History
Rightly Guided Caliphs Period of Rule
The Rightly Guided Caliphs were the first four leaders of the Islamic community after the death of the Prophet Muhammad. Their rule is known for its adherence to the principles of justice, consultation, and humility. This period is highly regarded in Islamic history for its emphasis on governance based on the teachings of Islam and the traditions of the Prophet.
Written by Perlego with AI-assistance
Related key terms
1 of 5
12 Key excerpts on "Rightly Guided Caliphs Period of Rule"
eBook - PDF- David Bone(Author)
- 2021(Publication Date)
- Mzuni Press(Publisher)
86 SECTION 2 DEVELOPMENT AND DIVERSITY Chapter 15 The Rightly Guided Caliphs Abu Bakr During the centuries that the Scholars of Islam were developing the Shariah the Islamic Community had grown, spread and lost its political unity. From being what it had been under Muhammad, a community with an association of confederated tribes and confined to Arabia, it had expanded to control a vast territory, from Spain in the West to the boundaries of India in the East. It had also undergone major changes in the way it was governed and eventually experienced the political divisions and religious schisms that are partly responsible for the diverse ways in which Islam finds expression today. Starting with Muhammad’s immediate successors, the following chapters will attempt to describe and explain some of the circumstances in which this happened, some of the reasons for it and some of its most important consequences. Muhammad had made no provision for who should succeed him as leader of the Umma on his death, but this issue was quickly decided. A group of Muhammad’s closest companions, though not including Ali, Muhammad’s ward and son-in-law, speedily appointed Abu Bakr, who had been one of Muhammad’s first male converts, oldest friend, chief adviser and father-in-law. The title that Abu 87 Bakr and his successors took was Caliph (successor) of the Prophet of God, or more simply, Caliph. The Caliphs did not take on Muhammad’s role as God’s Prophet, the revelations were believed to have been completed by the time of his death, but they took over as leader of the Community, commander-in-chief of the army, chief arbiter of disputes, the highest legal authority and controller of the treasury. Abu Bakr and the three Caliphs who succeeded him were all men who had been close companions of the Prophet and are known to history as the Rashidun or ‘Rightly Guided’ Caliphs.
- Gerhard Bowering, Patricia Crone, Wadad Kadi, Devin J. Stewart, Muhammad Qasim Zaman, Mahan Mirza, Gerhard Bowering, Patricia Crone, Wadad Kadi, Devin J. Stewart, Muhammad Qasim Zaman, Mahan Mirza, Gerhard Bowering, Patricia Crone, Wadad Kadi, Devin Stewart, Muhammad Zaman, Mahan Mirza(Authors)
- 2012(Publication Date)
- Princeton University Press(Publisher)
Throughout the centuries, however, various other rulers have made claims to the caliphate or adopted the caliphal titulature—that is, one or more titles usually associated with caliphs. The first four successors of the Prophet Muhammad are usually called the Rightly Guided Caliphs (al-khulafā’ al-rāshidūn). But those Muslims who do not accept the legitimacy of some of these rulers refrain from applying this expression to them. Despite the ubiquitous use of the terms “caliphate” and “caliph” in modern scholarship, they were not the principal or exclusive terms used in official documents or in the writings of Muslim authors, nor were they adopted immediately following Muhammad’s death. Many Muslim writers eschewed these two terms in favor of alternatives, especially imam and imāma, or (religious) leader and leadership. The two terms, “caliph” and “caliphate,” were almost always employed in conjunction with other terms and expressions. They also hardly appear in official or unofficial documentary sources (papyri, coins, rock inscriptions, textiles, weights, and seals), and non-Muslim sources do not use them when referring to Muslim sovereigns or to Islamic political institutions, especially for the first Islamic centuries. The institution of the caliphate developed gradually with time and crystallized only at the beginning of the Abbasid period in the second half of the eighth century. Also, despite their claims to universal rule over all Muslims, few Muslim sovereigns actually did so; many provinces and regions controlled by Muslims did not acknowledge the suzerainty of any caliph. Furthermore, the caliphs possessed actual power for a relatively short period, as they became mostly puppets in the hands of military commanders and high-ranking officials. The history of the development of the institution of the caliphate can be divided as follows: 632–945. This timespan covers three periods
