Pause and learn about the Companions, scholars, and prominent figures.
A new challenge: Who am I?
I am the beloved of the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him), his companion, his freedman, and his servant,
and his adopted son before Islam.
When the Prophet (peace be upon him) was sent in Mecca,
I was among the very first to follow him and believe in him.
Thus, I was the first of the freedmen to embrace Islam.
The Prophet (peace be upon him) said to me:
"You are our freedman, and you belong to me and I to you,
and you are the most beloved of people to me."
The Prophet (peace be upon him) married me to his cousin,
Zaynab bint Jahsh (may Allah be pleased with her).
Later, I divorced her,
and the Prophet (peace be upon him) married her by the command of Allah Almighty.
Allah revealed verses regarding this that explicitly mentioned my name.
Thus, I am the only one among the Companions of the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him)
whose name is explicitly mentioned in the Qur'an.
The Prophet (peace be upon him) used to appoint me to command military expeditions and detachments,
until the Battle of Mu'tah took place,
where the Prophet (peace be upon him) dispatched me as the commander of the Muslim army,
which consisted of three thousand fighters.
He said to the army:
"If this commander of yours is killed,
then your commander after him shall be Ja'far ibn Abi Talib;
and if Ja'far is killed,
then your commander shall be 'Abdullah ibn Rawahah."
So we marched until we reached Mu'tah,
where we met the Roman army,
which outnumbered us many times over,
for their number was two hundred thousand fighters.
We sought Allah's aid against them and engaged in battle.
I carried the banner of the Muslims
and fought in defense of the religion
until I was killed.
Then Ja'far (may Allah be pleased with him) took the banner,
and he too was killed,
until Khalid ibn al-Walid (may Allah be pleased with him) took it,
and Allah granted victory through him.
News of our martyrdom reached the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) in Medina,
and his eyes shed tears.
He informed the Companions who were with him of our death,
and that we were now resting on couches in Paradise.
[Ja'far] was killed,
until Khalid ibn al-Walid took the banner,
and then the Prophet asked forgiveness for me three times,
and asked forgiveness for the second and third commanders once each.
So, who am I?
The answer:
Zayd ibn Harithah (may Allah be pleased with him).
Pause.
Pause and learn about the Companions, scholars, and prominent figures.
A new challenge: Who am I?
I am one of the senior Companions among the Emigrants (Muhajirun).
I am the son of one of the chief polytheists of Quraysh.
I was known as the strategist of the Arabs,
and one of their shrewdest leaders.
I was an accomplished merchant
and a brave military commander.
I was the envoy sent by Quraysh to Abyssinia
to negotiate with the Negus,
asking him to return the Muslims who had emigrated to his land.
I used to harbour intense animosity toward Islam,
and it never crossed my mind that I would ever become a Muslim,
even if I were the last person remaining in polytheism.
I participated with Quraysh in their wars against the Muslims at Badr, Uhud, and the Trench,
and each time, Allah saved me.
I was not present at the Treaty of al-Hudaybiyyah.
But when news of the peace treaty reached me,
I realized with certainty that Muhammad (peace be upon him)
would prevail over Mecca
and over the entire Arabian Peninsula.
At that point, I decided to go to the Negus
and live in his land,
for he was a friend of mine.
I thought that being under his authority
was more desirable to me than being under the authority of Muhammad.
When I came to the Negus,
I found that he had already accepted Islam.
He said to me:
"Obey me and follow him,
for by Allah, he is upon the truth,
and he shall surely prevail over those who oppose him,
just as Moses prevailed over Pharaoh and his hosts."
Thereupon, Islam entered my heart,
and I said to him:
"Will you accept my pledge of allegiance to him upon Islam?"
He replied, "Yes."
So he stretched out his hand,
and I pledged my allegiance to Islam through him.
Then I departed from his presence, heading for Medina.
On the road, I met Khalid ibn al-Walid
and 'Uthman ibn Talhah (may Allah be pleased with them both),
who were also heading to Medina.
