The Messenger of Allh Prophet Muhammads Closest Companion

The Messenger of Allāh, Prophet Muhammad’s ﷺ Closest Companion and First Khalīfa: Sayyidinā Abū Bakr as-Siddīq ﺭﺿﻲ ﺍﻟﻠﻪ ﻋﻨﻪ Power. Point Presentation by Irshaad Ahmad Rashid Rabī’ al-Awwal 1438 A. H. / December 2016 C. E.

All praise and thanks is for Allāh the Most High, and may He shower His peace and blessings upon his Messenger Prophet Muhammad ﷺ , his Family, his Companions and all those who follow his way until the Last Day. Āmīn!

SAYYIDINĀ ABŪ BAKR AS-SIDDĪQ ﺭﺿﻲ ﺍﻟﻠﻪ ﻋﻨﻪ BEFORE ISLĀM * * * * He lived in Makkah and was a highly respected leader He was a cloth merchant and one of the richest men of Quraysh He was in charge of settling issues relating to blood money and debt He was literate and known as being very eloquent He was known for having exceptional knowledge in the genealogy of the `Arabs He was known for having unique abilities in dream interpretation He was known for being virtuous and of excellent character He was abstinent from worldly matters, for example he gave up the drinking of wine

SAYYIDINĀ ABŪ BAKR AS-SIDDĪQ’S ﺭﺿﻲ ﺍﻟﻠﻪ ﻋﻨﻪ CONNECTION TO ALLĀH THE EXALTED * He was the foremost Companion of Allāh’s Messenger ﷺ * Allāh ﷻ revealed āyāt (verses) concerning him in the Holy Qur’ān (such as 9: 40) * He had a deep understanding of the Qur’ān and the Sunnah * His heart was soft and easily moved by the Qur’ān and he was given to contemplation * Angel Sayyidinā Jibrīl (peace be upon him) came and informed the Prophet ﷺ that Allāh ﷻ was sending salām (greetings of peace) to Sayyidinā Abū Bakr as-Siddīq ﺭﺿﻲ ﺍﻟﻠﻪ ﻋﻨﻪ

SAYYIDINĀ ABŪ BAKR AS-SIDDĪQ’S ﺭﺿﻲ ﺍﻟﻠﻪ ﻋﻨﻪ CONNECTION TO RASŪLULLĀH ﷺ * * He was the first of the Khulafā ar-Rashidīn (Rightly Guided Khalīfas) He is one of the Asharatul Mubash-sharah ( ﺭﺿﻲ ﺍﻟﻠﻪ ﻋﻨﻬﻢ the ten Companions who were given the glad tidings of Paradise by the Holy Prophet Muhammad himself )ﷺ He related 142 ahadīth of Rasūlullāh ﷺ From the time of his acceptance of Islām he remained with Rasūlullāh ﷺ and he was laid to rest next to Rasūlullāh ﷺ in Madīna al Munawwarah * The Prophet ﷺ hoped Sayyidinā Abū Bakr all the gates of Paradise * * He was present at all the battles with Rasūlullāh ﷺ * ﺭﺿﻲ ﺍﻟﻠﻪ ﻋﻨﻬﻢ ﺭﺿﻲ ﺍﻟﻠﻪ ﻋﻨﻪ would be invited to enter from He emigrated with the Prophet ﷺ and is “thāniyathnayn” (the second of the two) that Allāh the Exalted refers to in the Holy Qur’ān (9: 40) He is also known as Sāhib Rasūlullāh (Companion of the Messenger of Allāh )ﷺ

HIS CONNECTION TO RASŪLULLĀH ﷺ (CONTINUED)… * He was so brave; enemies of Rasūlullāh ﷺ were continuously confronted by him * Both of his parents are 5 th generation descendants of Taym bin Murrah through whom they were related to the Prophet ﷺ * His Mother Umm al-Khayr ﺭﺿﻲ ﺍﻟﻠﻪ ﻋﻨﻬﺎ accepted hand at the house of al-Arqam Islām at the Prophet’s ﷺ ﺭﺿﻲ ﺍﻟﻠﻪ ﻋﻨﻪ * His father Abū Quhāfa ﺭﺿﻲ ﺍﻟﻠﻪ ﻋﻨﻪ accepted Islām on the Day of the Conquest of Makkah * Sayyidinā Abū Bakr ﺭﺿﻲ ﺍﻟﻠﻪ ﻋﻨﻪ was a neighbour of Rasūlullāh ﷺ * He was fortunate that Rasūlullāh ﷺ married his daughter `Āisha ﺭﺿﻲ ﺍﻟﻠﻪ ﻋﻨﻬﺎ

