The ten to whom Paradise was promised

The ten to whom Paradise was promised (Arabic: العشرة المبشرون, al-ʿashara al-mubashsharūn or العشرة المبشرة, al-ʿashara al-mubashshara)^[1] were ten early Muslims to whom, according to Sunni Islamic tradition, the Islamic prophet Muhammad (c. 570–632) had promised Paradise.^[2]

Several different lists of names exist, but most of them contain the four Rashidun caliphs Abu Bakr (c. 573–634), Umar (c. 583–644), Uthman (c. 573/576–656), and Ali (c. 600–661), as well as the members of the committee (shūra) that elected Uthman as caliph, i.e., Talha (c. 593–656), Zubayr (born c. 592–602, died 656), Abd al-Rahman ibn Awf (c. 577–c. 652), and Sa'd ibn Abi Waqqas (born c. 600, died c. 670–678).^[3]

The version that became canonical from the 9th century on also lists Sa'id ibn Zayd (c. 600–670/671) and Abu Ubayda ibn al-Jarrah (c. 581–639).^[2] However, the earliest known version of the list, which may date to c. 724–743, contains the name of the first Umayyad caliph Mu'awiya (c. 600–680). Mu'awiya's place was occupied in later versions by Abu Ubayda ibn al-Jarrah, or in some other versions also by the prophet Muhammad himself.^[4]

The tradition may be pro-Qurayshi or pro-Umayyad in origin,^[5] but was adopted by 9th-century Sunni hadith collectors as part of the then developing Sunni tradition,^[2] in which reverence for the companions of the prophet (Arabic: ṣaḥāba) held a special place.^[6] The collecting of yet other hadiths that heaped praise on these ten early Muslims, known by now as al-ʿashara al-mubashsharūn, developed into an independent Sunni genre by the 12th–13th century.^[7]

Despite the fact that Ali, the first and most important Shi'i Imam, also appeared on the list, the authenticity of the tradition was rejected by early Shi'i scholars.^[8] This is in line with the broader Shi'i rejection of the first three Rashidun caliphs as usurpers of Ali's rightful position, as well as of those companions who supported Abu Bakr, Umar, and Uthman against Ali.^[9]