Part of Pictures from the lives of the Companions (series completed)
· Lesson 54 of 93
Pictures from the lives of the Companions - Episode (69) - Ubayy bin Ka’b Al-Ansari, may God be pleased with him
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Transcript
Machine translation — may contain errors
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In the name of Allah, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful.
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The Mawaddah Association is pleased
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to present to you portraits from the lives of the Companions.
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By Abd al-Rahman Ra'fat al-Basha,
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may Allah have mercy upon him.
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Ubayy ibn Ka'b al-Ansari,
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may Allah be pleased with him.
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They are the leaders of the world, for they are guided and not led astray.
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They are the model for humanity in speech and action.
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Who is this?
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Who is the one mentioned in the Highest Assembly to the Messenger, peace be upon him?
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By his name and his father's name.
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Who is the one whom the noble Prophet, may the best of prayers and purest of salutations be upon him, commanded
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to recite the Qur'an to him?
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So he recited it to him.
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Who is the one whom Umar ibn al-Khattab, may Allah be pleased with him, called the "Master of the Muslims"?
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And no one disputes this honor with him.
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He is the noble Companion Ubayy ibn Ka'b al-Ansari al-Najjari,
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scribe of the Revelation for the Messenger, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him,
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and one of the geniuses of the Muslims,
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and a beacon among their most prominent figures.
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Ubayy ibn Ka'b embraced Islam when Mus'ab ibn Umayr arrived in Yathrib,
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the first herald of Islam.
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Yet Ubayy did not need a caller to invite him to the religion of Allah,
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or a herald to announce to him Muhammad, the Messenger of Allah, peace be upon him.
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This is because he was one of the rare scholars
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who had mastered writing during the Pre-Islamic era (Jahiliyyah),
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and had thoroughly studied the sacred scriptures held by the Jews and Christians,
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researching and examining them.
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Thus, he knew the Prophet, peace be upon him, before he was commissioned as a Prophet.
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He knew him by his specific name, his distinct and precise attributes,
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and his clear, identifying signs.
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He knew him better than any of those closest to him.
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When the seventy who were the first to embrace Islam went from Yathrib to Makkah
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to pledge allegiance to the Messenger, peace be upon him, at the Pledge of al-Aqabah,
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Ubayy ibn Ka'b was at the forefront of those pledging.
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Then, when the noble Messenger, may the best of prayers and purest of salutations be upon him,
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arrived in Medina,
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he took Ubayy ibn Ka'b as his scribe.
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The treaties of the noble Prophet, peace be upon him,
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his contracts, his gifts, and his letters
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were signed with the name of this noble Companion.
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For he would write at the end of every document:
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"Witnessed by so-and-so and so-and-so,"
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"And written by Ubayy ibn Ka'b."
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Thereafter, Muslim scholars followed the practice
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of signing what they wrote by saying:
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"Written by so-and-so."
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They only did this in imitation of Ubayy ibn Ka'b, may Allah be pleased with him.
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Furthermore, the Messenger, peace be upon him,
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bestowed upon Ubayy ibn Ka'b an honor before which all other honors pale,
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and entrusted him with a confidence before which all other confidences shrink.
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This was when he entrusted him with the Holy Qur'an,
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making him one of the scribes of the Revelation.
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Thus, he was granted the opportunity to receive the Noble Book
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fresh and pure from the lips of the Messenger, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him.
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Ubayy ibn Ka'b tasted the sweetness of the Holy Qur'an
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in a way that only a few of the Companions of the Great Messenger, peace be upon him, did.
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For he saw in the Noble Book of Allah
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such splendor of expression, power of inimitability,
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loftiness of guidance, and richness of meaning
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that he had not found in the books he had been accustomed to reading before.
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Therefore, he turned to the Book of Allah with his heart and soul,
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and devoted himself to it with his spirit and body,
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until it became his primary concern and his constant work,
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the comfort of his soul and the delight of his heart.
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He would write it down as revelation
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when the Trustworthy Spirit (Jibril) brought it down to the heart of Muhammad,
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the Messenger of the Prophets, peace be upon him.
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He would recite it in his private time,
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and nothing would interrupt him except an unavoidable task,
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or necessary, brief sleep.
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He would contemplate it as a student and a jurist,
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and penetrate its depths as a teacher and an educator,
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until he became one of the most reliable bearers of the Qur'an among the Muslims.
