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Umar's Trust in the Fay'

أمانة عمر في الفيء

Umar wrote Hudhayfa to pay the people their rizq; 'done — and much remains' came the answer, and his: 'it is theirs — the fay' God gave them — not Umar's nor Al Umar's — divide it among them'. Abu Hurayra (may God be pleased with him) brought five hundred thousand from Bahrayn — 'much money has come: shall we count it or weigh it?' — and a man said 'I have seen these Ajam keep a diwan they pay the people by'; so Umar wrote the diwan: first Muhajirun five thousand, Ansar four thousand, the Prophet ﷺ's wives twelve thousand. 'It is their right — had it been Khattab-money I'd not have given it, but I know there is surplus: let each stipend buy sheep for his sawad, then rams, till his children hold a substance' — and 'I counsel whom God charges: the Prophet said who dies cheating his flock will not smell paradise'. Every newborn, boy or girl, was registered for a hundred and two jaribs a month.

Depth

At a glance

Era
The Rashidun Caliphate
Review
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Overview

"Futuh al-Buldan" relates reports of the position of Umar on the spoils, that they are public property, belonging neither to Umar nor to his family. 1

The letter to Hudhayfa

Umar wrote to Hudhayfa to give people their stipends. Hudhayfa replied that he had done so and much remained. Umar wrote: "Among them is that which God gave them as spoils; it is not for Umar nor for the family of Umar, so divide it among them." 1

The money of Bahrain

Abu Hurayra came from Bahrain with five hundred thousand. A man told Umar that he had seen the foreigners recording a register, so Umar recorded the register. 1

He imposed five thousand on the first emigrants, four thousand on the Ansar and twelve thousand on the wives of the Prophet. He added every child born, male or female, to a hundred and two jaribs a month. 1

The book quotes his words: "It is only their right." It also relates the Prophet's saying about one who dies deceiving his subjects. 1

The text comes from automated extraction and needs the page numbers.

Connections

Explore the connections

Had participant
Umar ibn al-Khattab· Hudhayfa ibn al-Yaman· Abu Hurayra

People and things also explored

Medina· The Battle of Nihawand (Fath al-Futuh)· Uthman ibn Hunayf's Survey of the Sawad· Bukhari 3680 — Umar's palace in Paradise and his jealousy· Muslim 8 — The Jibril hadith: Islam, iman, ihsan· Muslim 20 — I will fight whoever separates prayer from almsgiving· Muwatta 300· Muwatta 526

Sources

  1. Futuh al-Buldan — al-Baladhuri (Mu'assasat al-Ma'arif edition)
Cite this page

islam.museum contributors. “Umar's Trust in the Fay'”. islam.museum, https://islam.museum/en/event/umar-fay-justice/. CC BY-SA 4.0. Last updated 2026-10-16.

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Medina

City in the Hejaz to which the Prophet migrated in 622 CE; site of the Prophet's Mosque and the first Muslim community. The Prophet declared it a sanctuary as Abraham declared Mecca — its bounds 'between 'Ayr and Thawr' (or 'to Uhud' in the reading Abu 'Ubayd and al-Hazimi preferred) and 'between its two lava fields'; within them hunting and tree-cutting are forbidden and the bloodwit for unintended killing is heavier. Samhudi counts nearly ninety-five names for it, among them Tayba, Taba and Yathrib.