Brief Account of Muhajireen, Ansar and Companions

Hayat Al-Qulub Vol. 1,
By: Allamah Muhammad Baqir Al-Majlisi
Ibn Babawayh has narrated through authentic chains of narrators from Abi Imamah that the Messenger of Allah (S) said, “Cheers for one who sees me and brings faith.” And he repeated this statement seven times.
Through good chains of narrators it is narrated from Imam Ja’far Sadiq (a.s.) that he said: “The Messenger of Allah (S) had 12000 companions; 8000 from Medina, 2000 from Mecca and 2000 emancipated persons. None of them was Qadariya who believe in the divine compulsion and neither was there any Murjia who say that the faith of every person is distinct.
And neither was there any Hururia who talk ill of Amirul Momineen (a.s.) and neither was there any Mutazali who say that the Almighty Allah cannot interfere in the actions of people and those who did not say anything regarding the religion of Allah and they used to weep and wail day and night and say: O Allah, please capture our souls before we receive the news of the martyrdom of Imam Husain (a.s.). According to another report they used to say: Give us death before we eat bread prepared from Maidah.[554]
Through another chains of narrators it is narrated from the Messenger of Allah (S) that he said, “Cheers be for one who saw me and what to say about one who meets one who has met me. And what can be said about one who has seen one who has seen me!”[555]
Shaykh Tusi has narrated through authentic chains of narrators from Amirul Momineen (a.s.) that he said: “I advise you about companions of the Prophet that you must not abuse them. And the companions of your Prophet are those who have not created innovations in religion after the Prophet and neither have they given shelter to anyone who has created innovations. Indeed the Messenger of Allah (S) requested me about them.”
Moreover it has been narrated through correct chains of narrators from Imam Muhammad Baqir (a.s.) that Amirul Momineen (a.s.) performed the Morning Prayer in Iraq with the people and after that addressed the gathering, himself wept and made other people also weep of the fear of Allah.
Then he said: “I swear by Allah, that I saw a group of people during the period of my friends, the Prophet who spend their days in night in such a condition that their hair were in disarray, smeared with dust, empty stomachs, their foreheads like knees of goats due to excessive prostrations. They spent the nights in remembrance of God. Sometimes they were in Qiyam, sometimes in Ruku and sometimes in Sujood. And they used to tire their foreheads and legs. They always beseeched their Lord in whispered prayers, and weeping, plead to Him to free them from the punishment of Hellfire. And by Allah, I always found them terrified of divine chastisement.
Through another chain of narrators, it is narrated from Abdur Rahman Jehni that he said: “One day I was in the company of the Messenger of Allah (S); suddenly we decried two riders.
When the Messenger of Allah (S) saw them, he said: These two are from the tribe of Madhij tribe. When they came near, it was known that they were indeed from the Madhij tribe. One of them came to the Prophet to pay allegiance. When the Holy Prophet (S) held his hand for allegiance, he said: O Messenger of Allah (S), inform me of the reward of one who visits you, brings faith on you, testifies to your prophethood and follows you.” His Eminence replied: “There is Tooba for him.” So the man paid the oath of allegiance and went away.
Then the second approached the Prophet and held his hand to pay the oath of allegiance and he said: “O Messenger of Allah (S), inform me of the reward of one who brings faith in you, believes in your statements and follows you, but who has not met you.” His Eminence replied: “There is Tooba for him also.” That man also paid the allegiance and went away.
Through another chain of narrators it is narrated from some companions of the Prophet that: One day we were having breakfast in the company of the Prophet when we asked: O Messenger of Allah (S), is there anyone better than us? Because we accepted Islam and performed Jihad in your service. His Eminence replied: “Yes, better than you are those from my Ummah who will be born after me and have faith in me.”
Through authentic chains of narrators, it is narrated by Kulaini that Abu Amr Zubairi asked Imam Ja’far Sadiq (a.s.) if there were different grades of faith due to which believers have excellence over each other in the view of Allah. His Eminence replied: “Yes.” Amr said, “Please explain so that I may also understand.” The Imam said, “The Almighty Allah has kept competition between believers like horses are raced after laying bets. And the believers are made to compete with each other in good deeds and no one has precedence on one who precedes him. And no inferior one has any precedence on one who is superior to him.
Therefore those who accepted faith at the end of this Ummah and if those who had precedence in faith had no excellence, everyone who brought faith later, the last of the Ummah would have joined the first. Rather due to good deeds he would have even achieved excellence over him. Therefore there is no excellence of those who have believed first. But due to the different grades of faith, the Almighty Allah has considered foremost those who accepted faith before.
Because we see some believers who brought faith later, that their prayer, fasting, Hajj and Zakat, Jihad and charity etc. is more than the ones who came later. If there had been no excellence of precedence of faith, those who accepted faith later, would have gained precedence over the former ones due to their excessive good deeds. Thus one who is given precedence by Allah cannot be considered less than the one who is kept behind.” Abu Amr said, “Please tell me about those matters that the Almighty Allah has encouraged in order to increase the grades of faith.” Imam (a.s.) said, “The Almighty says:
سَابِقُوا إِلٰى مَغْفِرَةٍ مِنْ رَبِّكُمْ وَجَنَّةٍ عَرْضُهَا كَعَرْضِ السَّمَاءِ وَالْأَرْضِ أُعِدَّتْ لِلَّذِينَ آمَنُوا بِاللَّهِ وَرُسُلِهٖ

