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6. Hadith Al-Qadha, An Age Of Jungle Justice III

Thekhalifah of Muslims is their supreme judge on every aspect of their religion, like the Messenger of Allah. As such, Muslims are required to refer all their religious problems and disputes to him for judgment, and his verdicts are binding over them. This function necessitates that thekhalifah be the most knowledgeable of theUmmah throughout his administration. Otherwise, he would be unfit for the grand office. Issuing correct religious verdicts on all types of religious questions and disputes, from all persons of all calibres, certainly requires unparalleled knowledge.

During his rule, a man came to ‘Umar b. al-Khaṭṭab with his personal religious problem. Imam Muslim (d. 261 H) records about how thekhalifah handled it:

حدثني عبدالله بن هاشم العبدي حدثنا يحيى (يعني ابن سعيد القطان) عن شعبة قال حدثني الحكم عن ذر عن سعيد بن عبدالرحمن بن أبزي عن أبيه أن رجلا أتى عمر فقال :إني أجنبت فلم أجد ماء فقال لا تصل فقال عمار أما تذكر يا أمير المؤمنين إذ أنا وأنت في سرية فأجنبنا فلم نجد ماء فأما أنت فلم تصل وأما أنا فتمعكت في التراب وصليت فقال النبي صلى الله عليه و سلم إنما كان يكفيك أن تضرب بيديك الأرض ثم تنفخ ثم تمسح بهما وجهك وكفيك فقال عمر اتق الله يا عمار قال إن شئت لم أحدث به

‘Abd Allah b. Hisham al-‘Abdi – Yahya b. Sa’id al-Qaṭṭan – Shu’bah – al-Hakam – Dharr – Sa’id b. ‘Abd al-Rahman b. Abza – his father:

A man came to 'Umar and said: “I have seminal discharges and I cannot find water (to do the ghusl)”. He (‘Umar) said, “Do not perform Salat.” So, ‘Ammar said, “Do you remember, OAmir al-Muminin , when I and you were in a military detachmentand we had seminal discharges and could not find water and you (‘Umar) did not perform the Salat. As for me, I rolled myself in dust and performed theSalat . So, the Prophet, peace be upon him, said, “It was enough for you to strike the soil with your hands and then blow and then wipe your face and palms”.Umar said: “Fear Allah, O Ammar!” Therefore, he (‘Ammar) replied,“If you so like, I would not narrate it” .83

There are some really interesting facts in this narration:

‘Umar and Ammar,radhiyallahu ‘anhu , were both together in a military detachment, and they had seminal discharges.

Ammar rolled himself in the soil in order to cleanse himself forSalat , due to a lack of water. He had no divine guidance for the act. It was only his intuition.

‘Umar, on his part, completely refrained from offering anySalat as long as he could not find water.

Both recounted their experiences to the Messenger of Allah,sallallahu ‘alaihi wa alihi , who taught themtayammum as the correct step should they encounter a similar situation.

During ‘Umar’s rule, a man came to him with the same problem that he personally had gone through. But, rather than offer to him the solution oftayammum as taught by the Prophet, ‘Umar instructed the man with his own initial wrong step!

‘Ammar attempted to remind ‘Umar of the Sunnah in such situations. But, the latter simply did not want to hear about it!

There are a number of questions here. First and foremost, did ‘Umar deliberately reject the Sunnah or not? This depends upon whether he actually remembered the incident involving him and ‘Ammar. If he did, and still gave the ruling that he gave, then he would have been contemptuous of the Sunnah. Moreover, even if he had completely forgotten it, why did he not act on ‘Ammar’s reminder? From the look of it, he was not convinced by ‘Ammar’s narration. He most probably had very serious doubts about the accuracy of ‘Ammar’shadith . Therefore, he saw no real reason to alter his decision on the matter.

So, the best-case scenario is that ‘Umar had absolutely forgotten the incident oftayammum , which involved him personally and directly. In addition, when ‘Ammar attempted to revive his memory of the event, he had grave trust issues with the latter’s report. Therefore, he did not remember, and there was no other reliable source to bring back his memories of the incident. The worst-case scenario is that ‘Umar actually remembered thehadith , or was at least successfully reminded of it by ‘Ammar. Yet, he thought that his personal solution to the issue before him outweighed the Sunnah of the Messenger of Allah. As such, he was in contempt of Muhammad and his teachings.

