Opinion

Early Muslims Around The Prophet (ﷺ)

Zafar Bangash

Jumada' al-Ula' 10, 14472025-11-01

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After Muhammad’s (ﷺ) dramatic encounter with Angel Jibra’il (as) in the Cave of Hira, the first person to become Muslim was his beloved wife Khadijah. His young cousin, Ali ibn Abi Talib and his freed slave Zayd ibn Haritha also accepted the message. These were people living with the Prophet in his house.

Outside the Prophet’s immediate family, Abu Bakr was the first person to accept Islam. Through him a number of others entered the fold. Naturally, Abu Bakr’s daughters Asma and ‘Aisha also accepted Islam, living as they were with their father. ‘Aisha’s acceptance of Islam in the early days challenges the widely propagated but erroneous belief that the Prophet married her when she was only 9 years old. Surely, she must have been old enough to understand what accepting Islam meant.

The other persons who accepted Islam in those early days were: Uthman ibn Affan, the brothers Uthman, Qudamah and Abdullah ibn Maz‘oon, Abu Ubaidah ibn al-Jarrah, Abu Salamah, Arqam ibn Abi Arqam, Sa‘ad ibn Abi Waqas, Khalid ibn Saeed and his wife Umaynah, Zubayr ibn al-Awwam, Abdur Rahman ibn Awf, Abdullah ibn Mas‘ud, Talha ibn Ubaydallah, Suhaib ibn Sinan, Abu Dharr Ghifari, Afif Kindi, Amr ibn Abasah, Umayr ibn Abi Waqas, ‘Amir ibn Fuhayra, Saeed ibn Zayd and Fatimah bint al-Khattab.

Among the slaves joining the ranks of Muslims were Yasir, his wife Sumayya and their son Ammar. Bilal ibn Rabah and Khabab ibn al-Arat also entered the fold of Islam.

Most of them became Muslim through personal contact. Islam was not publicly proclaimed until three years later. They would play a leading role in Islamic history, each in their own way.

The Prophet’s (ﷺ) wife, Khadijah bint Khuwaylid was a successful business woman. Even though 15 years older than him, Muhammad (ﷺ) did not hesitate to marry her when a proposal was sent to him. All the surviving children of the Prophet (ﷺ) were from Khadijah.

Of all the relationships, the one between the husband and wife is the most intimate. There is no hijab between them. Thus, Khadijah’s acceptance of the Prophet’s message without any hesitation reflected both her complete trust in her husband as well as her own nobility.

She had already shown her loyalty by placing her wealth at the disposal of Muhammad (ﷺ) after their marriage. This helped ease his financial burden immensely. It was even more important after the Prophet (ﷺ) received revelation.

Most of his family members were initially lukewarm to his message. Some like his uncle Abu Lahab and his wife were extremely hostile earning divine wrath in the noble Qur’an (Surat al-Masad).

Khadijah, however, stood by her husband at all times and in every situation including the three very difficult years when Muslims were besieged in Sha‘b abi Talib, a ravine located outside Makkah. It was as a consequence of this siege and the famine that Khadijah (ra) had to endure that her health suffered greatly resulting in her death. Never once did she complain about such suffering, reflecting her great nobility and dignity and loyalty to the Prophet (ﷺ).

After her death in the 10^th year of the Prophetic mission in Makkah, referred to as ‘Am al-Huzn (the year of grief in the Prophet’s life), whenever her name was mentioned, tears would well up in the Prophet’s eyes. In later years, he would remember her fondly in these words:

آمَنَتْ بِيْ حِيْنَ كَفَرَ بِيَ النَّاسُ، وَ صَدَّقَتْنِيْ حِيْنَ كَذَّبَنِيَ النَّاسُ، وَ أَشْرَكَتْنِيْ فِي مَالِهَا حِيْنَ حَرَمَنِيَ النَّاسُ، وَ رَزَقَنِيَ اللهُ وَلَدَهَا، وَ حَرَمَ وَلَدَ غَيْرِهَا

“She believed in me when the people rejected my message; and she trusted me when the people belied me. And she supported me with her wealth when the people would deny me [financial support], and Allah provided me with children through her and did not [provide children] from anyone else other than her.” (Musnad Ahmad ibn Hanbal, Vol 6, p.118; Also Fathul Bari, hadith # 3818).

There could be no greater tribute to honour her and the great love the Prophet (ﷺ) had for her, as evident in this hadith.

The other person who had immediately accepted Islam was young Ali. The Prophet (ﷺ) had taken him into his care to ease the burden of his kind but financially struggling uncle Abu Talib. Thus, Ali was trained by none other than the Prophet (ﷺ) himself. He imbibed great wisdom from the noble Messenger (ﷺ) and was known for his legal rulings after the Prophet (ﷺ) left this earthly abode. He was also a brave warrior. He participated in almost all the battles. The only exception was the expedition of Tabuk. The Prophet (ﷺ) had left him in charge in Madinah in his absence. Imam Ali showed his mettle on the battlefield whether at Badr, Uhud or Khyber.