“Hasten to forgiveness from your Lord and to a garden the extensiveness of which is as the extensiveness of the heaven and the earth; it is prepared for those who believe in Allah and His apostles…”[556]
Then He said:
وَالسَّابِقُونَ السَّابِقُونَ. أُولٰئِكَ الْمُقَرَّبُونَ
.
“And the foremost are the foremost, these are they who are drawn nigh (to Allah).”[557]
And then He says:
وَالسَّابِقُونَ الْأَوَّلُونَ مِنَ الْمُهَاجِرِينَ وَالْأَنْصَارِ وَالَّذِينَ اتَّبَعُوهُمْ بِإِحْسَانٍ رَضِيَ اللَّهُ عَنْهُمْ وَرَضُوا عَنْهُ

“And (as for) the foremost, the first of the migrants (from Mecca) and the helpers (among the people of Medina), and those who followed them in goodness, Allah is well pleased with them and they are well pleased with Him…”[558]
Then He said:
تِلْكَ الرُّسُلُ فَضَّلْنَا بَعْضَهُمْ عَلَىٰ بَعْضٍ ۘ مِنْهُمْ مَنْ كَلَّمَ اللَّهُ ۖ وَرَفَعَ بَعْضَهُمْ دَرَجَاتٍ

“We have made some of these apostles to excel the others, among them are they to whom Allah spoke, and some of them He exalted by (many degrees of) rank…”[559]
Then He said:
وَلَقَدْ فَضَّلْنَا بَعْضَ النَّبِيِّينَ عَلٰى بَعْضٍ

“… and certainly We have made some of the prophets to excel others…”[560]
Then He said:
انْظُرْ كَيْفَ فَضَّلْنَا بَعْضَهُمْ عَلَىٰ بَعْضٍ ۚ وَلَلْآخِرَةُ أَكْبَرُ دَرَجَاتٍ وَأَكْبَرُ تَفْضِيلًا

“See how We have made some of them to excel others, and certainly the hereafter is much superior in respect of excellence.”[561]
Then He said:
هُمْ دَرَجَاتٌ عِنْدَ اللَّهِ

“There are (varying) grades with Allah.”[562]
Then He said:
وَيُؤْتِ كُلَّ ذِي فَضْلٍ فَضْلَهٗ

…and bestow His grace on every one endowed with grace…”[563]
Then He said:
الَّذِينَ آمَنُوا وَهَاجَرُوا وَجَاهَدُوا فِي سَبِيلِ اللَّهِ بِأَمْوَالِهِمْ وَأَنْفُسِهِمْ أَعْظَمُ دَرَجَةً عِنْدَ اللَّهِ

“Those who believed and fled (their homes), and strove hard in Allah’s way with their property and their souls, are much higher in rank with Allah…”[564]
Then He said:
فَضَّلَ اللَّهُ الْمُجَاهِدِينَ بِأَمْوَالِهِمْ وَأَنْفُسِهِمْ عَلَى الْقَاعِدِينَ دَرَجَةً ۚ وَكُلًّا وَعَدَ اللَّهُ الْحُسْنَىٰ ۚ وَفَضَّلَ اللَّهُ الْمُجَاهِدِينَ عَلَى الْقَاعِدِينَ أَجْرًا عَظِيمًا. دَرَجَاتٍ مِنْهُ وَمَغْفِرَةً وَرَحْمَةً...

