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ABDULLAH
IBN MAS'UD Radhia
Allahu Anaha
When
he was still a youth, not yet past the age of puberty, he
used to roam the mountain trails of Makkah far away from
people, tending the flocks of a Quraysh chieftain, Uqbah
ibn Muayt. People called him "Ibn Umm Abd"Ñthe
son of the mother of a slave. His real name was Abdullah
and his father's name was Mas'ud.
The
youth had heard the news of the Prophet who had appeared
among his people but he did not attach any importance to
it both because of his age and because he was usually far
away from Makkan society. It was his custom to leave with
the flock of Uqbah early in the morning and not return
until nightfall.
One
day while tending the flocks, Abdullah saw two men,
middle-aged and of dignified bearing, coming towards him
from a distance. They were obviously very tired. They were
also so thirsty that their lips and throat were quite dry.
They came up to him, greeted him and said, "Young
man, milk one of these sheep for us that we may quench our
thirst and recover our strength."
"I
cannot," replied the young man. "The sheep are
not mine. I am only responsible for looking after
them."
The
two men did not argue with him. In fact, although they
were so thirsty, they were extremely pleased at the honest
reply. The pleasure showed on their faces . . .
The
two men in fact were the blessed Prophet himself and his
companion, Abu Bakr Siddiq. They had gone out on that day
to the mountains of Makkah to escape the violent
persecution of the Quraysh.
The
young man in turn was impressed with the Prophet and his
companion and soon became quite attached to them.
It
was not long before Abdullah ibn Mas'ud became a Muslim
and offered to be in the service of the Prophet. The
Prophet agreed and from that day the fortunate Abdullah
ibn Mas'ud gave up tending sheep in exchange for looking
after the needs of the blesse d Prophet.
Abdullah
ibn Mas'ud remained closely attached to the Prophet. He
would attend to his needs both inside and outside the
house. He would accompany him on journeys and expeditions.
He would wake him when he slept. He would shield him when
he washed. He would carry his staff and his siwak
(toothbrush) and attend to his other personal needs.
Abdullah
ibn Mas'ud received a unique training in the household of
the Prophet. He was under the guidance of the Prophet, he
adopted his manner and followed his every trait until it
was said of him, "He was the closest to the Prophet
in character."
Abdullah
was taught in the "school" of the Prophet. He
was the best reciter of the Qur'an among the companions
and he understood it better than them all. He was
therefore the most knowledgeable on the Shariah. Nothing
can illustrate this better than the story of the man who
came to Umar ibn al-Khattab as he was standing on the
plain of Arafat and said:
"I
have come, O Amir al-Mu'mineen, from Kufah where I left a
man filling copies of the Qur'an from memory."
Umar
became very angry and paced up and down beside his camel,
fuming.
"Who
is he?" he asked.
"Abdullah
ibn Masiud," replied the man.
Umar's
anger subsided and he regained his composure.
"Woe
to you," he said to the man. "By God, I don't
know of any person left who is more qualified in this
matter than he is. Let me tell you about this." Umar
continued:
"One
night the Messenger of God, peace be upon him, was havmg a
conversation with Abu Bakr about the situation of Muslims.
I was with them. When the Prophet left, we left with him
also and as we passed through the mosque, there was a man
standing in Prayer whom we did not recognise. The Prophet
stood and listened to him, then turned to us and said,
'Whoever wants to read the Qur'an as fresh as when it was
revealed, then let him read according to the recitation of
Ibn Umm Abd.'
After
the Prayer, as Abdullah sat making supplications, the
Prophet, peace be on him, said, "Ask and it will be
given to you. Ask and it will be given to you."
Umar
continued: "I said to myselfÑI shall go to
Abdullah ibn Mas'ud straight away and tell him the good
news of the Prophet's ensuring acceptance of his
supplications. I went and did so but found that Abu Bakr
had gone before me and conveyed the good news to him. By
God, I have never yet beaten Abu Bakr in the doing of any
good."
Abdullah
ibn Mas'ud attained such a knowledge of the Qur'an that he
would say, "By Him besides Whom there is no god, no
verse of the book of God has been revealed without my
knowing where it was revealed and the circumstances of its
revelation. By God, if I know there was anyone who knew
more of the Book of Allah, I will do whatever is in my
power to be with him."
