Two Lights Enveloped in Darkness

Two Lights Enveloped in Darkness

By: Omar Suleiman - MASCON2018

Opening

I seek refuge in Allah from the accursed Satan. In the name of Allah, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful. All praise is due to Allah, Lord of the worlds, and peace and blessings be upon the Messenger of Allah, his family, his companions, and all who follow him.

As-salamu alaykum wa rahmatullahi wa barakatuhu.

Introduction: Uthman as an Imaginary Friend

So some of you might know this about me. The very first halaqa I ever gave in my entire life was on Uthman (رَضِيَ اللَّهُ تَعَالَى عَنْهُ). So it's a very special topic to my heart. And I'll tell you why that, you know, when I used to read about the sahaba, and I'm going to take the words from one of my teachers because I felt the same sentiment, but it conveyed what I truly felt as I started to read about the companions of the Prophet (صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ).

At some point they became imaginary friends, except they're not imaginary. And, you know, what that meant was that always, you know, in whatever interest I took in literature, I took an intense interest in autobiographies. I absolutely loved autobiographies, which is why one of the most transformative books, The Autobiography of Malcolm X, had such an effect on me in terms of crafting a direction.

Because I always like to connect to the very personal side of people. And I remember the very first time I read about Sayyidina Uthman (رَضِيَ اللَّهُ تَعَالَى عَنْهُ) I just thought to myself, you know, why? Why is it that this man was so influential, yet so ignored? Was so generous, yet had that compensated with absolute abuse?

The Pattern of Mercy and Exploitation

And one of the things that you immediately connect with in the life of Uthman (رَضِيَ اللَّهُ تَعَالَى عَنْهُ) is how it is the general rule in life that when a person shows an intense level of mercy to the creation of Allah, that it will almost always be repaid with someone taking advantage or a group of people taking advantage of that intense generosity and that mercy that that person shows.

And that is the story of Uthman (رَضِيَ اللَّهُ تَعَالَى عَنْهُ) as a man who showed an immense amount of generosity and love and benevolence to the creation of Allah. And sadly, that was repaid to him with murder, with assassination. And not just with murder and assassination, but with an incredible amount of degradation before he was actually killed. And it's hard to come to terms with that when you realize the position that he had.

Reading History: Qualities Before Incidents

A lot of times what we tend to do when we read biographies is we isolate one episode of a person's life and then we try to project what the rest of their existence would have looked like in society based on that one episode. So if you are only reading a history book, and the most significant element of Uthman's life is when he's placed under siege and assassinated, then you might define him just within that one episode.

What's a better and more effective way of reading history, particularly when we're talking about biographies, and especially as Muslims, is to instead identify the qualities of the people that you're reading about, and then view all the incidents in light of those qualities, not vice versa, right?

Because a lot of times you start with the incidents and then you try to work backwards, which is why it's so skewed when you read hadith without reading seerah, with the Prophet (صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ). When you try to understand a hadith without understanding the Prophet (صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ) as a person.

Whereas throughout the history of the Ummah, they read seerah, and they did not engage with hadith literature as much as we do. We go into hadith literature looking for the rights and the wrongs, looking for the judgments and the points that we can take from those hadith, so that we can win an argument, or we can draw an instruction out of context.

But the way that the companions, and the way that the children of the companions, and those that came after them, used to read the Prophet (صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ) is they read seerah the way that they read the Quran. Because if you wanted to understand the Quran, you need to understand the person of the Prophet (صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ). If you wanted to understand the words of the Prophet (صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ), you need to understand the person of the Prophet (صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ).

The Righteous Guided Caliphs

So since I have two sessions about Uthman and Umar, may Allah be pleased with them both, here's something that I want us to understand first and foremost. The Prophet (صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ) said that these people were (خُلَفَاءَ رَاشِدِينَ مَهْدِيِّينَ - khulafa rashideen mahdiyeen). They were people that were righteous, guided in knowledge, and guided in action.

Guided in knowledge, guided in action. The difference between rushd (رُشْد) and hidayah (هِدَايَة) is guidance in regards to your ilm (عِلْم), guidance in regards to your knowledge. Rushd is guidance in regards to your amal (عَمَل), guidance in regards to your action.

So when you ask Allah (جَلَّ جَلَالُهُ), when we talk about Surah al-Hujurat:

"But Allah has endeared to you the iman and has made it pleasing in your hearts and has made hateful to you disbelief, wickedness and disobedience. Those are the ones who are rightly guided."

That the people that have an intense aversion to disbelief and everything that accompanies it of wickedness, those are the people that are rashidun (رَاشِدُونَ), they are those who are guided.

So all of the khulafa were rashidun (رَاشِدُونَ), they're guided in regards to their actions. What that means is, all of them, though they met very different endings, did the right thing. They did what Allah (جَلَّ جَلَالُهُ) guided them to do.

They are not perfect people because perfection is to Allah (جَلَّ جَلَالُهُ) and then infallibility in regards to actions concerning the message is reserved for the messengers of Allah. But you cannot look back and criticize them for their actions, particularly when we're talking about Abu Bakr, Umar, Uthman and Ali.

They did the best that they could with the situations that were presented to them and they acted with a lot of dua and a lot of consultation with the people around them.