We will go with the best-case scenario. ‘Umar had completely forgotten, and was not successfully reminded. This fact casts a mammoth shadow of doubt over ‘Umar’s memory power. Since he forgot the incident oftayammum so completely and absolutely, it is extremely uncertain that he was able to remember many – if not most - other teachings of the Prophet that were necessary in his discharge of his day-to-day judicial functions. The end result is that he lacked the requisite scholarly prowess for the office. The natural product of absolutely forgetting anything is complete ignorance of it.

Something that baffles the mind is how ‘Umar came to the conclusion that he could issue rulings in theShari’ah with his personal opinions simply because he had forgotten, or did not know, the correct positions. Is ignorance an excuse for the adoption of personal opinions in the Law of Allah? The Qur’an answers:

ومن لم يحكم بما أنزل الله فأولئك هم الكافرون

Whosoever does NOT give rulings, verdicts, judgments, or commands based upon what Allah has revealed, such people are the infidels .84

Therefore, giving a ruling by personal opinion amounts to disbelief (kufr ), according to Allah. Why did ‘Umar take such an extreme risk? He should have simply remained silent, or sought the advice of superior jurists likeAmir al-Muminin ,‘alaihi al-salam , Ibn ‘Abbas,radhiyallahu ‘anhu , and others. His reliance upon personal opinion in issuing a ruling in theShari’ah of Allah was a very wrong step. It saved neither him, nor the man who came to him for judgment.

Perhaps, the most disturbing part is that the ruling oftayammum is explicitly stated at two different places in the Book of Allah:

وإن كنتم مرضى أو على سفر أو جاء أحد منكم من الغائط أو لامستم النساء فلم تجدوا ماء فتيمموا صعيدا طيبا فامسحوا بوجوهكم وأيديكم

And if you are ill, or on a journey, or one of you comes after answering the call of nature, or you have had sexual intercourse withwomen and you cannot find water, perform tayammum with clean soil and rub therewith your faces and hands.85

It is apparent. Despite the double presence of the ruling oftayammum in the Qur’an, ‘Umar did NOT know it. This raises a blood-red flag on ‘Umar’s knowledge of the Book of Allah. Obviously, he was not ahafiz (memorizer) of the Qur’an. Secondly, his knowledge of its verses, and of al-Fiqh, must have been extremely deficient, astayammum is only one of the beginner’s courses in Islamic jurisprudence!

‘Umar’s controversial judgment expectedly split theUmmah . There were his loyalists who thought that his clearly invalid ruling was more correct than the Qur’an and Sunnah! There were also his opponents who sided with Allah and His Messenger. One of the staunchest loyalists of ‘Umar was ‘Abd Allah b. Mas’ud, a very senior Sahabi. Imam Muslim records:

حدثنا يحيى بن يحيى وأبو بكر بن أبي شيبة وابن نمير جميعا عن أبي معاوية قال أبو بكر حدثنا أبو معاوية عن الأعمش عن شقيق قال كنت جالسا مع عبد الله وأبي موسى فقال أبو موسى ثم يا أبا عبد الرحمن أرأيت لو أن رجلا أجنب فلم يجد الماء شهرا كيف يصنع بالصلاة فقال عبد الله لا يتيمم وإن لم يجد الماء شهرا قال أبو موسى فكيف بهذه الآية في سورة المائدة فلم تجدوا ماء فتيمموا صعيدا طيبا فقال عبدالله لو رخص لهم في هذه الآية لأوشك إذا برد عليهم الماء أن يتيمموا بالصعيد فقال أبو موسى لعبد الله ألم تسمع قول عمار بعثني رسول الله صلى الله عليه وسلم في حاجة فأجنبت فلم أجد الماء فتمرغت في الصعيد كما تمرغ الدابة ثم أتيت النبي صلى الله عليه وسلم فذكرت ذلك له فقال إنما كان يكفيك أن تقول بيديك هكذا ثم ضرب بيديه الأرض حصول واحدة ثم مسح الشمال على اليمين وظاهر كفيه ووجهه فقال عبد الله أو لم تر عمر لم يقنع بقول عمار

Yahya b. Yahya, Abu Bakr b. Abi Shaybah and Ibn Numayr – Abu Mu’awiyah – al-A’mash – Shaqiq:

I was sitting with ‘Abd Allah (b. Mas’ud) and Abu Musa (al-Ash’ari). So, Abu Musa asked: “O Abu ‘Abd al-Rahman, what is your opinion: if a man had a seminal discharge and could not find water for one month, how should he do about theSalat ? ‘Abd Allah replied, “He should NOT perform tayammum even if he cannot find water for a month” .