eBook - PDFEssential Islam
A Comprehensive Guide to Belief and Practice
- Diane Morgan(Author)
- 2009(Publication Date)
- Praeger(Publisher)
Supporters of Ali who disapproved of the truce left to form their own extreme group, the Karijites. For Sunni Muslims, these first caliphs (Abu Bakr, Umar, Uthman, and Ali) were the benchmark of Islamic behavior and rulership. They are called the “Rightly Guided Caliphs.” Those whom Allah has guided, follow their example (6:90). Shia Muslims do not accept the “Rightly Guided Caliph” theory and insist that from the beginning, Ali, the fourth caliph, should have been the heir. ( If there was a Rightly Guided Caliph, it was Ali only.) In any case, the caliphs were not prophets (Muhammad was the last prophet), but they were highly respected and had both religious and political authority over the Islamic com- munity ( ummah). Later in history, the caliphs were granted the right to lead the Friday prayers and to have their names included in those prayers. THE EXPANSION OF ISLAM It has been noted that Islam’s natural mode of being has never been the nation-state, but the Dar al-Islam, the Land of Islam, an empire that transcends national and natural borders and forms an Islamic community or ummah based on faith. This is the true motherland for all Muslims and the earthly entity to which they owe their highest al- legiance. This has been especially true for Arabic-speaking Muslims, 146 Essential Islam despite the fact that the Arab world has not had anything like an empire since the Middle Ages. The ideal of the world Islamic state remains a dream—but a potent one. Indeed, Islamic legal theory has gone so far as to claim that any land that harbors at least one practicing Muslim is part of the Dar al-Islam. Other lands, if there are any, make up the Dar al-Harb, or Land of Warfare; there can never be peace between the two. An armistice is the most that can be expected. Partly because of this idea, warfare has always retained a religious quality in Islam. From its beginning, Islam was an expansionist faith.
eBook - PDFHuman Rights Commitments of Islamic States
Sharia, Treaties and Consensus
- Paul McDonough(Author)
- 2021(Publication Date)
- Hart Publishing(Publisher)
58 The Prophet had led the Muslim community not only as its prophet, but as a political and military leader and an arbitrator as well. A successor was necessary in the latter roles. Abu Bakr (632–634), Umar (634–644) and Uthman (644–656) assumed the leadership, by consensus, followed by Ali (656–661) in a contested succession. Since the Prophet, only the government of these caliphs is universally regarded as implementing correct Islamic rule. 59 During these years, the caliphate grew The Rashidun Caliphate 23 the conditions of the true imamate’). See also Muhammad Khalid Masud, ‘The Changing Concepts of Caliphate – Social Construction of Shari’a and the Question of Ethics’ in Kari Vogt, Lena Larsen and Christian Moe (eds), New Directions in Islamic Thought (IB Taurus & Co, 2009) 187–205, 193–94 (the highly traditionalist Ibn Taymiyyah concurred in this view). There is disagreement on exactly which caliphs were rightly guided. Shia tradition holds that Ali was the sole successor to the Prophet and thus only his line are the true Imams. The term ‘rightly guided’ is also sometimes applied to Mu’awiya and the eighth Umayyad caliph, Umar II. 60 Berkey (n 1) 71. 61 William Ochsenwald and Sydney Nettleton Fisher, The Middle East: A History , 6th edn (McGraw-Hill, 2004) 39. 62 Ibid 40–41. 63 Kennedy (n 22) 68 (the new cities included Basra and Kufa in Iraq and Fustat in Egypt). from two tenuously connected cities into a world power, defeating the Byzantine and Sasanian empires in wars and expanding across the Middle East, Iran and Egypt. An unwritten constitution began to develop, as for example Abu Bakr initiated the office of caliph based on an exchange of promises with the people; he and Umar applied the Prophet’s words and deeds as sources of law; Uthman agreed to treat their acts as setting binding precedents; administrative structures formed; and the polity absorbed new communities under explicit compacts.
