#11 Umar ibn al-Khattab from The History of the Khalifahs by Jalal ad- Din as-Suyuti

Some accounts of him and of his judgements
Al-‘Askari narrated in al-Awa’il, at-Tabarani
in al-Kabir, and al-Hakim by way of Ibn
Shihab that ‘Umar ibn ‘Abd al-‘Aziz asked Abu
Bakr ibn Sulayman ibn Abi Hathamah what
was the reason that it used to be written,
‘From the Khalifah of the Messenger of Allah,
may Allah bless him and grant him peace,’ in
the time of Abu Bakr, then later ‘Umar used to
write at first, ‘From the Khalifah of Abu Bakr’?
Then who was the first to write, ‘From the
Amir al-Mu’minin (the Commander of the
Believers)’? He said, ‘Ash-Shifa, who was one
of the women of the Muhajirun, told me that
Abu Bakr used to write, “From the Khalifah of
the Messenger of Allah,” and ‘Umar used to
write, “From the Khalifah of the Khalifah of
the Messenger of Allah,” until one day ‘Umar
wrote to the governor of Iraq, to send him two
strong men whom he could ask about Iraq and
its inhabitants. He sent to him Labid ibn
Rabi‘ah and ‘Adi ibn Hatim, and they came to
Madinah and entered the mosque where they
found ‘Amr ibn al-‘As. They said, ‘Get
permission for us (to visit) the Amir al-
Mu’minin.’ ‘Amr said, ‘You two, by Allah, have
hit upon his name!’ Then ‘Amr went in to him
and said, ‘Peace be upon you, Amir al-
Mu’minin.’ He said, ‘What occurred to you
about this name? You must explain what you
have said.’ He told him and said, ‘You are the
amir (commander) and we are the mu’minun
(the believers).’ Thus letters have continued to
be written with that from that day.
An-Nawawi said in his Tahdhib: ‘Adi ibn
Hatim and Labid ibn Rabi‘ah named him thus
when they came as a deputation from Iraq. It
has been said that al-Mughirah ibn Shu‘bah
named him with this name. It has also been
said that ‘Umar said to people, ‘You are the
believers and I am your amir,’ and so he was
called Amir al-Mu’minin, and before that he
was known as the Khalifah of the Khalifah of
the Messenger of Allah, but they changed from
that expression because of its length.
Ibn ‘Asakir narrated that Mu‘awiyah ibn
Qurrah said: It used to be written ‘From Abu
Bakr the Khalifah of the Messenger of Allah,’
and then when it was ‘Umar ibn al-Khattab
they wanted to say, ‘The Khalifah of the
Khalifah of the Messenger of Allah.’ ‘Umar
said, ‘This is lengthy.’ They said, ‘No. But we
have appointed you as amir over us, so you
are our amir.’ He said, ‘Yes, and you are the
believers, and I am your amir.’ Then it became
written Amir al-Mu’minin.
Al-Bukhari narrated in his Tarikh that Ibn al-
Musayyab said: The first to write the date was
‘Umar ibn al-Khattab two and a half years
into his khilafah, and it was written down as
the sixteenth year of the Hijrah, through the
advice of ‘Ali.
As-Salafi narrated in at-Tuyuriyyat with a
sahih isnad from Ibn ‘Umar from ‘Umar that
he wished to record the sunan (customary
practices of the Prophet, may Allah bless him
and grant him peace, and of his companions),
so he sought Allah’s choice in the matter
(through the supplication known as the
istikharah) for a month. Then he arose one
morning with a clear resolve and said, ‘I
remembered a people who were before you
who wrote a book, and then they turned to it
and abandoned the Book of Allah.’
Ibn Sa‘d narrated that Shaddad said: The first
words that ‘Umar would say when he ascended
the minbar were, ‘O Allah, I am severe, so
make me gentle, I am weak, so strengthen me,
and I am miserly, so make me generous.”
Ibn Sa‘d and Sa‘id ibn Mansur and others
narrated by different routes thatt ‘Umar said,
‘I have placed myself in respect to Allah’s
property in the same relation as the guardian
of the orphan to his (the orphan’s) wealth. If I
am in good circumstances, I will refrain from
it, and if I am in need I will eat of it in
moderation, and if (again later) I am in good
circumstances, I will repay.”
Ibn Sa‘d narrated that Ibn ‘Umar said that
when ‘Umar ibn al-Khattab was in need, he
used to go to the man in charge of the bait
al-mal and seek a loan from him. Often he
might be in difficulty and the man in charge of
the public treasury would come to him, seek
repayment of the debt and would oblige him to
pay it, and ‘Umar would be evasive to him.
