WEBVTT

00:00:00.430 --> 00:00:03.430
In the name of Allah, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful.

00:00:03.430 --> 00:00:08.529
The best of generations in their conduct and as an example,

00:00:08.529 --> 00:00:13.529
Following the Messenger when he strove or excelled.

00:00:13.529 --> 00:00:15.529
Mawaddah Association

00:00:15.529 --> 00:00:17.530
Presents

00:00:17.530 --> 00:00:21.559
Portraits from the Life of the Tabi'un

00:00:21.559 --> 00:00:25.980
By Dr. Abd al-Rahman Ra'fat al-Basha,

00:00:25.980 --> 00:00:27.980
May Allah have mercy upon him.

00:00:27.980 --> 00:00:33.479
Salim ibn Abd Allah ibn Umar,

00:00:33.479 --> 00:00:35.799
May Allah have mercy upon him.

00:00:43.340 --> 00:00:46.340
The Commander of the Faithful, Umar ibn al-Khattab (may Allah be pleased with him),

00:00:46.340 --> 00:00:48.340
Had a number of children.

00:00:48.340 --> 00:00:50.340
But his son, Abd Allah,

00:00:50.340 --> 00:00:52.340
Was the one who resembled him most.

00:00:52.340 --> 00:00:54.340
Abd Allah ibn Umar (may Allah be pleased with him) also had

00:00:54.340 --> 00:00:56.340
A number of children,

00:00:56.340 --> 00:00:58.340
More than his father had.

00:00:58.340 --> 00:01:00.340
Yet his son, Salim,

00:01:00.340 --> 00:01:03.429
Was the one who resembled him most.

00:01:03.429 --> 00:01:07.430
So let us follow the life story of Salim ibn Abd Allah,

00:01:07.430 --> 00:01:09.430
The grandson of al-Faruq,

00:01:09.430 --> 00:01:12.430
And the person most like him in character and appearance,

00:01:12.430 --> 00:01:14.430
In religion and in demeanor.

00:01:14.430 --> 00:01:21.159
Salim ibn Abd Allah lived in the embrace of Tayyibah (Madinah) the Pure.

00:01:21.159 --> 00:01:23.159
And Tayyibah, at that time,

00:01:23.159 --> 00:01:26.159
Was draped in garments of wealth and prosperity,

00:01:26.159 --> 00:01:29.159
The likes of which it had never witnessed before.

00:01:29.159 --> 00:01:33.159
For its provision came to it in abundance from every place.

00:01:33.159 --> 00:01:38.159
The Umayyad caliphs provided it with sources of wealth

00:01:38.159 --> 00:01:40.159
That one could never have imagined.

00:01:40.159 --> 00:01:43.159
But Salim ibn Abd Allah

00:01:43.159 --> 00:01:47.159
Did not turn toward the world as others did,

00:01:47.159 --> 00:01:49.159
Nor did he concern himself with its fleeting offerings

00:01:49.159 --> 00:01:51.159
As others were concerned with them.

00:01:51.159 --> 00:01:56.159
Rather, he renounced what was in the hands of the people, desiring what was with Allah.

00:01:56.159 --> 00:01:58.159
He turned away from the immediate life,

00:01:58.159 --> 00:02:01.159
Hoping for success in the Hereafter.

00:02:01.159 --> 00:02:06.159
The Umayyad caliphs tried to shower him with wealth,

00:02:06.159 --> 00:02:08.159
Just as they showered others,

00:02:08.159 --> 00:02:12.159
But they found him indifferent to what they possessed,

00:02:12.159 --> 00:02:15.159
Deeming the world and all it contained as insignificant.

00:02:15.159 --> 00:02:18.539
For in a certain year,

00:02:18.539 --> 00:02:22.539
Sulayman ibn Abd al-Malik came to Makkah for Hajj.

