Biography of the commander of the believers Umar ibn Abd al-Aziz

48 - Umar ibn Abd al-Aziz ibn Marwan al-Umawi * (may Allah be pleased with him)

son of al-Hakam ibn Abi al-'As ibn Umayya ibn Abd Shams ibn Abd Manaf ibn Qusayy ibn Kilab. The imam, the hafiz, the eminent scholar, the mujtahid, the ascetic, the worshipper, the master, truly the commander of the believers, Abu Hafs al-Qurashi, al-Umawi, of Medina then of Egypt, the caliph, the ascetic, the rightly guided, the split-foreheaded one among the sons of Umayya.

He narrated from: Abdallah ibn Ja'far ibn Abi Talib, as-Sa'ib ibn Yazid and Sahl ibn Sa'd, from whom he received as a gift a cup from which the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) had drunk; and he narrated from Anas ibn Malik, who said:

I never saw anyone whose prayer resembled the prayer made with the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) more than the prayer of this young man.

He also narrated from: Sa'id ibn al-Musayyib, Urwa, Abu Salama ibn Abd ar-Rahman, Abu Bakr ibn Abd ar-Rahman, Abdallah ibn Ibrahim ibn Qariz, Amir ibn Sa'd, Yusuf ibn Abdallah ibn Salam, and a group of others.

And he reported in mursal form from: Uqba ibn Amir, Khawla bint Hakim, and others.

He was among the imams of ijtihad and among the rightly guided caliphs, may Allah have mercy on him.

Those who narrated from him: Abu Salama, one of his shaykhs, Abu Bakr ibn Hazm, Raja' ibn Haywa, Ibn al-Munkadir, az-Zuhri, Anbasa ibn Sa'id, Ayyub as-Sikhtiyani, Ibrahim ibn Abla, Tawba al-Anbari, Humayd at-Tawil, Salih ibn Muhammad ibn Za'ida al-Laythi,

his son Abd al-Aziz ibn Umar; his brother Zabban; Sakhr ibn Abdallah ibn Harmala; his son Abdallah ibn Umar; Uthman ibn Dawud al-Khawlani; his brother Sulayman ibn Dawud; Umar ibn Abd al-Malik; Umar ibn Amir al-Bajali; Amr ibn Muhajir; Umayr ibn Hani al-Ansi; Isa ibn Abi Ata, the scribe; Ghaylan ibn Anas; his scribe Layth ibn Abi Ruqayya; Abu Hashim Malik ibn Ziyad; Muhammad ibn Abi Suwayd ath-Thaqafi; Muhammad ibn Qays al-Qass; Marwan ibn Janah; Maslama ibn Abd al-Malik, the prince; an-Nadr ibn Arabi; his scribe Nu'aym ibn Abdallah al-Qayni; his mawla Hilal Abu Ta'ma; al-Walid ibn Hisham al-Mu'ayti; Yahya ibn Sa'id al-Ansari; Ya'qub ibn Utba ibn al-Mughira; and a great many besides them.

Ibn Sa'd said, in the third generation of the successors (tabi'un) of the people of Medina: his mother is Umm Asim, daughter of Asim ibn Umar ibn al-Khattab.

They said: he was born in the year 63.

He said: he was a reliable and trustworthy narrator, possessing fiqh, knowledge and piety; he narrated many hadiths, and he was a just imam, may Allah have mercy on him and be pleased with him.

az-Zubayr ibn Bakkar said: his full brothers are: Asim, Abu Bakr and Muhammad.

al-Fallas said: I heard al-Khuraybi say:

al-A'mash, Hisham ibn Urwa, Umar ibn Abd al-Aziz and Talha ibn Yahya were born in the year al-Husayn was killed, that is, in the year 61.

Khalifa ibn Khayyat said the same about his birth, and he is not the only one.

Sa'id ibn Ufayr described his appearance thus: he was wheatish of complexion, fine and handsome of face, slender of body, handsome of beard, deep of eye; he had on his forehead the mark of a beast's blow, and grey hair had streaked him.

Isma'il al-Khatbi said: I saw his description in some books:

fair of complexion, fine of face, handsome, slender of body, handsome of beard, deep of eye, with on his forehead the mark of the hoof

of a mount; for that he was surnamed Ashajj bani Umayya (the split-foreheaded one among the sons of Umayya), and grey hair had streaked him.

Damra ibn Rabi'a said: Umar ibn Abd al-Aziz, still a boy, entered his father's stable; a horse struck him and split his forehead; his father wiped away the flowing blood, saying: if you are the split-foreheaded one of the sons of Umayya, then you are indeed blessed.

Dimam ibn Isma'il reported from Abu Qabil:

that Umar ibn Abd al-Aziz wept while he was a very young child; his mother called him and asked: what makes you weep?

He answered: I remembered death.

He said: at that time he had already memorized the Quran; his mother wept when that reached her.

Abu Khaythama: al-Mufaddal ibn Abdallah narrated to us, from Dawud ibn Abi Hind, who said:

Umar ibn Abd al-Aziz entered upon us through this door, meaning one of the doors of the mosque of Medina, and a man of the assembly said:

this transgressor sent us this son of his to learn the laws of inheritance and the sunnas, and claimed that he would be caliph after him and that he would follow the conduct of Umar ibn al-Khattab (may Allah be pleased with him).

He said: Dawud then said to us: by Allah, he did not die before we saw that in him.

It is said that Umar ibn al-Khattab said: among my descendants there is a man with a cut on his face who will fill the earth with justice.

Mubarak ibn Fadala, from Ubaydallah ibn Amr, from Nafi', who said:

Ibn Umar said: would that I knew who this man descended from Umar is, who will fill it with justice as it had been filled with injustice and tyranny!

Sa'id ibn Ufayr: Ya'qub narrated to us from his father:

that Abd al-Aziz ibn Marwan sent his son Umar to Medina to be raised and educated there, and he wrote to Salih ibn Kaysan to look after him; he compelled him to the prayers; one day he was slow to come to prayer, and he asked him: what detained you?

He answered: my hair-curling comb was softening my hair.

He said: your care for your hair has reached the point that you prefer it to prayer.

He wrote that to his father, and Abd al-Aziz sent an emissary to him, without speaking to him until he had his hair shaved.

Umar ibn Abd al-Aziz used to frequent Ubaydallah ibn Abdallah to hear knowledge from him; Ubaydallah learned that Umar was criticizing Ali; he turned to him and said:

since when has it reached you that Allah, the Exalted, was displeased with the people of Badr after having been pleased with them?

He said: he understood what he meant and answered: I seek Allah's pardon and yours; I will not return to it.

Umar was never afterward heard mentioning Ali (may Allah be pleased with him) except in good terms.

az-Zubayr ibn Bakkar transmitted from al-Utbi:

that the first consultation obtained from Umar ibn Abd al-Aziz was this: his father was appointed governor of Egypt while he was still very young, to the point that his majority was doubted; the latter wanted to send him away, and he said:

O my father, is that not better, and more useful for you and for me: that you send me to Medina, so that I may sit with the jurists of its people and learn their good manners?

So he sent him to Medina, where he became famous for knowledge and intelligence despite his young age.