Abu Musa then said,“What about this verse in Surat al-Maidah said, ‘And you cannot find water, then perform tayammum with clean soil’?” ‘Abd Allah replied, “If they were allowed on the basis of this verse, there is a possibility that they would performtayammum with soil even if water were available but cold.” So, Abu Musa said to ‘Abd Allah, “Have you not heard

the statement of ‘Ammar: ‘The Messenger of Allah, peace be upon him, sent me on an errand and I had a seminal discharge, but could not find water. So I rolled myself in the soil just as a beast rolls itself. Then, I came to the Prophet, peace be upon him then and mentioned that to him and he (the Messenger) said: “It would have been enough for you to do thus”. Then he struck the earth with his hands once and wiped his right hand with the help of his left hand and the exterior of his palms and his face’.” ‘Abd Allah replied: “Didn't you see that ‘Umar was NOT satisfied with the statement of ‘Ammar?” 86

Abu Musa was on the side of the Qur’an and Sunnah, and sought to correct Ibn Mas’ud on his diehard ‘Umarist stance ontayammum . The former quoted the Book of Allah and the explicit teaching of His Messenger. Ibn Mas’ud however rejected both, citing excuses. He could not allow the people to follow the Qur’an, because there was a “possibility” that they would abuse its ruling. Well, this same logic could be employed to turn downeverything that Islam teaches! Moreover, Ibn Mas’ud equally refused the Sunnah of the Prophet only because ‘Umar was not satisfied with ‘Ammar’shadith !

 

7. Hadith Al-Qadha, An Age Of Jungle Justice IV

Tayammum was not the only topic in Islamic jurisprudence that ‘Umar had great difficulty grasping. There were many others, even according to his own confessions. We will be briefly examining a few examples and their implications.

Imam al-Bukhari (d. 256 H) opens the discussion:

حدثنا أحمد بن أبي رجاء حدثنا يحيى عن أبي حيان التيمي عن الشعبي عن ابن عمر رضي الله عنهما قال :خطب عمر على منبر رسول الله صلى الله عليه و سلم فقال إنه قد نزل تحريم الخمر وهي من خمسة أشياء العنب والتمر والحنطة والشعير والعسل والخمر ما خامر العقل وثلاث وددت أن رسول الله صلى الله عليه و سلم لم يفارقنا حتى يعهد إلينا عهدا الجد والكلالة وأبواب من أبواب الربا

Ahmad b. Abi Rajah – Yahya – Abu Hayyan al-Tamimi – Shu’bi – Ibn ‘Umar, may Allah be pleased with them both:

‘Umar delivered a sermon on the pulpit of the Messenger of Allah, peace be upon him, saying, “Verily, there was revealed an order making alcohol haram, and it is made from five things: grape, date, wheat, barley and honey. Alcohol is whatsoever clouds the mind.I wish the Messenger of Allah, peace be upon him, had not left us before he could explain three matters to us: the inheritance of the grandfather, kalalah and various types of riba (usury).” 87

Imam Muslim (d. 261 H) records too:

حدثنا أبو بكر بن أبي شيبة حدثنا علي بن مسهر عن أبي حيان عن الشعبي عن ابن عمر قال: خطب عمر على منبر رسول الله صلى الله عليه و سلم فحمد الله وأثنى عليه ثم قال أما بعد ألا وإن الخمر نزل تحريمها يوم نزل وهي من خمسة أشياء من الحنطة والشعير والتمر والزبيب والعسل والخمر ما خامر العقل وثلاثة أشياء وددت أيها الناس أن رسول الله صلى الله عليه و سلم كان عهد إلينا فيها الجد والكلالة وأبواب من أبواب الربا

Abu Bakr b. Abi Shaybah – ‘Ali b. Mas-har – Abu Hayyan – al-Sha’bi – Ibn ‘Umar:

‘Umar delivered a sermon on the pulpit of the Messenger of Allah, peace be upon him. He thanked Allah and praised him. Then he said, “Now, coming to the point: verily, there was revealed an order making alcoholharam on the day it was revealed. It is made from five things: wheat, barley, date, raisin and honey. Alcohol is anything which clouds the intellect. There are three matters, O people, that I wish the Messenger of Allah, peace be upon him, had explained to us: inheritance of the grandfather, kalalah and various types of riba (usury) .88

