Abu Huraira: The Beloved Narrator

" 'An Abi Huraira radiyallahu anhu qal, qala Rasul Allahi, sallallahu
alayhi wa sallam...."
(On the authority of Abu Huraira, may Allah be pleased with him, he
said: Allah's Messenger (s.a.w) said...)
Through this phrase millions of Muslims from early history of Islam to
the present have come tobe familiar with the name Abu Huraira, who you
expect to find his name in most Hadith, Sirah or Fiqh books.
Abu Huraira (r.a.a) enjoyed a great talent, he was gifted with an
extraordinary long term memory to the extent that he would hear a
discussion or a speech and be able to reproducethe identical
discussion or speech years later without changing or deleting one
single word from it.
This great gift that Abu-Huraira enjoyed could have been the worst
thing that could have happened to him assome people used his well
known and authentic name to make up false Ahadith about our beloved
Prophet, andlink these false Ahadith to Abu Huraira (r.a.a). However,
through hard and sincere efforts put in by some of the pious scholars
who sacrificed their lives to preserve and save our beloved Prophet's
Ahadith (sayings) and save them from any harm by the enemies of Islam
who tried to mislead Muslims by adding to them thing that were never
said by the Prophet of Allah (s.w.t), Abu Huraira's reputation was
saved from their wrong doing until our present day.
Abu Huraira became a Muslim at the hands of At-Tufayl Ibn Amr who was
the chief of the tribe to which he belonged. When he submitted to the
truthfulness of this religion, he accompaniedAt-Tufayl to Makkah and
had the privilege of meeting the noble Prophet (s.a.w.). The Prophet
(s.a.w) asked Abu Huraira what his name was, "Abdu-Shams"(the servant
of the sun), Abu Huraira replied. So he was introduced by theholy
Prophet (s.a.w) to change his name to"Abdur-Rahman" (the servant of
the Beneficent). However, he continued to be known among people as
"Abu Hurrah" (the kitten's father) because of his love for a cat he
looked after and fed, and which used to stick to him wherever he went.
Abu Huraira lived with his mother who was still a Mushrik. He prayed
for her and tried hard to convince her to join Islam, but she
adamantly refused. One day when he was telling her about Islam she
uttered some words about the Prophet which saddened Abu Huraira
greatly. He went to the Prophet (s.a.w), hiseyes full of tears and
told him about what had happened between him and his mother. He also
asked the Prophet to make supplication to Allah (s.w.t) for her to
make her heart respond to Islam. The Prophet responded to Abu
Huraira's request and prayed for his mother. When Abu Huraira returned
home he was delighted to hear his mother, who had just taken a shower,
testifying that there is nogod but Allah and that Muhammad is His
Servantand His Messenger. So he rushed back to the Prophet with his
eyes glowing with joy, and informed him that Allah had answered his
prayers, and guided his mother to Islam. He then said: "O Allah's
Messenger,Ask Allah to make me andmy mother lovable to the believing
men and women" . So he (s.a.w.) said: "O Allah, make this servant of
yours and his mother lovable to every believing man and woman" .
With his great gift and talent, Abu Huraira realised that he was able
to serve this religion a great deal. He realised that, because many of
the early companions who had the most knowledge died in the battles in
Allah's cause, this religion needed people to preserve it, as in these
days the companions used to write only the Qur'an fearing it might get
mixed with the Hadith of the Messenger, if the latter was to be
documented too. Even among those who had a great deal of
knowledge,many of them were occupied by their trades and didn't have
as much free time as Abu Huraira to spend with the Prophet (s.a.w).
Also the fact that he had an extraordinary long term memory meant that
he could hear the Prophet's teachings and be able to ask a writer to
write them later knowing that he will not forget any of them.
Therefore, during the four years Abu Huraira stayed with the Prophet
(s.a.w) in Madinah, he set himself to accompany the holy Prophet to
gain knowledge and memorise his sayings andteachings in order to
preserve the word of Allah (s.w.t) and the teachings of his beloved
Prophet (s.a.w). The Prophet (s.a.w.) himself directed Abu Huraira to
an effective way to memorise his Hadiths, Abu Hurrah said: Allah's
Prophet one day said to us: "whoever spreads his dress until I finish
my talk, and then takes hold of it, will not forget anything from what
he heard from me" .
The fact that Abu Huraira set himself to preserve the teachings of the
