Narrated from Sayyiduna Anas bin Malik (may Allah be pleased with him) that Sayyiduna Abu Bakr Siddiq (may Allah be pleased with him) related to him, saying: I saw the feet of the polytheists above our heads while we were in the cave. I said: O Messenger of Allah! If any one of them looks down towards his feet, he will see us. The Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) said: O Abu Bakr! What do you think of those two with whom the third is Allah?

Narrated from Sayyiduna Abu Sa'id Khudri (may Allah be pleased with him) that the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) sat on his pulpit and said: "There is a servant of Allah to whom Allah has given the choice, whether he wants the wealth of this world or to choose to be with Allah, and he chose to be with Allah." Upon hearing this, Sayyiduna Abu Bakr (may Allah be pleased with him) wept (he understood that the time of the Prophet's passing was near) and wept profusely. Then he said, "May our fathers and mothers be sacrificed for you, O Messenger of Allah." (Then it became known) that the servant referred to was the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) himself, and Sayyiduna Abu Bakr (may Allah be pleased with him) had the most knowledge among us. And the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) said: "Of all people, Abu Bakr has done the greatest favor to me, both with his wealth and his companionship. And if I were to take anyone as a friend (other than Allah), I would have taken Abu Bakr as a friend. (But there is no close friendship except with Allah), however, there is the brotherhood of Islam." "Let no one's window remain open in the mosque (all should be closed), except the window of Abu Bakr's house; let it remain open."

Abu Uthman says that Syedna Amr bin Aas (may Allah be pleased with him) informed me that the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) sent him with the army of Dhat-us-Salasil (Dhat-us-Salasil is the name of a water place in the outskirts of Syria, the battle there took place in Jumada al-Thani). So I came to the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) and said, "O Messenger of Allah! Among all people, whom do you love the most?" The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) replied, "Aisha Siddiqa." I asked, "Among men, whom do you love the most?" The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) replied, "Her father." I asked, "Then after him, whom?" The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) replied, "Umar." The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) then mentioned several other men.

The hadith of Sayyiduna Abu Hurairah (may Allah be pleased with him) regarding this chapter has already been mentioned in the Book of Zakat (see Hadith: 543).

Sayyiduna Abu Hurairah (may Allah be pleased with him) narrates that the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) said: A man was driving a bull, having loaded it with a burden. The bull looked towards him and said, "I was not created for this purpose; rather, I was created for plowing the field." The people (in amazement and fear) said, "Glory be to Allah! A bull speaks?" Sayyiduna Abu Hurairah (may Allah be pleased with him) says that the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) said, "I believe this to be true, and so do Abu Bakr and Umar."

A shepherd was among his goats when suddenly a wolf attacked and took away a goat. The shepherd chased after it and rescued the goat from it. The wolf looked towards him and said, "Who will protect the goat on the day when there will be no shepherd except me?" (A warning about the day when people of ignorance will be busy in play and wolves will take away the goats, or the days of calamity and tribulation near the Day of Judgment when people, overwhelmed by hardship, will be heedless of their wealth.) The people said, "Glory be to Allah!" The Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) said, "I believe this to be true, and so do Abu Bakr and Umar." (In another narration, it is mentioned that Abu Bakr and Umar (may Allah be pleased with them) were not present. This hadith shows their great virtue, that the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) had such trust in them that whatever he accepted, they would surely accept as well.)

Narrated Ibn Abbas (may Allah be pleased with them both): When Umar (may Allah be pleased with him) passed away and was placed in the bier, people gathered around him, making supplications and praising him, and praying for him before the funeral was lifted. I was among those people. I was not afraid except of one person who held my shoulder from behind. I looked and it was Ali (may Allah be pleased with him). He supplicated to Allah for mercy for Umar (may Allah be pleased with him) and (addressing him) said: O Umar! You have not left anyone whose deeds I would prefer to meet Allah with, as you have done. And by Allah, I used to think that Allah would join you with your two companions (meaning the Messenger of Allah صلی اللہ علیہ وسلم and Abu Bakr As-Siddiq, may Allah be pleased with him), and the reason is that I often heard the Messenger of Allah صلی اللہ علیہ وسلم say: I came, and Abu Bakr and Umar came; and I entered, and Abu Bakr and Umar entered; and I went out, and Abu Bakr and Umar went out. Therefore, I hoped that Allah would join you with both of them.

Ibn Abi Mulaikah says: I heard from Umm al-Mu’minin Aisha Siddiqa (may Allah be pleased with her), she was asked: If the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) had appointed a successor, whom would he have appointed? (From this it is understood that the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) did not explicitly appoint anyone as a caliph, rather the caliphate of Sayyiduna Abu Bakr Siddiq (may Allah be pleased with him) was established by the consensus of the Companions, and the claim of the Shia that the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) explicitly appointed Sayyiduna Ali (may Allah be pleased with him) as caliph is false and baseless, and Sayyiduna Ali (may Allah be pleased with him) himself refuted them.) She said: He would have appointed Sayyiduna Abu Bakr (may Allah be pleased with him). Then she was asked: After him, whom would he have appointed? She said: He would have appointed Sayyiduna Umar (may Allah be pleased with him). Then she was asked: After him, whom would he have appointed? She said: He would have appointed Sayyiduna Abu Ubaidah bin al-Jarrah. Then she remained silent.

‘Muhammad bin Jubair bin Mut’im narrates from his father that’ a woman asked Allah’s Messenger (peace be upon him) something. The Prophet (peace be upon him) said,“Come again.”She said,“O Messenger of Allah! If I come and do not find you (i.e., if you have passed away)?”The Prophet (peace be upon him) said,“If you do not find me, then go to Abu Bakr.”

‘Umm al-Mu’minin Aisha Siddiqa (may Allah be pleased with her) says: The Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) said to me during his illness,“Call your father Abu Bakr and your brother to me, so that I may write a document. I fear that someone who desires (leadership) may aspire to it, or someone may say, ‘I am more deserving (of leadership).’ But Allah refuses, and the Muslims refuse, anyone other than Abu Bakr (for leadership).”