The Four Companions, also called the Four Pillars of the Sahaba, is a

Shia Shia Islam is the second-largest branch of Islam. It holds that Muhammad designated Ali ibn Abi Talib () as both his political successor (caliph) and as the spiritual leader of the Muslim community (imam). However, his right is understood ...

term for the four Companions () of the Islamic prophet

Muhammad Muhammad (8 June 632 CE) was an Arab religious and political leader and the founder of Islam. Muhammad in Islam, According to Islam, he was a prophet who was divinely inspired to preach and confirm the tawhid, monotheistic teachings of A ...

who are supposed to have stayed most loyal to

Ali ibn Abi Talib Ali ibn Abi Talib (; ) was the fourth Rashidun caliph who ruled from until Assassination of Ali, his assassination in 661, as well as the first imamate in Shia doctrine, Shia Imam. He was the cousin and son-in-law of the Islamic prophet Muha ...

after Muhammad's death in 632: Salman al-Fārisī, Abū Dharr al-Ghifāri, Miqdad ibn Aswād al-Kindi, and Ammār ibn Yāsir. *

Details

Salman is generally considered to be the loftiest amongst these elite four in Shia theology. It is narrated from Muhammad that: *

Faith has ten grades, and Salman is on the tenth (i.e., highest) grade, Abu Dharr on the ninth, and Miqdad on the eighth grade.

Those among Muhammad's companions who were closest to Ali were called the ('the partisans of Ali') during Muhammad's lifetime. The following

hadith Hadith is the Arabic word for a 'report' or an 'account f an event and refers to the Islamic oral tradition of anecdotes containing the purported words, actions, and the silent approvals of the Islamic prophet Muhammad or his immediate circle ...

is narrated about them from Jabir al-Ansari:

The Messenger of Allah said: "Glad tidings Oh Ali! For verily you and your companions and your Shi'ah will be in Heaven."

These companions were later referred to as "''The Real Shia''."

Abdullah ibn Abbas ʿAbd Allāh ibn ʿAbbās (; c. 619 – 687 CE), also known as Ibn ʿAbbās, was one of the cousins of the Prophets and messengers in Islam, prophet Muhammad. He is considered to be the greatest Tafsir#Conditions, mufassir of the Quran, Qur'an. ...

Ubay ibn Ka'b Ubayy ibn Ka'b (, ') (died 649), also known as Abu Mundhir, was a Sahabah, companion of the Islamic prophet Muhammad and a person of high esteem in the early Muslim community. He was short, skinny, and gray haired. He is notable for the Codex of ...

Bilal ibn Rabah Bilal ibn Rabah (; ), also known as Bilāl al-Ḥabashī or simply Bilal, was a sahabah, close companion of the Islamic prophet Muhammad. Born in Mecca, he was of Abyssinian people, Abyssinian (modern-day Ethiopia) descent and was formerly ensl ...

Muhammad ibn Abi Bakr Muhammad ibn Abi Bakr ibn Abi Quhafa al-Taymi (; –July/August 658) was an Arab Muslim commander in the service of the fourth Rashidun caliph Ali ibn Abi Talib. Muhammad was the youngest son of the first Rashidun caliph Abu Bakr () and Asma bin ...

Malik al-Ashtar Malik al-Ashtar (), also known as Mālik bin al-Ḥārith al-Nakhaʿīy al-Maḏḥijīy () was, according to Sunni view, one of the people involved behind Uthman's assassination. While, according to Shias, he was one of the loyal companions of A ...

, and

Hudhayfah ibn al-Yaman Hudhayfah ibn al-Yaman (), or pronounced Huthaifah or Huzaifah (died in 656), was one of the Sahabah (companion) of the Islamic prophet, Muhammad. Early years in Medina. At Medina, Hudhayfah became a trusted and great companion of Muhammad, part ...

were other such partisans. However, it is only ''The Four Companions'' that are supposed to have attained distinction in their devotion to Ali.

References

Cultural lists Shia Islam Religious quartets {{shia-stub

Details

See also

References