The Outset of Dissension in Islam — Page 25
25 camel is born, then it becomes a calf. Then it grows two teeth, then four teeth and then six. Then it grows canine teeth. Now, what can be expected for one whose canine teeth have grown except for weakness. Listen! Islam has now reached its perfection. The Quraish desire that they should take all the wealth for themselves, while others are deprived. 19 Hearken! Until ‘Umar bin Al-Kha tta b is alive, he shall hold the Quraish by their necks so that they do not fall into the fire of disorder. ” 20 It appears from this statement of Hadrat ‘Umar ra , that even in his own era, he noticed the views billowing in the minds of people that the companions received a greater share. For this reason, except for a few companions, without whom the armies could not be managed, he would not allow the companions to go forth for jihad so that people would not be put to trial due to the Companions receiving a double share. Moreover, he felt that Islam had now reached the pinnacle of its success and after this, only the danger of its decline remained, not a hope of further progress. After having mentioned this much, I shall now relate the sequence of events which shed light on the reality of the conflicts that arose in the time of Hadrat ‘ Uthm a n ra. I have already mentioned that in the beginning of the Khilafat of Hadrat ‘Uthm a n ra we see no sign of disorder for up to six years. Quite the contrary, it appears that people were 19. In other words, if the companions took a share for being pioneers and then also for now taking part in jihad, others would receive less. 20. T a r i khu t-T abar i , vol. 5, pp. 184-185, Dhikru Ba ‘ di Siyari Uthm a na. . . . . , Published by D a rul-Fikr, Beirut, 2002 edition