The Education of the Prophet's Companions and Their Great Love and Admiration for Him
The Prophet's (sws) Education of His Companions
• The Prophet (sws) brought his companions up on pure monotheism: to worship only Allah Almighty and not associate partners with Him.
• He brought them up to obey the commands of Allah, to avoid that which He has prohibited and honor that which He has made sacred.
• He brought them up to enjoin virtue and forbid vice.
• He brought them up to be eager to win Allah's pleasure and Paradise.
• He brought them up to love Allah and His prophet more than anything else, even themselves.
• He gave them wholesome teachings to make them good citizens, able to protect the religion and carry the flag of Islam, to spread it all over the world with the support of their God after winning His good pleasure. Allah cleansed their souls and purified their spirits with the message of the Prophet (sws).
Allah says,
كَمَآ أَرۡسَلۡنَا فِيكُمۡ رَسُولٗا مِّنكُمۡ يَتۡلُواْ عَلَيۡكُمۡ ءَايَٰتِنَا وَيُزَكِّيكُمۡ وَيُعَلِّمُكُمُ ٱلۡكِتَٰبَ وَٱلۡحِكۡمَةَ وَيُعَلِّمُكُم مَّا لَمۡ تَكُونُواْ تَعۡلَمُونَ
البقرة : 151
It means,
{Similarly (to complete My blessings on you), We have sent among you a Messenger (Muhammad, sws) of your own, reciting to you Our Verses (the Koran) and purifying you, and teaching you the Book (the Quran) and the Hikmah (i.e. Sunnah, Islamic laws and fiqh - jurisprudence), and teaching you that which you used not to know.}
[Al- Baqarah 2: 151]
They were able to carry the banner of monotheism and invite others to it. In just a few years, Islam spread far and wide, all over the world, and the flag of monotheism flew high in the sky while all idols and other symbols of unbelief were smashed. The grandest and most powerful empires at that time were the Byzantine and Persian. The Persians worshipped fire and the Byzantines worshipped the cross; they set up a partner with Allah by claiming that He had a son.
The Prophet (sws) said to the unbelievers in Mecca,
The Prophet (sws) said to the unbelievers in Mecca, "Believe that there is no god but Allah and that you are victorious; you will rule the Arabs and the Persians will surrender to you."
And so it came to pass: the two world superpowers were subdued by the Muslims—those who followed the Prophet (sws), believed in Allah and His Book and held fast to the Sunnah of His Messenger (sws). Muslims established a civilization which could not be compared to any other, and the light of this civilization prevailed over the whole earth. That is because they applied the
divine law of Allah and they did not fear anything but Him. As such, Allah granted them power
and victory.
History itself bears witness to all of this. These facts are recorded on its pages and preserved within its lines. A host of Muslim victories are transcribed, with their statistics and dates, and they stand as proof of the greatness of the Prophet's (sws) first-class training of his companions. Suchan education could not have been accomplished by anyone except a prophet sent by the God of the whole world, and that prophet is Muhammad (sws), the last of all prophets.
The Great Love of the Companions for Prophet Muhammad (sws)
The companions of the Prophet (sws) loved and admired him greatly, took him as an example and sacrificed their lives to save him. That is a kind of love that lies beyond the imagination of the mind. They took him as an example in all their sayings and deeds, in their acts of worship and social interactions. They sacrificed their lives for his sake. Allah chose him and loved him, so He also placed love for the Prophet (sws) in his companions' hearts. They loved the Prophet (sws) more than their parents, more than their sons and more than
themselves. Here is some evidence to prove their great love:
Once, Urwa ibn Masoud al-Thaqafi (at the time not yet a Muslim), heard that the Prophet (sws) and his companions intended to visit the Kaäba to perform the minor pilgrimage, known as `umrah. Quraish held an advisory council to decide how to prevent the Muslims from reaching the Kaäba. Urwa was sent to spy for Quraish. He sat amongst the Muslims to learn about the relation between the Prophet (sws) and his companions. When he retuned to his clan, he told them how the companions of the Prophet (sws) loved him and how they behaved with him. He said that he had had the chance to meet many kings, including the Byzantine Emperor and the Negus of Abyssinia, but he had never seen any king receive such great love and honor as that which Muhammad (sws) enjoyed amongst his companions. When he expectorates phlegm, they hurry to take in their hands and rub their faces and skins with it; when he performs his ritual ablution, they fight over the water of his ablution; when he gives them an order, they hurry to carry out his command; and when he speaks, they look straight at him to glorify him.
Another event that affected the companions of the Prophet greatly was his death (sws).
When news spread that Muhammad (sws) had died, every spot in Medina went dark. It was a great disaster to lose the Prophet (sws) and not be able to see him again. Some of the companions would not believe he was dead; they thought perhaps he had just lost consciousness or been temporarily paralyzed. We will mention two situations concerning two great companions of the Prophet (sws).
The first situation was that of Umar ibn al-Khattab (the second caliph):
The news made him lose his mind. He said, "Some of the hypocrites claim that the Prophet (sws) died, but Muhammad (sws) went to meet his Lord, like Moses when he left his people for forty nights. During his absence, they claimed her was dead, yet he returned after forty nights, and so will Muhammad (sws); he will return and cut off the hands and legs of those who claimed that he died."
The second situation was that of Abu Bakr (the first caliph):
Abu Bakr came from his home, riding on his horse until he reached the mosque. He entered the mosque without speaking to anyone. He was covered in tears. He kissed the Prophet (sws) and asked Umar (who was still crying) to sit, but Umar refused. He then gathered the people and said to them, "Let he who worshipped Muhammad know that Muhammad is dead, and let he who
worships Allah know that Allah is Eternal; He does not die.
Allah says,
وَمَا مُحَمَّدٌ إِلَّا رَسُولٞ قَدۡ خَلَتۡ مِن قَبۡلِهِ ٱلرُّسُلُۚ أَفَإِيْن مَّاتَ أَوۡ قُتِلَ ٱنقَلَبۡتُمۡ عَلَىٰٓ أَعۡقَٰبِكُمۡۚ وَمَن يَنقَلِبۡ عَلَىٰ عَقِبَيۡهِ فَلَن يَضُرَّ ٱللَّهَ شَيۡـٔٗاۚ وَسَيَجۡزِي ٱللَّهُ ٱلشَّـٰكِرِينَ
ال عمران : 144
It means,
{Muhammad (peace be upon him) is no more than a messenger and indeed (many) messengers have passed away before him. If he dies or is killed, will you then turn back on your heels (as disbelievers)? And he who turns back on his heels, not the least harm will he do to Allah; and Allah will give reward to those who are grateful.}
[Al-Imran 3:144]
Ibn Abbas (the Prophet's cousin) said,
"It was as if people had never heard that verse of the Quran before. When Abu Bakr recited it, they all began to repeat it. Umar ibn al-Khattab said that he was about to faint from shock, but when he heard Abu Bakr recite that verse of the Quran, he finally realized that the Prophet (sws) was dead.
The whole of mankind has never known such great examples of love and dedication as the Companions towards the Prophet (sws). Allah Almighty loved him, so He placed love for him into the hearts of his companions and those who believed in his call and followed his teachings and methodology. The Prophet Muhammad (sws) was the greatest educator and the dearest loved one. He truly is the Prophet of Allah.