The Importance of Consultation (Shura)

So one of the things that you see with all four of them, by the way, which is just the defining trait of all of them, is that all four of them did do a lot of shura (شُورَى). They consulted the people that were around them.

So a lot of times that's how you deal with a person that has an imbalanced trait, even if it's a good imbalanced trait. So some of us lean towards mercy, some of us lean more towards justice, but ultimately Allah (جَلَّ جَلَالُهُ) has created you with those imbalances for the betterment of the balance of society.

The way that you balance yourself out is by keeping people around you and voices around you that will kind of center you and make sure that that one quality is not dominating the conversation.

Uthman's Character: The Seven Shaded by Allah's Throne

I remember thinking of the hadith where the Prophet (صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ) mentions the seven that are shaded by the throne of Allah (جَلَّ جَلَالُهُ). If there is one person that fits the definition of (رَجُلٌ تَصَدَّقَ بِصَدَقَة فَأَخْفَاهَا حَتَّى لَا تَعْلَمَ شِمَالُهُ مَا تُنْفِقُ يَمِينُهُ) "he who gives with his right hand in a way that even his left hand is not aware of it," it's Uthman (رَضِيَ اللَّهُ عَنْهُ) (Bukhari 1423)

If there's one person that fits that description, if you had to assign a personality to each of those seven, I would assign Uthman (رَضِيَ اللَّهُ عَنْهُ) to that particular quality, that trait of a person who is so used to generosity, who gives so regularly, who gives without thinking about how much he's giving or whatever it is, just constantly is generous in spending.

Not expecting anything from anybody but Allah (جَلَّ جَلَالُهُ). That is Uthman (رَضِيَ اللَّهُ عَنْهُ).

Uthman's Defining Qualities

So to understand Uthman before the siege, his qualities were of haya (حَیَاء) - bashfulness, his qualities were of jud (جود) - generosity, and those two qualities ultimately are what lead to him being assassinated as well, by the way. That his generosity extended even when he was under siege and his benevolence, his shyness, his bashfulness also extended to those moments of his life.

Uthman's Great Contributions

Expansion of the Masjid

So this is the man who when the Prophet (صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ) had an increasing number of people embracing the message of Islam, becoming converts. This is the man that immediately expanded the masjid because the size of the masjid no longer could accommodate the amount of converts that were coming to the religion, who expands the masjid.

Financing Expeditions

This is the man who finances entire expeditions and armies for the Prophet (صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ). This is the man who when they, you know, and this was known as Jaysh al-Usra (جَيْشِ الْعُسْرَةِ), you can read more about it. Jaysh al-Usra was the army that went to Tabuk, who financed all of it.

The Well of Rumah

This is the man who, you know, when the Prophet (صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ) arrived in Medina and said, who will purchase this well so that it could be an endowment for the community because the people needed clean water. This is the man that immediately went forth and used all that he had, even on the heels of just migrating to Medina.

So think about context. Uthman (رَضِيَ اللَّهُ عَنْهُ) was one of the people that migrated twice. He migrated to Abyssinia, and the first migration of Muslims escaping persecution that he migrated to Medina. But when you carry the quality of generosity, even though he was not some established businessman in Medina, as soon as he hears the Prophet (صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ) make a call for someone to purchase that well so that it could be an endowment for the people, he immediately rushes to the occasion and Uthman (رَضِيَ اللَّهُ عَنْهُ) purchases that well, the well of Rumah.

Dhunnurayn: The One with Two Lights

We also have the nickname of Uthman (رَضِيَ اللَّهُ عَنْهُ، ذُو النُّورَيْن), the one with two lights. And this is a narration from Abdullah bin Umar about Uthman (رَضِيَ اللَّهُ عَنْهُ) why he was named Dhunnurayn.

Of course, he was the person who Allah blessed to marry two daughters of the Prophet (صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ). He married Ruqayya (رَضِيَ اللَّهُ عَنْهَا) and then she passed away. And then he married the Prophet (صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ) married to him Um Kulthum, his other daughter, and no one else had that blessing bestowed upon them.

The Character Behind the Tragedy

So what is Uthman's qualities like? What are his characters like? And why is it that Uthman (رَضِيَ اللَّهُ عَنْهُ) when he faces the situation, I don't have time to go into the details of the situation itself, but he's placed under siege. And there are people that are stirring up a lot of trouble in the Ummah.

And Uthman (رَضِيَ اللَّهُ عَنْهُ) does not take a strong action against these rebels. And essentially they were rebels, but they were ideological rebels. So they were utilizing an ideology to justify their rebellion against Uthman (رَضِيَ اللَّهُ عَنْهُ).

Uthman's Fear of Oppression

Well, for one, Uthman feared dhulm (ظُلْم), he feared oppression to an extreme. So bashfulness is of different types. When you think of shyness, you think of someone who's very quiet, or you think of someone who's very reserved. But bashfulness in the shar'i (شَرْعِي) conception has more dimensions to it.

The Story of the Pinched Ear

And one of those is Uthman (رَضِيَ اللَّهُ عَنْهُ) was bashful amongst people, even if they were hurting him. And this is something that took place where once Uthman (رَضِيَ اللَّهُ عَنْهُ) and he lived into his 90s, he pinched the ear of a young man. And when he pinched the ear of that young man, he recognized that it hurt him.

