(Cont.) The Second Revelation
We return to the long hadith of revelation in Bukhari: Jabir ibn Abdillah (جابر بن عبد الله) continues the story and mentions that the Prophet PBUH stopped getting revelation. Ibn Abbas says the Prophet PBUH would wander Makkah —its valleys and mountains— wanting to see Jibril AS again. But Jibril would not appear. Some scholars say this period lasted for 2 or 3 years — but in our view, this is far too long. A riwaya (رواية - narration) from Ibn Abbas says 40 days. Ibn Shihab al-Zuhri said, "This period lasted for many days, for around a month"—40 days. Therefore, for an entire month and 10 days, the Prophet PBUH was confused. And this is when he says, "I was worried for myself"—meaning he thought he was hallucinating. And he would go to Jabal al-Nour every day, hoping to see Jibril again, but there was nothing there. Until finally one day, as he was coming down the mountain, he heard his name being called —and he looked in front and behind and couldn't see anyone— and then —as he PBUH said—: "I looked up and there was the angel I had seen at Hira, (sitting) on a throne between the heavens and the earth." And at this sight, the Prophet PBUH began to tremble out of fear. Subhan'Allah, he wanted to see Jibril; but when he saw him, he trembled immensely — one report even says the Prophet PBUH fell down on his knees out of shock and fear. And he then rushes home again, saying, "Wrap me up." And this was when the second revelation was revealed — the first 7 verses of Surah al-Muddaththir (سورة المدثر):
يَا أَيُّهَا الْمُدَّثِّرُ
قُمْ فَأَنذِرْ
وَرَبَّكَ فَكَبِّرْ
وَثِيَابَكَ فَطَهِّرْ
وَالرُّجْزَ فَاهْجُرْ
وَلَا تَمْنُن تَسْتَكْثِرُ
وَلِرَبِّكَ فَاصْبِرْ
What is the wisdom of the 30-40 days that the Prophet PBUH was not Inspired? The scholars say one wisdom is to prepare him for the second meeting. To make him recover and recollect energies and make him feel enthused. And indeed, the Prophet PBUH was coming to the mountain every day to try to meet Jibril. But despite this preparation, he still became terrified when he saw him. All of this shows us the humanity of the Prophet PBUH. And this surely isn't something a fraud, a charlatan, a two-faced liar would do — when someone makes a false claim to be a prophet, the stories they invent are all grandiose — they always put themselves to be the hero. But look at the story of the Prophet PBUH — we find a human reaction. This shows that our Prophet PBUH was telling the truth, and he was a true prophet.
(Notice as well, by the way —a lot of people think the second revelation occurred as soon as the Prophet PBUH saw Jibril AS; but this is wrong— from the context, it is clear that it occurred in the house of Khadija RA. Jibril AS must have followed the Prophet PBUH back to the house, and when he is covered up, *then* Jibril said, "O you who is wrapped up [in a garment].")
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Brief Tafsir of the First Seven Verses of Surah al-Muddaththir
What is the relevance of the verses in the second revelation?
1 & 2. "O you who is wrapped up [in a garment], stand up and warn the people"—the symbolism here is, "O you who are living in comfort and ease, stop this life of ease, stand up, be active, leave this sheltered life, and go out and warn the people."
3. "Revere your Lord [alone]"—meaning while you are doing the warning, praise and glorify your Lord.
4. "Purify your garments"—meaning make sure your garments are clean — (1) in a literal sense: make sure your clothes don't have any najasa (نجاسة - unclean substances) on them and have a presentable appearance; and (2) in a symbolic sense: make sure you have no sins to pollute you, make sure you have a pure soul and a good heart.
5. "[Continue to] shun idols"—meaning as for idols, get rid of them and leave them.
