“…Those who gave Bay’at ar-Ridwan beneath the tree at Hudaybiyah were 1,400 men. When was this? It was in Dhu al-Qi’dah 6 AH. When the treaty was solidified and Quraysh stood aside and held back from fighting the Messenger of Allah (صلى الله عليه و سلم), only then did people begin entering Islam, as they had previously been afraid of Quraysh. So, Quraysh had a treaty with the Messenger of Allah and held back from fighting him, and waves of people saw this as their chance to become Muslims even if Quraysh didn’t like this. So, they became Muslims. Those who came did so 21 months after the Treaty of Hudaybiyah. What happened after this? The conquest of Makkah. Those who came to conquer Makkah with the Messenger were 10,000. This means that how many people had become Muslim in the time leading up to this? At least 8,500 or 8,600 in the two years of peace had decided to enter Islam.

Why? There are people in society who like you. However, they will not dare to help you if the government is angry with you. Isn’t this so?

Believe me, during the time that Egypt was unleashing its wrath on Sayyid Qutb and his family, nobody was able to lend them even a single dirham at a time when the women in the family could not even afford the cost of their weekly visits to Sayyid and Muhammad Qutb. They wouldn’t dare. I heard them saying: “The people have cut themselves off from us. We went to some people to borrow money from, our friends. They said “We don’t know you. Don’t come to us, and we won’t come to you.””

…So, as a da’i, if you stand up to the government, the only ones who will stand by you are those who are ready for death or some sort of sacrifice. True men are known in times of hardship. No da’i will stand by you unless he is willing to give up his family, children, wealth, and job…So, nobody will stand by you in harsh circumstances except true men, and they are few – men who live by their beliefs and have principles they stick to.

When the Messenger made the pact with Quraysh, over 8,500 became Muslim in the less than two years that followed. And when Quraysh was defeated in Ramadan of 8 AH and Hawazin was defeated after them in Shawwal of 8 AH, only then did the delegations begin coming to Hunayn from all corners of the Arabian Peninsula to enter Islam in waves: {“When the victory of Allah and the conquest comes, and you see the people enter Allah’s Religion in waves.”} [an-Nasr; 1-2]

So, during difficult circumstances in which you are confronting the massive jahiliyyah around you, don’t expect people to accept your call. None will accept it except those are are prepared to sacrifice everything they own, even their lives.

Quraysh and Hawazin were finished in the 8th year AH. Two years later, in the 10th year AH, the Prophet made Hajj along with 124,000 people. How many were there during the conquest of Makkah? There were 10,000. This means that in the two years between the two, there were 114,000 who became Muslim. However, the core of this society and its essence and foundation and nucleus was the mere thousand who participated at Uhud or the 1,400 who witnessed Bay’at ar-Ridwan. These, if they were to have been removed them from the picture, the entire society would’ve collapsed.

Because of this, the governments are smart when they fight Islam. They are very smart. They don’t come and kill everyone and have this held against them. Rather, they come and remove the five, six, or seven leaders who are the nucleus and essence and solid foundation and kill them off. While they only took out six, they really took out an entire ummah by taking out these six! {“Indeed, Ibrahim was a nation unto himself…”} [an-Nahl; 120]

And how often is one man equal to a thousand * And how often are a thousand men equal to none…”

['Fi Dhilal Surat at-Tawbah'; p. 50-54]

Name: at-Tayyib bin Isma’il bin Ibrahim adh-Dhuhali
Kunyah: Abu Muhammad and Abu Hamdun
Status: Successor (Tabi’i)
Location: Baghdad, Iraq

He was known as Abu Hamdun ad-Dallal. He was one of the well known recitors, and was known for his righteousness and abstinence from worldly pleasures.

He learned to recite from al-Kisa’i and Ya’qub al-Hadrami.

Abu al-’Abbas Ahmad bin Masruq narrated:

“I heard the recitor Abu Hamdun say: “I prayed at night one time, so I accidentally mispronounced a letter from the Qur’an. I lifted my eyes to see a light in front of me, saying to me: “Between you and Allah is me.”

