who passed away while well pleased with him, and he kept company with ʿUmar, was an exemplary companion to him, and ʿUmar likewise died well pleased with him. ʿUmar expressly appointed him among the six members of the Consultative Council, and—as will be shown—he proved the best of them.

After ʿUmar, he assumed the caliphate, and through him Allah opened up many regions and cities. The Muslim realm expanded, the Muhammadan state spread, and the chosen Messenger’s mission reached the eastern and western horizons of the earth.

People thus witnessed the truth of the Almighty’s words:

“Allah has promised those among you who believe and do righteous deeds that He will surely grant them succession upon the earth as He granted it to those before them; He will surely establish for them the religion He has approved for them, and He will surely replace their fear with security. They worship Me and do not associate anything with Me.” (Surah al-Nūr 24:55)

and His statement:

“It is He who sent His Messenger with guidance and the religion of truth so that He may make it prevail over every other religion, even though the polytheists may detest it.” (Surah al-Tawbah 9:33)

and the Prophet’s saying ﷺ:

“Indeed Allah gathered before me the eastern and western corners of the earth, and the dominion of my community will reach as far as what was gathered before me.” (1)

and his saying ﷺ:

“When Caesar perishes, there will be no Caesar after him; when Chosroes perishes, there will be no Chosroes after him. By Him in whose hand is my soul, their treasures will most certainly be expended in the cause of Allah.” (2)

All of this was fully realized, confirmed, and firmly established in the time of ʿUthmān (may Allah be pleased with him).

He (may Allah be pleased with him) was handsome in form, fair-faced, of noble character, extremely modest, and immensely generous. For Allah’s sake he would show preference to his family and relatives (3), drawing their hearts with the perishable goods of this worldly life in the hope of prompting them to prefer what endures over what fades—just as the Prophet ﷺ would give to some people and leave others, granting to certain individuals lest Allah cast them on their faces into the Fire while entrusting others to the guidance and faith Allah had placed in their hearts. Because of this trait some people reproached him, just as certain Khārijites once reproached the Messenger of Allah ﷺ over his preferential giving. We have already discussed this under the expedition of Ḥunayn, when he distributed its spoils.

Numerous hadiths attest to the virtues of ʿUthmān (may Allah be pleased with him). We shall—Allah willing, in whom we place our trust—mention such of them as are readily accessible. They fall into two categories.

[First: Traditions that mention his merits together with those of others]

One such report is the hadith recorded by al-Bukhārī in his Ṣaḥīḥ (4): Musaddad related to us; Yaḥyā ibn Saʿīd related to us, from Saʿīd, from Qatādah, that Anas (5) related:

“The Prophet climbed Mount Uhud along with Abū Bakr, ʿUmar, and ʿUthmān. The mountain quivered, so he said, ‘Steady, Uhud!’—I think he struck it with his foot—‘for upon you are only a prophet, a ṣiddīq, and two martyrs.’”

Al-Bukhārī alone recorded this report; Muslim did not (6).