Then Allah SWT says:
6. "Do not do a favor expecting more [in return]"—meaning don't remind people of the favors that you have done — when you do good, don't do it to get the favor paid back from people. Again, this goes back to the concept of sincerity — when somebody does something purely for the sake of Allah, nobody can challenge that person's intention; and when somebody has other intentions, then it tarnishes that person's reputation. Therefore —as we learn from other ahadith— the Prophet PBUH was not even allowed to take charity or zakat — such is the standard of the prophets, so that they can say to their people —as Allah says in the Quran—: "Tell the people: I am not getting your payment" [42:23] nor "your wealth" [11:29] (in return for conveying the Message of Islam).
And the last ayah (آية - verse) in the second revelation was:
7. "And persevere (be patient) for [the sake of] your Lord"—this shows that there *will* be calamities and troubles — but be patient. And the only way you are going to be patient is by doing it for the sake of your Lord.
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7 Means of Revelation
What exactly is revelation? How does it occur? What happens when a person is inspired?
Wahy (وحي) or inspiration is a direct communication from Allah to mankind. And Ibn al-Qayyim mentioned that the Prophet PBUH was inspired by 7 different means/methods/ways:
1. True dreams — the lowest form of inspiration is true dreams. (And this, by the way, is the only form of inspiration that is still open to mankind — anyone can see true dreams. Our Prophet PBUH as well saw true dreams *before* and after his prophethood. They are not restricted to prophets.)
2. Whisperings of the angels other than the angel Jibril — and this is called ilham (إلهام). (And just like true dreams, ilham occurs to non-prophets as well — but only to extremely righteous people that Allah chooses. And as with seeing true dreams, getting ilham does not make one a prophet or a prophetess. Example is the mother of Musa being inspired by Allah, as mentioned in the Quran, "We inspired the mother of Musa" [Quran, 28:7]. And similarly, the mother of Isa AS. Ilham comes from Allah through the angels — the angels give you this type of message to the heart.)
3. Jibril AS would come to the Prophet PBUH in human form and speak to him directly — this happened many times. And in Madinan seerah [i.e., episode 29 onwards], when Jibril AS would come to the Prophet PBUH, usually he would come in the form of a sahabi called Dihyah al-Kalbi (دحية الكلبي) RA, an Ansari who was considered to be the most handsome of all sahaba. Sometimes people would see him and think he was Dihyah, but he was Jibril AS. Aisha RA on more than one occasion saw the Prophet PBUH talking to 'Dihyah,' and she would ask the Prophet PBUH, "What did Dihyah want from you?" But the Prophet PBUH said, "That wasn't Dihyah, that was Jibril." This type of wahy was easier for the Prophet PBUH to bear (compared to the next form of wahy).
4. The Prophet PBUH would go into what we would call a 'trance,' and Jibril AS would communicate with him in that state. The Prophet PBUH would lower his face, his eyes would close, and the world around him becomes unknown — doesn't matter what's happening, he is in his own world, the world of wahy. In this state —Aisha RA said—: "I have seen him on multiple times, that when the wahy was coming down —[even if it was] on a cold day— he would break into a sweat"—it was very difficult for the Prophet PBUH. In another hadith in Sahih Bukhari, it's narrated, "When Surah al-Ma'idah (سورة المائدة) came down, the Prophet PBUH was sitting on a camel, and the surah was so heavy that the camel had to sit down." Camels can carry more than 200 kg, yet when Ma'idah came down, it had to sit down — this truly shows how heavy revelations were. As Allah says in the Quran, "We will give you a heavy speech" [73:5]. In another hadith, it's said the Prophet PBUH was resting on the lap of a sahabi, and when wahy began, the sahabi felt a pressure that was so heavy he thought his thigh bone would crack. In Sahih Bukhari: Hakim ibn Hizam asked the Prophet PBUH, "How does wahy come to you, ya Rasulullah?" So the Prophet PBUH told us #3 and #4: "Sometimes Jibril AS comes to me in the form of a man and I understand what he says. And sometimes he communicates with me and I hear a noise like the ringing of a bell, and this is more difficult for me — and I understand what he tells me."
