Umar ibn Al Khattab:
The One who distinguishes truth from falsehood.
The envoy of the Roman Emperor set out for Medina attended by a large retinue and equipped with allthe pomp and pageantry which the Roman Empire could boast of. On arrival in the metropolis of Islam, he enquired of a passer-by: 'Tell me please, where is the palace of the Caliph'?
The Arab looked around. He was surprised by this strange question, 'What do you mean by a palace'? retorted the Arab.' I mean the palace of Umar, the Caliph of Islam,' added the envoy. 'O! you want to see Umar. Come on, I will take you to his presence,' replied the Arab.
The envoy was escorted to the Mosque of the Prophet, and to his utter astonishment, a person who was lying on the bare floor of the mosque was introduced to him as Caliph Umar Farooq, the greatest .uler of his time, whose armies held sway over the three known continents of the world. The envoy was taken aback at such a strange Sight and the report of what he observed in Medina was enough to terrorise the Roman Emperor and impress him with the invincible might of Islam.
Hazrat Umar ibn Khattab was born in Makkah in 40 B.H. (Before Hejirah). His lineage joins that of the Prophet of Islam in the eighth generation. His forefathers had held ambassadorial posts; commerce was his ancestral occupation. He was one of the seventeen literate persons of Makkah, when Prophethood was conferred on the Holy Prophet Muhammad (PBUH). He entered the pale of Islam at the age of 27.
An interesting anecdote is told about his conversion to Islam. He was one of the most powerful enemies of the new faith. One day, he set out with the intention of killing the Prophet of Islam. On the way he came across one Naeem ibn Abdullah, who asked him where he was bound for. Umar told him that he had resolved to do away with Muhammad (PBUH). Naeem tauntingly asked him to reform his own house first. Umar at once turned back and on arrival in his house, found his brother-in-law reciting the Holy Quran. He got awfully infuriated and mercilessly beat him, but he and his sister refused to renounce Islam. The fum stand of his sister at last calmed him and he asked her to recite the lines of the Quran again. She readily complied. Urnar was so much charmed and enthused that he hurried to the Prophet's place and embraced Islam. The small brotherhood was so much overwhelmed with joy that they raised the cry of 'Allah-o-Akbar' (God is great) and the surrounding hills resounded with the echo.
The conversion of Umar greatly added to the strength of the Muslims. He later on became the principal adviser to Hazrat Abu Bakr during his two and a half years reign. On the death of Hazrat Abu Bakr he was elected as the Second Caliph of Islam, a post which he held with unique distinction for ten and a half years. At last he was assassinated in 644 A.C., while leading the prayers in the mosque of the Prophet, by one Feroz alias Abu Lulu, a disgruntled Parsi (Majusi).
The greatness of Caliph Umar is visible in his sympathetic treatment of his non-Muslim subjects. Before the advent of Islam the rights of other races in the Roman and Persian empires were worse than those of slaves. Even the Syrian Christians had no right over their lands, so much so that with the transfer of their lands they were also transferred. When Hazrat Umar conquered these countries, he returned the lands to their tillers who were mostly non-Muslims. He granted peace to the Christians of Elia who had surrendered. The peace terms run as follows: 'This is the peace, granted by Umar, the slave of God, to the inhabitants of Elia. Non-Muslims will be allowed to stay-in their churches which will not be demolished. They will have full freedom of religion and will not be harmed in any way.'
Such benevolent and generous treatment of non-Muslims at the hands of the Caliph endeared him to all of his subjects, thus laying the foundation of a stable government and an efficient administration.
Hazrat Umar possessed an exemplary character and practised himself what he preached. He was intrinsically conscientious; his motto had always been the service of his people. He never favoured his own pious and learned son Abdullah bin Umar. In the fixation of monthly honorarium he gave preference to those who were close Companions of the Prophet, otherwise he observed equality even between the Quraish and the slaves. When he fixed the salary of Usama bin laid higher than that of his son Abdullah, the latter complained, 'Usama had never surpassed me in the service of Islam.' The pious Caliph at once replied, 'But he was closer and dearer to the Prophet.'
