Abu Ayyub al-Ansari or Khalid Ibn Zaid Ibn Kulayb was born in Medina in Banu Najjar tribe to whom the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings of Allah be to him) was distantly related. He was one of the closest companions of the Messenger of Allah and enjoyed the privilege of having him as a guest in his house for seven months during the initial days of the Hijrah. When the Messenger reached Medina, everyone, out of love, respect and reverence, wanted him to stay at his house; however this honour fell on Abu Ayyub. The Messenger left her she-camel loose and said wherever it will stop he will make that home his residence and ultimately it stopped in front of Ayyub’s house, whose face shone with extreme happiness, and then began the journey of a close companionship. Abu Ayyub was also among those who had pledged allegiance to the Messenger during the journey to Makkah.
Ayyub had two floors and he offered the upper floor to the Messenger, however the Messenger asked for the lower floor. On the first night when Ayyub ascended on the upper floor, his heart felt tremendous remorse and he said to his wife, “Woe to us! What have we done? The Messenger of Allah is below and we are higher than him! Can we walk on top of the Messenger of Allah? Are we standing between him and the Revelation? If so, we are doomed.” The very next morning, he went to the Messenger and said how he could not sleep the whole night as he was sleeping above the Prophet and persuaded him to move to the upper floor, however the Messenger said, “We prefer the lower floor because we have a lot of visitors.”
Ayyub submitted to the Messenger’s wish, though he disliked being above him. Few days later, on a cold night, some water got spilled on the upper floor and fearing that it would flow down to the Messenger, he wiped the water from the only blanket he had to save him from the cold. He narrated the incident to the Messenger and he exchanged the floors. Later when the Messenger shifted to Masjid-e-Nabawi, Ayyub became his neighbour.
It was also Ayyub who got the privilege to feed Abu Bakr, Umar (may Allah be pleased with them both) and the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings of Allah be to him) when they were terribly hungry and came out of their houses in the burning heat of the sun. When both told the Messenger about their condition, he said, “By Him in Whose hands is my soul, only hunger has caused me to come out also. But come with me.” The Messenger headed to the house of Abu Ayyub and his wife opened the door and welcomed all the three. Ayyub immediately brought some dates and slaughtered an animal to prepare food for them. When the food was presented before the Messenger, he placed a piece of meat on a loaf of bread and asked Ayyub to give it to his daughter Fatima, who also had not eaten for days. When they finished eating and got satisfied, the Messenger said, “This is a bountiful blessing about which you will be asked on the Day of Judgment. If such comes your way, put your hands to it and say, Bismillah and when you have finished say, Praise be to God Who has given us enough and Who has bestowed his bounty on us. This is best.” Such was the companionship of the Messenger with Abu Ayyub.
Indeed Abu Ayyub stood as a pillar to support the Messenger and Islam both physically and morally. Abu Ayyub was among those who pledged allegiance to the Messenger of Allah and invited him to Medina to establish the system of Allah. It was the time when Makkah turned totally hostile to the Messenger and tribes of Taif and other areas did not support the cause of Islam. The Messenger was looking for a tribe or a place where he could transfer his mission and Medina opened its doors for the Messenger.
Later when the clash became physical and wars began to take place, the Messenger received unflinching support from the people and Abu Ayyub was the one who proved himself as a professional warrior. He did not miss a single war and fought alongside the Messenger in all the battles. His dedication remained the same, or in fact increased, after the death of the Messenger and it was said regarding him that “He did not stay away from any battle the Muslims fought from the time of Muhammad to the time of Muawiyah unless he was engaged at the same time in another.”
Islam emphasises on personal relationships and orders its adherents not to break the bond of kinship. Abu Ayyub has narrated a hadith in this regard where the Messenger of Allah said, “It is not lawful for a man to desert his brother Muslim for more than three nights. (It is unlawful for them that) when they meet, one of them turns his face away from the other, and the other turns his face from the former, and the better of the two will be the one who greets the other first.”
He was loved by the Messenger of Allah so much that he prayed for him when he removed a bird feather from the face of the Messenger. The Messenger said, “O Abu Ayyub, now on no evil will touch you.” Indeed the prayer of the Messenger acted as a shield for Ayyub and he came alive from every battle he fought.