In the name of Allah, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful.
The Mawaddah Association is pleased
to present to you portraits from the lives of the Companions,
by Abd al-Rahman Ra'fat al-Basha,
may Allah have mercy upon him.
Al-Abbas ibn Abd al-Muttalib, may Allah be pleased with him.
It reached the leader of Quraysh, Abd al-Muttalib ibn Hashim,
that there was a woman of intellect and beauty
among the daughters of the kings of Rabi'ah, named Nutaylah.
He sought her out, proposed to her, and married her.
She bore him a child who was handsome and fair,
of radiant appearance.
He rejoiced greatly at his birth, then named him al-Abbas.
Not two years had passed since the joy of the elder of Makkah,
when his household was graced with joy once again.
For his son, Abdullah, had been blessed
with a newborn who rivaled al-Abbas in facial radiance and splendor.
When he saw him, his eyes welled with tears,
for he wished his father were still alive
to share in the joy of him, and he named him Muhammad.
Muhammad and al-Abbas grew up under the care of Abd al-Muttalib ibn Hashim,
knowing nothing other than that they were brothers.
They would go out together and return together,
eat from the same platter,
and play in the same playground.
When al-Abbas reached the age of ten,
his father, Abd al-Muttalib, passed away.
All of Makkah was struck with grief,
and its people mourned him deeply.
Yet the two boys, al-Abbas and Muhammad,
were the most grief-stricken of all,
for they had tasted the bitterness of orphanhood with his loss.
When the positions held by
Abd al-Muttalib were distributed among his sons,
Quraysh assigned to his son al-Abbas
the duty of providing water to the pilgrims (Siqayah), despite his youth,
because of what they perceived
in him of nobility
and what they anticipated for him of leadership.
The two youths, al-Abbas ibn Abd al-Muttalib
and Muhammad ibn Abdullah, continued to grow,
until they were both men in the prime of their youth,
and the age difference between them seemed to vanish,
to the point that one looking at them would think they were twins.
Someone once asked al-Abbas after he had embraced Islam:
"Are you older, or is the Messenger of Allah, peace be upon him?"
He replied, "He is older than me,
but I am two years his senior."
At the age of forty,
Allah, the Almighty, honored Muhammad ibn Abdullah with the Message,
and sent him with the religion of guidance and truth,
commanding him to warn his closest kinsmen.
And who was closer to him than al-Abbas?
He was his cherished peer, his intimate friend,
and his paternal uncle, his father's brother.
However, al-Abbas, who had inherited leadership among his people from his father,
and to whom the Siqayah of the pilgrims was entrusted—
a position for which rivals competed—
disliked the idea of turning against his people,
and was keen to maintain his leadership among them.
Thus, he did not respond to the call of the Messenger of Allah, peace be upon him.
Yet, he continued to hold Muhammad, peace be upon him, in his heart
as a brother holds a brother,
and an intimate friend holds his companion.
He would ward off harm from him,
and protect him with the utmost vigilance.
For instance, when the Messenger, peace be upon him, met
with the delegations of the Ansar on the night of al-Aqabah,
his uncle al-Abbas was with him,
even though he was still in a state of polytheism.
Al-Abbas was the first to speak, saying:
"O people of Khazraj,
Muhammad is one of us, as you know.
We have protected him from our own people
who share our opinion of him.
He is in honor and protection among his people and in his land.
Yet he has insisted on joining you and coming to you.
If you believe you can fulfill what you have invited him to,
then you are responsible for what you have undertaken.
But if you think you will betray him or abandon him after he comes to you,
then leave him now,
for he is in honor and protection among his people and in his land."
The Ansar replied:
"We have heard what you said, O Abu al-Fadl."
Then they turned to the Messenger, peace be upon him, and said:
"O Messenger of Allah,
take for yourself and for your Lord whatever pledge you wish."
When the pledge was completed,
the Messenger, peace be upon him, returned with his uncle al-Abbas to Makkah under the cover of darkness.
