The leaders are from Quraysh

Sayyiduna Abu Hurayrah (may Allah be pleased with him) said that the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "People follow Quraysh in this matter: their Muslims follow their Muslims, and their disbelievers follow their disbelievers." [Sahih]

Sayyiduna Jabir (may Allah be pleased with him) reports the saying of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him): "People follow Quraysh in both good and evil."

Abdullah bin Umar (may Allah be pleased with them both) narrates from the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) that he said: "Leadership will always remain in Quraysh as long as even two people remain among mankind."

Muhammad bin Jubayr bin Mut'im said that it reached Mu'awiyah (may Allah be pleased with him), while he was with a delegation of Quraysh, that Abdullah bin Amr bin al-As (may Allah be pleased with them both) says that soon there will be a king from Qahtan. Mu'awiyah (may Allah be pleased with him) became very angry, stood up and praised Allah. Then he said: 'Amma ba'd' (after praise and glorification): It has reached me that men among you narrate things that are neither in the Book of Allah nor said by the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him). Those are the ignorant ones among you. Beware of such wishful desires as lead you astray, for I heard the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) say: "Leadership will always remain in Quraysh as long as they establish the religion, and whoever is hostile to them, Allah will throw him down on his face."

Sayyiduna Abdullah bin Abbas (may Allah be pleased with them both) said that Sayyiduna Umar (may Allah be pleased with him) said: When the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) passed away, we learned that the Ansar were opposing us and had all gathered in the Saqifah (portico) of Banu Sa'idah, and Sayyiduna Ali and Sayyiduna al-Zubayr (may Allah be pleased with them both) and those with them also stayed away from us. The Muhajirun gathered and came to Sayyiduna Abu Bakr (may Allah be pleased with him). I said: "O Abu Bakr! Come with us to these brothers of ours from the Ansar." We set out towards them, and when we drew near to them, two righteous men from among them met us and mentioned what the people had agreed upon. They asked: "Where are you going, O Muhajirun?" We said: "To these brothers of ours from the Ansar." They said: "Do not go near them; settle your own matter (yourselves)." I said: "By Allah! We will certainly go to them." We went and reached them in the Saqifah of Banu Sa'idah, and there was a man wrapped up in a cloak in their midst. I asked: "Who is this?" They said: "This is Sayyiduna Sa'd bin Ubadah (may Allah be pleased with him)." I asked: "What is the matter with him?" They said: "He has a fever." When we had sat for a little while, their speaker bore witness (to the faith), praised Allah Almighty as He deserves, and then said: 'Amma ba'd' (after praise and glorification): We are the helpers of Allah('s religion) and the battalion of Islam, and you, O Muhajirun, are a small group among us. A small band of your people has crept in, and they want to cut us off from our roots and exclude us from the leadership. When he fell silent, I wanted to speak. I had prepared a speech that pleased me, which I wanted to put forward before Abu Bakr, and I used to spare him some of my sharpness. When I wanted to speak, Sayyiduna Abu Bakr (may Allah be pleased with him) said: "Wait." I disliked angering him, so Sayyiduna Abu Bakr (may Allah be pleased with him) spoke, and he was more forbearing and more dignified than me. By Allah, he did not leave out a single word that had pleased me in my prepared speech except that he said the like of it, or better, on the spot, until he fell silent. He said: "Whatever good you have mentioned about yourselves, you are worthy of it, but this matter (leadership) will not be recognised except for this clan of Quraysh. They are the most central of the Arabs in lineage, home and standing. I am pleased for you with one of these two men, so pledge allegiance to whichever of them you wish." Then he took hold of my hand and the hand of Sayyiduna Abu Ubaydah bin al-Jarrah (may Allah be pleased with him), who was sitting between us. Nothing he said displeased me except that. By Allah, to be brought forward and have my neck struck, without that bringing me near to any sin, would have been dearer to me than to be made leader over a people among whom is Sayyiduna Abu Bakr (may Allah be pleased with him), unless my soul should tempt me at death with something I do not find (in it) now. Then a speaker of the Ansar said: "I am its well-rubbed stump and its well-propped palm (i.e. the one whose counsel is sought); O Quraysh, let there be one leader from us and one leader from you." Then there was much clamour and voices were raised, until I feared that disagreement would break out, so I said to Sayyiduna Abu Bakr (may Allah be pleased with him): "Stretch out your hand." He stretched out his hand, and I pledged allegiance to him; then the Muhajirun pledged allegiance, and after that the Ansar pledged allegiance to him.

