, an agreement was reached with a tribe called Banoo Juhainah that they would remain neutral in case of a war between Quraish and the Islamic state of Madeenah. This trip opened the doors for subsequent reconnaissance missions to be sent to the area without fear of reprisal or problems from the tribes living around that area. This trip is known as the trip of Waddaan (a place about 23 miles from Madeenah) or the trip of Abwaa, both names referring to the two places where the Prophet stayed during the trip.
The treaty entered into with Banoo Dhamrah and other tribes mentioned later on, usually contained provisions such as the following:
§ Their life and wealth will be afforded safety and protection;
§ If the tribe is attacked or their rights are violated, they will be helped;
§ When the Prophet sall Allaahu ‘alayhi wa sallam calls upon them for help, they will respond;
§ Any religious fight or a fight within a tribe is excepted from treaty.
2. Within weeks of the abovementioned trip and treaties, Makkans sent a 300-strong cavalry unit under the command of ‘Ikrimah bin Aboo Jahl to counteract the influence the Prophet sall Allaahu ‘alayhi wa sallam had established. Having received intelligence reports of their incursion, the Prophet sall Allaahu ‘alayhi wa sallam dispatched a platoon of 60 Muhaajireen under the command of ‘Ubaidah bin Haarith to stop the invaders at the frontiers of the Federation. The invading army was taken by surprise in the territory of Dhamrah (the Muslim’s treaty tribe as per point #1). When the armies faced each other, a few arrows were exchanged between them. Suddenly, two of the invading army’s soldiers broke their ranks, ran out and joined the Muslims. The invaders retreated and the Muslims came back safe and sound. This is called the Raabigh expedition.
3. Makkans were not to give up that easily and undertook another military incursion. In the following month (Rabee‘ul Awwal 2AH), they dispatched another platoon of 300 horsemen commanded by Aboo Jahl himself. Thirty Muslims under Hamzah’s command were sent to intercept the enemy, again, right at the frontiers. The Muslims confronted the enemy in Juhainah’s territory. The chief of Juhainah, Majdi bin ‘Amr, interfered because of his agreement of neutrality with the Prophet, and the fight did not take place. The Prophet sall Allaahu ‘alayhi wa sallam praised and appreciated Majdi’s role in averting the clash. This is known as the Saiful-Bahr expedition.
4. The next month (Rabee‘ul Aakhir), the Makkans used a different strategy to assert their power and influence. One hundred Makkan horsemen headed by Umayyah bin Khalf attacked the coastal area and cooled their anger by capturing somewhere between 1000-2500 camels from different tribes in that area. Some people speculate that this was a trade caravan consisting of that many camels, but that is totally implausible considering the size and history of other Makkan caravans. The other researchers have established that camels had been robbed from that area to defy the law and order the Prophet sall Allaahu ‘alayhi wa sallam was trying to establish. On receiving the news, the Prophet sall Allaahu ‘alayhi wa sallam himself led about 60 or so Muhaajireen to confront the Makkan bandits and to help the allied tribes of the coastal area. The bandits ran away before his arrival. This is known as the Bawwaaŧ expedition.
All these expeditions occurred within three months. So far, the policy of the Prophet sall Allaahu ‘alayhi wa sallam of avoiding war without showing any weakness or losing any influence had worked very well. His diplomatic treaties had also proved useful.
5. After only a few days’ stay in Madeenah, at the end of Jumaadal-Oola, the Prophet sall Allaahu ‘alayhi wa sallam went on another diplomatic trip. For this trip he adopted unpopular side routes to develop relations with different clans and to let the Islamic state’s presence and its viability take root in the minds of the people of those areas. Naturally, in all his expeditions and interactions with various tribes, propagation of Islam always remained on the forefront of his agenda. He camped in the area called Dzul ‘Ushairah near Yamboo‘ and established a formal alliance with Banoo Mudlij. Banoo Mudlij were allies of Banoo Dhamrah who had become part of the Islamic federation of Madeenah a few months earlier.
6. While the Prophet sall Allaahu ‘alayhi wa sallam was constructively cementing relationships with his neighbours and establishing peace and friendship, the Makkans showed their frustration only through robberies. In the seventh month (Rajab) of 2 AH, Kurz bin Jaabir Al-Fihri came by secret routes through the mountains, conducted a night raid and drove away some camels and sheep from the pastures around Madeenah. The Prophet sall Allaahu ‘alayhi wa sallam immediately went with a party of Muhaajireen to chase him. They pursued him up to Safwaan valley, but Kurz escaped through his secret routes. This is known as the Safwaan expedition.
7. With the number of Makkan incursions increasing and their preparations for war accelerating, it was extremely necessary for the Prophet sall Allaahu ‘alayhi wa sallam to be aware of the Quraish’s movements so as not to be taken by surprise and to monitor arrivals of their caravans because, to a great extent, the major attack by the Quraish could be influenced by the arrival of their caravans with profits and wealth to finance the war. Thus, around that time, the Prophet sall Allaahu ‘alayhi wa sallam sent Sa‘d bin Abee Waqqaas with 8 people on a reconnaissance mission that went up to Kharraar.