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The people used to say:
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"The most compassionate of the Ummah of Muhammad is Abu Bakr al-Siddiq,"
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"The strongest of them in the religion of Allah is Umar ibn al-Khattab,"
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"The best judge among those in dispute is Ali ibn Abi Talib,"
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"The most knowledgeable of them in the lawful and unlawful is Mu'adh ibn Jabal,"
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"The most knowledgeable of them in the laws of inheritance is Zayd ibn Thabit,"
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"The most truthful in speech is Abu Dharr al-Ghifari,"
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"And the most trustworthy of the Ummah of Muhammad is Abu Ubaydah ibn al-Jarrah,"
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"And the most proficient of them in reciting the Book of Allah is Ubayy ibn Ka'b."
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The Faruq (Umar) once gave a sermon at al-Jabiyah and said:
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"O people, whoever wishes to ask about the Qur'an,
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let him come to Ubayy ibn Ka'b."
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"Whoever wishes to ask about the laws of inheritance,
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let him come to Zayd ibn Thabit."
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"Whoever wishes to ask about fiqh,
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let him come to Mu'adh ibn Jabal."
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"And whoever wishes to ask about wealth,
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let him come to me,"
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"let him come to me,"
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"for Allah has made me its guardian and its distributor."
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Allah favored Ubayy ibn Ka'b with a special honor
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that moved his heart in gratitude and praise to Allah,
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and brought tears to his eyes in joy for what He had honored him with,
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and in delight for what He had bestowed upon him and singled him out for,
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above the other Companions of the Messenger of Allah, peace be upon him.
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This was when the noble Messenger, may the best of prayers and purest of salutations be upon him,
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approached Ubayy ibn Ka'b one day and said:
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"Allah the Almighty has commanded me to recite the Qur'an to you, O Ubayy."
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Ubayy was overwhelmed,
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as if he could not believe what his ears had heard,
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and he said:
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"Has Allah mentioned my name to you, O Messenger of Allah?"
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"Or was I mentioned before the Lord of the Worlds?"
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The Prophet, peace be upon him, replied:
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"Yes."
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"Allah the Almighty mentioned your name to me, O Ubayy."
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Ubayy was overcome with joy,
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his eyes began to overflow with tears,
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and his tongue began to stammer with the praise and glorification of Allah.
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On one occasion,
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the Messenger, peace be upon him, wanted to test Ubayy ibn Ka'b,
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so he asked him, saying:
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"Which verse in the Qur'an is the greatest, O Ubayy?"
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He replied:
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"The greatest verse in the Book of Allah
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is the saying of the Almighty:
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﴾Allah - there is no deity except Him, the Ever-Living, the Sustainer of [all] existence﴿."
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“Allah! There is no deity save Him, the Alive, the Eternal. Neither slumber nor sleep overtaketh Him. Unto Him belongeth whatsoever is in the heavens and whatsoever is in the earth. Who is he that intercedeth with Him save by His leave? He knoweth that which is in front of them and that which is behind them, while they encompass nothing of His knowledge save what He will. His throne includeth the heavens and the earth, and He is never weary of preserving them. He is the Sublime, the Tremendous.” (2:255)
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The noble Messenger, peace be upon him, was pleased with his answer,
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and he patted his noble hand on his chest and said to him:
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"May knowledge be a source of joy for you, O Abu al-Mundhir."
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"May knowledge be a source of joy for you."
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Ubayy ibn Ka'b’s status in the religion reached such a level
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that he was one of the six who would issue legal rulings (fatwas)
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while the noble Messenger, peace be upon him, was still alive and among the Muslims.
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Indeed, there were those who issued fatwas during the time of the Prophet, peace be upon him:
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three from the Muhajirun,
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who were:
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Umar ibn al-Khattab,
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Uthman ibn Affan,
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and Ali ibn Abi Talib;
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and three from the Ansar,
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who were:
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Ubayy ibn Ka'b,
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Mu'adh ibn Jabal,
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and Zayd ibn Thabit.
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Just as Ubayy ibn Ka'b was a shining star in the horizon of knowledge,
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he was also a leading figure in the arena of piety and righteousness,
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and a unique beacon in the realms of asceticism and worship.
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Among this
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is that he heard a man saying to the Messenger, peace be upon him:
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"O Messenger of Allah,"
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"what do you think of these illnesses that afflict us?"
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"Is there any benefit for us in them?"
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The Prophet, peace be upon him, replied:
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"They are expiations for your sins."
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Ubayy ibn Ka'b turned to him and said:
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"Even if it is a fever, O Messenger of Allah?"
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The Prophet, peace be upon him, replied:
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"Even if it is a thorn or anything greater."
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So Ubayy prayed that the fever would never leave him until he died,
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and that it would not distract him from Hajj or Umrah,
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nor from Jihad in the cause of Allah,
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nor from the prescribed prayer in congregation.
