CONFIRMED PEOPLE OF PARADISE

The People of Paradise: The Leaders of the
People of Paradise
(i) The Leaders of the Men
Abu Sa'eed al-Khudri reported that the
Messenger (saw) said, "Abu Bakr and 'Umar
will be the leaders of men of Paradise from the
earlier and later generations." [Silsilat al-
Hadith as-Saheehah]
(ii) The Leaders of the Youth
Tirmidhi, al-Haakim, at-Tabaraani, Ahmad
and others reported that Abu Sa'eed al-Khudri
said, that the Messenger of Allah (saw) said,
"Hasan and Husayn are the leaders of the
youth of Paradise".
(iii) The Leaders of the Women
The true female leader is the one with whom
her Rabb is pleased and whose deeds He
accepts. The best women are those who attain
the Paradise of delights. The women of
Paradise are of different levels, and the
Messenger (saw) told us about their leaders:
"The Messenger of Allah (saw) drew four lines
and said, "Do you know what these are?" They
said, "Allah and His Messenger know best." He
said, "The best women of Paradise are
Khadeejah bint Khuwaylid, Faatimah bint
Muhammad, Maryam bint 'Imraan and
Aasiyah bin Muzahim, the wife of Fir'awn"
[Saheehah, 4/13, no. 1508, from Ahmad at-
Tahhaawi, al-Haakim from Ibn 'Abbaas,
saheeh]
Maryam and Khadeejah are the best of the
four - "The best of its women is Maryam and
the best of its women is Khadeejah" [from 'Ali
in Bukhaari, Kitaab Manaaqib al-Ansaar] -
and Maryam is the "First Lady" The reason
why Maryam is considered the best of all
women is clearly stated in the Qur'an:
"Behold! the angels said, "O Maryam! Allah
has chosen you and purified you, chosen you
above the women of all nations."
[Aale-Imran 3:42]
How could she not be the best of women when
Allah has clearly stated that, "her Rabb
accepted her with a goodly acceptance. He
made her to grow in a good manner...." [Aale-
Imran 3:37]
These four women are beautiful examples of
perfect, righteous women. Maryam, the
daughter of 'Imraan, is praised by Allah in the
Qur'an: "And Maryam, daughter of Imraan,
who guarded her chastity; and We breather
into [the sleeve of her shirt/garment] through
Our Ruh [i.e. Jibreel] and she testified to the
truth of the Words of her Rabb, and [also
believed in] His Scriptures and she was one of
the Qaaniteen [obedient to Allah]" [At-Tahreem
66:12]
Khadeejah as-Siddeeqah believed in the
Messenger (saw) without hesitation; she
consoled him and supported him in every way.
Her Rabb gave her the good news, during her
lifetime, of a place in Paradise in which there
would be no noise or exhaustion [Bukhaari,
Kitaab al-Manaaqib, Fath al-Baari, 7/133]
Aasiyah the wife of Fir'awn, despised the
power and luxuries of this world and rejected
Pharaoh and his false claims of divinity, so
her husband tortured her until her soul
departed to her Creator: "And Allah sets forth
an example for those who believe, the wife of
Pharaoh, when she said, "My Rabb! Build for
me a home with You in Paradise, and save me
from Pharaoh and his works, and save me
from the Dhaalimoon [those that do wrong]
" [At-Tahreem 66:11]
Faatimah az-Zahraa, the daughter of the
Prophet (saw) was patient and forbearing, and
feared Allah. She was a branch from the pure
tree, brought up by the educator of humanity.