eBook - ePubThe Meaning of Mecca
The Politics of Pilgrimage in Early Islam
- M. E. McMillam, M E McMillan(Authors)
- 2011(Publication Date)
- Saqi Books(Publisher)
TWO Following in the Prophet’s Footsteps: The Era of the Rightly Guided Caliphs Table 1 shows who led the ḥajj during the caliphates of the four Rightly Guided caliphs, the Rāshidūn : Abū Bakr, ‘Umar b. al-Khaṭṭāb, ‘Uthmān b. ‘Affān and ‘Alī b. Abī Ṭālib. Table 1 Year Ḥajj leader Relationship to caliph Governor of a Holy City? Abū Bakr 11/633 ‘Abd al-Raḥmān b. x x ‘Awf 1 or ‘Attāb b. Asīd 2 or x Mecca ‘Umar 3 x x 12/634 Abū Bakr 4 or CALIPH - ‘Umar 5 or x x ‘Abd al-Raḥmān 6 x x ‘Umar 13/635 ‘Abd al-Raḥmān x x b. ‘Awf 7 or ‘Umar 8 CALIPH - 14/636 ‘Umar 9 CALIPH - 15/637 ‘Umar 10 CALIPH - 16/637-638 ‘Umar 11 CALIPH - 17/638 ‘Umar 12 CALIPH - 18/639 ‘Umar 13 CALIPH - 19/640 ‘Umar 14 CALIPH - 20/641 ‘Umar 15 CALIPH - 21/642 ‘Umar 16 CALIPH - 22/643 ‘Umar 17 CALIPH - 23/644 ‘Umar 18 CALIPH - ‘Uthmān 24/645 ‘Abd al-Raḥmān x x b. ‘Awf 19 or ‘Uthmān 20 CALIPH - 25/646 ‘Uthmān 21 CALIPH - 26/647 ‘Uthmān 22 CALIPH - 27/648 ‘Uthmān 23 CALIPH - 28/649 ‘Uthmān 24 CALIPH - 29/650 ‘Uthmān 25 CALIPH - 30/651 ‘Uthmān 26 CALIPH - 31/652 ‘Uthmān 27 CALIPH - 32/653 ‘Uthmān 28 CALIPH - 33/654 ‘Uthmān 29 CALIPH - 34/655 ‘Uthmān 30 CALIPH - 35/656 ‘Abd Allāh x x b. al-‘Abbās 31 ‘Alī 36/657 ‘Abd Allāh cousin x b. al-‘Abbās 32 or ‘Ubayd Allāh cousin x b. al-‘Abbās 33 37/658 ‘Abd Allāh 34 or cousin x ‘Ubayd Allāh 35 or cousin x Qutham cousin Mecca b. al-‘Abbās 36 38/659 Qutham 37 or cousin Mecca ‘Ubayd Allāh 38 cousin x 39/660 Shaybah b. x Ḥājib (Keeper) of the Ka‘bah ‘Uthmān b. Abī Ṭalḥah 39 ABŪ BAKR: LEADERSHIP OF THE ḤAJJ AND THE NATURE OF AUTHORITY IN ISLAM In Table 1, Ibn Khayyāṭ, al-Ya‘qūbī, al-Ṭabarī and al-Mas‘ūdī cite Abū Bakr as leader of the ḥajj in 12/634. But Ibn Khayyāṭ and al-Ṭabarī also cite the early convert ‘Abd al-Raḥmān b. ‘Awf and the future caliph ‘Umar as alternative leaders for that year’s ḥajj. Al-Ṭabarī, for one, drew his information for leadership of the ḥajj from different sources – Abū Ma‘shar and al-Wāqidī – who did not always agree
eBook - PDFThe Clerics of Islam
Religious Authority and Political Power in Saudi Arabia
- Nabil Mouline, Ethan S. Rundell(Authors)
- 2014(Publication Date)
- Yale University Press(Publisher)
17 1 T he B irth of the H anbali T radition The Emergence of Scriptural Specialists The political quarrels that followed the death of the Prophet Muhammad in 632 were driven by personal rivalry, factional conflict, and the question of how power was to be transmitted. 1 By contrast, the nature, legitimacy, and preroga-tives of the institution of the Caliphate were almost never called into question. The first caliphs—or, as they were later known, the Rightly Guided Caliphs ( al-Khulafa’ al-Rashidun ) (632–661)—inherited the religious authority and kingly prerogatives of the Prophet. Though excluded from divine revelation, the first Muslim sovereigns enjoyed extensive prerogatives in the religious, legal, and political domains thanks to their messianic status. This status conferred a variety of titles, including God’s Vicar on Earth ( khalifat Allah ), Commander of the Faithful Destined to Sub-jugate the World ( amir al-mu’minin ), and Inspired Guide ( imam ). 2 The ca-liph Umar ibn al-Khattab (634–644), for example, laid down new laws in all domains, from the establishment of the Hegira calendar to the institution of supererogatory prayers performed during the nights of the month of Ramadan ( al-tarawih ), a ban on temporary marriage ( zawaj al-mut‘a ), and regulation of the status of non-Muslim populations ( ahl al-dhimma ). 3 It subsequently proved very difficult to conceal this historical reality, and the tradition was ultimately obliged to accept it, though it attempted to mitigate its effect by circulating hadith attributed to the Prophet. The most famous of these is, “If there were yet another prophet after me, it would surely be Umar [bin al-Khattab].” 4 In other words, the founder of Islam recognized and conferred a posteriori legitimacy upon the exceptional power of his first successors. These successors were vested with sacred status, and many of their deeds came to be seen as supplying nearly compulsory norms of behavior.