Then, often ‘Umar would receive his stipend
and so pay his debt.
Ibn Sa‘d narrated that al-Bara’ ibn Ma‘rur
said that ‘Umar went out one day until he
came to the minbar and he had been suffering
from a complaint. The good qualities of honey
were mentioned to him, and there was a
receptacle (made of kidskin) of it in the bait
al-mal. He said, ‘If you give me permission I
will take it, but if not then it is haram for me.’
They gave him permission.
He narrated that Salim ibn ‘Abdullah said that
‘Umar used to insert his hand into the saddle
sore of his camel and say, ‘I fear that I will be
asked about what is (wrong) with you.’
He narrated that Ibn ‘Umar said: When ‘Umar
meant to forbid people from some wrong
action, he would come to his family and say,
‘If I come to know of anyone who becomes
involved in something I have forbidden, I will
double the punishment for him.’
We have narrated in more than one way that
‘Umar ibn al-Khattab went out one night to
patrol Madinah – and he used to do that a lot
– when he came upon one of the women of the
Arabs whose door was bolted against her
(locking her in) and she was saying:
‘This night, whose stars creep slowly, is
wearisome and makes me sleepless,
Because I have no bedfellow with whom to
sport,
For, by Allah, if Allah’s punishments were not
feared,
His rights would have been removed from this
couch.
However, I fear a Watchful One Who is in
charge of our selves
And Whose recorder is not negligent for an
instant.
Fear of my Lord and modesty prevent me, and
I honour my husband (too much),
That his noble station should be conferred (on
another).’
So he (‘Umar) wrote to his governors about
military expeditions that no-one should be
absent for more than four months.
Ibn Sa‘d narrated from Zadan that Salman
said that ‘Umar said to him, ‘Am I a king or a
khalifah?’ Salman said to him, ‘If you collect a
dirham from the land of the Muslims, or less
or more, then you put it to an improper use,
you are a king, not a khalifah.’ ‘Umar took
warning from it.
He narrated that Sufyan ibn Abi’l-‘Arja’ said:
‘Umar ibn al-Khattab said, ‘By Allah, I do not
know whether I am a khalifah or a king, for if I
am a king then this is a tremendous matter.’
Someone said, ‘Amir al-Mu’minin, there is a
distinction between the two of them.’ He said,
‘What is it?’ He said, ‘A khalifah does not take
except what is due and he does not use it
except in the right way, and you, praise be to
Allah, are like that. The king treats people
unjustly, and takes from this one and gives to
that one.’ ‘Umar was silent.
He narrated that Ibn Mas‘ud, may Allah be
pleased with him, said: ‘Umar mounted a
horse and his robe disclosed his thigh. The
people of Najran saw on his thigh a black
mole and said, ‘This is the one whom we find
in our Book will exile us from our land.’
He narrated from Sa‘d al-Hari that Ka‘b al-
Ahbar said to ‘Umar, ‘We find you in the Book
of Allah at one of the gates of Jahannam
preventing people from falling into it. When
you die, they will carry on plunging into it
until the Day of Resurrection.’
He narrated that Abu Mash‘ar said: Our
shaykhs told us that ‘Umar said, ‘This matter
will not be correct but with the severity that
has no haughtiness in it, and with the
gentleness that has no weakness in it.’
Ibn Abi Shaybah narrated in his Musannaf
that Hakim ibn ‘Umayr said: ‘Umar ibn al-
Khattab said, ‘Let not the amir of an army or
a raiding party whip anyone for a hadd
punishment until he arrives at Darb (Derbe
near the Cilician Gates, a mountain pass
through which the Muslims passed returning
from raids into Byzantine territory) so that the
rage of the shaytan does not carry him to the
point that he joins with the kuffar.’
Ibn Abi Hatim narrated in his tafsir that ash-
Sha‘bi said: The Byzantine Emperor wrote to
‘Umar ibn al-Khattab, ‘My messengers have
come to me from you claiming that among you
there is a tree which is not like anything else
among trees: it produces something like the
ears of the ass, it opens out (to reveal)
something like a pearl, it becomes green so
that it is like the green emerald, it reddens
until it is like the red ruby, then later it ripens
and matures so that it becomes like the
sweetest honey-cake ever eaten, then later it
dries until it becomes a defence (against
want) for the house-dweller and a provision
for the traveller. If my messengers have told
me the truth, I can only imagine that this is
one of the trees of the Garden.’ ‘Umar wrote to
him, ‘From the slave of Allah, ‘Umar, the Amir
al-Mu’minin, to Caesar, the king of the
Byzantines. Truly your messengers have told
you the truth. This tree, which is with us, is
the tree which Allah made to grow over
Maryam when she gave birth to ‘Isa her son.