8. He sall Allaahu ‘alayhi wa sallam also sent another group of 8 persons under the command of ‘Abdullaah bin Jaĥsh to Nakhlah (also in Rajab 2 AH) to monitor the movement of Quraish and their caravans from Yemen . It was a dangerous mission in the sense that it was closer to Makkah, while very far from Madeenah. All of the eight members were old residents of Makkah thus known there. If noticed by the Quraish, this small party could have been captured by them easily. On their way, two of the Muslims became separated from their platoon, lost their way and were captured by the Quraish. The remaining party continued their reconnaissance mission. Coincidentally, a small caravan camped at night in the same area where the Muslims were camped. In the morning, this encounter created a difficult situation for the Muslims. Perhaps due to their apprehension on being discovered and annoyed by the loss of their two companions, they attacked the caravan though they had been sent only to monitor and gather information. Out of the four guards for the Caravan, one guard, ‘Amr bin Al-Hadhrami, was killed, two (‘Uthmaan and Alhakam) were taken captive and one escaped. The Muslims returned to Madeenah with the prisoners and their goods.
The Prophet sall Allaahu ‘alayhi wa sallam disapproved their action, refused to accept the goods brought by them, released the prisoners and offered the blood money for the killed person. In short, the Prophet sall Allaahu ‘alayhi wa sallam did everything possible to compensate for the incident. Although the action was taken without his permission and approval and although it could have been easily defended and fairly justified vis-à-vis the capture of two Muslims and the attack of the Makkans on Madeenah and the damages they had inflicted, he did not condone it because it was against his morals, policy and strategy. Also, he did not want to give Makkans any reason or justification to attack Madeenah.
As you can see, four of the expeditions were commanded by the Prophet sall Allaahu ‘alayhi wa sallam himself and each of the other four were commanded by a different person. The focal points of the three expeditions led by the Prophet sall Allaahu ‘alayhi wa sallam were that they were extensions of the Islamic mission, diplomacy and setting up an intelligence network through diplomatic relationships with important tribes as well as the believers or sympathisers in those tribes. The fourth expedition was for the enforcement of law and order necessitated by the robbers’ attack.
The focal point of the expeditions led by other Muslims was to develop leadership and team building capabilities in a variety of people, training the Muslims to accept the leadership of anyone appointed as their leader and to teach them flexibility to work equally well in any role assigned to them, whether as commanders or the commanded. For this purpose, different people were appointed commanders for different expeditions.
In addition, these expeditions also accrued the following demonstrative and developmental benefits:
§ Demonstrative benefits were gained by showing the Quraish, in particular, and other Arabs, in general, that:
· Despite the tough circumstances, the Prophet sall Allaahu ‘alayhi wa sallam and his followers will not allow themselves to be victimized by the Quraish’s hostile activities;
· They refuse to be intimidated and are fully prepared to confront the Makkans and protect their fellow citizens from their raids; and
· They are fully capable of monitoring and establishing their authority over all of their territory including the trade routes.
§ Developmental benefits towards building a viable political entity included: Gaining familiarity with the area for future defence needs, acclimatizing the personnel in the new environment, knowing the terrain, developing perseverance for difficulties and hardships, promoting teamwork, teaching cooperative group dynamics, training in the proper behaviour both as a commander as well as the commanded, and inculcating Islamic values and morals to be practised during military expeditions.
Even while undertaking these expeditions, the Prophet’s sall Allaahu ‘alayhi wa sallam strategy was to avoid war as much as possible. He wanted to achieve all of the above-mentioned objectives by tactical moves and demonstration of preparedness and dedication. He would manoeuvre his expeditions tactically so that he would disable the enemy by catching them by surprise or by putting the enemy in such a position that they had to retreat instead of fighting. Although he did not want war, he was not a coward to yield under pressure. He sall Allaahu ‘alayhi wa sallam wanted an honourable peace under which his mission of establishing an ideal human society in the world could continue onwards strongly and effectively. His briefings to the commanders always reflected his strategy of avoiding confrontation with honour, or of minimizing loss of human life, if battle was imposed.
Due to his being aware of enemy movements and being able to send his expeditions in time most of the times, he was able to get to the enemy by surprise and force them to withdraw without fighting. Out of eight Muslim expeditions, there was no real fight at all in six of them, although sometimes Makkan troops as strong as 200-300 men were intercepted. In one expedition, arrows were exchanged, but the enemy retreated immediately. Only the last expedition was an anomaly where the Muslim reconnaissance team could not contain their frustration and attacked a caravan of the Quraish without the Prophet’s permission.
Although the Makkans were trying to get other tribes involved by sending their troops to the areas of those tribes and thus exacerbate the tensions, the Prophet sall Allaahu ‘alayhi wa sallam took special precautions to limit the tensions from spreading. He was so careful that in none of the eight expeditions did he include anyone else other than Makkan Muhaajireen so that the tension remained limited within the Quraish on both sides and so that it was viewed by other Arabs as an internal strife between two groups of the same tribe. This would not give any reason for the Makkans to get other tribes involved in their campaign against the Muslims. Also, participation of the Ansaar of Aows and Khazraj in any of the incursions would give the Quraish an excuse to attack Madeenah.
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[1] The Helpers – the Muslims of Madeenah who supported the Prophet and the Muslims from Makkah and vicinity.
[2] The Immigrants – Those Muslims who migrated to Madeenah from Makkah and vicinity.
[3] Those people who declared themselves to be Muslims along with their tribes, but in their hearts they did not want to do so because they remained loyal to the idolaters and they were not ready to take the hardships and make the sacrifices that the sincere faith required in those circumstances. They acted as a fifth column among the Muslims.
[4] Angel Gabriel
