The Companions, who were the first to receive the Quran when it was revealed in the 7^th century, were examples, like the Prophet, both in behavior and practice for those who would come after them due to their sincere affiliation with him. However, this becoming an "example" occurred after a period of education that ran parallel with the gradual revelation of Quranic verses.

Mehmet Efendioglu, PhD

The Arabic word of Sahabi literally means a companion or a friend. As a religious term it means, “a person who saw Prophet Muhammad (pbuh), believed in him, acted along with him, and retained his belief until the moment of his death”. The plural form can be given as “sahaba” or “ashab”.

Hence a companion is anyone, male or female, who saw the Prophet, believed in him and died as a Muslim anytime during the nearly 23 years of his mission, that is between August 6th, 610, the date of the first verses revealed to the Prophet, and the 12th Rabi al-Awwal 632 (Gregorian calendar as June 7th, 632), the date of the death of the Prophet.