The Ugliest Sahabi

The "Ugliest" Sahabi?

Sheikh Omar Suleiman - Quran Weekly

Opening

السَّلَامُ عَلَيْكُمْ وَرَحْمَةُ اللهِ وَبَرَكَاتُهُ

As-Salaamu Alaikum Warahmatullahi Wabarakatuhu Quran Weekly, this is your brother Omar Suleiman.

Redefining Beauty and Value

The Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم one day, in a hadith that's narrated by Sahir رضي الله عنه in Al-Bukhari, saw a man that was walking by that was of high status. And the Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم actually asked the companions, he said, what do you say about this person? And they said, this is a person that if he speaks, people listen to him.

And if he intercedes on anyone's behalf, his intercession will be accepted. And if he was to propose to anyone for marriage, his marriage would also be accepted, his proposal would also be accepted. And then the Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم saw another man walking by, but this was a person that was of low status and that was from the poor Muslims.

And Rasulullah صلى الله عليه وسلم said, and what do you all say about this one? And they said, this is a person that if he speaks, no one's going to listen to him. And if he was to intercede on anyone's behalf, no one is going to accept his intercession. And if he was to propose to anyone for marriage, then his proposal will be rejected.

And the Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم wanted to make a point. Rasulullah صلى الله عليه وسلم said:

"But this person is better than mil-al-ard, better than an entire earth full of this person."

This person that you guys describe as being a reject, as being a loser, as being one of low status, is better than mil-al-ard, an entire world full of that person.

And so the Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم what he was doing was he was redefining our idea of beauty. And the Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم did this on numerous occasions.

The Example of Ibn Mas'ud

So we see for example Ibn Mas'ud رضي الله عنه and he is Abdullah. He is the man who is the greatest of the abadila, Abdullah. And this man رضي الله عنه was so short that he was a dwarf. And the Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم one day when Ibn Mas'ud رضي الله عنه was going up into the tree to grab him as Siwak from the Araq tree, the wind actually blew him into that tree.

And the sahaba laughed because his legs were exposed. So Rasulullah صلى الله عليه وسلم said, why are you laughing? They said, Ya Rasulullah, his legs are skinny, they're like two small twigs. And Rasulullah says صلى الله عليه وسلم:

"But you don't understand. These two legs on the day of judgment will be the weight of Uhud, the size and weight of Uhud."

Can you think about that? On the meezan, on the scale of good deeds, on the scale of Allah that counts most, these two legs will be the size and the weight of Uhud. And so what the Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم was doing was he was again, redefining value.

The Story of Zahir رضي الله عنه

Now you might have wondered from the title of this video, isn't it blasphemous to say ugly? Now first and foremost, because I know the takfir bombs are going to be in the comments, ugly is in quotation marks for a reason. There are two companions of the Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم that are referred to with this word as dameem, as being repulsive or ugly. But this is again, just in physical appearance.

And the first of those companions is Zahir رضي الله عنه. Zahir رضي الله عنه as is noted in Al-Bayhaqi, was a man with a very, very repulsive appearance. And he was also someone with a low self-esteem.

Usually when you read about the companions of the Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم, you read about this person had hasan al-wajh, he had the best appearance, he was so handsome in the face. In every way, this person is being praised. But they did have the companions that were not like that.

And so you had Zahir رضي الله عنه who had a very low self-esteem. And the Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم he recognized that. And Rasulullah صلى الله عليه وسلم for that reason, always made it a point to recognize Zahir. Always made it a point to put him on a pedestal. In fact, the Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم he said:

Which means that Zahir رضي الله عنه he's our man in the desert because he was a Bedouin. And we are his attendees in the city. Meaning we all kind of work for him. SubhanAllah, he is for us and we are for him. So Rasulullah صلى الله عليه وسلم was again, making mention of him, letting him know that he was aware of him.

And this was the beautiful adab of the Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم. And in fact, there's a beautiful story that Rasulullah صلى الله عليه وسلم he once saw Zahir رضي الله عنه in the marketplace selling his stuff. And Rasulullah صلى الله عليه وسلم grabbed him from the back.

And he started to wrestle with him. And he started to say:

"Who's going to buy this slave of mine? Who's going to buy this slave of mine?"

And Rasulullah صلى الله عليه وسلم is playing with him, again, so that he can know that Rasulullah صلی الله عليه وسلم is aware of him. And Zahir رضي الله عنه when he saw the hands of the Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم and remember, Anas ibn Malik رضي الله عنه describes the hands of the Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم in this smooth texture, smoother than silk, subhanAllah.

And he recognized the voice of the Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم, then he didn't fight back too hard, because he wanted to be close to the Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم. And he says to the Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم something very very hurtful, not to the Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم, but rather he degrades himself. And he says:

"That no one is going to want to buy me anyway. Who would want to buy me, even if I was a slave?"

