Omar ibn Khattab

“ When he drew near, Abu Obeidah knew him to be Asamah Ebn Zeid; who, making his camel kneel, alighted; and, having paid his respects, delivered him the following letter.
“In the name of the most merciful God. “From the servant of God, Omar Ebn Al Khattab, to his lieutenant, greeting. I praise the only God, besides whom there is no other; and I pray for his prophet Mohammed, upon whom be the blessing of God. There is no turning back the decree and determination of God; and he that is, written an infidel in the secret book, [18] shall have no faith. ”

“ The road of right thou hast made straight, that erst was crooked
grown; Yea, for its path of old had fall'n to ruin and
decay.
Exalted mayst thou be above th' empyrean heaven of joy And may
God's glory greater grow and more exalted aye!
"And indeed," continued Adi, "this ode on the Prophet (may God bless and keep him!) is well known and to comment it would be tedious." Quoth Omar, "Who is at the door?" "Among them is Omar ibn [Abi] Rebya the Cureishite," [FN#49] answered Adi, and the Khalif said, "May God show him no favour neither quicken him! Was it not he who said ... ?" ”

“ Abu Bekr followed the Prophet’s example. In the great revolt of the Arabic tribes after the death of Mahomet, and in the invasion of Irak and Syria by the Moslems, the principal generals belonged to them. Omar did not deviate from that line of conduct. It was he who appointed Yazīd, the son of Abu Sofiān, and after his death, his brother Moawiya as governor of Syria, and assigned the province of Egypt to Amr-ibn-el-Ass (‘Amr b. Āṣ) . It is even surprising to find among the leading men so few of the house of Hāshim, the nearest family of the Prophet. ”

“ This is the testament of Abubeker Ebn Abu Kohafa, which he made at that time when he was just going out of this world, and entering into the other; a time in which the infidel shall believe, and the wicked person shall be assured, and the liar shall speak truth; [56] I appoint Omar Ebn Al Khattab my successor over you; therefore hearken to him, and obey him. If he does that which is right and just, it is what I think and know of him. If he does otherwise, every man must be rewarded according to his works. I intend to do for the best, but I do not know hidden things ”

“ A STORY is told of the people of el-Kûfah, that they one day presented themselves before ʾOmar-ibn-el-Khattâb, in order to complain of their governor, Saʾad-ibn-abi-Wakkâs. And when ʾOmar had heard them, he said, "Who will deliver me from these people of el-Kûfah? If I appoint a virtuous man for their ruler, they think that he is weak; and if I appoint a man of determination, they accuse him of impiety." ”

“ As the levies kept coming in, 'Omar sent them on, one after another, to join Sa'd. The numbers swelling rapidly, embraced the chivalry of all Arabia. Toleiha, the quondam prophet, now an exemplary believer, and 'Amr ibn Ma'dikerib, went in command of their respective tribes; and 'Omar wrote that each alone was worth a thousand men. ”

“ I reckon the reign of Abu Bakr as Khalif at two years, and the reign of ' Omar as Khalif at ten years, and that of 'Othman at twelve years, and that of 'Ali six years." ' Ahmad, At Tirmidht.
It is related from 'Abdu'llah bin 'Omar that, 'The Apostle of God said, "There will be sedition involving the Arabs, the slain of which will be in the fire, and in which the (abuse of the) tongue will be worse than the fall of the sword." ' At Tirmidhi, Ibn Mdjah. ”

“ We have won for the people their right to speak in an Assembly of Notables, and we keep the ground to prevent their being cajoled or frightened out of it. In this we work not for ourselves but for our children and for those that trust us.... We soldiers are for the moment in the position of those Arabs who answered the Caliph Omar when, in old age, he asked the people whether they were satisfied with his rule, and whether he had walked straightly in the path of justice. "O son of El Khattab," said they, "thou hast indeed walked straightly and we love thee. ”

“ The Omayyad dynasty was not a pious one. Men who were not religious but wished to appear so invented 420 traditions to justify their manner of life. The sectarians did not hesitate to adopt the same means of spreading their own teaching. Many Moslem writers testify to the fact that forged traditions were circulated, and that religious opinion was confused thereby. The need for some sort of authoritative collection seems to have been felt by the one pious Omayyad caliph, Omar II. (717-720) , who is said to have ordered Ibn Shihāb uz-Zuhrī to make such a collection. ”

“ So Omar governed in the first place, and reigned until he fell in battle against the sovereign of Wadaï. His successor, Abûl Kasim, also reigned seven years, and was killed in the same way. To him succeeded Tyrab, surnamed the Seeds of Syria, who hated war, and remained at home, occupied in the cares of government for thirty-three years. He loved boisterous amusements, and was [32] fond of dress. ”

