Prophet Muhammad's (peace on him) Companions &

The First Three Generations of Muslims

Prophet Muhammad peace on him, said: "The best of my nation is my generation then those who follow them and then those who follow them." (Saheeh Bukhaaree)

Ahl as-Sunnah believe that the Caliph after the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) is Abu Bakr; then 'Umar; then 'Uthman, then 'Ali, and that whoever contests the Caliphate of any one of these Imams is indeed more lost than an ass.  Ahl as-Sunnah do not think that each of the Sahabah (May Allah be pleased with them) is infallible of committing grave sins or light sins, but that they are liable to commit general offenses. Nevertheless, to them belongs priority in accepting Islam and in doing good deeds which qualify them for forgiveness of what they may have committed, to the extent that their offenses are forgiven. The same offenses will not be forgiven of those who come after them because they (as-Sahabah (May Allah be pleased with them) have a credit of good deeds which erase the bad deeds, a credit the generations after them do not have. It has been confirmed by the saying of the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him): "That they are the best of all generations," (hadith al-Bukhari and Muslim)

[Ahl as-Sunnah] urge people to mend the relations with those who have broken with them, to give to those who have deprived them, and to forgive those who have done injustice to them. They order people to keep filial piety, to be good to other relatives, to be good neighbors, to treat orphans, wayfarers and the poor kindly and to be gentle and humane to the slave. They forbid bragging, arrogance and transgression. They prevent people from feeling superior over others, rightly or wrongly. And they bid people use high manners and prohibit them from pursuing trifles. All that they say or do of the above, or of other than it, in all of it they follow the Book (The Qur'an) and the Sunnah. Their "path" is the religion of Islam, for which Allah sent Muhammad (peace be upon him).

But for all this, the Prophet (peace be upon him) foretold: "That his 'Ummah will split into seventy-three factions, all of them in Hell except one: The Jama'ah (the Community)." (Reported by Ahmad Ibn Hanbal)

 And (the Prophet) (peace be upon him) said in another hadith: "They are those who will follow what I am and what my companions are today." (at-Tirmidhi)

Abu-d Dardaa

Early in the morning, Abu-d Dardaa awoke and went straight to his
idol which he kept in the best part of his house. He greeted it and
made obeisance to it. Then he anointed it with the best perfume from
his large shop and put on it a new raiment of beauti ful silk which
a merchant had brought to him the day before from Yemen.

When the sun was high in the sky he left his house for his shop. On
that day the streets and alleys of Yathrib were crowded with the
followers of Muhammad returning from Badr. With them were several
prisoners of war. Abu-d Dardaa surveyed the crowds and t hen went up
to a Khazraji youth and asked about the fate of Abdullah ibn Rawahah.

"He was put through the most severe tests in the battle," "but he
emerged safely..."

Abu-d Dardaa was clearly anxious about his close friend, Abdullah
ibn Rawahah. Everyone in Yathrib knew the bond of brotherhood which
existed between the two men from the days of Jahiliyyah, before the
coming of Islam to Yathrib. When Islam came to the city, Ibn Rawahah
embraced it but Abu-d Dardaa rejected it. This however did not
rupture the relationship between the two. Abdullah kept on visiting
Abu-d Dardaa and tried to make him! see the virtues, the benefits
and the excellence of Islam. But with e very passing day, while Abu-
d Dardaa remained a mushrik, Abdullah felt more sad and concerned.

Abu-d Dardaa arrived at his shop and sat cross-legged on a high
chair. He began trading-buying and selling and giving instructions
to his assistants unaware of what was going on at his house. For at
that very time, Abdullah ibn Rawahah had gone to the hou se
determined on a course of action. There, he saw that the main gate
was open. Umm ad-Dardaa was in the courtyard and he said to her:

"As-salaamu alayki - Peace be unto you, servant of God."

"Wa alayka-s salaam - And unto you be peace, O brother of Abu-d
Dardaa."

"Where is Abu-d Dardaa?" he asked. "He has gone to his shop. It
won't be tong before he returns." "Would you allow me to come
in?" "Make yourself at home," she said and went about busying
herself with her household chores and looking after her children.

Abdullah ibn Rawahah went to the room where Abu-d Dardaa kept his
idol. He took out an adz which he had brought with him and began
destroying the idol while saying:

"Isn't everything batil which is worshipped besides Allah?"

