Abdul Razzaq al-Badr said,
The author wanted to highlight the death of the Prophet (peace be upon him) after he finished the chapters related to his description for his death was indeed the greatest calamity that befell the Muslims.
The most famous remark made upon the death of the Prophet (peace be upon him) was said during the state of confusion that overtook the Muslims. They could not believe the news and were under the shock of it. Then Abū Bakr addressed the people, “Whoever worships Allāh, then know that Allāh is alive and does not die, and whoever worships Muhammad, then Muhammad has died.”
385. Anas ibn Mālik narrated: “The last glimpse I laid upon the Messenger of Allāh (peace be upon him) was on a Monday when the curtain of his house was lifted [the people had aligned [in rows] for the prayer]. I looked at him [and his face was bright] and it was as if it was a page of a mus-haf (Qur’ān). Upon seeing the Prophet (peace be upon him), we were about to leave the prayer [due to the overwhelming joy of seeing him]. However, he (peace be upon him) beckoned to us to complete the prayer. Abū Bakr led the people in prayer and he let the curtain fall. Towards the end of that day the Messenger of Allāh (peace be upon him) passed away.” [446]
Abdul Razzaq al-Badr said,
This hadīth explains that the death of the Prophet (peace be upon him) was on a Monday. On that day, the sickness of the Prophet (peace be upon him) became severe and so Abū Bakr led the Fajr prayer. The brief moment that the Prophet (peace be upon him) lifted the curtain and saw his companions standing in lines with humility ready for the prayer he rejoiced at witnessing that scene and smiled as stated in the hadīth in Sahīh al-Bukharī and Sahīh Muslim.
The concern and worry of the Prophet (peace be upon him) regarding the prayer did not stop there for his last words upon his death bed were to remind the people to observe the prayer and he mentioned it twice as stated in Sunan ibn Mājah[447]. This shows the great status of the prayer in Islām.
The correct view is that the Prophet (peace be upon him) passed away during the time of Duha and it seems that the meaning of Anas was that people verified the news of his death towards the end of the day. It happened when they inquired from Abū Bakr regarding the authenticity of such news. He confirmed the news, kissed the Prophet (peace be upon him) between his eyes and delivered a speech to the people to inform them about it.
386. Aisha narrated: “The Messenger of Allāh (peace be upon him) was resting against my chest, [or she said: in my lap]. He asked for a wash-basin to relieve himself. He relieved himself and thereafter, he passed away.” [448]
Ibn Kathīr said,
It is reported in the two Sahīh books that in the presence of Aisha some people mentioned that the Prophet (peace be upon him) had appointed Alī by will as his successor. Aisha said, “When did he appoint him by will? Verily when he died he was resting against my chest (or she said: in my lap), he asked for a wash-basin and then collapsed whilst in that state. I could not even perceive that he had died, so when did he appoint him by will?”
Talhah ibn Musarrif related, “I asked ‘Abdullāh ibn Abī Awfa, ‘Did the Messenger of Allāh (peace be upon him) have a will?’ He replied, ‘No.’ I said, ‘If he did not do so, why did he order us to write our own wills?’ He said, ‘His will was that we do not overlook the book of Allah.’”
Abdul Razzaq al-Badr said,
The other hadīths indicate that he (peace be upon him) was resting against her chest. The Prophet (peace be upon him) asked the permission of his wives to be treated in the house of Aisha and he used to lead the prayer until he could no longer do so due to his sickness. The last prayer he led was a Friday prayer and then Abū Bakr began leading the prayer from that Friday until the Fajr prayer on Monday.
Due to his sickness, he could not get up from his bed and this is why he asked for the container.
387. Aisha narrated: “I saw the Messenger of Allāh (peace be upon him) just before he passed away placing his hands into a cup of water. He would wipe his face with it whilst saying, ‘O Allāh help me endure the agonies of death.’” [449]
Abdul Razzaq al-Badr said,
The Prophet (peace be upon him) repeated the statement, “There is no god worthy of worship besides Allāh” and then said, “Death possesses agony.” Then he stretched his hand, raised it and said, “I choose to be with the company of the higher companion” until he died and his hand fell down.
Ibn Hajar al-Asqalānī said,
Al-Suhailī said, “The reason why these (“O Allāh, [with] the higher companion”) were the last words of the Prophet (peace be upon him) is because they refer both to tawhīd and to dhikr in the heart. It offers comfort to those who are unable to speak [when dying], because some people may not be able to speak out loud for some reason, but that does not matter if their hearts are steadfast in remembering Allāh.”
