Abdullah was the son of Abbas, an uncle of the noble Prophet. He was
born just three years before the Hijrah. When the Prophet died,
Abdullah was thusonly thirteen years old.
When he was born, his mother took him to the blessed Prophet who put
some of his saliva on the babe's tongue even before he began to
suckle. This was thebeginning of the close and intimate tie between
Abbas and the Prophet that was to be part of a life-long love and
devotion.
When Abdullah reached the age of discretion, he attached himself to
the service of the Prophet. He would run to fetch water for him when
he wanted to make wudu. During Salat, he would stand behind the
Prophetin prayer and when the Prophet went on journeys or expeditions,
he would follow next in line to him. Abdullah thus became like the
shadow of the Prophet, constantly in his company.
In all these situations he was attentive and alert to whatever the
Prophet did and said. His heart was enthusiastic and his young mind
was pure and uncluttered, committing the Prophet's words to memory
with the capacity and accuracy of a recording instrument. In this way
and through his constant researches later, as we shall see, Abdullah
became one of the most learned companionsof the Prophet, preserving on
behalf of later generations of Muslims, the priceless words of the
Messenger of God. It is said that he committed to memory about one
thousand, six hundred and sixty sayings of theProphet which are
recorded and authenticated in the collections of al-Bukhari and
Muslim.
The Prophet would often draw Abdullah as a child close to him, pat him
on the shoulder and pray: "O Lord, make him acquire a deep
understanding of the religion of Islam and instruct him in the meaning
and interpretation of things."
There were many occasions thereafter when the blessed Prophet would
repeat this dua or prayer for his cousin and before long Abdullah ibn
Abbas realized that his life was to be devoted to the pursuit of
learning and knowledge.
The Prophet moreover prayed that he be granted not just knowledge and
understanding but wisdom. Abdullah related the following incident
about himself: "Once the Prophet, peace be upon him, was on the point
of performing wudu. I hurried to get water ready for him. He was
pleased with what Iwas doing. As he was about to begin Salat, he
indicated that I should stand at his side. However, I stood behind
him. When the Salat was finished, he turned to me and said: 'What
prevented you from being at my side, O Abdullah?' 'You are too
illustrious and too great in my eyes for me to stand side by sidewith
you,' I replied.
Raising his hands to the heavens, the Prophet then prayed: 'O Lord,
grant him wisdom." The Prophet's prayer undoubtedly was granted for
the young Abdullah was to prove time and again that he possessed a
wisdom beyond his years. But it was a wisdom that came only with
devotion and thedogged pursuit of knowledge both during the Prophet's
lifetime and after his death.
During the lifetime of the Prophet, Abdullah would not miss any of his
assemblies and he would commit to memory whatever he said. After the
Prophet passed away, he would take care to go to as many companions as
possible especially those who knew the Prophet longer and learn from
them what the Prophet had taught them. Whenever he heard that someone
knew a hadith of the Prophet which he did not know he would go quickly
to him and record it. He would subject whatever he heard to close
scrutiny and check it against other reports. He would go to as many as
thirtycompanions to verify a single matter.
Abdullah described what he once did on hearing that a companion of the
Prophet knew a hadith unknown to him: "I went to him during the time
of the afternoon siesta and spread my cloak in front of his door. The
wind blew dust on me (as I sat waiting for him). If I wished Icould
have sought his permission to enter and he would certainly have given
me permission. But I preferred to wait on him so that he could be
completely refreshed. Coming out of his house and seeing me in that
condition he said: 'O cousin of the Prophet! What's the matter with
you? If you had sent for me I would have come to you.' 'I am the one
who should come to you, for knowledge is sought, it does notjust
come,' I said. I asked him about the hadith and learnt from him."
In this way, the dedicated Abdullah would ask, and ask, and go on
asking. And he would sift and scrutinize the information he had
collected with his keen and meticulous mind.
It was not only in the collection of hadith that Abdullah specialized.
He devoted himself to acquiring knowledge in a wide variety of fields.
He had a special admiration for persons like Zayd ibn Thabit, the
recorderof the revelation, the leading judge and jurist consult in
Madinah, an expert in the laws of inheritance and in reading theQuran.
