If you have known me for a while, I am sure you know that I am not a feminist. There are certain things that we have to live with and our gender is one of em…obviously unless u are a transgender.

Talking to a lot of working women (being one of em myself), I have often felt that working women tend to be in a far greater pressure, not only from ppl at work but also from the family, as compared to men. They not only have to fulfill their role at office but also have to take care of their parents, husbands, get pregnant and then also take care of their children, finally making it more difficult for them to be really  good at each and everything, being guilty about it and finally creating even more pressure on themselves.

I just found a very interesting article which talks about this very same issue that women deal with literally every day of their lives. A must read.

The First Fitnah (part 6)

Please read this if you havent.

Hazrat Abu Bakar Siddiq (RA)

Hazrat Omar (RA)

Hazrat Usman (RA)

The First Fitnah: Part 1, Part 2, Part 3, Part 4, Part 5

As the body of the Caliph laid vulnerable on the ground, one of the assassins sat on his chest and attacked him further. On seeing this, Hazrat Usman’s (RA) wife threw herself on her husband’s body trying to save him from further indignity, losing two of her fingers in the process but there were further blows tohis body. The rebels wanted to mutilate his body and deny burial but they were deterred by the crying and wailing of Hazrat Usman’s (RA) wife. As she sat there embracing her husband’s body tightly, crying, the rebels looted the house and left.

It is known that the rebels did not let the Caliph to be buried at Jannat ul Baqi. Instead, he was buried in a Jewish graveyard adjacent to Jannat ul Baqi.

Note: This should been part of the previous post but I was shivering and my fingers felt numb. I had no option but to leave this for later.

Heroes

I did a post a while back with the same name, I wish I found this video back then.

The First Fitnah (part 5)

Please read this if you havent.

Hazrat Abu Bakar Siddiq (RA)

Hazrat Omar (RA)

Hazrat Usman (RA)

The First Fitnah: Part 1, Part 2, Part 3, Part 4

The Umayyads were proving themselves to be very talented and even the biggest critics could not complain about their generals hip as the empire continued to expand on all frontiers but this clearly did not extend to allowing one clan to monopolise the command of all the armies of Islam. Hazrat Usman (RA) ws privately warned by various Sahabas and Umm-ul-Momineen that he must not allow his immediate kinsmen to be seen to be dominating the Islamic Empire.

A revlutionary ferment of dissatisaction was brewing up especially in Kufa and Fustat. It is believed that many people with personal grudges against Hazrat Usman (RA) exploited this sentiment and they were soon joined by some young people who supported the right of Hazrat Ali (RA) to be a Caliph. It is known that Hazrat Ali (RA) himself stayed away from this whole affair as much as he could.

When Hazrat Usman (RA) found out about it, the 82 year old Caliph, decided to investigate the matter. During the Hajj o that year, led by Hazrat Usman (RA) himself, he called for an informal meeting with all his key governors and advisors to discuss the troubled times. Many recommended to go on a war against those who had gone against the Caliph but Hazrat Usman (RA) was a pacifist and could not agree to spill blood of Muslims. Some even recommended brutally that he should leave the office to which he replied, “I cannot take off a dress in which Allah (SWT) has dressed me.” So he decided to find another and more peaceful solution to the problem.

The rebels had already formed three different armed bases in and around Medina and sent deputations to three different Sahabas including Hazrat Ali (RA). At first all of them rebuked the rebels from entering the holy city and refused to have anything to do with them. Finally, Hazrat Ali (RA) decided to act as a counsellor and advised Hazrat Usman (RA) to sack the governor of Egypt, something that was supported by Hazrat Aisha (RA) too. The people of Egypt wanted Mohammed ibn Abu Bakar (who was brought up in Hazrat Ali’s (RA) home) to be the new governor. Hazrat Usman (RA) agreed and the rebels decided to go back to their city.

Just three days later on their march back to Fustat, they saw an African slave who had a letter for them which had the new seal of the Caliph. The letter was for the sacked governor and ordered him to kill the rebels on their return to the city. At this, they felt betrayed and decided to march back into Medina.

