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PBUH
• The Election of the Caliph / Leader (Religious/ Political)
• The Apostasy Movement
• The False Prophethood
• Military Expeditions on Syrian and Persian Borders
Second, the Prophet, (may Allah exalt his mention) collected the Zakat, which the
various tribes used to send to Al-Madeenah. As the Prophet, , had died, they claimed
that there was no reason for them to send it there. Besides, the Prophet, , had often
agreed to local alms distribution; so why should they send their contributions away?
Third, as the wars indicated, some of the uncivilized Bedouins had not
genuinely converted to Islam; they had adopted it because they admired a man who could
challenge the two greatest empires of their time. As soon as he, , died, his effect on
them faded away and they turned away from Islam.
Fourth, the influence of the Romans from the north and the Persians and Abyssinians from
the east and the south, encouraged the distant tribes to adopt their own religions and
beliefs.
Abu Bakr, may Allah be pleased with him, faced the crises with strong
determination that knew no wavering. He summoned all his combat forces to Thil-Qassah
(the name of a place), where he arranged them into eleven different armies, each headed
by an appointed commander. The number and commander of each army were well chosen
for the exact commission of each particular army, and the enemy to be confronted.
The first army was commanded by Khaalid bin Al-Waleed, may Allah be pleased
with him, to meet and subdue Tulayhah bin Khuwaylid of Bani Assad; then to
march to Maalik bin Nuwayrah of Bani Tameem; both situated east of Al-
Madeenah at Al-Bitah, and Al-Bazakhah. Bani Assad and Bani Tameem were the
nearest of the renegade tribes to Al-Madeenah. The second army was commanded
by 'Ikrimah bin Abi Jahl, may Allah be pleased with him, and was commissioned
to fight Mussaylamah of Bani Haneefah at Al-Yamaamah. The third army was
commanded by Sharahbeel bin Hasnah, may Allah be pleased with him, with
orders to assist the second army under 'Ikrimah in the battle against Bani Haneefah.
When victorious, Sharahbeel and his army should move north to assist 'Amr bin
Al-‘Aas, may Allah be pleased with him, against Bani Quda’aha. The fourth army
was commanded by Al- Muhaajir bin Ummayah Al-Makhzoomi, may Allah be
pleased with him, to fight Al-Aswad Al-Ansi and his followers in Yemen, and
after that to march to Kindah and Hadhramawt in the south to fight Al-Ash’aath
bin Qays and his tribes of apostates. The fifth army was commanded by Suwayd
bin Maqrin Al-Awsi, may Allah be pleased with him, to fight the reversionary
groups in Tuhaamah on the East coast of the Red Sea neighboring Yemen. The
sixth army was commanded by Al-Ale’s bin Al-Haddaam, may Allah be pleased
with him, to subdue the renegade tribes in Bahrain on the Persian Gulf. The
seventh army was commanded by Huthayfah bin Muhsin Al-Ghatfaani, may Allah
be pleased with him, to fight Thi Al-Taj Laquit bin Maalik Al-Azdi, the impostor
in Oman. The eighth army was commanded by Arfajah bin Harthah, may Allah be
pleased with him, who was to march to Mahrah on the south coast of the Peninsula
between Oman and Hadhramawt.
The remaining three armies were commissioned to march north. The first
under the command of 'Amr bin Al-'Aas, may Allah be pleased with him, was
ordered to confront Bani Qudaah. The second commanded by Ma’an bin Haajiz
Al-Salmi, may Allah be pleased with him, to fight Bani Saalim and their followers
from Bani Hawaazen. The third was commanded by Khaalid bin Sa'eed bin Al-
‘Aas, may Allah be pleased with him, to safeguard the northern frontiers
with Syria. The apostasy campaigns began in August 632 CE and by February 633
CE, the apostate tribes were totally suppressed; Arabia stood unified, and all
people in Arabia joined the fold of Islam. That was a remarkable achievement,
which changed the course of history. Abu Bakr, may Allah be pleased with him,
was adamant, intent in purpose, wise in action, and uncompromising regarding the
terms of Allah.
