Sayyiduna Hishaam bin ‘Aas رَضِیَ اللہُ تَعَالٰی عَنْہُ

Shining stars

Sayyiduna Hishaam bin ‘Aas رَضِىَ الـلّٰـهُ عَـنْهُ 

Maulana Adnan Ahmad Attari

The Kunya of the erudite scholar, the possessor of goodness,^[1] the well-known horse rider and fearless warrior^[2], the Sahabi of the Messenger, Sayyiduna Hishaam bin ‘Aas رَضِىَ الـلّٰـهُ عَـنْهُ was initially ‘Abul ‘Aas (i.e. the one who disobeys),’ however, it was later changed by the Beloved Prophet صَلَّى اللهُ عَلَيْهِ وَاٰلِهٖ وَسَلَّم to ‘Abu Mutee’ (i.e. the one who obeys).’^[3] Sayyiduna Hishaam bin ‘Aas رَضِىَ الـلّٰـهُ عَـنْهُ is the younger brother of the famous Sahabi, the conqueror of Egypt, Sayyiduna ‘Amr bin ‘Aas رَضِىَ الـلّٰـهُ عَـنْهُ.^[4] His elder brother, Sayyiduna ‘Amr bin ‘Aas رَضِىَ الـلّٰـهُ عَـنْهُ accepted Islam at the beginning of the 8^th year of Hijri^[5], but he himself had accepted Islam a long time before, and became a Muslim in Makkah before his elder brother.^[6]  The Beloved Prophet صَلَّى اللهُ عَلَيْهِ وَاٰلِهٖ وَسَلَّم once testified that both brothers were believers^[7], hence, he صَلَّى اللهُ عَلَيْهِ وَاٰلِهٖ وَسَلَّم stated, ‘The sons of ‘Aas, Hishaam and ‘Amr, are both believers.’^[8]

Migration

He رَضِىَ الـلّٰـهُ عَـنْهُ migrated to the land of Ethiopia but when he رَضِىَ الـلّٰـهُ عَـنْهُ received the news of the Prophet’s migration, he رَضِىَ الـلّٰـهُ عَـنْهُ returned to Makkah. However, his non-believing father and tribe stopped him from migrating to Madinah and they imprisoned him.^[9] In one narration, it is mentioned that after returning from Makkah, he رَضِىَ الـلّٰـهُ عَـنْهُ made a promise with Ameer al-Mumineen Sayyiduna Umar al-Farooq رَضِىَ الـلّٰـهُ عَـنْهُ that he would migrate to Madinah with him, but his father imprisoned him. After the death of his father, his tribe continued to imprison him, and he tried to escape many times until he رَضِىَ الـلّٰـهُ عَـنْهُ eventually escaped and migrated to Madinah after the Battle of Khandaq [Trench] in 5 AH, where he رَضِىَ الـلّٰـهُ عَـنْهُ visited the Prophetic court.^[10]  In 8 AH, after the conquest of Makkah, the Beloved Prophet صَلَّى اللهُ عَلَيْهِ وَاٰلِهٖ وَسَلَّم despatched armies to various locations, thus, he رَضِىَ الـلّٰـهُ عَـنْهُ took an army of 200 soliders towards Yamamah.

Journey to Shaam

The first caliph of the Muslims, Ameer al-Mumineen Sayyiduna Abu Bakr Siddique رَضِىَ الـلّٰـهُ عَـنْهُ sent him as an envoy to Rome. Sayyiduna Hishaam رَضِىَ الـلّٰـهُ عَـنْهُ mentions the following about this event: During the era of the caliphate, we two companions were sent to the Emperor of Rome, Heraclius, so that we could invite him towards Islam. When we reached the Emperor of Rome, everything in the place that he was sat in was red in colour, and the things around him were red, in fact, even his clothes were red. When we came closer to him, he smiled and said, ‘If you had shown respect to me in accordance to the etiquettes that are common here, you would have lost nothing.’ We replied, ‘The etiquettes of meeting others in our religion are not Halal for you, and your etiquettes of meeting are not Halal for us.’

He asked, ‘What are the etiquettes of meeting in your religion.’ We replied, السَّلامُ عَلَیک! He then asked, ‘What etiquettes do you display before your ruler?’ We said, ‘With these very words.’ He then asked, ‘How does he reply to you?’ We said, ‘He replies with the same words.’ He asked, ‘How is your prayer and fasting?’ Thus, we informed him about prayers and fasts. After this, he made us stay in a beautiful place and called us after three days. He then called for a large four-cornered object which was covered in gold and had small drawers, and every drawer had a door. He opened one drawer, took out a picture covered in silk and said, ‘This is a picture of Sayyiduna Adam عَـلَيْـهِ الـسَّـلاَم,’ he then proceeded to open the drawers one-by-one and took out pictures of the Noble Prophets, until he asked about one of the pictures, ‘Do you know who this is a picture of?’ We said, ‘Yes, this is a picture of Muhammad, the Messenger of Allah صَلَّى اللهُ عَلَيْهِ وَاٰلِهٖ وَسَلَّم,’ and then we began to weep.

