Khuzaimah ibn Thabit al-Awsi, also known as Abu 'Amarah, was the
possessor of two testimonies. His father was Thabit ibn al-Fakih, and his
mother was Kabshah bint Aws al-Sa'idiyyah. He was blessed with two sons,
'Amarah and 'Amr, both of whom narrated hadiths from the Prophet (peace and
blessings be upon him), and 'Abd al-Rahman and Muhammad (his last son).
Khuzaimah ibn Thabit was a nobleman among the Aws tribe, both
before and after Islam, and a courageous and foremost warrior. He participated
in the Battle of Badr and all subsequent battles. He carried the banner of the
Aws tribe of Banu Khatmah on the day of the conquest of Mecca. He lived until
the caliphate of Ali ibn Abi Talib and witnessed the Battles of the Camel and
Siffin. He did not decide to fight until Ammar ibn Yasir was killed. He was
among those who heard the Messenger of God (peace and blessings be upon him)
say, "Ammar will be killed by the rebellious group." So he drew his
sword (may God be pleased with him) and fought until he was killed in the
thirty-seventh year of the Hijra.
Khuzaimah was nicknamed "the one with two testimonies"
because of his testimony alongside the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon
him) when he was attacked. The Messenger of God (peace and blessings be upon
him) considered his testimony equivalent to that of two men. It was narrated on
the authority of Ammarah ibn Khuzaimah's uncle that he said, "The Prophet
(peace and blessings be upon him) bought a horse from a Bedouin, and the
Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) sent him after him to pay him the
price of his horse." So the Messenger of God, may God bless him and grant
him peace, hastened his pace, while the Bedouin lagged behind. Some men began
to approach the Bedouin, bargaining with him over the horse, unaware that the
Prophet, may God bless him and grant him peace, had already bought it. The
Bedouin called out to the Messenger of God, may God bless him and grant him
peace, and said, “If you are going to buy this horse, then so be it; otherwise,
I will sell it to you.” When the Prophet, may God bless him and grant him
peace, heard the Bedouin’s call, he stood up and said, “Didn’t I already buy it
from you?” The Bedouin said, “No, by God, I did not sell it to you.” The
Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said, “Yes, I did buy it from you.”
The Bedouin then said, “Bring a witness.” Khuzaymah ibn Thabit said, “I bear
witness that you did sell it to him.” The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon
him) turned to Khuzaymah and said, “On what basis do you bear witness?” He
replied, “On the basis of your word, O Messenger of God.” So the Messenger of
God (peace and blessings be upon him) made Khuzaymah’s testimony equivalent to
the testimony of two men. (Source: Sahih Abi Dawud; Hadith classification:
Sahih by al-Qalbani).
It was made. The testimony of Abu Huraira, may God be pleased with
him, is considered equivalent to the testimony of two men because it is based
on the general affirmation of the Prophet, peace and blessings be upon him.
This is one of the fundamentals of faith in him. Therefore, his testimony was
considered a specific affirmation included within the general affirmation. It
cannot be said that he was honored with this title because he testified to
something that did not happen, for this statement is incorrect. Ibn al-Qayyim
said, “The Prophet, peace and blessings be upon him, made his testimony
equivalent to two testimonies because it included his testimony to the
Messenger of God, peace and blessings be upon him, regarding the general
truthfulness of what he conveys from God, and the believers are like him in
this regard.” This testimony, and Khuzaymah alone testified to it regarding the
contract of trade with the Bedouin, without the presence of those who were
there, because this report falls under the category of reports that every
Muslim is obligated to believe, and believing it is a requirement of faith.
This is the testimony that pertains specifically to this claim, and he accepted
it from him alone. He also said, "The testimony of Khuzaymah was given the
weight of two testimonies by the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be
upon him), unlike the testimony of others who were superior to him." This
was due to a specific reason: his being the first among the Companions present
to testify for the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him).
Zayd ibn Thabit said, "When the Caliph of the Believers, our
master Abu Bakr, tasked me with compiling the Qur’an, I followed the Qur’an,
collecting it from palm leaves, thin white stones, and the hearts of men, until
I found the last verses of Surah At-Tawbah with my father." Khuzaimah
Al-Ansari: I did not find it with anyone else: “Verily, there has come unto you
a Messenger (Muhammad SAW) from amongst yourselves (i.e., whom you know well).
It grieves him that you should receive any injury or difficulty. He (Muhammad
SAW) is anxious over you (to be rightly guided, to repent to Allah, and beg Him
to pardon and forgive your sins, in order that you may enter Paradise and be
saved from the punishment of the Hell-fire), for the believers (he SAW is) full
of pity, kind, and merciful. 129 But if they turn away, say (O Muhammad SAW):
"Allah is sufficient for me. La ilaha illa Huwa (none has the right to be
worshipped but He), in Him I put my trust, and He is the Lord of the Mighty
Throne” (Surat At-Tawbah). The scrolls remained with Abu Bakr until his death,
then with Umar during his lifetime, and then with Hafsa bint Umar (may God be
pleased with her).
The Rightly Guided Caliphs accepted his testimony alone, and it
was specific to him. The Companions' acceptance of his narration, their consensus
on its Quranic status (Verily, there has come unto you a Messenger (Muhammad
SAW) from amongst yourselves (i.e., whom you know well). It grieves him that
you should receive any injury or difficulty until the end of Surah At-Tawbah;
their affirmation of God Almighty's words, "Verily We: It is We Who have
sent down the Dhikr (i.e., the Quran) and surely, We will guard it (from
corruption)" (Surat Al-Hijr 9), and its inclusion in the agreed-upon
Quranic text are sufficient legal proof that it is undoubtedly part of the Holy
Quran.
Zayd ibn Thabit relied on two main sources in compiling the Quran:
what was written on the palm leaves, thin white stones, tanned leather,
parchments (papers), and what was memorized by men. He established a precise
method that relied on verifying each verse by presenting it from two sources,
one memorized by men and the other written. He did not accept a verse unless
two just witnesses testified to its authenticity, except in the case of the
testimony of Khuzaymah ibn Thabit, whose testimony was considered the testimony
of two men. He made an exception for two verses from Surah At-Tawbah that he
found with Khuzaymah ibn Thabit alone, because the Prophet, may God bless him
and grant him peace, made his testimony the testimony of two men, so Zayd
accepted it and wrote it down.
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