The Status of the Ansar & their Tribes
Hazrat Jabir bin Abdullah bin Amr bin Haram (ra) relates, “My father once instructed me to prepare some Harira and I did so.”
Harira is a famous dish which is prepared from flour, butter and water. However, according to the lexicon of Hadith, Harira is prepared from flour and milk. In any case, he relates: “Upon my father’s instruction I took the Harira and presented it before the Holy Prophet (sa). The Holy Prophet (sa) was in his residence at the time and asked, ‘O Jabir, is this meat?’ I submitted, ‘O Messenger (sa) of Allah, no, it is Harira. I prepared this upon the instructions of my father, who then told me to present this before you, and so I have come.’ After this, I returned to my father and he asked whether I saw the Holy Prophet (sa). I replied that I did and my father then enquired whether the Holy Prophet (sa) said anything to me. I told my father that the Holy Prophet (sa) asked me whether it was meat that I had brought. Upon hearing this, my father thought that perhaps the Holy Prophet (sa) desired to eat meat and so slaughtered a goat and then cooked its meat and told me to take it and present it before the Holy Prophet (sa).”
Hazrat Jabir (ra) continues to relate: “I presented the goat meat before the Holy Prophet (sa) and the Holy Prophet (sa) stated, ‘O Allah! Grant reward to the Ansar from me, particularly Abdullah (ra) bin Amr bin Haram and Sa‘d (ra) bin Ubadah.’”
(al-Mustadrak Ala al-Sahihain, Vol. 5, pp. 39-40, Kitabul At’imah, Dar-ul-Fikr, Beirut, 2001) (Fath-ul-Bari, Kitabul At‘imah Vol. 9, p. 678, Qadimi Kutub Khana, Karachi) (Jahangeer Urdu Lughat, p. 649, Jahangeer Books, Lahore) (Lexicon, part 2 p. 539 London 1865)
Hazrat Abu Usaid (ra) relates that the Holy Prophet (sa) once stated that the best households among the Ansar were from the tribes of the Banu Najjar, Banu Abd Ash‘al, Banu Harith bin Khazraj and then Banu Sa‘idah and that every house of the Ansar was full of goodness. This tradition is from Sahih al-Bukhari. Upon hearing this, Hazrat Sa‘d (ra) bin Ubadah, who was from among the prominent companions (ra) in Islam, stated that it seemed as if the Holy Prophet (sa) held the other households of the other tribes superior to them. However, he was told that the Holy Prophet (sa) had also established his rank higher than many other people.”
(Sahih al-Bukhari, Kitab Manaqib al-Ansar, Bab Manqabah Sa‘d bin Ubadah, Hadith 3807)
Hazrat Abu Usaid (ra) testified that the Holy Prophet (sa) stated that the best households among the Ansar were the Banu Najjar, Banu Abd Ahsh‘al, Banu Harith bin Khazraj and then Banu Sa‘idah and that every house of the Ansar was filled with goodness. The narrator of this tradition, Abu Salma, states that Hazrat Abu Usaid (ra) stated, “I am accused of fabricating this tradition, however if that was the case, then I would have mentioned the name of my tribe first, i.e., the Banu Sa‘idah.”
When Hazrat Sa‘d (ra) bin Ubadah heard this, he also felt this in his heart. In the previous narration it also mentioned that he expressed that the Holy Prophet (sa) had listed them last among the four. So, he asked for the saddle to be fastened on his donkey and so he could present himself before the Holy Prophet (sa). Hazrat Sa‘d (ra) bin Ubadah’s nephew, Sahl, said to him, “Are you going to the Holy Prophet (sa) to challenge the statement of his and enquire about the order [of the tribes] the Holy Prophet (sa) mentioned, when the truth is that that the Holy Prophet(sa) knows better? Is it not sufficient enough for you that you are also one of the four?” And so, Hazrat Sa‘d (ra) bin Ubadah abandoned his plan and stated that Allah and His Messenger (sa) know better. He then instructed his saddle to be loosened from the donkey. This narration is from Sahih Muslim.
(Sahih Muslim, Kitab Fada‘il al-Ansar, Bab fi Khair Daur al-Ansar, Hadith 6425)