Prophet's
Companions
Q518 :The companions of the Prophet have been
praised in the Qur'an and by the Prophet for their glorious deeds in
support of the message of Islam. When a Muslim mentions any of the
companions of the Prophet, he is supposed to pray for them that Allah
may be pleased with them. In view of this, is it fair for any Muslim to
criticize the actions of some or all the companions of the Prophet, if
such actions have proved to be mistaken? Does such criticism affect the
faith of a Muslim, or does it cause him or her any harm?
A518 : As you have said, Allah has praised the
companions of the Prophet in the Qur'an describing them as keeping a
tough attitude toward the disbeliever, treating one another with mutual
compassion; you always see them bowing and prostrating themselves
before Allah, seeking His grace and pleasure, etc. The Prophet also
praised his companions for their dedication and courage in the defense
of Islam. He also said that the best generation among his followers is
that of his companions followed by their successors and the generation
after that. Those three generations will remain better than any
subsequent generations of Muslims. The companions of the Prophet were
human beings who could make mistakes, errors, in judgment and could
commit sins. It is undeniable that they were less liable to do this
last thing than other Muslims, but the fact remains that some of them
could be tempted to do so. But if you look at the record on every one
of them, you will find them firm believers, dedicated to the cause of
Islam, ready to defend it, even if its defense meant the loss of their
lives. As such, they deserve all praise from us, because they have
helped provide an ideal example of what human society will be like when
Islam will be implemented. Criticism of any of the companions of the
Prophet is most unbecoming of any believer. To start with, no one can
aspire to the position of the companions of the Prophet, because of the
great honor which they had of actively supporting the Prophet in his
efforts to make the world of Allah triumphant. In every circle or
society, criticism of an honorable personality by a lesser person looks
particularly odd. When such superiority is dictated by the service
given to the cause of Islam, the criticism becomes repugnant. You
know that Khalid ibn Al-Waleed embraced Islam rather late, perhaps in
the seventh year of the Prophet's emigration to Madinah. He had a
quarrel with one of the companions of the Prophet. The Prophet said to
him: "Leave my companions alone. If you were to spend all that the
earth contains in gold, you would not make a person reach the standard
of anyone of them or even half his standard." The general rule about
such criticism is that Allah will hold the person who makes it to
account. If it is unjustified, then he will make him do justice to the
person so criticized or abused. In this life, such criticism does not
speak well of the person who does it. Indeed, it raises a question mark
about his sincerity. Whether it affects his faith or not is another
matter. He may truly be a believer in the message of Islam but his
criticism tells of his bad taste.
Our Dialogue ( Source : Arab News - Jeddah )