Sayyidah Aishah (may Allah be pleased with her) said: When the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) passed away, Sayyiduna Abu Bakr (may Allah be pleased with him) was at al-Sunh. Sayyiduna Umar (may Allah be pleased with him) stood up and said: "By Allah! the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) has not died." Umar (may Allah be pleased with him) said: "By Allah, nothing came to my mind except that, and Allah, the Mighty and Majestic, will surely raise him up, and he will cut off the hands and feet of (certain) men." Then Sayyiduna Abu Bakr (may Allah be pleased with him) came, uncovered the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) and kissed him, and said: "May my father and mother be sacrificed for you! You were pure in life and in death. By Him in whose hand is my soul, Allah will never make you taste two deaths." Then he went out and said: "O you who are swearing, take it easy." When Sayyiduna Abu Bakr (may Allah be pleased with him) began to speak, Sayyiduna Umar (may Allah be pleased with him) sat down. He praised and glorified Allah, then said: "Whoever used to worship Muhammad (peace and blessings be upon him), then indeed Muhammad (peace and blessings be upon him) has died; and whoever worships Allah, then indeed Allah Almighty is Ever-Living and will never die." And he recited: "Indeed, you will die, and indeed, they will die." [Surah al-Zumar: 30] And he recited: "Muhammad is no more than a Messenger; messengers have passed away before him. So if he dies or is killed, will you turn back on your heels? And whoever turns back on his heels" [Surah Al Imran: 144] (the whole verse). The people began to weep, sobbing. Then the Ansar gathered around Sayyiduna Sa'd bin Ubadah (may Allah be pleased with him) in the Saqifah of Banu Sa'idah and said: "One leader from us and one leader from you." So Sayyiduna Abu Bakr, Sayyiduna Umar and Sayyiduna Abu Ubaydah bin al-Jarrah (may Allah be pleased with them) went to them. Sayyiduna Umar (may Allah be pleased with him) wanted to speak, but Sayyiduna Abu Bakr (may Allah be pleased with him) silenced him. Umar (may Allah be pleased with him) used to say: "By Allah, I only intended by that (to speak first) because I had prepared a speech that pleased me, and I feared that Abu Bakr would not reach (its level)." Then Sayyiduna Abu Bakr (may Allah be pleased with him) spoke, and spoke most eloquently, and said in his speech: "We are the leaders and you are the ministers." Sayyiduna al-Hubab bin al-Mundhir (may Allah be pleased with him) said: "No, by Allah! We will never do that; one leader from us and one leader from you." Sayyiduna Abu Bakr (may Allah be pleased with him) said: "No, rather we are the leaders and you are the ministers. They (Quraysh) are the most central of the Arabs in home and the most noble of them in lineage, so pledge allegiance to Umar bin al-Khattab or Abu Ubaydah bin al-Jarrah (may Allah be pleased with them both)." Sayyiduna Umar (may Allah be pleased with him) said: "Rather, we pledge allegiance to you. You are the best of us, our leader, and the most beloved of us to the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him)." Then Sayyiduna Umar (may Allah be pleased with him) took his hand and pledged allegiance to him, and all the people pledged allegiance to him. Someone said: "You have killed Sa'd bin Ubadah." Sayyiduna Umar (may Allah be pleased with him) said: "Allah has killed him."

Muhammad bin Ishaq bin Yasar reports the sermon of Sayyiduna Abu Bakr al-Siddiq (may Allah be pleased with him), in which he said: "This matter (leadership) belongs to Quraysh as long as they obey Allah and remain steadfast upon His command; this has reached you, or you have heard it, from the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him). 'And do not dispute with one another, lest you lose courage and your strength departs; and be patient. Indeed, Allah is with the patient.' [Surah al-Anfal: 46] So we are the leaders and you are the ministers; you are our brothers in religion and our helpers upon it." Then in his sermon after him, Sayyiduna Umar (may Allah be pleased with him) said: "I adjure you by Allah, O Ansar! Did you not hear the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him), or did not those of you who heard him, (hear him) say: 'The rulers are from Quraysh as long as they obey Allah and remain steadfast upon His command'?" Some of the Ansar said: "Yes, now we remember." He said: "Then we seek this matter only for this (reason), so do not let desires lead you astray, for after the truth there is nothing but misguidance; so how are you being turned away?"