noble Prophet, meant that he was always close to the Prophet (s.a.w)
in his stay in Madinah, as hehad free time at his disposal, unlike the
Muhajirin he did not work in trade and unlike the Ansar he did not
havea land to look after. This enabled Abu Huraira to stay with the
noble Prophet at Madinah and to go with him on journeys and
expeditions.
He loved the Prophet a great deal, he was never tired of looking at
the Prophet nor was he tired of listening to him. Often he would
praise Allah for his good fortune and say "Praise be to Allah who has
guided Abu Huraira to Islam, Praise be to Allah who taught Abu Huraira
the Qur'an, Praisebe to Allah who has bestowed on Abu Hurairathe
companionship of Muhammad (s.a.w)" .
Abu Huraira underwent much hardship and difficulties as a result of
devoting his life to knowledge and companionship of the holy Prophet
(s.a.w): "Oneday, my hunger became so severe that I placed a stone on
my stomach. I then sat down in the path of the companions. Abu Bakr
passed by and I asked him about an Ayah of the book of God. I
onlyasked him so that he would invite me but he didn't".
Despite the fact that Abu Huraira set himself to preserving the word
of Allah and the teachings of his Prophet, he by no means neglected
his other duties as much of his time was spend in prayers and devotion
to God. He often rotated staying up at night with his wife and his
daughter, as he would stay up for a third of the night, his wife for
another third and his daughter for a third, this way in the house of
Abu Huraira no hour of the night would pass withoutIbadah and Salat.
Abu Huraira's presence was also felt in the battlefield when needed to
protect and establish the religionof Islam by the sword, as he lived
all his life, since becoming a Muslim, as a soldier of Islam not
missing a single battle with the holy Prophet (s.a.w).
After the death of the holy Prophet (s.a.w), Abu Huraira continued his
duties in conveying the teachings of the Prophet (s.a.w). He went on
preaching a great number of Ahadith, which made some of his friends
curious of the large amount of Ahadith that he memorised in such a
short time. Although the fact that he was able to memorise so many
Ahadith was justified by the fact that he was dedicated to staying
with the Prophet and due to the extraordinary ability to memorise
speeches from the first time.
During the caliphate of Umar (r.a.a), Umar appointed him as a governor
of Bahrain where he became quiet rich. Umar, being very scrupulous
about the type of persons he appointed as governors, he was concerned
that his governors should live simply and frugally and not acquire
much wealth even through lawful means. When Umar (r.a.a)heard about
Abu Huraira's wealth he recalled him to Madinah, thinking that Abu
Hurairahad acquired his wealth through unlawful means.
When Abu Huraira arrived in Madinah, Umarquestioned him about the way
he acquired sucha fortune. Abu Huraira replied "from breeding horses
and gifts that I received" . Umar then ordered him to hand his fortune
over to the treasury of the Muslims. Abu Huraira did as he was ordered
and raised his hands to the heavens and prayed "O Lord, forgive Amir
ul-Muminin" . After a while Umar called upon Abu Huraira and offered
him to regain his position as thegovernor of Bahrain but Abu Huraira
refused the offer. When he was asked by Umar why he refused his offer
he replied "So that my honorwould not be besmirched, and my wealth
would not be taken and my back would not be beaten" . He then added "I
also fearto judge without knowledge and speak without wisdom".
Abu Huraira continued tolive a righteous life, devoting himself to
servethe religion of Islam and being kind to his mother as well as
encouraging others to be kind to their parents. One day when Abu
Huraira's health was deteriorating quickly andhis friends were praying
for him to recover, he looked to the heavens and said "O Allah I love
meeting you and ask you to love meeting me" . He then died in the year
59 after Hijra when he was seventy eight years old.
He died after having accomplished his duty and his desire to preserve
and transmit the teachings of the Holy Prophet (s.a.w), leaving
Muslims a great debt of gratitude for helping to preserve the
teachings ofthe noble Prophet (s.a.w)and setting them a perfect
example and platform to follow in preaching and conveyingto the
humanity what he and others had worked relentlessly, facing all sorts
of hardships, in order to preserve. We askAllah (s.w.t) to reward Abu
Huraira and grant him the companionship of the holy Prophet in
thehereafter just as he was granted his companionship in this world.

