Even though the caliph knew about the abundance of 'Amr's Ibn
Al-'Aas Radi-Allahu 'anhu wealth, he did not remove him
but sent Muhammad Ibn Maslama
Radi-Allahu 'anhu
to him and ordered 'Amr Ibn Al-'Aas Radi-Allahu 'anhu to
split with him, all of his wealth and possessions. So, he left
him one half of it and carried the other half to the treasury in
Madînah. However, if
'Umar bin Al-Khattab Radi-Allahu ‘anhu
had known
that 'Amr's Ibn Al-'Aas Radi-Allahu 'anhu love for wealth
would lead him to carelessness in his responsibility, it is
conceivable that his reasonable conscience would not have
allowed him to stay in power for even one moment.
'Amr Ibn Al-'Aas Radi-Allahu 'anhu was sharp-witted with
strong intuitive understanding and deep vision, so much so that
whenever
'Umar bin Al-Khattab Radi-Allahu ‘anhu
saw a person incapable of
artifice, he clapped his palms in astonishment and said, "Glory
be to Allâh Subhanahu Wa Ta'ala Indeed, the Creator of
this and the Creator of 'Amr Ibn Al-'Aas Radi-Allahu 'anhu
is one Ilâh."
'Amr Ibn Al-'Aas Radi-Allahu 'anhu was also very daring
and unhesitant. He used to combine his daring with his wits in
some instances so that he would be thought to be cowardly or
hesitant. However, it was the capacity to trick which 'Amr Ibn
Al-'Aas Radi-Allahu 'anhu perfected with great skill to
get himself out of a destructive crisis.
'Umar bin Al-Khattab
Radi-Allahu ‘anhu knew these talents of his and appreciated
their true value. For that reason, when he sent him to Syria,
before his going to Egypt, it was said to
'Umar bin Al-Khattab Radi-Allahu ‘anhu, "At the head of the armies of Rome in Syria is Artubun;
a shrewd and brave leader and a prince." 'Umar's bin Al-Khattab
Radi-Allahu ‘anhu response was, "We have hurled at
Artubun of Rome Artubun of the Arabs, so let us see how the
matter unfolds."
Matters unfolded in a massive victory for the Artubun of the
Arabs, their dangerous, sly old fox, 'Amr Ibn Al-'Aas
Radi-Allahu 'anhu over the Artubun of Rome, who left his
army to defeat and fled to Egypt. 'Amr Ibn Al-'Aas
Radi-Allahu 'anhu would catch him shortly thereafter to
raise the standard of Islâm above its secure lands.
What are the situations in which the intelligence and wits of
'Amr Ibn Al-'Aas Radi-Allahu 'anhu excelled? We do not
count among them his position with
Abű Műsa Al-Ash'ariy
Radi-Allahu 'anhu
in the incident of arbitration when the two of them agreed to
depose
`Alî
bin Abi Tâlib
Radi-Allahu 'anhu
and
Mu'âwiyah
Ibn Abi
Sufyan
Radi-Allahu 'anhu
to refer the matter back to consultation between the Muslims.
Abű Műsa
Radi-Allahu 'anhu
implemented the agreement and 'Amr Ibn Al-'Aas
Radi-Allahu 'anhu relented from carrying out his part of the
agreement.
If we want to witness a picture of his wits and the skill of his
intuitive insight, we find it in his position with respect to
the commander of the Citadel of Babylon (near present day Cairo)
during his war with Rome in Egypt, and, in another historical
narration, in the battle we shall mention which took place in
Yarműk
with
Artubun
of Rome.
When Artubun and the commander invited 'Amr Ibn Al-'Aas
Radi-Allahu 'anhu to talk, they gave an order to some of
their men to throw a rock at him immediately upon his departure
from the Citadel and to prepare everything so that the killing
of 'Amr Ibn Al-'Aas Radi-Allahu 'anhu would be an
inevitable matter.
