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The Life of Omar
Ameer Al-Moumineed Omar ibn Al-khattab was a man from the tribe of Quraysh. His father was Al-khattab ibn Nufay of nobility in his clan of Bani Adi, although very modest in life.
His mother was Hantamah bint Hashil ibn Al-Mughirah, who gave birth for Fatimah and Safiyah as sisters for Omar. The second wife of Al-Khattab Asma bint Wahb gave birth only Zied ibn Al-Khattab as brother to Omar. All the children of Al-Khattab followed Islam, and all emigrated to Al-Madinah. The clan of Bani Adi carried the responsibility of embassy and delegation of the Quraysh, a function that necessitated knowledge, culture, patience, education, and diplomacy.
The clan of Bani Adi were the poorset among the clans of the Quraysh, having to work hard for their living. The residence of Al-Khattab and his family was in Maccah; where Omar ibn Al-Khattab grew up as a young boy, workning to earn his daily bread; an experience that was fundamental in promoting the formulation of the unique personality of Omar ibn Al-Khattab. He worked for his father, his aunts, and then engaged himself in several avenues seeking fortune, to become one of the most affluent men in Maccah at the time of his emigration to Al-Madinah.
In spite of Omar means to live a life of comfort and ease, instead practiced a life of self-abnegation, humbleness with extreme renunciation of worldly ornateness or luxury. This character of Omar developed as he followed Islam, and progress to become one of the most important significant features in his personality. His food garments and means of life were very humble and modest. Several of his people and members of his family approached him to become more lenient and moderate in his life-style; in reply, he reminded them of the life of the prophet (prayers and peace from Allah upon him), its severity, humbleness and extreme harshness. This paradigm that Omar ibn Al-Khattab as Ameer Al-Mumineen presented to people compelled his associated to practice a similar trend in their life is sincere respect to the great man. The life style of the Muslim society during the reign of Omar ibn Al-Khattab was not extravagant, lustful, or ostentatious; the splendor of life was culture, work, zeal, resolution and solemn earnestness.
Omar ibn Al-Khattab rejected the luster of life at the time he was most capable, instead he was seeking the paradise of Hereafter. He was extremely consciously perceptive of facing judgement in the afterlife; a matter which made him unconcerned to the ostentatious frames of life. This particular characteristic of Omar made him on several accessions face rejection of women to accept his proposal in marriage; he was known to lead a harsh stiff life not accepted by many women. However, several others accepted to share his life in matrimony, and discovered, in him the profound qualities of the hidden kindness, and tenderness of the soul. Omar uban Al-Khattab was very selective in choosing his wives, and the most characteristic quality to his preference was the fertile female.
For that, he divorced Qaribah bint Ummayah, and UM Kulthoum bint Garwal ibn Malik when they did not engender. The first women Omar married was Zainab bint Mathoon. Who gave birth to Hafsah, Abd Allah, and Abd Al-Rahman; then he married Um Hakim bint A-l_Harith ibn Hisham who gave birth to Fatimah; Atekah bint Zaid was the mother of Ayyadh; Um Kulthum bint ibn Abi Talb was the mother of Zaid and Ruqaiah; Gamilah bint Thabet was the mother of Assem; and Fukihah was the mother of Zeniab.
Chroniclers relate that Omar ibn Al-Khattab was very lenient and tender to his wives and children. However, he expected then to concern themselves with his trend in life, to support him to bear the difficulties of life with strength of genuine content. He educated and cultured his children, enlightened their mental faculty, instructed in the wisdom to understand and perceive. He accepted the sentiment of love; but attached more significant important to fidelity, adherent decoction, virtue, candidness and dependability.
His tolerant indulgence was genuine in righteousness, never ruled by prejudice, partiality or injustice; always congnizant in hope for amendment Omar never during his reign dicated upon people which he did not dicate upon himself. His preceptive mind and intelligent thought developed into an inherent talent and sagacious wisdom which was the fundamental element of his candid free spoken genuine forthright behavior. The broad knowledge of Omar ibn Al-Kattab optimized his judicious faculty of discrimination widened his alternative options of decision, and promoted his ability of comparative judgment with sensitive differentiation.
These talented abilities provided superior authoritative rationality in the balance of arguments, in the pursuit of justice, and in the mental evolutionary process of resolutive opinions and decision making. The extreme ultrasensitive devout piety that was deep rooted in the personality of Omar ibn Al-Khattab enlightened his mind, and refined his inherent faculties to a level of supreme profound excellence. Added to his qualities of genius, he possessed the magnanimous character of modest humbleness without any arrogance or insolent conceited vanity. Possessing all these rich qualities of character, and wealth of facultative abilities; Omar ibn Al-Khattab always were consulted, accepted advice, confessed when wrong, rectified errors. His famous words were “ Allah knows that I am truthful sincere in honesty, seeking reality and truth”.
This unique distinctive character of Omar ibn Al-Khattab with unfeigned conscientious sincere faculties enlightened the spirit and enabled the soul to envisage in prospective forethought, matters which materialized according to the precise text of the Holy Revelation, or were in total conformity with it. The most popular of such matters was the decision related to the prisoners of the battle of Badre; the prohibition of intoxicant drinks; the style of garments for the prophet’s wives and Muslim women’s and the summons for Salat, the “Adhan”. The forethought of Omar ibn Al-Khattab was also conforming to that of the prophet (Prayers and peace from Allah upon him) and several of the companions in several matters.
The purification of soul, and the reverend pious qualities that Omar achieved were basically and fundamentally processed through the genuine conviction of the aphorism of Faith, this energized responsibility, purposefulness, enlightenment, rationality, justice, value concept, confidence, courage, and virtuous conduct. The whole characteristic built-up of Omar ibn Al-Khattab became totally integrated into the molten substance of religion; a transformation that affected the whole trend of behavior and conduct. The Islamic faith removed concepts; implanted some, and energized in promotions others; all having a universality in the service of mankind. Ameer Al-Moumineen Omar ibn Al-Khattab has died, but his teachings remain to light the path.
Omar ibn Al-Khattab left to the generations of the Muslim Ummah a treasure of achievements that will remain as landmarks in the history of Islam. The whole life of Omar from the day he confused the “Shehadah” of Islam to the end of his prosperous reign, was a continuos sequence of illustrious accomplishments, and the realization of value concepts. It is very true that the Islam of Omar was a gateway, and his hijrah was victory, and his leadership was mercy, greatness, ascendancy and opulence.
The exposure of the global proliferation of Muslim Theism originated essentially at the time of Abu Bakre Al-Siddiq and was established and organized during the reign of Omar ibn Al-Khattab. The policy adopted in the integration of Muslim Ummah of all its heterogeneous national origins, and the process of Islamization that took place; were accomplishment of supreme profound wisdom, diplomacy, justice, and above all extreme piety, fundamental sense of self judgement, and self discipline. His total concern in life was his relation with the Creator, and the establishment of social justice within a milieu of mutual confidence.
Omar ibn Al-Kattab, Ammer Al-Momineen the man, who established the foundations of the Musilm Ummah, lived on the edge of poverty, concerned with the affluence of the Musilm society at large. He was a unique matrix of human element, a yardstick by which all other leaders of nation are to be measured and judged. The man who walked the streets of Al-Madinah to concern himself with the intimate problems of every man, women, child and infant.
By: Dr. Anas Moustafa El-Naggar, M.D,Ph.D
[Al-Azhar ,Ramadan 141]
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