By Asma Anjum Khan
He was the second caliph of the Muslims who didn’t live in a big mansion, like his predecessors.
He would be found sleeping under a tree in hot summers. Someone from outside Madinah would be surprised to find him thus. But as a matter of fact this happened often. The grand Caliph would feel tired running after and searching for camels from the state treasury, then he would find some rest under a tree.
Such simplicity today seems unbelievable.
H.Umar Farooque RA is one of the most esteemed and interesting personalities of Islam.
Some say democracy and Islam have nothing to do with each other. While a clear reading without prejudice is all that it needs to inform us, that is not the truth,
In the incident below we find the seeds of democracy buried in and all those who say Islam is not democratic can modify their views if they choose to.
It so happened that….
Once a load of chaddors ( bedsheets) arrived in Madinah from somewhere.
All were distributed one for one person living in Madinah.
When during the week Umar RA went to masjid on a jumma , a sort of unusual argument happened between him, his son and a questioner from the crowd.
The reason?
The reason was Umar’s abaya, his cloak.
Umar ‘s abaya was freshly and brilliantly stitched with the help of those large chaddors.
But how could one chador be enough for his large stature? He was a tall and well -built man.
Umar RA had been asked to stitch an abaya ,long flowy kurta, of the chaddor , but him being a very tall well built man the chaddor was not enough for his kind of physical stature.
Yet his gown got stitched.
How?
You will know, read further.
He wore the new gown , thanked his Allah and went to deliver his jummah khutbah; as the leader of the Muslims has the duty of delivering a weekly address to the Muslims every Friday afternoon.
A common man call him Aam aadmi, from the gathering in the masjid , got up even before Umar RA could start speaking and pointed his arrow towards the caliph. Caliph was, you call call him, sort of Prime Minister.
The questioner from the crowd, a common man, asked Umar, his leader,
“How could you get your abaya stitched , when you also got one chador like us?”
The man was right. Justice was the norm. Even Caliph Umar had received only one piece of Chaddor like the rest of the citizens.
Hence, the question and the questioner.
What was being implied here in the august gathering of men at the holy mosque of Madinah as is obvious, was corruption.
So had Umar taken ‘one chador more ‘ for himself? While the rest of the Muslims had received only one?
How could this be possible?
Justice was the norm in that Medinan society.
And did you notice the dare devilry of the questioner to get up in the gathering and pose the question directly to his Caliph, i.e. his leader?
This is, folks, the true democracy where, even the most ordinary of the persons had the courage to pose a question to the supreme authority, without fearing of consequences.
In fact there were no consequences, muslims could question their leaders, demand to know the details of whatever was happening at the time.
Here you can imagine, your own dear irresponsible systems of justice, but at your own peril.
Now coming back;
Did Umar being, the Prime Minister steal one more chaddor when everyone else got only one?
Was the question. Perhaps in most minds.
Because it was obvious to everyone present, that Umar’s abaya would not fit into one chador. Him being very tall and stout.
One can imagine the thunder in the Friday crowd gathered ‘to listen’ patiently to their leader; not like us today who rush out of our well-built masjids to have a bite of our favourite biryanis and qormas, post jumma khutbah.
Now let’s focus on this rare drama happening on a jumma some one thousand four hundred years ago.
The man angrily asked if the supreme leader “ had stolen” the second chador for himself?
Imagine!
The supreme authority being accused of theft by a common man.
No no, don’t imagine…Please don’t.
Just chill. Read and forget. Be as numb as possible.
Our collective habit is difficult to abandon for us.
H. Umar RA started crying hearing this.
Wonder he didn’t order to cut off the throat of the callous questioner.
After a brief and very difficult pause, Abdullah the son of Umar got up and revealed the secret behind this alleged corruption.
Abdullah informed the august gathering that when he saw his father struggling to stitch his abaya with his one chador unsuccessfully, he gifted him his own share of chador to him. And Umar’s abaya got stitched , now comfortably.
Umarthe Caliph after controlling his emotions, appreciated the one who raised the doubt about him stealing a chaddor, for this sensible question, and said,
“As long as people like you exist, we have amaan ( to live in safety.)
Wonder he didn’t send the man to the gallows for daring to ask a question to him the Prime Minister.
This is how truedemocracy works where the supreme authority stands equal with the rest of the citizens.
Umar further added that As long as, such fearless people who have the courage to question the authority ; the people(community) shall remain in peace.
A sensible reader would find lots of nuances for and of democracy in this incident. But as most of us have turned into dumb asses in the last few years, expectation criteria falls low.
Go and grab your next OTT with hot coffee. Have it cold , better for you, you and your sensitivities are cold.
The incident of Umar RA shows, most of all the ability the courage the audacity of the Aam Aadmi to question the highest authority.
This is what true democracy is and should be and secondly and most importantly, the higher authority appreciates the questioner and welcomes him and didn’t send him to the gallows.
But Umar was Umar, he wanted to resolve the situation in his own way of truth. He asked the man who questioned him, what in case,
had he found him guilty of stealing one chador from the state treasury?
The questioner was also one of his kind, he replied,
“Had we found you stealing the chaddor or misbehaving with us for our questions,” the subject of that young state, he said,
“ we would have straightened you with our arrows!”
(Yatha Raja , tatha Praja) ‘यथा राजा तथा प्रजा’
But what we see today is a spectacle of public and private sentiments. Ramadan has arrived. Can we from this year, try to be authentic in our speech and behaviour?
Let’s pledge so.
But what have we been doing now ; drawing our half torn chaddors more closely over us and pretending to sleep?
But not before our OTTs.
Shubh Ratri
Asma Anjum Khan teaches English , attempting and is tempted to write
28 February 2025
Source: countercurrents.org