The role of angels in the wars of the Prophet (PBUH) Between the Qur’anic text and history

Abstract

Belief in the unseen is considered part of faith in the religion Islam. God Almighty said (and those who believe in the unseen), The angels are among the manifestations of the unseen, and the Qur’an often refers to the names of some of them, their attributes, and their duties. Among the things mentioned in the Qur’an was the descent of the angels in the Battle of Badr, and on the Day of Battle, But there is a difference about the role of angels in these battles between the apparent meaning of the Qur’an and what was understood by the early narrators. The Arab imagination went on to present them as human bodies resembling the image of the Arab fighter. The angels wear turbans and ride horses, and the Arabic narrative went on to explain a greater role for the angels, represented by killing and capturing infidels. But these narrators are no more than those of the polytheists who participated in the day of Badr or of those who converted to Islam in the conquest of Mecca in the year 8 AH. Or from the unknown, or from the Tabi’een, who are the generation following the generation of the Companions. How can we trust what they brought, when perhaps they narrated it out of mockery, or as a literal interpretation of Qur’anic verses? This research came to compare what was stated in the Qur’anic text, and what was contained in the historical narrative, which may have been a reflection of the Arab imagination. Among the most important sources for the study were: biography books, such as the biography of Ibn Ishaq, d. 151 AH, the biography of Ibn Hisham, d. 218 AH, and the biography of Ibn Sayyid al-Nas, d. 734 AH. Among the books of the Maghazis: the book of Maghazi al-Waqidi, d. 209 AH. As for the history books, the book The History of the Messengers and Kings by al-Tabari, d. 310. Hijri, and the book The Beginning and the End by Ibn Kathir, d. 774 AH. In addition to the books of the Prophet’s hadith, such as Sahih al-Bukhari, d. 256 AH, Sahih Muslim, d. 261 AH, and others.