Compilation of the Glorious Quran
A large number of Muslims were killed in the war of apostasy, among whom were many
of those known for memorizing the Quran. ’Umar bin al Khattaab, may Allah be pleased
with him, whose brother Zayd, may Allah be pleased with him, was among the dead,
thought deeply of what might happen if more such people were killed in further
confrontations. He reached the conclusion that if the Quran was to be preserved, it ought
to be compiled into one volume. At that time, it was scattered among the companions of
the Prophet, with each preserving a part of it. Methods of preservation differed --
some had it written on parchment; others on palm branches stripped of leaves; a third
group on shoulder bones of animals; and a fourth on stone tablets; a large numbe r had
also learnt it by heart. If many of those who had memorized it were killed, then a part of
the Holy Book might disappear. So ‘Umar, may Allah be pleased with him, went to the
Caliph, who was then sitting in the mosque of the Prophet, . He discussed his idea
with him, but Abu Bakr, may Allah be pleased with him, rejected it because it had not
been approved by the Prophet, . A lengthy debate followed, after which Abu Bakr,
may Allah be pleased with him, was convinced that ‘Umar, may Allah be pleased with
him, was right.
He called for Zayd bin Thaabit, may Allah be pleased with him, a youth of perfect
character, and commissioned him to compile the Quran into one volume. At first Zayd
objected for the same reason, which had made Abu Bakr, may Allah be pleased with him,
protest. Then he agreed, but felt that the commission was an extremely difficult task. He
had to collect every verse and every chapter from those who owned them, and then classify
them in the order, which was prescribed by the Prophet, .
After Zayd, may Allah be pleased with him, accomplished the task and had
organized the Quran into one book, he submitted the precious collection to Abu Bakr,
may Allah be pleased with him, who kept it in his possession until the end of his li fe.
During ‘Umar's Caliphate it was placed in the custody of his daughter, Hafsah, may Allah
be pleased with her, the Prophet's wife. Finally, in the days of ‘Uthmaan, may Allah be
pleased with him, when different readers began to recite it differently, the Caliph had
several copies of it made, and distributed them to the various countries, which comprised
the Islamic world. The modern edition of the Quran is the ‘Uthmaan copy, which is
considered the standard to which every other copy should conform.
The compilation of the Quran during the Caliphate of Abu Bakr, may Allah be
pleased with him, is regarded by many people as his most significant achievement -- even
more significant than the war of apostasy and the conquests of 'Iraq and Syria. `Ali bin
Abi Taalib, may Allah have pleased with him, used to say: "May Allah have mercy upon
Abu Bakr! He is worthy of being superbly rewarded, because he was unique in compiling
the Quran."
APOSTASY MOVEMENT:
• After the Prophet’s death, some of the people rose in revolt against the authorities
in Medina and renounced Islam.
• Abu Bakr, without any delay, launched an expedition against this movement.
• After collecting the troops at Medina, he divided them into eleven battalions each
with an experienced commander, and sent them in eleven different directions to
crush these revolts.
• He instructed each commander to first invite these tribes to Islam. If any refused
to comply they were to be attacked.
• Some of the tribes accepted Islam but the others were stubborn and were dealt with
harshly.
• All campaigns were successful and Abu Bakr was able to re-establish control of
Islam throughout the Peninsula.
FALSE PROPHETS:
• In the last days of the Prophet’s life some misguided people arose to claim prophet
hood.
• When Abu Bakr was elected as the Caliph they started their preaching openly.
• Among these false prophets were Tulaiha, Aswad Ansi, Musailamah and Sajjah.
Tulaiha belonged to the Banu Asad tribe in the northern Arabia.
• An army under Khalid bin Walid was sent which met them at Buzaka.
• After a fierce battle Tulaiha’s army surrendered and he himself fled to Syria. He
embraced Islam during the time of the second Caliph.
• Aswad Ansi belonged to the Ansi tribe in Yemen.
• He was an ugly man who kept his face veiled all the time.
• He was nicknamed ‘’the veiled prophet’’.
