The Islamic Community + Caliphs

THE FIRST ISALMIC COMMUNITY INCLUDING THE CALIPHS

MUHAMMAD SHUMAIL MOHY-UD-DIN MOHY MOHY -UD UD-DIN

Islamiyat Notes

MUHAMMAD SHUMAIL MOHY-UD-DIN TABLE OF CONTENTS: CONTENTS:

Sr. No 1) 2) 3) 4) 5) 6) 7) 8) 9) 10) 11) 12) 13) 14) 15) 16) 17)

The First Muslim Community Topic Hazrat Abu Talib Hazrat Bilal Hazrat Abu Sufiyan Hazrat Hamza Hazrat Zaid bin Sabit Hazrat Abu Huraira Hazrat Sulaiman Farsi The Ansar The Muhajireen Wives of the Holy Prophet Scribes of the Holy Prophet The Ten Blessed Companions Descendants Descendants of the t he Holy Prophet The Four Rightly Guided Caliphs Hazrat Abu Bakar Saddique Hazrat Umar Bin Khattab Hazrat Usman Ghani Hazrat Ali Al-Murtaza

THE FIRST ISLAMIC COMMUNITY

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Islamiyat Notes

MUHAMMAD SHUMAIL MOHY-UD-DIN TABLE OF CONTENTS: CONTENTS:

Sr. No 1) 2) 3) 4) 5) 6) 7) 8) 9) 10) 11) 12) 13) 14) 15) 16) 17)

The First Muslim Community Topic Hazrat Abu Talib Hazrat Bilal Hazrat Abu Sufiyan Hazrat Hamza Hazrat Zaid bin Sabit Hazrat Abu Huraira Hazrat Sulaiman Farsi The Ansar The Muhajireen Wives of the Holy Prophet Scribes of the Holy Prophet The Ten Blessed Companions Descendants Descendants of the t he Holy Prophet The Four Rightly Guided Caliphs Hazrat Abu Bakar Saddique Hazrat Umar Bin Khattab Hazrat Usman Ghani Hazrat Ali Al-Murtaza


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Islamiyat Notes

MUHAMMAD SHUMAIL MOHY-UD-DIN

Explain the importance of the following personalities during the lifetime of the Prophet: i. Abu Talib [4] ii. Bilal [4] iii. Abu Sufiyan [4] iv. The Ansar [4] (May 2005) Abu Talib was the Prophet's paternal uncle. He brought up the Prophet after the death i) of his grandfather Abdul Muttalib. Abu Talib showed him immense love and affection like a real father, while bringing him up and at times even preferred Muhammad over his own sons. The Prophet never felt an orphan when he was in Abu Talib's home. Abu Talib not only looked after him but also canned him as a merchant. He took him with him to his trade journeys where the Prophet learnt the art of trading during these journeys. One such journey was to Syria, when the Prophet was twelve years old and they met a Christian monk Mahaira at Musra, who told Abu Talib to take care of Muhammad and to keep him away from Jews. Abu Talib also made arrangements for the Prophet's marriage with Khatijah. When the Prophet started preaching openly at Makkah, the people of Makkah turned against him and his followers, the Prophet was saved from physical torture due to the political support he had from Abu Talib. The people of Makkah asked Abu Talib to let go of his support of his nephew or refrain him from preaching Islam. But on seeing the devotion of Muhammad towards preaching Islam he said to Muhammad, 'Go and preach what you please, by Allah I will not forsake you." He continued to support the Prophet during the persecutions and did not let go of his support even during the boycott of Banu Hashim which l asted for three years during which they were forced to live in a narrow gorge by the name of Shib Abi Talib and no one was allowed to talk, send food or drink, intermarry or trade with any person of Banu Hashim. When Abu Talib died died in the 10th year year of Prophethood, the Prophet declared declared it a Year of Sorrow he no longer received the support of his loving uncle. Although Abu Talib never openly accepted Islam but Shias believe that he had converted to Islam secretly. Biological Account Real name: Abd Munaf Date of Birth: 536 AD Relationship with the Prophet: Paternal Uncle Sons: 4 sons; Talib, Jafir, Aqueel, Ali Daughters: 2 daughters; Umm Hani, Jamana Died in: 621 AD Bilal was amongst the first seven converts to Islam. When his master Umaiyah bin ii) Khalaf came to know of his conversion he persecuted him mercilessly by making him lay down on the hot desert under the scorching sun and placing huge rocks on his chest but Bilal never renounced his faith but instead he would shout, "Allah is One, Allah is One." And his master would lash him at night. He migrated with the Prophet to Madinah. He had a fine THE FIRST ISLAMIC COMMUNITY

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Islamiyat Notes


voice and was the first Muezzin to call Muslims for congregational prayer at Masjid-e-Nabvi. He took part in all the battles fought during the lifetime of the Prophet including the battle of Badr during which he killed his master Umaiyah bin Khalaf and his son Ali. He was a witness of the Treaty of Hudabiya. He was amongst the three with whom the Prophet entered Makkah after its conquest in 10 AH. The Prophet then ordered Bilal to climb up the Ka'aba and call the Muslims for congregational prayer. He was appointed by the Prophet as the first in charge of Bait-ul-Maal and his household. He was a body guard of the Prophet and one of his fourteen escorts. He was one of those who performed the funeral rites of t he Prophet. After the Prophet’s death After the Prophet’s death, he distanced himself from the affairs of the time except for when Bait-ul-Maqadas was conquered during the reign of Umar, he called the Azan there.

. Abu Sufiyan was a leader of Banu Umayyah. He was a rich and respected merchant iii) who often led caravans for trade to other countries particularly Syria. He was one of the bitterest enemies of the Prophet and very hostile towards Islam in its early stages. He indirectly brought about the battle of Badr in 2 AH. He asked the Quraish for protection against a possible interception by the Prophet to his trade caravan from Syria which belonged to the Quraish. Although the caravan was safe, the Quraish insisted on fighting. He led the Quraish armies at the battles of Uhad in 3 AH and Trench in 5 AH. On his request the Prophet granted the Quraish 500 gold coins and asked the chief of Najad, Thamana bin Uthal to provided them with wheat and other eatables when Arab was struck with a terrible famine. He went to Madinah and tried to convince first Umm Habiba, then Abu Bakar, Umar, Usman and Ali and finally to the Prophet to renew the Treaty of Hudabiya in 8 AH. At the conquest of Makkah those assembled in the House of Abu Sufiyan were granted security. He finally accepted Islam after much opposition, after the conquest of Makkah in 8 AH. He took part in the expeditions to Hunain, Ta’if and Tabuk. He was given one hundred camels and forty ounces of gold from the booty of the Battle of Hunain by the Prophet. His daughter Umm Habiba was married to the Prophet. After the Prophet’s death He heard and reported 100 traditions. During the reign of Abu Bakar, he was made the governor of Najran and Hijaz. He took part in the battles of Yarmuk and Ajnadin during the Cali hate of Umar. Biological Account Real name: Sakhr bin Harb Date of Birth: 561 AD Died in: 33 AH Ansar were the people of Madinah, mainly form the tribe of Khazraj, who received iv) and helped the Prophet after his migration to Madinah. They accepted Islam and the Prophet as their leader and invited him and his followers to live in Madinah. They were given the title of Ansar to distinguish them from the emigrants (Muhajireen), who were mainly dependant upon their help and support after their migration to Madinah. The Ansar accepted the Muhajireen as their brothers in the bond of brotherhood established by the Prophet which came to be known as Maukhat. Abu Ayub bin Ansari accepted Musab bin Umair from the THE FIRST ISLAMIC COMMUNITY

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Islamiyat Notes


Muhajireen as his brother, Utban bin Malik accepted Umar from the Muhajireen as his brother and Aus bin Thabit accepted Usman from the Muhajireen as his brother as his brother. Each Ansar helped his Muhajireen brother and shared his wealth and property with him. The Muhajireen who were in a dire economic state were financially uplifted. At Madinah they helped the Prophet in the battles fought against the unbelievers i.e. the Battle of Badr in 2 AH, Uhad in 3 AH, Trench in 5 AH, Expedition to Khyber in 7 AH, Conquest of Makkah, Battle of Hunain and the Siege of Ta’if in 8 AH and the Tabuk Expedition in 9 AH . After the Prophet’s death They gave up their claims that the first Caliph should be an Ansar and pledged their loyalty to Abu Bakar who was from the Muhajireen.


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Islamiyat Notes


Muhajireen (The Emigrants) Muhajireen is the term applied to those followers of the Holy Prophet who migrated from Makkah to Madinah with him. The term Muhajireen does not apply to the Prophet himself. They accepted Islam during its initial stages. They included the people of Makkah as well as people form other places e.g. Sohaib Rumi form the Roman Empire and Sulaiman Farsi from the Persian Empire. They were tortured and persecuted by the unbelievers specially those who were socially or financially week. Bilal was made to lie under the scorching sun on the hot desert sands and lashed at night by this master Umaiyah bin Khalaf and he used to lash him at night. Khubab bin Arat was made to lie on burning coals. But the Muhajireen remained steadfast and did not abandon their faith. They migrated to Abyssinia twice when th the persecutions of the Quraish became unbearable. In the 5 Year of Prophethood, 11 men and 4 women migrated followed by 18 women and 83 men in the next year. They secretly migrated to Madinah in small batches leaving behind their properties, riches and houses. At Madinah they helped the Prophet in the battles fought against the unbelievers i.e. the Battle of Badr in 2 AH, Uhad in 3 AH, Trench in 5 AH, Expedition to Khyber in 7 AH, Conquest of Makkah, Battle of Hunain and the Siege of Ta’if in 8 AH and the Tabuk Expedition in 9 AH. The Quran says, “Those who believed and those who suffered exile and fought in the path of Allah, they have the hope of mercy of Allah.” The Four Rightly Guided Caliphs i.e. Abu Bakar, Umar, Usman and Ali were also from the Muhajireen.


