COMPANIONS OF PROPHET MUHAMMAD (PEACE BE UPON HIM) – SAHABA

Encyclopaedia Britannica
“I have studied him — the wonderful man — and in my opinion far from being an anti-Christ he must be called the saviour of humanity.”

Almighty Allah says:

[Certainly you have in the Messenger of Allah an excellent exemplar for those who hope in Allah and the latter day and remember Allah much] (Al-Ahzab 33:21)

Muslims believe that Allah (God) sent a series of prophets to earth, to teach about His nature and His guidance for human beings. From Adam to Muhammad, they all shared the same message.

Muhammad (c. 570 – June 8, 632) is the prophet of Islam. He was a religious, political, and military leader who founded the religion of Islam. Muslims view him not as the creator of a new religion, but as the restorer of the original, uncorrupted monotheistic faith of Adam, Abraham, Moses, Jesus and others. In Muslim tradition, Muhammad is viewed as the last and the greatest in a series of prophets—as the man closest to perfection, the possessor of all virtues.

BRIEF ACCOUNT OF HIS LIFE JOURNEY

Muhammad’s father, Abdullah, died almost six months before he was born. According to the tradition, soon after Muhammad’s birth he was sent to live with a Bedouin family in the desert, as the desert-life was considered healthier for infants. Muhammad stayed with his foster-mother, Halimah bint Abi Dhuayb, and her husband until he was two years old. Some western scholars of Islam have rejected the historicity of this tradition. At the age of six Muhammad lost his mother Amina to illness and he became fully orphaned. He was subsequently brought up for two years under the guardianship of his paternal grandfather Abd al-Muttalib, of the Banu Hashim clan of the Quraysh tribe. When Muhammad was eight, his grandfather also died. He now came under the care of his uncle Abu Talib, the new leader of Banu Hashim. According to Watt, because of the general disregard of the guardians in taking care of weak members of the tribes in Makkah in sixth century, “Muhammad’s guardians saw that he did not starve to death, but it was hard for them to do more for him, especially as the fortunes of the clan of Hashim seem to have been declining at that time.”

Beginning at age 40, Muhammad reported receiving revelations from God. The content of these revelations, known as the Qur’an, was memorized and recorded by his companions.

During this time, Muhammad preached to the people of Makkah, imploring them to abandon polytheism. Although some converted to Islam, Muhammad and his followers were persecuted by the leading Makkah authorities. After 13 years of preaching, Muhammad and the Muslims performed the Hijra (“emigration”) to the city of Medina (formerly known as Yathrib) in 622. There, with the Medinan converts (Ansar) and the Makkahn migrants (Muhajirun), Muhammad establiHed his political and religious authority. Within years, two battles had been fought against Makkahn forces: the Battle of Badr in 624, which was a Muslim victory, and the Battle of Uhud in 625, which ended inconclusively. Conflict with Medinan Jewish clans who opposed the Muslims led to their exile, enslavement or death, and the Jewish enclave of Khaybar was subdued. At the same time, Makkahn trade routes were cut off as Muhammad brought surrounding desert tribes under his control. By 629 Muhammad was victorious in the nearly bloodless Conquest of Makkah, and by the time of his death in 632 he ruled over the Arabian peninsula. In all his journey he had faced a lot of opposition and resistance.

HIS REVELATIONS

The revelations (or Ayat, lit. “Signs of God”) – which Muhammad reported receiving until his death – form the verses of the Qur’an, are regarded by Muslims as the “Word of God” and around which the religion is based. Besides the Qur’an, Muhammad’s life (sira) and traditions (sunnah) are also upheld by Muslims.

FAMILY OF PROPHET MUHAMMAD

In addition to being a prophet, a statesman, and a community leader, the Prophet Muhammad was a family man. The Prophet Muhammad was known to be very kind and gentle with his family, setting an example for all to follow.

Mothers of the Believers

The wives of the Prophet Muhammad are known as the “Mothers of the Believers.”