Untainted service to humanity was his foremost concern. He roamed about during the night often incognito in order to acquaint himself with the condition of his people. One night as he was roaming outside Medina, he observed in a house a woman cooking something and two girls sitting beside her crying for food. After waiting for sometime, he asked the woman what was the matter. She told him that the children were hungry, that there was nothing in the kettle except water and a few pieces of stones and that she was lulling them to believe that food was being cooked for them. The Caliph without disclosing his identity hurried to Medina, three miles-away, brought a bag of flour on his back, cooked the food himself and was not contented until the appetite of the children was fully satisfied. The next day he called again to apologise to the old woman for his negligence and fixed dole-money for her.
The great Caliph led a very simple life. His standard of living was in no case higher than that of an ordinary man. Once the Governor of Kufa visited him while he was taking his meals comprising of barley bread and oliveoil. The Governor said. 'Amirul Momineen (Commander of the Faithful) enough wheat is produced in your dominions. why do you not take wheat bread'. Feeling somewhat offended the Caliph asked him in a melancholy tone, 'Do you think that wheat is available to each and every person inhabiting my vast dominions?'
'No'. replied the Governor.
'Then how can I take wheat bread unless it is available to all of my people'? added the Caliph.
Honesty and integrity were the highest virtues in the character of the Second Caliph. Once, during his illness his physician prescribed honey for him. Tons of honey was kept in the Baitul Mal. but he did not take a drop of it unless he was permitted by the people's committee. His wife, Umme Kulsum, once presented a few bottles of perfumes to the Empress of Rome. The Empress returned the bottles ruled with precious stones. When Hazrat Umar learned of it, he deposited the jewels in the Baitul Mal.
The Caliph had great respect for the social equality of man. The Patriarch of Jerusalem was profoundly struck by the respect for social equality shown by the esteemed Caliph when he observed the slave was riding on the camel and the Caliph was leading the camel by the string.
According to a report of Abdur Rahman bin Auf, the Caliph came to him one day and asked him to accompany him to a certain place. On enquiry, he told Hazrat Auf that a caravan had arrived in Medina and since the members must be tired, the Caliph considered it obligatory to guard them for the whole of night so that they might rest undisturbed.
Once he addressed a gathering saying, 'Brothers, if I stray from the right path what will you do'? A man stood up and said, 'We will behead you.' Umar shouted in order to test him: 'You dare utter such impertinent words for me?' 'Yes, for you,' replied the man. Umar was very much pleased with his boldness and said, 'Thank God, there exist such bold men in our nation that if I go astray they will set me right.'
'It was only to his high moral character,' says a European historian, 'that Umar owned the respect which he inspired, for the physical force at his command was none. Umar was not only a great ruler but also one of the most typical models of all the virtues of Islam'. Tradition makes the Prophet of Islam say: 'If God had wished that there should have been another prophet after me, he would have been none other than Urnar.'
The second Caliph of Islam occupies an outstanding place in the history of the world. One would hardly come across a ruler who led so simple a life, and dedicated himself to the service of his people and was a terror for his foes. 'Of simple habits, austere and frugal, always accessible to the meanest of his subject, wandering about at night to enquire into the condition of the people without any guard or escort, such was the greatest and most powerful ruler of the time.
Following are excerpts from Umar's addresses to the people of Madinah, when he learnt that the fear they had for him was more than their love for him.
Brethren, it has come to my notice that the people are afraid of me..... they say that he (Umar) has become the Caliph now, God knows how hard he will be. Whoever has said this is not wrong in his assessment...... know ye brethren that you will feel a change in me.[38] For those who practise tyranny and deprive others of their rights, I will be harsh and stern, but for those who follow the law, I will be most soft and tender.
Umar's addresses greatly moved the people. Next time he addressed the people as:
I will be harsh and stern against the aggressor, but I will be a pillar of strength for the weak.
I will not calm down until I will put one cheek of a tyrant on the ground and the other under my feet, and for the poor and weak, I will put my cheek on the ground.
The following are the historic words of Umar, over which he laid foundation of his rule:
By God, he that is weakest among you shall be in my eye the strongest, until I have vindicated for him his rights; he that is strongest I will treat as the weakest, until he complies with the law.
Perhaps Dr. Iqbal, the poet of the East was alluding to Caliph Umar when he said,
lis se jigar-i-lala me thandak ho woh shabnam
Daryaan ke dil jis se dahel jaen woh toofan
(Like the dew which cools the heart of lily
and like the storm which shakes the heart of the rivers).
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