HIS CONNECTION TO RASŪLULLĀH ( ﷺ CONTINUED)… • His daughter `Āisha ﺭﺿﻲ ﺍﻟﻠﻪ ﻋﻨﻬﺎ is amongst the most beloved people to Rasūlullāh ﷺ • His daughter Asmā’ ﺭﺿﻲ ﺍﻟﻠﻪ ﻋﻨﻬﺎ is known as Dhāt an-Niqatayn (‘the one with the two sashes’, in which she used to carry food to Rasūlullāh ﷺ in secrecy during his hijra) • He was pleased with Allāh ﷻ as his Lord and Prophet ﷺ as his master • The Prophet’s ﷺ comfort was his main concern • He had trust in Allāh ﷻ and His Messenger ﷺ • He is the first in Islām to have an affectionate nickname: `Atīq (which means “saved from the punishment of hell fire”) - the Prophet ﷺ referred to him with this name.

MORE SIGNIFICANT ASPECTS OF HIS LIFE ﺭﺿﻲ ﺍﻟﻠﻪ ﻋﻨﻪ * He is the foremost of mankind after the Prophets and Messengers (peace be upon them) * He is the pride of the Muslim Ummah; a sign for humanity, and his name is known from East to West * He is also known as al-Awwa (one given to sorrow due to intense compassion) * He did not conceal his conversion to Islām, rather he actively invited others, amongst whom are Sayyidinā `Uthmān bin `Affān, Hadrat Talha bin `Ubdaydillāh, Hadrat al-Zubayr bin `Awwām, Hadrat Sa`d bin Abī Waqqās and Hadrat `Abd al-Rahmān bin `Awf ﺭﺿﻲ ﺍﻟﻠﻪ ﻋﻨﻬﻢ * He freed slaves and spent his energy and resources to further the cause of Islām

MORE SIGNIFICANT ASPECTS OF HIS LIFE ﺭﺿﻲ ﺍﻟﻠﻪ ﻋﻨﻪ * Due to his belief and open practice of Islām, he was a prime target for abuse which he bore with patience * He had so many virtues, among them were bravery, generosity and scrupulousness * He is the only Companion whose genealogical tree in his lifetime includes four successive generations of Companions including his parents, children and some of his grandchildren * He was appointed by Rasūlullāh ﷺ as the Hajj leader for the year 9 A. H. / 631 C. E. * He was appointed to lead the Salāh by Rasūlullāh ﷺ during Rasūlullāh’s ﷺ final illness * He was one of the few Companions who gave fatwā after the passing of Rasūlullāh ﷺ

5 SIGNIFICANT EVENTS IN THE LIFE OF SAYYIDINĀ ABŪ BAKR AS-SIDDĪQ may Allāh be pleased with him

SAYYIDINĀ ABŪ BAKR AS-SIDDĪQ FREEING BILĀL BIN RABĀH ﺭﺿﻲ ﺍﻟﻠﻪ ﻋﻨﻬﻢ Hadrat Bilāl al-Habashi ﺭﺿﻲ ﺍﻟﻠﻪ ﻋﻨﻪ was under torture, and heavy stones were put on him, when Sayyidinā Abū Bakr ﺭﺿﻲ ﺍﻟﻠﻪ ﻋﻨﻪ came and bought his freedom for five measures of gold. After accepting the deal, the Qurayshi headman remarked to Sayyidinā Abū Bakr ﺭﺿﻲ ﺍﻟﻠﻪ ﻋﻨﻪ : “I would have sold him to you even if you had insisted and bargained on a single measure of gold!” Sayyidinā Abū Bakr ﺭﺿﻲ ﺍﻟﻠﻪ ﻋﻨﻪ replied, “Should you even had insisted on asking one hundred measures of gold for his freedom, I would have paid them. ” May Allāh be pleased with them!

