Righteous Path…

Hazrat Bilaal (Allah be pleased with him)

Bilal Ibn Rabah, the first Muazzin of Islam, was one of the most trusted and loyal companion of Holy Prophet Muhammad (S.A.W.).He was a true model of the morals and customs of Islam. He cherished unbounded love for the Holy Prophet (S.A.W.) and was deeply devoted to Islam. He was a staunch foe of the infidels and idolaters but this involved no personal feelings. He held the infidels in deep contempt because they were the enemies of Islam and the Holy Prophet (S.A.W.). His father was an Arab hut his mother was an Abyssinian. His fathers name was Rabah and his mother was called Hamama. Bilal (R.A.A.) was brought up at Mecca, in a well known Quraishi tribe called Abu Jamah. During the Days of Ignorance, the members of this tribe were thought as experts in palmistry-reading the lines of hands. They also drew out lots with the help of arrows. Bilal (R.A.A.) had a natural hatred against the customs and practices prevailing in the Days of Ignorance, The people in those days were devoid of good morals, kindness and of other human values, deceit had become their second nature. He has no wealth, no office and no authority. He was only slave. Hadrat Bilal was passing his life as a slave when the streets of Mecca echoed with the message of Tuhid (belief in one Allah). The Holy Prophet (peace be upon him) gave His call to liberate humanity from all sorts of slavery.

He exhorted:

“Slavery is to Allah only. He has created us; He has favor us with food to eat; He has provided us with all the necessaries of life. Hence our real Master is Allah. All that conforms with the will of Allah is right. If our desires are subject to Allah’s commandments, they are worth implementation otherwise not. If our family customs and traditions are governed by the Will of Allah, they are agreeable otherwise they are worthless. If the orders of a human beings to his fellow human beings are in conformity with the dictates of Allah, they are worth submission, otherwise not “Hadrat Bilal was the slave of the most cruel person of Mecca, Umaayya bin Khalaf. The call for belief in one Allah and the teaching of the Holy Prophet had such a deep effect on him that he could not restrain himself for even a moment and he at once cried out:

(Ash hado An La Illal-lahowa-Ash hado Anna Muhammad-dar Rassol ullah) Meaning:I stand witness to the fact that there is no God except Allah and I stand witness that Muhammad (Peace be upon him) is the Prophet of Allah.

How could Umaayya bin Khalaf tolerate that his slave bow to one God. Bilal (Allah be pleased with him) had to pay heavily for it. Umaayya bin Khalaf inflicted so much torment and torture upon him that its details make us shudder even today. Would lay Bilal on the burning sand of the Arabian Desert, or on hot pub hot bed of burning coal. He would tie a bless and cord round his neck and would hand over the end of it to ruffians of the city to drag him all around. Bilal (Allah be pleased with him) utter the words ‘Ahad! Ahad!’’, even in that unbearable torture to the utter disgust of his master, who now laid him down on burning sand, face downwards, and put a heavy stone upon his back. At about noon when Bilal (Allah be pleased with him) fainted, the master said, “Bilal! It is still time that you leave Allah of Muhammad (Peace be upon him)! ”. Bilal (Allah be pleased with him) unmindful of the torments, still utter the words ‘Ahad! Ahad! ’’, his master invented some heinous torments. He would sometimes pack him in a cow’s shin; sometime he would put on his person an iron armour and would lay him down in sever heat of the sun, and not satisfied even with that he would beat him severely and force him to admit that Laat and Uzza were his Gods. But the devotee of Allah could say nothing but ‘Ahad! Ahad! ’’ (Allah is one). The injuries inflicted upon his person could even melt the stones; and even the nonbelievers of Mecca felt sympathy for him and said, “Bilal! If you only repeat the words we say, we will press your master to stop torturing you”. But Bilal said, “My tongue is unable to repeat those words”. As a result the sympathizers were it and left him alone; but neither was Umaayya  tired of tormenting Bilal, not Bilal of suffering the torments.

When Hadrat Bilal (Allah be pleased with him) bore the burnt of the tortures and torments with courage and perseverance and proved his mental, Allah, the almighty took him out of the great ordeal. Hadrat Abu Bakr (Allah be pleased with him) was a very kind hearted person of Mecca. Though wealthy, he did not posses the mentality of a capitalist. He had already embraced Islam. He was passing by when he heard the call, ‘Ahad! Ahad! ’’. He saw the painful condition to Bilal and was grieved; ad purchased him from his master, after paying a heavy price and set him free.