“ Some of them would sometimes throwstones at him. When he was through with Talbas [27] and ʿÂnât, [28] he came to an-Naʾûsah, Âlûsah [29] and Hît where he found out that ʿAmmâr ibn-Yâsir, the ʿâmil of ʿUmar ibn-al-Khaṭṭâb over al-Kûfah, had sent an army for the invasion of the region above al-Anbâr, under the leadership of Saʿd ibn-ʿAmr ibn-Ḥarâm al-Anṣâri. The holders of these forts had come to Saʿd and demanded peace, which he arranged with them, retaining one-half of the church of Hît. ʿUmair, therefore, kept on his way to ar-Raḳḳah. ”

“ Al-Ḳâsim ibn-Sallâm from az-Zuhri:—The Prophet took Khaibar by force as a result of a fight; and after taking away one-fifth, he divided the remaining four-fifths among the Moslems.
The Jews of Khaibar expelled. ʿAbd-al-Aʿla ibn-Ḥammâd an-Narsi from ibn-Shihâb:—The Prophet said: "There can be no two religions at the same time in the Arabian peninsula." [15] ʿUmar ibn-al-Khaṭṭâb investigated until he found it certain and assured that the Prophet had said, "There can be no two religions at the same time in the Arabian peninsula." Accordingly, he expelled the Jews of Khaibar. ”

“ Al-Ḥûsain ibn-al-Aswad from Ḥârithah ibn-Muḍarrib:—ʿUmar ibn-al-Khaṭṭâb, desiring to divide as-Sawâd among the Moslems, ordered that they be counted. Each Moslem had three peasants for his share. ʿUmar took the advice of the Prophet's Companions, and ʿAli said, "Leave them that they may become a source of revenue and aid [11] for the Moslems." Accordingly, ʿUmar sent ʿUthmân ibn-Ḥunaif al-Anṣâri who assessed on each man 48, 24, or 12 [dirhams] . ”

“ Arab. “Yá Bilál”: Bilal ibn Rabah was the Prophet’s freedman and crier: see vol. iii. 106. But bilal also signifies “moisture” or “beneficence,” “benefits”: it may be intended for a double entendre but I prefer the metonymy.
95. The verses of this Kasidah are too full of meaning to be easily translated: it is fine old poetry.
96. i.e. of the Koraysh tribe. For his disorderly life see Ibn Khallikan ii. 372: he died however, a holy death, battling against the Infidels in A.H. 93 (= 711–12) , some five years before Omar’s reign. ”

“ This narrative reads so circumstantially that one can hardly do otherwise than accept it, but in that case Nizám ul Mulk's birth must be placed at least twenty years later than 408, [2] the date given both by Ibn Khallikán and Abul Faraj; or else the accepted dates of Omar's and Hasan's deaths (517 and 518 A.H.) must be abandoned for others at least twenty years earlier.
Omar's appointment at Merv mentioned by Nizám ul Mulk was, as we learn from Abul Feda, that of Astronomer Royal. ”

“ Scarcely was the ditch ready, when the entire plain was covered by the tents of the enemy's army, ten thousand strong: the Quraish, Banu Kamanah, Ghatafans, Arabs of the Tuhamah and of the Najd, etc. Despite their great superiority of numbers, the Infidels were not sanguine as to the result of their conflict with the Prince of Apostles, and they cast about for new allies. Huwai ibn Akhtab, an enemy of Allah, approached Kab ibn Asad, Prince of the Jewish tribe of the Banu Quraizah who, although deeply hostile to the Prophet, had signed a treaty with him. ”

“ Moseilama, a prophet who competed with Mohammed, was destroyed, the discontented tribes in Arabia itself were reduced to obedience. The Persian provinces on the Euphrates were attacked. The Roman empire itself was summoned to accept the new religion, or to become tributary.
[pg 120] Upon the death of Abu Bekr, the chief associates of Mohammed around him proclaimed Omar as chalif, and entitled him Chalif, and Prince of the Faithful. In the ten years of his chalifate, from 634 to 644, Omar made the Mohammedan empire. He had exerted great influence over Mohammed himself ”

“ Their short dominion in Kufa under Mokhtār had been suppressed, but the discontent continued. In North Africa particularly, and in Khorasan the effect of Omar’s proclamation was that a great multitude embraced Islam. When it became necessary to impose a tribute upon the new converts, great discontent arose, which largely increased the number of those who followed the Shi‘ite preachers of revolt. Conversion to Islam was promoted by the severe regulations which Omar introduced for the non-believers, such as Christians and Jews. ”

