Life and Teachings of the Prophet Muhammad
2. The Life of the Prophet Muhammad
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in the path of God. So they became known as the mothers of the
faithful. All the Prophet’s sons had died in infancy. But four
daughters borne by Khadijah survived infancy, grew to adulthood,
married and bore children. They were Fatimah, Umm Kulthum,
Ruqayyah and Zaynab.
JIHAD
The Prophet was a man of peace and reconciliation. He urged
his companions to ask God for peace. For the Prophet’s main task
was the communication of the divine message to the people. And
an atmosphere of peace and goodwill was essential to perform this
duty. But the Quraysh did not allow him to work in peaceful
conditions. When they saw that the Muslims were becoming
increasingly stronger, they resolved to wage war and crush them
altogether.
THE BATTLE OF BADR
The Quraysh marched to Madinah with a thousand strong
army. They camped at Badr, about eighty miles from Madinah. It
was the month of Ramadan, 2 A.H. On hearing the news of the
enemy camping at Badr, the Prophet marched out of Madinah at
the head of an army of 313 Muslims. There were few horses and
the Muslims had no armours. The Makkans, on the other hand,
were well armed and had 300 horses and 700 camels.