SubhanAllah. So even though they were laughing and they were joking, but Zahir رضي الله عنه again was brought down, when he recognized that he was someone that was repulsive in appearance. And Rasulullah صلى الله عليه وسلم he turns Zahir around, and he puts his hands on his shoulders, and he says:

"He said, but you know what, in the sight of Allah, you are priceless."

You are beautiful to Allah subhanAllah. Don't worry about if other people find you dameem, and find you ugly and repulsive or deformed. You are beautiful to Allah subhanAllah because of the person that you are.

And that's all that should matter at the end of the day, is how Allah sees you.

The Story of Julaibib رضي الله عنه

Now there is one man who was even more than that. And this man who was even more known for his repulsive appearance, was actually named by that.

And this was the sahabi by the name of Julaibib رضي الله عنه. You may have even never heard of Julaibib. In fact, many times you don't find him being mentioned in the books.

Because again, Julaibib رضي الله عنه you don't find much written about him, you don't find much about his appearance, you don't find much about his status. We don't even know Julaibib bin what. We just know Julaibib.

And in fact the name Julaibib means deformed. So he was known for his deformities, he was known for his appearance, and subhanAllah the way that he is described is قصيرٌ وَفَقِيرٌ وَدَمِيمٌ. He was extremely short, he was extremely poor, and he was extremely repulsive.

Again the word dameem, although we know that ugliness is not physically, but he was known for being physically unattractive, physically repulsive. And on top of that, what makes Julaibib رضي الله عنه his case so heartbreaking, was that Julaibib had no lineage, no one knew where he was from, he didn't know who his parents were.

And in that type of society, where it's all about where you're from, and it's all about your tribe, and all about your status, to be that physically repulsive and deformed, and also not have any protection, and no tribe to stand by you, and no name at least, no reputation, subhanAllah put him in a very tough situation.

Julaibib's Difficult Situation

And Hamad bin Salama رضي الله عنه he says just describing to us, what Julaibib used to go through. He says, before the ayat of hijab were revealed, so Julaibib is actually from Medina. He said, before the ayat of hijab were revealed, before Islam, and even after Islam, before the ayat of hijab were revealed, Julaibib رضي الله عنه was bullied so much, that he used to only sit with the women, and speak with the women, because they were the only ones that would be sensitive towards him.

SubhanAllah, think about that. He had such a rough time being amongst the men, that he used to sit with the women, because they wouldn't treat him as badly. And they would be more sensitive towards him.

That was his situation. So you can imagine, this man, and what he went through. Now Rasulullah رضي الله عنه recognized again, that this is a young man that goes through a lot.

And the Prophet رضي الله عنه constantly wanted to show him, show him and show the sahaba, beauty is not in your outer beauty, it's in your internal beauty. And Rasulullah رضي الله عنه in fact, because Julaibib had no one to take up his cause, and as Hamad says, no one would have considered Julaibib for marriage, so he didn't even bother asking anyone for marriage. Rasulullah رضي الله عنه he goes on behalf of Julaibib.

The Prophet's Proposal for Julaibib

And he goes to a man, and he says to this man from the Ansar, who was a man of status, Rasulullah رضي الله عنه says to him:

(Sahih Muslim 2472)

"Rasulullah رضي الله عنه said I want to get your daughter married."

Now the man understood that Rasulullah رضي الله عنه is coming to ask for my daughter's hand in marriage.

And this daughter of his, was a woman ذاتُ حَسَبٍ وَجَمَالٍ a woman of status and beauty. So I mean, it's expected that this woman of status and beauty is going to be proposed to by someone of great physical attraction, and at the same time of great status. And who's greater than the Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم in any of those regards.

So he said, this is karam, this is our honor, subhanAllah, this is the pleasure of our eyes, the coolness of our eyes, that we would marry our daughter to the Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم. And Rasulullah صلى الله عليه وسلم said:

(Sahih Muslim 2472)

"He said, I don't want her for myself."

He said, but instead, I want her for, and of course the man was very disappointed. Because he thought, so who is it? Is it Abu Bakr? Is it Umar? Is it Uthman? Is it Ali? Who is it going to be? Rasulullah صلى الله عليه وسلم says:

(Sahih Muslim 2472)

"I said, I want her for Julaibib."

And Julaibib was known for his physical ugliness. So the man didn't want to tell Rasulullah صلى الله عليه وسلم . He said to Rasulullah صلى الله عليه وسلمI need to go and talk to her mom first.

So he goes and he talks to his wife and he says, Rasulullah صلى الله عليه وسلم wants to marry your daughter. Now in the Arabic language, again, it could mean that he himself or for someone else. And she said the same words.

She said that this is a great honor and this is the coolness of our eyes. This is wonderful news that Rasulullah صلى الله عليه وسلم wants to marry our daughter. And he says, he doesn't want her for himself.

She said, well then for who? Is it Abu Bakr, Umar, Uthman, Ali? Who is it? And by the way, the context of this narration is that they actually turned away quite a bit of people. So they wanted someone of great status. And he said to his wife, Julaibib.

