Al-Naḍr—‘Uqbah ibn ‘Alqamah al-Yashkurī narrated to us: I heard ‘Alī ibn Abī Ṭālib say, “These very ears of mine heard the Messenger of Allah ﷺ say, ‘Ṭalḥah and al-Zubayr are my neighbors in Paradise.’ ”
It is also transmitted through several chains that ‘Alī said (1): “I hope that I, Ṭalḥah, al-Zubayr, and ‘Uthmān are among those of whom Allah said: ‘We removed whatever rancor was in their hearts; they will be brothers, reclining on couches, facing one another.’ [al-Ḥijr: 47].”
Ḥammād ibn Salamah related from ‘Alī ibn Zayd, from Sa‘īd ibn al-Musayyib, that a man used to revile Ṭalḥah, al-Zubayr, ‘Uthmān, and ‘Alī (may Allah be pleased with them). Sa‘d kept forbidding him, saying, “Do not speak against my brothers,” but the man refused. Sa‘d therefore rose (2), prayed two rak‘ahs, and said, “O Allah, if what he is saying angers You, then show me a sign concerning him today and make him an example for the people.” The man went out, and suddenly a bikhtī camel (3) tore through the crowd, seized him on the pavement, pinned him between its chest (4) and the ground, and crushed him to death.
Sa‘īd ibn al-Musayyib said, “I saw the people following Sa‘d, saying, ‘Congratulations, Abū Isḥāq—your supplication has been answered!’ ”
Al-Zubayr ibn al-‘Awwām ibn Khuwaylid (5) ibn Asad ibn ‘Abd al-‘Uzzā ibn Quṣayy ibn Kilāb ibn Murrah ibn Ka‘b ibn Lu’ayy ibn Ghālib ibn Fihr ibn Mālik ibn al-Naḍr ibn Kinānah, Abū ‘Abd Allah al-Qurashī al-Asadī, was the son of Ṣafiyyah bint ‘Abd al-Muṭṭalib, the aunt of the Messenger of Allah ﷺ. He embraced Islam early, at the age of fifteen—some said younger, others older. He migrated first to Abyssinia and then to Madīnah, where the Messenger of Allah ﷺ formed a bond of brotherhood between him and Salamah ibn Salamah ibn Waqsh (6). He was present at every battle.
Al-Zubayr reported: On the Day of the Confederates the Messenger of Allah ﷺ said, “Who will bring us news of the enemy?” I replied, “I will.” He then called upon the people and al-Zubayr volunteered; he called them again and al-Zubayr volunteered once more. The Messenger of Allah ﷺ then said, “Every prophet has a disciple, and my disciple is al-Zubayr.” (7) This is established in the narration of Zizz from ‘Alī (8).
It is also authentically reported that al-Zubayr said, “On the Day of Banū Qurayẓah the Messenger of Allah ﷺ combined both of his parents for me (in his invocation).”
It is related as well that he was the first person to draw a sword in the cause of Allah. That occurred in Makkah when the Companions received word that the Messenger of Allah had been killed, so he came