We traveled together until we arrived before the Prophet (peace be upon him).
When he saw us,
he rejoiced over us
and said to his Companions:
"Mecca has thrown to you the very pieces of its heart."
The Prophet (peace be upon him) testified to my faith
on more than one occasion.
He appointed me to command military expeditions and detachments,
and I was among those close to him.
Despite that,
I could never raise my eyes to look at him directly
out of shyness before him.
If I were asked to describe him (peace be upon him),
I would not be able to do so.
I participated in the Wars of Apostasy
and the conquests of Iraq and the Levant.
During the reign of 'Umar ibn al-Khattab (may Allah be pleased with him),
I led the armies to conquer Egypt,
and Allah granted its conquest at my hands,
so I became its first Muslim governor.
So, who am I?
The answer: 'Amr ibn al-'As (may Allah be pleased with him).
Pause.
Pause.
Pause and learn about the Companions, scholars, and prominent figures.
A new challenge:
Who am I?
I am one of the Companions of the Prophet (peace be upon him)
from the Ansar.
I was among the first people of Medina to embrace Islam.
I was present at both the First and Second Pledges of 'Aqabah,
and I witnessed all the major battles alongside the Prophet (peace be upon him).
At the Battle of Badr,
my chief desire during the engagement
was to avenge the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him)
upon Abu Jahl, who used to revile and harm him in Mecca.
I stood on the battlefield on the day of Badr,
a young boy of tender age,
beside the Companion 'Abd al-Rahman ibn 'Awf (may Allah be pleased with him).
I asked him about Abu Jahl,
as I did not recognize him.
He said:
"What do you need with him?"
I replied:
"I heard that he reviles the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him).
By Him in Whose Hand my soul is,
if I see him, my shadow will not part from his shadow
until the faster of us to die meets his end!"
My brother stood on the other side of 'Abd al-Rahman
and said the exact same thing to him.
Only a short moment passed
before Ibn 'Awf spotted Abu Jahl among the people,
standing like a massive mountain.
He said to us:
"There is your man about whom you asked."
So we swooped down upon him like two falcons,
and I struck at him with my sword.
Once I got a firm reach on him,
I dealt him a heavy blow
that sent his foot flying along with half his leg.
My brother also struck him a powerful blow
until we brought him down to the ground.
Then we returned to the Prophet (peace be upon him),
each of us claiming that he had killed him.
He (peace be upon him) asked:
"Have you wiped your swords?"
We said, "No."
So he looked at the two swords
and said:
"Both of you have killed him."
Then 'Ikrimah ibn Abi Jahl spotted me on the battlefield
and struck me on my shoulder,
severing my arm at the shoulder joint,
though it remained attached by a thin strip of skin at my side.
I fought for most of the day dragging it behind me,
and when it severely hindered me,
I placed my foot upon it
and stood up tall until I tore it off,
then cast it away
and carried on fighting.
As for my brother,
he was martyred during the battle.
So, who am I?
The answer:
Mu'adh ibn al-Harith,
the son of 'Afra' (may Allah be pleased with him).
Pause.
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Pause and learn about the Companions, scholars, and prominent figures.
A new challenge:
Who am I?
I am one of the Emigrant Companions.
I came to Mecca before Islam,
and when the Prophet (peace be upon him) was sent,
I followed him and accepted Islam.
Then I returned to my people in Yemen
to call them to Allah Almighty.
I remained doing so
until I heard of the emigration of the Prophet (peace be upon him)
to Medina.
So I set out to join him, accompanied by my people,
numbering fifty-some men.
We boarded a ship,
but the sea grew rough and tossed us about,
until our ship cast us ashore in the land of the Negus (may Allah be pleased with him) in Abyssinia.
We met Ja'far ibn Abi Talib (may Allah be pleased with him) there,
and we stayed with him
until we arrived in Medina in the seventh year after the Hijrah.
We met the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him)
just after he conquered Khaybar.
So he (peace and blessings be upon him) said to us:
"For you, O people of the ship, there are two migrations."
