..."If I were to take a friend other than my
Lord, I would take Abu Bakr as a friend."...
(Muslim)
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Shahaba
Abu- ad Dardaa (Shahaba) Publicerat torsdag 18 oktober 2007 22:22
Abu- ad
Dardaa
Early in the
morning, Abu-ad Dardaa awoke and went straight to his idol which he
kept in the best part of his house. He greeted it and made
obeisance to it. Then he anointed it with the best perfume from his
large shop and put on it a new raiment of beauti ful silk which a
merchant had brought to him the day before from
Yemen.
When the sun was
high in the sky he left his house for his shop. On that day the
streets and alleys of Yathrib were crowded with the followers of
Muhammad returning from Badr. With them were several prisoners of
war. Abu-ad Dardaa surveyed the crowds and t hen went up to a
Khazraji youth and asked about the fate of Abdullah ibn
Rawahah.
"He was put
through the most severe tests in the battle," "but he emerged
safely..."
Abu-ad Dardaa
was clearly anxious about his close friend, Abdullah ibn Rawahah.
Everyone in Yathrib knew the bond of brotherhood which existed
between the two men from the days of Jahiliyyah, before the coming
of Islam to Yathrib. When Islam came to the city, Ibn Rawahah
embraced it but Abu-ad Dardaa rejected it. This however did not
rupture the relationship between the two. Abdullah kept on visiting
Abu-ad Dardaa and tried to make him! see the virtues, the benefits
and the excellence of Islam. But with e very passing day, while
Abu-ad Dardaa remained a mushrik, Abdullah felt more sad and
concerned.
Abu-ad Dardaa
arrived at his shop and sat cross-legged on a high chair. He began
trading-buying and selling and giving instructions to his
assistants unaware of what was going on at his house. For at that
very time, Abdullah ibn Rawahah had gone to the hou se determined
on a course of action. There, he saw that the main gate was open.
Umm ad-Dardaa was in the courtyard and he said to
her:
"As-salaamu
alayki - Peace be unto you, servant of
God."
"Wa alayka-s
salaam - And unto you be peace, O brother of Abu-ad
Dardaa."
"Where is Abu-ad
Dardaa?" he asked. "He has gone to his shop. It won't be tong
before he returns." "Would you allow me to come in?" "Make yourself
at home," she said and went about busying herself with her
household chores and looking after her
children.
Abdullah ibn
Rawahah went to the room where Abu-ad Dardaa kept his idol. He took
out an adz which he had brought with him and began destroying the
idol while saying:
"Isn't
everything batil which is worshipped besides
Allah?"
When the idol
was completely smashed, he left the house. Abu-ad Dardaa's wife
entered the room shortly afterwards and was aghast at what she saw.
She smote her cheeks in anguish and said: "You have brought ruin to
me, Ibn Rawahah." When Abu-ad Dardaa retur ned home, he saw his
wife sitting at the door of the room where he kept his idol. She
was weeping loudly and she looked absolutely terrified. "What's
wrong with you?" he asked.
"Your brother
Abdullah ibn Rawahab visited us in your absence and did with your
idols what you see." Abu-ad Dardaa looked at the broken idol and
was horrified. He was consumed with anger and determined to take
revenge. Before long however his anger subside d and thoughts of
avenging the idol disappeared. Instead he reflected on what had
happened and said to himself:
"If there was
any good in this idol, he would have defended himself against any
injury."
He then went
straight to Abdullah and together they went to the Prophet, peace
be on him. There he announced his acceptance of Islam. He was the
last person in his district to become a
Muslim.
From this time
onwards, Abu-ad Dardaa devoted himself completely to Islam. Belief
in God and His Prophet animated every fibre of his being. He deeply
regretted every moment he had spent as a mushrik and the
opportunities he had lost to do good. He realize d how much his
friends had learnt about siam in the preceding two or three years,
how much of the Quran they had memorized and the opportunities they
had to devote themselves to God and His Prophet. He made up his
mind to expend every effort, day and nigh t to try to make up for
what he had missed. Ibadah occupied his days and his nights. His
search for knowledge was restless. Much time he spent memorizing
the words of the Quran and trying to understand the profundity of
its message. When he saw that busin ess and trade disturbed the
sweetness of his ibadah and kept him away from the circles of
knowledge, he reduced his involvement without hesitation or regret.