Once again Hazrat Ali (RA) acted as the arbitrator. Hazrat Usman (RA) informed Hazrat Ali (RA) that he had no knowledge of the letter. Although the mystery surrounding the letter has never been solved but it is a common belief that it was written by Marwan ibn al-Hakam (a cousin of Hazrat Usman (RA), who also later became a Caliph) or perhaps was a maination of Amr ibn al-As (also an Umayyad sacked from governorship of Egypt much earlier).

Hazrat Usman (RA) decided to address the people at Friday prayers but the sermon was never to be completed as the rebels started pelting stones at the old Caliph who had to be taken to the safety of his house through the angry mob, never to be able to step outside the house before his death.

Hazrat Ali (RA), Hazrat Talha (RA) and Hazrat Zubair (RA) each appointed one of their sons to guard the Caliph. As the days passed, the rebels intensified their pressure against Hazrat Usman and also forbade the entry of any food or provisions, and later water as well, into his house, even turning down the Umm-ul-Momineen.

A few days later, the rebels entered the house. It is believed that Hazrat Iman Hasan (AS) got injured while trying to stop the rebels from entering but was unable to stop the inevitable from happening. Hazrat Usman (RA) had already ordered his guards not to relataliate anymore. He was alone in his room, reading from a copy of the Qur’an when the rebels found him right after the Friday prayers. One of the rebels, commonly blelieved to be Mohammed ibn Abu Bakar, grabbed the old Caliph with his beard who cried out, “Son of my brother, your father would not have touched what you have grabbed in your hand.” On hearing this, Mohammed ibn Abu Bakar pierced Hazrat Usman’s (RA) forehead while another rebel thrust behind his ear so that its point emerged hrough his throat spilling blood on the opened copy of the Qur’an.

Hazat Usman (RA) III

Please read this if you havent.

The First Fitnah

Hazrat Abu Bakar Siddiq (RA)

Hazrat Omar (RA)

Hazrat Usman (RA) Part 1

Hazrat Usman (RA) Part 2

Right after Hazrat Usman’s (RA) appointment as the Caliph, his first assignment was to decide upon the fate of Ubaidullah ibn Omar who had killed a few people in an attempt to take revenge for his father’s death. Ubaidullah ibn Omar had been imprisoned for the act and Hazrat Usman (RA) decided that execution of Hazrat Omar’s (RA) son would only infuriate people. Thus, the incident was settled after long negotiations and by giving blood money to the victims. This was perhaps the first incident which instilled negativity against Hazrat Usman (RA) amongst the Persians settled in Medina.

Right after the death of Hazrat Omar (RA), there was a rebellion in many of the conquered territories to such an extent that those regions had to be reconquered. Although this was a taxing time, it helped the Muslim army develop in a lot of different ways, the most important being the formation of the first naval force (headed by Amir Muawiah) which aided in a grand victory against Byzantine forces.

It is known that Hazrat Usman (RA) preferred people from the Umayyad Clan (his cousins) for authrotative ranks, most of them being very well educated, efficient and skillful but this went against him in the worst possible manner. People started to blame him for nepotism. And although this sentiment had been there all along, specifically among the Ansars, it only turned into a rebellion activism after first 6 years* of his reign in tranquility. A lot of the people started complaining about the ostentatious display of wealth by the ruling class and the leniency shown by Hazrat Usman (RA) towards this. Many anonymous letters were written to the leading Sahabas complaining about the alleged tyranny of Hazrat Usman’s (RA) appointed governors leading to unrest in the Empire. It is still unknown who wrote those letters but they were being used to exploit the sentiments and played a major role in creating further rifts and misunderstandings.

While Sunnis believe this to be a tactic used by miscreants to overthrow the realm of Hazrat Usman (RA), by making him lose control over some provinces where he had appointed some of his closest relatives for loyalty’s sake, Shias suggest that although they had achieved success as governors, they had failed to lead the people according to the principles of Islam.

