there was no prophet whom Allah sent forth except that he guided his people to every good he knew for them and warned them against every evil he knew would harm them. All the prophets, peace be upon them, sincerely advised their nations: they taught them what is good, showed them the way to it, urged them toward it, clarified what is evil, and cautioned them against it.

In the same manner, the people of knowledge and their students must clarify good for the public, encourage them to pursue it, expose evil, and warn them away from it. The scholars of this community are the heirs of the prophets. Since there is no prophet after Muḥammad—peace and blessings be upon him—prophethood closed with him, and only the scholars remain to receive his law and his religion. Therefore, the duty that rested upon the prophets—to explain good, promote it, lead people to it, and lay bare evil while warning against it—now rests upon the scholars.

The Prophet, peace and blessings be upon him, then informed that this ummah—the community of Muḥammad—was granted its well-being at its beginning; in other words, the earliest generations enjoyed safety free of tribulations. During the lifetime of the Prophet there were no civil strifes, and the same was true in the caliphates of Abū Bakr and ʿUmar, may Allah be pleased with them both.

When ʿUmar—may Allah be pleased with him—was killed, the murderer was the slave of al-Mughīrah, a young man called Abū Luʾluʾah, a vile Magian who harbored rancor against the Commander of the Faithful. As ʿUmar stepped forward to lead the dawn prayer, the man struck him with a dagger that had two blades; some reports say the weapon was poisoned. He stabbed him until he split open his abdomen. ʿUmar was carried away, survived for three days, and then died—may Allah be pleased with him.

That wretched man fled, but the people pursued him. He managed to kill thirteen men, for his dagger was gripped at the center with two points, enabling him to strike people as he slashed