• Khadija bint Khuwailid – The Prophet Muhammad described his first wife as follows: “He believed in me when no one else did; He accepted Islam when people rejected me; and He helped and comforted me when there was no one else to lend me a helping hand.” Muhammad and Khadija were married for 25 years until her death. It was only after her death that Muhammad married again.
• Sawdah bint Zam’ah – Sawdah had been previously married and widowed, and was one of the first to immigrate toAbyssiniain the early years of Islam.
• Aishah bint Abu Bakr – Known for her spirit and good memory, He became a teacher to other Muslims and a narrator of hadith. Aishah was the daughter of Muhammad’s close friend and companion, Abu Bakr.
• Zainab bint Jahsh
• Hafsah bint ‘Umar – Hafsah was a woman who was not afraid to speak her mind. He had been previously married. Hafsah was assisting the wounded on the battlefield when her husband was killed.
• Zainab bint Khuzaimah – Zainab bint Khuzaimah was an elderly widow who was known to give money to the poor.
• Umm Salamah – Umm Salamah and her first husband were early converts to Islam, and He had emigrated to bothAbyssiniaand Madinah. At the time of her marriage to the Prophet, He was the single mother of four young orphans.
• Maria
• Juwayriah bint Al-Harith
• Umm Habibah
• Maimunah bint Al-Harith
• Safiyah bint Huyayy
• Raihanah

Daughters of the Prophet Muhammad

The Prophet Muhammad doted on his four daughters. Only two survived him after death, Zainab and Fatimah.

• Ruqaiyyah
• Umm Kulthum
• Zainab
• Fatimah – The Prophet’s youngest daughter was deeply devoted to him, and spent her spare time in prayer and worship. He was the mother of the Prophet Muhammad’s grandsons, Hassan and Husayn.

The Prophet Muhammad also had three sons, but they died in infancy. They were named Qasim, Abdullah, and Ibrahim.

HIS MIRACLES

The Messenger of Allah possesses many manifest miracles and signs demonstrating [his veracity], reaching thousands and they are well known.

From amongst them was the Qur’an, the manifest and clear miracle and brilliant proof, falsehood cannot approach it from before it or behind it. It is a revelation from One Who is All-Wise and Praiseworthy. It incapacitated the most eloquent of people in the most eloquent of times to produce a single chapter that would be comparable to it, even if the whole of creation were to gather for that purpose. Allah, the Exalted says,

“Say: If the whole of mankind and the jinn gathered in order to produce the like of this Qur’an, they could not produce the like of it, even if they assisted each other.” [Al-Israa' (17): 88]

It challenged them to this despite their large numbers, their eloquence and their severe enmity, and it challenges them to this day.

As for the other miracles, it is not possible to enumerate them all due to their huge number and renewing and increasing nature.

CHARACTERS OF MUHAMMAD (Peace Be Upon Him)

In fact his characters can’t be summed up in one article, here we’ll discuss few of his features..

- Courage and bravery

The Prophet Muhammad (Peace Be Upon Him) had great courage. He faced a multitude of dangers and calamities all at once but never showed any weakness or timidity. When the opposition and rebukes of the Quraish of Makkah became unbearable, his uncle Abu Talib spoke to Muhammad (Peace Be Upon Him) and said, “Could you not be silent about all this; believe it all for yourself, but not trouble others, anger the chief men, and endanger yourself and all of us, talking of it?” Muhammad (Peace Be Upon Him) answered: “If the sun stood on my right hand and the moon on my left, ordering me to hold my peace, I could not obey!” This indicates what divine courage Muhammad possessed and that he never showed any weakness in his determination to fight for a just cause.. similarly he fought all the wars against Kuffar chivalry and bravely..

