55

The Greater River

Damascus, the Caliphal Palace, AH 100/722 CE

“MUHAMMAD DID NOT COME TO our world as a tax collector. He came as a guide!”

After repeating the statement twice in the presence of the foreign delegation, the caliph fell silent.

He contemplated the pilgrims who had come from the distant lands in the West, his features graced with a tranquil expression that bespoke an intimate warmth. His guests whispered among themselves, laboring to translate into their respective tongues the meaning of a certain word—sakina, or divinely inspired peace of mind—of which religious scholars had spoken so often when they had come to teach them the rites of Islamic worship, and which the caliph’s genteel manner brought to mind. They were charmed by the air of kindness this man exuded, a kindness they had not been accustomed to encountering in the demeanor of governors, army commanders, or soldiers who were constantly pursing their lips and were invariably gloomy and condescending. They knew they were in the presence of an apostle.

When the Umayyads were at last overtaken by the sword of justice, Umar ibn Abd al-Aziz wrested from them what they had wrested unjustly from the Muslim community. The Umay-yads then sought out Fatima bint Marwan (Umar’s paternal aunt) for protection, asking her to intercede on their behalf. As we read in the annals of Islamic history, Umar addressed his paternal aunt with the words:

God Almighty, blessed be He, sent Muhammad, may God’s blessings and peace be upon him, not as a chastisement, but as a source of mercy to all people. Then He took him unto Himself, having chosen to bring him into His own presence. Upon his death, Muhammad left a river from which all of his people were to drink equally. He was succeeded by Abu Bakr, who left the river as it was. Abu Bakr was succeeded by Umar, who emulated his companion and predecessor. However, when Uthman came, he derived a second river from the first. Uthman was followed by Muawiya, who split the river into numerous rivers. The river then went on dividing with Yazid, Marwan, Abd al-Malik, al-Walid, and Sulayman, and on down to me. The greater river has now dried up, and its owners will not be given to drink from it until it is restored for them to what it was before.

According to Muslim historians, including Abu-l-Faraj al-Isfahani, author of Kitab al-aghani, Fatima bint Marwan then returned to her house surrounded by the chiefs of Banu Umayya, who were incredulous over what had befallen them, and said simply, “Taste the bitter fruit of having married into the family of Umar ibn al-Khattab!” (Umar ibn al-Khattab, the legendary caliph known for crowning faith with justice, was the maternal grandfather of Umar ibn Abd al-Aziz.)

It is said that when he received the delegation from the land of the non-Arabs in pursuit of justice, the Commander of the Faithful made the same statement with which he had addressed the Umayyads on the day he became caliph. After repeating these words to the delegation visiting from the Greater Maghreb, the caliph added that he would instruct the judiciary to issue a fatwa on their case. He pledged to release them from the burden of the unjust jizya, and to resolve the matter of their missing children, who, if still alive, would be brought back accompanied by their own children, even if they had been fathered by an Umayyad governor. He also promised to pay adequate compensation for the damages caused by the deaths of those whom Fate had snatched away before their time. Upon hearing these things, the members of the delegation cheered the illustrious emir as though they had won a victory on the battlefield, praising the Almighty in a chorus of many languages.

Still, would those who had developed a taste for ill-gotten spoils accept such a defeat, even if it had come in the form of an order handed down by the highest authority in the land?