Our Belief: Love for the Companions - Shaykh Zakaullah Saleem

Opening — Khutbah al-Hajah

Indeed, all praise is due to Allah. We praise Him and ask His help and ask His forgiveness. And we seek refuge in Allah from the evils of our souls and from the evils of our deeds.

O you who have believed, fear Allah as He should be feared, and do not die except as Muslims.

O you who have believed, fear your Lord, Who created you from one soul, and created from it its mate, and He spread among them many men and women. And fear Allah in Whom you ask for help and mercy. Indeed, Allah is ever watching over you.

O you who have believed, fear Allah and say the right words. He will amend for you your deeds and forgive you your sins. And whoever obeys Allah and His Messenger has certainly attained a great success.

As for what follows — the best hadith is the Book of Allah. And the best guidance is the guidance of Muhammad, peace and blessings be upon him. And the worst of things are their innovations, and every innovation is a creation, and every creation is a misguidance, and every misguidance is in the Fire.

The Importance of Correct Aqeedah

Because the aqeedah is the most important part of our religion. Aqeedah is the core, is the foundation of our religion, the religion of Islam that Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala has bestowed on us. The reason we put emphasis on this is that if you do not know your aqeedah from the ayat of the Qur'an and the sunnah of Rasulullah, peace and blessings be upon him, you can easily be misguided.

And one of the harms and the dangers — or disadvantages — of not knowing the correct aqeedah based on the Qur'an and the sunnah of Rasulullah, peace and blessings be upon him, is what we see and face in this sacred blessed month, the month of Muharram.

The Sacred Month of Muharram

Our Nabi, peace and blessings be upon him, has named this sacred month as the month of Allah — the month of Muharram. It is one of the sacred months that Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala declared that these months are sacred from the day when Allah created the heavens and the earth.

Indeed the number of months with Allah is twelve. Out of these twelve months, four are the sacred months. This is the correct religion. This is what Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala said in the Qur'an. And Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala declared that the month of Muharram was sacred from the day when Allah created the heavens and the earth. That is why Rasulullah, peace and blessings be upon him, named it Shahrullah. And there are many virtues of this month that the Prophet, peace and blessings be upon him, has taught us.

But unfortunately, due to our ignorance and our lacking in knowledge and learning our aqeedah particularly, we do not know the details of the virtues of this month. All we know is that this is the month of sorrow and grief. Why? Because one of the horrific incidents — the murder and the martyrdom of the grandson of our beloved Prophet, peace and blessings be upon him, Sayyiduna Hussain ibn Ali ibn Abi Talib, may Allah be pleased with him — took place in this month.

Innovations Surrounding the Month of Muharram

That is why the vast majority of the Muslims see this month as the month of sorrow and grief. They do not know anything other than this. As soon as the month of Muharram starts, the vast majority of Muslims try to put on black clothing in order to show their sorrow and grief towards the martyrdom of Hussain, may Allah be pleased with him. And they do many other innovations that have no place in the religion of Islam. And we find no place for them in the teaching of Rasulullah, peace and blessings be upon him.

People hold their gatherings — all they do in their gatherings, in their conferences, in their ijtemaat, is only the mention of that story that took place hundreds of years ago, the martyrdom of Hussain, may Allah be pleased with him.

And bear in mind — we Ahlus Sunnah wal Jamaah, the followers of the Salaf, Ahlul Hadith, we also feel this sorrow and grief within our hearts. And we strongly believe that Hussain, may Allah be pleased with him, was martyred out of oppression. There is no doubt in it. But is it part of the religion that you hold gatherings and make mention of Hussain, may Allah be pleased with him?

There is no harm in making the mention of Hussain and Hassan, may Allah be pleased with them, and praising them and making mention of their virtues and their high status within the religion of Islam. Because this is what our Prophet, peace and blessings be upon him, has taught us. There is no harm in it.

But the harm comes when you show your ignorance of your aqeedah, and people try to misguide you by linking that incident of the martyrdom of Hussain, may Allah be pleased with him, to the Khilafah of Abu Bakr and Umar and Uthman, may Allah be pleased with them.