So, I asked: “And who are you?”

It said: “I am the letter that you mispronounced.”

I said: “I will never do so again.”

So, I continued reciting, and I never mispronounced a letter after that again.”"

Abu Muhammad al-Hasan bin ‘Ali bin Sulayh narrated:

“Abu Hamdun at-Tayyib bin Isma’il lost his eyesight, so he had someone leading him into the masjid. When they entered the masjid, his assistant said to him: “Mister, take off your shoes now.”

So, Abu Hamdun asked: “O my son! Why should I take them off?”

He said: “Because there is some impurity on them.”

ٍSo, Abu Hamdun became distressed that he could bring filth from his shoes into the masjid, so, he raised his hands and supplicated, then Allah returned his eyesight to him, and he continued walking.”

Abu ‘Abdullah bin al-Khatib narrated:

“Abu Hamdun had a scroll on which was written the names of 300 of his close friends, and he used to supplicate for them – one by one – every single night. One night, he went to sleep without doing so. So, in his sleep, he heard a voice saying: “O Abu Hamdun, why did you not light your lamps this evening?” So, he woke up, and lit his lamp, and began supplicating for each and every name on the list until he completed it.”

And Abu al-Husayn bin al-Munadi narrated:

“Abu Hamdun at-Tayyib bin Isma’il adh-Dhuhali is from the best of the righteous who is well known for his recitation of the Qur’an. He used to purposely visit the areas where there was a lack of recitors for the people and teach them. When they had memorized from him, he would move on to a different area doing the same. He used to always pay special attention to the outcasts in the community. May Allah have Mercy upon him.”

He narrated hadith from al-Musayyib bin Shurayk, Sufyan bin ‘Uyaynah, and Shu’ayb bin Harb.

Name: Unknown
Kunyah: Unknown
Status: Later generations
Location: Egypt

One of the wise men of the past said:

“I passed by a village in Egypt seeking to engage in Ribat (guarding the Muslim frontier against the disbelievers), when suddenly I passed by a man in sitting in the dark. His was missing his eyes, as well as his hands and legs. He was suffering all types of difficulty, while saying: “Praise be to You, Allah – a praising that combines the praises of all of Your Creation – for what You have blessed me with, and preferred me greatly over many of those whom You have Created.”

So, I said to him: “For what blessing are you praising Allah? For what preference are you thanking Him for? By Allah, I do not see any type of difficulty except that you are experiencing it!”

So, he said: “Do you not see what has happened to me? By Allah, if He were to cause the heavens to rain fire down upon me, and I were to be burned up because of it, and He were to command the mountains to crush me, and He were to command the oceans to drown me, I would not increase except in praising and thanks to Him, and I request something of you: I have a daughter who used to serve me and break my fast with me. Can you see if you can find her?”

I said to myself: “By Allah, I hope that in fulfilling the request of this pious servant, I will gain nearness to Allah – the Mighty and Majestic.” So, I went out looking for her in the desert to discover that she had been eaten by wild beasts. I said to myself: “To Allah we belong and to Him we return! How will I tell this pious servant that his daughter had died?” So, I went to him and asked him: “Are you better in the Sight of Allah than Prophet Ayyub? Allah put him to trial with his wealth and his children and family.”

He replied: “No, rather, Ayyub is better!”

I said: “Well, the daughter that you had asked me to find, I found that she has been eaten by wild beasts.”

He said: “Praise be to Allah who has taken me out of this World without putting in my heart any love for it.” Then he collapsed and died.

I said: “To Allah we belong and to Him we return! Who will help me to wash his body and bury it?” Suddenly, a group of horsemen engaging in Ribat passed by, so I motioned for them to stop. They came over, so I informed them of what had happend, so we washed the man’s body, shrouded it and buried it in this village, and the group of men then went on their way.

I spent the night in the village unable to leave this man. When a third of the night had passed, I began dreaming that I was with him in a green garden. He was wearing two beautiful green garments, and he was standing up and reciting the Qur’an. I said to him: “Are you not my companion from yesterday?”