And Uthman (رَضِيَ اللَّهُ عَنْهُ) imagine this old man that holds the position that he holds in our Ummah. Uthman (رَضِيَ اللَّهُ عَنْهُ) says pinch my ear back. And he says, no, I can't do that. It doesn't make sense. And Uthman insists. He gets down and he says, pinch my ear back.

And he keeps on insisting until the young man does it. And he puts his hand on his ear. And Uthman (رَضِيَ اللَّهُ عَنْهُ) says, pinch harder.

And he says (فَإِنَّ قِصَاصَ الدُّنْيَا أَهْوَنُ مِنْ قِصَاصِ الْآخِرَةِ) "because retaliation in this world is far easier than retaliation in the hereafter. I don't want to meet Allah with that on my neck, pinch harder."

Continue to pinch my ear. If Uthman رضي الله عنه had that much fear with a young man while he was old enough to be his great-grandfather. And he holds the position that he has in the Ummah.

So how is that going to manifest itself when Uthman رضي الله عنه was dealing with أَهْلُ الْفِتَنِ )Ahlul Fitan) or the Khawarij, the first manifestation of the Khawarij in his lifetime.

The Nature of Generous People

So a person like that who has that quality of generosity and benevolence and bashfulness, a person like that will be taken advantage of. The prophets were taken advantage of in their generosity and in their benevolence. So of course this would also extend to people that are not messengers of Allah.

So when people would complain to Uthman رضي الله عنه he wouldn't think to himself for a moment that this was coming from a bad place. Rather he assumed that those that were complaining and those that were stirring up trouble were stirring up trouble in the Ummah because they had legitimate grievances and legitimate concerns. And so the best thing to do would be to hear them out and to take care of them.

Uthman's Generous Responses to Complaints

So when people would complain to Uthman from different places in the Ummah, he'd replace governors in those regions. When people would complain to Uthman رضي الله عنهhe sends a public letter to the entire Ummah and says if anyone has anything they want to talk to me about directly, come to Hajj and I will pay for your Hajj.

I will pay for your Hajj to come and to lodge your formal complaint. Can you imagine that? I mean, what type of Khalifa would do that? I will pay for your Hajj so that you can meet me in Hajj and you can, you know, give me your complaint.

When Uthman رضي الله عنه would send investigators to different parts of the Ummah to see what was going on, who was making these complaints? Why were these rebellions taking place? Why or why was this, you know, why was the strife suddenly taking place? People would come back and say nothing is wrong.

I mean, we're going there and we're not seeing anything. So we don't really understand where these letters are coming from and where these questions are coming from.

The False Accusations Against Uthman

But one thing that did hurt Uthman رضي الله عنه and where he would defend himself is when he was accused of mishandling money, misappropriating money. And you know, when you do something particularly well, then it really hurts to have your integrity called into question in regards to that particular matter.

This is the man that used all of his money for the sake of Allah and the Messenger صلى الله عليه وسلم So when you attack someone in regards to that, then it has a particular effect.

Uthman's Defense of His Character

But there is something to take from this that Uthman رضي الله عنه was accused of using his money, of taking the money from the Ummah and spending on his relatives with money that was given to the treasury. And Uthman رضي الله عنه was extremely upset with that accusation. He didn't really bother answering the other accusations, but that accusation really did affect him.

So he stands up and he says, who amongst you witnessed Tabuk? Who amongst you witnessed when I purchased the well of Rumah? Who amongst you witnessed when the Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم asked for an expedition جَيْ الْعُسْرَةِ )Jaysh al-Usra) to be financed and I gave everything there? Who amongst you witnessed when I expanded the masjid of the Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم?

I mean, you really think that I would take money from the treasury, from بَيْتُ الْمَالِ )baytul mal) when I basically built it? I mean, he spent, he put all the seed money into what would be the treasury. Do you really think that I would then steal money from it at this point in my life and betray the Messenger صلی الله عليه وسلم

So he said, look, I'm 83 years old and Allah has blessed me with great wealth. So he said that from my personal wealth, I spend on my family.

The Comparison with Umar's Approach

Uthman رضي الله عنه was very generous with his family, but that was from his own personal wealth. And when we say his family, we're talking about his nephews, his cousins, those that were from his tribe. He saw that as a means of getting close to Allah, spending on his family.

Now they responded to him and they said to him that Umar wasn't like that. Umar was very harsh with his family. Umar رضي الله عنه used to hold back from his family.

And this is actually really important. So when they said to Uthman رضي الله عنهwell, Umar رضي الله عنه used to hold back from his family. So, you know, what makes you different from him? And listen to what .said رضي الله عنه Uthman

"Umar was harsh on his family as a means of seeking closeness to Allah. And I am generous with my family as a means of seeking closeness to Allah. And both of us are correct."

That's special. Umar did not, he wanted his family to feel the, you know, the struggle, right? So he wanted to keep money away from his family because at the end of the day, Umar's house was the poorest house in Medina and he wanted to keep it that way. And he did not want his family to feel privileged for being the family of the leader, the family of the Khalifa. So Umar held back from his family.

Uthman said, look, I spend on my relatives. We both did what we did as a means of seeking closeness to Allah and we're both right. There is no wrong here. They're two different approaches. Both of them are seeking the noble means of coming close to Allah.