All people know about this month is that we cannot conduct, we cannot hold any wedding or nikah ceremonies in this month — because this is a month of sorrow and grief. Who said this? There is no evidence from the Sunnah of Rasulullah, peace and blessings be upon him.

People hold the Sabeel — Sabeel Hussain or Hussainiyat. People cook food and they distribute free food in the name of Hussain. Many of them with the intention that Hussain, may Allah be pleased with him, will be pleased — if you distribute the food in his name, he will be pleased, so he can protect you for the next whole year. But some others say, we do it with the intention of Isal-e-Thawab. Is this from the religion of Allah? Is this something that Rasulullah, peace and blessings be upon him, encouraged? Is this something that Rasulullah, peace and blessings be upon him, taught us?

People, in order to show their sorrow and grief for the martyrdom of Hussain, may Allah be pleased with him, come out of their houses, march on the roads, and beat themselves with knives and chains. They also make their children beat themselves and injure themselves. Is this part of religion? The nauha and beating and wailing at the time of hardship and difficulties — this is something that our Nabi, peace and blessings be upon him, has taught us is one of the major sins.

On one hand, you believe that Hussain, may Allah be pleased with him, was martyred in the way of Allah, out of oppression and zulm. And if someone gets martyred, do you thank Allah that He allowed them to die the best death? Or do you show your sorrow and grief?

Cursing the Companions is an Insult to the Prophet

By linking this incident of Karbala — the martyrdom of Hussain, may Allah be pleased with him — to the Khilafah of Abu Bakr and Umar and Uthman, may Allah be pleased with them all — and this is the most sad and upsetting part of this matter — people curse and criticize and detest Abu Bakr and Umar and Uthman, may Allah be pleased with them all. Those who were the most close friends of Rasulullah, peace and blessings be upon him.

And we, Ahlul Sunnah wal Jamaah, Ahlul Hadith, we believe that anyone who detests and dislikes and criticizes and curses Abu Bakr and Umar and Uthman and Aisha and Hafsa and any other companion of Rasulullah, peace and blessings be upon him — they directly insult Muhammadur Rasulullah, peace and blessings be upon him. Because they are the people who lived with Muhammadur Rasulullah, peace and blessings be upon him. They were the direct students of Rasulullah, peace and blessings be upon him. If you curse them, if you detest them, if you criticize them, then this is a direct insult of Rasulullah, peace and blessings be upon him — disrespect to the Prophet, peace and blessings be upon him. Yet people claim that they love the Prophet, peace and blessings be upon him.

Unfortunately, there is a group amongst the Muslims who call themselves Muslims with the title of Shia and Rafida. They hold very strong and very strange beliefs when it comes to the companions of Rasulullah, peace and blessings be upon him. Due to their hatred towards Abu Bakr and Umar and Uthman, anything and anyone who is linked with them they detest as well. Why do they curse Aisha? Because Aisha was the daughter of Abu Bakr. Why do they curse Hafsa? Because Hafsa was the daughter of Umar. Why do they criticize Muawiyah? Because Muawiyah was one of the relatives of Uthman, may Allah be pleased with him.

Not only the people — even anything that Abu Bakr and Umar and Uthman, may Allah be pleased with them, did for the sake of Allah, for the betterment of the religion of Allah, for spreading the religion of Allah, for safeguarding the religion of Allah — anything that they did positively, these Shia and Rafidas see it as negative — even the compilation of the Qur'an.

But unfortunately, we Ahlus Sunnah wal Jamaah, we think and we believe that no, this is a matter that we need to be quiet on. My dear brothers and sisters in Islam, Wallahi, this is one of the dangers of not knowing your Aqeedah.

Love for the Companions is Part of Aqeedah

How is the love of the companions of Rasulullah, peace and blessings be upon him, linked to your Aqeedah? A part of your Aqeedah is that you believe in all the prophets, and you must believe that the last prophet of Allah was Khatamun Nabiyeen Muhammadur Rasulullah, peace and blessings be upon him. And part of your belief in Muhammadur Rasulullah, peace and blessings be upon him, must be that you love those who were loved by Muhammad, peace and blessings be upon him.