* An incident in the seventh year of his Caliphate changed everything and the young Islamic Empire ended up in a civil war which shapes up the world that we live in now. Hazrat Usman (RA), as always, was concerned about the water supplies for the people and was directing a team of workers over deepening of a well in Medina. As he leant over the wall and pointed towards a stone that needed further reinforcement. At just that mment, an old ring slipped from his finger and fell down into the well. It was no ordinay ring, it was the seal of the Prophet (SAW). Over the next few weeks, the well was searched, with the well being emptied, the mud cleaned out again and again. The seal of the Prophet (SAW) had been lost and, although, it still sounds superstitious, it marked the start of the worst that had to come.

Hazrat Usman (RA) Part 4

Hazrat Usman (RA) II

Please read this if you havent.

The First Fitnah

Hazrat Abu Bakar Siddiq (RA)

Hazrat Omar (RA)

Hazrat Usman (RA) Part 1

Right after the death of Hazrat Omar (RA), the most important issue was to elect a new Caliph who would be worthy enough to fill the space that had been left void. According to Tabari, Caliph Omar (RA) had prescribed a maximum of 3 day period to choose the next Caliph after his death from amongst the 6 people (the shura) that he had nominated. He wanted to ensure complete consensus on the selection of the next Caliph and, according to some narrations, ordered his son to kill anyone who would disagree with the rest 5 people in the group.

According to the Sunnis, there was a tie three candidates: Hazrat Usman (RA), Imam Ali (AS) and Hazrat Abdul Rehman bin Awf (RA). Hazrat Usman (RA) voted in favor of Hazrat Ali (RA) and Hazrat Ali (RA) voted in favor of Hazrat Usman (RA) and it was then that Hazrat Abdul Rehman (RA) withdrew his candidature. The tie remained and the next Caliph had to be decided by Hazrat Abdul Rehman’s (RA) vote. He favored Hazrat Usman (RA) and gave his oath of allegiance to Hazrat Usman (RA). Everyone else followed making Hazrat Usman (RA) the new caliph.

According to Shias, the election should not have taken place at all and also refute that Hazrat Ali (RA) gave his allegiance to Hazrat Usman (RA).

It was a surprise victory for Hazrat Usman (RA). He was already quite old and his soft, modest nature was did not seem to be a match for Hazrat Omar’s rigour and zeal. He knew he a had tough task ahead to win the hearts of war-hardened Muslims. But he had plans for certain reforms:

One of the first things that he did was to increase the stipend of war widows and also devised mechanisms for collection and distribution of zakaat. He used the skills that he had learned as a successful trader and lifted the ban placed by Hazrat Omar (RA) on the sale of agricultural lands in occupied territories. He developed a ‘filing system’ whereby each every correspondance was efficiently documented, even from the time of Hazrat Omar (RA) and it was during his Caliphate that the first Muslim coins were introduced. As the business flourished and money started to flow in for the Muslims, the strict austere measures ensured by Hazrat Omar (RA) started to relax. He allowed Muslims to construct large, lavish buildings and  also own more property than they needed for their own personal use. Although it was a move to make the muslims more affluent, it shattered Hazrat Omar’s (RA)  desire to keep the muslims sternly austere. It is a well known fact that a small group of Sahabas stayed away from all the luxuries and stayed in their simple houses in Medina.

Hazrat Usman’s (RA) reign as a Caliph saw the construction of 5 new mosques and an extension of both Masjid-ul-Haram and Masjid-al-Nabawi. One of his greatest contributions ever would be the copy of Quran that we have today. Although it had been carefully compiled during the reign of Hazrat Abu Bakar (RA), its only copy was with Hazrat Hafsa (RA). During his reign, several Muslim centers started to develop their own versions of the Qur’an and Hazrat Usman (RA) feared that the changes would lead to much greater problems in the future. Thus, he got several different copies of the Qur’an developed from Hazrat Hafsa’s (RA) copy and sent each one of them to different cities. All different versions of the Qur’an were burnt.

