This excerpt is taken from Sheikh Abu Hamza Abdul Khaliq Siddiqi's book Sahi Fazail-e-Amaal.
Sayyiduna Abu Musa Ash'ari رضي الله عنه said, the Messenger of Allah صلی اللہ علیہ وسلم said: "O Abu Musa! You have been given one of the melodious voices of the family of Dawud."
Reference: Sahih al-Bukhari, Book of Virtues of the Qur'an, Chapter: Good Voice in Reciting the Qur'an, Hadith No: 5048.
◈ Regularity in Congregation:
When Sayyiduna Abu Musa Ash'ari رضي الله عنه and his travel companions came to Medina, they stayed in Baqi' Bathan. Although not everyone could attend the Isha prayer there, they took turns, and on their turn, people would come and pray Isha with the Prophet صلی اللہ علیہ وسلم.
Reference: Sahih al-Bukhari, Book of Times of Prayer, Hadith No: 567.
◈ Recitation of the Qur'an:
Sayyiduna Abu Musa Al-Ash'ari رضي الله عنه was melodious in recitation. In fact, this was not only his characteristic; melodiousness was a distinctive trait of his entire tribe. The Messenger of Allah صلی اللہ علیہ وسلم used to say that when the people of the Ash'ari tribe would come at night, I would recognize their place of stay just by their Quranic recitation."
Reference: Sahih Muslim, Book of Virtues, Chapter on the Virtues of the Ash'aris, No: 2499/166.
Abu Uthman Mahdi stated, "I also witnessed the pre-Islamic era, but I never found the sound of the chang (a stringed instrument) and barbat (a lute) better than the melodiousness of Abu Musa Al-Ash'ari رضي الله عنه. When he led us in Fajr prayer, one felt like reciting the entire Surah Al-Baqarah."
Reference: Al-Isti'ab, Tadhkirah by Abdul Rahman bin Mul.
◈Love for Visiting the Messenger of Allah ﷺ :
The hearts of the Companions, may Allah be pleased with them, were filled with the desire to visit the Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings be upon him. Therefore, when the time for visitation approached, this passion would intensify and be expressed in the form of sacred chants. When Sayyiduna Abu Musa Ash'ari, may Allah be pleased with him, along with his companions, reached near Medina, they all harmoniously began to recite this verse with verbal enthusiasm:
غدا نلقى الأحبه محمدا و حزبه
"We will meet our friends tomorrow, that is Muhammad, peace and blessings be upon him, and his group."
Reference: Musnad Ahmad: 223/3
◈ Commitment to the Promise:
A contract is indeed a significant matter. The Companions of the Prophet, may Allah be pleased with them, used to fulfill even minor promises without fail. Once, Sayyiduna Abu Musa Ash'ari, may Allah be pleased with him, told Anas, may Allah be pleased with him, "I am going to travel on such and such a day; prepare my travel provisions." He began preparing the provisions. When the time of departure came, he said, "There is a slight deficiency; if you had stayed a little longer, I would have completed it." He replied, "I have already told my family that I will travel on such and such a day. If I lie to them, they will lie to me. If I betray them, they will betray me. If I break my promise to them, they will break their promise to me." Thus, he departed without caring about the deficiency or the incomplete travel provisions.
Reference: Tabaqat Ibn Sa'd, Tadhkirah Abu Musa Ash'ari, may Allah be pleased with him.
Sayyida Aisha (may Allah be pleased with her) says: I have no jealousy towards any woman as much as I have towards Sayyida Khadijah (may Allah be pleased with her), even though the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) married me after her death. This is because the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) used to speak very highly of her, and Allah Almighty commanded him to give glad tidings of a house made of pearls in Paradise for Khadijah, in which there is neither noise nor any discomfort.
Reference: Sahih al-Bukhari, Book of the Virtues of the Ansar, Chapter: The Marriage of the Prophet (peace be upon him) to Khadijah and Her Virtues (may Allah be pleased with her), No: 3817, 3819
◈ A Glance at the Seerah :
The very first marriage was with Sayyida Khadijah رضي الله عنها. She belonged to the Quraysh family and was a woman of forty years of age with pure morals. Tahira was her title. Her lineage traces back to the Prophet Muhammad صلی اللہ علیہ وسلم in the fifth generation. Her father, Khuwaylid, was a respected Qurayshi, and she herself was very wealthy. Her first marriage was to Abu Halah bin Zinda Tamimi. After his death, she married Atiq ibn Aidh. After his death, she was married to the Prophet Muhammad صلی اللہ علیہ وسلم. At that time, Sayyida Khadijah رضي الله عنها was forty years old, and the Prophet Muhammad صلی اللہ علیہ وسلم was twenty-five years old. Except for one, all of the Prophet Muhammad’s صلی اللہ علیہ وسلم children were born from her womb. The Prophet Muhammad صلی اللہ علیہ وسلم loved her greatly. He did not marry anyone else throughout his life. She passed away in Makkah several years before the migration to Madinah. Although the Prophet Muhammad صلی اللہ علیہ وسلم married several times after her, the mark of her love always remained in his heart.
Reference: Tareekh-e-Islam: 134/1, with slight modification.
