Companions & Great WomenA Companion

Usamah ibn Zayd

أسامة بن زيد

The son of Zayd ibn Harithah, whom the Prophet ﷺ put in command of an army while still a young man.

SahihSee it in the Atlas
Known as
The beloved son of the beloved

Life

The Prophet ﷺ put him in command of an army, and when some questioned it, he said they had questioned his father's command before, and that this son was among the people most beloved to him after his father (al-Bukhari 3730).

Al-Dhahabi says the army was bound for Syria with senior Companions in it, among them 'Umar, and that Usamah was eighteen; the Prophet ﷺ died before it left, and Abu Bakr sent it on. 'Umar, he reports, would greet him as 'commander' for the rest of his life.

Evidence

Sahih

Sahih al-Bukhari 3730

Grades
GraderVerdict
al-BukhariSahih (included by al-Bukhari in his Sahih) (Sahih)
Full narration

حَدَّثَنَا خَالِدُ بْنُ مَخْلَدٍ، حَدَّثَنَا سُلَيْمَانُ، قَالَ حَدَّثَنِي عَبْدُ اللَّهِ بْنُ دِينَارٍ، عَنْ عَبْدِ اللَّهِ بْنِ عُمَرَ ـ رضى الله عنهما ـ قَالَ بَعَثَ النَّبِيُّ صلى الله عليه وسلم بَعْثًا، وَأَمَّرَ عَلَيْهِمْ أُسَامَةَ بْنَ زَيْدٍ، فَطَعَنَ بَعْضُ النَّاسِ فِي إِمَارَتِهِ، فَقَالَ النَّبِيُّ صلى الله عليه وسلم ‏ "‏ إِنْ تَطْعُنُوا فِي إِمَارَتِهِ فَقَدْ كُنْتُمْ تَطْعُنُونَ فِي إِمَارَةِ أَبِيهِ مِنْ قَبْلُ، وَايْمُ اللَّهِ، إِنْ كَانَ لَخَلِيقًا لِلإِمَارَةِ، وَإِنْ كَانَ لَمِنْ أَحَبِّ النَّاسِ إِلَىَّ، وَإِنَّ هَذَا لَمِنْ أَحَبِّ النَّاسِ إِلَىَّ بَعْدَهُ ‏"‏‏.‏

Narrated `Abdullah bin `Umar:The Prophet (ﷺ) sent an army under the command of Usama bin Zaid. When some people criticized his leadership, the Prophet (ﷺ) said, "If you are criticizing Usama's leadership, you used to criticize his father's leadership before. By Allah! He was worthy of leadership and was one of the dearest persons to me, and (now) this (i.e. Usama) is one of the dearest to me after him (i.e. Zaid)

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