Omar bin Abdul Aziz, the eighth caliph of the Umayyads and the mediator of their contract, rose with justice and repelled grievances until he was named the fifth of the adult caliphs after the end of the adult caliphate by 60 years, and he sought knowledge at the hands of the companions and senior followers until he was counted as one of the greatest scholars of his time.

He was born in Medina in the year 61 AH and died of poisoning in the year 101 AH near the city of Maarat al-Numan.

He ordered the writing of the noble hadith and taking care of it when he appointed the caliphate.

He took over the Emirate of Medina, Taif, and the rest of the Hijaz, then became the ruler of the caliphate after the death of his cousin Suleiman bin Abd al-Malik, who made him his minister and counselor.

And when he assumed power, he undertook a wide purification campaign in which he removed a large number of the governors of his predecessors who were accused of injustice and corruption, and reinstated the Shura Council after it was suspended, and the period of his succession was two years and 5 months.

Birth and upbringing

Abu Hafs Omar bin Abdul Aziz was born in the year 61 AH in Al-Madinah Al-Munawwarah with his maternal uncles, the Omar bin Al-Khattab family, may God be pleased with him. His mother is Umm Asim Laila bint Asim bin Omar bin Al-Khattab. He takes care of her family, so when the mother indicated to her daughter to taste (mix) the water with the milk so that it increases and the price of it meets their living expenses, justifying that with Omar’s absence and not seeing them, the girl replied, saying: “By God, I would not obey him in public and disobey him in the open.”

And as soon as Omar heard her words, he married his son, Asim, to her, and she was born to Asim Laila, and Laila was born to Omar bin Abdul Aziz.

As for his father, he is Abd al-Aziz bin Marwan, one of the princes of the Umayyads, and the ruler of Egypt during the era of his father, and he remained ruler over it for 20 years, and he was a perfect grammarian.

Marwan ibn al-Hakam, the founder of the second Umayyad dynasty, and the clerk and secretary of Othman ibn Affan found him.

And his uncle, Abd al-Malik ibn Marwan, the fifth Umayyad caliph and one of the city's leading jurists.

A picture of the mausoleum of Caliph Omar bin Abdul Aziz (communication sites)

Scientific formation

Omar grew up in Al-Madinah Al-Munawwarah with his maternal uncles, and he used to frequent the great companion Abdullah Bin Omar to receive knowledge, hadith and interpretation of the Qur’an from him. His guardianship is with Omar remaining with him, so the father was pleased with that, and he paid him his expenses and recommended him to his brother Abd al-Malik.

Omar remained in Medina, sitting with its scholars and senior jurists, until his return to knowledge became stronger and his fork was strengthened in jurisprudence and hadith, and he became a reference to whom people refer.

And he was among those who sat with them and took from them his sheikh, Salih bin Kisan, and Obaidullah bin Abdullah bin Utbah bin Masoud, one of the seven jurists of Medina, and Saeed bin Al-Musayyib, the master of the followers, and when his father died, his uncle Abd al-Malik sponsored him, and he was a jurist known for his knowledge, so he grew up in his fold and sat with him and received from him Science, politics, and good management, and his daughter Fatima married him.

His name was mentioned in the Hanafi books as “Omar al-Saghir” to distinguish him from his grandfather Omar Ibn al-Khattab, as Imam Malik mentioned him in the Muwatta’ in more than 20 places, and Imam al-Nawawi also translated for him from the Shafi’is in names and languages, and Imam Ahmed bin Hanbal said about him: “I do not know the saying of any of the followers as proof except for the saying of Umar bin Abdul Aziz.”

His sheikh, Obaidullah bin Abdullah, said about him: “The scholars were students at Umar bin Abdul Aziz.”

Mujahid bin Jabr said: “Umar came to us to teach him, so we did not stop until we learned from him.”

Despite his scientific status, his knowledge did not spread and did not find its way to be a doctrine comparable to the doctrines of those who were like him with or less knowledge, because of his preoccupation with politics on the one hand, and his early death on the other.

He said, describing himself: "I left Medina, and there is no man more knowledgeable than me, so when I came to Syria, I forgot."