'Amr
Ibn Al-'Aas Radi-Allahu 'anhu met the commander, not
suspecting anything from him, and their meeting ended. While
'Amr Ibn Al-'Aas Radi-Allahu 'anhu was on his way out of
the Citadel, he glimpsed over the walls something suspicious
that aroused in bun a strong sense of danger, and immediately he
behaved in an outstanding manner. He returned back to the
commander of the Citadel, in safe, secure, slow steps, with
confident, happy feelings, as if nothing had scared him at all
or had aroused his suspicion. He met the commander and said to
him, "An idea came across my mind I wanted you to know. I have
with me, where my companions are camped, a group from among the
first Sahâbah of the Prophet Muhammad Sallallahu ‘Alaihi Wa
Sallam to enter into Islâm.
'Umar bin Al-Khattab Radi-Allahu ‘anhu
would not decide anything without consulting them and would not
send an army unless he put them at the head of its fighters and
soldiers. I will bring them to you so that they hear from you
that which I heard, so they will become as clear in the matter
as I am."
The Roman commander realized that 'Amr Ibn Al-'Aas
Radi-Allahu 'anhu, by his naiveté, had granted him the
opportunity of a lifetime. Therefore, he thought, Let us agree
with him, and when he returns with this number of Muslim
commanders and the best of their men and their leaders, we will
deliver the coup de grace and finish off all of them at once,
instead of finishing off 'Amr Ibn Al-'Aas Radi-Allahu
'anhu alone.
Secretly he gave his order to put off the plan that was devised
to assassinate 'Amr Ibn Al-'Aas Radi-Allahu 'anhu,
and he saw 'Amr Ibn Al-'Aas Radi-Allahu 'anhu off
cordially and shook his hand with enthusiasm and fervour.
'Amr Ibn Al-'Aas Radi-Allahu 'anhu smiled the most
intelligent of Arab smiles as he was leaving the Citadel.
In the morning 'Amr Ibn Al-'Aas Radi-Allahu 'anhu
returned to the Citadel at the head of an army, mounted on his
horse that whinnied in a loud burst of laughter, behaving
proudly and haughtily and making fun. Yes, for it, too, knew a
lot of things about the shrewdness of its owner.
In
A.H. 43,
death caught up with 'Amr Ibn Al-'Aas Radi-Allahu 'anhu
in Egypt, where he was ruling. He recaptured his life in the
moments of departure, saying, "In the first part of my life I
was a disbeliever, and I was one of the fiercest people against
the Messenger of Allâh Subhanahu Wa Ta'ala, so if I had died on
that day, the fire would have been my fate. Then, I swore
allegiance to the Messenger Sallallahu ‘Alaihi Wa Sallam of
Allâh Subhanahu Wa Ta'ala, and there was no person more
dear to me than he and more glorious in my eyes than he. If I
wanted to describe him, I could not, because I was not able to
fill my eyes with him on account of being in awe of him. If I
had died back then, I would have wished to be of the inhabitants
of Paradise. Then after that I was tested with command and with
material things. I do not know if they were for me or against
me."
Then he raised his sight to the sky in awe, calling upon Allâh
Subhanahu Wa Ta'ala, saying, "O Allâh Subhanahu Wa
Ta'ala, I am not innocent, so forgive me. I am not mighty,
so help me. And if Your mercy does not come to me, I will surely
be of those destroyed."
And he continued in his yearning and his prayers until his
spirit ascended to Allâh Subhanahu Wa Ta'ala and his last
words were, "There is no god but Allâh Subhanahu Wa Ta'ala."
Under the ground of Egypt, which 'Amr Ibn Al-'Aas Radi-Allahu
'anhu acquainted with the path of Islâm, where his corpse
was finally placed, and above its hard earth, his seat is still
standing throughout the centuries. Here he used to teach, judge,
and rule, beneath the ceiling of his ancient Masjid, the Masjid
of 'Amr Ibn Al-'Aas Radi-Allahu 'anhu, the first mosque
in Egypt, in which the name of Allâh Subhanahu Wa Ta'ala,
the One and Only is mentioned and declared between its walls and
from its pulpit, the words of Allâh Subhanahu Wa Ta'ala
and the principles of Islâm.
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