He said: then Abd al-Malik ibn Marwan summoned him to his side upon his father's death, mingled him with his own sons, preferred him over many of them, and married him to his daughter Fatima, of whom it was said:

daughter of the caliph, and the caliph is her grandfather ... sister of the caliphs, and the caliph is her husband

Those who criticized Umar, among those who envied him, did so for his excess in blessings and his haughty gait.

Abu Mushir said: Umar governed Medina under the rule of al-Walid, from the year 86 to the year 93.

I say: he has no narration in Medina in the year 72, nor any narration from Jabir ibn Abdallah; had he been there in his youth, he would have narrated from Jabir.

Abu Bakr ibn Ayyash said: Umar ibn Abd al-Aziz led the people in pilgrimage more than once, the first time in the year 89.

Ibn Sa'd: Muhammad ibn Umar informed us, Ibn Abi az-Zinad narrated to us from his father, who said:

when Umar ibn Abd al-Aziz arrived in Medina as governor, he prayed the noon prayer, then summoned ten men: Urwa, Ubaydallah, Sulayman ibn Yasar, al-Qasim, Salim, Kharidja, Abu Bakr ibn Abd ar-Rahman, Abu Bakr ibn Sulayman ibn Abi Hathma and Abdallah ibn Amir ibn Rabi'a; he praised Allah and extolled Him, then said:

I have called you for a matter in which you will be rewarded, and in which we will be helpers of the truth. I do not wish to decide any matter without your opinion, or the opinion of whoever among you is present. If you see anyone overstepping the bounds, or if news reaches you of injustice committed by a governor, then may Allah hold sinful before Him whoever learns of it and does not inform me.

They wished him well and dispersed.

al-Layth ibn Sa'd: al-Qadim al-Barbari narrated to me:

that he discussed with Rabi'a ibn Abi Abd ar-Rahman some of the judicial rulings of Umar ibn Abd al-Aziz when he was in Medina; Rabi'a said: it is as if you say that he erred. By Him in whose hand my soul is, he never erred at all.

Abu Zur'a, Abd al-Ahad ibn Abi Zurara al-Qitbani, said: I heard Malik say:

young men came to Umar ibn Abd al-Aziz and said: our father has died and left wealth with our uncle Humayd al-Amaji.

Umar summoned him; when he entered, he said: are you the one who said:

Humayd, he whose house is a place of passage ... brother of wine, bald and white-haired

old age came upon him while he still drank it ... and he was generous, never desisting

He answered: yes.

He said: I see nothing but that I will have your head shaved. You admitted drinking wine and not desisting from it.

He said: woe to you! Where are you heading? Have you not heard Allah say: {And the poets, it is the astray who follow them}, until His words: {and that they say what they do not do}? Surah Ash-Shu'ara, 224-226.

Then he said: that would befit you better, Humayd; I see none but you as spared. Woe to you, Humayd! Your father was a righteous man, and you are a wicked man.

He said: may Allah set you right! Which of us two resembles his father? Your father was a wicked man, and you are a righteous man.

He said: these people claim that their father died leaving wealth with you.

He said: they speak the truth.

And he brought him out with their father's signet ring, and said: I spent on them from my own wealth, and this is their wealth.

He said: no one is more worthy than you to keep it.

He said: should it return to me after it has left me?!

al-Attaf ibn Khalid: Zayd ibn Aslam narrated to us; Anas said to us:

I never prayed behind any imam, after the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him), whose prayer resembled the prayer of the Messenger of Allah more than that of your imam, and he meant Umar ibn Abd al-Aziz.

Zayd said: Umar completed the bowing and the prostration, and lightened the standing and the sitting.

Suhayl ibn Abi Salih said: I was with my father on the morning of Arafat; we stopped to look at Umar ibn Abd al-Aziz, who was commanding the pilgrimage, and I said: O my father! By Allah, I see that Allah loves Umar.

He said: and why?

I said: because of the love for him that I see in the hearts of people, and you heard Abu Hurayra say:

the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) said: "When Allah loves a servant, He calls Jibril: Allah has loved so-and-so, so love him." And the rest of the hadith.

From Abu Ja'far al-Baqir, who said: every people has its treasure; the treasure of the sons of Umayya is Umar ibn Abd al-Aziz; he will be resurrected alone as an entire community.

ath-Thawri reported from Amr ibn Maymun, who said: the scholars were with Umar ibn Abd al-Aziz like disciples.

Ma'mar, from the brother of az-Zuhri, who said:

al-Walid wrote to Umar, then governor of Medina, to have Khubayb ibn Abdallah ibn az-Zubayr flogged; he flogged him with lashes and made him stand in the cold, and he died.

I say: whenever Umar was praised, he would say: and what have I to do with Khubayb? May Allah have mercy on them both.

I say: this man was beautiful of form and character, of perfect intelligence, of noble bearing, gifted in governance, eager for justice by every possible means, abundant in knowledge, a jurist in his own right, manifest in intelligence and understanding, penitent, ever returning to Allah, devout toward Allah, sincerely upright, ascetic despite the caliphate, speaking the truth despite the fewness of supporters and the multitude of tyrannical governors who wearied of him, detested his demanding restitution from them, his reducing their gifts, and his taking from their hands much of what they had taken unjustly; they persisted against him until they gave him poison to drink, and he attained martyrdom and bliss; he was counted among the people of knowledge among the rightly guided caliphs and the acting scholars.

Mubashshir ibn Isma'il, from Ja'far ibn Burqan, from Maymun ibn Mihran, who said:

we used to come to Umar ibn Abd al-Aziz thinking he needed us, but we were with him nothing but disciples.

The same is reported from Mujahid and others.

In the Muwatta: it reached me that Umar ibn Abd al-Aziz,

as he was leaving Medina, turned toward it, wept, then said:

O Muzahim, do you fear that we may be among those whom Medina has spewed out?

Ibn Ishaq, from Isma'il ibn Abi Hakim:

I heard Umar ibn Abd al-Aziz say: I left Medina when no man was more knowledgeable than I; when I arrived in Syria, I forgot.

Ma'mar, from az-Zuhri, who said:

I spent an evening with Umar ibn Abd al-Aziz narrating to him; he said: all that you have narrated to me tonight I have already heard, but you have memorized, and we have forgotten.

Uqayl, from Ibn Shihab:

that Umar ibn Abd al-Aziz told him: al-Walid sent for him at midday and found him frowning between his eyes.

He said: I sat down, and none was with him but Ibn ar-Rayyan, standing with his sword. He said: what do you say about one who insults the caliphs? Do you think he should be killed?

I remained silent; he rebuked me and said: what is wrong with you?

I remained silent; he asked the same again, and I said: should he be killed, O commander of the believers?!

He said: no, but he insulted the caliphs.

I said: then I think he should be deterred.

He raised his head toward Ibn ar-Rayyan and said: among them there are indeed fangs.

From Abd al-Aziz ibn Yazid al-Ayli, who said:

Sulayman went on pilgrimage with Umar ibn Abd al-Aziz; lightning and thunder struck them until their hearts nearly burst; Sulayman said: O Abu Hafs, have you ever seen, or heard of, a night like this?

