THE

PROPHET AND HIS

T E N C 0 I H P H 0 N S

W HO WERE PROMISED PARADISE

rG ;

B y al-Hafiz ‘Abdul-Ghani al-M aqdisi (600 ah )

Commentary by Shaykh Muhammad bin 'Abdul-Wahhab al-'Aqll
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Second Edition: Jumada al-Awwal 1437 AH / March 2016 CE

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 Transliteration Table

C onsonants

£ » d d til k

L-J b j dh L t J 1

Cj t J r z m
r
ell th j 2 t 6
u n

c j u- S i gh h

c h L>- sh f j w

c kh (J-3 s c3 q cS y

V ow els

Short _ a — i _L u

Long ll a LSZ I jL u

Diphthongs ay/ai aw

5|§? Sallallabu ‘a layhi wa sallam (M ay A llah's praise & salutations be upon him)

vtiiSi ‘A layhis-saldm (Peace be upon him)

?0 A layhim as-salam (Peace be upon them)

RadiyaUahu ‘a nhu (M ay A llah be pleased w ith him)

RadiyaUahu 'anha (M ay A llah be pleased w ith her)

RadiyaUahu 'auburn (M ay Allah be pleased w ith them )

iiA fc Rahimahullal) (M ay A llah have m ercy on him)

 CONTENTS

Introduction by Sbuykb Mu hummad al-Aqil .............................................. 6

Author's Introduction ..................................................................................... 9

The Prophet's Lineage ............................................................................. 12

His Mother .................................................................................................. 19

His Birth ....................................................................................................... 20

His Father's Death ..................................................................................... 25

His Mother's Death .................................................................................... 27

His Grandfather's Death .......................................................................... 29

His Wet Nurses ........................................................................................... 31

His Names .................................................................................................... 36
His Upbringing in Makkah ...................................................................... 47

His Travel to Sham with His Uncle ...................................................... 50

His Marriage to Khadljah ........................................................................ 55

The Beginning of Revelation ................................................................. 58

His Migration to Madlnah ....................................................................... 62

His Death ..................................................................................................... 68

His Sons ....................................................................................................... 73

His Daughters ............................................................................................. 76

His Hajj and ‘Umrah .................................................................................. 80

His Batdes .................................................................................................... 83

His Scribes and Heralds ........................................................................... 85

His Paternal Uncles and Aunts ............................................................... 91

His Wives ....................................................................................................... 99

His Servants .................................................................................................. 111

His Freed Slaves ........................................................................................... 114

His Animals ...................................................................................................116

His Weapons ................................................................................................120

His Physical Characteristics ...................................................................... 123

His Manners ...................................................................................................134

His Miracles ................................................................................................. 145

His Ten Companions Promised Paradise ............................................. 159

A bu B akr as-Siddlq ........................................................................................................... 161
‘U m ar bin al-K hattab ........................................................................................................ 164
‘U thm an b in ‘A ffan ........................................................................................................... 167
‘Ali bin A b l T alib ................................................................................................................ 171
T alhah bin ‘U baydillah ..................................................................................................... 176
A z-Z ubayr bin al-‘A w w am ............................................................................................. 178
S a’d bin A b l W aqqas ........................................................................................................ 180
S a‘Td bin Zayd bin ‘A m r ................................................................................................... 182
‘A bdur-R ahm an bin ‘A w f ................................................................................................ 183
A bu ‘U bavdah bin al-Jarrah ............................................................................................ 186
 ♦ (: J / a y / f ■ sM tf/utftt//H it / « / - • J r fy t / ' ♦

In the name o f Allah, the M ost Gracious, the M ost M erciful; all
praise belongs to Allah. M ay Allah grant our Prophet M uhamm ad
the highest m ention and bestow peace upon him.

Given that the nobility7 o f knowledge is connected to the nobility7

o f the science being studied, the study o f the Prophet’s biography
IIS is from the noblest and m ost im portant fields o f study7. This is
because studying the strah o f the Prophet lit is connected to the
study o f the noblest o f creation — our Prophet M uham m ad m -
The M uslim who takes our Prophet M uham m ad 0 as his imam ,
exemplar, and model is in dire need o f studying his biography.

Your ‘a qidah w ill not be correct unless your ‘a qidah is like the ‘a qidah
o f the Prophet tgl. Your prayer, \-akdh, fasting, Hajj, and all other
acts o f worship w ill not be correct unless they are in agreem ent
with what the Prophet 0 was upon. The details o f these matters
are known from the details o f the life o f the Prophet Studying
his life brings about belief in him, because knowing about his
affairs is part o f believing in him. There are some matters that are
obligatory to know about him, and if you are deficient in knowing
these matters, your faith w ill be deficient. However, the more you
learn about him, the more your faith in him w ill increase, and then
your overall imdn will increase.

The biography o f the Prophet 0 is not similar to the biography o f

1 This explanation is extracted from a lecture delivered by Shaykh Muhammad al-‘Aq!l, mav
Allah preserve him.

6
 Introduction by Shaykh Muhammad al-'Aqil

any other person. As for the biographies o f other than him, then
only a small portion o f their biographies have been preserved. In
contrast, the Prophet’s biography Hf has been narrated to us by his
Lord, and He has taken the responsibility o f preserving it.

(j^jaSlaJ 4J Ijlj j^ lll U ijj dP-j ^

Verily, it is We Who have sent down the reminder

(i.e., the Qur'an) and surely, We are its guardian
(from corruption).
[Surah al-Hijr 15:9]

How many verses are there that m ention the names o f the Prophet
H , how he was sent, his worship, his supplication, the reality o f
his d a ’wah, w hat he encountered, and his hum an nature? There are
many verses, and these are one o f the sources o f his biography;
and Allah has entrusted H im self with the preservation o f this in
His Book. Likewise, his biography is preserved by w hat has been
narrated from his Com panions 0 , from those ahadlth with sound
chains o f narration.

Consequently, his biography is true, and he is the trustworthy

one who is believed. His sirah is not [made of] ancient tales or
fabricated stories, nor is it a gam e for the people to add to it or
take away from it w hat they like. Rather, his biography has been
preserved for us just as his Sunnah has been preserved for us.
Those who give care and concern to his Sunnah, his statements
and actions, also give care and concern to his biography.

For this reason, the scholars o f the ummah have undertaken

the task o f authenticating w hat has been transm itted from the
Prophet's biography fit, affirm ing w hat is authentic and w hat is
weak. The innovator may come w ith a book o f sirah saying that
the Prophet Hf did this or that. We say, first we need to authenti­
cate the chain o f narration for this statement. Everything that has
been narrated concerning the Prophet’s biography is not correct;

7
 THE PROPHET A N D HIS TEN C O M PA N IO N S

rather, it is upon us to verify its authenticity first. Therefore, his

Sunnah is his sirah.

Before us is a blessed abridged book concerning the Prophet’s

biography 0 , by ‘Abdul-G hani al-Maqdisi. I ask Allah to grant us
the ability to follow our Prophet M uham m ad H in the m ost excel­
lent manner. I ask Him to increase our love for him, our belief
in him, and our certainty o f his trustworthiness by knowing his
biography.

I ask Allah to resurrect us in the crowd with him. Our Lord said:

<ill l)a 3 ^

And whoever obeys Allah and the Messenger, then

they will be in the company of those on whom
Allah has bestowed His grace, from the prophets,
the truthful, the martyrs, and the righteous. And
how excellent these companions are!
[Surah an-Nisa' 4:69]

And the Prophet Ht said:

The person will be with those he loves.2

Sahih al-Wukhdri 6168

 ♦ • / / ((/ / or 6 ♦

O RIG IN A L TEXT

All praise and thanks belong to Allah, the Creator o f the earth and
the heavens, the One who has made the light and the darkness,
the One who w ill gather the creadon to judge between them so
the doer o f good w ill be successful while the people o f m isery
will be wretched. And I bear witness that nothing has the right
to be worshiped except Allah alone w ithout partners. W hoever
says this testim ony will be joyful on the D ay o f Recompense. May
Allah grant the highest m ention to the chief o f the m essengers
and prophets, M uham m ad, and upon his family and Companions.

E XPLA N A TIO N

The testim ony that nothing has the right to be worshiped

except Allah is not unknown to the likes o f you all, may Allah
preserve you. Surely, the testim ony that nothing has the right to
be worshiped except Allah is the key to Paradise, and whoever
says “nothing has the right to be worshiped except A llah” as his
final words shall enter Paradise. No one w ill be successful and
saved from the punishm ent o f the Fire on the Day o f Judgm ent
except the one who says “nothing has the right to be worshiped
except A llah.” W hoever actualizes the statement “nothing has the
right to be worshiped except Allah” w ill enter Paradise without
reckoning and w ithout punishm ent. This is because the statement
that nothing has the right to be worshiped except Allah is tawhid,
as Imam al-Bukhari states in “The Book o f Tawhid” (in Sahih
al-Bukbari).

9
 THE PROPHET AND HIS TEN C O M PA N IO N S

ORIGINAL LEX I

As to what follows: These are concise words concerning our

leader, our Prophet, the Chosen One, M uhamm ad i t , which each
and every Muslim is in need of. I ask Allah to cause this treatise to
benefit those who read it and hear it.

I API AN AT ION

From the rights o f the Prophet i t is that you learn inform ation
about him that w ill put belief in him in your heart. Then, study
his biography to increase your m an, and this includes knowing his
noble lineage and some o f the affairs connected to it. In reality,
every Muslim is in need o f knowing some o f these affairs. This is
because the Prophet 0 is your example, and he is your imam.

It is unfortunate that there are young M uslims who have been

raised by Muslim parents but have not read the Prophet’s biogra­
phy i t even one day, while they have heard the names o f hundreds
o f disbelievers and other M uslim personalities. In truth, this is a
deficiency from the parents, because the child’s m ind and heart are
like vessels — if you fill them with good, they will be filled with
good, and if you fill them with evil, then evil w ill occupy them.
And if you neglect these vessels, someone else will fill them.

The Muslim youth today have been caught in the trap o f filling
their hearts and minds with that which will not benefit them or
with that which will harm them. If there is benefit, it is m inimal,
while the harm is greater than the benefit. Consequently, it is
upon the M uslim fathers to fear Allah the Exalted and to fill their
children’s hearts and minds with the sirah o f the Prophet 0 and
the sirah o f his Companions, so they can take them as their role
models.

The youth w ill definitely take someone as a role model. If you

make the Prophet i t their role model, they w ill succeed in this
life and the next. If not, others w ill give them role models, such

10
 Author's Introduction

as athletes, male and female actors, m ale and female singers, and
other than them from the people o f innovations and misguidance.
Thus, fear Allah, O noble fathers, concerning your children.

11
 m / m et 6 in e a < jfe ▼

O RIG IN A L TEXT

He is: Abul-Qasim

EXPLAN A 1 ION

Abul-Q asim is the kunyah he was known by. This kunyah is

connected to his son al-Qasim , who was born to our mother
Khadljah Al-Qasim was his oldest son, so the Prophet took
this name as his kunyah. The scholars differ concerning the
perm issibility o f anyone else using the kunyah Abul-Q asim after
the death o f the Prophet ilf, but they agree it was not perm issible
to use this kunyah during his lifetime.

Some o f the scholars say the prohibition was specific to his

lifetime, and some o f them say it is not perm issible for anyone
else to combine both nam es— m eaning, if a man’s name is
M uhamm ad, he cannot [also] take the kunyah Abul-Q asim. And
some o f the scholars say this was only [prohibited] during his
lifetime; it was not perm issible for any o f the Com panions to
take the kunyah Abul-Q asim because this was the kunyah o f the
Prophet 0 .

W hoever calls him by other than this kunyah has shown bad
manners. The scholars have disapproved o f calling the Prophet
by any other kunyah, such as Abu az-Zahra'3 or A bu Fatimah. This
is bad manners with the Prophet 0 because he is w idely known
3 Translator’s note: Az-Zahra' is a nickname used to refer to Fatimah.

12
 The Prophet's Lineage

by his kunyah Abul-Q asim , and he did not like to be called by any
other kunyah. Therefore, the M uslim should only call him by this
kunyah, and when it is said, “Abul-Q asim ill said such-and-such,”
the people w ill know you are speaking o f the Prophet 0 .

O R IG IN A L TEXT

M uham m ad bin ‘A bdullah bin ‘Abdul-M uttalib bin Hashim bin

‘A bd M anaf bin Q usayy bin Kilab bin M urrah bin K a’b bin
Lu'ayy bin Ghalib bin Fihr bin M alik bin an-N adr bin Kinanah
bin Khuzaymah bin M udrikah bin Ilyas bin M udar bin N izar
bin M a‘add bin ‘A dnan bin Udad bin M uqawwim bin N ahur bin
Tayrah bin Ya’rub bin Yashjub bin N abit bin Ism a‘Il bin Ibrahim
(Khalil ar-Rahman) bin Tarih (also known as Azar) bin N ahur bin
Saru’ bin R a‘u bin Falikh bin ‘A ybir bin Shalikh bin Arfakhshad
bin Sam bin Nuh bin Lam ik bin M atushalkh bin Akhnukh bin
Yard bin M ahlll bin Qlnan bin Yanish bin Shlth bin Adam.

EXPLAN ATIO N

We shall suffice with the first part o f his lineage, may Allah
preserve you. This is the part o f his lineage that has been authen­
ticated. The Prophet H has m entioned that his lineage goes back
to ‘A dnan, and ‘A dnan is from the sons o f Ism a‘Il, the son o f
Ibrahim stif. There is m ajor disagreem ent concerning the authen­
ticity o f his lineage beyond this. His relation to ‘A dnan is affirm ed,
and no one disputes that ‘Adnan is from the sons o f Ism a‘Il, the
son o f Ibrahim

In regard to the names m entioned between ‘A dnan and Ism a‘11,

there is disagreem ent am ong the scholars, and likewise there is
disagreem ent concerning the names m entioned between Ibrahim
and Adam The reason for the difference o f opinion concern­
ing the names o f the men m entioned beyond ‘A dnan is that these
names were translated from Hebrew, and the translators differ on
how some o f the names should be translated. Some say “A dad”

13
 THE PROPHET A N D HIS TEN C O M PA N IO N S

while others say “Udad,” and likewise they differ concerning the
translation o f the other names.

The proof that the Prophet H is from the lineage o f Ibrahim is

that when he ascended to the heavens and m et the prophets, they
greeted him by saying, “W elcome to the righteous brother and
righteous Prophet,” except Ibrahim Ibrahim said, “Welcome
to the righteous son and righteous Prophet.” W hen Ibrahim, the
son o f the Prophet i l , was born from M ariyah al-Qibtiyyah he
said:

J ^4 p X ILih ^ djj

A son was born to me tonight and I gave him the name of my

father Ibrahim.4

O RIG IN A L TEXT

M uhamm ad bin ‘A bdullah bin ‘A bdul-M uttalib

EXPLANATION

A bdul-M uttalib'1 was the grandfather o f the Prophet i t . His

actual name was Shaybah al-Hamd. His grandfather’s name (“the
slave o f M uttalib”) is not a proof for the perm issibility o f naming
oneself the slave o f anyone other than Allah. To name oneself
the male or female slave o f anyone other than Allah is not perm is­
sible; rather, it should be said “the son o f so-and-so” or “the
daughter o f so-and-so.”

There is a story behind Shaybah, the grandfather o f the Prophet

HI, being called ‘Abdul-Muttalib. His actual name is Shaybah and
his m aternal uncles were from BanI Najjar, and they were the A nsar
o f Madlnah. His paternal uncle, al-M uttalib bin ‘A bd M anaf, went
to M adlnah to take Shaybah from his m aternal uncles; thus, they

4 S u n an A bi Daivtid 3126, declared sahih by Shaykh al-Albani

5 I ranslator’s note: ‘Abdul-Muttalib means “the slave o f Muttalib.”

14
 The Prophet's Lineage

traveled back to M akkah while Shaybah rode behind his uncle.

W hile on the journey, Shaybah was tanned by the sun, and he
wore tattered clothes, so when the people saw this unknown child
they assumed he was the slave o f al-Muttalib. Consequently they
began to say, “This is A bdul-M uttalib (the slave o f al-M uttalib).”
The intent here behind the word “slave” is not the servitude given
to Allah; rather, the intent for the word “slave” in this context is
the relationship between the servant and his master. Al-M uttalib
was his uncle, but the people thought that he was his slave master.
For this reason, the name A bdul-M uttalib was the exception.6

A bdul-M uttalib’s actual name was Shaybah.7 He was given this

name because he had a white streak o f hair on his head when he
was born.

We have m entioned that the Prophet’s lineage i§S is authenticated

up to A dnan, and this proves the nobility o f the Prophet i t ,
because Allah placed him in the noblest tribe o f the Arabs. The
Q uraysh, who are [from] Fihr bin M alik or an-N adr bin Kinanah,
is the noblest o f all the Arab tribes. The Prophet i t said:

Verily Allah granted eminence to Kinanah from amongst the

descendants of Isma‘il, and he granted eminence to the Quraysh
amongst Kinanah, and he granted eminence to Banu Hashim
amongst the Quraysh, and he granted me eminence from the tribe
of Banu Hashim.8

This means Allah chose them, honored them , and preferred them.

6 Translator's note: Shavkh ‘Abdul-'AzTz bin Baz said, “Imam Abu Muhammad bin Hazm
said, ‘The scholars have agreed that it is not perm issible to take any name that gives servi­
tude to anyone other than Allah, such as the names ‘Abdul-‘A mr, ‘A bdul-K a’bah, and similar
names. The exception was given to ‘Abdul-M uttalib.’ ” (M ajm u’ Fatdwa Ibn Ba% vol. 5)
Translator’s note: The word “shaybah ” means grav-headed.
8 Sahih Muslim 2276

15
 THE PROPHET A N D HIS TEN C O M PA N IO N S

Therefore, he is from the best tribe o f the children o f Ism ail, the
best tribe o f Kinanah, and the best tribe o f Quraysh, which is
Banu Hashim, and he is the best from the tribe o f Banu Hashim.

The scholars have m entioned the wisdom o f Allah placing him in

the best tribe o f the Arabs. From the wisdom m endoned is that
the Arabs used to brag about their tribes, and if the Prophet had
been from a lowly tribe, it would have been an argum ent for some
of them to reject his da’wah. W hen Heraclius, the king o f Rome,
questioned Abu Sufyan about the lineage o f the Prophet iH, he
had no way o f insulting his lineage. Thus Abu Sufyan replied:

He belongs to a good (noble) family amongst us.9

This is proof that Allah the Exalted preferred the Prophet and
honored him with this noble lineage in order to assist in the accep­
tance o f his da ’wah. Thus he has noble lineage, honor, and high
status, and it is not possible for the person with these qualities to
claim prophethood in order to attain a nobility he already has. His
lineage was sufficient in elevating his status, so it was a true state­
m ent when he inform ed the people that he was sent as a prophet.

In addition to this, Allah the Exalted wanted to raise the status o f

the Arabs. Our Lord said:

dLayfllj dll Ajlj

And indeed, it is a remembrance for you and your

people.
[Surah az-Z ukhruf43:44]

Prophecy had been cut o ff from the Arabs for a long time, and
it had elevated the Children o f Israel and others for a long time.
Prophecy rem ained am ong the Children o f Israel so long that

" Sahib ai-Kukhari 7

16
 The Prophet's Lineage

they boasted and said prophecy would never leave them. So Allah
took it from them against their desire and placed prophecy am ong
the Arabs, and He elevated the Arabs. Therefore, we thank Allah
the Exalted for m aking our Prophet M uham m ad HI from the
Arabs, in the Arabian Peninsula. And He made his language the
Arabic language, and He made it such that everyone who speaks
the Arabic language is an Arab. Everyone who speaks Arabic is an
Arab and is thus ascribed to the people o f the Prophet HI.

O RIG IN A L TEXT

This is the lineage m entioned by M uham m ad bin Ishaq in one o f

the narrations he m entioned. The lineage up to A dnan is agreed
upon, while there is a difference o f opinion about the rem aining
lineage.

EXPLAN ATIO N

[This refers to] M uham m ad bin Ishaq bin Yasar al-M adani, the
author o f the famous sirah. Ibn Hisham 'Life- used some o f it for
his famous sirah, Sirah Ibn Hisham. Ibn Ishaq’s sirah is vast. In one
o f the narrations, he m entioned the lineage that goes beyond
A dnan, although the lineage m entioned before A dnan is more
authentic. It is m entioned in al-Bukhari and other places as well.
There is a difference o f opinion concerning those m entioned
between A dnan and Ism a‘Il, and between Ibrahim and Adam.

O R IG IN A L TEXT

The Quraysh are from Fihr bin M alik, and it has been said they are
from an-N adr bin Kinanah.

EXPLAN ATIO N

The Quraysh are from Fihr bin M alik, while some say they are
from the grandfather an-N adr bin Kinanah. It is said they got the
name “Q uraysh” due to their gathering in M akkah after they had

17
 THE PROPHET A N D HIS TEN C O M PA N IO N S

been divided, and this unity took place at the hand o f Fihr bin
M alik or an-Nadr bin Kinanah.

It has also been said they were called the Quraysh because they
they were merchants instead o f farmers or herdsmen, as Allah
favored them with this.

(It is a great grace and protection from Allah),

for the taming of the Quraysh, their accustomed
security [in] the caravan of winter and summer. So
let them worship the Lord (Allah) of this House
(the Ka’bah in Makkah).
[Surah Quraysh 106:1-3]

18
O RIG IN A L ! I XT

The m other o f the M essenger o f Allah iH was Am inah bint Wahb

bin A bd M anaf bin Zuhrah bin Kilab bin M urrah bin K a’b bin
Lu'ayy bin Ghalib.

EXPLANATION

The m other o f the Prophet iH was also from the noble tribe
o f Quraysh. Her lineage connects with his at K ilab bin M urrah,
because Zuhrah was the brother o f Q usayy bin Kilab. Zuhrah bin
Kilab is from the forefathers o f Sa’d bin A bl W aqqas <§£. This is
why the Prophet H would say, “He is my m aternal uncle,” because
[Sa’d’s] lineage is connected with the Prophet’s lineage HI at Kilab
bin M urrah. And Sa’d is related to the m other o f the Prophet
i§f from Zuhrah bin Kilab. Zuhrah bin Kilab was the brother o f
Qusayy bin Kilab, who is one o f the forefathers o f the Prophet

19
O RIGIN AL TEXT

The M essenger o f Allah tfe was born in M akkah during the Year
o f the Elephant, in the m onth o f RabF al-Awwal, on a Monday.
Some have said he was born 30 years after the Year o f the
Elephant, and some have said he was born 40 years after the Year
o f the Elephant. The correct view is that he was born during the
Year o f the Elephant.10

EXPLANATIO N

As for where the Prophet US was born, the historians have agreed
he was born in Makkah. This is the well-known city o f Makkah
in which al-M asjid al-Haram is located. The Prophet’s tribe had
homes built around the K a’bah; they were not nomads who
traveled, had tents in the area, and followed the rain— during the
winter [the nomads] would go south, and during the sum mer they
would go north. Allah decreed that his tribe would have status in
the hearts o f the rest o f the Arabs, and He decreed that M akkah
would have high status in the hearts o f the Arabs; thus, they exalt
it, love it, and perform pilgrim age to it. T hey revered M akkah to
the extent that if a man saw his father’s killer there, he would not
go forth to harm him. Allah favored the Arabs and the Quraysh
with this.

Translator’s note: Ibn al-Qayyim said, “There is no difference o f opinion concerning

the fact that the Prophet sfe was born in Makkah, and that his birth was in the Year o f the
Elephant.” [Z adal-M a'adJi H adji K h a yra l-'lb a d by Ibn al-Qayyim, 1/76)

20
 His Birth

^ya L-flja^3jj iLai Uayk ' ^ \jl Ijjj

4
Have they not seen that We have made (Makkah) a
sanctuary secure, and that men are being snatched
away from all around them?
[Surah al-'Ankabut 29:67]

This safe sanctuary o f M akkah is the birthplace o f the Prophet

As for the day he was born, then it was certainly a Monday, because
when he was asked why he fasted on Mondays he said:

. Jjjl o j Jj dIA
That is the day on which I was born and on it my mission began
or Revelation came to me.11

Therefore, there are two things we are certain about: he was born
in M akkah, and he was born on a Monday.

And there are two things the scholars differ about. [One o f them
is] the exact date on which the Prophet was born— some say he
was born on the 2nd o f R abf al-Awwal, some say he was born on
the 8th o f R abf al-Awwal, some say he was born on the 10th o f
R abf al-Awwal, and some say he was born on the 12th o f R abf
al-Awwal. Some have even said that he was not born in R abf
al-Awwal, but that he was born on the 8th o f Ram adan, and this is
the weakest o f the opinions. T hat which is m ost correct is that the
Prophet 0 was born on the 2nd o f R abf al-Awwal.

W ith this, we affirm the m istake o f many o f the M uslim s today

who are certain that he was born on the 12th o f R abf al-Awwal.
Consequently, they establish parties, which are broadcast through

11 Sahih Muslim 1162

21
 THE PROPHET A N D HIS TEN C O M PA N IO N S

the television and radio and attended by the masses. There is much
innovation and sin present in these parties, such as singing, the
m ixing o f men and wom en, and associating partners with Allah
the Exalted. We ask Allah the Exalted for safety and security from
this evil, the extent o f which no one knows except Him. Thus,
from the standpoint o f the legislation, these parties are delusive
because they are not based upon any religious proof.

They celebrate the Prophet’s birthday 0 , but it is as though

they are celebrating a singer’s birthday. If they were to celebrate
a singer’s birthday, they would gather together to rem em ber his
compositions, his songs, and his instruments. They would sing
along to his songs, and the men and women would mix together,
because this person was a singer. But today the people gather
together to celebrate the birthday o f the Prophet tH, the one who
prohibited music, the m ixing o f men and wom en, and alcohol and
drugs, yet they celebrate his birthday by singing, playing instru­
ments, m ixing the men and the wom en, drinking alcohol, and
com m itting various sins prohibited by the Prophet Hf. The person
who believes he is celebrating the Prophet’s birthday with this has
a corrupt mind.

These parties that m any o f the M uslim s attend— may Allah rectify
us and them — are false, because those who had more knowledge
than us never celebrated the Prophet’s birthday Hf. His birthday
was not celebrated by Abu Bakr, ‘Umar, ‘Uthman, ‘A li, or by any
o f the 10 Com panions prom ised paradise, nor was it celebrated
by any o f the 120,000 Companions, which is the num ber o f
Companions the scholars estimate he had. His birthday was
not celebrated by any o f the four Imams. His birthday was not
celebrated during the first three generations o f Muslims, and they
were more knowledgeable and loved him more than those who
came after them.

And what benefit comes from these parties? Today, millions o f

22
 His Birth

people sing and dance, and it doesn’t benefit Islam at all.

Be you rabbaniyyun (learned men of religion who

practice what they know and also preach to others),
because you are teaching the Book, and you are
studying it.
[Surah Ali 'Imran 3:79]

If you w ant to benefit the M uslim s, teach them the Prophet’s

biography, his Sunnah, his ‘aqidah, his prayer, his 3akah , his fasting,
his Hajj, and his manners. This w ill benefit the Muslims. Sit in a
house from the houses o f Allah and read a verse from the Book
o f Allah or a hadith from the speech o f the Prophet iH. Revive a
sunnah , disseminate his m anners and his virtue— this w ill benefit
the ummah. These birthday celebrations are unfounded in the
religion, just as they are unjustifiable w ith the intellect.

As for the year in which he was born, the m ost prom inent state­
m ent is that he was born in the Year o f the Elephant. The Year o f
the Elephant is w hat Allah has m entioned in the Qur'an:

4 1—llau^aL i2bj Qia (. fljS j j

Have you (O Muhammad) not seen how your Lord

dealt with the owners of the elephant?
[Surah al-FIl 105:1]

This is [referring to] when Allah the Exalted repelled A braha and
those w ith him to protect M akkah, a precursor for the advent o f
the Prophet 0 . Allah protected M akkah from the desecration and
destruction o f the K a’bah by Abraha the Ethiopian. Thus, the
Year o f the Elephant was the year the Prophet i l l was born, after
Abraha and those w ith him were defeated.

23
 THE PROPHET A N D HIS TEN C O M PA N IO N S

Some have said he was born 80 days or less after this event. Some
scholars say he was born 40 years after this event, but it seems
they have confused his birth with his prophecy. He was sent as a
prophet 40 years after the Year o f the Elephant, and according to
what is most correct he was born during the Year o f the Elephant.

As for those who specify a particular home in Makkah now as

where he was born, then this is a clear lie. That is not the home
in which the Prophet 0 was born, because a great deal o f time
has passed and the area has changed— m any different people
have owned that home and the land around it, and it has changed.
There is no doubt the M essenger tH was born in M akkah, but it
is an innovation to visit and worship Allah in what is allegedly his
birth home. Those who were more knowledgeable than us and
loved the Prophet 0 more than us never did that, and there is
nothing authentic stating that the Prophet 0 ever once visited this
home. And his Com panions never visited it or worshiped Allah
in it, and all good lies in following the Salaf, while all evil lies in
following those who came later.

24
 ♦ •//d 6 C $ ea t/ b ♦

O R IG IN A L LLAI

His father, ‘A bdullah bin ‘A bdul-M uttalib, died when the

M essenger o f Allah iH was 28 months old. Some say his father
died when he was seven months old.

Some say he died in the home o f an-N abighah12 while the Prophet
was still in his m other’s womb. It is said his father died in al-Abwa'
between M akkah and Madlnah.

Abu A bdullah az-Zubayr bin Bakkar az-Zubayri said, “ A bdullah

bin ‘Abdul-M uttalib died in M adlnah when the M essenger o f
Allah 0 was two months old.”

L’X n . A NATIO N

These are some o f the different statements o f the historians

concerning the time and place o f the death o f A bdullah bin
‘Abdul-Muttalib, the Prophet’s father. He was the father o f the
Prophet 0 , and his full brother Abu Talib was the paternal uncle
of the Prophet 0 . Abu Talib was entrusted with the Prophet’s
upbringing after the death o f his parents and his grandfather
‘Abdul-Muttalib. The Prophet’s father A bdullah was the son
whom ‘Abdul-M uttalib had vowed to sacrifice. He had vowed
that if he was granted 10 sons, he would sacrifice one o f them.
However, instead o f sacrificing his son A bdullah, he gave 100

12 Translator's note: He was a man from Bam ‘A di bin an-Najjar.

25
 THE PROPHET A N D HIS TEN C O M PA N IO N S

camels as a ransom, and thus it becam e a practice am ong the

Quraysh for a man to ransom 100 camels. The other son who was
to be sacrificed was Ism a‘Il, the son o f Ibrahim, the friend o f the
M ost M erciful stif. This is the correct view — it was Ism a‘Il, not
Ishaq, who was to be sacrificed. Thus the two fathers (the prophet
Ism a‘Il and ‘Abdullah bin ‘A bdul-M uttalib) o f the Prophet 0 were
ransomed twice.