The Systematic Campaign Against Uthman

Spreading Rumors of Innovation

So how does the, you know, how did this instigation start with Umar رضي الله عنه with Uthman رضي الله عنه Firstly, they started to spread rumors that Uthman was a مُبْتَدِعٌ )mubtadi'), he was an innovator. So first they started, they tried to delegitimize him by saying that he was not holding to the teachings of the Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم

The Story of the Egyptian Man

And there's a narration in Bukhari that an Egyptian man came to perform hajj, a man from مصر )Misr( came to perform hajj, and some people were sitting there. So he asked who they were or what tribe they were from. So they said they were from Quraysh. He said, who's the old man that's sitting amongst you? Because there was an elderly man sitting amongst them.

They said, this is Abdullah ibn Umar. So the man said to them, Ya ibn Umar, I want to ask you something. He said, don't you know that Uthman fled from the battle of Uhud? And Abdullah ibn Umar says, yes, and I'll give some context.

He said, don't you know that Uthman wasn't present at بَيْعَةُ الرّضوان )Bayat al-Ridwan), the pledge under the tree? And he said, yes. He said, don't you know that Uthman wasn't present at Badr? And Abdullah ibn Umar says, yes.

So the man said, (الله أَكْبَرُ - Allahu Akbar), why do you follow this hypocrite?

Explaining the Context

So let's go through these بَيْعَةُ الرّضوان )Bayat al-Ridwan), which was the allegiance that was taken under the tree, which was a pledge that people would sacrifice their lives for the sake of Allah in avenging who? Uthman.

The context of that is that when they were doing, when they were crafting the treaty of Hudaybiyyah, صُلْحُ الْحُدَيْبِيَةِ )Sulh al-Hudaybiyyah), Uthman went to Mecca to negotiate with the Meccans on behalf of the Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم. And he was held up for a very long time.

So a rumor spread that Uthman was dead, that he was murdered. The people took a pledge to protect, to die in the cause of Uthman رضي الله تعالى عنه meaning to go forth to Mecca unarmed and that they would die for the sake of Allah because Uthman had been killed.

The Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم took one of his hands and he took the other hand and he said, اللَّهُمَّ هَذِهِ لِعُثْمَانَ "Oh Allah, this is for Uthman."

So he represented Uthman with one of his hands and took a pledge with himself. So the pledge was taken for Uthman. But now you're living disconnected enough from that time.

And it's scary because it's only a few years that people wouldn't have the common sense when they start hearing a rumor that Uthman was not present in Bayat al-Ridwan to say, well, that's because the Bayat was for him in the first place. He wasn't there because it was for him in the first place.

They would not have the sense to know, and this can show you how stories can change very quickly, even when people are still alive. They did not have the sense to know that on the day of Badr, Uthman رضي الله عنه's wife died. Ruqayya, the daughter of the Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلمpassed away.

And that's why it was called the day of great sadness and the day of great joy because when the victory of Badr came, the daughter of the Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم and the wife of Uthman died and the رضي الله عنها instructed Uthman to stay back and to take care of Ruqayya صلى الله عليه وسلم Prophet

But the rumor had already spread that Uthman missed Badr. So he must be a hypocrite. As for fleeing Uhud, the vast majority of the Sahaba thought the battle was over and they fled Uhud. Allah forgave them and Allah revealed their forgiveness in the Quran.

But once you start to spread those types of rumors, then you just create a profile about a person. The goal here, it's like Islamophobes do, right? The goal is not to actually have anything verifiable against you. It's to create enough suspicion to where they can profile you. So if I throw enough stuff at him, then some of it will stick.

More False Accusations

So they started to say Uthman stood one step higher on the مِنْبَر )minbar) than the Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم. Who does he think he is? They started to say, why does Uthman in hajj, we do قصرqasr you pray two rak'ahs in Mina instead of the full four, right?

Uthman رضي الله عنه in his fatwa, he prayed the full four rak'ahs because he still had a residence there. So he didn't feel like it was appropriate for him to pray qasr. But because of that, he's an innovator. He's مُبْتَدِعٌ )mubtadi). You delegitimize him by creating this type of a profile about him. And that's very dangerous.

That's very dangerous. And we do it to each other. Imam Al-Bukhari,رحمه الله تعالىwho the ummah benefits from so much today, was an outcast, was humiliated, dragged, cast out by his people because that's the profile that was created about him as well. He's an innovator, right?

So this is something that we need to learn ourselves as well. That the شريعة shari'a), you know, our deen places such care on verification, on not profiling people by virtue of the abundance of news, أَخْبَار )akhbar), that exists about them as was done with Uthman رضي الله تعالى عنه

The Prophet's Prophecies About Uthman's Martyrdom

That's the first way that Uthman رضي الله تعالى عنه was delegitimized. Now, the Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم prophesized his martyrdom. And the Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم informed him about his martyrdom.

The Hadith of Mount Uhud

And there are many narrations about this. One of them, the Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم was on Mount Uhud with Abu Bakr, Umar, and Uthman. And Uhud shook, and the Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم said:

"Be firm, O Uhud, you have a prophet on you, a صديق )siddiq), a person of truth, and two martyrs, Umar and Uthman." (Bukhari 3675)

So the Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم prophesized that Umar and Uthman would both be murdered and would be martyred.

The Angel's Message

The Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم included him from the ten guaranteed paradise. The Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم said, An angel passed by me. And the angel said to the Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم،

"We are shy of Uthman, a man that will extend benevolence to his people and be killed by them."

