Hazrat Khabbab (may Allah be pleased with him), who was among the participants of the Battle of Badr, says that once I was waiting for the Prophet (peace be upon him) at night. The Prophet (peace be upon him) started the prayer and kept praying the whole night until the time of Fajr. Then he ended his prayer with salam. After that, Khabbab (may Allah be pleased with him) came to the Prophet (peace be upon him) and said, "O Messenger of Allah, may my parents be sacrificed for you! Tonight you performed such a prayer that I have never seen you pray like this before." The Prophet (peace be upon him) said, "Yes. This was a prayer of encouragement and warning. In this prayer, I asked my Lord for three things, out of which He granted me two and refused one. I requested my Lord not to destroy us as He destroyed the previous nations; He accepted this request of mine. Then I requested Him not to impose any external enemy upon us; He also accepted this. Then I requested my Lord not to divide us into different sects, but He did not accept this request of mine."