When Zayd intended to go on a trip, the young Abdullah would stand
humbly at his side and taking hold of the reins of his mount would
adopt the attitude of a humble servant in the presence of his master.
Zayd would say to him: "Don't, O cousin of the Prophet."
"Thus we were commanded to treat the learned ones among us," Abdullah
would say. "And Zayd would say to him in turn:"Let me see your hand."
Abdullah would stretch out his hand. Zayd, taking it, would kiss it
and say: "Thus we were commanded to treat the ahl al-bayt members of
the household of the Prophet."
As Abdullah's knowledge grew, he grew in stature. Masruq ibn alAjda
said of him: "Whenever I saw Ibn Abbas, I would say: He isthe most
handsome of men. When he spoke, I would say: He is the most eloquent
of men. And when he held a conversation, I would say: He is the most
knowledgeable of men."
The Khalifah Umar ibn al-Khattaboften sought his advice on important
matters of state and described him as "the young man of maturity".
Sad ibn abi Waqqas described him with these words: "I have never seen
someone who was quicker in understanding, who had more knowledge and
greater wisdom than Ibn Abbas. I have seen Umar summon him to discuss
difficult problems in the presence of veterans of Badr from among the
Muhajirin and Ansar. Ibn Abbas would speak and Umar would not
disregard what he had to say."
It is these qualities which resulted in Abdullah ibn Abbas being known
as "the learned man of this Ummah".
Abdullah ibn Abbas was not content to accumulate knowledge. He felt he
had a dutyto the ummah to educate those in search of knowledge and the
general masses of the Muslim community. He turned to teaching and his
house became a university - yes, a university in the full sense of the
word, a university with specialized teaching but with the difference
that there was only one teacher Abdullah ibn Abbas.
There was an enthusiastic response to Abdullah's classes. One of his
companions describeda typical scene in front of his house: "I saw
people convergingon the roads leading to his house until there was
hardly anyroom in front of his house. I went in and told him about the
crowds of people at his door and he said: 'Get me water for wudu.'
He performed wudu and, seatinghimself, said: 'Go out and say to them:
Whoever wants to ask about the Quran and its letters (pronunciation)
let him enter.'
This I did and people entered until the house was filled. Whatever he
was asked, Abdullah was able to elucidate and even provide additional
information to what was asked. Then (to his students) he said: 'Make
way for your brothers.'
Then to me he said: 'Go out and say: Who wants to ask about theQuran
and its interpretation, let him enter'.
Again the house was filled and Abdullah elucidated and provided more
information thanwhat was requested."
And so it continued with groups of people coming in to discuss fiqh
(jurisprudence), halal and haram (the lawful and the prohibited in
Islam), inheritance laws, Arabic language, poetry and etymology.
To avoid congestion with many groups of people coming to discuss
various subjects on a single day, Abdullah decided to devote one day
exclusively for a particular discipline. On one day, only the exegesis
of the Quran would be taught while on another day only fiqh
(jurisprudence). The maghazi or campaigns of the Prophet, poetry, Arab
history before Islamwere each allocated a special day.
Abdullah ibn Abbas brought to his teaching a powerful memoryand a
formidable intellect. His explanations were precise, clear and
logical. His arguments were persuasive and supported by pertinent
textual evidence and historical facts.
One occasion when his formidable powers of persuasion was used was
duringthe caliphate of Ali. A large number of supporters of Ali in his
stand against Muawiyah had just deserted him. Abdullah ibn Abbas went
to Ali and requestedpermission to speak to them. Alihesitated fearing
that Abdullah would be in danger at their hands but eventually gave
way on Abdullah's optimism that nothing untoward would happen.
Abdullah went over to the group. They were absorbed in worship. Some
were not willing to let him speak but others wereprepared to give him
a hearing.
"Tell me" asked Abdullah, "what grievances have you against the cousin
of the Prophet, the husband of his daughter and thefirst of those who
believed in him?"
"The men proceeded to relate three main complaints against Ali. First,
that he appointed men to pass judgment in matters pertaining to the
religion of God - meaning that Ali had agreed toaccept the arbitration
of Abu Musa al-Asbari and Amr ibn al-Asin the dispute with Muawiyah.
Secondly, that he fought and didnot take booty nor prisoners of war.
