(d. 23 A.H.)
"O Allah! bring support to Islam through the conversion to Islam either one of the two 'Umars, Umar ibn Al-Khattab or 'Amr ibn Hisham." The Prophet (salla-Llaahu 'alayhi wa-sallam)
'Taa Haa. We have not sent down the Qur'an to you (0 Muhammad) to cause you distress. But only as reminder to those who fear Allah. A revelation from Him (Allah) Who created the earth and the high heavens. The Most Gracious (Allah) rose over the Throne (in a manner that suits His Majesty). Whatever is in the heavens and the earth and in between them, belongs to Him, as whatever lies under the earth. (The Qur'an 20:1-6)
The above verses were the key of the light of Islam to our hero, Umar ibn Al-Khattab, whose nick-name was AI-Farooq.
The Qur'an, being the inimitable Words of Allah with its superb style and language and its miraculous content, was responsible for the guidance of many a discriminating Arab in the early days of Islam.. For the Arabs were at the time very fond of linguistic excellence and their appreciation of superior style was at its peak, its being one of the main fields of rivalry and competition. 'Umar ibn Al-Khattab (ra) was one of those Arabs who was enchanted by the Qur'an, especially the verses mentioned earlier.
To his luck, his sister and brother-in-law were studying the Our'an. Their teacher, Khabbab ibn AI-Aratt, was reciting to them the beginning of Chapter 20 (Taa Haa). Upon approaching the house, 'Umar was mesmerized at hearing those few verses. When his sister saw him she swiftly hid the sheet from which they were studying. 'Umar insisted on looking at that sheet, but his sister would not for fear that he might do something bad to it out of disrespect. She was hurt in the process, and Umar calmed down. When his sister felt secure, she told him that he is a pagan and has inpurity and could not, therefore, touch the Our'an. If he wanted to see the sheet that contained Our'anic verses he had to take a bath and to purify himself first and then to announce his declaration of the Faith. Our hero did what he was asked to, and said the declaration of the Faith: "I bear witness that there is no deity except Allah and I bear witness that Muhammad is the Messenger of Allah."
Immediately he went to the Prophet (saws) to announce his conversion to Islam in his presence. The Prophet (saws) was heard earlier praying to Allah to increase the glory of Islam with the conversion of either 'Umar ibn AI-Khattab or Amr ibn Hisham (Abu Jahl). The Muslims were excited and very happy to learn of this great event. For our hero was known as a tough man, feared by many people in Makkah.
With the conversion of our hero to Islam the Muslims gained a very strong ally and protector, a man of strength and courage, and they felt more secure. We are told that when our hero decided to migrate to Madina, he announced his decision to the Makkan pagans, challenging anyone to stop him. None dared to be in his way.
Toughness and courage, however, were not the sole characteristics of our hero. For he was also very well-known for his wisdom and extreme sense of justice and fearing of Allah. His suggestions with regard to many issues, in fact, concurred with Divine revelation, we are told.
To him Muslims owe many practices of great historical significance. For example, It was on his suggestion that the Caliph Abu Bakr (ra) ordered the compilation of the Qur'anic texts in a book form. For he told the Caliph that due to the fierce battles the former companions of the Prophet (saws) were engaged in there was the danger that portions of the Qur'an would be lost with the death of the companions who memorized and learnt them. Abu Bakr (ra) was hesitant in the beginning for fear of doing something not done by his teacher, the Prophet (saws), but was later convinced of the necessity of the compilation. The task was assigned to Zaid ibn Thabit (ra), as we shall discuss later.
Upon the death of Abu Bakr (ra), our hero, Umar Ibn" Al-Khattab, was elected Caliph. "Amir AI- Mu'mineen (Leader of the Faithful'), a term used for a long time after him, to refer to the Muslim rulers.
During his reign many important administrative institutions were established: regular mail system, official registry for the armies and soldiers (known then as "Diwan AI-Jund') ... etc.
Our hero's conduct of the state affairs is exemplary in many ways. For it combined innovation with the strict observance of the teachings of the religion, firmness with kind heartedness, and toughness with an extreme sense of justice and responsibility for the welfare of his subjects.
