Emulating the Sahaba: Models of Success and Divine Pleasure

Opening — Quranic Verse on the Sahaba

In the name of Allah, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful. Praise be to Allah, and peace and blessings be upon His servants who have chosen what is next. Allah, the Exalted, said in His revelation, after we seek refuge in Allah from the accursed Satan:

And the foremost of the emigrants and the helpers, and those who followed them with goodness — may Allah be pleased with them and they be pleased with Him. And He has prepared for them gardens beneath which rivers flow, abiding therein forever. That is the great triumph. Sadaqallahul Azeem.

My dear respected brothers and sisters, respected elders, and young friends in Islam, As-salamu alaykum wa rahmatullahi wa barakatuh.

Allah Did Not Leave Us Without Guidance

Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala, when He sent us down into this world, He did not leave us without purpose, without direction. Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala sent the Anbiya alayhim wa salam with the revelation, guiding us to the purpose of our creation and how to lead our lives and prepare for the hereafter. And Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala sent the Anbiya alayhim wa salam as the first line of models for us to follow.

Indeed, for you in the noble life of the Prophet sallallahu alayhi wa sallam is the best example. But after the Prophets, after the Anbiya alayhim wa salam, and in our case after our beloved Nabi, our Master sallallahu alayhi wa sallam, He did not leave us without further examples, further models to emulate, to be inspired by, and to follow their footsteps.

And amongst our pious predecessors, the one group which Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala declared His pleasure with in the Qur'an, in very clear explicit terms — that indeed He is pleased with them:

رَضِيَ اللَّهُ عَنْهُمْ وَرَضُوا عَنْهُ — Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala is pleased with them and they are pleased with Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala. This is the group of the Sahaba, Ridwanullahi ta'ala alayhim ajma'een.

May Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala allow us to fill our hearts with their love, and to follow their footsteps. Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala says in this ayah that I quoted: those that are the pious predecessors from amongst the immigrants, the muhajirun, and the ansar, the helpers. And those who followed after them in ihsan — in perfection, in pleasing Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala. رَضِيَ اللَّهُ عَنْهُمْ وَرَضُوا عَنْهُ — Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala is pleased with them and they are pleased with Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala. And Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala has prepared for them gardens — Jannat tajree tahtahal anhar — in which rivers are flowing. They will remain therein forever. And then He concludes the ayah by saying, ذَٰلِكَ الْفَوْزُ الْعَظِيمُ — this is the greatest success.

Who Are the Sahaba and What Is Their Defining Quality?

So who are these Sahaba and how did they become Sahaba? If you look at the actual word Sahaba, it comes from suhbah — companionship. The defining quality of the Sahaba Ridwanullahi ta'ala alayhim ajma'een is that they were granted the distinct honor of having the company of Rasulullah sallallahu alayhi wa sallam. They could have been termed as mu'minoon — the believers — or muslimoon — those who submit to Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala. Or mutasaddiqoon — those who give sadaqah. Or musalloon — those who perform salah. Saimoon — those who fast. All of these ibadah they did. They could have had many different titles. But the title they have been granted is that of Sahaba, coming from suhbah, meaning that they had the companionship of Rasulullah sallallahu alayhi wa sallam. And there is nothing that can compare to that. There is no other quality that can match having the companionship of Rasulullah sallallahu alayhi wa sallam.

The Hadith: Allah Selected the Companions

Rasulullah sallallahu alayhi wa sallam mentioned in a hadith:

(Reported by al-Hakim in al-Mustadrak, and others)

Verily Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala has chosen me, has selected me. And He has selected for me my companions, my helpers, and asharah — my relatives through marriage, my in-laws. Meaning every single marriage of Rasulullah sallallahu alayhi wa sallam was selected by Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala. And these are selected by Allah.

فَسَيَأْتِي قَوْمٌ يَسُبُّونَهُمْ وَيَسْتَنْقِصُونَهُمْ — A time will come when people will arise who will try to find faults in my companions, and they will be — na'udhu billah — finding faults in them, and yasubboonahum, even cursing them, attacking them, their honor.

