Outline
- Introduction
- Sayyidunā ‘Umar’s Last Phase as a Caliph
- Sayyidunā ‘Uthmān’s Appointment in Strategic Regions
- Sayyidunā ‘Uthmān’s Style of Leadership
Introduction
Alhamdulillah… infinite thanks and praises are due to the Almighty Allah. Complete peace and blessings are upon Sayyidinā Muhammad, his household, his companions and all those who follow his guided path.
This is the fourth part of The Fitnah series of articles covering the greatest fitnah that the Ummah had to embrace 14 centuries ago, the impact of which continues to tear the fabric of the Ummah apart after this long period.
The first three parts of this series are:
- The Fitnah: Introduction
- The Fitnah: Definition, Elements, and Types
- The Fitnah: Ahadīth Predicting the Fitnah in the Horizon
This part highlights the events that had happened and then led to the main events of the fitnah. This period starts from the last phase of Sayyidunā ‘Umar’s caliphate, and extends to the end of the 12-year period of the caliphate of Sayyidunā ‘Uthmān raḍiya Allāhu ’anhu.
Sayyidunā ‘Umar’s Last Phase as a Caliph
A Caliph doesn’t run a Caliphate on his own. He has appointees (or governors, if you may) to run the various regions that fall under his caliphate.
The set of challenges that Sayyidunā Abū Bakr had to deal with, as a Caliph, didn’t allow him to complete some projects he had started, that’s expanding the Islamic caliphate. Most of his time was spent to do housekeeping and bringing back those who went apostates. Moreover, his duration of caliphate was not even up to three years.
The first thing Sayyidunā ‘Umar raḍiya Allāhu ‘anhu started was to complete the projects started by his predecessor, Sayyidunā Abū Bakr raḍiya Allāhu ‘anhu, and then initiate new ones. To accomplish that successfully, there was a need for him to appoint rulers, or governors if you will, for the new regions that fell under the Islamic Caliphate.
Following were his appointees and their respective locations of governance, at the time of his passing, raḍiya Allāhu ‘anhu.
- Nāfi’ ibn ‘Abdul-Ḥārith al-Khuzā’ī in Makkah
- Sufyān ibn ‘Abdillāh al-Thaqafī to Ṭā’if
- Ya’lā ibn Maniyyah to Yemen.
- Al-Mughīrah ibn Shu‘bah to Kūfa.
- Abū Mūsā al-Ash’arī to Bara.
- ‘Amr ibn al-Āṣ to Egypt.
- ‘Umayr ibn Sa’d to Homs
- Mu’āwiyah ibn Abī Sufyān to Damascus
- ‘Abdul-Raḥmān ibn ‘Alqamah to Palestine.
- ‘Uthmān ibn Abī al-Āṣ al-Thaqafī to Bahrain
Something you can notice is that while most of these appointees were not from the tribe of Quraysh, none of them were his kinship. In other words, he appointed his governors in the various regions based on merit and capability. At least to the best of his knowledge.
Imām Muslim reports from the narration of Sayyidinā Ḥudhayfah ibn al-Yamān raḍiya Allāhu ‘anhu, that they were one day in the company of ‘Umar raḍiya Allāhu ‘anhu, and he asked “who amongst you has preserved in his mind most perfectly the ḥadīth of Prophet ṣallā Allāhu ’alayhi wa sallam regarding to the fitnah as he told about it? I (Ḥudhayfah) said: It is I. Thereupon he said: You are bold (enough to make this claim). And he further said: How? I said: I heard Allah’s Messenger saying: There would (first) be fitnah for a person in regard to his family, his property, his own self, his children, his neighbours (and the sins committed in their connection) would be expiated by fasting, prayer, charity, enjoining good and prohibiting evil. Thereupon ‘Umar said: I do not mean (that fitnah which is on a small scale) but that one which would emerge like the mounting waves of the ocean. I said: Commander of the Faithful, you have nothing to do with it, for the door is closed between you and that. He said: Would that door be broken or opened? I said: No, it would be broken. Thereupon he said: Then it would not be closed despite best efforts. We said to Ḥudhayfah: Did ‘Umar know the door? Thereupon he said: Yes, he knew it (for certain) just as one knows that night precedes the next day. And I narrated to him something in which there was nothing fabricated. Shaqīq (one of the narrators) said: We dared not ask Ḥudhayfah about that door. So we requested Masrūq to ask him. So he asked him, and he said: (By that door, he meant) ‘Umar.
The point of this ḥadīth is that, the fitnah was destined to start with the killing of Sayyidunā ‘Umar, and that is what was referred to as “the door would be broken, and never be closed thereafter.”