So, Uthman رضي الله عنه was given that type of news.

The Man in the Desert

The Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم was sitting in a gathering one day. This is a narration of Tirmidhi that a man was... They were in the desert. And so a man walks by and he was wrapped up with his garments. And the Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم said that this is a man that will be unjustly killed in a فِتْنَة )fitna), in a massive tribulation.

And it was Uthman رضي الله عنه Ubay ibn Ka'b رضي الله عنه says, I heard the Messenger of Allah صلی الله عليه وسلم talking about the fitna, talking about dissension, breaking out amongst the ummah. Then I

saw this man wrapped up walking by and the Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم said, when that happens, this man will be on truth and guidance.

So then Uthman رضي الله عنه unwrapped his face. So Ubay said, I wanted to be sure. I said, him, O Messenger of Allah? The Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم said yes, him.

The Garment That Cannot Be Removed

The Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم told Uthman رضي الله عنه and this is very powerful. He said:

"Ya Uthman, Allah will clothe you with a certain garment. And if the hypocrites demand that you remove it from yourself, do not remove it until you meet me."

"Do not remove a garment that Allah has dressed you with."

Meaning, a man of that generosity and bashfulness, if he was given the choice, as soon as people started complaining about his leadership, he would resign, right? He would say, okay, well, I'm just not gonna be the khalifa anymore. Let's go ahead and solve this that way.

But the Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم insisted upon him so many times that when that time comes, do not step down from your post. Stay in that post.

The Dream Before Martyrdom

There was another time that Aisha رضي الله عنها narrates this, and Muslim Imam Ahmed, that Uthman صلى الله عليه وسلم And the Prophet .صلى الله عليه وسلم entered the house of the Prophet رضي الله عنه told him to come close. And he kept telling him to come close until he started to whisper in the ear of رضي الله عنه Uthman

And as he was whispering in the ear of Uthman, Uthman's face was changing colors. And the Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم kept on asking him or nodding to him, do you understand what I just said to you? And Uthman رضي الله عنه would nod in approval.

So the Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم, he'd tell him to come back and he'd whisper something else to Uthman, and Uthman's face would change colors and he'd nod in approval. And Aisha asked the Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم what that was all about.

And the Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم basically gave him the story of his death. He basically told him what was going to happen to him in detail.

So Uthman رضي الله عنه was under no false illusion that his life was going to end in any way but martyrdom. He had already accepted it from the time of the Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم .

But it's one thing to be told that something will happen. It's another thing when you start encountering that thing. So it doesn't make it any less painful even if the expectation was already there.

The Siege and Its Escalation

It still hurt Uthman رضي الله عنه greatly the way that things would spiral out of control. Uthman رضي الله تعالى عنه still despite the Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم telling him never to resign, Uthman still brought his governors around.

He brought the companions around and he asked them if they thought that he should just step down from the Khilafah because of all the trouble that's being created. No doing of his own. Uthman has no idea what type of agenda is at play here.

He has no idea why this rebellion is happening. The companions that are close to Uthman have no idea why this is happening. So Uthman still asked them, should I resign or not?

Abdullah bin Abbas رضي الله تعالى عنه reminds him of the hadith of the Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم:

"O commander of the believers, do not remove a garment that Allah has placed on you."

And Uthman رضي الله عنه said لا حَوْلَ وَلَا قُوَّةَ إِلَّا بِالله "There is no power except with Allah." At this point, I'm stuck.

And it's really interesting because how does Ibn Abbas know this stuff? Because Ibn Abbas asked all of the companions after the death of the Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم to basically tell them every interaction صلى الله عليه وسلم they ever had with the Prophet

So this young man who was a kid is reminding Uthman, remember you told me that the Prophet صلی الله عليه وسلم told you that there will come a time that Allah will give you a garment. Don't take off that garment that Allah has placed on you.

The Escalation of Violence

And then things start to get worse. They start to deteriorate. First, Uthman رضي الله عنه is cursed during the خطب )khutbas). So people would raise their voices at him and interrupt him in the جمعة )jumu'ah( khutba.

The sahaba would stand up to defend him. And people, these rebels, who no one knew, would attack the sahaba. And Uthman would insist upon the sahaba not to kill them. Don't spill blood.

Then, Uthman رضي الله عنه this old man, is hit by a stone in the head and he falls unconscious in the masjid of the Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم . And the sahaba carried him to his home.

And Ali رضي الله عنه Talha and Zubayr رضي الله عنه begged Uthman for the permission to kill these people, to fight these people. And Uthman رضي الله عنه says no.

Uthman sees things intensifying and his last khutba that he gives to the people, he reminds them of the آخرة akhira). And he says to them, so go out and leave my doors and do not lift your swords on your brothers. Whatever you do, don't lift your swords on your brothers.

So Uthman did not resign from the khilafa, but he stepped away from giving the khutba so that he was hoping that some calm would overtake the masjid, that there would be some sort of a situation.

The Cruelty of the Siege

And the people continue to get harsher with him. They start abusing him, throwing rocks into his home. And there is one man, it was a very embarrassing situation for this man. But it's very powerful that this man was throwing rocks into the home of Uthman رضي الله عنه

And Uthman called out to him. He said, listen to him. He was a young man. Uthman is this old man. He says to him, listen. He says, there are other people in this house other than me. If you're going to hit me, it's fine. Don't hit my wife and my kids.

