The noble companion Ubayy ibn Ka'b,
the first scribe of revelation, was the most knowledgeable reciter of the Quran
among the Prophet's nation. He was also a jurist and a narrator of hadith. His
lineage traces back to the Ansar, specifically the Banu Mu'awiyah ibn 'Amr ibn
Malik ibn al-Najjar clan of the Khazraj tribe. His father was Qays ibn 'Ubayd
ibn Zayd ibn Mu'awiyah ibn 'Amr ibn Malik ibn al-Najjar, and his mother was
Suhaylah bint al-Najjar. His children were al-Tufayl, Muhammad, 'Abdullah, and
Umm 'Amr. The mother of al-Tufayl and Muhammad was Umm al-Tufayl bint al-Tufayl
ibn 'Amr al-Dawsi, while the names of the mothers of 'Abdullah and Umm 'Amr are
not mentioned.
Ubayy ibn Ka'b embraced Islam and
participated in the Second Pledge of Aqaba with the seventy Ansar. When the
Prophet migrated, he established a bond of brotherhood between him and Talhah
ibn 'Ubaydullah, or, according to another account, between him and Sa'id ibn Zayd.
He participated in all of the Prophet's battles. He compiled the Quran and
presented it to the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) during his
lifetime. He was one of the four who compiled the Quran during the Prophet's
lifetime.
After the death of the Prophet
(peace and blessings be upon him), Ubayy ibn Ka'b devoted himself to worship
until he felt the people's need for him. He then abandoned worship and began
teaching. He was a distinguished scholar. Masruq ibn al-Ajda' said of him,
"The knowledge of the Companions culminated in six: Umar, Ali, Ubayy ibn
Ka'b, Zayd ibn Thabit, Abu al-Darda', and Ibn Mas'ud. Then the knowledge of the
six culminated in Ali and Ibn Mas'ud." As Mu'ammar ibn Rashid said,
"Most of Ibn Abbas's knowledge came from three people: Umar, Ali, and
Ubayy."
Anas narrated that the Messenger of
Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) said, "The most merciful of my
nation towards my nation is Abu Bakr, the strictest of them in the matter of
Allah is Umar, the most modest of them is Uthman, the best reciter of the Book
of Allah is Ubayy ibn Ka'b, the most knowledgeable of them in inheritance laws
is Zayd ibn Thabit, and the most knowledgeable of them regarding what is lawful
and unlawful is Mu'adh ibn Jabal. Indeed, every nation has a trustworthy
person, and the trustworthy person of this nation is Abu Ubaydah ibn
al-Jarrah." (Source: Sahih al-Bukhari; Hadith classification: Sahih). Amr
ibn al-As said, "I was with the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be
upon him) on the day of Eid, and he said, 'Call the leader of the Ansar for
me.'" So they summoned Ubayy ibn Ka'b and said, "O Ubayy, go to Baqi'
al-Musalla (the place of the Eid prayer) and order it to be swept."
Umar ibn al-Khattab held Ubayy in
high esteem, treated him with great respect, and sought his judgment. It was
narrated that Umar ibn al-Khattab said, "Ali is the most knowledgeable of
us in matters of law, and Ubayy is the most proficient reciter of the Quran. We
sometimes omit parts of Ubayy's recitation, but he says, 'I will not omit
anything I heard from the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon
him).' Allah Almighty says, "We do not abrogate a verse or cause it to be
forgotten except that We bring forth [one] better than it or similar to it. Do
you not know that Allah is over all things competent?" (Surat Al-Baqarah:
106) It was also narrated that a man sought Umar's help, and beside him
sat a man with white clothes and hair. The old man said, "This world
contains our sustenance and provisions for the Hereafter, and it contains our
deeds for which we will be rewarded in the Hereafter." The man asked,
"Who is this, O Commander of the Faithful?" He replied, "This is
the master of the Muslims, Ubayy ibn Ka'b." When Umar ibn al-Khattab
convened a conference in al-Jabiyah after the Battle of Yarmouk (a historical
area in Syria now called Tell al-Jabiyah, located west of the city of Nawa in
the Hauran Plain, which the Ghassanids had established as their capital), he
said, "Whoever wants to ask about the Quran should go to Ubayy ibn Ka'b;
whoever wants to ask about the laws of inheritance should go to Zayd; whoever
wants to ask about jurisprudence should go to Mu'adh; and whoever wants to ask
about finances should come to me, for God has made me a treasurer and distributor."