5. The Prophet PBUH would see Jibril AS in his original, angelic form. What is Jibril's original form? All we know is that he was so big he blocked the horizon, and he had 600 wings (the largest number of wings that the angels have). Scholars have differed with regards to how many times the Prophet PBUH saw Jibril in this form — but for sure this happened at least twice: once before Surah al-Muddaththir was revealed [as discussed above], another in the journey of al-Isra' wal-Mi'raj [see episode 22]. And some scholars added a third time.
6. (This is disputed how and when it occurred, but Ibn al-Qayyim mentions it) : Allah's direct wahy — Allah inspired the Prophet PBUH directly without the intermediary of the angels. [Sh. YQ is still wondering whether he would agree with this, as there is no example to support this point — but Allah knows best.]
7. The highest form of wahy possible: Allah's direct Kalam (كلام) — Allah's direct Speech. This only happened once to the Prophet PBUH in the journey of al-Isra' wal-Mi'raj. Only once did Allah speak to him directly — even Jibril AS was not there [see episode 22]; Jibril said, "You go on, ya Muhammad. I don't have permission to go beyond this." And the Prophet PBUH went to a place where he could hear the Pen[1] writing. And he could see the Hijab of Allah AWJ — the Veil of light; and this was when Allah spoke to him directly, like Allah spoke to Musa AS. However, our Prophet PBUH was preferred over Musa AS, in that, Allah spoke to Musa on Tur Saina, but He called our Prophet PBUH to His Presence in above the seven heavens.
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Difference Between Nabi and Rasul
Some scholars claim that the Prophet PBUH became a nabi through the revelation of Iqra, and he became a rasul through the revelation of Surah al-Muddaththir. And this leads us to another tangent: what exactly is a nabi, what exactly is a rasul, and what is the difference between a nabi and a rasul, and what was our Prophet Muhammad PBUH? There are many opinions, but for the sake of brevity, we will only mention four:
1. One group of scholars says there is no difference. Nabi = rasul; they are synonyms, just like tawba and istighfar (استغفار) are synonyms. However, this does not seem to be the strongest opinion, because of many reasons; of them is the verse in the Quran, "We didn't send before you either a rasul or a nabi except that..." [22:52] — had nabi and rasul been the same thing, this would be against the eloquence of the Arabic language to phrase something like this. It doesn't make sense to put them together in this manner. So this is not the strongest opinion.
2. A nabi is one who is inspired by Allah with a revelation but he is not told to preach it to the people, whereas a rasul is somebody who is told to proclaim it to mankind. However, this opinion is problematic on multiple levels. Firstly, the ayah [22:52] above clearly says that nabis are also "sent." Also, in Sahih Bukhari, the Prophet PBUH said, "I saw all of the prophets on the Day of Judgment, and there was a nabi with a huge ummah, and there was a nabi and he had a small group (of followers), and there was a nabi and he had 5 people (followers), and there was a nabi he had 2 people, and there was a nabi he had no people following him"—shows that nabis were also preaching to the people and had followings. Also, this opinion doesn't appear to be correct because even scholars are told that if you conceal knowledge, you are going to be punished. In fact, the Muslim is told, "بلغوا عني ولو آية"—so even the average Muslim has to preach. How then can somebody be inspired by Allah and he doesn't preach? Thus this opinion is also not the strongest.
