Anas bin Malik R.A
Anas bin Malik (RA) was born in Madina ten years before the Hijra (Muslim Immigration from Makkah). He gained fame as “the Servant of the Prophet,” since he was a close personal attendant to the Messenger of Allah (PBUH) for around ten years.
During the Prophet’s immigration from Makkah to Madina, Anas bin Malik was a child of ten years old. He narrates the excitement and joy of the Madinans upon the arrival of the Prophet (PBUH) with the following words: “The children of Madina were screaming: “Muhammad is coming! Muhammad is coming!” I started to run and cry out with them. Finally, the Messenger of Allah (PBUH) appeared with Abu Bakr (RA). When we saw them approaching, a man sent us back to the city, asking us to tell everybody that the Messenger of Allah had arrived. We ran back right away and informed everyone. Around five hundred Madinan hosts came out to greet them.” After the Prophet (PBUH) came to Madina, the hosts started to compete with each other to be of service to him.
Anas a great love for the Prophet (PBUH) and took great joy and pride in attending to his needs. He would wake up before everyone else in the mornings and go to the Prophet’s mosque to take care of his needs and wishes. If the Prophet (PBUH) intended to fast that day, Anas would prepare his pre-dawn meal and perform the morning prayer with him after the meal ended.
Due to his young age, Anas did not participate in the battles of Badr, Uhud, and Khandaq. However, he was present on the battlefield during Badr, attending to the Prophet (PBUH) and assisting the fighters where possible. He also took his place in the Prophet’s closest personal party during such important events as the Treaty of Hudaybiya, the Expedition of Haybar, the pilgrimage of the year 629 AD (Umrah al-Qadha), the Conquest of Mecca, the Battle of Hunayn, the Siege of Taif, and the Farewell Pilgrimage. After the death of the Prophet (PBUH), the newly-elected caliph Abu Bakr (RA) assigned Anas bin Malik to the post of alms collector and sent him to Bahrain. During the rule of the caliph Umar bin Khattab (RA), Anas was preoccupied with the education of the Muslims in Basra. He was also a member of a council of leading Companions, which was assembled by the Caliph Umar to advise and counsel him. After a brief stint in Damascus, Anas returned to Basra and continued his work. Anas managed to stay away from the political disturbances and polarization that started during the rule of the Caliph Uthman bin Affan (RA).
During the reign of the Umayyads, the rulers exerted considerable pressure on the scholars, and Anas was one of the Companions who were most affected by this pressure. He was always courageous and adamant in his struggle against oppression and injustice, and he never shrunk from telling the truth.
Another quality that distinguishes Anas is the large number of hadith he narrated. He is one of the seven Companions who are called “the Increasers” (Mukthirun) for having transmitted an extraordinarily high number of reports from the Prophet (PBUH). With approximately 2286 hadiths he narrated, Anas ranks third among the Mukthirun. 168 of his narrations are included in the canonic hadith collections of Bukhari and Muslim. Having spent the great majority of his life in Basra, Anas bin Malik (RA) died in the 93rd year of the Hijra at the age of 103.