Then the Prophet sallallahu alayhi wa sallam sent four warnings about them:

Falaa tujaasisoohum — Do not ever sit with such people. Do not even sit in such a gathering.
Walaa tuwakiloohum — Do not eat with such people.
Walaa tusharibuhum — Do not drink with such people.
Walaa tunakihuhum — Do not marry anyone of these people.

Those Who Attack the Sahaba

So there are different groups throughout history who have attacked Abu Bakr Siddiq radiyallahu anhu, attacked Umar Farooq, attacked Aisha radiyallahu anha — the wives of Rasulullah sallallahu alayhi wa sallam — even though they claim to love Rasulullah, the family of Rasulullah, the Ahlul Bayt, the family of Rasulullah sallallahu alayhi wa sallam. Yet they attack his wives, starting with his own wives — even just because they may be the daughters of Abu Bakr and Umar radiyallahu anhuma.

They believe that — with the exception of Ali radiyallahu anhu, Salman al-Farsi, Ammar ibn Yasir, and a few notable Sahaba — the majority of the Sahaba became hypocrites, that they are munafiqoon. What could be farther from the truth? The initial recipients of revelation, upon whom the Qur'an was revealed, who were the ones being addressed by the Qur'an, they were the companions of Rasulullah sallallahu alayhi wa sallam — yet they believe they left the fold of Islam. Nothing can be farther from the truth. May Allah ta'ala protect us from such batil ideologies.

Quranic Proof: Jannah Is Promised for the Sahaba

Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala clearly mentioned in the Qur'an that He has promised Jannah for them. He says in Surah Al-Hadid:

Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala says that they can never be equal — those who strove in the path of Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala and made sacrifices before the Fath of Makkah, and those who came afterwards. Because before the Fath of Makkah it was difficult, and after the Fath of Makkah it became easier. Those who worshipped Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala in the difficult times, their rank is much higher than those who came in the easier time. But, at the end of the day, Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala says, وَكُلًّا وَعَدَ اللَّهُ الْحُسْنَىٰ — both groups, Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala has promised Jannah for them. A very clear explicit ayah — that Jannah is promised for the Sahaba.

So hating the Sahaba, having animosity towards them, attacking them — this is not going to hurt their status, not going to impact or affect them in any way. It will only be a sign of — na'udhu billah — losing our own iman.

The Qualities of the Sahaba in Surah Al-Fath

Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala says at the end of Surah Al-Fath:

Muhammad sallallahu alayhi wa sallam is the messenger of Allah. And those who are with him — his companions — their qualities are mentioned: أَشِدَّاءُ عَلَى الْكُفَّارِ رُحَمَاءُ بَيْنَهُمْ — They are strong and severe against the enemies of Allah, and they are loving and merciful to each other.

Not strong and severe against any single peace-loving non-Muslim civilian — to clarify that. What it means is those who are the oppressors, those who are doing zulm on people, those who are attacking the Muslims, those who are not allowing Allah to be worshipped in the land — in the battle, that is when they are أَشِدَّاءُ عَلَى الْكُفَّارِ. They are strong and severe, they do not turn their backs, they are not cowards. We need to clarify that in this day and age, so that we do not reach a wrong conclusion. أَشِدَّاءُ عَلَى الْكُفَّارِ means in an actual battlefield they are brave. Otherwise, of course, they have love for the entire creation, they wish for the guidance of humanity.

They are the best of all the ummah — or rather all of us have been selected for the guidance of mankind. We cannot be a true mu'min until we love for others what we love for ourselves. But this أَشِدَّاءُ عَلَى الْكُفَّارِ is limited to the actual active battlefield. رُحَمَاءُ بَيْنَهُمْ — they love and have mercy for one another. تَرَاهُمْ رُكَّعًا سُجَّدًا — you will see them sometimes in the condition of ruku' and sometimes in the condition of sujood — sometimes bowing, sometimes prostrating. يَبْتَغُونَ فَضْلًا مِّنَ اللَّهِ وَرِضْوَانًا — they are seeking the bounty of their Lord, they are seeking the pleasure of their Lord.