Did the Prophet, peace and blessings be upon him, not love Abu Bakr, may Allah be pleased with him, the most amongst his companions? Yes — Abu Bakr, may Allah be pleased with him, was the most close friend to the Prophet, peace and blessings be upon him. To the extent that the Prophet, peace and blessings be upon him, said:

(Sahih al-Bukhari, Hadith 3656; Sahih Muslim, Hadith 2383)

"If I was to take anyone as my Khalil from the creation of Allah, I would have taken Abu Bakr as my Khalil. But because Allah has taken me as His Khalil, so I am not allowed to take anyone from the creation of Allah as my Khalil." Because Khalil is the highest level of love.

But he, peace and blessings be upon him, was once asked, "O Messenger of Allah, who is the most beloved to you?" The Prophet, peace and blessings be upon him, said, "My wife Aisha." The companion asked the Prophet, peace and blessings be upon him, "From amongst the men, O Messenger of Allah — we are asking you amongst the men — who is the most beloved to you?" He, peace and blessings be upon him, said, "Abu Bakr, the father of Aisha."

(Sunan al-Tirmidhi, Hadith 3890)

The one who is most close to the Prophet, peace and blessings be upon him. The one who is most beloved to the Prophet, peace and blessings be upon him, in the creation of Allah. You hate them and you curse them.

The High Status of Umar ibn al-Khattab

And then Umar, may Allah be pleased with him — who amongst the Muslims does not know the high status of Umar, may Allah be pleased with him, in the religion of Islam? Abdullah ibn Mas'ud, may Allah be pleased with him, used to say, "By Allah, from the day when Umar, may Allah be pleased with him, accepted Islam, we lived a life of dignity and respect. Allah granted us respect and dignity due to Umar, may Allah be pleased with him, and his acceptance of Islam."

The High Status of Uthman ibn Affan

Uthman, may Allah be pleased with him — the one who married two of the daughters of Rasulullah, peace and blessings be upon him, one after another. But unfortunately, those who hate Abu Bakr and Umar, may Allah be pleased with them, they deny so many facts within the history of Islam, within the seerah of Rasulullah, peace and blessings be upon him, the verses of the Qur'an, the hadith of Rasulullah, peace and blessings be upon him. People do not believe that Ruqayyah and Umm Kulthum, may Allah be pleased with them, were the daughters of Muhammad, peace and blessings be upon him. They deny it.

Those who hate Abu Bakr and Umar and Uthman, may Allah be pleased with them, they hate Aisha and Hafsa, although they were the mothers of the believers, the wives of Muhammad, peace and blessings be upon him. I ask you, my dear brothers and sisters in Islam — you claim to love someone, but when it comes to their wives, you say, "We believe that their wives are the most hypocrite" — do you show their love to them? Or is this a clear disrespect and insult?

But unfortunately, we as Ahlus Sunnah wal Jamaah, due to our ignorance of our aqeedah, we do not see the love of the companions of Rasulullah, peace and blessings be upon him, as part of our aqeedah.

Ibn Taymiyyah and al-Aqeedah al-Wasitiyyah

Sheikhul Islam Imam Ibn Taymiyyah, may Allah have mercy on him, has mentioned in his very famous book, Al-Aqeedatul Wasitiyyah, that this is one of the principles of the aqeedah of Ahlus Sunnah wal Jamaah — that we respect all the companions of Rasulullah, peace and blessings be upon him. It is part of our Iman that the best amongst the companions of Rasulullah, peace and blessings be upon him, was Abu Bakr, and he was the most deserving to the Khilafah of Rasulullah, peace and blessings be upon him. And then after Abu Bakr comes Umar, may Allah be pleased with him.

Because the companions Abdullah ibn Umar, Abdullah ibn Abbas, Abdullah ibn Mas'ud, Sayyiduna Anas, and many other companions, ridwanullahi alayhim, testified and said, "We very often used to hear the Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings be upon him, saying: 'I went out — myself and Abu Bakr and Umar. I came in — myself and Abu Bakr and Umar. Myself and Abu Bakr and Umar, we sat down, we stood up.'" The Prophet, peace and blessings be upon him, out of his love for Abu Bakr and Umar, may Allah be pleased with them, very often used to mention both of them with his blessed name, peace and blessings be upon him.

