The Noble Companion Utbah Ibn Ghazwan, may Allah (swt) be pleased with him
(Translated)

https://www.al-waie.org/archives/article/20078
Al Waie Magazine Issue No. 472
Thirty-Ninth Year, Jumada I 1447 AH corresponding to November 2025 CE
Ustadh Muhammad Mashur

Among the first forerunners, the name of Utbah ibn Ghazwan, may Allah (swt) be pleased with him, shines brightly. He was the man who carried the torch of the Dawah in its early days, and he tasted with the Messenger of Allah (saw) the bitterness of the siege in the valley of Abu Talib. He participated in the moments of hardship when the Companions (ra) were being pursued in the streets of Makkah and tortured to turn them away from their Deen. However, he did not retreat or hesitate, but instead remained steadfast like a towering mountain.

Utbah lived through the period of hardship in all its details: hunger, fear, and rejection by the Quraysh. He even said one day, addressing the people of Basra, reminding them,

«لقد رأيتُني سابعَ سبعةٍ مع رسولِ اللهِ ﷺ ما لنا طعامٌ إلّا ورقُ الشّجرِ» “I saw myself as the seventh of seven with the Messenger of Allah (saw), and we had no food except tree leaves,” referring to the years of famine and siege. Those were dark days on the surface, but they forged men whose worth cannot be measured by all the gold in the world.

Years passed until Utbah (ra) migrated to Medina, moving with his brothers from a state of weakness to one of empowerment; from persecution in Makkah to the establishment of the state in Madinah. He then participated in the battles of Badr, Uhud, the Trench, and others, demonstrating that victory is not a gift without a price, but rather the fruit of patience, steadfastness, and struggle.

As the conquests expanded, that young man who had suffered in Makkah was no longer a fugitive, but had become a leader and soldier in the Islamic state. Umar ibn al-Khattab (ra) appointed him wali (governor) of Basra, where he established a complete city that would serve as a military and political base for the fledgling state. He did not establish a market for profit, but rather established a city and a barracks from which armies would set out, and from which the affairs of the Dawah would be managed. Thus, he understood that umran (urbanization) is a tool for carrying a risaalah (message), not a worldly goal in itself.

Despite all this, his heart remained abstinent and fearful of the temptations of this world. He addressed the people, warning them, «أمّا بعدُ فإنّ الدُّنيا قد آذَنَتْ بصُرمٍ وولَّتْ حذّاءَ، وإنّما بقي منها صُبابةٌ كصُبابةِ الإناءِ صبَّها أحدُكم، وإنّكم مُنتقِلونَ منها إلى دارٍ لا زوالَ لها، فانتقِلوا ما بحضرتِكم ـ يُريدُ من الخيرِ ـ، فلقد بلغني أنّ الحجرَ يُلقى من شفيرِ جهنّمَ فما يَبلُغُ لها قعرًا سبعينَ عامًا، وايمُ اللهِ لَتُملأنَّ، أفعجبتُم؟ ولقد ذُكِرَ لي أنّ ما بينَ مِصراعَيِ الجنّةِ مسيرةُ أربعينَ عامًا، وليأتِيَنَّ عليه يومٌ وهو كَظيظٌ من الزّحامِ، ولقد رأيتُني سابعَ سبعةٍ مع رسولِ اللهِ صلّى اللهُ عليهِ وسلّم ما لنا طعامٌ إلّا ورقُ الشّجرِ حتّى قرِحَتْ منّا أشداقُنا، ولقدِ التقطتُ بُردةً فشققتُها بيني وبينَ سعدٍ، فَاتَّزَرتُ بنصفِها واتَّزرَ سعدٌ بنصفِها، ما منّا أحدٌ اليومَ حيٌّ إلّا أصبحَ أميرًا على مِصرٍ من الأمصارِ، وأعوذُ باللهِ من أن أكونَ عظيمًا في نفسي صغيرًا عندَ اللهِ، وإنّها لم تكنْ نبوّةٌ إلّا تناسختْ حتّى تكونَ عاقبتُها مُلكًا، ستبلونَ الأمراءَ بعدَنا» “Now then, this world has signaled its end and is swiftly departing. Only a remnant remains, like the last drops poured from a vessel. You will be moving from it to an eternal abode. So, move on with whatever good you have—meaning, good deeds—for I have heard that a stone thrown from the edge of Hell will not reach its bottom for seventy years. By Allah (swt), it will surely be filled! Are you surprised? I have also been told that the distance between the two gates of Paradise is a journey of forty years, and a day will come when it will be overflowing with people. I remember being the seventh of seven with the Messenger of Allah (saw) and we had no food except tree leaves until they became sore for our jaws, and I picked up a cloak and tore it between myself and Sa’d, so I wore half of it as a covering and Sa’d wore half of it as a covering. There is no one among us alive today who has not become an amir over one of the cities of Egypt, and I seek refuge in Allah (swt) from being great in my own eyes but small in the sight of Allah (swt). And there was no Prophethood except that it was repeated until its outcome was authority. You will test the ameers after us,” reminding that the goal is not to collect possessions, but to support the Deen.

Thus, Utbah went from being persecuted in Makkah to leading in Basra, from starvation in the valley to managing the Shariah state treasury (Baytul Maal), and from weakness to empowerment. It is the story of a man who embodied the way of Allah (swt) in Dawah to Iman, patience and steadfastness leading to victory and empowerment in authority.

Will we learn the lesson? The path to empowerment today is no shorter than the one trodden by Utbah and the other Companions (ra). It is a path of action, patience, and principled political struggle, until Allah (swt) grants the Ummah on the Khilafah Rashidah (Rightly-Guided Caliphate) on the Method of Prophethood.

So be the threshold of this era... Steadfast in the face of persecution, patient in the face of oppression, working to establish the state, until Allah (swt) grants you and your Ummah a way out, and Islamic leadership returns to guide humanity as Utbah and his brothers once did.