Someone asked him why he did this and he
replied:
"I was a
merchant before my pledge to the Messenger of God, may God bless
him and grant him peace. When I became a Muslim, I wanted to
combine trade (tijarah) and worship (ibadah) but I did not achieve
what I desired. So I abandoned trade and inclined tow ards
ibadah.
"By Him in whose
hand is the soul of Abu-ad Dardaa, what I want to have is a shop
near the door of the masjid so that I would not miss any Salat with
the congregation. Then I shall sell and buy and make a modest
profit every day."
"I am not
saying," said Abu-ad Dardaa to his questioner, "that Allah Great
and Majestic is He has prohibited trade, but I want to be among
those whom neither trade nor selling distracts form the remembrance
of God ."
Abu-ad Dardaa
did not only become less involved in trade but he abandoned his
hitherto soft and luxurious life-style. He ate only what was
sufficient to keep him upright and he wore clothes that was simple
and sufficient to cover his body.
Once a group of
Muslims came to spend the night with him. The night was bitterly
cold. He gave them hot food which they welcomed. He himself then
went to sleep but he did not give them any blankets. They became
anxious wondering how they were going to s leep on such a cold
night. Then one of them said: "I will go and talk to him." "Don't
bother him," said another.
However, the man
went to Abu-ad Dardaa and stood at the door of his room. He saw
Abu-ad Dardaa lying down. His wife was sitting near to him. They
were both wearing light clothing which could not protect them from
the cold and they had no blankets. Abu-ad Dardaa said to his guest:
"If there was anything we would have sent it to
you."
During the
caliphate of Umar, Umar wanted to appoint Abu-ad Dardaa as a
governor in Syria. Abu-ad Dardaa refused. Umar persisted and then
Abu-ad Dardaa said:
"If you are
content that I should go to them to teach them the Book of their
Lord and the Sunnah of their Prophet and pray with them, I shall
go."
Umar agreed and
Abu-ad Dardaa left for Damascus. There he found the people immersed
in luxury and soft living. This appalled him. He called the people
to the masjid and spoke to them:
"O people of
Damascus! You are my brethren in religion, neighbors who live
together and helpers one to another against enemies. "O people of
Damascus! What is it that prevents you from being affectionate
towards me and responding to my advice while I do not seek anything
from you. Is it right that I see your learned ones departing (from
this world) while the ignorant among you are not learning. I see
that you incline towards such things which Allah has made you
answerable for and you abandon what He has commanded you to
do.
"Is it
reasonable that I see you gathering and hoarding what you do not
eat, and erecting buildings in which you do not live, and holding
out hopes for things you cannot attain.
"Peoples before
you have amassed wealth, made great plans and had high hopes. But
it was not long before what they had amassed was destroyed, their
hopes dashed and their houses turned into graves. Such were the
people of Aad, O people of Damascus. They filled the earth with
possessions and children.
"Who is there
who will purchase from me today the entire legacy of Aad for two
dirhams?"
The people wept
and their sobs could be heard from outside the masjid. From that
day, Abu-ad Dardaa began to frequent the meeting places of the
people of Damascus. He moved around in their market-places,
teaching, answering questions and trying to arouse a nyone who had
become careless and insensitive. He used every opportunity and
every occasion to awaken people, to set them on the right
path.
Once he passed a
group of people crowding around a man. They began insulting and
beating the man. He came up to them and said: "What's the matter?"
"This is a man who has committed a grave sin," they
replied.
"What do you
think you would do if he had fallen into a well?" asked Abu-ad
Dardaa. "Wouldn't you try to get him out?" "Certainly," they said.
"Don't insult him and don't beat him. Instead admonish him and make
him aware of the consequences of what he had done. Then give praise
to God Who has preserved you from falling into such a sin." "Don't
you hate him?" they asked Abu-ad
Dardaa.
"I only detest
what he had done and if he abandons such practice, he is my
brother." The man began to cry and publicly announced his
repentance.
A youth once
came up to Abu-ad Dardaa and said: "Give me advice, O companion of
the Messenger of God," and Abu-ad Dardaa said to
him:
"My son,
remember Allah in good times and He will remember you in times of
misfortune.