Sayyiduna Abu Dharr Ghifari رضي الله عنه heard the words of the Prophet صلی اللہ علیہ وسلم and embraced Islam right there. Then the Prophet صلی اللہ علیہ وسلم said to him: "Now go back to your tribe Ghifar and tell them about my condition until you become aware of our victory." (Then come to us.) Abu Dharr رضي الله عنه said: By the One in Whose hand is my life! I will proclaim the declaration of the oneness of Allah in the assembly of these Quraish. Accordingly, he returned from the Prophet’s presence and came to the Masjid al-Haram and loudly said: I bear witness that there is no deity but Allah and Muhammad صلی اللہ علیہ وسلم is the Messenger of Allah. Upon hearing this, the entire assembly attacked him and beat him so much that he was laid on the ground. At that moment, Sayyiduna Abbas رضي الله عنه came and placed himself over Abu Dharr رضي الله عنه and said to the Quraish: Alas, do you not know that this man is from the tribe of Ghifar and that all the traders going to Sham pass through this route? Thus, he protected him from them. Then Sayyiduna Abu Dharr رضي الله عنه came to the Masjid al-Haram the next day and expressed his Islam. The tribe again attacked him severely and began to beat him. On that day too, Sayyiduna Abbas رضي الله عنه fell over him to protect him.
Reference: Sahih Bukhari, Book of Virtues, Chapter: The Story of the Islam of Abu Dharr Ghifari رضي الله عنه, Number: 3522.
◈ Endurance of Hardships:
The Companions of the Prophet, may Allah be pleased with them, endured all kinds of hardships for Islam, and not even a trace of doubt occurred in their faith. When Sayyiduna Abu Dharr al-Ghifari, may Allah be pleased with him, declared his Islam in the Kaaba, the disbelievers attacked him and beat him until he fell to the ground.
Reference: Sahih Muslim, Book of the Virtues of the Companions, may Allah be pleased with them, No: 2473.
◈ Charity and Alms:
Sayyiduna Abu Dharr al-Ghifari, may Allah be pleased with him, considered accumulating wealth altogether impermissible.
Reference: Sahih Bukhari, Book of Zakat, No: 1406.
◈ Courage and Bravery:
The expression of courage and bravery sometimes occurs in the expression of beliefs, sometimes on the battlefield, and sometimes in front of a tyrant king. The companions of the Prophet, may Allah be pleased with them, possessed this moral quality, so it manifested on all these occasions.
Sayyiduna Abu Dharr al-Ghifari, may Allah be pleased with him, is a very early companion of Islam. When he came to Mecca and embraced faith, the Messenger of Allah, peace be upon him, advised him to return to his homeland at that time and inform his people about his mission. But he said in a very passionate tone, "By the One in whose hand is my life, I will proclaim the declaration of the oneness of Allah in front of the disbelievers of Mecca." The situation was such that he was poor and had no supporters or helpers in Mecca, yet he came to the Sacred Mosque and loudly said: اشهد ان لا اله الا الله واشهد ان محمد رسول الله . The disbelievers heard this and attacked him fiercely. But the next day, with the same enthusiasm, he again proclaimed this declaration in the Kaaba, and the disbelievers again attacked him in the same way.
Reference: Sahih Bukhari, Book of Virtues, Number: 3861.
◈ Treatment of Slaves :
The Companions of the Prophet, may Allah be pleased with them, treated slaves with complete equality. Once, Sayyiduna Abu Dharr Ghifari, may Allah be pleased with him, was wearing a cloak, and a slave was also dressed in the same way. When asked the reason, he said: "Once I spoke harshly to a slave, and the Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings be upon him, said: 'Abu Dharr! The influence of ignorance still remains in you. These people are your brothers. Allah has placed them under your hand, so whoever has a brother under his hand should feed and clothe him as he himself eats and drinks.'"
Reference: Sahih Bukhari, Book of Faith, Hadith No: 30.
Sayyiduna Abdullah bin Umar رضي الله عنهما said that the Messenger of Allah صلی اللہ علیہ وسلم said: "Learn the Quran from four people:
● Abdullah bin Masood.
● Salim, the freed slave of Abu Hudhaifah.
● Ubayy bin Ka'b.
● Mu'adh bin Jabal (رضی اللہ عنہم)
Reference: Sahih al-Bukhari, Book of Virtues of the Companions of the Prophet ﷺ, Chapter: Virtues of Abdullah bin Masood رضي الله عنه, Number: 3760.
◈ Service to the Messenger ﷺ :
Sayyiduna Abdullah bin Masood رضي الله عنه had the honor that whenever he went somewhere, he would first put shoes on you, then walk ahead carrying a staff. If you wanted to sit in a gathering, he would remove your shoes from your feet, then give you the staff. When you stood up, he would put the shoes on you again, walk ahead carrying the staff, and reach your blessed face. When you bathed, he would provide privacy; when you slept, he would wake you up. When you traveled, your bedding, miswak, shoes, and ablution water were with him. Therefore, he was called the Sahib Sawad Rasul Allah صلی اللہ علیہ وسلم, meaning the one who took care of the belongings of the Messenger of Allah صلی اللہ علیہ وسلم.
Reference: Tabaqat Ibn Saad, Tazkira Abdullah bin Masood رضي الله عنه.
◈ Tafaqquh fi ad-Deen:
Masrooq says that Abdullah bin Masood (may Allah be pleased with him) said: والذي لا إله غيره "I swear by the One besides whom there is no deity, there is no chapter of the Holy Quran about which I do not know where and when it was revealed, and I know the reason for the revelation of every verse of the Quran." Then he said: If I were to find a person who is a greater scholar of the Holy Quran than me, I would go to him and seek knowledge, even if he lived so far away that one could only reach him by camel.
Reference: Sahih Bukhari, Virtues of the Quran, Number: 5002
◈ Following the Messenger ﷺ:
Abdur Rahman bin Yazid says that we asked Hudhaifa رضي الله عنه to name a person who embodied the character of the Prophet Muhammad صلی اللہ علیہ وسلم so that we could acquire knowledge from him. He replied: "I do not know anyone other than Ibn Umm Mabad (that is Abdullah ibn Mas'ud رضي الله عنه) who adopted the character of the Prophet Muhammad صلی اللہ علیہ وسلم to such an extent."
Reference: Sahih Bukhari, Book of the Virtues of the Companions, No: 3762.
