In the name of Allah, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful.
And the city of Medina grew dark.
The final sermon of the Prophet.
Ibn 'Abbas, may Allah be pleased with them both, says:
The Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, went out
during the illness in which he passed away,
wrapped in a sheet, with a cloth tied around his head.
He sat upon the pulpit,
praised Allah, and extolled Him.
Then he said: "To proceed:
The people will increase in number,
while the Ansar will decrease,
until they are among the people like salt in food.
So, whoever among you is placed in charge of something that harms some and benefits others,
let him accept the good deeds of their righteous ones,
and overlook the faults of their wrongdoers."
This was the final gathering in which the Prophet, peace be upon him, sat.
Abu Sa'id al-Khudri, may Allah be pleased with him, narrates
a hadith containing a portion of the Prophet's sermon on that day.
He said, may Allah be pleased with him:
The Messenger of Allah, peace be upon him, addressed the people and said:
"Allah has given a servant the choice between this world and what is with Him,
and that servant has chosen what is with Allah."
He said: Abu Bakr wept.
We were surprised by his weeping, as the Messenger of Allah, peace be upon him, was merely informing us about a servant who had been given a choice.
Yet, the Messenger of Allah, peace be upon him, was the one who had been given the choice,
and Abu Bakr was the most knowledgeable among us.
The Messenger of Allah, peace be upon him, then said:
"Indeed, the most generous of people to me with his companionship and his wealth is Abu Bakr.
If I were to take a close friend other than my Lord, I would have taken Abu Bakr,
but the brotherhood of Islam and its affection remain.
Let no door leading into the mosque remain, except for the door of Abu Bakr."
Ibn Hajar says in his commentary on the hadith of 'A'ishah regarding the pouring of seven waters:
The Prophet, peace be upon him, delivered a sermon during his illness,
and he mentioned the hadith, saying in it:
"If I were to take a close friend, I would have taken Abu Bakr."
And the city of Medina grew dark.