WEBVTT 00:00:00.000 --> 00:00:03.000 In the name of Allah, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful. 00:00:15.220 --> 00:00:18.219 Mawaddah Association is pleased 00:00:18.219 --> 00:00:22.219 to present to you snapshots from the lives of the Companions, 00:00:22.219 --> 00:00:25.219 authored by 'Abd al-Rahman Ra'fat al-Basha, 00:00:25.219 --> 00:00:27.260 may Allah have mercy on him. 00:00:27.260 --> 00:00:33.820 Abu Dharr al-Ghifari, may Allah be pleased with him. 00:00:46.890 --> 00:00:50.890 In the valley of Waddan, which connects Mecca to the outside world, 00:00:50.890 --> 00:00:53.890 dwelt the tribe of Ghifar. 00:00:53.890 --> 00:00:57.890 Ghifar made its living from the modest sustenance 00:00:57.890 --> 00:01:01.890 provided by the caravans carrying the trade of Quraysh, 00:01:01.890 --> 00:01:05.890 bound for the Levant or returning from it. 00:01:05.890 --> 00:01:09.890 At times, they lived by highway robbery against these caravans 00:01:09.890 --> 00:01:12.890 if the traders failed to offer them a satisfying tribute. 00:01:12.890 --> 00:01:16.890 Jundub ibn Junadah, known by his kunya Abu Dharr, 00:01:16.890 --> 00:01:19.890 was a son of this tribe. 00:01:19.890 --> 00:01:22.890 However, he was distinguished among them by his courageous heart, 00:01:22.890 --> 00:01:25.890 sound intellect, far-sighted wisdom, 00:01:25.890 --> 00:01:29.890 and his intense aversion to the idols 00:01:29.890 --> 00:01:32.890 that his people worshipped besides Allah. 00:01:32.890 --> 00:01:36.890 He denounced the corruption of religion among the Arabs 00:01:36.890 --> 00:01:38.890 and the triviality of their beliefs, 00:01:38.890 --> 00:01:41.890 longing for the emergence of a new prophet 00:01:41.890 --> 00:01:44.890 who would capture the minds and hearts of the people. 00:01:44.890 --> 00:01:47.890 “Whereby Allah guideth him who seeketh His good pleasure unto paths of peace. He bringeth them out of darkness unto light by His decree, and guideth them unto a straight path.” (5:16) 00:01:47.890 --> 00:01:50.980 Then, news reached Abu Dharr 00:01:50.980 --> 00:01:53.980 while he was in his desert abode regarding the new Prophet 00:01:53.980 --> 00:01:55.980 who had appeared in Mecca. 00:01:55.980 --> 00:01:57.980 He said to his brother Unays: 00:01:57.980 --> 00:01:58.980 "O Unays, 00:01:58.980 --> 00:02:00.980 travel to Mecca—may you be blessed— 00:02:00.980 --> 00:02:05.980 and learn about this man who claims to be a prophet 00:02:05.980 --> 00:02:08.979 and that revelation comes to him from the heavens. 00:02:08.979 --> 00:02:11.979 Listen to some of his speech and bring it back to me." 00:02:11.979 --> 00:02:13.979 Unays went to Mecca, 00:02:13.979 --> 00:02:17.979 met the Messenger, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, 00:02:17.979 --> 00:02:18.979 listened to him, 00:02:18.979 --> 00:02:20.979 and then returned to the desert. 00:02:20.979 --> 00:02:23.979 Abu Dharr met him eagerly, 00:02:23.979 --> 00:02:27.979 asking him fervently about the news of the new Prophet. 00:02:27.979 --> 00:02:33.979 Unays said: "By Allah, I saw a man calling to noble morals 00:02:33.979 --> 00:02:36.979 and speaking words that are certainly not poetry." 00:02:36.979 --> 00:02:39.979 Abu Dharr asked him: "And what do the people say about him?" 00:02:39.979 --> 00:02:45.979 He replied: "They say he is a sorcerer, a soothsayer, and a poet." 00:02:45.979 --> 00:02:49.979 Abu Dharr said: "By Allah, you have not quenched my thirst, 00:02:49.979 --> 00:02:51.979 nor fulfilled my need. 00:02:51.979 --> 00:02:55.979 Will you take care of my family so I may go and investigate his matter myself?" 