companion of the Prophet.He was known as Abu Ayyub (thefather of
Ayyub) and enjoyed a privilege which many of the Ansar in Madinah
hoped they would have.
When the Prophet, peace and blessings of God be on him, reached
Madinah after his hijrah from Makkah, he was greeted with great
enthusiasm by the Ansar of Madinah. Their hearts went out to him and
their eyes followed him with devotion and love. They wanted to give
him the most generous reception anyone could be given.
The Prophet first stopped at Quba on the outskirts of Madinah and
stayed there for some days. The first thing he didwas to build a
mosque which is described in the Quran as the"mosque built on the
foundation of piety (taqwa)". (Surah At-Tawhah 9: 1O8).
The Prophet entered Madinah onhis camel. The chieftains of the city
stood along his path, each one wishing to have the honor of the
Prophet alighting and staying at his house. One after the other stood
in the camel's way entreating, "Stay with us, O Rasulullah." "Leave
the camel," the Prophet would say. "It is under command. "
The camel continued walking, closely followed by the eyes and hearts
of the people of Yathrib. When it went past a house, its owner would
feel sad and dejected and hope would rise in the hearts of others
still on the route.
The camel continued in this fashion with the people following it until
it hesitated at an open space in front of the house of Abu Ayyub
al-Ansari. But the Prophet, upon whom be peace, did not get down.
After only a short while, the camel setoff again, the Prophet leaving
itsreins loose. Before long, however, it turned round, retraced its
steps and stopped on the same spot as before. Abu Ayyub's heart was
filled with happiness. He went out to the Prophet and greeted him with
great enthusiasm. He took the Prophet's baggage in his arms and felt
as if he was carrying themost precious treasure in the world.
Abu Ayyub's house had two stories. He emptied the upper floor of his
and his family's possessions so that the Prophet could stay there. But
the Prophet, peace be on him, preferred to stay on the lower floor.
Night came and the Prophet retired. Abu Ayyub went up to the upper
floor. But when they had closed the door, Abu Ayyub turned to his wife
and said:
"Woe to us! What have we done? The messenger of God is below and we
are higher than he! Can we walk on top of the messenger of God? Do we
come between him and the Revelation(Wahy)? If so, we are doomed."
The couple became very worried not knowing what to do. They only got
some peace of mind when they moved to the side of the building which
did not fall directly above the Prophet. They were careful also only
to walk on the outer parts of the floor and avoid the middle.
In the morning, Abu Ayyub said to the Prophet: "By God, we did not
sleep a wink last night, neither myself nor Umm Ayyub.""Why not, Abu
Ayyub?" asked the Prophet. Abu Ayyub explained how terrible they felt
being above while the Prophet was below them and how they might have
interrupted the Revelation. "Don't worry, Abu Ayyub," said the
Prophet. "We prefer the lower floor because ofthe many people coming
to visit us." "We submitted to the Prophet's wishes," Abu Ayyub
related, "until one cold night a jar of ours broke and the water
spilled on the upper floor. Umm Ayyub and I stared at the water We
only had one piece of velvet which we used as a blanket. We used it to
mop up the water out of fear that it would seep through to the
Prophet. In the morning I went to him and said,'I do not like to be
above you,' and told him what had happened. He accepted my wish and we
changed floors."
The Prophet stayed in Abu Ayyub's house for almost seven months until
his mosque was completed on the open space where his camel had
stopped. He moved to the roots which were built around the mosque for
himself and his family. He thus became a neighbor of Abu Ayyub. What
noble neighbor to have had!
Abu Ayyub continued to love the Prophet with all his heart end the
Prophet also loved him dearly. There was no formality between them.
The Prophet continued to regard Abu Ayyub'shouse as his own. The
following anecdote tells a great deal aboutthe relationship between
them.
Abu Bakr, may God be pleased with him, once left his house in the
burning heat of the midday sun and went to the mosque. Umar saw him
and asked, "Abu Bakr, what has brought you out at this hour? Abu Bakr
said he had left his house because he was terribly hungry and Umar
said that he had left his house for the same reason. The Prophet came
up to them and asked, "What has brought the two of you out at this
hour?" They told him and he said, "By Him in Whose hands is my soul,
only hunger has caused me to come out also. But come with me."
They went to the house of Abu Ayyub al-Ansari. His wife opened the
door and said, "Welcome to the Prophet and whoever is withhim."
"Where is Abu Ayyub?" asked theProphet. Abu Ayyub, who was working in
a nearby palm grove, heard the Prophet's voice and came hurriedly.
"Welcome to the Prophet and whoever is with him," he said and went on
"O Prophet of God, this is not the time that you usually come." (Abu
Ayyub used to keep some food for the Prophet every day. When the
Prophet did not come for it by a certain time, Abu Ayyub would give it
to his family.) "You are right," the Prophet agreed.
Abu Ayyub went out and cut a cluster of dates in which there were ripe
and halfripe dates. "I did not want you to eat this," said the
Prophet. "Could you not have brought only the ripe dates?" "O
Rasulullah, please eatfrom both the ripe dates (rutb) and the half
ripe (busr). I shall slaughter an animal for you also." "If you are
going to, then do not kill one that gives milk," cautioned the
Prophet. Abu Ayyub killed a young goat, cooked half and grilled the
otherhalf. He also asked his wife to bake, because she baked better he
said.
When the food was ready, it wasplaced before the Prophet and his two
companions. The Prophet took a piece of meat and placed it in a loaf
and said,"Abu Ayyub, take this to Fatima. She has not tasted the like
of this for days.
When they had eaten and were satisfied, the Prophet said reflectively:
"Bread and meat and busr and rutb!" Tears began to flow from his eyes
as he continued:
"This is a bountiful blessing about which you will be asked on the Day
of judgment. If such comes your way, put your handsto it and say,
Bismillah (In the name of God) and when you have finished say, Al
hamdu lillahalladhee huwa ashbana wa anama alayna (Praise be to God
Who has given us enough and Who has bestowed his bounty on us). This
is best."
These are glimpses of Abu Ayyub's live during peace time. He also had
a distinguished military career. Much of his time was spent as a
warrior until it was said of him, "He did not stayaway from any battle
the Muslims fought from the time ofthe Prophet to the time of Muawiyah
unless he was engaged at the same time in another."
The last campaign he took part in was the one prepared by Muawiyah and
led by his son Yazid against Constantinople. Abu Ayyub at that time
was a very old man, almost eighty years old. But that did not prevent
him from joining the army and crossing the seas as a ghazi in the path
of God. After only a short time engaged in thebattle, Abu Ayyub fell
ill and had to withdraw from fighting. Yazidcame to him and asked:
"Do you need anything, Abu Ayyub?" "Convey my salaams to the Muslim
armies and say to them: "Abu Ayyub urges you to penetrate deeply into
the territory of the enemy as far as you can go, that you should carry
him with you and that you should bury him under your feet at the walls
of Constantinople." Then he breathed his last.
The Muslim army fulfilled the desire of the companion of the Messenger
of God. They pushed back the enemy's forces in attack after attack
until they reached the walls of Constantinople. There they buried him.
(The Muslims beseiged the city for four years but eventually hadto
withdraw after suffering heavy losses.)
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