Part of Glimpses from the Lives of the Tabi‘un (the Successors) (series completed)
· Lesson 6 of 37
Pictures from the lives of the followers | D. Abdul Rahman Raafat Al-Basha | Episode (6) | Omar bin Abdulaziz and his son, may God have mercy on them
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Transcript
Machine translation — may contain errors
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In the name of Allah, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful.
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The best of generations in character and example,
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Following the Messenger whenever he strove or spoke.
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Mawaddah Association presents:
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"Portraits from the Lives of the Tabi'un"
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By Dr. Abd al-Rahman Ra'fat al-Basha,
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May Allah have mercy on him.
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Umar ibn Abd al-Aziz
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And his son Abd al-Malik.
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No sooner had the venerable Tabi'i, the Commander of the Faithful, Umar ibn Abd al-Aziz,
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Shaken the dust from his hands from the grave of his predecessor, Sulayman ibn Abd al-Malik,
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Than he heard the ground rumbling around him.
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He asked, "What is this?"
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They replied, "These are the royal mounts of the caliphate, O Commander of the Faithful,
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Prepared for you to ride."
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Umar glanced sideways at them
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And said in his quavering voice, exhausted by fatigue
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And worn thin by sleepless nights:
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"What have I to do with them? Take them away from me, may Allah bless you,
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And bring me my mule,
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For it is sufficient for my needs."
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Then, no sooner had he settled firmly onto the back of the mule
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Than the chief of police came to march before him,
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Accompanied by a squadron of his men lined up on his right and left,
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Bearing glistening lances in their hands.
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He turned to him and said:
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"I have no need of you or them;
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I am merely a man from among the Muslims.
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I go out in the morning as they go out,
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And I return in the evening as they return."
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Then he proceeded, and the people walked with him until he entered the mosque,
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Where the call was raised among the people:
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"Assemble for prayer!"
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"Assemble for prayer!"
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The people poured into the mosque from every direction,
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And when their assembly was complete,
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He stood up among them to deliver a sermon.
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He praised Allah and extolled Him,
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Sent blessings upon His Prophet, and then said:
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"O people!
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I have been tested with this office without my counsel,
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Without my seeking it,
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And without consultation with the Muslims.
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I hereby release you from the allegiance to me placed upon your necks;
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So choose for yourselves a caliph with whom you are pleased."
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Thereupon, the people cried out with a single voice:
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"We have chosen you, O Commander of the Faithful, and are well pleased with you!
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So lead our affairs with good fortune and blessing!"
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When he saw that their voices had quieted
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And their hearts were set at ease,
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He praised Allah once more and extolled Him,
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Sent blessings and peace upon Muhammad, His servant and Messenger,
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And began urging the people toward mindfulness of Allah (taqwa),
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Fostering their detachment from the worldly life, instilling longing for the Hereafter,
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And reminding them of death in a manner that softened hardened hearts
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And drew forth unyielding tears—
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Words that emerged from the speaker's innermost heart
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To settle deep within the hearts of his listeners.
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Then he raised his weary voice so that everyone could hear him, and said:
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"O people! Whoever obeys Allah, obedience to him is obligatory;
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But whoever disobeys Allah, no one owes him any obedience.
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O people! Obey me so long as I obey Allah concerning you;
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But if I disobey Allah, you owe me no obedience whatsoever."
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Then he stepped down from the pulpit,
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Headed to his house, and retired to his room,
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Seeking to take an hour of rest
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After the grueling exertion he had endured since the death of the caliph.
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Yet, Umar ibn Abd al-Aziz
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Had barely laid his side down on his bed
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When his son Abd al-Malik entered upon him—
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Who was at that time approaching seventeen years of age—
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And asked, "What do you intend to do, O Commander of the Faithful?"
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He replied, "My dear son, I wish to take a short nap,
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For there is no strength left in my body."
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He said, "Will you slumber before restoring usurped rights to their rightful owners, O Commander of the Faithful?"
