Biography of Usama ibn Zayd

"with the community: Allah will never gather the community upon error; until a righteous man is relieved, or a wicked man is done away with."

Khalifa said: Abu Mas'ud died before year forty.

Ibn Qani' said: in year thirty-nine.

Al-Mada'ini and others say: in year forty.

It is said: he made a visit to Mu'awiya.

And from Khaythama ibn Abd al-Rahman, who said:

When Ali went out, he appointed Abu Mas'ud governor of Kufa, and men who had not gone out with Ali remained in hiding.

Abu Mas'ud said from the minbar: "O people, whoever has hidden himself, let him come forth: by the life of Umar, if it is about numbers: our companions are many, and we do not hold it ugly that these two mountains meet tomorrow among the Muslims, and these kill those, and those kill these,

until there remains but a handful of these and of those: one of the two parties will prevail.

But we hold it ugly that Allah bring a decree from His side, by which He spares their blood and repairs what lies between them."

Yahya al-Qattan said: Abu Mas'ud died the days Ali was killed, in Kufa.

Al-Waqidi said: he died in Medina, under the caliphate of Mu'awiya.

No. 104: Usama ibn Zayd ibn Haritha ibn Sharahil, may Allah be pleased with him, ibn Abd al-Uzza ibn Imri al-Qays, the freedman, the great commander.

The love of the Messenger of Allah, peace and the salutation of Allah be upon him, and his freedman, and the son of his freedman.

Abu Zayd.

And it is said: Abu Muhammad.

And it is said: Abu Haritha.

And it is said: Abu Yazid.

Command of the army of Syria

The Prophet, peace and the salutation of Allah be upon him, put him in command of an army for the campaign of Syria, and in the army were Umar and the elders; he did not march before the Messenger of Allah, peace and the salutation of Allah be upon him, died; the Truthful hastened to send them, and they raided Ubna, from the side of al-Balqa.

It is said: he was present on the day of Mu'tah with his father, and he dwelt in al-Mizza for a time; then he returned to Medina and died there.

It is said: he died at Wadi al-Qura.

The narrators of Usama ibn Zayd

Those who narrated from him: Abu Hurayra, Ibn Abbas, Abu Wa'il, Abu Uthman al-Nahdi, Urwa ibn al-Zubayr, Abu Salama, Abu Sa'id al-Maqbari, Amir ibn Sa'd, Abu Dhabyan, Ata ibn Abi Rabah, and many; and his two sons: Hasan and Muhammad.

Established from Usama, who said: the Prophet, peace and the salutation of Allah be upon him, would take me with al-Hasan and say: "O Allah, I love them both: love them both."

I say: he was older than al-Hasan by ten years and more.

He was very dark, of light temperament, shrewd, courageous; the Prophet, peace and the salutation of Allah be upon him, raised him and loved him greatly.

He is the son of the nurse of the Prophet, peace and the salutation of Allah be upon him: Umm Ayman; and his father was fair; and the Messenger of Allah rejoiced over him at the saying of Mujazziz al-Mudliji: "These feet have in them a part belonging to each other."

Abu Awana: from Umar ibn Abi Salama, from his father: Usama ibn Zayd informed me:

That Ali said: "Messenger of Allah, which of your family is dearest to you?"

He said: "Fatima."

He said: "I only ask you about the men."

He said: "He upon whom Allah has bestowed favor and upon whom I have bestowed favor: Usama ibn Zayd."

He said: "Then who?"

He said: "Then you."

And Mughira narrated, from al-Sha'bi:

That Aisha said: "It does not befit anyone to hate Usama, after I heard the Messenger of Allah, peace and the salutation of Allah be upon him, say: whoever loves Allah and His Messenger, let him love Usama."

And Aisha said concerning the Makhzumi woman who had stolen, and they said:

"Who would dare speak to the Messenger of Allah about her but Usama: the love of the Messenger of Allah, peace and the salutation of Allah be upon him."

Musa ibn Uqba and others: from Salim, from Ibn Umar, who said:

The Messenger of Allah, peace and the salutation of Allah be upon him, said: "The most beloved of the people to me is Usama, except Fatima and other than her."

Zayd ibn Aslam said, from his father, who said:

Umar allotted to Usama three thousand five hundred, and allotted to his son Abd Allah three thousand.

He said: "Why have you preferred him to me? By Allah, he never outstripped me to any battlefield."

He said: "Because his father was more beloved to the Messenger of Allah than your father, and he is more beloved to the Messenger of Allah, peace and the salutation of Allah be upon him, than you: I have preferred the love of the Messenger of Allah to my love."

Al-Tirmidhi declared it good.

Ibn Umar said: the Messenger of Allah, peace and the salutation of Allah be upon him, put Usama in command, and they criticized his command; he said:

"If you criticize his command, you have criticized the command of his father; by Allah, he was worthy of command, and he was among the most beloved of the people to me; and this son of his is among the most beloved of the people to me after him."

I say: when the Prophet, peace and the salutation of Allah be upon him, put him in command of that army, he was eighteen years old.

