1. _Al-Haafidh Ibn Hajar al-Asqalani mentioned while commenting on this hadith that is a part of a longer hadith narrated by Abu Minhal and collected by al-Bukhari in the book of ‘Afflictions and the End of the World’ (Kitab al-Fitan). In that hadith, Abu Minhal went with his father to visit Abu Barza and Abu Minhal’s father said: “O Abu Barza! Don’t you see in what dilemma the people has fallen?”. (This was referring to what was happening when Marwan ibn al-Hakam, Ibn Az-Zubair, the Khawwarij etc were involved in different conflicts in the Muslim world at the period of Afflictions.). – Fathul Baari, Sharh Sahih al-Bukhari_
2. _The narrator of the hadith, Abu Barza al-Aslami, is one of the Sahaba of the Prophet ﷺ and a narrator of hadith. He fought a number of Jihad alongside the Prophet ﷺ and Ali ibn Abi Talib as recorded in aurhentic ahadith. In the longer version of the hadith, as collected by al-Bukhari in the Book of al-Fitan, he addressed Abu Minhal and his father, and invariably all Muslim then (Arabs and non-Arabs), that: ‘O you Arabs! You know very well that you were in misery and were few in number and misguided, and that Allah has brought you out of all that with Islam and with Muhammad till He brought you to this state (of prosperity and happiness) which you see now; and it is this worldly wealth and pleasures which has caused mischief to appear among you.’_
3. _A major benefit of this hadith is that holding to the Qur’an and the guidance of the Prophet ﷺ (sunnah) brought prosperity and happiness to the early Muslims and before tgen, they were misguided and disunited. When the latter Muslims however started leaning towards the rivalry of this world (political authority and wealth), they became disunited and great affliction befell them. See Surah Aal-Imran (3) vs 103 and its tafsir for further reading on similar message of holding fast to the Qur’an_
O Allah, we ask you for steadfastness in this matter, and we ask You for the resolve to adhere to the path of guidance, and we ask You for gratitude for Your blessings and to worship You well, and we ask You for a truthful tongue and a sound heart, and we seek refuge with You from the evil of what You know, and we ask You for the good of what You know, and we ask You for forgiveness for what You know; You are the knower of the Unseen … Ãmeen