3. A rasul is someone who has been given a new shariah (code of laws), whereas a nabi is someone who follows the shariah of the rasul before him. This opinion seems to be good, but it doesn't match up with all of the examples. E.g., by this definition, Yusuf AS wouldn't be a rasul. But the Quran [40:34] clearly mentions Yusuf as a rasul. Another example is: if a nabi is someone who follows the shariah of the previous prophets, Adam AS would have been a rasul. But in Sahih Bukhari, the Prophet PBUH said the first rasul is Nuh AS. So Adam is a nabi but not a rasul. Also Idris AS — he is not a rasul according to this same hadith. Yet another example: Dawud and Sulayman AS were rusul (رسل - messengers [plural of rasul]) even though they followed the shariah of Musa AS. (No doubt, Dawud AS had Zabur [زبور - the Psalms] [see Quran, 17:55], but Zabur contained nothing but praise —tasbih [تسبيح] and tahmid [تحميد]— with no law at all.) All of this evidence demonstrates that the hypothesis is not supported by the raw data; and it appears therefore, this opinion is unlikely to be correct.
4. The correct opinion seems to be the one that Ibn Taymiyyah (ابن تيمية) (d. 728 AH) propounded. He says let's look at the linguistic meaning of nabi and rasul. Nabi (نبي) comes from ن ب ء (n-b-a) which means information. So a nabi is somebody who informs you what Allah wants him to inform — a nabi has information from Allah and has to preach and teach — the word nabi automatically implies he is speaking to you a Message from Allah. Rasul (رسول) comes from ر س ل (r-s-l) which means to send [a delegate / emissary / representative / ambassador]. So a rasul is somebody that Allah sends. To whom? Generally, to a nation that he is not on friendly terms with, i.e., a nation that does not believe in him. Whereas a nabi teaches and preaches to people who already accept him. If you look at this definition, all the raw data fits into place. Did any of Adam's children reject him? No. Did any of Idris's people reject him? No. How about Nuh? People rejected him. And in Sahih Bukhari, the Prophet PBUH confirms that he is a rasul. Yusuf AS is also a rasul because he is sent to the nonbelievers of Egypt. Dawud and Sulayman too had to fight to establish a kingdom, so they were rusul. Another classic example is Yahya (يحيى - John) AS and Isa AS; two cousins, their mothers were sisters — but one is a nabi and the other a rasul because their people accepted Yahya and rejected Isa. So this definition seems to be precise.
And then Ibn Taymiyyah says: Generally, every rasul does have a new shariah. But this is not a rule, it's just a symptom/adjective which has exceptions.
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Were There Female Prophets?
Were there female prophets, i.e., prophetesses? This is an interesting question. Oftentimes, Maryam AS and the mother of Musa are the foremost examples used by those who believe there were female prophets. Of the scholars who held this opinion were Abu al-Hasan al-Ash'ari (أبو الحسن الأشعري) (d. 324 AH), al-Qurtubi (القرطبي) (d. 671 AH), and Ibn Hazm al-Andalusi. Let us see how Maryam AS and the mother of Musa were described in the Quran:
It's agreed that the angel Jibril AS showed himself to Maryam AS [see Quran, 19:17].
— But does this make her a prophetess?
— No. The sahaba also saw Jibril AS, but that didn't make them prophets.
Another evidence that the scholars who held this opinion put forward is: Allah used the word "wahy" in the Quran [28:7] for the mother of Musa.
— But does this make the mother of Musa a prophetess?
— No. We already mentioned that ilham is not given *only* to the prophets.
And further, Allah says in Surah al-Ma'idah:
مَّا الْمَسِيحُ ابْنُ مَرْيَمَ إِلَّا رَسُولٌ قَدْ خَلَتْ مِن قَبْلِهِ الرُّسُلُ وَأُمُّهُ صِدِّيقَةٌ
"The Messiah, son of Mary, was not but a rasul; [other] rasuls have passed on before him. And his mother was a siddiqah" [5:75] — Notice how Allah says Isa AS is a rasul just like rasuls before him; and as for his mother, she was a siddiqah (صديقة - supporter of Truth). Clearly, Allah is mentioning the difference. And we know from another ayah (Quran, [4:69]) that of the levels of the righteous people are: (1) nabiyyin (prophets), (2) siddiqin (people of Truth), (3) shuhada (martyrs), and (4) salihin (the righteous). Isa AS is from the first group, and his mother is from the second. And Allah says in the Quran [3:42] to Maryam AS, that He has "chosen you above the women of the worlds" — [and if the best woman in the world is a siddiqah, clearly there were no female prophets].