• Being leader of his tribe he revolted with the cooperation of the neighbouring
chiefs.
• He was the first false prophet who collected a large army in open revolt against
Islam.
• He was defeated and killed by the Muslims.
• The most dangerous of the false prophets was Musalima.
• He belonged to a tribe of central Arabia.
• His tribe accepted him as a prophet.
• Abu Bakr sent Shurbhil and Ikramah to crush the rebellion; later Khalid bin Walid
joined them. Musalima,s army was defeated after a fierce battle at Yamamah in
633AD. Musalimah was killed.
• In this battle about 800 Muslims were martyred. Amongst them were 360 Huffaz
(memorizers of the Holy Qur’an).
• Sajjah was a woman who belonged to the Bani Tamim tribe.
• She claimed to be a prophetess and succeeded in mustering a large following.
• When Musalimah heard about her claim he invited her to Yamamah.
• They decided to join forces and later Musailma married her which ended her
adventure of prophet hood and she lived in obscurity for the rest of her life.
• When the Muslims conquered Iraq she entered the circle of Islam along with her
tribe.
3) (a) Trace the major stages in the compilation of the Qur’an in the time of the Rightly
Guided Caliphs.
(b) Why did these Caliphs think it was important to make a compilation of the Qur’an?
ANS 3(a):
• At the time of the Prophet’s death no official copy of the Qur’an existed in a
complete written form.
• During the caliphate of Abu Bakr some people declared themselves to be prophets.
Among them was Musalima. Abu Bakr waged a war against him and around 360
companions laid down their lives in that battle, known as the battle of Yamamah.
• 70 of them had committed the Holy Qur’an to memory.
• Hazrat Umar realized that these ‘’oral copies’’ of the Qur’an would gradually
diminish because of natural death or martyrdom in future battles.
• He suggested to Abu Bakr that the Qur’an should be compiled for the future
generations or else it would meet the same fate as the previous scriptures.
• Hazrat Abu Bakr, however, hesitated and said that how could he do something that
the Holy Prophet did not do.
• Hazrat Umar argued that under the circumstances this was an absolute necessity.
According to Hazrat Abu Bakr, ‘’Umar went on persuading me to accept his
suggestion till I was convinced that he was right so I accepted his suggestion.’’
• Abu Bakr directed Zaid bin Sabit, one of the scribes of the Qur’an, to collect the
Quranic verses from every part of the Islamic empire and compile them in a book
form.
• A commission was appointed and headed by Zaid bin Sabit and its members were
a number of companions.
• Zaid collected the chapters of the Qur’an from every person who had it in their
possession. He collected it from palm leaves, stones, and pieces of wood and
people who had memorized it.
• He not only collected it, but also verified it from people who had heard it from the
Holy Prophet.
• Though he himself was a Hafiz of the Qur’an, he always tried to find a verse in
writing before including it in his manuscript.
• Zaid is reported to have said that he felt it would be far easier to carry a mountain
on his head than to shoulder such a great responsibility.
• The script prepared by Zaid remained with the first Caliph and after his death was
transferred to Hazrat Umar, the second Caliph.
• After Hazrat Umar’s death it was transferred to Hazrat Hafsa, a widow of the Holy
Prophet and Umar’s daughter.
• This copy of the Qur’an came to be known as Musaf al-Hafsa i.e. Hafsa’s copy of
the Holy Book.
• By the time of Usman’s Caliphate the Islamic state had expanded well beyond
Arabia.
• The new converts of these areas recited the Qur’an in their own dialects.
• Disputes rose among these people and some of them insisted that their style of
recitation was correct and the others were not.
• One of the companions of the Prophet approached the Caliph and told him about
the possible danger of the division of the Ummah.
• Usman took immediate action and he declared that the Muslims should unite on a
uniform way of recitation.
• He got the copy of the Qur’an from Hazrat Hafsa and gave it to a team of four
companions which was headed by Zaid bin Sabit.
• It was decided that one standard version of the Qur’an would be written in the
dialect of the tribe of the Quraish.
