Model Behavior of the Prophet (Kitab Al-Sunnah)

‘Uthman al-Batti said: Al-Hasan never interpreted any Quranic verse but to establish (Divine decree).

Ibn ‘Umar said: We used to say in the times of the Prophet (ﷺ): We do not compare anyone with Abu Bakr. ’Umar came next and then ‘Uthman. We then would leave (rest of) the companions of the Prophet (ﷺ) without treating any as superior to other.

Ibn ‘Umar said: When the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) was alive, we used to say: The most excellent member of the community of the Prophet (ﷺ) after himself is Abu Bakr, then ‘Umar, then 'Uthman.

Muhammad b. al-Hanafiyyah said: I said to my father: Which of the people after the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) is best? He replied: Abu Bakr. I then asked: Who comes next? He said: ‘Umar. I was then afraid of asking him who came next, and he might mention ‘Uthman, so I said: You came next, O my father? He said: I am only a man among the Muslims.

Muhammad al-Firyabl said: I heard Sufyan say: If anyone thinks that ‘All (Allah be pleased with him) was more deserving for the Caliphate than both of them, he imputed error to Abu Bakr, ‘Umar, the Muhajirun (Immigrants), and the Ansar (Helpers) Allah be pleased with all of them. I think that with this (belief) none of his action will rise to the heaven.

Sufyan al-Thawri said: The Caliphs are five: Abu Bakr, ‘Umar, ‘Uthman, ‘All and ‘Umar b. ‘Abd al-Aziz.

Ibn 'Abbas said: Abu Hurairah said that a man came to the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) and said: I saw (in my dream) a piece of cloud from which ghee and honey were dropping. I saw the people spreading their hands. Some of them took much and some a little. I also saw a rope hanging from Heaven to Earth. I saw, Messenger of Allah, that you caught hold of it and ascended by it. Then another man caught hold of it and ascended it. Then another man caught hold of it and ascended it. Then another man caught hold of it, but it broke, and then it was joined and he ascended it. AbuBakr said: May my parents be sacrificed for you, if you allow, I shall interpret it. He said: Interpret it. He said: The piece of cloud is the cloud of Islam; the ghee and honey that were dropping from it are the Qur'an, which contains softness and sweetness. Those who received much or little of it are those who learn much or little of the Qur'an. The rope hanging from Heaven to Earth is the truth which you are following. You catch hold of it and then Allah will raise you to Him. Then another man will catch hold of it and ascend it, Then another man will catch hold of it and it will break. But it will be joined and he will ascend it. Tell me. Messenger of Allah, whether I am right or wrong. He said: You are partly right and partly wrong. He said: I adjure you by Allah, you should tell me where I am wrong. The Prophet (ﷺ) said: Do not take an oath.

The tradition mentioned above has also been transmitted by Ibn ‘abbas through a different chain of narrators. This version adds: He refused to tell him (his mistake).

Narrated AbuBakrah: One day the Prophet (ﷺ) said: Which of you had dream? A man said: It is I. I saw as though a scale descended from the sky. You and AbuBakr were weighed and you were heavier; AbuBakr and Umar were weighed and AbuBakr was heavier: Umar and Uthman were weighed and Umar was heavier; than the scale was taken up. we saw signs of dislike on the face of the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ).

Abu Bakrah said: One day the Prophet (ﷺ) asked: Which of you had a dream? He then mentioned the rest of the tradition to the same effect, but he did not mention the word “disliked”. Instead, he said: The Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) was grieved about that. He then said: There will be a caliphate on the model of prophecy, then Allah will give the kingdom to whom he wills.

Jabir b. ‘Abd Allah reported the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) as saying: Last night a good man had a vision in which Abu Bakr seemed to be joined to the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ). ‘Umar to Abu Bakr, and ‘Uthman to ‘Umar. Jabir said: When we got up and left the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ), we said: The good man is the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ), and that their being joined together means that they are the rulers over this matter with which Allah has sent His Prophet (ﷺ).Abu Dawud said: It has been transmitted by Yunus and Shu’aib, but they did not mention ‘Amr b. Aban.

