My companions! My companions! It will be said: You do not know what they invented after you. Certainly, they remained apostates

أصحابي أصحابي فيقال إنك لا تدري ما أحدثوا بعدك إنهم ما زالوا مرتدين

My companions! My companions! It will be said: “You do not know what they invented after you. Certainly, they remained apostates.”

Important note: The Shia cite the following verse as proof to emphasise that the Sahabah radiya Llahu ‘anhum apostatised after Rasulullah’s salla Llahu ‘alayhi wa sallam demise except three or seven of them:

وَمَا مُحَمَّدٌ إِلَّا رَسُوْلٌ قَدْ خَلَتْ مِنْ قَبْلِهِ الرُّسُلُ أَفَإِنْ مَّاتَ أَوْ قُتِلَ انْقَلَبْتُمْ عَلىٰ أَعْقَابِكُمْ

Muhammad is not but a messenger. [Other] messengers have passed on before him. So if he was to die or be killed, would you turn back on your heels [to unbelief]?[1]

We would firstly like to ask those who exceed the limit in loving and honouring Sayyidina ‘Ali radiya Llahu ‘anhu:

Did ‘Ali give bay’ah to apostates?
Did he marry his daughter to one of them?
Did he name his sons after them?
Did he declare publicly after Sayyidina ‘Umar’s radiya Llahu ‘anhu death that his daughter Umm Kulthum was married to an apostate?

Furthermore, the verse does not denote the occurrence of apostasy. It simply warns them from it, just as Allah subhanahu wa ta ‘ala says to His noble Messenger salla Llahu ‘alayhi wa sallam:

وَلَوْ شَاءَ رَبُّكَ لَآمَنَ مَنْ فِي الْأَرْضِ كُلُّهُمْ جَمِيْعًا أَفَأَنْتَ تُكْرِهُ النَّاسَ حَتّىٰ يَكُوْنُوْا مُؤْمِنِيْنَ

Then, [O Muhammad], would you compel the people in order that they become believers?[2]

Why did you take the Qur’an from them whereas they were renegades and distorters of the verses? Do you have an alternate source other than them?

Undoubtedly, there was a group who apostatised after Rasulullah’s salla Llahu ‘alayhi wa sallam demise and it was these apostates that Sayyidina Abu Bakr radiya Llahu ‘anhu fought and defeated. From among those who fought against them was Sayyidina ‘Ali radiya Llahu ‘anhu who married a woman from among the captives whose name was Khawlah bint Jafar, the mother of Muhammad ibn ‘Ali al Akbar.[3] Al Majlisi has referenced this view to the muhaqqiqin narrators and declared it the accepted view.[4]

Hafiz stated:

أم محمد بن الحنفية كانت مرتدة فاسترقها علي و استولدها و ذكر الواقدي في كتاب الردة من حديث خالد بن الوليد أنه قسم سهم بني حنيفة خمسة أجزاء و قسم علي الناس أربعة و عزل الخمس حتى قدم به على أبي بكر ثم ذكر من عدة طرق أن الحنفية كانت من ذلك السبي قلت و روينا في جزء بن علم أن النبي صلى الله عليه و سلم رأى الحنفية في بيت فاطمة فأخبر عليا أنها ستصير له و أنه يولد له منها ولد اسمه محمد

The mother of Muhammad ibn al Hanafiyyah was an apostate. ‘Ali took her and she gave birth to his child. Al Waqidi has mentioned in Kitab al Riddah from the hadith of Khalid ibn al Walid that he divided the spoils of the Banu Hanifah into five parts, four of these were divided among the people and the khumus was kept aside until he brought it to Abu Bakr. He then mentioned through many chains that al Hanafiyyah was from among these captives. I say: We have reported in Juz’ ibn ‘Ilm that Nabi salla Llahu ‘alayhi wa sallam saw al Hanafiyyah in the house of Fatimah and informed ‘Ali that she will soon be his and he will beget a boy from her whose name will be Muhammad.[5]

This strengthens the fact that Sayyidina ‘Ali radiya Llahu ‘anhu participated in the wars against apostasy.

Secondly, we would like to ask:

Does the Qur’an contradict itself?
How can their apostasy be understood from here, whereas it is the very Qur’an that praises the Muhajirin and Ansar?
Why would Allah subhanahu wa ta ‘ala allow the renegades to assume the divine post, and deprive those whom He promised the same?

Do you have any escape besides proposing Bada’, i.e. Allah subhanahu wa ta ‘ala came to know later about the Sahabah radiya Llahu ‘anhum that which He was unaware of beforehand? (May Allah forbid!)

The hadith of ashabi is general. And the Qur’an has specifically praised the Muhajirin and Ansar. So will the Rawafid praise them specifically in accordance to the Qur’an?

The Qur’an impressed the presence of the munafiqin who would outwardly portray themselves as Muslims and that Rasulullah salla Llahu ‘alayhi wa sallam was unaware of their exact numbers as Allah subhanahu wa ta ‘ala declares:

وَمِمَّنْ حَوْلَكُمْ مِّنَ الْأَعْرَابِ مُنَافِقُوْنَ وَمِنْ أَهْلِ الْمَدِيْنَةِ مَرَدُوْا عَلَى النِّفَاقِ لَا تَعْلَمُهُمْ نَحْنُ نَعْلَمُهُمْ

And among those around you of the bedouins are hypocrites, and [also] from the people of Madinah. They have become accustomed to hypocrisy. You, [O Muhammad], do not know them, [but] We know them.[6]

This verse deals with the munafiqin, not the Muhajirin, Ansar, and the participants of Bay’at al Ridwan. Sayyidina Abu Bakr and Sayyidina ‘Umar radiya Llahu ‘anhuma are among the Muhajirin.

