In the name of Allah, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful.
Mawaddah Association is pleased
to present to you snapshots from the lives of the Companions,
by 'Abd al-Rahman Ra'fat al-Basha,
may Allah have mercy on him.
Zayd ibn Thabit,
may Allah be pleased with him.
We are in the second year of the Hijrah,
and the city of the Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him,
was surging with intense activity,
in preparation for the Battle of Badr.
The noble Prophet
was casting his final glances over the first army moving under his command to strive in the cause of Allah
and to establish His word upon the earth.
Here, a young boy stepped forward toward the ranks,
who had not yet reached thirteen years of age,
glowing with intelligence and acumen,
radiant with noble aptitude and zeal.
In his hand was a sword equal to him in length,
or perhaps slightly taller.
He approached the Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, and said,
"May I be sacrificed for you, O Messenger of Allah!
Grant me permission to join you
and strive against the enemies of Allah beneath your banner."
The noble Messenger looked at him with delight and admiration,
patted his shoulder with gentleness and affection,
comforted his heart,
and turned him back due to his young age.
The young boy returned, dragging his sword along the ground, sorrowful and grieving,
because he was deprived of the honor of accompanying the Messenger of Allah in the very first campaign he was to fight.
Behind him returned his mother, Al-Nuwar bint Malik,
no less sorrowful and grieving than he was.
She had longed for her eyes to be delighted by the sight of her young son
marching with the men, striving in cause beneath the banner of the Messenger of Allah.
She had hoped he would occupy the stature that his father had been expected to gain with the Prophet,
had he remained alive.
But the young Ansar boy,
when he saw that he had failed to gain proximity to the Messenger of Allah in this realm due to his tender age,
his acumen unlocked another realm that had no relation to age—
one that would bring him close to the Prophet, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him,
and draw him near to his side.
That realm was the realm of knowledge and memorization.
The boy mentioned the idea to his mother,
and she was delighted, overjoyed, and eagerly set out to realize it.
Al-Nuwar spoke to men from their tribe about the boy's desire
and mentioned his idea to them.
So they took him to the Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him,
and said, "O Prophet of Allah!
This is our son, Zayd ibn Thabit.
He has memorized seventeen surahs of the Book of Allah,
reciting them correctly just as they were revealed to your heart.
Moreover, he is skilled and proficient in reading and writing,
and he wishes to draw closer to you through this and to remain in your company.
So listen to him if you wish."
The noble Messenger listened to the young boy, Zayd ibn Thabit, recite some of what he had memorized,
and found his performance radiant and his pronunciation crystal clear.
The words of the Qur'an glistened upon his lips
just as the stars glisten across the face of the sky.
Furthermore, his recitation reflected deep emotion for what he was reciting,
and his pauses demonstrated mindfulness of what he read and excellent comprehension.
The noble Messenger was delighted with him,
finding him to be even beyond what they had described.
His joy in him was further increased
by his mastery of writing.
So the noble Prophet turned to him and said,
"O Zayd,
learn for me the writing of the Jews,
for by Allah, I do not trust them regarding what I say."
He replied,
"At your service, O Messenger of Allah!"
He immediately devoted himself to Hebrew until he mastered it in a short time.
He began writing it for the Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him,
whenever he wished to write to the Jews,
and reading it to him whenever they wrote to him.
Then he learned Syriac at his command, peace and blessings be upon him,
just as he had learned Hebrew.
Thus, the youth Zayd ibn Thabit became
the translator for the Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him.
Once the Prophet, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, was fully assured of Zayd's sound judgment, trustworthiness,
precision, and understanding,
he entrusted him with the revelation from heaven to earth,
appointing him as a scribe of Allah's revelation.
Whenever any part of the Qur'an was revealed to his heart,
he would send for him and say,
"Write, O Zayd!"
And he would write it down.
Thus, Zayd ibn Thabit was receiving the Qur'an directly from the Messenger of Allah, peace be upon him,
moment by moment,
growing along with its verses,
receiving it fresh and pristine from his noble mouth,
connected to the very contexts of its revelation.
His soul shone with the lights of its guidance,
and his mind was illuminated by the secrets of its divine law.
