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THE
COMPANIONS IN HADITH
Besides
the Qur’an, the Prophet himself, upon him be peace and
blessings, praised the Companions and warned Muslims
against attacks and insulting words about them. For
example:
Bukhari,
Muslim and other Traditionists relate from Abu Sa‘id
al-Khudri that God’s Messenger warned:
Do
not curse my Companions! Do not curse my Companions! I
swear by Him in Whose hand my life is that, even if
one among you had as much gold as Mount Uhud and spent
it in the way of God, this would not be equal in
reward to a few handfuls of them or even to half of
that.1
This
is certainly so because they accepted Islam and preached
and protected it when circumstances were most severe.
Besides, according to the rule ‘the cause is like the
doer’, the reward gained by all Muslims so far and yet
to come until the Last Day has been, and will be, added to
the record of the Companions, without, of course,
diminishing anything from the reward of the doers
themselves. Had it not been for the efforts of the
Companions to spread Islam, to convey it to the peoples of
the world, no one could have the possibility of knowing of
Islam, and, therefore, being Muslim. So, all the Muslims
coming after the Companions should feel indebted to the
Companions and, rather than thinking of criticizing them,
should pray for them as the Qur’an teaches us to:
As
for those who came after them, they say, Our Lord,
forgive us and our brothers who preceded us in belief,
and put not into our hearts any rancor towards those
who believe. Our Lord, surely You are the All-Gentle,
the All-Compassionate. (al-Hashr, 59.10)
Tirmidhi
and Ibn Hibban quote ‘Abdullah ibn Mughaffal that
God’s Messenger warned:
Oh
God, Oh God! Refrain from using bad language about my
Companions! Oh God, Oh God! Refrain from using bad
language about my Companions! Do not make them the
target of your attacks after me! Whoever loves them,
loves them on account of his love of me; whoever hates
them, hates them on account of his hatred of me. He
who hurts them, has hurt me, and he who hurts me, has
hurt God, he who hurts God, God will punish him.2
Imam
Muslim relates in his Sahih that God’s Messenger, upon
him be peace and blessings, declared:
The
stars are means of security for the heaven, [that is,
the heaven is maintained because of the delicate order
among the stars]. When the stars are scattered [when
that order collapses], what was promised for the
heaven befalls it [i.e. the final destruction of the
universe]. I am the means of security for my
Companions [my Companions will continue to live in
peace and security as long as I am alive]. When I
leave the world, what was promised for my Companions
will befall them. My Companions are means of security
for my nation (Ummah). When my Companions leave the
world, what was promised for my Ummah will befall them
[they will be exposed to many misfortunes and
calamities].3
As
recorded in authentic books of Tradition, including
Bukhari and Muslim, God’s Messenger, upon him be peace
and blessings, declared:
The
best of people are those living in my time. Then come
those who follow them, and then come those who follow
them. Those will be followed by a generation whose
witness is sometimes true, sometimes false.4
The
time of the Companions and the two succeeding generations
was the time of truthfulness. People of great
righteousness and scholars of utmost exactitude appeared
among those first three generations of Islam. Among the
later generations were many who told lies and perjured
themselves in order to reinforce false beliefs or for
worldly aims. It was natural for liars, for members of
heterodox sects (as it is for biased Orientalists and
their blind followers in the Muslim world), to lie against
the Companions and the pure Imams of the two generations
succeeding them. For the Companions and those Imams were
strongholds of Islam, and strengthened its pillars.
In
his Hilyat al-Awliya’, Abu Nu‘aym quotes ‘Abdullah
ibn ‘Umar as saying:
Whoever
desires to follow a straight path, should follow the
path of those who passed away. They are the Companions
of Muhammad, upon him be peace and blessings. They are
the best among his Ummah, the purest in heart, the
deepest in knowledge, and the farthest from false
display of piety. They are a community whom God chose
for the company of His Prophet and the conveyance of
His religion. Try to be like them in conduct and
follow their way. They are the Companions of Muhammad,
upon him be peace and blessings. I swear by God, the
Lord of the Ka‘ba, that they were on true guidance.5
As
recorded by Tabarani and Ibn al-Athir, ‘Abdullah ibn
Mas‘ud, who was among the first to embrace Islam in
Makka and sent to Kufa as a teacher by ‘Umar, said:
God
looked at the hearts of His true servants and chose
Muhammad, upon him be peace and blessings, to send to
His creatures as a Messenger. Then, He looked at the
hearts of people and chose his Companions as the
helpers of His religion and the viziers of His
Prophet, upon him be peace and blessings.6
Ibn
Mas‘ud also said concerning the Companions.
You
may excel the Companions of God’s Messenger, upon
him be peace and blessings, in fasting, praying and in
striving to worship God better. Yet they are better
than you. For they give no heed to the world and are
most desirous of the Hereafter.7
O
God, bestow blessings and peace an our Master
Muhammad, who said: “My Companions are like the
stars; whichever of them you follow, you will be
rightly guided. The best of the ages is my age.”-and
on his family and Companions.
Glory
be to You! We have no knowledge save what You have
taught us. Surely you are the All-Knowing, the
All-Wise.
1.
Bukhari, “Fada’il al-Ashab,” 5; Muslim,
“Fada’il al-Sahaba,” 221.
2. Tirmidhi, “Manaqib,” 58; I. Hibban, 9.189; I.
Hanbal, 5.57.
3. Muslim, “Fada’il al-Sahaba,” 207.
4. Muslim, “Fada’il al-Sahaba,” 212; Bukhari,
“Fada’il al-Ashab,” 1.
5. Abu Nu‘aym, Hilya, 1.305.
6. Abu Nu‘aym, Hilya, 1.375.
7. Ibid., 1.135.
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