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Humility
In his book Encyclopaedia of Islam, Mufti Muhammad Mukarram Ahmed describes his journey to Jerusalem to take control of the city from the Byzantine Patriarch of Jerusalem Sophronius:
Hadrat Umar (r.a.) appointed Hadrat Ali (r.a.) as his deputy and went to Jerusalem with his slave. They were having one camel on which each of them rode by turn. When Hadrat Umar (r.a.) was entering Jerusalem it happened to be the slave’s turn to ride on the camel. Though the slave offered his turn to the "Khalifah" but Hadrat Umar refused and remarked: "The honour of Islam (i.e., being Muslim) is enough for all of us." He entered Jerusalem holding the rope of the camel on which was riding his slave. His clothes were dirty and there were several patches on them.
In The Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire, Gibbon refers to Umar in the following terms:
Yet the abstinence and humility of Umar were not inferior to the virtues of Abu Bakr: his food consisted of barley bread or dates; his drink was water; he preached in a gown that was torn or tattered in twelve places; and a Persian satrap, who paid his homage as to the conqueror, found him asleep among the beggars on the steps of the mosque of Muslims.
Political legacy
Umar is considered as a political genius, as an architect of Islamic Empire he is regarded as 52nd most influential figure in history. Umar remained politically stagnant during Prophet Mohammad's era, however after his death, it was Umar's political brilliance that Abu Bakr was elected Caliph, despite of massive initial confrontations at Saqifah, Umar successfully broke the alliance of the tribes of Madinah who claim Caliphate to be their right, paving the way for the succession of Abu Bakr. During Abu Bakr's era, he actively participated as his secretary and main adviser. After succeeding Abu Bakr as caliph, Umar won over the hearts of Bedouin tribes by emancipating all their prisoners and slaves taken during Ridda wars, his excellent oratory skills helped him gain broader support among the poor and the underprivileged. He proved himself as a excellent manager during the year of the great Famine when his dynamic abilities saved millions from starvation. He is best known to build up an efficient administrative structure of the empire, that held together his vast realm. He organized an effective network of intelligence, partly a reason for his strong grip on his bureaucracy. His judicial reforms were fairly modern and advance in nature when compared to contemporary systems of his era. He opposed the construction of present day Suez Canal, as it posed threat to the security of Madinah. Twelve hundred years later Great Britain opposed the construction of the canal for the same reason as it then posed threat to its colonies in Indian Subcontinent.
One of the reason of the compactness of his political rule in the conquered lands is reputed to his policy of tolerance to their religious beliefs and imposition of far lower taxes on them as compared to the Sassanid Persian empire and the Byzantine empire. Their local administration was kept un-touched and several of the former Byzantine and Persian official were retained on their services under Umar's governors. Umar was very painstaking in every matter. His meticulousness was evident from his appointment of governors and judges that never let him lose his grip on the government. He never appointed governors for more than two years, for they might get influence in their county. He dismissed his most successful general Khalid ibn Walid, due to his immense popularity and growing influence he feared that the Muslims might think it was Khalid who gave them victory not God. Rather than tenacious conquest he stressed more on consolidating his rule in the conquered land, a fact that saved Byzantine empire from complete disappearance. Umar is reported to have wished an official tour across his domain to personally examine the condition of his subjects. In 641, before the conquest of the Persian empire, Umar is reported to have said:
If I would live few more years, I wish to visit Syria next year, then next Iraq and then the next year Egypt to personally check the conditions of the subjects and inquire whether my mandate is followed or not.
At the time, Umar made this statement, Persia was not yet conquered (conquest of Persia begun in 642). He would walk the streets of Medina with a whip in his hand, and it is said that Umar's whip was feared more than the sword of another man. He is famous for covert night tours of the city to know the secret life of his domain, a tradition that was later followed by some of the Abbasid Caliphs and even Mughul rulers of Indian Subcontinent.
Social justice and accountability
Saeed M Mohtsham cites from Caliph Umar's rule in his research paper Vision and Visionary Leadership – An Islamic Perspective:
"He used to monitor very closely the public policy and had kept the needs of the public central to his leadership approach. As second caliph of Islam, he refused to chop off the hands of the thieves because he felt he had fallen short of his responsibility to provide meaningful employment to all his subjects. As a ruler of a vast kingdom, His vision was to ensure that every one in his kingdom should sleep on a full stomach.
If a dog dies hungry on the banks of the River Euphrates, Umar will be responsible for dereliction of duty.
He also knew that just having a vision is not enough unless it is supported by effective strategies. He didn’t only have a vision; he truly transformed his vision into actions. For example, to ensure that nobody sleeps hungry in his empire, he used to walk through the streets almost every night to see if there is any one needy or ill."