When Quraysh resolved to march to the Battle of Badr,
al-Abbas disliked participating in the fight against his nephew.
But his leadership among his people compelled him to join them,
and made him one of the twelve men
who took responsibility for feeding the polytheist army during the campaign.
However, the Messenger, peace be upon him,
did not forget his uncle al-Abbas's support and assistance to him,
so he said to his Companions:
"Whoever meets Abu al-Bakhtari ibn Hisham, do not kill him,
and whoever meets al-Abbas ibn Abd al-Muttalib, do not kill him,
for they were brought out against their will."
When Allah granted victory to His Prophet, peace be upon him, at Badr,
and those of the polytheists who were killed were killed,
and those who were captured were captured,
al-Abbas ibn Abd al-Muttalib was among the prisoners who fell into the hands of the Muslims.
The one who captured him was a man of slight build and weak frame,
known as Abu al-Yusr.
As for al-Abbas, he was large and tall, like a grey camel.
When al-Abbas returned to Makkah, his children were amazed at his capture,
and they asked him, saying:
"O our father, how did Abu al-Yusr capture you,
when you could have easily put him in your sleeve?"
He replied, "By Allah, my sons, when he leaped upon me, he appeared to me as large as an elephant.
When he gripped my arm with his small, sinewy hand,
I thought the blood would drip from my fingertips.
Then he twisted my hand behind my back,
and took the other and bound it to the first,
and tied them with a rope,
while I was submissive, neither defending myself nor resisting him."
Al-Abbas ibn Abd al-Muttalib spent his first night in the prisoners' camp
near the Messenger of Allah, peace be upon him,
and he began to moan with a deep, continuous sound.
When his moaning reached the ears of the Prophet, peace be upon him, he could not sleep,
and signs of sadness appeared on his face.
His Companions asked him:
"What makes you sad, O Messenger of Allah? May we be sacrificed for you."
He replied, "The moaning of al-Abbas ibn Abd al-Muttalib."
At that, a man from the Muslims went to him,
and finding that his bonds were tied very tightly,
he loosened them for him, and he became silent.
His silence aroused the concerns of the Messenger, peace be upon him,
and he asked, "Why do I not hear the moaning of al-Abbas?"
The man said, "I loosened his bonds."
The Prophet, peace be upon him, said:
"Do the same for all the prisoners."
Then the Messenger, peace be upon him,
began to accept ransoms from the prisoners.
When his uncle was brought to him,
al-Abbas began to apologize, claiming he had no wealth.
The Prophet, peace be upon him, said:
"Where is the wealth you left with your wife, Umm al-Fadl,
and said to her, 'If I am killed, then for al-Fadl is such and such,
and for Abdullah is such and such,
and for Ubaydullah is such and such'?"
Al-Abbas was stunned, for that was a matter no one had ever known except Allah.
On the day of Uhud,
al-Abbas ibn Abd al-Muttalib refused to go out with the polytheists
to fight the Prophet, peace be upon him.
Instead, he sent word to inform him of Quraysh's intention to march against him,
which had a great impact on the preparation of the Prophet, peace be upon him, and his Companions,
and their readiness to meet the enemy.
Twenty years had passed since the call of the Messenger, may the blessings and peace of Allah be upon him,
and his uncle al-Abbas remained in a state of polytheism.
One day, al-Abbas sat with his wife, Umm al-Fadl,
recounting the noble characteristics of the Messenger, peace be upon him,
mentioning his virtuous qualities,
and recalling the story of his knowledge of the wealth he had entrusted to her,
in total secrecy from all people.
He soon found himself saying to his wife:
"What is the matter with us, O Umm al-Fadl?
Why do we not embrace Islam?"
Umm al-Fadl was overjoyed at his words,
as if she had been waiting for him to say that.
Within a few hours,
al-Abbas ibn Abd al-Muttalib had prepared two mounts for himself and his wife,
and they set off together toward Madinah,
migrating to Allah and His Messenger, peace be upon him.