• The Holy prophet was from the Quraish, the Quran had been revealed in that
dialect, and it was felt that this was the right dialect for the recitation of the
Qur’an.
• This team made several copies from the original text and made sure the surahs,
too, were arranged in order.
• The Qur’an was read out loudly from the beginning to the end in the Prophet’s
mosque from these copies, so that not a shadow of doubt remained in anyone’s
mind that changes had been introduced in the text.
• These copies were sent to the capital city of every province of the Muslim states
with a teacher to teach how to recite the Qur’an properly and correctly.
• Instructions were also given that in the future, copies should be made only from
the official text and that if anyone had a copy with a different text, it should be
burnt.
• Hazrat Usman is known as the Jami-al-Quran which means that he brought the
Muslims around to a uniform reading of the Quran.
• The Quran that is being read today is the same as in the time of Abu Bakr.
• Nothing has been added or deleted from it and the arrangement of the chapters and
verses are in the same order as proclaimed by the Holy Prophet, in accordance with
Divine instructions.
ANS 3(b): The two Caliphs performed remarkable services to Islam by compiling the
Holy Quran.
• Both were driven by different circumstances.
• Abu Bakr, being a staunch follower of the Prophet, was reluctant to compile the
Quran but on Umar’s insistence, was convinced of doing so.
• He realized if the memorizers of the Quran were either killed or died naturally with
the passage of time, a situation of confusion might arise throughout the Muslim
world regarding the exact number of verses and surahs of the Quran.
• If the future generations of the Muslims had no single copy of the Quran, they
might be misled as the Quran is the basis of all thought and action for the Muslims.
• Usman, likewise, faced another challenging situation.
• Several newly converted Muslims in non-Arab territories began to argue about the
ways of recitation of the Quran.
• There was a danger of the growth of sects amongst Muslims regarding the way of
recitation because every group insisted that their dialect was the correct one and
the others were wrong.
• This meant that various groups might oppose each other and disunity amongst
Muslims might threaten their fraternity.
• So Usman took a wise, timely action by compiling and standardising the Holy
Book and burning all the copies which did not match the official and approved
text.
SAVIOUR OF ISLAM:
• Abu Bakr is rightly called the saviour of Islam because of the vital services
rendered by him. Soon after the Prophet’s death, he was the one to calm down the
shocked Muslim community.
• Most of the companions including Umar were not ready to believe in the Prophet’s
death. Abu Bakr on this occasion, delivered a convincing speech told all about the
mortality of Mohammad by reciting: ‘’Mohammad is no more than a messenger:
many messengers that were before him passed away, if he died or were slain will
you then turn back on your heels?’’ (3:144).
• Later as a Caliph he suppressed the apostasy movement and thus preserved the
fundamentals of Islam.
• False prophets challenged the second component of Shahada—‘’Mohammad is the
final Messenger of God.’’ He defeated the false prophets and thus kept the unity
of Islam.
• He fought and won against the tribes refusing to pay Zakat. By eradicating both,
Abu Bakr defended the basic principles of Islam.
• Finally by compiling the Qur’an, Abu Bakr ensured the unity of the Muslim
community that depended on the Qur’an.
ELECTION:
• Prophet did not nominate a successor.
• After his death there was an argument between the ansar and mahajireen.
• Both wanted that the caliph should be from their group.
• A suggestion was given that there should be two caliphs, one from each group.
• Abu Bakr reminded them that the prophet instructed that the leader should be from
the Quraish tribe.
• He suggested the names of Ubu Ubaidah bin Jarrah and Umar bin Khataab.
• But Umar took Abu Bakr’s hand and pledged his loyalty to him.
• On seeing this everyone did the same.
• He was unanimously elected the first Caliph.
LIST OF QUESTIONS (a) Write an account of the major contributions made to Islam
by Abu Bakr: (i) During the Prophet’s lifetime;
• 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 `A’isha to be the Prophet’s wife.
• He made a financial contribution to the expedition to Tabuk.
(ii) During his caliphate.
