See [I]Zaad al-Ma’aad by Ibn al-Qayyim, 1/71
Thirdly:
With regard to the message to which our Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) called people, it is sufficient to quote what was said by Abu Sufyaan – who was a kaafir (disbeliever) at the time. Heraclius, the ruler of Byzantium, asked Abu Sufyaan, “What does he tell you to do?” Abu Sufyaan said: “He tells us to worship Allaah alone, not associating anything with Him, and he forbids us to worship that which our fathers used to worship. He commands us to pray, to give in charity, to be chaste, to keep our promises and fulfil our trusts.” Heraclius commented on Abu Sufyaan’s words by saying: “This is the description of a Prophet. I knew that he would appear, but I did not think that he would be from among you [the Arabs]. If you are indeed speaking the truth, then soon he will take possession of the place where my feet are standing. If I thought that I could meet him I would not hesitate to go to him, and if I were with him I would wash his feet.”
(Narrated by al-Bukhaari, 2782; Muslim, 1773).
Fourthly:
After the death of the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him), he was succeeded as khaleefah (leader of the Muslim community) by Abu Bakr al-Siddeeq, during whose time a number of major events took place: the dispatching of the army of Usaamah [to Syria]; the wars against the apostates (ahl al-riddah); fighting those who refused to pay the zakaah; the emergence of Musaylimah the liar [a false prophet]; and the compilation of the Qur’aan.
Then came ‘Umar ibn al-Khattaab, who was one of the earliest Muslims, one of the ten whom the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) had testified would enter Paradise, one of the Rightly Guided Caliphs (al-khulafa’ al-raashideen), one of the in-laws of the Messenger of Allaah (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him), one of the greatest scholars and ascetics among the Sahaabah (the Companions of the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him)). Many conquests took place during his time, including the conquest of Damascus, Jordan, Iraq, Jerusalem and Egypt. He is the one who decided, in consultation with ‘Ali, that history should be dated from the time of the Hijrah (the migration of the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) from Makkah to Madeenah).
He was martyred in 23 AH by the kaafir Magian murderer Abu Lu’lu’ah.
Then came ‘Uthmaan ibn ‘Affaan, who was also one of the ten whom the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) had testified would enter Paradise. He had also become Muslim in the earliest days. He was one of those whom Abu Bakr al-Siddeeq had called to Islam. He migrated twice, first to Abyssinia (Ethiopia) then to Madeenah. He married Ruqayyah the daughter of the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him), then she passed away and he married her sister Umm Kalthoom. He ruled as khaleefah for twelve years, then he was martyred in 35 AH at the age of eighty-odd.
Then came ‘Ali ibn Abi Taalib, who was also one of the ten whom the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) had testified would enter Paradise. He was the brother of the Messenger of Allaah (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) according to the system of brotherhood established when the muhaajiroon (migrants from Makkah) first came to Madeenah, and he was also the Prophet’s son-in-law as he married his daughter Faatimah, the best of all women (may Allaah be pleased with her). He
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