00:02:22.539 --> 00:02:25.599
When he began the circumambulation of arrival (tawaf al-qudum),

00:02:25.599 --> 00:02:30.599
He saw Salim ibn Abd Allah sitting opposite the Ka'bah in humility,

00:02:30.599 --> 00:02:35.599
Moving his tongue with the Qur'an in devotion and reverence,

00:02:35.599 --> 00:02:39.599
With tears streaming down his cheeks,

00:02:39.599 --> 00:02:43.599
As if there were an ocean of tears behind his eyes.

00:02:43.599 --> 00:02:46.699
When the Caliph finished his tawaf,

00:02:46.699 --> 00:02:49.699
And prayed two rak'ahs for the Sunnah of the tawaf,

00:02:49.699 --> 00:02:53.699
He headed toward where Salim ibn Abd Allah was sitting.

00:02:53.699 --> 00:02:55.699
The people cleared a path for him,

00:02:55.699 --> 00:02:58.699
Until he took his place beside him,

00:02:58.699 --> 00:03:01.699
Coming so close that his knee almost touched his.

00:03:01.699 --> 00:03:05.699
Yet Salim did not notice him, nor did he turn toward him,

00:03:05.699 --> 00:03:08.699
Because he was absorbed in what he was doing,

00:03:08.699 --> 00:03:12.699
Occupied with the remembrance of Allah, oblivious to everything else.

00:03:12.699 --> 00:03:16.699
The Caliph began to watch Salim with a sidelong glance,

00:03:16.699 --> 00:03:20.699
Seeking an opportunity when he would stop reciting,

00:03:20.699 --> 00:03:24.789
And cease his weeping, so that he might speak to him.

00:03:24.789 --> 00:03:28.789
When the opportunity arose, he leaned toward him and said,

00:03:28.789 --> 00:03:32.789
"Peace be upon you, O Abu Umar, and the mercy of Allah."

00:03:32.789 --> 00:03:37.789
He replied, "And upon you be peace, and the mercy of Allah the Almighty,

00:03:37.789 --> 00:03:41.789
And His blessings." The Caliph said in a low voice,

00:03:41.789 --> 00:03:45.789
"Ask me for a need, that I may fulfill it for you, O Abu Umar."

00:03:45.789 --> 00:03:48.919
But Salim did not answer him with anything.

00:03:48.919 --> 00:03:51.919
The Caliph thought he had not heard him,

00:03:51.919 --> 00:03:55.979
So he leaned closer than before and said,

00:03:55.979 --> 00:03:59.979
"I desire that you ask me for a need so that I may fulfill it for you."

00:04:00.139 --> 00:04:04.139
Salim said, "By Allah, I am ashamed

00:04:04.139 --> 00:04:07.139
To be in the House of Allah, the Majestic and Exalted,

00:04:07.139 --> 00:04:10.139
And then ask anyone other than Him."

00:04:10.139 --> 00:04:13.180
The Caliph felt embarrassed and fell silent,

00:04:13.180 --> 00:04:16.240
But he remained sitting in his place.

00:04:17.240 --> 00:04:21.240
Salim rose, intending to return to his lodging,

00:04:21.240 --> 00:04:24.240
And the crowds of people followed him;

00:04:24.240 --> 00:04:27.240
One asking him about a hadith of the

00:04:27.240 --> 00:04:30.240
Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him),

00:04:30.240 --> 00:04:34.240
Another seeking a legal ruling (fatwa) on a matter of religion,

00:04:34.240 --> 00:04:38.240
A third seeking advice on a worldly affair,

00:04:38.240 --> 00:04:41.240
And a fourth asking him for supplication.

00:04:41.240 --> 00:04:44.370
Among those who followed him

00:04:44.370 --> 00:04:47.370
Was the Caliph of the Muslims, Sulayman ibn Abd al-Malik.

00:04:47.370 --> 00:04:50.370
When the people saw him,

00:04:50.370 --> 00:04:53.370
They made room for him until his shoulder touched

00:04:53.370 --> 00:04:56.370
The shoulder of Salim ibn Abd Allah.

