The Two Noble Grandsons, Hasan and Husayn (may Allah be pleased with them both)
The two noble grandsons, Sayyiduna Hasan and Sayyiduna Husayn (may Allah be pleased with them both), are the pieces of the heart of the beloved daughter of the Messenger of Allah ﷺ, Sayyidah Fatimah (may Allah be pleased with her), and the arms of Sayyiduna Ali (may Allah be pleased with him). These two young princes drew directly on the love of the noble Master ﷺ, and then they also became trusted among the Companions of the Messenger ﷺ.
The Messenger of Allah ﷺ used to say:
هما ريحانتاي من الدنيا.
“Hasan and Husayn (may Allah be pleased with them both) are my flowers in this world.”
Sometimes he would say:
“O Allah! I love them, so You too love them!”
Sometimes he would scatter flowers of love in these words:
“O Allah! Have mercy on them, for I too have mercy on them.”
When he ﷺ was in prostration, Hasan and Husayn (may Allah be pleased with them both) would climb onto his shoulders. What a fine mount, and what fine riders! This is what nobility means; leaders are just like this.
Sayyiduna Shaddad (may Allah be pleased with him) narrates:
خرج علينا رسول الله صلى الله عليه وسلم فى إحدى صلاتي العشاء وهو حامل حسنا أو حسينا، فتقدم رسول الله صلى الله عليه وسلم فوضعه، ثم كبر للصلاة فصلى فسجد بين ظهراني صلاته سجدة أطالها، قال أبي: فرفعت رأسي وإذا الصبي على ظهر رسول الله صلى الله عليه وسلم، وهو ساجد فرجعت إلى سجودي، فلما قضى رسول الله صلى الله عليه وسلم الصلاة قال الناس: يا رسول الله، إنك سجدت بين ظهراني صلاتك سجدة أطلتها حتى ظننا أنه قد حدث أمر أو أنه يوحى إليك، قال: كل ذلك لم يكن ولكن ابني ارتحلني فكرهت أن أعجله حتى يقضي حاجته.
“Once the Messenger of Allah ﷺ came to us to lead the Maghrib or Isha prayer, and he was carrying Sayyiduna Hasan or Husayn (may Allah be pleased with them both). The Messenger of Allah ﷺ went forward and set him down, then said the takbir for the prayer. He prostrated, and made the prostration long. My father raised his head and looked, and what did he see but that the child was on the shoulders of the Messenger of Allah ﷺ. I went back into prostration. After the prayer the Companions said: O Messenger of Allah ﷺ! You made the prostration so long that we feared for your death, or we thought that revelation had perhaps come. He said: Nothing of the sort happened; my son had climbed onto my shoulder, and I did not want to take him down before his wish was fulfilled.”
Imam al-Hakim (may Allah have mercy on him)
declared it sahih (authentic) according to the condition of Imam al-Bukhari (may Allah have mercy on him) and Imam Muslim (may Allah have mercy on him). Hafiz al-Dhahabi (may Allah have mercy on him) agreed with him, and Hafiz al-Dhahabi (may Allah have mercy on him) also declared its chain of narration jayyid (good).
A similar scene has also been narrated by Sayyiduna Abu Hurayrah (may Allah be pleased with him). He says:
كنا نصلي مع رسول الله صلى الله عليه وسلم العشاء، فإذا سجد وثب الحسن والحسين على ظهره، فإذا رفع رأسه، أخذهما بيده من خلفه أخذا رفيقا، فيضعهما على الأرض، فإذا عاد عادا، حتى قضى صلاته، أقعدهما على فخذيه، قال: فقمت إليه، فقلت: يا رسول الله، أردهما، فبرقت برقة، فقال لهما: الحقا بأمكما، قال: فمكث ضوؤها حتى دخلا.
“We would be praying the Isha prayer with the Messenger of Allah ﷺ. When he prostrated, Hasan and Husayn (may Allah be pleased with them both) would sit on his shoulders. When he was about to raise his head, he would take hold of them gently, lift them and set them down on the ground. When the Messenger of Allah ﷺ prostrated again, they would come and sit again. In this way the prayer was completed. Then he would seat them on his lap. I would take them from him and go to leave them at home. A light would also be with us. He would say: Go to your mother. And this light would remain until they entered the house.”
A Companion (may Allah be pleased with him) narrates:
إنه رأى النبى صلى الله عليه وسلم يضم إليه حسنا، وحسينا ويقول: اللهم إني أحبهما فأحبهما.