سِيمَاهُمْ فِي وُجُوهِهِم مِّنْ أَثَرِ السُّجُودِ — there are marks on their faces, on their foreheads, from the effect of sajdah. This is not necessarily referring to the hardening of the skin on the forehead, but beyond that it is the nur that emanates from their foreheads, from their faces, from the excessive prostration and sajdah in front of Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala.

The Sahaba Described in the Torah and Injil

Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala says that — just as we know and must have heard many times — the Prophet sallallahu alayhi wa sallam, his detailed description was given in the Torah, in the Zabur, in the Injil, in the previous scriptures. The Anbiya alayhim wa salam came and told their ummah that there will be a final Prophet who is coming, and these are his signs. Such that the Jewish rabbis — Allah ta'ala says:

They recognized the Prophet sallallahu alayhi wa sallam when he came to Medina, to Yathrib — just like a father would be able to recognize his own children, they knew from head to toe: this is the messenger of Allah. But in this ayah we also learn that just like the prophecies about Rasulullah sallallahu alayhi wa sallam and his detailed description — his alamat, his athar, his signs — were mentioned in the Taurat, Zabur, and Injil; and just as Isa alayhis salam came and he said:

I come to give the glad tidings: there will be a Nabi after me, his name is Ahmad, mentioned in Surah As-Saf. Likewise, we learn in Surah Al-Fath that — Allahu Akbar — even the Sahaba, their qualities were mentioned in the previous scriptures: ذَٰلِكَ مَثَلُهُمْ فِي التَّوْرَاةِ وَمَثَلُهُمْ فِي الْإِنجِيلِ — this description was in the Taurat, this description was in the Injil.

Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala gives an example of how crops grow — they are very weak in the beginning, but then they become strong, and they are able to withstand the weather, and they give beautiful, bountiful grains and fruits. يُعْجِبُ الزُّرَّاعَ — the farmer who has done his effort, put his toil into the earth, is now pleased and happy to see the results. But then, لِيَغِيظَ بِهِمُ الْكُفَّارَ — those who are the disbelievers, those who have kufr, they are the ones who will be hurt by seeing the success of the Sahaba. They are not happy with the progress of the Sahaba. They have enmity towards the Sahaba. لِيَغِيظَ بِهِمُ الْكُفَّارَ — and they are named as kufar in this ayah.

So Imam Malik rahmatullahi alayhi and other scholars in the past said that this ayah indicates that having hatred towards the Sahaba, ridwanullahi alayhim ajma'een, can be kufr. Because Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala said لِيَغِيظَ بِهِمُ الْكُفَّارَ — which is a very dire warning. May Allah protect us.

Then Allah ta'ala continues to conclude the ayah and the surah by saying: وَعَدَ اللَّهُ الَّذِينَ آمَنُوا وَعَمِلُوا الصَّالِحَاتِ مِنْهُم مَّغْفِرَةً وَأَجْرًا عَظِيمًا — Allah has promised those who believe and do righteous deeds, that for them is maghfirah — forgiveness — and ajran azheeman — great, abundant reward.

The Words of Abdullah ibn Mas'ud About the Sahaba

Abdullah ibn Mas'ud radiyallahu anhu, when praising the Sahaba radiyallahu anhum and warning others, said — and similar narrations are found from Abdullah ibn Umar and other Sahaba:

(Reported in various narration collections; see Musnad Ahmad and others)

Never dare to utter any words of disrespect against the companions of Muhammad sallallahu alayhi wa sallam. For their standing up for a short period of time in the ibadah of Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala is better than your entire life's worth of ibadah. Because of the level of iman that they had, the level of ikhlas, the level of sincerity that they had.

As the Prophet sallallahu alayhi wa sallam said — sometimes shaqqu tamratin — not an entire date, one date, but a half of one date. In the eyes of Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala, the reward of that can be greater than giving an entire mountain of gold in the path of Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala. It is the ikhlas. Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala looks at the sincerity. Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala on the Day of Judgment will not be counting the deeds — He will be weighing the deeds. There is not 'addul a'mal, it is wazn al-a'mal.

