Page 3 - Hazrat Abu Dharr Ghafari

Hazrat Abu Dhar is remembered for his strict piety and also his

opposition to Muawiyah during the caliph Uthman ibn Affan era. He

is venerated by Shia Muslims as one of The Four Companions, early

Muslims who were followers of Ali ibn Abi Talib. He preferred to live

a poor but honest life as a shepherd. Having heard the supposition

that a new prophet had arisen in Mecca, Abu Dharr and his brother

travelled to Mecca to find the claimed prophet. The young seeker

converted instantly and rushed out to declare his new faith in front

of the Kaaba. After this he returned to his tribe, where he made

other converts for Islam, and then joined Muhammad after the

Hijra, or migration to Medina in 622 CE. Hazrat Abu Dharr is

claimed to have been the fourth or fifth convert to Islam.