I had a beautiful voice in reciting the Qur'an,
and the Prophet (peace be upon him) once said to me:
"You have been given one of the flutes of the family of Dawud."
One night, I stood praying in the mosque,
and the wives of the Prophet (peace be upon him) heard my voice,
so they stood listening to my recitation.
When morning came,
I was told that the Mothers of the Believers
had been listening to your recitation during the night.
So I said: "Had I known,
I would have beautified it profoundly
and filled it with deep emotion."
'Umar ibn al-Khattab (may Allah be pleased with him) used to say to me:
"Remind us of our Lord, the Exalted."
So I would recite the Qur'an in their presence.
Sometimes, I would lead the people in prayer,
and they would wish that I would recite Surah al-Baqarah,
owing to the beauty of my voice.
After the death of the Prophet (peace be upon him),
the Commander of the Believers, 'Umar ibn al-Khattab, sent me to Basra
to teach the people the Qur'an.
The people said:
"No traveler ever came to Basra who was better for its people than he."
Later, a delegation from the people of Basra came to 'Umar (may Allah be pleased with him),
and he asked them about me.
They replied:
"We left him teaching the people the Qur'an."
Thereupon he (may Allah be pleased with him) said:
"Indeed, he is truly astute and capable."
I gathered those who had read the Qur'an under my instruction in Basra,
and they numbered nearly three hundred.
So I emphasized the great significance of the Qur'an to them,
then I said:
"Indeed, this Qur'an will either be a reward for you,
or a burden against you.
So follow the Qur'an,
and do not let the Qur'an pursue you.
For whoever follows the Qur'an,
it will lead him down into the gardens of Paradise;
but whoever is pursued by the Qur'an,
it will strike him in the back of his neck
and cast him into the Fire."
Before my death,
I exerted myself immensely in acts of worship.
So it was said to me:
"If only you would ease up and be gentle with yourself."
But I replied:
"When racehorses are set loose
and approach the finish line,
they summon all the strength they possess.
And what remains of my appointed time
is even less than that."
So, who am I?
The answer:
Abu Musa al-Ash'ari,
'Abdullah ibn Qays,
may Allah be pleased with him.
Pause
and get to know the Companions, the scholars, and the prominent figures.
A new challenge:
Who am I?
I am one of the senior Companions of the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him),
his father-in-law, and his minister.
I embraced Islam in the sixth year after the start of the Prophetic mission,
and I witnessed all the major battles alongside the Prophet (peace be upon him).
I was his counselor in many matters,
and the Qur'an was revealed in agreement with my view on more than one occasion.
I remained closely attached to the Prophet (peace be upon him) throughout his life and after his death,
for my grave lies right beside his grave.
When the Prophet (peace be upon him) passed away,
the Ansar gathered at the Saqifah of Banu Sa'idah
to choose the Caliph.
So I said: "O Abu Bakr,
let us go to our brothers among the Ansar."
So we set out toward them
and came to them while they were in the Saqifah of Banu Sa'idah.
Then their spokesman stood up,
praised Allah as He deserves to be praised,
and said: "To proceed:
We are the Ansar and the battalion of faith,
while you, O assembly of the Emigrants, are a group from among us;
therefore, from us shall be the leader."
When he fell silent,
I intended to deliver a speech that I had prepared and liked,
but Abu Bakr (may Allah be pleased with him) said to me:
"Take it easy."
I knew his firmness,
so I disliked displeasing him;
and he was better than me, more discerning, and more dignified.
Then he spoke,
and by Allah, he did not leave out a single point I had liked
without delivering it, and even better than it,
until he concluded.
Then he said: "To proceed:
Whatever good you have mentioned,
it is truly found among you, O assembly of the Ansar,
and you are worthy of it and even more.
Yet the Arabs will never recognize this leadership
except for this clan of Quraysh,
for they are the best of the Arabs in lineage and status.
And I am pleased for you to choose either of these two men;
so pledge allegiance to whichever of them you wish."
