THE COMPANIONS’ LOVE FOR GOD’S MESSENGER

Why Are You Walking Like That?

The Messenger of God and noble Abu Bakr were climbing up the Mount Light. Abu Bakr walked in front of our Prophet for some time and then changed position to walk behind him. When the Messenger of Allah noticed that he was constantly doing this, he asked Abu Bakr why he was doing so. Abu Bakr answered, “O Messenger of Allah! When I remember that the non-believers are searching for you I start walking behind you, when I remember that they are on the lookout for you I start walking in front of you.”

When our beloved Prophet asked, “Would you prefer a disaster meant for me to strike you instead,” Abu Bakr replied, “Definitely! I swear to Allah, who sent you with the true religion, that I would prefer a disaster to strike me rather than strike you.”

Tears in the Cave

After an hour of walking, God’s Messenger and his eminently truthful friend arrived the Cave of Thawr on the Mount Light. As they reached the entrance of the cave, Abu Bakr called out to our Prophet, “O Messenger of Allah! Let me enter first.”

He cleaned the inside of the cave and checked over everything very carefully. He covered all the holes with pieces of cloth that he tore from his shirt so as to prevent a snake or a scorpion coming out and harming Allah’s Messenger. Then, he turned to our Prophet and said, “You may enter now O Messenger of Allah.”

Our Prophet went inside the cave. He was so exhausted that he fell asleep as soon as he put his blessed head down on Abu Bakr’s lap. Meanwhile, Abu Bakr realized that one of the holes in the ground was left open. He had run out of the cloth that he used to close up the holes. So, he used his foot heel to close up the hole so that no snake could come out and harm our Prophet. A short while later, a snake rose out of that hole and bit Abu Bakr’s foot. Despite the pain he felt on his heel, Abu Bakr did not even move a muscle so as not to disturb our Prophet. The pain, however, caused tears to fall from his eyes. When the tears dropped onto our Prophet’s face, he woke up immediately. When he realized what had happened, he wet his had with his blessed saliva and spread it over the snake bite. The pain on Abu Bakr’s heel was gone in an instant. His foot was healed in no time; it was like the snake had never bit him.

The Women Companions’ Love for God’s Messenger

When their husbands and children were martyred in battle, the Women Companions asked first about the Messenger of Allah and, by putting his welfare before that of their own children and spouse, they demonstrated the most poignant example of love for the Prophet.

Due to their knowing that sacrifice for God and His Messenger would not be left unrewarded, they accepted wholeheartedly even the greatest trials and tribulations.

During the Battle of Uhud, a rumor had been spread that God’s Messenger had died. A woman whose heart burned in anguish rushed to Uhud from Medina. She covered the distance of six kilometers running and when she finally approached Uhud someone said to her, “Sumayra, look your father was martyred right here!” Not looking at her father, she kept repeating, “Where is God’s Messenger?”

A few steps later, someone exclaimed, pointing to her children, “Sumayra, two of your sons were martyred and are lying right here,” but she did not look in their direction either, instead crying out, “Where is God’s Messenger?” Soon after, they showed her the body of her husband Abdullah. Again, she asked, “Where is God’s Messenger?”

Eventually she found the Messenger of Allah. She threw herself to the ground at a short distance from his feet and the following words fell from her lips when she reached him: “All misfortunes are nothing to me, provided that you are alive, O Messenger of God!”

Another female Companion by the name of Nasiba fought heroically before God’s Messenger in his defense, paying no mind to anything or anyone else. When God’s Messenger showed her her son and said, “Rush to his aid,” she remembered that she had a son on the battlefield, rushed to his side, took care of his wounds and then, patting him on the back, sent him back to the battlefield saying, “Come on, my dear son! Now go and protect God’s Messenger!”

As they did not want anything to take precedence over their love for God’s Messenger, they made such a sacrifice without reservation. With a more delicate and sentimental disposition, the women Companions did not utter a single word when they lost their loved ones, due to their love for the Messenger; far from it, they considered protecting him with a complete devotion and sacrifice to be more important than all else.

Companions Who Sacrificed Their Lives for God’s Messenger

True loyalty and faithfulness is to be able to sacrifice one’s life and possessions, sacrifice everything for the sake of the beloved without hesitation. Those thinking of the God’s Messenger and his cause even while at the point of death are the true heroes of love. The noblest representatives of this pinnacle are the Companions. One of these is Sa’d ibn Rabi’, one of the Medinan Helpers, who pledged his allegiance to God’s Messenger at Aqaba. He fought selflessly at Uhud and sacrificed his own life to protect God’s Messenger. When the Messenger of Allah could not see Sa’d beside him, he sent someone to look for him and saying, “I saw him fighting over there shortly before,” indicated a certain section of the valley. When Zayd ibn Thabit found him, he found him with seventy wounds on his body and having sustained serious injury with an arrow that had pierced through his stomach out of his back. Just as he was about to breathe his last breath with the jubilation of having been inquired after by God’s Messenger, he wished for the following to be conveyed to his people: “Fear God and remember the pledge you made to the Messenger of God at Aqaba. I swear to God that if you fail to protect God’s Messenger from his enemies while you still breathe and allow any harm to come to him, you will have no ground of exculpation before God (on the Day of Reckoning).”