Imam al-Hakim (d. 403 H) documents too:

وأخبرنا علي بن محمد بن عقبة ثنا الهيثم بن خالد ثنا أبو نعيم ثنا سفيان عن عمرو بن مرة عن مرة عن عمر رضي الله عنه قال ثلاث لأن يكون النبي صلى الله عليه وسلم بينهم لنا أحب إلي من الدنيا وما فيها الخلافة والكلالة والربا

‘Ali b. Muhammad b. ‘Uqbah – al-Haytham b. Khalid – Abu Na’im – Sufyan – ‘Amr b. Marrah – Marrah – ‘Umar, may Allah be pleased with him:

“There are three matters.Had the Prophet, peace be upon him, clearly explained them to us , that would have been more beloved to me than this world and whatsoever is in it: the khilafah (caliphate), kalalah and riba (usury)” .89

Al-Hakim says:

هذا حديث صحيح على شرط الشيخين

Thishadith issahih upon the standard of the two Shaykhs90

Al-Dhahabi (d. 748 H) agrees:

على شرط البخاري ومسلم

(Sahih ) upon the standard of al-Bukhari and Muslim91

Imam Ahmad b. Hanbal (d. 241 H) has an even clearer report:

حدثنا عبد الله حدثني أبي ثنا يحيى عن بن أبي عروبة ثنا قتادة عن سعيد بن المسيب قال قال عمر رضي الله عنه: ان آخر ما نزل من القرآن آية الربا وان رسول الله صلى الله عليه و سلم قبض ولم يفسرها فدعوا الربا والريبة

‘Abd Allah (b. Ahmad b. Hanbal) – my father (Ahmad b. Hanbal) – Yahya – Ibn Abi ‘Arubah – Qatadah – Sa’id b. al-Musayyab:

‘Umar, may Allah be pleased with him, said: “Verily, the last of what was revealed in the Qur’an was the Verse of Riba.And verily, the Messenger of Allah, peace be upon him, died and never explained it. Therefore, avoidriba and doubt.92

Shaykh al-Arnauṭ comments:

حسن رجاله ثقات رجال الشيخين

It is hasan . Its narrators arethiqah (trustworthy), narrators of the two Shaykhs.93

Apparently, ‘Umar did not know the Islamic rulings and teachings concerning the inheritance of the grandfather (from his grandchild),kalalah , usury (riba ) and thekhilafah . He therefore placed the blame on the Messenger of Allah,sallallahu ‘alaihi wa alihi , and accused him of never explaining them to hisUmmah . His allegations however directly contradict these verses:

وما على الرسول إلا البلاغ المبين

The duty of the Messenger isonly to convey in a clear way .94

وأنزلنا إليك الذكر لتبين للناس ما نزل إليهم

And We have sent down unto you (Muhammad)al-Dhikr (i.e. the Qur’an)that you may explain clearly to mankind what is sent down to them .95

Therefore, if the Prophet had not explained clearly a single item of his risalah, he would have failed in his mission. Allah however testifies in favour of His Messenger, that he actually conveyed and explained

everything clearly to theUmmah . This was why He declared the religion completed and perfect:

اليوم أكملت لكم دينكم وأتممت عليكم نعمتي ورضيت لكم الإسلام دينا

This Day, I have perfected your religion for you , completed My Favour upon you, and have chosen for you Islam as your religion.96

This is an unmistakable testimony that the Messenger did explain everything in a clear, explicit and simple manner to his followers. He successfully fulfilled his mission. It was ‘Umar that had once again forgotten completely that the Messenger performed his duty.

One then wonders how ‘Umar handled questions and disputes regarding the inheritance of the grandfather,kalalah , usury and thekhilafah that were brought to his court. He either relied upon his personal opinion – as in the case oftayammum – or rather guessed and gambled in his judgments. Another possibility was that he would refer those issues to superior jurists among the Sahabah,radhiyallah ‘anhum , for help. In all cases, his competency as even an ordinary judge falls into serious doubt. It gets really worse when one considers that ‘Umar was the sovereign judge, and that there was no right of appeal against his rulings and judgments.