00:02:55.979 --> 00:02:57.979 Unays said: "Yes, 00:02:57.979 --> 00:03:00.979 but be cautious of the people of Mecca." 00:03:00.979 --> 00:03:03.979 Abu Dharr prepared his provisions, 00:03:03.979 --> 00:03:06.979 carried a small waterskin, 00:03:06.979 --> 00:03:10.979 and set out the next morning for Mecca, seeking to meet the Prophet 00:03:10.979 --> 00:03:13.979 and learn about his news firsthand. 00:03:13.979 --> 00:03:16.050 Abu Dharr reached Mecca 00:03:16.050 --> 00:03:19.050 filled with apprehension regarding its people, 00:03:20.050 --> 00:03:24.050 for news had reached him of Quraysh's rage in defense of their idols 00:03:24.050 --> 00:03:27.050 and their brutal persecution of anyone who contemplated 00:03:27.050 --> 00:03:29.050 following Muhammad. 00:03:29.050 --> 00:03:33.050 Therefore, he disliked asking anyone about Muhammad, 00:03:33.050 --> 00:03:35.050 because he did not know 00:03:35.050 --> 00:03:39.050 whether the person he asked was a supporter or an enemy. 00:03:39.050 --> 00:03:41.050 When night fell, 00:03:41.050 --> 00:03:43.050 he lay down in the Sacred Mosque. 00:03:43.050 --> 00:03:46.050 'Ali ibn Abi Talib, may Allah be pleased with him, passed by him 00:03:46.050 --> 00:03:48.050 and recognized that he was a stranger. 00:03:48.050 --> 00:03:51.050 He said: "Come with us, O man." 00:03:51.050 --> 00:03:55.050 So he went with him and spent his night at his home. 00:03:55.050 --> 00:04:00.050 In the morning, he took his waterskin and provisions and returned to the mosque, 00:04:00.050 --> 00:04:04.050 without either of them asking the other about anything. 00:04:04.050 --> 00:04:09.050 Abu Dharr spent his second day without coming to know the Prophet. 00:04:09.050 --> 00:04:13.050 When evening came, he took his place to sleep in the mosque again. 00:04:13.050 --> 00:04:16.050 'Ali, may Allah be pleased with him, passed by him 00:04:16.050 --> 00:04:20.050 and said: "Has the time not come for a man to know his lodging?" 00:04:20.050 --> 00:04:24.050 So he took him along and he spent his second night at his house, 00:04:24.050 --> 00:04:28.050 yet neither of them asked the other about anything. 00:04:28.050 --> 00:04:31.050 On the third night, 00:04:31.050 --> 00:04:33.050 'Ali said to his guest: 00:04:33.050 --> 00:04:37.050 "Will you not tell me what brought you to Mecca?" 00:04:37.050 --> 00:04:40.050 Abu Dharr replied: "If you give me a solemn promise 00:04:40.050 --> 00:04:43.050 to guide me to what I seek, I will do so." 00:04:43.050 --> 00:04:46.050 So 'Ali gave him the promise he desired, 00:04:46.050 --> 00:04:51.050 and Abu Dharr said: "I traveled to Mecca from afar 00:04:51.050 --> 00:04:54.050 seeking to meet the new Prophet 00:04:54.050 --> 00:04:57.050 and hear something of what he says." 00:04:57.050 --> 00:05:00.050 A smile beamed on the face of 'Ali, may Allah be pleased with him, 00:05:00.050 --> 00:05:04.050 and he said: "By Allah, he is truly the Messenger of Allah! 00:05:04.050 --> 00:05:07.050 He is indeed the Prophet! 00:05:07.050 --> 00:05:10.079 When morning comes, follow me wherever I go. 00:05:10.079 --> 00:05:13.079 If I see anything I fear for you, 00:05:13.079 --> 00:05:16.079 I will stop as if pretending to pour water. 00:05:16.079 --> 00:05:20.079 But if I keep walking, follow me until you enter where I enter." 