عَنْ أَنَسٍ رَضِيَ اللَّهُ عَنْهُ قَالَ لَمَّا سَارَ رَسُولُ اللَّهِ صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَآلِهِ وَسَلَّمَ إِلَى بَدْرٍ خَرَجَ فَاسْتَشَارَ النَّاسَ فَأَشَارَ عَلَيْهِ أَبُو بَكْرٍ رَضِيَ اللَّهُ عَنْهُ ثُمَّ اسْتَشَارَهُمْ فَأَشَارَ عَلَيْهِ عُمَرُ رَضِيَ اللَّهُ عَنْهُ فَسَكَتَ فَقَالَ رَجُلٌ مِنَ الْأَنْصَارِ إِنَّمَا يُرِيدُكُمْ فَقَالُوا يَا رَسُولَ اللَّهِ وَاللَّهِ لَا نَكُونُ كَمَا قَالَتْ بَنُو إِسْرَائِيلَ لِمُوسَى عَلَيْهِ السَّلَامُ {اذْهَبْ أَنْتَ وَرَبُّكَ فَقَاتِلَا إِنَّا هَا هُنَا قَاعِدُونَ} [المائدة: 24] وَلَكِنْ وَاللَّهِ لَوْ ضَرَبْتَ أَكْبَادَ الْإِبِلِ حَتَّى تَبْلُغَ بَرْكَ الْغِمَادِ لَكُنَّا مَعَكَ
It is narrated from Sayyiduna Anas (may Allah be pleased with him) that when the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) set out towards Badr, he came out and consulted the people. Sayyiduna Abu Bakr (may Allah be pleased with him) gave an opinion, then the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) sought counsel again. This time, Sayyiduna Umar (may Allah be pleased with him) gave an opinion, but the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) remained silent. Meanwhile, an Ansari stood up and said: O Ansar! The Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) is addressing you. So they said: O Messenger of Allah! By Allah, we will not be like the Children of Israel who said to Musa (peace be upon him): "You and your Lord go and fight, we will sit here." By Allah, O Messenger of Allah! If you travel striking the livers of camels, until you reach Bark al-Ghamad, we will remain with you.
Brief Explanation
Benefits: … The Battle of Badr is also called Badr al-Uzma, Badr Thaniyyah, Badr Qital, and Badr Furqan. Badr is the name of a village between Makkah al-Mukarramah and Madinah al-Munawwarah, and it is located at a distance of four stages (155 kilometers) from Madinah.
The command of Allah, the Exalted, is: {ٰیقَوْمِ ادْخُلُواالْاَرْضَ الْمُقَدَّسَۃَ الَّتِیْ کَتَبَ اللّٰہُ لَکُمْ وَلَا تَرْتَدُّوْا عَلٰٓی
اَدْبَارِکُمْ فَتَنْقَلِبُوْاخٰسِرِیْنَ۔ قَالُوْا ٰیمُوْسٰٓی اِنَّ فِیْھَاقَوْمًاجَبَّارِیْنَ وَاِنَّالَنْ نَّدْخُلَھَاحَتّٰییَخْرُجُوْا مِنْھَا فَاِنْ یَّخْرُجُوْامِنْھَا فَاِنَّا دٰخِلُوْنَ۔ قَالَ رَجُلٰنِ مِنَ الَّذِیْنَیَخَافُوْنَ اَنْعَمَ اللّٰہُ عَلَیْھِمَا ادْخُلُوْا عَلَیْھِمُ الْبَابَ فَاِذَا دَخَلْتُمُوْہُ فَاِنَّکُمْ غٰلِبُوْنَ وَعَلَی اللّٰہِ فَتَوَکَّلُوْٓا اِنْ کُنْتُمْ مُّؤْمِنِیْنَ۔ قَالُوْا ٰیمُوْسٰٓی اِنَّالَنْ نَّدْخُلَھَآاَبَدًا مَّا دَامُوْافِیْھَا فَاذْھَبْ اَنْتَ وَرَبُّکَ فَقَاتِلَا ٓ اِنَّا ھٰھُنَا قٰعِدُوْنَ۔ قَالَ رَبِّ اِنِّیْ لَا ٓاَمْلِکُ اِلَّا نَفْسِیْ وَاَخِیْ فَافْرُقْ بَیْنَنَاوَبَیْنَ الْقَوْمِ الْفٰسِقِیْنَ۔ قَالَ فَاِنَّھَا مُحَرَّمَۃ’‘ عَلَیْہِمْ اَرْبَعِیْنَ سَنَۃًیَتِیْھُوْنَ فِی الْاَرْضِ فَلاَ تَاْسَ عَلَی الْقَوْمِ الْفٰسِقِیْنَ۔} … O my people! Enter the holy land which Allah has prescribed for you, and do not turn back on your heels, lest you become losers. They said, "O Musa! Indeed, in it is a very mighty people, and indeed we will never enter it until they leave from it; so if they leave from it, then surely we will enter." Two men said, from among those who feared (Allah), upon both of whom Allah had bestowed favor, "Enter upon them through the gate, for when you enter it, you will surely be victorious; and upon Allah alone put your trust, if you are believers." They said, "O Musa! Indeed, we will never enter it as long as they are in it; so you and your Lord go and fight, indeed we are sitting right here." He said, "O my Lord! Indeed, I have no power except over myself and my brother, so separate us from the defiantly disobedient people." He said, "Then indeed, it is forbidden to them for forty years; they will wander in the land, so do not grieve over the defiantly disobedient people." (Surah al-Ma'idah: 21–26)
The ancestral home of the Banu Isra'il's forefather Ya'qub (alayhis salam) was Bayt al-Maqdis, but during the time of Yusuf (alayhis salam) as the ruler of Egypt, these people went and settled in Egypt, and from then on remained in Egypt, until Musa (alayhis salam) led them out of Egypt by night, hiding from Pharaoh. At that time, Bayt al-Maqdis was under the rule of the Amalekites, who were a brave nation. When Musa (alayhis salam) resolved to settle again in Bayt al-Maqdis, it was necessary to wage jihad against the occupying Amalekites for this purpose. Thus, Musa (alayhis salam) commanded his people to enter this holy land and also gave them glad tidings of divine help, but despite this, the Banu Isra'il were not willing to fight the Amalekites and lost courage at the very first stage, abandoning jihad, and paid no heed to the command of Allah and His Messenger. Displaying the worst cowardice, disrespect, and rebelliousness, they said, "O Musa! You and your Lord go and fight."
In contrast, when at the occasion of the Battle of Badr, the Messenger of Allah (sallallahu alayhi wa sallam) consulted the noble Companions (radi Allahu anhum), they expressed a firm resolve to participate in jihad despite their small numbers and lack of resources.
Birk al-Ghimad is the name of a place; according to one opinion, it is at a distance of five days' journey beyond Makkah al-Mukarramah. This means that this place is about fifteen days' journey from Madinah al-Munawwarah. It has also been said that it is across Hijr or the name of a city in Abyssinia.