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Khalid ibn Zayd ibn Kulayb from the Banu Najjar was a great and close
companion of the Prophet. He was known as Abu Ayyub (the father of Ayyub)
and enjoyed a privilege which many of the Ansar in Madinah hoped they
would have.
When the Prophet, peace and blessings of God be on him, reached Madinah
after his hijrah from Makkah, he was greeted with great enthusiasm by
the Ansar of Madinah. Their hearts went out to him and their eyes followed
him with devotion and love. They wanted to give him the most generous
reception anyone could be given.
The Prophet first stopped at Quba on the outskirts of Madinah and stayed
there for some days. The first thing he did was to build a mosque which
is described in the Quran as the "mosque built on the foundation of piety
(taqwa)". (Surah At-Tawhah 9: 1O8).
The Prophet entered Madinah on his camel. The chieftains of the city
stood along his path, each one wishing to have the honor of the Prophet
alighting and staying at his house. One after the other stood in the camel's
way entreating, "Stay with us, O Rasulullah." "Leave the camel," the Prophet
would say. "It is under command. "
The camel continued walking, closely followed by the eyes and hearts
of the people of Yathrib. When it went past a house, its owner would feel
sad and dejected and hope would rise in the hearts of others still on
the route.
The camel continued in this fashion with the people following it until
it hesitated at an open space in front of the house of Abu Ayyub al-Ansari.
But the Prophet, upon whom be peace, did not get down. After only a short
while, the camel set off again, the Prophet leaving its reins loose. Before
long, however, it turned round, retraced its steps and stopped on the
same spot as before. Abu Ayyub's heart was filled with happiness. He went
out to the Prophet and greeted him with great enthusiasm. He took the
Prophet's baggage in his arms and felt as if he was carrying the most
precious treasure in the world.
Abu Ayyub's house had two stories. He emptied the upper floor of his
and his family's possessions so that the Prophet could stay there. But
the Prophet, peace be on him, preferred to stay on the lower floor.
Night came and the Prophet retired. Abu Ayyub went up to the upper floor.
But when they had closed the door, Abu Ayyub turned to his wife and said:
"Woe to us! What have we done? The messenger of God is below and we are
higher than he! Can we walk on top of the messenger of God? Do we come
between him and the Revelation (Wahy)? If so, we are doomed."
The couple became very worried not knowing what to do. They only got
some peace of mind when they moved to the side of the building which did
not fall directly above the Prophet. They were careful also only to walk
on the outer parts of the floor and avoid the middle.
In the morning, Abu Ayyub said to the Prophet: "By God, we did not sleep
a wink last night, neither myself nor Umm Ayyub." "Why not, Abu Ayyub?"
asked the Prophet. Abu Ayyub explained how terrible they felt being above
while the Prophet was below them and how they might have interrupted the
Revelation. "Don't worry, Abu Ayyub," said the Prophet. "We prefer the
lower floor because of the many people coming to visit us." "We submitted
to the Prophet's wishes," Abu Ayyub related, "until one cold night a jar
of ours broke and the water spilled on the upper floor. Umm Ayyub and
I stared at the water We only had one piece of velvet which we used as
a blanket. We used it to mop up the water out of fear that it would seep
through to the Prophet. In the morning I went to him and said, 'I do not
like to be above you,' and told him what had happened. He accepted my
wish and we changed floors."
The Prophet stayed in Abu Ayyub's house for almost seven months until
his mosque was completed on the open space where his camel had stopped.
He moved to the roots which were built around the mosque for himself and
his family. He thus became a neighbor of Abu Ayyub. What noble neighbor
to have had!
Abu Ayyub continued to love the Prophet with all his heart end the Prophet
also loved him dearly. There was no formality between them. The Prophet
continued to regard Abu Ayyub's house as his own. The following anecdote
tells a great deal about the relationship between them.
Abu Bakr, may God be pleased with him, once left his house in the burning
heat of the midday sun and went to the mosque. Umar saw him and asked,
"Abu Bakr, what has brought you out at this hour? Abu Bakr said he had
left his house because he was terribly hungry and Umar said that he had
left his house for the same reason. The Prophet came up to them and asked,
"What has brought the two of you out at this hour?" They told him and
he said, "By Him in Whose hands is my soul, only hunger has caused me
to come out also. But come with me."
They went to the house of Abu Ayyub al-Ansari. His wife opened the door
and said, "Welcome to the Prophet and whoever is with him."
"Where is Abu Ayyub?" asked the Prophet. Abu Ayyub, who was working in
a nearby palm grove, heard the Prophet's voice and came hurriedly.
"Welcome to the Prophet and whoever is with him," he said and went on
"O Prophet of God, this is not the time that you usually come." (Abu Ayyub
used to keep some food for the Prophet every day. When the Prophet did
not come for it by a certain time, Abu Ayyub would give it to his family.)
"You are right," the Prophet agreed.
Abu Ayyub went out and cut a cluster of dates in which there were ripe
and halfripe dates. "I did not want you to eat this," said the Prophet.
"Could you not have brought only the ripe dates?" "O Rasulullah, please
eat from both the ripe dates (rutb) and the half ripe (busr). I shall
slaughter an animal for you also. " "If you are going to, then do not
kill one that gives milk," cautioned the Prophet. Abu Ayyub killed a young
goat, cooked half and grilled the other half. He also asked his wife to
bake, because she baked better he said.
When the food was ready, it was placed before the Prophet and his two
companions. The Prophet took a piece of meat and placed it in a loaf and
said, "Abu Ayyub, take this to Fatima. She has not tasted the like of
this for days.
When they had eaten and were satisfied, the Prophet said reflectively:
"Bread and meat and busr and rutb!" Tears began to flow from his eyes
as he continued:
"This is a bountiful blessing about which you will be asked on the Day
of judgment. If such comes your way, put your hands to it and say, Bismillah
(In the name of God) and when you have finished say, Al hamdu lillah alladhee
huwa ashbana wa anama alayna (Praise be to God Who has given us enough
and Who has bestowed his bounty on us). This is best."
These are glimpses of Abu Ayyub's live during peace time. He also had
a distinguished military career. Much of his time was spent as a warrior
until it was said of him, "He did not stay away from any battle the Muslims
fought from the time of the Prophet to the time of Muawiyah unless he
was engaged at the same time in another."
The last campaign he took part in was the one prepared by Muawiyah and
led by his son Yazid against Constantinople. Abu Ayyub at that time was
a very old man, almost eighty years old. But that did not prevent him
from joining the army and crossing the seas as a ghazi in the path of
God. After only a short time engaged in the battle, Abu Ayyub fell ill
and had to withdraw from fighting. Yazid came to him and asked:
"Do you need anything, Abu Ayyub?" "Convey my salaams to the Muslim armies
and say to them: "Abu Ayyub urges you to penetrate deeply into the territory
of the enemy as far as you can go, that you should carry him with you
and that you should bury him under your feet at the walls of Constantinople."
Then he breathed his last.
The Muslim army fulfilled the desire of the companion of the Messenger
of God. They pushed back the enemy's forces in attack after attack until
they reached the walls of Constantinople. There they buried him.
(The Muslims beseiged the city for four years but eventually had to withdraw
after suffering heavy losses.)
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