He also knew that just having a vision is not enough unless it is supported by effective strategies. He didn’t only have a vision; he truly transformed his vision into actions. For example, to ensure that nobody sleeps hungry in his empire, he used to walk through the streets almost every night to see if there is any one needy or ill."
Military legacy
It has been reported that Umar was a champion wrestler of his time, and though not distinguished as a swordsman, he would later attain prominence as a master strategist. Along with Khalid, he is said to be one of the key figures in the collapse of the Arabian rebellion, the greatest triumph of Abu Bakr. One of his greatest strategic marvels was his brilliant fission of Persio-Roman alliance in 636, when Emperor Heraclius and Emperor Yazdegerd III allied against their common enemy Umar. He was lucky in that the Persian Emperor Yazdegerd III couldn't synchronize with Heraclius as planned. Umar fully availed the opportunity and successfully tackled the minefield by straining the Byzantines to jump in the battle. This was contrary to the orders of Empreror Heraclius, who presumably wanted a coordinated attack along with the Persians. Umar did this by sending reinforcements to the Roman front with instructions that they should appear in the form of small bands, one after the other, giving the impression of a continuous stream of reinforcements that finally lured the Byzantines to an untimely battle. On the other hand Yazdegerd III of Persia was engaged in negotiations that further gave Umar time to transfer his troops from Syria to Iraq. These troops proved decisive in the Battle of Qadisiyyah. Both the battles thus fought proved decisive and are noted as two of the most decisive battles in history.
His strategic dimensions were the prime reason of Muslim victory at 2nd Battle of Emesa in 638. Where the pro-Byzantine Christian Arabs of Jazira, aided by Byzantine Emperor, making an unexpected flanking movement and laid siege to Emesa (Homs). Umar's brilliance was behind this Muslim victory and was achieved without firing a single shot.
Umar's orders to invade the very homeland of the Christian Arab forces besieging Emesa, the Jazirah. A three prong attack against Jazirah was launched from Iraq. To further pressurize the Christian Arab armies, Umar instructed Saad ibn Abi Waqqas, commander of Muslim forces in Iraq, to sent reinforcement to Emesa, Umar himself led a reinforcement from Madinah and marched towards Emesa. Under this unprecedented press-gang, Christian Arabs retreated from Emesa before Muslims reinforcement could reach their. This incursion from Byzantines however resulted in Muslim annex Mesopotamia and parts of Byzantine Armenia.
Nonetheless the greatest triumph of Umar remained Conquest of Persian empire. After years of non-offensive policy according to which Umar wished the Zagros Mountains to be the frontiers between Muslims and Persians, after Battle of Nahavand Umar launched a whole scale invasion of Sassanid Persian Empire. The invasion was a series of well coordinated multi-prong attacks that was based on the principle of isolating and then destroying the target. Umar launched the invasion by attacking the very heart of Persia aiming to isolate Azerbaijan and eastern Persia. It was immediately followed by simultaneous attacks on Azerbaijan and Fars. In the final secession Sistan and Kirman and captured thus isolating the stronghold of Persian, the Khurasan. The final expedition was launched against Khurasan where after Battle of Oxus riverCentral Asia. He founded the city of Cairo, conquered 36,000 cities or castles, and built 1400 mosques. Persian empire ceased to exist, and emperor Yazdegerd III fled to
Religious legacy
Sunni views
Sunnis Muslims view him as the Second Rashidun and know him as Farooq the great. SunniFarooq, meaning "leader, jurist and statesman", and the second of the rightly-guided Caliphs. He patched his clothes with skin, took buckets on his two shoulders, always riding his donkey without the saddle, rarely laughing and never joking with anyone. On his ring is written the words "Enough is Death as a reminder to you O' 'Umar". He did not seek advancement for his own family, but rather sought to advance the interests of the Muslim community, the ummah. The general Sunni sentiment for Umar is summarized by one of Muhammad's companions, Abd Allah ibn Mas'ud: remember Umar as a Strong Muslim of a sound and just disposition in matters of the religion of Allah, a man they title.
Umar's submission to Islam was a conquest, his migration was a victory, his Imamate (period of rule) was a blessing, I have seen when we were unable to pray at the Kaabah until Umar submitted, when he submitted to Islam, he fought them (the pagans) until they left us alone and we prayed.
Shia views
Umar is viewed very negatively in Shi'a literature and is regarded as a traitor to Muhammad, a usurper of Ali's rights, and a murderer. According to shia, his role during Muhammad's lifetime is questioned as he was not assigned to any civil or military authority. Some Shi'a writers have accused him of killing Muhammad's daughter Fatimah (see Fatimah's death). According to Shia Muslims, Fatimah, wife of Ali and daughter of Muhammad, was physically abused by him. These sources report that the event caused her to miscarry her child and eventually led to her death soon after. (see Umar at Fatimah's house).
Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Umar
Posted in: Umar ibn Khattab
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