Umm 'Umara: The Prophet's Shield atUhud

Umm 'Umara was blessed with many honours, amongst these her presence
at Uhud, al-Hudaybiyya, Khaybar, the Fulfilled Umra, Hunayn, and the
Battle ofYamama. But her most noble role came about during the battle
of Uhud.
Umm 'Umara set out to the battle with her husband, Ghaziya, and her
two sons. Her inhad been to give water to thewounded, but Allah had
planned for her a more rewarding role.
So she set out with her family with a waterskin, and arrived at the
battle field during the beginning of the day. The Muslims had the
upper hand, and she went to see how the Messenger of Allah (s.a.w)was.
But then the Muslims committed a fatal error - seeing the Quraysh on
the retreat, they ran towards the booty, ignoring the Prophet's
command to remain on the hill. Khalid bin Walid, (who hadn't embraced
Islam yet), seeing the open flank, made a charge against the Muslims
and suddenlythe tide had swung towards the Quraysh. TheMuslims
panicked and began to flee, leaving behind only the Prophet (s.a.w)
and a handful of his Companions. Among these was Umm Umara.
Seeing the Muslims flee, Umm Umara ran to the defense of the Prophet
and took up arms, along with her husband and two sons. The Prophet
noticed that she had no shield, and so said to oneof the retreating
men:"Give your shield to the one who is fighting." So he handed her
the shield,and she defended the Prophet of Allah with it, using also
the bow and arrow along with a sword. She was attacked by horsemen,
but never wavered nor felt fear. She later boldly claimed,"If they had
been on footas we were, we would have trounced them, Allah willing."
Abdullah ibn Zayed, her son, was wounded during the battle. His wound
bled profusely. His mother ran to him and bandaged his wounds, and
then commanded him, "Go and fight the people, my son!" The Prophet
(s.a.w) admired her sense of sacrifice, and commended her, "Who can
endure what you canendure, Umm 'Umara!"
Suddenly, the man who had struck her son advanced, and the Prophet
called out to her,"This is the one who struck your son." She bravely
confronted the man, who her very son described as being like a great
tree trunk, and struck at his leg, sending him to his knees. The
Messenger of Allah smiledso much his teeth became visible, and
remarked, "You have retaliated, Umm 'Umara!".Having finished him off,
the Prophet then said"Praise be to Allah who has given you victory
anddelighted you over your enemy and let you enjoy your revenge
directly."
At one stage, the Prophet(s.a.w) was left alone, so taking the
opportunity, the enemy Ibn Qumay'a charged at the Prophet, shouting
"Show me Muhammad! I will not be saved if he is saved!" So Mus'ab ibn
'Umayr, along with some other of the Companions, dashed to the
protection of the Prophet. Umm 'Umara was among them, and began
fiercely striking at the enemy of Allah, even though he was wearing
double armour. Ibn Qumay'a managed to strike a blow at her
neck,leaving a serious wound. The Prophet quickly called on her son
"Your mother! Your mother! Bind her wound! May Allah bless you, the
people of a house! The stand of your mother is better than the stand
of so-and-so. May Allah havemercy on you, people of a house! The stand
of your foster father is better than the stand of so-and-so. May Allah
havemercy on you, people of a house!" Umm 'Umara, seeing the Prophet's
pleasure on her determination and valour , earnestly requested"Ask
Allah to make us your companions in the Garden!" So he said "O Allah,
make them my companions in the Garden." And this was thedesire of Umm
'Umara, to which she replied "I do not care what afflicts me in this
world!"
That day, she received thirteen wounds, and was treated for her neck
wound for a complete year. She also participated in the Battle of
Yamama, where she received eleven wounds and lost her hand.
Her courageous characterearned her the respect ofall the Companions,
especially the Khalifa's who would visit her and pay special attention
to her.
'Umar bin Khattab (r.a.a) was brought some silk garments which
contained excellent quality material. One of the people remarked"This
garment is worth such-and-such (meaning how expensive it was). You
should send it to the wife of 'Abdullah ibn 'Umar, Safiyya bint Abi
'Ubayd." 'Umar (r.a.a) however did not desire such a garment for his
daughter in law. "That is something which I will not give to Ibn
'Umar. I will send it to someone who is more entitled to itthan her -
Umm 'Umara Nusayba bint Ka'b. On theday of Uhud, I heard the Messenger
of Allah (s.a.w)say, 'Whenever I looked to the right or left I saw her
fighting in front of me'."
This was the life of Umm 'Umara, the warrior who stood when many fled,
who sent her wounded son back into the thick ofthe battle, and was
prepared to lose her life to save the Prophet's. In return, she
received the du'a for the Prophet's companionship in Paradise.
May Allah bless our women with such courage, self-sacrifice and perseverance.