Despite his complete preoccupation with politics during his assumption of the caliphate, the interest in science, especially the hadith of the Messenger of God, may God’s prayers and peace be upon him, remained inherent to Omar.

Omar bin Abdul Aziz was known for his justice, piety, and piety, and his succession reminded people of his grandfather Omar bin Al-Khattab (Al-Jazeera)

His mandate is over the Two Holy Mosques

The ruler of Omar bin Abdul Aziz in the year 87 AH was the emirate of Madinah during the reign of his cousin Al-Walid bin Abdul-Malik after his dismissal and its previous governor, who was not of good conduct among its people.

Omar was aware of the social and political nature of the city. As soon as he received the emirate, he initiated the formation of a Shura Council that included the seven jurists of the city and notables from its people who had a social status in it and a prominent political presence.

Among them were Al-Qasim bin Muhammad, Saeed bin Al-Musayyib, Kharijah bin Zaid, Suleiman bin Yasar, Urwa bin Al-Zubayr, Ubaidullah bin Abdullah, Salem bin Abdullah and others, and he specified to them what he wanted from them, and he said: “I have called you for a matter for which you will be rewarded and in which you will be helpers.” On the truth, I do not want to cut off an issue except with your opinion or the opinion of those present among you.

And Omar did not deviate from their opinion, especially if this opinion was of what Saeed bin Al-Musayyab agreed with, and Ibn Al-Musayyib did not enter upon any of the caliphs, except that he used to enter upon Omar and come to him and advise him, remind him and advise him.

Omar at first decided to close the houses of drink and promiscuity, and he was circling the alleys of the city during the day and having fun there at night, observing and observing. To him to meet the needs of the people of the city.

By order of Al-Walid, he expanded the Prophet’s Mosque and included the rooms of the wives of the Prophet, may God’s prayers and peace be upon him, with the exception of the room of Mrs. Aisha, may God be pleased with them all, as he hollowed out his mihrab and raised the minarets on it, so it became a Sunnah in mosques.

During the years of his rule over the Hijaz, the Emir of Hajj remained performing the Hajj, giving sermons to the people, preaching, issuing fatwas, and teaching the people the rituals.

Among his most important exploits during his rule in Medina and the Hijaz was bridging the gap between the ruling authority and Bani Hashim, who were estranged from some of the Umayyad caliphs.

He used to say: “I am ashamed of God that a man from the family of the Prophet, may God’s prayers and peace be upon him, stand at my door and not allow him to enter from his hour.”

And he used to say to them: “By God, the people of a household on the surface of the earth are dearer to me than you, and you are dearer to me than the people of my household.”

And he continued to establish justice as much as he could and remove people’s grievances until al-Hajjaj bin Yusuf al-Thaqafi, who worked for al-Walid in Iraq after he sheltered those who fled from his tyranny to Medina, was fed up with him. about the emirate.

So he left Medina, turning around crying and saying to his servant: "O hustler, we are afraid that we may be among those who banished Medina," referring to the hadith of the Prophet, may God bless him and grant him peace: "The Hour will not come until Medina banishes its evil, just as the bellows banishes the impurity of iron."

succession

Omar arrived in Damascus in an attempt to reform by preventing what he could from the grievances that were bothering him, sensing his responsibility as a member of the ruling family, but he was not in agreement with Al-Walid, so reform attempts remained stalled until Al-Walid died and was succeeded by his brother Suleiman, at which time Omar saw that the opportunity was ripe. For reform and change, and Suleiman was an influencer of the right and a lover of justice, so he sought Omar and appointed him as his advisor.

Among Suleiman’s ministers was also Raja bin Haywa, the righteous scholar who kept urging Suleiman to succeed Umar, until Suleiman once said in the presence of a gathering of the Umayyads: “By God, I will make a contract for them in which Satan will not have a share.”

An imaginary painting of the caliph Omar bin Abdulaziz (communication sites)

Omar was sold to the caliphate in Safar in the year 99 AH, and some of the sons of Abd al-Malik did not like this matter, except that they acquiesced in what they saw of the people’s turnout and their joy in Omar’s succession, and Omar was averse to the matter, desiring him, sensing the weight of responsibility and its burden, and when he addressed the people at first, he removed them from his pledge of allegiance, changed They shouted in one shout: "We have chosen you, O Commander of the Faithful."