And he took my hand
and the hand of Abu 'Ubaydah ibn al-Jarrah (may Allah be pleased with him).
I hated nothing of what he said except for that proposal.
Then a man from the Ansar stood up and said:
"From us shall be a leader, and from you a leader, O assembly of the Emigrants!"
Commotion broke out and voices rose,
until I feared division.
So I stood up and said:
"Stretch out your hand, O Abu Bakr."
He stretched out his hand,
and I pledged allegiance to him.
Then the Emigrants stood up and pledged allegiance to him,
followed by the Ansar (may Allah be pleased with them).
Thus Allah spared the believers from fitnah
after the death of the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him),
and the unity of the Muslims was preserved.
And all praise is due to Allah.
So, who am I?
The answer:
'Umar ibn al-Khattab (may Allah be pleased with him).
Pause
and get to know the Companions, the scholars, and the prominent figures.
A new challenge:
Who am I?
I am one of the Companions of the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him),
the leader of the Emigrants in the land of Abyssinia,
and the cousin of the Prophet (peace be upon him),
as well as the one who resembled him most closely.
He (peace be upon him) said to me:
"You resemble me in both my physical appearance and my character."
I made the two migrations:
to Abyssinia,
and then to Medina in the seventh year after the Hijrah,
after the conquest of Khaybar.
When the Prophet (peace be upon him) saw me,
he said: "I do not know with which of the two
I am more delighted:
with your arrival,
or with the conquest of Khaybar."
The people nicknamed me 'the Father of the Poor'
because of my immense compassion for them,
and they also called me 'the Possessor of Two Wings'
and 'the Flying One.'
The Prophet (peace be upon him) dispatched an army to Mu'tah
numbering three thousand fighters,
and appointed three commanders over them in succession.
I was the second commander among them.
So we met the enemy,
who numbered one hundred thousand from the Romans,
joined by one hundred thousand of their Arab allies.
Soon after, the fighting broke out between us,
and within just moments,
our first commander fell:
Zayd ibn Harithah (may Allah be pleased with him),
who fell as a martyr.
So I took the banner after him
and assumed the command,
fighting with great intensity.
This was my very first battle alongside the Muslims.
When the battle raged fiercely,
I dismounted from a blond mare of mine
and hamstrung her so that the enemy could not make use of her,
thus becoming the first man among the Muslims to hamstring a horse in Islam.
Then I fought the Romans while chanting:
"O how wonderful is Paradise as it draws near,
sweet and cool is its drink!
And the Romans are Romans whose punishment is near,
disbelievers of distant lineage;
it is upon me, when I meet them, to strike them down!"
While I was doing so,
a Roman soldier struck my right hand and severed it,
and the banner fell from my grasp.
So I seized it with my left hand,
but he struck my left hand and severed it as well.
So I embraced the banner with my upper arms until I was killed.
Then Allah replaced my two arms
with two wings in Paradise, with which I fly wherever I wish.
When they prepared to bury me,
they found over ninety wounds on my body,
ranging from sword strikes,
spear thrusts,
and arrow shots,
all of them on the front of my body,
with not a single one on my back.
The Prophet (peace be upon him) was deeply moved
by my martyrdom.
He went to my house in Medina,
embraced my children and kissed them while his eyes overflowed with tears.
My wife wept
She complained to him of the orphanhood of my children,
so he said to her,
"Do you fear poverty for them?
I am their guardian in this world and the Hereafter."
So, who am I?
Answer: Ja'far ibn Abi Talib (may Allah be pleased with him).
Pause,
and get to know the Companions, scholars, and prominent figures!
A new challenge:
Who am I?
I am one of the Companions of the Prophet (peace be upon him) from the Ansar,
and I am one of the prolific narrators of the Prophetic hadith.
I attended the Second Pledge of 'Aqabah with my father when I was young,
but my father prevented me from attending the battles of Badr and Uhud
so that I might stay behind to take care of his nine daughters.
