Leadership

Al-Harith bin Yazid al-Hadrami (may Allah have mercy on him) said that Sayyiduna Abu Dharr (may Allah be pleased with him) asked the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) for a position of authority. He (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "You are indeed weak, and it is a very great trust, and on the Day of Resurrection it will be a cause of disgrace and regret, except for the one who takes it rightfully and fulfills the right that is due from him in it."

Sayyiduna Abu Musa (may Allah be pleased with him) said: "I and two of my paternal cousins came to the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him). One of the two men said: 'O Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him)! Make us amirs over some part of the dominion that Allah has granted you (peace and blessings be upon him).' And the other man said the same. He (peace and blessings be upon him) said: 'By Allah, we do not entrust this office to anyone who asks for it, nor to anyone who is greedy for it.'"

Sayyiduna Abu Hurayrah (may Allah be pleased with him) said that the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "You will soon become greedy for leadership, and it will become a source of regret and remorse. How excellent is the wet nurse, and how wretched is the one who weans!"

Sayyiduna Abd al-Rahman bin Samurah (may Allah be pleased with him) said that the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) said to me: "Never ask for a position of authority. For if it is given to you because you asked, you will be left to it. And if it is given to you without your asking, you will be helped with it."

Muhammad bin al-Munkadir (may Allah have mercy on him) said that Sayyiduna al-Abbas (may Allah be pleased with him) said: "O Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him)! Why do you not make me an amir?" He (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "O Abbas! O uncle of the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him)! A soul that is saved from leadership is far better than leadership; you do not have the strength for it."

Masruq (may Allah have mercy on him) said that Sayyiduna Abdullah bin Mas'ud (may Allah be pleased with him) said: "No one judges between people except that he will be gathered on the Day of Resurrection in such a state that an angel will seize him by the neck and bring him to stand at the edge of Hell. Then he will raise his head toward the Most Merciful. If the Most Merciful says to him: 'Throw him into Hell,' he will throw him into the depth of Hell, a distance of forty years."

He said: Masruq said: "That I should judge for a single day with justice and truth is dearer to me than a year in which I fight in the path of Allah."

Sayyiduna Bishr bin Asim (may Allah be pleased with him) said that Sayyiduna Umar bin al-Khattab (may Allah be pleased with him) wished to entrust him with an office. He said: "I have no need of it. I heard the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) say: 'The officials of government will be brought on the Day of Resurrection and made to stand on the edge of Hell. Whoever among them was obedient to Allah, Allah will take him with His right hand until He saves him from Hell. And whoever disobeyed Allah, the bridge of Hell will throw him into a valley where fire will envelop him.'" The narrator said: Sayyiduna Umar (may Allah be pleased with him) sent a messenger to Sayyiduna Abu Dharr (may Allah be pleased with him) and Sayyiduna Salman (may Allah be pleased with him), and he asked Sayyiduna Abu Dharr (may Allah be pleased with him): "Did you (may Allah be pleased with him) hear this hadith from the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him)?" He said: "Yes, by Allah." And he said: "After this valley there will be another valley of Hell." And he asked Sayyiduna Salman (may Allah be pleased with him), and he disliked saying anything about it. At this Sayyiduna Umar (may Allah be pleased with him) said: "If this is the matter, then who will take it?" Sayyiduna Abu Dharr (may Allah be pleased with him) said: "The one whose nose and eye Allah cuts off, and whom He wills to humiliate."

Khaythamah said that the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "Leadership is a gate of hardship, except for the one on whom Allah has mercy."

Urwah bin al-Zubayr said that Sayyiduna Umar (may Allah be pleased with him) said: "No man has been wholly greedy for leadership and then acted justly in it."

Abu Bakr bin Hafs (may Allah have mercy on him) said that Sayyiduna Umar bin al-Khattab (may Allah be pleased with him) appointed a man as governor, and he said: "O Commander of the Believers! Advise me." He (may Allah be pleased with him) said: "Sit down, and keep this matter concealed for me."

Al-A'mash (may Allah have mercy on him) said that the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) appointed a man as amir, and he said: "O Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him)! Give me some good advice." He (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "Sit down."

Talhah bin Musarrif al-Yami (may Allah have mercy on him) said that Sayyiduna Khalid bin al-Walid (may Allah be pleased with him) said: "Never take so much as a needle from one under a covenant. Do not walk even three steps while you are amir over two men. And do not deceive the amir of the Muslims."

A man from the tribe of Abd al-Qays said: "I saw Sayyiduna Salman (may Allah be pleased with him) on a donkey in an army of which he was the amir, and his two shins were dangling, and the men of the army were saying: 'The amir has come! The amir has come!' At this Sayyiduna Salman (may Allah be pleased with him) said: 'Good and evil in this matter will be decided only after today.' And he said: 'If you are able to eat dust and not become amir over two men, then do so. And beware of the supplication of the oppressed, for nothing stands in its way.'"

Sayyiduna Sa'd bin Ubadah (may Allah be pleased with him) said that the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "There is no amir of ten people except that he will be brought on the Day of Resurrection with a collar around his neck. He cannot be freed from that collar except by acting justly."

Sayyiduna Abu Hurayrah (may Allah be pleased with him) said that the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "There is no amir of three men except that he will be brought on the Day of Resurrection with his hands tied to his neck. Acting justly will set him free, or failing to act justly will bind him tightly."

Sayyiduna Ma'qil bin Yasar (may Allah be pleased with him) said that the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "There is no ruler of any subjects, whether they are few or many, who does not act with justice and fairness among them, except that Allah Almighty will cast him face down into Hell."

Sayyiduna Ibn Umar (may Allah be pleased with them both) said that Sayyiduna Abu Hurayrah (may Allah be pleased with him) said: "There is no amir of ten men except that he will be brought on the Day of Resurrection. Acting justly will set him free, or failing to act justly will bind him."

Isma'il bin Muhammad bin Sa'd (may Allah have mercy on him) said that Sayyiduna Sa'd (may Allah be pleased with him) said: "It is enough for you that a position of authority does not add anything good to a person's religion."