Lives Of The Sahaba 61 - Abdullah Ibn 'Amr Ibn Al 'As

Elaborating on the life and times of Abdullah Ibn Amr Ibn Al As RA - the most ascetic amongst the Sahaba, one among the four Abadilah, Shaykh Yasir Qadhi divulges and discusses various facets associated this great Sahaba . Abdullah Ibn Amr Ibn Al As RA was born when his father Amr Ibn Al As RA was just 12 years old. He was named after his grandfather but his name was changed by the Prophet ﷺ due to its negative connotations and the Prophet ﷺ named him Abdullah saying: ‘The most beloved of names to Allah is Abdullah and Abdur Rahman.’ Abdullah Ibn Amr Ibn Al As RA is famous for primarily keeping a journal of Hadith in the lifetime of the Prophet ﷺ in which he would scribe Hadiths directly from the Prophet ﷺ. But he always sought permission from the Prophet ﷺ to do so and this request was affirmatively granted. Another magnanimous quality of Ibn Amr RA was his ultimate devotion to islam by means of extra Ibadah, memorization of the entire Qur'an in the lifetime of Muhammad ﷺ and recitation of the whole Qur'an in a single night. Also, he would fast everyday without fail and prayed Tahajjud every night. Once, Abdullah Ibn Amr RA asked the Messenger of Allah ﷺ, “O Messenger of Allah! Shall I record everything you say when you are angry or happy?” The Messenger of Allah ﷺ said: “Yes, I do not tell anything but the truth.” This is the ultimate truth since Allah SWT has explicitly stated in the Quran that the Messenger of Allah ﷺ only spoke the truth. Among other great acts was his participation in the battle of Yarmuk and the Battle of Siffin (on the insistence of Prophet ﷺ that he must obey what his father had ordained but avoided fighting of any kind) but his heart only leaned towards matters of knowledge and Qur'an and that was his ultimate calling. There are more than 700 hadiths that have been narrated by him and he is also said to have authored"Al-Sahifa al-Sadiqah" which was a Hadith compilation of glorious repute and understanding and authority. Abdullah ibn Amr RA narrated: The Messenger of Allah SAW said, “Those who are merciful will be shown mercy by the Most Merciful. Be merciful to those on the earth and the One in the heavens will have mercy upon you.” Abu Hurairah Rah said, ‘There is no one more knowledgeable of the sayings of the Messenger ﷺ except Abdullah ibn Amr. He used to preserve them in his heart and I used to preserve them in my heart; but, he used to write them down and I did not.’ Abdullah Ibn Amr RA narrated that, “I memorized the Quran and recited it all in one night. The Messenger of Allah ﷺ said: 'I am afraid that you may live a long life and that you may get bored. Recite it over the period of a month.' I said: 'Let me benefit from my strength in my youth.' He said: 'Recite it in ten days.' I said: 'Let me benefit from my strength and my youth.' He said: 'Recite it in seven days.' I said: 'Let me benefit from my strength and my youth,' but he refused (to alter it any further)." The Messenger of Allah ﷺ also added: "No one properly understands who reads the Quran in less than three days." May Allah SWT bless him and make us one like this great Sahaba.