Aban Ibn Sa'id
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Aban ibn Sa'id ibn al-As (), was one of the
scribe A scribe is a person who serves as a professional copyist, especially one who made copies of manuscripts before the invention of Printing press, automatic printing. The work of scribes can involve copying manuscripts and other texts as well as ...
companions of the
Islamic Prophet Prophets in Islam () are individuals in Islam who are believed to spread God's message on Earth and serve as models of ideal human behaviour. Some prophets are categorized as messengers (; sing. , ), those who transmit divine revelation, mos ...
Muhammad Muhammad (8 June 632 CE) was an Arab religious and political leader and the founder of Islam. Muhammad in Islam, According to Islam, he was a prophet who was divinely inspired to preach and confirm the tawhid, monotheistic teachings of A ...
, who was appointed as a ruler of
Bahrain Bahrain, officially the Kingdom of Bahrain, is an island country in West Asia. Situated on the Persian Gulf, it comprises a small archipelago of 50 natural islands and an additional 33 artificial islands, centered on Bahrain Island, which mak ...
in place of Al-Ala al-Hadhrami. Ibn Abd al-Barr; ''Al-Isti'āb''; vol. 1, p. 35


Biography

Aban's father's name is Abu Uhayha Sa'id Ibn al-As and his mother's name is Hind bint Mughira. The fifth male in the upper part of his family went to Abd Mannaf and met Muhammad's dynasty. Ali ibn al-Athir; '' Usa al-Gabah''; Vol. 1, p. 35–37 His father Sa'id was a respected person of
Quraysh The Quraysh () are an Tribes of Arabia, Arab tribe who controlled Mecca before the rise of Islam. Their members were divided into ten main clans, most notably including the Banu Hashim, into which Islam's founding prophet Muhammad was born. By ...
. Sa'id had several worthy sons. Among them, Khalid and Amr converted to Islam and migrated to
Abyssinia Abyssinia (; also known as Abyssinie, Abissinia, Habessinien, or Al-Habash) was an ancient region in the Horn of Africa situated in the northern highlands of modern-day Ethiopia and Eritrea.Sven Rubenson, The survival of Ethiopian independence, ...
in the early days of Islam. al-Asqalani; '' Al-Isabah''; vol. 1, p. 13 He died in
Taif Taif (, ) is a city and governorate in Mecca Province in Saudi Arabia. Located at an elevation of in the slopes of the Hijaz Mountains, which themselves are part of the Sarat Mountains, the city has a population of 563,282 people in 2022, mak ...
as a non-Muslim in the 2nd or 3rd year of Hijri and was buried there. Aban remained a pagan with his other two brothers, Ubaidah and al-As. He was getting great pain when his two brothers converted to Islam. He expressed his pain in a poem written by him. One of his verses is as follows: Aban, along with his two other brothers, continued to oppose Muhammad and the Muslims. He left
Mecca Mecca, officially Makkah al-Mukarramah, is the capital of Mecca Province in the Hejaz region of western Saudi Arabia; it is the Holiest sites in Islam, holiest city in Islam. It is inland from Jeddah on the Red Sea, in a narrow valley above ...
with Ubayda and al-As to fight Muslims in the
Battle of Badr The Battle of Badr or sometimes called The Raid of Badr ( ; ''Ghazwahu Badr''), also referred to as The Day of the Criterion (, ; ''Yawm al-Furqan'') in the Qur'an and by Muslims, was fought on 13 March 624 CE (17 Ramadan, 2 AH), near the pre ...
. Ubayda and al-As were slain by Muslims. Aban somehow returned to Mecca with his life.


