Approaching the West — Page 41
A pproaching the West—41 Messenger. After him, the next three successive khulaf ā ’, namely, Ḥ a ḍ rat ‘Umar ibn al- Kha ṭṭā b, Ḥ a ḍ rat ‘Uthm ā n bin ‘Aff ā n and Ḥ a ḍ rat ‘Al ī ibn Ab ī Ṭā lib (may All ā h be pleased with them all) were among the most devoted of the companions of the Prophet. They carried on his mission under very difficult and complex circumstances. Thus, when the Prophet was no more among the believers, Khil ā fat on the precept of Prophethood (Khil ā fat ‘ala minhajun- nabuwwah) was firmly established. The Khal ī fah would lead the prayers as Im ā m-us- Ṣ al ā t. He would impart religious and spiritual knowledge to the fellow Muslims; maintain justice and piety in society, and remain above any party-politics. In addition, he administered all matters with mutual consultation (Mush ā warat) as was ordained in the Holy Qur’ ā n. He was also the commander-in-chief as Am ī r-ul- Mu’min ī n. The Text of the Holy Qur’ ā n Preserved One of the major tasks in the hands of the khulaf ā ’ of the Messenger of All ā h was to preserve the text of the Holy Qur’ ā n. When many ḥ uff āẓ (those who commit the entire Qur’ ā n to memory) were killed in a battle, on the advice of Ḥ a ḍ rat ‘Umar, codification and compilation of the Holy Qur’ ā n started under the directive of Ḥ a ḍ rat Ab ū Bakr. He entrusted the work to Ḥ a ḍ rat Zaid bin Th ā bit, a close companion of the Prophet who presented the Holy Qur’ ā n in a complete Book form, to Ḥ a ḍ rat Ab ū Bakr. At the death of Ḥ a ḍ rat Ab ū Bakr, the compiled Book passed into the hands of Ḥ a ḍ rat ‘Umar who in turn bequeathed it to his daughter Ḥ a ḍ rat Ḥ af ṣ ah, the widow of the Holy Prophet (peace and