Likewise, his words, “Tomorrow I shall place ⦗2/b⦘ the banner in the hand of a man whom Allah and His Messenger love, and who loves Allah and His Messenger,” are among the most rigorously authentic reports, indeed the soundest hadith transmitted concerning the virtues of ʿAlī, may Allah be pleased with him; both Ṣaḥīḥ collections record it (75). Some fabricators later interpolated the false clause, “The banner was taken by Abū Bakr and ʿUmar, but the two of them turned and fled” (76).
According to the authentic narration, when the Prophet ﷺ announced, “Tomorrow I shall give the banner to a man…,” ʿUmar said, “Never before did I desire leadership except on that day” (77). ʿUmar and others eagerly hoped for that honor, and had the chosen man been expected to retreat in defeat, no one would have coveted it. Thus the tradition refutes the Nawasib who malign ʿAlī—may Allah ennoble his face—woe to them! He was a believing, devout man who loved Allah and His Messenger, and Allah and His Messenger loved him (78). Yet this is not an exclusive distinction, for every believer whose faith is full loves Allah and His Messenger and is loved by Allah and His Messenger. The Almighty says: “Then Allah will bring a people whom He loves and who love Him” (Al-Māʾidah 54)—namely, those who fought the apostates under the command of Abū Bakr, may Allah be pleased with him. It is also authentically reported that the Prophet ﷺ said to the Helpers, “By Allah, I truly love you” (79).
In another sound report ʿAmr ibn al-ʿĀṣ (80) asked, “Who is the dearest of people to you?” He answered, “ʿĀʾishah.” ʿAmr inquired, “And from among the men?” He replied, “Her father.” This establishes that Abū Bakr was the man he loved most, a distinction unique to Abū Bakr, may Allah be pleased with him (81).
Usāmah ibn Zayd (82) was known as “the beloved, son of the beloved” because of the Prophet’s ﷺ affection for him and for his father (83). Texts such as these clarify that simply knowing someone to love Allah and His Messenger, and to be loved by Allah and His Messenger, does not of itself make that person the very best of creation; many people ⦗3/a⦘ share this description, so it is not confined to any single individual.
As for his saying, “Are you not pleased to occupy with respect to me the position of Aaron in relation to Moses?” (84), it is an authentic hadith. He uttered it during the expedition of Tabūk (85) when he left ʿAlī in charge of Madinah, whereupon certain people criticized him.
(75) Al-Bukhari, Sahih, Book of Jihad, 3/1086, no. 2812; Muslim, Sahih, Book of the Merits of the Companions, 4/1871, no. 2407. The hadith was cited earlier, but the page reference is missing because of an undefined bookmark.
(76) Al-Haythami records this report in Majmaʿ al-Zawaʾid, 9/124, from Ibn ʿAbbas through al-Tabarani and says: “Its chain contains Hakim b. Jubayr, a discarded narrator.” He also relates it from Ibn Abi Layla through al-Bazzar and adds: “Its chain contains Muhammad b. ʿAbd al-Rahman b. Abi Layla, who has a poor memory; the remaining transmitters are those of the Sahih.” The wording is: “The Prophet, peace and blessings be upon him, summoned Abu Bakr, tied a banner for him and dispatched him; he advanced with the people but was defeated. When he returned, he summoned ʿUmar, tied a banner for him and dispatched him; he too returned defeated with the people. The Messenger of Allah then said: ‘Tomorrow I shall give the banner to a man who loves Allah and His Messenger and whom Allah and His Messenger love; through him Allah will grant victory; he does not flee,’ and he sent …” (Musnad al-Bazzar, 2/135, no. 496). Al-Hafiz comments that Muhammad b. ʿAbd al-Rahman b. Abi Layla is “truthful but extremely poor in memory”; hence the hadith is weak.
(77) Muslim, Sahih, Book of the Merits of the Companions, chapter on the merits of ʿAli, 4/1871, no. 2405.
(78) Text supplied from the margin in the scribe’s handwriting.
(79) Al-Bukhari, Sahih, Book of the Virtues of the Helpers (Ansar), chapter “You are the most beloved people to me”, 3/1379, nos. 3574–3575. The wording is: “O Allah, you (the Ansar) are among the dearest of people to me,” repeated three times. In another hadith he said: “By Him in whose hand is my soul, you are the most beloved of people to me,” repeating it twice or thrice while addressing an Ansari woman. This is all I have found of the author’s wording in the Six Books; Allah knows best.
(80) Al-Sahmi: a well-known Companion; he embraced Islam at Hudaybiyya, governed Egypt twice and led its conquest. He died there in the early 40s AH (Taqrib, p. 423).
(81) Al-Bukhari, Sahih, Book of the Merits of the Companions, chapter on the excellence of Abu Bakr after the Prophet, 7/22, no. 3662; Muslim, Sahih, Book of the Merits of the Companions, chapter on the merits of Abu Bakr al-Siddiq, 4/1856, no. 2384.
(82) Ibn Haritha al-Kalbi, a commander and famous Companion; he died in 54 AH in Madina (Taqrib, p. 98).
(83) Al-Bukhari, Sahih, Book of the Merits of the Companions, chapter on the virtues of Zayd b. Haritha, 3/1365, nos. 3524 and 3526.
(84) This hadith was already cited on p. 1246, note 40.
(85) Tabuk: a locality between Wadi al-Qura and Syria. The Prophet, peace and blessings be upon him, marched there in the ninth year after the Hijra; it was his last expedition. Today Tabuk is a large city, the administrative centre of the north-west of the Kingdom, about 700 km from Madina (Muʿjam al-Buldan, 2/14; North-West of the Kingdom, 1/349).