Minhaj as-Sunnah - Ibn Taimiya - (5/487)

Minhaj as-SunnahIbn Taimiya

This is among the matters established by mass-transmitted authentic hadiths. He continued to lead them in prayer until dawn on Monday. He led them in the Fajr prayer, and the Prophet—may Allah bless him and grant him peace—drew back the curtain and saw them praying behind Abū Bakr. When they saw him, they nearly became distracted in their prayer. He then lowered the curtain. That was their last sight of him, and he died on Monday when the morning was well advanced, shortly before midday.

It has also been said that he led them for longer than that, from (1) the preceding Friday (2), which would mean that he led them throughout the Prophet’s illness. However, (3) “the Prophet—may Allah bless him and grant him peace—came out for one prayer when he felt somewhat better. He stepped forward and placed Abū Bakr to his right. Abū Bakr followed the Prophet—may Allah bless him and grant him peace—(4), while the people followed Abū Bakr.” At the Fajr prayer on Monday, he drew back the curtain while they were praying behind Abū Bakr. His face—may Allah bless him and grant him peace—was like a page of the Quran, and he was delighted to see the people gathered in prayer behind Abū Bakr. They did not see him again after that.

It has also been said that the last prayer he performed was behind Abū Bakr. It is further said that he performed another prayer behind him as well.

How, then, could it be imagined that he ordered Abū Bakr to depart on the military expedition while also ordering him to lead the people in prayer?!

(1) The word “from” is omitted in (H) and (B). (2) (H) and (B) read: “which was said.” In (Y), a blank space the width of one word follows “preceding.” (3) In the margin of (R), beside this passage, it is written: “The text down to this point was written in the author’s own hand in the source manuscript behind the exemplar.” (4) Page 241 ends with the phrase “may Allah bless him and grant him peace.” At the bottom of the page, the following is written: “Know that the passage connected to the end of this folio—namely, the words ‘and the people’—is at the beginning of the sixth folio after it; take note.” This page was found out of place in manuscript (Y), where it occurs on p. 252.

هَذَا مِمَّا تَوَاتَرَتْ بِهِ الْأَحَادِيثُ الصَّحِيحَةُ، وَلَمْ يَزَلْ يُصَلِّي بِهِمْ إِلَى فَجْرِ يَوْمِ الِاثْنَيْنِ: صَلَّى بِهِمْ صَلَاةَ الْفَجْرِ، وَكَشَفَ النَّبِيُّ - صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ - السِّتَارَةَ، فَرَآهُمْ يُصَلُّونَ خَلْفَ أَبِي بَكْرٍ، فَلَمَّا رَأَوْهُ كَادُوا يُفَتَنُونَ فِي صَلَاتِهِمْ، ثُمَّ أَرْخَى السِّتَارَةَ. وَكَانَ ذَلِكَ آخِرُ عَهْدِهِمْ بِهِ، وَتُوُفِّيَ يَوْمَ الِاثْنَيْنِ حِينَ اشْتَدَّ الضُّحَى قَرِيبًا مِنَ الزَّوَالِ. وَقَدْ قِيلَ: إِنَّهُ صَلَّى بِهِمْ أَكْثَرَ مِنْ ذَلِكَ مِنْ (١) الْجُمُعَةِ الَّتِي قَبْلَ (٢) فَيَكُونُ قَدْ صَلَّى بِهِمْ مُدَّةَ مَرَضِهِ كُلَّهَا، لَكِنْ (٣) «خَرَجَ النَّبِيُّ - صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ - فِي صَلَاةٍ وَاحِدَةٍ لَمَّا وَجَدَ خِفَّةً فِي نَفْسِهِ، فَتَقَدَّمَ وَجَعَلَ أَبَا بَكْرٍ عَنْ يَمِينِهِ فَكَانَ أَبُو بَكْرٍ يَأْتَمُّ بِالنَّبِيِّ - صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ - (٤) ، وَالنَّاسُ يَأْتَمُّونَ بِأَبِي بَكْرٍ» ، وَقَدْ كَشَفَ السِّتَارَةَ يَوْمَ الِاثْنَيْنِ صَلَاةَ الْفَجْرِ، وَهُمْ يُصَلُّونَ خَلْفَ أَبِي بَكْرٍ، وَوَجْهُهُ - صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ - كَأَنَّهُ وَرَقَةُ مُصْحَفٍ، فُسِّرَ بِذَلِكَ لَمَّا رَأَى اجْتِمَاعَ النَّاسِ فِي الصَّلَاةِ خَلْفَ أَبِي بَكْرٍ، وَلَمْ يَرَوْهُ بَعْدَهَا. وَقَدْ قِيلَ: إِنَّ آخِرَ صَلَاةٍ صَلَّاهَا كَانَتْ خَلْفَ أَبِي بَكْرٍ. وَقِيلَ: صَلَّى خَلْفَهُ غَيْرَهَا. فَكَيْفَ يُتَصَوَّرُ أَنْ يَأْمُرَهُ بِالْخُرُوجِ فِي الْغَزَاةِ وَهُوَ يَأْمُرُهُ بِالصَّلَاةِ بِالنَّاسِ؟ !

(١) مِنْ: سَاقِطَةٌ مِنْ (ح) ، (ب) . (٢) ح، ب: الَّتِي قِيلَ، وَبَعْدَ " قَبْلَ " يُوجَدُ بَيَاضٌ بِمِقْدَارِ كَلِمَةٍ فِي (ي) . (٣) فِي هَامِشِ (ر) أَمَامَ هَذَا الْمَوْضِعِ كُتِبَ " كُتِبَ إِلَى هُنَا دُونَ بِخَطِّ الْمُصَنِّفِ فِي أَصْلِ الْأَصْلِ ". (٤) عِنْدَ عِبَارَةِ " صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ " تَنْتَهِي ص ٢٤١ وَكُتِبَ فِي أَسْفَلِ الصَّفْحَةِ مَا يَلِي: " اعْلَمْ أَنَّ الَّذِي يَلِي رَبْطَ آخَرِ هَذِهِ الْوَرَقَةِ، وَهُوَ قَوْلُهُ: وَالنَّاسُ أَوَّلَ الْوَرَقَةِ السَّادِسَةِ بَعْدَهُ فَتَنَبَّهْ "، وَوُجِدَتْ هَذِهِ الصَّفْحَةُ فِي غَيْرِ مَكَانِهَا فِي نُسْخَةِ (ي) إِذَا جَاءَتْ فِي ص ٢٥٢