Salim, Grandson of Umar ibn al-Khattаb
Let us fast forward to the reign of Umar ibn al-Khattab.
The richest spoils of war, which had fallen to the Muslims after the death of Yazdegerd, the last Persian king, were brought to Medina – the city of the Messenger of God ﷺ. Among the riches they acquired were the crowns of the Persian rulers, adorned with precious stones, their belts embroidered with pearls, and their swords inlaid with rubies and mother-of-pearl. These were treasures of unprecedented beauty.
Besides these valuables, the Muslims also captured numerous Persian prisoners. Among them were Yazdegerd’s three daughters. Ali ibn Abu Talib ransomed them, after which he allowed each of them to choose a husband of their choice from among the best Muslim youths.
One of them chose al-Husayn ibn Ali, the grandson of the Messenger of God ﷺ, and bore him Zayn al-Abidin. The second chose Muhammad, the son of Abu Bakr al-Siddiq, and bore him al-Qasim, one of the seven greatest faqihs (theologians) of Medina. The third chose Abdullah, the son of the Caliph Umar ibn al-Khattab, and bore him Salim, the grandson of al-Faruq, who resembled him more in behavior and character than anyone else.
Let us examine some episodes from the life of Salim, the son of Abdullah ibn Umar ibn al-Khattab.
Salim was born in the radiant city of Medina, where the Messenger of God ﷺ lived and passed away, and which was the place of his migration. His father, who diligently worshipped Allah ﷻ, was indifferent to worldly goods and fasted a lot on hot days, was in charge of his upbringing, and his son adopted from him the good character that he had at one time adopted from his father, Umar ibn al-Khattab.
Salim was also fortunate to learn from companions such as Abu Ayyub al-Ansari, Abu Hurairah, Abu Rafi;, Abu Lubabah, Zayd ibn al-Khattab, not to mention his own father Abdullah ibn Umar.
Very soon, Salim became one of the leaders of the followers of the Companions (Tabi’een), as well as one of the jurists of Medina, to whom the believers turned on religious matters.
The happiest and most well-disposed to the people’s hearts were those governors who consulted Salim ibn Abdullah and followed his advice. Those who disregarded his advice found no peace and did not hold their positions for long.
Let us recall Abd ar-Rahman ibn ad-Dahhak, the governor of Medina during the reign of Yazid ibn Abd al-Malik.
Fatima, the daughter of al-Husayn, was widowed and devoted herself to her children. Abd ar-Rahman ibn ad-Dahhak proposed to her. She said, “By Allah, I do not wish to marry.” She was left alone with the children and devoted herself to them.
He insisted, but she made excuses as best she could, trying not to offend him, for she feared that otherwise he might harm her.
Realising that she did not wish to marry him, Abd ar-Rahman said, “If you do not wish to marry me, then I will take your eldest son and have him flogged for drinking wine!”
She turned to Salim ibn Abdullah, who advised her to write to the Caliph (ruler of the Muslims) complaining about his viceroy, mentioning her relationship with the Messenger of God ﷺ and her connection with the rest of his family.
She wrote the letter to the Caliph and sent a messenger with it to Damascus. Hardly had the messenger departed with the letter when the treasurer, Ibn Hurmuz, received an order from the Caliph to report to him. Ibn Hurmuz began visiting those who had rights over him. He also visited Fatima bint al-Husayn. He said to her, “I am going to Damascus. Do you need anything?”
She replied, “Yes... Inform the Commander of the Faithful of how Ibn al-Dahhak is treating me and how he is offending me...”
Ibn Hurmuz regretted visiting her. He did not want to convey her complaint against Ibn al-Dahhak to the Caliph. Ibn Hurmuz arrived in Damascus on the same day as Fatima’s messenger, who was carrying her letter to the Caliph.
When Ibn Hurmuz entered the Caliph’s presence, the latter began questioning him about events in Medina.
“Has anything happened that I should know about? Do you have any important news?”