It’s worth indicating, that after the expansions that happened to the Islamic State in the caliphate of ‘Umar, he passed a law that prohibited people from the conquered lands from entering Madinah. Unless they were Muslims. This was to minimize the possibility of those who were recovering from the conquer to create troubles in the name of revenge. We’re talking about people who were defeated and had to live under the rule of Islam.
However, some of ‘Umar’s workers (governors) pleaded for him to allow some of their subjects into Madinah. Among those who were allowed in was a Persian man by the name Abū Lu’lu’ah Fayrūz. This Abū Lu’lu’ah is the one who will later kill Sayyidunā ‘Umar raḍiya Allāhu ’anhu.
It’s reported that after he (Abū Lu’lu’ah) stabbed ‘Umar multiple times, he also attacked those who tried to catch him. In the process, he killed six of them. He was captured. However, unfortunately, he stabbed himself and committed suicide.
With that Abū Lu’lu’ah was buried with the secrets of the conspiracy and masterminds behind it.
Sayyidunā ‘Uthmān’s Appointment in Strategic Regions
After Sayyidunā ‘Uthman, raḍiya Allāhu ’anhu, took over, he fulfilled the promises of Sayyidunā ‘Umar and retained all his appointees for a year. In fact, he maintained most of them, except for those in the strategical regions. While all regions were significant, the most with strategical and political significance were Shām, Egypt, Kūfa and Basra. These four regions served as the most strategic regions in the expanded caliphate. Each of them was a base for military operations to enhance the expansion of the Caliphate. Moreover, most of the financial needs of the Caliphate were funded from revenues from these regions.
Let’s take a close look at these regions.
Shām (Damascus, Palestine, Jordan)
During his caliphate, while Sayyidunā ‘Umar appointed Mu’āwiyah ibn Abī Sufyān to govern Damascus, he appointed his brother, Yazīd ibn Abī Sufyān to take care of Jordan. When Yazīd lost his life to the Plague of Amuas, Sayyidunā ‘Umar added Jordan to the territory of Mu’āwiyah raḍiya Allāhu ‘anhu. And this remained even when ‘Uthman succeeded ‘Umar raḍiya Allāhu ’anhum. In addition to that, Sayyidunā ‘Uthmān added Palestine to the territories governed by Mu’āwiyah, after the demise of its governor, ‘Abdul-Raḥmān ibn ‘Alqamah. And when he relieved ‘Umayr ibn Sa’d from governing Homs, he added Homs, too, to the territories of Mu’āwiyah’s rule.
Shām had seen only one governor throughout the period of the Fitnah. And that governor was none other than Sayyidunā Mu’awiyah ibn Abi Sufyan raḍiya Allāhu ‘anhu.
There are a few factors that made him successful in winning the hearts of the people of Shām.
Although less significant, the first reason is worth observing. That’s his kinship with Sayyidunā ‘Uthman raḍiya Allāhu ‘anhu.
The second outsmarts all possible factors including the first. That is, the man was charismatic who possessed leadership qualities and was a decisive man. That made of him a good politician. Perhaps, this explains why Sayyidunā ‘Umar raḍiya Allāhu ‘anhu appointed him. Mind you, Sayyidunā ‘Umar didn’t appoint any Tom, Dick and Harry, even if the person happens to be his son, let alone his kinship.
Because he was a good politician, Sayyidunā Mu‘āwiyah raḍiya Allāhu ‘anhu knew how to win the hearts of the people of Shām. Also, he married from tribes of Shām. His son, Yazīd ibn Mu’āwiyah was a product of this marriage. All that strengthened the establishment of Mu’āwiyah in Shām.
It’s reported that whenever any of the rulers of the other region regions had a tough time handling any of their subjects, they would complain those subjects to Sayyidunā ‘Uthmān, and he would in return order for them to be sent to Mu‘āwiyah raḍiya Allāhu ‘anhu. This was because Sayyidunā Mu‘āwiyah raḍiya Allāhu ‘anhu had effective means of persuading troublemakers.
Egypt
Sayyidunā ‘Amr ibn al-Āṣ raḍiya Allāhu ’anhu was Sayyidunā ‘Umar’s appointed governor to Egypt. Short after Sayyidunā ‘Uthmān took over, his reletaves whispered to him about the importance of that part of the world. The truth is, Egypt was the number one supplier of booties to Madīnah.
Soon after, Sayyidunā ‘Uthmān raḍiya Allāhu ‘anhu sent a troop for an operation in North Africa, bypassing ‘Amr ibn al-Āṣ. The commander in-charge for this operation was ‘Abdullāh ibn Sa’d ibn Sarḥ, ‘Uthmān’s milk brother. When ibn Sarḥ succeeded in his mission, ‘Uthmān appointed him in-charge of the finance of Egypt. With that appointment, ‘Amr remained only as political leader in Egypt. It was a matter of time and a misunderstanding stroke between the two. It’s reported that Sayyidunā ‘Uthmān raḍiya Allāhu ‘anhu quickly relieved ‘Amr from his position. That way, ‘Abdullāh ibn Sarḥ became the new overall governor in Egypt.
