Sa'id ibn Zayd

Sa'id ibn Zayd, (Arabic: سعيد بن زيد), was one of the "Sahābah" (ArB|الصحابة "companions"), the companions of Muhammad. He is also nicknamed "Abu-al-Aawar". He was from the one of The Ten Promised Paradise.

Family

*Said ibn Zayd was the son of Zayd ibn Amr.

*Khattab ibn Nufayl was the father of Umar ibn al-Khattab, the second Sunni Caliph.

*Sa'id's grandfather, Amr ibn Nufayl was the brother and also the stepfather of Khattab ibn Nufayl, since Sa'id's great grandmother (who was also his grandmother) married one of her sons (Sa'id's grandfather) after becoming a widow. Thus, Said's grandmother and great grandmother were the same woman; she came from the Fehm tribe known as San'a.

*Before Islam, Said ibn Zayd was a hanif, the monotheistic tradition of Abraham, and hence never worshipped idols and used to mock his uncle Khattab ibn Nufayl for worshipping idols, which made him the object of his uncle's wrath.

*He eventually married Fatimah bint al-Khattab, and both became Muslims and hid their faith from Umar, the wife's brother, until the wife managed to contribute to Umar becoming a Muslim as well.

Background

Said ib Zaid enjoys the odd distinction among the companions of Islamic prophet Muhammad in that his father, Zaid, hated idolatry and its attendant evils even before the advent of Islam.

His Father – A Seeker of Truth

Zaid (Zayd) was so temperate that even before the advent of Islam he refused to accept the meat offered to gods as sacrifice and said boldly, “I do not partake of the meat of animals sacrified to your gods……”

Although he did not believe in idol-worship, he wondered about the path that leads to one God. He travelled far and wide in search of the truth. He met the learned rabbis among the Jews.

He visited Christian priests and put before them his spiritual dilemma. They said, “You will find pure ‘"Tawhid"' (belief in one God) only in "Deen-e-Haneef". Zaid said, “What is Deen-e-Haneef?” They explained, “Deen-e-Haneef is the religion of Ibrahim (Abraham)”.

Zaid returned to Makkah with the name of "Deen-e-Ibrahim" and a great curiosity for it. People would see him often sitting with his back to the wall under the Ka'aba, and saying “By Allah, none among you, besides me, adheres to the religion of Ibrahim.”

As he was passing through the territory of Lakhm on the southern border of Syria he was attacked by a group of nomadic Arabs and killed before he could set eyes on Muhammed. However, before he breathed his last, he raised his eyes to the heavens and said:"O Lord, if You have prevented me from attaining this goodness, do not prevent my son from doing so."This pious man died with a burning desire in his heart to see "Deen-e-Hanif" in its complete and pure form.

Hardships after Conversion to Islam

His son, Sa'id ibn Zayd responded zealously to the call of "Deen-e-Ibrahim" (Islam) in its complete form as presented by Muhammad. To him, the call to "Tawhid" was not unfamiliar. His faithful wife also joined him in embracing Islam.

Those were the days when the pagans of Makkah could not tolerate anybody embracing Islam, especially, when a person from their own family turned Muslim, the other members of the clan considered it a mark of personal shame before their friends and relatives.

Hence the person who inflicted the most painful torture upon his Muslim relation was often his non-believer father, brother or some other close relative.

The wife of Said (Allah be pleased with him), Fatimah, was the sister of ‘Umar. The sister of Umar got the treasure of Islam through her husband but the brother embraced Islam through his sister.

It is an awe-inspiring event of history. The Makkans pressed ‘Umar to kill Muhammad. ‘Umar took his sword and went out to find Muhammad. On the way he met a friend who said, “Where are you going ‘Umar ?” “I am going to kill Muhammad", said ‘Umar. “Well, look to your own house first. Go and see your own sister and husband. They have embraced Islam” taunted the friend. These words added fuel to his rage. ‘Umar went to his brother-in-law’s house in a frenzy. He began to beat his brother-in-law, Said ibn Zayd, mercilessly. When Fatimah her sister saw her brother’s cruelty and her husband’s perseverance, she came forward to intercede. ‘Umar became more enraged, and he beat his sister even more. The sister said very boldly. “O ‘Umar ! You may take our lives but you cannot take Islam out of our hearts. If you do not follow the truth, your Creator will extract vengeance from you.”

Seeing the fortitude of his sister and brother-in-law, Umar stood aghast. His sister’s words moved his heart. He grew calm, and said, “Then let me listen to what you were reading.” Said ibn Zayd recited some verses from the Qur’an. The time had come. So when he pondered over the meaning of those verses, he was altogether changed. He had come to slay his sister and her husband, but when he got up to depart, the truth of Islam had fully dawned upon him. He had no way out but to go to Muhammad and embrace Islam. Thus, Said ibn Zayd became an instrument to lead ‘Umar to embrace Islam.

During the lifetime of Muhammed

History record that Said ibn Zayd was a pious man and he never did anything throughout his life against the teachings of Muhammad. It is a said that ‘Said always covered Muhammad keeping himself ahead and in front of him in battle and always stood behind him in prayers. He took part in a number of battles, even after the death of Muhammad, for the sake of Islam, and fought very bravely.

He participated in all of the battles in which Muhammad participated personally with the exception of the battle of Badr.Muhammad had sent Talha and Sa'id ibn Zayd to get information on the movement of the Quraysh army. They missed the Quraysh army and by the time they returned, the battle had been won by the Muslims. However, both of them were given their share of the war trophies of the battle.

During the time of the Caliphs

Said ibn Zayd was offered the office of a Governor on account of his courage and administrative abilities, but he did not accept it.

Once he was appointed Governor of Damascus without his consent. He wrote to Abu ‘Ubaidah, “I am unable to offer such a sacrifice. You will perform Jihad while I will be deprived of it. Please send someone else to replace me as soon as you receive this letter. I am coming to you soon.” Later, he fought as an ordinary soldier in all the battles which were waged for the cause of Islam.

He is said to have passed the rest of his life in perfect peace and did not ever incline towards the mundane pleasures of life.

He disliked taking oaths. Once he had to attend a court of law in connection with a suit. The judge asked him to speak on oath. He withdrew his case and abandoned his claim. His submission to faith, his fear of Allah, and his services for the cause of Islam, earned him the glad tidings from Muhammad during his lifetime that he would enter the Eternal Gardens in the life hereafter.

Death

He died aged seventy in 671AD

Legacy

Sunnis praise him as one of The Ten Promised Paradise.

ee also

*Family tree of Said ibn Zayd
*Sahaba
*Umar

References

External links

*http://www.youngmuslims.ca/online_library/companions_of_the_prophet/SaidZayd.html
*http://www.witness-pioneer.org/vil/Articles/companion/02_abu_bakr.htm