eBook - ePub- Zaheer Ali(Author)
- 2023(Publication Date)
- Routledge(Publisher)
2 The Rightly Guided CaliphsYet the abstinence and humility of Umar were not inferior to the virtues of Abu Bakr: his food consisted of barley bread or dates; his drink was water; he preached in a gown that was torn or tattered in twelve places; and a Persian satrap, who paid his homage as to the conqueror, found him asleep among the beggars on the steps of the mosque of Muslims.– Edward GibbonThe birth, the alliance, the character of Ali, which exalted him above the rest of his countrymen, might justify his claim to the vacant throne of Arabia. The son of Abu Talib was, in his own right, the chief of the family of Hashem, and the hereditary prince or guardian of the city and temple of Mecca. The light of prophecy was extinct; but the husband of Fatima might expect the inheritance and blessings of her father; the Arabs had sometimes been patient of a female reign; and the two grandsons of the Prophet had often been fondled in his lap, and shown in his pulpit, as the hope of his age, and the Chiefs of the Youth of Paradise.– Edward GibbonI
The anglicised version Caliph of the Arabic word Khalifa means ‘representative’ or ‘successor’. The word is used in the Quran in the context of Adam who had to act as the representative (Khalifa) of Allah on earth. In Islamic history the word acquired the connotation of ‘the head of the Muslim ummah’ possessing mostly temporal powers. The death of Prophet Muhammad in 632 necessitated the appointment of a leader to administer the affairs of the nascent ummah and also promote the interest of the Islamic community. Since most people believe that the Prophet had not named a successor1 , Abu Bakr, a close friend and the father-in-law of the Prophet was nominated as Khalifat ur Rasul Allah (the political successor to the Messenger of God). Caliph (Khalifa) is thus the shortened version of Khalifat ur Rasul Allah. Though there are alternative titles for the leader of the Muslim community such as Emir ul Muminin (Commander of the Muslim community), Imam ul Ummah and Imam ul Muminin
No longer available |Learn more- Alexander Knysh(Author)
- 2016(Publication Date)
- Routledge(Publisher)
After Muhammad The Rightly Guided Caliphs and the ConquestsAfter the death of its founder, the Islamic community was faced with a number of internal and external challenges. Its very existence depended on the ability of its members to cope with them by rallying around one leader. The most dangerous scenario was a potential conflict over the leadership of the umma between the helpers (ansár ) of Medina and the emigrants (muhájirún ), the first Meccan Muslims who had accompanied Muhammad to Medina after he had to flee from his native city. This rift could have led to the election of two rival leaders and, as a result, to the inevitable split of the community into Meccan and Medinan “branches.” Were this to have happened, Muslim unity would have been fatally ruptured.1The other challenges were external. Upon the news of Muhammad’s death, there appeared in different parts of Arabia a number of individuals claiming divine guidance and prophetic status. Their preaching of their own religious messages threatened to undermine the hard-won position of Islam as the religion of if not all the Arabs, then at least the majority of them.2 Finally, many Bedouin allies of Mecca and Medina, who had made their pacts with Muhammad, no longer felt obligated to maintain loyalty to his successor. In practice, this meant their refusal to contribute the obligatory zakát tax to the Muslim communal treasury. While some tribes canceled their agreements with the Muslim state in Medina altogether, others pledged to remain within the coalition as long as they were exempt from the zakát . This disloyalty on the part of the Bedouin tribes was fueled by their deeply ingrained desire to be independent of outside political control. In refusing to render the zakát to the new head of the umma