• He steadied the mourning community after the Prophet’s death.
• He continued the Prophet’s intention to send expeditions to the north.
• He fought against the tribes who withheld zakat.
• He fought against the false prophets.
• These were Musaylima, Tulayha, Aswad al-Ansi and Sajjah.
• He arranged to have the first collection of the Qur’an made.
(a) Describe four incidents that show how, between 622 and 661, the Prophet and the
Rightly Guided Caliphs conducted relations with other states.
(b) Suggest ways in which any two of these examples can provide models for relations
between states today.
(a) Describe Abu Bakr's activities against the false prophets and apostate tr ibes.
Answers could have basic references to the false prophets, the tribes withhol ding zakat
and the apostate tribes. Some could go on to give fuller accounts of these challenges,
faced by Abu Bakr. In the answers it could be described that at the time of Abu Bakr's
caliphate there were a number of people in Arabia who claimed to be prophets like
Muhammad. The main ones were Musaylima among the Hanifa tribes in Yamama,
Tulayha among the tribes of Asad and Ghatafan, al-Aswad in the Yemen and Sajjah
among the Tamim tribe. Answers could give accounts of how Abu Bakr sent forces against
all of them and write about the fighting against Musaylima in the battle of Yamama, which
was the most fierce, and one in which many memorizers of the Qur'an were killed. The
revolt against Islam by tribes that had pledged loyalty to the Prophet and the refusa l of
some tribes to send taxes to Medina could also be described. Excellent answers will give
a full account.
(b) Why is Abu Bakr called the Saviour of Islam?
A satisfactory answer would simply explain that he fought to prevent the break -up of
Islam. However, more complete answers will explain that the false prophets and apostates
threatened the uniqueness and unity of Islam and could not be allowed to continue their
activities. Hence when he became caliph he not only gave new heart to the Muslims after
the Prophet passed away but helped the community of Muslims against its many enemies.
In his short term as caliph he defeated the tribes who withdrew from Islam and made them
stay Muslim and he fought and won against tribes who refused to pay zakat. He also
defeated the false prophets and thus kept the unity of Islam when there was much danger.
Candidates could mention his contribution in the compilation of the Qur’an as well.
(b) Explain why he was known as the Honest One (al-Siddiq), and the Saviour of Islam.
• 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 Saviour 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]
(a) Write about:
(i) Abu Bakr’s conquest of the false prophets
(ii) Uthman’s arrangements to make a collection of the Qur’an.
(iii) Explain why these two caliphs thought it was important to take these
actions.
(i)
• One of the problems facing Abu Bakr was a number of people in Arabia
who claimed to be prophets like Muhammad
• The main ones were Musaylima among the Hanifa tribes in Yamama,
• Tulayha among the tribes of Asad and Ghatafan, al-Aswad al-Ansi in
the Yemen and Sajdah among the Tamim tribe
• He sent forces against all of them
• The fighting against Musaylima was most fierce: in the battle of
Yamama many memorizers of the Qur’an were killed
(ii)
• Uthman discovered that in parts of the empire people were following different
versions of the Qur’an
• He ordered all copies of the Qur’an to be destroyed
• He invited Zayd Ibn Thabit and a group of Muslims to compile an authentic copy
of the text
• They took great care, consulting widely and checking the text against memories
• They referred to the collection in the keeping of Hafsa
• Uthman had copies made and distributed these to the major centres
(b)
• The false prophets threatened the uniqueness of the Prophet Muhammad
• Their claims suggested that Muhammad was not the last prophet sent from God
• Unless they were overthrown Islam could not uphold its claims.
• If variant readings were allowed the message of the Qur’an might be obscured
• These readings threatened the purity of God’s instructions
• If they were allowed to continue the community might be split over different
teachings
HAZRAT UMAR
MAIN ACTIVITIES DURING THE LIFETIME OF THE PROPHET:
• Umar belonged to the Banu Ádi clan of the Quraish.
• His father Al-Khatab was an influential leader of Makkah.
• Umar was tall, well built, a fierce fighter and well educated.