Stories of the exemplary sense of justice and responsibility that charactenzed our hero fill the pages of the glorious history of Islam. We will try to give a few examples below.
In a cold night the Caliph 'Umar was on one of his routine inspection mission around Madina when he heard some children crying. He approached to find out the cause. There he saw a widow surrounded by a few children crying. 'Umar (ra) asked about the cause of their crying. The woman said that they were suffering from the pangs of hunger.
"What do you have in that pot on the stove?" asked 'Umar(ra), the woman answered that there were some pebbles in water to keep the children quite until they went to sleep. She went on complaining of the negligence of the Caliph of his subjects. Tears came down our hero's eyes, and he immediately rushed to the treasury and brought himself some flour and oil on his back. He then put the food in the pot and started blowing the fire with his own mouth until the food was cooked. 'Umar (ra) left only after he made sure that the children had eaten. He then told the woman that she go to the treasury for her regular food supply, all the time without her recognizing him.
But 'Umar's kindness was not limited to his dealing with the Muslim citizens at Madina. Once we are told he met an old man begging in Syria. Upon inquiring he learnt that he was a Jew. The Caliph immediately chided his governor of the region, reminding him that was a citizen who used to pay Jizyah imposed by Islam on all non Muslims living under the protection of an Islamic government. when he was able bodied, therefore, it was the Muslim State's duty to take care of him in his old age. Equality is another aspect of justice which our hero strictly observed.
History tells us that on the occasion of Hajj ('pilgrimage to Makkah'). an Egyptian Copt complained to the Caliph that the son of 'Amr ibn AI-'As (the governor of Egypt) had beaten him, because he outran him in a race, saying, "How dare you outrun the son of the honouble people?" The Caliph 'Umar ibn Al-Khattab was angry. He immediately ordered that the young man (the governor's son) be brought forward, and the Copt was given a whip to revenge for himself. The Caliph turned to his governor saying: "Since when have enslaved people who were born free!"
The mighty 'Umar was feared by his enemies, but not even by the weakest of his subjects. On one occasion the Caliph was giving instructions that the sadaaq (dower paid by a man to his bride) be limited to a small amount. A woman rose from the audience, and said how could do you do that when Allah says in the Qur'an, "If you give them a qintaar (a large amount),..." The Caliph acknowledged his mistake, saying, " 'Umar has erred and a woman has said the right thing." He rescinded his orders.
Our hero was a practical man of vision, as we can see from the following. Once while he was on one of his rounds of the city he heard a woman chanting a poem expressing her longing to her husband. The Caliph inquired about the woman's husband and learnt that he was away in the military expedition. He went to his daughter, Hafsah, and asked her how long a married woman could stay away from her husband. When she told him "a maximum of four months," the Caliph issued orders that all married soldiers be sent back home every four months on vacation.
A couple of slaves were caught stealing a camel. When the Caliph saw that they were very skinny. He realized that they stole out of hunger. So instead of punishing them he asked for their master to be brought forward, and he chided him for not feeding his slaves properly. Then 'Umar (ra) ordered the master to compensate the owner of the stolen camel for it. Naturally, the slaves were warned not to ever steal again.
Like all the heroes of Islam, our hero 'Umar ibn Al-Khattab was a very humble person, despite the fact that he was the head of the Islamic State that was heir to and conqueror of the greatest two powers in the Middle East at the time, Persian and, Eastern Byzantine empires. To his wise leadership Muslims owe the first conquest of Jerusalem too.
It was with that spirit of humility that 'Umar (ra) received the keys of the city of Jerusalem from its Patriarch, in the presence of the commanders of the Muslim armies and other important dignitaries. For to our hero, firsty, gratitude was due to Allah to whom utmost humility should be shown. Secondly, it was the person, rather than the attire or appearance, that essence really mattered. It was these traits of a truly humble and fair minded Muslim genius that kept his memory alive not only in the hearts and minds of Muslims, but also in the minds of many a non-Muslim scholar and historian.
Source: "HEROES OF ISLAM" by Prof. Mahmoud Esma'il Sieny
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