He said: O commander of the believers, this is the sound of Allah's mercy; how then, had you heard the sound of Allah's punishment?!

Ibn Uyayna reported from a man:

Umar ibn Abd al-Aziz said: I have never lied since I learned that lying harms those who practice it.

Abd al-Aziz ibn al-Majishun: Abdallah ibn Dinar narrated to us from Ibn Umar, who said:

Umar said: we used to jest; and in another wording: people claim that this world will not end before a man from the family of Umar

exercises the rule and acts as Umar acted.

He said: Bilal, the son of Abdallah ibn Umar, had a mark on his face, and they believed he was the one, until Allah brought Umar ibn Abd al-Aziz.

His mother is the daughter of Asim ibn Umar.

A group reported it from him.

Juwayriya, from Nafi':

we learned that Umar said: among my descendants there is a man marked on the face who will exercise the rule and fill the earth with justice.

Nafi' said: I think of none but Umar ibn Abd al-Aziz.

Ubaydallah ibn Umar reported from Nafi', who said:

Ibn Umar used to say: would that I knew who this man descended from Umar is, who bears a sign on his face and who will fill the earth with justice.

Mubarak ibn Fadala alone reported it from him, and he is a truthful narrator.

Damra ibn Rabi'a, from as-Sari ibn Yahya, from Riyah ibn Abida, who said:

Umar ibn Abd al-Aziz went out to prayer leaning on the hand of an old man; I said to myself: this is a harsh old man.

When he had prayed and entered, I followed him and said: may Allah grant success to the emir; who is that old man who was leaning on your hand?

He said: O Riyah, did you see him?

I said: yes.

He said: I did not think of you otherwise than as a righteous man. That is my brother al-Khidr; he came to me and informed me that I would be charged with the affairs of the community and that I would deal justly in it.

al-Mada'ini, from Jarir ibn Hazim, from Hizzan ibn Sa'id: Raja' ibn Haywa told me, and he said:

when Sulayman ibn Abd al-Malik grew gravely ill, Umar ibn Abd al-Aziz saw me in the house going out, coming in and hesitating; he said: O Raja', I remind you of Allah and Islam: do not mention me to the commander of the believers and do not designate me, for by Allah I have not the strength to bear this matter.

I rebuked him and said: you are indeed greedy for the caliphate!

He felt shame, and I entered; Sulayman said to me: whom do you see for this matter?

I said: fear Allah, for you are about to come before Allah, the Exalted, who will question you about this matter and about what you did with it.

He said: then whom do you see?

I said: Umar ibn Abd al-Aziz.

He said: how shall I deal with the testament of Abd al-Malik in favor of al-Walid, and toward me concerning the two sons of Atika, whichever of them remains?

I said: you designate him after him.

He said: you have spoken truly; bring me a sheet.

I brought him a sheet; he wrote the testament designating Umar, then Yazid ibn Abd al-Malik after him; then I had men enter, and he said: my testament is in this sheet, in the presence of Raja'; bear witness and seal the sheet.

He said: it was not long before he died; I stopped the women from wailing and went out to the people; they said: how is the commander of the believers?

I said: he has never been calmer since he fell ill.

They said: praise be to Allah.

Ibn Uyayna said: one who witnessed Dabiq told me; it was the gathering place of the people's armies; Sulayman died at Dabiq, and Raja' ibn Haywa was in charge of his command and of his counsel; he went out to the people, informed them of his death, ascended the pulpit and said:

the commander of the believers has written a letter and made a testament, and he informed them of his death: do you hear and do you obey?

They said: yes.

Hisham said: we hear and we obey, if it entails designating a man from among the sons of Abd al-Malik.

He said: the people pulled at him until he fell to the ground, and they said: we have heard and we have obeyed.

Raja' said: stand up, O Umar, while he was on the pulpit.

Umar said: by Allah, this is a matter I never asked of Allah.

al-Walid ibn Muslim, from Abd ar-Rahman ibn Hassan al-Kinani, who said:

when Sulayman fell ill at Dabiq, he said: O Raja', shall I designate my son?

He said: your son is absent.

He said: then the other?

He said: he is young.

He said: whom do you see?

He said: Umar ibn Abd al-Aziz.

He said: I fear the sons of Abd al-Malik will not accept it.

He said: designate him then, and after him Yazid ibn Abd al-Malik; write a letter, seal it, and call them to a pledge of allegiance sealed upon it.

He said: he wrote the testament and sealed it; Raja' went out and said: the commander of the believers commands you to pledge allegiance to the one mentioned in this letter.

They said: and who is mentioned in it?

He said: it is sealed, and you will not be told who is mentioned in it until he dies.

They refused; Sulayman said: go to the men of the guard (shurta), announce the gathering prayer, and order them the pledge; whoever refuses, strike his neck.

He did so, and they pledged allegiance.

Raja' said: when they went out, Hisham came to me in his procession and said: you know your standing with us, and I fear the commander of the believers has removed it from me; inform me while there is breath left in this matter.

I said: glory be to Allah! The commander of the believers confides in me and you want me to reveal it to you? That will never be. He turned away from me and clung to me; I refused him, and he went away.

As I was walking, I heard clamor behind me: it was Umar ibn Abd al-Aziz; he said: O Raja', a great matter has come to my mind concerning this man; I fear he has assigned it to me while I am not fit to bear this charge; inform me while there is breath left in this matter, perhaps I may extricate myself.

I said: glory be to Allah! The commander of the believers confides in me a matter and you want me to reveal it to you?!

al-Waqidi reported the like of it.

Dawud ibn Khalid narrated to us, from Suhayl ibn Abi Suhayl, who heard Raja' ibn Haywa say, and he adds:

Umar ibn Abd al-Aziz prayed over Sulayman; and when the burial was finished,

the mounts of the caliphate were brought to him; he said: my mount is gentler with me.

He rode his mule; then he was told: will you not alight at the residence of the caliphate?

He said: the family of Abu Ayyub lives in it, and my tent suffices me.

When the evening of that night came, he said: O Raja', bring me a scribe.

I called him; he dictated to him a letter of beautiful and concise dictation; he ordered it copied, and it was sent out to every land.

Sulayman ibn Abd al-Malik was among the best of caliphs: he raised the banner of jihad and equipped one hundred thousand men by land and sea; they besieged Constantinople, and the fighting and the siege intensified upon it for more than a year.

Sa'id ibn Abd al-Aziz said: Sulayman took power and said to Umar ibn Abd al-Aziz:

O Abu Hafs, we have taken charge of what you see, and we had no knowledge of its management; whatever you judge beneficial to the general interest, order it.

Among that was the dismissal of al-Hajjaj's agents, and the reestablishment of the prayers at their times after they had been made to miss their time, along with weighty matters he heard from Umar concerning them.

It is said: Sulayman performed the pilgrimage and saw the creatures at the standing place; he said to Umar: do you not see this creation whose number none but Allah counts?

He said: these today are your subjects; tomorrow they will be your opponents.

He wept bitterly.

I say: Umar had a truthful vizier; Sulayman fell ill at Dabiq for a week and passed away; his son Dawud was absent, away on campaign against Constantinople.