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If his father asked him for money and he does not have any, does he have to take a loan?

My father asks us, me and my brothers, for help in sponsoring the
marriage of one of my brothers or changing the furniture in the house
or other things that are not important. Most of the time I give him my
share of what heasks for, but sometimes Iam not able to because I do
not have the means, then he gets angry with me for a while so I go and
ask for a loan from the bank and bring it to him, and so on. Please
note that he is financially of moderate means. Is it permissible for
me to disobey him and tell him that I do nothave the money, or should
I go to the bank and take out a loan for something that is not very
important?.
Praise be to Allaah.
Firstly:
The father has the right to take from his son's wealth whatever he
needs, if that will not harm the son. That is because of the report
narrated by Abu Dawood(3530) and Ahmad (6640) from the hadeeth of
'Abdullah ibn 'Amr, according to which a man said: O Messenger of
Allaah, I have wealth and children, and my father is in need of my
wealth. He said: "You and your wealth belong to your father."
Classed as saheeh by al-Albaani in Saheeh Abi Dawood.
What the hadeeth means– as al-Khattaabi (may Allah have mercy on him)
said – is that the father needed the money for his living expenses,
but the son's wealth was so little that his father's living expenses
would consume all that he had. But the Prophet (blessings and peace of
Allah be upon him) did not excuse him and allow him not to spend on
his father's living expenses. See 'Awn al-Ma'bood.
It is stipulated that the father should be in needof this wealth
according to the majority of fuqaha', apart from the Hanbalis, because
of the report narrated by al-Haakim (2/284) and al-Bayhaqi (7/480)
from 'Aa'ishah (may Allah be pleased with her) who said: The Messenger
of Allah (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him) said: "Your
childrenare a gift from Allah to you – 'He bestows female (offspring)
upon whom He wills, and bestows male (offspring)upon whom He wills'
[ash-Shoora 42:49] – so they and their wealth belong to you, if you
need it."
Classed as saheeh by al-Albaani in as-Silsilah as-Saheehah, 2564
Ibn Qudaamah (may Allah have mercy on him) said: The father may take
whatever he wants from his son's wealth and take possession of it,
whetherthe father needs what he takes or not, and whether the son is a
child or an adult, subjectto two conditions:
(i) that it is not unfair to the son, it does not harm
him and he should not take anything that the son needs;
(ii) that he does not take from the wealthof one son and
give it to another, because it is forbidden to single out one child
for giving fromhis own wealth, so it is more appropriate that it
should be forbidden to single out one child for giving what he has
taken from the wealth ofanother child.
Abu Haneefah, Maalik and ash-Shaafa'i said: Hedoes not have the right
to take from his son's wealth except as much as he needs, because
theProphet (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him) said: "Your
blood and your wealth are sacred to you, as sacred as this day of
yours, in this month of yours." (Agreed upon). And it was narrated
that the Prophet (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him) said: "It
is not permissible to take the wealth of a Muslim unless he gives it
willingly." Narrated by ad-Daaraqutni. And because the son has
complete authority over his own wealth, so it is not permissible to
take itfrom him.
End quote from al-Mughni, 5/395
If the father needs the wealth, he may take from his son's wealth and
spend it on his own living expenses and those of his dependents, so
long as that does not harm his son and he does not take anything that
his son needs, such as his car that he drives, and so on. See also the
answer to question no. 9594
Secondly:
If you do not have any money, you do not have to take out a loan, and
you can tell your father: Ido not have any money right now, or you can
tell him that you need the money that you do have. This is not
regarded as being disobedience towards him.
It is not permissible to take a loan from a riba-based bank under any
circumstances, because of the texts which indicate that the one who
consumes riba and the one who pays it are cursed. And it is not
permissible to obey yourfather if he tells you to take out this loan,
because there is no obedience to any created being if it involves
disobedience towards the Creator.
To sum up: if the father needs the money to spend on maintenance or to
buy furniture for the house and so on, it ispermissible for him to
take from his sons' wealth, on condition that this does not harm them,
and that he does not take things that theyneed. If they do not haveany
money to spare, then they do not have totake out a loan.
The brothers should cooperate to help the one who has not got married,
each according to what he is able to afford.
And Allah knows best.

