8. THE
POSITION OF THE ṢAḤĀBAH (1)
The term ṣaḥābah(صَحَابة) is
derived from ṣaḥiba (صَحِبَ) “to
associate, to accompany, to escort, to make or become friends, to be closely
associated (with someone), to keep (someone’s) company.” Its verbal noun are ṣuḥbah,
ṣaḥabah, and ṣiḥabah (صُحْبَة, صَحَابَة, صِحَابَة) meaning “friendship, companionship,
association.” The term ṣāḥib (صَاحِب) means: “companion, associate,
comrade, friend, adherent, follower;” its plural are: aṣḥāb (أَصْحَاب), ṣaḥb (صَحْب), and ṣaḥābah
(صَحَابة) When we
say “the ṣaḥābah” (الصَّحَابة) it is meant “the Companions of the
Prophet,” and for a singular person he is called “the ṣaḥābī” (الصَّحَابِي), “the companion of the
Prophet.”
As the term “the ṣaḥābah” (الصَّحَابة) means “the Companions of the Prophet (ﷺ)”, then who are they? Muslim scholars have
different views, as follows:
The ṣaḥābah according to the jumhūr
al-‘ulamā’ (Muslim scholars in the mass) including IbnḤazm, Taymiyyah, Aḥmad
ibn Ḥanbal, and Mālik ibn Anas are: the Prophet’s contemporaries who saw him
once or more than once, also any of those who heard him saying something, and
neither opposing him nor rejecting his prophethood. They assert
that the ṣaḥābah are those who believe in the Prophet (ﷺ) and met him, and died as believers, even
though the meeting may have lasted only for a short time. Whether they report
about him or not is not a condition. Here are some views about the ṣaḥābah:
a.
Anyone who have lived with the Prophet for at least one year or joined
him in one of his campaigns he is considered a ṣaḥābī. This is the view
of Sa‘īd ibn al-Musayyib, who was one of the the tābi‘īn (the generation
following that of the ṣaḥābah) who lived in Madīnah. This view is rejected especially
by Ibn Ḥazm who maintains that there would be no limit of time and number in
seeing the Prophet (ﷺ) and being
in company with him to qualify as a ṣaḥābī.
b.
The view of the historian and the qāḍī of Baghdad al-Wāqidī (d.
206/822) excluded children from being ṣaḥābah, but this opinion was rejected by
the jumhūr al-‘ulamā’ (Muslim scholars in the mass). Therefore, the ṣaḥābah
include free people as well as slaves, even children, like the Prophet’s
grand-son al-Ḥasan and al-Ḥusayn. The hypocrites of Madīnah, and those whose
conditions are unfavourable, like Hīt the effeminate, whom the Prophet ordered
to be banished, and the expelled al-Ḥakam and excluded from being among the
ṣaḥābah.
Followers of previous prophets were their ṣaḥābah (companions). The Prophet said there are 124 000
prophets sent by Allah to human beings. Abū Dharr asked the Prophet:
يَا نَبِيَّ اللَّهِ، كَمْ وَفَاءُ
عِدَّةِ الأَنْبِيَاءِ؟ قَالَ: مِائَةُ أَلْفٍ وَأَرْبَعَةٌ وَعِشْرُونَ
أَلْفًا، الرُّسُلُ مِنْ ذَلِكَ ثَلاثُ مِائَةٍ وَخَمْسَةَ
عَشَرَ جَمًّا غَفِيرًا
(مشكاة المصابيح)
O Prophet of Allah, how many is the total number of
prophets?” He
said: “One hundred and twenty
thousands, numerously
among them three
hundred and
thirteen messengers”
(Mishkāt al-Maṣābīḥ)
Out of this great number, only twenty-five of them are
mentioned in the Qur’ān, and out of this number, five of them are called ūlū
’l-‘azm (أُوْلُوا الْعَزْم), lit. “those who have strong
will”), as mentioned in the following verse:
وَإِذْ أَخَذْنَا مِنَ
النَّبِيِّينَ مِيثَاقَهُمْ وَمِنْكَ وَمِنْ نُوحٍ وَإِبْرَاهِيمَ وَمُوسَى
وَعِيسَى ابْنِ مَرْيَمَ
وَأَخَذْنَا مِنْهُمْ مِيثَاقًا غَلِيظًا (الأحزاب:7)
And (remember) when We took from the Prophets
their covenant,
and from you (O Muhammad), and
from Nūḥ
(Noah), Ibrāhīm (Abaham), Mūsā (Moses),
and ‘Īsā
(Jesus) son of Maryam (Mary). We took
from them a
strong covenant. (Q. 33:7)
These
five prophets had worked hard in calling their respective people to follow them
as mentioned in the Qur’ān, but their response to their call varied. Prophet
Noah, despite spending 950 years of calling his people only few people followed
him. The Qur’ān said,
... وَمَا آمَنَ مَعَهُ إِلَّا قَلِيلٌ (هود:40)
…And none believed with him, except a few (Q.