He said: “Yes, I am.”

I said: “How did you reach your current state (of health and happiness)?”

He replied: “I have reached a level that none of the patient reach, except those who are patient during times of calamity and thankful during times of ease.”"

Name: ‘Ali bin Bakkar al-Basri
Kunyah: Abul-Hasan
Status: Tabi’i
Location: al-Masisah, Syria

He was detached from the worldly pleasures. He became a fighter and guarder of the Muslim lands; a truthful worshipper.

He lived in al-Masisah (in Sham) as a fighter, and he was a scholar of Fiqh.

Musa bin Turayf said: “‘Ali bin Bakkar’s slave-girl used to spread his bed for him, so he would touch it with his hand and say: “By Allah, you feel good; by Allah, you feel cool; by Allah, I will not lay on you tonight,” and he would pray until the next morning with the same wudu’.”

Abul-Hasan bin Abi al-Ward said: “A man said to us: “We came to ‘Ali bin Bakkar and said to him: “Hudhayfah bin al-Mar’ashi sends you his greetings.” So, he said to us: “May peace be upon you and him. I know of him that he has only eaten that which is lawful for over thirty years, and I would love to meet Satan more than I would love to meet him.” I asked him why this was, and he said: “I am afraid that I would try to beautify myself for him out my respect for him, and then be guilty of beautifying myself for other than Allah, and as a result, have my status lowered in the Eyes of Allah – the Mighty and Majestic.”"

Yusuf bin Muslim said: “‘Ali bin Bakkar wept until he became blind, and his tears would leave marks on his cheeks.”

Fayd bin Ishaq said: “I came to ‘Ali bin Bakkar, seeking to go out in the Path of Allah, so asked him to advise me. He said: “Fear Allah and stay in your dwelling, guard your tongue, and avoid unnecessarily mixing with the people, and wisdom will be poured on you from above you.”

Yahya bin Zakariyyah said: “We were with ‘Ali bin Bakkar, so some clouds passed by overhead. I asked him about something, so he said to me: “Be quiet! Do you not fear that these clouds will be followed by rocks that will be poured down on us?”

It has been narrated to us that ‘Ali bin Bakkar was stricken with an injury during a battle that he fought in, as a result of which his intestines spilled out of his stomach. He then gathered his intestines and pushed them back into his stomach, then tied the wound up with his turban. He then jumped back into the battle and was killed after he himself had killed thirteen disbelievers.

‘Ali bin Bakkar narrated hadith from Hisham bin Hassan, Abu Ishaq al-Fizari, Abu Khaldah, etc. He was a close companion of Ibrahim bin Adham.

He was killed in al-Masisah in the year 199 H.

Name: Maymunah as-Sawda’
Status: Successor (Tabi’iyyah)
Location: Kufah, Iraq

al-Fudayl bin ‘Iyad narrated:

‘Abdul-Wahid bin Zayd said: “I asked Allah – the Mighty and Majestic – for three nights in a row to show me my future companion in Paradise in a dream, so in my dream, I heard a caller saying: “O ‘Abdul-Wahid! Your companion in Paradise is Maymunah as-Sawda’.” So, I asked: “And where is she now?” The voice replied: “She is among such-and-such a tribe in Kufah.”

So, I went out to Kufah and asked about her, so I was told: “She is among us, and she takes care of the livestock.” So, I said: “I wish to see her.” I was taken to the place where she was, and found her standing in prayer with a walking stick to support her. She was wearing a wool cloak, with a sign written on it that said: “Not to be bought or sold.” ِAlso, the sheep that she was supposed to be caring for were surrounded by wolves. However, the wolves were not trying to attack the sheep, and the sheep were not afraid of the wolves.

When she saw me, she ended her prayer and said to me: “Go back, Ibn Zayd. Our meeting place is not here. Rather, it is later on (in the Hereafter).”

I said to her: “May Allah have Mercy upon you! Who told you that I am Ibn Zayd?”