"My son, be
knowledgeable, seek knowledge, be a good listener and do not be
ignorant for you will be ruined.
"My son, let the
masjid be your house for indeed I heard the Messenger of God say:
The masjid is the house of every God-conscious person and God
Almighty has guaranteed serenity, comfort, mercy and staying on the
path leading to His pleasure, to those for whom masjids are their
houses."
On another
occasion, there was a group of people sitting in the street,
chatting and looking at passers-by. Abu-ad Dardaa came up to them
and said:
"My sons, the
monastery of a Muslim man is his house in which he controls himself
and lowers his gaze. Beware of sitting in market-places because
this fritters away time in vain
pursuits."
While Abu-ad
Dardaa was in Damascus, Muawiyah ibn Abi Sufyan, its governor,
asked him to give his daughter in marriage to his (Muawiyah's) son,
Yazid. Abu-ad Dardaa did not agree. Instead he gave his daughter in
marriage to a young man from among the poor whose character and
attachment to Islam pleased him. People heard about this and began
talking and asking: Why did Abu-ad Dardaa refuse to let his
daughter marry Yazid? The question was put to Abu-ad Dardaa himself
and he said: "I have only sought to do wh at is good for
ad-Dardaa." That was his daughter's name. "How?" enquired the
person.
"What would you
think of ad-Dardaa if servants were to stand in her presence
serving her and if she were to find herself in palaces the glamour
of which dazzled the eyes? What would become of her religion
then?"
While Abu-ad
Dardaa was still in Syria, the Caliph Umar ibn al-Khattab came on
an inspection tour of the region. One night he went to visit Abu-ad
Dardaa at his home. There was no light in the house. Abu-ad Dardaa
welcomed the Caliph and sat him down. The tw o men conversed in the
darkness. As they did so, Umar felt Abu-ad Dardaa's "pillow" and
realized it was an animal's saddle. He touched the place where
Abu-ad Dardaa lay and knew it was just small pebbles. He also felt
the sheet with which he covered himse lf and was astonished to find
it so flimsy that it couldn't possibly protect him from the cold of
Damascus. Umar asked him:
"Shouldn't I
make things more comfortable for you? Shouldn't I send something
for you?"
"Do you
remember, Umar," said Abu-ad Dardaa, "a hadith which the Prophet,
may God bless him and grant him peace, told us?" "What is it?"
asked Umar. "Did he not say: Let what is sufficient for anyone of
you in this world be like the provisions of a rider? " "Yes," said
Umar. "And what have we done after this, O Umar?" asked Abu-ad
Dardaa.
Both men wept no
doubt thinking about the vast riches that had come the way of
Muslims with the expansion of Islam and their preoccupation with
amassing wealth and worldly possessions. With deep sorrow and
sadness, both men continued to reflect on this si tuation until the
break of dawn.
Abo Ayyob al- Ansari (Shahaba) Publicerat torsdag 18 oktober 2007 22:21
Abo Ayyob al-
Ansari
Khalid ibn Zayd
ibn Kulayb from the Banu Najjar was a great and close companion of
the Prophet. He was known as Abu Ayyub (the father of Ayyub) and
enjoyed a privilege which many of the Ansar in Madinah hoped they
would have.
When the
Prophet, peace and blessings of God be on him, reached Madinah
after his hijrah from Makkah, he was greeted with great enthusiasm
by the Ansar of Madinah. Their hearts went out to him and their
eyes followed him with devotion and love. They want ed to give him
the most generous reception anyone could be
given.
The Prophet
first stopped at Quba on the outskirts of Madinah and stayed there
for some days. The first thing he did was to build a mosque which
is described in the Qur'an as the "mosque built on the foundation
of piety (taqwa)".
(Surah At-Tawbah
9: 108).
The Prophet
entered Madinah on his camel. The chieftains of the city stood
along his path, each one wishing to have the honour of the Prophet
alighting and staying at his house. One after the other stood in
the camel's way entreating, "Stay with us, O Ra
sulullah."
"Leave the
camel," the Prophet would say. "It is under
command."