The most telling examples of self-sacrifice for the sake of one’s beloved were experienced during the Raj’i incident, which drove God’s Messenger into deep sorrow. Ensnared during the Raj’i episode and sold to the Meccans, Khubayb ibn Adiyy and Zayd ibn Dathina were imprisoned for some time and then tied to trees from which they were then to be executed. A leading Meccan Abu Sufyan approached Zayd and said, “Would that you were now with your family and Muhammad were in your place so that we might cut off his head instead of yours, Zayd.” He, in all likelihood, sought to frighten him with death and make him abandon his faith. Rejecting this offer with a vengeance Zayd said, “Let alone wishing that Muhammad were here in my place so that I were with my family, I could not even bear the thought of even a thorn hurting his foot in Medina!” Abu Sufyan, who was standing in astonishment, could not help but remark, “How strange it is that I have never seen a person so loved by his Companions as Muhammad.” They then went to Khubayb ibn Adiyy and told him that if he would be saved if he renounced his belief. Khubayb responded in the same way as Zayd and said, “I would not renounce my belief for the entire world!”

Special Guests

One day the Prophet gave away all the food in his house to the needy as he always did. He helped Muslim students and the poor. He took care of his guests until it was late at night. When his guests were gone, he prayed for a while. After his prayer, he felt very hungry.

He looked around his house in order to find something to eat. However, there was nothing left to eat. It was almost midnight. Where could he find food at this time of the night? He could not sleep because of his hunger. If he could fall asleep, he might not feel the pain of hunger. However, his hunger didn’t let him sleep. He had no more strength left. He decided to go out to find food. He went to Abu Bakr, who was one of his best friends. “He might have something to eat,” he thought.

Just as he left home to see Abu Bakr, he saw someone coming closer to him. It was very dark, but the Prophet recognized who he was. It was his friend, Abu Bakr. The Prophet greeted Abu Bakr and asked:

“Oh Abu Bakr, why are you outside at this time of the night?”

“Because of hunger, O Messenger of God! I felt very hungry. I could not find anything to eat at home, so I decided to come to you. I thought you might have something to eat.”

After saying this, Abu Bakr asked the Prophet:

“Why did you leave your house at this time, O Messenger of God?”

The Prophet said: “I went out for the same reason. I was coming to you to ask for food.”

When Abu Bakr heard this, he forgot about his own problem. He started to think how he could find some food for the Messenger of God.

Then they saw another person coming toward them. A tall man was getting closer to them. This well-built man was Umar ibn al-Khattab. He was surprised to see his two best friends. They greeted each other.

The Prophet asked Umar why he left home at midnight. And he gave the same answer as Abu Bakr did.

“Hunger...I could not find anything to eat at home.”

Umar gave away the food to the needy as Abu Bakr did. Hunger brought three best friends together at midnight. They asked each other what they were going to do. They decided to go up to a friend’s house to eat something. But who could this friend be? Who could they go to? It was very late at midnight. Who could they disturb at this hour?

As they were thinking about where to go, Abu al-Haytham’s name came to the Prophet’s mind. The Prophet loved Abu al-Haytham and he knew that Abu al-Haytham loved him too. Even if he knocked at his door at midnight, Abu al-Haytham would not be uncomfortable, he thought. Moreover, his home was not far away. The Prophet thought: “Abu al-Haytham has a date garden. He may have brought some dates to his house.”

“Let’s go to Abu al-Haytham,” he said to Abu Bakr and Umar. Then they started to walk toward Abu al-Haytham’s house. Abu al-Haytham had a very nice garden. He and his son, Haytham, went to this garden every morning and brought their sheep with them. When his father worked in the garden, Haytham took care of the animals grazing and also collected some dates.

Haytham was a very intelligent boy who was about five or six years old. His father always took Haytham with him when he visited the Prophet and his Companions.

Abu al-Haytham and his son Haytham went to their garden to work that day, too. As they were very tired, they went to bed early. When they were in their deep sleep, the Prophet and his friends came to the door. They were aware that it was very late. Umar knocked the door first. He called out with his strong voice,

“Abu al-Haytham!”

Abu al-Haytham and his wife did not hear him, but Haytham did. He recognized this voice. He was familiar with this voice as he heard it many times before. He tumbled out of his bed right away and went up to his father.

“Wake up dad, Umar has come!” Abu al-Haytham thought that his son Haytham was dreaming. He told Haytham: “Go to sleep my boy. Why on earth would Umar come here at this time of the night?”

Upon his father’s words, Haytham went back to his bed. As the door was not opened, the Prophet and his friends understood that they had not been heard. Abu Bakr knocked the door this time.

“Abu al-Haytham!” he called out.

Abu al-Haytham and his wife did not hear Abu Bakr’s voice either.

Haytham heard and recognized this voice too. He told his father:

“Wake up dad, Abu Bakr has come!”

Abu al-Haytham still thought that Haytham was dreaming: “Sleep, my boy. Abu Bakr has nothing to do here at midnight.”