The People of Paradise: The Ten Who Were
Given Glad Tidings of Paradise
The Messenger (saw) clearly stated that ten of
his Companions would be in Paradise: "Abu
Bakr will be in Paradise, 'Umar will be in
Paradise, 'Uthmaan will be in Paradise, 'Ali will
be in Paradise, Talhah will be in Paradise, az-
Zubayr will be in Paradise, 'Abdur-Rahmaan
ibn 'Awf will be in Paradise, Sa'd ibn Abi
Waqqaas will be in Paradise, Sa'eed ibn Zayd
will be in Paradise and Abu 'Ubaydah ibn al-
Jarraah will be in Paradise." [sahih, Ahmad
from Sa'eed ibn Zayd, at-Tirmidhi from
'Abdur-Rahmaan ibn 'Awf]
The People of Paradise: Others Who It Was
Reported Will Be In Paradise
Others are Ja'far ibn Abi Taalib, Hamzah ibn
'Abdul-Muttaalib, Abdullaah ibn Salaam, Zayd
ibn Harithah, Zayd ibn 'Amr ibn Nufay, *
Harithah ibn al-Nu'maan, Bilaal ibn Abi
Rabah, Abud-Dahdah, * Waraqah ibn Nawfal
Ibn 'Abbaas narrated that the Prophet (saw)
said "I entered Paradise yesterday and looked
at it, and saw Ja'far flying with the angels,
and I saw Hamzah reclining on a couch" [at-
Tabaraani, Ibn 'Adiyy, al-Haakim, Saheeh al-
Jaami', 3/140, no. 3358]
In a saheeh hadith the Prophet (saw) said,
"The leader of the martyrs is Hamzah ibn
'Abdul-Muttaalib" [Saheeh al-Jaami', 3/219,
no. 3569]
From Mu'aadh that the Messenger of Allah
(saw) said, "'Abdullaah ibn Salaam is the
tenth of the first ten to enter
Paradise" [Saheeh al-Jaami' as-Sagheer,
4/25, no. 3870, Ahmad, at-Tabaraani, al-
Haakim]
ar-Rawayanee and ad-Diyaa reported from
Buraydah that the Prophet (saw) said, "I
entered Paradise and I was welcomed by a
young girl. I asked, "Who do you belong to?"
She said, "To Zayd ibn Harithah" [Saheeh al-
Jaami as-Sagheer, 3/141, no. 3361]
From 'Aa'ishah (ra) that the Messenger of
Allah (saw) said, "I entered Paradise and I saw
that Zayd ibn 'Amr ibn Nufayl had two
levels." [Saheeh al-Jaami as-Sagheer, 3/141,
no. 3362. Ibn 'Asaakir]
Tirmidhi and al-Haakim narrated from
'Aa'ishah that the Messenger of Allah (saw)
said, "I entered Paradise and I heard someone
reciting. I asked, "Who is that?" They said,
"Harithah ibn al-Nu'maan; this is the
righteous man" [Saheeh al-Jaami as-Sagheer,
3/142, no. 3366]
Tabaraani and Ibn 'Adiyya report with a
saheeh isnaad from Abu Umamah that the
Prophet (saw) said, "I entered Paradise, and
heard footsteps ahead of me. I asked, "What is
this sound?" I was told, "This is Bilaal, walking
in front of you"" [Saheeh al-Jaami' as-
Sagheer]
Muslim, Abu Dawood, at-Tirmidhi and Ahmad
reported from Jaabir ibn Samurah that the
Messenger (saw) said, "How many bunches of
dates are hanging for Abud-Dahdah is
Paradise!". This is the one who gave his
garden called Bayrahaa, the best garden in
Madinah, in charity when he heard that Allah
(swt) had revealed : "Who is he that will lend
to Allah a goodly loan so that He may multiply
it to him many times?...." [Al-Baqarah 2:245]
Al-Haakim reported with a saheeh isnaad
from 'Aa'ishah that the Messenger (saw) said,
"Do not slander Waraqah ibn Nawfal for I have
seen that he will have one or two gardens in
Paradise" [Saheeh al-Jaami as-Sagheer,
6/1534, no. 7197]
Waraqah believed in the Prophet (saw) when
Khadeejah brought him to him at the
beginning of his Call; he had asked Allah to
let him live until he saw His Messenger so
that he could support him.
Two groups were misled in this matter: The
Jabaariyyah, who took the hadith to mean
that the reward is not connected to deeds,
because man has nothing to do with deeds
[i.e. everything is foreordained]; and the
Qaadariyyah who took the hadith to mean
that Paradise was the equivalent of good
deeds, and man has the right to enter by
virtue of his good deeds.
The commentator on at-Tahhaawiyyah said,
"As for the idea that recompense results
directly from one's deeds, the Jabaariyyah and
the Qaadariyyah are misled, and Allah has
guided Ahl as-Sunnah. The ba' of negation
[nafyi] is not like the ba' used for affirmation.
The negation in the hadith "No one will enter
Paradise by virtue of his deeds" [bi' amaalihi]
is the ba' of substitution or exchange, as if
good deeds were not the price of a man's
admission to Paradise. This is like the [false]
Mu'tazili claim that good deeds will give a
person the right to enter Paradise, whereas
the truth is that admission to Paradise is by
the Grace and Mercy of Allah. The bi' in the
aayah "....a reward for what they used to
do...." [As-Sajda 32:17]. Allah is the Creator
of Cause and Effect, so everything is referred
back to His Grace and Mercy" [Sharh at-
Tahhaawiyyah, 495]