When the idol was completely smashed, he left the house. Abu-d
Dardaa's wife entered the room shortly afterwards and was aghast at
what she saw. She smote her cheeks in anguish and said: "You have
brought ruin to me, Ibn Rawahah." When Abu-d Dardaa returned home,
he saw his wife sitting at the door of the room where he kept his
idol. She was weeping loudly and she looked absolutely
terrified. "What's wrong with you?" he asked.

"Your brother Abdullah ibn Rawahab visited us in your absence and
did with your idols what you see." Abu-d Dardaa looked at the broken
idol and was horrified. He was consumed with anger and determined to
take revenge. Before long however his anger subsided and thoughts
of avenging the idol disappeared. Instead he reflected on what had
happened and said to himself:

"If there was any good in this idol, he would have defended himself
against any injury."

He then went straight to Abdullah and together they went to the
Prophet, peace be on him. There he announced his acceptance of
Islam. He was the last person in his district to become a Muslim.

From this time onwards, Abu-d Dardaa devoted himself completely to
Islam. Belief in God and His Prophet animated every fibre of his
being. He deeply regretted every moment he had spent as a mushrik
and the opportunities he had lost to do good. He realize d how much
his friends had learnt about siam in the preceding two or three
years, how much of the Quran they had memorized and the
opportunities they had to devote themselves to God and His Prophet.
He made up his mind to expend every effort, day and nigh t to try to
make up for what he had missed. Ibadah occupied his days and his
nights. His search for knowledge was restless. Much time he spent
memorizing the words of the Quran and trying to understand the
profundity of its message. When he saw that busin ess and trade
disturbed the sweetness of his ibadah and kept him away from the
circles of knowledge, he reduced his involvement without hesitation
or regret. Someone asked him why he did this and he replied:

"I was a merchant before my pledge to the Messenger of God, may God
bless him and grant him peace. When I became a Muslim, I wanted to
combine trade (tijarah) and worship (ibadah) but I did not achieve
what I desired. So I abandoned trade and inclined tow ards ibadah.

"By Him in whose hand is the soul of Abu-d Dardaa, what I want to
have is a shop near the door of the masjid so that I would not miss
any Salat with the congregation. Then I shall sell and buy and make
a modest profit every day."

"I am not saying," said Abu-d Dardaa to his questioner, "that Allah
Great and Majestic is He has prohibited trade, but I want to be
among those whom neither trade nor selling distracts form the
remembrance of God ."

Abu-d Dardaa did not only become less involved in trade but he
abandoned his hitherto soft and luxurious life-style. He ate only
what was sufficient to keep him upright and he wore clothes that was
simple and sufficient to cover his body.

Once a group of Muslims came to spend the night with him. The night
was bitterly cold. He gave them hot food which they welcomed. He
himself then went to sleep but he did not give them any blankets.
They became anxious wondering how they were going to s leep on such
a cold night. Then one of them said: "I will go and talk to
him." "Don't bother him," said another.

However, the man went to Abu-d Dardaa and stood at the door of his
room. He saw Abu-d Dardaa lying down. His wife was sitting near to
him. They were both wearing light clothing which could not protect
them from the cold and they had no blankets. Abu-d Dardaa said to
his guest: "If there was anything we would have sent it to you."

During the caliphate of Umar, Umar wanted to appoint Abu-d Dardaa as
a governor in Syria. Abu-d Dardaa refused. Umar persisted and then
Abu-d Dardaa said:

"If you are content that I should go to them to teach them the Book
of their Lord and the Sunnah of their Prophet and pray with them, I
shall go."

Umar agreed and Abu-d Dardaa left for Damascus. There he found the
people immersed in luxury and soft living. This appalled him. He
called the people to the masjid and spoke to them:

"O people of Damascus! You are my brethren in religion, neighbors
who live together and helpers one to another against enemies. "O
people of Damascus! What is it that prevents you from being
affectionate towards me and responding to my advice while I do not
seek anything from you. Is it right that I see your learned ones
departing (from this world) while the ignorant among you are not
learning. I see that you incline towards such things which Allah has
made you answerable for and you abandon what He has commanded you to
do.

"Is it reasonable that I see you gathering and hoarding what you do
not eat, and erecting buildings in which you do not live, and
holding out hopes for things you cannot attain.

"Peoples before you have amassed wealth, made great plans and had
high hopes. But it was not long before what they had amassed was
destroyed, their hopes dashed and their houses turned into graves.
Such were the people of Aad, O people of Damascus. They filled the
earth with possessions and children.

"Who is there who will purchase from me today the entire legacy of
Aad for two dirhams?"