When al-Abbas and his wife reached al-Juhfah,
they were surprised by the Messenger of Allah, may the blessings and peace of Allah be upon him,
leading a massive army to conquer Makkah.
The Messenger, peace be upon him, was also surprised by them,
for it was an unexpected meeting.
The Messenger, peace be upon him, initiated the conversation with his uncle, saying:
"What has brought you here, uncle?"
He replied, "The desire for Allah and His Messenger."
He and his wife declared the word of truth,
and he entered the religion of Allah after long resistance.
As soon as the Messenger, peace be upon him, heard
his uncle testify that there is no god but Allah
and that Muhammad is the Messenger of Allah,
tears of joy overflowed from his eyes, and he said:
"Your migration, uncle, is the final migration,
just as my prophethood is the final prophethood."
From that moment, al-Abbas ibn Abd al-Muttalib resolved
to make up for the goodness and reward he had missed,
so he placed himself and his wealth in the obedience of Allah
and the pleasure of His Messenger, peace be upon him.
On the day of Hunayn, when the Muslims were defeated
and had abandoned the Messenger of Allah, peace be upon him,
he stood by his side like a fierce lion.
He drew his sword with his right hand,
and held the reins of the Messenger of Allah's mule with his left,
and continued to defend him with a small group of his Companions,
until Allah granted victory at their hands.
And on the day the Messenger, may the blessings and peace of Allah be upon him,
resolved to equip the Army of Hardship, he called upon his Companions to give and spend,
and al-Abbas came and poured his wealth before him.
When the Prophet, peace be upon him, joined the Highest Companion,
and the matter fell to his two successors, Abu Bakr and Umar, may Allah be pleased with them,
Al-'Abbas was a source of sound counsel and support for them both.
They would shade him with their respect and hold him in high esteem.
This was in recognition of his merit and out of loyalty to the Prophet, upon whom be the best of prayers and the purest of peace.
An example of this is when drought intensified upon the Muslims during the Year of Ashes.
The udders dried up and the crops withered.
The sky appeared as if it had been forged from copper.
'Umar Ibn al-Khattab went out with the Muslims.
He prayed for rain for them, but they were not granted any.
He repeated this several times, yet there was no response.
So he said to a group of his Companions:
"Tomorrow, I shall seek rain through the one by whom Allah grants us rain if He wills."
When morning came, he went to al-'Abbas Ibn 'Abd al-Muttalib.
He had become a very old man, so he said to him:
"O Uncle, come out with us, perhaps Allah will grant us rain through your hands."
Al-'Abbas Ibn 'Abd al-Muttalib went out among the multitude of Muslims.
He was humble, submissive, and devoted to Allah.
Before him was 'Ali Ibn Abi Talib.
To his right was al-Hasan, and to his left was al-Husayn.
And behind him were the throngs of Muslims.
They prayed two rak'ahs.
Then 'Umar took the hands of the uncle of the Messenger of Allah, peace be upon him.
His tears moistened his beard, and he said:
"Pray for us, O uncle of the Messenger of Allah, peace be upon him."
Al-'Abbas raised his palms to the sky.
His eyes were overflowing with the fear of Allah.
He began to cry out to Allah with righteous supplication and sincere hope.
The people behind him were saying "Amin," pleading and weeping.
He had barely finished his supplication,
when the atmosphere became overcast with dark clouds.
The sky sent down abundant rain upon the earth.
Allah removed the distress from the Muslims.
He relieved them of their hardship.
The people were given water through the hands of the provider of the pilgrims.
May Allah be pleased with him and grant him satisfaction.
This is al-'Abbas Ibn 'Abd al-Muttalib.
The most generous of the Quraysh in his giving.
And the one who maintained family ties the best.
Muhammad Ibn 'Abd Allah.
Through Muhammad and his Companions.
The lofty edifice has been aided.
O poet, assist me and pour forth.
In their praise, are they to assist me?