Thirdly, that he did not insist on the title of Amir al-Muminin during
the arbitration process although theMuslims had pledged allegiance to
him and he was their legitimate amir. To them this was obviously a
sign of weakness and a sign that Ali was prepared to bring his
legitimate position as Amir al-Muminin into disrepute.
In reply, Abdullah asked them that should he cite verses from the
Quran and sayings of the Prophet to which they had no objection and
which related to their criticisms, would they be prepared to change
their position. They replied that they would and Abdullah
proceeded:"Regarding your statement that Ali has appointed men to pass
judgment in matters pertaining to Allah's religion, Allah Glorifiedand
Exalted is He, says: 'O you who believe! Kill not game whilein the
sacred precincts or in pilgrim garb. If any of you do so
intentionally, the compensation is an offering, of a domestic animal
equivalent to the one he killed and adjudged by two just men among."
"I adjure you, by God! Is the adjudication by men in matters
pertaining to the preservation of their blood and their lives and
making peace between them more deserving of attention than
adjudication over a rabbit whose value is onlya quarter of a dirham?"
Their reply was of course that arbitration was more important in the
case of preserving Muslim lives and making peace among them than over
the killing of game in the sacred precincts for which Allah sanctioned
arbitration by men.
"Have we then finished with thispoint?" asked Abdullah and theirreply
was: "Allahumma, naam - O Lord, yes!" Abdullah went on:"As for your
statement that Ali fought and did not take prisoners of war as the
Prophet did, do you really desire to take your "mother" Aishah as a
captive and treat her as fair game in the way that captives are
treated? If your answer is"Yes", then you have fallen into kufr
(disbelief). And if you say that she is not your "mother", you would
also have fallen into astate of kufr for Allah, Glorified and Exalted
is He, has said: 'The Prophet is closer to the believersthan their own
selves and his wives are their mothers (entitledto respect and
consideration).' (The Quran, Surah al-Ahzab, 34:6).
"Choose for yourself what you want," said Abdullah and then he asked:
"Have we then finishedwith this point?" and this time too their reply
was:"Allahumma, naam - O Lord, yes!" Abdullah went on: "As for your
statement that Ali has surrendered the title of Amir al-Muminin,
(remember) that theProphet himself, peace and blessings of God be on
him, at the time of Hudaybiyyah, demanded that the mushrikin write in
the truce which he concluded with them: 'This is what the Messenger of
God has agreed...' and they retorted: 'If we believed that you were
the Messenger of God we would not have blocked your way to the Kabah
nor would we have fought you. Write instead: 'Muhammad the son of
Abdullah.' The Prophet concededtheir demand while saying: 'By God, I
am the Messenger of God even if they reject me." At this point
Abdullah ibn Abbas asked the dissidents: "Have we then finished with
this point? and their reply was once again:
"Allahumma, naam - O Lord, yes!"
One of the fruits of this verbal challenge in which Abdullah displayed
his intimate knowledge of the Quran and the sirah of the Prophet as
well as his remarkable powers of argument and persuasion, was that the
majority, about twenty thousand men, returned to the ranks of Ali.
About four thousand however remained obdurate. These latter came to be
known as Kharijites.
On this and other occasions, the courageous Abdullah showed that he
preferred peace above war, and logic against force and violence.
However, he was not only known for his courage, his perceptive thought
and his vast knowledge. He was also known for his great generosity and
hospitality. Some of his contemporaries said of his household: "We
have not seen a house which has more food or drink or fruit or
knowledge thanthe house of Ibn Abbas."
He had a genuine and abiding concern for people. He was thoughtful and
caring. He once said: "When I realize the importance of a verse of
God's Book, I would wish that all people should know what I know.
"When I hear of a Muslim ruler who deals equitably and rules justly, I
am happy on his accountand I pray for him...
"When I hear of rains which fail on the land of Muslims, that fills me
with happiness..."
Abdullah ibn Abbas was constant in his devotions. He kept voluntary
fasts regularly and often stayed up at night in Prayer. He would weep
while praying and reading the Quran. And when reciting verses dealing
with death, resurrection and the life hereafter his voice would be
heavy from deep sobbing.
He passed away at the age of seventy one in the mountainous city of Taif.
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