11:40)
Prophet Abraham did not have any follower, but he was
called in the Qur’ān, an ummah, representing a nation, as he was the
father of prophets (Ismā‘īl and Isḥāq), as mentioned in the Qur’ān,
إِنَّ إِبْرَاهِيمَ كَانَ أُمَّةً قَانِتًا لِلَّهِ
حَنِيفًا وَلَمْ يَكُ مِنَ الْمُشْرِكِينَ (النحل:120)
Verily, Ibrāhīm
(Abraham) was an Ummah (a leader
having all the good
righteous qualities, or a nation)
obedient to Allah, Ḥanīf (i.e. to worship none
but Allah),
and he was not one of those who were
al-Mushrikūn (polytheists, idolaters, disbelievers in the Oneness of
Allah and those who joined partners
with Allah (Q. 16:120)
Prophet
Mūsā (Moses), his people (the children of Israel) had seen with their own eyes
miracles bestowed on him by Allah, yet they blamed him for their suffering
which they thought caused by him. They did not have strong faith, as they
worshiped the calf (Q. 2:54) when he went to Mt. Sinai to receive the tablet
containing Allah commandments, and they did not want to join him in fighting and
told him, “… So, go you and your Lord and fight you two, we are sitting
right here.” (Q. 5:24). Prophet ‘Īsā
(Jesus) had followers called in the Qur’ān al-awāriyyūn (الْحَوَارِيُّون), meaning “helpers in Allah’s cause.” They were his companions
and disciples.[1] Allah says in the Qur’ān,
فَلَمَّا أَحَسَّ عِيسَى مِنْهُمُ
الْكُفْرَ قَالَ مَنْ أَنْصَارِي إِلَى اللَّهِ قَالَ الْحَوَارِيُّونَ
نَحْنُ أَنْصَارُ اللَّهِ آمَنَّا
بِاللَّهِ وَاشْهَدْ بِأَنَّا مُسْلِمُونَ (آل عمران: 52)
Then when ‘Īsā (Jesus) came to know of their
disbelief, he said: “Who will be my helpers in
Allah’s Cause?” Ḥawāriyyūn (the disciples) said:
“We are the helpers
of Allah (i.e., we will strive
in His Cause!); we believe in Allah, and bear
witness that we are Muslims (i.e.
we submit to Allah).” (Q. 3:52(
When the Prophet (ﷺ) assigned al-Zubayr for a task in the Battle of the Trench,
also called the battle of the Confederates (or al-Aḥzāb, “the Clans”) which
took place in Shawwāl 5 AH he said, as
narrated by Jābir ibn ‘Abdullah,
إِنَّ لِكُلِّ نَبِيٍّ
حَوَارِيًّا وَحَوَارِيَّ الزُّبَيْرُ (رواه البخاري)
Verily, every Prophet has a helper, and my
helper is al-Zubayr (Reported by Bukhārī)
The ṣaḥābah of the Prophet never asked any
miracle from him as their belief had been strong; it was non-believers who
asked for it. These al-ḥawāriyyūn were not strong believers, as they
still requested miracle from Prophet ‘Īsā. Allah said:
إِذْ قَالَ الْحَوَارِيُّونَ يَا عِيسَى
ابْنَ مَرْيَمَ هَلْ يَسْتَطِيعُ رَبُّكَ أَنْ
يُنَزِّلَ عَلَيْنَا مَائِدَةً مِنَ السَّمَاءِ قَالَ
اتَّقُوا اللَّهَ إِنْ كُنْتُمْ مُؤْمِنِينَ.
قَالُوا نُرِيدُ أَنْ نَأْكُلَ مِنْهَا
وَتَطْمَئِنَّ قُلُوبُنَا وَنَعْلَمَ أَنْ قَدْ صَدَقْتَنَا
وَنَكُونَ عَلَيْهَا مِنَ الشَّاهِدِينَ (المائدة:112-113)
(Remember) when al-Ḥawāriyyūn (the disciples) said:
“O ‘Īsā (Jesus)
son of Mayam (Mary)! Can your Lord
send down to us
a table spread (with food) from heaven?”
‘Īsā (Jesus)
said: “Fear Allah, if you are indeed believers.”