Saying between the twoprostrations: Rabb ighfir li wa li waalidayya (Lord forgive me and my parents)

What is the ruling on saying "Rabb ighfir li wali waalidaya (Lord
forgive me and my parents)" when sitting between the two prostrations?
Is that permissible?.
Praise be to Allaah.
You should adhere to what was narrated of the du'aa' of the
Prophet(blessings and peace of Allah be upon him) between the two
prostrations, which is to say, "Rabb ighfir li (Lord forgive me)", as
it was narrated by an-Nasaa'i (1145) and Ibn Maajah (897) from
Hudhayfah (may Allah be pleased with him) that the Prophet (blessings
and peace of Allah be upon him) used to say between the two
prostrations: "Rabb ighfir li, Rabb ighfir li (Lord forgive me, Lord
forgive me)."
It is proven that the Prophet (blessings and peace of Allah be upon
him) also used to say between the two prostrations: "Allaahumma ighfir
li warhamni wajburni warfa'ni wahdini wa 'aafini warzuqni (O Allaah,
forgive me, have mercy on me, console me, raise me in status, guide
me, grant me well being and grant me provision)."
At-Tirmidhi (284) narrated from Ibn 'Abbaas (may Allah be pleased with
him) that the Prophet (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him) used
to say between the two prostrations: "Allaahumma ighfir li warhamni
wajburni wahdini warzuqni (O Allaah, forgive me, have mercy on me,
console me, guide me, and grantme provision)."
Abu Dawood (850) narrated it as follows: "Allaahumma ighfir li
warhamni wa 'aafini wahdini warzuqni (O Allaah, forgive me, have mercy
on me, grant me well being, guide me and grant me provision)."
Ibn Maajah (898) narrated it as follows: "Rabb ighfir li
warhamniwajburni warzuqni warfa'ni (O Lord, forgive me, have mercy on
me, console me, grant me provision and raise me in status).
This hadeeth was classedas saheeh by al-Albaani in Saheeh at-Tirmidhi.
An-Nawawi (may Allah have mercy on him) said in al-Majmoo' (3/414):
With regard to the hadeeth of Ibn 'Abbaas, it was narrated by Abu
Dawood, at-Tirmidhi andothers with a jayyid isnaad. It was narrated by
al-Haakim in al-Mustadrak and he said: Its isnaad is saheeh.He quoted
the different versions then he said: Tobe on the safe side, the best
option is to combine all the reports and say all the phrases
mentioned, of which there are seven: "Allaahumma ighfir li warhamni wa
'aafini wajburni warfa'ni wahdini warzuqni (O Allaah, forgive me, have
mercy on me, grant me well being, console me, raise me in status,
guide me and grant me provision)." End quote.
With regard to adding tothis du'aa', what appears to be the case is
that it is permissible, butit is preferable to keep to what has been
narrated and to offer du'aa' for one's parents in prostration or
before saying the salaam at the end of the prayer. Muslim (479)
narrated from Ibn 'Abbaas (may Allah be pleased with him) that the
Messenger of Allah (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him) said:
"…as for prostrating, strive in du'aa', for it is deservingof a
response (from yourLord)."
Shaykh Ibn Baaz (may Allah have mercy on him) said: Then he should
rise from prostration, saying "Allahu akbar (Allah is most great),"
and sit muftarishan, which means sitting on the left foot and holding
the right foot upright, placing his right hand on his right thigh or
on his knee, extending his fingers over his knee, and placing his left
handon his left thigh or his left knee, extending his fingers over it.
This is theSunnah. And he should say: "Rabb ighfir li, Rabb ighfir li,
Rabb ighfir li (Lord forgive me, Lord forgive me, Lord forgive me), as
the Messenger (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him) used to do.
And it is mustahabb to say in addition to that: Allahumma ighfir li
warhamni wahdini wajburni warzuqni wa 'aafini (O Allah, forgive me,
have mercy on me, guide me, console me, grant me provision and grant
me well being), because that is proven from the Prophet (blessings and
peace of Allah be upon him). And if he says more than that, there is
nothing wrong with it, such as if he says, "Allahumma ighfir li wa li
waalidayya(O Allah, forgive me and my parents)" or "Allaahumma
adkhilni al-Jannah wa anjini min an-naar (O Allah, admit me to
Paradise and save me from Hell)" or "Allaahumma aslih qalbi wa 'amali
(O Allah, make my heart and my actions righteous) and so on. But he
should ask a great deal for forgiveness between thetwo prostrations,
as was narrated from the Prophet (blessings and peace of Allah be upon
him).
End quote from Fataawa ash-Shaykh Ibn Baaz, 11/36
And Allah knows best.

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And Allah Knows the Best!

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