Umar ibn Al-Khattab

By Dania Ali

As one of the most well-known Sahaba during the time of the Prophet Muhammad (ﷺ), Umar ibn Al-Khattab was a man of justice and truth, strength and courage, and asceticism and piety. He devoted his life to Islam, but his journey to Islam was quite different than other companions.

Before embracing Islam, Umar ibn Al-Khattab was among the people of Quraysh. Raised by his harsh father, the Sahabi had a very tough upbringing, working as a shepherd and tending his father’s herd. Unlike many of the Arabs of his time, Umar was one of the few people who knew how to read and write; not even the Prophet (ﷺ) was literate. Because of his knowledge and nobility among the Quraysh, they appointed Ibn Al-Khattab as their ambassador, hoping he would be able to spread their religion to neighboring tribes and nations. He was a tall and muscular man, and he used this to his advantage to wrestle in festivals. It is narrated that he was so big that when everyone would be walking, it looked as if Umar was riding a horse. He was a man involved with alcohol and women and worshipped idols he carved with his own hands. That is why when the Prophet Muhammad (ﷺ) presented Islam to the people of Makkah, Umar was one of the people who wanted him gone.

When a reward was presented in return for the death of Muhammad (ﷺ), Umar ibn Al-Khattab was first to jump to the offer. The night before Umar planned to kill the Prophet, Muhammad (ﷺ) prayed to Allah (SWT), asking of Him: “O Allah, strengthen Islam with one of two men whom you love more: Abu Jahl or Umar ibn al-Khattab.” The next day, Umar was on his way to get the task done when he came across a companion by the name of Nu’aim Bin Abdillah (RA), a man who had just become Muslim days before. The Sahabi asked Ibn Al-Khattab where he was going, and with a firmness in his voice, he replied, “I am going to get rid of Muhammad.” A wave of panic overcame the Sahabi as he tried to come up with an excuse to divert Umar’s plan so he could have enough time to warn the Prophet of what was to come. Bin Abdillah (RA) eventually said to him, “Oh Umar! Why would you want to go and to kill Muhammad if your own sister, Fatima Bint Al-Khattab, and your own brother in law, Sa’eed ibn Zaid, had already become Muslims? Why not start with your own family?” His shock and resulting anger pushed him to his sister’s house to confirm what he had heard with her. When he arrived, Ibn Al-Khattab overheard the recitation of Surah Taha by a companion who appeared to be teaching his sister and her spouse Quran. Immediately, he began banging on the door, and everyone in the house became terrified after hearing that Umar had found out that they accepted Islam. In the heat of the moment, Umar barged into the house and slapped his sister to the point where she had fallen to the ground - blood trickling down her face. Umar’s heart softened after seeing the state he put his sister through and deeply regretted his actions. So that he may right his wrong, he sat down and asked to see what they had been reading. Fatima (RA) refused to give him the piece of paper with the verses of the Quran on it unless he made ghusl, so that was what he did. Soon enough, Ibn Al-Khattab was reading ayahs about the Creator and His creations in this world, and by the end of it, he was astonished. He asked about the whereabouts of Muhammad (ﷺ) for him to accept this new religion of Islam, and it was at this moment that the companion who had been teaching Fatima and Sa’eed told Umar that the Prophet (ﷺ) prayed to Allah (SWT) that he would embrace Islam. Umar went to the Messenger’s house, where multiple Sahaba accompanied Muhammad after hearing of what Umar had initially planned to do to him. Although hesitant at first, the Sahaba opened the door for Ibn Al-Khattab, and to their surprise, Umar accepted Islam at that very moment.

With Umar ibn Al-Khattab (RA) accepting Islam, the Muslims had become more powerful than before; the fear people had for him did not diminish after he took his shahada. In fact, when the Prophet Muhammad (ﷺ) and Abu Bakr (RA) migrated to Madinah in private, Umar (RA) went to the center of Makkah and announced that he had embraced Islam, saying, “I’ve accepted Islam, and I’m migrating to Madinah. Anyone who wants to make his mother cry, and his wife a widow, and his son and children orphans, follow me behind the mountains.” Throughout the Prophet (ﷺ)’s life, Ibn Al-Khattab (RA) was the second man always by his side. After the death of Muhammad (ﷺ), he was appointed as the second caliph after Abu Bakr (RA), and through that, he earned his title of Al-Farooq, the one who distinguishes truth from falsehood.

There are countless stories about Umar ibn Al-Khattab (RA)’s generosity as caliph of the Muslims. At the time during his rule, a famine struck the outskirts of Madinah, leaving the people to eat grass. Once when Al-Khattab (RA) was walking, he saw a woman cooking stones in a pot of water to stop her children from crying out of hunger. When he asked her what the reason was, she explained to him her situation. Like everyone else, she had no food to feed her children, and the only thing she knew to do was to let them believe that she was cooking something for them to eat. She told Umar (RA) that she was going to hold the leader of the Muslims accountable, not knowing that she was talking to the leader himself. Upon hearing this, Umar (RA) went to the house of wealth, collected money and food supplies, and carried it to the woman he had met the day before. When his servant offered to carry the bag for him, the caliph replied, “You are not going to carry my luggage on the Day of Judgment.” He made his way to the woman’s house to give her what he had collected for her and her children, and he cooked food for her family. Another story starts when Umar (RA) decided to walk through the streets of Madinah at night. Talha (RA) followed him without his knowledge, and he saw the caliph walk into a home when he thought nobody was watching. After spending some time inside, Ibn Al-Khattab (RA) came out and continued with his walk. The next day, Talha (RA) went to visit this house out of curiosity, expecting to figure out what the companion was doing there the night before. To his surprise, he found an old, blind living in the house, so he asked her who had visited her the night before. She replied, “I don’t know, but it is a man who told me that he will come every so often. He brings me some food, and he cleans my whole house in a little while, and then he goes back.” Not only did Umar (RA) have the power to lead the Muslims, but his character and heart were in the right place as well.

One day while he was praying Fajr salah, Umar ibn Al-Khattab (RA) was stabbed three times by Abu Lulu Al-Fayruz, a Magian, and causing Umar to become a martyr. He was buried alongside the Prophet Muhammad (ﷺ) with Abu Bakr As-Siddiq (RA) close by. The sacrifices he made for the Ummah were beyond compare, and that is why he is one of the most well-known companions in Islam. May Allah (SWT) protect us all and make us among the best believers.

Sources

“Umar Ibn Al-Khattab RA” - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eiucBgSL-XI&t=472s

“49 Chapters on Virtues” - https://sunnah.com/urn/635640

“Short Biography of Second Caliph Umar Ibn Al-Khattab (R.A.)” - https://www.islamicfinder.org/knowledge/biography/story-of-umar-ibn-alkhattab-ra/

“‘Umar ibn Al-Khattab, Al-Fârûq” - https://en.islamway.net/article/12709/umar-ibn-al-khattab-al-faruq

“Hadith on Umar” - https://abuaminaelias.com/dailyhadithonline/2012/09/17/umar-converts-to-islam/

“The Kindness of Umar Ibn Al-Khattab (RA)” - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TytrAjKIwTI&t=49s