Abu Bakr Passes Away After an illness of two weeks, Abu Bakr passed away. He was sixty-three at the time. He was buried by the side of the Holy Prophet. Before his death he said, Do not use new cloth to cover my dead body. The sheet of cloth I have on will do for me. Wash it clean. But this is too old and worn, father, said his daughter Aisha. This old and worn sheet will do for me, he replied. This parting wish was acted upon. The second wish of the dying Caliphs was, Sell my land and pay back in the public treasury all the money I got as my salary. This was also done. Before he became the Caliph, Abu Bakr was a well-to-day merchant. The affairs of the Caliphate left him no time to look after his own business. The matter was put before the Companions. They allowed the Caliph a salary of six thousand dirhams a year. All this money was paid back to the Bait-ul-Mal (the Public Treasury) after the Caliphs death. Thus Abu Bakr, the first Caliph, left behind a noble example of selfless service. He lived and worked for Islam to the last breath. And for his tireless labors, he sought no worldly reward. Two Years of Abu Bakrs Calpihate Abu Bakr was Caliph for only two years, three months and ten days. This was a relatively short period of time in the life of people. But during this short period, Abu Bakr was able to do great things for Islam. These achievements have made his name immortal. They have placed him among the greatest men of all time. When Abu Bakr too over, Islam was confined to Arabia alone. And here, too its hold was rather shaky. In many parts of the country, Islam was but a name. It was not a way of life with most people. Scores of tribes had thought of the Holy Prophet has a mere king. They tried to throw off his yoke as soon as he was no more. Abu Bakr taught these people a lasting lesson. He taught them that Islam was a way of life. Abu Bakr was able to do this because of his unshakable faith. No difficulties could take him off the path of the Prophet. Usama might be youthful and inexperienced, but Abu Bakr would not hear a word against him. He was appointed by the Prophet. There might be rising in the country, but Abu Bakr would not put off the expedition to Tabuk. The Prophet had ordered it. Abu Bakr stood unequalled in his love for Allah and His Apostle. This was the secret of his unbending strength. It was this inner strength that carried him through the darkest hours of his Caliphate. Abu Bakr was as sincere as he was firm in faith. He lived up to every word of what he said at the beginning of his Caliphate. He was never anything but the faithful agent of Allah and His Apostle, and the humblest servant of his people. It was this fact which won him the deepest love and respect for all classes of his people. The result was that Islam took an unshakable hold on the coutrny of its birth. Soon it gathered enough strength to overlap its boundaries. It struck at the two most feared powers of the time. And lo! it was successful. Abu Bakr had put Islam on the road to worldwide expansion. Islam means total submission to the will of Allah. It means that utter absence of all selfishness. The Holy Prophet showed by his example hwo that goal could be reached. He showed how the power of the State should not be used for private ends but for the public good. Abu Bakr was the first among his followers to live up to the Prophets example. He go tno personal gain out of the Caliphate. He spent every minuted of the last two years of life in the service of his people, but got not a penny as wages. Abu Bakr had several sons and many near relatives. For public offices, he did not choose anyone of them. He rather chose other people who were more fit for public service. He had to nominate his own successor to prevent quarrels. But his choice fell on none of his own relatives. His choice was rather the man whom he honestly believed to be the best among the Companions. All the same, he did not force his choice on people. He put his proposal before the Companions. When they had agreed to it, he put it before the people. In short, Abu Bakr showed the world what government of the people, for the people, and by the people really meant. Neither the East nor the West had ever known such a form of government before. The mighty empires of Iran and Byzantium were based upon naked force. In short Abu Bakr kept going the great work of the Prophet. For that he had to fight hard. He fought with a will and with a faith that amazed everyone. Islam is for ever grateful to him for the great services he rendered to it.
Posted on: Thu, 25 Dec 2014 10:43:15 +0000
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