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The Salary of the Caliph...

And so, Ramadan starts again. I hope you can feel the air around you get a little fresher, and thinner. A feeling of tranquility, and free from perturbation has descended. From tomorrow, as my mother like to say, a new life begins.

The point of this blog is to share a story with you; the story of Islam's first Caliph, Abu Bakr(R).

"After the death of our beloved Prophet(SA), Abu Bakr(R) was appointed as the rightful leader of the Muslims. Now, one day, Umar(R)- the second caliph of Islam- saw Abu Bakr(R) walking with a bunch of clothes strapped on his shoulder.Bewildered, he went forward and inquired about the purpose of the clothes. Abu Bakr(R) replied that he was going to the bazaar to sell these clothes and earn a living for his family.Grasping the critical situation Abu Bakr(R) was, Umar(R),along with the head of the treasury,Ubayda, it was decided that a salary should be fixed for the caliph.So that he does not have to do anything extra to earn money, and thus can give his full concentration in running the Muslims' affairs.

The resolved salary for him AND HIS FAMILY consisted of:four sheets of clothes each year,and food for him and his family for everyday.

Abu Bakr(R) readily accepted the salary, moreover, deposited EACH penny he had on himself at the treasury!

Now, his wife wanted to make some sweets for him but she didn't have enough sugar.So what she di was simple: she saved pinching amount of sugar from the ration, until she had enough for the sweets.And then she presented them to him with sheer delight.Now, the first reaction of any normal person would be to devour them, but Abu Bakr(R) was not just like any other man.He inquired WHERE did she get enough sugar for the sweets,because he knew the ration was too little to provide such luxury.Upon hearing the saving process, he concluded, that they MUST have been taking MORE THAN THAT WAS NECESSARY.Or else, how could his wife SAVE an amount? Thus, he went to the treasury and self reduced his ration.

At his deathbed, Abu Bakr(R) made his sons calculate the exact amount the treasury had spent on him.And then, he did,one of the most incredible thing.He ordered that all of his property are to be sold to repay the treasury to the penny."


People call us conservative, back dated, and there are some people who will even go as far as calling us extremist.Why? Because, the Quran calls for us to submit to the will of our Creator and act accordingly.Because, it calls for us to take actions which,simply put, are hard to take.Well, if being conservative means I am going along the direction that our beloved Prophet(S) and men like Abu Bakr(R) showed, then let it be known;I am happy being a conservative!

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