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Islamiyat Notes


Hazrat Hamza When Hamza on come to know that Abu Jahl insulted the Prophet, he became enraged, went to Abu Jahl, hit him on the head and accepted Islam during the 6th year of Prophethood. He was known for his bravery throughout Arabia and his conversion encouraged the Muslims. Hamza used to pray openly at Ka'aba along with Umar. He shared the persecution and hardships with the Prophet at Makkah. He migrated with the Prophet to Madinah. His bond of brotherhood was with Zaid bin Haritha. He was the first person to be entrusted with the Banner of Islam when the Prophet sent an expedition of 30 men to check a caravan of the non-believers in 2 A.H. He was appointed the leader of the army by the Prophet which laid siege to the Jewish tribe Banu Qaynuka for fifteen days. During the battle of Badr in 2.A.H he participated in the individual combat and killed Utbah, Sh’aybah, Aswad bun Abu-ul-Asad and Tuaiyna (uncle of Jabar bin Multin) during the course of the battle. Hamza also fought courageously in the battle of Uhad in 3.A.H during which he killed Arat bin Shurahbil, Siba bin Abul Huza before he was killed by Washi, a slave of Jabar bin Multin. He was given the title of Syed-us-Shuhada by the Prophet when he gave the funeral prayer of the martyrs of Uhad. Biological Account Titles: Asadullah (Lion of Allah); Syed-us-Shuhada (Prince of the Martyrs) Date of Birth: 569 AD Relationship with the Prophet: Paternal uncle; maternal cousin; foster brother Father’s Name: Abu Muttalib Mother’s Name: Hala bint Wahab Died in: 3 AH

Zaid bin Sabit He accepted Islam at the tender age of 11. He was forbidden by the Prophet from taking part in the battles of Badr in 2 AH and Uhad in 3 AH due to his young age and therefore did not take part in them. He participated in the digging of the Trench at the battle of Khandak. He was a witness of the signing of the Treaty of Hudabiya in 6 AH. He was the standard bearer of his tribe Banu Najam, when Makkah was conquered. He also took part in the battle of Tabuk. He learnt foreign languages such as Persian, Hebrew and Syriac corresponded with the Jew on the Prophet's behalf. He was the chief scribe of the Prophet and learnt the Holy Quran by heart. He was the first Ansar to take pledge of alliance to Abu Bakar as the Prophet's Caliph. He took part in the Battle of Yamamah fought against false prophet Musailamah after which he was appointed head of commission by Abu Bakar to compile the Holy Quran in the form of a single book to preserve the Holy Quran for generations to come; and later by Usman to make a revised and accurate collection of the Holy Quran during his regime to remove the conflicts and misunderstandings which may have risen in the Muslim Community with regards to the difference in dialect of the Holy Quran in the newly conquered areas. His knowledge of the Quran is confirmed by this statement of Umar. "O people! Whosoever wants to ask about Quran, let him go to Zaid bin Sabit." He was made judge of Madinah during Umar's Caliphate. During the time of the draught he was appointed by Umar to prepare a survey if the famine struck families and to distribute provisions to


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Islamiyat Notes


them. He was made the in charge of Bait-ul-Maal by Usman during his regime as Caliph. When he died in 665 AD Abu Hurayrah said "Today a scholar of this Ummah has died." Biological Account Date of Birth: 619 AD Tribe: Khazraj Died in: 665 AD


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Islamiyat Notes


a) b) c)

a)

Identify the ten blessed companions. [8] Explain why they were known by this name. [2] Write brief notes on the lives of any three of these companions who did not become Caliphs. [2×3] (Nov 2005) 1)- Abu Bakar, the First Caliph 2)- Umar, the Second Caliph 3)- Usman, the Third Caliph 4)- Ali, the Fourth Caliph 5)- Abdur Rehman bin Auf 6)- Abu Ubaidah bin Jarrah 7)- Tulha bin Ubaidullah 8)- Zaid bin Al-Awwam 9)- Saad bin Abi Waqas 10)- Saeed bin Zaid

b) They were all from the Quraish who were amongst the early converts to Islam and had therefore experienced persecution at the hands of the Makkans. When these persecutions became unbearable all of them migrated either to Abyssinia or Madinah. They took part in most battles fought during the lifetime of the Prophet, particularly during the Battles of Uhad and Hunain where they formed a protective guard around the Prophet. Once while all of them were with the Prophet at the Mount of Uhad he promised them they would be spared the final judgment and gave them the glad tidings of Paradise after this life. They were therefore called the Ten Blessed Ones, Ashara mubashshara.

Tulha bin Ubaidullah: c) He was amongst the early converts who accepted Islam at the hands of Abu Bakar. He endured the persecutions of the Quraish at Makkah in particular when he and Abu Bakar were left tied together on the ground. He migrated to Madinah shortly after the Prophet’s own migration and accompanied Prophet’s wife and his two unmarried daughter Umm Kulthum and Fatima. He took part in battles fought during at lifetime of the Prophet except for the battle of Badr in 2 AH as he and Syed bin Zaid were sent to inquire the whereabouts of the caravan of Abu Sufiyan. At the battle of Uhad in 3 AH, helped the Prophet get out of a tunnel he had fallen into and protected the Prophet from sword piercing his head during which he permanently wounded two fingers of his hand. He was therefore given the unique title of the “living martyr” by the Prophet. He was a successful merchant and spent his wealth in the way of Allah which earned him the title of Fayyaz, the generous. He also protected the Prophet at the battle of Hunain in 8 AH. During the Caliphate of Abu Bakar he was commander of one of the 11 armies assembled to crush the apostasy movement. He was on the panel of six appointed by Umar to appoint the next Caliph on his death bed. He initially swore his alliance to Ali as the fourth Caliph but then turned against him for delaying the punishment for the assassins of Usman and together with Zubair bin Awwam raised an army. He was martyred by one of the rebels in 35 AH in the Battle of Camel in the clash between the two sides.


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Islamiyat Notes


Zubair bin Al-Awwam: He was amongst the early converts who accepted Islam at the hands of Abu Bakar. He endured the persecutions of the Quraish at Makkah and was forced to migrate to Abyssinia and then to Madinah. He took part in the battles fought during the lifetime of the Prophet including the Battles of Uhad in 3 AH and Hunain in 8 AH where he protected the Prophet. He also took part in the individual combats at the Battle of Uhad. He was given the title of Hawari-e-Rusool or helper of the Prophet on account of his services as a spy at the Battle of Trench. At the Khyber Expedition in 7 AH, he killed the well-known warrior Yasir. He was amongst the leaders of the Muslim army at the Conquest of Makkah in 8 AH. During the regime of Abu Bakar, he was appointed as the commander of one of the 11 armies assembled to crush the apostasy movement. He was made Amir-ul-Hajj by Umar during his Caliphate. Although he had supported Ali’s appointment as the first Caliph of Islam, but he turned against him for delaying the punishment for the assassins of Usman and together with Tulha bin Ubaidullah raised an army. He was martyred by one of the rebels in 35 AH in the Battle of Camel in the clash between the two sides.

Saeed bin Zaid: He was amongst the early converts to Islam. He endured the persecutions of the Quraish at Makkah and migrated north to Madinah. He took part in battles fought during at lifetime of the Prophet except for the battle of Badr in 2 AH as he and Tulha bin Ubaidullah were sent to inquire the whereabouts of the caravan of Abu Sufiyan. He participated in the Battles of Uhad in 3 AH and Hunain in 8 AH where he protected the Prophet. He took part in the conquest of Palestine and Syria during the reign of Umar as Caliph. He was also appointed as the governor of Syria but he resigned from his post due to his love for Jihad. He suggested to Umar to nominate his successor as Caliph on his death bed. He died in 50 AH.

Abdur Rehman bin Auf His real name was Abu Amr. He was amongst the early converts who accepted Islam at the hands of Abu Bakar. He endured the persecutions of the Quraish at Makkah and was forced to migrate to Abyssinia twice and then to Madinah. At Madinah he did not take anything from his brother Saad Ibn al-Rabi after the bond of brotherhood but choose to sell cheese and butter in the market and eventually became wealthy enough to send out trading caravans. He is reported to have donated 40,000 dirhams to charity. He took part in all the battles fought against the Quraish at Madinah. At the Battle of Badr in 2 AH, he shared a joint camel with Abu Bakar and Umar and also killed Umair bin Usman. He received 21 wounds while protecting the Prophet in the battle of Uhad in 3 AH and also protected him at the Battle of Hunain in 8 AH. He led the expedition of 700 men against Damut al-Jandal in 6 AH. He consoled the Prophet after the passing away of his son Ibrahim. He donated 8000 dinar at the expedition to Tabuk in 9 AH. He led the Fajr prayer at the expedition of Tabuk in the Prophet’s absence. When the Prophet arrived late, he was content to take his place behind Abdur Rehman. After the Prophet’s death, he played a prominent part in electing Abu Bakar as the first Caliph of Islam. He was appointed Amir-ul-Hajj during the Caliphates of Abu Bakar, Umar and Usman. He led prayer during Umar regime when Umar became seriously injured. He has amongst the six members appointed by Umar to succeed him as Caliph. He later pulled out of the commission and instead became election commissioner and honestly and fairly appointed Usman as the next Caliph. He died in 31 AH.


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Islamiyat Notes


Abu Ubaidah bin Jarrah His real name was Amir. He was amongst the early converts who accepted Islam at the hand of Abu Bakar. He endured the persecutions of the Quraish at Makkah and was forced to migrate to Abyssinia and then to Madinah. He took part in the battles fought during the lifetime of the Prophet including the Battle of Badr in 2 AH during which he first took part in the individual combats and then killed his own father. He protected the Prophet at the Battle of Uhud in 3 AH and lost two of his teeth while extracting metal links form the body of the Prophet with his teeth. He also protected the Prophet at the Battle of Hunain in 8 AH. He was the commander of one of the four squadrons at the Conquest of Makkah. In the last year of the Prophet’s life, he led expeditions to Dhu- al Qassa and al-Khabat. He took part in the expedition to Syria just before the Prophet’s death. The Prophet gave him the title of Aminul-Ummat and sent him to act as a judge in disputes for the Christian delegation of Najran after their visit to Madinah. He was one of the scribes of the Holy Prophet. After the Prophet’s death he played a major role in ensuring the election of Abu Bakar as Caliph although Abu Bakar nominated his name along with Umar as the Caliph. He led successful expeditions to Syria and Iran during Abu Bakar’s reign as Caliph. During the Caliphate of Umar, he was the commander of the Muslim armies at the Conquest of Palestine and Syria. He died in Syria in 18 AH because of plague.