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He answered, "My dear son, I stayed awake all of last night attending to your uncle Sulayman,
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And when noon arrives, I will lead the people in prayer
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And restore the usurped rights to their owners, if Allah wills."
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He said, "And who can guarantee for you, O Commander of the Faithful, that you will live until noon?"
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This remark ignited Umar’s resolve,
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Banished sleep from his eyes,
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And infused strength and vigor into his exhausted body.
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He said, "Come close to me, my dear son." So he drew near,
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And Umar embraced him, kissed him between the eyes, and said:
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"Praise be to Allah, Who brought forth from my loins one who aids me in my religion."
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Then he arose and ordered that an announcement be made among the people:
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"Hear ye! Whoever has suffered an injustice, let him bring it forward!"
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Who, then, was this Abd al-Malik?
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What is the story of this youth, concerning whom the people said
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That it was he who steered his father into devotion
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And guided him along the path of asceticism?
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Let us explore the story of this righteous youth from its beginning.
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Umar ibn Abd al-Aziz had fifteen children,
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Among whom were three daughters.
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All of them possessed an abundant share of piety
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And a high standing in righteousness;
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Yet Abd al-Malik was the centerpiece of his siblings' necklace
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And their radiant, shining star.
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He was cultured, refined, and intelligent,
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Possessing the youth of a boy and the wisdom of a mature elder.
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Furthermore, he grew up in the obedience of Allah, the Mighty and Sublime,
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From his earliest childhood.
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He was the closest of people in demeanor to the family of al-Khattab in general,
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And bore the closest resemblance to Abdullah ibn Umar in particular,
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In his reverent fear of Allah,
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His dread of disobeying Him,
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And his drawing near to Him through obedience.
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His cousin Asim narrated, saying:
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"I arrived in Damascus
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And stayed with my cousin Abd al-Malik, who was unmarried at the time.
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We prayed the night prayer (Isha),
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And each of us retired to his bed.
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Abd al-Malik got up, extinguished the lamp,
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And we both surrendered our eyes to sleep.
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Then I awoke in the middle of the night,
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Only to find Abd al-Malik standing in prayer in the darkness,
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Reciting the words of the Mighty and Sublime.
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What struck me about him was that he kept repeating the verse,
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Sobbing with muffled, stifled weeping
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That tore at the heartstrings.
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Every time he finished the verse, he returned to it again,
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Until I thought his weeping would kill him.
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When I witnessed that, I called out:
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'There is no god but Allah!
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And all praise is due to Allah!'
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Just as one waking from sleep would do,
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In order to interrupt his weeping.
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When he heard me, he fell silent,
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And I did not hear a sound from him thereafter."
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The Umari youth studied
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Under the leading scholars of his era,
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Until he was thoroughly steeped in the Book of Allah,
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Deeply versed in the hadith of the Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him,
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And accomplished in fiqh.
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Thus, despite his young age,
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He rivaled the foremost rank of the jurists of the Levant in his time.
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It is related that Umar ibn Abd al-Aziz
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Gathered the Qur'an reciters and jurists of the Levant
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And said:
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"I have summoned you regarding the matter of these usurped properties
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Held in the hands of my household;
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What is your view concerning them?"
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They replied:
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"O Commander of the Faithful!
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That was an affair that occurred outside of your rule,
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And the burden of these injustices rests upon the one who seized them unlawfully."
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But he was not satisfied with what they said.
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Then one of those who held a different view leaned toward him and said:
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"Send for Abd al-Malik, O Commander of the Faithful,
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For he is in no way inferior to those you have summoned in knowledge, fiqh, or intellect."
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When Abd al-Malik entered upon him,
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Umar asked him:
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"What is your view regarding this wealth that our cousins seized from the people unlawfully,
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Given that its owners have come forth demanding it,
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And we have verified their rightful claim to it?"
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He answered:
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"I believe you must return it to its rightful owners, so long as you have learned of their entitlement;
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For if you do not do so,
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You will be a partner to those who seized it unlawfully."