So fear Allah and do not take ‘Isa as a god
apart from Allah, for truly, “The likeness of ‘Isa
with Allah is as the likeness of Adam, He
created him from dust, …”’ (Qur’an 3: 59) to
the end of the ayah.
Ibn Sa‘d narrated from Ibn ‘Umar that ‘Umar
ordered his governors, so they recorded their
properties, and among them was Sa‘d bin Abi
Waqqas. Then ‘Umar shared with them in their
properties and took a half and gave them a
half.
He narrated that ash-Sha‘bi said that when
‘Umar used to appoint a governor he would
record his property.
He narrated that Abu Imamah ibn Sahl ibn
Hunayf said: ‘Umar remained some time not
eating anything at all from the property of the
bait al-mal, until poverty and constriction
came upon him in that. He sent for the
Companions of the Prophet, may Allah bless
him and grant him peace, to seek their advice.
He said, ‘I have occupied myself with this
command, so what is fitting for me from it?’
‘Ali said, ‘The midday and evening meals.’
‘Umar took that.
He narrated from Ibn ‘Umar that ‘Umar
performed the Hajj in the year twenty-three
(AH) and spent sixteen dinars upon his Hajj.
He said, ‘‘Abdullah we have been extravagant
with this property.’
‘Abd ar-Razzaq narrated in the Musannaf that
Qatadah and ash-Sha‘bi said: A woman came
to ‘Umar and said, ‘My husband stands at
night (in prayer) and fasts during the day.’
‘Umar said, ‘You have praised your husband
excellently well.’ Ka‘b ibn Sawwar said, ‘She
was complaining.’ ‘Umar said, ‘How?’ He said,
‘She claims that she has no share in her
husband (in his time).’ He said, ‘If you
understood that much, then you decide
between them.’ He said, ‘Amir al-Mu’minin,
Allah has permitted him four (wives). So she
has one day of every four days, and one night
of every four nights.’
He narrated that Ibn Jarir said: One I trust
informed me that ‘Umar, while he was
patrolling, heard a woman saying:
‘This night stretches out and is grievous,
and that I have no intimate to sport with
makes me sleepless,
For, if it were not for fear of Allah Whom
nothing is like,
his rights would have been removed from this
couch.’
‘Umar said, ‘What is wrong with you?’ She
said, ‘You sent my husband on an expedition
some months ago, and I long for him.’ He
said, ‘Do you mean to do wrong?’ She said, ‘(I
seek) the refuge of Allah!’ He said, ‘So restrain
yourself; it is only (a matter of) the post to
him.’ He sent a message to him. Then he went
to Hafsah and said, ‘I want to ask you about a
matter which concerns me, so dispel it for me.
How long does a woman long for her
husband?’ She lowered her head and was shy.
He said, ‘Truly Allah is not shy of the truth.’
She gestured with her hand, indicating three
months, and if that is not possible, then four
months. ‘Umar wrote that armies must not be
kept on service for more than four months.
He narrated from Jabir ibn ‘Abdullah that he
came to ‘Umar to complain to him of the
treatment he received from his womenfolk.
‘Umar said to him, ‘We also find that, so much
so that when I intend (going out for) some
necessity, she says to me, “You are only going
to the girls of Bani so-and-so to look at
them.”’ ‘Abdullah ibn Mas‘ud said to him,
‘Has it not reached you that Ibrahim, peace be
upon him, complained to Allah about Sarah’s
character and it was said to him, “She has
been created from a rib so have the enjoyment
of her company as long as you don’t see in
her any unsoundness in her deen.”’
He narrated that ‘Ikrimah ibn Khalid said: One
of ‘Umar ibn al-Khattab’s sons went in to see
him. He had combed and oiled his hair and
dressed up in the very best clothing. ‘Umar
struck him with a whip until he made him
weep. Hafsah asked him, ‘Why did you strike
him?’ He said, ‘I saw that his self had made
him conceited, and I wanted to make it (his
self) small for him.’
