Companions of the Prophet (s): Difference between revisions

The majority of Sunni scholars believe that all the prophet’s companions were just and righteous individuals (`Ādil) and hence, any mistakes they made or crimes they committed were because of an error in their individual ijtihad.  According to the Shias, the Sahabah were no different to the rest of the Muslims in this regard, and the veracity or justice of each companions would need to be established separately.

In the view of the Shias, the best of the Prophet’s (s) companions were Imam Ali b. Abi Ṭālib (a) and his two sons, Imams Hasan (a) and Hussain (a).

=The definition of Sahabah=

A companion of the Prophet (Sahabah) is someone who has met the Prophet (s), believes in him and leaves this world as a Muslim . This includes those who leave Islam in between the time that they met the Prophet and died as Muslims. The condition of ‘meeting’ as used in this context is inclusive of actual companionship (regular interaction) with the Prophet (s), accompanying the Prophet, and crossing paths with the Prophet even if no words were exchanged, or the other party did not physically see the Prophet due to a cause such as blindness .

It is reported that the Prophet’s companions numbered up to one-hundred and fourteen-thousand individuals . Establishing whether or not someone was a companion can be done through one of the following ways; widely reported narrations (tawātur), if such is recorded in three or more reports with different chains (Istifādhah), being well known to people (shuhrah), or being reported by trustworthy narrators (khabar thiqah) .

Those who had the good fortune of seeing the Prophet (s), but were young in age, are known as the ‘minor companions’ (Sahabah Sighār).

Since some of the companions lived approximately up and until one-hundred Hijri, the period of the Sahabah is considered to be between the time after the Prophet’s demise to the end of the first Islamic century .

The last companion to pass away in Kufa was Abdullah b. Abī Awfa in the eighty-sixth year of Hijri. In Medina, the last of the companions to leave this world was Sahl b. Sa`d Sā`idī in the year ninety-one Hijri, while he was a hundred years old. Anas b. Malik was the final companion to die in the city of Basra in either ninety-one or ninety-three Hijri. The last companion in Shaam was Abdullah b. Yasr, who passed away in eighty-eight Hijri .

Abu Tufayl `Amir B. Wāthilah was the last of those who saw the Prophet (s), but were not counted among his companions, to pass away. Abu Tufayl was a flagbearer in the government of Mukthār b. Abi Ubayd al-Thaqafī, and believed in the doctrine of Raj’ah. He died after one-hundred Hijri. It appears that Fādhil Mamqānī has counted him among the companions of the Prophet (s) .

=Authorship about the companions=

Authorship regarding the companions began in the first Islamic century (post-Prophetic migration) in the form of cataloguing the works of companions (Fehrist) or listing their names (Tasmīyah or Ismā’). The root of this practise (listing names) stems from the science of genealogy, or is at least an extension of it, as it existed in pre-Islamic Arabia during the era of ignorance (Jahiliyyah). As a result of this continuing tradition, the recording of the companions names, and their individual and tribal specifications, was seen as an important endeavour. This authorship about the companions began to develop in the format of an encyclopaedia for Sahabah. When the writing of biographies was introduced, lists of those had participated in wars or tribes which had given martyrs, and information of this nature started to be recorded. Events like the first and second allegiance of ‘Uqabah, or who was martyred during the battle of Badr, were documented. We see this type of documentation in the ‘Sīrah’ of Ibn Ishāq and ‘Maghāzi’ of Musa b. ‘Uqbah . This approach of cataloguing the works of companions (Fehrist) gradually developed, finally becoming very different and independent from the previous name listing (Tasmīyah) method of documentation.

A large majority of the books written on the biographies of hadith narrators under the topics of (narrator) history or Ṭabaqāt (listing the narrators in order of a particular criterion), are usually dedicated to the works authored by the companions (Fehrist). Waqidī is a pioneering example of this occurrence. Although (Ṭabaqāt) Waqidī’s book is not available, his student, Ibn Sa`d, has brought a lot of the material from his teachers work in his own book, Al-Ṭabaqāt Al-Kubra. In this book, Ibn Sa`d has mentioned most of the companions names. The names and grouping however have not been arranged in an alphabetical order, since this method of ordering lists is a latter development. The names have been arranged in what seems to be a geographical order, so for example first companions who resided in Mecca are mentioned, followed by those who were in Ṭā’if .

Alongside such books, other independently organised material under the name of Tasmīyah or Ismā’ (listing names) was also produced. The oldest and first work written under this title was authored by `Ubaydullah b. Abī Rāfi’. His book was titled ‘Names of those who were martyred in the ranks of the Commander of the Faithful, Ali ibn Abī Ṭālib in (the battles of) Jamal, Sifīn and Nahrawān’. The book itself no longer exists, but Qādhī Nu`mān al-Misrī has brought it in his ‘Sharh al-Akhbār’ .

