As Buraidah Aslami drew close to Rasulullah (sallallahu ‘alaihi wasallam), Rasulullah (sallallahu ‘alaihi wasallam) asked him, “Who are you?” He replied, “I am Buraidah.” Hearing this, Rasulullah (sallallahu ‘alaihi wasallam) turned to Hazrat Abu Bakr (radhiyallahu ‘anhu), and taking Buraidah’s name as a good omen, he remarked:

بَرُدَ أَمْرُنَا وَصَلُحَ

“O Abu Bakr! Our concerns have cooled down and have been resolved.”

(The man’s name was “Buraidah”. The word “buraidah” is a diminutive of the word “bard” which means “coolness”. Thus, when he mentioned that his name is Buraidah, Rasulullah (sallallahu ‘alaihi wasallam) took this as a good omen to indicate that now their anxieties and concerns will be cooled down.)

Rasulullah (sallallahu ‘alaihi wasallam) then asked Buraidah, “From which tribe do you hail? Buraidah replied, “I come from the tribe of Aslam.” Hearing this, Rasulullah (sallallahu ‘alaihi wasallam) again turned towards Hazrat Abu Bakr (radhiyallahu ‘anhu), and taking this as a good omen, he said:

سَلِمْنَا

“We will be safe.” (as the name “Aslam” comes from the word “Salaam” which means safety.)

Rasulullah (sallallahu ‘alaihi wasallam) then asked Buraidah, “Which clan of the Aslam tribe do you come from?” Buraidah replied, “I come from the Banu Sahm clan.” Hearing this, Rasulullah (sallallahu ‘alaihi wasallam) responded:

خَرَجَ سَهْمُكَ

“Your share (of Islam) has materialised (i.e. you will bring imaan and get a share of Islam).” (as the word “sahm” means “a share”.)

Buraidah then asked Rasulullah (sallallahu ‘alaihi wasallam), “Who are you?” Rasulullah (sallallahu ‘alaihi wasallam) replied:

أنَا مُحَمَّدُ بْنُ عَبْدُ اللهِ وَرَسُوْلُ الله

“I am Muhammed, the son of Abdullah, and I am the Rasul of Allah.”

To this, Buraidah said:

أَشْهَدُ أَنْ لَا إِلهَ إِلّا اللهُ وَأَنَّ مُحَمَّدًا عَبْدُهُ وَرَسُوْلُه

“I bear witness that there is none worthy of worship besides Allah and that certainly Muhammed is His slave and messenger.”

In this manner, Hazrat Buraidah (radhiyallahu ‘anhu) himself embraced Islam, and the seventy riders accompanying him all embraced Islam as well.

Hazrat Buraidah (radhiyallahu ‘anhu) then addressed Rasulullah (sallallahu ‘alaihi wasallam) saying, “O Rasul of Allah (sallallahu ‘alaihi wasallam)! At the time when you enter Madinah Munawwarah, you should have a flag in front of you.”

Accordingly, Rasulullah (sallallahu ‘alaihi wasallam) removed his imaamah (turban), tied it onto a spear and handed it to Hazrat Buraidah (radhiyallahu ‘anhu). Thereafter, when Rasulullah (sallallahu ‘alaihi wasallam) eventually entered Madinah Munawwarah, Hazrat Buraidah (radhiyallahu ‘anhu) was in front of him bearing this flag.

(Extracted from Seeratul Mustafa 1/395-396)