And We ransomed him with a great sacrifice

[Surah as-Saffat 37:107]

This verse refers to Ism a‘Il. Both o f the Prophet’s fathers (the
prophet Ism a‘Il and ‘Abdullah bin ‘A bdul-M uttalib) had to live
because the Prophet Hi would be from their offspring. The second
son who was supposed to be sacrificed was ‘Abdullah bin ‘Abdul-
Muttalib, the father o f the Prophet H .

It is said that ‘Abdullah, the Prophet’s father, died in M adlnah

am ong the m aternal uncles o f his father, ‘A bdul-M uttalib, from
BanI ‘Adi bin an-Najjar. The m ost correct statement is that he died
while his wife was still pregnant with the Prophet H - The schol­
ars have m entioned that this was the first test for the Prophet H ,
and he was tested a great deal. His father died while his m other
was pregnant, so he was raised as an orphan. Allah m entioned His
favor upon him in His statement:

Did He not find you (O Muhammad) an orphan

and gave you a refuge?
[Surah ad-Duhd 93:6[

26
 ♦ -/M 6 C p)ea/ / ♦

O R I G I N A L T E X 'f

His m other died when he was four years old, and his grandfather
‘Abdul-M uttalib died when he was eight years old. Some say his
m other died when he was six years old.

EXPLANATIO N

His mother, Aminah bint Wahb, died on her return from Madlnah.
She had taken the Prophet §1 to visit his m aternal uncles from
BanI ‘Adi bin an-Najjar, and when she reached al-Abwa' she
became sick and died. This is the m ost correct statem ent from the
historians.

Abu Hurairah M said:

o , %
jljLs aJ^- 3 ‘P *' P^3 j\j
p J j i' p P p pj
.o jjl jf jj Jjp\
The Prophet % visited his mother’s grave and wept, and those
with him wept. Then he said, “I asked my Lord for permission to
pray for her forgiveness, but He did not grant me permission to
do that, so I asked Him for permission to visit her grave, and He
gave me permission. So visit the graves, for they are a reminder of
death.”13

11 Sahih Muslim 976

27
 THE PROPHET AND HIS TEN C O M PA N IO N S

The Prophet i t was four years old when his m other died, although
some say he was six years old. Picture an orphan child with no
father or mother, yet he was the best o f mankind tH. This shows
that if the orphan seeks the aid and help o f Allah the Exalted,
Allah will support and aid him.

The difficult situation o f orphanhood does not alter the knowl­

edge o f a man or the path o f that man; rather, it will perhaps
be beneficial for him. This is because many children are raised
with the guidance o f two good, caring, m erciful parents who give
them everything they ask for. As for the orphan, he is raised upon
placing his trust in Allah the Exalted. This was the situation o f the
Prophet — he was raised relying upon Allah. For this reason,
it has been authenticated that from the names o f the Prophet ife
is al-M utawakkil (the one who places his trust in Allah). This is
from the hadith o f ‘A bdullah bin ‘Am r bin al-‘As M , collected by
al-Bukhari.14

Some o f the contem porary scholars have m entioned that it was

decreed for him to be orphaned so he would be raised upon
saying, “O Allah.” The child who has a father w ill call out to their
father, saying, “O father,” and the child who has a m other will call
out to their mother, saying, “O mother.” The Prophet 0 did not
have a father or a mother, so he was raised calling out to Allah,
saying, “O Allah, O Allah.” Consequently, he loved to seclude
him self— he would isolate him self and devote him self to worship
for long nights, seeking his Lord.

14 A l-A dab al-M ufrad by Imam al-Bukhari (373)

28
 ♦ • / / fi(^ ra tu / fa / Z eK J (2 $ ea t/ ♦

O RIG IN A L TEXT

His grandfather, ‘A bdul-M uttalib, died when the Prophet was eight
years old. Some say his m other died when he was six years old.

EXPLANATION

W hen his father ‘Abdullah died, he was placed in the trust o f

his grandfather, under the care o f his m other Aminah bint
W ahb— they were both his guardians. The Prophet 0 spent the
first eight years o f his life with his grandfather. His grandfather
had tremendous love for the Prophet 0 , and he would prefer him
over his own children. This is the natural disposition Allah has
placed in man, and no one will know this except the one whom
Allah has granted grandchildren. The one who has grandchil­
dren w ill perhaps love them more than he loves his own children,
especially if the child is weak due to his father’s death. This will
cause [the grandfather] to love him even more. And if his m other
dies, he w ill love him even more.

This perhaps created some jealousy from the uncles o f the Prophet
0 , due to the status he had w ith their father. ‘Abdul-M uttalib had
a seat at the K a’bah and none o f his sons would sit in this area,
but he allowed the Prophet IS to sit there, and he allowed the
Prophet to enter upon him at any time o f day or night. There is an
innate love for the grandchild, and this was m agnified due to the
Prophet t§? being an orphan w ithout a m other or father.

29
 THE PROPHET A N D HIS TEN C O M PA N IO N S

‘Abdul-M uttalib lived for the first eight years o f the Prophet’s life
!§ . Then, at the time o f his death, he entrusted the Prophet’s care
to his paternal uncle Abu Talib, the father o f ‘A li bin A bl Talib M .
Abu Talib was the full brother o f ‘Abdullah, the Prophet’s father.
Thus, he raised him, and they spent more than 40 years o f their
lives together. D espite this, Allah did not decree that Abu Talib
would enter Islam. We ask Allah to make us firm upon the truth.
Verily, Allah does as He wills.

30
 ♦ -J&ii type* S t t W 15♦

O R IG IN A L IFXI

He was breastfed by Thuwaybah, Abu Lahab’s slave girl.

rx n \ \ \ i io n

Abu Lahab was the paternal uncle o f the Prophet H . A bdul-

M uttalib gave him the nicknam e Abu Lahab (Possessor o f the
Flame) because he was white with red, inflam ed cheeks. And
whom ever Allah wants to guide, he guides them as a favor from
Himself, and whom ever He wants to m isguide, He misguides
them, and He is justified in doing so. As the poet said:

. ^--^1 bl LiS”" OLiL* jj£s

Islam elevated Salman the Persian just as disbelief debased Abu

Lahab.

Abu Lahab lived alongside the Prophet HI for over 40 years, but
his arrogance prevented him from entering Islam through the
d a ’wah o f the Prophet i| . Allah sent down verses regarding him:
«■' %^ * of ^^ ^ £ O'*
‘ '' -'X baj <lba <JC. La (J) c lijj I3j Cjjj
(J) L_ilaaJI (J) C-lgJ d llj IjU
|) IxA (J a J ja .

Perish the two hands of Abu Lahab, and perish he!

1:5 Translator’s note: This refers to the women who breastfed the Prophet jpf.

31
 THE PROPHET A N D HIS TEN C O M PA N IO N S

His wealth and his children (etc.) will not benefit

him! He will be burnt in a Fire of blazing flames!
And his wife (as well), the carrier of firewood.
Around her neck is a rope of [twisted] fiber.
[Surah al-M asad 111:1-5]

This religion and this guidance are the exclusive right o f Allah
the Exalted. So the one who is guided does not feel safe [from
misguidance] and the one who is misguided does not despair. The
one who is guided asks Allah for firmness, while the one who is
misguided asks Allah for guidance.

IjL kj V -»$ tuflil ^ cJ®

f O s , s j i « o-
jjf lx ll j i AjI e S-1 u! J

Say: “O My slaves who have transgressed against

themselves (by committing evil deeds and sins)!
Despair not of the mercy of Allah—verily Allah
forgives all sins. Truly, He is Oft-Forgiving, Most
Merciful.”
[Surah az-Zumar 39:53]

If Abu Talib would have said, “N othing has the right to be

worshiped except Allah,” and died upon that, the Prophet 0
would have testified to that. But he refused to say it, and instead
he said he was dying upon the religion o f Abdul-M uttalib.

Thuwaybah, Abu Lahab's slave girl, was the first wet nurse to
breastfeed the Prophet fit.

O RIG IN A L TEXT

Am ong those whom she breastfed with him were Hamzah bin
A bdul-M uttalib16 and Abu Salamah A bdullah bin A bdul-A sad

16 The uncle o f the Prophet

32
 His Wet Nurses

bin al-M akhzum i.1

EXPLANATION

The historians have said she breastfed Hamzah before the Prophet
0 , and Hamzah was two years older than the Prophet 0 . [He
was] Hamzah bin ‘Abdul-M uttalib, the Lion o f Allah, the Lion o f
the M essenger o f Allah l l , the one who was m artyred during the
Battle o f Uhud. Hamzah (the uncle o f the Prophet 0 ) was also
his brother through breastfeeding. For this reason, when he was
offered m arriage to H am zah’s daughter, he refused.

‘Ali said:

llpdij (Jjpj JJJ L* dJt J jA j b c J 5 J li 4ap dJl t'jLc-

<uip dJl dil (JyAj j l i . oj-LS- jdLj cd5 ,-ki-l jll
.ipUdjJl ^ g fr' ^
I said, “O Messenger of Allah, why do you choose wives from
among the Quraysh and not from among us?” He said, “Do
you have anyone in mind?” I said, “Yes, Hamzah's daughter.”
The Messenger of Allah said, “She is not permissible for me (to
marry)— she is the daughter of my brother through breastfeed­
ing.”18

The Prophet 0 and his uncle Hamzah were both breastfed by

Thuwaybah, Abu Lahab's slave girl, so they were brothers through
breastfeeding.

As for Abu Salamah, he was Umm Salam ah’s husband.19 Umm

Salam ah’s daughter was presented to the Prophet |§F for marriage.
Umm Hablbah said:

1 The paternal cousin o f the Prophet %i.

111 Sunan an-N asa'i 3304
19 I'm m Salamah Hind bint Abl Umayyah After her husband Abu Salamah was killed
during the Battle o f L’hud, she married the Prophet S3.

33
 THE PROPHET A N D HIS TEN CO M P A N IO N S

I said, “O Allah’s Messenger! Would you like to have (my sister),

Abu Sufyan’s daughter?” The Prophet 0 said, “What shall I do
(with her)?” I said, “Marry her.” He said, “Would you like that?” I
said, “(Yes), for even now I am not your only wife, so I would like
for my sister to share you with me.” He said, “She is not lawful for
me (to marry).” I said, “We have heard that you want to marry.” He
said, “Umm Salamah's daughter?” I said, “Yes.” He said, “Even
if she were not my stepdaughter, she would be unlawful for me to
marry, for Thuwaybah suckled me and her father (Abu Salamah).
So you should not present your daughters or your sisters to me.”20

Thus, there were two reasons he could not m arry her. One reason
was because she was his stepdaughter, and if a man is intimate
with a woman, he cannot m arry her daughter. The other reason
was because she was the daughter o f his brother through breast­
feeding.

O RIG IN AL II XI

She breastfed both o f them from the milk o f her son Masruh.

tA H AN VI ION

She had breast milk due to the birth o f her son M asruh, so
Masruh was also the brother o f the Prophet tjt through breast­
feeding. And that which is made sacred through lineage is also
made sacred through breastfeeding.

211 Sahih al-Rukhari 5106

34
 His Wet Nurses

What becomes unlawful (for marriage) through breastfeeding is

that which becomes unlawful through lineage.21

O R IG IN A L T EX T

He was also breastfed from Hallmah bint A bl Dhu'ayb as-Sa’di-

yyah.

EX PI AN A I ION

Hallmah as-Sa’diyyah breastfed the Prophet W, and she is very

well known. There are m any narrations concerning her; some are
authentic and some are not.

So how m any w et nurses did the Prophet 0 have? He had two

w et nurses: Thuwaybah (Abu Lahab's slave girl) and Hallmah
as-Sa’diyyah.

21 Sunan an-N asa'i 3302

35
O RIG IN A L TEXT

The Prophet |§f said:

I am Muhammad, I am Ahmad, I am al-Mahi (the Eraser) with

whom Allah erases kufr, I am al-Hashir (the Gatherer) at whose
feet the people will gather, and I am al-‘Aqib (the One Who Comes
Last), after whom there shall be no other prophet.22

EXPLANATION

As for the names o f the Prophet 0 , they are all attributes indica­
tive o f great meanings by which Allah has perfected his character.
Some o f his names are specific to him, and some o f them he
shares with the other prophets. The names specific to him are
M uhamm ad, Ahm ad, al-M ahi (the Eraser), al-‘Aqib (the One
W ho Comes Last), and al-H ashir (the Gatherer). These names are
indicative o f special qualities only he possesses. As for the names
he shares with other prophets, they are: bringer o f glad tidings,
warner, prophet, and messenger.

The names o f the Prophet are not just given names like our
names; rather, they are names that describe him. For example, you
may find a man named K arim (generous) while in reality he is the

22 Sahib M uslim 2354, from the hadith o f Jubayr bin M ut‘im

36
 His Names

stingiest man around. Or his name m ay be Jam il (beautiful) and

he is repulsive, or his name may be Shuja‘ah (bravery) while he is
really a coward. But in regard to the Prophet H , all o f his names
are attributes, and they are indicative o f his perfect character.

There is a difference between the names M uham m ad and Ahm ad,

and both names can be found in the Q ur'an and the Sunnah.

Muhammad is no more than a messenger...

[Surah Ali 'Imran 3:144]

Giving glad tidings of a messenger to come after

me, whose name shall be Ahmad.
[Surah as-Saf61:6]

M uham m ad means “the one who is praised the m ost by the

people.” This name indicates the am ount o f praise for him.
Ahm ad means “the one who praises his Lord m ore than anyone
else.”

Al-M ahi (the Eraser) means “the one w ith whom Allah erases
disbelief.” This name has been affirm ed for him. By way o f him,
Allah erased the disbelief that was practiced by those on earth
before he was sent as a messenger. This disbelief, which was
practiced by the Jew s, Christians, and idol worshipers, was inval­
idated by the Prophet ill.

The name al-H ashir (the Gatherer) means “the one at whose feet
the people w ill gather.” One explanation for this is that he was
sent close to the Day o f Judgm ent. Another explanation is that
he w ill lead the people to the place o f gathering on the Day o f
Judgm ent.

37
 THE PROPHET AND HIS TEN CO M PAN IO N S

He said, “I am al-‘Aqib (the One W ho Comes Last).” This means

there is no prophet com ing after him.

O RIG IN A L TEXT

Abu Musa A bdullah bin Qays said:

The Messenger of Allah f|? used to mention many of his names to

us. He said, “I am Muhammad, Ahmad, al-Muqaffi (the Last in
Succession), al-Hashir (the Gatherer), the Prophet of Repentance,
and the Prophet of Mercy.23

I A PI \ \ A HON'

Al-Muqaffi (the Last in Succession) is the one who follows the

path o f the prophets before him. Allah the Exalted said:

Muhammad is no more than a messenger, and

indeed (many) messengers have passed away
before him.
[Surah AH 'Imran 3:144]

And Allah the Exalted said:

Say: “I am not something new among the messen­

gers...”
[Surah al-A hqdf 46:9]

The Prophet came after the prophet before him, and he called
to the same thing [the previous prophets] called to.

23 Sahih Muslim 2355

38
 His Names

He said, “ ...th e Prophet o f Repentance.” There are three reasons

he is called the Prophet o f Repentance:

• The first reason is that Allah accepted the repentance o f

the inhabitants o f the earth when He sent the Prophet i§|. This is
after He had been angry with them, the Arabs and the non-Arabs.

• The second reason is that A llah opened the door o f repen­

tance for those who follow the Prophet |H, regardless o f the sins
they committed. And the Jew s, Christians, and pagans who believe
in the Prophet 0 and enter Islam w ill have their previous sins
forgiven.

• The third reason is that repentance for this um m ah is easy,

unlike the previous nations— repentance for the previous nations
was difficult. W hen the Children o f Israel took the golden calf as
an object o f worship, they were com m anded to kill the w rongdo­
ers as repentance.

And (remember) when Musa said to his people, “O

my people! Verily, you have wronged yourselves by
worshiping the calf. So turn in repentance to your
Creator and kill yourselves (the innocent kill the
wrongdoers among you); that will be better for you
with your Lord.” Then He accepted your repen-
tance.
[Surah al-Baqarah 2:54]

They would line up in ranks, and the second rank would be

ordered to execute the first rank, and the third rank would execute
the second rank, and so on. Repentance in the previous legisla­
tions was extrem ely difficult, but it is easy in the legislation given
to the Prophet.

39
 THE PROPHET A N D HIS TEN C O M PA N IO N S

%, 0 j a ^ ' *
jA ajI i ^311 u ! s

4
Say: “O My slaves who have transgressed against
themselves (by committing evil deeds and sins)!
Despair not of the mercy of Allah, verily Allah
forgives all sins. Truly, He is Oft-Forgiving, Most
Merciful.”
[Surah az-Zumar 39:53]

In this ummah, repentance consists o f regretting the sin, stopping

the sin, and having a strong resolve to never return to it. The door
o f repentance is open until the sun rises from the west.

Allah, the Exalted and Glorious, stretches out His Hand during
the night so the people may repent for the faults committed from
dawn till dusk, and He stretches out His Hand during the day
so the people may repent for the faults committed from dusk to
dawn. This will continue until the sun rises from the west.24

It has also been said that he is called the Prophet o f Repentance

because he com manded his ummah to repent. The M essenger o f
A llah itt said:

O people, turn in repentance to Allah and beg pardon of Him. I

turn to Him in repentance 100 times a day.25

Ibn ‘Um ar M said:

24 Sahih Aluslim 2759

23 Sahih M uslim 2702

40
 His Names

“uIp dJi ^ ~ ^ JtJ

<-j\yi\ c J l dJd (_sip t - J j yip'

We used to count the Messenger of Allah 0 saying 100 times in

one sitting, “O my Lord forgive me, and accept my repentance.
Indeed, You are the Oft-Returning with compassion, and Ever
Merciful.”26

Consequently, he is called the Prophet o f Repentance. Allah

forgave his past and future sins, but he would still seek A llah’s
forgiveness more than 100 times a day. So how about the lam enta­
ble people like us? We ask Allah to pardon and forgive us.

He said, “...the Prophet o f Mercy,” because Allah the Exalted sent

him as a m ercy for the people. Allah the Exalted said:

(JyLalliii] VJ dlluLiijI tiaj

And We have not sent you, [O Muhammad], except

as a mercy to all of creation.
[Surah al-Anbiya' 21:107]

And Allah the Exalted said:

And by the mercy of Allah, you dealt with them

gently.

O people, I am but a bestowed mercy.27

26 Sunan A b i Daw/id and J d m i' at-Tirmidhi

r Sahih a!-]am i' bv Shaykh al-Albani (2345)

41
 THE PROPHET A N D HIS TEN CO M PAN IO N S

This is a m ercy for all the creation. Likewise, the Prophet was
kind and gende with the believers, as Allah the Exalted said:

tV'r- bo Abie,^ *“fll' iSf l!jA 3 ^

Verily, there has come unto you a messenger

(Muhammad) from amongst yourselves. It grieves
him that you should receive any injury or difficulty.
He (Muhammad) is anxious over you. He is full of
pity for the believers, kind and merciful.
[Surah at-Taivbah 9:128]

The Prophet |§ was m erciful to all people— Arabs and non-Ar­

abs, M uslims and non-M uslim s— so he was called the Prophet o f
Mercy.

O RIG IN A L TEXT

In another narration he said:

Jl

...and the Prophet of Battle

EXPLANATION

He is called the Prophet o f Battle because he 0 encountered his

enemies in a way m any o f the previous prophets did not. The
enemies o f the Prophet tH w ent from M akkah to M adlnah and
amassed a force to battle with him. Thus he fought against his
enemies in a way the previous prophets did not, and his ummah
went to battle in a way the previous nations did not. And the
M uslims w ill continue to battle their enemies from the disbeliev­
ers until the Day o f Judgm ent. Therefore, the Prophet i t is called
the Prophet o f Battle, and the good ending is for the Prophet i t
and his ummah.

42
 His Names

If you want honor and strength in this world and the next, it is
upon you to follow the steps o f the Prophet %i. As for innovation
and deviance, partisanship and groups, then by Allah I swear these
will weaken the ummah. An analogy to this is a man who is protect­
ing his house from his enemies. Then one o f his sons removes the
door, another son removes the window, the third son removes the
wall, and this continues until there is no structure or protection
left. This is the condition o f Islam today— each person makes a
hole, and the Sunnah plugs the holes.

OKIG IN AL TEXT

The M essenger o f Allah US said:

tilj \j \j tit) til

o *5) -L»_>«Jl ilyJ jlS ' 015” I5L* aj ilJl (_5-dl

I am Ahmad, I am Muhammad, I am al-Hashir (the Gatherer)

at whose feet the people will gather, I am al-Mahi (the Eraser)
with whom Allah erases kuj'r. On the Day of Judgment, the Flag
of Praise will be with me and I will be the imam of the messengers,
and the one who intercedes for them.28

EXPLANATION

He is the imam o f the m essengers and the one granted interces­

sion. These are some things specific to him. This narration from
Jabir has some weakness in its chain, but everything m entioned in
the narration has been affirm ed for the Prophet !§i in m any other
authentic ahadith. The Prophet 0 w ill be given the Flag o f Praise
in his hand, and all o f the creation o f Allah the Exalted w ill be
behind him. This is to honor the Prophet Hf. Adam and every­
one else w ill be beneath his flag on the Day o f Judgm ent. This is
specific for our Prophet M uham m ad i§f. He w ill be the imam o f

From the hadith o f Jabir bin ‘Abdullah

43
 THE PROPHET A N D HIS TEN C O M PA N IO N S

the m essengers and their khatib on the Day o f Judgm ent, and the
one they put forward. He will have the greatest intercession and
the station o f praise. He will be praised by the first and last o f
mankind.

jy ; ^ J g ■Ja.•' b>ES"" lit

o/b j^-jli $a$- aju jfjj 14J i j j iyui 3^ J\ US
Oyib bbt l y^‘ ^ 3 bgJ (JjaCj j
dj) j yj bj ajl«_ES^ aUI ‘'jy* f^-1 «*•>' iJj'A:1*
14J di (Jjil* ^j^Li bp tb-^5 (ibdp o ^ 3 14J c~Li
. *y l^j o-LCi-l X»L>t-« ^4-gJuJ ^jl OajEj J p ^jEp jil£E-E»

dJ-blj b Jj- 2bj lA>-LA JJ ddbj o-CC?-Ei

E«a. ^llail Jyiibi 1^“*^ lS~^ b j b Jy^Ei Ja*j i3]-E*iJ dJ-1
ddlij oAA-^-b .Sypl ^JjbsEs ^yilajli obCj (JEaE* aJ j DES*- jy®
ddl ^»_LJ ^ 3 >
—bblj -CL>«-i b JEaEj lJC>-Lb: aJ y>-l jjj X.E^Jl
jES"" JyJ E$A« ^-y?-E* ,3^11 cJyAE* b j ^ (JyiEi jk-A-io Ja*j
sAAj >-U jypl jji ^JjbiEs jjliaJli a^-^>-E* jbbjl Jy® aJ3J>- yl Sji (JEaI® aJ j
dJJ £A_Lj Jiy JJ-brtJ b J^ aEj l_b>-Lb a) jib -L«E>«aJI dJLbo
. £jL-L.~ ^aAiIj Ja*j (3j-E“3

When the Day of Resurrection comes, the people will surge with
each other like waves. They will come to Adam and say, “Intercede
for us with your Lord.” He will say, “I am not fit for that. Go to
Ibrahim, for he is the close friend of the Most Merciful.” So they
will go to Ibrahim, but he will say, “I am not fit for that. Go to
Musa, for Allah spoke to him directly.” So they will go to Musa,
but he will say, “I am not fit for that. Go to ‘Isa, for he is a soul
created by Allah and His Word.” So they will go to ‘Isa, but he
will say, “I am not fit for that. Go to Muhammad Ife.” So they will
come to me and I will say, “I am fit for that.” Then I will ask my
Lord for permission and He will give me permission, and He will
inspire me with words that I will praise Him with, words I do not
know now.

44
 His Names

So I will praise Him with those words and I will fall down prostrate
before Him. He will say, “O Muhammad, raise your head. Speak
and intercession will be granted to you, ask and you will be given,
intercede and your intercession will be accepted.” I will say, “O
Lord, my ummah, my ummahV’ He will say, “Go and bring forth every­
one in whose heart there is faith the weight of a barley grain.” So
I will go and do that. Then I will come back and praise Him with
those words of praise, and I will fall prostrate before Him. He will
say, “O Muhammad, raise your head. Speak and intercession will
be granted to you, ask and you will be given, intercede and your
intercession will be accepted.”29

Likewise, the Prophet ill w ill intercede for the inhabitants o f

Paradise to enter it.

^ lAjc-la. Ijl

And those who kept their duty to their Lord will be

led to Paradise in groups, till, when they reach it...
[Surah az-Zumar 39:73]

The Prophet Hf said:

Ls d -L

. l i t i s tH £ 3f H t y \ vib jjid s

I will come to the gate of Paradise on the Day of Resurrection and

seek its opening. The gatekeeper will say, “Who are you?” I will
say, “Muhammad.” He will then say, “It is for you. I have been
ordered not to open the door for anyone before you.”30

Thus, the Prophet ilf w ill be the first to enter Paradise, and then
the prophets and m essengers w ill enter. A fter them, the best o f
this ummah will enter, the first o f them being Abu Bakr M , then
the 10 Com panions prom ised Paradise, and then the rest o f this

29 Sahib al-Bukhari 7510

30 Sahih M uslim 197

45
 THE PROPHET A N D HIS TEN C O M PA N IO N S

ummah. The Prophet i l has [a type of] intercession specific to him,

and he has [a type of] intercession he shares with the other proph­
ets and righteous people.

O R IG IN A L TEX I

Allah the Exalted has given him various names in His great Book.

He called him:

4 4 j 4 4
...a bringer of glad tidings and a warner.31
[Surah al-Bacjarah 2:119]

He called him:

4 ^ 0 4 j 4 & 4
...kind and merciful.32
[Surah at-Tawbah 9:128[

He called him:

4 (jAollill a ^

...a mercy to all that exists.33

[Surah al-Anbiya' 21:107]

11 Indeed, We have sent you, (O Muhammad), with the truth as a bringer o f glad tidings
and a warner. [Surah al-Baqarah 2:1191
Verily, there has come unto you a messenger from amongst yourselves. It grieves him
that you should receive any injury or difficulty. He is anxious over you, for the believers he is
full o f pity, kind and merciful. Surah at-Tawbah 9:1281
11 And We have sent vou (O Muhammad) not but as a m erer for all that exists. [Surah
al-Anbiya' 21:107]

46
O R IG IN A L TEXT

The M essenger o f Allah i§f was raised as an orphan in the care

o f his grandfather ‘Abdul-Muttalib. A fter his grandfather’s death,
he was raised by his uncle, Abu Talib bin ‘Abdul-Muttalib. Allah
the Exalted purified the Prophet from the filth o f pre-Islam ic
ignorance and from every defect. He favored him with noble
character, such that he was known am ongst his people as trust­
worthy and they bore witness to his trustworthiness, morality',
truthful speech, and purity.

EXPLANATION

The upbringing o f the Prophet ;§§ was pure, free from physical or
ideological defects. Rather, in his essence, he was unsullied from
these defects. As for the statem ent o f Allah the Exalted:

C s'^ Y L j a

And He found you unaware and guided you?

[Siirah ad-Duha 93:7]

This verse and similar verses mean that he did not know how to
worship his Lord. As our Lord says:

^ ( j L a L a c i L p j ' A La
You did not know what the Book or faith is.
[Surah ash-Shura 42:52]

47
 THE PROPHET A N D HIS TEN C O M PA N IO N S

He did not know the Qur'an, the branches o f faith, %akah, fasting,
or Hajj. The worship o f the Prophet I t was to isolate him self
and ponder for long nights. His natural disposition was sound.
How could this not be the case when Allah had Jibril tear open his
chest?!

CAjdl <uLi ^ p 4PjX^3 o*D-li of^Td! l .A.b *u1p

^j A .AE® Qllfl*.*.!! J t I A a <cdp
— jg«Ao jU liJl f-LS-j ^ oSIp I jjj diSl jJJ ttiC ^.Jso
JgA <Jb . OJill 3A3 •d)”'* ^-CL5c» 0! IgiLaj —ojPtls A
0 0 ^ c t >
.oj-O ^ Jal>«-A' AUi y ' c£j -^3

Anas bin Malik reported that Jibril came to the Messenger of

Allah % while he was playing with his playmates. Jibril took hold
of him, laid him prostrate on the ground, tore open his chest,
took out his heart, and extracted a blood clot from it. Then he
said, “That was the part of the Shaytan in you.” Then he washed
it with Zamzam water in a golden basin, then it was put back
together and restored to its place. The boys came running to his
mother (his nursemaid), and said, “Verily, Muhammad has been
murdered!” They all rushed toward him and found his color had
changed. Anas said, “I myself saw the marks of a needle on his
chest.”34

Allah the Exalted purified our Prophet US from the beliefs,

manners, and customs o f the pre-Islam ic Days o f Ignorance,
including their m anners o f eating, drinking, and clothing. He did
not attend their clubs, and he did not eat from the meat sacri­
ficed on their pagan altars. If the Prophet 0 had participated in
anything from the affairs o f pre-Islam ic ignorance, they would
have used it as a reason to reject his d a ’wah. They would have said,
“You used to worship and sacrifice to al-Lat, al-‘Uzza, and M anat
with us.” Or they would have said, “You used to drink intoxicants

,4 Sahih Muslim 162

48
 His Upbringing in Makkah

and sing w ith us.” But Allah protected the Prophet 0 from all the
affairs o f the pre-Islam ic Days o f Ignorance.

The Prophet 0 was w ell known for being reliable and trust­
w orthy due to his truthfulness and him fulfilling his commitments.
This was to the extent that the disbelievers o f M akkah trusted
the Prophet 0 with their wealth, even though there was religious
anim osity between them, because they knew it was not possible
for him to betray his trust. For this reason, when revelation came
to the Prophet 0 and he w ent to his wife K hadljah— after 15
years o f m arriage— she knew he was speaking the truth. She said:

No, for by Allah, Allah will never disgrace you. You uphold the
ties of kinship, speak truthfully, help the poor and destitute, serve
your guests generously, and assist those stricken by calamity.35

W ith these noble characteristics, it would never be possible for the

Shaytan to descend upon him.

55 Sahih al-Bukbari 3

49
 ♦ d/ M d ? 7 r a o e tlo ( p tf/ id m ic t t / -h / df yf / / to / o ♦

O RIG IN A L 1 I \ I

W hen he was 12 years old, he traveled with his uncle Abu Talib to
Sham until they reached Busra. W hen he arrived there, Bahlra the
monk saw him and recognized his descriptions.

EXPLANATION

He was a monk, meaning a worshiper from the Christians. The

monks are those who isolate themselves from the people to
worship, and this is an innovation o f theirs. Islam does not contain
monks. Islam entails following the Prophet 0 .

