Abu Qatada al-Ansari (Arabic: أبو قتادة الأنصاري), also known as Harith ibn Rab'i (Arabic: الحارث بن ربعي), was one of the companions of Rasulullahﷺ. He assisted the battles of Uhud and Hudaybiyyah.
Abu
Qatadah was born in Madinah. He
hailed from Banu Sulaym, a branch of the Khazraj tribe.
Life during the period of Rasulullahﷺ in Madinah
Abu Qatadah participated in the Battle
of Badr, which caused him to earn the honorific title of al-Badri by the Muslim community of the time.
Sometimes after the battle of Khandaq in 627, there is an incident after Rasulullahﷺ returned from the raid of Banu Lihyan. a band of armed men of Ghatafan tribe led by Abdur Rahman Uyanah bin Hisn Al-Fazari raided the outskirts of Madinah and seized 20 milch camels. They also killed the shepherd and took his wife as a captive. Rasulullahﷺ immediately dispatched several hundreds of horsemen consisting of Abu Qatadah رضي الله عنه, Miqdad ibn Aswad رضي الله عنه , Ukkash ibn al-Mihsan رضي الله عنه , Akhram al-Asadi رضي الله عنه, and others. Akhram رضي الله عنه and Abu Qatadah رضي الله عنه then engaged some of the raiders, Abu Qatadah رضي الله عنه personally engaged Abdur Rahman Uyanah in a duel after Akhram has been killed by Abdurrahman before and finally able to defeat him while Salamah ibn al-Akwa, who has been engaged the invaders before Abu Qatadah رضي الله عنه arrived still fighting. shortly after that Abu Qatadah رضي الله عنه marched on to catch up with other soldiers ahead until afternoon Due to this accident Rasulullahﷺ praised both Abu Qatadah رضي الله عنه and Salamah saying:
"The best of our horse riders today is Abu Qatadah,
and the best of our footmen(infantry) is Salamah(ibn al-Akwa)."
Later in 629 AD, Rasulullahﷺ appointed Abdullah bin Atik رضي الله عنه as the leader of the expedition to assassinate Abu Rafi because he is the instigator and mediator of the tribal alliance during the battle of Khandaq. Abdullah رضي الله عنه and Abu Qatadah رضي الله عنه urged to Rasulullahﷺ they want to carry out the mission since the 'Aws tribe counterpart has successfully assassinated Ka'b ibn al-Ashraf before. Abu Qatadah رضي الله عنه and Abdullah رضي الله عنه then brought along other 3 members of Khazraj clansmen namely Mas'ud ibn Sinan, Abdullah ibn Unays and Khuza'i ibn Aswad. marching towards the fortress where Abu Rafi lives in Hijaz. they arrived at their destination during dusk. they successfully sneak out of the fortress in the night and then killed Abu Rafi before they immediately leave the place to report to Rasulullahﷺ.
In November 629, Abu Qatadah رضي الله عنه lead two military expeditions under the instruction of Rasulullahﷺ. The first was an expedition to the place of Khadirah, which took place in the 8th month of the Islamic calendar. Abu Qatadahرضي الله عنه is tasked to punish the Ghatafan tribe, as Rasulullahﷺ has been informed that the tribe is amassing their troops to attack Madinah. Abu Qatadah رضي الله عنه led about 18 men to mount the raid, which took 15 days to reach their destinations. the expedition was a success as Abu Qatadah رضي الله عنه killed and captured several members of the Ghatafan tribe during the raid while also managing to secure spoils.
This expedition, along with the Expedition of Ibn Abi Al-Awja Al-Sulami helped the growing reputation of the still infant Muslim community in Madinah as later several Arab tribes such as Banu Dzobian, Banu Fazara, Banu Murra, and Banu Abs pledged their allegiance to Rasulullahﷺ. The second expedition of Abu Qatadah رضي الله عنه occurred about one month later during Ramadhan. Rasulullahﷺ tasked Abu Qatadah رضي الله عنه to raid a place called Idam with 8 personnel in order to divert the attention in Arab soils from the plan to mobilize the entire Muslims army
During the Battle of Hunayn Abu Qatadah, رضي الله عنه has narrated the word of Rasulullahﷺ regarding those fighters who were fleeing, his contributions to the battle, and the rules pertaining to the divisions of war booty.
Another version of Sayyidina Abu Qatadah Al Ansari رضي الله عنه
Abu Qatada al-Ansari (Arabic: أبو قتادة الأنصاري) also known as Harith ibn Rab’i (Arabic: الحارث بن ربعي) was one of the companions of Prophet. Abu Qatadah رضي الله عنه was a soldier of Rasulullahﷺ’s (s) army, known as “Faris Rasul Allah (s)”. In most battles, he fought for Rasulullahﷺ. (s) and at the time of Sayyidina Ali Ibn Abi Tlib, he participated in the battles of Jamal, Siffin, and Nahrawan. Abu Qatada رضي الله عنهhas narrated from Rasulullahﷺ (s) and some others.