Samurah b. Jundub told that a man said: Messenger of Allah (ﷺ)! I saw (in a dream) that a bucket was hung from the sky. Abu Bakr came, caught hold of both ends of its wooden handle, and drank a little of it. Next came ‘Umar who caught hold of both ends of its wooden handle and drank of it to his fill. Next came ‘Uthman who caught hold of both ends of its handle and drank of it to his fill. Next came ‘All. He caught hold of both ends of its handle, but it became upset and some (water) from it was sprinkled on him.

Makhul said: The Romans will enter Syria and stay there for forty days, and no place will be saved from them but Damascus and 'Uman.

Abu al-A’yas ‘Abd al-Rahman b. Salam said: A king of the foreigners will come and prevail over all the cities except Damascus.

Makhul reported the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) as saying: The place of the assembly of Muslims at the time of war will be in a land called al-Ghutah.

‘Awf said: I heard al-Hajjaj addressing the people say: The similitude of ‘Uthman with Allah is like the similitude of Jesus son of Mary. He then recited the following verse and explained it: “Behold! Allah said: O Jesus! I will take thee and raise thee to Myself and clear thee (of the falsehood) of those who blaspheme.” He was making a sign with his hand to us and to the people of Syria.

Al-Rabi’ b. Khalid al-Dabbi said: I heard al-Hajjaj say in his address: Is the messenger of one of you sent for some need is more respectable with him or his successor among his people? I thought in my mind: I make a vow for Allah that I shall never pray behind you. If I find people who fight against you, I shall fight against you along with them. Ishaq added in his version: He fought in the battle of al-Jamajim until he was killed.

‘Asim said: I heard al-Hajjaj say on the pulpit: Fear Allah as much as possible; there is no exception in it. Hear and obey the Commander of the Faithful ‘Abd al-Malik; there is no exception in it. I swear by Allah, if order people to come but from a certain gate of the mosque, and they come out from another gate, their blood and their properties will be lawful for me. I swear by Allah, if I seize the tribe of Rabi’ah for the tribe of Mudar, it is lawful for me from Allah. Who will apologies to me for the slave of Hudhail (i.e. ‘Abd Allah b. Mas’ud) who thinks that his reading of the Quran is from Allah. I swear by Allah, it is a rhymed prose of the Bedouins. Allah did not reveal it to his Prophet (ﷺ). Who will apologies to me for these clients (non-Arab). One of them thinks that he will throw a stone and when it falls (on the ground) he says: Something new has happened. I swear by Allah, I shall leave them (ruined and perished) like the day that passes away.He said: I mentioned it to al-A’mash. He said: I swear by Allah, I heard it from him.

Al-A’mash said: These clients (i.e., non-Arabs) are to be struck and cut off. I swear by Allah, if I strike a stick with a stick, I would annihilate them like the day that passed away. Al-hamra means clients or non-Arabs.

Sulaiman al-A’mash said: I prayed the Friday prayer with al-Hajjaj and he addressed. He then transmitted the tradition of Abu Bakr b. ‘Ayyash. He said in it: Hear and obey the caliph of Allah and his select ‘Abd al-Malik bin Marwan. He then transmitted the rest of the tradition, and said: If I seized Rabi’ah for Mudar. But he did not mention the story of the clients (i.e. non Arabs).

Narrated Safinah: The Prophet (ﷺ) said: The Caliphate of Prophecy will last thirty years; then Allah will give the Kingdom of His Kingdom to anyone He wills.Sa'id told that Safinah said to him: Calculate Abu Bakr's caliphate as two years, 'Umar's as ten, 'Uthman's as twelve and 'Ali so and so. Sa'id said: I said to Safinah: They conceive that 'Ali was not a caliph. He replied: The buttocks of Marwan told a lie.

Safinah reported the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) as saying: The caliphate of Prophecy will last thirty years; then Allah will give the Kingdom to whom he wishes; or his kingdom to whom he wishes.