00:04:56.370 --> 00:04:59.370
He leaned toward him and whispered in his ear, saying,

00:04:59.370 --> 00:05:02.399
"Here we are, we have now

00:05:02.399 --> 00:05:05.399
Left the mosque, so ask me for a need

00:05:05.399 --> 00:05:08.430
That I may fulfill it for you." Salim said,

00:05:08.430 --> 00:05:11.430
"Is it from the needs of the world or the needs of..."

00:05:12.430 --> 00:05:15.500
The Caliph became flustered and said,

00:05:15.500 --> 00:05:18.500
"Rather, from the needs of the world."

00:05:18.500 --> 00:05:21.500
Salim said to him, "I have not asked

00:05:21.500 --> 00:05:24.500
For the needs of the world from the One who owns it,

00:05:24.500 --> 00:05:27.500
So how could I ask for them from one who does not own them?"

00:05:27.500 --> 00:05:30.500
The Caliph felt ashamed before him,

00:05:30.500 --> 00:05:33.500
Greeted him, and turned away, saying,

00:05:33.500 --> 00:05:36.500
"How noble you are, O family of al-Khattab,

00:05:36.500 --> 00:05:39.500
In your asceticism and piety!

00:05:39.500 --> 00:05:42.500
May Allah, the Majestic and Exalted, bless you.

00:05:42.500 --> 00:05:46.709
May Allah bless you, O family."

00:05:46.709 --> 00:05:49.709
In the year before that,

00:05:49.709 --> 00:05:52.740
Al-Walid ibn Abd al-Malik performed Hajj.

00:05:52.740 --> 00:05:55.740
When the people departed from Arafat,

00:05:55.740 --> 00:05:58.740
The Caliph met Salim ibn Abd Allah

00:05:58.740 --> 00:06:01.740
In Muzdalifah while he was in the state of ihram.

00:06:01.740 --> 00:06:04.740
He greeted him warmly,

00:06:04.740 --> 00:06:07.740
Then looked at his exposed body,

00:06:08.740 --> 00:06:11.740
Which looked like a sturdy structure,

00:06:11.740 --> 00:06:14.740
And said to him, "You have a fine physique, O Abu Umar.

00:06:14.740 --> 00:06:17.740
What is your primary food?"

00:06:17.740 --> 00:06:20.740
He replied, "Bread and oil."

00:06:20.740 --> 00:06:23.740
"And if I find meat sometimes, I eat it."

00:06:23.740 --> 00:06:26.810
He said, "Bread and oil?"

00:06:26.810 --> 00:06:29.810
He said, "Yes."

00:06:29.810 --> 00:06:32.810
He asked, "Do you crave it?"

00:06:32.810 --> 00:06:35.810
He replied, "If I do not crave it, I leave it;

00:06:35.810 --> 00:06:40.279
If I become hungry, I crave it."

00:06:40.279 --> 00:06:43.279
And just as Salim resembled his grandfather, al-Faruq,

00:06:43.279 --> 00:06:46.279
In turning away from the world

00:06:46.279 --> 00:06:49.279
And renouncing its fleeting offerings,

00:06:49.279 --> 00:06:52.279
He also resembled him in speaking out

00:06:52.279 --> 00:06:55.279
With the word of truth,

00:06:55.279 --> 00:06:58.410
No matter how heavy the burden,

00:06:58.410 --> 00:07:01.410
Or how severe the consequences.

00:07:01.410 --> 00:07:04.410
Among such instances is when he entered upon al-Hajjaj.

00:07:04.410 --> 00:07:07.410
Al-Hajjaj welcomed him, brought his seat close,

00:07:07.410 --> 00:07:10.470
And was excessive in honoring him.

00:07:10.470 --> 00:07:13.470
While they were in that state,

00:07:13.470 --> 00:07:16.470
Al-Hajjaj was brought a group of men,

00:07:16.470 --> 00:07:19.470
With disheveled hair, dusty bodies,

00:07:19.470 --> 00:07:22.569
Pale faces, and bound in shackles.

00:07:22.569 --> 00:07:25.569
Al-Hajjaj turned to Salim

00:07:25.569 --> 00:07:28.569
And said, "These are rebels,

00:07:28.569 --> 00:07:31.569
Corruptors in the land."

