The Outset of Dissension in Islam — Page 8
8 H A D RAT MIRZA BASHIR-UD-DIN MAHMUD AHMAD WHY DISSENSION EMERGED IN THE ERA OF THE THIRD KHAL I FAH? All educated Muslims are probably aware that signs of dissension amongst the Muslims began to prominently emerge in the era of the third Khalifah. Prior to him, in the era of Hadrat Ab u Bakr ra and Hadrat ‘ Umar ra , discord never took on a serious nature. The Muslims were so united that both friend and foe believed that it was impossible to divide them. It is for this reason that people generally attribute the discord under discussion to the weakness of the third Khalifah. However, as I shall explain ahead, this is not the case. AN INTRODUCTION TO H A D RAT ‘ UTHM A N RA After Hadrat ‘Umar ra , the gaze of all the companions fell upon Hadrat ‘ Uthm a n ra for the office of Khilafat and thus, he was appointed for this task through the consultation of the eminent companions. He was the son-in-law of the Holy Prophet sa and two daughters of the Holy Prophet sa were wedded to him one after another. When the second daughter of the Holy Prophet sa passed away, the Holy Prophet sa said, “If I had another daughter I would marry her to Hadrat ‘ Uthm a n ra as well. ” 6 This shows that he held a special rank of honour in the sight of the Holy Prophet sa. He held a very unique position in the sight of the people of Makkah and was a wealthy man according to the circumstances of Arabia at the time. After Hadrat Ab u Bakr ra accepted Islam, one of the people to whom he particularly chose 6. Usdul-Gh a bah F i Ma‘rifati s - S a ha bah, vol. 3, p. 481, ‘ Uthm ā nubnu ‘ Aff a na, D a rul-Fikr, Beirut, Lebanon [Publishers]