• He was elected the spokesperson of Quraish.
• He remained a bitter enemy of Islam and the Holy Prophet before his conversion.
• He treated the early converts of low origin quite mercilessly and according to a
tradition the Holy Prophet had prayed to God for the conversion of Umar bin
Khattab or Amr bin Hisham (Abu Jahal).
• The prayer was soon granted. Umar one day decided to kill the Holy Prophet and
with that intention started towards his house with a sword.
• On the way, he was informed that his sister and her husband had embraced Islam.
Infuriated, Umar changed his course and went to his sister’s house who was
reading the Holy Qur’an loudly.
• This enraged Umar so much that he attacked her and her husband.
• On Umar’s insistence his sister recited some verses from Surah Taha.
• The words of the Holy Qur’an softened his heart and tears began to fall from his
eyes and he immediately decided to embrace Islam.
• He approached the Holy Prophet and embraced Islam.
• This was a great occasion as the morale of the Muslims boosted so much that now
they started offering prayers openly in the Kaabah after Umar took the bold step
of entering the Kaabah with a small band of Muslims.
• The Holy Prophet was so pleased on hearing this that he gave him the title of
‘’Farooq’’ (one who distinguishes between truth and falsehood).
• He started preaching Islam openly and boldly.
• He is counted amongst the 10 blessed companions and is also a scribe of the Divine
revelation.
• His daughter Hafsa was married to the Holy Prophet.
• He also migrated to Medina shortly after Ammar and Bilal had departed.
• It was Umar who gave the suggestion of summoning the believers for Daily
prayers by Adhaan (call for prayer).
• He also rendered remarkable services in all the battles including Badr, Uhad,
Trench, Khyber and Hunain.
• He was also present at the treaty of Hudaibiya and took part in Bait-e-Rizwan.
• He participated in the victorious march to Makkah.
• In the Tabuk expedition he donated half of his wealth and in the battle of Hunain,
he was among those handfuls of Muslims who stood firmly by the side of the Holy
Prophet.
• Umar was not ready to believe in the death of the Holy Prophet till Abu Bakr called
him down by reciting the verse (3:144).
• Soon after, he started making arrangements for the Holy Prophet’s burial together
with Abu Bakr.
• In the meantime they heard of an Ansar meeting to discuss the issue of succession.
• Both reached the spot and finally, due to Umar’s wisdom and timely intervention,
Abu Bakr got elected as the first Caliph of Islam.
• Umar himself performed extra ordinary services for Islam during his Caliphate
(634-644 AD).
ADMINISTRATION:
• Hazrat Umar framed the constitution of the State on the basis of democracy.
• He established a Majlis-e-Shoora consisting of prominent companions of the Holy
Prophet from both Muhajirin and Ansaar.
• The Muslim Empire had grown tremendously in size and therefore it was
inevitable (unavoidable) to divide it further into a greater number of provinces.
• Each province was governed by a governor or Wali who held the executive
authority.
• The Wali was assisted by a number of officers e.g. the Treasury Officer, the
Revenue Collector, the Vigilance Officer and the Judge (Qazi).
• Each province was divided into districts which were administered by Amils.
• All appointments were made in consultation with the Majlis-e-Shoora.
• All the officers were summoned to Makkah on the occasion of Hajj to be
answerable to the Caliph.
• They were paid handsome salaries to make them incorruptible.
• The Caliph himself was the central authority with the headship of religious and
non-religious departments but he would always consult the Shoora in all important
matters.
• In order to uphold Islamic morals and maintain law and order, Umar set up a
department of police (shurta).
• Umar reorganized the ‘bait-al-maal’ or public treasury, which was soon full to the
brims with the funds from various sources.
• These sources were: Zakat, Jizya, Kharaj (land tax), Ushr (special land tax), the
goods left out by the retreating armies of the enemy and a tax paid by non-Muslim
traders.
• Special care was taken to distribute the funds among the poor and the disabled.
Umar established a special department, the Diwan or the Register of Pensions.
• It was aimed at disbursement of the public funds among the Muslim tribes.
