“By the Book of Allah.” He asked, “What is that?” He answered, “Al-‘Abbas ibn al-Walīd ibn ‘Abd al-Malik has usurped my land.” Al-‘Abbas was seated, so ʿUmar said to him, “O ‘Abbas, what do you say?” He replied, “Indeed, the Commander of the Faithful, al-Walīd, granted it to me and issued me a deed.” ʿUmar then asked, “What do you say, O protected non-Muslim (dhimmī)?” He answered, “O Commander of the Faithful, I appeal to you by the Book of Allah.” ʿUmar said, “The Book of Allah is more worthy to be followed than the deed of al-Walīd. Rise and restore his land to him.” And so he did. Thereafter people continuously brought their grievances to ʿUmar; no complaint was presented that he did not remedy, whether the injustice lay with him or with someone else. He even seized the property of the Banu Marwān and others that they held without right. The Banu Marwān appealed to every notables’ house, but to no avail. Finally they went to their aunt, Fāṭima bint Marwān—his father’s sister—and complained that ʿUmar had taken their wealth, demeaned them in his presence, and would not look up when they approached him. This woman was never refused by the caliphs, was not turned away with any request, and was honored by them—just as ʿUmar had honored her before his caliphate. She rose and went to him. When she entered, he treated her with great respect, for she was his aunt. He offered her a cushion and began to speak with her. Seeing her unusually angry, ʿUmar said, “O aunt, what troubles you?” She replied, “The sons of my brother ‘Abd al-Malik and their descendants are dishonored under your rule. You seize their money and give it to others; they are insulted before you, and you do not rebuke the offenders.” ʿUmar smiled, perceiving her restraint and the weight of her concerns, and then spoke candidly: “O aunt, know that the Prophet ﷺ died and left the community as a flowing river. A man succeeded him and did not diminish it until he died; then another succeeded him and did likewise; then a third succeeded and diverted one of its canals. After him the people neglected the channels until they ran dry. By God, if Allah grants me life, I will restore it to its original course. Whoever is pleased will have my pleasure, and whoever is displeased will have my displeasure. When injustice comes from the governor’s inner circle—those close to him—yet the governor does not correct it, how can he address injustices farther from him?” She asked, “Will they no longer be insulted in your presence?” He answered, “Who insults them? A man brings his grievance, and I adjudicate his case.” Ibn Abī al-Dunyā, Abū Nu‘aym, and others report this story, and the author alludes to it subtly. Muslima ibn ‘Abd al-Malik said, “I once visited ʿUmar during his final illness. He was wearing a filthy shirt. I said to Fāṭima, ‘Will you not wash the Amir al-Mu’minīn’s shirt?’ She replied, ‘By God, he has no other shirt.’ He began to weep; Fāṭima wept, and the household wept, though none knew what moved them. When the moment of sorrow passed, Fāṭima asked, ‘What made you weep, O Commander of the Faithful?’ He said, ‘I reflected on how all creation will depart from before Allah—some to Paradise and some to Hell.’ Then he cried out and fainted. Once a gift of musk from the state treasury was offered to him. He blocked his nose and refused it, saying, ‘Who benefits from musk except its fragrance?’ At the point of death he summoned his children—twelve boys—looked at them with tears, and said, ‘May my life be the ransom for my young ones.’ ʿUmar ibn ‘Abd al-‘Azīz often pondered these verses: “See him humbled, by vain talk abhorring, From empty words that hold no space. His knowledge burdens him with every folly, Who more ignorant than the one who knows not? He frowns at fools when he beholds them, No cheeks to tease him in merry chase. He weighs life’s end that still remains him, Distracted from the fleeting by what next may be.” Ibn Abī al-Dunyā relates from Maymūn ibn Mihrān that he entered upon ʿUmar ibn ‘Abd al-‘Azīz while the former Berber al-Barbarī was present, reciting poetry to him. He concluded his verses with: “How many a sound soul sleeps in death’s security, Yet death surprises it when least presumed.”