What are the conditions and criteria for the description of a "Companion"?
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Question:
Are the disbelievers who saw the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) called Companions?
Answer:
If they embraced Islam, then anyone who saw the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) while believing in him, even if he later apostatized and then returned to Islam.
As for if he saw him during disbelief, then embraced Islam after the death of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him), he is not a Companion.
Q: What are they called?
A: Tabi'un; if he embraced Islam during the era of the Companions, he is a Tabi'i.
Except if he embraced Islam and believed before the death of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him), even if he apostatized.
The condition for being a Companion is that he saw the Prophet and believed before the death of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him).
Are the disbelievers who saw the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) called Companions?
Answer:
If they embraced Islam, then anyone who saw the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) while believing in him, even if he later apostatized and then returned to Islam.
As for if he saw him during disbelief, then embraced Islam after the death of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him), he is not a Companion.
Q: What are they called?
A: Tabi'un; if he embraced Islam during the era of the Companions, he is a Tabi'i.
Except if he embraced Islam and believed before the death of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him), even if he apostatized.
The condition for being a Companion is that he saw the Prophet and believed before the death of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him).
Source
binbaz.org.sa
The Arabic text is copied verbatim from the original source, without any edits.