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Mon 19 Jumada Al Akhira 1445AH 1-1-2024AD at 8:23 am #90795
الحمد لله ربّ العالمين
This is a brief Biography of ‘Abdullah bin ‘Umar Radhi’Allāhu’anhuma; we ask Allāh to benefit us thereby.
‘Abdullah bin ‘Umar (May Allah be pleased with them both)
He was a great and venerable Companion, one of the most knowledgeable and virtuous of people and one of the best of the Companions in following the example of the Messenger ﷺ. He did not change or substitute anything after the Messenger of Allāh ﷺ died; in fact, he said: “I took the oath of allegiance to the Messenger of Allāh ﷺ and I did not violate it nor did I alter anything to this day.”
And in spite of the fact that he was descended from one of the noblest of families, what raised him to this exalted level was not his lineage; what raised him were his deeds, his diligence, his striving and his sincerity in calling to Allāh.
He loved the Messenger of Allāh ﷺ and so Allāh ordained for him that the people would love him. He raised the matter of this religion above every fleeting worldly goal and Allāh raised him to an elevated station and ordained for him a praiseworthy remembrance until the Day of Recompense.
Who is He?
He is ‘Abdullah bin ‘Umar bin Al-Khattāb, his mother was Zainab bint Maẓ’ūn and his maternal uncle was the great and venerable Companion, ‘Uthman bin Maẓ’ūn (رضي الله عنهم).
His father was the great and venerable Companion and one of the Rightly-Guided Caliphs who was a shining example of fairness and a vigorous upholder of the truth, and he bears a high rank and outstanding virtues, as transmitted by the books of Seerah and the books written about him.
The Messenger of Allāh ﷺ said of him: “If there were to be a Prophet after me, it would have been ‘Umar bin Al-Khattāb.” [Reported by At-Tirmidhi]
And it is reported on the authority of ‘Aishah رضي الله عنها that the Prophet ﷺ said: “I see the devils among the jinn and mankind fleeing from ‘Umar.'” [From the book Khulafa’ur-Rasul (ﷺ)]
And Ibn ‘Asākir reported on the authority of ‘Aishah رضي الله عنها that the Prophet ﷺ said: “Verily, the devil is afraid of you, oh, ‘Umar.”
The Messenger of Allah ﷺ knew the strength of his personality, his adherence to the truth and his status in Makkah, and for this reason, he supplicated Allāh, saying: “Oh, Allah! Strengthen Islam with ‘Umar bin Al-Khattāb or with ‘Umar bin Hisham.” “Umar bin Al- Khattāb was the only one who did not migrate to Al-Madinah in secret, instead, he migrated openly before the eyes of the disbelievers of Quraish.
Ibn ‘Asākir said: “I do not know of anyone who did not emigrate in secret except ‘Umar.” He donned his sword, slung his bow across his shoulder, withdrew his arrows from his quiver and said: “Whoever wishes his mother to be bereaved of him, then let him meet me behind that mountain.”
‘Umar bin Al-Khattāb رضي الله عنهما had his opinion confirmed by the Qur’ān on more than one occasion and the Islamic State was expanded greatly during his rule.
His son, ‘Abdullah was born in the third year following the start of the Prophet’s (ﷺ) mission.
His Acceptance of Islam
‘Abdullah bin ‘Umar رضي الله عنهما was a child when the Messenger of Allāh ﷺ complied with the Command to preach the truth, and his father had persisted in opposing the new call and plotting against it and blocking it with all of his might and he was a powerful and courageous man. His stance was typical of that of the leaders of Quraish, who feared that the new religion would cause them to lose their social position, for it equalizes people so that there are neither masters nor slaves. He was from a noble family, and he held a special position in the eyes of the leaders of Quraish so much so that they used to appoint him as an emissary between them and the enemy in times of war when there were negotiations. And in times of peace, they would appoint him as their representative to boast on their behalf if the tribes bragged of their lineages, their glories, their battles and their victories, for he was good at that and he would convey the message in the best way possible.
