Abu Bakr Siddique (Radhi Allaahu Anhu) EARLY LIFE Abu Bakr (Radhi Allaahu Anhus) real name was Abdullah, and he was given the title of As SiddiqueorTestifier to the Truth. His father, Uthman, was known as Abu Quhafah and his mother, Salma, was known as Ummul Khair. He was two and a half years younger than Rasoolullaah (SallAllaahu Alaihi Wa Sallam). He was the first among the Sahaba to accept Islam. He accompanied Rasoolullaah (SallAllaahu alaihi wasallam) during the Hijrah to Madinatul Munawwarah. Abu Bakr (R A) was a merchant. He freed many slaves, including Bilal (R A) and Umayyah bin Qahaf (R A) . He participated in all the battles in which Rasoolullaah (SallAllaahu Alaihi Wa Sallam) had to fight with the Kuffar. Abu Bakr (RadhiAllaahu Anhu) loved his faith more than anything else. At the Battle of Badr, his son, Abdur Rahman (R A), was fighting on the side of the Kuffar. After accepting Islam, Abdur Rahman (R A) said to his father, O Father, at Badr, you were twice under my sword, but my love for you held my hand back. To this, Abu Bakr (R A) replied, Son, if I had you only once under my sword, you would have been no more. He was so uncompromising in his faith. At the time of the Battle of Tabuk, he donated all his wealth to the war effort, and when Rasoolullaah (SallAllaahu alaihi wasallam) asked him, What have you left for your family,? he replied, Allaah and His Rasool (SallAllaahu Alaihi Wa Sallam). PERSONAL LIFE He lived a very simple, pious and upright life. He was a true servant of Almighty Allaah and a meticulous follower of Rasoolullaah (SallAllaahu Alaihi Wa Sallam). He wore ordinary clothes and his meals were very simple. He attended to house-hold work and would go out at night and seek the poor and destitute. Humility and modesty were the keynotes of his character. He felt embarrassed when people showered praises on him or showed him immense respect. He often fasted during the day and spent the whole night in Salaah and meditation. He was a great orator and a master of genealogy (one who can trace a persons family line). In personal life, he was a Saint. He used all his powers to promote the interest of Islam and the good of people Rasool’s Close Companion: Allaahs Apostle (SAWS) addressed the people saying, Allah has given option to a slave to choose this world or what is with Him. The slave has chosen what is with Allaah. Abu Bakr (R A) wept, and we were astonished at his weeping caused by what the Prophet mentioned as to a Slave ( of Allaah) who had been offered a choice, (we learned later on) that Allaahs Apostle himself was the person who was given the choice, and that Abu Bakr knew best of all of us. Allaahs Allaahs Apostle (SAWS) said, No doubt, I am indebted to Abu Bakr more than to anybody else regarding both his companionship and his wealth. And if I had to take a Khalil from my followers, I would certainly have taken Abu Bakr, but the fraternity of Islam is. sufficient. Let no door (i.e. Khoukha) of the Masjid remain open, except the door of Abu Bakr. AS A CALIPH After his election as the Caliph, Abu Bakr ( R A) addressed the Muslims with these words: O People! I have been chosen by you as your leader, although I am no better than any of you. If I do any wrong, set me right. Listen, truth is honesty and untruth is dishonesty. The weak among you are the powerful in my eyes, as long as I do not give them their dues. The powerful among you are weak in my eyes, as long as I do not take away from them what is due to others. Listen carefully, if people give up striving for the Cause of Almighty Allaah, He will send down disgrace upon them. If people become evil-doers, Almighty Allaah will send down calamities upon them. Obey me as long as I obey Allaah and His Rasool (SallAllaahu Alaihi Wa Sallam). If I disobey Allaah and His Rasool (SallAllaahu alaihi wasallam), you are free to disobey me. Such was the first Caliph of Islam. Indeed, the world would be a better place to live in, if we had leaders like Abu Bakr (R A) . Abu Bakr (R A) now sent Usamah (R A) on the expedition to Syria to fight the Romans, even though he had to attend to all the internal problems of the Islamic State. The news that Rasoolullaah (SallAllaahu Alaihi Wa Sallam) had passed away, made some new Muslims think that the Islamic State would crumble and they refused to pay the Zakaah. These new Muslims could not yet get used to their faith and its requirements until then. Abu Bakr (R A) declared, By Allaah! Even if a single thread is due from a man, he must give it. If he refuses, I will declare war against him. RENEGADES AND IMPOSTERS Some others became imposters and renegades. Tulaiha, Musailimah, Maalik bin Nuwairah, Aswad Ansi and a woman named Sajah claimed that they were prophets and caused a great deal of confusion. Abu Bakr (Radhi Allaahu anhu) was quick to take action against these imposters. Khalid bin Walid (R A) was sent to deal with Tulaiha who fled to Syria and later became a Muslim. Maalik bin Nuwarah was killed. Ikramah (R A) and Surahbil (Radhi Allaahu anhu) were sent to take action against Musailimah, but they were defeated. Abu Bakr (R A) sent Khalid bin Walid (R A) to tackle the notorious Musailamah who married Sajah. In the fight that followed, Wahshi (R A) killed Musailamah. Musailamah and Aswad Ansi also claimed to be prophets while Rasoolullaah (SallAllaahu Alaihi Wa Sallam) was alive. Aswad was killed by the Muslims of Yemen. Abu Bakr (Radhi Allaahu Anhus) swift and bold steps saved the Islamic State from the serious danger of chaos and confusion. He could now attend to other urgent problems. ERA OF CONQUESTS During his Khilaafat, Abu Bakr (R A) had to take action against the Iranian Empire. The Emperor of Iran, Khusrou Parvez, was killed by his son, Shirooya, and the whole empire fell into chaos and disorder. Hurmuz, the Persian governor of Iraq, was very hostile to the Arabs and he was also cruel to the Muslims living in that area. Abu Bakr (R A) sent Muthamia (R A) to take action against the Iranians in Iraq. His forces were not enough and Khalid bin Walid (R A) was then sent with reinforcements. The Muslim army captured vast areas of the Iranian Empire in several battles. Abu Bakr (R A) then turned his attention to the Romans who were causing trouble in the North-West frontier. Abu Bakr (R A) sent 4 separate armies under Ubaidah bin Jarrah, Amr Ibnul Aus, Yazid bin Abu Sufyaan and Surahbil bin Hasnal (Radhi Allaahu anhumul ajmain) to deal with the Roman power. The four armies joined into one unit to face the Romans more effectively. The Romans had amassed 150 000 soldiers, but the total Muslim army was only 24 000. Reinforcements were requested. Abu Bakr (R A) asked Khalid bin Walid (R A) to take charge of the Iraqi front and Muthanna ( R A) to rush to the Syrian front to help fight the huge Roman army. The armies met in Yarmuk after Abu Bakr (R A) passed away. In this battle, the Romans were totally defeated. PASSES AWAY Abu Bakr (R A) fell ill at this time and passed away on the 21st of Jamadi-ul-Aakhir 13 A.H. (22 August 634). His rule lasted 2 years and 3 months. He was 63 years old. One of the many contributions of Abu Bakr (R A) was the collection and compilation of the Quran.
Posted on: Thu, 24 Oct 2013 08:46:44 +0000