It is narrated from Sayyiduna Amr bin al-As (may Allah be pleased with them both) that:
I asked the Prophet ﷺ: Whom do you love the most? He ﷺ said: Aisha’s father (Abu Bakr al-Siddiq (may Allah be pleased with him)). I asked: Who after him? He ﷺ said: Umar (may Allah be pleased with him).
Muhammad bin Ali bin Abi Talib, known as Muhammad bin al-Hanafiyyah (may Allah have mercy on him), says that:
I asked my father (Sayyiduna Ali (may Allah be pleased with him)): After the Prophet ﷺ, who is the best man (most virtuous)? He said: Abu Bakr (may Allah be pleased with him). I said: Then who after him? He said: Umar (may Allah be pleased with him).
The mention of Sayyiduna Abu Bakr (may Allah be pleased with him) is in the Holy Quran. Allah the Exalted says:
اِلَّا تَنْصُرُوْہُ فَقَدْ نَصَرَہُ اللہُ اِذْ اَخْرَجَہُ الَّذِیْنَ کَفَرُوْا ثَانِیَ اثْنَیْنِ اِذْ ھُمَا فِی الْغَارِ اِذْ یَقُوْلُ لِصَاحِبِہٖ لَا تَحْزَنْ اِنَّ اللہَ مَعَنَا
“If you do not help him, (it does not matter, for) Allah has already helped him when those who disbelieved expelled him (from his home), the second of two; when they were both in the cave, and he said to his companion, ‘Do not grieve; indeed Allah is with us.'”
It is narrated from Sayyiduna Abu Sa’id al-Khudri (may Allah be pleased with him) that the Prophet ﷺ said:
In terms of companionship and wealth, Abu Bakr has the greatest favour upon me. And if I were to take a close friend other than my Lord, I would take Abu Bakr as my close friend; but the brotherhood and love of Islam suffices. Look! All doors opening onto the (Prophet’s) Mosque should be closed except the door of Abu Bakr.
It is narrated from Sayyiduna Abu Hurairah (may Allah be pleased with him) that:
The Messenger of Allah ﷺ asked (the Companions): Who fasted today? Abu Bakr said: I did. He asked: Who among you followed a funeral today? Abu Bakr said: I did. He asked: Who among you fed a poor person today? Abu Bakr said: I did. He asked: Who among you visited a sick person today? Abu Bakr said: I did. Then the Messenger of Allah ﷺ said: ما اجتمعن فی امری إلا دخل الجنۃ Whoever has these qualities gathered in him will enter Paradise.
It is narrated from Sayyiduna Abu Musa al-Ash’ari (may Allah be pleased with him) that the Prophet ﷺ was in a garden. A man came and asked permission to enter, and the Prophet ﷺ said: افتح لہ وبشرہ بالجنۃ Open the door for him and give him the good news of Paradise. It was Abu Bakr (al-Siddiq (may Allah be pleased with him)) who entered the garden.
In a well-known hadith, the Prophet ﷺ said:
أبو بکر فی الجنۃ Abu Bakr is in Paradise.
It is narrated from Sayyiduna Anas bin Malik (may Allah be pleased with him) that: Once the Prophet ﷺ, Abu Bakr, Umar and Uthman (may Allah be pleased with them) climbed Mount Uhud, and (due to an earthquake) the mountain began to shake. The Prophet ﷺ struck it with his foot and said: اثبت أحد، فإنما علیک نبی و صدیق و شھیدان O Uhud! Be still, for upon you there are only a Prophet, a Siddiq and two martyrs.
Sayyiduna Umar bin al-Khattab (may Allah be pleased with him) said:
لو وزن إیمان أبی بکر بإیمان أھل الأرض لرجح If the faith of Abu Bakr (al-Siddiq) and the faith of the people of the earth were weighed together, the faith of Abu Bakr (may Allah be pleased with him) would outweigh them.
The virtues of Sayyiduna Abu Bakr al-Siddiq (may Allah be pleased with him) are very many, and a short article like this cannot contain their details. Imam Ahmad bin Hanbal (may Allah have mercy on him), the leader of Ahl al-Sunnah, was asked about a man who abuses Abu Bakr, Umar and Aisha (may Allah be pleased with them all). He said: I do not consider him to be upon Islam, i.e., a Muslim.
Imam Abdullah bin Ahmad bin Hanbal (may Allah have mercy on him) says: I asked my father (Imam Ahmad bin Hanbal (may Allah have mercy on him)) about a man who insults a Companion. He said: I do not consider such a person to be upon Islam.
The trustworthy jurist, worshipper, Tabi’i Imam Masruq bin al-Ajda’ (may Allah have mercy on him) said: حب أ بی بکر و عمر و معرفۃ فضلھا من السنۃ Love for Abu Bakr and Umar (may Allah be pleased with them both) and recognising their virtue is from the Sunnah.
Imam Abu Ja’far Muhammad bin Ali bin al-Husayn al-Baqir (may Allah have mercy on him) said:
من جھل فضل أبی بکر و عمر رضی اللہ عنھما فقد جھل السنۃ
Whoever does not know the virtues of Abu Bakr and Umar (may Allah be pleased with them both) is ignorant of the Sunnah.
Imam Ja’far bin Muhammad al-Sadiq (may Allah have mercy on him) said:
برئ اللہ ممن تبرأ من أبی بکر و عمر
Allah is free from whoever is free from Abu Bakr and Umar (may Allah be pleased with them both).
Imam Ja’far al-Sadiq used to say: اللھم إنی أحب أبا بکر و عمر و أتو لاھما، اللھم إن کان لی خلاف ھذا فلا نالتنی شفاعۃ محمد صلی اللہ علیہ وسلم یوم القیامۃ O Allah, I love Abu Bakr and Umar, and I take them as my allies. O Allah, if there is anything in me (i.e., in my heart) contrary to this, then may I not attain the intercession of Muhammad ﷺ on the Day of Resurrection.
Imam Abu Ishaq (al-Sabi’i) (may Allah have mercy on him) said:
بغض أبی بکر و عمر من الکبائر
Hatred of Abu Bakr and Umar (may Allah be pleased with them both) is a major sin (i.e., kufr).
O Allah! Fill our hearts with the love of Sayyidina Abu Bakr al-Siddiq (may Allah be pleased with him) and all the Companions (may Allah be pleased with them all), and increase that love. آمین