And in another ayah, Allah mentioned two conditions for prophethood:
وَمَا أَرْسَلْنَا مِن قَبْلِكَ إِلَّا رِجَالًا نُّوحِي إِلَيْهِم مِّنْ أَهْلِ الْقُرَىٰ
'For, every person that We sent before you was (1) a man (2) from the people of the cities' [12:109].
So putting all the evidence together, it is clear that the prophets of Allah have only been men — as the majority opinion has always been.
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Number of Nabi and Rasul
In a hasan hadith in Musnad Imam Ahmad, Abu Dharr al-Ghifari (أبو ذر الغفاري) RA asked the Prophet PBUH, "How many messengers (rasuls) did Allah send?" The Prophet PBUH said, "310 and something." (Side note: "310 and something" was also the exact number of Muslims in the Battle of Badr [see episode 36]; and also the exact number of the people of Talut [طالوت - Saul], i.e., the people who crossed over the river [see Quran, 2:249]. This number seems to be recurring and seems to have some type of power to it.) And then Abu Dharr RA asked, "And how many prophets were there?" The Prophet PBUH said, "124,000."
And this, by the way, is another indication that rasul and nabi are not the same. And also from this, we derive that every rasul is a nabi, but not every nabi is a rasul.
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The Ulu al-Azm
Out of the rasuls, there are 5 elite rasuls called the Ulu al-Azm (أولو العزم - People of Determination/Strong Will). And these are of course:
1. Nuh,
2. Ibrahim,
3. Musa,
4. Isa, and
5. Muhammad,
Peace Be Upon Them All.
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Why Does Mankind Need Prophets?
What is the purpose of prophets? Why do we need them? This is the crux of the difference between us [adherents of Abrahamic religions] and the rest of humanity. We believe that the only guidance that is ultimate guidance is the guidance that comes from Allah SWT through the prophets. (Whereas the bulk of the world believes that they can find their own way in life by experimenting with different laws and customs.) We believe that the best law is the law of Allah, and only Allah has the right to ultimately legislate, and Allah knows what is best for us — and that is why He sends prophets continuously. To deny that Allah sends prophets is to deny the mercy and power of Allah. We will repeat: to deny that Allah sends prophets is to deny the mercy and power of Allah. There are many people on earth who say, "Yeah, God created us, but then He let us be, and He has nothing to do with us anymore"—and this is insulting to Allah AWJ. The Quran [6:91] mentions:
وَمَا قَدَرُوا اللَّهَ حَقَّ قَدْرِهِ إِذْ قَالُوا مَا أَنزَلَ اللَّهُ عَلَىٰ بَشَرٍ مِّن شَيْءٍ
[This is difficult to translate, but can metaphorically be translated as]: 'They did not give the respect that is due to Allah when they said Allah does not reveal anything to mankind'—they insulted Allah when they claimed He didn't send any revelation.
We on the other hand would say: For God so truly loved the world, He continued to send prophets to us from the beginning up until the very end. The sending of the prophets is the sign of Allah's love for us. There is always going to be prophets preaching the Truth. Without knowledge of the prophets, there is no ultimate knowledge of Truth. How do we know what is right and wrong; how do we know what is good and bad; how do we know what is moral and immoral — unless there were prophets of Allah? Look around us —societies and nations— all of their laws differ. No two countries, or even two states in the U.S., have the exact same laws. One thing might be legal in one land, but illegal in another. And logically, this doesn't make sense — if it's illegal in one land, why should it be legal in another? This is what's going to happen when you don't have a standard. [Therefore, it is necessary for humanity to have prophets sent by Allah, who provide a universal standard of moral and ethical guidance that transcends cultural and geographical differences.]
