Verily all praise is for Allah,
we praise Him and seek His aid, and we ask for His forgiveness, and we seek
refuge in Allah from the evils of our own selves and from our evil deeds.
Whomsoever Allah has guided, none can misguide him, and whomsoever Allah has
misguided, none can guide him, and I testify that none has the right to be
worshiped except Allah, without any partner, and I testify that Muhammad is His
servant and Messenger.
While reading this, we cannot
help but be moved by the lives of the Companions herein depicted. How we long
to have their awe and reverence for Allah! How we long to spend the same hours
in worship as they! How we long to be as brave as they were in the face of
danger! How we long to be as patient as they were under torture! It is my
hope that this will fulfill a need for the English speaking Muslim to learn
more about that first generation of Muslims. Indeed the Companions - those men
and women who were contemporaneous with the Prophet Muhammad (PBUH) -- inspire
and encourage us. Read these stories and share them with your children, for
these Companions are a part of our Islamic heritage that will, Allah willing,
strengthen us as a nation if we try to follow their examples.
To proceed, SALMAAN AL-FAARISIY (The Seeker after Truth)
From Persia comes our hero this time, and from Persia many
came to embrace Islam in the long run, and it made some of them extraordinary,
unsurpassable in faith and knowledge in religion and worldly affairs.
It is one of the wonders of Islam and its greatness that it
never enters a country on Allah's earth but that it exerts invaluable influence
on all its potentialities and forces, bringing forth the latent genius of its
people and followers. From there came forth Muslim philosophers, physicians,
jurists, astronomers, inventors, and mathematicians.
Behold, they reached all
heights, broke all frontiers, until the first era of Islam flourished with
great geniuses in all fields of intellectual activity such as administration
and science. Verily, they came from various nations, but their religion
remained one.
The Prophet (PBUH) had prophesied this blessed spread of his
religion. Indeed, he had been so promised by his Almighty Lord. He had pointed
to the time, place, and day, and he had seen in his mind's eye the banner of
Islam fluttering in all comers of the earth and over the palaces of its earthly
rulers.
Salmaan Al-Faarisiy (The Persian) bore witness to this and was
firmly connected with what happened. That was on the Day of Al Khandaq (The
Trench) in the year A.H. 5, when the leaders of the Jews approached Makkah to
stir up the polytheists and form an alliance against the Prophet (PBUH) and the
Muslims, asking the polytheists to enter upon a treaty for decisive battle to
eradicate this new religion.
The ungodly war was planned: the Quraish army and allies would
attack Al-Madiinah from outside, while the Bani Ouraidhah would attack from
within, behind the ranks of the Muslims, who would then fall prey and be
crushed. One day the Prophet (PBUH) and the Muslims were taken unaware by a
huge well-armed army marching on Al-Madiinah. The Qur'aan depicts the scene
thus: "When they came against you from above you and from below you and
your eyes turned away and your hearts reached to your throats, and you imagined
vain thoughts about GOD; in that place the believers were tried and shaken most
severely" (33:10-11).
Twenty-four thousand fighters under the command of Abu Sufyaan
and `Uyainah lbn Hisn were advancing on Al-Madiinah to storm it and to lay
siege to it in order to get rid of Muhammad, his religion, and his Companions.
This army did not represent the Quraish alone, for they were in alliance with
all the tribes, and all had vested interests that were threatened by Islam. It
was a last and decisive attempt embarked on by all the enemies of the Prophet
(PBUH), based upon individual, collective, and tribal interests.
The Muslims found themselves in a precarious situation. The
Prophet (PBUH) assembled his Companions for consultation. Certainly they were
gathered to reach a decision on defense and battle, but how could they put up a
defense? And then a long - legged man with flowing hair for whom the Prophet
(PBUH) bore great love, Salmaan Al-Faarisiy, held up his head and took a look
at Al Madiinah, which was surrounded by hills, mountains, and exposed open
country which could be easily broken through by the enemy.
Salmaan had much experience, in warfare and its tactics in his
native Persia. So he proposed to the Prophet (PBUH) something which the Arabs
had never seen before in warfare. It was the digging of a trench in the exposed
places around Al- Madiinah.
And Allah knows what could have been the position of the
Muslims in that battle had they not dug the trench, which was no sooner seen by
the Quraish than they were stunned by despair. The forces of the enemy still
remained in their tents for a month, unable to take Al-Madiinah, until Allah
sent them one night a storm which devastated their tents and tore them
asunder.
Then Abu Sufyaan announced to his forces that they should
return to where they had come from. They were despondent and frustrated.