And the young man, arrogant young man, says to him, اللهُ رَمَاكَ وَلَيْسَ أَنَا "Allah threw the stone at you, not me." Uthman رضي الله عنه says كَذَّبْتَ you've lied. Because if Allah threw the stone, it wouldn't have missed."

And goes right back into his house. Like, you know, he's at complete calm despite his house being set on fire, despite stones being thrown into his home, despite them preventing him from doing things as time goes on.

And what starts to happen is they start to prevent him from praying in the masjid. And Uthman رضي الله عنه says, I remember when the prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم called for the masjid to be expanded. He built the masjid. And now they're stopping him from praying in the masjid.

They started to prevent water from reaching the house of Uthman رضي الله عنه . And Uthman رضي الله عنه says, I remember when the prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم called for بِئْرَ رُومَةَ )bi'r Rumah) to be purchased. And I purchased it. Now you're preventing that water from reaching my home.

It's absolutely amazing the cruelty that was extended to him in return for all that he did for them. And Uthman رضي الله عنه was at complete peace with himself.

The Final Martyrdom

Eventually, we know that the end of this is that the siege becomes so tight. And it's really interesting. The reason why they killed Uthman رضي الله عنهthey eventually rushed his house.

What they were trying to do was to provoke a battle of sorts. And then they kill Uthman and kill some other sahaba in the process. Because in that situation, in the fog of it all, they could get away, right? Or they could say that things got intense.

It's just like how, you know, if you really want to, if you really want to rob and oppress people of their narrative, then you start using the conflict story. You start calling it a conflict. You start saying two sides. Things got intense, right? Things got heated up, things escalated.

Then you remove the burden from the oppressor and you put it on equal sides, right? So you, though they don't have equal circumstances, you make them both complicit in usually the disproportionate deaths on the side of the oppressed.

So what they were hoping to do was to provoke Uthman, to provoke the companions, to turn this into all-out chaos. Because they were more heavily armed and they were in a situation where they would have won anyway and they could have killed a few more in the process.

Uthman was not giving in. What was happening is that the companions that had gone for Hajj at that point had heard about the siege and they were making their way back now to Medina. Different governors had heard about the siege on Uthman's house. They were sending troops from different places to catch these people.

So even though Uthman is commanding the companions in Medina not to lift their swords on these people, not to kill them, the word is starting to get out in the Ummah and the majority of the people which are the innocent bystanders, their emotions are starting to get stirred.

Their sentiment is growing towards Uthman. Like, how can we allow this old man to be tortured this way with everything that he's done for us?

So at that point, the Khawarij make this strategic decision to just go in and to kill him because they decided that they needed to kill him before other people showed up in Medina and killed them or before the people, contrary to the orders of Uthman, eventually took up arms against them and started to fight them.

Uthman's Final Reflections

And so they charged the house of Uthman. Uthman was having a lot of conversations with the other companions in his house, the children of Ali, Talha and Zubair, you know, Abdullah bin Umar. There are so many people that were around Uthman.

So one of the ways that Allah comforts the believers, the righteous, the last day of their life usually proceeds with Allah comforting them. It's like the presence of the angels is already coming to them.

So Uthman رضي الله عنه mentions, you know, that he prayed that Allah would enter him into Jannah on the basis of 10 things. And Uthman is bashful. He's not one to boast. But he feels his death is near and Uthman is reflecting on the good things that have happened to him.

He said, I was one of the first four people to convert to Islam. That's number one. Number two, he had the distinction of marrying two daughters of the Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم . No one else had that distinction.

Number three, he said that he did not apply his hand to anything materialistic since he offered that hand in allegiance to the Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم. Meaning what? That his hand that he gave allegiance to the Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم with since the day he became Muslim, he used that hand to earn and to صلى الله عليه وسلم spend in the cause of Allah and his Messenger

Number four, Uthman رضي الله عنه said that I used to liberate a slave every week that he had a habit of freeing a slave every single week that he would purchase the freedom of a slave every single week.

Number five, that he never committed fornication or adultery. Number six, that he never committed a major or an open sin. Number seven, that through him Allah preserved the text of the Quran which you hold now is مُصْحَفٌ عُثْمَانَ )Mushaf Uthman(.

That it was through his efforts that the Quran was preserved. Number eight, that he was one of the ten people who were given the glad tidings of Paradise during his lifetime that the Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم gave him the glad tidings of Jannah during his lifetime.

Number nine, that he spent his wealth freely for the sake of Allah. And number ten, that the Prophet عليه الصلاة والسلام Abu Bakr and Umar were all pleased with him.

The Final Dream

As Uthman was attacked, the night before Uthman was attacked. Uthman was, he actually went into fasting. So it was the day of Thursday. So it was the habit of Uthman to fast Mondays and Thursdays.

So he went to sleep that day. Fasting. And he had that dream of the Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم. He sees the Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم saying to him:

"Have they prevented you from water? Ya Uthman."

Yes, O Messenger of" صلى الله عليه وسلم نَعَمْ يَا رَسُولَ اللهِ And Uthman complaining to the Prophet Allah."

Imagine the Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم sitting in front of you in a dream and having a conversation asking about you. And he says to him, Did they prevent food from reaching you? And he says, Yes, O Messenger of Allah.