The heavy responsibility consumed all of Omar's time and effort, to the extent that his wife, Fatima, used to enter upon him, and he would see him crying, so she would ask him, and he would answer her: "I knew that my Lord would ask me about whom I had appointed over them, and that my opponent, without them, was Muhammad, may God bless him and grant him peace."

And his wife says: “Umar, may God have mercy on him, had emptied himself and his body for the people, and he would sit for them during the day, and if evening came, he would have the rest of his day’s necessities, and he would pray for the night, until evening, and he had finished the necessities of his day, so he called for his saddle, which he used to saddle for him from his money, then he got up and prayed. Two rak’ahs, then he fell down and put his head on his hand, tears flowing down his cheek, heaving a sob, and I said: His breath came out or his liver cracked.

And since he became the ruler of the caliphate, he left pleasures in all their forms, and he is the one who inherited a lot of money from his father, so he lived as an ascetic as any member of his nation.

His approach to his caliphate

In his caliphate, the Commander of the Faithful, Umar bin Abdul Aziz, was keen on 3 things that he saw that his predecessors did not do in the way they should be, which is establishing the truth by adhering to the Book and the Sunnah, applying the Shura, and spreading justice.

Since his first sermon, he announced his clear approach by following the Sunnah of the Holy Prophet, peace be upon him, and the guidance of the Rightly Guided Caliphs, until the famous Al-Hassan Al-Basri, the follower, said: “We have never received a book from Umar bin Abdul-Aziz except by reviving a Sunnah, killing an innovation, or refuting a grievance.”

Then Omar turned to his advisors and ministers, so he expanded the circle of shura to include scholars, righteous people, and people of opinion and advice, and he also prevented poets from entering it.

And he used to send to the people of knowledge and those who were good and righteous among them, consulting them, advising them, and seeking their opinion, among them Maymoon bin Mahran, Raja bin Haywa, and Riah bin Ubaidah Al-Kindi, and among them also Al-Hassan Al-Basri, Salem bin Abdullah, Peacock bin Kisan, and others.

As for justice, the most obvious example of it is what Umar did with his family and clan from among the Umayyads. He revoked the financial privileges that were given to them, and the special livelihoods that were given to them, and made them equal to others from his subjects. Then he said to them one day, when they were too much on him in asking for rights: “By God.” You and the most extreme Muslim man in this matter are the same for me.”

And he often used to judge their opponents in disputes between his family and people, as happened in the case of Muslim bin Abdul Malik and people from Deir Ishaq.

And he made restitution of the grievances committed by his ancestors his religion and policy until the day of his death.

Ishaq bin Abdullah said: "Umar continued to respond to the grievances of Muawiyah until he became caliph."

And his aunt entered him one day interceding for her nephews from whom Umar bin Abdul Aziz extracted money and livelihood, so he went along with her and honored her, except that he refused her intercession, so she returned to her nephews saying: “You marry the Omar family - you mean Ibn Al-Khattab - so if he tends to resemble you, you will be alarmed!! Be patient with him.” .

Ahmed bin Hanbal said, and Omar bin Abdul Aziz mentioned: “It was not the most severe for the Umayyads.”

his death

Omar's policies of extracting money from those who took it unjustly, redressing grievances, and harassing those who profited unfairly provoked the ire of a group of Umayyads, until it prompted them to conspire against him by poisoning his food after they lured his boy with a thousand dinars, and Omar had neglected caution and reservation and refused to guard.

Omar continued to complain about his illness for 20 days, and the poison spread in his blood and killed him slowly until he surrendered the soul to its creator in Rajab in the year 101 AH, and he was under 40 years old, and Maslama bin Abdul Malik prayed for him, and he was buried in Deir Simon near Maarat al-Numan in Syria.

His wife, Fatima bint Abd al-Malik, said when the mourners asked her about his condition in his house: “By God, Omar was not the most of you in prayer or fasting, but by God, I have never seen a servant of God who was more fearful of God than Omar.”

Al-Hassan Al-Basri said when he heard the news of his death: "The best of people died."