The Battle of Badr in Diverse Views of Narrators of the Quran and Biographers of the Prophet

The Battle of Badr was the holy Prophet's first important battle (SWA) the victory in which improved the reputation and the position of Muslims and their nascent state in Medina. Because of its significance, this battle is specifically mentioned in the holy Quran, in the Surah al-Anfal, the very revelation and completion of which was for and after this battle. In addition, Islamic biographers and narrators have paid a special attention to this battle although their opinions are apparently somehow different from the Quranic view. Finding the real causes of the Battle of Badr based on the Quran and Islamic exegeses was the main concern and question of the present research. Thus, this question was raised that why the interpretations about this battle vary from the Quranic view to that expressed by the biographers of the Prophet and why the latter try to impose their perspective on the Quran. It is hypothesized that the Quran sees thwarting the Quraysh's threat as the real cause of this battle while biographers of the Prophet and historians point to the attack of Muslims on the Quraysh caravan for acquiring their assets as the main motivation. What this study achieved is a review and analysis of the Battle of Badr from a Quranic perspective, different from the writings of the Islamic biographers.