The monk recognized him by his attributes because the previous

books were sent with the attributes o f the Prophet Ht. Each book
that was sent down contained his attributes, especially the later
books like the Tawrah and Injll. The previous books contained
not only the attributes o f the Prophet iH, but also the attributes
o f his Com panions and the ummah. As our Lord the Exalted said:

L>*
} Jj. i ^ ^ ^
tix lA f 3^ jy j
hU~u°>'la a jjls olki>u ^ 3 ^ (Jj~>vy' z
jlaSJl h jijl

Muhammad is the Messenger of Allah, and those

who are with him are severe against disbelievers

50
 His Travel to Sham with His Uncle

and merciful among themselves. You see them

bowing and falling prostrate (in prayer), seeking
bounty from Allah and (His) good pleasure. Their
mark is on their faces from the traces of (their)
prostration. This is their description in the Tawrah.
But their description in the Injil is like a (sown)
seed that sends forth its shoot, then makes it
strong; it then becomes thick and stands straight
on its stem, delighting the sowers that He may
enrage the disbelievers with them.
[Surah al-Fath 48:29]

O K I G I W I. I ! XI

[Bahira] approached him, took his hand, and said, “This is the
leader o f mankind, the M essenger o f the Lord o f all that exists;
he has been sent as a m ercy for all that exists.”

LXPl AN \ I ION

[Bahlra] recognized his attributes when he was young because the

Prophet iH was given a noble upbringing, and Allah protected him
from the Shaytan and his enemies so he could convey the message.
As our Lord the Exalted said:

Allah will protect you from mankind.

[Surah al-Md'idah 5:67]

The Jew ish and Christian scholars knew the appearance o f the
Prophet IS was near. W hen Bahlra the m onk saw the signs upon
him, he knew he was the final prophet to come. There are many
stories about Bahlra, some authentic and some not.

O RIG IN A L TEXT

It was said to him, “How do you know that?” [Bahlra] said,

51
 THE PROPHET A N D HIS TEN C O M PA N IO N S

“W hen you came through the ‘Aqabah m ountain pass, there was
no tree or stone except that it prostrated, and they only prostrate
for the prophets. And we find him m entioned in our books.” So
he convinced Abu Talib to return him (back to M akkah), fearing
for him the harm o f the Jews.

EXPLANATION

From the attributes o f the Prophet |Sf is that the stones and rocks
would prostrate to him, and it has been authenticated that the
rocks would give him salam before he becam e a prophet. He said:

.os'i j ; A xi jl 'L i j i f iL l, ji

Verily I know a rock in Makkah that used to give me salam before I

was sent as a prophet; verily, I know that rock now.36

From the miracles o f the Prophet is the incident o f the two

trees concealing him. Jab ir M said:

i u j j l i d>-L>- l_s-iaAj die- ill I dJl JjA ) CJfcji bolj IDJj

y. j»k* dyAj jh A ^b* sj^ib
dl' dJl J l i b
ob bsjli dJl j i b *1p ^ jb £ l JUb jd a ii Ji>-U bliliU-l
^ y t ^ /■ y £ '
-b>-1* ^I>- edjli Ajbjd (_£-ill ^*1)15" lib
li) dJJAS" lib o ib a jli dJl j i b *ip j i b LgJUaj^t ^ A «.
b«qdl j i b bo^ki>- bb4-bb Ii-g-A.1 li~* vJws^bJb jl5"
dll dll J jA j j l dlAb Jjb -I d b -y k i j)S - j l i liililli dJl
^ - jsj j i > l cu-d>*J jd p .xibb Jli_j A*2jj dip
jliybJLll litj a y jjljJ adb IDl LSlb dJl JjA jj dl liU dal cJlb d
oA>-lj j i ”" o b lb Ibybl j i

36 Sahib Muslim 2277

52
 His Travel to Sham with His Uncle

We stopped in a fragrant valley, and the Messenger of Allah %

wanted to answer the call of nature. I followed him, bringing a
botde of water, but he could not find anywhere to conceal himself.
There were two trees at the edge of the valley, so the Messenger of
Allah went to one of them, took hold of one of its branches, and
said, “Follow me, by the permission of Allah.” So it followed him
like a camel being led by a rope, until he came to the other tree.
He took one of the other tree’s branches and said, “Follow me, by
the permission of Allah.” So it followed him until he reached the
halfway point between them, then he put them together and said,
“Stay together and cover me, by the permission of Allah.” So they
stayed together.
I [Jabir] kept away, fearing that the Messenger of Allah % might
feel my presence and move even further away. So I sat down, think­
ing to myself, and when I turned around I saw the Messenger of
Allah % coming towards me, and the two trees had separated and
returned to their former positions.37

And [also there is] the tree that cried because o f him. Jab ir M said:

C-JLaJ ii>«J Jl VfmJ* SjciJUJl fjAJ J15" Hil bM

\jLsJ j&A D] J l i IJA* J j j *yt A I* y r j 3' jU^Sf! Zj A
I k ! 31 J\ I 11b a

ju (jjj\ j J i g 4\ (i* i 4 * J ^ lJ 4 3 ? p
.Ia Jup c-jlS"Li c-oLS*

The Prophet # used to stand next to a tree (or a palm tree) on

Fridays. An Ansari woman or man said, “O Messenger of Allah,
should we not make for you a minbar (pulpit)?” He said, “If you
wish.” So they made a minbar for him, and when the next Friday
came, he was shown to the minbar. The tree cried like a small child,
so the Prophet % came down [from the minbar] and hugged the
crying tree until it calmed down.” It was crying because of the
dhikr (remembrance of Allah) that it used to hear.38

r Sahih M uslim 5328

18 Sahih al-buk hari 3319

53
 THE PROPHET A N D HIS TEN C O M PA N IO N S

His uncle Abu Talib did not take him into Sham, he only took
him to the southern region. This was because he feared for the
Prophet’s life due to the envy o f the Jew s, and the Jew s are the
killers o f the prophets. Each time a prophet came who opposed
their desires, they would kill him.

y* A (jl jj-a <111 s-tAil tjjh a i -As (Js

Say: “Why then have you killed the prophets

of Allah aforetime, if you indeed have been
believers?”
[Surah al-Baqarah 2:91]

^ s

Some you disbelieved in, and some you killed.

[Surah al-Baqarah 2:87]

Thus, he feared that the Prophet 0 would be killed.

54
ORIGINAL TEXT

Then he went to Sham a second time with M aysarah, the servant

o f Khadljah in order to do business for Khadljah. This was
before he m arried her. W hen he reached the Busra m arket, he sold
his merchandise. He m arried K hadljah when he was 25 years old.

EXPLANATION

The Prophet H went to Sham another time. This time he went

for a business venture, and he had a partnership with Khadljah
He went with her servant M aysarah. Upon M aysarah’s return, he
inform ed Khadljah about the com plete m anners o f the Prophet
US. Traveling is the best time to know a person’s character, and
this is w hy it is called such— the word “safar” (yU- - travel) means
to unveil, because it unveils a person’s character. Thus M aysarah
narrated the story o f his travel w ith the Prophet tH and the
am azing character and nobility he saw from him. This was despite
the Prophet being a young m an at this time.

So this virtuous, noble wom an (Khadljah) had her guardian send

an offer to the Prophet for him to seek her hand in marriage.
Thus the Prophet i l proposed to her through her guardian. This
shows the com pleteness o f her intellect and guidance Allah
was pleased with her and He chose her to aid the Prophet lit in
the beginning o f his d a ’wah. And it occurred as Allah willed, as
Allah made the Prophet H firm through this intelligent woman.

55
 THE PROPHET A N D HIS TEN CO M PAN IO N S

W hen Jibril descended the first time, he squeezed the Prophet

three times and said to him, “Read.” The Prophet 0 returned,
afraid, to his intelligent wife Khadljah 8^, and Allah made him
firm through her. She said:

tijtji dJi k* aUij y s '

No, for by Allah, Allah will never disgrace you. You uphold the
ties of kinship, speak truthfully, help the poor and destitute, serve
your guests generously, and assist those stricken by calamity.39

Then Khadljah took him to someone who had knowledge o f

these matters, W araqah bin Nawfal, and Allah made him firm
through what W araqah said to him.

This illustrates to us the virtue o f the intelligent woman, and it

explains to us the statement o f the Prophet US:

.■fildj g/ o ld j Jjilalj

Seek the one who is religiously committed, may your hands be

rubbed with dust (i.e., may you prosper).40

The religiously-com m itted wom an w ill assist you in keeping the

ties o f kinship, being kind to the parents, and raising the children.
Thus, you w ill obtain happiness in this life and the next. Seek the
one who is religiously com mitted, may your hands be rubbed with
dust. As for this righteous wom an, the M other o f the Believers,
there are am azing narrations concerning her status. A bu Hurairah
ssH narrated:

c-ol Ai sAa dJl 3 k Jbs-® <ulp dJl

^ 1£1pjplid iil ^ ISU ,L > \^ jl ju k jl pisi £bj [&

39 Sahih al-Bukhari 3
40 Sahih al-Bukhari 4802; Sahih Muslim 1466

56
 His M arriage to Khadijah

,C ^ S a > Vj <ui Si a s c-Ao ti=s~4-?

Jibril came to the Prophet f t and said, “O Messenger of Allah,
this is Khadijah coming to you with a dish of meat soup (or some
food or drink). When she reaches you, give her salam on behalf of
her Lord (Allah) and on my behalf, and give her the glad tidings
of having a palace in Paradise wherein there will be no noise or
fatigue (trouble).”41

From above the seven heavens, Allah the Blessed and Exalted sent
Jibril to convey the salam to this blessed wom an and to give her
glad ddings o f a house in Paradise made o f gold. This is an honor
for her as a reward for her faith and for aiding the Prophet f t with
her wealth and herself 0 .

W hen the Prophet f t was 25 years old, he m arried Khadijah ^t,

and she was 40 years old, according to the m ost correct opinion.
His m arriage to her illustrates the com pleteness o f his intellect
even before he becam e a prophet, as his intellect overcame his
emotions. Emotions would lead the young man to m arry a young
virgin, but Allah perfected the Prophet’s intelligence f t , so he
chose this wom an who was well known for her chastity and purity
even before Islam. She had been m arried twice previously, and she
was 15 years older than the Prophet f t .

Khadijah ^ was also from the Quraysh. Her lineage connects to

the lineage o f the Prophet f t at Qusayy bin Kilab. The Prophet
f t used to honor Khadijah, and he did not take another wife undl
she died. After she died, he would show kindness to her friends
by slaughtering animals and sending the m eat to them. He would
mention her so much that our m other ‘A'ishah was jealous o f her,
even though she had died. M ay Allah be pleased with all o f them.

41 Sahih al-Hukhdri 3820

57
 ♦ '■ J/ Jte ^ M e^ in n in ijf cf^ V eite/ a tio n ♦

O RIG IN A L TLX I

W hen he was 40 years old, Allah chose him with His honor and
com missioned him as a prophet. Jib ril came to him while he
was in the Cave o f Hira', a m ountain in Makkah. The Prophet
rem ained in Makkah for 13 years. It has also been said that he
remained there for 15 years, and others say 10 years; but the first
view (13 years) is the m ost correct. He used to pray in the direc­
tion o f Bayt al-M aqdis (in Jerusalem ) while he was in Makkah. He
never turned his back to the K a’bah; rather, he would stand so the
K a’bah was in front o f him. He also prayed toward Bayt al-M a­
qdis for 16 or 17 months after he arrived in Madlnah.

I XI ' ! W A S I O N

The age o f 40 is the com pletion o f manhood, full strength,

character, and intellect. As Allah the Exalted said:

...till when he attains full strength and reaches 40

years...
[Surah al-A hqaf 46:15]

M any o f the scholars have m entioned that all the prophets

received revelation upon reaching 40. The revelation began for the
Prophet W by him seeing truthful dreams for the first six months.
Each time he had a dream, it would occur [in reality] just as he had
dream t it.

58
 The Beginning o f Revelation

A righteous dream is one of 46 parts of prophecy.42

He received revelation for 23 years, and he first saw truthful

dreams for six months. Since truthful dreams are a part o f revela­
tion, they are included in the total tim espan he received revelation.
All o f this was to prepare the Prophet H so he would not be
surprised when he saw the angel for the first time. Jib ril came to
the Prophet 0 while he was worshiping. As we m entioned, Allah
perfected his intellect just as he perfected his physical appearance,
and from the com pletion o f his intellect was that he hated to go
near where the pagans worshiped idols. Thus, A llah made isolation
beloved to the Prophet Ilf. He would go out to isolate him self for
perhaps an entire month.

His worship was reflection and pondering. He was naturally

inclined to knowing he has a Creator, a King, One who controls
the affairs o f the universe, One who deserves to be worshiped
alone w ithout partners. Ju st as the Creator had created the
universe alone w ithout partners, provides for the creation alone
without partners, and arranges the affairs o f the universe alone
w ithout partners, He also deserves to be worshiped alone without
partners.

But the Prophet did not know about the Book or iman. He did
not know how to worship Allah the Exalted. For this reason, he
loved to worship Allah alone. Thus, he would stay up late ponder­
ing, and he would do this for weeks at a time. Before leaving for
worship, he would perform taw af around the K a’bah, and upon
returning, he would perform taw af around the K a’bah and then go
to his family.

Once while he was in the cave, Jibril came to him in the im age o f

42 Sahih al-Bukhari 6989

59
 THE PROPHET A N D HIS TEN C O M PA N IO N S

a man. The Prophet i t raised his head, and there was a m an (i.e.,
Jibrll in the form o f a man) in front o f him. Jibrll squeezed him
tighdy, and Allah has described Jibrll as very strong. He squeezed
the Prophet i§t three times, each time saying to him, “Read.” The
Prophet responded by saying, “I cannot read.” The last time, Jibrll
said to him:
£ o
0 (jic. (ja j l i i y\ 0 fZ l? j)al ^
jUajVI 0 -1c. 0 jjal

i 0
Read! In the name of your Lord, Who has created
(all that exists); He created man from a clot (a
piece of thick coagulated blood). Read! And your
Lord is the Most Generous, He is the One who
taught by the pen; He taught man that which he
knew not.
[Surah al-'Alaq 96:1-5]

These were the first verses sent down upon the Prophet i§t. Then
he went to his wife Khadljah ^ and said, “Cover me, cover me.”

He rem ained in Makkah for 13 years, and it has also been said that
he rem ained there for 10 or 15 years.

Is it correct for someone to go to the Cave o f Hira' now to sit and

worship, or is this not prescribed? This would only be prescribed
if there was a prophet com ing after Prophet M uhamm ad
itt— m eaning, if you think you are the next prophet and that
Jibrll w ill come to you with revelation. But Jib rll w ill not come
again (and there is no prophet after M uham m ad 0 ) , so going to
the Cave o f Hira' is not perm issible. It is not perm issible for the
people perform ing Hajj or other visitors to visit the Cave o f Hira'.

A fter Jib rll came to the Prophet in the cave, he never returned
there. The Prophet was searching for how to worship Allah

60
 The Beginning o f Revelation

and Allah showed him how and sent the Qur'an down upon
him. So after this, he had no need for isolation, and it has not
been documented that the Prophet Hf or any o f his 120,000
Com panions ever went to this cave afterwards. All good lies in
following the Prophet 0 , and there is no good in an action that
has not been done by the Prophet 0 .

As for his duration in M akkah, he stayed 13 years, according to the

m ost correct opinion o f the scholars. O nly one branch o f faith
was sent down to him before the m igration, and this was “nothing
has the right to be worshiped except Allah.” Then he was taken to
the heavens and the five daily prayers were made an obligation. In
the beginning, he faced the Holy House in Jerusalem — he would
face Bayt al-M aqdis during the prayer w ithout putting his back
towards the K a’bah.

W hen he prayed, he would face north. This is to stand between

the corner holding the black stone and the Yemeni corner. He
faced north because Bayt al-M aqdis is north o f Makkah. So he
would place the K a’bah between him self and Bayt al-Maqdis. This
was the action o f the Prophet 0 w hen the direction o f prayer was
towards Bayt al-Maqdis. But as for now — and all praises belong to
Allah— the M uslims face the K a’bah for prayer.

He also prayed towards Jerusalem for 16 or 17 months after he

migrated to Madlnah. This was until Allah changed the direction
o f prayer. O ur Lord said:

So turn your face in the direction of al-Masjid

al-Haram (in Makkah).
[Surah al-Baqarah 2:144]

This occurred during the m onth o f Rajab, 16 or 17 months after

the m igration o f the Prophet 0 . After this day, all the Muslims
faced the direction o f the K a’bah.

61
 ♦ S & fi S M t o j f m t t o n t o S M a d in a / ♦

ork; i\ \i irxi
Then he m igrated to M adlnah with Abu Bakr as-Siddlq iH and
Abu Bakr’s freed slave, ‘Am ir bin Fuhayrah. T hey were shown
the way by ‘A bdullah bin al-Urayqat al-Laythi while he was a
disbeliever, and it is not known that he ever accepted Islam. The
Prophet rem ained in M adlnah for 10 years.

EXPLANATION

A fter the Prophet Hf spent 13 years in M akkah, Allah perm itted

him to m igrate to Madlnah. This was a blessed trip, the likes o f
which the world has not otherwise seen. Allah altered the course
o f history with this m igration and removed the people from the
many forms o f darkness to the light. This m igration resulted in
the blessed A nsar 0 ., who assisted him even before he migrated.
The Prophet 0 would present him self to the tribes during the
Hajj season and say:

Is there no man who will take me to my people? For surely the

Quraysh have prevented me from conveying my Lord’s speech.43

Thus Allah the Exalted honored the A nsar and they accepted the
Prophet’s m igration to them. They made a covenant with him to
protect him as they protected themselves and their children, and

43 Ja m i' at-Tirmidhi 2925

62
 His Migration to Madlnah

they presented their wealth to him. Therefore, Allah perm itted

the Prophet ill to migrate. He inform ed his Com panions o f this
and perm itted them to leave, so m ost o f the Com panions went
to M adlnah before the Prophet 0 . Abu Bakr 0 sought perm is­
sion to m igrate, but the Prophet 0 did not give it to him. It is as
though he wanted to honor Abu Bakr by his com panionship, as
they would migrate together. Allah the Exalted said:

Ij A^l Qj*A i -iflS ojjjdajj VI

<111 (jl V l ! j 5j LI jla d l Lai LI ( jlljl
# l±*-o

If you do not aid [the Prophet], Allah has already

aided him when those who disbelieved had driven
him out [of Makkah] as one of two, when they
were in the cave and he said to his companion,
“Do not grieve; indeed, Allah is with us.”
[Surah at-Taivbah 9:40]

From A llah’s aid for the Prophet IS? was sending Abu Bakr as
his com panion on the journey. The second aid was Allah being
with them, and in relation to Allah being w ith His slaves, there
are three categories: general, specific, and exclusive. "Indeed A llah is
with u s ”— This was an honor and virtue for Abu Bakr i i i, as Allah
first described him as a com panion for the Prophet i S and then
Allah clarified His exclusive m anner o f being with him.

Abu Bakr’s freed slave, ‘A m ir bin Fuhayrah j§g, was w ith them
on this blessed journey. The m an guiding them on the journey
was ‘A bdullah bin al-Urayqat al-Laythi, a disbeliever. I attempted
to research the history o f this m an to see if he [ever] entered
Islam, and I found that some historians m ention him becom ing a
M uslim after this journey, but I did not find anything firm on the
matter, and Allah knows best. But during this journey he was not
a M uslim; rather, he was hired while he was a disbeliever. This is

63
 THE PROPHET A N D HIS TEN CO M PAN IO N S

proof that it is perm issible to hire the disbelievers and conduct

trade with them. Hiring the disbelievers and participating with
them in trade is not considered befriending, loving, or flattering
them. Interacting with them in this m anner has worldly benefits.

The people o f M adlnah rejoiced at the Prophet’s arrival tH, as

Allah had honored their city with his arrival, his residence in their
city, and the spread o f this blessed religion. From the virtue and
blessings o f this m igration is that the Com panions M made this
the beginning o f the Islamic calendar. W hen the Com panions M
established the Islamic state during the days o f ‘U m ar M , they
needed to mark the dates, and before that the dates were only by
m oon sightings. They had four different opinions: some o f them
said they should start the calendar with the Prophet’s birth, some
said it should start with the beginning o f revelation, some said
it should begin with his death, and others said it should begin
with the migration. So they agreed that it should be based on the
migration.

From the blessings o f this country (the K ingdom o f Saudi Arabia)

is that it is the only Islamic country in the world that relies on
the Hijri calendar, following the way o f the rightly-guided caliphs.
Unfortunately, the other Muslim countries today base their dates
on the non-M uslim calendars, which are based on the birth o f
‘Isa They don’t use the lunar months, even though Islam is
connected to the lunar calendar more than it is connected to the
solar calendar.

Observe the fast on sighting it (the new moon), and break (fast)
on sighting it.44

Hajj, prayer, and fasting are all connected to the lunar calendar.
As for the solar calendar, it is good for hunting, herding sheep,

44 Sahih Muslim 1081

64
 His Migration to Madinah

predicting the rain, farming, and business. So we call on our broth­

ers who are businessm en and utilize the Christian calendar to not
introduce an evil practice into Islam.

p i 'S i ^ ^ ^ LSi (!r“ i!r*i

dr; ^3
And whoever sets a bad precedent in Islam will bear the burden of
sin for that, and the burden of those who do it after him, without
that detracting from their burden in the slightest.45

Likewise, we call upon the M uslim s in general to give concern to

the Hijri calendar and spread it in their lands.

It is from the wisdom o f the Com panions that they preferred the
m igration over the birth o f the Prophet iH. This is because they
feared that if they chose his birthday, the people would take it as
a holiday and exaggerate concerning the Prophet as the Christians
exaggerated concerning ‘Isa And it is from the wisdom o f the
Com panions that they did not choose the day he died, because
this would have become a day o f mourning.

The Prophet 0 strove diligendy night and day in M adinah for 10

years. He bore various types o f hardship that no one except him
could bear. D uring the battles o f Badr and Uhud, those closest
to him waged w ar against him. D uring the Battle o f the Trench,
the confederates united against him. A ll the while he was patient,
seeking the reward from Allah. He said, as the prophets before
him said, “O Allah, guide m y people, for verily they know not
w hat they do.”

Every caller to Islam m ust pay attention to the Prophet’s methods

o f d a ’wah in Madinah. He lived with the people in a good m anner
and was kind to them, [treating them] with patience, forbearance,
mercy, and pity. He supplicated to Allah, during the late hours of

Sahih Muslim 1017

65
 THE PROPHET A N D HIS TEN C O M PA N IO N S

the night, to have m ercy upon his ummah and to forgive them.
Allah spoke the truth in describing him:

Verily, there has come unto you a messenger from

amongst yourselves. It grieves him that you should
receive any injury or difficulty. He (Muhammad) is
anxious over you, for the believers (he is) full of
pity, kind and merciful.
[Surah at-Tawbah 9:128]

Since the day the Prophet HI entered M adlnah, those w ith the
greatest anim osity towards him were the Jew s and the hypocrites.
D espite this, he was m erciful and patient w ith them. He would
visit them in their homes and eat their food, and they would
visit him — the men, wom en, and children. Sometimes the Jew s
would ask him questions, such as “W hat is the ‘spirit’ that is
D hul-Q arnayn?” and “W hat determ ines if the child w ill resemble
his m other or his father?” Sometimes, the Jew ish women would
come to him for judgm ent in a dispute they had with the Muslim
women.

The Prophet 0 was only sent as a m ercy for all creation. He was
merciful to the Jews, the Christians, the M agians, and the idol
worshipers, not to m ention his m ercy towards the Muslims. In
M akkah, the pagans’ anim osity towards him was apparent— they
tried to physically harm him and assassinate him. T hey slandered
him, calling him a fortune-teller and magician. But in M adlnah,
the harm o f the Jew s and hypocrites was covert; they would
constantly plot against him. D espite this, he was still kind to them,
even visiting them when they became sick.
 His Migration to Madlnah

i p j u u t t .( d - v j A -ip d J l J I a » 0-U p <Uj! ^gjl j l a l 't

.jU l odjJjl (_£dJl <dJ -L«^«Jl (Jyib _jAj aAp <d!l

Anas narrated, “A young Jewish boy used to serve the Prophet jfe
and he became sick. So the Prophet % went to visit him. He sat
near his head and asked him to embrace Islam. The boy looked
at his father, who was sitting there; his father said to him, ‘Obey
Abul-Qasim,’ and the boy embraced Islam. The Prophet •§§ came
out saying, ‘All praises be to Allah, Who saved the boy from the
Hellfire.’ ”46

“ Sahih al-Bukhari 1356

67
 ♦ - //d C A 'atf ♦

O R IG IN A L TEXT

He died when he was 63 years old. Some say he was 65 and some
say 60, but the first statement is the m ost correct. The Prophet ||
died on a M onday at midday, on the 12th o f R abf al-Awwal. Some
say he died on the 2nd o f R abf al-Awwal, while some say he died
on the 1st o f R abf al-Awwal. He was buried W ednesday night, but
some say it was Tuesday night. He had been sick for 12 days previ­
ous to that; some say it was 14 days. His body was washed by A li
bin A bl Talib, his uncle al-A bbas, al-Fadl bin al-A bbas, Qutham
bin al-A bbas, Usam ah bin Zayd, Shuqran (his freed slave), and
Aws bin Khawla al-Ansari. He was shrouded in three white
garm ents from Yemen, with no shirt or turban.

The Muslims prayed over him individually, with no one acting as

the imam to lead them in prayer. The red velvet cloak he used to
wear was placed beneath him. A l-A bbas, A li, al-Fadl, Qutham,
and Shuqran entered his grave and placed nine blocks around him.
He was buried where Allah had taken his soul, around his bed.
A lahd (niche) was dug in his home, the home o f ‘A'ishah. W hen
Abu Bakr and ‘Umar died, they ^ were also buried there.

EXPLANATION

The Prophet <i§t becam e sick 12 days before he died. W hen his
sickness became severe, he would ask his wives whose night it was,
and then he would seek their perm ission to spend his sick days in

68
 His Death

‘A 'ishah’s home. His wives gave him perm ission to do so, because
‘A'ishah was young and strong, and when a man is sick he needs
someone who is able to care for his needs. M ost o f the other
wives o f the Prophet fit were older, and the older person cannot
do w hat the young person can do. In addition to this, ‘A'ishah i^g
was 18 years old when he died, so he wanted to honor her and
give her a lasting m em ory o f him by spending his last days with
her. She would not m arry after his death— she was his wife in this
life and she will be his wife in Paradise.

Allah the Exalted honored her by allowing the Prophet fH to die

while she was holding him on her chest. She was also a witness that
the Prophet 0 did not decide for anyone to become the khalifah
after him. If ‘A'ishah was not truthful, she could have said he told
her father (Abu Bakr) to be the khalifah. But she was truthful, so
she bore witness that he did not name anyone to be khalifah. This
is a refutation o f the Rafidah, who say the Prophet fit decided ‘A li
should be the khalifah.

Five days before the Prophet i t died, he said:

Let Allah’s curse be upon the Jews and the Christians, for they
have taken the graves of their prophets as places of worship.47

As he was dying, he experienced the severe pains o f death. W hen

he was asked about his fever and pain, he replied:

Yes, I have as much fever as two of your men.48

‘A'ishah ^ had thought that relief during the time o f death was
an honor for the dying, but when she saw the suffering o f the
4 Sahih M uslim 530
48 Sahih al-ftukhdri 5648

69
 THE PROPHET A N D HIS TEN C O M PA N IO N S

Prophet 0 , she knew the severe pains were an atonement for the
dying.

‘A'ishah ^ said:

lili ^ *dJi Ap
(_gjlyadlj aIJI Sl*J AUAS^ j Aj jlAs I^ aAS" L^j
.\ycdp \j> ji> J .Jj>-lX~» jy?* [y

When the last moment of the life of the Messenger of Allah 0

came, he started putting his shirt on his face; and when he felt hot
and short of breath, he took it off his face and said, “May Allah
curse the Jews and Christians, for they built places of worship at
the graves of their prophets.” The Prophet 0 was warning (the
Muslims) from what they (the Jews and Christians) had done.49

D uring the last moments o f his life, the Prophet 0 mentioned

this dangerous affair that separates the M uslim from taivbid and
leads him to shirk. This is the affair o f taking graves as places o f
worship. They perform tawaj around the graves, vow to them,
sacrifice to them, and seek help from them. The Prophet lit cursed
those who take the graves o f the prophets as places o f worship,
so how about those who do so with [the graves of] people lesser
than the prophets?! This has no place in the religion o f Islam at
all; rather, it is from the religion o f the Jew s and Christians. As for
the masajid, they are built for prayer.

IgjS y^ i^ J Lp' L9^ Cff? ^

In houses (masajid), which Allah has ordered to be
raised and that His name be mentioned therein.
[Surah an-Nur 24:36]

As for the masajid built on top o f graves, is it A llah’s name

m entioned there, or the names o f the deceased in the graves?

4I) Sahih ai-Hiikhari 435

70
 His Death

The Prophet 0 died on a Monday, during the severe heat o f

midday. [The Companions] were so busy trying to regroup from
the loss that they did not bury him until Tuesday night. He was
buried in the room o f ‘A'ishah because the prophets are buried
where they die. Her bed was raised and a grave was dug in its
place. The M uslim s were not pleased to pray over him in congre­
gation due to their severe love for him. The men, wom en, and
children prayed over him individually. Each one came to pray over
him and bid him farewell. Then he was buried in the room o f
‘A'ishah, and his grave is known. Shaykh-ul-Islam Ibn Taymiyyah
said, “The only prophet whose grave is known is the Prophet
M uham m ad ?§t.”

His body was washed by his guardians— his uncles and their
children. This has been the custom o f the Arabs for a long time,
and it is the custom o f the M uslim s, past and present. He was
washed by his cousin and son-in-law ‘Ah bin A bl Talib, by his
uncle al-‘A bbas, and by his cousin al-Fadl bin al-‘Abbas. Al-Fadl
is the youth who sat behind him during his Farewell Pilgrimage.
Also from those who washed him was his cousin Qutham bin
al-‘A bbas and the Prophet’s Ht two freed slaves, Usam ah bin Zayd
and his father Zayd bin Thabit. Both father and son were from
those beloved to the Prophet 0 . Also present was Shuqran, the
Prophet’s ifc freed slave, and Aws bin Khawla al-Ansari.50

He was shrouded in three white garm ents, w ith no shirt over them
and no turban. The garm ents were not made o f silk or any fancy
m aterial; they were plain w hite garm ents. It is from the Sunnah for
the living and the deceased to w ear w hite garm ents.

511 Translator’s note: W hen the Prophet died, the Companions said, “By Allah, we did not
know if we should take o ff the clothes o f the M essenger o f Allah as we took o ff the
clothes o f our dead, or wash him with his clothes on. W hen the people differed [about this],
Allah cast slumber over them until each one o f them had put his chin on his chest. Then
someone spoke from a side o f the house, and they did not know who he was: W ash the
Prophet % with his clothes on.’ So they stood around the Prophet ife and washed him with
his shirt on. They poured water on his shirt and rubbed him with it instead o f with their
hands.” {SunanA bi D awud 3141, declared hasan by Shaykh al-Albani)

71
 THE PROPHET A N D HIS TEN C O M PA N IO N S

Allah honored Abu Bakr with being buried next to the Prophet
US when he died, and ‘Umar was buried in the same room as well.
Allah was pleased with them in this life and the realm between life
and death, and both o f them shall be his com panions in Paradise.
This is proof o f their virtue, as clear as the sun, and a refutation
o f the Rafidah who insult Abu Bakr and ‘Umar

72
ORIGINAL TEXT

The Prophet iH had three sons:

• Al-Q asim , from whom he took his kunyah: Al-Q asim was
born in M akkah before [Muhammad] becam e a prophet. He died
at the age o f two. Q atadah said, “He lived until he was walking.”