Of the four subjects, ‘Umar had particular difficulty in graspingkalalah . He never understood it till his death. So, we will flash light upon it, as this situation reveals some more information about him. Imam Muslim records:

حدثنا محمد بن أبي بكر المقدمي ومحمد بن المثنى (واللفظ لابن المثنى) قالا حدثنا يحيى بن سعيد حدثنا هشام حدثنا قتادة عن سالم بن أبي الجعد عن معدان بن أبي طلحة أن عمر بن الخطاب خطب يوم جمعة فذكر نبي الله صلى الله عليه و سلم وذكر أبا بكر ثم قال إني لا أدع بعدي شيئا أهم من الكلالة ما راجعت رسول الله صلى الله عليه و سلم في شيء ما راجعته في الكلالة وما أغلظ لي في شيء ما أغلظ لي فيه حتى طعن بأصبعه في صدري وقال يا عمر ألا تكفيك آية الصيف التي في آخر سورة النساء ؟ وإني إن أعش أقض فيها بقضية يقضي بها من يقرأ القرآن ومن لا يقرأ القرآن

Muhammad b. Abi Bakr al-Muqaddami and Muhammad b. al-Muthanna – Yahya b. Sa’id – Hisham – Qatadah – Salim b. Abi al-Ja’d – Ma’dan b. Abi Talhah:

‘Umar b. al-Khaṭṭab delivered a sermon on Friday and mentioned the Prophet of Allah, peace be upon him, and also mentioned Abu Bakr. Then he said, “I do not abandon behind me anything more important thankalalah .I did not refer to the Messenger of Allah, peace be upon him, concerning anything as I referred to him concerning kalalah. And he was never as harsh to me concerning anything as he was harsh to me about it , so much that he struck my chest with his fingers and said,“O ‘Umar, is the Verse of the Summer, which is at the end of Surat al-Nisa, not sufficient for you?” If I (‘Umar) lived longer, I would give judge concerning it (i.e.kalalah ) with a judgment that would be the precedent for all future judgments concerning it

by those who could read the Qur’an and those who could not read the Qur’an.”97

Imam Ahmad again documents:

حدثنا عبد الله حدثني أبي ثنا إسماعيل عن سعيد بن أبي عروبة عن قتادة عن سالم بن أبي الجعد عن معدان بن أبي طلحة قال قال عمر رضي الله عنه: ما سألت رسول الله صلى الله عليه و سلم عن شيء أكثر مما سألته عن الكلالة حتى طعن بأصبعه في صدري وقال تكفيك آية الصيف التي في آخر سورة النساء

‘Abd Allah (b. Ahmad b. Hanbal) – my father (Ahmad b. Hanbal) – Isma’il – Sa’id b. Abi ‘Arubah – Qatadah – Salim b. Abi al-Ja’d – Ma’dan b. Abi Talhah:

‘Umar, may Allah be pleased with him, said:“I never asked the Messenger of Allah, peace be upon him, about anything more (repeatedly) than I asked him about kalalah so much that he struck my chest with his fingers and said, “O ‘Umar, is theVerse of the Summer , which is at the end ofSurat al-Nisa , not sufficient for you?”98

Shaykh al-Arnauṭ comments:

إسناده صحيح على شرط مسلم رجاله ثقات

Its chain issahih upon the standard of Muslim. Its narrators arethiqah (trustworthy).99

So, ‘Umar’s most difficult topic waskalalah . Although he was basically clueless about the other topics as well,kalalah proved the most stubborn of them to him. He repeatedly questioned the Messenger of Allah about it. It was the Prophet’s job to explain things clearly to him each time, and we believe he did that each time ‘Umar came to him. In the end, the Messenger got frustrated and baffled by ‘Umar’s inability to comprehend a fairly straightforward topic likekalalah , even after several explanations! What exactly is so difficult about it? Moreover, the Prophet thought that there was a verse aboutkalalah at the end ofSurat al-Nisa , which was fully self-explanatory and ordinarily should be sufficient for anyone without further commentary100 . Why was ‘Umar still unable to grasp it, despite the verse and the repeated explanations?

Surprisingly, ‘Umar apparently read theVerse of the Summer (before or after the Messenger of Allah referred him to it) but could not understand its simple rules. Worse still, the Prophet repeatedly explained it to him, and he nonetheless did not get it! This raises some grave concerns about ‘Umar’s comprehension skills. It also apparently reveals why the Messenger became frustrated and harsh with him.