Saad bin Abi Waqas He was one of those who accepted Islam at the hands of Hazrat Abu Bakr at early stage. He accepted Islam at the age of 17. He was the maternal uncle of Prophet. The Prophet said: “Saad is my uncle. Let a man show his maternal uncle to me” . His mother, Hamna, had threatened that she would die of starvation if he had not abandon his new faith i.e. Islam, but he remained steadfast. In early years of Islam, he was among those Muslims who went to pray outside the Makkah in order to avoid Quraish’s persecution. They were interrupted by some people of town and when the two groups came to blows, Saad wounded an opponent and drew the first blood in the Islamic history. He supported the Prophet and all the members of Banu Hasim during the days of social boycott. And he was also one of those who migrated to Medina. After the migration, he took part in all early battles and fought bravely in all those battles. In Battle of Badr, he killed Saeed bin Aas. In Uhad he was one of those who protected the Prophet when the other fled from ground. Abdullah bin Qama struck Prophet with stones and he fell in cave. The Prophet said Saad to throw arrows on enemies. Saad threw a thousand arrows on enemies. Then the Prophet said: “O’ Saad shoot arrows, my father and mother will be sacrificed on you” . He was present at the occasion of Bait-eRidwan, and took pledge of it, and Treaty of Hudaibiya and Conquest of Makkah and took part in it. He was a wealthy and generous man. During Farewell Hajj, he felt ill and when the Prophet visited him, he said to Prophet that he wanted to give two-third of his wealth in the way of Allah but the Prophet advised him to give one-third. After the death of Prophet, he was a member of Majlis-Shura - (advising council) set by Abu Bakr. He took part in battles fought against Apostasy Movement. He was a Scribe of Prophet. During the reign of Umar, he was commander in chief of the forces sent for Battle of Qadsia and Madain and conquered. He was one of the six members appointed by Umar to choose new caliph. He founded Kufa and was appointed its governor by Usman. After the death of Usman, he was requested to become Caliph but he refused. During Ali’s caliphate, he remained impartial during civil war. He died in 54 AH at the age of about 80.


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Islamiyat Notes


a) b) c)

Briefly explain the importance of the scribes of the Holy Prophet. [4] Outline the work they carried out in writing down the revelations. [4] Describe the part played by Zaid bin Sabit in preserving the revelations after the Prophet’s death. [8] (May 2006)

The scribes of the Holy Prophet played a very important role in preserving the Islam a) for generations to come. They were approximately 41 in number. They included the Four Rightly Guided Caliphs i.e. Abu Bakar, Usman, Ali and Umar as well as Zaid bin Sabit, Khalid bin Saeed, Ma’az bin Jabl, Ubaiy bin Kaab, Muawyia bin Abi Sufiyan, Shuarheel bin Hasama and Abdullah bin Masud. Amongst these Umar, Ai, Zaid bin Sabit, Ma’az bin Jabl and Ubaiy bin Kaab learnt the Holy Quran by heart on the Prophet’s persuasion. Female scribes of the Holy Prophet included Ayesha, Hafsa, Umm Salama and Umm Warqa. They remained close to the Prophet and became one of his dearest companions. It was due to this close companionship that they became authorities on religious knowledge and were later able to check the truthfulness on the copies of the Quran. Abdullah bin Masud was regarded as an expert on reciting and interpreting the revelation. Zaid bin Sabit was appointed by Abu Bakar as the head of the committee to make the first compilation of the Quran and then again by Usman to make a revised collection of the Quran. The scribes were skilled in art of accurate reading, science of phonetics and in shapes and forms of letters. Apart form the revelation, they also wrote down the judgments made by the Prophet and the letters he sent out to the emperors and the kings e.g. to Khusrau Pervez of Persia and Negus of Abyssinia, the treaties such as the treaty of Hudabiya and the treaty of Najraur and other administrative measures taken by the Prophet. The Quran says, “(It is) books held (greatly) in honor, exalted (in dignity), kept pure and holy, written by the hands of scribes, honorable, pious and just.” b) The Quran was revealed on the Prophet in a span of 23 years. During this period 114 Surahs were revealed on the Prophet and all of these were written by the scribes of the Holy Prophet. The Prophet himself couldn’t write down the revelations because he was illiterate so whenever a verse was revealed the Prophet learnt it by heart and then conveyed it to scribes who were always near the Prophet to write down the revelations as soon as they heard it. The Prophet also told them to write the verses after such and such Surah. This is called Tarteeb-eTauqeefi. The scribes wrote down the revelations on different writing materials including pieces of papyrus and leather, flat stones, palm leaves, shoulder blades and ribs of animals and were memorized by men. The scribes tried their level best to pr eserve these revelations as they were revealed as accurately as possible. They sacrificed their family, personal life and worldly pursuits to achieve this.

Zaid bin Sabit was made head of the committee which included Umar, Ma’az bin c) Jabl, Ubaiy bin Kaab and Abu Zaid by Abu Bakar during his Caliphate after the battle of Yamamah against the false prophet Musailmah where 360 Huffaiz were martyred. Zaid retrieved the revelations from pieces of papyrus and leather, flat stones, palm leaves, shoulder blades and ribs of animals as well as from hearts of men and wrote them down on sheets known as Suhuf. He also asked anyone who had any fragment of the Holy Quran to bring it to Masjid-e-Nabvi. The person had to swear and bring two eye witnesses to that fact that the verse was written down during the Prophet’s lifetime and at least two persons needed to have that verse. The work was completed in one year. On Abu Bakar’s death, Umar took THE FIRST ISLAMIC COMMUNITY

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Islamiyat Notes


possession of them. After Umar’s death in 644 AD, they were passed on to his daughter Hafsa and the sheets came to be known as Mushuf-e-Hafsa. During the reign of Usman, the Muslim Empire expanded. In 27 AH following the Battle of Armenia, Huzaifa bin Yaman observed the difference in the dialect of Quran in newly conquered areas and reported this to Usman. Usman entrusted Zaid bin Sabit to make an accurate collection of the Quran. He was assisted by Abdullah bin Zubair, Abdur Rehman bin Harith and Syed bin al-Aas. They carefully collected full text using methods that ensured the authenticity of their work like preferring passages in Makkan dialect in case of conflict, as the Quran ha been revealed in that dialect. They also consulted leading Muslims and finally compared their work to the Suhuf of Hafsa to further ensure the correctness of what they collected. They compiled their work in the form of a book and kept the original order of the verses which were instructed to the Prophet by the angel Gabriel. The work was completed in five years. One was kept at the capital, Madinah, and the remaining six were distributed to all the provinces of the Muslim empire.


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Identify the Wives of the Prophet b) Explain the importance of: i. Khadijah during the lifetime of the Prophet ii. Ayesha in the years following the Prophet’s death

[6] [4] [4] (October 2004)

1) Hazrat Khatijah bin Khawalid 2) Hazrat Sawdah bint Zama’a 3) Hazrat Ayesha bint Abu Bakar 4) Hazrat Hafsa bint Umar 5) Hazrat Zainab bint Khuzayma 6) Hazrat Umm Salama 7) Hazrat Zaynab bint Jahsh 8) Hazrat Juwayriyya bint Harith 9) Hazrat Umm Habiba 10) Hazrat Safiyya bint Huyayy 11) Hazrat Maymuna bint al-Harith 12) Hazrat Rayhana bint Zaid 13) Hazrat Maria bint Qibtiya Hazrat Khadijah inherited the wealth left for her by her father Khawalid bin Asad. i) She had married twice before her marriage with the Prophet and had been widowed. Her first interaction with Muhammad was when he took her merchandise to Syria and brought back huge prophets. Maisra, the slave who accompanied him on his trip spoke highly of Muhammad. She was so impressed that she proposed to him through her friend Nafeesa which he accepted. At the time of marriage Muhammad was 25 years old while she was 40 years old. The Prophet and Khatijah were blessed with 6 children, two sons Qasim by whom the Prophet had his kuniyat (Abul Qasim) and Abdullah and four daughters Zaynab, Ruqayah, Umm Kulthum and Fatimmah and therefore had the honor of being the mother of his only surviving children. Following her marriage to the Prophet, she provided him with the financial support by placing his wealth at his disposal which enabled the Prophet to spend more time meditating in the cave of Hira. She was a loving and devoted wife. She stood by him in times of trouble. When the first revelation came she supported and comforted him and took him to her cousin Waraqa bin Naufal who assured the Prophet that he had been ordained by Allah to be His messenger. She supported the Prophet’s mission and was the first person to accept Islam. She was the only wife of the Prophet who endured the persecutions of the Makkans particularly during the Boycott of Banu Hashim from the seventh to the tenth year th of Prophet Hood. She died in 10 year of Prophet Hood and that year is marked in the Islamic calendar as the “Year of Sorrow”. The Prophet said about Hazrat Khatijah, “She was the onl y wife who believed in me when others rejected me. When people refused to believe me she affirmed my truthfulness. When people refused to believe me, she affirmed my truthfulness. When I stood forsaken, she spent my wealth to lighten the burden of m y sorrow.


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Biological Account Titles: Tahira (the pure) Date of Birth: 556 AD Father’s Name: Khawalid bin Asad Mother’s Name: Fatima bint Za’dah Kuniyat name: Umm Hind First Marriage: Abu Hala bin Zurarah Second Marriage: Ateeq bin Aidh Makzumi Died in: 621 AD

ii)

Hazrat Ayesha is one of the most prominent wives of the Holy Prophet. The

Prophet spent a lot of time with her and even died in her lap and was buried in her apartment. This enabled Hazrat Ayesha to become an authority on religious matters. She heard and reported 2,210 Hadith. She had an excellent memory. When Saad in Abi Waqas died, Hazrat Ayesha suggested that his funeral prayers should be offered in the Prophet’s mosque. People objected but Hazrat Ayesha said, “How week is peoples’ memory. The Prophet offered the funeral prayer of Suhail bin Baidha in his mosque. Companions of the Prophet would ask her if they had any difficulty in religious matters. Abu Mus Al Ashar said, “It never happened that the companions of the Prophet had asked Ayesha about difficult religious and she had not given us knowledge about it.” Speaking of her knowledge Imam Zuhri said, “If the knowledge of all wives was put together, the knowledge of Khatijah would exceed them.” She was an important advisor to Abu Bakar and Umar, the first two Caliphs of Islam. She disagreed with some polices of Usman that he appointed inefficient relatives as governors in four provinces and was too lenient towards them. She also alleged Usman that he had spent on his relatives from the Bait-ul-Maal. But when Akhter Nakhai, the rebel leader suggested that Usman should be killed, she strongly opposed it. She disagreed with Ali over the punishment of the assassinators of Usman when he delayed taking action against them. She supported Tulha and Zubair when they raised an army in the cry of vengeance for Usman’s killers and met Ali’s armies at Basra. She participated in the battle while riding on a camel. The battle is therefore known as the Battle of Camel in which 10,000 Muslims were killed from either side. Many Muslims, particularly the Shias believe that this caused the first major conflict amongst the Muslim Community.


