And it is mentioned in marginal notes of Sahih Muslim that he said:1
In the beginning of Muawiyah’s rule he committed a strange act that he
justified the Caliphate of Muawiyah after the fact that he justified the rule of the
three Caliphs; and he omitted the fourth person, inspite of the fact that his was
also a perfect Caliphate. And the words of Bukhari is that: Ibne Umar rented out
his farmlands during the period of Holy Prophet (s.a.w.a.), Abu Bakr Umar, and
Uthman and initial period of Muawiyah’s rule.
As Qastalani2 has narrated regarding the fast on Ashura Day: Muawiyah
said: “I am the first ruler.”
Manawi has written in Sharh Jamiul Saghir:3 Caliphate was in Medina and
rulership was in Shaam and it was from the miracles of the Prophet that what he
predicted came to pass.
Manawi says in the explanation of the tradition: After me, the Caliphate
would be there for thirty years – that the period of thirty years was duration of
Caliphate of four caliphs and days of Caliphate of Hasan [and then it was
changed into rulership] , because the title of Caliph only befits those, who act
according to Sunnah and rulers, who opposed the Sunnah and called themselves
Caliph were in fact only rulers and not Caliph in the real sense.
Allamah Amini says: Are you not amazed at the son of the Caliph, who
grew up at the capital of Caliphate and became aged around divine revelation and
house of Prophet, the great school of Islam, and among youth of companions of
Prophet and in chambers of senior companions, amidst the Ummah who were all
learned about religion. He grew up among such people and people were guided
through them, but till the end of the rulership of Muawiyah he remained in
ignorance and for fifty years he lived on unlawful income?
And from that money his bones and intellect grew and his flesh and skin
developed till Rafe bin Khadij, who was not even a senior companions and the
Messenger of Allah (s.a.w.a.) had regarded him as young, he was guided through
him about the Sunnah?
Whereas the Sunnah regarding Mahaqila and Makhabira4 is narrated through companions, and in some reports they have regarded it to be a sin and have
warned against it, like the statement of Messenger of Allah (s.a.w.a.) in the
tradition of Jabir: “One, who does not abstain from Mukhabira, has declared war
on God and His Messenger.”5
And this practice in Sahih and Musnad books is quoted from correct chains
of narrators from Jabir bin Abdullah, Saad bin Abi Waqqas, Abu Huraira, Abu
Saeed Khudri and Zaid bin Thabit.6
Alas, if Ibne Umar, after knowing that through which he fulfilled his greed
throughout his life, was in fact unlawful – and the condition was such that he
reminded others of this condition and he guided them or destroyed them or
deceived them, and others.
Because he was the son of a jurist companion and their Caliph, followed
him, someone to whose samples of jurisprudence and knowledge we hinted in the
miscellaneous traditions – was from the jurists of Ummah or ask Muawiyah
himself regarding the law of wealth, which he had obtained and enjoyed through
foul means.
Is it not regarded as open extremism or a great crime against the religious
society that such an individual should be the point of reference for the Ummah,
jurist, elders, and source of knowledge and wisdom (you have seen his level of
jurisprudence)? I don’t know.
Traditional report of Ibne Umar: It is a report, which Darqutni has
mentioned in his Sunan7 quoting from Urwah from Ayesha that: The following
statement of Ibne Umar reached Ayesha: “Ablution (Wudhu) becomes obligatory
on kissing.” Ayesha said: “The Messenger of Allah (s.a.w.a.) used kiss while
fasting and after that he did not perform the ablution.”8
Traditional report of Ibne Umar: His statement regarding Temporary
Marriage (Mutah), weeping for the dead, Farewell Circumambulation (Tawaf) for
a female in menses, using perfume during consecration (Ihram), about which we
will mention the reports shortly.9
And what Ibne Hajar has narrated from him in his Fathul Bari,10 makes us
aware of the level of knowledge of this man about the religion of Islam:
It is narrated from Marwan that: When he sought Caliphate, Ibne Umar was
mentioned before him, and he said: “Ibne Umar is not more knowledgeable than
me (in jurisprudence), but he is senior to me in age and was a companion of the
Prophet.”