Ibnu Mas'ud

Ibnu Mas’ud

Ibn Mas’ud

His name is Abdullah Ibn Mas’ud Ibn Ghafil Al Hudzali. His nickname is Abu Abdurrahman. He was often referred to his mother, because his father died during the time of ignorance while his mother was still alive when Islam started to rise and she embraced it. Thus, his mother was dubbed “Ummu Abd”, while Ibn Mas’ud with “Ibn Ummi Abd”. He was among the first of the companions who embraced Islam during it’s dawn, and he emigrated twice to Habasyah (Ethiopia) and Medina. He joined the army of Badar battle and he was the one managed to kill Abu Jahl in that battle.

The Prophet -peace and prayer of Allah be upon him- said to him at the beginning of his enjoin, “You are an educated young man.” (Narrated by Ahmad in hadith no. 3599; classed sahih by Shuhaib Al Arnauth). The Prophet -peace and prayer of Allah be upon him- also commented about Ibn Mas’ud:
“Whoever intends to recite the Qur’an as the way it is descended should recite as the recitation of Ibn Ummi Abd (Ibn Mas’ud).” (Narrated by Ahmad in hadith no. 35; classed sahih by Shuhaib Al Arnauth).

Ibn Mas’ud once said about himself, “Indeed, the companions of the Prophet -peace and prayer of Allah be upon him- know that I am the most knowledgeable man of the Qur’an. By Allah, The One that none has the right to be worshipped but Him, there is no single chapter of the Qur’an revealed but I know where it was revealed, about who it was revealed for. If I know, that there is someone that has better knowledge about the Qur’an than me, and his whereabout is able to be reached by riding the camel, I’d surely go to him.”

Among the his excellences is that he was a companion who always served the needs of the Prophet -peace and prayer of Allah be upon him-. He prepared his sandals, water for ablution, and pillow, until Abu Musa Al Ash’ari said, “Me and my brother came from Yemen. Then we came to stay with the Prophet -peace and prayer of Allah be upon him-. We thought that Ibn Mas’ud was the relative of the Prophet -peace and prayer of Allah be upon him- due to his and his mother frequent presence, in and out of the house of the Prophet -peace and prayer of Allah be upon him.”

So frequent that he was to see the Prophet -peace and prayer of Allah be upon him- in his daily life, that his habits were greatly influenced by the sunnah of the Prophet -peace and prayer of Allah be upon him-. Until Hudzaifa said, “I’ve never seen a man whose gestures and attitudes is more similar to the Prophet -peace and prayer of Allah be upon him-, than Ibn Ummi Abd.”

At the reign of Umar as the Caliph, he was sent to Kufah to teach the people there about religion. Also in that period, Umar appointed Ammar Ibn Yasir as the governor of Kufah. Umar instructed the people of Kufah, saying:” Indeed, these two men are the chosen ones among the companions of the Prophet -peace and prayer of Allah be upon him- , so follow them. “After that, he was sent back to Medina and he died in that city, on the year 32 H, aged 70 something. He was buried at the Baqi cemetery in Medina. (See: “Ushul fi Tafsir“, page. 52–53)

References:

  • Ushul fi Tafsir” . Author: Muhammad bin Shaleh Al-Utsaimin. Published by Maktabah As-Sunnah. Mesir. 1419 H.
  • Musnad Imam Ahmad“. Author: Ahmad bin Hambal Asy-Syaibani. Published by: Muassasah Qurthubah. Mesir.

Article of www.whatisquran.com

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