388. Aisha said: “I no longer rejoice at anyone experiencing an easy death after having witnessed the difficulties in death endured by the Messenger of Allāh.” [450]
Ibn Hajar al-Asqalānī said,
This shows that experiencing hardship and agony at the time of death does not indicate a lower status of imān; rather it is a means whereby the good deeds of the believers increase or the bad deeds of the believers are erased.
Al-Sindī said,
This hadīth proves that Aisha knew that the more agony a person experiences at the time of death, the more good deeds he receives. [This is from] observing the extreme level of suffering the Prophet (peace be upon him) endured upon his death bed.
389. Aisha related: “After the demise of the Messenger of Allāh (peace be upon him), the people disagreed regarding where to bury him. Abū Bakr said, ‘I heard something from the Messenger of Allāh (peace be upon him) that I did not forget. He (peace be upon him) said, ‘Allāh does not take the life of His Prophets except in the location He [or the Prophet] wishes them buried.’’ Thus he was buried in the place where his bed was.” [451]
Alī al-Qārī said,
The companions differed regarding the location where they should bury the Prophet (peace be upon him), some suggested to bury him in his masjid, some said in al-Baqī’ where his companions were buried, and some suggested in Makkah.
Al-Zarqanī said,
Indeed, there was no darker day than the day on which he (peace be upon him) died. Upon his death, he moved to another place that has the pleasure of receiving him, and to celebrate his coming Paradise wore its best adornment to welcome his soul.
After the death of the Prophet (peace be upon him), it is reported that his donkey showed sadness until it fell in a well and died. Also, his camel refused to eat and drink anything after his death until it died.
390. ‘Abdullāh ibn Abbās and Aisha both narrated: “Abū Bakr kissed the Prophet after he passed away.” [452]
391. Aisha narrated: “Abū Bakr entered upon the Prophet (peace be upon him) after his death. He kissed him between his eyes, put his hands upon his forearms and said, ‘O my Prophet! O my close companion! O my best friend!’” [453]
Ibn al-Qayyim said,
It is permissible to express one’s sadness over someone’s death if the statement is simple and truthful and is not intended to wail or to show discontentment as this does not contradict the patience that one is obliged to show in such events, as can be noted in this hadīth.
Ibn Hajar al-Haytamī said,
Abū Bakr cried and kissed the forehead of the Prophet (peace be upon him) to follow the example that he (peace be upon him) set when he kissed ‘Uthmān ibn Madh’ūn after his death. It shows that it is recommended to kiss the face of the deceased pious person.
392. Anas ibn Mālik narrated: “The day the Messenger of Allāh (peace be upon him) arrived at Madīnah, everything became illuminated. The day that the Messenger of Allāh (peace be upon him) passed away, everything darkened. We had not yet dusted off the earth of his burial from our hands, yet we felt a change in our hearts.” [454]
Ibn Hajar al-Asqalānī said,
After the burial of the Prophet (peace be upon him), Fātimah chastised the companions, including Anas ibn Mālik for having the heart to place the Prophet (peace be upon him) down in his grave [and bury him] as she knew their extreme love towards him. In response, Anas remained silent given the emotional state he was in at that time as if to indicate that they disliked doing so but they had to subdue their hearts to comply with his command.
The statement where he said that they felt a change in their hearts meant that they did not find their hearts to be upon the same degree of purity, serenity and softness as before the Prophet’s death, when revelation was still being revealed to him, and when he was still teaching them.
Ibn Abdul Barr said,
Indeed, the death of the Prophet (peace be upon him) made all other calamities and hardships look small and trivial. How could it not be when by his passing the divine revelation ceased descending to the earth!
The Prophet (peace be upon him) said that there is no Muslim who is afflicted with a calamity and says that which Allāh has enjoined, “Innā lillāhi wa inna ilayhi rāji’ūn. Allāhumma ajurni fi musībati wakhluf li khayran minha” (Verily to Allāh we belong and to Him we will return. O Allāh, reward me for my calamity and compensate me with something better than it), but Allāh will compensate him with something better than it.
393. Aisha narrated: “The Messenger of Allāh (peace be upon him) passed away on a Monday.” [455]
394. Muhammad al-Bāqir narrated: “The Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) passed away on a Monday. His burial waited until the day of Monday and night of Tuesday had passed, and then he was buried on the night of Wednesday.” Sufyān (the narrator of this hadīth) said: “In other narrations it is stated that the sound of spades could be heard in the latter portion of the night.” [456]
Ibn al-Qayyim said,
It is permissible to bury the deceased at night. Imām Ahmad was asked about the ruling on burying the deceased during the night and he did not object to it and said, “Abū Bakr was buried at night, and Alī ibn Abī Tālib buried Fātimah at night.”
