English translation
6830. Narrated Ibn ‘Abbās رضي الله عنهما I used to teach (the Qur’ān to) some people of the Muhājirin (emigrants), among whom there was ‘Abdur-Rahmān bin ‘Auf. While I was in his house at Mina, and he was with ‘Umar bin Al-Khaṭṭāb during ‘Umar’s last Hajj, ‘Abdur-Rahmān came to me and said, “Would that you had seen the man who came today to the Chief of the believers (‘Umar), saying, ‘O Chief of the believers! What do you think about so-and-so who says: ‘If ‘Umar should die, I will give the Bai’a (pledge) to such-and-such person, as by Allāh, the Bai’a to Abū Bakr was nothing but a prompt sudden action which got established afterwards.’ ‘Umar became angry and then said, ‘If Allāh will, I will stand before the people tonight and warn them against those people who want to deprive others of their rights (the question of rulership).’” ‘Abdur-Rahmān said, “I said, ‘O Chief of the believers! Do not do that, for the season of Hajj gathers the riffraff and the rabble, and it will be they who will gather around you when you stand to address the people. And I am afraid that you will get up and say something, and some people will
spread your statement and may not say what you have actually said and may not understand its meaning, and may interpret it incorrectly, so you should wait till you reach Al-Madina as it is the place of emigration and the place of Prophet's Sunna; and there you can come in touch with the learned and noble people, and tell them your ideas with confidence, and the learned people will understand your statement and put it in its proper place.' On that, 'Umar said 'By Allāh! If Allāh will, I will do this in the first speech I will deliver before the people in Al-Madina.'" Ibn 'Abbās added: We reached Al-Madīna by the end of the month of Dhūl-Hijja, and when it was Friday, we went quickly (to the mosque) as soon as the sun had declined, and I saw Sa'īd bin Zaid bin 'Amr bin Nufail sitting at the corner of the pulpit, and I, too, sat close to him so that my knee was touching his knee, and after a short while, 'Umar bin Al-Khaṭṭāb came out, and when I saw him coming towards us, I said to Sa'īd bin Zaid bin 'Amr bin Nufail, "Today, 'Umar will say such a thing as he has never said since he was chosen as caliph." Sa'īd denied my statement with astonishment and said, "What thing do you expect 'Umar to say the like of which he has never said before?" In the meantime, 'Umar sat down on the pulpit and when the Muadh-dhin had finished their call for Ṣalāt (prayer), 'Umar stood up, and having glorified and praised Allāh, as He deserved, he said, "Amma Ba'du (then after), I am going to tell you something which (Allāh) has written for me to say. I do not know; perhaps it portends my death, so whoever understands and remembers it, must narrate it to the others wherever his mount takes him, but if somebody is afraid that he does not understand it, then it is
unlawful for him to tell lies about me. Allāh sent Muḥammad ﷺ with the Truth and revealed the Book (the Qur'ān) to him, and among what Allāh revealed, was the Verse of the Rajm (the stoning to death) of married person (male and female) who commits illegal sexual intercourse, and we did recite this Verse and understood and memorized it. Allāh's Messenger ﷺ did carry out the punishment of stoning and so did we after him. I am afraid that after a long time has passed, somebody will say, 'By Allāh, we do not find the Verse of the Rajm in Allāh's Book,' and thus they will go astray by leaving an obligation which Allāh has revealed. And the punishment of the Rajm is to be inflicted to any married person (male and female) who commits illegal sexual intercourse if the required evidence is available or there is conception or confession. And then we used to recite among the Verses in Allāh's Book: 'O people! Do not claim to be the offspring of other than your fathers, as it is disbelief on your part that you claim to be the offspring of other than your real father.' Then Allāh's Messenger ﷺ said, 'Do not praise me excessively as (Prophet) Ṣā'ī bin Maryam (Jesus, son of Mary) was praised, but call me Allāh's slave and His Messenger'. (O people!) I have been informed that a speaker amongst you says, 'By Allāh, if 'Umar should die, I will give the Bai'a (pledge) to such and such person.' One should not deceive oneself by saying that the Bai'a given to Abū Bakr was given suddenly and it was successful. No doubt, it was like that, but Allāh saved (the people) from its evil, and there is none among you who has the qualities of Abū Bakr. Remember that whoever gives the Bai'a to anybody among you without consulting the other Muslims, neither that person, nor the