During the excavation of the trench, Salmaan took his place
among the Muslims while they dug and removed the sand. The Prophet (PBUH) was
also taking part in digging where Salmaan was working in a group. Their
pickaxes could not smash a stubborn rock, in spite of the fact that Salmaan was
of strong build and hard working. A single stroke of his would break a rock to
pieces, but he stood in front of this stubborn one. He let all those around him
try to break it, but in vain. Salmaan went to the Prophet (PBUH) to ask him to
divert the trench around that stubborn and challenging rock. The Prophet (PBUH)
returned with Salmaan to see the rock himself. When he saw it, he called for a
pickax and asked the Companions to keep back from the splinters. He said,
"In the name of Allah," and then raised his blessed, firm hands
gripping the pickax and let it fall.
The rock broke, making a great light. Salmaan said that he
himself saw that light shining upon AlMadiinah. The Prophet (PBUH) raised the
pickax and gave a second blow and the rock broke more. At that moment the
Prophet (PBUH) said loudly, "Allahu akbar - Allah is the Greatest - I have
been given the keys to Rome; its red palaces have been lit for me and my nation
has vanquished it."
The Prophet (PBUH) struck his third blow. Then the rock
shattered and its glittering light was seen! The Prophet (PBUH) told them that
he was now looking at the palaces of Syria, San'aa' and others like them, and
the cities of the world over which the banner of Islam would flutter one day.
The Muslims shouted in deep faith, "This is what Allah and His Prophet
have promised us!"
Salmaan was the originator of the project to dig the trench,
and he was associated with the rock out of which poured some secrets of the
unseen and of destiny. When he called the Prophet (PBUH) to break it, he stood
by the side of the Prophet (PBUH), saw the light, and heard the glad omen, and
he lived to see the prophecy fulfilled and abided in its living reality. He saw
the great capitals of Persia and Rome (Byzantium), the palaces of San'aa',
Syria, Egypt, and Iraq. He saw every place trembling with the blessed ecstasy
which was issuing forth from the high minarets in all parts of the world,
spreading the light of guidance and goodness.
And here he is sitting there in the shade of a tree before his
house in Al-Madiinah telling his guests about his great adventures in the quest
for truth, explaining to them how he abandoned the religion of his Persian
people for Christianity and then for Islam. How he abandoned his father's
wealth and estate and threw himself into the arms of the wilderness in the
quest for the release of his tension and soul. How he was sold in a slave
market on his way to search for truth. How he met with the Prophet (PBUH) and
how he came to believe in him. Now let us approach his great court and listen
to his grand tale which he is recounting.
I come from Isfahan, from a place called Jai, and I was the
most beloved son of my father, who was a figure of high esteem among his
people. We used to worship fire. I devoted myself to fire worship until I
became custodian of the fire which we lit and never allowed to be
extinguished.
My father had an estate. One day, he sent me there. I passed
by a Christian church and heard them praying. I went in and saw what they were
doing. I was impressed by what I saw in their prayers. I said, "This is
better than our religion." I did not leave them until sunset, nor did I go
to my father's estate, nor did I return to my father until he sent people to
search for me.
I asked the Christians about their affair and prayers which
impressed me, and about the origin of their religion. They answered, "In
Syria." I said to my father when I returned to him, "I passed by
people praying in a church of theirs, and I was impressed by their prayer, and
I could see that their religion is better than ours." He questioned me and
I questioned him, and then he put fetters on my feet and locked me up.
Then I sent to the Christians saying I had entered their
religion, and I requested that whenever a caravan came from Syria, they should
tell me before its return in order for me to travel with them, and so they
did.
I broke loose from the iron fetters and went away. I set out
with them for Syria. While I was there, I asked about their learned man, and I
was told that he was the bishop, leader of the church. I went to him and told
him my story. I lived with him, serving, praying, and learning.
But this bishop was not faithful in his religion, because he
used to gather money from the people to distribute it, but he would keep it for
himself. Then he died.
They appointed a new leader in his place. I have never seen a
man more godly than he in his religion, nor more active in his bid for the
Hereafter, nor more pious in the world, nor more punctual at worship. I loved
him more than I had ever loved any other person before.
When his fate came, I asked him, "To whom would you
recommend me? And to whom would you leave me?" He said, "O my son, I
do not know anyone who is on the path I am and who leads the kind of life I
lead, except a certain man in Mosul."
When he died, I went to that man in Mosul, and told him the
story, and I stayed with him as long as Allah wished me to stay. Then death
approached him. So I asked him, "To whom would you advise me to go
to?" He directed me to a pious man in Nisiibiin." So I went to him
and told him my story. I stayed with him as long as Allah wished me to stay.