And he said, And did they prevent you from praying in my masjid? And he says نَعَمْ يَا رَسُولَ اللهِ "Yes,O Messenger of Allah."

And the Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم comforts him with these words. He says, لَا تَحْزَنْ يَا عُثْمَانُ، تُفْطِرْ عِنْدَنَا غَدًا "Don't worry about it, Ya Uthman. You will break your fast with me, Abu Bakr and Umar tonight. Your iftar will not be in this dunya. Your breaking of fast will be with me, Abu Bakr and Umar."

The Final Moments

Once you get that, Uthman رضي الله عنه woke up. He picked up his mushaf, his Quran. The chaos ensued. They attacked his house. They firebombed it. They're charging in. Sahaba are jumping in front of him trying to protect him. Uthman is holding his mushaf and reading.

I mean, at that point, it doesn't matter what would happen to him. And Uthman رضي الله عنه was reading the ayah in surah al-baqarah:

"Allah will suffice you against them and he is the all-hearing and the all-knowing."

His blood was spilt on his mushaf. That he preserved the words of Allah and his blood was still spilt on that mushaf. May Allah be pleased with him and accept him into Jannatul Firdaus. اللهم آمين Allahumma ameen).

Lessons from Uthman's Character

One reflection that I'll share on this. If Allah has given you a quality, that quality is tested at some point under duress. Uthman رضي الله عنه was generous. He was benevolent. But he had consistency with that generosity and benevolence.

What does that look like in regards to these last moments of the life of Uthman رضي الله عنه? Uthman could have, at that point, responded with arrogance, responded with cruelty.

There's a saying in the Arabic language, قِ غَضَبَ الْحَلِيمِ "fear the anger of the one who's always patient with you." You know, people that never get mad, when you make them mad, you don't want to be anywhere around them when they get mad.

Like their anger is very serious because it doesn't come out frequently and usually infrequent anger is more severe. So a person that gets pushed around a lot, that's taken advantage of a lot, when they eventually go over the top, it's bad, right? It's extreme.

So Uthman could have had that reaction at some point. He said, you know what? I'm done with you people. I've given you all of this and this is how you respond. At that point, he could have really taken out his frustration of his entire life, of giving without return in this life, but his generosity continued into those

moments to where his greatest concern was, I don't want to meet Allah with a single drop of blood spilled in my cause.

I don't want to meet Allah with a single drop of blood spilled in my cause. And he still had mercy with the people and his generosity to the people at that point, his benevolence was that even though they were hurting them, he would not hurt them back. That was the character of Uthman.

The Emotional Response to Uthman's Death

That's why that gives you some context to understand why the reaction of people, why the fitna was so strong. Those that wanted to avenge him wanted it now because this is not a man that you slaughter. This is not a man that you kill.

Na'ila, the wife of Uthman رضي الله عنها Her fingers were cut off defending Uthman. She put her hand in front of Uthman and they chopped her fingers. She sent the shirt, the bloodstained shirt of Uthman and her fingers to Syria to the relatives of Uthman and said, so who's going to avenge this man?

Think of the emotions and that shirt, the bloodstained shirt of Uthman was placed on the pulpit in Damascus where the people could look at it. Think of the anger and the outrage that stirred amongst the people, the raw emotion that how could we let this happen to Uthman?

Of course it's going to stir an incredible amount of emotion. Ali رضي الله عنه was right. He was right to want to stabilize things so that this does not become vigilantism and lead to a greater chaos.

Ali had every intention to go after the killers of Uthman. But Ali رضي الله عنه wanted to function with some level of stability so that it's not just killing everyone that you thought you saw kill Uthman and it doesn't become a free for all. That's all that Ali رضي الله عنه wanted.

But the emotions were so strong because this man had done so much good for people.

Az-Zubayr's Moving Statement

One of the most transformative sayings and I don't know why I apply it to a lot of other things in life because it's not really related, but it is related. There's a very powerful saying from Az-Zubayr رضي الله عنه. May Allah be pleased with them. Were two of the men that were enraged.

I mean, they were there in the house trying to defend Uthman. They wanted vengeance. They wanted to . رضي الله عنه avenge Uthman

And Az-Zubayr رضي الله عنهhe cried and he said this statement and it's very beautiful and very powerful. He said:

"Oh Allah, take from me for Uthman until you're pleased."

Like at this point, like my blood, my sacrifice. If you think about it, that same spirit, when the Sahaba took the pledge بَيْعَةُ الرّضوان )Bayat al-Ridwan) and said we're going to march into Mecca without weapons and be killed because our brother Uthman has been killed.

There's a certain type, it was for Allah. That's a guy that you would feel comfortable, that you'd feel like you want to give your life for, who deserves that type of sacrifice on your part, even though the sacrifice in its absolute senses for the sake of Allah.

But you talk about selflessness and the emotions that drove these people. When Az-Zubayr says, اللَّهُمَّ خُذْ مِنِّي لِعُثْمَانَ حَتَّى تَرْضَى He thinks that's the most pleasing to Allah that this was a crime that was committed in our lifetime, in front of us. Oh Allah, let me, let me be taken from, whatever that means.

Let me be taken from until you are pleased for the cause of Uthman رضي الله تعالى عنه

The Beautiful Ending

The Prophecy of the Well

How many of you have seen, how many of you have been to Medina? Okay, it seems like the majority of you. So you got the Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم Abu Bakr and Umar buried next to each other, right?