Ibn Hurmuz told him nothing about Fatima bint al-Husayn’s story.
And so, while he was reporting to the Caliph, the gatekeeper entered and said, “May Allah bless the Sovereign...” A messenger from Fatima bint al-Husayn arrived.
Ibn Hurmuz’s face changed and he said, “May Allah bless the Sovereign’s life be long. Indeed, Fatima bint al-Husayn commanded me to convey something to you.”
And he told him her story.
After listening to Ibn Hurmuz, the Caliph rose from his bed and exclaimed, “May your mother be deprived of you! Did not I ask you about Medina and the events that took place there? You had such news, and you hid it from me?!”
Ibn Hurmuz began to justify himself, saying that he had forgotten.
Then the Caliph ordered Fatima’s messenger admitted. Taking the letter from him, he broke the seal and began to read. His eyes seemed to flash with anger. He began to pound the ground with the staff he held and exclaimed, “Ibn ad-Dahhak has dared to insult the family of the Messenger of God ﷺ! Who will punish him so severely in Medina that I will hear his cries here in Damascus?”
They said to him, “There is such a man, O Commander of the Faithful... Abd al-Wahid ibn Bishr al-Nadri must be sent to Medina. Appoint him governor. He is now in Ta’if.”
The Caliph said, “Very well. By Allah ﷻ, I will do so. He is a suitable man.”
He ordered the paper to be brought and wrote in his own hand: “From the Commander of the Faithful, Yazid ibn Abd al-Malik, to Abd al-Wahid ibn Bishr al-Nadri. Peace be upon you! Truly, I have appointed you governor of Medina, and when you receive my letter, go to Medina and remove Ibn ad-Dahhak from this position. Fine him forty thousand dinars and punish him so severely that I can hear his voice coming from Medina.”
The messenger took the letter and hurried to Ta’if. His route lay through Medina. Upon reaching Medina, he did not stop to see Ibn ad-Dahhak or greet him. The governor suspected something was wrong. He sent to the messenger and invited him to his house. When he arrived, he asked him about the reason for his visit. The messenger told him nothing. Then Ibn ad-Dahhak lifted the edge of his bed and said, “Look...”
He looked and saw a whole sack of dinars.
The governor said, “I swear to you by Allah ﷻ that I will give you this money if you tell me what errand you were sent on. And I will not tell anyone about this.”
The messenger told him everything. Ibn ad-Dahhak gave him the money and said, “Wait three days until I reach Damascus, and then carry out the errand you have been given.”
Ibn ad-Dahhak rode at full speed to Damascus. There he visited the Caliph’s brother, Maslama ibn Abd al-Malik, a magnanimous man. Appearing before him, Ibn ad-Dahhak said, “I seek your protection and patronage!”
He replied, “Hope for the best... But what happened?”
Ibn ad-Dahhak said, “The Commander of the Faithful wants revenge on me for the mistake I made...”
Maslama went to Yazid and said, “I need something from the Commander of the Faithful.”
Yazid replied, “I will fulfill any request you make, as long as it does not involve Ibn ad-Dahhak.”
Maslama said, “That is precisely what I came to talk about.”
Yazid said, “By Allah ﷻ, he will never receive my forgiveness!”
Maslama asked, “But what did he do?”
Yazid said, “He offended Fatima bint al-Husayn, threatened her, and caused her anxiety and sorrow.”
Maslama said, “Then deal with him as you see fit, O Commander of the Faithful.”
Yazid said, “Command him to return to Medina, and let the new governor of Medina fulfill the order I gave him regarding Ibn ad-Dahhak. Let this be a lesson to the other governors.”
The people of Medina were overjoyed at the arrival of the new governor. They were pleased with the decisiveness with which he carried out the Caliph’s order regarding Ibn ad-Dahhak.
They then became even more attached to him when they saw that he acted righteously and did nothing without consulting al-Qasim ibn Muhammad (the grandson of Abu Bakr ) and Salim ibn Abdullah ibn Umar.
