Response to: Is it Possible that Sahaba would object to Caliph Appointed by Holy Prophet asws?

The following is a response to SlaveOfAhlubait’s article: Is it Possible that Sahaba would object to Caliph Appointed by Holy Prophet asws? The article was published on the blog on the 6th of June, 2012, and can be found here.

SoA, in this article, argues the following:

You may have heard this argument being given by Sunnis that is it possible that Holy Prophet asws had appointed someone and people had objected or criticized to it? Let us see the answer to this with this narration from Fadail us Sahaba,
Ibn Umar says that when Holy Prophet asws appointed Usama on people, people criticized it, so He said: You are criticising his leadership, no doubt you criticized leadership of his father as well, By God! he was deserving of that, and the most beloved of me in people, and his son is the most beloved of me after him
This narration with the same chain comes in Musnad Ahmad, urdu version, 3/69. Translator of the book, Zafar Iqbal has said that it is Sahih as per Bukhari, Muslim, Ibn Haban and Tirmidhi termed it Hasan Sahih.

As we can see from the above, some Sahaba disliked and even criticized the appointment of both Zaid bin Haritha and his son Usama. One may argue that this was due to their lowly status in the eyes of those communities that were for so long affected by tribalism.

However, this argument actually is evidence against tashayyu and SlaveOfAhlubait, since as we all know, historians agree that the Prophet (salalahu alaihi wa salam) died before the army was sent out. Then, when Abu Bakr was appointed as the caliph by the people, he sent out Usama as a leader of an army in Rabee’ Al-Awal, which is the same month in which the Prophet (salalahu alaihi wa salam) died in. Refer to the events of year 11 AH in Tareekh Al-Tabari and Tareekh Khalifa.

In other words, it is not blameworthy upon the Sahaba for them to dislike what was ordained, but many of what was legislated was disliked by them. This included the banning of intoxicants, gambling, usury, and many other matters, however, the test is in whether they applied what was legislated upon them or not, and as we can see from the example above, they fulfilled the wishes of the Prophet (salalahu alaihi wa salam), even if they did not like it.

It is the very fact that they accepted what they didn’t like that displays their faith. Allah (subhanahu wa ta’ala):

But no, by your Lord, they will not [truly] believe until they make you, [O Muhammad], judge concerning that over which they dispute among themselves and then find within themselves no discomfort from what you have judged and submit in [full, willing] submission.
Surat Al-Nisa’ 65.