When the Holy Prophet (S.A.W.) granted permission to his companions to migrate, Bilal, along with the other companions of the Holy Prophet (S.A.W.), migrated to Medina In medina, the Holy Prophet (peace be upon him) constructed the Holy Mosque. Hadrat Bilal was entrusted with the duty of announcing the adhan five times a day. And, thus, the tongue which had refused to move for uttering words of respect to the idols came into action now. Allah had been bountiful in giving Bilal a voice very loud and melodeons. Persons, intoxicated with the love of Islam, were enchanted on hearing it. Men left their business, women came out of their houses, and children stopped playing, to gather in the mosque, and then all of them, young or old, stood shoulder to shoulder to bow before Allah.Hadrat Bilal (Allah be pleased with him) was not only a Muadhdhin for the Holy Prophet (Peace be upon him), he was also his confidant. He was always with the Holy Prophet (Peace be upon him) to every place and walked a few paces ahead of him with a spear in his hand. When the Holy Prophet (Peace be upon him) enter the Ka’aba after the conquest of the city, Hadrat Bilal had the honor of accompanying him. Hadrat Bilal looked to the management of the Holy Prophet’s (Peace be upon him) household affairs. He was with him in all the military campaigns. He killed the greatest enemy of Islam Umaayya bin Khalaf, inthe battle of Badr. He followed the footsteps of the Prophet of Allah (Peace be upon him) throughout his life. In course of time he was elevated to a position of great esteem in the society and the high and respectable families wished him to marry in their families. The Holy Prophet (Peace be upon him) himself performed his Nikah ceremony with the daughter of Hadrat Abu Bukair.

Relationship with the Caliphs after the demise of the Holy Prophet (Peace be upon him):

 The first Caliph Hadrat Abu Bakr (Allah be pleased with him) never kept Hadrat Bilal away from himself. One day Hadrat Bilal said to him, “I have heard the Prophet of Allah (Peace be upon him)” say that the best work for a good Muslim is to go for Jehad in the way of Allah. So I wish that I should engage myself in this sac work till the end of my life, I request that I may be allowed to go on some expedition” Hadrat Abu Bakr (Allah be pleased with him) said, “O Bilal! In the name of Allah and my right over you, do you leave me alone in this old age? When Hadrat Bilal (Allah be pleased with him) heard theses affectionate words he did not insist”.  During the reign of Hadrat Umar Farooq (Allah be pleased with him), Hadrat Bilal Again sought permission for Jehad. He also wanted to stop Bilal but did not succeed in persuading him to stay in Medina. So Bilal (Allah be pleased with him) joined the expedition to Syria.

Hadrat Umar (Allah be pleased with him) used to say, “Abu Bakr (Allah be pleased with him) was our leader, and he has set our leader Bilal (Allah be pleased with him) free.

 Once the second caliph, Hadrat Umar Farooq (Allah be pleased with him) was sitting with some friends. In the course of their talk they decided that every one present should express his choicest desire. So one of them said, “I wish Allah may bestow upon me gold worth the mountain of Uhud in weight, so that I may spend it name of Allah to seek His pleasure.” another person said, “My desire is that Allah may favor me with a number of slave girls, so that I may set them free to seek His pleasure”. Some other person dies for martyrdom to win an abode in the Eternal Gardens; another person wished to go on Jehad, and still another person dies to perform a faultless Hajj. But, when to was the turn of Hadrat Umar Farooq (Allah be pleased with him), he said, “May Allah fill this house with saints like Bilal, Salman Farsi, Khubaib and Suhaib (Allah be pleased with him) and I may sit amongst them.” This shows what esteem Hadrat Bilal enjoyed in Hadrat Umar’s (Allah be pleased with him) eyes.

Narrated Abu Huraira: At the time of the Fajr prayer the Prophet asked bilal, “Tell me of the best deed you did after embracing Islam, for I heard your footsteps in front of me in Paradise.” bilal replied, “I did not do anything worth mentioning except that whenever I performed ablution during the day or night, I prayed after that ablution as much as was written for me.”  (Book #21, Hadith #250) [ Shai Muslim ]

 Before the death, he saw the Holy Prophet (Peace be upon him) in his dream, saying, “O Bilal! How long this uninteresting life! Has not the time come that we meet again?” when he got up, he was in highly excited state of mind. On his deathbed he was very glad at the prospect of meeting his master, the Prophet (S.A.W.) and his companions who had already gone to the next world. When his wife cried out by his bedside and began to weep bitterly, he comforted her saying: “Do not cry. Why do you weep! l am looking forward to see my master, the Prophet (S.A.W.) and other companions after such a long reparation. If Allah wills I shall meet them all tomorrow.” And he really expired the day after. Seeing the various aspects of Bilals life we come to the clear conclusion that the most prominent feature of his life was his complete honesty and integrity. It was on this account that the Holy Prophet (S.A.W.) had entrusted to Bilal the management of the Baitul Mal (State Treasury). He was also in charge of the house hold of the Prophet (S.A.W.). He remained close at hand even at the time of the Prophets departure for heavenly home and was included among the selected few who performed the funeral rites of the Prophet (S.A.W.).

Bilal, because of his sincerity, was an extremist by nature. He loved intensely and hated intensely. He loved intensely Allah and His Prophet (S.A.W.) and was deeply devoted to Islam, but he was, at the same time, a staunch foe of the infidels and polytheists, and he never tried to hide his feelings and contempt for them. Bilal (R.A.A.) left no legacy in the form of material wealth or offsprings, but he left a spiritual memorial which is unique in the world, that is Azan. The call to prayer has been recited continuously in the world, for the last fourteen hundred years of Islam, and as the people hear the call it recalls to mind the memory of the First Muazzin of Islam, Bilal bin Rabah (Radia Allahu Anhu).   May Allah shower his choicest blessings upon him for his piety and nobility of character? And, may Allah bless all those who love and follow the Holy Prophet (Peace be upon him) as did the devoted companies of the Holy Prophet (Peace be upon him).