Day 13 – Sūrat al-Anfal, No.8 – Part 1

Sūrat al-Anfal, No.8. Revealed in Madinah, 75 verses.  

Most of the verses of this Surah are about the Battle of Badr. It was the first war of Muslims against the disbelievers. In this war the Muslims had Divine help as stated in many of the verses in this Sūra.

Merits of reciting the Sūra

Imam al-Sadiq (a) has said; Whoever recites Sūra al-Anfal and Sūra al-Tawbah, hypocrisy will never enter him, and he will be from the true followers of Amir al-Mu’minin (Imam Ali) (a), and they will eat from the tables of Heaven on the Day of Judgment until the people are done with their reckoning.

Note: The reward is for those for whom the reciting is a prelude to reflection and action.

Sūrat al-Anfal, verses 1-29

General synopsis of contents                                                                          

  • The issue of war booty (verse 1)
  • Qualities of true believers (verses 2-4)
  • Rules of battle (verses 5-19)
  • Obedience to Allah and His Messenger (verses 20-29)

Suggested verses for memorization in Arabic and English

  1. 8:2- The faithful are only those whose hearts tremble [with awe] when Allah is mentioned, and when His signs are recited to them, they increase their faith, and who put their trust in their Lord
  2. 8:9 – When you appealed to your Lord for help, He answered you: ‘I will aid you with a thousand angels in a file.
  3. 8:10 – Victory comes only from Allah. Indeed Allah is all-mighty, all-wise.
  4. 8:24 – O you who have faith! Answer Allah and the Apostle when he summons you to that which will give you life. Know that Allah intervenes between a man and his heart and that toward Him you will be gathered.

Activities for self-study

  1. Verses 2-4 of this Sūra talk about the qualities of believers. Compare these qualities with the ones discussed in 23:1-9. Which are some common qualities described in both these passages?
  2. Study verses 11-12. What are the different ways in which Allah helped the Muslims during the battle of Badr?

 Sources

Āyatullāh Nāsir Makārim Shirazi (Ed.) Tafsir Namūne; https://www.al-islam.org/enlightening-commentary-light-holy-quran-vol-20/surah-shams-chapter-91; Ali Quli Qarai, The Qur’an With a Phrase-by-Phrase English.