The camel
continued walking, closely followed by the eyes and hearts of the
people of Yathrib. When it went past a house, its owner would feel
sad and dejected and hope would rise in the hearts of others still
on the route.
The camel
continued in this fashion with the people following it until it
hesitated at an open space in front of the house of Abu Ayyub
al-Ansari. But the Prophet, upon whom be peace, did not get down.
After only a short while, the camel set off again, t he Prophet
leaving its reins loose. Before long, however, it turned round,
retraced its steps and stopped on the same spot as before. Abu
Ayyub's heart was filled with happiness. He went out to the Prophet
and greeted him with great enthusiasm. He took the Prophet's
baggage in his arms and felt as if he was carrying the most
precious treasure in the world.
Abu Ayyub's
house had two storeys. He emptied the upper floor of his and his
family's possessions so that the Prophet could stay there. But the
Prophet, peace be on him, preferred to stay on the lower
floor.
Night came and
the Prophet retired. Abu Ayyub went up to the upper floor. But when
they had closed the door, Abu Ayyub turned to his wife and
said:
"Woe to us! What
have we done? The messenger of God is below and we are higher than
he! Can we walk on top of the messenger of God? Do we come between
him and the Revelation (Waky)? If so, we are
doomed."
The couple
became very worried not knowing what to do. They only got some
peace of mind when they moved to the side of the building which did
not fall directly above the Prophet. They were careful also only to
walk on the outer parts of the floor and avo id the
middle.
In the morning,
Abu Ayyub said to the Prophet:
"By God, we did
not sleep a wink last night, neither myself nor Umm
Ayyub."
"Why not, Abu
Ayyub?" asked the Prophet.
Abu Ayyub
explained how terrible they felt being above while the Prophet was
below them and how they might have interrupted the
Revelation.
"Don't worry,
Abu Ayyub," said the Prophet. "We prefer the lower floor because of
the many people coming to visit us."
"We submitted to
the Prophet's wishes," Abu Ayyub related, "until one cold night a
jar of ours broke and the water spilled on the upper floor. Umm
Ayyub and I stared at the water. We only had one piece of velvet
which we used as a blanket. We used it to mop up the water out of
fear that it would seep through to the Prophet. In the morning I
went to him and said, 'I do not like to be above you,' and told him
what had happened. He accepted my wish and we changed
floors."
The Prophet
stayed in Abu Ayyub's house for almost seven months until his
mosque was completed on the open space where his camel had stopped.
He moved to the rooms which were built around the mosque for
himself and his family. He thus became a neighbour of Abu Ayyub.
What a noble neighbour to have had!
Abu Ayyub
continued to love the Prophet with all his heart and the Prophet
also loved him dearly. There was no formality between them. The
Prophet continued to regard Abu Ayyub's house as his own. The
following anecdote tells a great deal about the relationship
between them.
Abu Bakr, may
God be pleased with him, once left his house in the burning heat of
the midday sun and went to the mosque. Umar saw him and asked, "Abu
Bakr, what has brought you out at this hour? Abu Bakr said he had
left his house because he was terribly hungry and Umar said that he
had left his house for the same reason. The Prophet came up to them
and asked, "What has brought the two of you out at this hour?" They
told him and he said, "By Him in Whose hands is my soul, only
hunger has caused me to com e out also. But come with
me."
They went to the
house of Abu Ayyub al-Ansari. His wife opened the door and said,
"Welcome to the Prophet and whoever is with
him."
"Where is Abu
Ayyub?" asked the Prophet. Abu Ayyub, who was working in a nearby
palm grove, heard the Prophet's voice and came
hurriedly.
"Welcome to the
Prophet and whoever is with him," he said and went on, "O Prophet
of God, this is not the time that you usually come." (Abu Ayyub
used to keep some food for the Prophet every day. When the Prophet
did not come for it by a certain time, Abu Ayyub would give it to
his family.) "You are right," the Prophet
agreed.
Abu Ayyub went
out and cut a cluster of dates in which there were ripe and
half-ripe dates.
"I did not want
you to cut this," said the Prophet. "Could you not have brought
only the ripe dates?"
"O Rasulullah,
please eat from both the ripe dates (rutb) and the half ripe
(busr). I shall slaughter an animal for you
also."
