At the beginning of his call, the Messenger of Allah (pbuh) invited to Islam people whom he felt had the readiness to accept it, regardless of their age, position, race, or origin. He (pbuh) never selected people, but rather invited people indiscriminately and then sensed their readiness to accept Islam. Scores of people believed and embraced Islam.
He (pbuh) was anxious to educate these new Muslims and perfect their knowledge of the Deen, as well as teach them the Qur’an. He (pbuh) formed a group from the companions and they carried the Da’wah in turn. Their number grew to over forty men and women, who came from all walks of life, though they were mostly young men. There were among them the poor and the rich, the weak and the strong.
This group of Muslims who believed in Allah’s Messenger (pbuh) and pursued the Da’wah were:
1. ‘Ali ibn Abi Talib (8 years old)
2. Zubayr ibn al-’Awwam (8 years old)
3. Talhah ibn ‘Ubaydullah (11 years old)
4. Al-Arqam ibn Abi al-Arqam (12 years old)
5. ‘Abdullah ibn Mas’ud (14 years old)
6. Sa’id ibn Zayd (under twenty)
7. Sa’d ibn Abi Waqqas (17 years old)
8. Sa’ud ibn Rabi’ah (17 years old)
9. Ja’far ibn Abi Talib (18 years old)
10. Suhayb al-Rumi (under twenty)
11. Zayd ibn Harithah (about twenty)
12. ‘Uthman ibn ‘Affan (about twenty)
13. Tulayb ibn ‘Umayr (about twenty)
14. Khabbab ibn al-Arrat (about twenty)
15. ‘Amir ibn Fuhayrah (23 years old)
16. Mus’ab ibn ‘Umayr (24 years old)
17. Al-Miqdad ibn al-Aswad (24 years old)
18. ‘Abdullah ibn Jahsh (25 years old)
19. ‘Umar ibn al-Khattab (26 years old)
20. Abu Ubaydah ibn al-Jarrah (27 years old)
21. ‘Utbah ibn Ghazwan (27 years old)
22. Abu Hudhayfah ibn ‘Utbah (30 years old)
23. Bilal ibn Rabah (about 30 years old)
24. ‘Ayyash ibn Rabi’ah (about 30 years old)
25. ‘Amir ibn Rabi’ah (about 30) 26. Na’im ibn ‘Abdullah (about 30)
27. ‘Uthman (30 years old), and
28. ‘Abdullah (17 years old), and
29. Qudamah (19 years old), and
30. Al-Saib (about 20, all four being sons of Maz’un ibn Habib)
31. Abu Salamah ‘Abdullah ibn ‘Abd al-Asad al-Makhzumi (about 30) 32. ‘Abd al-Rahman ibn ‘Auf (about 30)
33. ‘Ammar ibn Yasir (between 30 and 40)
34. Abu Bakr al-Siddiq (37 years old)
35. Hamzah ibn ‘Abd al-Muttalib (42 years old)
36. ‘Ubaydah ibn al-Harith (50 years old)
A number of women also embraced Islam.
After three years, the Messenger of Allah (pbuh) was relieved and reassured when these Sahabah matured and when their hearts and minds became filled with nothing but Islamic concepts grounded in the Islamic culture. He (pbuh) then became certain that they had acquired a deep understanding of Islam and that their personalities had reached great heights in terms of belief in Allah (swt). Only then were his worries appeased, for this group of Muslims became strong and capable enough to face society, so he (pbuh) came out leading his group to confront Quraysh when Allah (swt) ordered him to do so.