• It was based on certain principles, for example, the whole Ummah had a share in
the public funds.
• Secondly, each Muslim had a share according to his/her relationship with the
Prophet, priority in accepting Islam and services to Islam.
• Huge spending were made in the construction of mosques, schools, office
buildings, canals, rest houses and expansion of the Haram and the mosque of the
Prophet.
• Umar founded some new cities like Basrah and Kufa in Iraq and Fustat and Jizah
in Egypt. Umar also introduced the Hijrah calendar. This makes a long list of the
reforms and development projects introduced by Umar.
(b) What does the way he died tell us about his character?
Might begin by showing signs that they have some knowledge of how the caliph died.
Some might go on to describe how ‘Umar was assassinated by his servant. However a
more complete answer will explain why the servant killed his master, and will show an
awareness of the severe fairness of ‘Umar this reveals. It was ‘Umar’s scrupulous sense
of fairness that was the reason for his refusal to give preferential treatment to his slave
despite his relationship with him which led to his assassination.
Another version regarding ‘Umar’s assassination is that he was killed by a Persian slave
Firoz, who was owned by Mughira b. Shuba. Firoz wanted a reduction in the daily
payment he made to his master. ‘Umar rejected his claim and so in anger Firoz stabbed
him at dawn prayers the next day.
3: Trace the expansion of the Islamic empire under the rule of the caliph Umar.
Basic answers may show some knowledge of the main battles and areas brought under
Muslim rule during the caliphate of Umar. Better answers will be able to expand on the
points made earlier and be able to name and date the main battles. Some of the important
dates/battles are: 636AD/15AH battle of Yarmuk, 638AD/17AH battle of al-Qadisiyya,
642AD/21AH battle of Nihawand. Better candidates should be able to give a coherent
account of the progress of Muslim armies, the battles won and the land captured. Fully
detailed and dated answers showing a gradual expansion of the answer will enable the …..
In what ways did the conversion of ‘Umar help the young Muslim community?
Good answers here should show an understanding of the significance of ‘Umar’s
conversion.
Answers could talk about how his conversion boosted Muslim morale. He was an open
persecutor and oppressor of Muslims, but upon conversion was the most open about public
praying. Muslims couldn’t pray at the Ka’ba until he became Muslim. He helped the
Muslims gain confidence in practising Islam openly; no-one dared interfere with ‘Umar
when he was praying. He was known for his temper and his physical strength. All this
gave a physical protection to the vulnerable Muslims.
Conversion of Umar:
‘Umar: he was initially angry at the prophet and the new message he was preaching and
set out to kill him; on his way he was told his own sister and brother-in-law had converted
and so went there; overheard recitation of part of sura Ta Ha; when he read the words
himself he went to accept Islam; he had a reputation of being the fiercest man in Makka
and so his conversion provided Muslims some protection; he fought Qur’aysh until
Muslims could pray at the Ka’ba.
Write a detailed account of the administrative measures put in place by ‘Umar during
his caliphate.
Candidates could give a basic answer by saying that the Islamic empire expanded rapidly
during his caliphate and he undertook many administrative measures to manage the affairs
of the state in an effective manner and they could go on to list a few of the measures he
took. A few examples are: he divided the state into several provinces and appointed
qualified governors called Wali; he separated the judiciary from the executive to make it
completely impartial. The Qadi was the head of the judiciary; he established a department
of finance under the name of Dewan etc. Candidates could discuss some or many of
‘Umar’s administrative measures, however the more developed answers would discuss
the more important measures in some detail.
Umar’s caliphate is regarded as the golden period of early Islamic history.”
Discuss.
Some candidates could compare ‘Umar’s caliphate with those of other caliphs and give
comparisons between them to support their answer. If candidates agree with the statement
then they need to show why and similarly if they disagree they need to back up their
answer with reasons. Answers could write about how this period witnessed a lasting
process of internal consolidation, peace and stability as well as prosperity as a direct result
of a comprehensive and well built infrastructure and at the same time how the borders of
the empire were hugely expanded and made secure.