(Sahih al-Bukhari, Hadith 3685; Sahih Muslim, Hadith 2391)

The Prophet, peace and blessings be upon him, loved them. That is why we love them. And it is part of our Iman that we must love Abu Bakr and Umar and Uthman, ridwanullahi alayhim ajma'een.

The Khulafa Rashidun and the Ten Promised Paradise

We also believe that all four of them — Abu Bakr and Umar and Uthman and Ali, ridwanullahi alayhim ajma'een — they were the Khulafa Rashidun. We also believe that amongst the companions of Rasulullah, peace and blessings be upon him, were the ten companions that the Prophet, peace and blessings be upon him, gave the glad tidings of paradise by making the mention of their names — clearly stating and saying:

(Sunan al-Tirmidhi, Hadith 3747; Sunan Abi Dawud, Hadith 4649)

Abu Bakr is in paradise, Umar is in paradise, Uthman is in paradise, Ali is in paradise, Talha is in paradise, Zubair ibn al-Awwam is in paradise, Sa'd ibn Abi Waqqas is in paradise, Sa'id ibn Zayd is in paradise, Abdul Rahman ibn Awf is in paradise, Abu Ubaidah ibn al-Jarrah is in paradise. He, peace and blessings be upon him, named them one by one and said all of them are in paradise.

Do you and I have any guarantee that we are going to go to paradise? No, we do not have any guarantee. You open your mouth and you curse them. You curse those who are already in paradise. This is our belief.

The Companions of Badr and Hudaybiyyah

The Prophet, peace and blessings be upon him, also praised and gave the glad tidings to those who took part in the Battle of Badr, when he, peace and blessings be upon him, said that Allah looked at the sacrifice of those who took part in the Battle of Badr and Allah said, "Do whatever you want in your life — I have forgiven you."

(Sahih al-Bukhari, Hadith 3983; Sahih Muslim, Hadith 2494)

We also believe that every single companion of Rasulullah, peace and blessings be upon him, who gave the pledge on the hand of Rasulullah, peace and blessings be upon him, at the occasion of Hudaybiyyah — all of them are forgiven by Allah, despite their mistakes and errors.

Indeed, Allah is pleased with those believers who took the bay'ah and pledge on the hand of Rasulullah, peace and blessings be upon him, underneath that tree.

It is a reality that those who accepted Islam and spent in the way of Allah before the victory of Mecca are at a higher level and of higher rank than those who accepted Islam afterwards. We give every companion the status that Rasulullah, peace and blessings be upon him, has declared for them. But Allah says in this ayah that Allah has promised all of them paradise.

That is why the aqeedah of Ahlus Sunnah wal Jamaah is: all of the companions of Rasulullah, peace and blessings be upon him — anyone who looked at the blessed face of Rasulullah, peace and blessings be upon him, while being in the state of Islam, is called a sahabi, the sahib of Rasulullah, peace and blessings be upon him. And Allah has promised all of them paradise.

Not Getting Involved in the Conflicts Between Companions

It is also part of our principles of aqeedah that we do not get involved in and do not discuss in detail the conflicts, battles, and wars that took place between the companions of Rasulullah, peace and blessings be upon him. It is from the principles of the religion. Because once you start discussing them, you end up criticizing one or the other. And this is unfortunately what happens to many of those who claim themselves to be part of Ahlus Sunnah wal Jamaah — they end up criticizing Muawiyah, may Allah be pleased with him.

Although Muawiyah, may Allah be pleased with him, was one of the companions of Rasulullah, peace and blessings be upon him. Despite his many mistakes, we believe that Muawiyah was the companion, the sahabi of Rasulullah, peace and blessings be upon him. And there is no need for us to get involved in the details of what took place between Ali and Muawiyah, may Allah be pleased with them. Because it will decrease the love for them in your heart and increase nothing other than hatred for one or the other.