He narrated from Ma‘mar from Layth ibn Abi
Salim that ‘Umar said, ‘Do not name
yourselves with the name al-Hakam (the ruler
and judge) nor Abu’l-Hakam (possessor of
judgement) for truly Allah, He is al-Hakam
(the ruler) and don’t call a road a sikkah.’2
Al-Bayhaqi narrated in Shu‘ab al-Iman that
ad-Dahhak said: Abu Bakr said, ‘By Allah, I
wish that I were a tree by the side of the road
by which a camel passed, and it took me into
its mouth, chewed me, swallowed me, passed
me out as dung, and that I were not a man.’
‘Umar said, ‘Would that I were my family’s
ram, which they were fattening as much as
seemed right to them, until when I became as
fat as could be, some people whom they love
visit them, and they sacrifice me for them,
make some of me into roasted meat, some of
me into sun-dried meat, then eat me, and that
I were not a human being.’
Ibn ‘Asakir narrated that Abu’l-Bakhtari said:
‘Umar ibn al-Khattab used to give the
khutbah on the minbar. Al-Hussein ibn ‘Ali,
may Allah be pleased with him, stood up
before him and said, ‘Come down from my
father’s minbar.’ ‘Umar said, ‘It is the minbar
of your father and not the minbar of my father.
Who told you to do this?’ ‘Ali stood and said,
‘By Allah, no-one told him to do this. I will
certainly cause you (al-Hussein) some pain,
traitor.’ He (‘Umar) said, ‘Don’t hurt the son
of my brother, for he has told the truth, it is
the minbar of his father.’
Al-Khateeb narrated in Adab ar-Rawi from
Malik by his route from Ibn Shihab that Abu
Salamah ibn ‘Abd ar-Rahman and Sa‘id ibn
al-Musayyab narrated that ‘Umar ibn al-
Khattab and ‘Uthman ibn ‘Affan were arguing
over a certain question until an onlooker said,
‘They will never reach an agreement.’ Yet they
only separated on the best and most beautiful
terms.
Ibn Sa‘d narrated that al-Hasan said: The first
khutbah which ‘Umar delivered, he praised
Allah and then said, ‘Right. I have been tested
by you and you have been tested by me, and I
have succeeded to the khilafah, amongst you,
after my two companions. Whoever is here
present, we will manage their affairs in person,
and whoever is not here with us, we will
appoint over him strong and trustworthy
people. Whoever acts excellently well, we will
increase him in excellent treatment, and
whoever acts wrongly we will punish, and may
Allah forgive us and you.’
He narrated from Jubayr ibn al-Huwayrith
that ‘Umar ibn al-Khattab, may Allah be
pleased with him, sought the advice of the
Muslims on the recording of a register. ‘Ali
said to him, ‘Divide up every year what is
collected for you of property, and don’t keep
any of it.’ ‘Uthman said, ‘I see much wealth,
which is sufficient for the people and if it is
not counted so that whoever takes is
distinguished from whoever does not take, I
am afraid that the matter will become
confused.’ Al-Walid ibn Hisham ibn al-
Mughirah said, ‘Amir al-Mu’minin, I went to
Syria and I saw that its kings had recorded
registers and organised the troops, so record
registers and organise the troops.’ He took his
advice, and he called ‘Aqil ibn Abi Talib,
Makhramah ibn Nawfal and Jubayr ibn
Mut‘im, who were genealogists of Quraysh,
and said, ‘Record people according to their
ranks.’ They recorded them beginning with
Banu Hashim, then they followed with Abu
Bakr and his people, then ‘Umar and his
people, according to the order of their
khilafahs. When ‘Umar saw it, he said, ‘Begin
with the close relatives of the Prophet, may
Allah bless him and grant him peace, the
closest, then the next closest until you place
‘Umar where Allah placed him.’
He narrated that Sa‘id ibn al-Musayyab said:
‘Umar recorded the register in al-Muharram of
the year 20 AH.
He narrated that al-Hasan said: ‘Umar wrote
to Hudhayfah, ‘Give the people their stipends
and their provisions.’ He wrote back to him,
‘We have done that and a great deal remains.’
‘Umar wrote to him, ‘It is their spoils which
Allah has given them. It is not ‘Umar’s nor
‘Umar’s family’s. Divide it up among them.’
Ibn Sa‘d narrated that Jubayr ibn Mut‘im
said: While ‘Umar was standing on the
mountain of ‘Arafah he heard a man calling
out, saying, ‘Khalifah of Allah!’ Another man
heard him, and they were taking provisions for
the way, so he said, ‘What is wrong with you,
may Allah split your uvulas?’ I went towards
the man and shouted at him. Jubayr
continued: Then the next morning, I was
standing with ‘Umar at al-‘Aqabah (the major
pillar of stones in Mina) and he was stoning
it, when there came a stray pebble and split
(the skin on) ‘Umar’s head. I turned that way
and heard a man from the mountain saying, ‘I
make it known, by the Lord of the Ka‘bah, that
‘Umar will not stand in this place after this
year,’ and it was the one who had called out
among us the day before, and that disturbed
me greatly.
