And know, Commander of the Believers, that God has sent down (His prescription for) the legal punishments to chide (people) away from wickedness and immorality. How shall it be, if he who administers them, deserves them? And He sent down (the law of) retaliation to give life to His servants. How will it be if the man who gives them retaliation puts them to death?

 

Remember, O Commander of the Believers, death and what comes after it, and how few partisans you have there, or aids against it. Therefore make provision for death, and against the greater terror which follows it.

 

And know, Commander of the Believers, that there is a place for you other than the place where you are now. Your stay there will be long, and your friends will be separated from you. You will be committed to its depths as a completely solitary individual. Therefore, make provision of what you may take with you.

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 And the just Imam, Commander of the Believers, is the guardian of the orphan, and the treasury of the poor, fostering the little ones, and providing for the old ones. The just Imam, Commander of Believers, is as the heart is to the members of the body: all are sound when it is sound, and all corrupt when it is corrupt. The just Imam, Commander of Believers, stands intermediary between God and His servants; hearkening to God’s words, and making them hearken; looking to God, and making them to look; obedient to God and making them obedient.

 

Therefore, Commander of the Believers, act not in what God the Mighty and Glorious has given you like a slave whose master has trusted him and given into his care his wealth and his children, who then squanders his master’s wealth and drives his children away, and reduces the family to poverty and scatters their fortune.

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ADVICE TO ‘UMAR IBN ‘ABDUL-‘AZIZ FROM AL-HASAN AL-BASRI

When ‘Umar ibn ‘Abdul-‘Aziz became Caliph, he wrote to Al-Hasan al-Basri to give him an advice him and to write him the description of a just Imam, and Al-Hasan wrote him:

 

“Know, Commander of the Believers, that God has made the just Imam the prop of every learner, the straightener of every deviator, the reform of all corrupt, the strength of all weak, the justice of all oppressed, the refuge of all who are pitied. The just Imam, O Commander of Believers, is like a herdsman, solicitous for the camels he tends, desiring the sweetest pasture for them, driving them away from any dangerous grazing place, protecting them from beast of prey, and shielding them from the harms of heat and cold.

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The Successor of the Prophet

The first Hajj under Islam was in the ninth year of Hijrah. The Prophet sallallahu ‘alayhi wa sallam was too busy at Madinah to lead the Hajj, so he sent Abu Bakr as his agent, he was to lead the Hajj in place of the Prophet.

 

The Prophet sallallahu ‘alayhi wa sallam led the prayers himself ever since he arrived at Madinah. During his last illness, the Prophet could no longer lead the prayers, he was too weak to go to the mosque, he therefore had to choose someone to fill such high position after him. Abu Bakr was also the one who was honored to be chosen by the Prophet for such a task.

 

Such was the quality of the humble and generous Companion who believed the Prophet in everything to the extent that he was called As Siddiq, by the Prophet. His great personality and service to Islam and Muslims earned him the love and respect of all Muslims, so that he was chosen as the first Caliph after the death of the Prophet by all Muslims.

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ABU BAKR WITH THE WEALTH

Abu Bakar As Siddiq had a major role in freeing some of the Muslim slaves, who were barbarically tortured by their heartless Mushrik masters to give up the faith and return to their masters’ beliefs. The heartless monsters tried all kinds of torture: they made them lie all naked on the burning desert sand, putting big stones on their chest, as well as other kinds of torture.

 

Here Abu Bakr’s wealth came to the rescue, as he bought the poor helpless slaves from their inhuman masters and set them free, Bilal alHabashi, the slave of ‘Umayyah ibn Khalaf, was among those who were set free by Abu Bakr. Bilal became afterwards the mu’adhin at the Prophet’s mosque.

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ABU BAKR’S LOVE FOR THE PROPHET

 

Abu Bakar As Siddiq was so great that he was willing to sacrifice his life for the sake of protecting and comforting the Prophet saw. Such love and sacrifice were demonstrated when one day the Holy Prophet was saying his prayers in the Ka’bah, while some of the chiefs of Makkah were sitting in the courtyard of the Ka’bah. Seeing the Prophet praying, ‘Uqba h ibn Abi Mu’it took a long piece of cloth and put it around the Prophet’s neck and twisted it hard in an attempt to strangle the Prophet sallallahu ‘alayhi wa sallam to death.

 

At that moment Abu Bakr happened to pass by from a distance, he saw ‘Uqbah trying to strangle the Prophet to death. Immediately Abu Bakr ran to the help of the Prophet, he pushed ‘Uqbah aside and took the cloth from around the Prophet’s neck. Thereupon the enemies of Islam came down upon Abu Bakr and beat him unmercifully. Abu Bakr with faith like a rock did not care for his own suffering, he was glad that he was able to save the Prophet of Allah, even at the risk of his own life.

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 Abu Bakr As Siddiq was always a very close Companion of the Prophet SAW, he knew him better than any other man. He knew how honest and upright the Prophet was. He was indeed the first adult male to accept Islam.

 

He submitted to Islam with such determination that once the Prophet himself remarked, “I called people to Islam, everybody thought over it, at least for a while, but this was not the case with Abu Bakr, the moment I put Islam before him, he accepted it without any hesitation.” He was titled as Siddiq by the Prophet because his faith was too strong to be shaken by anything.

 

In fact, Abu Bakr was more than a great believer, as soon as he became a Muslim, he immediately began to preach Islam to others. Among those who accepted Abu Bakr’s invitation to Islam were ‘Uth man, Az Talhah, ‘Abdur– Zubayr, Rahman ibn Awf, Sa’ad ibn Waqqas and others who later became the pillars of Islam.

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