They said: “We
wish to eat thereof and to satisfy our
hearts (to be
stronger in Faith), and to know that
you have
indeed told us the truth, and that we
ourselves be its witnesses.” (Q. 5: 112-113)
There are
many verses of the Qur’ān stating the virtues of the ṣaḥābah, among
which are as follows:
مُحَمَّدٌ رَسُولُ اللَّهِ وَالَّذِينَ مَعَهُ أَشِدَّاءُ
عَلَى الْكُفَّارِرُحَمَاءُ بَيْنَهُمْ
تَرَاهُمْ رُكَّعًا سُجَّدًا يَبْتَغُونَ فَضْلًا
مِنَ اللَّهِ وَرِضْوَانًاسِيمَاهُمْ فِي
وُجُوهِهِمْ
مِنْ أَثَرِ السُّجُودِ ذَلِكَ مَثَلُهُمْ فِي التَّوْرَاةِ وَمَثَلُهُمْ فِي الْإِنْجِيلِ
كَزَرْعٍ أَخْرَجَ شَطْأَهُ فَآزَرَهُ فَاسْتَغْلَظَ
فَاسْتَوَى عَلَى سُوقِهِ يُعْجِبُ الزُّرَّاعَ
لِيَغِيظَ
بِهِمُ الْكُفَّارَ وَعَدَ اللَّهُ الَّذِينَ آمَنُواوَعَمِلُوا الصَّالِحَاتِ مِنْهُمْ
مَغْفِرَةً وَأَجْرًا عَظِيمًا (الفتح : ٢٩)
Muhammad is the messenger of Allah. And
those with
him
[i.e., the ṣaḥābah] are hard against disbelievers and merciful among
themselves. Thou (O Muhammad) seest
them bowing and falling prostrate (in worship), seeking
bounty from Allah and (His) acceptance. The mark of
them is on their foreheads from the traces of
prostration. Such is their likeness in
the Torah and and their likeness
in the Gospel—like as sown corn that riseth
firm upon its stalk, delighting the sowers—that He may enrage the disbelievers
with (the sight of) them. Allah has promised, those among them who
believe and do good works,
forgiveness and immense
reward.”(Q. 48:29)
إِنَّ
الَّذِينَ سَبَقَتْ لَهُمْ مِنَّا الْحُسْنَى أُولَئِكَ عَنْهَا مُبْعَدُونَ. لَا يَسْمَعُونَ
حَسِيسَهَا
وَهُمْ فِي مَا اشْتَهَتْ أَنْفُسُهُمْ خَالِدُونَ. لَا يَحْزُنُهُمُ الْفَزَعُ الْأَكْبَرُ
وَتَتَلَقَّاهُمُ
الْمَلَائِكَةُ هَذَا يَوْمُكُمُ الَّذِي كُنْتُمْ تُوعَدُونَ
(الأنبياء ٢١ : ١٠١-١٠٣)
Lo! Those unto whom kindness hath gone
forth before from Us,
they will be far removed
from thence. They will not hear the slightest
sound thereof, while they
abode in that which
their souls desire. The Supreme Horror will
not grieve them, and the angels will welcome
them, (saying): This is
your day which
ye were promised. (Q. 21:101-3)
The Prophet
(ﷺ) himself praised his ṣaḥābah and
said:
دَعُوا
لِي أَصْحَابِي، فَلَوْ كَانَ لِأَحَدِكُمْ مِثْلَ أُحُدٍ ذَهَبًا
فَأَنْفَقَهُ
فِيْ سَبِيْلِ الله مَا بَلَغَ مُدَّ أَحَدِهِمْ وَلَا نَصِيْفَهُ
Leave for me my ṣaḥābah.
For if any of you
had gold as big as Mt. Uḥud
and you spent it in
the path of Allah, it
would not reach [the reward
or the merit of] one mudd
(about 1.053 liter)
[of barley or dates] or a
half of it [spent
by them in the path of Allah].
Al
Imān al-Nawawī said that the term (“Leave for me my ṣaḥābah”) means لاَ تَسُبُّوْهُم )“do not insult them”) which is one of major sins. CIVIC, 28 October, 2016)
المراجع:
المكتبة الشاملة
تفسير الطبري (ت. 310 هـ (
تفسير القرطبى (ت. 671 هـ(
تفسير ابن كثير (ت. 774 هـ)
Muhammad Asad. The Message of the Qur’ān
M.A. Samad. Ibn Ḥazm’s
Concept of Ijmā‘
https://islamqa.info/ar/181943
http://www.d1g.com/qna/show/3894722
[1]Muhammad Asad gives his commentary on
this term. He said: “Al- ḥawāriyyūn (sing. ḥawarī)
is the designation applied in the Qur’ān to the disciples of Jesus. Many
interpretation of this term (derived from ḥawar, “witeness”) are given
by the commentators, ranging from “one who whitens clothes by washing them”
(because this was allegedly the occupation of some of Jesus’ disciples) to “one
who wear white garments”, or one whose heart white”, pure (cf. Ṭabarī, Rāzī,
Ibn Kathīr). It is, however most probable – and the evidence provided by the
recently discovered Dead Sea Scrolls, strongly supports this view – that the
term ḥawarī was popularly used to denote a member of
the Essene Brotherhood, a Jewish religious group which existed in Palestine at
the time of Jesus, and to which, possibly, he himself belonged. The Essenes
were distinguished by their strong insistence on moral purity and unselfish
conduct, and always wore white garments as the outward mark of their
convictions; and this would satisfactorily explain the name given to them. The
fact that the Prophet once said, ‘Every prophet has his ḥawarī ‘
(Bukhārī and Muslim) does not conflict with the above view, since he obviously
used this term figuratively, recalling thereby Jesus’ ‘helpers in God cause.’”
Muhamad Asad, The Message of the Qur’ān, p. 75, n. 42 (commentary on Q.
3:52). It is said that the women of Paradise are called الحُوْرُ اْلعَيْن (“those
who have eyes with a marked contrast of white and black, the white of cornea
and the black of the iris.”)