Something happened in the life of the Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم. Abu Musa al-Ash'ari رضي الله عنه narrates this. The Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم was once, he was missing. And what they meant by him missing was that, you know, usually there are people waiting at the door. The Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم the moment he opened his door, they surrounded him. He was always surrounded by people.

So they went looking for him. When he went to the graveyard, there were people around him. When he went to the marketplace, there were people around him. So the Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم was missing for an unusual amount of time. So Abu Musa رضي الله عنه went looking for him. And everybody went صلى الله عليه وسلم looking for the Prophet

So he found the Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم sitting in بئر عريس Bi'r Aris), which is a well on the outskirts of Medina, close to Masjid Quba. And he had his pants pulled up to his knees,صلى الله عليه وسلمand he was dangling his feet in that well. So he's just relaxing, contemplating, taking a break from the world.

And Abu Musa says, I'm going to guard the Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم . So I'm going to make sure that no one interrupts him, that he has his time. He deserves it, right? So he stands outside the gate where the Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم is. He says, I'm going to guard, I'm going to make sure no one comes here.

And Abu Bakr shows up. So Abu Bakr asks permission to come sit. So Abu Musa goes back to the Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم. He says, you know, that Abu Bakr is here. And the Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم says let him in and grant him the glad tidings of Paradise as well.

So Abu Bakr comes and he sits right next to the Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم. He pulls his pant legs up, puts his feet in the well, starts dangling his feet as well.

Abu Musa says that then Umar رضي الله عنه came in. So I informed the Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم that there was someone else that was there. And he said, grant him entrance and give him the glad tidings of Paradise.

So Umar came in and Umar sat next to the Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم as well and dangled his legs in the water too. So you got this sight of the Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم sitting with Abu Bakr and Umar.

And that's just the way that it was. It's like they knew where to find him. They always knew how to get to him somehow. And it always was that way that they were signs of the Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم coming in some way.

So after that Abu Musa says, I was hoping the next person that would come would be my brother because I could tell the Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم was giving slots of Jannah here, right? He was guaranteeing Paradise. I was hoping that the next person to come ask for admission would be my brother.

But it was Uthman. And the Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم responded and he said ادْخُلْ وَبَشِرْهُ بِالْجَنَّةِ عَلَى بَلْوَى تُصِيبُهُ "let him in and give him the glad tidings of Jannah after a horrible tragedy will strike him in this dunya."

It's like even then the Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم was making it a point to remind him that your death will not be ordinary. So Uthman says, أَصْبِرْ إِنْ شاءَ الله "I will be patient inshallah."

He comes in and because Abu Bakr and Umar were sitting on the side of the Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلمUthman sits directly across from them. So he's sitting on the other side all by himself.

The Expansion of Baqi

Sa'id ibn Musayyib is one of the narrators of this. When Uthman was killed, one of the things that these rebels did is that they forbade a public funeral for Uthman because they were afraid of sentiments being stirred for him. So Ali had to go and bury Uthman privately at night.

Not only that, but they forbade him from being buried in the تقيع )Baqi), which is where the companions are buried. So he can't be buried with the rest of the family and the companions of the Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم

Ali took a small group of people and they went and they buried him at night with no public ceremony. And they wanted to shame Uthman by excluding him from the Baqi where the companions are buried.

All right, listen to what happens. This is the (qadar) of Allah. The Baqi expanded to where Uthman's grave became a part of the Baqi anyway.

So all of the reward of being buried in جَنَّةُ الْبَقيع )Jannatul Baqi), may Allah make us amongst them اللَّهُمَّ آمین Allahumma ameen), was assured for Uthman because he ended up in the Baqi anyway.

Not only that, but here's a pro tip if you're going for Hajj or Umrah and you get to go into the Baqi, it's very obvious which grave is Uthman's grave. You know, they obviously leveled all the graves and you can tell by where they scream at you, someone important is buried.

Unfortunately, that's the way that you can tell now. But it's very obvious which one's Uthman's grave because that's the only place like kind of centered where there's a guard sitting there all the time watching that grave just in case someone wants to come worship Uthman.

Anyway, so if you go into the Baqi, you know where he's at. But here's the beautiful interpretation of Said al-Musayyib. Said al-Musayyib said that hadith of the Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم sitting with Abu Bakr, Umar and Uthman, that is the way that they would be buried.

So Abu Bakr and Umar next to the Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم and then Uthman is literally a direct line could be drawn on a map from the grave of Uthman to the graves of the Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم Abu Bakr and Umar.

So at the end of the day, they still get to end up sitting in a well, sitting around the table in الجنّة al jannah), breaking their fast together. And that's the way that this story ends, not with his assassination, but with his elevation.

And that's an important part because that's where شهَادَة shahada) plays in to our understanding of these people.

Closing

We ask Allah to be pleased with the companions, to send us peace and blessings upon the Prophet صلی الله عليه وسلم be pleased with his family and his companions and to join us with them. اللَّهُمَّ آمین (Allahumma ameen).

جَزَاكُمُ اللهُ خَيْرًا

بَارَكَ اللهُ فِيكُمْ وَالسَّلَامُ عَلَيْكُمْ وَرَحْمَةُ اللهِ وَبَرَكَاتُهُ