00:07:32.629 --> 00:07:35.629
Then he gave him a sword,

00:07:35.629 --> 00:07:38.629
Pointed to the first of them, and said,

00:07:38.629 --> 00:07:41.759
"Take care of him; rise and strike his neck."

00:07:41.759 --> 00:07:44.759
Salim took the sword from the hand of al-Hajjaj

00:07:44.759 --> 00:07:47.759
And walked toward the man,

00:07:47.759 --> 00:07:50.759
While the eyes of the people were fixed upon him,

00:07:50.759 --> 00:07:53.949
Watching what he would do.

00:07:53.949 --> 00:07:56.949
When he stood over the man, he said to him,

00:07:56.949 --> 00:07:59.949
"Are you a Muslim?" He replied, "Yes."

00:07:59.949 --> 00:08:02.949
"And this question..."

00:08:02.949 --> 00:08:06.019
"Proceed to carry out what you were ordered to do."

00:08:06.019 --> 00:08:09.050
Salim said to him, "Did you pray the morning prayer?"

00:08:09.050 --> 00:08:12.050
The man said,

00:08:12.050 --> 00:08:15.050
"I told you I am a Muslim."

00:08:15.050 --> 00:08:18.050
"Then you ask me if I prayed the morning prayer?"

00:08:18.050 --> 00:08:21.079
"Do you think there is a Muslim who does not pray?"

00:08:21.079 --> 00:08:24.079
Salim said,

00:08:24.079 --> 00:08:27.079
"I am asking you, did you pray the morning prayer today?"

00:08:27.079 --> 00:08:30.079
"May Allah guide you."

00:08:30.079 --> 00:08:33.080
"I told you, yes."

00:08:33.080 --> 00:08:36.080
"And I asked you to carry out what this tyrant ordered you to do,"

00:08:36.080 --> 00:08:39.179
"Otherwise you expose yourself to his wrath."

00:08:39.179 --> 00:08:42.179
Salim returned to al-Hajjaj,

00:08:42.179 --> 00:08:45.179
Threw the sword before him, and said,

00:08:45.179 --> 00:08:48.179
"The man testifies that he is a Muslim,

00:08:48.179 --> 00:08:51.179
And says that he prayed the morning prayer today."

00:08:51.179 --> 00:08:54.179
"It has reached me that the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him)

00:08:54.179 --> 00:08:57.179
Said, 'Whoever prays the morning prayer,

00:08:57.179 --> 00:09:00.179
He is under the protection of Allah.'"

00:09:00.179 --> 00:09:03.179
"And I will not kill a man who has entered the protection of Allah, the Almighty and Exalted."

00:09:03.179 --> 00:09:06.370
Al-Hajjaj said to him,

00:09:06.370 --> 00:09:09.370
Angrily, "We are not killing him

00:09:09.370 --> 00:09:12.370
For leaving the morning prayer,"

00:09:12.370 --> 00:09:15.370
"But we are killing him because he is among those who aided in"

00:09:15.370 --> 00:09:18.399
"The killing of the Caliph Uthman ibn Affan."

00:09:18.399 --> 00:09:21.399
Salim said to him,

00:09:21.399 --> 00:09:24.399
"Who is more entitled than I or you to the blood of Uthman?"

00:09:24.399 --> 00:09:27.399
Al-Hajjaj fell silent

00:09:27.399 --> 00:09:30.500
And could not offer a reply.

00:09:30.500 --> 00:09:33.500
Later, one of the witnesses of the gathering arrived in Madinah

00:09:33.500 --> 00:09:36.500
And informed Abd Allah ibn Umar

00:09:36.500 --> 00:09:39.500
Of what al-Hajjaj had requested of his son, Salim.

00:09:39.500 --> 00:09:42.500
He did not wait to hear the rest of the news,

00:09:42.500 --> 00:09:45.500
But immediately prompted his narrator, saying,

00:09:45.500 --> 00:09:48.500
"And what did Salim do regarding the order of al-Hajjaj?"