• ‘Abdullah: He was called at-Tayyib and at-Tahir because he

was born upon Islam. It has been said that at-Tayyib and at-Tahir
are names that refer to someone other than him, but the first view
is correct.

• Ibrahim: He was born in M adlnah and died there in 10

AH, at the age o f 17 or 18 months.

It was said that he also had a son named ‘A bdul-‘Uzza, but Allah
purified him from such a thing and forbade that such a thing
would be true.

EXPLANATIO N

Some o f the scholars view at-Tayyib and at-Tahir as two other

children o f the Prophet Hf, while m ost o f the historians say these
are two attributes for ‘A bdullah. ‘A bdullah was his wife K hadijah’s
son, and he was born after the Prophet received revelation, so he
was given the nicknames at-Tayyib and at-Tahir. Both al-Qasim
and ‘A bdullah were from his wife Khadijah ^jjg.

73
 THE PROPHET A N D HIS TEN C O M PA N IO N S

Ibrahim was born from his Coptic slave-girl M ariyah, who was
given to him by al-Muqawqis, the ruler o f Egypt. Thus, he advised
that the people o f Egypt should be treated well. He said:

You will soon conquer Egypt, and that is a land known as the land
of al-qirat. So when you conquer it, treat its inhabitants well. This
responsibility is upon you because of blood ties or the relationship
of marriage (with them).51

As for the blood ties, this is because the m other o f the

A rabs— Hajar, Ism a‘il’s m other ^ — was from Egypt. As for the
relationship o f m arriage, this is because M ariyah al-Qibtiyyah, the
m other o f the Prophet’s son Ibrahim, was from Egypt.

W hen Ibrahim died, the sun eclipsed, so some o f the people said
it did this because o f the Prophet’s son’s death. So the Prophet i §
said:

S'j o JJ jli- A H J\ 1 0 i l l otiT jA

m jliT y d b \ \ j !)1

The sun and moon are two signs of Allah the Most High, and they
do not become eclipsed because of the death or birth of anyone;
rather, Allah the Mighty and Sublime strikes fear into His slaves
through them.52

The he went to his son Ibrahim and kissed and hugged him, and
he cried. He said:

51 Sahih M uslim 2543

52 Sunan an-N asai 1459

74
 His Sons

The eyes shed tears and the heart is sad, but we only say what
pleases our Lord. And surely we are saddened, O Ibrahim, by your
departure.53

He died when he was still at the age o f breastfeeding, so the

Prophet Ht said:

.slijdl jl

Verily, he will have a wet nurse in Paradise.54

This is because he died before com pleting his years o f breastfeed­

ing. This was from the trials that Allah tested the Prophet HI with.
From the greatest tests for a person is the loss o f their children,
and consequendy his reward will be increased for bearing this
ordeal.

It is not correct that he named one o f his children ‘A bdul-‘Uzza,

because the Prophet H was pure and free from shirk, and nam ing
a child A bdul-‘Uzza is m inor shirk. It is not perm issible to name
someone as the slave o f other than Allah.

53 Sahih M uslim 4279

34 Sahih al-bukhari 5842

75
 ♦ - /M CJ)a(ty//ero ♦

O R IG IN A L I I X 1

• Zaynab: She m arried A b u l-A s bin ar-RabF bin A bdul-

‘Uzza bin A bd Shams. He was her m aternal cousin. His mother
was Halah bint Khuwaylid. Zaynab gave birth to a son named A li,
and he died young. She had a daughter named U mamah, whom
the Prophet Ife used to hold during the prayer. Umamah grew up
and married A li [bin Abl Talib] after Fatim ah’s death.

EXI’ L AN A I ION

Zaynab married A bul-‘As bin ar-RabF before Islam ,153 and the
story o f how she ransomed her husband is well known.56

Her son A li is m entioned in this narration:

aJJI J ^*3 a-1p aJJI tdJl JjAjJ Aul j l lAiLjl

.U-V^-jls JjzzAl J i ^ j! j l ^gjlj -Utjj A jj aJLp dJl
55 Translator's note: Zaynab, the daughter o f the Prophet married Abul-‘As bin ar-Rabf
during the pre-Islamic Days o f Ignorance. However, when she became Muslim, their mar­
riage was annulled, so she went to stay with her father W hen her husband became
Muslim, the Prophet sent her back to him. (Jam i’ at-Tirm idhi 1143; Sunan A b i D awud 2240;
Sunan Ibn M ajah 2009; classed as sahib by Imam Ahmad, 1789. At-Tirm idhi said there is
nothing wrong with its chain o f narration.)
56 Translator’s note: It was narrated that ‘A'ishah said, “W hen the people o f Makkah sent a
ransom for their prisoners, Zaynab sent some wealth as a ransom for Abul-‘As, including a
necklace o f Khadljah’s, who had given it to her to wear when she married Abul-‘As. W hen
the M essenger o f Allah %, saw it, he felt very sorry for her and said, ‘If you wish, you may
release her prisoner and return what belongs to her?’ They said, ‘Yes,’ and the M essenger of
Allah made them promise to let Zaynab come to him. The M essenger o f Allah sent
Zayd bin Harithah and an Ansari man, instructing them: ‘Wait in Batn Ya'jij (a place on the
outskirts o f Makkah) until Zaynab passes by, then accompany her and bring her to me.’ ”
(Sunan A b i D awud 2629, and classed as hasan by Shavkh al-Albani in Sahih A b i Dawud).

76
 His Daughters

Once, a daughter of the Messenger of Allah jfe sent a message

to the Messenger of Allah % while Usamah bin Zayd, Sa’d, and
Ubayy were (sitting there) with him. She said (in the message),
“My child is going to die; please come to us.” The Messenger of
Allah % told the messenger to convey his greetings to her and say,
“Whatever Allah takes is for Him, and whatever He gives is for
Him, and everything with Him has a limited, fixed term. So she
should be patient and hope for Allah’s reward.” Then she again
sent for him, swearing that he should come, so the Prophet % got
up, and so did we.
When he sat there (in his daughter’s house), the child was brought
to him, and he took him into his lap while the child’s breath was
disturbed in his chest. The eyes of Allah’s Messenger sis started
swelling with tears. Sa’d said, “What is this, O Messenger of
Allah?” The Prophet Hf said, “This is the mercy that Allah has
lodged in whichever of his slaves’ hearts He wants, and verily
Allah is only merciful to His slaves who are merciful (to others).”57

O R I G I N A L TLX I

• Fatimah bint Rasulillah i§f: She m arried A li bin A bl

Talib. She gave birth to al-Hasan, al-Husayn, and M uhassin (who
died young). Her daughters were Umm Kulthum, who married
‘Umar bin al-Khattab, and Zaynab, who m arried Ja ’far bin A bl
Talib.

LXI ' l \ \ VI I ON

Umm Kulthum refers to Fatim ah’s daughter with ‘Ali i^jl. ‘Ali

37 Sahih al-buk hari 6655

77
 THE PROPHET A N D HIS TEN C O M PA N IO N S

loved ‘Umar bin al-Khattab dearly, so he m arried his daughter to

him, and thus they were related through m arriage. ‘A li also named
some o f his sons ‘Umar, Abu Bakr, and ‘Uthm an, while his son
M uhamm ad bin al-Hanafiyyah is known.58 He named his sons with
the names o f the Prophet 0 and the three rightiy guided caliphs;
this is proof that A li loved ‘Umar and recognized his virtue. This
is why he married his daughter to him and named some o f his sons
after him. ‘Umar did not have an urgent need for m arriage, but
he wanted to be connected to the Prophet Ilf, so he married [‘A li’s
daughter] and becam e [the Prophet’s] in-law from two angles. The
Prophet 0 married Hafsah, ‘U m ar’s daughter, while ‘Umar
married Umm Kulthum, the Prophet’s granddaughter 0 .

O R IG IN A L LEXT

• Ruqayyah bint Rasulillah 0 : She m arried ‘Uthm an bin

‘A ffan, and she died while married to him. She gave birth to a son
named A bdullah, and this was the kunyah o f ‘Uthman.

EXPLANATION

R u q ayyahm igrated with ‘Uthm an to Ethiopia, leaving her father

behind in Makkah. She fled with her husband to protect her
religion, and she was patient, seeking the reward from Allah the
Exalted. She died while married to ‘Uthm an s!g.

O R IG IN A I I I XI

• Umm Kulthum bint Rasulillah 0 : She married ‘Uthman

after Ruqayyah’s death, and she died while m arried to him.

There is no differing about the Prophet having four daughters,

and the m ost correct statement concerning his sons is that he had
three.
5* Translator's note: It was narrated that Muhammad bin al-Hanafiyyah said, “I said to mv
father (‘ALi bin AbT Talib), ‘W hich o f the people was the best after the M essenger o f Allah
•gS?’ He said, ‘Abu Bakr.’ I said, ‘Then w ho?’ He said, ‘Then ‘Umar.’ I was afraid that he
would say ‘Uthman next. I said, ‘Then, is it you?’ He said, ‘I am only one o f the Muslims.’ ”
{Sahih al-Bukbiiri 3671)

78
 His Daughters

The first born was al-Q asim , then Zaynab, then Ruqayyah, then
Fatimah, then Umm Kulthum. As for those o f his children born
into Islam, they were ‘A bdullah and then Ibrahim in Madlnah.

EXPLANATION

A fter Ruqayyah’s death, ‘Uthm an m arried her sister Umm

Kulthum, the daughter o f the M essenger o f Allah 0 , and she
died while m arried to him. Thus, ‘Uthm an was the only person
to m arry two daughters o f the Prophet Hi, so he was given the
nickname Dhun-Nurayn (the Possessor o f the Two Lights).

All o f the Prophet’s children were from Khadljah except Ibrahim,

who was from M ariyah al-Qibtiyyah.

ORIGINAL TEXT

All o f his children died before him except Fatimah; she died six
months after his death.

EXPLANATION

All o f his sons and daughters except Fatimah died before him,
and this was a test Allah tried him with to increase his reward on
the Day o f Judgm ent. And he was patient w ith this test from Allah
until he received this lofty station in Paradise.

79
 ♦ a n d ♦

ORIGINAI TEXT

It has been narrated by Hammam from Qatadah that he said:

I asked Anas bin Malik, “How many times did the Messenger of
Allah % perform Hajj?” He said, “He performed Hajj once and
he performed ‘Umrah four times: an ‘Umrah during Dhul-Qa’dah,
the ‘Umrah of al-Hudaybiyyah, an ‘Umrah with his Hajj, and an
‘Umrah from al-Ji’ranah when he divided the spoils of war from
Hunayn.”59

This was after he arrived in M adinah; as for his perform ing Hajj
and ‘Umrah while in M akkah before the m igration, this has not
been documented.

He perform ed the Farewell Pilgrim age and addressed the people,

saying, “Perhaps you w ill not see me after this year.”

EXPLANATION

The Prophet 0 went out during the year o f al-Hudaybiyyah to

perform ‘Umrah, and the pagans prevented him from the Sacred
House. The Prophet iH put on the garm ent o f ihram, shaved his

59 Janti ’ at- Tirmidhi 815

80
 His Hajj and 'Umrah

hair, and brought his sacrificial animal. The Com panions also
donned the garm ents o f ihrdm, and the great treaty [of al-Hu-
davbiyyah] was im plem ented. T hat m orning, Allah sent down the
verse:

# 111A LkjS dll Likja IjJ

Verily, We have given you (O Muhammad) a

manifest victory.
[Surah al-Fath 48:1]

The M uslims were secure, and afterwards the Prophet 0 made

alliances with m any o f the Arab tribes. He sent m essengers to
the kings o f Ethiopia, Yemen, Bahrain, Persia, and Rome, invit­
ing them to Islam. All o f this resulted from the treaty that many
o f the Com panions were not pleased with, but Allah knew the
benefit it would have for the religion. And the people began to
enter Islam in crowds.

The next time he perform ed ‘Umrah was the following year, during
al-Ji’ranah when he divided up the spoils o f war from Hunayn,
in the month o f D hul-Q a’dah. A fter the Battle o f Hunayn, they
donned the garm ents o f ihrdm from al-Ji’ranah. He also perform ed
‘Umrah and Hajj together in 10 AH. He perform ed qiran, which is
to join Hajj and ‘Umrah together with one sacrifice.

All o f this occurred after the m igration to Madlnah. N one o f the

historians m entioned the Prophet 0 perform ing ‘Umrah before
m igration or before he becam e a prophet. But they m ention that
the Prophet -H used to revere the Sacred House and perform taw af
around it a lot before m igration and before he becam e a prophet.
He would go before the tribes during the Hajj season, so it’s possi­
ble he perform ed Hajj. It has been narrated that he would go to
‘A rafat during the Hajj season, in opposition to the pagans. The
pagans would not go to ‘Arafat during Hajj, and they would say,
“Do not leave the Haram.” So the Prophet would oppose them

81
 THE PROPHET AND HIS TEN COM PANIONS

by leaving the Haram and going to ‘Arafat, so it is possible he

perform ed Hajj.

A fter the m igration, he only perform ed Hajj once. M akkah was

conquered in 8 AH, and in 9 AH he perform ed the Farewell Hajj
with close to 100,000 Companions.

82
O R IG IN A L TLX I

The M essenger o f Allah 0 personally led 25 battles; this is well

known. This was m entioned by M uham m ad bin Ishaq, Abu
M a’shar, M usa bin ‘Uqbah, and others. It has also been said he
participated in 27 battles. He sent out about 50 detachments,
and he fought in nine m ajor battles: Badr, Uhud, the Battle o f
the Trench, Banu Qurayzah, M ustaliq, Khaybar, the conquest o f
M akkah, Hunayn, and at-Ta'if. Some say he also fought in W adi
al-Qura, the expedition o f G habah, and Banu an-Nadlr.

E X PI A N A L I O N

These are the battles that the Prophet 0 participated in himself.

The historians differ concerning the num ber o f battles. All o f
the battles occurred after the m igration to M adlnah, because the
M uslims were not given perm ission to fight prior to that. Thus,
in 10 years, he participated in 25 battles, while some say 27. This
difference o f opinion exists because sometimes they w ent out for
one battle but fought in two battles. Some historians count those
as separate battles and others do not.

As for the m ajor battles that the Prophet 0 participated in, the
num ber is nine. The first o f those battles were Badr, Uhud, and
the Battle o f the Trench. Fighting against him in these battles
were his cousins from the Quraysh. T hey forgot about their tribal­
ism and the blood ties between them because o f their envy o f the

83
 THE PROPHET AND HIS TEN COM PANIONS

Prophet 0 , and they wanted to kill him and destroy his d a ’wah.
But as Allah has promised, and as is His sunnah with all the proph­
ets, victory is for the righteous.

These batdes were followed by the batdes o f Qurayzah, M ustaliq,

Khaybar, and Banu an-Nadlr. All o f these batdes were against the
Jews. After that came the conquest o f M akkah. Anas bin Malik
said:

\ y . 4j1p dJl dl
The Prophet % entered Makkah the day of the conquest wearing
a helmet on his head.60

Following these batdes, there were the batdes o f Hunayn and

at-Ta'if. The Prophet 0 never oppressed anyone in any o f these
batdes, nor did he take revenge on anyone; he would pardon the
people. He would say:

Slj \jjJSu Slj Slj h\yt\ d Jl; 'yds IjJjU dJl dJi jvdo h)Jpl
.IaJj IjJij€> S lj
Fight in the name of Allah, in the cause of Allah; fight those who
disbelieve in Allah. Fight, and do not behave treacherously and do
not mutilate the dead nor kill children.61

W hen Makkah was conquered, he entered it in a state o f humility.

He had been given victory after being expelled from Makkah.

611 Sahib al-Rukhari 4286

61 Ja m i ’ at-’I 'i rmirlbi 1408

84
O R IG IN A L TEXT

Those who wrote for the Prophet 0 were: Abu Bakr as-Siddlq,
‘Umar bin al-Khattab, ‘Uthm an bin ‘A ffan, ‘Ali bin A bi Talib,
‘Am ir bin Fuhayrah, ‘Abdullah bin al-Arqam az-Zuhri, Ubayy bin
K a’b, Thabit bin Qays bin Shammas, K halid bin Sa‘Id bin al-‘As,
Hanzalah bin ar-R abf al-Asadi, Zayd bin Thabit, M u‘awiyah
bin A bi Sufyan, and Shurahbll bin Hasanah. M u‘awiyah bin A bi
Sufyan and Zayd bin Thabit were the m ost com m itted o f them to
this task.

EXPLANATIO N

These are the letters that were w ritten for him because he was
unlettered, m eaning he could not read or write. “U nlettered”
does not necessitate ignorance— ignorance is the opposite o f
knowledge, while unlettered is the opposite o f writing. From his
miracles is that he was unlettered yet he mem orized this glorious
Qur'an that was revealed to him. It was not possible for him to
receive this from anyone except from revelation through Jibrll ph.
The Prophet 0 did not read or write, which is why he said to
Jibrll when he first met him:

til U

I cannot read.62

As for the unlettered person now, they are accom panied by

62 Sahih M uslim 160

85
 THE PROPHET AND HIS TEN COM PANIONS

ignorance, such that you are not likely an unlettered person

except that you are ignorant. As for “unlettered” in relation to the
Prophet it was completeness, as he was the m ost knowledge­
able o f people. He said, “I am the m ost knowledgeable o f you,
the m ost pious, and the m ost fearful o f A llah.” W hen the Qur'an
was revealed to him through Jibril, he com prehended it, under­
stood it, and mem orized it, then he dictated it to the Companions
who wrote it down.

O R IG IN A L II XI

• To an-Najashi: The M essenger o f Allah 0 sent ‘A m r bin

Umayyah ad-Damri as a m essenger to an-N ajashi, whose name
was Ashamah (m eaning “a gift”). [An-Najashi] took the letter
o f the M essenger o f Allah 0 and placed it before him, then he
descended from his chair and sat on the ground. He entered Islam
and perfected his Islam. He accepted Islam in the presence o f
Ja ’far bin Abl Talib and his companions. It has been authenticated
that the Prophet |§£ prayed the funeral prayer for him when he
died. It has been narrated that light was seen from his grave.

EXPLANATION

There were two kings o f Ethiopia with the tide “an-N ajashi.”
The first an-Najashi is the one who accepted Islam when the
Companions m igrated to his land, during the first migration.
He is the one who married the Prophet 0 to Umm Hablbah
Ramlah bint A bl Sufyan 0 . [The Prophet] gave her 4,000 dirham
as a dowry. After he died, the Prophet sent A m r bin Umayyah
ad-Damri to invite the succeeding king o f Ethiopia to Islam. It
is m entioned that he also accepted Islam, or that he desired to
accept Islam, and Allah knows best.

O RIG IN AL I l-XT

• To Heraclius: The M essenger o f Allah IS sent D ihyah bin

86
 His Scribes and Heralds

Khalifah al-Kalbi to Caesar (Qaysar), the king o f Rome, whose

name was Heraclius (Hiraql). He asked about the Prophet 0 and
he affirm ed the truthfulness o f his prophecy. He was determ ined
to accept Islam, but the Romans did not agree. He feared for his
kingdom, so he refrained from entering Islam.

r x r i.A \ A i io \

The M essenger o f Allah H sent Dihyah bin Khalifah al-K albi to

Caesar (Qaysar), the king o f Rome. Dihyah al-Kalbi is well known
because Jib ril used to take his form. W hen Jib ril would
come to see the Prophet 0 , he would come in the appearance
o f Dihyah al-Kalbi. [The Prophet] sent [Dihyah] to Heraclius.
[Heraclius] asked about the Prophet 0 and affirm ed the truthful­
ness o f his prophecy. He was determ ined to accept Islam, but the
Romans did not agree. He feared for his kingdom, so he refrained
from entering Islam.

He was Christian and he possessed knowledge. He had books

containing the attributes and description o f the Prophet ■§?. He
wanted to accept Islam, but the scholars, elders, and soldiers
prevented him from doing so. Consequently, he feared for his
kingdom. This is proof that the leader o f a country cannot bring
change, good or evil, if he does not have anyone to assist him.
This was the situation o f H eraclius— he believed in the Prophet
ilS and he wanted to accept Islam, but his scholars, monks, and
arm y becam e upset. So he replied, “I was only testing you,” and he
did not accept Islam, fearing for his kingdom.

O R IG IN A L TEXT

• To Khosrow: The M essenger o f Allah IS sent A bdullah

bin Hudhafah as-Sahm i to K hosrow (Kisra), the king o f Persia.
He ripped up the Prophet’s letter, so the Prophet 0 said, “May
Allah rip his kingdom .” Thus, Allah ripped away his kingdom and
the kingdom o f his offspring.

87
 THE PROPHET AND HIS TEN COM PANIONS

I X I ’ I. W A 11( ) \

Khosrow, the king o f Persia, ripped up the Prophet’s letter H . He

ripped up the Prophet’s letter H because he was an idol worshiper
and the idol worshipers are arrogant. O ur Lord says:

Verily, you will find the Jews and those who are
pagans the strongest among men in enmity to the
believers (Muslims).
[Surah al-Ma'idah 5:82]

This is in contrast to the Christians, as the king o f Rome did not

rip up the letter o f the Prophet ill. The Prophet •§! said, “May
Allah rip his kingdom .” Thus, Allah ripped his kingdom and the
kingdom o f his heirs.

O R IG IN A L TEXT

• To al-Muqawqis: The M essenger o f Allah tH sent

Hatib bin A bi Balta‘ah to al-Muqawqis, the king o f Alexandria
and Egypt. The king spoke kind words to them and considered
the affair, but he did not enter Islam. He sent the Prophet 0 a
gift— Mariyah al-Qibtiyyah and her sister Sirin. The Prophet gave
her sister as a gift to Hassan bin Thabit. She gave birth to ‘Abdur-
Rahman bin Hassan.

• To Jayfar and ‘Abd: The M essenger o f Allah fit sent ‘Amr

bin al-‘As to the two kings o f Oman, Jayfar and ‘Abd, the two
sons o f al-Julandi. T hey were from Azd.63 Both Jayfar and ‘A bd
accepted Islam and proved true in their Islam. They granted ‘Amr
free rein in regard to charity and the laws pertaining to it. ‘Am r bin
al-‘As remained with them until the death o f the M essenger o f
Allah
63 Translator's note: Azd was an ancient Arabian tribe.

88
 His Scribes and Heralds

• To Hawdhah: The M essenger o f Allah 0 sent Sallt bin

‘A m r al-‘Amiri to al-Yamamah64 to Hawdhah bin ‘A li al-Hanafi.
Hawdhah honored the m essenger and wrote back to the Prophet
0 saying, “How wonderful and beaudful is that which you call
me to. I am an orator and a poet am ong my people, so give me a
posidon in governm ent.” The Prophet i t refused, and Hawdhah
did not accept Islam; he died in the era o f the conquest.

• To Harith: The Prophet i t sent Shuja’ bin Wahb al-Asadi

to Harith bin Abl Sham ir al-G hassani, the king o f Damascus.
Shuja’ said, “I went to him while he was in an oasis o f Damascus.
He read the letter o f the Prophet 0 and then he tossed it and
said, ‘I am going to him.’ And he was determ ined to do so, but
Caesar (Heraclius) prevented him .”

EXPLANATION

Harith al-Ghassani was like a line between the Arabian Peninsula

and the kings o f Rome, just like the M untherids (al-M unadhirah)63
were a line between the Arabian Peninsula and the kings o f Persia.
They would keep the Arab tribes in line by m endoning Persia or
Rome. W hen the call o f the Prophet 0 reached him, he wanted to
make w ar against him, believing he was like the other Arab tribes
and had gone against the obedience o f Caesar or Khosrow. But
Heraclius was sm arter than him, so he prevented him from w arring
against the Prophet i t . Al-G hassani was under the um brella of
Rome and the M untherids were under the um brella o f Persia.

O R IG IN A l J I M

• To al-Harith: The M essenger o f Allah 0 sent al-Muha-

jir bin A bl Umayyah to al-Harith al-Him yari, one o f the kings of
Yemen.

64 Translator's note: Al-Yamamah is an ancient district to the east o f the Najd plateau in mod-
ern-dav Saudi Arabia.
’Translator's note: The Muntherids were an Arab Christian kingdom that lived in Southern
Iraq.

89
 THE PROPHET AND HIS TEN COM PANIONS

EXPLANATION

The kings o f Yemen were called al-Aqyal or al-M uqawilah, similar

to the names Caesar and K hosrow for Rome and Persia, respec­
tively.

O R IG IN A I TEXT

• To al-Mundhir: The M essenger o f Allah 0 sent al-A la'a

bin al-Hadram i to al-M undhir bin Sawa, the king o f Bahrain. He
wrote a letter to him inviting him to Islam. He accepted Islam and
proved true to Islam.

• To Yemen: The M essenger o f Allah H? sent Abu Musa

al-Ash‘ari and M u‘adh bin Jabal to the general populace o f
Yemen, calling them to Islam. The people o f Yemen willingly
entered Islam, as did their leaders, w ithout any fighting.

EXPLANATIO N

The general populace o f Yemen entered the religion o f Allah

without a fight. For this reason, the Prophet Ife used to say:

, aUL»j
• V - s J
jlS
f
J t

Faith is amongst the Yemenis, and wisdom is amongst the

Yemenis.66

He described them as having good hearts.

66 Sahih Muslim 52

90
O R IG IN A L TEXT

His Paternal Uncles:

The Prophet H? had 11 paternal uncles.

EXPLANATIO N

His paternal uncles and aunts are his father’s brothers and sisters.
He had m any uncles and aunts, but only a few o f them reached
the days o f Islam, and even fewer accepted Islam. Allah guides
whom ever He wills and m isguides whom ever He wills.

O R IG IN A L TEXT

• Al-Harith: He was the eldest son o f ‘A bdul-M uttalib, by

whom he took his kunyah. From his sons and grandsons came
m any o f the Com panions o f the Prophet ||.

• Qutham: He died while young, and he was the full brother

al-Harith.

• Az-Zubayr bin ‘Abdul-Muttalib: He was from the noble­

men o f the Quraysh. His son ‘Abdullah bin az-Zubayr participated
in the Battle o f Hunayn w ith the M essenger o f Allah 0 and he
was firm that day. He (‘A bdullah bin az-Zubayr) was m artyred at
the Battle o f Ajnadln. It has been narrated that there were seven
bodies lying beside him, o f those he killed, before he him self was
killed. Az-Zubayr bin ‘A bdul-M uttalib’s daughters were D uba‘ah

91
 THE PROPHET AND HIS TEN COM PANIONS

bint az-Zubayr, who was a Com panion, and Umm al-Hakam, who
narrated from the Prophet 18.

EX PI AN ATIO N

This was ‘Abdullah az-Zubayr bin ‘A bdul-M uttalib and not

‘Abdullah bin az-Zubayr bin al-‘A wwam. ‘A bdullah bin az-Zubayr
bin al-‘Awwam was Asm a' bint Abl Bakr’s son. His father was
az-Zubayr bin al-‘A wwam, the cousin o f the Prophet 18 from his
aunt Safiyyah.

Az-Zubayr bin ‘A bdul-M uttalib’s daughters were D uba‘ah bint

az-Zubayr and Umm al-Hakam, who were Com panions o f the
Prophet This is from the truthfulness o f the Prophet’s state­
ment:

Rather I hope that Allah will bring forth from their loins people
who will worship Allah alone, not associating anything with Him.67

The father died upon disbelief, while his children were

Companions o f the Prophet Allah brings forth the living from
the dead. If the Prophet 18 had supplicated against them, they
would have been destroyed— the old and the young, the men and
the wom en, would have died, and these Com panions would not
have come about.

O R IG IN A L TEXT

• Hamzah: He is Hamzah bin ‘A bdul-M uttalib, the Lion o f

Allah and the Lion o f His Messenger. He was also the Prophet’s
brother through breastfeeding. He was am ong the first to accept
Islam and migrate to Madlnah. He participated in the Battle o f
Badr and was m artyred during the Batde o f Uhud. He only had
one daughter.

6 Sahih Muslim 1795

92
 His Paternal Uncles and Aunts

EXl’ L W A "I l ( ! \

Hamzah was the brother o f the Prophet i t through breastfeed­

ing. He was breastfed by T h u w aybah, Abu Lahab’s slave girl. He
only had one daughter and she was offered to the Prophet Hi for
marriage. He refused because she was the daughter o f his brother
through breastfeeding.

What becomes unlawful (for marriage) through breastfeeding is

that which becomes unlawful through lineage.68

It was not perm issible for him to m arry H am zah’s daugh­

ters because he was not just his uncle— he was also his brother
through breastfeeding.

O R IG IN A L I I X I

• Abul-Fadl al-‘Abbas bin ‘Abdul-Muttalib: He accepted

Islam and perfected his Islam, and he m igrated to Madlnah. He
was three years older than the M essenger o f Allah 0 . He had 10
sons, am ong them al-Fadl, ‘A bdullah, and Qutham. He was from
the Companions. He died in 32 AH, during the leadership o f
‘Uthm an bin ‘Affan, in Madlnah.

EXPI.A V Y l ION

It has been said that al-‘A bbas accepted Islam the year Makkah
was conquered. He perfected his Islam and m igrated to Madlnah.
Others say he accepted Islam during the early days o f M akkah but
hid his Islam sgi. He aided the Prophet Hf a great deal, secretly
and openly. He feared for the Prophet i t when he presented
him self to the Arab tribes during the Hajj season, so he went out
with him. He assisted in getting the tribes to pledge alliance to
the Prophet i t . An entire dynasty named themselves after this

68 Sunan an-N asa'i 3302

93
 THE PROPHET AND HIS TEN COM PANIONS

righteous m an.69 They ruled the Muslim ummah for over 400 years.
‘Umar bin al-Khattab would go to him during droughts and ask
him to pray for rain.

O R IG IN A I 11 \ I

N one o f the Prophet’s paternal uncles accepted Islam except

al-‘Abbas and Hamzah.

EXPLANA I ION

The Prophet US only met four o f his uncles. He m et Abu Lahab

and Abu Talib, neither o f whom accepted Islam, and he met
al-‘A bbas and Hamzah, both o f whom accepted Islam 0 .

O R IG IN A L TEX I

• Abu Talib bin ‘Abdul-Muttalib: His name was ‘A bd

Manaf. He was the full brother o f the Prophet’s father ‘A bdullah,
sharing the same m other and father. Their sister was ‘Atikah, the
one who had the vision at Badr. Their m other was Fatimah bint
‘Amr. Abu T alib’s sons were Talib, who died a disbeliever, and
‘A qll, Ja ’far, ‘A li, and Umm Hani, who were Companions. Umm
H ani’s name was Fakhitah, and some say her name was Hind.
Jum anah was also m entioned as one o f his daughters.