Ibn Hajar al-Haytamī said,
The reason why the companions delayed his burial was either due to the fact that some of them did not believe that he had passed away, because they differed upon where to bury him or because of their busyness with the succession of the Prophet (peace be upon him) so as to avert any possible disputes that may have arisen if there was a delay in the decision being made and the pledge being given. The burial was decided after the intervention of Abū Bakr whose statement settled the dispute.
Ibn Battal said,
It is narrated that Aisha said, “We did not know of the burial of the Messenger of Allāh (peace be upon him) until we heard the sound of spades in the latter portion of the night of Wednesday.”[457]
‘Uqbah ibn ‘Amir narrated, “There are three times at which the Messenger of Allāh (peace be upon him) forbade us to pray or to bury our dead: when the sun has clearly started to rise until it is fully risen, when it is directly overhead at midday until it has passed its zenith, and when the sun starts to set until it has fully set.”
Al-Bajūrī said,
The burial preparation began on Tuesday and the burial finished during the latter part of the night of Wednesday. This can reconcile the reports stating he was buried on Tuesday and the reports stating he was buried on Wednesday.
395. Abū Salamah ibn Abdul Rahman ibn ‘Awf narrated: “The Messenger of Allāh (peace be upon him) passed away on a Monday and was buried on Tuesday.” [458]
Ibn Hajar al-Haytamī said,
To reconcile between this hadīth and the previous one, it can be said that the companions started to prepare the body of the Prophet (peace be upon him) at the end of Tuesday and only finished the preparation during the latter portion of the night of Wednesday.
396. Salim ibn ‘Ubayd narrated: “During his sickness the Prophet (peace be upon him) fell unconscious; when he later recovered consciousness he asked, ‘Has the time of the prayer commenced?’ They replied, ‘Yes.’ Then he said, ‘Order Bilāl to call to the prayer, and order Abū Bakr to lead the people in prayer.’ Then again, he lost consciousness; when he was revived, he said, ‘Has the time of the prayer commenced?’ They said, ‘Yes.’ He (peace be upon him) said, ‘Order Bilāl to call to the prayer, and order Abū Bakr to lead the people in prayer.’
Aisha said, ‘My father is a man with a soft heart, prone to being moved. If he stands in that position, he will cry and he would not be able to control it. If you wish you can appoint someone else.’ He again lost consciousness, and when he revived this time, he said, ‘Order Bilāl to call to the prayer, and order Abū Bakr to lead the prayer, for indeed, you women are the companions of Yūsuf.’ Thereupon, Bilāl was ordered to make the call to prayer and he did so, and Abū Bakr was ordered to lead the people in prayer, and he did so. Then the Messenger of Allāh (peace be upon him) found some respite from his illness and so he (peace be upon him) said, ‘Find someone for me upon whom I may lean.’ Barīrah and another man came and he (peace be upon him) leaned upon them. When Abū Bakr saw him, he began to move back so that the Prophet (peace be upon him) could take his place, but the Prophet (peace be upon him) indicated to him that he should remain firm in his place, until Abū Bakr completed his prayer.
Then, the Messenger of Allāh (peace be upon him) passed away, upon which ‘Umar said, ‘By Allāh, if anyone mentions that the Messenger of Allāh (peace be upon him) has died, I will strike his neck with this sword of mine.’ The Arabs were illiterate and never before Muhammad (peace be upon him) had there been a Prophet amongst them. The people desisted [from any action] and said, ‘O Salīm, go to the Messenger of Allāh’s companion and call him.’ I came to Abū Bakr whilst he was in the masjid. I approached him whilst crying and in a state of shock. When he saw me, he said, ‘Did the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) die?’ I replied, ‘Indeed but ‘Umar is saying, ‘If I hear anyone mention that the Messenger of Allāh (peace be upon him) has died, I will strike his neck with this sword of mine.’’
Abū Bakr then said to me, ‘Come,’ and so I proceeded with him until we reached the people, who had entered the room of the Messenger of Allāh (peace be upon him). He said, ‘O people! Make way for me.’ They made way for him until he bent down to the Prophet (peace be upon him) and touched him; he then said: “{Verily, you [O Muhammad (peace be upon him)] will die and verily, they [too] will die.}”[459]
The people asked, ‘O companion of the Messenger of Allāh, has the Messenger of Allāh (peace be upon him) died?’ He answered, ‘Yes.’ They knew that he had spoken the truth.