Narrated Sa'id ibn Zayd ibn Amr ibn Nufayl: Abdullah ibn Zalim al-Mazini said: I heard Sa'id ibn Zayd ibn Amr ibn Nufayl say: When so and so came to Kufah, and made so and so stand to address the people, Sa'id ibn Zayd caught hold of my hand and said: Are you seeing this tyrant? I bear witness to the nine people that they will go to Paradise. If I testify to the tenth too, I shall not be sinful. I asked: Who are the nine? He said: The Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) said when he was on Hira': Be still, Hira', for only a Prophet, or an ever-truthful, or a martyr is on you. I asked: Who are those nine? He said: The Messenger of Allah, AbuBakr, Umar, Uthman, Ali, Talhah, az-Zubayr, Sa'd ibn AbuWaqqas and AbdurRahman ibn Awf. I asked: Who is the tenth? He paused a moment and said: it is I.Abu Dawud said: This tradition has been transmitted by al-Ashja'i, from Sufyan, from Mansur, from Hilal b. Yasaf, from Ibn Hayyan on the authority of 'Abd Allah b. Zalim through his different chain of narrators in a a similar manner.

Narrated Sa'id ibn Zayd: AbdurRahman ibn al-Akhnas said that when he was in the mosque, a man mentioned Ali (may Allah be pleased with him). So Sa'id ibn Zayd got up and said: I bear witness to the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) that I heard him say: Ten persons will go to Paradise: The Prophet (ﷺ) will go to Paradise, AbuBakr will go to Paradise, Umar will go to Paradise, Uthman will go to Paradise, Ali will go to Paradise, Talhah will go to Paradise: az-Zubayr ibn al-Awwam will go to paradise, Sa'd ibn Malik will go to Paradise, and AbdurRahman ibn Awf will go to Paradise. If I wish, I can mention the tenth. The People asked: Who is he: So he kept silence. The again asked: Who is he: He replied: He is Sa'id ibn Zayd.

Rabah ibn al-Harith said: I was sitting with someone in the mosque of Kufah while the people of Kufah were with him. Then Sa'id ibn Zayd ibn Amr ibn Nufayl came and he welcomed him, greeted him, and seated him near his foot on the throne. Then a man of the inhabitants of Kufah, called Qays ibn Alqamah, came. He received him and began to abuse him. Sa'id asked: Whom is this man abusing? He replied: He is abusing Ali. He said: Don't I see that the companions of the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) are being abused, but you neither stop it nor do anything about it? I heard the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) say--and I need not say for him anything which he did not say, and then he would ask me tomorrow when I see him --AbuBakr will go to Paradise and Umar will go to Paradise. He then mentioned the rest of the tradition to the same effect (as in No. 4632). He then said: The company of one of their man whose face has been covered with dust by the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) is better than the actions of one of you for a whole life time even if he is granted the life-span of Noah.

Anas b. malik said: The prophet of Allah (ﷺ) ascended Uhud, and Abu Bakr, ’Umar and 'Uthman followed him. It began to shake with them. The prophet of Allah (ﷺ) struck it with his foot and said: Be still, for only a prophet, an ever-truthful and two martyrs are on you.

Narrated AbuHurayrah: The Prophet (ﷺ) said: Gabriel came and taking me by the hand showed the gate of Paradise by which my people will enter. AbuBakr then said: Messenger of Allah! I wish I had been with you so that I might have looked at it. The Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) then said: You, AbuBakr, will be the first of my people to enter Paradise.

Jabir reported the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) as saying: No one of those who took the oath of allegiance under the tree will go to hell.

Abu Hurairah reported the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) as saying – will be according to the version of Musa : Perhaps Allah, and Ibn Sinan’s version has : Allah looked at the participants of the battle of Badr (with mercy) and said : Do whatever you wish ; I have forgiven you.

Al-Miswar b. Makhramah said : The prophet (ﷺ) went out during the time of (treaty of) al-Hudaibiyyah. He then mentioned the rest of the tradition. He said : ‘Urwah b. Mas’ud then came to him and began to speak to the Prophet (ﷺ). Whenever he talk to him, he caught his beard ; and al-Mughirah b. Shu’bah was standing near the head of the Prophet (ﷺ) with a sword with him and a helmet on him. He then struck his hand with the handle of the sword, saying : Keep away your hand from his beard. ‘Urwah then raised his head and said : Who is this ? The prophet said : Al-Mughirah b. Shu’bah.