Allah will establish the scales of justice. And they will not be counting the deeds — they will be weighing the deeds.

Allah has created this system of life and death to test you: who amongst you will have the best quality of their deeds — not necessarily the most deeds. So the Sahaba Ridwanullahi alayhim ajma'een — their deeds are of the highest quality.

أَعْمَقُهُمْ عِلْمًا — they had the deepest knowledge of the deen.
أَبَرُّهُمْ قُلُوبًا — they had the purest hearts.
أَقَلُّهُمْ تَكَلُّفًا — they had the least level of formalities and pretentious behavior. They were sincere.
كَانُوا مَصَابِيحَ الْهُدَى — they were the lanterns of guidance.

The Anbiya Are Ma'soom — The Sahaba Are Maghfur

At the same time, we have to remember the limits — as everything is about keeping our aqeedah in the proper limits — that it is only the Anbiya alayhim wa salam who are divinely protected from committing sins. So technically the Anbiya are ma'soom — meaning divinely protected from committing sins. They do not commit major sins nor minor sins. They do not commit these sins prior to and post-prophethood. They are ma'soomun 'anil sagha'ir wal kaba'ir qabla al-nubuwwati wa ba'daha.

Not like what we see in the Bible, with the Christians attributing the worst crimes — that even an average person would never dare to commit — they assign these crimes to their prophets: whether it is incest, adultery, murder. As they claim — their understanding of David — fell in love with the wife of General Uriah, then he sends him to the battlefield and gets him killed, and then he takes his wife — na'udhu billahi min thalika. So we believe that the Anbiya are ma'soom, they never commit sins. How can they be a model if they are committing sins?

They do not speak even from their desires, much less do any actions based on their desires. Whatever they speak is a divine revelation. مَا كَانَ لِنَبِيٍّ أَن يَغُلَّ — no Nabi will commit any khiyanah or do any treacherous behavior.

Now, after that — when it comes to the Sahaba — are they ma'soom? Because we are talking about their praises: Allah has forgiven them, Allah has elevated their status, Allah is pleased with them, Allah has selected them, their maqam is so great, so high. So do we believe from an aqeedah perspective that they are ma'soom? That is not the case. The Anbiya are ma'soom, and only the Anbiya are ma'soom.

But the Sahaba ridwanullahi alayhim ajma'een — where do they stand? Are they just very great people? Or exactly how can we define their position in a very objective manner? Because we got the basic idea that they are great people, they are beloved by Allah ta'ala. And we now learn that they are not ma'soom. So we have to remind ourselves — subhanAllah — they are at a level which is known as maghfur. They are not ma'soom but they are maghfur. Meaning Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala has repeatedly, very clearly and explicitly, promised that He has forgiven them.

So if they have committed any sin — which they may have, they may have committed minor sins, they may have even committed major sins — the fact of the matter is, at the end of the day, their forgiveness has been promised by Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala. So if Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala has forgiven them, and we keep grudges in our hearts, then this is a foolishness on our part. This is a grave mistake on our part.

The Wisdom of Umar ibn Abd al-Aziz

That is why it was said — when Umar ibn Abd al-Aziz rahmatullahi alayhi was asked about Ali radiyallahu anhu and Mu'awiya radiyallahu anhu and others in the past, what his opinion was — he said: Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala has protected our swords from shedding their blood. I would desire and hope to protect my tongue from slandering them and — consuming their meat, na'udhu billah. As Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala says about backbiting:

Would you dare like to eat the dead meat of your brother? Fakarihtumoohu — naturally you would dislike it. Such is the similitude and the example of backbiting. So if Allah has protected us from committing the sin of shedding any of their blood, why should I now defile my tongue by speaking ill of them? So we hold back our tongue, we do not attack them, we love them, we respect them, we follow them. This is the beautiful relationship we can have with the Sahaba, Ridwanullahi alayhim ajma'een.

