Ibn Abbas

ʿAbd Allāh ibn ʿAbbās (Template:Langx; c. 619 – 687 CE), also known as Ibn ʿAbbās, was one of the cousins of the prophet Muhammad. He is considered to be the greatest mufassir of the Qur'an.<ref name="EB">Template:Cite encyclopedia</ref><ref>Ludwig W. Adamec (2009), Historical Dictionary of Islam, p.134. Scarecrow Press. Template:ISBN.</ref>

He was the son of Abbas ibn Abd al-Muttalib, an uncle of Muhammad, and a nephew of Maymunah bint al-Harith, who later became Muhammad's wife. During the early struggles for the caliphate he supported Ali, and was made governor of Basra. He withdrew to Mecca shortly afterwards. During the reign of Mu'awiya I he lived in Hejaz and often travelled to Damascus. After Mu'awiya I died in 680 CE he migrated to At-Ta'if, where he is resting from around 687 CE.<ref name=EB/><ref>There is uncertainty as to the actual year of his death. Some sources state either 687 or 688.</ref>

'Abd Allah ibn Abbas was highly regarded for his knowledge of traditions and his critical interpretation of the Qur'an. From early on, he gathered information from other companions of Muhammad and gave classes and wrote commentaries.<ref name=EB/>

Biography

File:مسجد عبدالله بن عباس.jpg

Masjid Abdullah bin Abbas (Template:Coord) in the Hejazi city of At-Ta'if

Family

He was the third son of a wealthy merchant, Al-'Abbas ibn 'Abd al-Muttalib, thus he was called Ibn Abbas (the son of Abbas). His mother was Umm al-Fadl Lubaba, who prided herself in being the second woman who converted to Islam, on the same day as her close friend Khadijah bint Khuwaylid, Muhammad's wife.<ref>Marriage to a 'past': Parents should not reject a proposal without a good reason – and being a revert with a past is not an acceptable one</ref>

The father of Ibn Abbas and the father of Muhammad were both sons of Shaiba ibn Hashim, better known as 'Abdul-Muṭṭalib. Shaiba bin Hashim's father was Hashim ibn Abd Manaf, the progenitor of the clain of Banu Hashim of the tribe of Quraysh in Mecca.Template:Citation needed

619–632: Muhammad's era

Ibn Abbas was born in 3 BH (619–620 C.E.) and his mother took him to Muhammad before he had begun to suckle. This event represented the beginning of a close relationship between them.<ref name="usc"/>

As he grew up, he was by Muhammad's side doing different services like fetching water for ablution (Template:Langx). He would pray (Template:Langx) with Muhammad and follow him on his assemblies, journeys and expeditions. It is said that Muhammad would often draw him close, pat him on the shoulder and pray, "O God! Teach him (the knowledge of) the Book (Qur'an) ".<ref>Template:Hadith-usc</ref> Muhammad had also supplicated for him to attain discernment in religion.<ref>Sahih Muslim (#6523)</ref> Ibn Abbas kept following Muhammad, memorizing and learning his teaching.<ref name="usc"/>

Muhammad's statement

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In Template:AH, Muhammad fell into his last illness. During this period, the Hadith of the pen and paper was reported, with Ibn Abbas as the first-level narrator, at that time about twelve years old.<ref name=understanding>Regarding Omar's Refusal to Give the Prophet a Pen to Write his Will!!!Template:Dead link</ref> Days after that, Abbas and Ali supported Muhammad's weight on their shoulder, as Muhammad was too weak to walk unaided.<ref>Template:Hadith-usc, Template:Hadith-usc, Template:Hadith-usc,Template:Hadith-usc</ref>

632–634: Abu Bakr's era

Inheritance from Muhammad

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Ibn 'Abbas was thirteen years old when Abu Bakr came to power.