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Umar's face beamed with delight,
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His soul found ease,
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And the anxiety that weighed upon them both was lifted.
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The Umari youth preferred stationing himself along the frontier outposts
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And residing in one of the cities nearby
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Over remaining in the heart of the Levant.
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So he set out for them,
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Leaving behind Damascus with its lush gardens,
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Plentiful shade,
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And seven rivers.
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His father, despite all he knew of his son's righteousness and piety,
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Feared greatly for him from the incitements of Satan,
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Worried deeply over him regarding the impulses of youth,
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And was eager to know everything he properly could about his affairs,
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Never neglecting or overlooking that in the least.
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Maymun ibn Mihran,
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The minister, judge, and counselor to Umar ibn Abd al-Aziz, related:
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"I entered upon Umar ibn Abd al-Aziz
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And found him writing a letter to his son Abd al-Malik,
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Admonishing him and offering him counsel,
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Guiding him and cautioning him,
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Warning him and giving him glad tidings.
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Among the things written therein was:
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'To proceed:
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The most deserving of people to heed my instruction and understand my words is you.
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Indeed, Allah—praise be to Him—
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Has been gracious to us in matters small and great.
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So remember, my son, Allah's favor upon you and upon your parents,
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And beware of arrogance and haughtiness,
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For they are of the work of Satan,
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And he is to the believers an open enemy.
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Know that I have not sent you this letter of mine
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Because of any ill report that has reached me concerning you,
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For I have known nothing of your conduct except good;
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Rather, something of your self-admiration has been reported to me.
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And had this self-admiration led you into what I dislike,
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You would certainly have seen from me what you would dislike.'
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Maymun said:
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Then Umar turned to me and said:
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"O Maymun,
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my son 'Abd al-Malik has been made dear and pleasing in my eyes,
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and I suspect myself on that account.
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I fear that my love for him may have clouded my true judgment of him,
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and that I have been overcome by that blindness which overtakes fathers regarding their children's faults.
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Go to him and test his inner character,
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and see if you detect in him anything resembling arrogance or boastfulness;
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for he is still a young lad,
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and I do not consider him safe from the whisperings of Satan."
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Maymun said:
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"So I set out on the journey to 'Abd al-Malik until I reached him.
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I asked permission and entered,
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and there stood a young man in the prime of his youth,
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blooming with vitality,
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radiant of countenance,
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abundant in humility,
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sitting upon a white cushion over a simple wool rug.
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He welcomed me and then said:
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'I have heard my father speak of you with all the goodness that you truly deserve,
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and I truly hope that Allah brings benefit through you.'
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So I asked him: 'How do you find yourself?'
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He replied:
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'In goodness and grace from Allah, the Mighty and Sublime.
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However, I fear that my father's good opinion of me may have deceived me,
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for I have not attained all the virtue that he thinks I possess.
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I truly dread that his love for me has overwhelmed his true knowledge of who I am,
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and that I might thus become a source of trial and harm for him.'
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I was astonished by the mutual harmony of their perceptions.
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Then I asked him: 'Inform me, from where do you earn your livelihood?'
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He said:
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'From the produce of land I purchased from someone who inherited it from his father,
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paying its price from purely lawful wealth entirely free of doubt;
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thus I have made myself independent of the public treasury of the Muslims.'
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I asked: 'What is your food?'
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He said:
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'One night meat, one night lentils and olive oil,
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and one night vinegar and olive oil;
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and in this there is ample sustenance.'
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So I asked him:
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'Do you not feel any self-admiration?'
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He replied:
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'There was indeed something of that in me,
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but when my father admonished me,
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he opened my eyes to the reality of my own self,
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diminished its worth in my esteem,
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and humbled its status before my eyes;
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and Allah, the Mighty and Sublime, benefited me greatly through that.
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So may Allah reward him with the best reward of a father!'
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I sat with him for a while conversing,
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delighted by his eloquence and speech,
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for I had never seen anyone with a more handsome face,
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nor of more sound intellect,
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nor of finer manners and refinement than him,
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despite his tender age
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and limited experience.