“ Khorāsān under the First `Abbāsids The Umayyad Caliph at last recognised the gravity of the situation, and sent all the forces he could muster to oppose Kahtaba. But the Hāshimite troops carried all before them. They defeated a large Syrian army near Isfahān, and captured the important stronghold of Nahāvend, A.H. 132 (749) . Then Kahtaba started for Kūfa, making a slight detour to avoid Ibn Hobayra, who was encamped at Jalūlā. On reaching the Euphrates, Ibn Hobayra came up with him, and a battle ensued at nightfall near Kerbelā. ”

“ The region is subject to the Sultan of Muscat, who is in turn a pensioner of the Anglo-Indian Government.
Omar, the successor of Abu-Bekr, and the second Caliph from 634 to 644; was at first a persecutor of the Faithful, but underwent in 615 a sudden conversion like Said, with a like result; was vizier of Abu-Bekr before he succeeded him; swept and subdued Syria, Persia, and Egypt with the sword in the name of Allah, but is accused of having burned the rich library of Alexandria on the plea that it contained books hostile to the faith of Islam ”

“ Shaibân ibn-Farrûkh from as-Saffâḥ ash-Shaibâni:—ʿUmar ibn-al-Khaṭṭâb wanted to collect the poll-tax from the Christian tribe, banu-Taghlib; but they took to flight and some of them went to a distant land. An-Nuʿmân ibn-Zurʿah (or Zurʿah ibn-an-Nuʿmân) addressed ʿUmar saying: "I plead in Allah's name for the banu-Taghlib. They are a body of Arabs too proud to pay poll-tax, but severe in warfare. Let not thy enemy, therefore, be enriched by them to thy disadvantage." [1] Thereupon ʿUmar called them back and doubled the ṣadaḳah laid on them. ”

“ He was succeeded in the Caliphate by his son Welīd, and in the same year Kutayba ibn Muslim made a triumphal entry into Merv as governor of Khorāsān. On arriving at Merv, Kutayba called together the inhabitants, and urged them to join a Holy War, emphasising his trumpet-call by quotations from the Koran. The fierce Arabs swarmed to his standard, and Kutayba soon found himself at the head of an army animated with the keenest enthusiasm, to whom he distributed pay sufficient to maintain their families during their career of conquest. ”

“ The Prophet's special share. ʿAmr ibn-Muḥammad an-Nâḳid from Mâlik ibn-Aus ibn-al-Ḥadathân:—It was stated by 'Umar ibn-al-Khaṭṭâb that the possessions of the banu-an-Naḍîr were assigned by Allah to the Prophet, the Moslems having not "pressed toward them with horse or camel." Thus they were wholly his property. The Prophet used to spend their annual income on his family and invest what was left in horses and arms to be used in the cause of Allah. ”

“ So died Omar, next to the Prophet the greatest in the of Islam; for it was all within these ten years that, by his wisdom, patience, and vigour, the dominion was achieved over Syria, Egypt, and Persia, which Islam has ever since maintained. Abu Bekr beat down the apostate tribes; but at his death the armies of Islam had but just crossed the Syrian frontier. Omar began his reign the master only of Arabia. He died the Caliph of an empire embracing Persia, Egypt, and some of the fairest provinces of the Byzantine throne. ”

“ None can hinder thee in thy lifetime from giving them what will suffice them out of the treasury; and this indeed were better than leaving the good work to him who shall rule after thee.' Omar looked at him with a look of wrath and wonder and presently replied, 'O Maslamah, I have defended them from this sin all the days of my life, and shall I make them miserable after my death? Of a truth my sons are like other men, either obedient to Almighty Allah who will prosper them, or disobedient and I will not help them in their disobedience. ”

“ Omar was assassinated by a Persian slave in 644, and though he lingered several days after the attack, he appointed no successor, but only a body of six Muhajirun who should select a new caliph. Omar was a wise and far-sighted ruler and rendered great service to Islam. ”

“ To fill a vacancy requiring unusual skill, experience, and power 'Omar unwisely appointed 'Ammar, who, as a persecuted slave and confessor in the first days of Islam, was second to none in the faith; but a man of no ability, and now advanced in years.1 The citizens of Al-Kufa were not long in finding out his incapacity; and, at their desire, 'Omar transferred Abu Musa from Al-Basra to rule over them. But it was no easy work for him to curb the factious populace. ”