From Raja' ibn Haywa, who said:

Sulayman grew gravely ill; when he died, I seated him upright, propped him and prepared him; then I went out to the people, and they said: how did the commander of the believers spend the night?

I said: he spent the night at peace; enter, greet him, and pledge allegiance before him according to what the testament contains.

They entered; I stood beside him and said: he commands you to remain standing.

Then I took the letter from his pocket and said: the commander of the believers commands you to pledge allegiance to what this letter contains.

They pledged allegiance and extended their hands; when they had finished, I said: may Allah reward you on behalf of the commander of the believers.

They said: then who?

I opened the letter: Umar ibn Abd al-Aziz.

The faces of the sons of Abd al-Malik changed; when they heard "and after him Yazid", they calmed down; Umar was sought, and he was in the mosque; they came to him and greeted him with the caliphate; he fainted and could not rise until they took him by both arms and led him up the pulpit; he sat for a long time without speaking.

Raja' said: will you not rise to the commander of the believers, in order to pledge allegiance to him?

They rose to him, and he extended his hand to them; when Hisham ibn Abd al-Malik extended his hand to him, he said: to Allah we belong and to Him we return.

Umar said: yes, to Allah we belong, now that it is I and you who lead this community.

Then he stood, praised Allah and extolled Him, and said: O people, I am not a lawgiver, but an executor; I am not an innovator, but a follower; if the inhabitants of the provinces around you obey as you have obeyed, then I am your governor; and if they refuse, I am not your governor.

Then he descended; the keeper of the mounts came to him; he said: no, bring me my mount.

Then he wrote to the governors of the provinces.

Raja' said: I thought he would be weak; but when I saw what he made of his letters, I knew he would be strong.

Amr ibn Muhajir said: Umar prayed the sunset prayer, then prayed over Sulayman.

Ibn Ishaq said: Sulayman died on a Friday, the tenth of Safar, in the year 99.

Khalid ibn Mirdas said: al-Hakam ibn Umar narrated to us:

I witnessed Umar ibn Abd al-Aziz when the keepers of the caliphal mounts came asking him for their upkeep and the provision of their service.

He said: send them to the provinces of Syria to be sold, and put their price in the treasury of Allah; this grey mule of mine suffices me.

From ad-Dahhak ibn Uthman, who said: when Umar ibn Abd al-Aziz turned away from the grave of Sulayman, the mounts of Sulayman were presented to him, and he said:

had it not been for piety, then sound conduct, out of fear of ruin, I would have disobeyed, out of love for the youth, every rebuker

he decreed what he decreed of what has passed, then he will not be seen to endure again through the long nights

there is no strength except by Allah.

Sufyan ibn Waki': Ibn Uyayna narrated to us, from Umar ibn Dhar:

that a mawla of Umar ibn Abd al-Aziz said to him after the funeral of Sulayman: why do I see you gloomy?

He said: let him be gloomy who is in my state; there is no one in this community whose due I do not wish to render, and there is none who will write to me about it, nor claim it from me.

Ubaydallah ibn Umar said: Umar addressed them and said: I am not the best of you, but I am the heaviest burden you carry.

Ayyub ibn Suwayd: Yunus narrated to us, from az-Zuhri, who said:

Umar ibn Abd al-Aziz wrote to Salim to write him down the conduct of Umar regarding the alms; he wrote it to him, and he wrote back to him:

if you act as Umar acted in his time and with his men, in a time like yours and with men like yours, you would be with Allah better than Umar.

I say: this is astonishing speech; how could he be better than Umar?!

Certainly not, never; but this saying is interpreted as hyperbole. Where is the might of religion in Umar's Islam? Where is his witnessing at Badr? Where is Satan's flight from Umar? Where are Umar's conquests east and west? Allah has appointed for everything a measure.

Hammad ibn Zayd, from Abu Hashim:

a man came to Umar ibn Abd al-Aziz and said: I saw the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) in sleep, with Abu Bakr at his right and Umar at his left; then two men were disputing, and you were standing before him; he said to you: O Umar, when you act, act according to the deed of these two.

He made him swear by Allah: did you see it? He swore to him, and he wept.

Maymun ibn Mihran said: Allah used to watch over people with a prophet after a prophet, and Allah has watched over people with Umar ibn Abd al-Aziz.

Hammad ibn Abi Sulayman said: when Umar ibn Abd al-Aziz took power, he wept; a man said to him: what of your love for this world and for the dirham?

He said: I do not love it.

He said: fear not, Allah will surely aid you.

Ya'qub al-Fasawi: Ibrahim ibn Hisham ibn Yahya narrated to us; my father narrated to me from my grandfather, who said:

I was with Ibn Abi Zakariyya at the door of Umar ibn Abd al-Aziz; we heard weeping, and it was said: the commander of the believers has given his wife the choice between remaining in her residence as it was, having informed her that he was distracted from the women by what weighed upon him, and joining the residence of her father.

She wept, and her maids wept.

Jarir, from al-Mughira, who said:

Umar ibn Abd al-Aziz had dark-eyed maids whom he consulted; the sign of what passed between them was that, when he wanted them to rise, he would say: whenever you wish.

From him likewise: he delivered a sermon and said: by Allah, no servant, between whom and Adam there is no father who has not died, will remain but sweating over death.

Jarir, from al-Mughira, who said:

when Umar ibn Abd al-Aziz was invested, he gathered the sons of Marwan and said: the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) possessed Fadak, out of which he spent, with which he provided for the young children of Banu Hashim and from which he married off their widows; Fatima asked him to assign it to her, and he refused; it remained so during the lifetime of Abu Bakr and Umar, and he acted in it as he acted; then Marwan seized it, then it came down to me; but I have seen a matter, which the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) refused to his own daughter, to which I have no right;

and I take you as witnesses that I have returned it to what it was in the time of the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him).

al-Layth said: Umar ibn Abd al-Aziz began with the members of his own house: he took what was in their hands and declared their wealth wrongful seizures; the sons of Umayya rushed to his aunt Fatima bint Marwan; she sent him word: a matter has seized me.

She came to him by night; he had her dismount from her mount; when she took her seat, he said: O my aunt, it is yours to speak first.

She said: speak, O commander of the believers.

He said: Allah sent Muhammad (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) as a mercy, and not as a punishment, and He chose for him what is with Him, leaving the people a river from which they all drank equally; then Abu Bakr rose and left the river as it was; then Umar, who acted as his companion had acted; then the river kept being dug into by Yazid, Marwan, Abd al-Malik, al-Walid and Sulayman, until the matter came down to me, while the great river had dried up and will not water its people until it returns to what it was.

She said: that suffices you; I will not remind you of anything.

And she went back and reported his words to them.

From Maymun ibn Mihran: I heard Umar ibn Abd al-Aziz say:

if I lived among you fifty years, I would not complete establishing justice among you; there are matters of the public interest that I undertake,

and I fear their hearts will not bear them, and that a greed stemming from the greed for this world may come out with them.

Ibn Uyayna, from Ibrahim ibn Maysara:

I said to Tawus: he is the Mahdi, meaning Umar ibn Abd al-Aziz.