Before entering Islam

Ibn Hisham Abu Muhammad Abd al-Malik ibn Hisham ibn Ayyub al-Himyari (; died 7 May 833), known simply as Ibn Hisham, was a 9th-century Abbasid historian and scholar. He grew up in Basra, in modern-day Iraq and later moved to Egypt. Life Ibn Hisham has ...
mentions an incident related to Aban's pre-Islam life: In the pre-Islamic era, Muhammad married some of his daughters to the Quraish youth of Mecca. When Muhammad's conflict with the Quraish started, the Quraish leaders appealed to Muhammad to divorce his daughters from the son-in-laws. Muhammad's daughter Ruqayyah was the wife of Utbah ibn Abi Lahab. The Quraish said to Utbah: You divorce Muhammad's daughter. He agreed on the condition that she would divorce Ruqayyah if they could marry with him, the daughter of Aban ibn Sa'id, or the daughter of Sa'id ibn al-As. They accepted Utbah's demand and married Sa'id ibn al-As's daughter and overtook Ruqayyah from him. On the eve of the
Treaty of Hudaybiyyah The Treaty of al-Hudaybiya () was an event that took place during the lifetime of the Islamic prophet Muhammad. It was a pivotal treaty between Muhammad, representing the state of Medina, and the tribe of the Quraysh in Mecca in March 628 (corres ...
, Muhammad sent
Uthman Uthman ibn Affan (17 June 656) was the third caliph of the Rashidun Caliphate, ruling from 644 until his assassination in 656. Uthman, a second cousin, son-in-law, and notable companion of the Islamic Prophet Muhammad, played a major role ...
with his message to the Quraish in Mecca. Then Uthman was heading towards Mecca with the ' Baldah' valley. The Quraish asked him: Where to go? Uthman told them what Muhammad had told him. At that time, Aban ibn Sa'id came forward from among the Quraish and welcomed Uthman. He had a close relationship with Uthman beforehand. Aban prepared his horse and lifted Uthman on his back and took charge of his safety. Then Aban brought Uthman to Mecca. When Uthman came to Aban's house, Aban said to him: Why is this the condition of your clothes? Uthman's shirt was up to the middle of his knees aAban adds: Why don't you make your clothes as long as the people of Qaum? Uthman said: Our prophet wears a shirt like this. Aban says: You repent the Kaaba. Uthman said: We cannot do it until our Prophet does it. We just follow in his footsteps.


Coming towards Islam

Although Aban had long been hostile to the Prophet of Islam and Islam, he did not refrain from searching for the truth at this time. At that time, he used to ask wise people about Muhammad's prophecy. In those days, al-Sham or
Syria Syria, officially the Syrian Arab Republic, is a country in West Asia located in the Eastern Mediterranean and the Levant. It borders the Mediterranean Sea to the west, Turkey to Syria–Turkey border, the north, Iraq to Iraq–Syria border, t ...
was the center of wise and experienced people. Aban had a trip there for business. Once he spoke to a Christian by the name of 'Raheeb': 'I am the son of the Quraish tribe of Hijaz. A man from this tribe claims to be the nominee of Allah. He said, God has sent me as a prophet like
Jesus Jesus (AD 30 or 33), also referred to as Jesus Christ, Jesus of Nazareth, and many Names and titles of Jesus in the New Testament, other names and titles, was a 1st-century Jewish preacher and religious leader. He is the Jesus in Chris ...
and
Moses In Abrahamic religions, Moses was the Hebrews, Hebrew prophet who led the Israelites out of slavery in the The Exodus, Exodus from ancient Egypt, Egypt. He is considered the most important Prophets in Judaism, prophet in Judaism and Samaritani ...
.' Raheeb asked the man's name. Aban said: The man's name is Muhammad. Rahib explained the age, lineage, etc. of the prophet's debut, as described in the
Islamic holy books Islamic holy books are certain religious scriptures that are viewed by Muslims as having valid divine significance, in that they were authored by God (Allah) through a variety of prophets and messengers, including those who predate the Quran. Amo ...
. Hearing his statement, Aban said: All of these exist in that man. Then Raheeb said: 'By Allah, then he will spread all over the world after he dominates the whole of Arabia. When you go back, you will convey my greetings to this righteous servant of Allah.' This Rahib or priest of Sham is called 'Yakka'. This time, when Aban returned from Sham, he had no previous form. The power of opposition to Islam and Muslims is gone. Aban remained completely silent for a few days, thinking about the religion of his father and his peers and for his condemnation and ridicule. But he could not suppress the passion for truth that had arisen in him for a long time. Meanwhile, his brothers Amr and Khalid returned from Habas and contacted Aban. Then he converted to Islam before the Battle of Khaybar and migrated to
Medina Medina, officially al-Madinah al-Munawwarah (, ), also known as Taybah () and known in pre-Islamic times as Yathrib (), is the capital of Medina Province (Saudi Arabia), Medina Province in the Hejaz region of western Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, ...
. The three brothers together participated in the Khaybar expedition with Muhammad. According to another description, when Aban reached Medina, he made an emir of a small force of Muhammad and sent him to the
Najd Najd is a Historical region, historical region of the Arabian Peninsula that includes most of the central region of Saudi Arabia. It is roughly bounded by the Hejaz region to the west, the Nafud desert in Al-Jawf Province, al-Jawf to the north, ...
. When he returned to Medina after succeeding in this campaign, Khaybar's victory was over. At that time, Abu Hurayrah came to Medina along with other muhajirs of Habas. The two of them approached Muhammad together. Muhammad gave them some parts of the goods of the People's Republic of Khaybar. Apart from the Najd campaign, he received the leadership of some other small expeditions from Muhammad. Aban participated in the Ta'if expedition with Muhammad. Abu Bakr saw the tomb of Aban's father in Taif and said: God's curse to the inhabitants of this tomb, he was opposed to Allah and the Messenger. Aban and his brother, Amr, immediately protested at Abu Bakr's words and condemned his father
Abu Quhafa Uthman ibn Amir ibn Amr (, 540635 CE), commonly known by the Abu Quhafa (), was the father of the first Rashidun caliph Abu Bakr (). Family Abu Quhafa was the son of 'Amir ibn 'Amr ibn Ka'b ibn Sa'd ibn Taym ibn Murra ibn Ka'b ibn Lu'ayy ibn G ...
. Then Muhammad said: Don't abuse the dead. The living are hurt when they abuse the dead.