“I saw the Noble Prophet ﷺ; he ﷺ embraced Hasan and Husayn (may Allah be pleased with them both) and said: O Allah! I love these two, so You too love them.”
It is a mutawatir hadith:
الحسن والحسين سيدا شباب أهل الجنة.
“Hasan and Husayn (may Allah be pleased with them both) are the leaders of the youth of Paradise.”
Imam al-Tirmidhi (may Allah have mercy on him) called this hadith hasan gharib, while Imam Ibn Khuzaymah (may Allah have mercy on him)
, Imam Ibn Hibban (may Allah have mercy on him)
and Imam al-Hakim (may Allah have mercy on him)
called it “sahih”, and Hafiz al-Dhahabi (may Allah have mercy on him) agreed.
Hafiz al-Suyuti (may Allah have mercy on him) declared this hadith mutawatir.
Imam al-Hakim (may Allah have mercy on him) says:
هذا حديث قد صح من أوجه كثيرة.
“This hadith is sahih through many routes.”
Sayyiduna Abdullah ibn Abbas (may Allah be pleased with them both) narrates:
كان النبى صلى الله عليه وسلم يعوذ الحسن والحسين، ويقول: إن أباكما كان يعوذ بها إسماعيل وإسحاق: أعوذ بكلمات الله التامة، من كل شيطان وهامة، ومن كل عين لامة.
“The Messenger of Allah ﷺ used to seek Allah’s protection for Sayyiduna Hasan and Husayn (may Allah be pleased with them both) and would say: Your illustrious forefather (Ibrahim, peace be upon him) used to seek protection with these words for Isma’il and Ishaq (peace be upon them both): أعوذ بكلمات الله التامة، من كل شيطان وهامة، ومن كل عين لامة. I seek refuge in the perfect words of Allah, from every devilish, rebellious one and every harmful eye.”
Sayyiduna Hasan (may Allah be pleased with him) bore an extreme resemblance to the Messenger of Allah ﷺ.
Sayyiduna Anas bin Malik (may Allah be pleased with him) narrates:
لم يكن أحد أشبه بالنبي صلى الله عليه وسلم من الحسن بن علي.
“No one resembled the Prophet ﷺ more than Sayyiduna Hasan (may Allah be pleased with him).”
Sayyiduna Abu Juhayfa (may Allah be pleased with him) narrates: I saw the Messenger of Allah ﷺ, and Sayyiduna Hasan bin Ali (may Allah be pleased with him) resembled him very much.
كان أبيض، قد شمط.
“He was of a white complexion inclining to wheatish.”
Likewise, Sayyiduna Uqba bin al-Harith (may Allah be pleased with him) narrates:
صلى أبو بكر رضى الله عنه العصر، ثم خرج يمشي، فرأى الحسن يلعب مع الصبيان، فحمله على عاتقه، وقال: بأبي، شبيه بالنبي لا شبيه بعلي وعلي يضحك.
“Sayyiduna Abu Bakr (may Allah be pleased with him) prayed the Asr prayer. After the prayer, as he was walking, he saw Sayyiduna Hasan (may Allah be pleased with him) playing with the children, so he lifted him onto his shoulder and said: May my father be sacrificed for you, he resembles the Prophet, not Ali (may Allah be pleased with him). And Sayyiduna Ali (may Allah be pleased with him) was laughing.”
Once the Prophet ﷺ kissed Sayyiduna Hasan (may Allah be pleased with him) while al-Aqra’ bin Habis (may Allah be pleased with him) was sitting nearby. He said: I have ten sons and I have never kissed any of them.
نظر إليه رسول الله صلى الله عليه وسلم ثم قال: من لا يرحم لا يرحم.
“The Messenger of Allah ﷺ looked at him, then said: One who does not show mercy will not be shown mercy.”
Sayyiduna Abu Hurayrah (may Allah be pleased with him) is the narrator of this hadith, and how the narrator of the hadith followed the character of the Prophet is shown by this incident, which Umar bin Ishaq (may Allah have mercy on him) has narrated. He says: I was then with Sayyiduna Hasan bin Ali (may Allah be pleased with him) when I saw Abu Hurayrah (may Allah be pleased with him) come and say:
أرني أقبل منك حيث رأيت رسول الله صلى الله عليه وسلم يقبل، قال: فكشف عن بطنه، قال: فقبل سرته.