It is narrated that Ubayy ibn Ka'b said to Umar ibn al-Khattab, "Why don't
you appoint me to a position?" He replied, "I dislike that your
religion should be defiled."
Ubayy ibn Ka'b was among the few
Arabs skilled in writing during the pre-Islamic era. The Prophet Muhammad
(peace and blessings be upon him) chose him to be the first scribe of the
revelation from among the Ansar (Helpers). Ubayy ibn Ka'b compiled the Quran
during the Prophet's lifetime and presented it to him. Abdullah bin Amr narrated
that he said, "Abdullah bin Masoud was mentioned in the presence of
Abdullah bin Amr, and he said, 'That is a man whom I will always love.'" I
heard the Prophet, may God bless him and grant him peace, say, “Take the Qur’an
from four: Abdullah bin Masoud”—and he began with him—“and Salim, the freed
slave of Abu Hudhayfah, and Mu’adh bin Jabal, and Ubayy bin Ka’b” (Source:
Sahih al-Bukhari; Summary of the Hadith scholar’s ruling: Sahih). It was
narrated on the authority of Anas ibn Malik that he said, “The Prophet, peace
and blessings be upon him, said to Ubayy, ‘Allah has commanded me to recite the
Qur’an to you.’” Ubayy said, “Did Allah mention me by name to you?” He said,
“Allah mentioned you by name to me.” Then Ubayy began to weep. Qatadah said, “I
was informed that he recited to him, ‘Those who disbelieved among the People of
the Scripture were not to be among the disbelievers’” (Source: Sahih
al-Bukhari; Hadith classification: Sahih). He also said, “The Qur’an was
compiled during the time of the Prophet, peace and blessings be upon him.” Four
men, all from the Ansar, embraced Islam: Ubayy, Mu'adh ibn Jabal, Abu Zayd, and
Zayd ibn Thabit. I asked Anas, "Who is Abu Zayd?" He replied,
"One of my uncles." (Source: Sahih al-Bukhari; Hadith classification:
Sahih).
Ubayy ibn Ka'b was a master reciter
of the Quran and a primary authority in its understanding and compilation. He
was the first scribe of the revelation, and it was to him that God commanded
the Prophet Muhammad (peace and blessings be upon him) to recite the Quran.
Ubayy ibn Ka'b's interest in the Quran is evident in his questioning the
Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) about specific details, such as the
reason for its revelation and whether the last two chapters of the Quran
(al-Mu'awwidhatayn) were part of the Quran. He also inquired about the reason
for some Companions' absence from the Fajr prayer, details regarding
congregational prayer, and the story of "Yes, God named me for you"
when the Prophet ordered Surah Al-Bayyinah to be recited to him. His sons Muhammad,
Tufayl, and Abdullah narrated from him, as did many Companions, including Anas
ibn Malik, Ibn Abbas, Sa'id ibn Al-Musayyib, Sahl ibn Sa'd, and others.
He was distinguished from other
hadith narrators by his authority on the Quran and his direct acquisition of knowledge
from the Prophet Muhammad (peace and blessings be upon him), as well as his
precision and attention to detail, ensuring that his narrations were based on
knowledge and understanding, as mentioned earlier. He emphasized the importance
of hearing hadith directly from the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him)
and stressed the necessity of transmitting hadiths faithfully. Baqi ibn Makhlad
narrated one hundred and sixty-four hadiths from him, three of which are found
in both Bukhari and Muslim, with Bukhari including three and Muslim including
seven. He also made numerous contributions to jurisprudence and exegesis, which
underscores his stature in disseminating knowledge.
He died in Medina in the year 30 AH.
'Ati ibn Damrah (a trustworthy historical figure, who narrated few hadiths but
transmitted from Ubayy ibn Ka'b and others, and belonged to the Banu Tamim
tribe) witnessed his death and said, "I saw the people of Medina surging
through their streets, so I asked, 'What is the matter with these people?' Some
of them said, 'Are you not from this city?' I said, 'No.' They said, "For
today the master of the Muslims, Ubayy ibn Ka'b, has died."
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