He narrated that ‘A’ishah, may Allah be
pleased with her, said: At the time of the last
Hajj which ‘Umar performed with the Mothers
of the Believers (the wives of the Prophet, may
Allah bless him and grant him peace), when
we returned from ‘Arafah, I passed by al-
Muhassab and I heard a man upon his camel
saying, ‘Where was ‘Umar, the Amir al-
Mu’minin?’ I heard another man saying, ‘Here
was the Amir al-Mu’minin.’ He made the
camel kneel down upon its breast, then he
raised his voice in a wail saying:
‘Upon you peace from an imam and may the
hand of Allah bless that much-rent skin,
Whoever hurries on or mounts the two wings
of the ostrich, in order to overtake what you
sent ahead the day before, will be outstripped.
You decided matters, then after them you left
behind trials and misfortunes in their sleeves,
not yet unloosed.’
That rider did not move and it was not known
who he was, and we used to say that he was
one of the Jinn, for ‘Umar came back from
that Hajj, was stabbed by the dagger and
died.
He narrated that ‘Abd ar-Rahman ibn Abza
said that ‘Umar said, ‘This authority is among
the people of Badr as long as one of them
remains, then it is among the people of Uhud
as long as one of them remains, and among
such and such, and such and such, and there
is no part in it for a freed captive, nor the son
of a freed captive, nor those who became
Muslims at the Opening (of Makkah to Islam).’
He narrated from an-Nakha‘i that a man said
to ‘Umar, ‘Will you not appoint ‘Abdullah ibn
‘Umar as khalifah?’ He said, ‘May Allah fight
you! By Allah, I never wanted this of Allah.
Shall I appoint as khalifah a man who did not
know how to divorce his wife properly?’
He narrated from Shaddad ibn Aws that Ka‘b
said: There was among the Tribe of Isra’il a
king whom, when we remember him we are
reminded of ‘Umar, and when we remember
‘Umar we are reminded of him. He had by his
side a prophet who received revelation. Allah
revealed to the prophet, peace be upon him, to
say to him, ‘Make your covenant and write
your testament to me, for you are dead after
three days.’ The prophet informed him of that.
When it was the third day, he fell down (dead)
between the wall and the couch. He came to
his Lord and said, ‘O Allah, if You knew that I
was just in my rule; that when matters
differed, I followed Your guidance; and I was
such and such, and such and such, then
increase my life-span until my infant son
grows up and my nation increases.’ Allah
revealed to the prophet that, ‘He has said
such and such – and it is true – and I have
added fifteen years to his life-span. That is
enough for his infant son to grow up and his
nation to increase.’ When ‘Umar was stabbed,
Ka‘b said, ‘If ‘Umar were to ask his Lord, Allah
would definitely let him stay.’ ‘Umar was told
about that. He said, ‘O Allah take me back to
You without (my) being powerless and
incapable or blameworthy.’
He narrated from Sulayman ibn Yasar that the
Jinn wailed in mourning for ‘Umar.
Al-Hakim narrated that Malik ibn Dinar said:
A voice was heard on the mountain of Tabalah
when ‘Umar, may Allah be pleased with him,
was killed:
‘Let whoever would weep, weep for Islam,
For they are on the point of being thrown to
the ground and (their) appointed time has not
been exceeded,
And the world has declined and the best of it
has gone, turning its back,
Whoever is sure of the promise has become
weary of it.’
Ibn Abi’d-Dunya narrated that Yahya ibn Abi
Rashid al-Basri said: ‘Umar said to his son,
‘Be economical with my shroud, for if there is
good for me with Allah, He will exchange it for
me for that which is better than it. If I have
been otherwise, He will strip me and be very
fast in stripping me. Be economical in the
grave you dig for me, for if there is good for
me with Allah, He will expand it for me as far
as my sight can reach. If I have been
otherwise, He will tighten it upon me until my
ribs interlace. Let not a woman go out with
me (to the grave), and do not attribute to me
a purity that I do not have, for Allah has more
knowledge of me. When you go out (with me
to the grave) then hasten your pace, for if
there is good for me with Allah, you will send
me on to what is better for me. If I am
otherwise, you will throw an evil you have
been carrying down from your necks.’