Ibn Sa'd: Yazid narrated to us; Hammad ibn Salama narrated; from Hisham ibn Urwa, from his father:

That the Prophet, peace and the salutation of Allah be upon him, delayed the ifada from Arafat because of Usama, awaiting him; there came a dark boy, flat-nosed; the people of Yemen said: "We sat only for this one!"

For that they apostatized, meaning the days of apostasy.

Waki' said: those kept safe from the strife among the illustrious were: Sa'd, Ibn Umar, Usama ibn Zayd and Muhammad ibn Maslama.

I say: Usama profited from the day of the Prophet, peace and the salutation of Allah be upon him, when he said to him: "How is it with: there is no god but Allah, O Usama?"

He restrained his hand and kept to his dwelling: he did well.

Aisha said: the Messenger of Allah, peace and the salutation of Allah be upon him, wanted to wipe the mucus of Usama; I said: "Let me be the one to do it."

He said: "O Aisha, love him: I love him."

I say: his age was of her age.

Mujalid: from al-Sha'bi, from Aisha:

The Messenger of Allah ordered me to wash the face of Usama, who was a little boy.

She said: "I had not given birth, and did not know how children are washed; I took him and washed him with a washing that was not that."

She said: he took him and began washing his face, saying: "Usama has done beautifully by us in not being a slave girl; and were you a slave girl, I would adorn you and give to you."

And in the Musnad: from al-Bahiyyi, from Aisha:

The Messenger of Allah said: "Were Usama a slave girl, I would clothe him and adorn him until I fed him from my spending."

And by another route, from Umar:

That he never met Usama without saying: "Peace be upon you, O commander, and the mercy of Allah! The Messenger of Allah, peace and the salutation of Allah be upon him, died, and you are for me a commander."

Jarir ibn Hazim: Ibn Ishaq narrated to us; from Salih ibn Kaysan, from Ubayd Allah ibn Abd Allah, who said:

I saw Usama ibn Zayd lying at the door of the chamber of Aisha, raising his little finger, humming; and I saw him pray near the grave of the Prophet, peace and the salutation of Allah be upon him.

Marwan passed by him and said: "You pray at a grave!"

And he said to him an ugly saying; he said: "O Marwan, you are an obscene one persisting in obscenity; and I heard the Messenger of Allah, peace and the salutation of Allah be upon him, say: Allah hates the obscene one persisting in obscenity."

Qays ibn Abi Hazim said: when it reached the Messenger of Allah that the banner had gone to Khalid, he said: "Why not to a man whose father was killed?"

Meaning: Usama.

Ibrahim ibn Tahman: from Utba ibn Abd Allah, from Abu Bakr ibn Abd Allah ibn Abi Juhm, who said:

I entered upon Fatima bint Qays, whom her husband had divorced [...] the hadith.

When she completed her 'idda, the Messenger of Allah, peace and the salutation of Allah be upon him, said: "Has anyone spoken of you?"

She said: "Yes: Mu'awiya and Abu al-Juhm."

He said: "As for Abu al-Juhm, he is hard of character; as for Mu'awiya, he is a man without wealth; but shall I marry you to Usama?"

I said: "Usama!", disdaining the matter of Usama; then I said: "Yes, in hearing and obedience to Allah and His messenger"; he married me to him; Allah honored me with Abu Zayd, ennobled me and raised me by him.

And Malik narrated its meaning, from Abd Allah ibn Yazid, from Abu Salama, from her.

Urwa ibn al-Zubayr said: Abu Bakr said:

"By Allah, that the bird carry me off is dearer to me than to begin anything before the command of the Messenger of Allah, peace and the salutation of Allah be upon him."

He sent Usama, and asked his leave to keep Umar with him.

He said: when they reached Syria, a dense fog seized them, covering them until they raided and attained their aim.

The death of the Prophet, peace and the salutation of Allah be upon him, and the raid of Usama upon his land reached Heraclius in one and the same moment.

The Rum said: "What ails these people: their chief dies and they raid our land!"

Ibn Ishaq: from Sa'id ibn Ubayd ibn al-Sabbaq, from Muhammad ibn Usama, from his father, who said:

When the Messenger of Allah, peace and the salutation of Allah be upon him, grew heavy, I went down, and the people went down to Medina; I entered upon him: he had fallen silent and did not speak; he kept placing his two hands upon me, then raising them: I knew he was praying for me.

Ahmad in his Musnad: Hajjaj narrated to us; Sharik informed; from al-Abbas ibn Dharih, from al-Bahiyyi, from Aisha:

That Usama stumbled on the threshold of the door and wounded his forehead; the Prophet, peace and the salutation of Allah be upon him, kept sucking the wound, then smoothing it, and said: "Were Usama a slave girl, I would clothe him and adorn him until I fed him from my spending."

Sharik: from Abu Ishaq, from Jabala, who said:

The Messenger of Allah, peace and the salutation of Allah be upon him, when he did not campaign, would give his armor to Ali or to Usama.