Does justice dispensation require very high comprehension skills on the part of the judge? We leave the answer to our esteemed reader.

8. Hadith Al-Qadha, An Age Of Jungle Justice V

As the chief law enforcement officer of theUmmah , thekhalifah has the authority to arrest and prosecute anyone who commits an offence in his presence. There is no requirement anywhere that the crime must be reported to him by someone else before he could arrest and prosecute. Imam ‘Abd al-Razzaq (d. 211 H) records an instance where ‘Umar, as thekhalifah , invoked this authority:

أخبرنا عبد الرزاق قال: أخبرنا عبيد الله بن عمر عن نافع عن صفية ابنة أبي عبيد. ومعمر عن نافع عن صفية قالت: وجد عمر في بيت رجل من ثقيف خمرا، وقد كان جلده في الخمر فحرق بيته، وقال: ما اسمك؟ قال: رويشد، قال: بل أنت فويسق

‘Abd al-Razzaq – ‘Ubayd Allah b. ‘Umar AND Ma’mar – Nafi’ – Safiyyah b. Abi ‘Ubayd:

‘Umar discovered alcohol in the house of a man from (the tribe of) Thaqif. He (the man) had already been lashed for alcohol consumption in the past.Therefore, he (‘Umar) burnt his house, and asked , “What is your name?” He (the man) replied, “Ruwayshid.” He (‘Umar) retorted, “Rather, you are Fuwaysiq (an abusive word)”.101

Al-Hafiz (d. 852 H) states about the first narrator:

عبد الرزاق بن همام بن نافع الحميري مولاهم أبو بكر الصنعاني ثقة حافظ

‘Abd al-Razzaq b. Hammam b. Nafi’ al-Humayri, their freed slave, Abu Bakr al-San’ani:Thiqah (trustworthy), hafiz (a hadith scientist) .102

There are two second narrators. So, this is whatal-Hafiz has to say aboutSecond Narrator A :

عبيد الله بن عمر بن حفص بن عاصم بن عمر بن الخطاب العمري المدني أبو عثمان ثقة ثبت

‘Ubayd Allah b. ‘Umar b. Hafs b. ‘Asim b. ‘Umar b. al-Khaṭṭab al-‘Umari al-Madani, Abu ‘Uthman:Thiqah (trustworthy), thabt (accurate) .103

He also says aboutSecond Narrator B :

معمر بن راشد الأزدي مولاهم أبو عروة البصري نزيل اليمن ثقة ثبت فاضل

Ma’mar b. Rashid al-Azdi, their freed slave, Abu ‘Urwah al-Basri, he lived in Yemen:Thiqah (trustworthy), thabt (accurate), fadhil (meritorious) .104

Both second narrators transmitted from Nafi’, about whom al-Hafiz states:

نافع أبو عبد الله المدني مولى ابن عمر ثقة ثبت فقيه مشهور

Nafi’, Abu ‘Abd Allah al-Madani, freed slave of Ibn ‘Umar:Thiqah (trustworthy), thabt (accurate) , a well-known jurist.105

Al-Hafiz seals it with these comments about the last narrator:

صفية بنت أبي عبيد بن مسعود الثقفية زوج بن عمر قيل لها إدراك وأنكره الدارقطني وقال العجلي ثقة

Safiyyah b. Abi ‘Ubayd b. Mas’ud al-Thaqafiyyah, the wife of Ibn ‘Umar. It is said that she met the Prophet, but al-Daraquṭni denies that. Al-‘Ijli said:Thiqah (trustworthy) .106

Safiyyah is also a narrator ofSahih Muslim .107

In summary, the above chain is impeccablysahih . Elsewhere, ‘Abd al-Razzaq has recorded the exact same report with this chain:

أخبرنا عبد الرزاق قال: أخبرنا معمر عن أيوب عن نافع عن صفية

‘Abd al-Razzak – Ma’mar –Ayub – Nafi’ – Safiyyah108

The only new name is Ayub. So, who is he? Al-Hafiz answers:

أيوب بن أبي تميمة جلس السختياني …. أبو بكر البصري ثقة ثبت حجة من كبار الفقهاء العباد

Ayub b. Abi Tamimah al-Sakhtayani, Abu Bakr al-Basri:Thiqah (trustworthy), thabt (accurate), hujjah (an authority in hadith) , from the greatest jurists and worshippers of Allah.109

In other words, theathar about ‘Umar is doublysahih !