He said: he is the Mahdi, but he is not he; he did not complete justice in its entirety.

Ibn Awn said: Ibn Sirin, when asked about gilded cloth (tilla'), would say: a rightly guided imam forbade it, meaning Umar ibn Abd al-Aziz.

Harmala said: I heard ash-Shafi'i say:

the caliphs are five: Abu Bakr and Umar,

then Uthman, Ali and Umar ibn Abd al-Aziz.

In another version: the rightly guided caliphs.

Similar words are reported from Abu Bakr ibn Ayyash.

Abbad ibn as-Sammat reported the like of it from ath-Thawri.

Abu al-Malih, from Khusayf, who said:

I saw in a dream a man, with two men at his right and at his left; Umar ibn Abd al-Aziz came and wanted to sit between the one at his right and him, but his neighbor clung to it; the one in the middle pulled him and seated him against himself; I said: who is this one?

They said: this is the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him), this is Abu Bakr, and this is Umar.

Abd ar-Rahman ibn Zayd, from Umar ibn Asid, who said:

by Allah, Umar ibn Abd al-Aziz did not die before men would bring us great sums of money saying: place this wherever you see fit.

And they kept going back with all their wealth; Umar had enriched the people.

Juwayriya bint Asma' said: we entered upon Fatima, daughter of the imam Ali; she praised Umar ibn Abd al-Aziz and said: had he remained for us, we would have needed no one after him.

From Damra: Umar ibn Abd al-Aziz wrote to one of his agents:

as to what follows: when your power over people invites you to wrong them, remember the power of Allah, the Exalted, over you, the perishing of what you bring toward them, and the enduring of what they bring toward you.

Umar ibn Dhar: Ata' ibn Abi Rabah narrated to me, and he said:

Fatima, the wife of Umar ibn Abd al-Aziz, told me:

that she entered upon him and found him in his prayer place, his hand on his cheek, his tears flowing; I said: O commander of the believers, has something happened?

He said: O Fatima, I have taken charge of the affairs of the community of Muhammad (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him), and I have reflected on the poor man who is hungry, the sick man who is forsaken, the naked man who is destitute, the wronged man who is oppressed, the stranger who is captive, the old man, and the one

who has dependents in all the regions of the earth; I knew that my Lord would question me about them, and that their advocate before Him would be Muhammad (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him); I feared my proof would not stand at his dispute, and I had mercy on myself, and I wept.

Hammad ibn an-Nadr reported it, from Muhammad ibn al-Munkadir, from Ata', from her, in a similar manner; he said: she told me after the death of Umar.

al-Firyabi said: al-Awza'i narrated to us:

that Umar ibn Abd al-Aziz sat in his house, surrounded by the notables of the sons of Umayya, and said: would you love that I appoint each one of you over an army of these armies?

One of them said to him: why do you offer us what you will not do?

He said: do you see this mat of mine? I know it will come to wear, and I hate that you defile it with your feet; how then should I appoint you over my religion, over the honors and the persons of the Muslims, to judge among them? Far be it, far be it!

They said: why? Do we not have kinship? Do we not have a right?

He said: you and the farthest of the Muslims are equal in my eyes in this matter, except for the man whom the length of his robe keeps from reaching me.

Yahya ibn Abi Ghaniya, from Hafs ibn Umar ibn Abi az-Zubayr, who said:

Umar ibn Abd al-Aziz wrote to Abu Bakr ibn Hazm: sharpen your pen and bring your lines close together, for I hate that what does not benefit the Muslims be drawn from their wealth.

Maymun ibn Mihran said: I stayed six months with Umar ibn Abd al-Aziz and never saw him change his cloak; he washed it from one Friday to the next and scented it with a little saffron.

ath-Thawri, from Umar ibn Sa'id ibn Abi Husayn, who said:

Umar ibn Abd al-Aziz had a muezzin who, when he

gave the call, trilled it; he sent him word: call to prayer with a simple call, and do not sing it, otherwise go and sit in your house.

Umar ibn Maymun reported from his father:

I never ceased softening, with Umar ibn Abd al-Aziz, the affairs of the community, until I said to him: what are these great skins written on with the coarse pen, when they come from the public treasury?!

He wrote to the horizons to abandon it, and his letters were about a handspan long.

Humayd at-Tawil said: al-Hasan dictated to me a letter to Umar ibn Abd al-Aziz; I delivered it; then he complained of need and of dependents.

I said: O Abu Sa'id! Do not spoil the letter with asking; write that in another one.

He said: leave me be.

He ordered that his gift be given.

He said: I say: O Abu Sa'id, write to him about consultation, for Abu Qilaba said:

Jibril would descend with the revelation, and that did not prevent the one upon whom be prayer and peace from being commanded by Allah to consult.

He said: yes.

He wrote about consultation, and I delivered it.

Hammad ibn Salama reported it from him.

Khalaf ibn Tamim: Abdallah ibn Muhammad narrated to us, from al-Awza'i, who said:

Umar ibn Abd al-Aziz wrote us a letter which only I and Mak'hul memorized:

as to what follows: whoever mentions death much is content with the little of this world; whoever counts his speech among his deeds speaks little, except of what benefits him. And peace.

al-Awza'i said: whenever Umar ibn Abd al-Aziz wanted to punish a man, he detained him for three days, then punished him, disliking to hasten at the first surge of anger.

Mu'awiya ibn Salih: Sa'id ibn Suwayd narrated to us:

that Umar ibn Abd al-Aziz prayed with them

the Friday prayer, then sat, wearing a shirt with a patched chest, in front and behind.

A man said to him: O commander of the believers! Allah has given you; wear something better!

He said: the best moderation is that practiced in hardship, and the best pardon is that granted when one has the power.

Juwayriya bint Asma' said: Umar ibn Abd al-Aziz said:

my soul is eager; nothing of this world was given to it but it yearned for what is better; when it was given that for which there is nothing better in this world, it yearned for what is better still, namely Paradise.

Hammad ibn Waqid said: I heard Malik ibn Dinar say:

people say of me that I am an ascetic; the ascetic is Umar ibn Abd al-Aziz, to whom this world came and who left it.

al-Fasawi: Ibrahim ibn Hisham ibn Yahya narrated to us; my father narrated to me from Abd al-Aziz ibn Umar ibn Abd al-Aziz, who said:

al-Mansur called me and said: what was the wealth of Umar ibn Abd al-Aziz when he was invested?

I said: fifty thousand dinars.

He said: and on the day of his death?

I said: two hundred dinars.

From Maslama ibn Abd al-Malik, who said:

I entered upon Umar and his shirt was dirty; I said to his wife, who was the sister of Maslama: wash it.

She said: we will.

Then I returned, and the shirt was as it was; I told her, and she said: by Allah, he has no other shirt.

Isma'il ibn Ayyash reported from Amr ibn Muhajir: the daily expenditure of Umar ibn Abd al-Aziz was two dirhams.

Sa'id ibn Amir ad-Duba'i reported from Awn ibn al-Mu'tamir:

that Umar ibn Abd al-Aziz said to his wife: do you have a dirham with which I might buy grapes?