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Hazrat Ayesha (during the Prophet’s lifetime) (May 2004) Hazrat Ayesha was the daughter of Abu Baker, the fist Caliph of Islam. The Prophet knew her due to his frequent visits to her father’s home and she was only 9 years old at the time of her marriage to Muhammad, though the couple did not become man and women until later. Khawala bin Ateeq suggested the marriage. The marriage further strengthened the ties of the Prophet with his close friend Abu Bakar The marriage took place in the month of Shawal which swept away a superstition that prevailed in ht Arab society of not marrying their daughters in the month of Shawal because a plague had broken out during this month in previous time. She was always a strong personality and her beauty and lively character attracted the Prophet towards her. One occasion, however, she caused him embarrassment when she got lost while accompanying the Prophet in the expedition of Banu Mustaliq while looking for her locket, she had lost. She was eventually brought home by a young, handsome man by the name of Safwan bin Muattal who came across her while she was waiting in the desert which caused scandal in the Muslim society, mainly propagated by Abdullah bin Ubaiy. But Allah in Surah-al-Nur proved her innocence. She participated in the Battle of Uhad where she fed water to the wounded Muslims. She was one of the scribes of the Prophet. She nursed him during his final days and he even died in her lap. Many chapters of the Holy Quran were revealed in her apartment and the Prophet was also buried there. She was an authority on religious knowledge and narrated 2,210 traditions. Speaking of her knowledge Imam Zuhri said, “If the knowledge of all the wives was put together the knowledge of Ayesha would exceed them all. Biological Account Titles: Humaira (complexion was bright red); Sadiqa (daughter of Abu Bakar who was known as Sadique) Date of Birth: 604 AD Father’s Name: Abu Bakar Mother’s Name: Zainab Kuniyat name: Umm Abdullah Mehr: 500 dirhams Died in: 58 AH Buried in: Jannat-al-Baqi in Madinah

Hazrat Hafsa (October 2007) Hazrat Hafsa was the daughter of Umar, the second Caliph of Islam. She first migrated to Abyssinia and then to Madinah for the sake of Islam with her husband, Khunais. The Prophet marred her in 3 AH in order to cement his ties with Umar. She was one of the scribes of the Prophet and amongst the four women who had committed the Holy Quran to memory. She was a custodian of the Quran which was compiled during the caliphate of Abu Bakar. Hafsa was entrusted with this duty because she was illiterate (could read and write), a hafiz, daughter of Umar who was the custodian of the Quran before her and a wife of the Prophet. The collection came to be known as the Mushuf-e-Hafsa. Much of her time was spent in reading and writing. Among the wives of the Prophet her knowledge was next to Ayesha only. She used to impart education to those who came to her for this purpose. She heard and narrated 60 traditions before her death in 45 AH. THE FIRST ISLAMIC COMMUNITY

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Biological Account Date of Birth: 606 AD Father’s Name: Umar bin Khattab Mother’s Name: Zainab bin Muzuan First Marriage: Khunais Died in: 45 AH Buried in: Jannat-al-Baqi in Madinah


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He belonged to a poor Yamanite family. He used to tend the herds of a wealthy lady, Busra. One day, he found a cat in the forest and enjoyed its company. The companionship of the two became known to the people and people called him Abu Huraira, Father of cat. His real name was Abd Shams before his conversion to Islam. He was given the name of Abdur Rehman by the Prophet after his conversion to Islam. He accepted Islam at the preaching of Tufal bin Amr Dousi in 7 AH at the time of Battle of Khyber. He was one of the people of Suffaa and spent most of his time in learning. He learnt Persian and Coptic languages. The Prophet said, ‘Abu Huraira is a reservoir of knowledge of my Ummah’ . He used to write the sayings of the Prophet and narrated 5374 Ahadiths that is the highest record. Abu Huraira also responded to the criticism made by people on him that how he learnt so much Ahadiths in just 4 years by saying, ‘The people are critical of my reports. They say I narrate reports which Muhajreen and Ansar have no knowledge but they ignore an important point. Muhajreen were busy in their business and Ansar in farming. I being a poor person spent whole of my time in the company of Prophet as I have no family’ . Moreover his memory was excellent. He had a habit of questioning. One of his students, Humam bin Munnabih, collected and compiled Ahadiths reported by Abu Huraira. This is known as Sahjfa-Sahiha Humam bin Munabih (contains 138 Ahadiths). He taught Hadith in Prophet’s mosque after Prophet’s death. He was appointed governor of Baharain during Umar’s caliphate and governor of Medina during Mawia’s regime. He was pious, generous and a contended person. He died in 678 AD in the age of 75 years. HAZARAT ABU HURAIRA Real name before accepting Islam: Abd Shams Real name after accepting Islam: Abdur Rehman Kuniat: Abu Huraira Tribe: Dous Death: 678 AD


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Sulaiman was born in Jayy near Isphan in the house of Yuzakhsan. Therefore he was known as Farsi. His parents were fire worshipper. He was true seeker of true religion. He travelled many cities and countries for this purpose. He first of all adopted Christianity and read all the books of Christianity. He went to Syria and met bishop of Damascus, then Musal and its bishop, then Nasiben and its bishop and then Amuria and the bishop of Amuria told Sulaiman that the last prophet will come in Arab and you should go there. He travelled with a great caravan and he was sold as a slave to a Jew of Banu Quraiza. Then he arrived Medina and met the Prophet and accepted Islam. The Prophet denoted 40 ounces gold and asked his companions to plant 300 date palm trees and he was set free by his slave as he wanted 40 ounces gold and 300 date palm trees to free him. He was one of the people of Suffaa. He did not participate in the battle of Badr and Uhad on account of his slavery because his master did not allow him to participate in those battles. Sulaiman suggested to dig a trench around Medina to protect it from the Quraish attack. The Prophet accepted his advice and dug trench. Sulaiman took part in all the remaining important battles. He was present at the Bait-eRidwan, Treaty of Hudabiya, Farewell Hajj and Conquest of Makkah. The Prophet said about him, ‘Sulaiman is a member of my family’. Sulaiman was a very learned person and knowledgeable companion and narrated 60 Ahadiths. He was one of the Prophet’s bodyguards. The Prophet said, ‘Every Prophet had 7 guardians but I have been given 14 and Sulaiman was one of them’. After the Prophet’s death, he was a member of advisory council of Abu Bakr and Umar. He participated in the battles fought against Iranians during the caliphate of Umar ( Qadsiya, Madain ). After the conquest of Madain, he was appointed the governor of Madain. He died in 35 AH in Madain. Hazrat Sulaiman Farsi Real name: Maabah Kuniat: Abu Abdullah Tittle: Sulaiman Al Khair (virtuous) Bond of Brotherhood: Abu Darda Death: 35 AH


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Fatimah Fatima was born in 605 AD and was the fourth and youngest daughter of the Prophet. She was brought up by the Prophet and she stood beside him during stressful time at Makkah and Madinah. She would to wash the Prophet’s head when the unbelievers threw dirt on him, and after Uqba bin Abu Muyeet placed the fetus of a she camel on the Prophet’s back while he was prostrating at the Ka’aba. She tended to the Prophet’s wounds when he was wounded in the battle of Uhad in 3 AH. The Prophet once said to her, “You are the highest of the women in the people in Paradise, except for Maryam, daughter of Imran.” When Jami bin Omair asked her aunt Ayesha who amongst the people was dearest to the Prophet she replied Fatima and when he asked about men she replied Her husband. Ayesha said, “The Prophet loved Fatimah dearly: whenever he went on a journey he came to her first and whenever he returned, he returned to her first, he rose whenever Fatimah came and would make her sit by his side.” She migrated to Madinah with her stepmother Sawdah bint Zama’a and two sisters Ruqqiya and Umm Kulthum. She was married to Hazrat Ali, a cousin of the Prophet in 2 AH. Like other Muhajireen they too faced extreme poverty. She gave birth to the Prophet’s only surviving descendants, Hasan in 3 AH and Husain in 4 AH, from where the line of Shia Imams began. She was also the mother of Mushin, who died in childhood and three daughters Ruqqiya who died in infancy, Umm-e-Kulthum and Zainab. She was given the title of alZuhra, the Shinning One. When the Prophet heard of Ali re-marrying she said, “Fatimah is part of my flesh, whosoever causes her anger, causes my anger.” After the Prophet’s death she argued at the election of Abu Bakar over her husband Ali. She had, however, been foretold by the Prophet, in his last illness that she would be the first one form his family to rd follow him and accordingly she died on 3 Ramadan 11 AH, just six months after her father. Shias have given her the title Sayyadun Nissa, the model of womanhood and believe that after the final judgment she will secure entry into Paradise for her supporters. She has been attributed with the Tasbeeh-e-Fatimah i.e. Subhan Allah 33 times, Al-hamad-ul-illah 33 times and Allah-hu-Akbar 34 times.