She said: “I know that the souls are like a unified army, so the souls that go together are one, and the souls that differ from each other are divided.”

I said to her: “Advise me.”

She said: “Strange! An admonisher who wishes to be admonished? O Ibn Zayd, it has been related to me that a servant is not given anything of this worldly life and wished for more of it, except that Allah ceases to allow that servant to love Him and desire Him, and He exchanges the closeness that he had with Him for distance…” Then she recited:

O admonisher! The accounting has begun * To drive the people away from sin

You forbid others while you are the one who is truly ill * This is indeed a strange evil

If you had rectified yourself beforehand * Your mistakes and repented recently

Then – my dear – what you you said * Would have had a position of truth in the heart

You warn against temptation and excess * While you yourself are in a state of doubt”

I then said to her: “I see these wolves with the sheep, but the sheep do not run away from the wolves, and the wolves do not try to eat the sheep! What is this?”

She said: “This is a sign to you from me: since I made peace between my Master and I, He made peace between the wolves and the sheep.”"

Name: Shaqiq bin Ibrahim al-Balkhi
Kunyah: Abu ‘Ali
Status: Later generations
Location: Balkh, Northern Afghanistan

He was considered the shaykh of Khurasan.

He was in his mother’s womb for thirty-six months.

‘Ali bin ‘Abdullah bin Shaqiq (his grandson) reported:

“My grandfather had travelled to the lands of the Turks in his youth for the purpose of business. He entered a temple filled with some idols that they would worship, and he said to the servant of the temple: “Verily, what you are upon is falsehood! These creations have a Creator Who is different from everything else, and He provides for everything else!”

So, the servant said to him: “Your words do not match your actions.”

Shaqiq said to him: “And how is that?”

The servant said to him: “You claimed that you have a Creator Who is able to do all things, yet you have tired yourself by travelling all the way over here in order to seek your provision!”

Shaqiq later said: “The inspiration for me abandoning the pleasures of this world and turning back to Allah were the words of this Turk.” He then returned to Khurasan and gave all of his wealth away in charity, and preoccupied himself with seeking knowledge.”

Abu ‘Abdullah said:

“I heard Shaqiq bin Ibrahim say: “I used to make one thousand dirhams from three hundred (i.e., I would engage in usury), then I wore wool (i.e., I repented) for twenty years without knowing anything (about Islam) until I met ‘Abdil-’Aziz bin Abi Rawad. He said to me: “O Shaqiq! The point is not simply eating barley or wearing wool. The point is that you have intimate knowledge of Allah and that you worship him without associating partners with him.”

So, I said: “Explain this to me.”

He replied: “It is that everything that you do be solely for Allah,” then he recited: {”So whoever hopes for the meeting with his Lord, let him work righteousness and associate none as a partner in the worship of his Lord.”} [al-Kahf; 110]“

Hatim al-Asamm said:

“We were with Shaqiq al-Balkhi while we were fighting the Turks, and that day I saw nothing except for heads rolling and swords slicing, so Shaqiq said to me: “We are between the two rows of the armies. O Hatim! How do you see yourself on such a day? Do you see yourself just like the night on which you wed your wife?”

So, I said: “No, by Allah.”

Shaqiq then said: “By Allah, on this day, I feel as good as I felt on the night in which I wed my wife.” Then he laid down between the two rows of fighters (as he was overtaken by sakinah) and put his leather shield underneath his cheek until I could hear him snoring.

Shaqiq also once said to me: “Befriend people just as you would befriend fire: take from them what you need, but beware of being burned.”

He also said to me: “The believer is like a man who plants a palm-tree and fears that it will have a single thorn growing on it, while the hypocrite is like the one who plants a thorny tree in hopes that it will bear fruit. Anyone who does good will be rewarded good by Allah, and the righteous will never descend to the level of the sinners.”"

Shaqiq narrated hadith from ‘Ubad bin Kathir, and he was a close companion of Ibrahim bin Adham.

He was killed in the Battle of Kulan in the year 194 H.

His story is also featured in ‘Siyar A’lam an-Nubala’ [8/200]