“I have never seen anyone who loves another like Muhammad’s companions and how they love him.” These were the words of Abu Sufyan, the chief of the Quraysh when he was still at the height of his opposition to the Prophet (peace be upon him), raising armies and forging alliances to smash the rising power of Islam. But Abu Sufayn was later to regret such hostility and accept Islam. Yet his remark was absolutely true. It is even true today of all Muslims as they learn what sort of personality the Prophet had and how keen he was to do good to all people. With his companions, he was most caring. He always did what he could to make them comfortable, and to help them if they met a misfortune, and to teach them what benefited them in this life and in the life to come. In return, the Prophet’s companions loved him more than they loved their parents and children. They recognized the light they received when they adopted Islam after the deep darkness of ignorance in which they previously lived.
The Prophet’s care manifested itself in a variety of ways. To give an example, we mention a report by Jareer, a companion of the Prophet who says that once “the Prophet entered the home of one of his wives, and people came and joined him. The home was full of people. Jareer then came and sat outside. The Prophet saw him, and he took his own garment, wrapped it and gave it to him, saying: ‘Sit on this.’ Jareer took it, put it on his face and kissed it.” (Related by Al-Tabarani, Al-Hakim, Al-Baghawi and others).
People came to the Prophet and entered his homes for all reasons and on all occasions. The Prophet’s homes consisted of small rooms, barely adequate and having few amenities. On this occasion, the home where he went was full of people, to the extent that a newcomer felt it was better for him to sit outside. He wanted to be party to whatever was being decided, so that he would join the Prophet right from the outset. When the Prophet saw Jareer, he realized why was he sitting outside, and as there was no room inside, he gave him something to sit on. This was his own garment. Needless to say, with the house being full with people, there could be no chair, stool or cushion to spare. Hence the Prophet gave him the garment, so that he would be more comfortable. But on recognizing what object the Prophet gave him, Jareer felt that he could not sit on it. Instead, he wiped his face with it and kissed it, because the Prophet used it. It should be clearly stated that none of the Prophet’s companions entertained any thoughts of physical adoration of the Prophet. Yet they knew that Prophet was blessed and they hoped to receive something of the blessings granted to him by God. This is how we should understand Jareer’s gesture, as well as many similar acts the Prophet’s companions did on many different occasions.
Needless to say, the Prophet was keen to teach his companions everything that related to their faith, and how they should practice their religion. This was always the case with everything that related to worship or to life in general. To take an example of each, we mention the Hadith that speaks of Abu Bakrah when he joined a congregational prayer already in progress. “Abu Bakrah arrived when the Prophet was already in ruku’, i.e. bowing in prayer, and he bowed standing alone behind the last row. He then walked to stand in the row. When the Prophet finished his prayers, he said to Abu Bakrah: ‘May God increase you keenness, but do not do this again.’” (Related by Al-Bukahri, Ahmad, Abu Dawood and Al-Nassaie).
It is well known that when Muslims pray in congregation, they stand in rows, shoulder to shoulder, and leave no gaps. It is unacceptable that one should stand alone, or apart from the congregation. On the other hand, prayers are composed of a multiple of rak’ah, which start in the standing position before bowing, standing up again followed by two prostrations with a short sitting in between. When we join a congregational prayer already in progress, we may join it at any time and in whatever position it is. However, we are deemed to have a complete rak’ah with the congregation if we join it in the ruku’ position or before it.
When Abu Bakrah arrived, the Prophet was already bowing in ruku’. Keen to catch up during the same rak’ah and knowing that ruku’ is of brief duration, he started before reaching the last row and immediately went into ruku’. This is what he should have done, except that he should have waited until he joined the row. But he was hasty, fearing that the Prophet would stand up before he could do his ruku’. This would have meant adding a rak’ah at the end. But he might also have been eager to have all his prayer with the Prophet. Whatever the reason, his action was rather done in haste. Hence the Prophet’s advice which he offered in a most caring way, coupled with a prayer that Abu Bakrah should be even keener to fulfill his religious duties.
A different example is shown in the Hadith narrated by Anas ibn Malik: “The Prophet once passed by a woman standing near a grave and crying. He said to her: ‘Remember to be God-fearing and remain patient in your adversity.’ She said to him: ‘Leave me alone! You have not experienced the calamity I have.’ She did not recognize the Prophet. When he left, people told her who he was. Therefore, she went to see him, but she did not find any doorkeeper at his place. She said to him: ‘I did not recognize you.’ He said: ‘True patience is to persevere when the shock is fresh.’” (Related by Al-Bukahri, Muslim, Abu Dawood and Al-Tirmidhi)
We note that the Hadith does not mention the woman’s name, which suggests that she was one of the people who could not be easily recognized. In her bereavement, she did not care for words of condolence. The Prophet reminded her that a Muslim should always remain God-fearing, which is a quality that best manifests itself through adherence to Islamic teachings. Thus in any bereavement, we should remember that death is dealt by God at the time He has appointed to every one of us. Therefore, we accept it with patience. Of course we will be in grief when we lose a very close relative or friend, but the proper attitude is to resign ourselves to the loss and remain patient, praying God to shower His mercy on the deceased and to enable us to bear the loss with patience.
However, the woman in this instance was too preoccupied with her grief. It was not only that she did not recognize the Prophet; she cared nothing for his advice. Hence, her rejoinder: ‘Leave me alone! You have not experienced the calamity I have.’ No Muslim would address the Prophet in such a manner, but the woman did not recognize him. When she went later to explain, he did not rebuke her. He only offered a word of advice, telling her how to remain patient, because a Muslim should always accept with resignation and patience whatever God’s will determines.