Rasulullah salla Llahu ‘alayhi wa sallam has indeed declared:

لا يدخل النار أحد من أصحاب الشجرة

None of the participants of the tree (i.e. Bay’at al Ridwan) will enter Hell.

Ponder over the words:

لا يدخل النار

Will not enter Hell.

The following wording also appears:

لن يلج النار أحد بايع تحت الشجرة

Anyone who pledged allegiance under the tree will never enter Hell.[7]

The same has been cited even by the Shia, the likes of al Tabataba’i in Tafsir al Mizan.[8] Fadl al Tabarsi writes in his Tafsir:

والذي نفسي بيده ليردن على الحوض ممن صحبني أقوام حتى إذا رأيتهم اختلجوا دوني فلأقولن أصحابي أصحابي أصحابي فيقال إنك لا تدري ما أحدثوا بعد إيمانهم ارتدوا على أعقابهم القهقرى و ذكره الثعلبي في تفسيره فقال أبو أمامة الباهلي هم الخوارج ويروي عن النبي أنهم يمرقون من الدين كما يمرق السهم من الرمية

By the Being in Whose hands lies my life, most certainly some clans from those who accompanied me will come to the pond. When I will see them, they will be chased away from me. I will shout, “My companions! My companions! My companions!”

It will be said, “You do not know what they invented after their faith. They turned back on their heels (i.e. they apostatised).” Al Tha’labi mentioned in his Tafsir. Abu Umamah al Bahili comments, “They are the Khawarij. It is reported from Nabi salla Llahu ‘alayhi wa sallam that they will pass through din like how an arrow passes through game.”[9]

With regards to the attachment of suhbah (companionship). It is only a generic noun, no technical definition is implied. It is used in different ways. Nabi salla Llahu ‘alayhi wa sallam did not qualify this suhbah with any quality or quantity. He just left it standard. And the basic standard is only to see (Nabi salla Llahu ‘alayhi wa sallam). Accordingly, it appears in a narration:

ليردن علي الحوض رجال ممن صحبني و رآني

Men who accompanied me and saw me will come to me at the pond.[10]

Rasulullah salla Llahu ‘alayhi wa sallam also mentioned them with an ism al tasghir (diminutive noun). Sayyidina Anas ibn Malik radiya Llahu ‘anhu reports that Nabi salla Llahu ‘alayhi wa sallam said:

ليردن علي الحوض ممن صاحبني حتى إذا رأيتهم و رفعوا إلي اختلجوا دوني فلأقولن أي رب أصيحابي أصيحابي فليقالن لي إنك لا تدري ما أحدثوا بعدك

Most certainly some of those who accompanied me will come to me at the pond. When I will see them, they will be chased away from me. I will shout, “O my Rabb, my Usayhabi (companions)! My Usayhabi (companions)!”

It will be said to me, “You do not know what they invented after you.”[11]

Some narrations have the words:

من أمتي

From my ummah.

Others have:

رجال منكم

Men from you.

Yet others have:

زمرة

A group.

It would extremely unethical to cite just the one version in an attempt to prove one’s preconceived notions. When all the narrations are taken into consideration it becomes clear that this is not a disparagement for any of the Companions from amongst the Muhajirin and Ansar. The entire claim is nothing more than the drivel of the Rawafid.

With regards to Rasulullah salla Llahu ‘alayhi wa sallam saying that he will recognise them. This does not necessarily mean that he will recognise them by their faces. Rather he will recognise them with certain signs as the hadith in Sahih Muslim elucidates:

ترد علي أمتي الحوض و أنا اذود الناس عنه كما يذود الرجل إبل الرجل عن إبله قالوا يا نبي الله أتعرفنا قال نعم لكم سيما ليست لأحد غيركم تردون علي غرا محجلين من آثار الوضوء و ليصدن عني طائفة منكم فلا يصلون فأقول يا رب هؤلاء من أصحابي فيجبني ملك فيقول و هل تدري ما أحدثوا بعدك

The Prophet salla Llahu ‘alayhi wa sallam said, “My ummah will come to me at the pond. I will chase people from it just as a man chases away another man’s camels from his own.”

They asked, “O Messenger of Allah, will you recognise us?”

“Yes,” he replied, “you will have signs which none besides you will have. You will come to me shining from the effects of wudu’. A group of you will definitely be prevented from me, hence they will not reach. I will say, ‘O my Rabb, these are my companions.’ An angel will answer my by saying, ‘And do you know what they invented after you?’”[12]

Next⇒ My companions are like the stars, whichever of them you follow you will be guided

[1] Surah Al ‘Imran: 144.

[2] Surah Yunus: 99.

[3] Qadi al Nu’man al Maghribi: Sharh al Akhbar vol. 3 pg. 295.

[4] Bihar al Anwar vol. 42 pg. 99.

[5] Talkhis al Habir vol. 4 pg. 50.

[6] Surah al Tawbah: 101.

[7] Jami’ al Tirmidhi; Sunan Abi Dawood. Al Albani graded it sahih in Silsilat al Sahihah Hadith: 7680, Sahih al Tirmidhi Hadith: 3033, and Sahih Abi Dawood Hadith: 2792.

[8] Tafsir al Mizan vol. 18 pg. 293.

[9] Majma’ al Bayan vol. 2 pg. 162.

[10] Fath al Bari vol. 11 pg. 393.

[11] Sharh Muslim Hadith: 2304; Sahih al Bukhari Hadith: 6211.

[12] Sharh Muslim Hadith: 247.

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