Always by the Side of the Holy Prophet (sa)
Narration 1
Then, there are narrations about how the Holy Prophet (sa) presented his claim before his tribe and how Hazrat Abu Bakr (ra) was always by his side. Allah the Almighty had decreed to grant dominance to His faith and bestow honour upon the Holy Prophet (sa) and fulfil His promise. Thus, during the days of Hajj, the Holy Prophet (sa) went outside and met with the Aus and Khazraj tribes of the Ansar. The Holy Prophet (sa) presented his claim before the people, as he would do so each year during the days of Hajj. In one narration, Hazrat Ali (ra) bin Abi Talib states, “When Allah the Almighty commanded the Holy Prophet (sa) to preach to the tribes of Arabia, Abu Bakr (ra) and I were with him when he set out towards Mina. We reached a gathering of the Arabs. Hazrat Abu Bakr (ra) moved ahead, and he was an expert in genealogy. He asked, ‘Which tribe do you belong to?’ They replied that they belonged to the Rabi‘ah tribe. Hazrat Abu Bakr (ra) asked, ‘Which branch of the Rabi‘ah tribe?’ They replied that they belonged to the Zuhl tribe.” Hazrat Ali (ra) further says, “We went to the gathering of the Aus and Khazraj and it was these people who were given the name of ‘Ansar’ by the Holy Prophet (sa), because they granted refuge to the Holy Prophet (sa) and said they would support him.” Hazrat Ali (ra) further says, “We left from that place once everyone had pledged allegiance to the Holy Prophet (sa).”
(Sharh al-Zurqani ala al-Mawahib al-Laduniyyah, Vol. 2, Dhikr ‘Ardh al-Mustafa’ Nafsah ala al-Qaba‘il [Beirut, Lebanon: Dar al-Kutub al-Ilmiyyah, 1996], pp. 72-74)
Narration 2
In another narration, Hazrat Ali (ra) says:
“When Allah the Almighty commanded His Prophet (sa) to present his claim before the tribes of Arabia, the Holy Prophet (sa) set out for this task. Abu Bakr and I were with him at the time. We went to a gathering which was civilised and dignified. They were honourable and noble people. Hazrat Abu Bakr (ra) asked, ‘Which tribe do you people belong to?’ To this, they replied that they belonged to Banu Shayban bin Tha‘labah. Hazrat Abu Bakr (ra) turned to the Holy Prophet (sa) and said, ‘May my mother and father be sacrificed for you! By Allah, there is not a nobler people among them.’ Among them was Mafruq bin Amr, Muthanna bin Harithah, Hani bin Qabisah and Nu‘man bin Shareek. The Holy Prophet (sa) recited the following verse to them:
قُلۡ تَعَالَوۡاْ أَتۡلُ مَا حَرَّمَ رَبُّكُمۡ عَلَيۡكُمۡۖ أَلَّا تُشۡرِكُواْ بِهِۦ شَيۡـٔٗاۖ وَبِالۡوالِدَيۡنِ إِحۡسَٰنًاۖ وَلَا تَقۡتُلُوٓاْ أَوۡلَادَكُمْ مِّنۡ إِمۡلَاقٍ نَّحۡنُ نَرۡزُقُكُمۡ وَإِيَّاهُمۡۖ وَلَا تَقۡرَبُواْ الۡفَوَاحِشَ مَا ظَهَرَ مِنۡهَا وَمَا بَطَنَۖ وَلَا تَقۡتُلُواْ النَّفۡسَ الَّتِي حَرَّمَ اللّٰهُ إِلَّا بِالۡحَقِّۚ ذَالِكُمۡ وَصّٰكُم بِهِۦ لَعَلَّكُمۡ تَعۡقِلُوْنَ
The translation of this is: “Say, ‘Come, I will rehearse to you what your Lord has forbidden: that you associate not anything as partner with Him and that you do good to parents, and that you kill not your children for fear of poverty – it is We Who provide for you and for them – and that you approach not foul deeds, whether open or secret; and that you kill not the life which Allah has made sacred, save by right. That is what He has enjoined upon you, that you may understand.’” (Ch.6: V.152)