eBook - PDF- Armando Salvatore(Author)
- 2018(Publication Date)
- Wiley-Blackwell(Publisher)
The Trajectory of the High Caliphate 119 Prophet’s grandson, and the introduction of hereditary rule and thus “kingship” ( mulk ), as opposed to religiously legitimate rule, which the Prophet himself famously denounced (Hawting 2000: 11–12). In his classic study of the Umayyads using Arabic sources from the ‘Abbasid era, the German orientalist Julius Wellhausen characterized their polity as a secular “Arab kingdom” founded on Arab tribal chauvinism with scant regard for Islam (Wellhausen 1963). However, it was the heightened sense of Arab identity of the Umayyads which held the spectacularly successful yet fragile Muslim polity together and shaped key tools to create a distinctive late antique civilization. The consolidation of Arabic as the primary language of religion, governance, literature, and science was an Umayyad master-stroke that enabled them to absorb the cultural resources of Byzantium while preserving their identity and lay the foundations without which the mature Islamic civilization of the Middle Periods, after 946, could not have come into being. These achievements were far from near when the Umayyads came to power in the aftermath of ‘Ali’s assassination (661), as Muslims struggled to come to terms with the thorny issue of leadership. In the 30 years since the death of the Prophet in 632, four caliphs supported by different factions had been nominated by their predecessor or elected, to use the term loosely, three of whom had died violent deaths as the stakes of empire rose. Although it was agreed that a caliph should be chosen by the community, there was no consensus as to whether he should be selected on the grounds of precedence of membership in the Muslim community ( sabiqa ), kinship with the Prophet, or aristocratic Qurayshi ancestry (see Chapter 4). The first appeal to hereditary succession occurred when some Muslims nominated ‘Ali’s son Hasan to succeed him as caliph.
eBook - ePubAnatomy of Dissent in Islamic Societies
Ibadism, Rebellion, and Legitimacy
- A. Souaiaia(Author)
- 2013(Publication Date)
- Palgrave Macmillan(Publisher)
If this were to be verified (and it is not the aim of this study to do so), it would mean that the reign of ‘Umar marked a shift from a strategy of defense to one of expansion. This period could therefore be seen as the beginning of the imperial Islamic era. This trend was solidified during the reign of ‘Uthmān, who inherited a state with vast lands and abundant revenues. In most empires, regimes exert control through a network of trusted, loyal, and powerful agents. Ibāḍīs suggest that ‘Uthmān had done that by bringing back Marwān Ibn al-Ḥakam (who was exiled by the Prophet Muhammad) to Madīnah and appointing him to a powerful advisory board. He also appointed the controversial ‘Abdullāh Ibn Sa’d Ibn Abī Sarḥ, governor in Egypt, and he placed his relatives and clansmen in positions of power and influence across the empire. These changes led to increasing numbers of dissenters, and before long dissent turned into the revolution that resulted in the killing of the caliph. Although the well-respected and widely revered son-in-law of the Prophet, ‘Alī Ibn Abī Ṭālib, was selected to be the next caliph, divisions were too deep to heal. In fact, one could argue that the various political, theological, and legal schools of thought were born during this time. Quraysh enjoyed a de facto monopoly on the institution of the caliphate until the rule of ‘Uthmān. The killing of ‘Uthmān and the argument for righteousness as the overriding condition opened the door of eligibility to non-Qurayshis. However, this event also radicalized others who insisted that the caliphate (or imāmah) is the exclusive right of Hashimites and specifically of the household of the Prophet Muḥammad. In other words, the spectrum of political rights was expanded and radicalized at the same time. It is very unlikely, however, that Muslims were yet organized in distinct political parties, each with a strict platform, agenda, and leadership