The only problem is that, people were not that comfortable with ‘Abdullāh ibn Sa’d ibn Abī Sarḥ. Simply because his honesty and integrity was questionable. In addition to the fact that, he was among the fiercest to torture the Prophet before he embraced Islam. Moreover, he also apostatized, and was set to be killed during the Conquer of Makkah, until ‘Uthmān raḍiya Allāhu ‘anhu himself interceded for him.
On the ground, in Egypt, Ibn Sarḥ was reported to be a tyrant leader, who would demand from the people to do more than they could. When they couldn’t take it from him, they complained him to ‘Uthmān in Madīnah. Sayyidunā ‘Uthmān wrote to him to be gentle with the people. But ibn Sarḥ didn’t take heed. Instead, he exposed those who complained him to ‘Uthman and tortured them until one of them died. This incident angered many people, both in Egypt and in Madīnah.
Kūfa
I’m sure you still remember, that when Sayyidunā ‘Umar raḍiya Allāhu ‘anhu passed on, his appointee there was Al-Mughīrah ibn Shu‘bah. Thus, Al-Mughīrah continued in his post at least for a year.
Sayyidunā ‘Uthman replaced him with Sa‘d ibn Abī Waqqāṣ. At that time, Sayyidunā ‘Abdullāh ibn Mas’ūd raḍiya Allāhu ‘anhu was the person-in-charge of finance in Kūfa. It so happened, that once Sa’d borrowed some money from the treasury. When it was time for him to pay back, Sa’d raḍiya Allāhu ‘anhu, requested additional time, as he didn’t have the money. However, Ibn Mas’ūd raḍiya Allāhu ‘anhu refused to wait. Thus they exchanged unpleasant words. This exchange of words escalated, and Sayyidunā ‘Uthman had to intervene. He had no choice, but to relieve Sa’d ibn Abī Waqqāṣ from his post.
The successor to Sa’d was Al-Walīd ibn ‘Uqbah raḍiya Allāhu ‘anhu. It may interest you to know that Al-Walīd was a half-brother of ‘Uthmān from the same mother. The people of Kūfa were not comfortable with Al-Walīd, not for his kinship with ‘Uthmān, but because they remember him to be the ‘evil-doer’ who is mentioned in the verse of Al-Hujurāt which reads:
يَـٰٓأَيُّهَا ٱلَّذِينَ ءَامَنُوٓا۟ إِن جَآءَكُمْ فَاسِقٌۢ بِنَبَإٍ فَتَبَيَّنُوٓا۟ أَن تُصِيبُوا۟ قَوْمًۢا بِجَهَـٰلَةٍ فَتُصْبِحُوا۟ عَلَىٰ مَا فَعَلْتُمْ نَـٰدِمِينَ ﴿﴾ـ
“Believers, if an evil-doer brings you news, ascertain the correctness of the report fully, lest you unwittingly harm others, and then regret what you have done,” (Al-Hujurāt, 49:6).
While the people of Kūfa were uncomfortable with him, Al-Walīd was careless enough, and was once caught leading prayer while drunk! A delegate reached out to ‘Uthman with his complain. They even had a proof; his ring, which was taken off him, when he was drunk. Al-Walīd was not only dismissed from his job, Sharī‘ah punishment was also carried on him.
Sayyidunā ‘Uthmān appointed Sa‘īd ibn al-‘Āṣ as the successor to the dismissed, Al-Walīd ibn ‘Uqbah. The people of Kūfa were happy with Sa‘īd and welcomed ceremonially. A few years later, a misunderstanding broke out between Sa ‘īd ibn al-‘Āṣ and his subjects. This misunderstanding led to some fights and the police chief (who was on Sa‘īd’s side) lost conscious, when he was hit.
When ‘Uthmān knew about the incident, he ordered for the troublemakers (those who hit the police chief) to be exiled to Shām (to Mu’āwiyah) for rehabilitation. This group of people were well received by Mu‘āwiyah and taken care of.
While Mu’āwiyah was trying to convince them that Quraysh are noble and of superiority over others, the group refuted that, that all races are the same. And that the only privilege of Quraysh is that the Messenger of Allah was sent from them. They even went further to ask Mu‘āwiyah to step down from ruling Shām to allow someone who is older than him in Islam, someone with a nobler father than his, and someone who’s more capable in ruling than he was.
