Hazrat Umar Farooq — Page 17
He said, “One who worshipped Muhammad should know that he has died and one who worships Allah should know that He is alive and will never die. ” Hadhrat Umar heard this, realised his mistake and wept bitterly. HADHRAT UMAR’S CLOSENESS TO THE HOLY PROPHET The Holy Prophet used to consult his Companions in various matters and the Companions used to give their opinion whenever they thought that their advice would be beneficial to the community. Once Hadhrat Umar suggested to the Holy Prophet that in order to make the Muslim community purer, the system of Purdah should be introduced. On another occasion he suggested that Muslims should be told to refrain from drinking alcohol. It so happened that after a while the verses of the Holy Quran, relating to Purdah and the verses forbidding the consumption of alcohol, were revealed to the Holy Prophet and the Muslims acted upon these commandments. Hadhrat Umar, once, suggested to the Holy Prophet that as he receives many dignitaries, he should have a special cloak made of fine material for himself to wear on these ceremonial occasions. The Holy Prophet did not approve of the suggestion and said, “God would not be pleased if I adopt such ways. I would like to meet those people in the clothes which I normally wear. ” Later when someone presented silk garments to the Holy Prophet. The Holy Prophet sent one of them to Hadhrat Umar. He approached the Holy Prophet and said respectfully, “How can I wear this garment when you yourself have disapproved of wearing silk for men. ” The Holy Prophet replied, “Every present is not meant for personal use. ” The Holy Prophet meant that since wearing of silk is not forbidden for women, he could have presented this garment to his wife or to his daughter or should have put it to some other use. Once the Holy Prophet related a dream that he drank some milk and that it was so delicious that he felt that the flavour had gone right through to the tips of his fingers. He gave the rest of the milk to Hadhrat Umar. The Companions asked the Holy Prophet what this dream meant. The Holy Prophet replied, milk in a dream means knowledge. On another occasion the Holy Prophet said that Satan would avoid the path on which Umar would tread. These examples show the greatness of Hadhrat Umar. 17