Request to Appoint a Successor

“The people said, ‘O Leader of the Faithful! Appoint a successor after you as part of your will.’ Hazrat Umar (ra) said, ‘I do not find anyone more suitable for the station of Khilafat than the following persons whom the Holy Prophet (sa) had been pleased with before he passed away’. Then Hazrat Umar (ra) mentioned the names of Hazrat Ali (ra), Hazrat Uthman (ra), Hazrat Zubair (ra), Hazrat Talha (ra), Hazrat Saad (ra) and Hazrat Abdur Rahman (ra) bin Auf. Hazrat Umar (ra) also stated,’ Abdullah (ra) bin Umar will be a witness to you, but he will not be entitled to the station of Khilafat.’ Hazrat Umar (ra) then said, ‘If Khilafat is granted to Saad (ra), then he will be Khalifa, otherwise whoever becomes the Khalifa should continue to seek assistance from Saad (ra) because I have not removed him from his office owing to any incompetence or dishonesty on his part.’

“Hazrat Umar (ra) further stated, ‘I first and foremost recommend that my successor takes care of the Muhajireen; to know their rights and to protect their honour. I also urge to show kindness to the Ansar, for they allowed faith to enter their homes in Medina even before the arrival of the Muhajireen. I recommend that he should accept the good deeds from among them and whoso is at fault from among them, they ought to be forgiven. I recommend that he should do good to all the people of the towns, as they are the protectors of Islam and the source of wealth and a means of frustrating the enemy. I also recommend that nothing be taken from them except from their surplus with their consent.

“I also recommend that he (i.e. the next Khalifa) do good to the Arab Bedouins, as they are the natives of Arabia and they make up the core following of Islam. He should take that from among their possessions which they are not in need of and distribute it amongst their needy. I also recommend him concerning those people who are under the protection of Allah and His Messenger (sa), to fulfil the covenants that have been established with them and to defend them and not to overburden them with what is beyond their ability.’

“When Hazrat Umar (ra) passed away, we took him and set out on foot. Hazrat Abdullah (ra) bin Umar greeted Hazrat Aisha (ra) and said that Umar bin al-Khattab sought permission to enter. Hazrat Aisha (ra) said he should be brought in, and so he was taken in and laid beside his two friends. After his burial, the men who had been named by Hazrat Umar (ra) gathered for the election of the next Khalifah and thus that process commenced.”

(Sahih al-Bukhari, Kitab Fada‘il Ashab al-Nabi (sa), Bab Qissat al-Bai‘ah wa al-Ittifaq ala Uthman bin Affan, Hadith 3700) (Umdat al-Qari Sharh Sahih al-Bukhari, Vol. 16, p. 292, Dar al-Kutub al-Ilmiyyah, Beirut, 2001) (Lughat al-Hadith, Vol. 1, p. 137, Barnas, Nu‘mani Kutub Khana, Lahore, 2005)