Then, when he was martyred at Uhud,
I never missed a battle alongside the Prophet (peace be upon him).
The Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) met me after Uhud
and said to me,
"Why do I see you looking downcast?"
I said,
"O Messenger of Allah,
my father was martyred,
and he left behind dependants and debt."
He said,
"Shall I not give you glad tidings of how Allah met your father?"
I replied, "Yes indeed, O Messenger of Allah!"
He said,
"Allah has never spoken to anyone
except from behind a veil,
but He brought your father back to life
and spoke to him directly without a veil,
saying,
'O My servant,
ask of Me and I shall give you.'
He replied,
'O Lord, bring me back to life so that I may be killed for Your sake a second time!'
The Lord, Mighty and Sublime, said,
'The decree has already proceeded from Me
that they shall not return to it.'
He said,
'O Lord,
then inform those behind me.'
So Allah, Mighty and Sublime, revealed this verse."
“Think not of those, who are slain in the way of Allah, as dead. Nay, they are living. With their Lord they have provision.” (3:169)
“Think not of those, who are slain in the way of Allah, as dead. Nay, they are living. With their Lord they have provision.” (3:169)
My father's grave was uncovered
when Mu'awiyah (may Allah be pleased with him) dug a spring
near the graves of the martyrs of Uhud,
after more than half a century had passed.
So I hastened to my father's grave
and found him as fresh as the day we buried him.
I fell ill one day,
and the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) came to visit me,
finding that I had lost consciousness.
He performed ablution
and poured some of the water over me,
so I regained consciousness.
Then I said,
"O Messenger of Allah,
how should I dispose of my wealth?
What should I do with my property?"
But he did not answer me with anything
until the verse of inheritance was revealed.
I was keen on seeking knowledge and transmitting it;
I heard about a man in the Levant
who had heard a hadith from the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him),
so I bought a camel,
strapped my saddle upon it,
and traveled to him for a month
until I reached the Levant.
I heard the hadith from him
and immediately returned to Medina at that very hour.
I used to advise the people of knowledge constantly,
saying to them,
"A scholar ought to wash his heart
just as a man washes his garment from impurity."
So, who am I?
Answer:
Jabir ibn 'Abdillah (may Allah be pleased with them both).
Pause,
and get to know the Companions, scholars, and prominent figures!
A new challenge:
Who am I?
I am the chieftain of the Aws tribe from the Ansar,
holding great stature and honor in Islam.
I accompanied the Prophet (peace be upon him)
and was his companion in every situation.
I participated with him in the Battle of the Trench,
where I was wounded in my arm.
So the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) pitched
a tent for me in the mosque where I could be treated,
and he would pass by to visit me
and ask about me every morning and evening.
When the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) set out
to confront the Jewish tribe of Banu Qurayzah,
who had broken their covenant during the Battle of the Trench,
he found them cowering,
not daring to resist.
Allah Almighty shook them with fear,
casting terror into their hearts,
so they feared for themselves
and fortified themselves inside their homes.
The Prophet (peace be upon him) besieged them,
until they eventually surrendered
and agreed to abide by the judgment of the Muslims.
Then men from my tribe came
and asked the Prophet (peace be upon him)
to appoint someone who would show mercy to them,
as they were our allies before Islam.
The Prophet (peace be upon him) said,
"Would you be pleased if one of your own men judges between them?"
They replied, "Yes!"
He said, "That decision rests with your chieftain."
My people said, "We agree."
So the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) sent for me,
and I came to him, struggling against my injury from the Trench.
The first to receive me were men from my tribe,
who surrounded me and said,
"Be benevolent to your allies and treat them well,
for the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him)
has appointed you to judge them so that you may do good to them."
But I remained silent and did not answer them with anything.
When they persisted,
I said, "The time has come for me not to care, for the sake of Allah, about the blame of any blamer."
When they heard this from me, they understood my intent
and turned back, announcing the doom of the people.
When I reached the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him),
he said to those with him,
"Stand up for your chieftain!"