And when the pagans observed that the call to the truth was spreading rapidly, that the numbers of the Muslims were increasing daily and that the new religion was gaining in strength and power, they came to the conclusion that nothing would stop its advance except the killing of Muhammad ﷺ and so ‘Umar bin Al-Khattāb was chosen to carry out this task and he took his sword and set out with the intention of going to the place of the Messenger of Allāh, but on the way, he was met by a man who said to him: “Where are you going, oh, son of Al-Khattāb?” ‘Umar replied: “I am going to Muhammad to kill him.” The man said: “Do you think that Banu Hashim and Banu Zuhrah [Banu Hashim are the family of the father of the Prophet and Banu Zuhrah are the family of his mother.] would allow you to continue to walk on this earth (if you killed him)? It is better that you begin with your own family; go to your sister and her husband for they have abandoned the religion of their forefathers and followed Muhammad.”
Upon hearing this, ‘Umar became filled with rage and went to the house of Fatimah directly, with sparks almost flying from his eyes and when he arrived, he rapped in the door and his sister answered: “Who is it?” He replied: “Umar.” He entered and asked: “Is it true that you have apostatized?” His cousin asked him: “What would you say if we were following the truth?” Upon hearing this, ‘Umar became furious and began to beat his cousin with all his strength; Fatimah tried to defend him and he struck her and fractured her skull, and she said: “Would you strike me because I believe in Allah Alone and I testify that none is worthy of worship except Allāh and that Muhammad is the Messenger of Allāh?” ‘Umar sat, saddened by the injury he had caused to his sister, whom he loved very much, then he thought for a while and said: “Where is that manuscript which you were both reading?” So, Fatimah passed it to him. She had hidden it when he entered. In it was Surat Ta-Ha and when he read it, the expression on his face changed and signs of amazement and astonishment appeared on it due to the Words, the like of which he had never seen before. His face said: “By Allāh, these are not the Words of a human being.” He thought for a while, then he asked: “Where can I find Muhammad?” They answered: “He is beneath As-Safa.” When he reached the place, he found Hamzah and a number of other Companions رضي الله عنهم at the door and Hamzah said: “That is ‘Umar; if Allāh wants good for him, He will guide him to Islam, but if he has come for some evil purpose, it is easy for us to kill him.”
‘Umar then entered the presence of the Messenger of Allah ﷺ and pronounced the Shahadatan [Shahadatan: The two testimonies, i.e., “La ilaha illallah, Muhammadur-Rasulullah” (none is worthy of worship except Allāh and Muhammad is the Messenger of Allāh)]. The Companions raised their voices glorifying Allah. But when some of the Companions advised him to keep his Islam a secret, he said: “By Allah, I will proclaim my Islam as I used to proclaim my disbelief.” Ibn ‘Umar said that when ‘Umar bin Al-Khattāb embraced Islam, he asked: “Which of the people of Makkah is the best at spreading news?” They said: “Jamil bin Ma’mar Al-Jamhi.” “So ‘Umar went out and I followed him and I was a young boy who understood everything that was said then he came to him and said: “Oh, Jamil! Do you know that I have embraced Islam?” By Allāh, he did not reply to these words, but stood up and raced off and ‘Umar followed behind him and I went with him, until he stood at the door of the Mosque and cried out: “Oh, people of Quraish! ‘Umar has apostatized!” He said: “You have lied, but I have embraced Islam.'” [From Usdul-Ghabah, vol. 3]
Ibn ‘Umar’s was a good soul, which was still upon the natural state (Fitrah) in which Allāh created it and so it was ready to receive the new religion. He used to hear about Muhammad ﷺ, his truthfulness and his trustworthiness, and his soul was filled with wonder by the personality of Muhammad ﷺ, which no one mentioned except to say good things about it, so when his father embraced Islam and announced his conversion, his young son felt that a heavy stone which had been blocking the way to his proclaiming his conversion to Islam had been removed and he embraced Islam while still at a young age and he became a good Muslim may Allah be pleased with him and may He please him.
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