( 209 ) تَقَدَّمَ فِي مَنَاقِبِ عُمَرَ حَدِيثُ جَعْلِهِ الْأَمْرَ شُورَى فِي سِتَّةٍ .
وَقَالَ الْحَارِثُ : حَدَّثَنَا أَبُو النَّضْرِ هَاشِمُ بْنُ الْقَاسِمِ ، ثَنَا اللَّيْثُ بْنُ سَعْدٍ ، عَنْ عُبَيْدِ اللهِ بْنِ عُمَرَ ، عَنِ ابْنِ شِهَابٍ ، أَنَّهُ حَدَّثَهُ ، عَنِ الْمِسْوَرِ بْنِ مَخْرَمَةَ رَضِيَ اللهُ عَنْهُ ، قَالَ : لَمَّا كَانَتِ اللَّيْلَةُ الَّتِي فِي صَبِيحَتِهَا يَفْرُغُ النَّفَرُ الَّذِينَ اسْتَخْلَفَهُمْ عُمَرُ بْنُ الْخَطَّابِ رَضِيَ اللهُ عَنْهُمْ مِنَ الْخِلَافَةِ ، صَلَّيْتُ الْعِشَاءَ ، ثُمَّ انْصَرَفْتُ إِلَى مَنْزِلِي فَنِمْتُ ، فَأَيْقَظَنِي مِنَ النَّوْمِ صَوْتُ خَالِي عَبْدِ الرَّحْمَنِ بْنِ عَوْفٍ رَحْمَةُ اللهِ عَلَيْهِ ، يَا مِسْوَرُ ، قَالَ : فَخَرَجْتُ مُشْتَمِلًا بِثَوْبِي ، قَالَ : أَنِمْتَ ؟ قُلْتُ : نَعَمْ ، قَدْ نِمْتُ . قَالَ : خُذْ عَلَيْكَ ثَوْبَكَ ثُمَّ الْحَقْنِي إِلَى الْمَسْجِدِ ، فَفَعَلْتُ . فَلَمَّا انْتَهَيْتُ إِلَيْهِ قَالَ لِي : ادْعُ لِيَ الزُّبَيْرَ وَسَعْدًا أَوْ أَحَدَهُمَا ، فَانْطَلَقْتُ فَدَعَوْتُهُ ، فَلَمَّا انْتَهَيْتُ بِهِ إِلَيْهِ قَالَ : اسْتَأْخِرْ عَنَّا قَدْرَ مَا لَا تَسْمَعُ كَلَامَنَا . قَالَ : فَفَعَلْتُ فَتَنَاجَيَا شَيْئًا يَسِيرًا ، ثُمَّ قَالَ : ادْعُ لِيَ الْآخَرَ ، فَلَمَّا انْتَهَيْتُ بِهِ إِلَيْهِ قَالَ : اسْتَأْخِرْ عَنَّا قَدْرَ مَا لَا تَسْمَعُ كَلَامَنَا . قَالَ : فَتَنَاجَيَا شَيْئًا يَسِيرًا ، ثُمَّ نَادَى : يَا مِسْوَرُ ، اذْهَبْ فَادْعُ لِيَ عَلِيًّا ، وَذَلِكَ حِينَ ذَهَبَتْ فَحْمَةُ الْعِشَاءِ . قَالَ : فَجِئْتُ بِعَلِيٍّ ، فَقَالَ : اسْتَأْخِرْ عَنَّا قَدْرَ مَا لَا تَسْمَعُ كَلَامَنَا . قَالَ : فَلَمْ يَزَالَا يَتَكَلَّمَانِ مِنَ الْعِشَاءِ حَتَّى كَانَ السَّحَرُ ، إِلَّا أَنَّنِي لَمْ أَسْمَعْ مِنْ فِيهِمَا مَا أَظُنُّنِي أَنَّهُمَا قَدْ أَقْبَلَا . فَلَمَّا كَانَ السَّحَرُ ، نَادَانِي وَعَلِيٌّ رَضِيَ اللهُ عَنْهُ عِنْدَهُ ، فَقَالَ : اذْهَبْ فَادْعُ لِيَ عُثْمَانَ رَضِيَ اللهُ عَنْهُ ، قَالَ : فَفَعَلْتُ . فَتَنَاجَيَا ، وَأَذَّنَ الْمُؤَذِّنُ بِالصُّبْحِ ، قَالَ : فَتَفَرَّقُوا لِلْوُضُوءِ ، وَقَدْ عَلِمَ النَّاسُ أَنَّهَا صَبِيحَةُ الْخِلَافَةِ ، فَاجْتَمَعُوا لِلصُّبْحِ ، كَمَا يَجْتَمِعُونَ لِلْجُمُعَةِ ، فَأَمَرَ عَبْدُ الرَّحْمَنِ رَضِيَ اللهُ عَنْهُ النَّفَرَ أَنْ يَجْلِسُوا بَيْنَ يَدَيِ الْمِنْبَرِ ، فَلَمَّا أَبْصَرَ النَّاسُ بَعْضُهُمْ بَعْضًا وَطَلَعَتِ الشَّمْسُ قَامَ عَبْدُ الرَّحْمَنِ رَضِيَ اللهُ عَنْهُ إِلَى جَنْبِ الْمِنْبَرِ ، فَحَمِدَ اللهَ تَعَالَى وَأَثْنَى عَلَيْهِ بِمَا هُوَ أَهْلُهُ ، ثُمَّ قَالَ : أَيُّهَا النَّاسُ ، قَدْ عَلِمْتُمُ الَّذِي كَانَ مِنْ وَفَاةِ أَمِيرِ الْمُؤْمِنِينَ وَاسْتِخْلَافِهِ إِيَّانَا أَيُّهَا النَّفَرُ ، وَرَضِيَ أَصْحَابِي أَنَّ ذَلِكَ إِلَيَّ ، فَأَخْتَارُ رَجُلًا مِنْهُمْ ، وَهَؤُلَاءِ هُمْ بَيْنَ أَيْدِيكُمْ ، ثُمَّ اسْتَقْبَلَهُمْ رَجُلًا رَجُلًا ، فَقَالَ : أَيْ فُلَانُ ، عَلَيْكَ عَهْدُ اللهِ وَمِيثَاقُهُ لَتَسْمَعَنَّ وَلَتُطِيعَنَّ لِمَنْ وَلَّيْتُ وَلَتَرْضَيَنَّ وَلَتُسَلِّمَنَّ ؟ فَيَقُولُ : نَعَمْ ، رَافِعًا صَوْتَهُ يُسْمِعُ النَّاسَ ، حَتَّى فَرَغَ مِنْهُمْ رَجُلًا رَجُلًا : عُثْمَانُ وَعَلِيٌّ وَالزُّبَيْرُ وَسَعْدٌ رَضِيَ اللهُ عَنْهُمْ . قَالَ : أَمَّا طَلْحَةُ فَأَنَا حَمِيلٌ بِرِضَاهُ . ثُمَّ قَالَ : إِنِّي لَمْ أَزَلْ دَئِبًا مُنْذُ ثَلَاثٍ أَسْأَلُكُمْ عَنْ هَؤُلَاءِ النَّفَرِ ، ثُمَّ سَأَلْتُهُمْ عَنْ أَنْفُسِهِمْ ، فَوَجَدْتُكُمْ أَيُّهَا النَّاسُ وَإِيَّاهُمُ اجْتَمَعْتُمْ عَلَى عُثْمَانَ رَضِيَ اللهُ عَنْهُ ، قُمْ يَا عُثْمَانُ ، فَلَمْ يَقُلْ رَجُلٌ مِنَ الْمُهَاجِرِينَ وَلَا الْأَنْصَارِ وَلَا وُفُودِ الْعَرَبِ وَلَا صَالِحِي النَّاسِ : إِنَّكَ لَمْ تَسْتَشِرْنَا ، وَلَمْ تَسْتَأْمِرْنَا ، فَرَضُوا وَسَلَّمُوا ، فَلَبِثُوا سِتَّ سِنِينَ لَا يَعِيبُونَ شَيْئًا . قَالَ : كَانَ طَائِفَةٌ مِنْهُمْ يُفَضِّلُونَهُ عَلَى عُمَرَ رَضِيَ اللهُ عَنْهُ ، يَقُولُونَ : الْعَدْلُ مِثْلُ عُمَرَ ، وَاللِّينُ أَلْيَنُ مِنْ عُمَرَ ، ثُمَّ حَدَثَ مَا حَدَثَ .