Hasan th

Hasan was born to Ali and Fatimah on 15 Ramadan, 3 AH and was named by the Prophet himself, meaning the beautiful one. He is also known as “Shabbar” which in Herbew language means handsome. His early childhood was spent in the company of the Prophet and would listen to him reciting the Quran and would immediately learn it by heart. The Prophet loved him dearly and would allow him to climb on his back while prostrating and would interrupt his sermon to some down from the minar to pick him up when he tripped over. He would also pick him up on his shoulder and say “O Allah I love him so love him.” He was just eight years old when the Prophet and his mother passed. He was therefore brought up by Ali. He took part in the expeditions to Central Asia and North Africa during Usman’s reign as Caliph. He and his brother Husain were sent by their father to provide Usman with food when he was besieged in his house in 35 AH. During his father’s Caliphate he was sent to Kufa to THE FIRST ISLAMIC COMMUNITY

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seek reinforcements during his struggle against Tulha, Zubair and Ayesha. He also supported his father in the Battle of Siffin and Naharwan and was also in charge of the Bait-ul-Maal during Ali’s regime. After the assassination of Ali in 40 AH he was proclaimed Caliph and nearly 40,000 people took oath of loyalty to him but Muawiya, the governor of Syria and Egypt rejected and went in battle against him on the border of Syria. Due to his reluctance to fight against fellow Muslims, and desertions of his army which continued even after his 20,000 men reached the borders of Syria who were bribed by spies of Muawiya, he was forced to abdicate the office of Caliphate after negotiations with Muawiya, spending less then a year in office thereby fulfilling the following prophecy of the Prophet who said, “Verily this progeny of mine is Sayyad and perchance Allah will bring out compromise between two big parties of the Muslims through him.” He settled in Madinah and died in 50 AH. It is said that he was poisoned by one his wives Judah who was been bribed with promises to money and marriage to his son, Yazid by Muawiya. Shias regard him as the second Imam and accept that he is sinless and perfect in all his actions. They also credit him with miracles.

Husain th

Husain was born to Ali and Fatimah on 4 Shawal, 4 AH and was named by the Prophet himself, meaning the little beautiful one. His earl childhood was spent in the company of the Prophet. The Prophet loved him dearly and would allow him to climb on his back while prostrating and would interrupt his sermon to some down from the minar to pick him up when he tripped over. The Prophet said, “Husain belongs to me and I to Husain. May Allah love him who loves Husain.” He further said, “Hasan and Husain are my flowers in the world.” He was just seven years old when the Prophet and his mother passed. He was therefore brought up by Ali. He took part in the expeditions to Central Asia and North Africa during Usman’s reign as Caliph. He and his brother Hasan were sent by their father to provide Usman with food when he was besieged in his house in 35 AH. He supported his father in the Battles of Camel, Siffin and Naharwan. He was against the Hassan’s abdication of the office of Caliphate to Muawiya. In 60 AH Yazid, succeeded his father Muawiya on his death as Caliph. But Husain refused to take oath of allegiance to him and left Madinah for Makkah since he did not want his grandfather’s city to become a battlefield. He reached rd Makkaho0n 3 Shaban 60 A.H. Here se sent his cousin Muslims bin Aqil to Kufa to check on the support from Kufa, who invited him into their city. He replied positively and said that the people of Kufa wanted him to come and offered him all their support, but immediately after sending the reply he was killed by the Umayyad Governor loyal to Yazid. Yazid bribed the leaders of the town and they withdrew their support form Husain. Although leading Muslims advised against this, Husain, when he knew of this, went to Kufa with his 72 supporters and nd on 2 Muharram 61 AH, camped at a desert called Kabala. He was heavily outnumbered by th Yazid’s 4,000 men. On 7 , Yazid’s forces cut off all supplies of water to them and did not allow even a single drop of water to reach them. After three days all of Hussains’s supporters were martyred and he was left alone in the battlefield. He went to his sick son Zain-ulAbideen to hand over the charge of Imamat to him and went back into the battlefield and was brutally martyred.


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Write an account of the major contributions made to Islam by Abu Bakar i. during the lifetime of the Prophet [6] ii. during his caliphate [6] b) Explain why he was known as the Honest One (al-Siddiq), and the Savior of Islam. [4] (May 2005)

i) He had been the prophet’s friend since childhood and accompanied the Prophet during his trade journeys. He became the first free adult male to accept Islam. After his conversion he convinced his friends including Usman, Zubair, Tulha, Abdur Rehman, Saad bin Abi Waqas and Abu Ubaidullah bin Jarrah to embrace Islam. He used his wealth to free slaves including Bilal, Amir bin Fuhaira, Nahdra and Lubaina who were persecuted by their masters for accepting Islam. He was the first person to confirm the Prophet’s statement about Miraj. He also accompanied the Prophet during his migration from Makkah to Madinah and carried all his wealth 5 to 6 thousand dirhams along. The Quran confirms this statement by saying, “He being the two of them when they were in a cave.” He gave his daughter Ayesha to be the Prophet’s wife. He remained loyal to the Prophet in all situations both in Makkah and in Madinah. He paid the price for the land of the Prophet’s mosque in Madinah. He supported the Prophet after the signing of the Treaty of Hudabiya even others including Hazrat Umar were critical of some of the terms of the treaty. He took part in all the battles fought during the lifetime of the Prophet including the Battle of Badr in 2 AH where he shared a joint camel with Umar and Abdur Rehman bin Auf. He protected the Prophet at the Battle of Uhad in 3 AH and Hunain in 8 AH. At the Battle of Khandak in 5 AH where he was one of those appointed at different spots by the Prophet to ensure that the pagans could not cross. At the battle of Tabuk in 9 AH, he placed all his wealth at the disposal of the Prophet. He was appointed Amir-ul-Hajj in when it first became obligatory and was appointed by the Prophet as the leader of the Congregational prayer when the Prophet became ill. He was one of the scribes of the Prophet and amongst the ten blessed companions. ii) He exercised remarkable self-control while announcing the Prophet’s death and consoled the Muslim community after his passing away. His first major decision as Caliph was to continue the Prophet’s intention of sending an expedition north to Syria under Usama despite opposition from the Muslims that Usama was inexperienced. But Abu Bakar chose not to defy the Prophet’s commands and sent the expedition which proved to be very successful. He forced the tribes who refused to pay Zakat e.g. Banu Asad, Banu Ghaftan and Banu Abbas to pay Zakat. Abu Bakar had to face the appearance of false prophets. Four persons namely Musailamah in central Arabia, Aswad Anasi in Yemen, Tulaiha in northern Arabia who belonged to the tribe Banu Asad and Sijjaha, who belonged to the tribe Banu Tamim, all declared their Prophethood but Abu Bakar fought them off and crushed their rebellions. Some tribes of the Muslim community had apostatized. Abu Bakar collected his troops divided them into 11 battalions each under the command of an experienced commander and sent them to fight off the movement. The wars fought proved to be very successful for the Muslims and the Apostasy Movement was crushed within a year. Abu Bakar’s greatest contribution to Islam was the compilation of Quran after the death of many Huffaiz in the various battles that took place to suppress the rebellions in the Muslim Empire particularly during the Battle of Yamamah during which 360 Huffaiz were martyred. He took Umar’s advice of compiling the Quran in the form of a book and entrusted Zaid bin Sabit, THE FIRST ISLAMIC COMMUNITY

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one of the chief scribes of the Prophet, with this task. The compilation of the Quran was completed in one year. b) The Prophet claimed that he had been taken to the Ka’aba, Jerusalem and the heavens all in one night and then back to his house at Makkah. When Abu Bakar came to know of this he believed the Prophet without any hesitation. So on the account of confirming the Prophet’s Night Journey and showing loyalty to him in all circumstances like accepting Islam without any kinds of reluctance, showing trust in the Prophet at the Treaty of Hudabiya when many were critical of the terms established and donating all his wealth at the time of Tabuk expedition, the Prophet gave him the title of al-Siddiq i.e. t he Testifier to the Truth. Abu Bakar took the office of Khilafat at a critical time of Islamic history. He encouraged the Muslims after the death of the Holy Prophet. Disunity amongst the Muslims, rise of false prophets and rebellions in the Peninsula, threatened the existence of the newly established Islamic State. But Abu Bakar fought of all these problems. He united the Muslims, eliminated the false prophets, crushed the apostasy movement, put an end to the rebellions and forced the tribes who had refused to pay Zakat, to pay Zakat. On the accounts of these services, Abu Bakar was known as the Savior of Islam.

Mark Scheme: (a) (i) • • • • • • • • •

He was the Prophet’s friend from childhood. He was one of the first to accept Islam. He brought others to accept Islam. He remained loyal to the Prophet at all times, good and bad. He expressed belief in the Prophet’s Night Journey. He bought slaves who were Muslim and freed them. He accompanied the Prophet on the hijra. He gave his daughter À’isha to be the Prophet’s wife. He made a financial contribution to the expedition to Tabuk.

(ii) • •

• • •

•

He steadied the mourning community after the Prophet’s death. He continued the Prophet’s intention to send expeditions to the north. [1 mark for the basic point, and 1 extra mark for details] He fought against the tribes who withheld Zakat. He fought against the false prophets. These were Musaylima, Tulayha, Aswad al-Ansi and Sajjah. [1 mark, but 2 marks if all four names are given] He arranged to have the first collection of the Qur’an made. [1 mark, but 2 marks for details of how this happened]

(b) •

• •

He was given the title of al-Siddiq after he declared without hesitation that he believed the Prophet had been taken to Jerusalem on the Night Journey. It also suits his conduct of showing complete loyalty towards Muhammad. He was acknowledged as the Savior of Islam because of his efforts to keep the community united, to resist the threat from tribes withdrawing from Islam, and to destroy the false prophets. [1 mark, but 2 marks for all of these points]


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Examiner’s Report:

This was a popular question, and it brought some very good answers, though there were also some common errors. (a) Most candidates were able to describe the two parts of Abu Bakr’s career very fully. The best answers included the following points: he brought others to Islam, he accompanied the Prophet on the hijra (this is referred to in the Qur’an), he remained loyal to the Prophet at all times, during his caliphate he fought against the apostate tribes and against the false prophets (three marks were allowed for details of this point, and some candidates gained them by naming the four best-known false prophets and saying a little about them), and he arranged a collection of the Qur’an. Some candidates seemed to mix him up with ‘Umar, and so wrote about his financial arrangements for the empire, and about conquests that were made not under him but under his successor. (b) Few candidates answered this part well. While many explained how he earned the title Savior of Islam by his quick actions to put down dissent and opposition to the young state, very few linked the title al-Siddiq with his unhesitating expression of belief in the Prophet’s Night Journey, though some linked it with his general character of trustworthiness.