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The Early Converts
Getting back to the seerah: in this early time when Surah al-Muddaththir was revealed, we only have a few brief stories as to what the Prophet PBUH did. That is he preached to his immediate friends and family.
The first convert was Khadija bint Khuwaylid (خديجة بنت خويلد) RA — she converted without even knowing what it is she is converting to; which shows how much faith she had in her husband. She said, "Allah is never going to humiliate you. Allah is never going to cause you to go astray. You are a person who is kind, merciful, tender" [see episode 10].
The second convert would have been Waraqa ibn Nawfal (ورقة بن نوفل) — which a lot of people overlook. He converted without even saying the shahada — because there was no shahada to say at that point in time — but technically, he did convert by saying, "You are a prophet"—he affirmed the prophethood of the Prophet PBUH. Therefore, the Prophet PBUH saw him in Jannah [see episode 10].
The third convert is either Ali ibn Abi Talib, Abu Bakr, or Zayd ibn Harithah RA. Scholars differed over who of the three converted first. One of the easiest ways to resolve this is to say: the first child to convert was Ali, the first adult free man was Abu Bakr, and the first freed slave was Zayd.
As for Ali ibn Abi Talib (علي بن أبي طالب), there is no question he was of the earliest of converts because he was being raised by the Prophet PBUH and Khadija RA themselves in their household. At this time, he was probably around 10 years old. As we mentioned, when the Prophet PBUH got married to Khadija, he PBUH offered Abu Talib that, "I will take care of your newborn (Ali)"—as Abu Talib was very poor. So Ali was raised in the household of the Prophet PBUH.
The conversion of Abu Bakr (أبو بكر) is well known. The Prophet PBUH praised Abu Bakr like he praised no other Companion — and in some ahadith, he PBUH mentioned Abu Bakr's conversion. However, we don't know the exact story. All we know is that when the Prophet PBUH presented Islam to him, he converted instantaneously. This is mentioned in a hadith that the Prophet PBUH said later in Madinah: Once, when the Companions began to disagree amongst themselves, the Prophet PBUH got a little bit frustrated with something that Umar RA had done, so he said to him, "Allah sent me with the Truth, but all of you accused me of being a liar; and it was only Abu Bakr who said, 'You are telling the truth.'" In another hadith, the Prophet PBUH said, "There was not a single person whom I invited to Islam except that he had some doubts before he converted — except for Abu Bakr," i.e., "As soon as I presented, he did not hesitate — and he accepted." Thus by unanimous consensus of all Ahl al-Sunnah wa al-Jama'ah (أهل السنة والجماعة - the People of the Sunnah and the Community) (i.e., Sunnis), Abu Bakr RA is the best of all Companions. In Sahih Bukhari, the Prophet PBUH said, "Allah has chosen me as a khalil (خليل - sincere friend), so I cannot have any other khalil — but were I to choose a khalil, it would have been Abu Bakr." We already mentioned that the only sahabi to be mentioned by name in the Quran is of course Zayd [see episode 10] — and the only other sahabi that is directly referenced by the pronoun is Abu Bakr RA, when Allah says, "When the *two of them* were in the cave" [9:40]. So Allah called Abu Bakr 'the Second of the Two' — that is, second to none but the Prophet PBUH. And that is enough of an indication of his rank in this ummah.
And then of course, Zayd ibn Harithah (زيد بن حارثة) whose story we went through [see episode 10].
These converts were directly from the Prophet PBUH.