When death overtook him, I asked him as before. He told me to meet a person at
`Amuriah in Byzantium. So, to Byzantium I went and stayed with that man,
earning my living there by rearing cattle and sheep.
Then death approached him, and I asked him, "To whom
should I go?" He said, "O my son, I know no one anywhere who is on
the path we have been on so that I can tell you to go to him. But you have been
overtaken by an epoch in which there will appear a prophet in the pure creed of
lbraahiim (Abraham). He will migrate to the place of palm trees. If you can be
sincere to him, then do so. He has signs which will be manifested: he does not
eat of charity, yet he accepts gifts, and between his shoulders is the seal of
prophethood. When you see him, you will know him."
A caravan passed by me on that day. I asked them where they
had come from and learned that they were from the Arabian Peninsula. So I told
them, "I give you these cattle and sheep of mine in return for your taking
me to your land." They agreed. So they took me in their company until they
brought me to Wadi Al-Quraa and there they wronged to me. They sold me to a
Jew. I saw many palm trees and cherished the hope that it was the land that had
been described to me and which would be the future place of the advent of the
prophet, but it was not.
I stayed with this Jew who bought me until another from Bani
Quraidhah came to him one day and bought me from him. I stayed with him until
we came to Al -Madiinah. By Allah, I had hardly seen it when I knew that it was
the land described to me.
I stayed with the Jew, working for him on his plantation in
Bani Quraidhah until Allah sent His Prophet, who later emigrated to Al-Madiinah
and dismounted at Qubaa' among the Bani `Amr lbn `Awf.
Indeed, one day, I was at the top of a palm tree with my
master sitting below it when a Jewish man came. He was a cousin of his and said
to him, "May Allah destroy Bani Qubaa'. They are spreading a rumor about a
man at Qubaa' who came from Makkah claiming that he is a prophet." By
Allah, he had hardly said it, when I was seized by a tremor, and the palm tree
shook until I almost fell on my master.
I climbed down quickly saying, "What are you saying? What
news?" My master gave me a nasty slap and said, `What have you got to do
with this? Return to your work!"
So, I returned to work. At nightfall I gathered what I had and
went out until I came to the Prophet (PBUH) at Qubaa'. I entered and found him
sitting with some of his Companions. Then I said, "You are in need and a stranger.
I have some food which I intend to give out as charity. When they showed me
your lodgings, I thought you most deserve it, so I have come to you with
it." I put the food down. The Prophet (PBUH) said to his Companions,
"Eat in the name of Allah." He abstained and never took of it. I said
to myself, "This, by Allah, is one sign. He does not eat of
charity!"
I returned to meet the Prophet (PBUH) again the next day,
carrying some food, and said to him (PBUH), "I can see that you do not
partake of charity. I have something which I want to give to you as a
present." I placed it before him. He said to his Companions "Eat in
the name of Allah" and he ate with them. So I said to myself, "This
indeed is the second sign. He eats of presents." I returned and stayed
away for a while. Then I came to him, and I saw him sitting, having returned
from a burial, and surrounded by his Companions. He had two garments, carrying
one on his shoulder and wearing the other. I greeted him, then bent to see the
upper part of his back. He knew what I was looking for, so he threw aside his
garment off his shoulder and, behold, the sign between his shoulders, the seal
of Prophethood, was clear just as the Christian monk had described."
At once, I staggered towards him, kissing him and weeping. He
called to me to come forward and I sat before him. I told him my story as you
have already heard me describe the events.
When I became a Muslim, slavery prevented me from taking part
in the battles of Badr and Uhud.
Therefore the Prophet (PBUH) advised me, "Go into terms
with your master for him to free you," and so I did. The Prophet (PBUH)
told the Companions to assist me, and Allah freed me from bondage. I became a
free Muslim, taking part with the Prophet (PBUH) in the Battle of Al-khandaq
and others. With these simple clear words, Salmaan spoke of his great, noble, and
sacrificial adventure for the sake of Allah, seeking after the reality of
religion that led him to Allah and helped him to find his role in this
life.
What kind of a noble person was this man? What great
superiority was achieved by his aspiring spirit, that restless spirit that
withstood difficulties and defeated them, confronted the impossible and it gave
way! What devotion to the truth, and what sincerity that led its owner
voluntarily away from the estate of his father, with all its wealth and luxury,
to the wilderness, with all its difficulties and suffering. He moved from land
to land, town to town, seeking acquaintances, persevering, worshiping and
searching for his destiny among people, sects, and different ways of life. And
adhering all the way to the truth with all its noble sacrifices, for the sake
of guidance until he was sold into slavery. He was then rewarded by Allah the
best of rewards, making him reach the truth and come into the presence of His
Prophet. And then He granted him longevity, enough for him to see the banner of
Islam fluttering in all parts of the world and His Muslim worshippers filling
its space and corners with guidance, progress and justice!
