Othman bin Affan, may God be pleased with him, is one of the ten who were given the glad tidings of Paradise, and he is one of the forerunners to Islam, and the third of the Rightly Guided Caliphs. the Noble Qur’an was collected in one Qur’an During his reign. He was called “Dhu al-Nurayn” because he married two of the Prophet’s daughters, may God bless him and grant him peace (Ruqayyah and Umm Kulthum). Let’s get to know more about this great personality Uthman ibn Affan.
Who Was Uthman Ibn Affan?
He is Othman bin Affan bin Abi Al-Aas bin Umayyah bin Abd Shams bin Abd Manaf bin Qusai bin Kilab bin Murra bin Ka’b bin Luay bin Ghalib bin Fahr bin Malik bin Al-Nadr bin Kinana bin Khuzaymah bin Mudraka bin Elias bin Mudar bin Nizar bin Maad bin Adnan. His lineage meets the Messenger of God in the fourth grandfather on the side of his father. He is the cousin of the great companion Abi Sufyan bin Harb.
Early Life
Othman bin Affan was born in Mecca in the year 576 AD, six years after the Year of the Elephant. He was from the womb of the Umayyads and one of their masters. He was a generous horseman and was one of the wealthy. His mother is Arwa bint Kariz bin Habib bin Abd Shams bin Abd Manaf bin Qusay. she is the daughter of the Prophet’s paternal aunt, may God bless him and grant him peace. Her mother is Al-Bayda bint Abd Al-Muttalib, the aunt of the Prophet.
Othman was rich and honorable in the pre-Islamic era, and one of the wisest of the Quraish in mind, and he was loved by his people. He did not prostrate to any idol throughout his life, nor did he drink alcohol, neither in ignorance nor in Islam. He was also aware of the lineages of the Arabs in the pre-Islamic era, and he traveled to the Levant and Abyssinia and lived with non-Arab peoples. so he knew of their conditions and phases that no one else from his people knew. he took care of the trade that he inherited from his father, and his wealth grew, and he became one of the men of the Umayyads who had a great position in all of the Quraysh. In the pre-Islamic era, he was called Abu Amr, so when Abdullah came to him from Ruqayyah, the daughter of the Prophet Muhammad, the Muslims called him Abu Abdullah.
Conversion to Islam
Othman embraced Islam at the beginning of Islam before Muhammad, the Messenger of God (may God bless him and grant him peace), entered Dar Al-Arqam. When he converted to Islam, he was over thirty years old. He is the fourth man to enter Islam. Abu Bakr Al-Siddiq invited him to Islam, and he embraced Islam, and when Abu Bakr offered him, Islam, he said to him: O Othman, by God, you are a resolute man who does not hide the truth from falsehood from you. These idols that your people worship, are they not deaf stones that do not hear or see, do not harm or benefit? He said: Yes, by God, they are like that. Abu Bakr said: This is Muhammad bin Abdullah, whom God sent with His message to all His creation, so can you come to him and hear from him? Immediately, the Messenger of God passed by and said: O Othman, answer God to his heaven, for I am the Messenger of God to you and to all his creation. He said(Othman): By God, I did not possess it when I heard his saying that I converted to Islam, and I testified that there is no god but God, alone with no partner and that Muhammad is the servant of God and His Messenger.
Othman migrated two migrations. he was the first to migrate to the land of Abyssinia with his wife, Mrs. Ruqayyah, daughter of the Messenger of God – may God’s prayers and peace be upon him – to preserve Islam, then the rest of the immigrants followed him to the land of Abyssinia. then he migrated the second migration to Medina. Othman married Ruqayyah, daughter of the Messenger of God Muhammad (peace be upon him). And it was said: The best couple a person has ever seen is Ruqayyah and Uthman. Then she fell ill and died in the year 2 AH during the Battle of Badr. he mourned her greatly, so the Prophet married him to her sister, Umm Kulthum. he was called Dhu al-Nurayn because he married the two daughters of the Messenger of God, Muhammad (may God bless him and grant him peace). the Messenger of God trusted him, loved him, and honored him for his modesty, good manners, and the money he used to give to support the Muslims. the Messenger of God, Muhammad (may God bless him and grant him peace) give him good tidings of Paradise like Abu Bakr, Umar, Ali, and the rest of the ten, and told him that he would die as a martyr.
The Role of Uthman in The Military Campaigns “Ghazawat”
Othman bin Affan – may God be pleased with him – witnessed all the invasions witnessed by the Prophet – upon him be blessings and peace -, with the exception of the Battle of Badr. This is because the Prophet – upon him be peace and blessings be upon him – ordered him to stay with his daughter Ruqayyah, who was ill, so he stayed with her. he had a great role in the Battle of Tabuk, which was the last battle of the Messenger, may God’s prayers and peace be upon him, where the news came to the Messenger of God, may God’s prayers and peace be upon him, that Heraclius, the king of the Romans, was preparing to invade the Muslims in Medina. the heat was intense, so the Battle of Tabuk was called the Battle of Al-Asrah. Because it occurred at a time of hardship for people, severe heat, remoteness in place, and scarcity of money and animals.