“Upon this Mafruq said, ‘These words are not of any human, if they were, we would certainly have known it.’ The Holy Prophet (sa) then recited the following verses:
إِنَّ اللّٰهَ يَأۡمُرُ بِالۡعَدۡلِ وَالۡإِحۡسَانِ وَإِيتَآيِٕ ذِي الۡقُرۡبَىٰ وَيَنۡهَىٰ عَنِ الۡفَحۡشَآءِ وَالۡمُنكَرِ وَالۡبَغۡيِۚ يَعِظُكُمۡ لَعَلَّكُمۡ تَذَكَّرُونَ
“That is, ‘Verily, Allah enjoins justice, and the doing of good to others; and giving like kindred; and forbids indecency and manifest evil and transgression. He admonishes you that you may take heed.’ [Ch.16: V.91]
“Upon hearing this, Mafruq stated, ‘O my Quraish brother! By Allah, you have invited us towards the highest morals and good deeds. The nation which rejects you and helps one another to oppose you are indeed liars.’
“Muthanna stated, ‘O my Quraish brother! We heard what you have said and you have discoursed in an excellent manner. What you have said has greatly inspired me. However, we have an agreement with Chosroes that neither will we initiate something from our own selves nor grant refuge to anyone else who initiates something new. What you are inviting us towards is perhaps something that the kings will be displeased with. If you wish that we help you and protect you against the people dwelling in and around Arabia, then we can do this for you.’
“The Holy Prophet (sa) stated, ‘There is nothing wrong in what you have said for you have openly spoken the truth. Only those people can protect the religion of Allah, whom Allah Himself has surrounded [by His grace].’ Thereafter, the Holy Prophet (sa) took hold of Hazrat Abu Bakr’s (ra) hand and departed from there.”
(Ibn Naeem, Ma‘rifat al-Sahabah, Vol. 4, Riwayat number 6382 [Beirut, Lebanon: Dar al-Kutub al-Ilmiyyah, 2002], pp. 309-310)
Narration 3
In another narration, it is mentioned that the Holy Prophet (sa) stated, “What do you say if, in just a short span of time, Allah the Almighty shall grant you the land of Chosroes and their women shall come under your authority, will you then praise and glorify Allah the Almighty?” Upon hearing this, he stated, “By God, we are ready!”
God manifested His will in such a manner that these words of the Holy Prophet (sa) were fulfilled to the letter. The same Muthanna, who at the time was greatly overawed by the might of Chosroes and was hesitant to accept Islam lest he displeased him, soon became the commander-in-chief of the Muslim army during the era of Hazrat Abu Bakr (ra) to fight against Chosroes, that is Muthanna bin Harithah. He was the one who broke the power of the Chosroes and became the recipient of the Holy Prophet (sa) glad tidings.
(Sayyiduna Abu Bakr Siddiq (ra), Shakhsiyyat aur Karname, Urdu Tarjumah, p. 82, 84)
Narration 4
There is another narration from the occasion of Hajj wherein it states that when the tribe, Bakr bin Wail came for Hajj, the Holy Prophet (sa) stated to Hazrat Abu Bakr (ra), “Go to these people and present my message before them.”
That is, to preach to them the message of Islam and present the claims of the Holy Prophet (sa) to them.
Hazrat Abu Bakr (ra) went to those people and presented the message of the Holy Prophet (sa) before them and then the Holy Prophet (sa) gave them the message of Islam.
(Ali bin Burhan al-Din al-Halabi, Al-Sirah al-Halabiyyah, Vol. 2, Bab Dhikr ‘Ard al-Mustafa’ Nafsah ala al-Qaba‘il [Beirut, Lebanon: Dar al-Kutub al-Ilmiyyah, 2002], p. 7)