It is narrated from Sayyiduna al-Miswar bin Makhramah (may Allah be pleased with him) that when the night came on whose morning the persons whom Sayyiduna Umar bin al-Khattab (may Allah be pleased with him) had nominated for choosing the caliph were to conclude the matter of the caliphate, I prayed the Isha prayer, went to my house and slept. Then the voice of my maternal uncle, Sayyiduna Abd al-Rahman bin Awf (may Allah be pleased with him), woke me; he called out: "O Miswar!" I came out wrapped in my sheet, and he asked: "Were you asleep?" I said: "Yes, I was asleep." He said: "Put on your clothes properly and come with me to the mosque." So I went with him. When we reached there, he said to me: "Call Sayyiduna al-Zubayr and Sayyiduna Sa'd (may Allah be pleased with them both) to me, or one of them." I went and called him. When I brought him to him, he said to me: "Move away from us far enough that you cannot hear our conversation." I moved back, and they whispered together for a little while. Then he said: "Call the other one too." When I brought him, he repeated the same words: "Stay at such a distance from us that you cannot hear what we say." So they too spoke privately for a little while. Then he called out: "O Miswar! Go and call Sayyiduna Ali (may Allah be pleased with him) to me." This was the time when the darkness of the night had deepened. I brought Sayyiduna Ali (may Allah be pleased with him), and he said: "Move back from us far enough that you cannot hear our words." So the two of them kept talking continuously from the time of Isha until the pre-dawn (sahar), but I did not hear anything from their mouths that would make me think they had reached a (final) decision. When it was the time of sahar, he called me while Sayyiduna Ali (may Allah be pleased with him) was still with him, and said: "Go and call Sayyiduna Uthman (may Allah be pleased with him) to me." So I called him, and the two of them also kept whispering until the muezzin gave the call to the Fajr prayer. Then they all went off to perform ablution. People had come to know that this was the morning of the decision on the caliphate, so they gathered for the Fajr prayer just as they gather on Friday. Sayyiduna Abd al-Rahman bin Awf (may Allah be pleased with him) instructed those nominated persons to sit in front of the pulpit. When it became fully light and the sun rose, Sayyiduna Abd al-Rahman (may Allah be pleased with him) stood beside the pulpit, praised and extolled Allah Almighty as befits His majesty, and then said: "O people! You know that the Commander of the Believers has passed away and that he entrusted us (the six) with the responsibility of appointing his successor; and my companions have agreed to entrust this matter to me, so that I may choose a righteous man from among them, and they are all present before you." Then he turned to each one individually and asked: "O so-and-so! Is the covenant and pledge of Allah upon you that whoever I appoint as ruler (caliph), you will listen to him and obey, and remain content with it and submit?" Each one said "Yes" in a loud voice so that the people could hear, until he had finished with all of them: Sayyiduna Uthman, Sayyiduna Ali, Sayyiduna al-Zubayr and Sayyiduna Sa'd (may Allah be pleased with them). And he said: "As for Sayyiduna Talhah (may Allah be pleased with him), I am the guarantor of his consent." Then he said: "For three days I have been striving continuously, asking you people about these persons; then I also asked these candidates themselves about themselves; and, O people, I have found you and these men agreed upon the caliphate of Sayyiduna Uthman (may Allah be pleased with him). O Uthman, stand up!" Not a single one of the Muhajirun, the Ansar, the delegations of the Arabs or the righteous people said: You did not consult us or seek our opinion. Rather, all were content and accepted obedience. Then they remained for six years in such a state that people found no fault in any of his actions; indeed, a group of them even gave him precedence over Sayyiduna Umar (may Allah be pleased with him) and said: "In justice and fairness he is like Umar, but in gentleness he is even gentler than Umar." Then, after that, there occurred the circumstances of fitnah that were destined to occur.
Imam al-Harith bin Abi Usamah recorded this hadith in his Musnad, and this incident is one of the most authentic historical and political testimonies of the Rightly Guided Caliphate.