“Allah has made the strivers with their property and their persons to excel the holders back a (high) degree, and to each (class) Allah has promised good; and Allah shall grant to the strivers above the holders back a mighty reward: (High) degrees from Him and protection and mercy…”[565]
Then He said:
لَا يَسْتَوِي مِنْكُمْ مَنْ أَنْفَقَ مِنْ قَبْلِ الْفَتْحِ وَقَاتَلَ ۚ أُولَٰئِكَ أَعْظَمُ دَرَجَةً مِنَ الَّذِينَ أَنْفَقُوا مِنْ بَعْدُ وَقَاتَلُوا

“…not alike among you are those who spent before the victory and fought (and those who did not): they are more exalted in rank than those who spent and fought afterwards…”[566]
Shaykh Tusi has narrated that the Messenger of Allah (S) said: “Indeed the Ansar are my shield in warding off the enemies. Therefore forgive them their mistakes and help the good ones among them.”
Ibn Babawayh has narrated through authentic chains of narrators from Imam Ja’far Sadiq (a.s.) that he said: “When people were joining the religion of the Messenger of Allah (S) in groups, there arrived a delegation for the Azd tribe; the people of this clan were sweet spoken and tenderhearted. Companions said: “O Messenger of Allah (S), we have understood the delicateness of the hearts, but why are they so sweet spoken?” He replied: “Because they used to brush their teeth during the period of Jahiliyya.”
And Shaykh Tusi has narrated through authentic chains of narrators from Imam Muhammad Baqir (a.s.) that he said: “Swords of the Muslims did not come out and their rows were not formed in prayers and jihad and the Azan was not recited in a loud voice, and the verse of: ‘O people who believe,’ was not revealed in Qur’an before the tribes of Aws and Khazraj (Ansar) embraced Islam.”[567]
Ibn Babawayh has narrated through authentic chains of narrators that Imam Ja’far Sadiq (a.s.) heard a Quraish man talking to a Shia person that he was boasting of his lineage. The Imam in its reply said to the Shia man: “You tell him that you are more excellent than him due to Wilayat and devotion of Ahlul Bayt (a.s.).”
Through correct chains of narrators, it is narrated from Imam Ali Reza (a.s.) that the Messenger of Allah (S) was fond of people of four tribes: Ansar, Abdul Qays, Aslam and Bani Tamim. And he despised four tribes: Bani Umayyah, Bani Hunaif, Thaqif and Bani Hudhail. And he used to say that my mother has not given birth to me because I am Bakari or Thaqafi. And he used to say: “There is a noble in every tribe except in Bani Umayyah.”
Shaykh Tusi has narrated that one day Amirul Momineen (a.s.) said: Call the Ghani and Bahila tribes so that they may take their share of gifts. By the God Who split the grain and created the creations, they have no concern with Islam and I will testify at Hauz Kauthar and Maqam Mahmud that they are my enemies in the world and the Hereafter and if my Caliphate is established I will transfer some tribes to others; and indeed I will legalize the killing of sixty tribes because they have no share in Islam.”
Notes:
[554] Superfine flour
[555] The author says: This tradition is related through Sunni chains and there is no doubt that faith is necessary for this.
[556] Surah Hadid 57:21
[557] Surah Waqiah 56:10-11
[558] Surah Taubah 9:100
[559] Surah Baqarah 2:253
[560] Surah Bani Israel 17:55
[561] Surah Bani Israel 17:21
[562] Surah Aale Imran 3:163
[563] Surah Hud 11:3
[564] Surah Taubah 9:20
[565] Surah Nisa 4:95-96
[566] Surah Hadid 57:10
[567] The author says: The praise and excellence mentioned in these verses for Companions, Muhajireen and Ansar are in fact for those who neither left the fold of Islam nor gave way to hypocrisy; who never followed anyone except Amirul Momineen (a.s.). And the companions who became infidels and apostates, and who helped the enemies of Amirul Momineen (a.s.), are worse then infidels. Thus the Holy Prophet (S) said: “Many of my companions on Judgment Day will be driven away from Hauz Kauthar; so I will say: they are my companions; the Almighty Allah will say: O Muhammad you don’t know what they did after you. After you they turned on their heels and apostasied from faith.” Numerous traditions will be mentioned through Shia as well as Sunni channels in the coming pages on this topic.
Ref: Imam Reza Network