EXPLANATION

W hen Abu Talib was near death, the Prophet ill went to him and
said:

.aU Up [& AJl! l i i f cAiil A aJI V : “]] °J\

O my uncle, say, “Nothing has the right to be worshiped except

Allah,” a statement by which I will argue on your behalf in front
of Allah.70

69 Translator's note: M eaning the Abbasid Dynasty.

" Sahih M uslim 24

94
 His Paternal Uncles and Aunts

But with him were his two friends Abu Jahl and A bdullah bin A bl
Umayyah,71 and they said to him, “Do you seek other than the
religion o f A bdul-M uttalib?” The Prophet continued to repeat
his advice, as did they, until the last words o f A bu Talib were that
he was upon the religion o f Abdul-M uttalib.

This shows the danger o f having evil companions, such that

a person may be tested in his religion due to his friends. And it
shows the im portance o f righteous companions. The Prophet 0
said:

Hi 'U i/ i , ..<Il -id s ,‘ LuJl U14.<" ,°.?Jls -KfMl ...I4.lt A i l

The example of a good, pious companion and an evil one is that

of a person carrying musk and another blowing a pair of bellows.
The one who is carrying musk will either give you some perfume
as a present, or you will buy some from him, or you will get a good
smell from him, but the one who is blowing a pair of bellows will
either burn your clothes or you will get a bad smell from him.72

From the special intercessions given to the Prophet i t is that he

w ill intercede to lessen the torm ent o f Abu Talib. He said:

.jUjl Id SlyJj CjIj 'asmUo yb

He is in a shallow fire, and had it not been for me, he would have
been in the bottom of the Fire.73

O RIG IN .A l TEXT

• Abu Lahab bin ‘Abdul-Muttalib: His name was A bdul-

1 Translator’s note: Al-Hafiz Ibn Hajar m entioned in his book, C orrectness in D etermining W’ho
is a Companion, that ‘Abdullah bin Abl Umayyah accepted Islam the year Makkah was con­
quered. He perfected his Islam and was martyred fighting alongside the Prophet in the
Battle o f Hunayn.
2 Sahih al-buk hari 5534
5 Sahih al-buk hari 3883

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 T H E P R O P H E T A N D H IS T E N C O M P A N I O N S

‘Uzza. His father gave him the nickname Abu Lahab74 because
o f his handsome face. From his children were ‘Utbah and
M u‘attab, who were both with the Prophet 0 during the Battle
o f Hunayn. Along with [Abu Lahab’s] daughter D urrah, they
were Companions. From his sons was ‘Utaybah, who was killed
by a lion near the city o f Zarqa' after the Prophet t§f supplicated
against him .73

EXPLANATION

Abu Lahab was the paternal uncle o f the Prophet fit and he died
as a disbeliever. Surah al-Masad was sent down concerning him.

O R IG IN A L TEXT

The rem aining uncles were:

• ‘Abdul-Ka’bah

• Hijl, whose name was Mughtrah.

• Dirar, al-A bbas’s full brother.

• Al-Ghaydaq, who was called such because he was the m ost

generous o f the Quraysh.

His Paternal Aunts:

The Prophet 0 had six paternal aunts.

• Safiyyah bint ‘Abdul-Muttalib: She accepted Islam and

migrated. She was the m other o f az-Zubayr bin al-‘A wwam. She
died in M adlnah during the leadership o f ‘U m ar bin al-Khattab.

4 Translator’s note: Abu Lahab means “the possessor o f the flame.”

' 3 Translator's note: It was narrated by al-Hakim (3984) and by al-Bayhaqi in ad -D a la il (622)
that ‘Utbah bin Abl Lahab used to revile the Prophet US and the Prophet said, “O Allah,
send Your dog against him.” ‘Utbah went out with a caravan, heading towards Syria. He
halted at some place and said, “I am afraid o f the supplication o f M uham mad.” Thev said
to him, “No, don’t worry.” They surrounded him with their luggage and stood guard over
him; then a lion came and snatched him. Al-Hakim said its chain is authentic and adh-Dha-
habi agreed with him.

96
 His Paternal Uncles and Aunts

She had the same m other as Hamzah.

• ‘Atikah bint ‘Abdul-Muttalib: It is m entioned that she

accepted Islam. She had the vision at Badr. She was m arried to
Abu Umayyah bin al-M ughlrah. She gave birth to A bdullah, who
accepted Islam and was from the Companions. She also gave birth
to Zuhayra and Q arlbah al-Kubra.

EXPLANATIO N

‘Atikah, the paternal aunt o f the Prophet H , saw (in a dream) a

caller in M akkah yelling atop three mountains. He then threw a
rock from atop the m ountain that entered every home in Makkah.
This dream came true, and it was those killed at Badr. This
is because there was no home except that the inhabitants were
shocked by those killed at Badr. There is a difference o f opinion
as to w hether or not she accepted Islam.

O R IG IN A L TEXT

• Arwa bint ‘Abdul-Muttalib: She was m arried to ‘Umayr

bin Wahb. She gave birth to Tulayb bin ‘Umayr. He was from the
first to migrate. He participated in the Battle o f Badr and he was
m artyred at the Battle o f Ajnadln. He did not have any offspring.

• Umaymah bint ‘Abdul-Muttalib: She was m arried to

Jahsh bin Ri'ab. She gave birth to ‘A bdullah, who was m artyred at
the Battle o f Uhud; Abu Ahm ad, the blind poet whose name was
‘A bd; and Zaynab, the wife o f the Prophet HI. She also gave birth
to Hablbah and Hamnah. A ll o f them were Companions. She also
had ‘Ubaydullah bin Jahsh, who accepted Islam and then became
Christian, and he died in Ethiopia as a disbeliever.

EXPLANATIO N

This [‘Ubaydullah bin Jahsh] was the husband o f Umm Hablbah

Ramlah bint Abi Sufyan before she m arried the Prophet Hi. He

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 TH E P R O P H E T A N D H IS T E N C O M P A N I O N S

was M uslim , then he m igrated with Umm Hablbah to Ethiopia,

where he became Christian and died upon Christianity. And we
seek refuge in Allah from this. Then she married the Prophet Hf.

O R IG IN A L TEXT

• Barrah bint ‘Abdul-Muttalib: She was married to A bdul-

Asad bin Hilal. She gave birth to Abu Salamah, whose name was
A bdullah. He was m arried to Umm Salamah before the Prophet
iH. After Abdul-A sad, [Barrah] married Abu Rahm bin A bdul-
‘Uzza, with whom she had Abu Abrah.

• Umm Hakim: She is al-Bayda' bint Abdul-M uttalib.

She was married to Kurayz bin R abfah. She gave birth to Arwa
bint Kurayz, who was the m other o f ‘Uthm an bin ‘Affan 0 ..

98
 ♦ t y f a v e '4 ♦

O R IG IN A L I I X I

• Khadljah: The first wom an the M essenger o f Allah %t

married was Khadljah bint Khuwaylid bin Asad bin ‘Abdul-TJzza
bin Qusayy bin Kilab. He m arried her when he was 25 years old.
He rem ained with her during the time he received prophecy, and
she was a truthful aid to him. She died three years before the
m igration to M adlnah, and this is the m ost correct statement.
Some say she died five years before m igration, while others say
four.
• Sawdah: Then, after K hadljah, he m arried Sawdah bint
Zam a‘ah bin Qays bin A bd Shams in M akkah before the m igra­
tion to Madlnah. Before that, she was m arried to as-Sakran bin
A m r, the brother o f Suhayl bin Am r. She becam e older, so [the
Prophet] offered to divorce her, but she declined and instead gave
her days to ‘A'ishah, and he rem ained m arried to her.

EXPLANATIO N

Suhayl bin A m r is famous for being instrum ental in concluding

the Treaty o f Hudaybiyyah w ith the Prophet 0 . As for Sawdah,
her choosing to rem ain with the Prophet Ifc shows her intelli­
gence, as she wanted to be raised on the Day o f Judgm ent from
am ongst his wives

O R IG IN A L TLXT

• ‘A'ishah: Then the Prophet 0 m arried ‘A'ishah bint Abl

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 T H E P R O P H E T A N D H IS T E N C O M P A N I O N S

Bakr as-Siddlq in M akkah, two years before the m igration to

M adinah, while some say it was three years before. At the time,
she was six years old, while some say seven; but the first state­
ment is most correct. The m arriage was consum mated after they
m igrated to Madinah, when she was nine years old. Some say it
was seven months after m igration, and some say eight months.

The Prophet •§! died when she was 18 years old. She died in
Madinah and was buried in al-B aqf .76 This was at her bequest in
58 AH; some say it was in 57 AH, but the first statement is most
correct. Abu Hurairah prayed the funeral prayer over her. The
Prophet %% did not m arry any virgin besides her. Her kunyah was
Umm ‘Abdullah. It has been narrated that she had a miscarriage
with the Prophet 0 , but this narration is not affirmed.

I XI’ I A N A I i o \

The third woman the Prophet IS m arried was ‘A'ishah. ‘Umar

iH sought her perm ission to be buried next to his two com pan­
ions (Abu Bakr and the Prophet). Although she had desired to be
buried there next to her father and her husband, she gave prefer­
ence to ‘Umar; thus, he was buried there and she was buried in
al-B aqf with the other wives o f the Prophet Hf. She was from the
last o f his wives to pass away.

W hy was she given the kunyah Umm ‘Abdullah? The scholars have
three statements concerning this:

1) It is said she m iscarried a child from the Prophet i§?, and

this statement is weak.
2) It is perm issible for men and wom en to take a kunyah even
if they do not have any children, as it comes in the narration:

? j ^ J l J * S tf J ;* * til ti

6 Translator's note: A l-Baql’ is a cem etery in Madinah, present-day Saudi Arabia, located to
the southeast o f al-Masjid an-Nabawi.

100
 His Wives

O Abu ‘Umayr,77 what did the little sparrow do?78

3) She took the kunyah due to ‘A bdullah bin az-Zubayr, the

son o f her sister Asm a', because the aunt is similar to the mother.
So even though she did not have any children, her nephew
A bdullah was like her son.

O R IG IN A L TEXT

• Hafsah: The Prophet m arried Hafsah bint ‘Umar

bin al-Khattab sSjl. Before him, she was m arried to Khunays bin
Hudhafah. He was from the Com panions o f the Prophet 0 and
he died in M adlnah, having been m artyred at Badr. It has been
narrated that the Prophet 0 divorced her, but Jib ril came to him
w ith a com mand from Allah. He said:

. dU>-_j3 AiljJ oljjv? 4./3 *»•>-

Go back to Hafsah, for she fasts a lot and prays a lot at night, and
she will be your wife in Paradise.79

And it has been narrated that when news reached ‘U m ar that

the Prophet H had divorced Hafsah, he threw dirt on his head
and said, “Allah w ill not be pleased w ith ‘Umar and his daughter
after this.” So the next day, Jib ril came to the Prophet i S and said,
“Verily Allah commands you to take Hafsah back as a m ercy to
‘Umar.”

Hafsah died in 27 AH, though some say it was 28 AH, during the
year o f the African conquest.

E XPLANATIO N

The com m and for the Prophet i t to take Hafsah back was an
honor given to her ^g.

Translator's note: Abu ‘Umayr was Abu Talhah’s son and Anas bin M alik’s younger brother.
8 Sahih al-V>ukhari 6129
79 Sunan A h i D awud 2283

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 T H E P R O P H E T A N D H IS T E N C O M P A N I O N S

ORIGIN Al II XI

• Um m Hablbah: The M essenger o f Allah H married

Umm Hablbah Ramlah bint Abl Sufyan. She m igrated with her
previous husband, ‘Ubaydullah bin Jahsh, to Ethiopia. There,
he becam e a Christian, while Allah perfected Islam for her. She
m arried the Prophet Hi while she was still in Ethiopia. An-N ajashi
gave her 400 dinar on his behalf as a dowry. The Prophet Hi sent
A m r bin Umayyah ad-D am ri to Ethiopia. ‘Uthm an bin ‘A ffan was
her guardian for the m arriage, although some say it was Khalid bin
Sa‘id bin al-‘As. She died in 44 AH.

EXPLANATION

Umm Hablbah accepted Islam before her father (Abu Sufyan) and
before her brother M u‘awiyah.

O RIG IN A L I I X I

• Um m Salamah: The M essenger o f Allah Hf married Umm

Salamah. Her name was Hind bint Abl Umayyah bin al-Mughlrah.
Before him, she was married to Abu Salamah ‘A bdullah bin ‘Abdul-
Asad. She died in 62 AH and was buried in al-BaqF in Madlnah.
She was the last o f his wives to die, although some say Maymunah
was the last o f his wives to die.

• Zaynab bint Jahsh: The M essenger o f Allah Hi married

Zaynab bint Jahsh. She was the daughter o f his paternal aunt
Umaymah bint ‘Abdul-Muttalib. Before him, she was m arried to
his freed slave Zayd bin Harithah. Zayd divorced her and Allah
married the Prophet to her from above the heavens.80 She used to
say to the wives o f the Prophet Hi:

*' Translator’s note: “So when Zayd had accomplished his desire from her (i.e., divorced her),
We gave her to you in marriage, so that (in the future) there may be no difficult)- for the be­
lievers regarding (the marriage of) the wives o f their adopted sons when the latter have no
desire to keep them (i.e., they have divorced them).” [Surah al-Ah^ab 33:37]

102
 His Wives

Your families arranged your marriages, but Allah arranged my

marriage from above the seven heavens.81

EX PLAN ATIO N

This hadith is m entioned in Sahih al-Bukhari in “The Book o f

Taivhid,” in the chapter “And His Throne Was Above the Water.”
This hadith is proof that Allah is above the heavens, above His
creation in the real sense, in a m anner that befits His m ajesty and
greatness. Zaynab ^ said, “Allah arranged m y m arriage from
above the seven heavens.”

Zaynab bint Jahsh ^ died in 20 AH in M adinah and was buried in

al-Baqf.

O R IG IN A L TEXT

• Zaynab bint Khuzaymah: The M essenger o f Allah 0

m arried Zaynab bint K huzaym ah bin al-Harith. She was called the
M other o f the Poor due to her feeding the poor a great deal. She
was m arried to A bdullah bin Jahsh, while some say it was A bd
at-Tufayl bin al-Harith, but the first statement is m ost correct.
[The Prophet] m arried her in 3 AH. She only rem ained with him
for a short time, two or three m onths [before she died].

EXPLANATIO N

This wife and Khadljah were the only wives o f the Prophet fit
to die during his lifetime. Khadljah died in M akkah while Zaynab
died in Madinah. His rem aining wives all died after him, may Allah
be pleased with all o f them.

O R IG IN A L TEXT

• Juwayriyah bint al-Harith: The M essenger o f Allah i t

m arried Juw ayriyah bint al-Harith. She becam e a prisoner during

81 Sahih al-Bukhari 7420

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 T H E P R O P H E T A N D H IS T E N C O M P A N I O N S

the Battle o f BanI al-M ustaliq, captured by Thabit bin Qays bin
Shammas. She wrote to the Prophet asking him to free her. He
proposed to her and she accepted. He m arried her in 6 AH, and
she died during R abf al-Awwal in 56 AH.

EXPLANATION

She was a prisoner during the Batde o f BanI al-Mustaliq. She

accepted Islam and the Prophet H m arried her. It is said that
Juwayriyah brought more blessing to her fam ily than any other
woman. Her family was captured after the Batde o f BanI
al-Mustaliq. W hen she married the Prophet H , the people said,
“Free the in-laws o f the M essenger o f Allah,” so the people freed
the prisoners o f BanI al-Mustaliq.

ORIGINAL LEX I

• Safiyyah bint Huyayy bin Akhtab: The M essenger of

Allah IS m arried Safiyyah bint Huyayy bin Akhtab, whose family
was from the descendants o f Harun bin ‘Imran, M usa bin ‘Im ran’s
brother stif. She became a prisoner during the Batde o f Khaybar in
7 AH. Before [the Prophet], she was m arried to K inanah bin A bl
al-FIaqiq, whom the Prophet killed during the Batde o f Khaybar.
He freed Safiyyah as a charity. She died in 30 AH, while some say
she died in 50 AH.

EXPLANATION

This was another Jew ish wom an who accepted Islam and married
the Prophet H . She said that the Prophet used to be the m ost
hated man to her, because [the Muslims] killed her people during
the Battle o f Khaybar. T hey killed her husband, her father, and
her uncle. They jusdy killed them in battle and they did not do so
oppressively. She said, “He was the m ost hated man to me, but he
continued to treat me in a loving m anner until he was the m ost
beloved man to me.”

104
 His Wives

Look at the trem endous effect o f good manners. The Muslims

killed her husband, her father, her uncle, and her brother in the
Battle o f Khaybar, but she forgot about all o f that due to the kind
treatm ent o f the M essenger o f Allah 0 . This is proof o f his great
character. How else could a wom an love a man who was responsi­
ble for the death o f her family, except if he had great morals and
character?! This also shows the wisdom o f him m arrying from the
different tribes, and even from am ong the Jews. By way o f this, his
great biography and character was spread am ong the people. Allah
said about him:

V ' - 5 I » ' * ;
lijle . UaS Ca£ 4-111 4 LuS #
V,. d ll^ k a I jjJ a f ljV

And by the mercy of Allah, you dealt with them

gently. And had you been severe and harsh-hearted,
they would have broken away from about you.
[Surah Ali 'Imran 3:159]

The affair o f our m other Safiyyah is amazing. Anim osity towards

him had been placed in her heart since childhood. W hen the
Prophet 0 entered M adlnah, her father and uncle went to visit
him. W hen they returned home, their faces had changed due to the
envy they harbored towards him. One o f them said to the other,
“Is it him ?” M eaning, is he the prophet we have been inform ed o f
in our books? The other m an responded in the affirmative. The
first man said, “W hat is your position towards him ?” He replied,
“Hatred and anim osity towards him until death.” Thus, the Jew s
knew the Prophet tit completely, but they harbored envy towards
him because prophecy had been removed from the Children o f
Israel.

Allah guided her and honored her, as she was the daughter o f a
prophet, the niece o f a prophet, and the wife o f a prophet.82
“2 Translator’s note: Anas narrated, “It reached Safiyyah that Hafsah called her ‘the daughter
of a Jew,’ so she wept. Then the Prophet jfe entered upon her while she was crying, so he

105
 TH E P R O P H E T A N D H IS T E N C O M P A N I O N S

ORIGINAL I EXT

• Maymunah bint al-Harith: The M essenger o f Allah

married M aymunah bint al-Harith, the m aternal aunt o f Khalid
bin al-Walld and ‘A bdullah bin ‘Abbas. He married her in a place
called Sharif, a spring nine miles from Makkah. She was the last
wom an he married from the M others o f the Believers. She died in
63 AH.

These are the women he consum mated m arriages with, making a

total o f 11. He had m arriage contracts with seven other women,
but he did not consum mate the m arriages with them.

EXPLANATION

He had nine wives at once, while two died during his lifetime.
Al-Hafiz Ibn Hajar 'M
j - m entioned some o f the wisdom for the
number o f wives he had.

Firstly, the previous religion had no limit on the num ber o f wives a
man could have. It has been authentically reported that Sulayman
said:

j l i j . dJl JS" Aij a\y*\ aJLoj aJuUI

o -dj p i p-b .ilil jl tsA-LLsJl
jisj p sLi j i a j l j i i j j 3L 3 d b dii ^ Jji j i i jix J i

“Tonight I will go around to 100 women, each of whom will give

birth to a boy who will fight for the sake of Allah.” The angel said
to him, “Say, ‘If Allah wills.”’ But he did not say it, as he forgot.
He went around to them, but none of them gave birth, apart from
one woman who gave birth to half a child. The Prophet ^ said,

said, ‘W hat has made you cry?’ She said, ‘Hafsah said to me that I am the daughter o f a Jew.’
So the Prophet f e said, ‘And you are the daughter o f a prophet, and your uncle is a prophet,
and you are married to a prophet, so what is she boasting to you about?’ Then he said, ‘Fear
Allah, O fdafsah.’ ” (Jam i’ at-T irm idhi3894)

106
 His Wives

“If he had said insha A llah , he would not have broken his oath and
he would have had more hope of fulfilling his wish.”83

W hen Islam came, the num ber o f wives a man could have at one
time was limited to four. Consequently, those who entered Islam
with more than four wives were com m anded to keep four and
divorce the remaining. As for the Prophet Hi, he was given special
consideration and was allowed to exceed that number. This allow­
ance was granted to him by Allah.

Ibn Hajar m entioned 10 reasons for this. From the reasons

m entioned were:

• This would allow more people to witness his dom estic

behavior, because he did not go out to the people except during
limited hours o f the day. He slept in his home, and he ate and
drank in his home. Thus, by him having more wives and in-laws,
there would be more people to transm it w hat his character inside
the home was like.

• Another reason was to grant honor to the tribes by giving

them a connection to the Prophet HI, as the greatest honor given
to a tribe is their women being m arried to noble men. Allah
wanted to honor some o f the tribes by m aking them the in-laws
o f the Prophet 0 .

• Another reason was to unite the Arab tribes, because the

Arab tribes were at war with one another, but when he married
into w arring tribes, the hatred subsided; they united and the
people entered Islam.

• Another reason was to increase the responsibility o f the

Prophet HI, thus increasing his reward. As the Com panions said:

83 Sahih Muslim 1654

107
 T H E P R O P H E T A N D H IS T E N C O M P A N I O N S

j i Li dJl ./2'I* C^yA^J

a7j g A caS-Ua’ ji5A?-l ^ ^ ‘■3 o-C»j»tj^ OxaaIaJ JS y OJ
LgjLjsj j l dTi ^*jj_j Dl5~ ^*4^' t^JySxJ' ^gi ^*03 j J ?aJ-Co
.£ -t aJ OIS' JSU JI

“O Messenger of Allah, the wealthy people have taken all the

rewards. They pray as we pray, and they fast as we fast, but they
give charity from their excess wealth.” He said, “Has Allah not
given you something to give as charity? Every time you praise or
glorify Allah, that is charity. There is charity in sexual intercourse.”
He was asked, “Is there charity in satisfying one’s desire?” He
replied, “If he does it in a haram manner, is that not a sin? Similarly,
if he does it in a permissible manner, he receives a reward.”84

Thus, his spending on nine wom en, looking after them and taking
care o f them, w ill increase his deeds, thus increasing his m a n , thus
increasing his reward.

• Another reason was to increase his family, because when a

man marries a woman he becomes from them, and it is not possi­
ble for anyone to transgress him because the tribe w ill protect
him, his wealth, and his honor.

• Another reason was to dissem inate the legislative rulings

for women. The wives o f the Prophet i t would ask him the details
o f affairs that the men did not know about, such as the affairs o f
breastfeeding, menses, and pregnancy.

• Another reason was to give a glance into the excellent

manners o f the Prophet i t , to confirm that his hidden character
was the same as his apparent character, showing that his actions
matched his statements. This was evident in the extreme love our
mother Safiyyah had for the Prophet, even though he killed her
father, uncle, and form er husband. For this reason, the people say,

*4 Al-Adab al-Mufrad by Imam al-Bukhari (227)

108
 His Wives

“If you see a man being exalted by his family, then know that his
apparent condition agrees w ith his hidden condition. And if you
see a man whose fam ily does not exalt him, then know his hidden
affair is in contrast to his apparent affair.” A m an’s family w ill not
exalt him due to w hat they see from him in private.

As for the wives o f the Prophet they would exalt him and
spread the news o f his great character. Anas ail said:

Jai (jli 4-ilpI <ub dJl «Ll j j L j jlS

.is I t i Ip - u l i V j OS) d Jb ^

I served the Messenger of Allah % for nine years, and I do not

know (of any instance) when he said to me, “Why have you done
this and that?” and he never found fault with me in anything.85

• Another reason was so he could take care o f his wives

and their children. All o f his wives except ‘A'ishah were married
before and m any o f them had children, so he took care o f all o f
them, and this was a sign o f his generosity.

These are from the m ost im portant reasons m entioned by Ibn

Hajar. This is a refutation against those who allege that he married
only to fulfill his desires. In reality, if a m an were to m arry in order
to fulfill his desires, a person with com m on sense would not blame
him for it. O ur Lord the Exalted said:

^ IJJJ frL -u ll (jA L_lUa l i

5ita.lj3 Ij E xj VI ,jla

Marry women of your choice, two or three or four,

but if you fear that you shall not be able to deal
justly (with them), then only one.
[Surah an-Nisa' 4:3]

85 Sahih Muslim 2309

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 T H E P R O P H E T A N D H IS T E N C O M P A N I O N S

The man who m arries to fulfill his desires is not blameworthy;

rather, it is the person who commits im perm issible acts (such as
fornication or adultery) who is blameworthy. The Prophet 0 only
m arried one virgin; if he was trying to fulfill his desires, he would
have married many virgins. A ll o f his Com panions wanted him to
m arry their daughters.

110
 ♦ • / / f r i (p tfe w a n M ♦

O R IG IN A L TEXT

His Male Servants:

• Anas bin M alik al-Ansari.

• Hind and Asm a', the two sons o f Harithah al-Aslami.

EXPLANATION

The names Hind and Asm a' are names for both males and females
according to the Arabs. Khadljah, the wife o f the Prophet Hf, had
a son named Hind bin A bi Halah.

O R IG IN A L TEXT

• R abfah bin K a’b al-Aslami.

• A bdullah bin M as‘ud, who was responsible for [the

Prophet’s] sandals— when [the Prophet] stood, [Ibn M as‘ud]
would put them on him, and when he sat, [Ibn M as‘ud] would
hold them in his hands until he stood.

• ‘Uqbah bin ‘Amir would lead his donkey when he traveled.

• Bilal bin Rabah was the caller to prayer.

EXPLANATIO N

The Prophet had four people who gave the call to prayer. The
two in his masjid were Bilal and ‘A bdullah bin Umm Maktum.

Ill
 TH E P R O P H E T A N D H IS T E N C O M P A N I O N S

Sa’d al-Quraz was in M asjid Quba', while Abu M ahdhurah was in

Makkah.

O R IG IN A L TEX 1

• Sa’d, the freed slave o f Abu Bakr as-Siddlq.

• Dhu Mikhmar, the nephew o f an-N ajashi; some say his

name was Dhu Mikhbar.

• Bukayr bin Shaddakh al-Laythi; some say his name was

Bakr.

• Abu D harr al-Ghifari, and W aqid, Abu W aqid, Hisham,

Abu D amlrah, Hunayn, Abu A slb (whose name was Ahm ar), and
Abu ‘Ubayd.

• SafTnah, who was the slave o f Umm Salamah, the wife of

the Prophet Ife. She freed him under the condition that he would
serve the Prophet Hf for the duration o f his life. He said, “Even
if you did not make it a condition, I would have never left the
M essenger o f Allah 0 . ”

These are the well-known servants. It has been said he had 40

servants.

His Female Servants:

• Salma Umm R ati’.

• Barakah Umm Ayman, whom he inherited from his father.

She was the mother o f Usamah bin Zayd.

EXPLANATION

The Prophet % inherited Barakah from his father. She raised the
Prophet 0 while he was young. She took good care o f him and
she loved him. The historians have m entioned m any beautiful
stories about her. W hen Zayd divorced Zaynab, the Prophet 0

112
 His Servants

m arried Zayd to Barakah Umm Ayman. She gave birth to Usamah

bin Zayd iii. His m other was black while his father Zayd was
white, and Usam ah came out black, resem bling his mother. He
was the beloved o f the Prophet 0 .

O R IG IN A L TEXT

• M aym unah bint Sa’d, Khadirah, and Radwa.

113
 ♦ S&/A ca reer / (^ f/ a ve6 ♦

O R IG IN A L TEXT

• Zayd bin Harithah and his son Usam ah bin Zayd; Usamah
was called the Beloved Son o f the Beloved.

• Thawban, whose lineage is from Yemen.

• Abu Kabshah, who was born in M akkah; his name was

Salim. He participated in the Batde o f Badr.

• Salih Shuqran, Rabah Aswad, and Yasar Nubi.

• Abu Rafi’, whose name was Aslam , although some say his
name was Ibrahim. He was a slave o f Ibn A bbas. Ibn A bbas gave
him to the Prophet 0 as a gift, and the Prophet freed him.

• Abu M uwayhibah, and Fadalah who lived in Sham.

• Rafi’, who was a slave for Sa‘Id bin al-As, S a‘Id’s son inher­
ited slaves from [his father], freeing some while not freeing others.
Rafi’ went to the Prophet 0 seeking his help, so [Sa‘Id’s son] gave
[Rafi’] to the Prophet as a gift. Rafi’ would say, “I am the freed
slave o f the Prophet 0 . ”

• M id‘am Aswad, who was given to Rifa‘ah bin Zayd. He was

killed in the valley o f al-Qura.

• K irkirah, who was in charge o f the personal items o f the

Prophet 0 .

114
 His Freed Slaves

• Zayd, the grandfather o f Hilal bin Yasar bin Zayd.

• ‘Ubayd, Tahm an (also known as Kaysan, M ihran, Dhakran,

or M arwan), and M a'bur al-Q ibti, whom he acquired from
al-Muqawqis.

115
O R IG IN A L TEXT

• As-Sakbu: This was the first horse he owned. He purchased

it from an Arab Bedouin for 10 uqiyah .86 The Bedouin had named
it ad-Daris, and he changed the name to as-Sakbu. This was the
first horse he used in battle. He would also race with this horse
and he was victorious with it, which brought him joy.

LXI’ I ANA I ION

He had seven race horses. The name as-Sakbu is taken from the
phrase “to pour water.” He gave it this name because it was fast
like pouring water.

O R IG IN A L TEXT

• Al-M urtajaz: He bought this horse from an Arab Bedouin,

and Khuzaymah bin Thabit testified to the purchase.87

8<l Translator's note: An uqiyah is 40 dirham; the weight o f a dirham is 2.975 grains.
8' Translator's note: The Prophet % bought a horse from a Bedouin. The Prophet 3S took
the Bedouin with him to pay for the horse. The Messenger o f Allah sb walked quickly and
the Bedouin walked slowly. The people stopped the Bedouin and began to bargain with him
for the horse, as they did not know that the Prophet & had bought it. The Bedouin called
the M essenger o f Allah jfe, sating, “If you want this horse, (then buy it), otherwise I shall
sell it.” The Prophet 5K stopped when he heard the call o f the Bedouin, and said, “Have I
not bought it from you?” The Bedouin said, “I swear by Allah, I have not sold it to you.”
The Prophet said, “Yes, I have bought it from you.” The Bedouin began to say, “Bring
a witness.” Khuzaymah bin Thabit then said, “I bear witness that you have bought it.” The
Prophet turned to Khuzaymah and said, “On what (grounds) do you bear w itness?” He
said, “By considering you trustworthy, O M essenger o f Allah!” The Prophet 5g made the
witness o f Khuzaymah equivalent to the witness o f two people. (Sunati A b i D auud 3607,
authenticated by Shaykh al-Albani)

116
 His Animals

• Sahl bin Sa’d as-Sa‘idi said, “The Prophet 0 had three

horses with me: Lizaz, at-Tarib, and al-Luhayf. As for Lizaz, it
was given to him as a gift from al-Muqawqis. A l-Luhayf was given
to him by R abfah bin Abi al-Bara' as a gift, and at-Tarib was given
as a gift to him from Farwah bin ‘Amr.”