00:05:20.079 --> 00:05:24.079 Abu Dharr could not sleep at all that night 00:05:24.079 --> 00:05:26.079 out of longing to see the Prophet 00:05:26.079 --> 00:05:31.079 and eagerness to hear some of what was revealed to him. 00:05:31.079 --> 00:05:36.079 In the morning, 'Ali walked with his guest to the house of the Noble Messenger, 00:05:36.079 --> 00:05:39.079 and Abu Dharr followed closely behind him, 00:05:39.079 --> 00:05:43.079 paying attention to nothing else until he entered upon the Prophet. 00:05:43.079 --> 00:05:48.079 Abu Dharr said: "Peace be upon you, O Messenger of Allah." 00:05:48.079 --> 00:05:54.079 The Messenger replied: "And upon you be the peace of Allah, His mercy, and His blessings." 00:05:54.079 --> 00:05:59.079 Thus, Abu Dharr was the first to greet the Messenger with the greeting of Islam, 00:05:59.079 --> 00:06:02.079 which subsequently spread and became the universal greeting. 00:06:02.079 --> 00:06:06.079 The Messenger, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, turned to Abu Dharr, 00:06:06.079 --> 00:06:11.079 calling him to Islam and reciting the Qur'an to him. 00:06:11.079 --> 00:06:14.079 It was not long before Abu Dharr declared the word of truth 00:06:14.079 --> 00:06:18.079 and embraced the new religion before leaving his spot. 00:06:18.079 --> 00:06:23.079 He was the fourth or fifth person to embrace Islam. 00:06:23.079 --> 00:06:25.079 Let us leave the account to Abu Dharr 00:06:25.079 --> 00:06:28.079 to relate to us himself the rest of his story. 00:06:28.079 --> 00:06:33.079 He said: "I stayed after that with the Messenger of Allah in Mecca, 00:06:33.079 --> 00:06:38.079 and he taught me Islam and recited some of the Qur'an to me. 00:06:38.079 --> 00:06:42.079 Then he said to me: 'Do not tell anyone in Mecca of your Islam, 00:06:42.079 --> 00:06:45.079 for I fear they might kill you.' 00:06:45.079 --> 00:06:48.079 I said: 'By Him in Whose Hand is my soul, 00:06:48.079 --> 00:06:52.079 I will not leave Mecca until I go to the mosque 00:06:52.079 --> 00:06:56.079 and proclaim the call of truth aloud amidst Quraysh!' 00:06:56.079 --> 00:06:58.079 The Messenger remained silent. 00:06:58.079 --> 00:07:02.079 So I went to the mosque while Quraysh were sitting and conversing. 00:07:02.079 --> 00:07:06.079 I stepped into their midst and shouted at the top of my voice: 00:07:06.079 --> 00:07:08.079 'O people of Quraysh! 00:07:08.079 --> 00:07:11.079 I bear witness that there is no god but Allah, 00:07:11.079 --> 00:07:14.079 and that Muhammad is the Messenger of Allah!' 00:07:14.079 --> 00:07:18.269 No sooner had my words touched their ears 00:07:18.269 --> 00:07:20.269 than they were all alarmed. 00:07:20.269 --> 00:07:23.269 They sprang from their seats and said: 00:07:23.269 --> 00:07:25.269 'Get this apostate!' 00:07:25.269 --> 00:07:29.269 They rushed at me and began beating me to death. 00:07:30.269 --> 00:07:33.269 Then al-'Abbas ibn 'Abd al-Muttalib reached me— 00:07:33.269 --> 00:07:35.269 the uncle of the Prophet— 00:07:35.269 --> 00:07:37.269 and threw himself over me to protect me from them. 00:07:37.269 --> 00:07:40.269 He then turned to them and said: 00:07:40.269 --> 00:07:43.269 'Woe to you! Would you kill a man from Ghifar, 00:07:43.269 --> 00:07:46.269 when your trade caravans must pass through their lands?' 00:07:46.269 --> 00:07:48.269 So they desisted and let me go. 00:07:48.269 --> 00:07:53.269 When I regained consciousness, I came to the Messenger of Allah, peace be upon him. 00:07:53.269 --> 00:07:56.269 When he saw my condition, he said: 00:07:56.269 --> 00:07:59.269 'Did I not forbid you from announcing your Islam?' 