—the verses (al-Anfāl: 42).

Allah then sent down rain from the sky. The valley had been loose sand; the shower reached the Messenger of Allah ﷺ and his Companions, packing the ground firmly beneath them without hindering their march, whereas it struck Quraysh in such a way that they were unable to break camp.

I say: Concerning this, Allah the Exalted says: “He sends down upon you water from the sky to purify you thereby, remove from you the defilement of Satan, strengthen your hearts, and steady your footsteps” (al-Anfāl: 11). He thus informed them that He cleansed them outwardly and inwardly, made their feet firm, emboldened their hearts, and dispelled Satan’s discouragement, intimidation, and whisperings—support for both body and soul. He then sent victory upon them from above in His words: “When your Lord revealed to the angels, ‘I am with you, so make firm those who believe. I shall cast terror into the hearts of those who disbelieve—strike them above the necks…’”

that is, upon their heads— “and strike from them every fingertip,” meaning so they cannot grasp their weapons. “That is because they defied Allah and His Messenger; and whoever defies Allah and His Messenger—surely Allah is severe in punishment. That is yours, so taste it, and for the disbelievers is the punishment of the Fire” (al-Anfāl: 12–14).

Ibn Jarīr said: Ḥārūn ibn Isḥāq narrated to me—Muṣʿab ibn al-Miqdām, Isrāʾīl, and Abū Isḥāq narrated from Ḥāritha—from ʿAlī ibn Abī Ṭālib, who said: “During the night a light drizzle fell upon us”—that is, the night whose morning witnessed the Battle of Badr—“so we withdrew beneath the trees and our shields to shelter from the rain, while the Messenger of Allah ﷺ spent the night standing in prayer and urging us to fight.”

Imām Aḥmad reported: ʿAbd al-Raḥmān ibn Mahdī narrated to us—from Shuʿbah, from Abū Isḥāq, from Ḥāritha ibn Muḍarrib—from ʿAlī, who said: “There was no horseman among us on the Day of Badr except al-Miqdād, and I saw that all of us were asleep except the Messenger of Allah ﷺ; he was beneath a tree praying and weeping until dawn.” This ḥadīth will be cited in full later. Al-Nasāʾī likewise transmitted it from Bundār, from Ghundar, from Shuʿbah by this same chain.