00:09:48.500 --> 00:09:51.500
He told him, "He did such and such."

00:09:51.500 --> 00:09:54.500
He felt relieved and said,

00:09:54.500 --> 00:09:57.500
"Astute, astute; wise, wise."

00:09:57.500 --> 00:10:02.159
When the Caliphate passed

00:10:02.159 --> 00:10:05.159
To Umar ibn Abd al-Aziz,

00:10:05.159 --> 00:10:08.159
He wrote to Salim ibn Abd Allah, saying,

00:10:08.159 --> 00:10:11.159
"To proceed: Allah, the Almighty and Exalted,

00:10:11.159 --> 00:10:14.159
Has tested me with what He has tested me with, regarding the leadership

00:10:14.159 --> 00:10:17.159
Of the affairs of the Muslims, without consultation."

00:10:18.159 --> 00:10:21.190
"So I ask Allah, who tested me with this matter,

00:10:21.190 --> 00:10:24.190
To aid me in it."

00:10:24.190 --> 00:10:27.190
"When this letter of mine reaches you,"

00:10:27.190 --> 00:10:30.190
"Send me the books of Umar ibn al-Khattab,"

00:10:30.190 --> 00:10:33.190
"His judgments, and his biography,"

00:10:33.190 --> 00:10:36.190
"For I am determined to follow his biography,"

00:10:36.190 --> 00:10:39.190
"And walk upon his path, if Allah aids me"

00:10:39.190 --> 00:10:42.379
"In that. Peace."

00:10:42.379 --> 00:10:45.379
Salim wrote to him, saying: "To proceed,

00:10:45.379 --> 00:10:48.379
I have received your letter in which you mention

00:10:48.379 --> 00:10:51.379
that Allah, the Almighty and Majestic, has tested you

00:10:51.379 --> 00:10:54.379
with the leadership of the Muslims without your seeking it,

00:10:54.379 --> 00:10:57.379
nor your consultation, and that you wish to follow

00:10:57.379 --> 00:11:00.379
the path of 'Umar; do not let it escape you

00:11:00.379 --> 00:11:03.379
that you are in a time other than the time of 'Umar,

00:11:03.379 --> 00:11:06.379
and that among your men there is no one who resembles

00:11:06.379 --> 00:11:09.379
the men of 'Umar, but

00:11:09.379 --> 00:11:12.379
know that if you intend the truth and desire it,

00:11:12.379 --> 00:11:15.379
Allah will aid you in it and provide for you

00:11:15.379 --> 00:11:18.379
officials who will uphold it for you,

00:11:18.379 --> 00:11:21.379
and He will bring them to you from where you do not expect.

00:11:21.379 --> 00:11:24.379
For the aid of Allah for the servant is in proportion to

00:11:24.379 --> 00:11:27.379
his intention; whoever has a complete intention

00:11:27.379 --> 00:11:30.379
for good, the aid of Allah for him is complete,

00:11:30.379 --> 00:11:33.379
and whoever has a deficient intention, the aid of

00:11:33.379 --> 00:11:36.419
Allah for him is diminished in proportion to his deficiency.

00:11:36.419 --> 00:11:39.419
And if your soul tempts you toward

00:11:39.419 --> 00:11:42.419
that which does not please Allah, the Majestic and Exalted,

00:11:42.419 --> 00:11:45.419
then remember those who were before you from among the rulers

00:11:45.419 --> 00:11:48.419
who preceded you in departing from this world,

00:11:48.419 --> 00:11:51.419
and ask yourself:

00:11:51.419 --> 00:11:54.419
How did their eyes, with which they used to

00:11:54.419 --> 00:11:57.419
gaze upon pleasures, decompose?

00:11:57.419 --> 00:12:00.419
And how did their bellies, with which they used to

00:12:00.419 --> 00:12:03.419
never be satisfied from desires, tear apart?