What do you expect of the Islam of a man with such a noble
character but to be a man of such truth! It was an Islam of the God- fearing
and innocent. In his devotion he was intelligent, pious, and the person nearest
to `Umar Ibn Al-khattaab.
He once stayed with Abu Ad-Dardaa', under the same roof. Abu
Ad-Dardaa' used to pray all night and fast all day. Salmaan blamed him for this
excessive worship. One day, Salmaan wanted to stop him from fasting and to say
it was supererogatory. Abu Ad-Dardaa' asked him, "Would you prevent me
from fasting for my Lord and from praying to Him?" Salmaan replied,
"No, your eyes have a claim upon you, your family has a claim upon you, so
fast intermittently, then pray and sleep."
This reached the Prophet (PBUH) who said, "Salmaan is,
indeed, full of knowledge." The Prophet (PBUH) was often impressed by his
wisdom and knowledge, just as he was impressed by his character and religion.
On the Day of Al-khandaq the Ansar stood up and said, "Salmaan is of
us," the Muhaajiruun stood up also and said, "Salmaan is of us."
The Prophet called to them saying, "Salmaan is of us, O People of the
House (Prophet's house)."
Indeed, he deserved this honor! `Aliy lbn Abi Taalib , (May
Allah honor his face) nicknamed him "Luqmaan the Wise ". He was asked
about after his death: "There was a man who was of the People of the
House. Who among you is like Luqmaan the Wise? He was a man of knowledge who
absorbed all the scriptures of the People of the Book. He was like a sea that
was never exhausted!"
He was held in the minds of Prophet's Companions with all
highest regards and in the greatest position and respect. During the Caliphate
of `Umar, he came to Al-Madiinah on a visit and `Umar accorded him what he had
never accorded to anyone before when he assembled his Companions and said,
"Come, let us go out and welcome Salmaan!" They received him at the
border of Al-Madiinah. Salmaan had lived with the Prophet (PBUH) ever since he
met him, and believed in him as a free Muslim, and worshiped with him. He lived
during the Caliphate of Abu Bakr, `Umar and `Uthmaan, in whose era he met his
Lord. In most of these years, the banner of Islam spread everywhere, and the
treasures of Islam were carried to Al Madiinah in floods and distributed to the
people in the form of regular allowance and fixed salaries. The
responsibilities of ruling increased on all fronts, as well as duties and the
overwhelming burden of holding official posts. So where did Salmaan stand in
this respect? Where do we see him in the time of splendor, plenty, and
enjoyment?
Open wide your eyes. Do you see that humble man sitting there
in the shade making baskets and utensils out of palm fronds?
That is Salmaan. Take a good look at him. Look at his short
garment, which is so short that it is only down to his knees. That was him in
grand old age. His grant was 4,000 to 6,000 dirhams a year, but he distributed
all of it, refusing to take a dirham of it, and he used to say, "I would
buy palm fronds with one dirham to work on and then sell it for three dirhams.
I retained one dirham of it as capital, spent one dirham on my family, and gave
away one dirham, and if `Umar lbn Al-Khattaab prevented me from that, I would
not stop."
What next, O followers of Muhammad? What next, O noblest of
mankind in all ages? Some of us used to think, whenever we heard the conduct of
the Companions and their piety - for example, Abu Bakr, `Umar, Abu Dhar and
their brethren - that it was based on the life of the Arabian Peninsula, where
the Arabs find pleasure in simplicity. And here we are before a man from
Persia, the land of pleasure, luxury, and civilization, and he was not of the
poor but of its upper class. What about him now refusing property, wealth, and
enjoyment, and insisting that he live on one dirham a day from the work of his
hands? How about his refusing leadership and position except for something
relating to jihaad and only if none but he were suitable for it, and it was
forced upon him, and he accepted it weeping and shy? How about when he accepted
leadership which was forced upon him but he refused to take his lawful dues?
Hishaam lbn Hasaan relates from Al-Hassan: The allowance of Salmaan was 5,000.
He lived among 30,000 people and used to dress in a garment cut into halves. He
wore one and sat on the other half. Whenever his allowance was due him, he
distributed it to the needy and lived on the earnings of his hands!