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The next batch of converts all converted at the hands of Abu Bakr RA. And this shows us how Allah helped the Prophet PBUH by Abu Bakr. Abu Bakr RA went to these four people and they all converted:
1. Sa'd ibn Abi Waqqas
2. Uthman ibn Affan
3. Zubayr ibn al-Awwam
4. Abd al-Rahman ibn Awf
1. Sa'd ibn Abi Waqqas (سعد بن أبي وقاص) was the youngest, around 16, and he was from a great family of the Quraysh. And when he left idolatry, his mother used emotional blackmail, "I am going to stop eating and drinking until you worship idols. And I will die a painful death in front of you if you don't leave your faith." And he tried to convince and cajole her, but she withered away —sickening and weakening— on her [basically] deathbed, until he became very emotional and said to her, "I swear by Allah, O my mother, that I am not going to give this religion up no matter what you do. Even if I had 100 ruhs in me and I had to give up every ruh and see you die in every single one of them, I will still not go back to worshiping idols." When his mother saw this determination, she broke her fast and started eating again. And in response to this, Allah revealed in the Quran:
وَإِن جَاهَدَاكَ عَلَىٰ أَن تُشْرِكَ بِي مَا لَيْسَ لَكَ بِهِ عِلْمٌ فَلَا تُطِعْهُمَا ۖ وَصَاحِبْهُمَا فِي الدُّنْيَا مَعْرُوفًا
'If they try to force you to worship idols, don't listen to them. But be good to them in this world' [see Quran, 31:15].
— Sa'd ibn Abi Waqqas is the first person to ever shoot an arrow for the sake of Islam [see episode 35].
— He is the only person for whom the Prophet PBUH said, "May my father and mother be given to you in ransom (فداك ابي وامي)"—this is an expression in Arabic which basically means, "I would give up everything for you." The Prophet PBUH never said this to anyone except for Sa'd ibn Abi Waqqas, and this is a huge honor [see episode 49].
— And he was one of those who were chosen in the shura (شورى - consultation) when Umar RA was on his deathbed and said, "I will choose the only people left alive whom I am sure that the Prophet PBUH was well pleased with when he died." And Umar chose number one amongst them Sa'd ibn Abi Waqqas.
2. Uthman ibn Affan (عثمان بن عفان) was also in this shura, and there are many blessings to say about him, which we will discuss throughout the series.
3. Zubayr ibn al-Awwam (الزبير بن العوام) was the third convert of Abu Bakr — and he is a direct cousin of the Prophet PBUH through his aunt. His mother is Safiyyah bint Abdul Muttalib [see episode 5].
— He is a sahabi himself, and he is the son of a sahabiyya, and the father of a sahabi, and the brother of a sahabi. So he is of the most noble of all sahaba in this sense.
— The Prophet PBUH said about him, "Every prophet has been given a hawari (حواري - disciple) — and Allah has given me as my hawari Zubayr ibn al-Awwam" [see episode 58].
4. And Abd al-Rahman ibn Awf (عبد الرحمن بن عوف), who is very well known as a businessman/trader. He is around 30 and the eldest of these converts after Abu Bakr. He is very wise in business and honest in his dealings.
— He is the famous one who when he left Makkah, he had to give up all of his belongings to the Quraysh. And he came to Madinah with just the clothes on his back. And his Ansari Brother, Sa'd ibn al-Rabi' (سعد بن الربيع), said to him, "I have two gardens, I'll give one to you; I have two wives, I'll divorce one and give her to you; I have two storeys in my house, choose one." And Abd al-Rahman responded, "May Allah bless you — [but] just tell me where is the marketplace, and let me just go and start selling things." And he took some butter that was his food for the day, and started selling this and that, this and that, until finally, he came with some gold, got married, etc., and became a rich businessman again, who lived a long and noble life afterward.
All of these converts are noblemen of Quraysh — and all of them were to have very prominent lives in Islam. We as Muslims should really know these names by heart. Every one of these early converts became a legend. Every one of them is a mountain in and of himself.
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The next Companion to convert was Abdullah ibn Mas'ud (عبد الله بن مسعود) RA. One of the first to convert who was not of the noblemen of the Quraysh — but he was not of the slaves either. He was of the servant class from a Yemeni tribe. He was hired to be a shepherd for Uqba ibn Abi Mu'ayt (عقبة بن أبي معيط) in Makkah.