eBook - PDF- Valerie Hansen, Ken Curtis(Authors)
- 2016(Publication Date)
- Cengage Learning EMEA(Publisher)
Others could be king, but the Abbasids had a unique claim to being caliph. This chapter will examine the history of Islam, from the first revelations received by Muhammad to the final collapse of the Abbasid empire in 1258. Muhammad (ca. 570–632) Believed by Muslims to be the last prophet who received God’s revela-tions directly from the angel Gabriel. The first leader of the Muslim community. FOCUS QUESTIONS ❯ Who was the prophet Muhammad, and what were his main teachings? ❯ Between Muhammad’s death in 632 and the founding of the Abbasid caliphate in 750, what were the different ways that the Islamic commu-nity chose the new caliph? ❯ Which economic, political, and social forces held the many peoples and territories of the Abbasid caliphate together? ❯ After the fragmentation of the Abbasid empire in 945, which cultural practices, technologies, and customs held Islamic believers in different regions together? The Origins of Islam and the First Caliphs, 610–750 M uhammad began to preach sometime around 613 and won a large following among the residents of the Arabian peninsula before his death in 632. The man who succeeded to the leadership of the Islamic religious community was called the caliph (KAY-lif), literally “successor.” The caliph exercised political authority because the Muslim religious community was also a state, complete with its own government and a powerful army that conquered many neighboring regions. The first four caliphs were chosen from different clans on the basis of their ties to Muhammad, but after 661 all the caliphs came from a single clan, or dynasty, the Umayyads, who governed until 750. Muhammad was born into a family of merchants sometime around 570 in Mecca, a trading community in the Arabian peninsula far from any major urban center. At the time of his birth, the two major powers of the Mediterranean world were the Byzantine empire (see Chapter 10) and the Sasanian empire of the Persians (see Chapter 6).
eBook - PDF- Wael B. Hallaq(Author)
- 2016(Publication Date)
- Routledge(Publisher)
Crone and Hinds, God's Caliph, 89. THE FORMATION OF ISLAMIC LAW THE CALIPHS, THE 'ULAMA', AND THE LAW 21 reference to) it. TeHingly, however, his authority is described in con-junction (not in competition) with that of the local religious scholars. Abu Yusuf could have had little to disagree with on the advice to consult such scholars; as noted, he was in fact much concerned to see a closer relationship between them and the 'Abbiisid administration. Harun's advice to Harthama about the option of referring the problems in question to the imam, i.e. to the caliph himself, likewise figures in Abu Yiisuf's advice to Hiiriin. The recognition that the 'ulama' and the caliph are both fit to rule on obscure matters (mii u~lima 'alayhim, mii ishtabaha, in Abii Yiisuf's formulation) 59 is thus independently attested from both a scholar and a caliph. The caliph's authority to clarify obscure matters may perhaps be taken as comparable with the author-ity of the 'ulama' to do so, which suggests at once a recognition that the latter are the locus of religious authority and an effort to make the caliph a part of such authority. Nor is the recognition of the caliph's religious competence peculiar to Abu Yusuf among the 'ulama'. Mftlik, for instance, recognised the caliph's (jtihiid 60 as did ai-Shiifi'ir' 1 and Al)mad b. J:Ianbal (d. 241/855); 62 later al-Miiwardl (d. 450/1058) was to speak of the knowledge which conduces to ijtihiid in problems that occur (nawiizil) and in legal decisions (a/:lkiim) as one .of the seven preconditions for imiima.63 That Harthama, the governor-designate, should have been advised to refer problematic issues to local scholars or to the caliph does not suggest two competing sources of authority here.
Index pages curate the most relevant extracts from our library of academic textbooks. They’ve been created using an in-house natural language model (NLM), each adding context and meaning to key research topics.
