Excessive Praise of the Companions and Pious People

Defining excessive praise of the Companions and the pious people.

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The Companions of the Prophet ﷺ accepted Islam, gave da’wah and defended Islam in the most difficult period and severest of times. In return for their noble efforts they have been promised great reward by Allah.
Muslims around the world from the time of the Sahaabah until the Day of Judgment are indebted to the Sahaabah for their efforts and sacrifices. In fact, the rewards gained by all Muslims so far, and yet to come until the Day of Judgment, has been and will be added to the record of the Companions.
Allah ﷻ used the Companions to spread Islam and to convey it to the people of the world. For this too they will be rewarded immensely.
After the Sahaabah, came many pious people who studied the religion and gave da’wah to the people and also made major sacrifice in the path of Allah.
For this reason, all the Muslims should love the Companions and pious people. One way to show this love is to make du’aa for them. This is something that Allah teaches all Muslims in the Qur’aan. Allah says:

وَٱلَّذِينَ جَآءُو مِنۢ بَعْدِهِمْ يَقُولُونَ رَبَّنَا ٱغْفِرْ لَنَا وَلِإِخْوَٰنِنَا ٱلَّذِينَ سَبَقُونَا بِٱلْإِيمَـٰنِ وَلَا تَجْعَلْ فِى قُلُوبِنَا غِلًّۭا لِّلَّذِينَ ءَامَنُوا۟ رَبَّنَآ إِنَّكَ رَءُوفٌۭ رَّحِيمٌ (سورة الحشر : ١٠ )

“And (there is a share for) those who came after them, saying, “Our Lord, forgive us and our brothers who preceded us in faith and put not in our hearts (any) resentment toward those who have believed. Our Lord, indeed You are Kind and Merciful.” (Soorat al-Hashr: 10)

The noble and honorable position that is accorded to the Sahaabah and even pious scholars and predecessors does not, however, allow for there to be any type of excess in the respect shown to them or their position. It is not allowed in Islam to give the Companions or the pious predecessors excessive praise.
Some people engage in exceeding the boundaries established by Allah in this regard and they place the Sahaabah or pious scholars on pedestals that exceed the position given to the Sahaabah and pious predecessors by Allah. Some forms of excessive praise of the Companions and the pious predecessors include:

Claiming that a Companion or pious predecessor is a prophet or messenger.
Worshipping a Companion or pious predecessor.
Rejecting an authentic hadeeth of the Prophet if another Companion or a pious predecessor said or did something different.
Building roofs or domes on their graves, or decorating them.

Muslims today should look at how the Companions praised the Prophet and at how the Taabi’eenn praised the Companions.
A clear example of how the Companions avoided excessive praise of the Prophet can be seen after his death. ‘Aaishah narrated in Bukhaari that while some of the Companions were crying, Aboo Bakr said,

“No doubt! If any of you worshipped Muhammad, then Muhammad is dead. But whoever worshipped Allah, Allah is alive and will never die.” Aboo Bakr then recited, “Indeed (O Muhammad), you are to die, and indeed, they are to die.” (Soorat az-Zumar. 30)

He also recited, “Muhammad is not but a messenger. [Other] messengers have passed on before him…” (Soorat Aali Imraan: 144)

The Taabi’een never showed excessive praise for the Companions. They studied with the Companions and learnt the religion from them. However, sometimes Taabieen learnt a hadeeth from one Companion that was not known by another Companion. In this case, the Taabi’een acted upon the hadeeth. The Taabi’eenn did not reject the hadeeth just because a Companion was unaware of it. Importantly, they still had the utmost respect for all the Companions.
The pious predecessors had a lot of love for their teachers who passed away before them. They praised them and had a lot of respect for them. However, they never went to their graves and they never asked them for help. They never made animal sacrifices for them and they never made sujood to them. The pious predecessors knew that those who had died before them could not benefit them. The pious predecessors knew that only Allah could help them and save them from evil.
The Companions and the pious predecessors understood the religion of Islam better than the Muslims of today. For this reason, Muslims must learn from and follow their example.

Learning from the lesson