In the end, we asked the emperor, ‘From where did you get these pictures of the Noble Prophets?’ He replied, ‘Sayyiduna Adam عَـلَيْـهِ الـسَّـلاَم wished to see the Prophets from his offspring, so Allah sent down their images. These pictures were present in the place where the sun sets; they were taken from there by Sayyiduna Zul Qarnayn رَضِىَ الـلّٰـهُ عَـنْهُ and given to Sayyiduna Daniyal عَـلَيْـهِ الـسَّـلاَم.’ Then the Emperor of Rome presented gifts to us and bade us farewell. We returned and related the entire account to Sayyiduna Abu Bakr Siddique رَضِىَ الـلّٰـهُ عَـنْهُ. Upon this, Ameer al-Mumineen Sayyiduna Abu Bakr Siddique رَضِىَ الـلّٰـهُ عَـنْهُ began to weep and then said, ‘Poor man! If Allah Almighty intended good for him, He would have surely favoured him.’^[11]

Martyrdom

The Battle of Ajnadeen took place in 13 AH, on the 27^th or 28^th of Jumadi-ul-Awwal^[12], during the caliphate of Sayyiduna Abu Bakr رَضِىَ الـلّٰـهُ عَـنْهُ, and this was the first battle that took place between the Muslims and Roman, in which the commander of the Muslim army was Sayyiduna ‘Amr Bin ‘Aas رَضِىَ الـلّٰـهُ عَـنْهُ. In this battle, large numbers of Romans and Christian Arabs gathered against the Muslims, and some of the Muslims began to say to each other, ‘There is a very large army in front of you, so if you deem it appropriate, retreat and write a letter to Sayyiduna Abu Bakr Siddique رَضِىَ الـلّٰـهُ عَـنْهُ, telling him to send reinforcements.’

Hearing this, he رَضِىَ الـلّٰـهُ عَـنْهُ said, ‘If you are aware that help is only from Allah, the Most-Wise, then attack this army, and if you wait for help from Ameer al-Mumineen, I will remain mounted on my conveyance (i.e. I will continue to fight) until I meet Allah.’ Upon this, some of the fervent Muslims said, ‘Sayyiduna Hishaam Bin ‘Aas رَضِىَ الـلّٰـهُ عَـنْهُ has not left anything for you to say now.’ After this, an intense battle ensued in which many Muslims were martyred.^[13] During this sensitive situation, he رَضِىَ الـلّٰـهُ عَـنْهُ noticed that some of the Muslims were holding back from attacking the enemy, so he removed his helmet, threw it away and said, ‘These heedless people cannot bear the strike of the sword, so do as I do,’ he then fell upon the Roman army and killed many disbelievers. He continued to penetrate the ranks of the enemy whilst calling out, ‘O Muslims! I am Hishaam Bin ‘Aas (رَضِىَ الـلّٰـهُ عَـنْهُ), come towards me; Paradise is a peaceful place.’^[14]

After sending many of the Romans to Hell and fighting bravely, he رَضِىَ الـلّٰـهُ عَـنْهُ was martyred. The horses of the Romans trampled him (such that his body was separated into several parts).^[15] Allah Almighty granted victory to the Muslims in this battle. The conquering commander, Sayyiduna ‘Amr Bin ‘Aas رَضِىَ الـلّٰـهُ عَـنْهُ gathered the scattered flesh, limbs and bones of his brother in one skin and buried them.^[16]  When Sayyiduna Umar al-Farooq رَضِىَ الـلّٰـهُ عَـنْهُ received this saddening news, he رَضِىَ الـلّٰـهُ عَـنْهُ said: May Allah have mercy upon Hishaam! He was a great aider of Islam. He did not leave any children behind.^[17]

Who is the most superior?

Some people asked Sayyiduna ‘Amr Bin ‘Aas رَضِىَ الـلّٰـهُ عَـنْهُ, ‘Who is the most superior from you two brothers?’ According to one narration, he رَضِىَ الـلّٰـهُ عَـنْهُ said, ‘Once, me and my brother spent the entire night asking for martyrdom from Allah Almighty. When morning arrived, my brother attained martyrdom and I was deprived, thus, this shows that my brother was superior to me.’^[18]