You can argue that Mu‘āwiyah became cautious of this group. Because they know what they were saying and doing. Plus, they were critical and persuasive. So he was quick to ask ‘Uthmān to take them back to Kūfa, which he did. As they returned to Kūfa, they resumed their attacks on Sa‘īd ibn al-‘Āṣ. As he couldn’t stand them, Sa‘īd ibn al-‘Āṣ wrote to ‘Uthmān again to find solution for this group of troublemakers.
Sayyidunā ‘Uthmān exiled them to Homs, to be with ‘Abdul-Raḥmān ibn Khālid ibn al-Walīd. Unlike Mu‘āwiyah, Abdul-Raḥmān received them fiercely, with aggressiveness, restrictions and authority. In contrary to how Mu‘āwiyah did, he didn’t debate with them. To put it blatantly, he humiliated them to make them submit. When they had enough, they declared their repentance and remorse. They then chose one of them and sent him to ‘Uthmān to present to him their remorse. But they continued to stay with ‘Abdul-Raḥmān in Homs.
Sa‘īd went to Madīnah to visit ‘Uthmān. In his absence, the people of Kūfa gathered and decided to not allow him back in Kūfa anymore. They also wrote to their friends, who were in exile. The exiled ones ran from Homs quickly back to Kūfa.
From Kūfa, the leader of the exiled ones, Mālik ibn al-Ḥārith wrote a letter to ‘Uthmān, demanding that he kept Sa‘īd and Walīd with him, and appoint for Kūfa Abū Mūsa al-Ash’arī and Ḥudhayfah.
Sayyidunā ‘Uthmān had no choice. So he appointed ‘Abū Mūsā on Kūfa. Abū Mūsā was appointed to Basra by Sayyidunā ‘Umar and he remained there for another year after ‘Uthmān became Caliph. Remember?
The bad news is, by giving in, the door for more pressure on ‘Uthmān was open.
Basra
Sayyidunā Abū Mūsā al-Ash’arī remained a loyal governor of Bara, during the caliphate of ‘Umar, as good relations were observed between him and the people. A group of people suddenly lodged a complaint about Abū Mūsā to ‘Uthmān, using his old age as an excuse. Fortunately or unfortunately, Sayyidunā ‘Uthmān quickly replaced him with his cousin, the then 25-year-old Abdullāh ibn ‘Āmir ibn Kurayz. With that, Sayyidunā ‘Uthmān has ensured that his appointees in these strategical locations were his kinship and from Quraysh. At least that satisfied his kinship, who have been putting much pressure on him to appoint them and their relatives in leadership positions.
Sayyidunā ‘Uthmān’s Style of Leadership
Sayyidunā ’Uthmān raḍiya Allāhu ’anhu was among the richest in Madīnah. Contributions in preparing the Muslim army in various battles, as well as the type and amount of endowment he made for the Ummah speak for themselves.
Besides his abundant wealth, Sayyidunā ‘Uthmān raḍiya Allāhu ’anhu was a person with extreme generosity. As much as he was generous to the general public, he was more generous with his family, relatives and kinship. Interestingly, he had a largely extended family.
Unfortunately, as a Caliph, his generosity was misinterpreted, by his critics as reckless use of public money; funding his kinship from Baytul-Māl (which is public money). They were quick to forget that no house in Madīnah which has not once benefitted from the kindness and generosity of Sayyidunā ‘Uthmān ibn ‘Affāh raḍiya Allāhu ’anhu.
The other problem was that, observers and critics were expecting him to spend less on himself and his household and kinship as less as did his predecessors, Sayyidunā Abū Bakr al-Ṣiddīq and Sayyidunā ‘Umar raḍiya Allāhu ’anhumā. However, Sayyidunā ‘Uthmān justified that, by stating that he was not obliged to deprive himself from his rights from Baytul-Māl, as his predecessors did to them themselves.
In addition to all that, his financial spending style as a caliph and what was perceived as a clear dominance of Quraysh in administrative posts in the Caliphate, especially ‘Uthmān’s kinships, combined were used as excuse to revolt against the Caliph of the Muslims.
At this point of time, people have developed enough disappointment in Sayyidunā ‘Uthmān’s style of leadership and governance. The majority of them were those who knew Islam after it has past its most difficult times and moments of scarcity. Thus, they were ready to accept any rumours and act upon it, with less or no proper analysis and considerations.
But who masterminded the events of revolting against Sayyidunā ‘Uthmān raḍiya Allāhu ’anhu?
There’re two possible masterminds, either of which was responsible for the conspiracy that led to the overthrowing of Sayyidunā ‘Uthmān ibn ‘Affān raḍiya Allāhu ’anhu.
In our next article, we will learn about the masterminds of The Fitnah, and how its events unfolded.
Until then, I leave you in Allah’s protection.
Allah knows best.
Allāhu Ḥāfiẓ 🙂
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