Abu Qatadah was born in Madinah. He hailed from Banu Sulaym, a branch of the Khazraj tribe
Abu Qatadah had a Mawla or a freed slave named “Abu Muhammad”.Presumably, he had a son named “Qatada ibn al-Harith”. His wife was Kabsha bint Kab ibn Malik.
Abu Qatada was a horseman in the army of Rasulullahﷺ (s) who was known as “Faris Rasul Allah (s)”. It is mentioned that in the Ghazwa (battle) of Ghaba when Abu Qatada killed Mas’ada in revenge of Muhriz b. Nadia, a companion of the Rasulullahﷺ (s), he is called Abu Qatadah رضي الله عنه his “Faris” (horseman).
In most Ghazwas and Sariyyas, Abu Qatadah رضي الله عنه participated but there are different opinions about his participation in the Battle of Badr. Referring to this disagreement, Ibn Athir said that he believed that Abu Qatada participated in all the battles of the Rasulullahﷺ including the Battle of Badr.
Al-Tabarani has also reported that on the eve of the day when the Battle of Badr happened, Abu Qatadah رضي الله عنه was the guard of Rasulullahﷺ. Except for the Battle of Badr, there is an agreement about his participation in the Battle of Uhud and later battles accompanying Rasulullahﷺ and even they have said that in the Battle of Uhud when he became upset of Rasulullahﷺ deep sadness due to enemies’ behavior and actions and mutilation of the martyrs and wanted to curse Quraysh, Rasulullahﷺ prohibited and ordered him to stay calm and be patient.
Abu Qatadah رضي الله عنه was a horseman in most battles and sometimes was in charge of commanding the group.
In the battle against Khawarij, Abu Qatada رضي الله عنه was among the commanders of the army and led the foot soldiers. He was also the governor of Mecca for a while during the rule of Imam ‘Ali (a).
Anas b. Malik رضي الله عنه, Sa’id b. Musayyib رضي الله عنه , ‘Ata’ b. Yasar رضي الله عنه, ‘Ali b. Riyah رضي الله عنه , ‘Abd Allah b. Riyah رضي الله عنه and some others including his sons, Thabit and ‘Abd Allah رضي الله عنه, have narrated from Abu Qatada. Many narrations have been mentioned by him in hadith references such as al-Sihah al-Sitta and Musnad Ibn Hanbal.
According to Siyar A’lam Nubala's compilation of Hadith written by Dhahabi, Abu Qatadah died in Medina in years of 45 Hijra or 665 AD.
Abu Qatadah رضي الله عنه narrated Hadiths:
Sayyidina Ali's رضي الله عنه Era (656–661)
He participated in all campaigns of Sayyidina Ali ibn Abu Thalib رضي الله عنه during his tenure as Caliph including the Battle of the Camel. when entering Basra, he was riding a powerful bay. He wore a white turban, carried a sword and a bow, and led a contingent of 1000 horsemen.(s) and at the time of Sayyidina ‘Ali رضي الله عنه, he participated in the battles of Jamal, Siffin, and Nahrawan
According to Siyar A'lam Nubala's compilation of Hadith written by Dhahabi, Abu Qatadah رضي الله عنه died in Madinah in years of 45 Hijra or 665 AD.
Legacy
Abu Qatadah رضي الله عنه was known in the Islamic scholars' community as the narrator of many hadiths quoted in several hadith collections, including Sahih Bukhari.
Abu Qatadah narrated:
A funeral procession passed by Allah's Apostle who said,
"Relieved or relieving?" The people asked, "O Allah's Apostle!
What is relieved and relieving?" He said, "A believer is relieved (by
death) from the troubles and hardships of the world and leaves for the Mercy of
Allah, while (the death of) a wicked person relieves the people, the land, the
trees, (and) the animals from him."
Abu Qatadah رضي الله عنه also narrated hadith regarding fiqh ruling of swearing-in transaction which became basis guidance for Sunni Madhhab scholars to implement Sharia law regarding communication during any economical transaction
1.
^ Shaykh Mahmud al Mishri gave
commentary to this quote that according to Saheeh Bukhari and Saheeh Muslim
which quoted by majority Muslim historians, the expedition of Dhu Qarrad
occurred three years before the battle of Khaybar[6]
2.
^ Quoting Imam
Muslim;no. 1807; al Jihad was Siyar, Fursaan min 'Ashrin
Nubuwwah; Page 293
Allahﷻ
Rasulullahﷺ
Rasulullahﷺ
رضي الله عنه