And he said to me, "These people from the treacherous Jews
have submitted to your judgment, so pronounce judgment upon them."
I asked, "Is my judgment binding upon them?"
The Jews said, "Yes."
I asked, "Is my judgment binding upon the Muslims?"
The Muslims said, "Yes."
I asked, "Is my judgment binding upon those who are here?"
pointing toward the direction of the Prophet (peace be upon him),
gesturing with my face out of deference and veneration for him.
He (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) said, "Yes, and upon me."
I said, "Then I judge that their fighters be executed,
their women and children taken as captives, and their property divided among the Muslims."
Thereupon, the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) said to me,
"You have judged among them with the judgment of Allah from above seven heavens."
So, who am I?
Answer: Sa'd ibn Mu'adh (may Allah be pleased with him).
Pause, and get to know the Companions, scholars, and prominent figures!
A new challenge: Who am I?
I am one of the righteous Companions and the orator of the Ansar.
I believed in Allah alone and followed the Prophet (peace be upon him),
participating with him in all the major battles except Badr.
I was eloquent, articulate in speech, and Allah gifted me a powerful voice,
so I became the orator of the Prophet (peace be upon him),
speaking in his presence and responding to delegations whenever they boasted in his assembly.
The Prophet (peace be upon him) said of me, "What an excellent man!"
and gave me glad tidings of Paradise. The delegation of Banu Tamim came to Medina,
and when they entered the mosque, they called out to the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) from behind his private apartments,
saying, "Come out to us, O Muhammad!" So he came out to them.
They said, "O Muhammad, we have come to engage in a contest of glory with you, so grant permission to our poet and orator."
He said, "I have given permission to your orator, so let him stand."
Their orator stood up, boasting and delivering a speech to the people, speaking eloquently, then sat down.
Then the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) said to me, "Stand up and reply." So I stood up
and delivered a sermon in the presence of the Prophet (peace be upon him) and the people,
extolling the status of the Prophet (peace be upon him) and the Muslims.
Then their poet stood up and recited verses of pride,
so the Prophet (peace be upon him) said, "Stand up, O Hassan, and reply."
Hassan ibn Thabit (may Allah be pleased with him) stood up and answered him.
The chieftain of the delegation then said, "By Allah, his orator is more eloquent than our orator,
and his poet is a better poet than ours!"
Thus they embraced Islam, and the Prophet (peace be upon him) gave them generous gifts.
And when there was revealed to the Prophet (peace be upon him) His words, the Exalted:
“O ye who believe! Lift not up your voices above the voice of the Prophet, nor shout when speaking to him as ye shout one to another, lest your works be rendered vain while ye perceive not.” (49:2)
“O ye who believe! Lift not up your voices above the voice of the Prophet, nor shout when speaking to him as ye shout one to another, lest your works be rendered vain while ye perceive not.” (49:2)
"lest your deeds become worthless while you perceive not,"
I feared for myself that I might be among those whose deeds were rendered worthless
because of my raised voice in the presence of the Prophet (peace be upon him).
Grief overwhelmed me, and I sat in my home weeping.
The Prophet (peace be upon him) noticed my absence
and asked my neighbor, Sa'd ibn Mu'adh (may Allah be pleased with him), about me.
Sa'd came to me, and I said to him,
"This verse in Surah Al-Hujurat was revealed,
and you know that I am among those with the loudest voice before the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him),
so I am one of the people of the Fire!"
Sa'd mentioned that to the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him),
and he (peace be upon him) said,
"Rather, he is among the people of Paradise."
When Sa'd returned to me with the glad tidings of Paradise,
I hastened to the Prophet (peace be upon him).
When I met him, he said to me,
"Are you not pleased to live praised,
be killed as a martyr,
and enter Paradise?"
I replied, "Yes indeed, I am pleased!"
On the Day of Al-Yamamah,
I was with Khalid ibn al-Walid (may Allah be pleased with him),
and we faced severe hardship from the apostates,
to the point that the Muslims were exposed and on the verge of defeat.