“Hasan! Show me the place where the Messenger of Allah ﷺ kissed you; I want to kiss it from the same place. Sayyiduna Hasan (may Allah be pleased with him) lifted the cloth from that place, and he kissed his navel.”
Concerning this elder grandson, the Master ﷺ used to say:
اللهم إني أحبه فأحبه وأحبب من يحبه.
“O Allah! I love him, so love him too, and love the one who loves him.”
Hafiz al-Dhahabi (may Allah have mercy on him) says:
هو متواتر.
“This is a mutawatir hadith.”
The narrator of this hadith is also Sayyiduna Abu Hurayrah (may Allah be pleased with him), and, expressing his own belief in accordance with it, he says:
ما كان أحد أحب إلى من الحسن بن علي، بعد ما قال رسول الله صلى الله عليه وسلم ما قال.
“Ever since I heard this saying of the Messenger of Allah ﷺ, no one is dearer to me than Hasan bin Ali (may Allah be pleased with him).”
Sayyiduna Mu’awiyah bin Abi Sufyan (may Allah be pleased with him) narrates:
رأيت رسول الله صلى الله عليه وسلم يمص لسانه، أو قال: شفته، يعني الحسن بن على صلوات الله عليه، وإنه لن يعذب لسان أو شفتان مصهما رسول الله صلى الله عليه وسلم.
“I saw the Messenger of Allah ﷺ sucking the tongue of Sayyiduna Hasan (may Allah be pleased with him), or he said that he saw him sucking his lips, and surely the tongue or the lips that the Messenger of Allah ﷺ has sucked will not enter Hell.”
The Noble Master ﷺ also called this beloved one of his a leader:
ابني هذا سيد، ولعل الله أن يصلح به بين فئتين من المسلمين.
“This son of mine is a leader; perhaps Allah will bring about reconciliation, through him, between two groups of Muslims of the Ummah.”
Hafiz Ibn Abd al-Barr (may Allah have mercy on him) says:
تواترت الآثار الصحاح عن النبى صلى الله عليه وسلم أنه قال لحسن بن علي: إن ابني هذا سيد، وعسى الله أن يبقيه حتى يصلح به بين فئتين عظيمتين من المسلمين، رواه جماعة من الصحابة.
“On this subject there are mutawatir hadiths: that the Messenger of Allah ﷺ said to Sayyiduna Hasan bin Ali (may Allah be pleased with him): This son of mine is a leader; Allah will soon bring about reconciliation, through him, between two great groups of Muslims. A group of the Companions narrated this report.”
Allama Abu al-Abbas al-Qurtubi (may Allah have mercy on him) has also said the same.
Hafiz Ibn Hajar (may Allah have mercy on him) says:
في هذه القصة من الفوائد، علم من أعلام النبوة ومنقبة للحسن بن على فإنه ترك الملك لا لقلة ولا لذلة ولا لعلة بل لرغبته فيما عند الله لما رآه من حقن دماء المسلمين فراعى أمر الدين ومصلحة الأمة وفيها رد على الخوارج الذين كانوا يكفرون عليا ومن معه ومعاوية ومن معه بشهادة النبى صلى الله عليه وسلم للطائفتين بأنهم من المسلمين.
“There are many beneficial points of knowledge in this hadith. For example, this incident is among the signs of prophethood, and it contains a virtue of Sayyiduna Hasan bin Ali (may Allah be pleased with him). He gave up the kingship, and the reason was not that he had a small army or that he was weak. There was no cause for it other than that he did not want to see the blood of the Muslims being shed. He took into account the interest of the Ummah and the command of the religion. Moreover, this narration also contains a refutation of the Khawarij, who declare Sayyiduna Ali (may Allah be pleased with him), Sayyiduna Muawiyah (may Allah be pleased with him) and their companions to be disbelievers, because the Messenger of Allah ﷺ testified that both groups were Muslims.”
Imam Sufyan bin Uyaynah (may Allah have mercy on him) says:
قوله : فئتين من المسلمين، يعجبنا جدا.
“The Messenger of Allah ﷺ calling these two groups Muslims is a cause of great joy for us.”
Hafiz al-Bayhaqi (may Allah have mercy on him) writes, explaining this statement:
إنما أعجبهم لأن النبى صلى الله عليه وسلم سماهما جميعا مسلمين، وهذا خبر من رسول الله صلى الله عليه وسلم بما كان من الحسن بن على بعد وفاة على فى تسليمه الأمر إلى معاوية بن أبى سفيان.