The people wept and their sobs could be heard from outside the
masjid. From that day, Abu-d Dardaa began to frequent the meeting
places of the people of Damascus. He moved around in their market-
places, teaching, answering questions and trying to arouse a nyone
who had become careless and insensitive. He used every opportunity
and every occasion to awaken people, to set them on the right path.

Once he passed a group of people crowding around a man. They began
insulting and beating the man. He came up to them and said: "What's
the matter?" "This is a man who has committed a grave sin," they
replied.

"What do you think you would do if he had fallen into a well?" asked
Abu-d Dardaa. "Wouldn't you try to get him out?" "Certainly," they
said. "Don't insult him and don't beat him. Instead admonish him and
make him aware of the consequences of what he had done. Then give
praise to God Who has preserved you from falling into such a
sin." "Don't you hate him?" they asked Abu-d Dardaa.

"I only detest what he had done and if he abandons such practice, he
is my brother." The man began to cry and publicly announced his
repentance.

A youth once came up to Abu-d Dardaa and said: "Give me advice, O
companion of the Messenger of God," and Abu-d Dardaa said to him:

"My son, remember Allah in good times and He will remember you in
times of misfortune.

"My son, be knowledgeable, seek knowledge, be a good listener and do
not be ignorant for you will be ruined.

"My son, let the masjid be your house for indeed I heard the
Messenger of God say: The masjid is the house of every God-conscious
person and God Almighty has guaranteed serenity, comfort, mercy and
staying on the path leading to His pleasure, to those for whom
masjids are their houses."

On another occasion, there was a group of people sitting in the
street, chatting and looking at passers-by. Abu-d Dardaa came up to
them and said:

"My sons, the monastery of a Muslim man is his house in which he
controls himself and lowers his gaze. Beware of sitting in market-
places because this fritters away time in vain pursuits."

While Abu-d Dardaa was in Damascus, Muawiyah ibn Abi Sufyan, its
governor, asked him to give his daughter in marriage to his
(Muawiyah's) son, Yazid. Abu-d Dardaa did not agree. Instead he gave
his daughter in marriage to a young man from among the poor whose
character and attachment to Islam pleased him. People heard about
this and began talking and asking: Why did Abu-d Dardaa refuse to
let his daughter marry Yazid? The question was put to Abu-d Dardaa
himself and he said: "I have only sought to do wh at is good for ad-
Dardaa." That was his daughter's name. "How?" enquired the person.

"What would you think of ad-Dardaa if servants were to stand in her
presence serving her and if she were to find herself in palaces the
glamour of which dazzled the eyes? What would become of her religion
then?"

While Abu-d Dardaa was still in Syria, the Caliph Umar ibn al-
Khattab came on an inspection tour of the region. One night he went
to visit Abu-d Dardaa at his home. There was no light in the house.
Abu-d Dardaa welcomed the Caliph and sat him down. The tw o men
conversed in the darkness. As they did so, Umar felt Abu-d
Dardaa's "pillow" and realized it was an animal's saddle. He touched
the place where Abu-d Dardaa lay and knew it was just small pebbles.
He also felt the sheet with which he covered himse lf and was
astonished to find it so flimsy that it couldn't possibly protect
him from the cold of Damascus. Umar asked him:

"Shouldn't I make things more comfortable for you? Shouldn't I send
something for you?"

"Do you remember, Umar," said Abu-d Dardaa, "a hadith which the
Prophet, may God bless him and grant him peace, told us?" "What is
it?" asked Umar. "Did he not say: Let what is sufficient for anyone
of you in this world be like the provisions of a rider? " "Yes,"
said Umar. "And what have we done after this, O Umar?" asked Abu-d
Dardaa.

Both men wept no doubt thinking about the vast riches that had come
the way of Muslims with the expansion of Islam and their
preoccupation with amassing wealth and worldly possessions. With
deep sorrow and sadness, both men continued to reflect on this si
tuation until the break of dawn.

"The best words in their best order in any language cannot adequately depict the way God's Messenger (peace be upon him) looked at the dirham and dinar, wealth and property, and the world and all that it stands for. Indeed, even the disciples who had served their time at the feet of the Prophet's companions (may Allah be pleased with them) or the disciples of such disciples never regarded fortunes and treasures fit enough for the dusthole. Their pure and pious lives, their indifference to wealth and worldly possessions, the way they showered bounty on one and all and preferred others over their own selves, their contentedness with the barest minimum and their heroic selflessness and self-denial take one's breath away. One can only picture to oneself the nobleness of heart and openhanded generosity as well as self-abnegation and unearthly disposition of the great teacher who had enlarged the minds of all the later godly souls."
 
-IslamToday.com