"If you are
going to, then do not kill one that gives milk," cautioned the
Prophet.
Abu Ayyub killed
a young goat, cooked half and grilled the other half. He also asked
his wife to bake, because she baked better, he
said.
When the food
was ready, it was placed before the Prophet and his two companions.
The Prophet took a piece of meat and placed it in a loaf and said,
"Abu Ayyub, take this to Fatimah. She has not tasted the like of
this for days."
When they had
eaten and were satisfied, the Prophet said
reflectively:
"Bread and meat
and busr and rutb!" Tears began to flow from his eyes as he
continued:
"This is a
bountiful blessing about which you will be asked on the Day of
Judgment. If such comes your way, put your hands to it and say,
'Bismillah' (In the name of God) and when you have finished say,
'Al hamdu lillah alladhee huwa ashba'na wa an'ama a layna (Praise
be to God Who has given us enough and Who has bestowed his bounty
on us). This is best."
These are
glimpses of Abu Ayyub's life during peace time. He also had a
distinguished military career. Much of his time was spent as a
warrior until it was said of him, "He did not stay away from any
battle the Muslims fought from the time of the Prophet to the time
of Mu'awiyah unless he;: was engaged at the same time in
another."
The last
campaign he took part in was the one prepared by Mu'awiyah and led
by his son Yazid against Constantinople. Abu Ayyub at that time was
a very old man, almost eighty years old. But that did not prevent
him from joining the army and crossing the seas as a graze in the
path of God. After only a short time engaged in the battle, Abu
Ayyub fell ill and had to withdraw from fighting. Yazid came to him
and asked:
"Do you need
anything, Abu Ayyub?"
"Convey my
salaams to the Muslim armies and say to
them:
'Abu Ayyub urges
you to penetrate deeply into the territory of the enemy as far as
you can go, that you should carry him with you and that you should
bury him under your feet at the walls of Constantinople."' Then he
breathed his last.
The Muslim army
fulfilled the desire of the companion of the Messenger of God. They
pushed back the enemy's forces in attack after attack until they
reached the walls of Constantinople. There they buried
him.
(The Muslims
beseiged the city for four years but eventually had to withdraw
after suffering heavy losses.)
Abdur- Rahman Ibn Awf (Shahaba) Publicerat torsdag 18 oktober 2007 22:20
Abdur- Rahman Ibn
Awf
He was one of
the first eight persons to accept Islam. He was one of the ten
persons (al-asharatu-l mubashshirin) who were assured of entering
Paradise. He was one of the six persons chosen by Umar to form the
council of shura to choose the Khalifah after his
death.
His name in
Jahiliyyah days was Abu Amr. But when he accepted Islam the noble
Prophet called him Abdur-Rahman - the servant of the Beneficent
God.
Abdur-Rahman
became a Muslim before the Prophet entered the house of al-Arqam.
In fact it is said that he accepted Islam only two days after Abu
Bakr as-Siddiq did so.
Abdur-Rahman did
not escape the punishment which the early Muslims suffered at the
hands of the Quraysh. He bore this punishment with steadfastness as
they did. He remained firm as they did. And when they were
compelled to leave Makkah for Abyssinia beca use of the continuous
and unbearable persecution, Abdur-Rahman also went. He returned to
Makkah when it was rumored that conditions for the Muslims had
improved but, when these rumors proved to be false, he left again
for Abyssinia on a second hijrah. Fro m Makkah once again he made
the hijrah to Madinah.
Soon after
arriving in Madinah, the Prophet in his unique manner began pairing
off the Muhajirin and the Ansar. This established a firm bond of
brotherhood and was meant to strengthen social cohesion and ease
the destitution of the Muhajirin. Abdur-Rahman was linked by the
Prophet with Sad ibn ar-Rabi'ah. Sad in the spirit of generosity
and magnanimity with which the Ansar greeted the Muhajirin, said to
Abdur-Rahman:
"My brother!
Among the people of Madinah I have the most wealth. I have two
orchards and I have two wives. See which of the two orchards you
like and I shall vacate it for you and which of my two wives is
pleasing to you and I will divorce her for
you."
Abdur-Rahman
must have been embarrassed and said in reply: "May God bless you in
your family and your wealth. But just show me where the suq
is.."