“This is a cause of joy only because the Messenger of Allah ﷺ declared both groups to be Muslims. This concerns the caliphate that Sayyiduna Hasan (may Allah be pleased with him) handed over to Sayyiduna Muawiyah (may Allah be pleased with him) after the death of Sayyiduna Ali (may Allah be pleased with him).”
By Allah! Few will have seen such magnanimity: the army was there, the kingdom was there, yet he cast it all aside at the movement of a lip, saying that the blood of a Muslim was far dearer to him than his own caliphate.
Sayyiduna Jubayr bin Nufayr (may Allah have mercy on him) narrates:
قلت للحسن بن علي: إن الناس يقولون إنك تريد الخلافة فقال: قد كان جماجم العرب فى يدي يحاربون من حاربت، ويسالمون من سالمت تركتها ابتغاء وجه الله تعالى، وحقن دماء أمة محمد صلى الله عليه وسلم، ثم ابتزها باتناس أهل الحجاز.
“I said to Sayyiduna Hasan bin Ali (may Allah be pleased with him) that people say you desire the caliphate. He said: The great warriors of the Arabs used to fight under my obedience, and whomever I made peace with, they made peace with. I gave this up for the pleasure of Allah, the Exalted, and to stop the blood of the Muslims from being shed. Then despair of the people of the Hijaz overcame it.”
Imam al-Hakim (may Allah have mercy on him) declared its chain sahih (authentic) according to the condition of al-Bukhari and Muslim, and Hafiz al-Dhahabi (may Allah have mercy on him) agreed with him.
Rija bin Rabi’ah (may Allah have mercy on him) narrates:
كنت جالسا بالمدينة فى مسجد الرسول صلى الله عليه وسلم، فى حلقة فيها أبو سعيد وعبد الله بن عمرو، فمر الحسن بن علي، فسلم، فرد عليه القوم، وسكت عبد الله بن عمرو ثم اتبعه، فقال: وعليك السلام ورحمة الله، ثم قال: هذا أحب أهل الأرض إلى أهل السماء.
“A circle was sitting in Madinah in the Prophet’s Mosque, in which Sayyiduna Abu Sa’id (may Allah be pleased with him) and Sayyiduna Abdullah bin Amr (may Allah be pleased with them both) were present. I was also present there. Sayyiduna Hasan bin Ali (may Allah be pleased with him) passed by and greeted them with salam. The people replied with wa alaykum as-salam, but Sayyiduna Abdullah bin Amr (may Allah be pleased with them both) did not speak. Then he went after him and said: Wa alayka as-salam wa rahmatullah. Then he began saying to his companions: This is the most beloved person on earth to the people of the heavens.”
Zuhayr bin Qamar (may Allah have mercy on him) narrates:
بينما الحسن بن على يخطب بعدما قتل على رضى الله عنه إذ قام رجل من الأزد آدم طوال فقال: لقد رأيت رسول الله صلى الله عليه وسلم واضعه فى حبوته يقول: من أحبني فليحبه، فليبلغ الشاهد الغائب، ولولا عزمة رسول الله صلى الله عليه وسلم ما حدثتكم.
“Sayyiduna Hasan bin Ali (may Allah be pleased with him) was delivering a sermon after the martyrdom of Sayyiduna Ali (may Allah be pleased with him), when a tall man of the Azd tribe stood up and said: I saw the Messenger of Allah ﷺ, and Hasan (may Allah be pleased with him) was in his wrap, and he was saying: Whoever loves me should love him too, and those who are present should tell those who are absent. Had the Messenger of Allah ﷺ not said this emphatically, I would not have narrated it to you.”
It is established in countless hadiths from Sayyiduna Hasan bin Ali (may Allah be pleased with him) that he says:
حفظت من رسول الله صلى الله عليه وسلم…
علمني رسول الله صلى الله عليه وسلم…
Ahl al-Sunnah wal-Jama’ah are agreed that he was a Companion.
Sayyiduna Abu Hurayrah (may Allah be pleased with him) narrates:
أخذ الحسن بن على تمرة من تمر الصدقة، فجعلها فى فيه، فقال رسول الله صلى الله عليه وسلم: كخ كخ، ارم بها، أما علمت أنا لا نأكل الصدقة؟
“Sayyiduna Hasan bin Ali (may Allah be pleased with him) (once) took a date from the date of charity and put it in his mouth, so the Messenger of Allah ﷺ said: Listen, throw it out. Do you not know that we (the Ahl al-Bayt) do not eat charity?”
