An arrow of light - Part 1 of 2
October 8, 2015
Before becoming a Muslim, Umar entered his sister’s house. His sister was chanting from the Qur’aan in a loud voice:
“TA HA: We have not sent down…”
When she saw her brother she immediately hid the Qur’aan and became silent. Umar bared his sword saying, “Tell me what you were reading and why you hid it or this very instant I will chop off your head!” His sister feared him, knowing his temper when angry, and in terror for her life she confessed, “I was reading from these words that Allaah revealed to Muhammad.”
“Read on, so that I can hear,” said Umar, and she recited the whole of the Surah of Ta Ha. Umar became furious, and in a rage he waved his sword, saying, “If I killed you this instant, it would be a killing of the defenseless. First I will go and cut off Muhammad’s head, then I will attend to you.”
In his anger, holding a naked sword, Umar set off for the Prophet’s home. The chieftains of Quraysh, seeing him go by, exclaimed, “Wonderful! Umar is after Muhammad. Surely, if anyone can stop this new religion, Umar can.” For Umar was a mighty and powerful man. Any army he marched against was vanquished. In fact, the Prophet had many times declared, “Allaah, succor my religion by means of Umar or Abu Jahl.” For those two were famous in that time for strength and heroism. Afterwards, when Umar became a Muslim, he used to weep and say, “O Messenger of Allaah, woe for me if you had spoken Abu Jahl’s name before mine. What would have become of me then? I would have continued in error.”
(adapted from Fihi Ma Fihi,
translated by A.J. Arberry, p. 291 - 293)
* * *
By grace, we come upon one of the most wonderful tales of conversion: when Umar became a Muslim. It remains one of the most cherished stories of Muhammad’s (p.b.u.h.) Companions. Umar’s transformation shifts from murderous hatred toward Muhammad to immense endearing love: a transformation few thought would be possible. Yet, as Jalaal ud- Diin Rumi states in the words preceding the above selection: “realize that in this world things happen as Allaah wills. Its is the design, and all purpose comes from It.” (Fihi p. 291)
Let’s set the stage for this story, because the conditions of that time are strong factors in what occurs. The scene is Mecca after Muhammad has began to publicly call others to embrace Islam, including sharing revelations of the Qur’aan. At this point, the persecution of the Muslims is very intense: the leaders of the Quraysh, the Arab clan that lived in Mecca, were openly opposed to Muhammad. People known to be Muslims were physically abused and socially ostracized. Some were tortured and killed. This is why many who were Muslims kept this fact secret. In fact, it is likely Muhammad would have been murdered to stop the spread of Islam had it not been for the protection of his uncle Abu Taalib. Any attack on Muhammad would have meant bloody retaliation from Banu Hashim (Muhammad’s familial group) upon the familial group of anyone who attacked him. And Banu Hashim was very powerful, no group wanted to go to war with them.
It is within these conditions, that the story unfolds. There are varying versions of this story but we’ll stick with the account Jalaal ud-Diin Rumi shares here. Umar was a huge and powerful man, known to be harsh but fair. Muhammad said even Shaytaan, who tempts the mass of humanity, is afraid of Umar’s shadow -- then how much more the man himself? So surely his sister was afraid of being found out as a Muslim, especially since Umar had previously declared that he would kill any member of his familial group who converted to Islam.
Yet we should not perceive Umar’s opposition to Islam as being based in impiety. His resistance was primarily based on two things. Firstly, Umar felt he had a duty to uphold the religion of his forefathers, which included polytheism. In traditional Arab society, one’s personhood is based in the identity of one’s familial lineage and clan, so what the preceding generations pass on in terms of religion is highly regarded. Such was cherished by Umar even if it veered from the way of their ancestral father, the prophet Ibraahiim (a.s.) -- also known as Abraham, who re-established worship of only the Absolute.
This call to honor one’s forefathers was combined with Umar’s wish to maintain unity among the Quraysh. In a region filled