Abdur-Rahman
went to the market-place and began trading with whatever little
resources he had. He bought and sold and his profits grew rapidly.
Soon he was sufficiently well off and was able to get married. He
went to the noble Prophet with the scent of perfume lingering over
him.
"Mahyarn, O
Abdur-Rahman!" exclaimed the Prophet - "mahyam" being a word of
Yemeni origin which indicates pleasant
surprise.
"I have got
married," replied Abdur-Rahman. "And what did you give your wife as
mahr?" "The weight of a nuwat in gold."
"You must have a
walimah (wedding feast) even if it is with a single sheep. And may
Allah bless you in your wealth," said the Prophet with obvious
pleasure and encouragement.
Thereafter
Abdur-Rahman grew so accustomed to business success that he said if
he lifted a stone he expected to find gold or silver under
it!
Abdur-Rahman
distinguished himself in both the battles of Badr and Uhud. At Uhud
he remained firm throughout and suffered more than twenty wounds
some of them deep and severe. Even so, his physical jihad was
matched by his jihad with his wealth.
Once the
Prophet, may God bless him and grant him peace, was preparing to
despatch an expeditionary force. He summoned his companions and
said:
"Contribute
sadaqah for I want to despatch an expedition." Abdur-Rahman went to
his house and quickly returned. "O Messenger of God," he said, "I
have four thousand (dinars). I give two thousand as a qard to my
Lord and two thousand I leave for my family.
"
When the Prophet
decided to send an expedition to distant Tabuk - this was the last
ghazwah of his life that he mounted - his need for finance and
material was not greater than his need for men for the Byzantine
forces were a numerous and well-equipped fo e. That year in Madinah
was one of drought and hardship. The journey to Tabuk was long,
more that a thousand kilometers. Provisions were in short supply.
Transport was at a premium so much so that a group of Muslims came
to the Prophet pleading to go wit h him but he had to turn them
away because he could find no transport for
them.
These men were
sad and dejected and came to be known as the Bakka'in or the
Weepers and the army itself was called the Army of Hardship
('Usrah). Thereupon the Prophet called upon his companions to give
generously for the war effort in the path of God an d assured them
they would be rewarded. The Muslims' response to the Prophet's call
was immediate and generous. In the fore front of those who
responded was Abdur-Rahman ibn Awl. He donated two hundred awqiyyah
of gold whereupon Umar ibn al-Khattab said to the
Prophet:
"I have (now)
seen Abdur-Rahman committing a wrong. He has not left anything for
his family."
"Have you left
anything for your family, Abdur-Rahman?" asked the
Prophet.
"Yes," replied
Abdur-Rahman. "I have left for them more than what I give and
better." "How much?" enquired the
Prophet.
"What God and
His Messenger have promised of sustenance, goodness and reward,"
replied Abdur-Rahman.
The Muslim army
eventually left for Tabuk. There Abdur-Rahman was blessed with an
honor which was not conferred on anyone till then. The time of
Salat came and the Prophet, peace be on him, was not there at the
time. The Muslims chose Abdur-Rahman as the ir imam. The first
rakat of the Salat was almost completed when the Prophet, may God
bless him and grant him peace, joined the worshippers and performed
the Salat behind Abdur-Rahman ibn Awl. Could there be a greater
honor conferred on anyone than to have been the imam of the most
honored of God's creation, the imam of the Prophets, the imam of
Muhammad, the Messenger of God!
When the
Prophet, peace be on him, passed away, Abdur-Rahman took on the
responsibility of looking after the needs of his family, the
Ummahaat al-Muminin. He would go with them wherever they wanted to
and he even performed Hajj with them to ensure that a ll their
needs were met. This is a sign of the trust and confidence which he
enjoyed on the part of the Prophet's
family.
Abdur-Rahman's
support for the Muslims and the Prophet's wives in particular was
well-known. Once he sold a piece of land for forty thousand dinars
and he distributed the entire amount among the Banu Zahrah (the
relatives of the Prophet's mother Aminah), the poor among the
Muslims and the Prophet's wives. When Aishah, may God be pleased
with her, received some of this money she
asked:
"Who has sent
this money?" and was told it was Abdur-Rahman, whereupon she
said:
"The Messenger
of God, may God bless him and grant him peace, said: No one will
feel compassion towards you after I die except the sabirin (those
who are patient and resolute)."
