just as Allah remained silent. We therefore say: the group that forbade the wrongdoing was saved; the group that committed the forbidden act perished and was overtaken by the punishment; and as for the silent group, Allah said nothing about them—and what is stated in the Book of Allah is sufficient for us.

186 — The Fourth Ḥadīth: ʿUbādah ibn al-Ṣāmit Abū al-Walīd (may Allah be pleased with him) said: “We pledged allegiance to the Messenger of Allah ﷺ to listen and obey, in hardship and in ease, in eagerness and in reluctance, even when others are preferred over us; and that we would not contend with those in authority unless you see manifest disbelief for which you possess from Allah unmistakable proof; and that we would speak the truth wherever we were, fearing no one’s blame for Allah’s sake.” Agreed upon.

al-manshat and al-makrah—both with an open mīm—mean ‘in ease and in hardship.’ al-atharah refers to someone’s taking for himself what is held in common; this has been explained earlier. bawāḥan—spelled bāʾ, then wāw, then alif, then hāʾ—means ‘openly and unmistakably,’ admitting no interpretation.

[Explanation]

The author—may Allah have mercy on him—said, quoting the report of ʿUbādah ibn al-Ṣāmit (may Allah be pleased with him): he said, “We pledged allegiance to the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him),” or, in another wording, “We pledged allegiance to the Messenger of Allah to listen and obey in hardship and ease, in vigor and reluctance, and even when others are favored over us.” “We pledged allegiance” means that the Companions (may Allah be pleased with them) pledged to the Messenger ﷺ that they would listen and obey the one to whom he entrusted authority