Are all Companions (Ashab) people of Paradise? Are there any Companions who will go to Hell?

Dear Brother / Sister,

"A Companion (sahaba) is person who saw and met the Prophet (pbuh) as a believer and died as a Muslim." (Ibn Hajar, al-Isaba, 1/7)

The Companions are unanimously the greatest people after prophets because they were educated by the Messenger of Allah (pbuh) himself.

All Companions are regarded as just and righteous because all scholars were classified in terms of reliability but the Companions were excluded from it; they are all regarded as honest, straightforward and good people.

The consensus of the ummah – that all Companions remained on the true path going to Paradise – is a definite evidence for it.

Besides, the ummah also unanimously agreed that the Companions were the most virtuous people after prophets.

As a matter of fact, Ibn Hazm expressed his view by speaking on behalf of many mujtahids and imams: "All Companions are people of Paradise.” (Ibn Hajar, al-Isaba, 1/10)

There are many verses of the Quran and hadiths supporting this fact: Allah praised them and said,

they were an Ummah justly balanced (al-Baqara, 2/143),

they answered the call of Allah and the Messenger, and had a great reward (Aal-i Imran, 3/172, 173),

well-pleased is Allah with them, as are they with Him and for them hath He prepared gardens under which rivers flow, to dwell therein forever (at-Tawba, 9/100)

they were loyal believers aiding Allah and His Messenger (al-Hashr, 59/8),

they gave preference to others even though poverty was their own lot and they deserved salvation (al-Hashr, 59/9), 

they will be forgiven as true believers and that they will be given a provision most generously in the hereafter (al-Anfal, 8/ 74).

When the Prophet (pbuh) mentioned the Companions, whose sacrifices he personally witnessed, he described them as

"the best generation in the history of humanity" (Bukhari, Fadail 1; Muslim, Fadail 211, 212),

“the best ones among the ummah" (Musnad, 5/350),

"the people whom hellfire would not burn " (Tirmidhi, Manaqib, 57),

"people of Paradise" (Kanzul-Ummal, 11/539).

He also wanted his ummah

"to entertain them " (Tayalisi, Musnad, p. 7),

"to treat them well " (Musnad,1/ 26),

"and not to criticize them maliciously" ((Bukhari, Fadail 4).

He made the following warning for those who criticized his Companions maliciously:

"May Allah damn a person who curses my Companions! May angels damn him!  May all people damn him!" (Majmauz-Zawaid, 10/21; Kanzul-Ummal, 11/531)

Badiuzzaman Said Nursi states the following regarding the issue:

“From the point of view of general virtue, the Companions cannot be reached, who are the subject of Divine praise at the end of Sura al-Fath, and are praised and applauded in the Torah, Gospels, and Qur’an.” (Sözler, Yirmi Yedinci Söz'ün Zeyli)

Since the Companions are greater than the greatest saints as the ummah unanimously agrees, it is a necessity of the common sense that becomes distinguished with the belief of consciousness to show them more respect than the respect we show to great saints like Abdulqadir Ghaylani, Shah Naqshband, Imam Ghazali and Imam Rabbani.

Questions on Islam