Abdullah ibn Salam ibn al-Harith was a descendant of Joseph, son
of Jacob, son of Isaac, son of Abraham (peace be upon them all) (al-Nawawi).
His kunya (patronymic) was Abu Yusuf, and it is also said Abu al-Harith. He was
a scholar among the Jewish tribe of Banu Qaynuqa, and one of their learned
scholars who studied the Torah and was well-versed in its prophecies and
rulings. Before his conversion to Islam, his name was al-Husayn, but the
Messenger of God (peace and blessings be upon him) renamed him Abdullah after
his conversion. He embraced Islam upon the Prophet's arrival in Medina, was
promised Paradise, was an ally of the Ansar, and was among the Prophet's
closest companions (Al-Dhahabi in Siyar A'lam al-Nubala').
After the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) migrated to Medina
from Mecca, the Ansar were eager to host him. Whenever he passed by one of
their homes, they invited him to stay. The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon
him) would say to them, "Leave the camel, for it is guided." It knelt
at the door of Abu Ayyub al-Ansari (may God be pleased with him), on the site
of the Prophet's Mosque, which stands today. Then delegations began arriving to
visit the Messenger of God (peace and blessings be upon him) at Abu Ayyub's
house, and people called out to one another, "The Messenger of God has
arrived! The Messenger of God has arrived!"
It was narrated on the authority of Abdullah ibn Salam that he
said: "When the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) arrived in
Medina, the people rushed towards him, and it was said, 'The Messenger of God
(peace and blessings be upon him) has arrived!'" Peace and blessings be
upon him. The Messenger of God has arrived, the Messenger of God has arrived,
three times. So I went with the people to see him. When I saw his face, I knew
that it was not the face of a liar. The first thing I heard him say was: “O
people, spread peace, feed the hungry, maintain ties of kinship, and pray at
night while people are asleep, and you will enter Paradise in peace.” (Source:
Sahih Ibn Majah; Al-Albani’s ruling: Sahih). As-Sindi explains: I knew that his
face was not the face of a liar. He says: Because of the radiant light of
prophethood that shone upon him. If the righteous and those who pray at night
are recognized by their faces, then how much more so by his, their master? May
God’s prayers and peace be upon him.
It is narrated on the authority of Anas ibn Malik, may God be
pleased with him, that he said: When Abdullah ibn Salam heard of the Prophet’s
arrival in Medina, he came to him to ask him about some things. He said: “I
will ask you about three things that only a prophet knows: What is the first
sign of the Hour? What is the first food that the people of Paradise will eat?
And why does a child resemble his father or his mother?” He said: “Gabriel informed
me of this just now.” Ibn Salam said: “That is an enemy of God.” The Jews are
from among the angels. He said: As for the first sign of the Hour, it is a fire
that will gather them from the east to the west. As for the first food that the
people of Paradise will eat, it is the extra lobe of the whale's liver (the
separate piece attached to the liver, which is the most delicious and wholesome
of foods). As for the child, if the man's fluid precedes the woman's, the child
will be male, and if the woman's fluid precedes the man's, the child will be
female. He said: I bear witness that there is no There is no god but Allah, and
you are the Messenger of Allah. He said, "O Messenger of Allah, the Jews
are a people of slander, so ask them about me before they know of my conversion
to Islam." So the Jews came, and the Prophet, peace and blessings be upon
him, said, "What kind of man is Abdullah ibn Salam among you?" They
said, "He is the best of us and the son of the best of us, the most virtuous
of us and the son of the most virtuous of us." So the Prophet, peace and
blessings be upon him, said, "What if Abdullah ibn Salam were to convert
to Islam?" They said, "May Allah protect him from that!" So he
repeated the question to them, and they said: Similarly, Abdullah went out to
them and said: I bear witness that there is no god but Allah and that Muhammad
is the Messenger of Allah. They said: He is the worst of us and the son of the
worst of us, and they spoke ill of him. He said: This is what I feared, O Messenger
of Allah. (Source: Sahih al-Bukhari; Summary of the Hadith scholar's ruling
(al-Bukhari): Authentic).
The Jews used to harm those of their rabbis who believed, raise
doubts about them, belittle them, and accuse them of false and ugly charges
that had no basis except in their sick minds. The Holy Quran spoke of their
wicked methods and defended these believers, including Abdullah ibn Salam,
saying: "They are not [all] the same; among the People of the Scripture is
a community standing [in obedience], reciting the verses of Allah during
periods of the night and prostrating [in prayer] 3:113 They believe in Allah
and the Last Day, and they enjoin what is right and forbid what is wrong and
hasten to good deeds. And those are among the righteous.3.114 And whatever good
they do - never will it be removed from them. And Allah is Knowing of the
righteous 115 (Surat Al Imran 113:115). Ibn Abbas and Muqatil said regarding
the reasons for the revelation of these verses: When Abdullah ibn Salam,
Tha'labah ibn As'ad, Usayd ibn Sa'nah, Asad ibn Ubayd, and others from among
the Jews embraced Islam, the Jewish rabbis said, "Only the worst among us
have believed in Muhammad. If they were truly among the best, they would not
have abandoned the religion of their forefathers." They also said to them,
"You have betrayed us by exchanging your religion for another." So
Allah revealed: "They are not [all] the same" (Surat Al Imran: verse
113).
The story of Abdullah ibn Salam's conversion to Islam shows that
the Jews are a people of slander, meaning they are people of falsehood and
lies, saying and fabricating things about others that are not true. One of
their own rabbis, Abdullah ibn Salam, testified against them in this matter
after Allah had opened his heart to Islam, saying, "O Messenger of Allah!
The Jews are a people of slander." And among their falsehoods and
fabrications is that they lied about God Almighty, describing Him with
attributes that are not befitting Him, as He, Exalted is He, says in the Holy
Quran: “Indeed, Allah has heard the statement of those (Jews) who say:
"Truly, Allah is poor and we are rich!" We shall record what they
have said and their killing of the Prophets unjustly, and We shall say:
"Taste you the torment of the burning (Fire)." (Surat Al Imran: 181).
And God Almighty says: “The Jews say: "Allah's Hand is tied up (i.e. He
does not give and spend of His Bounty)." Be their hands tied up and be
they accursed for what they uttered. Nay, both His Hands are widely
outstretched. He spends (of His Bounty) as He wills. Verily, the Revelation
that has come to you from Allah increases in most of them their obstinate
rebellion and disbelief. We have put enmity and hatred amongst them till the
Day of Resurrection. Every time they kindled the fire of war, Allah extinguished
it; and they (ever) strive to make mischief on earth. And Allah does not like
the Mufsidun (mischief-makers” (Surat Al-Ma'idah 5:64) And Allah says: The Jews
say, "And the Jews say: 'Uzair (Ezra) is the son of Allah, and the
Christians say: Messiah is the son of Allah. That is a saying from their
mouths. They imitate the saying of the disbelievers of old. Allah's Curse be on
them, how they are deluded away from the truth! (Surat At-Tawbah 9:30)
تعليقات