THE TITLE AS-SIDDĪQ AND THE ISRĀ’ & MI`RĀJ Sayyidinā Abū Bakr meanings: ﺭﺿﻲ ﺍﻟﻠﻪ ﻋﻨﻪ has the title “as-Siddīq” which has the following * the truthful * the veracious * the one wholeheartedly confirms the truth * the one who never fails to attest to the truth When the Prophet ﷺ miraculously journeyed from Makkah to Jerusalem, up to the Heavens and back in one night, the disbelievers came to Sayyidinā Abū Bakr as-Siddīq ﺭﺿﻲ ﺍﻟﻠﻪ ﻋﻨﻪ and asked him, “What do you say of your Companion, as he claims to have travelled by night to the Sacred House (Bayt al-Maqdis in Jerusalem)? ” He replied: “Did he really say that? ” They said: “Yes. ” Sayyidinā Abū Bakr ﺭﺿﻲ ﺍﻟﻠﻪ ﻋﻨﻪ said: “Then verily he spoke the truth. Indeed, I confirm him and believe that he speaks the truth about something more wondrous than this: messages from Heaven, coming to him morning and evening. ”

SAYYIDINĀ ABŪ BAKR AS-SIDDĪQ ﺭﺿﻲ ﺍﻟﻠﻪ ﻋﻨﻪ IS THĀNIYITHNAYN (THE SECOND OF THE TWO) Sayyidinā Abū Bakr as-Siddīq ﺭﺿﻲ ﺍﻟﻠﻪ ﻋﻨﻪ accompanied the Messenger of Allāh ﷺ on the hijra from Makkah to Madīna. On this journey his spent 3 nights alone with Rasūlullāh ﷺ in the cave of Hirā. About this Allāh ﷻ says in the Holy Qur’ān, If you help not [the Prophet], Allāh surely helped him when the disbelievers drove him out; [with] the second of the two, when the two were in the cave, and he said to his Companion: “Grieve not, for verily, Allāh is with us. ” And thereupon Allāh sent down His tranquility (sakīna) upon him and strengthened him with hosts you did not see, and abased the word of the disbelievers; but the Word of Allāh is supremely exalted; for Allāh is Almighty, Infinitely Wise. (Qur’ān: 9: 40)

GIVING ALL HIS WEALTH FOR THE SAKE OF ALLĀH THE MOST HIGH When the Prophet ﷺ requested donations to equip the “Army that Endured Great Hardship” (jaysh al-`usra) for the battle of Tabūk (9 A. H. ), Sayyidinā Abū Bakr ﺭﺿﻲ ﺍﻟﻠﻪ ﻋﻨﻪ came bringing all of his wealth. When the Prophet ﷺ asked, “What did you leave behind for your family? ” He replied, “I left for them Allāh and His Messenger”. ﷺ

SAYYIDINĀ ABŪ BAKR AS-SIDDĪQ SENDING OUT THE ARMY OF HADRAT USĀMA ﺭﺿﻲ ﺍﻟﻠﻪ ﻋﻨﻬﻢ Before Rasūlullāh ﷺ passed ahead, he instructed that the army of Usāma bin Zayd ﺭﺿﻲ ﺍﻟﻠﻪ ﻋﻨﻪ be sent out on an expedition to Syria. After Rasūlullāh ﷺ passed ahead, many felt the Muslims were vulnerable due to unrest from some of the tribes outside of Arabia, and they inclined to postpone the army’s campaign. Sayyidinā Abū Bakr ﺭﺿﻲ ﺍﻟﻠﻪ ﻋﻨﻪ was resolute in trusting and obeying the Prophet’s ﷺ command to send out the army saying, “By Him in whose Hand is the soul of Abū Bakr, even if I risk being torn apart by predators still I will dispatch Usāma’s army in accordance with the wish of the Prophet ﷺ. ” He himself went to the encampment at al-Jurf to send off the army. This decision proved very beneficial to the Muslims. As the army travelled, every tribe the army passed by wishing to renegade would say (to themselves), “If these (the people of Madīna) did not have power, the like of these (the army) would not have come out from them, so let us leave them alone until they meet the Byzantines. They met them, defeated them and returned safely.