‘Allamah al-Albani (d. 1420 H) also has some further words:

روى الدولابي في الكنى " (1 / 189) عن إبراهيم بن عبد الرحمن بن عوف قال: رأيت عمر أحرق بيت رويشد الثقفي حتى كأنه جمرة أو حمة وكان جارنا يبيع الخمر. وسنده صحيح. ورواه عبد الرزاق عن صفية بنت ابي عبيد كما في " الجامع الكبيرة " (3 / 204 / 1) وأبو عبيد في " الأموال " (ص 103) عن ابن عمر وسنده صحيح أيضا

Al-Dawlabi reported in al-Kuni (1/189) on the authority Ibrahim b. ‘Abd al-Rahman b. ‘Awf that he said: “I saw ‘Umar burning the house of Ruwayshid al-Thaqafi until it became like firebrand or a hot spring.He was our neighbour who sold alcohol.” Its chain is sahih .

‘Abd al-Razzaq also narrated on the authority of Safiyyah bint Abi ‘Ubayd, as stated inal-Jami’ al-Kabirah (3/204/1) as well as Abu ‘Ubayd in al-Amwal (p. 103) on the authority of Ibn ‘Umar, andits chain is sahih too .110

Interestingly, this Ruwayshid was one of the Sahabah! Al-Hafiz states:

رويشد الثقفي أبو علاج الطائفي ثم المدني له إدراك وله قصة مع عمر بسبب بيعه الشراب قال بن أبي ذئب انا سعد بن إبراهيم بن عبد الرحمن بن عوف عن أبيه ان عمر أمر باحراق بيت رويشد وكان يبيع فيه الشراب فنهاه عمر فلم ينته

Ruwayshid al-Thaqafi, Abu ‘Alaj al-Taifi al-Madani:He met the Prophet. He also had a story with ‘Umar due to his selling of alcoholic drinks . Ibn Abi Dhaib said: Sa’d b. Ibrahim b. ‘Abd al-Rahman b. ‘Awf narrated to us from his father that ‘Umar ordered that the house of Ruwayshid be burnt down.He used to sell alcoholic drinks in it. ‘Umar had warned him to desist, but he never desisted .111

Elsewhere, he reiterates:

رويشد الثقفي وله قصة مع عمر في شربه الخمر وإنما ذكرته في الصحابة لأن من كان بتلك السن في عهد عمر يكون في زمن النبي صلى الله عليه وسلم مميزا لا محالة ولم يبق من قريش وثقيف أحد إلا أسلم وشهد حجة الوداع مع النبي صلى الله عليه وسلم

Ruwayshid al-Thaqafi.... He had a story with ‘Umar concerning his consumption of alcohol....I have mentioned him among the Sahabah only because whosoever was of that age (as Ruwayshid) during the time of ‘Umar must certainly have been matured during the time of the Prophet, peace be upon him. Also, there was no one from the tribes of Quraysh and Thaqif except that he had accepted Islam and had witnessed the FarewellHajj with the Prophet, peace be upon him.112

To summarize:

Ruwayshid was one of the Sahabah of the Prophet, from the tribe of Thaqif.

He accepted Islam during the Prophet’s lifetime, met the latter, and did the FarewellHajj with him.

During the rule of ‘Umar, Ruwayshid was convicted for alcohol consumption and punished.

However, after his conviction and punishment, Ruwayshid went ahead to sell alcohol in his house.

‘Umar warned him to desist from selling alcohol, but he refused to stop.

So, ‘Umar burnt his house where he was selling the alcohol.

The story of Ruwayshid flies in the face of repeated Sunni claims about the piety and righteousness of all the Sahabah!

It is a bit unclear on what ground ‘Umar burned Ruwayshid’s home. Was it to punish him for selling alcohol? Or, was it only an effort to disable him from further trading in alcohol?