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Toward the end of the day,
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a servant came to him and said:
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'May Allah rectify you, we have finished.'
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'Abd al-Malik remained silent.
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I asked:
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'What is this that they have finished?'
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He replied:
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'The public bathhouse.'
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I said: 'What do you mean?'
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He said:
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'They cleared the people out of it for me.'
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I said:
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'You had indeed held in my heart
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a status of great esteem,
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until I heard this!'
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He was startled, uttered the words of grief and turning to Allah,
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and said:
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'And what is wrong with that, uncle,
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may Allah have mercy on you?'
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I said:
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'Does the public bathhouse belong to you?'
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He said: 'No.'
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I said:
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'Then what prompted you to have people driven out of it,
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as if you desire by doing so
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to elevate yourself above them,
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and to assign yourself a status
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that towers over their status?
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Moreover, you harm
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the bathhouse owner regarding his daily earnings,
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and you turn away whoever comes
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to his bathhouse disappointed.'
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He said:
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'As for the owner of the bathhouse,
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I satisfy him and give him
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his full daily revenue.'
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I said:
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'This is an extravagant expenditure
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tainted by pride!
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And what prevents you from entering
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the bathhouse alongside the people,
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being just like any one of them?'
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He replied:
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'What prevents me from doing so
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is that a group among the common folk
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enter the bathhouse without waist-wraps,
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and I detest looking upon their nakedness,
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just as I detest compelling them
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to put on waist-wraps,
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lest they take that
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as an exercise of domineering power over them
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through political authority—
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from which I ask Allah to deliver us
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merely breaking even,
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with neither burden against us nor gain for us!
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So admonish me, may Allah have mercy on you,
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and grant me an advice by which I may benefit,
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and provide me an honorable way out of this matter.'
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I said:
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'Wait until
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the people leave the bathhouse at night
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and return to their homes,
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and only then enter it.'
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He said:
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'Without a doubt;
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that is to say,
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I pledge and swear
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that I will never enter it during the daytime
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after this day!
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Were it not for the severe cold of this land,
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I would never enter it at all.'
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He lowered his head for a moment
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as though deep in thought,
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then raised his head toward me
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and said:
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'I implore you by oath
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to conceal this matter from my father;
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for I would loathe for him to remain
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displeased with me,
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and I truly fear that death might intervene
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before securing his pleasure and forgiveness.'
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Maymun said:
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'At that point, I wanted to test
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his discernment, so I said to him:
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"If the Commander of the Believers asks me
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whether I saw anything amiss from you,
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would you be pleased for me to lie
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to him?"
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He said: "No, Allah forbid!
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Rather, tell him:
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'I noticed something in him,
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so I admonished him and magnified it
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in his eyes,
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and he hastened to renounce it.'
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For my father will not demand that you disclose
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what you have not volunteered to reveal to him,
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because Allah, the Sublime and Exalted,
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has protected him from prying into
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that which has been concealed."'
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Maymun said:
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"May Allah be pleased with the fifth
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of the Rightly Guided Caliphs,
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'Umar ibn 'Abd al-'Aziz,
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and may He be pleased with him,
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and may He illuminate his resting place and the resting place
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of his son and dearest part of his heart,
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'Abd al-Malik!
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And peace be upon them both on the day
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they departed to the Highest Companion,
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and peace be upon them both on the day
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they shall be resurrected alongside
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the righteous and pure elect!
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Do you not know that every
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people has a noble paragon,
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and that the noble paragon
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of Banu Umayyah is 'Umar
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ibn 'Abd al-'Aziz,
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and that he will be resurrected on the Day of
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Resurrection as an entire Ummah unto himself?"
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Muhammad ibn 'Ali ibn al-Husayn said:
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"They departed, leaving behind
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in our conscience a lingering question:
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Was there ever like them
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a star that soared and shone so bright?
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They filled this life
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with glorious deeds
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through their righteous actions,
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and by them
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our world was made to flourish and shine."