- Sacrifice

The most conspicuous quality of Muhammad (Peace Be Upon Him) was his unselfish struggle for the cause of Islam and sacrifice of his personal comforts for other people. He (Peace Be Upon Him) sacrificed all, even the love and comfort of his most dear ones, for Islam and for the convenience of other people. He (Peace Be Upon Him) loved his daughter, Fatima, so much that he used to stand up with an abundance of love for her and kissed her forehead whenever He came to see him. He lived in extreme poverty and herself worked on a wheel to grind flour and brought water from the well. The palms of her hands were worn out through the grinding of flour and her chest was beaten black and blue with the load of the water-bag. He came to her father and asked him for a maid-servant. Muhammad (Peace Be Upon Him) replied, “I have not been able to do anything for the As’hab Suffah; until this problem is resolved satisfactorily I cannot attend to other matters.” He never cared for his own interests or the interests of his most dear ones, when he was considering the interest and welfare of the people. Once a woman offered him a Heet of cloth which he needed at that time and he took it from her. A man praised the beauty of the Heet of the cloth and asked the prophet (Peace Be Upon Him) to give it to him; the Prophet (Peace Be Upon Him) took it off and gave it to him. When he left the assembly, the people cursed the man saying, “You knew that God’s Messenger (Peace Be Upon Him) needed this and also knew that he (Peace Be Upon Him) never turns down anyone’s request.” He agreed with them but said that he wanted the cloth as blessing and that it would be kept for his coffin.

Muhammad (Peace Be Upon Him) spent all his life in poverty but still never refused anyone’s request. After the Muslim victories, many lands and orchards came into their possession but he distributed them all..

- Fulfillment of promises

Muhammad (Peace Be Upon Him) always kept his promises and contracts at all costs even with his enemies, and never broke his word. He preached the Qur’an and practiced what he taught to other people in obedience to the Commandment of God

In the treaty of Hudaibiyah, one of the conditions was that if any Muslim went to Medinah from Makkah, he would be returned on demand. When the Treaty was being written, Abu Jandal escaped from the prison of the Makkans in chains. All the Muslims were shocked to see him in this condition, but the Holy Prophet (Peace Be Upon Him) said to him, “O Abu Jandal! Be patient, we cannot break the promise. God will very soon find a way for you.” He was returned to the people of Makkah. Two companions of the Holy Prophet (Peace Be Upon Him), Hazifa bin al-Yaman and Abu Husail, while coming from Makkah, were caught by the unbelievers. The Makkans insisted that they should not go to Muhammad but the two companions refused. At last they were released on the condition that they would not participate in the battle (of Badr) on behalf of the Muslims. They came to the Holy Prophet (Peace Be Upon Him) and told him the whole story. It was a severe test of their truthfulness. The Muslims were very few and needed more men to fight against the unbelievers. The addition of two men would have made a lot of difference to them but the Holy Prophet said, “Both of you must go back; we will keep the promise under all circumstances. We need only the help of God.”

- Honesty and Truthfulness

Undoubtedly, no one can be more truthful and honest than the Messengers of God (Peace Be Upon Him).The Prophet Muhammad (Peace Be Upon Him) proved by his living example that he was the most truthful and honest person of his age. Everyone was impressed by his honesty and truthfulness. He was a poor orphan, who had started trading with his uncle, but in a very short time, owing to his honest and fair dealings with all people, he became well-known and respected. He was known as Al-Sadiq (the Truthful) and Al-Amin (the Faithful). Every Makkan, rich or poor called him by these names..

When he gathered together all the Quraish near the Mount of Safa and asked them, “O Quraish! If I say that an army is advancing on you from behind the mountains, will you believe me?” All said in one voice, “Yes; because we have never heard you telling a lie.” All the people of Makkah, without any exception swore to his truthfulness and honesty, for he had lived an unblemiHed and extremely pious life among them for forty years.

He had lived his whole life in purity and virtue among them and this was acknowledged even by his most staunch enemies. They knew that he was the most honest and truthful person among them

- Modesty

Prophet Muhammad (S.A.W) was very modest and shy; in fact, he was a perfect model of modesty. It is narrated by many of his companions that he was more modest and bashful than a maiden. He never spoke loudly or in an unseeming manner. When he went shopping in the market, he always passed by the people quietly with a smile. When he heard anything undesirable in the assembly; he did not say anything out of respect for the people, but the colour of his face showed his feelings and the companions would become cautious. A’isha (RA) said that He never saw God’s Messenger (SAWS) laughing so immoderately that He could see the inside of his mouth, for he only used to smile. Zaid ibn Talya reported God’s Messenger as saying, “Every religion has a character and the character of Islam is modesty.” Abu Hurairah reported, “God’s Messenger never criticized any food (presented to him) but would eat it if he liked it; otherwise, he would leave it (without even expressing dislike)

- Fair dealing

The Prophet Muhammad (Peace Be Upon Him) was always fair and honest in his dealings with other people even before his prophethood. When he attained the age of maturity he became a trader and went on expeditions to theMiddle Eastcountries. He traded with other people’s money with great prudence and made large profits. The people of Makkah were very much impressed by his trading skill and fair dealing. Gradually he became well-known and the people trusted him. It was his honesty and fair dealing in business that impressed Khadijah, who first entrusted her enterprise to him and later married him. All the people who had done business dealings with him before his prophethood had always praised his honesty and fair dealing in trade.