00:07:59.269 --> 00:08:02.269 I said: 'O Messenger of Allah, 00:08:02.269 --> 00:08:05.269 it was a yearning in my heart that I felt compelled to fulfill.' 00:08:05.269 --> 00:08:06.269 He said: 00:08:06.269 --> 00:08:08.269 'Go back to your people 00:08:08.269 --> 00:08:11.269 and inform them of what you have seen and heard, 00:08:11.269 --> 00:08:13.269 and call them to Allah. 00:08:13.269 --> 00:08:17.269 Perhaps Allah will benefit them through you and reward you for them. 00:08:17.269 --> 00:08:19.269 And when news reaches you that I have prevailed, 00:08:19.269 --> 00:08:21.300 then come to me.'" 00:08:21.300 --> 00:08:23.300 Abu Dharr said: 00:08:23.300 --> 00:08:26.300 "I set out until I reached the dwellings of my people, 00:08:26.300 --> 00:08:28.300 and my brother Unays met me. 00:08:28.300 --> 00:08:29.300 He asked: 00:08:29.300 --> 00:08:30.300 'What have you done?' 00:08:30.300 --> 00:08:31.300 I said: 00:08:31.300 --> 00:08:34.299 'I have embraced Islam and believed.' 00:08:34.299 --> 00:08:37.299 It was not long before Allah opened his heart, and he said: 00:08:37.299 --> 00:08:40.299 'I have no dislike for your religion; 00:08:40.299 --> 00:08:43.299 I too have embraced Islam and believed.' 00:08:43.299 --> 00:08:47.299 Then we went to our mother and called her to Islam, 00:08:47.299 --> 00:08:48.299 and she said: 00:08:48.299 --> 00:08:50.299 'I have no dislike for your religion,' 00:08:50.299 --> 00:08:52.299 and she embraced Islam as well. 00:08:52.299 --> 00:08:54.299 From that day onward, 00:08:54.299 --> 00:08:58.299 the believing family set out calling to Allah among Ghifar, 00:08:58.299 --> 00:09:01.299 never tiring nor wearying, 00:09:01.299 --> 00:09:04.299 until a vast number of Ghifar embraced Islam, 00:09:04.299 --> 00:09:07.299 and the prayer was established among them. 00:09:07.299 --> 00:09:09.299 A group among them said: 00:09:09.299 --> 00:09:11.299 'We will remain as we are 00:09:11.299 --> 00:09:14.299 until the Messenger comes to Medina, then we will embrace Islam.' 00:09:14.299 --> 00:09:17.299 So when the Messenger arrived in Medina, they embraced Islam. 00:09:17.299 --> 00:09:20.299 Upon this, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him said: 00:09:20.299 --> 00:09:23.299 'Ghifar—may Allah forgive them! 00:09:23.299 --> 00:09:25.299 And Aslam—may Allah grant them peace!' 00:09:25.299 --> 00:09:28.370 Abu Dharr remained in his desert home 00:09:28.370 --> 00:09:31.370 through the events of Badr, Uhud, and the Trench. 00:09:31.370 --> 00:09:33.370 Then he came to Medina 00:09:33.370 --> 00:09:37.370 and devoted himself exclusively to the Messenger of Allah, peace be upon him. 00:09:37.370 --> 00:09:41.370 He asked his permission to serve him, 00:09:41.370 --> 00:09:42.370 and the Prophet granted him permission. 00:09:42.370 --> 00:09:45.370 He delighted in his companionship and found joy in serving him. 00:09:45.370 --> 00:09:49.370 The Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, continued 00:09:49.370 --> 00:09:51.370 to favor him and honor him; 00:09:51.370 --> 00:09:54.370 he never met him without shaking his hand, 00:09:54.370 --> 00:09:57.370 greeting him with a warm and cheerful smile. 00:09:57.370 --> 00:10:01.370 When the Noble Messenger passed away to the highest companionship, 00:10:01.370 --> 00:10:04.370 Abu Dharr could no longer bear to remain 00:10:04.370 --> 00:10:06.370 in Medina 00:10:06.370 --> 00:10:08.370 after it had been vacated of its master 00:10:08.370 --> 00:10:11.370 and deprived of the light of his gatherings. 