She said: no.

He said: do you have small coins?

She said: no; you are the commander of the believers and you cannot afford a dirham!

He said: that is lighter

than wearing chains in Hell.

Marwan ibn Mu'awiya, from a man, who said:

the lamp of the house of Umar ibn Abd al-Aziz stood on three reed stalks, with clay above them.

Abdallah ibn Idris, from his father, from al-Azhar, his companion, who said:

I saw Umar ibn Abd al-Aziz delivering a sermon at Khunasira, wearing a patched shirt.

Marwan ibn Muhammad said: Muhammad ibn Muhajir narrated to us; my brother Amr told me:

that Umar ibn Abd al-Aziz wore the cloak of the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) and held his staff in his hand on the day of the festival.

Mu'arrif ibn Wasil said: I saw Umar ibn Abd al-Aziz arrive in Mecca wearing two greenish garments.

al-Walid ibn Abi as-Sa'ib said: Umar ibn Abd al-Aziz owned a grey fur cloak, a yellow fur cloak and a fur coverlet, then he gave that up.

al-Waqidi said: Abd ar-Rahman ibn Abd al-Aziz narrated to us, from Amr ibn Muhajir:

I saw Umar ibn Abd al-Aziz deliver the first sermon seated, with a staff in his hand, resting it on his thigh; they claim it was the staff of the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him); and when he finished his sermon, he would fall silent.

Then he would stand and deliver the second sermon leaning on it; and when he grew tired, he would no longer lean on it and would carry it; and when he entered into prayer, he would set it beside him.

In the Zuhd of Ibn al-Mubarak: Ibrahim ibn Nashit informed us, Sulayman ibn Humayd narrated to us, from Abu Ubayda ibn Uqba ibn Nafi':

that he entered upon Fatima bint Abd al-Malik,

and said: will you not tell me about Umar?

She said: I know not that he ever performed the bath of major impurity nor had a nocturnal emission since he was invested.

Yahya ibn Hamza said: Amr ibn Muhajir narrated to us:

that a candle was lit for Umar ibn Abd al-Aziz as long as he was busy with the affairs of the Muslims; when he finished, he would put it out and light his own.

Malik said: ambergris was brought to Umar ibn Abd al-Aziz, and he held his nose, fearing to smell its scent.

From him likewise: he blocked his nose while musk from the treasuries was brought to him.

Khalid ibn Mirdas: al-Hakam ibn Umar narrated to us, and he said:

Umar had three hundred guardsmen and three hundred guards of the watch; I heard him say to his guards:

I have, besides you, a guard that preserves me by the decree and a keeper by the appointed term; whoever of you stays will have ten dinars, and whoever wishes may join his family.

Amr ibn Uthman al-Himsi: Khalid ibn Yazid narrated to us, from Jawna, who said:

a man entered upon Umar ibn Abd al-Aziz and said: O commander of the believers, for those before you the caliphate was their ornament, and you are the ornament of the caliphate.

He turned away from him.

From Abd al-Aziz ibn Umar: Raja' ibn Haywa said to me:

how complete was your father's manliness! I spent an evening with him; the lamp failed, and at his side a guest was sleeping; I said: shall I not wake him?

He said: no, leave him.

I said: I will get up myself.

He said: no; it is not part of a man's manliness to put his guest to work.

He went to the oil flask, mended the lamp, then returned and said: I rose while I was Umar ibn Abd al-Aziz, and I returned while I was Umar ibn Abd al-Aziz.

He was, may Allah have mercy on him, eloquent and lucid.

Hammad ibn Salama reported it, from Raja'

ar-Ramli, from Nu'aym ibn Abdallah, scribe of Umar ibn Abd al-Aziz:

that Umar said: what keeps me from much speech is the fear of boasting.

Jarir ibn Hazim, from al-Mughira ibn Hakim: Fatima, the wife of Umar ibn Abd al-Aziz, said:

al-Mughira told us that among people there are men more constant in prayer and fasting than Umar ibn Abd al-Aziz, but I never saw anyone who feared his Lord more than he; when he prayed the night prayer, he would sit in his mosque, raise his hands, and keep weeping until sleep overcame him; then he would wake, and he would keep supplicating, his hands raised, weeping, until sleep overcame him; he did that the whole night.

Ibn al-Mubarak, from Hisham ibn al-Ghaz, from Mak'hul:

if I swore, I would speak the truth: I never saw anyone more ascetic nor more fearful of Allah than Umar ibn Abd al-Aziz.

an-Nufayli said: an-Nadr ibn Arabi narrated to us, and he said:

I entered upon Umar ibn Abd al-Aziz; he was ever shuddering with agitation, as if he carried the sorrow of all creation.

al-Fasawi: Ibrahim ibn Hisham al-Ghassani narrated to us; my father narrated to me from my grandfather, from Maymun ibn Mihran: Umar ibn Abd al-Aziz said to me: narrate to me.

I narrated to him; he wept bitterly; I said: had I known, I would have narrated to you something gentler.

He said: we eat lentils, and I know them to be strengthening for the heart, abundant in bringing tears, and humbling for the body.

Hakkam ibn Salm, from Abu Hatim, who said:

when Umar ibn Abd al-Aziz fell ill, a physician was brought, who said: he has a disease that has no remedy: fear has overcome his heart.

From Ata': Umar ibn Abd al-Aziz gathered the jurists every night, and they would speak of death, of the resurrection and of the hereafter, and they wept.

It is said: Umar ibn Abd al-Aziz wrote to a man:

if you clothe yourself with the mention of death, night and day, everything that perishes becomes hateful to you and everything that endures becomes beloved to you. And peace.

From his poetry:

whoever, when the sun strikes his forehead, or the dust, fears disfigurement and dishevelment

and loves the shade so that his cheerfulness may last, will one day dwell, humbled, in a grave

at the bottom of a dark, earthen and desolate hollow, where he will prolong his stay beneath the soil

prepare your provision, the one that will carry you, O my soul, before ruin: you were not created in vain

Sa'id ibn Abi Aruba said: whenever Umar ibn Abd al-Aziz mentioned death, his joints trembled.

It is also reported from him:

there is no good in the life of a man who has no share with Allah in the abiding home

if this world pleases people, it is but a fleeting pleasure, and its end is near

It is also reported from him:

are you awake today, or are you asleep? How can the lost wanderer bear sleep?

were you awake in the morning, the streaming tears would pierce your eyes

you delight in what wears away, and you rejoice in hopes, as the dreamer today is deceived by pleasures

your day, O beguiled one, is heedlessness and neglect; your night is sleep, and ruin is inevitable for you

and your striving goes toward that whose outcome you will hate; thus live, in this world, the beasts

From Wuhayb ibn al-Ward: Umar ibn Abd al-Aziz often used to recite this:

he is seen yielding, while he loathes idle play, which keeps him from the talk of people

knowledge has made him restless of all ignorance; and no one knows anything like the one ignorant of it

he is somber toward the ignorant when he sees them; none of them has a cheek with which to jest with him

he remembered what remains of life as deferred, and the deferred occupied him away from the immediate of life

Abd ar-Rahman ibn Yazid ibn Jabir heard Umayr ibn Hani say:

I entered upon Umar ibn Abd al-Aziz, and he said to me: what do you say about a man who saw a chain lowered from heaven; the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) came, clung to it and ascended; then Abu Bakr came, clung to it and ascended; then Umar came, clung to it and ascended; then Uthman came, clung to it, the chain broke, then held, and he ascended; then came the one who saw this dream, clung to it and ascended, and he was their fifth.