Suddenly, this fortunate youth became a specialist in the Qur'an,
becoming the primary authority in it for the Ummah of Muhammad
after the passing of the Messenger, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him.
He was the head of those who gathered the Book of Allah during the era of Abu Bakr al-Siddiq,
and the foremost among those who standardized its copies during the time of 'Uthman.
Is there, after such a rank, any rank to which high aspirations could aspire?
Is there above this glory any glory to which souls could yearn?
It was among the blessings of the Qur'an upon Zayd ibn Thabit
that it illuminated for him the paths of truth in situations where men of intellect would be bewildered.
On the Day of Saqifah,
the Muslims differed as to who should succeed the Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him.
The Emigrants said,
"The succession of the Messenger of Allah lies among us,
and we are most entitled to it."
Some of the Ansar said,
"Rather, the succession shall be among us,
and we are most worthy of it."
Others among them said,
"Rather, the succession shall be shared between us and you together,
for whenever the Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him,
appointed one of you to an office,
he would pair him with one of us."
A great tribulation was on the verge of erupting,
while the Prophet of Allah was still shrouded among them,
not yet buried.
A decisive, wise word was imperative—
one radiant with the guidance of the Qur'an,
to nip the tribulation in the bud
and illuminate the path for those who were confused.
That word came forth from the mouth of Zayd ibn Thabit al-Ansari,
as he turned to his people
and said, "O assembly of the Ansar!
Indeed, the Messenger of Allah, peace be upon him,
was from the Emigrants;
therefore, his successor must be an Emigrant like him.
And we were the supporters (Ansar) of the Messenger of Allah, peace be upon him;
so we shall be supporters to his successor after him,
and his helpers upon the truth."
Then he extended his hand to Abu Bakr al-Siddiq and said,
"This is your successor, so give him your allegiance!"
By virtue of the Qur'an, his deep understanding of fiqh within it,
and his long companionship with the Messenger of Allah, peace be upon him, Zayd ibn Thabit became
a beacon for the Muslims.
Their caliphs consulted him in complex dilemmas,
the general populace sought his legal verdicts in difficult matters,
and they referred to him in inheritance law in particular,
for there was no one among the Muslims
at that time who was more knowledgeable than him concerning its rulings,
or more skilled in its distribution.
Indeed, 'Umar, may Allah be pleased with him, addressed the Muslims on the Day of al-Jabiyah,
saying, "O people!
Whoever wishes to ask about the Qur'an,
let him come to Zayd ibn Thabit.
Whoever wishes to ask about fiqh,
let him come to Mu'adh ibn Jabal.
And whoever wishes to ask about wealth,
let him come to me,
for Allah, the Mighty and Sublime, has made me its custodian
and its distributor."
The seekers of knowledge among the Companions and the Tabi'un recognized
Zayd ibn Thabit's true worth;
they honored and revered him
for the knowledge settled in his chest.
Here was the ocean of knowledge, 'Abd Allah ibn 'Abbas,
seeing Zayd ibn Thabit about to mount his riding beast;
he stood before him,
held his stirrup for him,
and took hold of the reins of his mount.
Zayd ibn Thabit said to him,
"Do not do that, O cousin of the Messenger of Allah!"
Ibn 'Abbas replied,
"Thus were we commanded to treat our scholars."
Zayd then said to him,
"Show me your hand."
Ibn 'Abbas extended his hand to him,
whereupon Zayd leaned over it and kissed it,
saying,
"Thus were we commanded to treat the household of our Prophet."
When Zayd ibn Thabit passed on to the proximity of his Lord,
the Muslims wept over his death, lamenting the knowledge that was buried with him.
Abu Hurayrah said,
"Today, the learned scholar of this Ummah has died;
perhaps Allah will make Ibn 'Abbas a successor to him."
The poet of the Messenger of Allah, Hassan ibn Thabit, eulogized him,
eulogizing himself along with him, saying:
"Who is left for poetry after Hassan and his son?
And who is left for deep meanings after Zayd ibn Thabit?"
"Who is left for poetry after Hassan and his son?
And who is left for deep meanings after Zayd ibn Thabit?"
Hassan ibn Thabit.
O poetry, excuse me as I pour forth in their praise—shall we excel?