EXPI.AN VI ION

Al-M uqawqis was the king from E gypt who sent M ariyah al-Qibti-
yyah and her sister Slrln as a gift to the Prophet Hk

O R IG IN A L TLX I

• Al-Ward: This was a horse given to him as a gift from

Tamlm ad-Dari. The Prophet 0 gave it to ‘Umar, who donated it.

EX PI A NATION

‘Umar bin al-Khattab said:

j l A o jU toJcs- jU " ^ jJ l cdJl o

jvL-j <dJl c JL gj iil c J lJ s j cU*

JjUdl jl* cU j-lj a^iloc-l j^ j coyuiJ Si JbaJ

I gave a horse in Allah’s cause. The person to whom it was given

did not look after it, so I intended to buy it back from him, think­
ing that he would sell it cheap. When I asked the Prophet 0 about
this, he said, “Don’t buy it, even if he gives it to you for one dirham ,
as the person who takes back what he has given in charity is like a
dog that swallows back its vomit.”88

O R IG IN A L TLXT

• Ad-Duldul was the mule he used to ride for travel. This

mule lived after his death, and she becam e old and all o f her teeth

88 Sahih al-fiukhari 2623

117
 T H E P R O P H E T A N D H IS T E N C O M P A N I O N S

fell out, so they would grind up the barley for her. She died in
Yanbu’.

IAIM ANA I ION

W hen his donkey became old, all o f her teeth fell out, so she was
not able to eat. Consequently, they would grind up her barley so
she could eat. This shows the great concern the Com panions gave
to everything connected to the Prophet 0 . They preserved his
weapons, clothes, possessions, and even his mule. They would
honor his mule and feed her, and they would grind up her barley
because she was not able to chew.

O R I G I N Al HA I

• ‘U fayr was his donkey who died during the Farewell

Pilgrimage.

• He had 20 m ilking camels that grazed. Each night, two huge

water-skins o f milk would be brought to him. A m ong the camels
with heavy milk were: al-Hanna', as-Sam ra', al-‘Urays, as-Sa’diyyah,
al-Baghum, al-YasIrah, and ar-Rayya.

I \ r i X N AIIO N

From his 20 m ilking camels, those mentioned produced the most

milk.

O R IO N AI II XI

• Burdah was his she-cam el, given to him as a gift from

ad-Dahhak bin Sufyan. He used to receive a great deal o f milk
from her.

• M uhrah and ash-Shaqra* were two she-camels sent to

him from Sa’d bin ‘Ubadah from BanI ‘Uqayl.

• A l-‘Adba' was a camel Abu Bakr bought from Bam

118
 His Animals

al-Harish for 800 dirham. Then the Prophet 0 purchased it

for 400 dirham. This is the cam el he rode when he m igrated to
Madlnah. W hen he arrived in M adlnah, the cam el was from the
best mounts. She was also called al-Qaswa' and al-Jad‘a'. This is
the she-cam el that was defeated in the race, and this was difficult
upon the Muslims.

EXPLANATION

Abu Bakr prepared two camels for him and the Prophet i t to ride
as they m igrated to M adlnah, but the Prophet i t refused to accept
it unless he could pay Abu Bakr for it, so he paid him 400 dirham.
A l-A dba' was the cam el who had never been defeated in a race
until a Bedouin came on a young cam el, which beat her in a race.
This upset the Muslims, so the M essenger o f Allah i t said:

Allah has made it incumbent upon Himself that He will not

elevate anything from this world except that He lowers it.89

Consequently, his cam el and other camels w ill win some races and
lose some.

O R IG IN A L TEXT

• He had seven m ilking goats: ‘Ujrah, Zamzam, Suqya,

Barakah, W arsah, Atlal, and Atraf. And [he had] 100 other goats.

EXPLAN ATIO N
The seven m ilking goats m entioned are the type o f goats that are
loaned to neighbors for milking. The owner lets his neighbors
borrow the goats to milk them.
It is not unusual for people to name their animals. This is a custom
am ong the A rabs— they name their camels, cows, horses, goats,
and sheep.

89 Sahih al-Bukhari 6501

119
 EXPLANATION

W hen the Prophet 0 died, his weapons were given to the Muslim
treasury. This is because the prophets do not leave behind any
heirs. The Prophet said:

We do not have any heirs; what we leave behind is a charitable

endowment.90

His nine wives did not inherit anything from him, nor did his
children or uncles. His uncle al-‘A bbas rem ained alive after him,
but he did not take any o f his possessions.

o r ig in a l i t.\i

• Spears: He had three spears, which he acquired from the

weapons o f BanI Q aynuqa’.

• Bows: He had three bows, named ar-Rawha', Shawhat, and

Safra'.

• Shield: He had a shield that contained an im age o f a ram ’s

head. He hated the image. One m orning, he awoke to find that
Allah the Exalted had removed the im age from his shield.

90 Sahih \ tus Urn 1761

120
 His Weapons

EXPLANATION

This was from the m iracles o f the Prophet i§i. He supplicated to

his Lord to remove the im age, and the next m orning when he
awoke, the im age on his shield was gone. This has been m endoned
by Imam at-Tabari.

O R IG IN A L TEXT

• Swords: His sword was named D hul-Fiqar, acquired from

the spoils o f war at Badr. He had a vision about this sword before
the Battle o f Uhud. The Prophet i|f said:

I saw in a dream that I moved a sword and its blade broke, and that
symbolized the casualties that the believers suffered on the day of
Uhud. Then I moved it again, and it became better than it was
before, and that symbolized the conquest (of Makkah) that Allah
helped us to achieve, and the unity of the believers. I (also) saw
cows in the dream, and what Allah does is always beneficial. Those
cows appeared to symbolize the faithful believers (martyred) on
the day of Uhud.91

The events took place just as he saw them in this dream.

He had three swords from Ban! Q aynuqa’: Q ula‘i, al-Battara, and

al-Hatf. He also had al-M ikhdam , and Rasub, which was taken
from al-Fuls, a pagan tribe from Tay'.

Anas bin M alik said:

4 *A* *ULp d J l d Jl s J jA j o U ”"

91 Sahih al-Bukhari 4081

121
 T H E P R O P H E T A N D H IS T E N C O M P A N I O N S

The metallic end of the scabbard of the Messenger of Allah |§?

was of silver, the pommel92 of his sword was silver, and in between
were rings of silver.93

EXPLANATION

This shows the perm issibility o f a man putting silver on his

weapon.

O R I G I N A1 I I XI

• Armor: As-Sa'ib bin Yazld said:

.L l i l S ”" -U-l Arlp dl

The Prophet 0 wore two coats of mail on the day of Uhud, one
over the other.94

EXPLANATION

This shows the obligation o f utilizing the means, and doing so

does not negate relying upon Allah, as the Prophet wore coats
o f arm or during the battles o f Uhud and Khaybar. Thus, those
who abandon the proper means are in error.

1,2 Translator's note: A pommel is a rounded knob on the end o f a sword’s handle.
93 Sunan an-K asa'i 5374
94 Sunan Ibn Alajah 2913

122
 ♦ - /J/i @ $uj6iea/ <
^ / a mct€ri6tic6 ♦

O R I G I N A L 1 1 X1

Anas bin M alik t§£ narrated, “W hen Abu Bakr would see the
Prophet i t com ing towards them, he would say, ‘Like the light o f
the full moon, his departure is darkness; the trustworthy chosen
one who calls to good.’ ”

EXPLAIN.'A I I ON

Allah the Exalted said:

LacE j (1°} (SUj LoijI Ij J L |s>

O Prophet (Muhammad)! Verily, We have sent you

as a witness, a bearer of glad tidings, a warner, one
who invites to Allah (by His permission), and a
lamp spreading light.
[Surah al-Ahzab 33:45-46]

This narration is m entioned by the historians, but I could not

find it in the books o f ahadith. It has been narrated by Jab ir bin
Samurah:

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 T H E P R O P H E T A N D H IS T E N C O M P A N I O N S

I saw the Prophet % on a clear night, so I looked at the Messenger

of Allah H? and at the moon; he was wearing a red garment, and
he looked better than the moon to me.95

O R IG IN A L TEXT

Abu Hurairah M narrated that ‘Umar bin al-Khattab i§£ used to

recite a poem that Zuhayr bin A bi Salma wrote about Harim bin
Sinan96:

You would be the light during the night o f a fu ll moon i f

y o u were anything other than a man.

Then ‘Umar and those sitting with him would say, “This describes
the M essenger o f Allah and no one else fits this description.”

l:\ ri.A N A I ION

It has been narrated by Abu Ishaq:

S/ J l i a1 !I U - j jlS ^ I

A man asked al-Bara', “Was the face of the Messenger of Allah 0

like a sword?” He said, “No, it was like the moon. »97

His face was white with a glow and round like the m oon; it was
not long like a sword.

O R IG IN A L TEXT

‘Ali bin A bi Talib M said:

b ; .v jjlli a- I p aJUi aJ J i J j Aj jlS '

aJ a2 sl* J jjjd ASOS' jtS " " A jJ2 ~ « J| O^Sj l i - U t il <L*S" f A lt

‘h Jd m i ’ at- 77rm idhi 3041

% Translator’s note: Harim bin Sinan was chief o f the Murrah tribe.
9 J a m i’ at-Tirmidhi 3996

124
 His Physical Characteristics

.jJi-3 Aiil UGU DjJtj

The skin color of the Prophet 0 was white with a shade of red. His
eyes were very black, his hair was neither curly nor straight, and
his beard was very thick. His cheeks were smooth. He had a small
amount of hair on his chest. His neck was like a silver pitcher.
The line of hair from his upper chest to his navel was straight. He
didn’t have any additional hair on his chest or stomach. His hands
and feet were fleshy. When he walked, it was like he was descend­
ing from a hill, and when he stepped, it was like he was removing
his foot from a huge rock. When he turned, he turned his entire
body. The sweat on his face was like pearls, and the scent of his
sweat was more fragrant than perfume. He was neither short nor
tall. He was neither weak nor ignoble. And I have never seen
anyone like him before him or after him.

EXI’l A W I ION

• Complexion: His skin color was white, but not with a

shade o f yellow; rather, his skin was white with a shade o f red.
This is the redness o f the Arabs. W hite, tan, and brown are all
reladve affairs, so the whiteness o f the Prophet i t was the w hite­
ness o f the Arabs, and the whiteness o f the Arabs leans toward
red, not toward yellow or another color as is the case with some
non-Arabs.

• Hair: He had a large beard, but it was well groom ed and

organized. The hair on his head was thick and its length was
between his shoulders and his earlobes.

• Body: He had a line o f hair from his chest to his navel.

Some people’s entire stomach or chest is covered with hair, but he

125
 T H E P R O P H E T A N D H IS T E N C O M P A N I O N S

only had one line o f hair from his chest to his navel, and the rest
of his chest and stomach did not have hair on it. This line o f hair
was in a straight line, not veering o ff to the left or the right.

Due to his pure, clear com plexion, his neck seemed like a pitcher
o f silver. This was not due to the color, because his color was
reddish white, but this com parison was made with silver due to his
clear, clean complexion.

• Hands: His fingers and toes were thick, as they were

proportionate to his body and his strength. He did not have thin
limbs.

• His walk: W hen he walked, he would lean forward like he

was descending from a high place. The Prophet 0 would look
towards the ground— he would not raise his head, nor would he
look to the right or left. He would look towards the ground, so
if you saw him from a distance, it looked like he was descending
from high ground.

His footsteps were firm; he would not skip his feet on the ground.
Sometimes when someone is walking towards you, their shoes can
be heard tapping the ground. As for the Prophet 0 , his walking
resembled that o f soldiers, w ithout any hardship. Soldiers walk
firmly, but sometimes they do so with hardship; the Prophet’s
steps were firm without hardship. It was like he was lifting his foot
off a boulder. He did not drag his feet— he raised them.

• His movements: W hen he wanted to speak to someone,

he wouldn’t turn his head while still walking to the left or right.
No; rather, he would stop and com pletely turn his body and head
towards the person. This was from his complete manners.

• His sweat: The sweat o f the Prophet i S was different than

the sweat o f the rest o f mankind. The sweat o f everyone else
does not have a pleasant smell, and it may become more unpleas-

126
 His Physical Characteristics

ant as they age. But Allah com pleted his physical attributes to the
extent that when the Com panions smelled his sweat, it smelled
like perfume. They would even take some o f his sweat and place
it in containers to use as perfume. This was from the nobility
granted to him.

• His height: He was o f m edium height. M edium height for

a man is from the com pleteness o f physical attributes, such that
he doesn’t appear tall nor does he appear short.

He was the m ost handsome o f people while also being the most
generous o f them. Hassan M said, “M y eyes have not seen one
more handsome than you and no wom an has given birth to one
more beautiful than you.”

O R IG IN A L TEXT

In another narration it mentions:

dJ-Us UyiUl
^ oj-'-'f -
dJl di» o J j C Vj c-cLj J\ jjj idplj J j J u <.>
'C S -\ daJLd dr*J 4^1*
-Up

The seal of prophethood was situated between his shoulders. He

was the last of all the prophets. He was the most generous and the
most forbearing. He was the most truthful of people in speech, the
best in fulfilling the trust, the most gentle and accommodating,
and he was the best at interacting with the people. Whoever saw
him would intuitively be in awe of him. Whoever described him
would say, “I have never seen anyone similar to him before him or
after him 111.”

EXI’ LA.X A I ION

The seal between his shoulders was an area o f raised skin the size
o f a pigeon’s egg. It was surrounded by moles and there were

127
 T H E P R O P H E T A N D H IS T E N C O M P A N I O N S

some hairs on it. W hen anyone possessing knowledge from the

People o f the Book would encounter him, they would look for
this seal. He is the last o f the prophets, so there w ill be no prophet
after him.

He was the m ost generous o f all the people. The Arabs used to
say that Hatim at-Ta'i98 was the m ost generous o f the people, but
when the Prophet itt appeared, they all forgot about Hatim and
anyone else.

He was the m ost forbearing, m eaning he had an expansive chest.

It means to have forbearance and patience w ith the trials that
befall you. Allah the Exalted said:

And whomsoever Allah wills to guide, He opens

his breast to Islam...
[Surah al-A n‘dm 6:125]

He was the m ost truthful in speech, and he was famous for his
truthfulness even before prophecy. He was known as the truthful
and trustworthy.

His character was gentle and easygoing. O ur Lord said about him:

And by the mercy of Allah, you dealt with them

gently.
[Surah Ali 'Imran 3:159]

He was the best at interacting with his family, his brothers in faith,
his wives, his children, his companions, his relatives, and strangers.

98 Translator’s note: Hatim at-Ta'i was a famous Arab poet. The people wrote proverbs about
his generosity.

128
 His Physical Characteristics

W hoever saw him for the first time would be awestruck in their
heart. This was som ething given to him by A llah— He put awe
for him in the people’s hearts. Salm an iig, upon seeing him for the
first time, said:

ill? ' ° of ^ , o , ? f ) y* >, s „ > .it .

*y ry j ! c-jJp C.--;-: LLls
When I saw his face clearly, I knew that it was not the face of a
liar."

Upon seeing him for the first time, the people were in awe o f
him, and when they interacted w ith him, they loved him. These
two character traits are only found in a person with complete and
perfect character, and the best o f them was our Prophet Hf.

O RIG IN A L II M

Al-Bara' bin ‘Azib said:

C t-y y <u!p <dJl dJl J y * j <jU" i ^ y y

& 7^1 i s i t i Adlj U i k - aAL j i ilA Ji ^

aJ p dJl
The Messenger of Allah 0 was of medium height, having broad
shoulders, with his hair hanging down on his earlobes. He put on
a red cloak, and I have never seen anyone more handsome than
him i f . 100

EXPLAN A I ION

He had broad shoulders, which is a sign o f manhood, and his

body was proportionate. His cloak was not pure red; rather, it was
red mixed with other colors.

m Sunan Ibn M ajah 3374

100 Sahih M uslim 2337

129
 TH E PR O PH ET AND H IS TEN C O M PA N IO N S

O RIG IN A L TEX I

Umm M a’bad al-Khu7.a‘iyyah said while describing the Prophet

§ f:

jy c a y i U s bU-j 'Ctolj
toy# c>.alag- Ojli-U ^ U— lAjcL^a
jl_j tjlijJl c —«-v? j j t j^SI tiiliS""<U;>xJ aJLlp

<.^j,y y y obU-'y t-C*j tjj-bJl ttLg-J' bU j L*—*

b! ajijj tOj-Iatj Asia:* jlS" tjJtA b/j j-ij V tjia-uJl yU-
AjbUil j- iljl jA j (,yy^3f-yyi y^oS- j+ ai yy> A^j>CJ>j bl_J tj_^b ^ jy b
^*1 j l j iaJja)IjLvfljl Jl* j( tAj {.Liij aJ Ij-li ^ Q—~*~^ <'jla:-»
. -UjL» b/j ^ jL f- bl 9_^*b/

I saw a handsome man whose face was illuminating. He had a

good physical build. His stomach did not protrude. He was not
despised for having a small head— his was handsome with nice
features. His eyes were extremely black; his eyelashes were long
and curly. His voice was commanding. His neck was illuminating;
his beard was abundant. His eyebrows were long and connected.
If he was silent, he was quiet with dignity, and when he spoke, his
speech was highly audible and radiant. He was the most handsome
of people from afar and the most handsome up close.
His speech was sweet. His words were decisive, not too long and
not too short. It is as though his words were a string of pearls
falling down from a broken necklace. His posture was medium,
not too tall, and the eye does not despise him for being too short.
He was a branch between two branches, and he was the most
handsome of the three, and the most valuable of them. He had
companions who surrounded him; when he spoke, they listened
to his statement, and if he commanded, they rushed to imple­
ment his command. He was served and surrounded. He was not
someone with a frowning face, and he was not viewed as feeble­
minded.

130
 His Physical Characteristics

EX I’ I A W I I O X

Umm M a’bad al-K huza‘iyyah was the wom an he passed by during

his m igration. ‘A'ishah ^ described his speech by saying:

. oI-i^3> - oUp l2L>Up- jUp*j d U ~ a U p dJl

Ji. d^

The Prophet Hf used to talk in a deliberate manner, such that if

someone wanted to count his words, he could do so.101

O R IG IN A L TEXT

Anas bin Malik ^ said:

X? dr5^ ' dr* **0 ^

J p-
j 'i/j tJaiai -Eapo J Vj cj^p^l

He was of average height, not too tall and not too short, with a
rosy color, not extremely white and not brown, and his hair was
neither very curly nor very straight.102

Hind bin Abl Halah M said:

aI J j j “}b AgP-J L»p>-ap l* P tJ ^'AC' aJl)1 dU "

jl c J p j Ul$jl j»^Jap ^y> dr* 4

cd jJJl yAjl 10_A? j P lit <cjjl U p x -i oytU J jlp s J b ii V jj tL?A ^bLJip C -ijjjJt

Oj-U (JijP La-frUj j^4 ^P <wP-ly>dl Ij

.jj-il iOjixj j j j iJ

dUp*i/l ^UjSp 4drr*i*^ C*CpdUl t,~.C

lob t Jjjoc* <A .jo g \\ (.[jL+ a ~A^a S -Ep- 4jLp jlS"" J) ^

j^P*-^ » * * ■ ' ^ dd Si U -d ^ Iff3 1 £ . t U "*

tJapJlS”
" y*dG SjJl ^ L» J ^ s jp c^pcudl jjj\

j-GaJl ^ypjj*xll I i,ddi —1sj>—

^ Up 1^Ip

101 Sahih al-ftukhari 3567

1112 Sahib al-ftukhdri 3283

131
 T H E P R O P H E T A N D H IS T E N C O M P A N I O N S

tl*Jj (J|j lil s.Ul U^-lp j ^L; Q1./g.»v <i ,./jah

4‘i -|-/^ Is I t ^£**4 1^1 4 -ft11 ^^ «** ^JJ 4 ^ifl *—
~
^Jl 0^laJ ^ J^lsl ^1 o^flj ctJ^JaJ' C-uiJl cuixil ISJj
.f ^ L J l <uiJ y I-Cjj 4<uL?w’ I i j j —J iSia^-'iLdl ojai tf.L»_vJl

The Messenger of Allah Hf was great and viewed as great. His face
shone like the full moon. He was taller than someone of medium
height, but shorter than a tall person. His head was large and his
hair was combed. If his hair became parted in the middle, he left
it like that, and if not, his hair did not go beyond his earlobes. His
complexion was rosy, and his forehead was wide. His eyebrows
were arched, complete, and not connected. Between his eyebrows
was a vein that showed if he was angry. His nose was long, arched
in the middle with a thin tip. He had light on his face. The one
who did not look at him closely would think his nose was tilted
high.

His beard was big with a lot of hair. His eyes were very black. His
cheeks were smooth. His mouth was wide. His teeth were well set,
with slight spaces between them. He had thin hair from his chest
to his navel. His neck was like the neck of a doll made from fine
silver. His physical stature was proportionate. His body was big
and his flesh was tight. His stomach was level with his chest, and
his chest was level. His shoulders were wide. He was big-boned
at the joints. His body parts that were uncovered remained bright
and light. He had a thin, straight line of hair from his upper chest
to his navel, and his chest and stomach did not have any hair
besides this. He had a little hair on his upper arms and shoulders.

His forearms were long and his palms were big. His fingers and
toes were big. His limbs were straight and his bones were long and
straight. His feet were arched, and they were level and soft such
that water flowed easily on them. When he walked, he lifted his
feet, walking in a calm, humble manner, taking wide steps. It was
as though he was walking down from a slope. When he turned,
he turned his entire body. He looked down towards the ground

132
 His Physical Characteristics

more than he looked towards the sky. His looks were brief. His
Companions walked in front of him. He initiated the saldm with
those he encountered.103

EXPLANATION

In some narrations, it is m entioned that his eyebrows were

connected, while in other narrations, it is m entioned that his
eyebrows were not connected. W hat is understood from the differ­
ent narrations is that the person who saw him from afar would
believe his eyebrows were connected, but once they saw him up
close, it became apparent his eyebrows were not connected; rather,
he had a vein between his eyebrows. This vein would show if he
was angry, and he only became angry for the sake o f Allah. The
Prophet HI had very small ankles and this allowed him to walk in
the m anner he did. It is said this is a sign o f strong legs.

105 Sham ailM uham m adijyah by Imam at-Tirmidhi (8)

133
 ♦- SManne'M ♦

ORIGINAI II XI
The M essenger o f Allah IS was the m ost courageous o f people.
‘A li bin A bi Talib <§£ said:

aTc- <dJl <dJl J L u a J I ^

When the battle became fierce and the people encountered the
enemy, we would find shelter with the Messenger of Allah lH.104

EXPLANATIO N

His courage is well known. He stood alone against his people in

M akkah, who were idol worshipers. They constandy threatened
to kill or banish him. He instructed m any o f the Companions
to migrate to Ethiopia for their safety, while he rem ained patient
against his adversaries in M akkah until he conveyed the m essage
Allah had instructed him to convey. He stood alone in front o f his
enemies on many occasions, such as the season o f Hajj and other
than that. This is proof o f his courage and his reliance upon A llah
the Exalted. This is because courage is based on trust in Allah,
reliance upon Him, belief in Him, and believing in His promise
that victory belongs to the righteous. And when he m igrated to
M adinah and the wars began between the M uslims and the pagans,
he again showed his courage during the battles, such as at Badr
and Uhud. Likewise, this courage was based upon his trust and
belief in Allah.
"I4 M usnad Imam A hm ad 564

134
 His Manners

Once, there was a noise that frightened the people o f Madlnah.

W hen they gathered together to investigate the noise, they saw the
Prophet 0 returning alone from the source o f the noise. Anas
said:

(JIaj <u1p dJl j U c l Za I j j IS""

j Vj U-LiJl d

Once, the people of Madlnah were frightened, so the Prophet IS

borrowed a horse from Abu Talhah called al-Mandub, and rode it.
When he came back, he said, “We have not seen anything (to be
afraid of), but we found this horse to be very fast.” (Though it was
known as a slow horse beforehand).105

M eaning, he arrived at the source o f the noise quickly because

the horse was fast, and this statem ent was from his humility.
This character is outside o f the norm , because m ost people with
courage are boastful. This was the perfection o f character only
found in the Prophet 0 .

O R IG IN A L TEXT

He was the m ost generous o f the people; he would never say no

when som ething was requested o f him.

He was the m ost forbearing o f all the people.

EXPLAN A I ION

Forbearance is having patience and refraining from taking

someone to account when they oppose you. It is upon those who
called to the way o f Allah to adorn themselves with this character
trait.

O R IG IN A L TEXT

He was shyer than a virgin in seclusion; he never stared anyone in

the face.
103 Sahih al-Bukhari 2627

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 T H E P R O P H E T A N D H IS T E N C O M P A N I O N S

1A I T \N A I I ON

This is a proverb used by the Arabs to describe shyness. As the

young girl reaches adolescence, she becomes shy, such that she
avoids her father and her brothers and remains alone in her room.
And the Prophet 0 said:

^1 Jk S' il^Jl
Shyness only brings about good.106

O RIG IN AL TEXT

He never sought revenge for himself, nor became angry for

himself, but if the rights o f Allah were violated, he would seek
revenge for the sake o f Allah. If he becam e angry for the sake o f
Allah, no one could intercede with him. Relatives and strangers,
the strong and the weak — all were equal to him regarding their
rights.

He never criticized food— if he liked it he ate it, and if he did

not want it, he would leave it. He never ate reclining and he never
ate at a table."r He did not prohibit the perm issible things. If he
found a date, he would eat it. If he had roasted meat, he would
eat it. If he had bread, he would eat it. If he had wheat or barley
bread, he would eat it. If he had milk, it would be sufficient for
him.

l A i ’ l AN A HON

There were some perm issible foods that the Prophet tlf did not
eat for a specific reason. He would not eat garlic or onions. W hen
asked about this, he said:

Ji

"* Sahih a/-hukbari 6117

Translator's note: Anas said, “The Prophet 36 never ate at a table until he died, and he
never ate soft bread until he died.” (Sahib al-Kukhari 6450)

136
 His Manners

Verily, I converse with those you do not converse with.108

He used to converse with the angels, and the angels are irritated
by the smell o f onions and garlic. Once, he was presented with
roasted lizard in the presence o f Khalid bin al-Waltd, so he said:

It is not found in the land of my people.109

He didn’t criticize the food, or say it wasn’t good; rather, he only

said, “It is not found in the land o f my people.”

O R IG IN A L TEXT

He ate melons with fresh dates, and he used to love sweets and
honey.

EXP L A N A I ION

W hat is intended here by “m elons” is the cantaloupe, not the

green waterm elon. And it is not the small, sweet cantaloupe— in
those days, the cantaloupes were bigger and bitter, so he ate them
with dates so the sweetness o f the fresh dates would contrast the
bitterness o f the cantaloupes.

O R IG IN A L TEXT

Abu Hurairah 0 . said:

. ll LjjJl <u1p dJl ldJl

The Messenger of Allah ffc left this world without satisfying his
hunger even with barley bread.110

"* Sahib M uslim 564

IIW Sahih al-Bukhari 5391; Sahih M uslim 1946
11,1 S“hih al-Bukhari 5414

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 T H E P R O P H E T A N D H IS T E N C O M P A N I O N S

EXPLANATION

This was due to his asceticism from worldly pleasures, not because
he did not have it, because Allah gave him the choice to either be
a prophet-king or a m essenger-slave o f Allah. A bu Hurairah
said:

l i b t y *u jsji J i ^ 4 * ilii Cr
13 :jll jp lib jjpliJl Jb fc & jp Li Alibi lli 01 jib
jll Wylj jl A l iSj isbbl :jll dJuj AAi yAAj' ■

Jibril sat with the Prophet fft and looked at the sky, and he saw
an angel descending. Jibril said, “This angel has never descended
since he was created, until now.” When he came down, [this angel]
said, “O Muhammad, your Lord has sent me to you and He asks,
shall He make you a prophet-king or a messenger-slave?” Jibril
said, “Be humble before your Lord, O Muhammad.” The Prophet
said, “A messenger-slave.”111

G reat amounts o f wealth and food would come to him, and he

would give it away in the cause o f Allah.

O R IG IN A L II XI

Sometimes a month or two would pass w ithout a fire being lit in

the household o f M uham m ad (for a cooked m eal), and their food
was dates and water.

EXPLANATION

The Prophet gave his wives a choice between the worldly

pleasures or Allah and His Messenger. All o f them chose Allah
and His M essenger; thus, his wives were patient with his ascetic
lifestyle just as he was patient.

Silsilab as-Sahihah by Shavkh al-Albani (1002)

138
 His Manners

O R IG IN A L TEXT

He would eat food given as a gift, but he would never eat charity.
W hen he was given a gift, he would give som ething back in return.
He did not indulge in luxurious food or garm ents — he ate what
he had and wore what he had.

He mended his own shoes and patched his own clothes. He

assisted his family with household chores and he visited the sick.

EXPLAN ATIO N

The Prophet 0 would visit the sick, w hether they were Muslim
or non-M uslim, such as the young Jew ish boy he visited when the
boy becam e ill.

O R IG IN A L TEXT

He was the hum blest o f the people-—he would accept an invita­

tion from the rich, the poor, the com m on people, or the nobles.

He loved the poor and needy. He attended their funerals and

visited their sick. He never belittled a poor person due to his
poverty, and he never feared a rich person due to his power and
status.

I A IM A N A T I O N

An example o f this is when the wom an who used to clean the

masjid died and the Com panions prayed over her w ithout inform ­
ing the Prophet 0 , so he then w ent out and prayed over h er."2

O R IG IN A L TEXT

He used to ride on a horse, a camel, a donkey, and a mule. He

112 Translator's note: There was a black woman who used to sweep the masjid, and she passed
away at night. The following morning, the M essenger o f Allah g!f was told o f her death. He
said, “W hy didn’t you call me?” Then he went out with his Companions and stood at her
grave, and he said takbir over her with the people behind him, and he supplicated for her;
then he went away. (Sunan I bn M djah 1600)

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 T H E P R O P H E T A N D H IS T E N C O M P A N I O N S

would let his servants or others ride on the saddle behind him. He
would not let anyone walk behind him. He would say:

Walk in front of me and leave my back for the angels.113

EXPLANATION

The scholars would prohibit people from walking behind them, as

they hated this. They would say, “It is hum iliation for those walking
behind (the scholar), and a trial for the one being followed.”

O R IG IN A L TEXT

He used to wear garm ents made o f wool, and sewn shoes. The
m ost beloved garm ent to him was a hibrab, a Yemeni cloak with
red and white material. His ring and its stone were silver. He wore
it on the little finger o f his right hand, and sometimes on his left
hand.

EXPLANATION

“M uhamm ad is the M essenger o f A llah” was written on his

ring. “M uham m ad” was on one line, “M essenger” was above his
name, and above everything was the name o f Allah. It was from
his hum ility that he would not place his name above the name o f
Allah.

O R IG IN A L TEXT

He would tie a stone to his stomach due to hunger. Allah granted

him all the keys to the earth’s treasures, but he refused to accept
them, and he preferred the afterlife over this life.