person to whom the Bai'a was given are to be supported, lest they both should be killed. And no doubt, after the death of the Prophet ﷺ we were informed that the Anṣār disagreed with us and gathered in the shed of Bani Sā'ida. 'Ali and Az-Zubair, and whoever was with them, opposed us, while the emigrants gathered with Abū Bakr. I said to Abū Bakr, 'Let's go to these Anṣār brothers of ours.' So we set out seeking them, and when we approached them, two of their pious men met us and informed us of the final decision of the Anṣār, and said, 'O group of Muhājirīn (emigrants)! Where are you going?' We replied, 'We are going to these Anṣār brothers of ours.' They said to us, 'You shouldn't go near them. Carry out whatever we have already decided.' I said, 'By Allāh, we will go to them.' And so we proceeded until we reached them at the shed of Bani Sā'ida. Behold! There was a man sitting amongst them, wrapped in something. I asked, 'Who is that man?' They said, 'He is Sa'd bin 'Ubāda'. I asked, 'What is wrong with him?' They said, 'He is sick.' After we sat for a while, the Anṣār's speaker said, 'Lā lāha illallāh (none has the right to be worshipped but Allāh)' and praising Allāh as He deserved, he added, 'Amma Bī' du, we are Allāh's Anṣār (helpers) and the majority of the Muslim army, while you, the emigrants, are a small group and some people among you came with the intention of preventing us from practising this matter (of caliphate) and depriving us of it.' When the speaker had finished, I intended to speak as I had prepared speech which I liked and which I wanted to deliver in the presence of Abū Bakr, and I used to avoid provoking him. So, when I wanted to speak, Abū Bakr said, 'Wait a while.' I disliked to make him angry. So Abū Bakr himself gave a speech,
and he was wiser and more patient than I. By Allāh, he never missed a sentence that I liked in my own prepared speech, but he said the like of it or better than it spontaneously. After a pause he said, 'O Anṣār! You deserve all (the qualities) that you have attributed to yourselves, but this question (of caliphate) is only for the Quraish as they are the best of the Arabs as regards their descent and homeland, and I am pleased to suggest that you choose either of these two men, so give the Bai'a to either of them as you wish. And then Abū Bakr held my hand and Abū 'Ubāida bin Al-Jarrāh's hand who was sitting amongst us. I hated nothing of what he had said except that proposal, for by Allāh, I would rather have my neck chopped off as expiation for a sin than become the ruler of a nation, one of whose member is Abū Bakr, unless at the time of my death my ownself suggests something I don't feel at present.' And then one of the Anṣār said, 'I am the pillar on which the camel with a skin disease (eczema) rubs itself to satisfy the itching (i.e., I am a noble), and I am as a high class palm-tree! O Quraish, there should be one ruler from us and one from you.' Then there was a hue and cry among the gathering and their voices rose so that I was afraid there might be great disagreement, so I said, 'O Abū Bakr! Hold your hand out.' He held his hand out and I gave the Bai'a to him, and then all the emigrants gave the Bai'a and so did the Anṣār afterwards. And so we became victorious over Sa'd bin 'Ubāda (whom Al-Anṣār wanted to make a ruler). One of the Anṣār said, 'You have killed(1) Sa'd bin 'Ubāda.' I replied, 'Allāh has killed Sa'd bin 'Ubāda.'" Umar added, "By Allāh, apart from the great tragedy that had happened to us (i.e.,
the death of the Prophet ﷺ), there was no greater problem than the Bai'a given to Abū Bakr because we were afraid that if we left the people, they might give the Bai'a after us to one of their men, in which case we would have given them our consent for something against our real wish, or would have opposed them and caused great trouble. So, if any person gives the Bai'a to somebody (to become a caliph) without consulting the other Muslims, then the one he has selected should not be given the Bai'a lest both of them should be killed."
