30.2 The Change of Tide Then the wondrous happened. Those six hundred, by Allah's will, were able to drive back the four thousand and change the tide of defeat to victory. Slowly the others began to return and by the end of the day it was a complete victory for the Muslims. The Koran says: Allah has given you victory in many situations, but on the day of Hunayn, when you were pleased with your numbers, they were of no use to you. And the earth in spite of its spaciousness seemed narrow to you, and you turned round in flight. (9: 25) It was a similar lesson to that of Uhud - a hard, clear lesson they had to learn. Victory comes from Allah, and from Him alone. It was not a matter of arms or numbers, for when they had neither arms nor men and trusted in Him, He gave them victory, but the moment they relied on their numbers, He withdrew His support, and they ran as if they had never seen a battlefield before. When six hundred trusted Him and were ready to die for His sake and the sake of His Prophet, Allah supported them again and victory became theirs. This lesson served the Muslims through all the years of fighting and empire-building that lay ahead of them, when they had to face armies of Romans, Persians, and Berber tribesmen of far greater numbers in distant lands. The Muslims were able to take many captives and collect much loot, but they learnt that the leaders of Hawazin and Thaqif who had instigated their tribes' action had taken refuge in Al-Taif, the home of Thaqif.