And she said, Julaibib? Julaibib? Julaibib? She started to scream. And then she even said something very inappropriate and refusing. She said:

(Sahih Muslim 2472)

She said, by Allah, we will not marry him to our daughter. Now, this was her reaction. Now, Allah placed something very special in that household.

The Righteous Daughter's Response

In the heart of that daughter. So the daughter heard her mother screaming in the house. So the daughter came down and said, what's going on? And they said that Rasulullah صلى الله عليه وسلم wants to marry Julaibib to you and we will never marry Julaibib to you.

And she said:

(Sahih Muslim 2472)

"Are you going to turn down a request and an order of the Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم?"

She said, marry me to him because he will not lose me. SubhanAllah, marry me to him.

She knew who Julaibib was too, but she was a righteous woman and that's why the Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم was coming and asking for Julaibib. She said, marry me to him and he will not let me go to

waste. So she understood that Rasulullah صلى الله عليه وسلم wants what's best for her also and that Julaibib رضي الله عنه would be the best for her.

Her name, by the way, is unknown. But subhanAllah, look at this great action that she did. Now Julaibib was so poor that Uthman رضي الله عنه volunteered to come forth and to pay his mahr رضي الله عنه

The Battle and Julaibib's Heroism

Now the Messenger of Allah صلى الله عليه وسلم consistently wanted to again make Julaibib رضي الله عنه feel appreciated and show Julaibib that his beauty was true beauty. That the ugliness that people saw in him was not true ugliness. And Rasulullah صلى الله عليه وسلم on the day of one of the battles, Rasulullah صلى الله عليه وسلم started to ask, he started to ask all of the different tribes and all of the different families.

He says:

(Sahih Muslim 2472)

"Are you missing anyone? Are you missing anyone? Are you missing anyone?"

And all of these families, all of these tribes are responding with the names of the dead from their families and from their tribes. And then the Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم he says:

And then whenever they started to say that we're not missing anyone, Rasulullah صلى الله عليه وسلم look at what he does. The same one صلى الله عليه وسلم that took it upon himself to marry this man off.

Rasulullah صلى الله عليه وسلم says:

(Sahih Muslim 2472)

"He said, but I'm missing Julaibib."

As if Julaibib is from my family, subhanAllah. I'm missing Julaibib. So the Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم starts to scan the dead. He starts to go around through the dead to try to find Julaibib in Uhud.

And Rasulullah صلى الله عليه وسلم,when he comes over the body of Julaibib, he sees around Julaibib seven of the enemies. Seven of the opposing army. So meaning Julaibib actually killed seven before he was killed.

And Rasulullah صلى الله عليه وسلمhe stands over Julaibib and he becomes emotional. And the Prophet said صلى الله عليه وسلم:

(Sahih Muslim 2472)

"He killed seven and then they killed him."

And Rasulullah صلى الله عليه وسلم stands over Julaibib and listen to these words.

And tell me what physical appearance is worth this. When Rasulullah صلى الله عليه وسلم stands over this man and says:

(Sahih Muslim 2472)

"This one is from me and I am from him. He is from me and I am from him. He is from me and I am from him."

And the Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم picks up Julaibib رضي الله عنه with his own two hands, and he was so small, and the narration says that he had no other sareer, no other coffin, nothing else to carry him, except for the hands of the Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلمbecause of how small he was. Rasulullah صلی الله عليه وسلم picks up Julaibib رضي الله عنه and he takes him a little bit further.

And the Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم puts down the body of Julaibib and he صلى الله عليه وسلم himself digs the grave of Julaibib and Rasulullah صلى الله عليه وسلم buries Julaibib رضي الله عنه alone.

Lessons from These Stories

What more do you want than that, dear brothers and sisters? What is greater beauty, what is greater value than to be seen that way by Allah and His Messenger صلى الله عليه وسلم

And I remind you again, if you notice in the title, the word ugly is in quotation marks because although everyone else saw him as ugly and saw Zahir رضي الله عنه as ugly, they were not ugly by any measure. They were beautiful in the sight of Allah and the Messenger صلى الله عليه وسلم.

And this should teach all of us a lesson. Number one, those of us who are self-conscious and those of us who may be actually suffering from a physical deformity, don't try to find your beauty in the sight of other people. Find your beauty in the sight of Allah because that's the only sight that will matter on the Day of Judgment.

And for everyone else, when you recognize that there is someone with low self-esteem, make it a point to raise that person's self-esteem.

That is a sadaqah to your brother. If smiling in the face of your brother is a sadaqah, then what about going to someone who has a low self-esteem and making them feel special and making them feel appreciated the way that the Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلمSayyidul Khalq, and the most noble of creation did for these companions.

We ask Allah to grant us true beauty and we ask Allah to forgive us for our shortcomings.

Closing

Allahumma ameen. JazakumAllahu khayran. We ask Allah to grant us true beauty and we ask Allah to forgive us for our shortcomings.

Wassalamu alaikum warahmatullahi wabarakatuh.