When Imam Ali complained that he was being left with women and children in Madinah as Muslims set out on the Tabuk expedition, the Prophet (ﷺ) is reported to have said to him:

أَنْتَ مِنِّي بِمَنْزِلَةِ هَارُوْنَ مِنْ مُوسَى إِلَّا أَنَّهُ لَا نَبِيَّ بَعْدِي

“You are to me in the position that Haroon was to Musa, except there is no Prophet after me.” (Bukhari, hadith # 3706).

Among the male adults who accepted the message of Islam without hesitation was Abu Bakr as-Siddique of the Taym clan. He was a close friend of Muhammad (ﷺ). Being of approximately the same age, Abu Bakr had observed the Prophet’s qualities very closely. It is said that the best way to judge a person’s character is to travel with them for a few days. Abu Bakr had plenty of opportunity to observe his friend’s qualities during their trade journeys and was greatly impressed by them, as would any sincere and decent human being. Thus, when he heard what his long-time friend said about receiving divine revelation from on high, he had no hesitation accepting it and became a Muslim.

This is what the Prophet (ﷺ) said about Abu Bakr:

مَا دَعَوْتُ أَحَدًا إِلَى الإِسْلامِ إِلَّا كَانَتْ فِيهِ عِنْدَهُ كَبْوَةٌ وَنَظَرٌ وَتَرَدُّدٌ إِلَّا مَا كَانَ مِنْ أَبِي بَكْرِ بْنِ أَبِي قُحَافَةَ مَا عَكَمَ عَنْهُ حِينَ ذَكَرْتُهُ لَهُ وَمَا تَرَدَّدَ فِيهِ

“Whoever I presented Islam to, there was always some degree of hesitation, except in the case of Abu Bakr. He embraced Islam without any hesitation.” (Imam Ibn Sayyid al-Naas: Uyun Al-Athar fi Funun al-Maghazi wa’sh Shamayil wa’as Siyar.)

Abu Bakr’s sincerity in accepting Islam was also evident from the fact that he called many others to the newly-proclaimed faith. Thus, after the Prophet (ﷺ), he became the first da‘i of Islam (a person who invites to the faith). He devoted all his energies, time and wealth for the sake of Islam.

So close was he to the Prophet (ﷺ) that when the noble messenger was granted permission by Allah to migrate from Makkah to Madinah, he chose Abu Bakr to accompany him on that journey. It was not without hazards, as we learn from the noble Qur’an. When the Makkan mushriks learned that the Prophet (ﷺ) had managed to escape their dragnet they had drawn around his house with the intention to kill him, they sent raiding parties to try and capture him.

The two of them—the Prophet (ﷺ) and Abu Bakr—took refuge in the Cave of Thawr. The raiding party arrived at the mouth of the cave but through Allah’s miracle, a spider spun its web at the entrance and a dove set up its nest. Abu Bakr was deeply worried when he heard the mushriks’ voices outside the cave. He thought they would be caught and the mushriks would cause great harm to the Prophet (ﷺ).

Allah makes reference to Abu Bakr about this episode in the noble Qur’an:

“If you do not support the Apostle, then [know that Allah will do so—just as] Allah supported him at the time when those who were bent on denying the truth [of His sovereignty and power] drove him away, [and he was but] one of two when these two were [hiding] in the cave, [and] the Apostle said to his companion, ‘Grieve not: verily, Allah is with us.’ And thereupon Allah bestowed upon them from on high His [gift of] inner peace and supported him with invisible troops, and brought downright low the cause of those who were in denial [of His dominance and governance], whereas the cause of Allah remained supreme: for Allah is almighty, wise” (Surat al-Tawbah, ayat 40).

The reference in this ayat “[and he was but] one of two when these two were [hiding] in the cave…” is to Abu Bakr as-Siddique. He remained a loyal companion of the noble messenger (ﷺ) throughout his life. He was further honoured when the Prophet (ﷺ) married his daughter ‘Ayesha, who became his favourite wife among the other wives, after Khadijah had passed away.

It was also Abu Bakr who brought the Muslims to their senses when the Prophet (ﷺ) passed away. The Muslims assembled in Masjid al-Nabawi refused to accept that the Prophet (ﷺ) could die. ‘Umar even went so far as to threaten to chop the head of anyone who said the Prophet had died.

It was at this point that Abu Bakr got up and recited the following ayat from the noble Qur’an whereupon the Muslims quitened down and accepted the reality of what had happened:

“And no living being can die save by Allah’s leave, at a term preordained. And if one desires the rewards of this world, We shall grant him thereof; and if one desires the rewards of the life to come, We shall grant him thereof; and We shall requite them who are grateful [to Us]” (Surat Al-e ‘Imran, ayat 144).

It was at such critical moments that the Prophet’s closest companion Abu Bakr was able to bring the situation under control. While Abu Bakr was an outstanding personality, the other early Muslims also made their contribution to Islam. Some sacrificed their lives. Among them, Yasir and Sumayya were tortured to death becoming the first martyrs of Islam. Bilal and Khabbab ibn al-Arrat also underwent torture. Bilal was ransomed by Abu Bakr by paying his ‘master’ Umayya ibn Khalaf.

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