Uthmanic and Himyarite Nature of Sunni Islam

 

In the Name of Allah, the Rahman, the Merciful

All praise belongs to Allah, Lord of the worlds

Peace and benedictions upon you, my Master, Apostle of Allah

Disapproval and even loathing of the Prophet’s third successor, Uthman bin Affan رضى الله عنه is a shared sentiment of the original non-Sunni schismatics, namely, the Kharijites and Shi’ites. Modern so-called “Islamists”, following an ideology that is generally a mixture of Marxist, Leninist, Kharijite and Shi’ite ideas, have also criticized sayyiduna Uthman رضى الله عنه in their literature. This is especially true of Maududi and Qutb. The gist of the criticism directed against Uthman رضى الله عنه is that he practised nepotism. But in stark contrast to the schismatic non-Sunni sects that dislike Uthman رضى الله عنه we orthodox Sunni Muslims are distinguished by our love and reverence for him. We consider him the third greatest individual in the Ummah after none other than Abu Bakr and Umar رضى الله عنهما For this reason one of the names with which we Sunnis have been labelled is Uthmani. The Holy Prophet صلى الله عليه وآله وسلم likewise loved his companion Uthman رضى الله عنه and married two of his daughters to him, one after the other, whereby Uthman earned the title Dhun-Nurain or the “one of two lights”.

It is not a coincidence that when some segments of the early Muslim community rose up against Uthman رضى الله عنه and laid siege to his residence in Medina, partly due to the instigation of the hypocritical troublemaker Ibn Saba, it was some of those Sahaba of Jewish and Himyarite background who boldly defended him with intellectual arguments in the face of those mischievous rebels. Chiefly among the defenders of Uthman رضى الله عنه was the eminent Companion Abdullah bin Salam رضى الله عنه

فَأَقْبَلَ ‌عَبْدُ ‌اللَّهِ ‌بْنُ ‌سَلامٍ حَتَّى قَامَ عَلَى بَابِ الدَّارِ يَنْهَاهُمْ عَنْ قَتْلِهِ وَقَالَ يَا قَوْمِ لا تَسُلُّوا سَيْفَ اللَّهِ عَلَيْكُمْ فو الله إِنْ سَلَلْتُمُوهُ لا تَغْمِدُوهُ وَيْلَكُمْ إِنَّ سُلْطَانَكُمُ اليوم يقوم بالدرة فان قتلتموه لا يقوم إِلا بِالسَّيْفِ

وَيْلَكُمْ إِنَّ مَدِينَتَكُمْ مَحْفُوفَةٌ بِمَلائِكَةِ الله والله لئن قتلتموه لتتركنها فقالوا

يا بن الْيَهُودِيَّةِ وَمَا أَنْتَ وَهَذَا فَرَجَعَ عَنْهُمْ

Then Abdullah ibn Salam came forward and stood at the door of the house, forbidding them from killing him. He said, “O my people, do not draw the sword of Allah against you. By Allah, if you draw it, you will not sheathe it. Woe to you! Your ruler today is based on the whip, and if you kill him, he will not be based except on the sword. Woe to you! Your city is guarded by Allah’s Angels. By Allah, if you kill him, they will leave it.” They said, “O son of a Jewess, what do you have to do with this?” So he turned away from them (Tarikh at-Tabari)

Likewise, the great Companion Abu Huraira رضى الله عنه who was of the Daws tribe from the south of Arabia:

وَأَقْبَلَ أَبُو هُرَيْرَةَ وَالنَّاسُ مُحْجِمُونَ عَنِ الدَّارِ إِلا أُولَئِكَ الْعُصْبَةَ فَدَسَرُوا فَاسْتَقْتَلُوا فَقَامَ مَعَهُمْ وَقَالَ أَنَا أُسْوَتُكُمْ وَقَالَ هَذَا يَوْمٌ طَابَ امْضَرْبُ- يَعْنِي أَنَّهُ حَلَّ الْقِتَالُ وَطَابَ وهذه لغة حمير- ونادى يا قَوْمِ مَا لِي أَدْعُوكُمْ إِلَى النَّجَاةِ وَتَدْعُونَنِي الى النار

Abu Huraira came up as the people were withdrawing from the house, save for that band that had courted death in a fierce assault. He stood up among them and said, “I am your leader.” Speaking in the Himyarite tongue, he said, “Hadha yawm taba ‘mdarbu” which means, “Now it is lawful and good to fight.” And (Abu Huraira) called out, “O my people, how is it with me that I call you to salvation and you call me to the Fire?” (Tarikh at-Tabari)

The Himyarites, including some of the Jews who converted to Islam in those early days like Ka’b al-Ahbar رضى الله عنه contributed much goodness for Islam. They participated in the holy wars with zeal for their new Faith, and were instrumental in the conquest of the Levant in particular. Undoubtedly, they must have been highly motivated and driven to fight for the divine promise of Jerusalem and the Holy Land, which was fulfilled in the days of Umar al-Faruq رضى الله عنه

According to a Hadith, though it is weak, the Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم is reported to have said:

رَحِمَ اللَّهُ حِمْيَرًا أَفْوَاهُهُمْ سَلاَمٌ وَأَيْدِيهِمْ طَعَامٌ وَهُمْ أَهْلُ أَمْنٍ وَإِيمَانٍ

May Allah have mercy upon Himyar! Their mouths are (full of) peace, their hands are (generous with) food and they are people of trust and faith (Jami at-Tirmidhi)

Much of what is considered Islamic culture and the refinement of Islamic theology and understanding is from the contribution of the Himyarite early converts to Islam.