This name – Al-Asrah – was mentioned in the Holy Qur’an when it spoke about this battle in Surat Al-Tawbah. God Almighty said: {God has forgiven the Prophet, the Magrafin, and the supporters who followed him in the hour of hardship, after the hearts of a group of them had almost deviated, then He forgave to them He is kind to them, Most Merciful. (At-Tawbah: 117). The Messenger, may God’s prayers and peace be upon him, called on the Companions to spend on equipping the army. Uthman bin Affan, may God be pleased with him, came with three hundred camels with their saddlebags and a thousand dinars in response to the call of the Prophet, may God’s prayers and peace be upon him: (Whoever equips the army of hardship will have paradise). the Prophet, may God’s prayers and peace be upon him, said what Othman did, may God be pleased with him, and he said: (It does not harm Othman what he did after today) Narrated by Al-Tirmidhi and authenticated by Al-Albani.
His Relationship With Abu Bakr
Othman bin Affan was one of the people of consultation in matters of the supreme state in the succession of Abu Bakr Al-Siddiq. Othman bin Affan, may God be pleased with him, was one of the companions and the people of the Shura whose opinion was sought in the most important issues in the succession of Abu Bakr Al-Siddiq, may God be pleased with him. He is the second of the two in favor of a friend. Omar bin Al-Khattab for determination and adversity, and Othman bin Affan for kindness and forbearance. Omar was the minister of the Siddiqiyah caliphate, and Uthman was its general secretary, its greatest lawmaker, and its greatest writer. His opinion was presented to Abu Bakr Al-Siddiq when Abu Bakr’s illness became severe, he consulted the people about whom they would like to take over the matter after him. so they advised Omar, and Uthman’s opinion about Omar was: Oh God, I know about him that his secret is better than his public. so Abu Bakr took his opinion and sent Omar bin Al-Khattab to take over the succession of Muslims after him.
Death of Umar And Election of Uthman
Othman bin Affan – may God be pleased with him – assumed the caliphate three days after the death of Caliph Umar bin Al-Khattab – may God be pleased with him. People used to meet with the honorable companion Abd al-Rahman bin Auf, to consult about the people most entitled to the caliphate, and all the companions of opinion were unanimous on Othman bin Affan – may God be pleased with him. His allegiance to the caliphate took place in the twenty-fourth year of the Hijrah, and his assumption of the caliphate was unanimous from the Companions – may God be pleased with them – and with this, he was the third of the Rightly Guided Caliphs.
Role as Caliph
The duration of caliphate Othman bin Affan may God be pleased with him lasted twelve years, and his caliphate was full of great achievements, including
- Taking care of the Holy Qur’an, transcribing it into several copies, and sending it to various regions.
- Taking care of mosques, as he expanded the Grand Mosque and the Prophet’s Mosque.
- The establishment of the first naval fleet for Muslims.
- the entry of Islam into many countries; Such as Armenia, Cyprus, Tripoli, and parts of Africa.
Assassination
In 656 CE, Uthman was assassinated by a group of rebels who were dissatisfied with his policies. His death marked the beginning of a period of political turmoil in the early Islamic state and led to the eventual split between the Sunni and Shia sects of Islam.
Legacy
After the migration of the Messenger of God, may God’s prayers and peace be upon him, to Medina, the Muslims faced the problem of the lack of water that they drink. there was a well of a Jew called “The Well of Rumah” overflowing with fresh water, and he used to sell its water to Muslims, and among them, there were those who could not find a price for that. so the Prophet, may God’s prayers and peace be upon him, wished that one of the Muslims would buy it and make it for the sake of God to overflow on people without a price.
Othman, may God be pleased with him, hastened to fulfill the desire of the Messenger of God, may God’s prayers and peace be upon him, hoping for the great reward with God.
He went to the Jew and bargained with him to buy it, but he refused at first. so Othman, may God be pleased with him, bargained with him for half, so he bought it from him for 12 thousand dirhams. So he made it for the Muslims on the basis that the well would be for him one day and for the Jew one day. so the Muslims used to draw water on the day of Othman, may God be pleased with him, which would suffice them for two days. When the Jew saw that, he said to Uthman: “You ruined my ride, so buy the other half.” So Othman accepted that and bought it for 8 thousand dirhams. he made the whole well for the Muslims. For the rich and the poor and the wayfarer, it overflows with its water without any price. The well is still pumping its water to this day to irrigate a farm around it that is named after her and is supervised by the Ministry of Agriculture in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. The proceeds are spent on the interests of the Prophet’s Mosque.
Conclusion
In this article, we talked about the caliph Othman bin Affan – may God be pleased with him – who was generous, and spent a lot in order to support Islam. he was martyred while he was fasting and reciting the Qur’an.
FAQs
What is Uthman ibn Affan most known for?
He was famous for his modesty, and the Messenger of God - may God bless him and grant him peace - had mentioned that the angels were ashamed of Uthman - may God be pleased with him.
The lineage of Othman bin Affan meets the lineage of our master Muhammad, may God bless him and grant him peace, in the fourth grandfather, Abd Manaf. And his mother: “Arwa bint Kariz bin Rabia bin Habib bin Abd Shams bin Abd Manaf bin Qusai bin Kilab bin Murra bin Ka’b bin Luay bin Ghalib bin Fahr bin Malik bin Al-Nadr, and he is Quraysh bin Kinana bin Khuzaymah bin Mudraka bin Elias bin Mudar bin Nizar bin Maad Bin Adnan. She is the daughter of the Prophet Muhammad's aunt, and her mother is Al-Bayda Bint Abd Al-Muttalib.