Larger collections of works regarding the Sahabah have been collected with titles such as ‘Ma`rifat al-Sahabah’ (Knowing the Companions) and ‘Mu`jam al-Sahabah’. In the third century, authors such as Ali b. Madīnī (d. 234 Hijri), Hilwānī Hasan b. Ali (d.242H), `Abbās b. Ya’qūb Rawājinī (d. 250H or 271H), Abdān, and Abu Muhammad Abdullah b. Muhammad b. `Isa Marūzī, and following them, Abu Mansur Bāwardī (in the beginning of the fourth century) all authored books with the title ‘Ma`rifat al-Sahabah’. The first book to be titled ‘Mujam al-Sahabah’ was written by Abu Ya`lī Mosulī (d.307H).

In writing the books known as ‘Mu`jam’, at times the content was organised alphabetically according to the first letter of the word, and even the following letters of the word, on other occasions. The latter (all letters of the word being listed based on alphabetical order) became more common during the sixth century onwards .

=Belief that all the companions were Just=

Sunni Muslims, all except a small group (whom Ibn Hajr refers to as the ‘Mubtada’ah’), are known to hold the belief that the companions were just and righteous individuals . However apparently, it seems that not all Sunni scholars have accepted this view; hence, it is not correct to say that all Sunnis have this belief .

Ibn Abi al-Hadīd, a Sunni Mu’tazzilite scholar, says regarding those who instigated the battle of ‘the camel’ (Jamal):

“According to the view of our companions, the Mu’tazzilites, they are all doomed, except Aisha, Ṭalḥah, and Zubayr. They are not doomed because they repented from their deeds, and had they not repented, their punishment would have been the hell fire for their insistence in rebellion and treachery (against a rightful leader)”.

“According to the view of our companions, the Mu’tazzilites, they are all doomed for their insistence in rebellion and treachery (against a rightful leader), and they all died in this state, the leaders and the followers”.

“According to the view of our companions, the Mu’tazzilites, without any dispute (among the scholars) they are in the hellfire. As a general principle, we the Mutazzalites, consider every unrighteous and sinful person, who dies in the state of sin and trespassing (God’s commandments), to be hell bound. And there is no doubt that every rebel and traitor against a rightful Imam (Imam al-Haqq) is unrighteous and sinful.”

“And the foremost (among them are), the first from the Muhājirīn (migrators) and the Ansār (helpers), and those who followed them in goodness, Allah is pleased with them, and they are pleased with Allah…” (Quran; Ch: 9, V: 100).

This verse however, does not indicate that all of the companions were just and righteous individuals, especially since the Quran mentions the unfavourable acts and characteristics of some companions.  It mentions that some of them had a sickness in their hearts , that a number of them would act as spies for the hypocrites, the fact that there are unrighteous and sinful individuals among them, and that the Prophet (s) was averse towards some of them. Therefore, it is not agreeable that God was pleased with such individuals, for He (swt) says in the Quran, ‘Indeed Allah will not be pleased with the transgressors’ (Quran; Ch: 9, V: 96).

Secondly, their excellence over others, and God being pleased with them is conditional to them believing and practising good deeds, the reason being that the praise of the believers in this verse comes after condemning the hypocrites for their disbelief and evil works. Furthermore, in the other instances where God praises the believers, it is always done so while being conditional to them having faith and doing good deeds. If this were not the case, it would be a direct opposition of the clear message of verse ninety-six in surah Tawbah (repentance), where God states his displeasure with the transgressors. It also goes against verse one-hundred and twenty-three of surah Nisā’, in which God states ‘…whoever commits evil, shall be requited for it…’, and many other verses of the Quran.

‘You are the best nation to have been brought forward for mankind…’ (Quran CH: Aal `Imrān, V: 110)

=The Shia Opinion=

The apostasy of companions such as Abdullah b. Hajash, `Ubaydullah b. Khaṭl, Rabī`ah b. Umayyah, and Ash’at b. Qays, also disproves the theory that being a companion keeps one away from sin.

Lastly, some of actions of the companions are incompatible with the quality of being just and righteous. History is filled with examples of such examples; companions going to war with a righteous Imam, (causing the) killing of innocents, usurping property, slandering and cursing (consider the practise of publicly cursing Imam Ali), starting wars between Muslims, causing sedition and discord (in society), and chasing power. As an example, the behaviour of Marwan b. Hakm during the time of ‘Uthman is very famous. Also the problematic actions of Basr b. Irṭāh, Mughayrah b. Shu’bah, and Walīd b. Uqabah, who were all Sahabah .

In the view of the Shias, the best of the Prophet’s (s) companions were Imam Ali b. Abi Ṭālib (a) and his two sons, Imams Hasan (a) and Hussain (a).