Episode 2: Life of Umar ibn al-Khattab
Umar ibn al-Khattab at the Battle of Badr:
At the Battle of Badr, Umar ibn al-Khattab showed his firmness against the enemies of Allah SWT.
On that day, seventy of the leaders of the Quraysh were killed and another seventy were taken as captives.
Among the captives was Suhayl ibn Amr and Umar ibn al-Khattab asked the Prophet Muhammad ﷺ to let him kill Suhayl as he was a spokesperson for the Quraysh and he knew Suhayl would go back and talk bad about the Prophet.
The Prophet Muhammad ﷺ replied: Leave it, O Umar.
Umar then asked the Prophet that instead of killing him, to let him break his teeth so that he could not speak.
Once again, the Prophet Muhammad ﷺ told Umar: Leave it O Umar. Perhaps Allah may guide him to Islam and the religion could spread from him.
Later on, Suhayl ibn Amr did become a Muslim.
Confrontation with Sa’d ibn al-A’as:
It was narrated that whenever Umar ibn al-Khattab would pass by Sa’id ibn al-A’as, he would notice that Sa’id’s face would change.
Umar knew why Sa’id had some type of issue with him and one day, he went to Sa’id ibn al-A’as and said: I see in you that you have something inside you. You are holding something against me. And I know what that issue is as well. I know that you think that I killed your father (Al-A’as ibn Sa’id, who was a disbeliever) on the day of Badr.
Umar continued: Even if I did kill him, I would not apologise to you for killing him as he deserved to be killed. He was fighting on the side of the disbelievers against the Muslims and the Prophet. On the day of Badr, I killed my own uncle, Al-A’as ibn Hisham (brother of Abu Jahal).
The Prisoners of Badr: Umar vs Abu Bakr’s Advice:
The Prophet Muhammad ﷺ asked Abu Bakr and Umar for advice on what to do with the prisoners at Badr.
Abu Bakr said to the Prophet that they should hold the prisoners for ransom and not kill them as maybe Allah will allow Islam to enter their hearts.
Umar did not agree with Abu Bakr and told the Prophet that they should cut off the necks of the prisoners and that each person (from the Muslims) should execute their own family members to show the power of the Muslims to the Quraysh.
The Prophet Muhammad ﷺ replied to Abu Bakr’s advice and said: your advice is like that of Ibrahim (AS) and Isa (AS).
The Prophet replied to Umar ibn al-Khattab’s advice and said: your advice is like that of Nuh (AS) and Musa (AS).
The Prophet Muhammad ﷺ then agreed with Abu Bakr to hold the prisoners at ransom and free them.
The next morning, Umar saw the Prophet and Abu Bakr crying and asked them: why are you crying? The Prophet Muhammad ﷺ replied: Allah has rebuked us.
This was because, it was the wrong decision to free the prisoners and in fact, Allah revealed that they should have killed the prisoners of Badr as a sign of power for the Muslims rather than showing compassion and mercy.
However, Allah SWT did not punish them because there was no command sent to do this by Him.
Allah had revealed an Ayat about this: ‘It is not fit for a prophet that he should take captives until he has thoroughly subdued the land. You (believers) settled with the fleeting gains of this world, while Allah’s aim ˹for you˺ is the Hereafter. Allah is Almighty, All-Wise’. (Quran, 8:67)
Umar at the Battle of Uhud:
The next year, at the battle of Uhud, the Prophet Muhammad ﷺ and his companions climbed Mount Uhud.
When the Prophet and the companions got onto the mountain, it began to shake.
The Prophet Muhammad ﷺ said: Stay firm O Uhud, because surely upon you there is a Prophet, a Siddique (Abu Bakr) and a martyr (Umar).
After making this statement, Mount Uhud then became firm.
The Quraysh thought that the Prophet Muhammad ﷺ had been killed.
Abu Sufyan and the Quraysh tried to follow them to the top of Mount Uhud but they were unable to get to that level because Sa’d ibn Abi Waqqas kept throwing arrows at them.
Abu Sufyan asked three questions to the Muslims, which were: Is the Prophet alive, is Abu Bakr among you and is Umar among you?
The Prophet Muhammad ﷺ commanded his companions to stay silent.
Abu Sufyan thought that the Prophet Muhammad ﷺ, Abu Bakr and Umar were dead, so he said to his people: As for these three, we have gotten rid of them.
Abu Sufyan was very happy and thought they had a great victory over the Muslims.
When Umar ibn al-Khattab heard this, he could not remain quiet and told Abu Sufyan: You have lied, O enemy of Allah. Rasoolullah is here and Abu Bakr is here. We are alive and you will see from us, a very bad day. May Allah humiliate you, O enemy of Allah, all of them are alive.
Abu Sufyan replied: Today we have defeated you. Today is our day just like Badr is your day. Hubal (one of their idols) is the most high.
The Prophet Muhammad ﷺ then asked Umar: Ain’t you going to answer him? Umar asked the Prophet to provide him with a response.
The Prophet Muhammad ﷺ told Umar to say to Abu Sufyan: Say to him, Allah is the most High and the most Glorious! Abu Sufyan replied: We have Al-Uzza (another one of their idols).
The Prophet told Umar to say: Allah is our guardian and our protector and you have no guardian or protector.
Abu Sufyan asked Umar to come down and the Prophet allowed him to do so.
When Umar ibn al-Khattab went down, Abu Sufyan asked him: I ask you by Allah, tell me the truth, did we kill Muhammad? Umar replied: No, you did not kill him.
Abu Sufyan then said: you are more truthful and I believe you over Ibn Kamia, who was the person who claimed that he killed the Prophet Muhammad ﷺ at Uhud.