The Teacher and the Students — An Analogy

I conclude with an example. There is a teacher who is educating the class. He is in a loftier position, he has more knowledge, and he is a master of the subject — so we benefit from that teacher. And then within the class, there are those who are the gold medalists, the first, the top 5% of the class, the 10% of the class — those who are excelling in their studies — and then those who are mediocre, and then there may be — may Allah forbid — those who are in the back bench, or failing.

So there is of course a great deal of benefit the students can take from the teacher and guidance and benefit from the lessons. The teacher of this ummah, as Rasulullah sallallahu alayhi wa sallam said:

(Sunan Ibn Majah, Hadith 229)

Verily, I have been sent as a teacher. In fact, he said innama — only, I have only been sent as a teacher. Only. This is my primary purpose: to be a mu'allim. The actual ilm comes from Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala — innama ana qasim, wallahu yu'ti — Allah grants the ilm, the nur from Allah, and then I distribute it to the ummah. And we are all the ummah of Rasulullah sallallahu alayhi wa sallam — we are all the students of Rasulullah sallallahu alayhi wa sallam.

And the level of the Sahaba, in this example, would be like those who are at the top of the class. So there is so much cross-learning that can happen amongst the students. There are certain things that we can gauge from the students — perhaps even things that may be difficult to learn directly from the teacher. Because the teacher is already at such a high level. The student is going through the same struggle as we are. He is approaching the subject as we are approaching the subject. But he is excelling in his performance. So we can learn from those students: how did you do this? How were you able to accomplish this?

At the end of the day, Nabi sallallahu alayhi wa sallam had certain khasa'is — certain beautiful, unique attributes — that set him apart from the rest of the ummah. He received divine revelation; we do not, nor did the Sahaba. He had miracles — Allah granted him. The Sahaba did not have that level of miracles; they had karamat, but the karamat are open till today. We do not have mu'jizat; the Sahaba did not have mu'jizat — only the Nabi had mu'jizat. There were special privileges and special responsibilities granted to Nabi sallallahu alayhi wa sallam that were not granted to us.

So in a way we can say that we have more in common with the Sahaba, and we can relate to them in ways that, in some aspects, may be difficult to relate to Rasulullah sallallahu alayhi wa sallam. This is how much we can benefit from them. That is why Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala has granted us this beautiful galaxy. Nabi sallallahu alayhi wa sallam of course was so comprehensive in his nature — he showed us as a Nabi, as the ultimate model. But the Sahaba, they showed us the model of being an ummati. So we are the ummati of Rasulullah sallallahu alayhi wa sallam, and the Sahaba were the best ummatis of Rasulullah sallallahu alayhi wa sallam. So when it comes to being a follower — how to be the best follower — we will gain that inspiration from the Sahaba.

May Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala fill our hearts with their love. Allow us to truly realize their value, their virtue, how beloved they are to Allah. And insha'Allah, by loving them, we can hope to be resurrected with them.

Al-Mar'u Ma'a Man Ahabba — A Person Is with Whom He Loves

I conclude with this beautiful basharah. Rasulullah sallallahu alayhi wa sallam was one day sitting when a Bedouin came. He came to Nabi sallallahu alayhi wa sallam and abruptly asked a question: "When is the Day of Judgment approaching, exactly, ya Rasulullah?"

Now, he was a Bedouin from outside, and the Bedouins were very straightforward, very frank. They did not necessarily have the opportunity to learn the protocol and the adab. And that is why the Sahaba — who were daily with Nabi sallallahu alayhi wa sallam, the Ansari and Muhajirun — they looked forward to the Bedouins coming. Because they would do all kinds of different strange things, and the Prophet sallallahu alayhi wa sallam would react in different manners with them — and this would become an educational opportunity. They loved to see how Nabi sallallahu alayhi wa sallam would react to these different questions.

Because this has been mentioned so many times already in the Qur'an that had been revealed up to that point — they asked you exactly when the Day of Judgment is coming; tell them that the knowledge of this is only with Allah. So everyone knew that Allah has kept that knowledge with Himself. Yet this Bedouin comes and says: "When is the Day of Judgment coming, ya Rasulullah?"

So the Prophet sallallahu alayhi wa sallam responded not by replying to the question, but by asking him a question. He said: "What have you prepared for that day? You are so boldly asking — bring it on, when is it coming? What have you prepared for that day?"

