ভূমিকা

Shiavault - a Vault of Shia Islamic Books Light On the Muhammadan Sunnah Or Defence of the Hadith Ka’b and Umar: On his arrival to al-Madinah and announcing his Islam, during the reign of Umar, Ka’b embarked on employing his sagacity and cunning for attaining to the goal for which he embraced Islam: that is corrupting the religion and fabricating lies against the Prophet (S).

The fact that prompted him to narrate and fabricate hadith was that Umar ibn al-Khattab, in the beginning of his rule, used to listen and heed to him, taking into consideration his becoming a Muslim of true faith, the fact pushing him to falsify as many as he could of traditions.

Ibn Kathir says: 264 “When Ka’b embraced Islam during government of Umar, he started to relate hadith to Umar, who used to pay attention to him, the fact that paved the way before people to listen to his narrations and convey his fabricated weak traditions.” But so soon Umar took notice of his stratagem and discovered his evil intention, when he forbade him from narrating the hadith, threatening him with exile to the land of apes shouldn’t he leave reporting hadith from the first.

265 Despite Umar’s lying in wait for this crafty man with his decisiveness and wisdom, penetrating into his wicked designs through his insight and discernment, as seen in the rock story, but the extreme cunning and artifice of this Jew (Ka’b) managed to overcome Umar’s perception and good intention. So he continued to hatch plots, secretly and openly, till they were concluded with murder of Umar.

All evidences indicate clearly that this murder was a plot engineered by an underground society, among whose senior members being this cunning man, and headed by Hormuzan, King of Khozustan, 266 who was brought as a captive to the Medina. The execution of this plot was entrusted to the non-Arab Abu Lu’lu’ah.

Murder of Umar and Ka’b’s Hand in It: Al-Musawwar ibn Makhramah 267 reported that when Umar went home after being threatened by Abu Lu’lu’ah, he was visited by Ka’b al-Ahbar 268 who said to him: O Amir al-Mu’minin, I am certain that you will die within three nights. (According to al-Tabari’s narration: three days). He said: How could you know this? He said: It is mentioned in the Torah. Umar said: Do you find name of Umar ibn al-Khattab in the Torah?

He replied: It is not so, but I find in it your ornament and attribute, and that the end of your life is approaching. When he uttered these words Umar was never feeling any pain.