- Simplicity

Our Prophet Muhammad (Peace Be Upon Him) was a very simple person and spent all his life in simplicity. He (Peace Be Upon Him) was very unceremonious and informal in his habits. He (Peace Be Upon Him) ate whatever he was given, wore very thick and coarse cloth, even when he (Peace Be Upon Him) was the ruler of a state and undisputed leader of the people. He (Peace Be Upon Him) sat on the floor, bare ground or a mat without any hesitation, alone or in the company of other people. He (Peace Be Upon Him) ate bread made from coarse flour and even spent days on mere dates. He (Peace Be Upon Him) wore simple clothes and did not like display or show. He (Peace Be Upon Him) was by nature simple and liked simplicity and informality in everything.

Ibn Masud (ra) said that God’s Messenger slept on a reed mat and got up with the mark of it on his body. He (Peace Be Upon Him) said, “O God’s Messenger! I wish you would order us to spread something out for you and make something.” The Prophet (Peace Be Upon Him) replied, “What have I to do with the world, I am like a rider who rests for a while under the shade of a tree, then goes off and leaves it.” Ubaid-Allah bin Muhsin (ra) reported God’s Messenger as saying, “If anyone among you is secure in mind in the morning, healthy in body and has food for the day, it is as though the whole world has been brought into his Possession.”

- Generosity

The Prophet Muhammad (Peace Be Upon Him) was by nature a very generous and charitable man. According to Ibn Abbas, God’s Messenger (Peace Be Upon Him) was the most generous of all people, especially in the month of Ramadan, when he (Peace Be Upon Him) became more generous. Muhammad (Peace Be Upon Him) never said ‘no’ to any request from anyone all his life.
Muhammad (Peace Be Upon Him) was generous to such an extent that he (Peace Be Upon Him) always gave something to anyone who asked him for help, but if he (Peace Be Upon Him) had nothing, he (Peace Be Upon Him) promised help later on. Sometimes it so happened that Muhammad (Peace Be Upon Him) purchased an article for himself, then gave it as a gift to the seller. Once he (Peace Be Upon Him) bought a camel from Umar (RA) and straightaway gave it as a gift to Abdullah ibn Umar(RA).

- Forgiveness

Another great quality of the prophet Muhammad (Peace Be Upon Him) was that he (Peace Be Upon Him) never took revenge on anyone for personal reasons and always forgave even his staunch enemies. A’isha(RA) said that God’s Messenger (Peace Be Upon Him) never took revenge on his own behalf on anyone. He also said that God’s Messenger (Peace Be Upon Him) was not unseemly or obscene in his speech, nor was he (Peace Be Upon Him) loud-voiced in the streets, nor did he (Peace Be Upon Him) return evil for evil, but he (Peace Be Upon Him) would forgive and pardon. The people of the Quraish rebuked him, taunted and mocked at him, beat him and abused him. They tried to kill him and when he escaped to Medinah, they waged many wars against him yet when he (Peace Be Upon Him) entered Makkah victorious with an army of 10,000, he did not take revenge on anyone He forgave all Even his deadliest enemy Abu Sufyan, who fought so many battles, was forgiven, and anyone who stayed in his house was also forgiven

The leaders of T’aif, who engaged scoundrels to throw stones at him when he (Peace Be Upon Him) visited that town in order to invite them to Islam, were also forgiven by him (Peace Be Upon Him)

lf a man like Muhammed were to assume the dictatorship of the modern world, he would succeed in solving its problems that would bring it the much needed peace and happiness.”

George Bernard Shaw