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Explain the importance of Umar i. during the lifetime of the Prophet [6] ii. during his caliphate [6] b) What does the manner of Umar's death tell us about his character? [4] (Nov 2006)

i) Following the declaration of Prophethood, Umar became the Prophet's bitterest enemies. During the 6th Year of Prophethood, the Prophet prayed to Allah to strengthen Islam by giving him Umar or Abu Jahl. Allah answered the Prophet's prayer during that same year when Umar set out to kill the Prophet. On the way he heard the news of her sister Fatima and her husband's conversion to Islam. He became furious and went to her sister's home and attacked her and her husband while they were reciting the Holy Quran. On his insistence her sister recited a few verses form Surah Taha. Immediately after listening to them, tears began to flow from his eyes. He went to the Prophet and accepted Islam. Due to his reputation as a strong and fearless fighter, his conversion encouraged the Muslims to pray openly in Makkah. The Prophet therefore gave him the title of al-Farooq, i.e. the distinguisher between right and wrong. He also protected the Prophet from attacks in Makkah and in doing so became his close companion. Their ties were further strengthened when he gave his daughter Fatima in marriage to the Prophet. Umar migrated to Madinah shortly before the Prophet's own migration and openly declared that he was going to migrate. Even after migration he stood beside the Prophet as a close companion. His bond of brotherhood was formed with Utban bin Malik. He dreamt the word and method of Azan. He took part in all the battles fought during the lifetime of the Prophet including the Battle of Badr in 2 AH where shared a joint camel with Abu Bakar and Abdur Rehman bin Auf and killed his maternal uncle Aasbin-Asham. At the Battles of Uhad in 3 AH and Hunain in 8 AH he defended the Prophet. He initially objected to terms and conditions of the Treaty of Hudabiya because they disadvantaged the Prophet but eventually submitted to the Prophet's will. At the Tabuk Expedition in 9 AH, he donated half of his entire wealth as war funds. He was one of those scribes of the Prophet who learnt the Holy Quran by heart and amongst the ten blessed companions. ii) Umar was able to extend the Muslim empire to Persia following a series of battles. In 634 AD, Muslims under the command of Muthanna bin Harith and Khalid bin Waleed defeated the Persians at the battle of Nammaraq. Muslims under Abu Ubaid-ath-Thaqafi lost to the Persians that same year at the Battle of Bridge, they were again defeated by Saad bin Abi Waqas at the Battle of Qadisiya in 637 AD following which Muslims captured Babal, Kutha, Bahrahsher and Madain, the capital of Persia. The Persians were again defeated in the same year by Nauman bin Maqqarin. The Persian threat was finally eliminated by Saad bin Abi Waqas at the Battle of Nahawand in 642 AD. Syria was also added to t he Muslim empire during the reign of Umar when an army led by Abu Ubaidah bin Jarrah, who replaced Khalid bin Waleed during the battle, crushed the Romans in 636 AD at the Battle of Yarmuk. In 638 AD Amar bin al-Aas further extended the Muslim empire after the conquest of Egypt. Khalid bin Waleed, Abu Ubaidah bin Jarrah and Amr bin al-Aas also captured Jerusalem during the reign of Umar. A peace treaty was signed between them and Muslims under which they were given full religious and complete security of their life and property as long as they paid Jiziya. Umar personally accepted the treaty and the agreements made formed the basis of the later legislation about Dhimmies (non-Muslims living in Islamic state). Umar also brought many other effective administrative changes to the Muslim empire such as the establishment THE FIRST ISLAMIC COMMUNITY

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of a regular Majlis-e-Shura'a. Prominent companions attended the meetings of the council where important issues were discussed. They included, Usman, Ali, Abdur Rehman bin Auf, Zaid bin Sabit, Ma'az bin Zubair and Tulha. Other administrative changes brought up by Umar included the division of the Muslim empire into provinces, separation of the judiciary from the executives, organization of the army and Bait-ul-Maal, introduction of a vast and effective Educational System, land reforms to promote agriculture, the departments of police, jail post office, pension and allowance and the Islamic Calendar. b) Umar was killed by a Persian slave named Abu Lu'lu'a who was known as Feroz. He was the slave of Mugheera bin Shuba. The reason for killin g Umar was that did not accept his appeal to excuse him from paying a tax. Umar rejected this because he thought that the tax could be paid by him since it was not that much. This incident completely describes Umar's character. While he was extremely kind and generous towards the poor and needy he was also very strict and refused to give anyone any concession if he felt that they were unnecessary and not within the folds of Islam. He was stern about the observance of all religious duties. Whatever he did was based on the teachings of Islam and did not hesitate for even a single second to punish anyone who did not follow the teachings of Islam without thinking about the consequences of his actions. Umar once imposed a punishment of 80 lashes on his own son, Abu Salma for drinking wine. The punishment resulted in his son's death. On another occasion when Umar met the Muslim commanders at Palestine who were dressed in silk, he started throwing stones at them. It was these fearless tactics of Umar which caused his death but because of these fearless tactics he also became one of the greatest rulers of the history of mankind. The fact that Hazrat Ayesha sacrificed her own place of burial alongside the Prophet for Umar further signifies that Umar was acknowledged by the whole Muslim community as a great leader.

Mark Scheme: (a) (i) •

• • •

• •

•

•

•

He converted to Islam when he heard a passage of the Qur’an being recited [here allow 1 mark for the basic point, and allow a further 1 mark for details, e.g. that he was on his way to kill the Prophet; that he surprised his sister and her husband hearing the Qur’an recited; that he was going to destroy this passage, but relented when he read it]. In Makka he had a reputation as a fierce and strong fighter. His conversion gave courage to the Muslims in Makka. In Makka he proved a great help because he was able to protect the Prophet from attacks. He made the Hijra to Madina with the other Muslims. There he was always close to the Prophet in battles [allow a further 1 mark for details, such as his defending the Prophet at Uhud, and his digging the trench before Khandaq]. His ties with the Prophet were strengthened when the Prophet married his daughter Hafsa. He objected to the terms of the Treaty of al-Hudaybiya because they disadvantaged the Prophet. He took part in the expeditions to the north that were organized towards the end of the Prophet’s life.

(ii) THE FIRST ISLAMIC COMMUNITY

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MUHAMMAD SHUMAIL MOHY-UD-DIN •

•

•

•

He oversaw the expansion of the empire into Syria, Persia, Iraq and Egypt [allow 1 mark for the basic point, a further 1 mark for details, and an additional 1 mark for names of battles and dates]. He personally accepted the surrender of Jerusalem [1 mark for the basic point, and a further 1 mark for details]. The agreements he made with conquered non-Muslims formed the basis of later legislation about Dhimmis. He oversaw many important administrative measures [1 mark for the basic point, a further 1 mark for details such as the diwan which listed those entitled to pensions from the state, the institution of the position of judge, and a further 1 mark for full details of more than one of his measures].

(b) • • •

•

•

Ùmar was killed by his slave (Abu Lu’lu’a). The reason was that he refused to excuse him from paying a tax. This is characteristic of Ùmar’s total impartiality and refusal to allow concessions even to those close to him. He was stern about the correct observance of all regulations [allow 1 mark for any examples that illustrate this characteristic]. He was buried near the Prophet, which shows he was held in high honor.

Examiner’s Report:

This was about the Caliph ‘Umar. In part (a) candidates were asked to describe his life (i) during the Prophet’s lifetime, and (ii) during his caliphate. While there were some very thorough answers, a surprising number of candidates did not appear to have a clear idea of what distinguished ‘Umar. Some thought he was one of the earliest converts, or had married two of the Prophet’s daughters (that was ‘Uthman). Others thought he had fought the false prophets (that was Abu Bakr), or compiled the Qur’an. Through such mistakes they missed easy marks. Part (b) was more demanding, requiring candidates to know how ‘Umar died, and also to suggest what this indicates about his character. A few did explain that his assassination by his slave was the result of his refusal to give his slave special concessions, which shows his unflinching fairness in treating everyone in exactly the same way (a trait that is exemplified in a great number of his actions in his earlier life). But most either did not know how he had died or failed to show how his assassination bore any significance as an indication to his character.


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Islamiyat Notes


Administration of Umar Establishment of Majlis-e-Shura'a Umar established a regular Majlis-e-Shura'a. Prominent companions attended the meetings of the council where important issues were discussed. They included, Usman, Ali, Abdur Rehman bin Auf, Zaid bin Sabit, Ma'az bin Zubair and Tulha. Provinces and Governors For the smooth functioning of the administrative system, Umar divided the Islamic state into several provinces; provinces into districts, districts into towns, Names of provinces were Makkah, Basra, Kufa, Palestine and Egypt. He appointed experienced personnel as administrators of the provinces and magistrate to run the affairs if the districts and towns. Umar imposed certain restrictions on them and they were called during Hajj season. Separation of Judiciary form Executives Umar was the first ruler who separated judiciary from executives. He was known as AlFarooq i.e. distinguisher between right and wrong. Judges were paid extra salaries. Names of judges included Zaid bin Sabit, Abdullah bin Masud, Shuraih, Salman bin Rabiah. Organization of Bait-ul-Maal Umar reorganized the entire system of Bait-ul-Maal on sound principals. Major resources of Revenue were Zakat, Jiziya, Kharaj (land tax), Spoils of War, Ushar, Ashoor (custom duty). Organization of the Army Umar encouraged the Muslims to enlist in the regular army of the state. He also divided the army into regular and irregular personnel. They ere paid good salaries and their families were given funds Umar did not allow military personnel to possess land in conquered areas. Cantonments and Barracks were built in Madinah, Makkah, Kufa, Damascus, Jordan, Palestine and Mosul. They were given holiday every four months to visit their homes. Education System Umar founded many schools in all provinces and towns for the promotion of knowledge in Muslims. These schools were located in mosques where Quran, Hadith and Islamic law were taught. Umar appointed Ubada bin Sabit, Ma'az bin Jabl, Adu Darda as teachers. They were paid excellent salaries. Administration of Land Umar introduced various land reforms for the promotion of agriculture. He ordered a thorough survey of the lands and divided hem into plots and fixed taxes according to the fertility of the soil and location of the land. Many canals were constructed for irrigational purposes e.g. the Canal of Saad, Amir-ul-Momineen and Abu Musa Canal. Police, jail, post office Umar introduced department of police, jail and post office for the smooth running of the government.