Umayr said: I said to myself: it is him, but he alluded to it without naming himself.

I said: it is possible that the man is Ali, and that opinion could not declare it openly, given the severity of hostility at that time.

Mu'awiya ibn Yahya said: Arta'a narrated to us, and he said:

it was said to Umar ibn Abd al-Aziz: were you to place over your food a trusted man, you would not be poisoned; a guard when you pray; and that you keep away from the plague.

He said: O Allah, if You know that I fear a day before the Day of Resurrection, then do not make my fear unfounded.

Ali ibn Abi Hamala, from al-Walid ibn Hisham, who said:

a Jew met me and said: Umar ibn Abd al-Aziz will soon be succeeded.

Then, during the rule of Umar, another met me and said: your companion has been given the drink; order him to save himself.

I informed Umar, and he said: may Allah fight him, how knowing he is! I knew the hour at which I was made to drink; had my cure been to wipe the fat of my ear, I would not do it.

Abu Umayer ibn an-Nahhas also reported it, from Damra, from him, saying: from

Amr ibn Muhajir, in place of al-Walid.

Marwan ibn Mu'awiya, from Ma'ruf ibn Mashkan, from Mujahid:

Umar ibn Abd al-Aziz said to me: what do people say of me?

I said: they say: bewitched.

He said: I am not bewitched.

Then he called one of his boys and said: woe to you! What made you give me poison to drink?

He said: I was given a thousand dinars, on condition that I be freed.

He said: bring them.

He brought them; he cast them into the public treasury and said: go where no one sees you.

Isma'il ibn Ayyash, from Amr ibn Muhajir, who said:

Umar ibn Abd al-Aziz craved apples; a man of his household gave him some as a gift, and he said: how fragrant its scent and how beautiful it is!

Then he said: take it, O boy, to the one who brought it, greet my servant on my behalf and tell him: your gift has landed where you love.

I said: O commander of the believers, he is your cousin, a man of your household, and you know that the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) used to eat gifts.

He said: woe to you! In his time a gift was a gift; today, for us, it is a bribe.

Ibn Uyayna said: I said to Abd al-Aziz ibn Umar: what were the last words your father spoke?

He said: his children were: I, Abdallah, Asim and Ibrahim; we were boys, and we came like those bidding him farewell and parting from him.

He was told: you have left your children without wealth, and you have not commended them to anyone!

He said: I was not going to give them what is not theirs, nor take from them a right that is theirs; Allah is my guardian over them, He who takes charge of the righteous; they are but one of two

men: righteous, or wicked.

It is said that it was their uncle Maslama who spoke to him about them.

Hammad ibn Zayd reported it, from Ayyub, who said:

it was said to Umar ibn Abd al-Aziz: O commander of the believers, if you came to Medina and Allah decreed your death, you would be buried in the place of the fourth grave, beside the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him).

He said: by Allah, that Allah punish me by other than the Fire is dearer to me than that my heart know that I deem myself worthy of that.

Ibn Shawdhab reported the like of it, from Matar.

From Layth ibn Abi Ruqayya: Umar ibn Abd al-Aziz said: seat me up.

They seated him, and he said: I am the one You commanded and who fell short; the one You forbade and who disobeyed, and that three times; but there is no god but Allah.

Then he fixed his gaze and said: I see a greenness that is neither of men nor of jinn.

Then he passed away.

Abu Ya'qub al-Khattabi reported the like of it, from as-Sari ibn Ubaydallah.

al-Mughira ibn Hakim said: I said to Fatima bint Abd al-Malik:

I used to hear Umar ibn Abd al-Aziz, during his illness, say: O Allah, veil my state from them, even for an hour.

She said: I said to him: shall I not step away from you, for you do not sleep?

I stepped out, and I heard him repeat over and over: {That is the home of the Hereafter which We assign to those who desire no exaltedness on earth nor corruption, and the final outcome is for the righteous} Surah Al-Qasas, verse 83.

Then he lowered his head; I remained a long time without hearing from him the slightest stir; I said to a maidservant: woe to you! Go and look.

When she entered, she cried out; I entered and found him dead, facing the qibla, one hand on his mouth and the other on his eyes.

Jarir ibn Hazim heard it from her.

From Ubayy ibn Hassan: when the death of Umar ibn Abd al-Aziz drew near, he said: withdraw from me.

Maslama and Fatima sat at the door, and heard him say: welcome to these faces, faces that are neither of men nor of jinn; then he recited: {That is the home of the Hereafter which We assign...} to the end of the verse; then the voice fell silent.

Maslama said to Fatima: your companion has just passed away.

They entered and found him dead.

Hisham ibn Hassan, from Khalid ar-Rab'i, who said:

we find in the Torah that the heavens and the earth weep over Umar ibn Abd al-Aziz for forty mornings.

Hisham said, when the news of his death came to al-Hasan: the best of people has died.

Abu Ishaq al-Juzajani said: Muhammad ibn Sa'id al-Qurashi narrated to us, Muhammad ibn Marwan al-Uqayli narrated to us, Yazid narrated to us:

that the delegates whom Umar ibn Abd al-Aziz sent to Caesar to call him to Islam said: when our arrival reached him, he prepared a reception for us, posted the patriarchs over his head, along with the Nestorians and the Jacobites..., until he said: then his messenger came to me telling me to answer.

I rode and went; those people had dispersed away from him, the patriarchs had gone, he had removed the crown and stepped down from the throne; he said: do you know why I sent for you?

I said: no.

He said: my minister wrote to me: the righteous man Umar ibn Abd al-Aziz has died.

He said: I wept, my weeping intensified and my voice rose.

He said to me: what makes you weep? Do you weep for yourself, or for him, or for the people of your religion?

I said: for all of them I weep.

He said: then weep for yourself and for the people of your religion,

as for Umar, do not weep for him, for Allah would not gather upon him the fear of this world and the fear of the hereafter.

Then he said: that monk who devoted himself to worship in his cell and left this world does not amaze me; but what amazes me is the one to whom the world came submissive, until it was in his hand, and who then let it go.

Ibn Wahb, from Malik:

Salih ibn Ali, the prince, asked about the grave of Umar ibn Abd al-Aziz and found no one to inform him, until he was directed to a monk; he questioned him, and he said: do you seek the grave of the truthful one? It is in that plantation.

Ibn Sa'd: Muhammad ibn Umar informed us, Muhammad ibn Muslim ibn Jammaz narrated to us, from Abd ar-Rahman ibn Muhammad, who said:

Umar ibn Abd al-Aziz made his bequest at the approach of death; he asked that there be brought a hair of the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) and some of his nails, and said: place them in my shroud.