Ahlus Sunnah: The Middle Path Between Rafida and Nasiba

That is why Ahlus Sunnah wal Jamaah is in between the Rafida and the Nasiba. Rafida are those who criticize and curse the companions of Rasulullah, peace and blessings be upon him. And Nasiba are those who criticize and curse the Ahlul Bayt, the family of Rasulullah, peace and blessings be upon him, including Ali and Hassan and Hussain, may Allah be pleased with them. We, Ahlus Sunnah wal Jamaah, are in the middle. We follow the middle path, a balanced way — we do not take the side of the Rafida, and we do not take the side of the Nasiba.

We Do Not Believe the Companions Were Infallible

And be it clear — that is why I say it is part of our aqeedah to learn about the companions of Rasulullah, peace and blessings be upon him. We never ever believe that they were infallible — that they never committed any mistake. No, they did make mistakes. There were some mistakes. But Allah forgave them.

The companions of Rasulullah, peace and blessings be upon him — they did not turn back into kufr after they accepted Islam. Apart from those who are clearly mentioned — some of those apostates who went back into kufr during the life of Rasulullah, peace and blessings be upon him. Yes, there were some Muslims who, after the death of Rasulullah, peace and blessings be upon him, went back into kufr. But Abu Bakr, may Allah be pleased with him, fought against them. But as for the companions of Rasulullah, peace and blessings be upon him — and especially the Khulafa ur-Rashidun, the Asharah Mubasharah, the Ashab of Badr, of Hudaybiyyah, and of Fath ul-Makkah — all of them are promised paradise by Allah. This is part of our faith and part of our aqeedah.

Love for the Ahlul Bayt is Also Part of Iman

We also believe that loving the family of Rasulullah, peace and blessings be upon him — the Ahlul Bayt: Ali, Fatima, Hassan, and Hussain, may Allah be pleased with them all — is also part of our Iman. As the Prophet, peace and blessings be upon him, said about all his companions:

(Sahih al-Bukhari, Hadith 3673; Sahih Muslim, Hadith 2540)

"Never criticize or curse my companions." And he also said, peace and blessings be upon him, "Whoever loves them, loves them because he loves me. And whoever hates them, hates them because he hates me." This is a statement of your beloved Prophet, peace and blessings be upon him.

We love Ali, may Allah be pleased with him. We love him because love for Ali, may Allah be pleased with him, is part of our aqeedah and Iman. We must love Ali, may Allah be pleased with him. Because the Prophet, peace and blessings be upon him, said about Ali:

(Sahih Muslim, Hadith 78)

"O Ali, no one will love you apart from the one who is a true believer. And no one can detest you, no one can hate you, except the one who is a hypocrite." By the grace of Allah, we are the believers. We love Ali, we love Uthman, we love Umar, we love Abu Bakr, may Allah be pleased with them all.

We also love the wives of the Prophet, peace and blessings be upon him. We believe that all of them were the mothers of the believers. And Allah has declared it in the Qur'an:

The Prophet is the most closest to the believers than their own souls, and his wives are their mothers. Allah said azwaj — plural, not singular. He did not say only one wife, Khadijah. Rather Allah said azwajuhu — all of his wives are the mothers of the believers: including Aisha, including Hafsa, including Maimunah, including Zainab, including Mariyah, and the other wives of the Prophet, peace and blessings be upon him. We love all of them, and we believe that they were the mothers of the believers. And we love Hassan and Hussain and Fatima, may Allah be pleased with them all.

Love for the Ahlul Bayt, the family of Rasulullah, peace and blessings be upon him, is also part of our Iman.

Du'a — Closing Supplication

May Allah increase the love for the Ahlul Bayt and all the companions of Rasulullah, peace and blessings be upon him, in our hearts. And we ask Allah to allow us to be with them in Paradise. May Allah allow us to see the Prophet, peace and blessings be upon him, in Paradise, and to be in the companionship of Abu Bakr, and Umar, and Uthman, and Ali, and Talha, and Bilal, and Aisha, and Hafsa, and Fatima, and Hassan, and Hussain, may Allah be pleased with them all, in Paradise. May Allah give us the ability to correct our aqeedah and to learn our religion. Ameen.