00:10:11.370 --> 00:10:13.370 So he departed for the desert of the Levant 00:10:13.370 --> 00:10:17.370 and resided there throughout the caliphates of al-Siddiq and al-Faruq, 00:10:17.370 --> 00:10:20.370 may Allah be pleased with them both and with him. 00:10:20.370 --> 00:10:22.370 During the caliphate of 'Uthman, 00:10:22.370 --> 00:10:23.370 he settled in Damascus, 00:10:23.370 --> 00:10:26.370 where he saw people turning to worldly pursuits 00:10:26.370 --> 00:10:28.370 and indulging in luxury, 00:10:28.370 --> 00:10:31.370 which astounded him and drove him to condemn it. 00:10:31.370 --> 00:10:35.370 'Uthman ibn 'Affan summoned him to Medina, 00:10:35.370 --> 00:10:36.370 so he came to the city. 00:10:36.370 --> 00:10:40.370 However, he soon grew weary of the people's pursuit of worldly pleasures, 00:10:40.370 --> 00:10:43.370 and the people grew weary of his strictness with them 00:10:43.370 --> 00:10:45.370 and his stern rebukes. 00:10:45.370 --> 00:10:48.370 So 'Uthman ordered him to move to al-Rabdhah, 00:10:48.370 --> 00:10:51.370 which was a small village among the villages of Medina, 00:10:51.370 --> 00:10:53.370 so he departed for it 00:10:53.370 --> 00:10:56.370 and resided there far away from people, 00:10:56.370 --> 00:10:59.370 abstaining from the ephemeral vanities of the world in their hands, 00:10:59.370 --> 00:11:03.370 firmly adhering to the path of the Messenger and his two companions 00:11:03.370 --> 00:11:06.370 in preferring the everlasting Abode over the fleeting world. 00:11:06.370 --> 00:11:09.370 A man once entered upon him 00:11:09.370 --> 00:11:12.370 and began looking around his house, 00:11:12.370 --> 00:11:14.370 but he found no furnishings or provisions in it, 00:11:15.370 --> 00:11:16.370 so he said, 00:11:16.370 --> 00:11:17.370 "O Abu Dharr, 00:11:17.370 --> 00:11:19.370 where are your household belongings?" 00:11:19.370 --> 00:11:20.370 He replied, 00:11:20.370 --> 00:11:22.370 "We have a house over there," 00:11:22.370 --> 00:11:24.370 meaning the Hereafter, 00:11:24.370 --> 00:11:27.370 "to which we send the best of our goods." 00:11:27.370 --> 00:11:30.370 The man understood his meaning and said to him, 00:11:30.370 --> 00:11:34.370 "But you must have some provisions as long as you are in this abode," 00:11:34.370 --> 00:11:36.370 meaning this worldly life. 00:11:36.370 --> 00:11:37.370 So he answered, 00:11:37.370 --> 00:11:41.429 "Indeed, the owner of the house will not leave us in it." 00:11:41.429 --> 00:11:45.429 And the governor of Sham sent him three hundred dinars, 00:11:45.429 --> 00:11:46.429 saying to him, 00:11:46.429 --> 00:11:49.429 "Use this to fulfill your needs." 00:11:49.429 --> 00:11:52.429 But he returned it to him and said, 00:11:52.429 --> 00:11:57.429 "Could the governor of Sham find no servant of Allah more insignificant in his eyes than me?" 00:11:57.429 --> 00:12:00.429 In the thirty-second year after the Hijrah, 00:12:00.429 --> 00:12:04.429 the hand of death claimed this devout, ascetic worshiper, 00:12:04.429 --> 00:12:08.429 regarding whom the Messenger, peace and blessings be upon him, said, 00:12:08.429 --> 00:12:10.429 "Earth has not borne, 00:12:10.429 --> 00:12:12.429 nor has the sky sheltered, 00:12:12.429 --> 00:12:15.429 anyone more truthful than Abu Dharr." 00:12:15.429 --> 00:12:18.840 "Earth has not borne, 00:12:18.840 --> 00:12:20.840 nor has the sky sheltered, 00:12:20.840 --> 00:12:24.840 anyone more truthful than Abu Dharr." 00:12:24.840 --> 00:12:28.059 Muhammad is the Messenger of Allah.