After death of Muhammad

Muhammad appointed Aban as a ruler of Bahrain in place of Al-Ala al-Hadhrami. He performed this duty until Muhammad's death. Hearing the news of Muhammad's death, he returned to Medina. After Muhammad's death, Abu Bakr was elected
caliph A caliphate ( ) is an institution or public office under the leadership of an Islamic steward with Khalifa, the title of caliph (; , ), a person considered a political–religious successor to the Islamic prophet Muhammad and a leader of ...
. Aban is one of the few Quraish people who have refrained from the
Bay'ah ''Bayʿah'' (, "Pledge of allegiance"), in Islamic terminology, is an oath of allegiance to a leader. It is known to have been practiced by the Islamic prophet Muhammad. In Bedouin culture it was a procedure for choosing the leader of the trib ...
for a few days even after the mass marriage is over in his hands. When Banu Hashim's people take Bay'ah, his objections are removed and he makes a statement. Abu Bakr did not remove any ruler or employee appointed by Muhammad. Aban was also a ruler appointed by Muhammad. Abu Bakr requested Aban to return to his charge. But Aban refused the caliph's request. According to some descriptions, the Aban finally took over as ruler of Yaman at repeated requests.
Ibn Sa'd Abū ‘Abd Allāh Muḥammad ibn Sa‘d ibn Manī‘ al-Baṣrī al-Hāshimī or simply Ibn Sa'd () and nicknamed ''Scribe of Waqidi'' (''Katib al-Waqidi''), was a scholar and Arabian biographer. Ibn Sa'd was born in 784/785 CE (168 AH) and di ...
explains: When Aban refused the caliph's request, one day
Umar Umar ibn al-Khattab (; ), also spelled Omar, was the second Rashidun caliph, ruling from August 634 until his assassination in 644. He succeeded Abu Bakr () and is regarded as a senior companion and father-in-law of the Islamic prophet Mu ...
said to Aban: He should not have left the workplace without the permission of the imam or the leader. Now he refuses to go back there at his behest. Aban said: By Allah! I will not work for anyone else after the Messenger of Allah. If I had done so, I would have been abu bakr's 'hope' or employee because of his dignity, his advance in Islam, etc. Abu Bakr consulted the companions on who else could be sent to Bahrain. Uthman said: Since Al-Ala al-Hadhrami was there before him, he should be sent there. Omar also said: Let Aban go there again. But Abu Bakr refused to do so. He said: Can I force anyone who says that I will not do any more work after the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him). Then Al-Ala al-Hadhrami appointed as the ruler of Bahrain.''Hayatus Sahaba''; vol. 2, p. 59


Death

There are differences among sirat experts about the duration of Aban's death. According to Musa ibn ʿUqba and most genetic experts, he died at the end of Abu Bakr's caliphate in the battle of Ajnadayn on Hijri 13 (that's 634 CE). According to
Ibn Ishaq Abu Abd Allah Muhammad ibn Ishaq ibn Yasar al-Muttalibi (; – , known simply as Ibn Ishaq, was an 8th-century Muslim historian and hagiographer who collected oral traditions that formed the basis of an important biography of the Islamic proph ...
, he died in the Yarmuk war and even according to some others on the day of Marj al-Saffar. Another description reveals that he died on 27 of Hijri during the caliphate of Uthman and under his supervision
Zayd ibn Thabit Zāyd bin Thābit () was the personal scribe of the Islamic prophet Muhammad, serving as the chief recorder of the Quranic text. He was an ansar (helper), and later joined the ranks of the Muslim army at age 19. After Muhammad's passing in 632 ...
compiled the Ottoman's manuscript. But there is ample reason to think that the first opinion is correct.


Sources

{{Authority control Companions of the Prophet 634 deaths Umayyad Caliphate Arab people of the Arab–Byzantine wars People from the Rashidun Caliphate Banu Umayya