I he people of the Sunnah are unanimous that the best of mankind niter the Messenger of Allah, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, were Abu Bakr, then cUmar, then cUthman, then cAli, then the rest of the ten (who were given the good news of the Garden by the Prophet, may Allah bless him and grant him peace), then the rest of the people of Badr, then the rest of the people of Uhud, then the rest of the people of the oath of allegiance (of Hudaybiyyah), I hen the rest of the Companions. Abu Mansur al-Baghdadi relates that there is consensus on this.

Al-Bukhari narrated that Ibn cUmar said, ‘We were choosing between people in the time of the Messenger of Allah, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, so we chose Abu Bakr, then cUmar (ibn al-Khattab), then cUthman (ibn cAffan) may Allah be pleased with them all.’ At-Tabarani added, in al-Kabir, ‘And the Prophet came to know of that but did not deny it.’ I bn cAsakir narrated that Ibn cUmar said: We, while the Messenger of Allah, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, was among us, used to prefer Abu Bakr, cUmar, cUthman and cAli.

Ibn cAsakir narrated that Abu Hurayrah said: We, the gatherings of the Companions of the Messenger of Allah, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, while we were considerable numbers, used to say, ‘The best of this ummah after its Prophet are Abu Bakr, then ‘Umar, and then cUthman,’ and then we would be silent.’ At-Tirmidhi narrated that Jabir ibn cAbdullah said: cUmar said to Abu Bakr, ‘O best of mankind after the Messenger of Allah, may Allah bless him and grant him peace.’ Abu Bakr said, ‘If you say that, then I heard him saying, “The sun has not risen over a better man than cUmar.’” Al-Bukhari narrated that Muhammad ibn cAli ibn Abi Talib said:

I said to my father, ‘Who is the best of mankind after the Prophet, may Allah bless him and grant him peace?’ He said, ‘Abu Bakr.’ I said, ‘Then who?’ He said, ‘cUmar.’ I was afraid that he would say cUthman so I said, ‘Then you?’ He said, ‘I am nobody but a man among the Muslims.’ Ahmad and others narrated that cAli said: The best of this ummah after our Prophet are Abu Bakr and cUmar. Adh-Dhahabi said: This is mutawatir5 from cAli, so may Allah curse ar-Rafidah (literally ‘the rejectors’ i.e. the Shicah), how ignorant they are! At-Tirmidhi and al-Hakim narrated that cUmar ibn al-Khattab said: Abu Bakr, our master, the best of us and the most beloved to the Prophet, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, said, \ .

Ibn cAsakir narrated that cAbd ar-Rahman ibn Abi Layla said that cUmar ascended the minbar and said, ‘Definitely the best of this ummah after our Prophet is Abu Bakr. Whoever says anything else is an inventor of falsehood. May there be upon him that which is upon the inventor of falsehood.’ He also narrated that Ibn Abi Layla said: cAli said, ‘Anyone who prefers me over Abu Bakr and cUmar, I will lash with the hadd punishment due to the inventor of falsehood.’ cAbd ar-Rahman ibn Humayd, in his Musnad, and Abu Nucaym and others narrated with different paths of transmission that Abu’d-Darda’, said that the Messenger of Allah, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, said, ‘The sun has not risen nor has it set over anyone better than Abu Bakr, unless he were a prophet.’ In a differently worded version, . .over any of the Muslims, after the prophets and messengers, better than Abu Bakr.’ It has also been transmitted as a hadith of Jabir, in its wording is, ‘The sun has not risen over anyone of you better than him.’ At-Tabarani and others narrated it. There are other texts which support it from other angles uikI which require that it be a sahih or hasan hadith. Ibn Kathir Indicated that his judgement was that it is sound.

At-Tabarani narrated that Salamah ibn al-Akwac said: The Messenger of Allah, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, said, 'Abu Bakr as-Siddiq is the best of mankind, unless it be a prophet.’ And in al-Awsat that Sacd ibn Zurarah said: The Messenger of Allah, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, said, ‘The Ruh ill-Quds, Jibril, informed me that, “The best of your ummah after you is Abu Bakr.’” I he two Shaykhs cAmr ibn al-cAs said: I said, ‘Messenger of Allah, which of the people is most beloved to you?’ He said, ‘cA’ishah.’ I said, ‘Of the men?’ He said, ‘Her father.’ I said, ‘Then who?’ He said, ‘Then cUmar ibn al-Khattab.’ This hadith has been narrated without, ‘Then TJmar,’ in narrations of Anas, Ibn cAmr and Ibn 'Abbas.

At-Tirmidhi, an-Nasa’i and al-Hakim narrated that cAbdullah ibn Shaqiq said: I said to cA’ishah, ‘Which of the companions of the Messenger of Allah were most beloved to the Messenger of Allah, may Allah bless him and grant him peace?’ She said, ‘Abu Bakr.’ I said, ‘Then who?’ She said, ‘Then cUmar.’ I said, ‘Then who?’ She said, ‘Abu TJbaydah ibn al-Jarrah.’ At-Tirmidhi and others narrated that Anas said: The Messenger of Allah, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, said about Abu Bakr and cUmar, ‘These two are the lords of the mature adults of t he people of the Garden, of the first ones and the last ones, except for the prophets and the messengers.’ He recorded the like of it from cAli.

In this section there are hadith from Ibn cAbbas, Ibn cUmar, Abu Sacid al-Khudri and Jabir ibn cAbdullah.

At-Tabarani narrated in al-Awsat that cAmmar ibn Yasir said:

Whoever preferred anyone of the companions of the Messenger of Allah, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, over Abu Bakr and TJmar has belittled the Muhajirun and the Ansar.

Ibn Sacid narrated that az-Zuhri said: The Prophet, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, said to Hassan ibn Thabit, ‘Have you said anything about Abu Bakr?’ He said, ‘Yes.’ He said, ‘Say it and I will listen.’ He said, ‘And the “second of the two” in the glorious cave, The enemy went round about it when he ascended the mountain.

The love of the Messenger of Allah (for him) they already knew, Of people he held not equal any man.’ And the Prophet, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, laughed until his back teeth were visible, then said, ‘You have told the truth, Hassan; he is as you say.’