Why do you think he was doing all this work and worshiping
with all this devotion, and yet he was a Persian child of luxury, the upbringing
of civilization? You can hear the reply from him. While he was on his deathbed,
the great spirit mounting forth to meet his Lord, Exalted and Merciful, Sa`d
lbn Abi Waqaas went to greet him, and Salmaan wept! Sa'd said, "What makes
you weep, O Abu `Abd Allah? The Prophet of Allah died pleased with you!"
Salmaan replied, "By Allah, I am not weeping in fear of death, nor for
love of the world. But the Prophet of Allah put me on an oath. He said, `Let
any of you have in this world like the provision of the traveler,' and here I
have owned many things around me." Sa'd said: I looked around, and I saw
nothing but a water-pot and vessel to eat in! Then I said to him, "O Abu
Abd Allah, give us a parting word of advice for us to follow." He said, O
Sa'd, remember Allah for your cares, if you have any. Remember Allah in your
judgment, if you judge. Remember Allah when you distribute the share."
This was the man who filled his spirit with riches just as it filled him with
renunciation of the pleasures of this world, its riches, and pride. The oath
which he and the rest of the Companions had taken before the Prophet of Allah
was that they must not let the world possess them and that they should take
nothing from it but the provision of the traveler in his bag.
Salmaan had kept the oath, yet still his tears ran when he saw
his soul preparing for departure, fearing that he had gone beyond the limits.
There was nothing around him except a vessel to eat in and a water-pot and yet
still he considered himself lavish! Did I not tell you that he was the nearest
in resemblance to `Umar? During the days of his rule over the Madiinah area, he
never changed his way. He had refused, as we have seen, to receive his salary
as a ruler, but went on making baskets to earn his living. His dress was no
more than a gown, resembling his old clothes in simplicity.
One day while on the
road, he met a man arriving from Syria, carrying a load of figs and dates. The
load was too heavy for him and made him weary. No sooner did the Syrian see the
man in front of him, who appeared to be one of the common people and poor than
he thought of putting the load on his shoulders and when he reached his
destination he would give him something for his labor. So he beckoned to the
man (Salmaan, the governor), and he came up to him. The Syrian said to him,
"Relieve me of this load." He carried it, and they walked
together.
While on their way, they met a group of people. He greeted
them and they stood up in obeisance, replying, "And unto the governor be
peace!" "Who is the governor?" The Syrian asked himself. His
surprise increased when he saw some of them rushing towards Salmaan to take the
load off his shoulders. "Let us carry it, O governor". When the
Syrian knew that he was the governor of Al Madiinah, he was astonished. Words
of apology and regret fell from his lips, and he went forward to grab the load.
But Salmaan shook his head in refusal, saying, "No, not until I take you
to your destination."
He was asked one day, "What troubles you in the
leadership?" He replied, "The pleasure of nurturing it and the
bitterness of meaning!"
A friend of his came to him one day at his house and found him
kneading dough. He asked him, "Where is your servant? "He replied, We
have sent her on an errand and we hate to charge her with two
duties."
When we say "his house" let us remember what kind of
house it was. When Salmaan thought of building it, he asked the mason,
"How are you going to build it?" The mason was courteous and yet
witty. He knew the piety and devotion of Salmaan, so he replied to him
saying "Fear not. It is a house for
you to protect yourself against the heat of the sun and dwell in the cold weather.
When you stand erect in it, it touches your head." Salmaan said to him,
"Yes, that is it, so go on and build it."
There was nothing of the goods of this world which could
attract Salmaan for a moment, nor did they leave any traces in his heart except
one thing, which he was particularly mindful of and had entrusted to his wife,
requesting her to keep it far away in a safe place. In his last sickness, and
in the morning on which he gave up his soul, he called her, "Bring me the
trust which I left in safe keeping!"
She brought it and behold, it was a bottle of musk. He had
gained it on the day of liberating the city of Jalwalaa' and kept it to be his
perfume on the day of his death. Then he called for a pot of water, sprinkled
the musk into it, stirred it with his hand and then said to his wife,
"Sprinkle it on me, for there will now come to me creatures from the
creatures of Allah. They do not eat food and what they like is
perfume."
Having done so he said to her, "Shut the door and go
down." She did what he bade her to do. After a while she went up to him
and saw his blessed soul had departed his body his frame. It was gone to the
Supreme Master, and it ascended with the desire to meet Him as he had an
appointment there with the Prophet Muhammad (PBUH) and his two Companions Abu
Bakr and `Umar and the noble circle of martyrs!
Long had the burning desire stirred Salmaan. The time had come
for him to rest in peace.
Adapted from: Men Around The
Messenger
by
Khalid Muhammad Khalid
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