This is in response to brother Danny Taylor's question.
Quoting the brother's question:-
"
Salaam all. If anyone can shed any light on or verse in the Quran that talks about the Sahaba please do share? My Friday lecture at the masjid is 90% about the prophet S and Sahaba? Very little about Quran. Today we were told to follow in the footsteps/example of umar RA because anything he does or say the path of what he I am doing or saying has been cleared of Satan, by Allah. I don't mind listening to these lectures because they do have food morals, but they have like a 5 min long duaa just before the Friday salat where they venerate and praise all the Sahaba plus the prophets wifes and daughters etc. I am really confused as I don't if it's right to attend the lecture and veneration and praises for people other than Allah. Salaam."
Walaykum as-Salam brother Danny and welcome to MV.
You must have read Surah At-Tawbah, Chapter 9. Please read again from
Verses 42 to 65 .. how Allah Almighty warns the Prophet (pbuh) about hypocritical companions who hovered around him trying to show they were well-meaning and loyal whereas the intent within their hearts was quite the opposite. No one's name is mentioned of course. But these were precisely the kind of people who later on, after the passing of the Prophet (pbuh), made plenty of mischief including the starting of the hadith culture and who are today referred to as "
sahabas." I'm absolutely sure these Verses don't refer to the close and loyal companions like Abu Bakr, Usman, Umer and Ali; and I'm also sure there were several others who were trustworthy. In Sunni masjids they don't talk about Ali. In my opinion, all of these four were honest sincere and truthful to the maximum. However, when our imams, sheikhs and ulemas (many of them so-called) get into the trance of veneration, then one needs to be careful as to what they say. Presently the sermons we hear in our masjids have too many digressions and concepts of
bid'ah. Often they're also influenced by the political climate. Absurdity of ideas contained in their glorification of their favorite spiritual icons is nothing unusual. It's of utmost importance that listeners must be discerning .... descry as you listen. These veneration 'sprees' (regardless of who they venerate) are lacking in authenticity more often than not .. sometimes also expressing Haram ideas of glorification. This is a problem with both sects, Sunnis as well as Shiias, big time! Therefor I reiterate, perceive carefully as you listen. No need at all to argue with them. Since you seem to be quite well-informed on the Noble Quran, Alhumdulilah, it won't be hard for you to catch anything inappropriate they may utter that does not feel compatible with the Quran or clearly clashes with the Quran.
There are also certain other Verses in other Surahs where Allah refers to the troublemakers who only created problems for the Prophet's mission. I cannot recall them at the moment, but whenever I find them, I'll post them here .... Insh'Allah.
The Quran mentions nothing of any
sahabas other than V.9:40 where apparently the reference is to Abu Bkr Siddiq.
Quote:
"when they two were in the cave, when he said unto his comrade: Grieve not. Lo! Allah is with us." V. 9:40.This Verse briefly describes the event when the Prophet (pbuh) was compelled to leave Makkah and immigrate to Medinah because of the growing persecution by the Makkans. From all accounts of history, the person traveling with the Prophet was his old friend and who later also became his father-in-law (Aisha's father), Abu Bakr. But even he isn't mentioned by name in V.9:40.
Needless to mention, though I respect Umer bin Khattab very much, I cannot vouch for any such story claiming anyone's "path being cleared of Satan by Allah." Presumably this fib comes from the Bukhari hadith no.5735 which forges the name of the Prophet (pbuh) as usual, and claims, "
The Prophet said, “O son of Khattab, by the one in whose hand is my soul, whenever Satan sees you taking a path, then he will take another path.” "
The only family member of the Prophet (pbuh) whose name has been mentioned in the Quran in just one Verse is that of his adopted son,
Zaid, in V.33:37. Other than that, the name of one of the arch enemies of the Prophet (pbuh) is mentioned in
Surah Al-Masad (Chapter 111), that is Abu Lahab, who is condemned to Hell in the words of The Almighty. Same condemnation in the same Surah is also for his wife though her name isn't mentioned.
Our imams and sheikhs often use Verse 4:59 to justify the practice of extreme reverence of "
sahabas." Quoting V.4:59 :-
"O ye who believe! Obey Allah, and obey the messenger and those of you who are in authority; and if ye have a dispute concerning any matter, refer it to Allah and the messenger if ye are (in truth) believers in Allah and the Last Day. That is better and more seemly in the end." V.4:59.The expression
"those of you who are in authority" is generally taken by our clerics as just about all names of the narrators of Hadith. Needless to say, the opinion couldn't be more deeply flawed. Most of such folks have been referred to in Verses 42 to 65 of Surah At-Tawbah (Chapter 9). Within the Quranic ideology there's no such thing as blind following of iconic personalities. Allah has given us a mind with a purpose. He expects us to think, reflect and perceive before making a decision about what we hear, read or see. Even when Allah Almighty explains to us the Truth of His Existence, He constantly reminds us to think and reflect. Check this article we've posted at MV written by Safdar Razi titled
"Investigation Before Belief."Conclusion: Do by all means listen to those lectures. Sometimes the speakers are good and they do certainly speak much sense which can be very comforting to the heart. No doubt about that. What I mean is, listen to the lectures, be discerning by constantly having the Quran as your Sole Criterion for assessing the extent of acceptability of their lectures. If they say something reasonable or justifiable, utilize it to acquire your peace of heart & mind. If they say something insupportable, bizarre or improper, listen to it with one ear and get it out of the other, forever.
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