Rights of Dhimmies Non-Muslims who were living in Islamic state were called Dhimmies and were given equal rights, full security and freedom of religion as long as they paid Jiziya. Umar showed kindness and charity to the non-Muslims. Once Umar saw as aged Christian begging to pay Jiziya, Umar exempted him from paying Jiziya and granted him an allowance form Bait-ulMaal. THE FIRST ISLAMIC COMMUNITY

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Islamiyat Notes


Pension and Allowance Umar introduced for the first time in the history of mankind, the allotment of pension to the retired officials and disabled soldiers. He fixed allowances for the needy and physically handicapped. This Department was called the "Department of Diwan." Introduction of Islamic Calendar Umar introduced Islamic calendar concerning prayer, fasting, Zakat, Hajj and other religious practices.


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Islamiyat Notes


Importance during the lifetime of the Prophet Usman was amongst the early converts, first amongst the Umayyads to Islam at the hands of Abu Bakar and experienced persecutions from the Quraish, particularly from his uncle Hakam who use to tie him up with a rope and beat him. The Prophet gave his daughter Ruqayya in marriage to Usman. When the persecutions became unbearable, he decided to migrate to Abyssinia and then to Madinah along with his wife, and at both places he worked as a merchant and became quite rich. He purchased a well named Bir-i-Rumah from a Jew for 20,000 dirhams and devoted it as free for use for the Muslims, following which the Prophet gave him the glad tidings of Paradise. When Prophet’s mosque became too crowded for the growing Muslim population, Usman answered the Prophet’s call and bought land for its extension. He was given the title of al-Ghani, the Generous one, by the Prophet for spending his wealth in the way of Islam. He took part in all the major battles fought during the lifetime of the Prophet except for the Battle of Badr in 2 AH when he stayed behind to take care of his sick wife, on the Prophet’s request. He also told him that he would get the reward of participating in the battle. Following the death of Ruqayya, during the time of the battle at Badr, the Prophet decided to marry his daughter Umm Kulthum in 2 AH to Usman and he is therefore known as Zun Naorrain, the carrier of two lights. The Prophet said, “For every apostle of Allah there was a constant companion and my companion in Paradise will be Usman.” He protected the Prophet at the battle of Uhad in 3 AH and Hunain in 8 AH. When Muslims went to perform Umra at the Ka’aba in 6 AH, he was appointed to negotiate with the Quraish on the behalf of the Prophet. The unbelievers wrongly informed Muslims of Usman’s murder following which the Prophet took the Bait-e-Ridwan form his companions to avenge the murder of Usman. At the conquest of Makkah in 8 AH he rode beside the Prophet on his entry in Makkah. At the Tabuk Expedition in 9 AH, he bore the expenses for one third of the Muslim army and also gave away 1000 camels, 1000 Dinars and 50 horses, following which the Prophet said, “Nothing will do any harm to Usman from this day, whatever he does.” During the farewell pilgrimage in 10 AH, he was given the task of escorting the Prophet’s wives. He could both read and write and was amongst the scribes of the Holt Quran and the first one who learnt it by heart. He is also amongst the ten blessed companions.

Biological Account Date of Birth: 573 AD Real Name: Abu Amr Father’s Name: Affan bin Abul-As Mother’s Name: Fatima

Kuniyat name: Abu Abdullah Bond of Brotherhood: Aus bin Sabit Died in: 35 AH

Importance during the first two Caliphs He was the second person after Umar to take an oath of allegiance at Abu Bakar’s hand at his election as first Caliph of Islam. He served in the army sent by Abu Bakar under Usamah’s command to Syria. During the apostasy movement, he remained by Abu Bakar’s side as his advisor. He was a member of the Majlis-e-Shura’a during the time of both Abu Bakar and Umar’s Caliphates. During the Caliphate of Umar, when his caravan carrying large supplies of food arrived in Madinah at the time of famine, he distributed them for free amongst the Muslims. THE FIRST ISLAMIC COMMUNITY

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Importance during his Caliphate Usman took over the office of Caliphate and not only consolidated the areas conquered during Umar’s regime by crushing the Roman rebellions in Alexandria (Egypt) and Syria within a year but also extended the Muslim Empire by capturing and consolidating Azerbaijan and Armenia by crushing the revolts in these areas. The Empire also extended into North Africa in 27 AH when the Muslims conquered Tripoli, Tunisia, Morocco and a part of Algeria under the rule of Abdullah bin Sarah. New areas like Hisraf, Gazni, Herat, Kabul, Balkh, Samarkand, Tashkent, Sajestan, Arghiyan, Tukemanistan, Khurasan, Tabrastan and Jarjan were conquered by 31 AH. The Island of Cyprus and a part of Spain was also conquered during his reign. He built the first Muslim Naval fleet consisting of 500 ships to fight the Greeks and appointed Abi Sara as its first Admiral. He built a dam to protect Madinah from floods and extended the mosque of the Prophet. But the expansion of the Muslim Empire resulted in the Quran being recited in many different dialects. So therefore, on the suggestion of Huzaifa bin Yaman, he appointed Zaid bin Sabit as head of a committee which also included Abdullah bin Zudair, Saeed bin al’Aas and Abdur Rehamn bin Harith to compile the Holy Quran in the form of a single, accurate and authoritative book. The task was completed in five years and the Quran was distributed to all the seven provinces of the Muslim empire. He was therefore known as Jame-al-Quran. He destroyed all the previous versions of the Quran by fire, which resulted in much criticism form the Muslim Community. He also appointed his relatives as governors of the provinces such as Waleed bin Uqbah at Kufa, Abdullah bin Amir at Busra and Abdullah bin Saad at Egypt and trusted them and gave them a free hand in running their provinces and they proved to be quite competent but opposition came form the public on the basis that Usman was too lenient on them and they were inefficient. Usman’s lenient hand however, caused the provincial governors particularly those at Kufa, Basra and Egypt to become too bold and unrest in the provincial capitals grew which spread to the whole Muslim State and led to rebellions up and down the Empire. There were rivalries between Arabs and non-Arabs in newly conquered areas because newly conquered areas had not been hired in respectable positions in the army or the government and between Ban Hashim and Ban Ummayiah which further weakened the power of the Caliph. Why were there allegations against Usman during the later years of his Caliphate He had appointed relatives as governors such as Waleed bin Uqbah at Kufa, Abdullah bin Amir at Busra and Abdullah bin Saad at Egypt which was seen as favoritism by the Muslims Community and there were allegations of them being inefficient and Usman being too lenient towards them and even spent on them from Bait-ul-Maal, even though he had spent on the welfare of Muslims form his own pocket in the early stages of Islam. Although he destroyed older versions of the Quran to ensure the authenticity of the book but many regarded this as a huge sign of disrespect to Allah and his book. He was also alleged of ill-treating major companions such as Abuzar Ghaffari, Amar bin Yair and Abdullah bin Masud. He has been accused of making changes in the rites of Hajj by offering complete prayer instead of the Qada prayer offered by the Prophet and the first two Caliphs. Abdullah bin Saba, a Yeminte Jew who claimed that he had accepted Islam but on the orders of the Persians and Romans created discretion amongst the Muslims by propagating against Usman and his officials. Usman failed to take a timely action against him. He pacified a force of rebels from Egypt by making concessions like agreeing replace Abdullah bin Saad with Muhammad bin Abi Bakar as governor of Egypt but he secretly sent word to have them killed on their return back to Egypt. The same rebels, on intercepting the messenger carrying the message to the governor of Egypt, returned to Madinah, besieged Usman’s home for fifty days and even though he denied sending the letter and claimed that it had been forged, they martyred him in 35 AH while he was reciting the Holy Quran. THE FIRST ISLAMIC COMMUNITY

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Importance during the lifetime of the Prophet Ali was the son of Abu Talib who was the Prophet’s grandfather. His name was selected by the Prophet who took him under his own care and protection from early life. Ali used to accompany the Prophet on his trade journeys to Syria. He was the second person who accepted Islam after Hazrat Khatijah and did that at the tender age of eleven. Ali was amongst those who could read and write and performed the duty of a scribe of the Prophet by memorizing and recording the revelations as they were revealed as well as the Prophet’s Hadith and was the scribe of the Treaty of Hudabiya. In the process he became a highly knowledgeable scholar. The Prophet said, “If I am the city of knowledge Ali is its gate.” He was also amongst the ten blessed companions. When the Prophet migrated to Madinah in 622 AD, he left Hazrat Ali as decoy in his bed to allow the Prophet a safe and unnoticed escape from the Quraish who had surrounded his house with the intentions to kill him and to return the valuables entrusted to him by the people. The Prophet declared Ali to be his brother at the time of Maukhat and when he the inquired the reason for this the Prophet replied, “You are my brother in this world and the Hereafter.” The Prophet also married his youngest daughter Fatimah to him who gave birth to Hasan and Husain from where the Prophet’s line of descendants continued and the line of Shia Imams continued. He took part in almost all the battles fought during the lifetime of the Prophet including the battle of Bard 2 AH where he shared a joint camel with Marthad Ibn Abi Marthad, was chosen as one of the scouts to discover enemies’ movements, carried the Muslim standard and also t ook a successful part in the indivual combats by killing Waleed bin Shaibah. At Uhad in 3 AH, he once again took part in the individual combats, by killing Abu Saad, carried the Muslim standard when Musab bin Umair was martyred and protected the Prophet when he was attacked. He also protected the Prophet in Hunain in 8 AH. At Khandak he again successfully took part in the individual combats by killinh his foe and was amongst the leaders of the siege of the Jewish tribe Banu Qaynuka. He was also sent by the Prophet to conquer Khyber in 7 AH, when the Muslims were unable to conquer the Fort of Kamoos, which he successfully completed during which he courageously used a door as a shield and killed the famous warrior Marhab. He was also sent as commander of the Muslims forces in the expeditions to Fadak and to Yemen. He also carried the Muslim standard at the Conquest of Makkah in 8 AH. He, however, did not take part in the battle of Tabuk in 9 AH, where he was left to be the incharge of Madinah. Upon this rumors of the Prophet’s displeasure with Ali spread, but on knowing this the Prophet replied, “You are to me as Haroon was to Moses, except that there will be no Prophet after me.” The Prophet gave him the title of Asadullah, the Lion of Allah, because of his bravery in the battles fought against the non-believers and Abu Turab, the father of dust. When Abu Bakar led the Hajj in 9 AH when the Prophet fell sick, he was sent by the Prophet to read out the new teachings revealed which can be found in Surah al-Tawba. He was also a great jurist and the Prophet sent him to Yemen in 10 Ahh as the Qadi (Judge). He tended the Prophet day and night during his last illness and some claim that the Prophet even died in his house. He was amongst those who performed the funeral rites of the Prophet and lowered him into the grave. He is held highly in honor amongst the entire Muslim Community and particularly the shies who consider him to be sinless and their first Imam. They also agree and that when the Prophet said, “Of whomsoever I am lord, Ali is also his lord. O Allah be supporter of whoever supports Ali and the enemy of whoever opposes him,” at Ghadir Khumm, he should have been declared the first Caliph of the Muslims. Numerous other traditions can be quoted which show the Prophet’s love, affection and respect for Ali. The Prophet said, “When I am