They said, ‘O companion of the Messenger of Allāh! Is the Messenger of Allāh (peace be upon him) to be prayed upon?’ He said, ‘Yes.’ To which they replied, ‘And how?’ He said, ‘A group shall enter, say the takbir, pray and then invoke Him. Then they shall leave, another group shall enter and do the same until everyone has prayed.’
The people asked, ‘O companion of the Messenger of Allāh! Is the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) to be buried?’ He said, ‘Yes.’ They said, ‘Where?’ He answered, ‘In the same place that Allāh took his soul, for indeed, Allah did not take his soul except in a good and pure place.’ And they knew that he had spoken the truth. Then he ordered the offspring from the Prophet’s father’s side to wash him.
The Muhājirūn then assembled to decide the succession to the Prophet (peace be upon him). They said, ‘Let us go to our brothers from amongst the Ansār and include them in this matter.’ The Ansār said, ‘Amongst us is a leader and amongst you is a leader.’ ‘Umar ibn al-Khattab said, ‘Who is that person from your midst who possesses these three: {The second of two; when they two were in the cave, when he said unto his comrade: ‘Grieve not. Indeed! Allah is with us?’}’ ‘Umar then extended his hand to give the pledge of allegiance. Subsequently, all those present followed suit and wholeheartedly gave allegiance to Abū Bakr. [460]
Ibn Hajar al-Haytamī said,
This shows that Prophets can fall unconscious (al-Ghazalī stated that their unconsciousness can be short or long in duration and al-Subkī stated that in this state their hearts are still awake) since it is considered as a sickness that does not entail a defect or a flaw; contrary to madness and insanity which Prophets are protected from experiencing. The reason that Allāh allows His Prophets to fall sick is so that their reward can be increased and to consolidate the people (i.e. to strengthen them with the knowledge that even Prophets are subject to hardship and sickness) and to avert the possibility of any extreme glorification on the part of the people after they witness the miracles of the Prophet (i.e. to prevent people from worshipping Prophets after seeing their miracles).
This hadīth shows that the person who should be asked to lead the prayer is the one with best understanding of religion, who can recite the Qur’ān in the best manner and has the most sense of piety. The fact that the Prophet (peace be upon him) ordered Abū Bakr to lead the prayer more than once is a strong indication that he was the most deserving to be his successor.
The similarity between Aisha and the woman mentioned in the story of Yūsuf is that both did not reveal the true purpose behind their requests and instead gave different justifications. Zulaykha invited the women and showed them good hospitality whilst her real purpose was to let them see the beauty of Yūsuf so that they could relate to her for falling in love with him. Similarly, Aisha stated that she disliked her father leading the people in the prayer because his soft heart would cause him to cry when reading the Qur’ān. In reality, she made that request because she feared that the people would dislike him for taking the place of the Prophet (peace be upon him), as she clearly revealed in another hadīth documented by al-Bukharī.
There are different hadīths, each of which states different people that the Prophet (peace be upon him) leaned upon. In Sahīh al-Bukharī and Muslim it states that they were two men: al-Abbās and Alī. In Muslim, they were al-Abbās and his son al-Fadl, and in another hadīth, they were al-Abbās and Usāmah ibn Zayd. In Sunan al-Daraqutnī they were Usāmah and al-Fadl, in Sahīh Ibn Hibbān they were Baryrah and Nubah, and in the book of Ibn Sa’d they were al-Fadl and Thawban. The reconciliation between these hadīths, if all are proven authentic, is that he (peace be upon him) went out of his house more than once and on each occasion he leaned upon different people.
The signal of the Prophet (peace be upon him) to Abū Bakr (to remain as the imām of the prayer) indicates that he prayed behind Abū Bakr. However, in Sahīh al-Bukharī and Muslim it states that he (peace be upon him) sat on the left side of Abū Bakr, thus Abū Bakr stood leading the prayer behind the Prophet (peace be upon him) and the people followed the lead of Abū Bakr. This explains the basis of the view of al-Shafi’ī that it is allowed for a person praying in congregation to leave following the imām [i.e. leave the congregation by intending to pray individually] and then follow another imām.
The reason ‘Umar denied the death of the Prophet (peace be upon him) and threatened anyone who dared to say that is because he thought that he was just unconscious. Regarding the meaning of the statement that Arabs were illiterate and that never before Muhammad (peace be upon him) was there a Prophet amongst them is that the Arabs never had the knowledge of how a Prophet would die, which can be attained either through witnessing that or through scripture, and Arabs never had either (i.e. they were not from the People of the Book. Therefore they did not have a scripture and no Prophet was sent to them before the Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him)).