The Khilāfa of Sayyidinā Abū Bakr as-Siddīq ﺭﺿﻲ ﺍﻟﻠﻪ ﻋﻨﻪ * His becoming Khalīfa kept unity in the Ummah of Rasūlullāh ﷺ * He was the first to collect the Holy Qur’ān together and the first to name it a mus-haf (a written copy) * He said he would fight those who withheld the payment of Zakāh, thus preserving Zakāh as one of the pillars of Islām * He sent a large army to fight a series of “wars against apostasy” (hurūb alridda) [there were at least four false claims to prophecy during his time] * He was the first to make a bayt al-māl (a public treasury in which Zakāh and other revenues were stored while they were being distributed) * The duration of his Khilāfa was approximately 2 years and 2 months * He appointed Sayyidinā `Umar al-Farūq as Khalīfa ﺭﺿﻲ ﺍﻟﻠﻪ ﻋﻨﻪ * He passed ahead at the age of 63 and his anniversary is observed on the 22 nd of Jumāda al-Thānī

Let us recite some couplets from Qasīda al-Mudariyya composed by Imām al-Būsīrī (Rahmatullāhi `alayh) in which Sayyidinā Abū Bakr ﺭﺿﻲ ﺍﻟﻠﻪ ﻋﻨﻪ is mentioned: Yā Rabbi salli `alal Mukhtāri min Mudarin Wal Anbiyā wa jamī`ir-Rusli mā dhukirū… Thumma ridā `an Abī Bakrin khalīfatihi Man qāma min ba`dihi lid-dīni yantasiru O Allāh, Send blessings upon the Chosen One al-Mukhtār from the tribe of Mudar And all the Prophets that have been previously mentioned… And may (Your) Pleasure be upon Abū Bakr, his Khalīfa, Who maintained the religion after him victoriously

Let us recite some couplets from Qasīda al-Burda also composed by Imām al-Būsīrī (Rahmatullāhi `alayh) in which Sayyidinā Abū Bakr ﺭﺿﻲ ﺍﻟﻠﻪ ﻋﻨﻪ is mentioned: Mawlāya salli wa sallim dāiman abadā `alā Habībika Khayril khalqi kullihimi… Thummar-ridā `an Abī Bakrin wa `an `Umarin Wa `an `Aliyyin wa `an `Uthmāni dhil karami O Patron (Allāh), Bestow blessings and peace always and forever Upon Your Beloved, the best in all creation… (O Lord), then be pleased with Abū Bakr and `Umar And `Alī and `Uthmān the people of nobility

Let us end by reciting the du`ā that Sayyidinā Abū Bakr is reported to have said whenever people praised him: (may Allāh be pleased with him) “O Allāh, You have the best knowledge of me and I know myself more than they (know me). O Allāh, make me better than their conjectures, forgive me what they do not know, and do not take me to task for what they say. ” Āmīn!

Al-Fātiha!

Sources: Hilyat-ul-Awliya wa Tabaqat al-Asfiya (The Beauty of the Righteous and the Ranks of the Elite) By Abu Na`im al-Asfahani translated by Shaykh Muhammad Al-Akili Pearl Publishing House, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, 1995 Kashf al-Mahjub Unveiling the Veiled By Data Ganj Baksh `Ali bin `Uthman al-Hujwiri translated by Maulana Wahid Baksh Rabbani Muslim Cultural Society, Delhi, India, 1997 “al-Khulafa ar-Rashidun” from Tarikh al-Khulafa (The History of the Khalifahs who took the right way) By Jalal ad-Din as-Suyuti translated by `Abdassamad Clarke Ta-Ha Publishers Ltd. London, 1995 Integrated Encyclopedia of the Qur’an (Volume 1) Section on Sayyidina Abu Bakr ﺭﺿﻲ ﺍﻟﻠﻪ ﻋﻨﻪ by Muzaffar Iqbal The Center for Islamic Sciences, Sherwood Park, Alberta, 2013 The Key to Islam (second edition) by students of Madrasa al-Hidaya, Toronto, 2013