Ihyaaud Deen An Effort to Revive Deen in Totality
The Ansaar were the Sahaabah of Rasulullah (sallallahu ‘alaihi wasallam) who resided in the blessed land of Madinah Munawwarah. They consisted of two tribes – the Aws and the Khazraj. They embraced Islam upon the hands of Rasulullah (sallallahu ‘alaihi wasallam) and supported Rasulullah (sallallahu ‘alaihi wasallam) in the mission of spreading of Islam. They happily and wholeheartedly spent their wealth and resources for the sake of Allah Ta‘ala, and even sacrificed their lives for the cause of deen.
Prior to Rasulullah (sallallahu ‘alaihi wasallam) coming to Madinah Munawwarah, these two tribes were at loggerheads among themselves and remained at war with one another for a lengthy period of time. However, through the blessing of Islam, Allah Ta‘ala united their hearts and created the bond of love and brotherhood among themselves. Allah Ta‘ala refers to this in the following verse of the Qur’aan Majeed:
وَ اذۡکُرُوۡا نِعۡمَتَ اللّٰہِ عَلَیۡکُمۡ اِذۡ کُنۡتُمۡ اَعۡدَآءً فَاَلَّفَ بَیۡنَ قُلُوۡبِکُمۡ فَاَصۡبَحۡتُمۡ بِنِعۡمَتِہٖۤ اِخۡوَانًا ۚ
And remember the favour of Allah upon you when you were enemies (of one another), then He brought your hearts together (creating unity among yourselves), and through His favour, you became brothers (to one another). (Surah Aal-e-Imraan v. 103)
The Aws and the Khazraj always gave preference to earning the pleasure of Allah Ta‘ala and the great rewards of the Hereafter over the wealth and material things of this world. Rasulullah (sallallahu ‘alaihi wasallam) was greatly pleased with them and made special dua for them in the following words:
اللهم اغفر للأنصار ولأبناء الأنصار ولأبناء أبناء الأنصار ولنساء الأنصار
O Allah! Forgive the Ansaar, the children of the Ansaar, the grandchildren of the Ansaar, and the women of the Ansaar!
The Reason for Rasulullah (sallallahu ‘alaihi wasallam) Making this Dua for the Ansaar
The Ansaar of Madinah Munawwarah were farmers and would earn their livelihood through their orchards and date palms. However, since the land of Madinah Munawwarah did not have rivers and dams, the Ansaar would need draw water from wells using buckets, and thereafter load the water onto their camels in order to transport it to their farms to irrigate their orchards. This arduous task caused them much difficulty and hardship.
Thus, on one occasion, the Ansaar held a mashwarah among themselves wherein they decided that they will come to Rasulullah (sallallahu ‘alaihi wasallam) and request him to make dua on their behalf to Allah Ta‘ala. They will ask him to beseech Allah Ta‘ala to transform the landscape of Madinah Munawwarah by creating rivers for them in it so that it would be easy for them to irrigate their orchards without difficulty.
Allah Ta‘ala loved the Ansaar on account of the great and selfless sacrifices they made for deen. Hence, before they came to Rasulullah (sallallahu ‘alaihi wasallam), Allah Ta‘ala informed him of the purpose for which they were coming to him.
When the Ansaar came before Rasulullah (sallallahu ‘alaihi wasallam), he said to them, “Welcome, O Ansaar! Welcome, O Ansaar! Welcome, O Ansaar!” Thereafter, Rasulullah (sallallahu ‘alaihi wasallam) addressed them and said, “Whatever you have come to ask from me, I will grant it to you, and whatever dua I make to Allah Ta‘ala on your behalf, Allah Ta‘ala will accept my dua and grant it to you (so think carefully over what you wish to ask).”
When the Ansaar heard this from Rasulullah (sallallahu ‘alaihi wasallam), they realized that this was an extremely valuable and golden opportunity for them to ask for the ultimate, as the dua was guaranteed acceptance. Therefore, they made mashwarah among themselves and decided that they will not ask for anything of the dunya, but rather they will seize this priceless opportunity to draw the greatest bounty of Allah Ta‘ala of the Hereafter.
They said to each other, “Value this opportunity and ask for the forgiveness of Allah Ta‘ala (as this is the greatest thing one can ask for).” Hence, they asked Rasulullah (sallallahu ‘alaihi wasallam) to make dua to Allah Ta‘ala to forgive them. It was on this occasion that Rasulullah (sallallahu ‘alaihi wasallam) made the following dua for them:
اللهم اغفر للأنصار ولأبناء الأنصار ولأبناء أبناء الأنصار ولنساء الأنصار
O Allah! Forgive the Ansaar, the children of the Ansaar, the grandchildren of the Ansaar, and the women of the Ansaar!
(Musnad Ahmed #12414 & Majma’uz Zawaa’id #16528)
Being blessed from the side of Allah Ta‘ala with maghfirah (complete forgiveness, after which Allah Ta‘ala will never be displeased) is the greatest bounty. When Allah Ta‘ala blesses one with His maghfirah, then Allah Ta‘ala becomes pleased with him, and this is the key to gaining the mercy of Allah Ta‘ala and His blessings in this life and the next.
It is for this reason that Rasulullah (sallallahu ‘alaihi wasallam) said in the Hadith, “Among the greatest favours which a person can be blessed with (by Allah Ta‘ala) in the Hereafter is maghfirah (the forgiveness of Allah Ta‘ala).” (Nawaadirul Usool 2/26 & Kanz-ul-Ummaal #3273)