— Ibn Mas'ud tells us his story: "One day, I was with my flock, and I saw two men come in the distance (the Prophet PBUH and Abu Bakr RA). I didn't recognize who they were. They said, 'O young man, we are thirsty. Can you give us some milk?'" Ibn Mas'ud said —and this shows his honesty—: "I'm afraid I can't, because these don't belong to me." The Prophet PBUH said, "Very well. Show us an [elderly] she-goat that has stopped producing milk." So Ibn Mas'ud showed, "That one is now beyond the age of giving milk." And then the Prophet PBUH made du'a and rubbed the udder of the goat, and lo and behold, it became full in front of the eyes of Ibn Mas'ud. And they milked it right then and there and drank it. And so Ibn Mas'ud is astonished —he is seeing a miracle— he asks, "Who are you?" And he is told, 'This is Abu Bakr. This is the Prophet PBUH'—and he converts right then and there, and became the 6th convert to Islam.
— He is the one whom the Prophet PBUH said, "If you want to know how to read the Quran, read it the way Ibn Mas'ud does."
— He is the one who said, "I learned over 70 surahs directly from the mouth of the Prophet PBUH."
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After this, the next batch of converts was a lot of the slave class — those who were not the freemen of Makkah. Most famous amongst them is of course Bilal ibn Rabah (بلال بن رباح), and then Khabbab ibn al-Aratt (خباب بن الأرت), Yasir (ياسر) and his wife Sumayyah (سمية), and their son Ammar (عمار).
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One final story: a very interesting story of a Yemeni by the name of Amr ibn Abasah al-Sulami (عمرو بن عبسة السلمي). He narrates his own story[2]: "In the days of Jahiliyyah, I knew that idol worship was wrong, and I knew my nation was upon misguidance, so I didn't join them. News came to me that somebody in Makkah was preaching something like I was saying (that idolatry is wrong). So I traveled all the way from Yemen to Makkah. And I found him mukhtafi (مختف - hiding/not being public). I was gentle and nice to him, I kept on talking to him and then asked, 'What are you?' He (the Prophet PBUH) said, 'I am a prophet.' Then I said, 'What is a prophet?' And the Prophet PBUH said, 'A prophet is someone whom Allah has sent.' So I asked, 'With what? (What has He sent you with?)' He said, 'To fulfill the tie of kinship (to be good to the family), to break all idols, and that only Allah SWT be worshiped.' I asked, 'Who has followed you?' He said, 'One free man, and one slave (Abu Bakr and Bilal).' I said, 'I want to be your follower.'"—Amr is the first non-Makki person to come and say he wants to convert. But in this early era, the Prophet PBUH said, "You cannot do this now. Don't you see my situation, that I have to hide from my own people?"—if Amr converted, he would have been killed [by the Quraysh]. In the early dawah, the Prophet PBUH was only preaching to his own people [see Quran, 26:214]. So he told Amr, "Go back to your people, and when you hear that I have been victorious over my people, come back to me." Subhan'Allah. And Amr said, "I went back to Yemen waiting and knowing that eventually his Message would be supreme. And when I heard the Prophet PBUH had Emigrated to Madinah, I went all the way there, entered the Mosque of the Prophet PBUH, and said, 'Ya Rasulullah, do you recognize me?' The Prophet PBUH said, 'Yes, you are the man who came to me from Yemen in Makkah.'" That's when he accepted Islam and became one of the Muhajirun (المهاجرون - Those Who Emigrated [to Madinah]).
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So initially, the dawah was private and closed — and this is important to note. We will explain further next time.
[Transcribed by Br. Safwan Khan & Faizan]
safwan-khan@hotmail.com
[Re-revised by Muhammad Abdul Rahman, April 2023]
safwan-khan@hotmail.com
[Re-revised by Muhammad Abdul Rahman, April 2023]