Continued education

After Muhammad's era, he continued to collect and learn Muhammad's teaching from Muhammad's companions (Template:Langx), especially those who knew him the longest. He would consult multiple Sahaba to confirm narrations, and would go to as many as thirty Companions to verify a single matter,<ref name="usc"/> once he heard that a Sahaba knew a hadith unknown to him:<ref name="usc"/> Template:QuoteHadith

In addition to his own scholarship, Ibn Abbas was a teacher. His house from where he taught became the equivalent of a university.<ref name="usc"/>

One of his companions described a typical scene in front of his house:

I saw people converging on the roads leading to his house until there was hardly any room in front of his house. I went in and told him about the crowds of people at his door and he said: 'Get me water for wudu.'

He performed wudu and, seating himself, said: 'Go out and say to them: Whoever wants to ask about the Qur'an and its letters (pronunciation) let him enter.'

This I did and people entered until the house was filled. Whatever he was asked, Abdullah was able to elucidate and even provide additional information to what was asked. Then (to his students) he said: 'Make way for your brothers.'

Then to me he said: 'Go out and say: Who wants to ask about the Quran and its interpretation, let him enter'.

Again the house was filled and Abdullah elucidated and provided more information than what was requested.<ref name="usc"/>{{#if:|{{#if:|}}

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He held classes on one single subject each day. His classes covered topics such as tafsir, fiqh, Halal and Haraam, ghazawa, poetry, Arab history before Islam, inheritance laws, Arabic language and etymology.<ref name="usc"/>

634–644: Umar's era

Advising Umar

Umar often sought the advice of Ibn Abbas on important matters of state and described him as a "young man of maturity":<ref name="usc"/>

The Sahaba Sa`d ibn Abi Waqqas said:

I have never seen someone who was quicker in understanding, who had more knowledge and greater wisdom than Ibn Abbas. I have seen Umar summon him to discuss difficult problems in the presence of veterans of Badr from among the Muhajirin and Ansar. Ibn Abbas would speak and Umar would not disregard what he had to say.<ref name="usc"/>{{#if:|{{#if:|}}

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656–661: Ali's era

Battle of Siffin

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Ibn Abbas remained a staunch supporter of his cousin Ali ibn Abi Talib during his war with Muawiyah, including at the Battle of Siffin. He had also been given the position of governor of Basra during Ali's reign as Caliph.Template:Citation needed

A large group of Ali's army were discontented with the outcome of Ali's war with Muawiyah, and broke off into a separate group that became known as the Khawarij or Kharijites. Ibn Abbas played a key role in convincing a large number of them to return to Ali; 20,000 of 24,000 according to some sources. He did so using his knowledge of Muhammad's biography, in particular, the events of the Treaty of Hudaybiyyah.<ref name="usc"/>

680–683: Yazid's era

Sunnis believe that ibn Abbas was in favour of the unity of the Muslims and hence did not revolt against rulers. He advised Husayn ibn Ali against his proposed expedition to Kufa that ended at Karbala.

Wives and children

By a Yemenite princess named Zahra bint Mishrah, Ibn Abbas had seven children:

1. Al-Abbas, the first born, who was childless.
2. Ali ibn Abdullah (died 736), who was the grandfather of the first two Abbasid caliphs, who replaced the Umayyads as rulers of Caliphate in 750.
3. Muhammad, who was childless.
4. Ubaydullah, who was childless.
5. Al-Fadl, who was childless. (Riverine Sudanese trace their ancestry to al-Fadl through a son named Saeed, whose mother is said to be from the Ansar).
6. Saad had two children
7. Lubaba, who married Ali ibn Abdullah ibn Jaafar and had descendants.

He had another daughter, Asma, by a concubine; she married her cousin Abdullah ibn Ubaydullah ibn Abbas and had two sons.<ref>Tabari, vol. 39, pp. 54-55.</ref>

Hadith transmitted

Ibn Abbas narrated that Muhammad said, "Two favours are treated unjustly by most people: health and free time." (from Sahih Bukhari, at-Tirmidhi, ibn Majah and al-Nasa'i)Template:Citation needed

Ibn Abbas reported: Muhammad said, "He who does not memorize any part from the Qur'an, he is like the ruined house." (from Tirmidhi)Template:Citation needed

