The lifestyle of Hadhrat 'Umar (May Allah be well pleased with him) in his own words

 

The lifestyle of Hadhrat 'Umar (May Allah be well pleased with him) in his own words

 

Ahnaf bin Qais (May Allah be well pleased with him) said:  Once, Caliph ‘Umar (May Allah be well pleased with him) sent many armies to various parts of Iraq.  I was also in one of them.  When many cities and territories of Iraq and Persia and Khorasan were conquered, we returned.  We wore the fine clothes of those countries that we had bought with us and went to meet Hadhrat ‘Umar (May Allah be well pleased with him).  He saw us and turned his face away. 

 

This attitude of the caliph hurt all the Companions (May Allah be well pleased with them).  They went to his son, Hadhrat ‘Abdullah bin 'Umar (May Allah be well pleased with them) and told him of the loveless treatment of the caliph.  He said:  The caliph has seen you in such clothes, which neither the Holy Prophet (Sallallahu alaihi wa sallam) ever wore nor Hadhrat Abu Bakr (May Allah be well pleased with him).  Maybe that’s why he treated you like this.

 

We also understood this.  We went to our houses and changed into our old clothes.  We again went to the caliph.  On seeing us, he immediately stood up and greeted each one of us with Salaam and embraced each one of us.  Now, it was as if he hadn’t seen us at all.  Then we presented the war booty that we had brought from Iraq, etc.  Hadhrat ‘'Umar (May Allah be well pleased with him) distributed all of them immediately as per the rules.  Then we presented the foods that we had brought from there.  He tasted them and said:  O Emigrants and natives of Madina!  These tasty foods and fragrant dishes are those for which your sons will kill their fathers and their own brothers!  He then ordered that these foods should be sent to the children of those who had been martyred in the Prophet’s lifetime.  He then finished and went away.

 

We also got up along with him.  The talk was that the empires of the Caesar and the Chosroe and other kingdoms of the east and the west have been won under 'Umar’s leadership.  Now delegations from Arab and non-Arab lands would come to him.  When they would see the caliph in such a condition wearing a shabby robe with 12 patches in it, what will they think?  As per the present circumstances, it is necessary that to talk to the most superior Companions (May Allah be well pleased with them) who fought alongside the Holy Prophet (Sallallahu alaihi wa sallam) and Emigrants and natives of Madina and make him change his robe.  The caliph should be made to wear such a fine robe that those who meet him would be overwhelmed with awe.  Also, it should be requested that every day the caliph, along with the Emigrants and the natives of Madina should have good food.

 

Everyone agreed that except Hadhrat ‘Ali (May Allah be well pleased with him) no one else could perform this task...  They went and told him everything that they had thought out.  Hadhrat ‘Ali (May Allah be well pleased with him) said:  I am not going to do this.  If you ask the wives of the Holy Prophet (Sallallahu alaihi wa sallam), maybe they can dare to do so, as they are the mothers of the believers.

 

Thus, we went to Hadhrat ‘Aisha and Hadhrat Hafsa (May Allah be well pleased with them), who by coincidence, were present in one house.  We told them all that we had thought.  We requested them to speak with Hadhrat 'Umar (May Allah be well pleased with him) in this regard.  Hadhrat ‘Aisha (May Allah be well pleased with her) consented to do so, but Hadhrat Hafsa (May Allah be well pleased with her) said:  I have no hopes that he will accept this.  However, both of them went to the house of the caliph.  Hadhrat 'Umar (May Allah be well pleased with him) seated them with utmost respect.

 

Hadhrat ‘Aisha (May Allah be well pleased with her) broached the topic saying:  O commander of the faithful!  Will you allow me to say something?  He replied:  O mother of the believers, please speak!.....the orderlies of the non-Arab and the delegations of the Arabs will come to you.  When they see this shabby robe which has 12 patches, what will they say?  It would be reasonable that you change it and wear some fine clothing, which would make you important in their eyes and you should also eat good food every day along with the emigrants and the native Companions of Madina.

 

Hadhrat 'Umar (May Allah be well pleased with him) started crying profusely on hearing this.  He said:  I ask you to state on oath, please tell me the truth, until the demise of the Holy Prophet (Sallallahu alaihi wa sallam), did He ever have enough wheat roti for 10 days or 5 days or 3 days at a stretch?  Until His demise did He ever eat both in the morning and in the evening?  They said:  This never happened.

 

Then Hadhrat ‘'Umar (May Allah be well pleased with him) asked:  Do you know whether any stool/table was placed for the Holy Prophet (Sallallahu alaihi wa sallam) or He would place the food on the ground itself and eat?.....He said:  I know that the Holy Prophet (Sallallahu alaihi wa sallam) would wear a woolen robe which would be so coarse that it would leave its marks on the blessed body of the Prophet.  You know this as well?  They said:  Yes.  Do you not know that the Holy Prophet (Sallallahu alaihi wa sallam) would rest on a sackcloth which would be the floor covering in the day and a bed by night?  And I have seen many times the effect of that on His blessed body……Allah Most High has assured the Holy Prophet (Sallallahu alaihi wa sallam) of His Mercy.  In spite of all this, He would remain hungry for the whole day and often would rest at night in the same condition.  He would spend his days and nights in Ruku’ and prostration and crying before Allah Most High….The same was the condition of Hadhrat Abu Bakr (May Allah be well pleased with him). 

 

Now 'Umar will never eat good food nor fine clothes.  He has to follow his 2 masters and neither can he combine 2 dishes except salt and oil and neither will he have meat for more than once in a month until his days end.

 

Both the mothers of the believers went away and whatever they had heard, they conveyed it to the Companions (May Allah be well pleased with him).  Hadhrat 'Umar’s (May Allah be well pleased with him) condition remained as he had described until he passed away from this world.

 

[Excerpted from Maqasid Ul Islam, Vol. 5]