Hazrat Usman (RA) part III

Hazrat Usman (RA) I

Please read this if you havent.

The First Fitnah

Hazrat Abu Bakar Siddiq (RA)

Hazrat Omar (RA)

Hazrat Usman (RA) was an elegant, literate and cultivated merchant prince who had always been very good looking. He was a broad shouldered man of medium height with his face framed by a magnificent beard and locks that cascaded down below his ears. It is said that he was ‘golden mouthed’ as his teeth had been bound with fine wires of gold, something which was seen as a symbol of status at that time.

He was born into Mecca’s most powerful clan: the Abd Shams. It is believed that he was born in Taif where his parents went every year to spend the summers which served as summer hill station for the very wealthy meccans. He was also amongst the tiny minority of fully educated literate people. He was known to be an outstanding businessman and negotiator making him a desirable match for anyone’s daughter. Given his background, it is astonishing that he was one of the 6 early reverts as he had nothing to gain, in terms of worldly gains, and everything to loose by becoming a muslim. Soon after his reversion, his rich and beautiful wives deserted him, and he subsequently, having no other option, divorced them. He later married the Prophet’s (SAW) daughter Bibi Ruqayyah (RA) who had been divorced by her husband (Utbah ibn Abu Lahab) for being the Prophet’s (SAW) daughter.

The two migrated to Abyssinia and stayed there for a while where Bibi Ruqayyah (RA) gave birth to a baby boy, Abdullah, who died when he was only two years old. This tragedy affected Bibi Ruqayyah (RA) to such an extent that she was never able to conceive again.

After the migration of Muslima to Medina, he migrated to Medina as well with his family and his wealth continued to be a great source of relief for the Muslims. The Meccans not being used to the weather of Medina were susceptible to fevers and Bibi Ruqayyah (RA) was no exception. This was around the period of Badr war. It is said that as the Muslims celebrated their victory at the wells of Badr, Bibi Ruqayyah (RA) was taking her last breaths. When the Prophet (SAW) returned, all he saw was his daughter’s cold body ready to be buried.

Soon after the death of Bibi Ruqayyah (RA), the Prophet (SAW) betrothed Bibi Umm Kulthum (RA)*, his third daughter, upon Hazrat Usman (RA) as he had been an exceptionally considereate husband to Bibi Raqayyah (RA). For this, it is said, Hazrat Usman (RA) was referred to as Dhun Nurain** (the owner of two lights) by the Prophet (SAW) himself.

Hazrat Usman (RA) was compassionate and generous. He was not a warrior, in fact, he tried to stay away from battles as much as he could, but he managed his business and administrive efficiency along with charity, prayer and a fulfilling and loving family life.

*Bibi Umm Kulthum (RA) was married to and later divorced by Utaibah ibn Abu Lahab for the same reason for which Bibi Ruqayyah (RA) was divorced.

**The Shias believe that Hazrat Faitmah (RA) was the only biological daughter of the Prophet (SAW) and the first three daugters were Hazrat Khadija’s (RA) daughters from earlier marriages.

Hazrat Usman (RA) Part 2

Schism Revisited

When I started this series, I just didnt know how difficult its gonna be. Its a huge responsibility which means I have to cross check each and everything that I write in at least 4-5 books, all from different fiqhs to make sure that it is something acceptable to all. At times I have even tried to write about 2-3 different variations that I have read about the same incident. Secondly, I am talking about people we greatly love and revere. Obviously, watever I am writing might be offensive as well but it was not only about being offensive….it was emotionaly exhausting and I discontinued writing it just 10 days after I started writing the series. In the last 6 months or so I have done only 5 posts on the topic and have left the most controversial topics for later.
I have now decided to continue with the series and if you have read it till now, you know that the narration is now reaching a point from where onwards all I would be talking about would be misunderstandings, tragedies, wars, bloodshed and the actual advent of schism.
This will be a difficult ride for me and if I disappear all of a sudden, you can assume that I just had no option but to get away from it.
There shall be a post on the topic for every 2-3 days from now for a while. The first post is already here