On the authority of Ibn Abbas, who said, "One day I was behind (i.e. riding behind him on the same mount) the Prophet and he said to me: 'Young man, I shall teach you some words (of advice). Be mindful of Allah, and Allah will protect you. Be mindful of Allah, and you will find Him in front of you. If you ask, ask of Allah; if you seek help, seek help of Allah. Know that if the nations were to gather together to benefit you with anything, they would benefit you only with something that Allah had already prescribed for you, and if they gather together to harm you with anything, they would harm you only with something Allah had already prescribed for you. The pens have been lifted and the pages have dried." (from Tirmidhi)

Al Hakim records on the authority of ibn Abbas that Muhammad advanced, carrying upon his back Hassan ibn Ali, and a man met him and said, 'an excellent steed thou ridest, lad!'. Muhammad replied, 'and he is an excellent rider.'Template:Citation needed

Ali ibn Husam Adin (commonly known as al-Mutaki al-Hindi) records that ibn Abbas narrated that Muhammad said the following about his deceased aunt Fatima, the mother of Ali: "I (Muhammad) put on her my shirt that she may wear the clothes of heaven, and I lay in her grave that I may lessen the pressure of the grave. She was the best of Allah’s creatures to me after Abu Talib".Template:Citation needed

Legacy

Masruq ibn al Ajda said of him:

Whenever I saw Ibn Abbas, I would say: He is the most handsome of men. When he spoke, I would say: He is the most eloquent of men. And when he held a conversation, I would say: He is the most knowledgeable of men."<ref name="usc"/>{{#if:|{{#if:|}}

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Descendants

The genealogy of the Abbasids including their rival Zaydi imams
Template:Color sample Caliphs of the Abbasid Caliphate Template:Color sample Caliphs of Cairo Template:Color sample Zaydi imams

Views

Ibn Abbas viewed that Tafsir can be divided in four categories:<ref>Interpreting The Text</ref>

• The category the Arabs knew because of its language
• Those of ignorance, of which no one will be excused
• Those the scholars know
• Those no one knows except Allah (Template:Langx Template:Transliteration)

Sunni view him as the most knowledgeable of the Companions in tafsir. A book entitled Tanwir al-Miqbas min Tafsir Ibn Abbas is tafsir, all explanations of which may go back to Ibn Abbas.<ref name="usc"/> Of all narrations transmitted by Ibn Abbas, 1660 were considered authentic (Template:Langx) by the authors of the two Sahihs.<ref name="usc"/><ref>Reliance of the Traveller by Ahmad al-Misr, (A Classic Manual of Islamic Sacred Law), translated by Nuh Ha Mim Keller, published by Amana publications, Beltsville, Maryland, USA 1991</ref>Template:Page needed

Regarding Ibn Abbas giving verdicts (Template:Langx) in favor of Nikah Mut'ah, most Sunnis view that Ali corrected him on the matter, while other view that "Ibn Abbas position on the permissibility of Mut'ah until his last day is proven" per the Hadith of Ibn al-Zubayr and Mut'ah.<ref>Fatih al-Qadir by Muhammad ash-Shawkani, Sharh Hidaya Volume 3 p. 51</ref>

Sunnis describe thus:

... the courageous Abdullah showed that he preferred peace above war, and logic against force and violence. However, he was not only known for his courage, his perceptive thought and his vast knowledge. He was also known for his great generosity and hospitality. Some of his contemporaries said of his household: "We have not seen a house with more food or drink or fruit or knowledge than the house of Ibn Abbas."

He had a genuine and abiding concern for people. He was thoughtful and caring. He once said: "When I realize the importance of a verse of God's Book, I would wish that all people should know what I know.

"When I hear of a Muslim ruler who deals equitably and rules justly, I am happy on his account and I pray for him...

"When I hear of rains that fall on the land of Muslims, that fills me with happiness..."

Abdullah ibn Abbas was constant in his devotions. He kept voluntary fasts regularly and often stayed up at night in Prayer. He would weep while praying and reading the Quran. And when reciting verses dealing with death, resurrection and the life hereafter his voice would be heavy from deep sobbing.<ref name="usc"/>{{#if:|{{#if:|}}

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See also

• List of Islamic scholars
• Sunni view of the Sahaba
• List of Sahabah

External links

• Hadith by Abdullah Ibn Abbas Collected By Bukhari