Tirmidhi

Hadith Commentary:
As it is mentioned in Surah Al-Balad: ﴿وَالَّذِينَ كَفَرُ‌وا بِآيَاتِنَا هُمْ أَصْحَابُ الْمَشْأَمَةِ ﴿١٩﴾, meaning those who disbelieved are the people of the left side, those who will receive their record of deeds in their left hand. In the later period, in Yemen, the teacher of teachers, the esteemed scholar, Imam Shawkani rahimahullah, was born, through whom Allah the Exalted enabled such services to the science of hadith that will remain a memorable legacy for all time. "Nayl al-Awtar" is his most famous book, which holds a great status in the commentary of hadith.
May Allah forgive him.

Hadith Commentary:
➊
In this hadith, the virtues of the people of Yemen and those who herd goats are mentioned.
There is more humility and modesty found among goats, and these qualities also permeate those who herd them.

➋
The people of Yemen accepted Islam without any fighting.
No hardship had to be endured to bring them to the right path, whereas battles were fought against the people of the East, and after suffering losses, these people accepted Islam.
In one hadith it is stated:
“People of Yemen will come to you whose hearts are soft and tender.
That is why faith is attributed to the people of Yemen, and wisdom and sagacity are also considered reliable among the people of Yemen, while the center of disbelief will be towards the East.”
(Sahih Muslim, Kitab al-Iman, Hadith: 190(52))
This refers to the era of the Messenger of Allah (sallallahu alayhi wa sallam).
This virtue is not for every Yemeni in every era.
The wording of the hadith does not necessitate this either; nevertheless, many great hadith scholars have emerged from Yemen who have rendered great services in the propagation of the Book and the Sunnah.

➌
The face of the Ka‘bah is towards the East because its door is on that side; therefore, Yemen is to its right and Sham (Greater Syria) is to its north.

➍
Imam Bukhari (rahimahullah) has mentioned the reason for the naming of Yemen and Sham at the end of the hadith.
Hafiz Ibn Hajar (rahimahullah) has also mentioned other opinions regarding the reason for these names.
Among them is the opinion that Yemen is called so because of Yaman bin Qahtan, and Sham is called so because of Sam bin Nuh.
Sam was originally “Sham”; when it was transferred into Arabic, it became “Sham.”
(Fath al-Bari: 6/651)

Hadith Commentary:
The narration of Ghundar has been connected (mawsul) by Imam Ahmad. The purpose of mentioning this chain is to make it explicitly clear that A‘mash heard (had direct transmission) from Dhakwan.

Hadith Commentary:
This hadith demonstrates the great virtue of the people of Yemen. The prevalence of the science of hadith in Yemen is unmatched by any other country, and there is no fanaticism for personal imitation (taqlid shakhsi) in Yemen. The meaning of the heart's veil being soft and delicate is that they accept the truth quickly, which is a sign of faith.

Hadith Commentary:
➊
"Fu'ad" refers to the membrane of the heart. If the membrane is thin and soft, external admonition will quickly affect the heart.
And when the membrane of the heart is hard, it becomes difficult for external admonition to reach the heart.
From this, it is understood that the command of truth quickly affects the hearts of the people of Yemen, and they accept the truth swiftly.
➋
Imam Bukhari rahimahullah has categorically narrated the aforementioned ahadith regarding the Ash'ari people of Yemen.
Ibn Abbas radi Allahu anhu says that the Messenger of Allah sallallahu alayhi wa sallam was in Madinah Tayyibah when he said "Allahu Akbar" and recited:
﴿إِذَا جَاءَ نَصْرُ اللَّهِ وَالْفَتْحُ﴾, then said:
"The people of Yemen have come to you, whose hearts are transparent and pure, and the spirit of obedience is deeply instilled in them.
Faith is that of the people of Yemen; their understanding is unparalleled, and what can be said of their wisdom and sagacity."
In another narration, the Messenger of Allah sallallahu alayhi wa sallam said:
"Soon the people of Yemen will come to you, as if, in terms of benefit, they are like clouds of mercy (clouds of mercy).
They are the best of all people on the face of the earth."
(Musnad Ahmad: 4/84 and al-Silsilah al-Sahihah of al-Albani, Hadith: 3437)

Hadith Commentary:
Vocabulary of the Hadith:

رَأْسُ الْكُفْرِ (Ra’s al-Kufr):
"Ra’s" refers to the head, the secret, or the peak of something.
And "Ra’s al-Shahr" means the first day of the month.
Therefore, the intended meaning here is the source or origin.
Just as in the saying: "Ra’s al-Hikmah Makhāfatullāh" — "The source of wisdom is the fear of Allah."

Hadith Commentary:
Vocabulary of the Hadith:

(1)
Fiqh:
Linguistically, it refers to the understanding and knowledge of something.
Some have defined it as subtlety,
precision, and knowing the intent and purpose of the speaker.

(2)
Al-Hikmah:
Various meanings have been given for hikmah (wisdom).
The simple meaning is to know the essence and reality of something and to act accordingly.

(3)
A-raqqu Af'idatan:
Riqah (tenderness)
refers to subtlety and softness.
The intended meaning is receptiveness or being easily affected.

(4)
Af'idatan:
This is the plural of fu’ad.
Some consider qalb (heart) and fu’ad to be synonymous, and this is apparent.
Some say that fu’ad refers to the inner part of the heart,
or the “eye” of the heart.

Benefits and Issues:
Allah, the Exalted, has placed different qualities within the people of different regions.
The qualities mentioned in the hadith are found within the people of Yemen,
just as among the people of the East, there is found hardness and harshness of the hearts.

Hadith Commentary: Benefits and Issues:
The meaning of the heart being weak and the breast being tender is that within their hearts there is fear (khawf), awe (khashyah), and humility (tawadu‘), and they possess the ability to be quickly affected by admonition and advice, and to accept what is correct.
They are free from the hardness and harshness of the heart, and their hearts are sound and pure.

Explanation:
1:
According to some, when the Prophet (sallallahu alayhi wa sallam) attributed faith (iman) and wisdom (hikmah) to Yemen, the reason is that both faith and wisdom originated from Makkah, and Makkah is part of Tihamah, and Tihamah is included within the land of Yemen.

And according to others, there is no harm in taking the apparent meaning here, that is, the specific Yemen which is well-known, meaning those people are intended who had come from Yemen at that time, not that the people of Yemen of every era are meant.

Furthermore, this meaning has also been stated: that the people of Yemen accepted faith very easily, whereas with the people of other regions, much more effort had to be made. That is why the people of Yemen (the people of Yemen of that time) were praised.

And Allah knows best.

Benefit:
This hadith establishes the virtue of the people of Yemen. However, by this are not meant all the people of Yemen, including those who will come until the Day of Judgment; rather, certain specific people are intended. This is because the current situation in Yemen is extremely dangerous—there, the Rafidah have taken control, and they are enemies of the Qur’an and Hadith. Among them, there is neither faith nor wisdom; these people are not included in the purview of this hadith. Furthermore, it is also understood from this that being harsh and hard-hearted is not a sign of a good person; rather, a good person is one who is soft-hearted and compassionate. «اللهم اجعلنا منهم»