The Explanation with Benefits

The Shaykh : First, Abu Bakr used to pray for them during the Prophet's (peace and blessings be upon him) illness in which he passed away. The benefit of this is to clarify that this was at the end of the Prophet's (peace and blessings be upon him) life, so let no one say that perhaps this virtue was at the beginning and then it was taken from him until it became for Ali, as the Rafidah say. For the end of the Messenger's life generally contains nothing that is abrogated. And his statement: He passed away (peace and blessings be upon him), and this is the day he was born, the day he was sent, the day revelation was sent down to him, the day he entered Medina, and the day he passed away. So the major events all occurred on a Monday. And his statement: As for the pages of the mushaf, in reality we do not know what they were like at that time, but it is most likely that they were white, because the clarity of black on white is greater than on anything else. This is the apparent meaning. It seems he wants to clarify that the Prophet's (peace and blessings be upon him) face was white and radiant, inviting one to look at it, just as one is invited to look at a page of the mushaf. And his statement: The apparent meaning, as the commentator al-‘Iyni said, is that he smiled, pleased with the state of his Companions (may Allah be pleased with them), because the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) undoubtedly finds among the greatest sources of joy seeing his Ummah standing firm in his Shari'ah. And his statement: The meaning of "we were about to be distracted" here is their exiting the prayer by saying, for example, "Allahu Akbar" or "Praise is for Him, whom we have seen," or a word to that effect. Because "fitnah" means misguidance, as Allah the Exalted said: meaning they misled them from the religion of Allah. And he said that he died on that day. One might raise an objection and ask how this reconciles with what is well-known and authentic that Abu Bakr, when the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) died, was in his orchard called al-Sinah, outside Medina. It is said that there is no great difficulty in this, and praise be to Allah. Abu Bakr prayed Fajr, then he came to the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) and found him that day in the best of states, because on that day he was better than before. For this reason, he looked at the Companions while the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) was standing, and he was reassured about his health. Then he went out to his orchard. Then Allah decreed the matter in the absence of Abu Bakr (may Allah be pleased with him). This is part of the great wisdom by which the virtue of Abu Bakr (may Allah be pleased with him) became manifest. When he was informed in his orchard of the death of the Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him), he returned to Medina with the composure of one who is steady and reassured. He entered upon the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) and found him lying down, covered. He uncovered his face and kissed him, saying, "By my father and mother, may Allah not gather two deaths for you. As for the first death, you have already died." Then he realized that he had died. He went out to the people, who were in turmoil and distress in the mosque, to the extent that the most intense among them, 'Umar (may Allah be pleased with him), was preaching and speaking, swearing that the Messenger had not died, but had ascended, and that Allah would send him back, and that he would cut off the hands and feet of some people from opposite sides. It is known that when 'Umar was speaking to this great gathering with this distress and turmoil, and he was known among the Companions to be the second in this Ummah, this word would have an effect. So this steady, reassured man, who was the most grieved by the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him), said to 'Umar, "Be patient." Then he ascended the minbar and recited the famous sermon, which is the greatest sermon after the sermons of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him). He said: "As for what follows, whoever used to worship Muhammad, then Muhammad has died. And whoever used to worship Allah, then Allah is Ever-Living and does not die." (may Allah be pleased with him). These are wonderful words, two sentences, but they equal the whole earth. Then he recited the verses concerning the death of the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him). 'Umar said: "I was so overcome that my legs could not support me." When a person is struck by something that shocks him, he cannot stand; he is overcome. And so it went until what happened afterward. Yes. And in his statement: there is evidence that "saying" is used for "doing," which is common in the Arabic language. From this is the hadith of 'Ammar ibn Yasir regarding tayammum, where he said: and he struck the ground with his hands. Yes.