One scenario is that the house-burning was inflicted as a judicial punishment. In other words, Ruwayshid was summarily tried, convicted and penalized for trading in alcohol. ‘Umar’ judicial sentence was that his house should be burnt to ashes. However, where did ‘Umar get that idea from? Was it from the Qur’an? Was it from the Sunnah? Imam Muslim records the standard procedure in a case like this:

حدثنا أحمد بن عيسى حدثنا ابن وهب أخبرني عمرو عن بكير بن الأشج قال بينا نحن عند سليمان بن يسار إذ جاءه عبدالرحمن بن جابر حدثه فأقبل علينا سليمان فقال حدثني عبدالرحمن ابن جابر عن أبيه عن أبي بردة الأنصاري: أنه سمع رسول الله صلى الله عليه و سلم يقول لا يجلد أحد فوق عشرة أسواط إلا في حد من حدود الله

Ahmad b. ‘Isa – Ibn Wahb – ‘Amr – Bukayr b. al-Ashja’ Sulayman b. Yasar – ‘Abd al-Rahman b. Jabir – his father – Abu Bardah al-Ansari:

I heard the Messenger of Allah, peace be upon him, saying: “None is to be given more than ten strokes of the cane (in punishment) except in the case of punishments immutably fixed by Allah.”113

So, the question is whether Allah has immutably fixed the punishment for alcohol sales business or not. Without an iota of doubt, there is no such

fixed penalty for it. Therefore, the maximum sentence that can be inflicted upon an alcohol seller is ten lashes. Apparently, ‘Umar did not follow the instructions of Allah in this regard. This brought him face-to-face against this verse:

ومن لم يحكم بما أنزل الله فأولئك هم الكافرون

Whosoever does NOT give rulings, verdicts, judgments, or commands based upon what Allah has revealed,such people are the infidels .114

Another scenario is that ‘Umar actually burnt the house down only to forcefully put Ruwayshid out of business, without any intention to touch the latter himself personally for breaking the law. This theory is further strengthened by the fact that ‘Umar had earlier warned Ruwayshid to desist (thereby confirming his full knowledge of the alcohol trade). However, he made no effort whatsoever to arrest or prosecute him. When the latter would not listen to him, he burnt down his house – which also served as his brewery and alcohol store – solely to shut down his business. Normally, a caring government closes or destroys illegal ventures within its control. This is usually to protect the public. In addition to that, the same government proceeds to prosecute the owner of the illegal business for his crime. In the case of Ruwayshid, ‘Umar merely burnt his alcohol store, but allowed him to go scotfree!

A baffling twist to this whole saga is that when another Sahabi was discovered, also engaging in alcohol business, ‘Umar simply let him be! He did not arrest him. He did not prosecute him. He did not burn his house! Imam Muslim records:

حدثنا أبو بكر بن أبي شيبة وزهير بن حرب وإسحاق بن إبراهيم (واللفظ لأبي بكر) قالوا حدثنا سفيان بن عيينة عن عمرو عن طاوس عن ابن عباس قال: بلغ عمر أن سمرة باع خمرا فقال قاتل الله سمرة ألم يعلم أن رسول الله صلى الله عليه و سلم قال لعن الله اليهود حرمت عليهم الشحوم فجملوها فباعوها

Abu Bakr b. Abi Shaybah, Zuhayr b. Harb and Ishaq b. Ibrahim – Sufyan b. ‘Uyaynah – ‘Amr – Tawus – Ibn ‘Abbas:

‘Umar was informed thatSamrah sold alcohol . So, he said, “May Allah curse Samrah! Does he not know that the Messenger of Allah, peace be upon him, said: ‘May Allah curse the Jews. The fat of animals was madeharam for them. But they melt it and sold it.’”115

Imam Abu Ya’la (d. 307 H) also documents:

حدثنا أبو خيثمة و أبو سعيد قالا : حدثنا سفيان بن عيينة عن عمرو عن طاووس عن ابن عباس قال : باع سمرة خمرا فقال عمر : قاتل الله سمرة ألم يعلم أن رسول الله صلى الله عليه و سلم قال : لعن الله اليهود حرمت عليهم الشحوم فباعوها وأكلوا أثمانها ؟

Abu Khaythamah and Abu Sa’id – Sufyan b. ‘Uyaynah – ‘Amr – Tawus – Ibn ‘Abbas:

Samrah sold alcohol . So, ‘Umar said, “May Allah curse Samrah! Does he not know that the Messenger of Allah, peace be upon him, said, ‘May Allah

curse the Jews. The fat of animals was madeharam for them. So, they sold it and ate its price.’”116

Shaykh Dr. Asad comments:

إسناده صحيح

Its chain issahih 117

Samrah was a prominent Sahabi. He too traded in alcohol. But, what was ‘Umar’s response? He merely cursed him by name, and that was it! There was no arrest, and no prosecution! Samrah’s house was equally left intact.