I put on my embalming perfume and said,
"This is not how we used to fight alongside the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him)!"
So I fought the enemy until I was killed.
While I lay covered on the ground,
a man from among the Muslims came to me,
He looked at my coat of mail,
and it was a precious armor,
so he took it and hid it among his belongings.
Then I came to one of my companions in his dream and said to him:
'I am making a bequest to you,
so do not neglect my bequest.
When you awaken from your sleep,
go to Khalid ibn al-Walid
and tell him
that such-and-such a Muslim took my armor
and placed it among his belongings in such-and-such a spot,
so let him retrieve it from him.
And when you all arrive in Medina,
go to the Caliph Abu Bakr
and tell him:
"I owe such-and-such an amount of debt,
so let him sell my armor
and pay off my debt."
And tell him:
"I have emancipated my servant so-and-so."'
The man carried out what I had instructed him,
so Khalid retrieved my armor,
and Abu Bakr executed my bequest.
And no one is known to have made a bequest after his death
whose bequest was lawfully executed, other than me.
Who am I?
The answer:
Thabit ibn Qays ibn Shammas,
may Allah be pleased with him.
Pause
and learn about the Companions, scholars, and prominent figures.
A new challenge:
Who am I?
I am one of the Companions of the Prophet, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him,
from the people of Mecca.
My maternal cousin was Abu Bakr al-Siddiq, may Allah be pleased with him.
I migrated to Medina
and witnessed all the military expeditions with the Prophet, peace be upon him.
I was poor and destitute,
unable to find enough sustenance to suffice me,
so my cousin Abu Bakr, may Allah be pleased with him,
used to spend on me from his wealth.
When the incident of the slander (al-Ifk) occurred,
and the hypocrites spoke ill of the Mother of the Believers, 'A'ishah, may Allah be pleased with her,
slandering her with falsehood,
people engaged in gossip regarding this matter,
and the distress became severe for the Prophet, peace be upon him,
and for the household of Abu Bakr.
The people remained in this state for a month,
while the Messenger of Allah, peace be upon him,
received no revelation concerning 'A'ishah.
And I was among those who repeated what the people were saying,
engaging in the gossip they indulged in,
until Allah Almighty revealed the exoneration of the Mother of the Believers, 'A'ishah,
in His Noble Book,
across some ten-odd verses recited until the Day of Judgment.
He sent down His reproach upon those who spoke in the fitnah without verifying the facts
or thinking well of themselves and one another.
So I repented to Allah,
and Allah accepted my repentance,
and the Messenger of Allah, peace be upon him, carried out the prescribed punishment for slander upon me.
After the ordeal was lifted and the fitnah subsided,
Abu Bakr swore that he would never spend on me again
because of what I had done during the incident of the slander.
Then Allah Almighty revealed:
"And let not those of virtue among you and ample means swear not to give..."
“And let not those who possess dignity and ease among you swear not to give to the near of kin and to the needy, and to fugitives for the cause of Allah. Let them forgive and show indulgence. Yearn ye not that Allah may forgive you? Allah is Forgiving, Merciful.” (24:22)
“And let not those who possess dignity and ease among you swear not to give to the near of kin and to the needy, and to fugitives for the cause of Allah. Let them forgive and show indulgence. Yearn ye not that Allah may forgive you? Allah is Forgiving, Merciful.” (24:22)
"...and let them pardon and overlook..."
“And let not those who possess dignity and ease among you swear not to give to the near of kin and to the needy, and to fugitives for the cause of Allah. Let them forgive and show indulgence. Yearn ye not that Allah may forgive you? Allah is Forgiving, Merciful.” (24:22)
"...and Allah is Forgiving, Merciful."
Thereupon, Abu Bakr said:
"Yes indeed, by Allah!
Truly, I love that Allah should forgive me."
So he restored to me the financial support he used to provide,
saying, "By Allah, I will never withhold it from you."
Who am I?
The answer: Mistah ibn Uthathah, may Allah be pleased with him.