The prayer of
the noble Prophet that Allah should bestow barakah on the wealth of
Abdur-Rahman appeared to be with Abdur-Rahman throughout his life.
He became the richest man among the companions of the Prophet. His
business transactions invariably met with success and his wealth
continued to grow. His trading caravans to and from Madinah grew
larger and larger bringing to the people of Madinah wheat, flour,
butter, cloths, utensils, perfume and whatever else was needed and
exporting whatever surplus pr oduce they
had.
One day, a loud
rumbling sound was heard coming from beyond the boundaries of
Madinah normally a calm and peaceful city. The rumbling sound
gradually increased in volume. In addition, clouds of dust and sand
were stirred up and blown in the wind. The peo ple of Madinah soon
realized that a mighty caravan was entering the city. They stood in
amazement as seven hundred camels laden with goods moved into the
city and crowded the streets. There was much shouting and
excitement as people called to one another to come out and witness
the sight and see what goods and sustenance the camel caravan had
brought.
Aishah, may God
be pleased with her, heard the commotion and asked: "What is this
that's happening in Madinah?" and she was told: "It is the caravan
of Abdur-Rahman ibn Awl which has come from Syria bearing his
merchandise."
"A caravan
making all this commotion?" she asked in
disbelief."
"Yes, O Umm
al-Muminin. There are seven hundred
camels."
Aishah shook her
head and gazed in the distance as if she was trying to recall some
scene or utterance of the past and then she
said:
"I have heard
the Messenger of God, may God bless him and grant him peace, say: I
have seen Abdur-Rahman ibn Awl entering Paradise
creeping."
Why creeping?
Why should he not enter Paradise leaping and at a quick pace with
the early companions of the Prophet?
Some friends of
his related to Abdur-Rahman the hadith which Aishah had mentioned.
He remembered that he had heard the hadith more than once from the
Prophet and he hurried to the house of Aishah and said to her: "Yaa
Ammah! Have you heard that from the M essenger of God, may God
bless him and grant him peace?"
"Yes," she
replied.
"You have
reminded me of a hadith which I have never forgotten," he is also
reported to have said. He was so over-joyed and
added:
"If I could I
would certainly like to enter Paradise standing. I swear to you,
yaa Ammah, that this entire caravan with all its merchandise, I
will giver sabilillah."
And so he did.
In a great festival of charity and righteousness, he distributed
all that the massive caravan had brought to the people of Madinah
and surrounding areas.
This is just one
incident which showed what type of man Abdur-Rahman was. He earned
much wealth but he never remained attached to it for its own sake
and he did not allow it to corrupt him.
Abdur-Rahman's
generosity did not stop there. He continued giving with both his
hands, secretly and openly. Some of the figures mentioned are truly
astounding: forty thousand dirhams of silver, forty thousand dinars
of gold, two hundred awqiyyah of gold, five hundred horses to
mujahidin setting out in the path of God and one thousand five
hundred camels to another group of mujahidin, four hundred dinars
of gold to the survivors of Badr and a large legacy to the Ummahaat
al Muminin and the catalogue goes on. On account of this fabulous
generosity, Aishah said:
"May God give
him to drink from the water of Salsabil (a spring in Paradise)."
All this wealth did not corrupt Abdur-Rahman and did not change
him. When he was among his workers and assistants, people could not
distinguish him from them. One day food was brought to him with
which to end a fast. He looked at the food and
said:
"Musab ibn Umayr
has been killed. He was better than me. We did not find anything of
his to shroud him with except what covered his head but left his
legs uncovered. . Then God endowed us with the (bounties of) the
world... I really fear that our reward h as been bestowed on us
early (in this world)." He began to cry and sob and could not
eat.
May Abdur-Rahman
ibn Awl be granted felicity among "those who spend their substance
in the cause of God and follow up not their gifts with reminders of
their generosity or with injury. For them their reward is with
their Lord, on them shall be no fear nor shall they grieve". (The
Quran, Surah al-Baqarah, 2: 262)