From Raja' ibn Haywa: Umar ibn Abd al-Aziz said to me:

be among those who wash me, and enter my grave; when you have laid me in my side niche, untie the knot, then look at my face, for I buried three caliphs: each of them, when I laid him in his niche, I untied the knot, looked at his face, and it was darkened, turned away from the qibla.

Raja' said: I entered the grave, untied the knot, and his face was like the crescent moon, facing the qibla.

Its chain of transmission is obscure; it is found in the Tabaqat of Ibn Sa'd.

Ibn Sa'd and Ishaq ibn Sayyar reported it, from Abbad ibn Umar al-Washihi, the muezzin, who said: Makhlad ibn Yazid, an excellent and good man, narrated to us, from Yusuf ibn Mahak, who said:

as we were leveling the earth over the grave of Umar ibn Abd al-Aziz, a paper scroll fell upon us from heaven, on which was written:

in the name of Allah, the Most Merciful, the Bestower of Mercy: security granted by Allah to Umar ibn Abd al-Aziz against the Fire.

I say: had such a sign been established, the people of that gathering would have transmitted it; instead it was reported only by an unknown transmitter, even though my heart is wide open to bearing witness that Umar is among the people of Paradise.

Ibn al-Mubarak said: Ibn Lahi'a informed me, and he said:

they found in some writings: the fear of Allah kills him, meaning Umar ibn Abd al-Aziz.

Muhammad ibn Muslim at-Ta'ifi, from Ibrahim ibn Maysara:

Umar ibn Abd al-Aziz bought, before dying, the site of his grave for ten dinars.

Kutayyir Azza elegized him:

his deeds spread abroad, and his passing spread abroad; the people, all of them, are rewarded through him

their mourning over him is one single mourning; in every house a wail and a sigh

the tongue of one you never governed praises you well, for you are worthy of praise

his deeds gave him back his life, as if he were brought back to life by their spreading

Khalifa ibn Khayyat and others reported:

that Umar ibn Abd al-Aziz died on a Friday, with five days remaining of Rajab, in the year 101, at Dayr Sim'an, in the land of Homs.

He said: it belongs in truth to the land of Ma'arra, but Ma'arra, like Hama, was among the districts of Homs.

He lived 93 years and a half.

Ja'far as-Sadiq said, from Sufyan ibn Asim:

he died with five days past of Rajab, on a Thursday, was buried at Dayr Sim'an, and Maslama ibn Abd al-Malik prayed over him.

He said: he was wheatish of complexion, fine and handsome of face, slender of body, handsome of beard, with a cleft on his forehead.

Abu Umar ad-Darir said: he died at Dayr Sim'an, in the land of Homs, on a Friday, with ten days remaining of Rajab, at the age of 93 years and a half.

A group said: in Rajab, without specifying the day; his caliphate lasted two years, five months and some days.

Sulayman ibn Umayyar ar-Raqqi said: Abu Umayya the eunuch, servant of Umar ibn Abd al-Aziz, narrated to us, and he said:

Umar sent me with two dinars to the people of the monastery, saying: either you sell me the site of my grave, or I turn away from you.

Hisham ibn al-Ghaz said: we camped on our way back from Dabiq; when we broke camp, Mak'hul went off, and we did not know where he was going; we walked a long way until he came back; we said to him: where did you go?

He said: I went to the grave of Umar ibn Abd al-Aziz, which is five miles from the camp, and I supplicated for him.

Then he said: if I swore without exception, I would say: in his time there was no one more fearful of Allah nor more ascetic in this world than he.

al-Hakam ibn Umar ar-Ru'ayni said: I saw Umar ibn Abd al-Aziz pray in sandals and in sarawil; he did not trim his mustache; I saw him begin with the sermon before the two festivals, then come down and pray; and I saw Umar ibn Abd al-Aziz write to the makers of brocade:

make the borders of khazz (silk) only of cotton, and do not put silk thread (ibrism) in them.

I prayed with him; he said the bismillah aloud in every surah he recited; I prayed behind him the dawn prayer: he performed the qunut

before the bowing; I saw him go to the two festivals on foot and return on foot; I saw his ring of silver, with a square silver bezel.

Such are the benefits taken from the copy of Khalid ibn Mirdas, who heard them from al-Hakam.

Ahmad ibn Hibat Allah informed us, from al-Mu'ayyad at-Tusi: Muhammad ibn al-Mufaddal informed us, Abd al-Ghafir al-Farisi informed us, Muhammad ibn Amrawayh informed us, Ibrahim ibn Muhammad informed us: Muslim ibn al-Hajjaj narrated to us: Amr an-Naqid narrated to me: Yazid ibn Harun narrated to us: Abd al-Aziz ibn Abi Salama informed us, from Suhayl ibn Abi Salih, who said:

We were at Arafat; Umar ibn Abd al-Aziz passed by during the pilgrimage season, and the people stood up to look at him; I said to my father: O my father! I see that Allah loves Umar ibn Abd al-Aziz.

He said: and what makes you say that?

I said: the love he has in the hearts of people.

He said: I heard Abu Hurayra narrate from the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him)..., and he mentioned a hadith like that of Jarir from Suhayl: "When Allah loves a servant, He calls Jibril and says: I love so-and-so, so love him.

He said: Jibril then loves him.

Then he calls out in heaven and says: Allah loves so-and-so, so love him.

The people of heaven then love him, and acceptance is placed for him on earth."

Sa'id ibn Mansur: Ya'qub ibn Abd ar-Rahman narrated to us, from his father:

that Hayyan ibn

Shurayh, governor of Egypt, wrote to Umar ibn Abd al-Aziz: the tributary people are streaming into Islam and have torn up the poll tax.

He wrote back to him: Allah sent Muhammad (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) as a caller, and not as a tax collector; when my letter reaches you, if the tributary people have entered Islam and torn up the poll tax, then fold your letter and come forward.

Ibn Wahb: Malik narrated to me:

that Umar ibn Abd al-Aziz mentioned some of what had passed of justice and injustice; Hisham ibn Abd al-Malik said: we, by Allah, do not find fault with our father, nor do we abandon our honor.

Umar said: what fault is graver than the one the Quran found fault with?!

Ibn Uyayna said: a man said to Umar ibn Abd al-Aziz: may Allah reward you well on behalf of Islam.

He said: rather, may Allah reward Islam well on my behalf.

Ibn Sa'd: Ali ibn Muhammad informed us, from Lut ibn Yahya, who said:

the governors of the sons of Umayya, before Umar ibn Abd al-Aziz, used to curse a man, may Allah be pleased with him; when he took power, he put a stop to that; Kutayyir Azza al-Khuza'i then said:

you ruled without cursing Ali, without frightening the innocent, nor following the word of a criminal

you spoke the manifest truth; and it is through speech that the signs of guidance become clear

you confirmed by your deeds the good you said; and every Muslim was well pleased

And Jarir said:

were I a king, while the destinies prevail, coming in turns, abiding and ever renewing,

I would have turned away from Umar the virtues of the place of his death, at Dayr Sim'an; but destiny prevails

The children of Umar ibn Abd al-Aziz included: his son Abd al-Malik, who died before him, and Abd