Then he took Haytham to his bed and covered him with the blanket.

When the Prophet saw that the door was still not opened, he decided to call out to Abu al-Haytham himself: “Abu al-Haytham!”

When Haytham heard the Prophet’s voice, he could not stay in his bed. He rushed to the door. While running to the door, he told his father that the Prophet came to visit them. His father did not fully understand what was going on. When he saw Haytham going toward the door, he got up from his bed. When Haytham opened the door, Abu al-Haytham was very surprised to see the Prophet and his best friends waiting in front of the door!

Abu al-Haytham did not know what to do out of excitement. He went up to the guests immediately, and welcomed them. Haytham was very pleased to see the Prophet and his friends in their home.

The Prophet told Abu al-Haytham that they were hungry and asked if he had something to eat. Hearing this, Abu al-Haytham went to the yard and slaughtered a sheep. His wife cooked a meal with the meat, and they prepared the table.

Haytham brought some of the dates they had collected from their garden that day. They put some sheep milk on the table, too. The table looked very beautiful. They wanted to offer more things to eat as these guests were very special to them.

The Prophet and his two close friends started eating. After they ate some, their hunger disappeared. They thanked Abu al-Haytham, his wife, and little Haytham.

The Prophet and his two friends were no longer hungry. Haytham was the happiest of all for what had happened. He always loved to visit the Prophet, and now he was a guest in their house.

“If I had not heard their voice, I would not be sitting with them now,” he thought. And he and his father thanked God Almighty for sending these special guests to their home that night.

Qur’anic Verses

Lower to them the wing of humility out of mercy, and say: “My Lord, have mercy on them even as they cared for me in childhood.” (Al-Isra 17:24).

God was assuredly well-pleased with the believers when they swore allegiance to you under the tree. He knew what was in their hearts (of sincere intention and loyalty to God’s cause) and, therefore, He sent down (the gift of) inner peace and reassurance on them, and rewarded them with a near victory. (Al-Fath 48:18).

The first and foremost (to embrace Islam and excel others in virtue) among the Emigrants and the Helpers, and those who follow them in devotion to doing good, aware that God is seeing them—God is well-pleased with them, and they are well-pleased with Him. (At-Tawbah 9:100).

Among the believers are men (of highest valor) who have been true to their covenant with God: Among them are those who have fulfilled their vow (by remaining steadfast until death), and those who are awaiting (its fulfillment). They have never altered in any way. (Al-Ahzab 33:23).

Prophetic Traditions

Abu Hurayra reported Allah’s Messenger as saying: “Do not revile my Companions, do not revile my Companions. By Him in Whose Hand is my life, if one amongst you would have spent as much gold as Uhud it would not amount to as much as one much on behalf of one of them or half of it.” (Sahih Muslim, Fadailu’s-Sahaba, 6167).

Abdullah ibn Mughaffal narrated Allah’s Messenger as saying: “Allah! Allah! (Keep the thought of Allah) concerning my Companions. Do not take them as a target (for your obscenity or charges) after me. One who loves them, loves me but one who hates them, hates me, and one who offends them, offends me and in turn offends Allah and one who offends Allah, Allah almost takes him.” (Sunan at-Tirmidhi, Manaqib, 58).

Abu Burda reported on the authority of his father: “The Messenger of Allah said: ‘The stars are a source of security for the sky and when the stars disappear there comes to the sky, i.e. (it meets the same fate) as it has been promised (it would plunge into darkness). And I am a source of safety and security to my Companions and when I would go away there would fall to the lot (of my Companions) as they have been promised with and my Companions are a source of security for the Ummah and as they would go there would fall to the lot of my Ummah as (its people) have been promised.’” (Sahih Muslim, Book 44, Hadith 295).

Questions

1) Which Companion accompanied God’s Messenger during the Emigration when God’s Messenger left Mecca and took to the cave in the Mount Light?

A) Abu Bakr C) Zayd

B) Ali D) Khadija

2) Which female Companion said, “All misfortunes are nothing to me, provided that you are alive, O Messenger of God!” upon seeing the Messenger, despite losing her husband and sons during the Battle of Uhud?

A) Halima C) Sumayra

B) Sumayya D) Safiyya

3) She fought before God’s Messenger in his defense, paying no mind to anything or anyone else. When God’s Messenger showed her her son and said, “Rush to his aid,” she remembered that she had a son on the battlefield, rushed to his side, took care of his wounds and then, patting him on the back, sent him back to the battlefield saying, “Come on, my dear son! Now go and protect God’s Messenger!” Who was this female Companion of the Prophet?

A) Halima C) Nasiba

B) Sumayya D) Sumayra

4) Who was the Companion, a representative of the Medinan Helpers, who pledged his allegiance to God’s Messenger at Aqaba and gave his life fighting selflessly to defend God’s Messenger?

A) Mus’ab C) Sa’d ibn Rabi

B) Hamza D) Umar

5) Which Companion was ensnared during the Raj’i incident and sold to the Meccans, only later to be executed?

A) Zayd ibn Dathina C) Anas ibn Malik

B) Zayd ibn Thabit D) Bilal