He would mention Allah a lot, and he did not engage in vain

speech; he lengthened the prayer and shortened the sermon. He

111 Sahih Ibn Hibban 2099, authenticated by Shaykh al-Albani (1557)

140
 His Manners

smiled more than anyone and m aintained a cheerful disposition

despite his many concerns. He was always pondering. He loved
good scents and hated bad odors.

He was hospitable to the noble people and honored the virtuous

people. He did not harbor ill feelings toward anyone, nor did he
shun anyone.

EXPLANATION

He was hospitable to the leaders o f the tribes to soften their

hearts towards Islam, because it would benefit the subjects if their
leaders entered Islam.

O R IG IN A L TEXT

He deemed playing to be perm issible, so he did not disapprove o f

it. He would joke, but he only spoke the truth. He would accept
the excuse from the one who gave it. He had male and female
slaves, but he never placed him self above them in food or cloth­
ing. He didn’t waste time. He was either in the service o f Allah or
he was assisting his family.

EXPLANATION

From his com plete hum ility is that he w ould eat w ith the common
people and the children, as it comes in the hadith that he said to
the young boy (‘Umar bin A bl Salamah) who was eating with him:

.JJJj It. Ji} CAlil p ftX 13

O young boy! Mention the name of Allah and eat with your right
hand, and eat from what is nearer to you of the dish.114

O R IG IN A L I EX I

He used to herd livestock, and he said:

114 Sahih al-Bukhari 5376

141
 T H E P R O P H E T A N D H IS T E N C O M P A N I O N S

There was no prophet except that he herded sheep.115

EXPLANATION

Herding sheep affects the shepherd’s character. It causes the

herder to have mercy, com passion, and leniency, while paying
special attention to and carefully watching his flock, because the
small sheep stray to the right and left. This is in contrast to the
camel herder. He said:

J it kS L Jlj J if laJl JjV'j J^Jl J it ibCA-S'j

.jS ii

Pride and conceit is found among horse and camel owners, who
are rude and uncivil people of the tents; and tranquility is found
among those who rear goats and sheep.116

Cam el herders become arrogant because they herd “m ountains,”

while shepherds watch over small animals.

O RIG IN A L I I XI

‘A'ishah 0 was asked about his character, and she said:

. OJSJl J lf *Jip dJl ^+0 *dJl jb

Surely the character of the Prophet was the Qur'an.117

He would become angry for its sake and pleased for its sake.

Anas bin M alik ^ said:

115 M unatta Imam M alik 1783

116 Sahih M uslim 52
11 Sahih Muslim 746

142
 His Manners

U p U I ^-*0 I 3^ jr* '*—-*&I -iaJ li^P j I Jai LUj c U U -

I have never touched any silk or brocade softer than the palm of
the Prophet US, and I have never smelled any fragrance sweeter
than the sweat of the Prophet US.118

fxi*i w v r io x
This was from the miracles given to him by Allah; his hands were
soft but possessed strength, the extent o f which no one was aware
o f except Allah. In m ost cases, a strong hand is hard and rough,
but in his case, they were soft while being extrem ely powerful.

O RIG IN A L I I \ I

And Anas said:

pbLi- b'j U-UJb JJU jJL-j U p U l £jJ3l c U j U

^ Jli L«j Ja* U l 14^ ^ JL* Li U p j^S^I j l US'"^5/-*'

.Ijla u i i j Sit jl i l i u i i j

I served the Prophet >S§ in Madlnah for 10 years. I was a young boy
and I did not do everything as he would have liked, but he never
said “u ff”119 to me, and he never said to me, “Why did you do
this?” or “Why didn’t you do that?”

Allah the Exalted bestowed upon him perfect character and the
perfection o f actions. Allah granted him the knowledge o f the
first people and those to come later. He revealed to him that which
grants the people salvation. The Prophet was illiterate— he did
not read or write, and he had no teacher from mankind. He was
born in a land o f ignorance in the desert o f Arabia. Allah granted
him what He never granted anyone else from mankind, and He

"" Sahih al-Hukhari 3561

Translator’s note: “U ff” is a word denoting minor displeasure.

143
 T H E P R O P H E T A N D H IS T E N C O M P A N I O N S

preferred him over all mankind. M ay the praise and salutations o f

Allah be upon him until the D ay o f Judgm ent.

144
 E X PL A N A T IO N

The topic o f m iracles is very im portant. A miracle is a feat outside

o f that which is norm al. “N orm al” means that which Allah allows
to norm ally occur in the universe, such as the days needed for
travel or the am ount o f food that can suffice a certain num ber o f
people.
M iracles were given to the prophets so the people would believe
in their prophecy. In the Q ur'an, Allah called miracles ayat; an ayah
is a sign, like when M usa split the Red Sea, when the rock stole
his clothes, and when his hand becam e white. Allah granted these
signs to M usa so Pharaoh and his people would believe he was
truthful.
Allah also gives karamat (oU lp*), which are miraculous feats, to
some o f the righteous people in order to aid and assist them. An
example o f this is w hat occurred w ith ‘Um ar bin al-Khattab HOfr.

aJ ^^ Nr'1* ^ (Jli
Ai Ij b I(JUb \
j Ip I

Nafi’ said that ‘Umar sent out a military detachment and put a
man called Sariyah in charge of them. While ‘Umar was deliv­
ering the khutbah one Friday, he said, “O Sariyah, the mountain!
O Sariyah, the mountain!” And they found out that Sariyah had
moved towards the mountain at that moment on Friday, even

145
 T H E P R O P H E T A N D H IS T E N C O M P A N I O N S

though there was the distance of a month’s journey between

them.120

And [there is also] the story o f Safinah, the freed slave o f the
Prophet i§t, when he spoke to the lion.121

Thus, we believe in the karamat given to the righteous people,

but not every action out o f the ordinary is considered a karamah.
If you see someone doing som ething out o f the ordinary, don’t
autom atically say that this is a karamah, because it could be magic.
How do you distinguish between a karamah and m agic? If you see
a man firm upon the Book and the Sunnah, not following whims
and desires, not practicing innovation, and not causing corruption
am ong the people, then actions out o f the ordinary from him are
considered karamat.

As for the one who does not pray, fast, or adhere to the manners
o f Islam, and instead innovates and works with the jin n , then this
person is doing magic. For this reason, al-Layth bin Sa’d said, “If
I saw a person walking upon water, I would not accept from him
until I weighed his statements against the Book and the Sunnah.”
So Imam ash-Shafi‘i then said, “He (al-Layth) has fallen short. If
I saw him walking on air, I would not accept from him until I
weighed his statements against the Book and the Sunnah.”122

O R IG IN A L TEXT

From the greatest o f his m iracles and the clearest o f his proofs is
the Glorious Qur'an, the Book that is free and clear o f falsehood

1211 Fada'il as-Sahabah by Imam Ahmad (1/269); classed as sahih by Shavkh al-Albani in
Si/si/ah as-Sahihah 1110
121 Translator's note: Ibn Kathlr mentioned the story o f Safinah and the lion in al-Bidayah
uan-Nihayah, vol. 6, p. 162. Safinah was on a boat that broke into pieces, so he lav on a plank
from the boat until he reached the shore. Upon reaching the shore, a lion approached him.
He addressed the lion, saying, “O Abul-Harith (the nickname for lions), verily I am Safinah,
the freed slave o f the M essenger o f Allah •§&.” So the lion dropped its head and walked be­
side him until it directed Safinah to the right path, and then the lion went on its way. (This
narration has been collected by Imam al-Bayhaqi.)
122 A l-A m r bil-lttiba' wan-N ahi 'an al-lbtida by Imam as-Suvuti

146
 His Miracles

from every single aspect. It was sent down from the All-W ise,
the All-Praiseworthy. It is the m ost eloquent influence, such
that it baffled the rhetoricians. M ankind is unable to produce 10
chapters similar to it, or even one chapter sim ilar to it, or even
one verse. The pagans bore witness to its m iraculous nature. Even
the disbelievers and those who refused to accept it recognized its
truthfulness.

I XI’I ANATIOM
The greatest miracle given to the Prophet H was the Qur'an. He
said:

There was no prophet among the prophets except that he was

given miracles that would make the people believe, but I was given
the divine inspiration that Allah revealed to me. So I hope that my
followers will be more than those of any other prophet on the Day
of Resurrection.123

This is because the m iracles o f the other prophets has come to an

end, but the Qur'an continues to be recited. M ankind and jin n are
not able to duplicate the likes o f this Qur'an, jin n and man have
heard this Qur'an for over 1,400 years, and they have not been
able to make anything similar to it. Allah the Exalted said:

Or do they say, “He (Muhammad) has forged it”?

Say: “Bring then a surah (chapter) similar to it, and
call upon whomsoever you can, besides Allah, if
you are truthful!”
[Surah Yunus 10:38]

123 Sahih al-Bukhdri 7274

147
 T H E P R O P H E T A N D H IS T E N C O M P A N I O N S

O RIG IN AI II\ I

The pagans asked the M essenger o f Allah jj§? to show them a sign,
so he showed them the splitting o f the moon. He split the moon
such that it becam e two halves. This is the statement o f Allah the
Exalted:

The Hour has drawn near, and the moon has been
cleft asunder.
[Surah al-Qamar 54:1]

The M essenger o f Allah |§f said:

Verily Allah contracted the earth for me, so I saw the east of it and
the west of it. And verily the dominion of my ummah will reach that
which was shown to me.124

Allah was truthful in His statement that this ummah would reach
the east and the west. And it did not spread in the south or the
north.123

He used to deliver his serm ons on the trunk o f a date palm tree.
W hen he began using a pulpit to deliver the serm on, the tree trunk
w ept due to yearning for his speech. It would not stop crying until
the Prophet 0 touched it and consoled it.126
124 Sahih M uslim 2889
125 Translator's note: Shaykh al-Fawzan said in his explanation o f this hadith. “The north and
south were not mentioned due to the low number o f people residing in these areas, and
because these areas were not conquered.”
126 An Ansari woman said to the M essenger o f Allah “O Allah’s Messenger! Shall I
make something for you to sit on, as I have a slave who is a carpenter?” He replied, “If vou
wish.” So she had a pulpit made for him. W hen it was Friday, the Prophet sat on that
pulpit. The date-palm trunk near which the Prophet % used to deliver his serm ons cried
so much that it was about to burst. The Prophet Ig came down from the pulpit to the tree
trunk and embraced it, and it started groaning like a child being persuaded to stop crying,
and then it stopped crying. The Prophet #5 said, “It has cried because o f (missing) what it

148
 His Miracles

W ater gushed from between his fingers on more than one

occasion. Pebbles in his hand were heard glorifying Allah, then
he placed them in the hand o f Abu Bakr, then ‘Umar, and then
‘Uthm an, and they glorified Allah. And his food could be heard
glorifying Allah while he was eating it. The stones and trees used
to give him salam. The poisoned shoulder o f the sheep told him
it was poisoned. Those who ate from the shoulder died, while the
Prophet iH lived for four years after eating from it.

EXPLANATION

V3 yL (i-j 4 * ili\Jl> Jjijj^ 5is'Ju ub J\^

JiJl dJl JjA j J^ B 1 ^ oAaB td-ttaJl
.A jt y L L J * L^jI L^>B 'j (Ud-j <uIp
Abu Salamah said, “The Messenger of Allah H? used to accept
gifts, but he did not eat (that which was given in) charity.” And
he added, “A Jewish woman in Khaybar gave him a roasted sheep
that she had poisoned, and the Messenger of Allah IS ate from
it along with the people. He said, ‘Lift up your hands (i.e., stop
eating), for it has told me that it is poisoned.’ ”127

O R IG IN A L TEXT

A w olf testified to his prophecy. A cam el passed by him while he

was traveling, and it com plained to him.

The M essenger o f Allah 1ft entered an orchard belonging to

an Ansari, and he saw a cam el there. W hen it saw him , it began
to groan and its eyes shed tears. The M essenger o f Allah |ft
approached it and patted it on the hum p and the base o f its head
until it quieted down. Then he 1ft asked, “W ho is the owner o f
this camel? To whom does it belong?” An Ansari youth stepped
forward and said, “It is mine, O M essenger o f A llah!” He said,

used to hear o f religious knowledge.” (Sahih al-Rukhdri 2095)

127 Sahih al-Rukhdri 3169; Sahih M uslim 2190; classed as sahih by Shaykh al-Albani

149
 T H E P R O P H E T A N D H IS T E N C O M P A N I O N S

“Do you not fear Allah regarding this beast that Allah has placed
in your possession? This cam el is com plaining to me that you
starve it and put it to toil.”128

Once on a journey, he was sleeping and a tree approached him,

splitting the ground until it reached him. W hen he awoke, it was
said to him, “This tree sought perm ission from its Lord to give
salam to the M essenger o f Allah, and its Lord granted perm is­
sion.” 129 And once he ordered two trees to cover him, so they
gathered together and covered him, and then they returned to
their places. A Bedouin asked him to show him a sign, so he
com manded a tree to come forward. The tree broke its roots
and walked until it stood in front o f him, and then the Prophet
com manded it to return to its place.

He wanted to sacrifice six camels, so each cam el began to move

forward in an effort to be sacrificed first. And he rubbed the udder
of a sheep that had never mated, and it filled with milk. He milked
the sheep, and he drank the milk and poured some for A bu Bakr.
There is a similar narration from Umm M a’bad al-K huza‘iyyah.

Qatadah bin N u’m an’s eye came out, to the extent that it was in
his hand. The Prophet returned his eye and it became the better
o f his two eyes. A li bin A bl Talib’s eyes were sore, so the Prophet
•H placed spittle in his eyes; he was im m ediately healed and his
eyes never experienced pain again. And the Prophet supplicated
for him when he was in pain, and he never felt that pain again.

EXPLANATION

This was during the Battle o f Khaybar. It was narrated that the
Prophet said:

1:8 Riyad as-Sdlihin by Imam an-Nawawi (967)

129 M usnad Imam A hm ad 4/173

150
 His Miracles

<ul«- JUijl <u .6 p Ijiol

“I would certainly give this flag to a person who loves Allah and
his Messenger, and Allah and his Messenger love him too.” [The
narrator] said, “We had been anxiously waiting for it, when he
(the Prophet) said, ‘Call ‘Ah.’ He was called, and his eyes were
inflamed. The Prophet applied saliva to his eyes and handed the
flag to him.”130

O R IG IN A L TEXT

‘Abdullah bin ‘A tlk’s leg becam e injured, so the Prophet 0 rubbed

it and it im m ediately healed.

EXPLANATION

The Prophet 0 sent him on a m ission, and during the mission

he broke his leg. So he came to the Prophet dragging his leg. The
Prophet iH rubbed his leg and it was healed immediately.

O R IG IN A L I I XL

He said he was going to kill U bayy bin K halaf during the Batde o f
Uhud. U bayy received a superficial scratch and died from it.

EXPLANATIO N

Ubayy bin K halaf swore he would kill the Prophet during the
Battle o f Uhud, so the Prophet replied that he would instead kill
Ubayy. D uring the battle, U bayy approached the Prophet while
on his horse. The Prophet 0 scraped Ubayy on the neck with a
spear and he fell down. The pagans said to him, “There is nothing
w rong with you.” He replied, “If this had happened to the family
o f D hul-M ajaz, they would have all died.” Ubayy died on his way
home. This is the only person the Prophet killed with his own
hand.'31

130 Sahih M uslim 2404

131 Z ad al-M a'ad by Ibn al-Qayyim (3/199)

151
 T H E P R O P H E T A N D H IS T E N C O M P A N I O N S

O RIG IN AL. TEXT

Sa’d bin M u‘adh said to his brother Umayyah bin Khalaf, “I heard
that M uhamm ad alleges he w ill kill you.” Umayyah was killed
during the Battle o f Badr, dying upon disbelief. On the day of
Badr, the Prophet foretold which pagans would be killed, as well
as where they would die. Each o f them died at the very place he
mentioned.

He foretold that some o f his followers would do battle overseas,

such as Umm Haram bint M ilhan, and it occurred just as he said.

EX PI AN A I ION

Anas bin M alik M said:

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The Messenger of Allah |l? used to enter upon Umm Haram bint
Milhan and she would give him food. Umm Haram was married
to ‘Ubadah bin as-Samit. One day, the Messenger of Allah %
entered upon her, and she provided him with food and started

152
 His Miracles

grooming his head.132 Then the Messenger of Allah |§F slept, and
he woke up smiling. Umm Haram asked, “What makes you smile,
O Messenger of Allah?” He said, “Some people of my ummah were
shown to me (in my dream) fighting for the sake of Allah, sailing
in the middle of the seas like kings on thrones (or like kings sitting
on their thrones).” (The narrator Ishaq is not sure which expres­
sion was correct.) Umm Haram added, “I said, ‘O Messenger of
Allah! Pray to Allah to make me one of them.’ ” So the Messenger
of Allah 0 prayed to Allah for her, and then he laid his head down
(and slept).
Then he woke up smiling (again). (Umm Haram added), “I said,
‘What makes you smile, O Messenger of Allah?’ He said, ‘Some
people of my ummah were shown to me (in my dream) fighting for
the sake of Allah.’ He said the same as he had said before. I said,
‘O Messenger of Allah! Pray to Allah to make me one of them.’
He said, ‘You will be among the first ones.’ ” Then Umm Haram
sailed across the sea during the caliphate of Mu‘awiyah bin Abi
Sufyan, and she fell off her riding animal after coming ashore and
died.133

O R IG IN A L TEXT

He told ‘Uthman bin ‘Affan that he would face great calamity, and
‘Uthm an was later murdered.

i xi’l an \ l n>\
Abu M usa fgjl said:

152 Translator's note: An-Na\va\vi said in his explanation o f this hadith: “The scholars
agree that Umm ttaram was a m ahram o f the Prophet tk , but they differed as to how that
came about. Ibn ‘A bdul-Barr and others said that she was one o f his maternal aunts through
breastfeeding. Others said that she was the maternal aunt o f his father or his grandfather,
because ‘Abdul-M uttalib’s mother was from Ban! an-Najjar.” He also said: “Umm Haram
was Umm Sulaym’s sister, and they were maternal aunts o f the M essenger o f Allah % and
his ntaharim, either through breastfeeding or through blood. So it was perm issible for him to
be alone with them and to enter upon them on his own, but he did not enter upon any other
women apart from his wives.”
133 Sahih al-bukhari 2789; Sahib Aluslim 1912

153
 T H E P R O P H E T A N D H IS T E N C O M P A N I O N S

jJj 4^ C& ^ OAjI jllLs

. jlip j j jU li- lili . aL*2JG- S jijj aJ j j j l j l i
The Prophet 0 entered a garden and ordered me to guard its gate.
A man came and asked permission to enter. The Prophet 0 said,
“Admit him and give him the glad tidings of entering Paradise.”
Behold! It was Abu Bakr. Another man came and asked permis­
sion to enter. The Prophet fl? said, “Admit him and give him the
glad tidings of entering Paradise.” Behold! It was ‘Umar. Then
another man came, asking permission to enter. The Prophet 0
kept silent for a short while and then said, “Admit him and give
him the glad tidings of entering Paradise with a calamity that will
befall him.” Behold! It was ‘Uthman bin ‘Affan.134

O RIG IN AI II X 1

He said about al-Hasan:

This son of mine is a master; may Allah bring reconciliation

between two great parties of believers by way of him.135

And this came to pass.

He inform ed his Companions about the killing o f the false

prophet al-Aswad al-‘Ansi, who would kill him, and the exact night
he would be killed while he was in San‘a', Yemen. He mentioned
the same about K hosrow (Kisra), and it occurred just as he said.

EXPI A NATIO N

Khosrow refers to the king o f Persia who ripped up the letter o f

the Prophet 0 .

114 Sahih al-Rukhdri 3695

135 Sahih al-Rukhdri 3704

154
 His Miracles

O R IG IN A L TEXT

He foretold that they would encounter a wom an named

ash-Shaym a' bint Buqaylah, who would be wearing a black
overgarm ent, riding a gray mule. The arm y o f Khalid bin al-Walld
encountered the wom an with this exact description during Abu
Baler’s reign.

And the Prophet said to Thabit bin Qays bin Shammas:

You will live a praiseworthy life and you will die as a martyr.

Thus, Thabit lived a noble life, and he was killed on the day o f
al-Yamamah as a martyr.

EXPLANATION

The day o f al-Yamamah was the w ar against the false prophet

Musaylim ah the Liar.

O R IG IN A L TEXT

Concerning a m an who claimed Islam and was fighting on the

battlefield, he said, “He is from the com panions o f the Fire.”
Allah brought this statem ent to fruition, as this man later killed
himself.

He supplicated for ‘U m ar bin al-Khattab and he becam e a Muslim.

He supplicated for ‘Ali bin A bi Talib to not feel hot or cold, so ‘Ali
did not feel hot or cold.

EXPLANATION

For this reason, ‘Ali bin A bi Talib M would wear sum mer clothes
in the w inter and winter clothes in the summer. He did not feel
the cold or the heat, so he was not concerned about the type o f
garm ent he wore.

155
 T H E P R O P H E T A N D H IS T E N C O M P A N I O N S

O RIG IN A L II XI

He supplicated for Allah to grant ‘Abdullah bin ‘A bbas understand­

ing in the religion and to teach him the m eaning o f the Qur'an.
Thus he came to be called the Learned Man and the Ocean, due
to his vast knowledge.

And he supplicated for Anas bin M alik to have a long life, an

increase in wealth and children, and for Allah to bless him in these
affairs. Thus he had 120 male offspring, his date orchard gave fruit
twice a year, and he lived to the age o f 120.

‘Utaybah bin A bi Lahab tore the Prophet’s shirt and harm ed him,
so the Prophet supplicated against him, asking Allah to send one
o f His dogs against him. Thus, a lion killed him in az-Zarqa' in
Sham.

The people complained o f drought to the Prophet while he was

delivering a serm on on the minbar , so he supplicated to Allah while
there were no clouds in the sky. The sky then filled with clouds
the size o f m ountains and it rained until the next Friday. Then a
man returned and com plained o f too much rain, so the Prophet
supplicated to Allah and the rain stopped and the sun came out.

EXPLANATION

This is the type o f tawassul that is perm issible. This is to go to a

righteous man and ask him to supplicate to Allah on your behalf;
but the person must be alive, present, and have the ability to do
so. All three conditions must be present. The Com panions did not
sit in their homes saying, “O Allah, we ask you by the right o f
the Prophet to send down rain.” Rather, they would go to him in
M adinah and ask him to supplicate for rain. This was while he was
alive; after his death, it is not perm issible. For this reason, when
the Prophet lit died, ‘Umar went to his uncle and asked him to
supplicate. If it was perm issible to ask the deceased, ‘Umar would
have asked the Prophet after his death.

156
 His Miracles

O R IG IN A L TEXT

He fed 1,000 people at the Battle o f the Trench with one sa ’m

o f wheat and no meat. Everyone ate their fill and left, and there
was more food left than when they began eating. He also fed
the people at the Battle o f the Trench with a few dates brought
by Bashir bin Sa’d ’s daughter and given to her father and to her
m aternal uncle, ‘A bdullah bin Rawahah. He ordered ‘Umar to feed
400 horsemen from the dates. He did so, and the pile o f dates
rem ained as if not even a single date was missing.

He fed 80 men in Abu T alhah’s home with a few loaves o f barley

that Anas carried under his arm , and everyone ate their fill. He
fed an arm y with provisions brought by Abu Hurairah until all
o f them ate their fill. The rem aining food was brought back, and
this food lasted for the rest o f the Prophet’s life and throughout
the lives o f Abu Bakr, ‘Umar, and ‘Uthman. Then this food was
carried to support those in a battle, and it am ounted to about 50
bushels.137

He was presented with a dish o f food as a gift from Umm

Sulaym when he m arried Zaynab. After everyone ate, the dish was
returned, and it was not known if there was more food in the dish
when it was given to him or after it was returned.

D uring the Battle o f Hunayn, he threw a handful o f dust at the

enemy, causing dust to enter all o f their eyes. Allah m entioned this
in His statement:
i , o X

And you (Muhammad) threw not when you did

throw, but Allah threw...
[Surah al-Anfal 8:17]

136 Translator’s note: The Permanent Com mittee o f Scholars said one sa is approximately
three kilograms.
l r Ja m i' at-Tirmidhi 3839

157
 T H E P R O P H E T A N D H IS T E N C O M P A N I O N S

On the night he m igrated to M adinah, there were 100 men from

the Quraysh w aiting to kill him. He threw dust on their heads and
walked past them, and they did not see him.

Suraqah bin M alik pursued him with the intent to kill or capture
him. W hen he got close to him, the Prophet i t supplicated against
him and his horse sank into the ground. Suraqah requested help
from the Prophet, so he supplicated for him and Allah saved him.

The Prophet had many impressive miracles, clear proofs, and

excellent manners, and we shall suffice with the aforementioned.

158
 l:\ P L A N ,VI ION

From the ‘a qidab o f A hl as-Sunnah wal-Jam a‘ah is to love the

Com panions o f the Prophet Hi, to supplicate that Allah is pleased
with them, and to m ention good things about them and remain
silent concerning the issues between them. The wives o f the
Prophet H are from his family and his Companions.

All o f the Com panions are in Paradise. The Prophet H m entioned

some o f them by name, and he singled out 10 am ong them,
m entioning these 10 in one narration.IW He also m entioned that
his wives in this life w ill be his wives in Paradise. He said Bilal
bin Rabah is in Paradise, and he said ‘Ukashah bin M ihsan139 is
in Paradise. Thus, he said that various Com panions who are not
mentioned in this particular hadith w ill also be in Paradise.

From the fruits o f loving the Com panions is being with them in
Paradise. Those who love them w ill be w ith them in Paradise. The
Prophet H said:

138 The Prophet jfe said, “Abu Bakr will be in Paradise, ‘Umar will be in Paradise, ‘Uthman
will be in Paradise, ‘Ali will be in Paradise, Talhah will be in Paradise, az-Zubayr will be in
Paradise, ‘Abdur-Rahman bin ‘A w f will be in Paradise, Sa’d w ill be in Paradise, Sa‘Td will be
in Paradise, and Abu ‘Ubavdah bin al-Jarrah w ill be in Paradise.” (Jam i’ at-Tirm idhi 4112)
139 Translator's note: Abu Hurairah said, “1 heard Allah’s M essenger Sg saying, ‘From my
followers there will enter Paradise a crowd, 70,000 in number, whose faces will glitter as the
moon does when it is full.’ On hearing that, ‘Ukashah bin Mihsan al-Asadi got up, lifting his
covering sheet, and said, ‘O M essenger o f Allah! Invoke Allah that He may make me one
o f them.’ The Prophet % said, ‘O Allah, make him one o f them.’ Another man from the
Ansar got up and said, ‘O M essenger o f Allah! Invoke Allah to make me one o f them.’ The
Prophet % said (to him), ‘ ‘Ukashah has preceded you.’ ” (Sahih al-Bukhari 6542)

159
 T H E P R O P H E T A N D H IS T E N C O M P A N I O N S

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The person will be with those he loves.140

141' Sahih al-Bukhari 6168

160
 Abu Bakr as-Siddlq

O R IG IN A L TEX T

His name: ‘A bdullah bin A bl Quhafah. Abu Q uhafah’s name was

‘Uthm an bin ‘Am ir bin A m r bin K a’b bin Sa’d bin Taym bin
M urrah bin K a’b, from the tribe o f Quraysh. His lineage connects
with the Prophet’s at M urrah bin K a’b.

His m other: Umm al-Khayr Salma bint Sakhr bin ‘Am ir bin A m r
bin K a’b bin Sa’d bin Taym bin M urrah.

He lived to the age o f 63, the same age as the M essenger o f Allah

E XPL A N A T IO N

Abu Bakr was two years and a few m onths younger than the
Prophet tH, and he died two years and a few months after the
Prophet Ht.

O R IG IN A L TEXT

He was the first person from this ummah to accept Islam. He is the
best o f this ummah after the M essenger o f Allah i t .

E X PL A N A T IO N

Abu Bakr as-Siddlq 0 . was the first man to accept Islam. He is the
best o f mankind after the prophets and messengers.

O R IG IN A L TEX T

He was the leader o f the M uslim ummah for two years and six
months, while some say it was for two years, three months, and
20 days. Others say it lasted for two years, and some say it was 20
months.

161
 T H E P R O P H E T A N D H IS T E N C O M P A N I O N S

His children:
• ‘Abdullah, who was from the forem ost o f those who
embraced Islam, and he is from the Companions. He would enter
upon the Prophet |§f and Abu Bakr while they were in the cave.
D uring the Battle o f at-Ta'if, he was struck w ith an arrow and
died. This was during the leadership o f his father.

• Asm a', the O wner o f the Two Belts: She was the wife
o f az-Zubayr bin al-‘Awwam. She m igrated to M adlnah while
pregnant with ‘Abdullah bin az-Zubayr, so he was the first child
born into Islam after the m igration. Her mother, who did not
embrace Islam, was Qutaylah bint ‘A bdul-TJzza from BanI ‘Amir.

EXPLAN A HON

W hen M uhamm ad and Abu Bakr sought refuge in the Cave o f

Thawr outside Makkah during their m igration to M adlnah, Asma'
used to carry food to them under the cover o f dark. W hen the
Prophet Ilf and Abu Bakr left the cave, she tied the goods with the
two belts o f her garm ent, and for this ingenuity she was called the
Owner o f the Two Belts. Her husband, az-Zubayr bin al-‘Awwam,
is also from the 10 prom ised Paradise.

O RIG IN M TEX I

• ‘A'ishah !<£, the wife o f the Prophet iS .

• ‘Abdur-Rahm an bin A bl Bakr, who was the full brother

o f ‘A'ishah. He fought in the Battle o f Badr on the side o f the
pagans, and he accepted Islam after that. ‘A 'ishah’s [and ‘A bdur-
Rahm an’s] m other was Umm Rum an bint ‘A m ir bin ‘Uwaymir bin
‘A bd Shams bin ‘Attab. She accepted Islam and m igrated, and she
died during the lifetime o f the Prophet US.

Abu Bakr’s grandson was M uham m ad bin ‘A bdur-Rahm an. He

was born during the lifetim e o f the Prophet H . And we do not
know of four Companions who accom panied the Prophet 0 who

162
 Abu Bakr as-Siddiq

were the children o f each other except them.

EXPLANATION

This is because M uham m ad [bin Abdur-Rahm an] was a

Com panion, and he was the son o f Abdur-Rahm an, who was a
Com panion and the son o f Abu Bakr, who was a Com panion and
the son o f Abu Q uhafah, who was a Com panion 0 ..

O R IG IN A L TEXT

• M uham m ad bin Abl Bakr: He was born in the year o f the

Farewell Pilgrim age and he was killed in Egypt. His m other was
Asm a' bint ‘Umays.

• Umm Kulthum bint Abl Bakr was born after Abu Bakr’s
death. Her m other was Hablbah. She married Talhah bin
‘Ubaydillah.

[Abu Bakr] had three sons and three daughters, and all o f them
were Com panions except for Um m Kulthum.

Abu Bakr OHfe died in 13 AH.