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No one touched him after that
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without feeling the heat of the fever until he died.
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Ubayy ibn Ka'b dedicated himself,
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after the noble Prophet, peace be upon him, joined the Highest Companion (in Paradise),
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to teaching people the Book of Allah,
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instructing them in the religion of Allah,
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teaching them the law of Islam,
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and guiding them to the path of Paradise.
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People flocked to him in great numbers,
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and crowded around him.
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Among this is that a man came to him and said:
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"Advise me, O Companion of the Messenger of Allah."
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He said:
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"Take the Book of Allah as your leader,"
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"and be content with what is in it as a judge and arbiter,"
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"for it is the successor that your Prophet, peace be upon him, left among you."
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"And know that the Noble Qur'an is an intercessor for you whose intercession is accepted,"
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"and a witness against you that is not to be doubted."
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"In it is your history,"
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"and the history of those before you,"
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"and the judgment for what is between you,"
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"and in it is your news and the news of what is to come after you."
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Another man came to him and said:
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"Exhort me, O Abu al-Mundhir."
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He said:
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"Do not involve yourself in what does not concern you,"
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"and do not envy a living person for anything,"
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"except for what you would envy a dead person for."
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"And do not seek a need from someone who does not care"
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"whether or not he fulfills it for you."
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A man once came to the mosque with a heavy heart
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over some provision that had been taken from him.
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Ubayy ibn Ka'b greeted him, comforted him, and said:
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"There is no servant who leaves something for the sake of Allah the Almighty,"
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"but that He compensates him with something better than it."
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"And there is no servant who takes something from where it is not lawful for him,"
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"but that Allah the Almighty strips him of something greater than it."
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Ubayy ibn Ka'b, may Allah be pleased with him, remained
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a refuge for seekers of knowledge,
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until he grew old and aged,
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People continued to seek him out from every place,
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until his appointed time arrived.
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Jundub Ibn 'Abdullah al-Bajali narrated:
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He said:
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I came to the city of the Messenger of Allah, peace be upon him, seeking knowledge.
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I entered the mosque of the Prophet, peace be upon him,
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and found the people there in various circles,
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gathering around the scholars.
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I began moving from one circle to another,
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until I came to a circle containing a man of pale complexion and a frail body,
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wearing two garments as if he had just arrived from a journey.
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I sat with him,
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and he spoke for as long as Allah willed him to speak.
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Then he stood up, intending to return to his home.
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I asked a man near me, "Who is this?"
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He replied,
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"Woe to you, do you not know him?
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This is the master of the Muslims today.
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This is Ubayy Ibn Ka'b al-Ansari."
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Jundub said:
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I followed him until he reached his house,
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and it was like the homes of the poor,
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and he lived in it the life of an ascetic, detached from the world.
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I greeted him with peace,
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and he returned the greeting with one better than it.
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Then he said,
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"Where are you from?"
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I said, "From the people of Iraq."
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Then I intended to ask him a question,
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but he said,
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"You have burdened me enough today."
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His words angered me,
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so I knelt on my knees,
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faced the Qibla,
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raised my hands, and said,
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"O Allah, we complain to You about them.
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We spend our wealth,
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we exhaust our bodies,
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and we weary our mounts in pursuit of knowledge,
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yet when we meet them, they frown upon us."
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No sooner had Ubayy Ibn Ka'b heard my words
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than he burst into tears.
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Then he began to appease me, saying,
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"Woe to you,
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I did not intend that,
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nor did I mean what you have perceived."
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Then he said,
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"O Allah, I make a covenant with You that if You keep me alive until Friday,
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I shall speak of what I heard from the Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him,
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and I shall not fear the blame of any critic regarding it."
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When he said that,
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I departed,
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and I began to wait for Friday.
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When Thursday came,
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I went out for some need of mine,
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and found the streets crowded with people.
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I could not find a street
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without encountering dense throngs of people in it.
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I stopped some of them and asked,
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"What is the matter with the people?"
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They said,
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"We assume you are a stranger."
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I said, "Yes,
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I am a stranger."
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They said,
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"The master of the Muslims has died,
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Ubayy Ibn Ka'b al-Ansari has died.
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May Allah illuminate the grave of Ubayy Ibn Ka'b,
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the bearer of the Book of Allah,
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and the scribe of the revelation of the Messenger of Allah, peace be upon him."
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May Allah be pleased with him and grant him satisfaction.
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'Umar Ibn al-Khattab, may Allah be pleased with him,
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used to narrate from Ubayy Ibn Ka'b,
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ask him about emerging issues,
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and seek his judgment in difficult matters.
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Ibn Hajar.