As I said, they had aqallu takallufan — they did not have formalities. So he very frankly said: "Look, ya Rasulullah, I did not prepare for that day with a lot of sadaqa and sawm — fasting and charity. I do not have abundant nafl charity or abundant nafl fasting to my credit."

"But one thing I can safely declare and proudly mention — subhanAllah — is that I deeply love Allah and His Rasul."

Then Nabi sallallahu alayhi wa sallam said:

"Do not worry. You are asking about the Day of Judgment — that means you are worried about it. Do not worry. Al-mar'u ma'a man ahabba yawmal qiyamah — a person will be raised in the company of whom he loves."

So insha'Allah, if you feel a heart of love for Rasulullah sallallahu alayhi wa sallam, and the Nabiyyeen, Siddiqeen — Abu Bakr al-Siddiq — the Shuhada — Umar, Uthman, and Ali — and if you become among the Saliheen, then insha'Allah, we will be together.

These are the best companions. Rafiq is a companion. Wa hasuna ula'ika rafiqa — these are the best companions. May Allah ta'ala grant us their rifaqah in Jannah.

Wa akhiru da'wana anil hamdulillahi rabbil 'alamin.

Announcements & Du'as

Please come closer insha'Allah. Please fill in the gaps and perform sunnah. Please do not leave any gaps.

A few important announcements. Sister Iman Nadeem, daughter of Nadeem Mudassir, is undergoing surgery. Please pray for her complete shifa and speedy recovery.

Please pass the donation boxes from left to right. Please donate generously. Sadaqa wards off calamity and draws the mercy of Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala. The sadaqa given on the day of Jumu'ah is more rewarding, as mentioned by Nabi sallallahu alayhi wa sallam in a hadith.

Summer Programs at Darussalam

There are many summer programs for the entire family here at Darussalam. There are many who want to benefit from Islamic knowledge but cannot do so on a full-time basis. That is why there are different programs catered for every age group in the summer:

Tamheed Summer Deen Intensive in Arabic Essentials — for young adults, men and women, older brothers and sisters, ages 14 and up. This is for all teenagers and anyone above — 20s, 30s, at any age. This is for adult learners.

Qur'an, Islamic Studies & Sports Camp — for boys and girls from ages 6 to 13.

Tarbiyah for Tots — for younger children, boys and girls ages 4 to 5.

Mini-Muslims Program — for toddlers ages 0 to 5. Nurture your little one's love for the deen in a welcoming space by joining our fun-filled sessions for moms and kids every Thursday, from 10 to 11 a.m. in the Sister's Banquet Hall, lower level.

Other Programs & Events

Team Fajr Program — Tazkiyah with breakfast, Saturdays after Fajr (iqamah at 4:45 a.m.)

Tuesday Night Tafsirs — after Maghrib salah; Surah Ghafir is continuing.

Weekly Salawat & Khatir — Thursday nights after Maghrib salah.

There is a citywide students' gathering regarding the effort of da'wah and yaqeen / iman at Masjid an-Nur on the north side of Chicago, after Maghrib tonight.

We also have a request for du'a for sister Nishad Akhtar, who is in the hospital on the ventilator. Please make du'a for her shifa.

And of course we continue to make du'a for our brothers and sisters in Palestine, in Gaza. May Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala grant them near victory. May Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala grant them sabr jameel and accept their shuhada. May Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala guide the Muslim leaders throughout the world to stand up for justice and against the oppressors. May Allah accept our du'a.

And praise be to Allah, Lord of the worlds.

Second Khutbah Du'a

Ibadallah, rahimakumullah, inna Allaha ya'muru bil-'adli wal-ihsan, wa ita'i dhil-qurba, wa yanha 'anil fahsha'i wal-munkari wal-baghi, ya'ithukum la'allakum tadhakkarun. Udhkurullaha yadhkurkum, wad'uhu yastajib lakum, wa ladhikrullahi akbar, wallahu ya'lamu ma tasna'un. Wa aqimis-salah.