Abu Bakr al-Siddiq

In short

In Arabic

أبو بكر الصديق

Name

Abdullah ibn Uthman (Abu Quhafah) ibn Amir

Titles

al-Siddiq (the one who affirmed the truth), al-Atiq

Tribe

Banu Taym, of Quraysh; his line meets the Prophet's ﷺ at Murrah ibn Ka'b

Mother

Umm al-Khayr Salma bint Sakhr

Born

In Makkah, about two years after the Year of the Elephant (about 573 CE)

Accepted Islam

At the very start of the call, the first free adult man to do so

Caliph

11 to 13 AH (632 to 634 CE)

Died

22 Jumada al-Akhirah 13 AH (August 634 CE), aged 63, in Madinah

Buried

Beside the Prophet ﷺ, in the room of Aishah

In short: Abu Bakr was a respected merchant of Makkah and a friend of the Prophet ﷺ from before Islam. When the Prophet ﷺ told him of the revelation, he believed at once. He spent his wealth freeing tortured Muslims such as Bilal, made the Hijrah with the Prophet ﷺ, and stood with him at every battle. In the Prophet's ﷺ last illness he led the prayers, and after his death he was chosen as the first caliph. In two years he held the Muslims together, sent the armies out, and had the Quran gathered into one book. He died at 63, the same age as the Prophet ﷺ.¹

How he accepted Islam

Ibn Ishaq reports that Abu Bakr accepted Islam without hesitation the moment the Prophet ﷺ told him, and that he then called his friends. Through him came Uthman ibn Affan, al-Zubayr ibn al-Awwam, Abd al-Rahman ibn Awf, Saad ibn Abi Waqqas and Talhah ibn Ubaydullah, five of the ten promised Paradise.² When the scholars discussed who was the first Muslim, Ibrahim al-Nakhai said it was Abu Bakr; others said Khadijah was the first of all, Ali the first child and Zayd ibn Harithah the first freed slave.³ The Prophet ﷺ himself said: "Allah sent me to you, and you said, 'You lie', and Abu Bakr said, 'He has spoken the truth', and he supported me with himself and his wealth".⁴

He bought and freed Muslims who were being tortured for their faith, among them Bilal. Umar used to say: "Abu Bakr is our master, and he freed our master", meaning Bilal.⁵

Key events

The Hijrah and the cave

When the Prophet ﷺ was given permission to emigrate, Abu Bakr went with him. They hid for three nights in the cave of Thawr while Quraysh searched for them. Abu Bakr said: "If one of them looked under his feet he would see us." The Prophet ﷺ answered:

In Madinah

He fought at Badr, Uhud, the Trench and every battle after them, and was with the Prophet ﷺ at Hudaybiyyah. Umar once tried to outdo him in charity by giving half his wealth; Abu Bakr brought everything he had, and when asked what he had left for his family he said, "Allah and His Messenger".⁶ In the Prophet's ﷺ last illness, the Prophet ﷺ said, "Tell Abu Bakr to lead the people in prayer".⁷

The day the Prophet ﷺ died

When the Prophet ﷺ died, Umar could not accept it and stood saying he was not dead. Abu Bakr came, uncovered the Prophet's ﷺ face, kissed him, then went out and said: "Whoever worshipped Muhammad, Muhammad has died. Whoever worshipped Allah, Allah is alive and does not die," and recited 3:144. The people felt as if they had never heard the verse before.⁸

The caliphate

He was chosen as caliph the same day. In two years and three months he sent out the army of Usamah that the Prophet ﷺ had prepared, fought the tribes who refused zakat or followed false prophets, and sent the first armies to Iraq and Syria. After many reciters of the Quran were killed at al-Yamamah, he had Zayd ibn Thabit gather the Quran into one written copy.⁹ See the history of the Quran.

His virtues in the hadith

• Amr ibn al-As asked the Prophet ﷺ who was most beloved to him. He said, "Aishah." "Among the men?" "Her father".¹⁰
• In the Prophet's ﷺ lifetime the Companions used to rank Abu Bakr first, then Umar, then Uthman.¹¹
• He is one of the ten given the glad tidings of Paradise by name.¹²
• When the mountain of Uhud shook beneath the Prophet ﷺ, Abu Bakr, Umar and Uthman, he said: "Be firm, Uhud, for on you are a prophet, a siddiq and two martyrs".¹³

His death

Abu Bakr fell ill in Jumada al-Akhirah 13 AH. In his illness he asked Aishah on which day the Prophet ﷺ had died, and when she said Monday, he said he hoped to die before the night.¹⁴ Before he died he named Umar ibn al-Khattab to succeed him. He died aged 63, as the Prophet ﷺ had,¹ and was buried beside him in Aishah's room.

Lessons from his life

• Believe the truth when it comes, without delay.
• Spend for Allah: he gave his wealth to free the oppressed and to support the Prophet ﷺ.
• Hold to the Quran in a crisis: one verse, recited at the right moment, steadied the whole ummah.
• Loyal friendship for Allah's sake lasts beyond this world.

In the seerah

Abu Bakr's life is woven into the life of the Prophet ﷺ. For the whole story in order, see the Prophet Muhammad ﷺ life timeline, and for the battles and turning points, the seerah events. More Companions are on the Sahaba page, and the meaning of the word is on Sahaba meaning.

Questions

Sources

1. Sahih Muslim 2348 and 2352: Abu Bakr died at 63.
2. Ibn Hisham, al-Sirah al-Nabawiyyah, from Ibn Ishaq.
3. Jami at-Tirmidhi 3735, the views of Zayd ibn Arqam and Ibrahim al-Nakhai; isnad graded sahih.
4. Sahih al-Bukhari 3661, from Abu al-Darda.
5. Sahih al-Bukhari 3754, from Jabir.
6. Jami at-Tirmidhi 3675, from Umar, graded hasan.
7. Sahih al-Bukhari 678, from Abu Musa.
8. Sahih al-Bukhari 3667 and 3668, from Aishah.
9. Sahih al-Bukhari 4986, from Zayd ibn Thabit.
10. Sahih al-Bukhari 3662, from Amr ibn al-As.
11. Sahih al-Bukhari 3655, from Ibn Umar.
12. Jami at-Tirmidhi 3747, from Abd al-Rahman ibn Awf, graded sahih.
13. Sahih al-Bukhari 3675, from Anas.
14. Sahih al-Bukhari 1387, from Aishah.
15. Ibn Kathir, al-Bidayah wa al-Nihayah, the caliphate of Abu Bakr.
16. Quran: Arabic from the Tanzil Uthmani text, transliteration from Tanzil, English by Sahih International. Hadith Arabic is the standard wording of the collection named; gradings are given for every hadith outside al-Bukhari and Muslim.