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Islamiyat Notes


patron of anyone, Ali is his patron too.” The Prophet further said, “You pertain to me and I pertain to you.” He also said, “I am from Ali and Ali is from me.” Importance during the First Three Caliphs

He took pledge of loyalty to the first three Caliphs, however he late in taking pledge at the hand of Abu Bakar. He was an important member of the Majlis-e-Shura’a during the reign of the first three caliphs and remained the judge (mufti) of madina during this time. He was also amongst the panel of 6 appointed by Umar on his deathbed to succeed him as caliph. He also narrated 540 tradtions. Importance during his Caliphate st

Ali took the office of Khilafat on 21 Dhul-Hajj and his first action as Caliph was to remove the reltives of Usman from duty. He appointed Suhail bin Hanif as governor of Syria, Sa’ad bin Ubaidullah as the Governor of Egypt, Ummara bin Shahab as the Governor of Kufa, Usman bin Hanif as Gvernor of Kufa and Abdullah bin abbas as Governor of Yemen. Muawiya, the governor of Syria, however, refused and demanded that the assassins of Usman be punished first. He also distributed the wealth that Umar and Usman had kept aside. Before being able to take action against him Tulha, Zubair and Ayesha also raised cry for vengeance of Usman murder and went against him in war at Busra. Although agreement between the two parties was reached before the battle, but since Ali’s forces contained people responsible for the murder of Usman, they felt that the solution would be against their interests and killed Tulha and Zubair as they left the battlefield. So the two parties took to battle in Rabi al Awwal 36 AH. Ali’s 20,000 fared off against Ayesha’s 30,000. Ayesha personally took part in the battle and the camel she rode became the centre of attention. The battle is accordingly called the battle of Camel. This was the first civil war amongst the Muslims in which 10,000 Muslims were killed. Ali won the battle and Ayesha was treated with the due respect and sent back to madina and was escorted by her brother Muhammad bin Abi Bakar. After the battle Ali shifted his capital from madina to Kufa where his support was strongest. Muawiya continued to investigate the Muslims against Ali by blaming him to be responsible for Usman’s death and showing the blood stained shirt of Usman and chopped fingers of his wife at a mosque in Damascus. Ali was forced to declare war against him and marched his 80 thousand followers against Muawiya’s 90 thousand to Siffin in 37 AH. The battle started on th 8 Safar and lasted for 7 days and as many as 90 thousand Muslims were killed. Ali gained the upper hand in battle and as a last resort, on the advice of Amr bin al-Aas, Muawiya ordered his men to raise the Quran on their lances to show that the decision should be referred to Quran. Ali however was to clever to fall for this and ordered his army to continue fighting.10 thousand from Ali’s army however refused to fight and Ali was therefore forced to accept the truce offered by Muawiya. On his way back Ali’s army insisted on fighting the Syrians Ali refused saying that he had signed a peace treaty with the Syrians and would not break it.3,000 to 4000 of Ali’s men turned against him who were enraged at Ali for accepting Muawiya’s truce. They came to be known as the kharijits or Seceders (derived form the verb Kharaja meaning to depart or separate) and their leader was Abdullah bin Wahab. According to the terms of the truce with Muawiya their dispute was referred to two arbitrators, Abu Musa Al Ashari who represented Ali and Amr Bin Al As who represented Muawiya. The arbitration took place at Damut al Jandal. Both the arbitrators agreed to depose Ali from duty but Amr Bin Al As did not agree with Abu Musa in his decision to depose THE FIRST ISLAMIC COMMUNITY

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Islamiyat Notes


Muawiya as well. The arbitration therefore failed. After this Ali prepared to wage war against Muawiya but the Kharijits who had encamped at Naharwan plotted against Ali but Ali inflicted a crushing defeat on them in 37 AH following which Ali ordered his troops to march to Syria but they refused and deserted him. Muawiya quickly seized on the opportunity and sent Amr bin al-Aas to successfully invade Egypt. This came as a big shock to Ali following, which many rebellions broke out in his empire. Finally negotiations took place between the two parties and it was agreed that Muawiya would rule Egypt and Syria whereas Ali will remain the caliph of the rest of the Muslim empire. Detailed Description of: Battle of Camel

Tulha, Zubair who were amongst the first who took pledge of loyalty to Ali became enraged with Ali not taking positive steps to punish the assassins of Usman after almost a year in office. They prevailed upon Ayesha who was herself deeply aggrieved of Usman’s death and raised cry for vengeance of Usman’s murder and marched against him to Basra. Ali sent his son Hasan to Kufa and successfully prepared an army 20,000 to fight against Ayesha’s 30,000. Before the battle negotiations took place between the two parties. Abdullah Ibn Abbas who was from Ali’s side successfully convinced Ayesha’s representative Abdullah bin Sabaa that due action against Usman’s murderers would be taken as soon as possible and was only being delayed due to lack of evidence, the large number of people involved and the political unrest in the Muslims empire. Although agreement between the two parties was reached before the battle, but since Ali’s forces contained people responsible for the murder of Usman, they felt that the solution would be against their interests and killed Tulha and Zubair as they left the battlefield according to the terms of the treaty. So the two parties took to battle in Rabi al Awwal 36 AH. Ayesha personally took part in the battle and the camel she rode became the centre of attention. The battle is accordingly called the battle of Camel. This was the first civil war amongst the Muslims in which 10,000 Muslims were killed. Ayesha fought off the rebels valiantly until her camel was wounded and brought down. Ali, therefore, won the battle and Ayesha was treated with the due respect and sent back to madina, escorted by her brother Muhammad bin Abi Bakar. After the battle Ali’s Khilafat was recognized by the whole Muslim community, except Syria but he shifted his capital from madina to Kufa where his support was strongest. Battle of Siffin

When Ali dismissed the Governors who came under scrutiny during Usman’s reign, Ameer Muawiya the Governor of Syria refused to step down from his post and under his pressure no one from Syria took oath of loyalty to Ali. Usman began instigating the Muslims against Ali by blaming him to be responsible for Usman’s death and showing the blood stained shirt of Usman and chopped fingers of his wife at a mosque in Damascus. He won over Iraq and by portraying Tulha and Zubair as martyrs for the cause of revenge of Usman’s murder and blaming Ali of mistreating Ayesha. Ali sent messengers asking Muawiya to accept him as Caliph or be prepared to face him in battle. Muawiya stated outright that any further negotiations would only take place if Ali punished the assassins of Usman first. Ali was forced to declare war against him and marched his 80 thousand followers against Muawiya’s 90 thousand to Siffin in 37 AH which were the largest armies so far assembled in the history of Islam. For several months rival soldiers stood facing each other, and during this time no fighting took place except for the occasional skirmishes, no battle took place as Ali tried to send messengers to Muawiya to accept his Caliphate but he remained firm in his earlier th claim. The battle started on 8 Safar and lasted for 7 days and as many as 90 thousand THE FIRST ISLAMIC COMMUNITY

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Muslims were killed. Ali gained the upper hand in battle and as a last resort, on the advice of Amr bin al-Aas, Muawiya ordered his men to raise the Quran on their lances to show that the decision should be referred to Quran. Ali however was to clever to fall for this and ordered his army to continue fighting.10 thousand from Ali’s army however refused to fight and Ali was therefore forced to accept the truce offered by Muawiya according to which the dispute was to be referred to two arbitrators and their decision would have to be acknowledged by both parties. Why did Muawiya refuse to accept Ali as Caliph

Usman was killed by rebels from Egypt who thought that he had tried to trick them to death. After his assassination unrest spread throughout the Muslims Empire and Ali was appointed as the next Caliph. Many Muslims took oaths of loyalty to him. Amongst these the unanimous decision was that Ali should punish these assassins. But Ali delayed taking action against them due to lack of evidence, the large number of people involved and the political unrest in the Muslims empire. Muawiya was a loyal supporter of Usman and his nephew. He had also sent troops to rescue him when his was surrounded by the rebels but aid could not arrive in time. So therefore Muawiya led the opposition against Ali to seek justice for Usman. But there was also a hidden motive of Muawiya. He did not want to leave his governorship of Syria and even wanted the Caliphate of the whole of the Muslim empire. So he also led the opposition against Ali in his quest for power, which became evident again when he was also ready to march to the battlefield to force Ali’s son Hasan to abdicate the office of Caliphate after Ali’s death.

Why did some supporters of Ali turn against him after the Battle of Siffin?

During the battle of Siffin in 37 AH fought between Ali and Muawiya, Ali gained the upper hand in battle and as a last resort, on the advice of Amr bin al-Aas, Muawiya ordered his men to raise the Quran on their lances to show that the decision should be referred to Quran. After desertion of 10 thousand from his army, Ali was therefore forced to accept the truce offered by Muawiya according to which the dispute was to be referred to two arbitrators and their decision would have to be acknowledged by both parties. Some people on Ali’s side violently disagreed with his decisions to accept the arbitration. They claimed that since he was the leader of the community he does not have to submit to the decision of others. They claimed that the Quran in Surah al-Hujarat clearly gave instructions on how to treat rebels and so it was wrong even to acknowledge that Muawiya had any right against the ruler of the community. Their cry was “No decision except Allah’s” and only Quran could be taken as the arbitrator. They insisted that Ali would fight against the Syrians on his way back but when Ali refused saying that he had signed a peace treaty with the Syrians and felt that he had to acknowledge. Angry at Ali’s move 3,000 to 4,000 of these men marched to Naharwan claiming that only the first two Caliphs were rightly guided. They came to be known as the kharijits or Seceders (derived form the verb Kharaja meaning to depart or separate) and their leader was Abdullah bin Wahab.


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The Islamic Community + Caliphs

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