163
 ‘Umar bin al-Khattab i§i

f.M ’ l \ V \ f l O \

Ibn ‘Abbas ill said:

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While I was standing amongst those who were invoking Allah for
‘Umar bin al-Khattab, who was lying on his bed, a man behind
me rested his elbows on my shoulder and said, “(O ‘Umar!) May
Allah bestow His mercy on you. I always hoped that Allah would
keep you with your two companions, for I often heard Allah’s
Messenger 0 saying, ‘I, Abu Bakr, and ‘Umar were (somewhere).
I, Abu Bakr, and ‘Umar did (something). I, Abu Bakr, and ‘Umar
set out.’ So I hoped that Allah would keep you with both of them.”
I turned back to see that the speaker was ‘Ali bin Abi Talib.141

So he was with the Prophet ife and Abu Bakr in this life, and he
will be with them in the next life as well.

W hen ‘Um ar was stabbed, he asked who did it. He was inform ed
that it was Abu Lulu, the Majusi. ‘Um ar was extrem ely happy and
he said, “All the praises are for Allah, W ho has not caused me to
die at the hand o f a man who claims to be a M uslim .”142

O R IG IN A L TEXT

He is Abu Hafs ‘Umar bin al-Khattab bin Nufayl bin ‘A bdul-‘Uzza

141 Sahih al-V>ukhari 3677

142 Sahih al-Rukhari 50

164
 'Umar bin al-Khattab

bin Riyah bin ‘A bdullah bin Q urt bin Razah bin ‘A di bin K a’b bin
Lu'ayy bin Ghalib. His lineage connects to the Prophet Hf at K a’b
bin Lu'ayy.

His m other was H antam ah bint Hashim; some say Hisham bin
al-M ughlrah bin A bdullah bin ‘Um ar bin al-Makhzum.

‘Umar accepted Islam in M akkah and participated in all the battles

with the M essenger o f Allah i t .

His children:
• Abu ‘Abdur-Rahm an A bdullah: He was from the foremost
o f those who accepted Islam and he m igrated with his father, and
he was from the best o f the Companions.

• Hafsah: She was the w ife o f the Prophet tH. Her mother
was Zaynab bint M az‘un.

• ‘Asim bin ‘Umar: He was born in the lifetim e o f the

Prophet 0 . His m other was Um m ‘Asim Jam llah bint Thabit bin
A bul-A qlah.

• Zayd al-Akbar (the Older) and Ruqayyah, who were both

the children o f Umm Kulthum bint A h bin A bl Talib.

• Zayd al-Asghar (the Younger) and ‘Ubaydullah: Their

mother was Umm Kulthum bint Jarw al al-K huza‘iyyah.

• ‘A bdur-Rahm an al-Akbar, and ‘A bdur-Rahm an al-Awsat

(the M iddle), who is Abu Shahm ah; he was lashed for drinking
wine. His m other was a freed slave named Lahyah.

• ‘A bdur-Rahm an al-Asghar: His m other was named Faklhah.

• ‘Iyad bin ‘Umar: His m other was ‘Atikah bint Zayd bin
‘A m r bin Nufayl.

165
 T H E P R O P H E T A N D H IS T E N C O M P A N I O N S

• ‘Abdullah al-Asghar: His m other was Sahdah bint Rafi’

al-Ansariyyah, from the tribe o f ‘A m r bin ‘A wf.

• Fatimah bint ‘Umar: Her m other was Umm Flaklm bint

al-Harith bin Hisham.

• Umm al-Walld bint ‘Umar: There is speculation concerning

her existence.

• Zaynab bint ‘Umar, the sister o f the younger ‘Abdur-

Rahman bin ‘Umar.

He was the khalifah for 10 years and six-and-a-half months. He

was killed during the month o f Dhul-FIijjah in 23 AH, at the age
o f 63, the same age as the M essenger o f Allah jj§f and his friend
Abu Bakr as-Siddlq.

166
 ‘Uthman bin ‘Affan

O R IG IN A L TEXT

He is Abu ‘A bdullah ‘Uthm an bin ‘A ffan bin Abl al-‘As bin

Umayyah bin ‘A bd Shams bin ‘A bd Manaf. His lineage connects
with the M essenger o f Allah H at ‘Abd M anaf, the fifth forefa­
ther. His m other was Arwa bint Kurayz bin R abfah bin Habib
bin ‘A bd Shams bin ‘A bd Manaf. H er m other was Umm Hakim
al-Bayda' bint ‘A bdul-Muttalib.

‘Uthm an was from the forem ost o f those who accepted Islam,
and he m igrated twice.

EXPLANATIO N

He first m igrated to Ethiopia and then to Madlnah.

O R IG IN A L TEXT

He m arried two daughters o f the Prophet 0 .

EXPLANATION

He first married Ruqayyah, and after she died he m arried Umm

Kulthum. The Prophet m arried him to two o f his daughters
due to his closeness to him and love for him.

O R IG IN A L TEXT

His time as khalifah lasted for 11 years, 11 months, and 20 days.

Some say it was 11 years, 11 months, and 18 days. He was killed
on the 18th o f D hul-Hijjah after !Asr prayer, while he was fasting.
This occurred in 35 AH. He died at the age o f 82.

EXPLANATION

The person who incited his killing was ‘A bdullah bin Sab'a the Jew.

167
 T H E P R O P H E T A N D H IS T E N C O M P A N I O N S

He first claimed to be M uslim, then he claimed he wanted recti-

ficadon, then he claimed he was giving d a ’w ah , and then he called
for jihad. He traveled to spread his jitnah in the Hijaz, then Basrah
and Kufah. He went to Damascus during the reign o f ‘Uthman
bin ‘Affan $§£ and was expelled by its people. Then he went to
Egypt and started to openly prom ote his innovation. Some o f
the youth and com moners were affected by his call; they entered
Madlnah and put ‘Uthm an under siege for a month.

A man who was following the Jew ‘Abdullah bin Sab'a entered
the home o f ‘Uthm an saying, “Allabu Akhar, nothing prevents me
from entering Paradise except killing this old m an.” This is the
jitnah o f the K hawarij— they do not make a distinction between
the elderly, the young, the scholars, or the com mon people. And
‘Uthm an’s m urder was from the greatest trials upon the Muslim
ummah.

O R IG IN A L I P X !

His children:

• ‘Abdullah al-Akbar, whose m other was Ruqayyah, the

daughter o f the M essenger o f Allah |§f. He died at the age o f six.
The M essenger o f Allah iH placed him in his grave.

• ‘Abdullah al-Asghar, whose m other was Fakhitah bint

Ghazwan, ‘Utbah’s sister.

• ‘Umar, Khalid, Aban, and M aryam : Their m other was

Umm ‘Am r bint Jundab bin ‘Am r bin Hum am ah, from Daws.

• Al-Walld, SaTd, and Umm ‘Uthman: Their m other was

Fatimah bint al-Walld bin ‘A bd Shams bin al-M ughirah bin
‘A bdullah bin ‘Umar bin Makhzum.

• ‘A bdul-M alik, who did not have any children, and he died
in adulthood. His m other was Umm al-Banln bint ‘Uyaynah bin

168
 'Uthman bin 'Affan

Hisn bin Hudhayfah bin Zayd.

• ‘A'ishah, Umm Aban, and Umm ‘A m r: Their m other was

Ramlah bint Shaybah bin R abf ah.

• Umm Khalid, Arwa, and Umm Aban as-Sughra (the

Younger): Their m other was N a'ilah bint al-Farafisah bin al-Ahwas
bin ‘A m r bin T ha’labah bin al-Harith bin Hisn bin D am dam bin
‘A di bin Janab, from the tribe o f Kalb bin Wabrah.

EXPLANATION'

The Prophet iH gave ‘Uthm an the glad tidings o f Paradise several

times. ‘Uthm an bin ‘A ffan spent his m oney to ready the arm y for
the Battle o f Tabuk. This m ade the Prophet i t very happy, and he
said:

Nothing ‘Uthman does will harm him after today; nothing

‘Uthman does will harm him after today.143

The Prophet i t said:

. i i j <L«i)j fy*

Whoever will (buy and) dig the well of Rumah will be granted
Paradise.144

And ‘Uthm an bought this well and dug it iii.

Allah united the M uslim s upon the recitation o f the Q ur'an that
was collected by ‘U thm an.145 Then Allah sealed his life by causing

143 ]a m i’ at-Tirmidhi 4066

144 Sahih al-Rukhdri 2778
143 Translator’s note: Shaykh Ibn Baz said, “It was proven that the M essenger o f Allah
said, ‘This Qur'an has been revealed in seven styles, so recite whichever is easiest.’ And the
scholars said, ‘They are close in meaning but different in wording.’ W hen ‘Uthman ® heard
o f the differences among the people and Hudhayfah Ufa came to him and said ‘Save the
people,’ he consulted the Companions who were still alive at that rime, such as ‘A li, Talhah,
az-Zubayr, and others, and they suggested com piling the Qur'an in one style, so that the

169
 T H E P R O P H E T A N D H IS T E N C O M P A N I O N S

him to die as a m artyr Thus, the M uslims have agreed that the
best o f this ummah after the Prophet tH is A bu Bakr, then ‘Umar,
and then ‘Uthm an bin ‘A ffan.

people would not differ. So he compiled it and he formed a four-man committee for
that task, headed by Zayd bin Thabit So they compiled the Qur'an in one style, and they
copied it and distributed it to the various regions so the people could rely on it, and to put
an end to disputes.
“In regard to the seven recitations or ten recitations, they are present in what was compiled
by ‘Uthman, and they have to do with adding or omitting a letter, or elongating or shorten­
ing a vowel. All o f that is included in the one style that ‘Uthman ^ compiled. The intention
behind that was to preserve the word o f Allah and protect people from differences that
could harm them or cause jitna h among them. Allah has not enjoined reciting it in the seven
styles; rather, the Prophet % said, ‘Recite whichever is easiest.’ So the people agreeing upon
one style is a good action for which ‘Uthman and the Companions are to be appreci­
ated, because it made things easier for people and prevented dispute among the Muslims.”
(M ajmu ’ batawa Ibn Ba% 9/362)

170
 ‘Ali bin Abl Talib

O R IG IN A L TEXT

He is Abul-H asan ‘A li bin A bl Talib, the cousin o f the Prophet Ht.

His m other was Fatimah bint Asad bin Hashim bin ‘A bd Manaf.
She was the first Hashimi to be born as a Hashimi. She accepted
Islam and m igrated to M adlnah, and she died during the lifetime
o f the Prophet tH.

‘A li m arried Fatimah, the daughter o f the Prophet She gave

birth to al-Hasan, al-Husayn, and M uhassin (who died young).

His other children:

• He had another son named M uham m ad al-H anafiyyah,
whose m other was K hawlah bint J a ’far from Ban! Flanlfah.

EXPLANATION

Al-H anafiyyah is an ascription to his m other’s tribe. ‘Ah took

Khawlah bint Ja ’far as a prisoner o f w ar during the Wars o f
Apostasy, when the people o f al-Yamamah refused to pay %akah
after the Prophet 0 died. She had previously been a slave o f Barn
Flanlfah. She was a black wom an, so her son M uham m ad bin ‘A h
was black.

M uham m ad bin al-Hanafiyyah said, “I said to my father, ‘W hich

of the people was the best after the M essenger o f Allah Ift?’ He
said, ‘A bu Bakr.’ I said, ‘Then w ho?’ He said, ‘Then ‘Umar.’ I was
afraid that he would say ‘Uthm an [next]. I said, ‘Then is it you?’
He said, ‘I am only one o f the M uslim s.’ ”146

O R IG IN A L TEXT

• ‘Um ar bin ‘A h and his sister Ruqayyah al-Kubra (the Older):

They were twins and their m other was Taghlubiyyah.
146 Sahih al-Bukhari 3671

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 T H E P R O P H E T A N D H IS T E N C O M P A N I O N S

EX PI AN ATION

A son o f A li was named ‘Umar. If ‘Ali hated ‘Umar, would he

have named his son ‘Umar? You w ill not find a Rafidi nam ing his
son ‘Umar, because they hate ‘Umar. The Rafidah are not follow­
ers o f A li— this is only a false claim they make. [Ali] w ill free
him self from them on the Day o f Judgm ent if they do not repent
and return to the truth.

O R IG IN A L TEXT

• A l-A bbas al-Akbar bin A li: He was called as-Saqqa'. He

was killed w ith al-Husayn, as well as his brothers.

EXIT AN A 1 ION

The m urder o f al-Husayn shows the danger o f fitnah. D uring trials

and tribulations, the righteous people are m urdered before the evil
people. Allah the Exalted says:

IjJalia ( jjill Y Uu3 Ijfljlj #

And fear the fitnah (affliction and trial, etc.) which

affects not in particular (only) those of you who do
wrong...
[Surah al-Anfal 8:25]

O R IG IN A L TEXT

• ‘Uthm an, Ja ’far, and A bdullah: Their m other was Umm

al-Banln al-Kilabiyyah.

EXIT ANA 1ION

Likewise, A li named one o f his sons ‘Uthman, showing his love
for ‘Uthman. And how could he not love one o f the 10 promised
Paradise?

172
 'Ali bin A bi Talib

O R IG IN A L TEX I

• ‘Ubaydullah bin ‘Ali and Abu Bakr bin ‘A li: T hey did
not have any offspring. Their m other was Layla bint M as‘ud
an-N ah shaliyyah.

EXPLANATIO N

You w ill not find a Rafidi on the earth who has nam ed his son
Abu Bakr, ‘Umar, or ‘Uthman. But the imams o f this ummah love
and support one another.

O R IG IN A L TEXT

• Yahya bin ‘A li: He died while young. His m other was Asm a'
bint ‘Umays.

• M uham m ad bin ‘A li al-Asghar.

• Umm al-Hasan and Ramlah: T heir m other was Um m Sa‘Id

bint ‘Urwah bin M as‘ud ath-Thaqafi.

• Zaynab as-Sughra, Umm Kulthum as-Sughra, Ruqayyah

as-Sughra, Umm Hani, Um m al-Kiram , Umm J a ’far (her name
was Jum anah), Umm Salamah, M aym unah, K hadljah, Fatimah,
and Umamah: The daughters o f ‘A li from various wives.

EXPLANA HON

‘A li i§i did not m arry another w ife during Fatim ah’s lifetime. W hen
she died, he m arried other wom en. At the time o f his death, he
had four wives.

O R IG IN A L TEXT

His time as khalifah lasted four years, seven m onths, and some
days. There is a difference o f opinion concerning the days. He
was killed at the age o f 63; some say he was 65, some say 58, and
some say 57. He was killed in 40 AH.

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 T H E P R O P H E T A N D H IS T E N C O M P A N I O N S

EXPLANATIO N

He was murdered by ‘A bdur-Rahm an bin Muljam. This man was

from those who used to teach the Qur'an, but when he entered
the fitnah , it overtook his heart. Thus, he w ent from Egypt to Iraq
to kill the fourth righdy-guided khalifah, ‘Ali bin A bl Talib. He
thought he would remove evil from the M uslim s by killing him,
when in fact the m urder o f A li caused evil for all o f the Muslims.

This is a lesson for the students o f knowledge — one cannot

merely recite the Qur'an w ithout pondering over the meanings,
and the student m ust seek knowledge with the correct manhaj and
‘a qidah upon the understanding o f the Salaf. He m ust not sit with
the innovators, read their books, or listen to their tapes. If he does,
he may go astray just as ‘Abdur-Rahm an bin M uljam went astray.
He murdered A li bin Abl Talib, who, at the time he was killed,
was the best man alive HHft. Some o f the Khawarij praise this man
(Abdur-Rahm an) with lines o f poetry!

A li bin Abl Talib had many virtues. The Prophet Ilf said:

. j i Ei VI d i i j S % VI V

No one except a believer loves you, and no one except a hypocrite

hates you.147

Thus we bear witness that we love A li, but our love for him is
based upon the legislation o f Islam. It is not the false love o f
the ShFah, that love which w ill not benefit them on the Day o f
Judgm ent.

The Prophet 0 said:

14J U Jjlks J l i Aill i L i j V - j j Alii L s~ SUrj Si^Jl

Xf)\ JLijf Ai J i .lip J

14 Musnad Imam Ahmad 642 1/ 84

174
 'Ali bin A bi Talib

“I would certainly give this flag to a person who loves Allah and
his Messenger, and Allah and his Messenger love him too.” [The
narrator] said, “We had been anxiously waiting for it, when [the
Prophet] said, ‘Call Ali.’ He was called and his eyes were inflamed.
[The Prophet] applied saliva to his eyes and handed the flag to
him.”148

The Prophet 0 said to ‘A li:

t g ^ k l Sll y JL* C jt
You are to me in the position that Harun was to Musa, except
there is no prophet after me.149

148 Sahib M uslim 2404

149 ]a m i’ at-Tirmidhi 4095

175
 Talhah bin ‘Ubaydillah

O R IG IN A L TEXT

He is Abu M uham m ad Talhah bin ‘Ubaydillah bin ‘Uthm an bin

‘A m r bin K a’b bin Sa’d bin Taym bin M urrah bin K a’b bin Lu'ayy
bin Ghalib. His lineage connects to the M essenger o f Allah at
M urrah bin K a’b.

His m other was as-Sa’bah bint al-Hadram i, al-‘A la' al-H adram i’s
sister. Al-Hadrami is ‘A bdullah bin ‘A bbad bin A kbar bin ‘A w f
bin M alik bin ‘U w ayf bin Khazraj bin Iyad bin as-Sudq. [Talhah’s]
mother accepted Islam and died as a Muslim.

He was from the forem ost o f those who embraced Islam. He

participated in the Batde o f Uhud and the batdes that followed,
but he did not participate in the Batde o f Badr because he was in
Sham for trade. The Prophet i t shot his arrow for him, so he was
rewarded for it.

His children:
• M uhamm ad as-Sajjad, who was killed w ith him, and ‘Imran:
Their m other was Hamnah bint Jahsh.

EXPLANATION

He was given the name as-Sajjad (the One W ho Prostrates)

because he prayed a lot.

O R IG IN A L TEXT

• M usa bin Talhah: His m other was Khawlah bint al-Q a’qa’
bin M a’bad bin Zararah.

• Ya’qub, Ism a‘Il, and Ishaq: Their m other was Umm Aban
bint ‘Utbah bin Rabfah.

176
 Talhah bin 'Ubaydillah

• Zakariyya and ‘A'ishah: Their m other was Umm Kulthum

bint A bi Bakr as-Siddlq ■£$..

• ‘Isa and Yahya: Their m other was Su’da bint ‘A w f al-Mur-

riyyah.

• Umm Ishaq bint Talhah: Her m other was Umm al-Harith

bint Q usamah bin Hanzalah at-Ta'iyyah.

Talhah had 10 children. Some say he had two other children,

‘Uthm an and Salih, but that is not affirm ed.

Talhah was killed in 36 AH at the Batde o f the Camel, at the age

o f 62.

177
 Az-Zubayr bin al-‘Awwam

O R IG IN A I I EX I

He is Abu ‘Abdullah az-Zubayr bin al-‘A wwam bin Khuwaylid bin

Asad bin ‘A bdul-‘Uzza bin Qusayy bin Kilab. His lineage connects
to the Prophet 0 at Qusayy bin Kilab, the fifth grandfather.

His m other was Safiyyah bint ‘Abdul-M uttalib, the paternal aunt
o f the M essenger o f Allah

He embraced Islam and m igrated to Madinah. He made both

migrations and prayed towards the first and the second qiblah.

I \IM \N ATION

He m igrated to Ethiopia and then to M adinah, and he prayed

towards Bayt al-M aqdis and then towards Makkah.

O RIG IN AI II X I

He was the first person to unsheathe his sword in the path o f

Allah. He was the disciple o f the M essenger o f Allah 0 .

EXPLANATION

Every prophet has a disciple, and my disciple is az-Zubayr bin

al-‘Awwam.150

O R IG IN A L TEXT

His children:
• ‘Abdullah: He was the first child born into Islam after the
migration.

150 J a m ’ at-'Virmidhi4109

178
 Az-Zubayr bin al-'Awwam

• Al-M undhir, ‘Urwah, ‘Asim , al-M uhajir, Khadijah al-Kubra,

Umm al-Hasan, and ‘A'ishah: T heir m other was Asm a' bint Abl
Bakr as-Siddlq.

EXPLANATIO N

‘A bdullah bin az-Zubayr was killed by al-Hajjaj bin Yusuf.

O R IG IN A L TEXT

• Khalid, ‘A mr, Hablbah, Sawdah, and Hind: Their m other

was Umm Khalid bint K halid bin Sa‘Id bin al-‘As.

• M us‘ab, Hamzah, and Ramlah: T heir m other was ar-Rabab

bint U nayf al-Kalbiyyah.

• ‘Ubaydah, Ja ’far, and Hafsah: Their m other was Zaynab

bint Bishr, from BanI Qays bin T h a’labah.

• Zaynab bint az-Zubayr: H er m other was Umm Kulthum

bint ‘Uqbah bin Abl M u‘ayt.

• Khadijah as-Sughra: Her m other was al-Jalal bint Qays,

from BanI Asad bin Khuzaymah.

A z-Zubayr had 21 children. He was killed during the Batde o f the

Cam el in 36 AH, at the age o f 66 or 67.

179
 Sa’d bin Abl Waqqas

O R IG IN A L II X I

He is Abu Ishaq Sa’d bin A bl Waqqas M alik bin Uhayb bin A bd

M anaf bin Zuhrah bin Kilab. His lineage connects with the
Prophet 0 at Kilab bin Murrah.

His m other was Hamnah bint Sufyan bin Umayyah bin A bd

Shams bin A bd Manaf.

He was from the forem ost o f those who em braced Islam, and he
used to say, “I saw m yself as the third person in Islam .”

LXPLA NATION

He was the third person to accept Islam.

O R IG IN A L TLXT

He participated in the Batde o f Badr and all the batdes w ith the
M essenger o f Allah Hf He was the first person to shoot an arrow
in the path o f Allah. He shot his arrows against the arm y o f Abu
Sufyan. They encountered them in the m iddle o f R abigh'1' in the
first year after the Prophet i l l arrived in Madlnah.

His children:

• M uhamm ad, who was killed by al-Hajjaj.

• ‘Umar, who was killed by al-M ukhtar bin A bl ‘Ubayd.

• ‘Am ir and M us‘ab, both o f w hom narrated ahadtth.

• ‘Umayr, Salih, and ‘A'ishah bint Sa’d.

151 Translator's note: Rabigh is an ancient town on the western coast o f Saudi Arabia, along
the Red Sea in the Makkah Region.

180
 Su'd bin A bi Waqqas

He died in his home 10 miles from M adinah, so men carried him

to M adinah after his death. He died in 55 AH, at about the age o f
70. He was the last o f the 10 prom ised Paradise to die.

l;X PL A NATION

From his virtues was his fighting alongside the Prophet jj§f. ‘A li bin
Abi Talib said:

(Jl* -AxaJ oOl (d—'j AIp aJUI aUI

^ 53 J i & A '
The Messenger of Allah i§t did not mention both (his) parents for
anyone except Sa’d bin Abi Waqqas. On the day of Uhud, he said,
“Shoot, may my father and mother be ransomed for you.” And he
said to him, “Shoot, O young man.”152

152 J a m i’ at-Tirmidhi 4119

181
 Sa‘Id bin Zayd bin ‘Amr

O R IG IN A L TEXT

He is Abul-A’war Sa‘Id bin Zayd bin A m r bin Nufayl bin A bdul-

‘Uzza bin Riyah bin A bdullah bin Q urt bin Razah bin A d i bin
K a’b bin Lu'ayy bin Ghalib. His lineage connects to the Prophet
iH at K a’b bin Lu'ayy.

His m other was Fatimah bint Ba’jah bin Umayyah bin Khuwaylid
from BanI M ulayh from K huza‘ah.

He was the cousin o f ‘Um ar bin al-Khattab iH, and he married

‘U m ar’s sister, Umm Jam il bint al-Khattab.

He was from the forem ost o f those who accepted Islam. He did
not participate in the Battle o f Badr.

His children:
• Abdullah, who was a poet; az-Zubayr bin Bakkar said, “He
only had a few children, and none o f them were in M adlnah.”

He died in 51 AH, at about the age o f 70.

EXPLANATION

He was from the first people to embrace Islam and he was from
those who were persecuted. ‘Um ar bin al-Khattab used to harm
him, and they had a dispute in his home until Allah opened
‘U m ar’s heart to Islam. It is said that Sa‘Id and his wife Fatimah,
‘U m ar’s sister, were the reason ‘Um ar entered Islam.

182
 ‘Abdur-Rahman bin ‘Aw f

O R IG IN A L TEXT

He is Abu M uham m ad ‘Abdur-Rahm an bin ‘A w f bin ‘A bd ‘A w f

bin ‘A bd bin al-Harith bin Zuhrah bin Kilab. His lineage connects
with the M essenger o f Allah at Kilab bin M urrah.

His m other was ash-Shifa'; some say her name was al-‘Anqa' bint
‘A w f bin ‘A bdul-H arith bin Zuhrah. She was from those who
migrated.

He was from the forem ost o f those who embraced Islam. He

participated in the Battle o f Badr and all the battles w ith the
M essenger o f Allah 0 . The Prophet |§f prayed behind him at the
Battle o f Tabuk.

EXPLANATION

This is from his greatest virtues. D uring the Battle o f Tabuk, the
Prophet i l l and some o f the Com panions were delayed. Fearing
the time for Fajr prayer would leave, the M uslim s put ‘A bdur-
Rahm an bin ‘A w f forward to lead the prayer.153 A fter they prayed
the first rak'ah, the Prophet Ilf and those w ith him joined them
and prayed behind him for a com plete rak ‘ah. W hen they finished,
the Prophet 1ft stood and com pleted his prayer. It is from the
greatest honors from Allah that He allowed ‘A bdur-Rahm an to
lead the best o f creation in prayer.

O R IG IN A L TEXT

His children:

• Salim al-Akbar: He died before Islam.

• Umm al-Qasim: She was born before Islam.

153 M usnad Imam A hm ad 4/249

183
 T H E P R O P H E T A N D H IS T E N C O M P A N I O N S

• M uhamm ad, the son by whom he took his kunyah: He was

born into Islam.

• Ibrahim, Humayd, and Ism a‘Il: Their m other was Umm

Kulthum bint ‘Uqbah bin A bl M u‘ayt bin A bl ‘Am r bin Umayyah
bin ‘A bd Shams bin ‘A bd Manaf. T hey are from those who
migrated and gave the pledge o f allegiance. A ll o f his children
from her were hadith narrators.

• ‘Urwah bin ‘A bdur-Rahm an: He was killed in Africa. His

m other was Nuhayrah bint Hani bin Qablsah bin M as‘ud bin
Sha’ban.

• Salim al-Asghar: He was killed in Africa. His m other was

Sahlah bint Suhayl bin ‘Amr; through his mother, he was the
brother o f M uham m ad bin A bl Hudhayfah bin ‘Utbah.

• ‘A bdullah al-Akbar: He was killed in Africa. His m other

was from Ban! ‘A bdul-Ashhal.

• Abu Bakr bin ‘A bdur-Rahm an and Abu Salamah al-Faqlh

(who was ‘A bdullah al-Asghar); his m other was Tum adir bint
al-Asbagh al-Kalbiyyah. She was the first wom an from the Kalb
tribe to m arry into the Quraysh.

• ‘Abdur-Rahm an bin ‘Abdur-Rahm an, and M us‘ab bin

‘A bdur-Rahman.

‘A bdur-Rahm an bin ‘A w f died in M adlnah and was buried in

al-B aqf in 32 AH, during the caliphate o f ‘Uthm an bin ‘Affan.
‘Uthman prayed the funeral prayer over him. He died at the age
o f 72.

IA P I \ V \ I ION

W hen ‘Umar was dying, he chose ‘A bdur-Rahm an bin ‘A w f to

decide who should be the next leader. The ummah waited three

184
 'Abdur-Rahman bin 'Awf

days for the decision. A lthough Sa’d bin A bl Waqqas was his
closest relative, he chose the leader who would be best for the
ummah; thus, he picked ‘Uthm an bin ‘A ffan. This shows that the
ummah trusted ‘A bdur-Rahm an and knew o f his iman, knowledge,
and virtue.

185
 Abu ‘Ubaydah bin al-Jarrah

O R IG IN A L TEXT

He is Abu ‘Ubaydah ‘Am ir bin ‘A bdullah bin al-Jarrah bin Hilal

bin Uhayb bin Dabbah bin al-Harith bin Fihr bin Malik.

His mother was Umm Ghanm bint Jab ir bin ‘A bdul-‘Uzza bin
‘Am ir bin ‘Umayrah bin WadTah bin al-Harith bin Fihr. Some say
she was Umaymah bint Ghanm bin Jab ir bin ‘A bdul-‘Uzza.

His lineage connects to the Prophet t|t at Fihr bin Malik.

He was from the forem ost o f those who embraced Islam. He

entered Islam before the M essenger o f Allah entered D ar al-Ar-
qam. 1S4

He participated in the Batde o f Badr and the other battles with the
M essenger o f Allah Hf. D uring the Batde o f Uhud, he removed
the two pieces o f m etal that had entered the Prophet’s face 0
from the helmet. [Abu ‘Ubaydah] lost two o f his teeth while
rem oving the metal, but this beautified his appearance. It was said,
“There has never been anyone w ith broken teeth more handsome
than Abu ‘Ubaydah.”

His children were Yazld and ‘Umayr; his children died, so he had
no heirs.

He died during the Plague o f ‘A m was in 18 AH. His grave is

located in Baysan in the village o f ‘Amta. He died at the age of
58. M u‘adh bin Jabal prayed the funeral prayer over him, although
some say it was ‘Am r bin al-‘As.

Abu ‘Ubaydah killed his father, who was a disbeliever, during the

1,4 Translator's note: Dar al-Arqam refers to the home o f al-Arqam bin al-Arqam, who was a
Companion. During the early days o f Islam, the Muslims would meet in his home to safe­
guard themselves from the pagans.

186
 Abu ‘Ubaydah bin al-Jarrah

Battle o f Badr. Allah sent down a verse concerning him:

(Ja (jj-d jj aAIIj V #

jl ^Ac-UjI jl ^Atljl Ijjlfs Aijjlujj <111 jlA

(jj^lfllall ^A <lll

You (O Muhammad) will not find any people

who believe in Allah and the Last Day making
friendship with those who oppose Allah and His
Messenger, even though they were their fathers,
or their sons, or their brothers, or their kindred
(people). For such He has written faith in their
hearts, and strengthened them with rub (proofs,
light, and true guidance) from Himself. And We
will admit them to gardens (Paradise) under which
rivers flow, to dwell therein (forever). Allah is
pleased with them, and they with Him. They are
the party of Allah. Verily, it is the party of Allah
that will be the successful.
[Surah al-M ujadilah 58:22]

EXPLANATION

D uring the Batde o f Badr, families were on opposite sides o f

the arm y— fathers against sons and brothers against brothers.
Abu ‘U baydah’s father was determ ined to kill his son, while Abu
‘Ubaydah did not want to harm his father. But w hen he saw his
father was resolute upon killing him and insulting Allah, he fought
him and killed him. Thus, Allah sent down this verse concerning
him.

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