“The best of generations is my generation, then those who follow them, then those who follow them.”

Some narrators were uncertain whether, after [his generation] (1), he mentioned two generations or three (2).

The point is that the merit and reward of deeds do not depend merely on their outward forms, but on their true realities within the hearts. People vary tremendously in this respect. This is among the arguments cited by those who rank every [individual] Companion above every person who came after them (3). The scholars agree that the Companions as a whole are superior to the Followers as a whole. But is every individual Companion superior to every individual who came after them? And is Muʿāwiyah superior to ʿUmar ibn ʿAbd al-ʿAzīz?

Qādī ʿIyād [and others] (4) reported two opinions regarding this question, stating that the majority consider every individual Companion superior. This is also reported from Ibn al-Mubārak, Ahmad ibn Hanbal, and others.

Among their arguments is that although the Followers may have performed more deeds, and although the justice of ʿUmar ibn ʿAbd al-ʿAzīz was more manifest than that of Muʿāwiyah and he was more ascetic than Muʿāwiyah, merit in Allah’s sight is determined by the true realities of faith within the hearts. The Prophet—may Allah bless him and grant him peace—said:

“If one of you were to spend gold equal to Mount Uhud, it would not amount to one mudd given by one of them, nor even half of it” (5).

They said:

We know that [some] (6) of those who came after them performed more deeds than some of them. But how can we know (7) that the faith in the former’s heart was greater than that in the latter’s, when the Prophet—may Allah bless him and grant him peace—tells us that a mountain of gold spent by those who