Author: Obaidullah Nimruzi
Biography of Sayyidna Umar Farooq, may Allah be pleased with him (2nd part)
His individual and relative characteristics
He is Umar bin Khattab bin Nafil bin Abdul azi bin Ka’b bin Levi bin Fahr. His lineage is the same as that of the Prophet in Ka’b bin Levi, he is from Quraysh and Bani Adi, and during the Jahiliya (before Islam), the responsibility of the embassy was the responsibility of his tribe. Umar, may God be pleased with him, carried out this responsibility in his tribe, that when the tribes disagreed with each other, he tried to end the differences and make peace among the opponents. This indicates the superiority of Hazrat Umar’s intellect, justice, wisdom and talent.
His birthday
He was born thirteen years after Aam al-Fail, which means he was thirteen years younger than the Prophet. Umar was twenty-seven years old when the Prophet, may God bless him and grant him peace, was sent. He became a Muslim six years after the Prophet’s mission.
He was fifty-two years old when he assumed the caliphate of the Muslims, he was the caliph of the Muslims for ten years, and he died when he reached the age of the Prophet, may God bless him and grant him peace, and was buried next to the Prophet, may God bless him and grant him peace, and Abu Bakr Siddique, may God bless him and grant him peace.
He is Umar bin Khattab bin Nafil bin Abdul azi from the tribe of Quraish and Bani Adi. No one said anything about the life and death of his father. But his mother Hantama is the daughter of Hashem from Bani Makhzoom, and one of his most prominent relatives are Walid bin Mughirah (father of Khaled bin Walid) and Amr bin Hisham (Abu Jahl).
Umar bin Khattab, may Allah be pleased with him, had three nicknames; The Prophet gave him two nicknames, the first one was Abu Hafs, the second one was Farooq, and the third one was Amirul Momineen.
The first nickname “Abu Hafs” has two reasons; First: The fact that the Prophet, may God bless him and grant him peace, told his companions in the Battle of Badr: “Whoever confronts Abbas, do not kill him.” One of the Companions stood up and said: Shall we kill our fathers and children? I swear to God, if I face Abbas, I will kill him. The Prophet (peace be upon him) looked at Umar and said: O Abu Hafs! Should the neck of the Prophet’s uncle be struck? and went out by force. It is also said that he was named Abu Hafs because of Hafsa Umm al-Mu’minin.
The second nickname was “Farooq”, which he was nicknamed on the first day of his conversion to Islam. The Prophet, peace and blessings of God be upon him, gave him the nickname and said: You are “Farooq” so that God can distinguish between right and wrong through you.
But the title of “Amir al-Mu’minin”; The Muslims called Abu Bakr the caliph of the Prophet, and when Umar reached the caliphate, the Muslims wondered what to say to him. Should they say the caliph of the Messenger of God? At this time, a delegation came from Iraq, headed by Udi bin Hatem Ta’i, may Allah be pleased with him. Amr bin Aas, may Allah be pleased with him, faced them and they told him: “Get permission from Amir al-Mu’minin (the Commander of the Faithful)”.
Said; from Whom? They said: Isn’t Umar our Amir (Commander)? He said: Yes. They said: Aren’t we believers? He said: Yes. They said: So, he is the Commander of the Faithful. Amr bin Aas came to Omar bin Khattab and said: Peace be upon you, Amir-al-Mu’minin (Commander of the Faithful). He said: What are you saying?
He said: Aren’t you, our Amir? He said: Yes. He said: Aren’t we believers? He said: Yes. He said: So, you are the Commander of the Faithful.
Every young Muslim can be Farooq in his community, in his home and in his school, provided that he has the qualities that were in Omar’s life.
continues…