Abdullah
was not exaggerating in what he said about himself. Once
Umar ibn al-Khattab met a caravan on one of his Journeys
as caliph. It was pitch dark and the caravan could not be
seen properly. Umar ordered someone to hail the caravan.
It happened that Abdullah ibn Mas'ud was in it.
"From
where do you come?" asked Umar.
"From
a deep valley," came the reply. (The expresion used
fadj amiqÑ deep valleyÑis a Qur'anic one).
"And
where are you going?" asked Umar.
"To
the ancient house," came the reply. (The expression
used al-bayt al-atiqÑthe ancient houseÑis a
Qur'anic one.)
"There
is a learned person (alim) among them," said Umar and
he commanded someone to ask the person:
"Which
part of the Qur'an is the greatest?"
"
'God. There is no god except Him, the Living, the
Selfsubsisting. Neither slumber overtakes Him nor sleep,'
" replied the person answering, quoting the Ayat
al-Kursi (the verse of the Throne).
"Which
part of the Qur'an is the most clear on justice?"
"
'God commands what is just and fair, the feeding of
relatives . . .' " came the answer.
"What
is the most comprehensive statement of the Qur'an?"
" 'Whoever does an atom's weight of good shall see
it, and whoever does an atom's weight of evil shall see
it.' "
"Which
part of the Qur'an gives rise to the greatest hope?"
"
'Say, O my servants who have wasted their resources, do
not despair of the mercy of God. Indeed, God forgives all
sins. He is the Forgiving, the Compassionate.' "
Thereupon
Umar asked: "Is Abdullah ibn Masiud among you?"
"Yes,
by God," the men in the caravan replied.
Abdullah
ibn Mas'ud was not only a reciter of the Qur'an, a learned
man or a fervent worshipper. He was in addition a strong
and courageous fighter, one who became deadly serious when
the occasion demanded it.
The
companions of the Prophet were together one day in Makkah.
They were still few in number, weak and oppressed. They
said, "The Quraysh have not yet heard the Qur'an
being recited openly and loudly. Who is the man who could
recite it for them?"
"I
shall recite it for them," volunteered Abdullah ibn
Mas'ud.
"We
are afraid for you," they said. "We only want
someone who has a clan who would protect him from their
"Let
me," Abdullah ibn Mas'ud insisted, "Allah shall
protect me and keep me away from their evil." He then
went out to the mosque until he reached Maqam Ibrahim (a
few metres from the Ka'bah). It was dawn and the Quraysh
were sitting around the Ka'bah. Abdullah stopped at the
Maqam and began to recite:
"
'Bismillahir Rahmani-r Rahim. ArRahman. Allama-l | Qur'an.
Khalaqa-l insan. Allamahu-l bayan . . . (In the | name of
God, the Beneficent, the Merciful. The Merciful s God. He
has taught the Qur'an. He has created man and taught him
the clear truth . . .)' "
He
went on reciting. The Quraysh looked at him intently and
some of them asked:
"What
is Ibn Umm Abd saying?"
"Damn
him! He is reciting some of what Muhammad brought!"
they realized.
They
went up to him and began beating his face as he continued
reciting. When he went back to his companions, the blood
was flowing from his face.
"This
is what we feared for you," they said.
"By
God," replied Abdullah, "the enemies of God are
not more comfortable than I at this moment. If you wish. I
shall go out tomorrow and do the same."
"You
have done enough," they said. "You have made
them hear what they dislike."
Abdullah
ibn Masiud lived to the time of Khalifah Uthman, may God
be pleased with him. When he was sick and on his
death-bed, Uthman came to visit him and said:
"What
is your ailment?"
"My
sins."
"And
what do you desire?"
"The
mercy of my Lord."
"Shall
I not give you your stipend which you have refused to take
for years now?"
"I
have no need of it."
"Let
it be for your doughters after you."
"Do
you fear poverty for my children? I have commanded them to
read Surah Al-Waqi'ah every night for I have heard the
Prophet saying, 'Whoever reads Al-Waqi'ah every night
shall ot be effected by poverty ever.'"
That
night, Abdullah passed away to the company of his Lord,
his toughte moist with the rememberance of God and with
the recitation of the verses of His Book. |