00:12:03.419 --> 00:12:06.419
And how did they become carcasses,

00:12:06.419 --> 00:12:09.419
and had the mounds of the earth not concealed them,

00:12:09.419 --> 00:12:12.419
we would have been distressed by their stench,

00:12:12.419 --> 00:12:15.419
and we would have felt harm from their foul odor.

00:12:15.419 --> 00:12:18.419
Peace be upon you, and the mercy of Allah, the Exalted,

00:12:18.419 --> 00:12:22.759
and His blessings."

00:12:22.759 --> 00:12:25.759
Salim ibn 'Abdullah ibn 'Umar ibn al-Khattab lived

00:12:25.759 --> 00:12:28.759
a long life,

00:12:28.759 --> 00:12:31.759
filled with piety and overflowing with guidance.

00:12:31.759 --> 00:12:34.759
In it, he turned away from the adornment and glitter of the world,

00:12:34.759 --> 00:12:37.759
and throughout it, he turned toward that which pleases Allah.

00:12:37.759 --> 00:12:40.820
He ate only the simplest of food,

00:12:40.820 --> 00:12:43.820
and wore only the coarsest of garments.

00:12:43.820 --> 00:12:46.820
He fought against the Romans with the Muslim armies as a common soldier,

00:12:46.820 --> 00:12:49.820
and he fulfilled the needs of the Muslims,

00:12:49.820 --> 00:12:52.820
and was as tender toward them as a mother.

00:12:52.820 --> 00:12:56.049
When certainty came to him

00:12:56.049 --> 00:12:59.049
in the year one hundred and six of the Hijrah,

00:12:59.049 --> 00:13:02.049
the city of Madinah shook with grief for him,

00:13:02.049 --> 00:13:05.049
and his passing left a pang in every heart,

00:13:05.049 --> 00:13:08.110
and a tear on every cheek.

00:13:08.110 --> 00:13:11.110
People, all the people, went out to escort

00:13:11.110 --> 00:13:14.110
his funeral and witness his burial.

00:13:14.110 --> 00:13:17.110
Hisham ibn 'Abd al-Malik

00:13:17.110 --> 00:13:20.110
was present in Madinah at that time,

00:13:20.110 --> 00:13:23.110
so he went out to pray over him and escort him.

00:13:23.110 --> 00:13:26.110
When he saw the crowding of the people and their outpouring,

00:13:26.110 --> 00:13:29.110
their great number awed him,

00:13:29.110 --> 00:13:32.110
and it stirred in his breast a sense of envy.

00:13:32.110 --> 00:13:35.110
He asked himself, saying:

00:13:35.110 --> 00:13:38.110
"I wonder how many of these people would come out

00:13:38.110 --> 00:13:41.110
if the Caliph of the Muslims were to die in

00:13:41.110 --> 00:13:44.299
this city of theirs?"

00:13:44.299 --> 00:13:47.299
Then he said to Ibrahim ibn Hisham al-Makhzumi,

00:13:47.299 --> 00:13:50.299
his governor over Madinah:

00:13:50.299 --> 00:13:53.299
"Impose upon the people of Madinah that they send

00:13:53.299 --> 00:13:56.299
four thousand men to the frontier borders,

00:13:56.299 --> 00:14:03.210
year after year, four thousand."

00:14:03.210 --> 00:14:06.210
There was no one in the time of Salim

00:14:06.210 --> 00:14:09.210
ibn 'Abdullah who was more similar

00:14:09.210 --> 00:14:12.210
to those who had passed away from the righteous

00:14:12.210 --> 00:14:15.210
in asceticism, virtue, and way of life.

00:14:15.210 --> 00:14:20.129
Imam Malik [said]:

00:14:32.129 --> 00:14:35.129
They departed and left behind

00:14:35.129 --> 00:14:38.129
a question in the conscience:

00:14:38.129 --> 00:14:41.129
Is there a star like them

00:14:41.129 --> 00:14:44.129
that has risen and shone?

00:14:44.129 --> 00:14:47.129
They filled life

00:14:47.129 --> 00:14:50.129
with pride through their deeds,

00:14:50.129 --> 00:14:53.129
and the world of the living was adorned by them.