It is reported from Sayyiduna Abu Sa'id al-Khudri (may Allah be pleased with him) that when the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) passed away, the speakers of the Ansar stood up. One of them began to say: "O company of Muhajirun! Whenever the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) appointed a man from among you as an official, he paired with him a man from us, so we think that two men should take charge of this matter, one from you and one from us." All the speakers (of the Ansar) followed in support of this. Then Sayyiduna Zayd bin Thabit (may Allah be pleased with him) stood up and said: "the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) himself was from the Muhajirun, and the Imam will be from the Muhajirun, and we will be his helpers just as we were the helpers of the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him)." Sayyiduna Abu Bakr (may Allah be pleased with him) stood up and said: "May Allah reward you with good, O Ansar, and keep your speaker firm." Then he said: "Had you done otherwise, we would not have come to terms with you." Then Sayyiduna Zayd bin Thabit (may Allah be pleased with him) took the hand of Abu Bakr and said: "This is your man, so pledge allegiance to him." Then they went off. When Sayyiduna Abu Bakr (may Allah be pleased with him) sat on the pulpit, he looked at the faces of the people and did not see Sayyiduna Ali (may Allah be pleased with him). He asked about him, and some people of the Ansar got up and brought him. Sayyiduna Abu Bakr (may Allah be pleased with him) said: "The cousin of the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) and his son-in-law! Did you want to break the unity of the Muslims?" Sayyiduna Ali (may Allah be pleased with him) said: "No blame (upon you), O Khalifah of the Messenger of Allah," and he pledged allegiance to him. Then he did not see Sayyiduna al-Zubayr bin al-Awwam (may Allah be pleased with him); he asked about him until they brought him, and he said: "The son of the paternal aunt of the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) and his disciple (hawari)! Did you want to break the unity of the Muslims?" He said the like of what Ali had said: "No blame (upon you), O Khalifah of the Messenger of Allah," and both of them pledged allegiance to Sayyiduna Abu Bakr (may Allah be pleased with him).

The previous narration (it has already preceded).
Muhammad bin Ishaq bin Khuzaymah (may Allah have mercy on him) said: Muslim bin al-Hajjaj came to me and asked me about this hadith. I wrote it down for him on a slip of paper and read it to him, and he said: "This hadith is worth a sacrificial camel (badanah)." I said: "Worth a badanah? Rather, it is worth a badrah (a full purse of money)."

Sayyiduna Ali (may Allah be pleased with him) said that the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "The Imams (leaders) will be from Quraysh."

Sayyiduna Anas (may Allah be pleased with him) said: the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) came to us while we were sitting in a house with a group of the Muhajirun. Every one of us began making room beside himself, hoping that the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) would sit next to him, but he (peace and blessings be upon him) stood at the door and said: "The Imams (leaders) will be from Quraysh, and just as I have a great right over you, they too have the like of it, as long as they do three things: when they are asked for mercy, they show mercy; when they judge, they are just; and when they make a covenant, they fulfil it. Whoever of them does not do that, upon him is the curse of Allah, the angels and all the people."

Sayyiduna Anas (may Allah be pleased with him) said that the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "The Imams (leaders) are from Quraysh. When they judge, they are just; when they are asked for mercy, they show mercy; and when they make a covenant, they fulfil it."

Same as the previous narration.

Sayyiduna Anas (may Allah be pleased with him) said that the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said three times: "The Imams (leaders) are from Quraysh. Just as I have a right over you, so do they, as long as they keep doing three things: showing mercy, being equitable, and being just in their judgements." [Hasan]

Same as the previous narration.

Ata bin Yasar (may Allah have mercy on him) narrates from the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) that he said to Quraysh: "You are the most entitled of people to this matter (leadership) as long as you are with the truth, unless you turn away from it; then you will be stripped just as this palm stalk is stripped." He (peace and blessings be upon him) pointed to a palm stalk in his hand.