—we did not see you ask for rain.”

He answered, “I sought rain through the majādīʿ (1) of the sky—the very conduits (2) by which water is drawn down.” He then recited: “Seek forgiveness of your Lord; indeed, He is ever Forgiving (10); He will send the sky down upon you in abundant showers (11)” (Sūrah Nūḥ, 10-11). After that he recited: “And that you should seek forgiveness of your Lord, then repent to Him” (Sūrah Hūd, 3).

Ibn Jarīr (3) recorded under the events of this same year—through the chain of Sayf ibn ʿUmar, from Abū al-Mujālid, al-Rabīʿ, Abū ʿUthmān, Abū Ḥārithah, and from ʿAbd Allāh ibn Shubruma, on the authority of al-Shaʿbī—that they said:

Abū ʿUbaydah wrote to ʿUmar ibn al-Khaṭṭāb informing him that a group of Muslims had consumed wine, among them Dirār and Abū Jandal ibn Sahl. “We questioned them,” he wrote, “and they replied, ‘We were offered a choice, and we chose.’”

ʿUmar said, “Will you then desist?” He did not yet issue a binding order, but he assembled the people, and they were unanimous in rejecting the offenders’ claim, agreeing that the meaning of the verse is: “Desist!” They all concurred that each man should receive eighty lashes, and that whoever interpreted the verse otherwise and persisted in that view should be put to death.

ʿUmar therefore wrote to Abū ʿUbaydah: “Summon them and ask them about wine. If they say it is lawful, put them to death; if they say it is unlawful, flog them.” The men acknowledged (4) its prohibition, so they were subjected to the prescribed punishment. They repented of the obstinacy they had shown in their earlier interpretation (5) until Abū Jandal was plagued by misgivings. Abū ʿUbaydah wrote again to ʿUmar about the matter, asking him to write to Abū Jand (6) and remind him.

ʿUmar ibn al-Khaṭṭāb wrote:

From ʿUmar to Abū Jandal: Allah does not forgive the association of partners with Him, but He forgives whatever is less than that for whom He wills. Therefore repent, raise your head, come forth, and do not despair, for Allah the Exalted says: “Say, ‘My servants who have transgressed against their own souls, do not despair of Allah’s mercy; indeed, Allah forgives all sins. He is the Forgiving, the Merciful.’” (53) (Sūrah al-Zumar, 53).

ʿUmar also wrote to the people: “Mind your own selves; when someone deviates, correct him. Do not revile anyone, lest affliction spread among you.”

Concerning this, Abū al-Zahrāʾ al-Qushayrī said (7):

Do you not see how Time trips up a youth,
And none can resist what Death has decreed? (8)