Al-Zubayr ibn Bakkar: Muhammad ibn Salam narrated to us; from Yazid ibn Iyad, who said:

Hakim ibn Hizam offered the Prophet, peace and the salutation of Allah be upon him, during the truce, a robe of Dhu Yazan, bought for three hundred dinars; he returned it and said: "I do not accept the gift of a polytheist."

Hakim sold it; the Prophet, peace and the salutation of Allah be upon him, ordered whoever bought it to bring it to him.

The Messenger of Allah, peace and the salutation of Allah be upon him, wore it; Hakim saw him in it and said:

"What does the discerning judge see, after there appeared
The outstripper, bright of brow, of admirable flanks"

The Messenger of Allah, peace and the salutation of Allah be upon him, clothed Usama ibn Zayd in it.

Hakim saw it on him and said: "Well done, well done, O Usama: upon you the robe of Dhu Yazan!"

The Messenger of Allah said to him: "Say to him: what holds me back, when I am better than he, and my father better than his father?"

Ma'mar: from al-Zuhri, who said:

Ali met Usama ibn Zayd and said: "We did not count you among them, O Usama: why do you not enter with us?"

He said: "O Abu al-Hasan, by Allah, were you to take the lion's one bit, I would take his other bit with you, until we all perish or all live; but as for this affair you are in: by Allah, I shall never enter it."

Its like was narrated by Amr ibn Dinar, from Abu Ja'far, from Harmala, the freedman of Usama, who said:

Usama sent me to Ali [...] and he mentioned its like.

Isma'il ibn Abd al-Rahman al-Adl informed us; Abd Allah ibn Ahmad al-Faqih informed us; Muhammad ibn Abd al-Baqi informed us; Ali ibn al-Husayn al-Bazzar informed us; Abu Ali ibn Shadhan informed us; Abu Sahl ibn Ziyad informed us; Ahmad ibn Abd al-Jabbar narrated to us; Yunus ibn Bukayr narrated; Muhammad ibn Ishaq: Muhammad ibn Usama ibn Muhammad ibn Usama narrated to me, from his father, from his grandfather Usama ibn Zayd, who said:

A man came upon me, I and a man of the Ansar; when we drew the sword upon him, he said: "There is no god but Allah."

We did not withhold from him until we killed him.

When we came to the Prophet, peace and the salutation of Allah be upon him, we told him his story; he said: "O Usama! Who protects you from: there is no god but Allah?"

We said: "Messenger of Allah, he said it only seeking refuge from killing."

He said: "Who protects you, O Usama, from: there is no god but Allah?"

He did not cease repeating it, until I wished that all my past Islam had not been, and that I had embraced Islam that day, without killing him.

I said: "I take before Allah a covenant never to kill a man who says: there is no god but Allah."

The Prophet, peace and the salutation of Allah be upon him, said: "After me, O Usama?"

He said: "After you."

Another sheikh narrated it, from Ahmad ibn Abd al-Jabbar, and added to it:

He said: "I came upon him, meaning Mirdas ibn Nahik: I and a man; when we drew the sword upon him, he said: I bear witness that there is no god but Allah."

Hisham al-Dastuwa'i: Yahya ibn Abi Kathir narrated to us; Umar ibn al-Hakam ibn Thawban narrated to me that the freedman of Qudama ibn Maz'un had narrated to him that the freedman of Usama said:

Usama would ride to wealth he had at Wadi al-Qura, and would fast Monday and Thursday on the road.

I said to him: "You fast Monday and Thursday in travel, though you have grown old, weakened, and become thin!"

He said: "The Messenger of Allah, peace and the salutation of Allah be upon him, used to fast Monday and Thursday, and he said: the deeds of the people are presented on Monday and Thursday."

Yunus ibn Bukayr: Ibn Ishaq narrated to us, from the son of the son of Usama ibn Zayd, from his grandfather Usama, who said:

I used to fast a month of the year; I mentioned it to the Prophet, peace and the salutation of Allah be upon him, and he said: "What would you be of Shawwal!"

Usama, when he broke his fast, fasted the next day of Shawwal, until he completed its last.

Ibn Abi al-Dunya: Amr ibn Bukayr informed us, from Abu Abd al-Rahman al-Ta'i, who said:

Usama came to Mu'awiya, who seated him with him, lavished care on him, and stretched out his leg.

Mu'awiya said: "May Allah have mercy on Umm Ayman: it is as if I see, at Mecca, the shinbone of her leg, like the shinbone of a barred ostrich."

He said: "May Allah deal with you, O Mu'awiya: she is, by Allah, better than you!"

It is related that Mu'awiya said: "O Allah, forgiveness."

The shinbone is the visible bone; and the barred one: in it is white and black.

In the Musnad of Baqi there are of him one hundred eighteen hadiths; among them, in al-Bukhari and Muslim: fifteen; in al-Bukhari: one hadith; in Muslim: two hadiths.

The death of Usama ibn Zayd

Al-Zuhri said: Usama died at al-Jurf.

And from al-Maqbari, who said:

I attended the funeral of Usama; Ibn Umar said: "Hasten with the love of the Messenger of Allah before the sun rises."

Ibn Sa'd said: he died at the end of the caliphate of Mu'awiya.