The Detroit Address — Page 23
23 your deprived brothers—these deprived people and embrace them. For this is the way of the Holy Prophet Muhammad sas. In the most magnificent way, he embodied all that he learned from the Holy Quran, and he left an unparalleled precept of extreme beauty for others to follow in this world. The Holy Prophet sas has shown such a great love towards the poor that the A sha bu s - S uffa 1 came and started living in the mosque just for the sake of love for the Holy Prophet sas. It was indeed an expression of love in response to the Holy Prophet’s sas love. Some people mistakenly think that A sha bu s - S uffa nei- ther had any work nor any skills and they, like other indi- gents, flocked to a place where food was available. This is utterly untrue and a baseless notion. They were, in fact, men of knowledge and dignity. Many among them had skills to earn money, but out of sheer love, they offered themselves in entirety to the Holy Prophet sas. They accepted poverty in exchange for his love because they know they would earn more of his love if they were poor. Look at Abu Hurairah ra. He had lived a life of great style but, after accepting the Holy Prophet sas, to compensate himself for what he had missed earlier, he stayed constantly at the mosque so that he would not miss any talk of his beloved master. The only way he could 1. In one corner of the Prophet’s mosque in Madinah, a covered plat- form was prepared which was known as ‘Suffah’. This served as the resting place of indigent Emigrants who dedicated themselves to the worship of Allah, the company of the Holy Prophet sas, and recitation of the Holy Quran. They became known as A sha bu s - S uffah. [Publisher]