Referring to Abū Bakr as the companion of the Prophet (peace be upon him) indicates that he was known amongst the people with that description as if they agreed that it is his description that Allāh has confirmed in the Qur’ān (i.e. the ayah wherein it says in its meaning “he says to his companion….”).
Abū Bakr addressed the people after he verified the death of the Prophet (peace be upon him) and said, “Whoever worships Muhammad then know that Muhammad has died, and whoever worships Allāh, then Allāh is Alive and does not die.” Then he recited the ayah {“You will die and so they shall too…”} Thereupon, the people began to cry. This shows the courage and knowledge of Abū Bakr as he quoted the ayāt to refute the claim that the Prophet did not die and stayed firm in the face of such a difficult calamity.
The response of the companions to the news differed, ‘Umar could not believe the news and threatened anyone who claimed that the Prophet (peace be upon him) had died, ‘Abdullāh ibn Anīs could not get up and remained seated upon hearing the news and ‘Uthmān could not speak. Abū Bakr was the firmest and he arrived whilst his eyes were full of tears.
Ibn Battal said,
Al-Bukharī documented in his Sahīh that Aisha narrated: “Allāh’s Messenger (peace be upon him) died whilst Abū Bakr was at a place called al-Sunah (al-‘Aliya). ‘Umar stood up and said, ‘By Allāh! Allāh’s Messenger is not dead!’ ‘Umar (later on) said, ‘By Allāh! Nothing occurred to my mind except that.’ He said, ‘Verily! Allāh will resurrect him and he will cut the hands and legs of some men.’ Then Abū Bakr came and uncovered the face of Allāh’s Messenger, kissed him and said, ‘Let my mother and father be sacrificed for you, [O Allāh’s Messenger], you are good in life and in death. By Allāh in Whose Hands my life is, Allāh will never make you taste death twice.’ Then he went out and said, ‘O oath-taker! Don’t be hasty.’ When Abū Bakr spoke, ‘Umar sat down. Abū Bakr praised and glorified Allāh and then said, ‘No doubt! Whoever worshipped Muhammad, then Muhammad is dead, but whoever worshipped Allāh, then Allāh is Alive and shall never die.’ Then he recited Allah’s Statement: {[O Muhammad] Verily you will die, and they also will die.}[461] He also recited, {Muhammad is no more than an Apostle; and indeed many Apostles have passed away, before him, If he dies or is killed, will you then turn back on your heels? And he who turns back on his heels, not the least harm will he do to Allāh and Allāh will give reward to those who are grateful.}[462]
The statement of Abū Bakr that the Prophet (peace be upon him) will not taste death twice was in response to the statement of ‘Umar and others who said that the Prophet (peace be upon him) died and will be resurrected again in this life. This is to state that he dies once in this life and will be resurrected on the Day of Judgment. This hadīth shows the virtue of Abū Bakr and that he was more knowledgeable than ‘Umar. This event showed his sensibility, firmness and his ability to understand events in the light of the Qur’ān and it also shows his high status amongst the Muslims.
397. Anas ibn Mālik narrated: “When the Messenger of Allāh (peace be upon him) was experiencing the agonies of death, Fātimah said, ‘What a calamity that has inflicted my father!’ Thereupon, the Messenger of Allāh (peace be upon him) said, ‘No calamity will inflict your father after today. That which has befallen your father is inevitable and none will be saved from it until the Day of Reckoning.’” [463]
Al-Sindi said,
The meaning of the statement of the Prophet (peace be upon him), “No calamity will inflict your father after today” is that the agony he felt would come to a halt through his death.
398. ‘Abdullāh ibn Abbās narrated: “I heard the Messenger of Allāh (peace be upon him) say, ‘The person who experiences the loss of two young children [during his lifetime], Allāh shall admit him in Paradise by them!’ Aisha asked, ‘What about the one from your nation who experiences the death of one young child [during his lifetime]?’ He replied, ‘O successful! The one who loses one child shall also enter Paradise.’ Aisha then inquired, ‘What about those from among your nation who have not lost any children?’ He replied, ‘I shall be their intercession in the Hereafter for no loss equals the loss of my death.’” [464]
Ibn al-Qayyim said,
From the hadīths that encourage us to have children is this hadīth.
Al-Baydāwī said,
The meaning of this hadīth is that the deceased children precede their parents to Paradise and prepare for their parents places therein.
Alī al-Qārī said,
The praise of the Prophet (peace be upon him) to Aisha (“O successful”) was due to her questioning. He mentioned this to indicate that she is guided to the good as her questions were an evidence of her concern for the Muslims.