Sirah
The Islam of Umar
Umar (RA) turns at the recitation of the Qur'an, c. 616 CE
c. 616 CE
Educational historical reconstructionWhere
The house of Fatima bint al-Khattab (RA), Makkah
21.4218, 39.8245 · View on OpenStreetMap
Background
Among the most consequential conversions of the Makkan years was that of Umar ibn al-Khattab (radiyallahu 'anhu), a strong and feared man of Quraysh who had been among the harshest opponents of the believers. Ibn Ishaq and Ibn Sa'd preserve the well-known account: Umar set out one day meaning harm to the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him), but was met on the way and told that the religion had already entered his own house, for his sister Fatima bint al-Khattab (radiyallahu 'anha) and her husband had accepted Islam. He went to their house in anger and heard recitation within; when he entered and demanded the sheet they had been reading, and after he had washed himself, he read from it the opening verses of Surah Ta-Ha, and the words so moved him that his heart turned, and he asked to be brought to the Prophet, where he declared his Islam. The sources relate that his conversion, coming soon after that of his uncle Hamza (RA), so strengthened and emboldened the small community that they were able for the first time to pray openly at the sanctuary, and Umar was thereafter called al-Faruq, the one who distinguished truth from falsehood. This scene depicts the place and a single object: the plain inner room of a Makkan house, a woven mat and cushion, a water bowl, and an open sheet of parchment written with verses, the sahifa that turned him. In keeping with the Sirah tier no person is shown, neither the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) nor Umar (RA) nor his sister; the moment is carried by the quiet room and the written page.
What you see
The plain inner room of a Makkan house, a woven mat on the floor and a cushion, a water bowl set by the wall; a modest domestic interior in the valley town, not a public place.
An open sheet of parchment lies on the mat, written with verses, a sahifa of the Qur'an such as the early believers kept and recited in secret; the page that turned a hard man's heart.
This marks the day Umar ibn al-Khattab (radiyallahu 'anhu), who had set out meaning harm to the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him), was told that his own sister had accepted Islam, came to her house, and on hearing and then reading the verses of Surah Ta-Ha was overcome and went to declare his faith.
The coming of a strong and feared man of Quraysh to the believers, soon after Hamza (RA), so emboldened the community that they prayed openly at the sanctuary; a decisive strengthening in the Makkan years. The scene shows the room and the page, not any face.
The simple furnishings of an early Makkan household, lamp niche, mat and bowl, the quiet room where the recitation was heard; the believers still met and read in secret.
The Islam of Umar (RA) is recorded by Ibn Ishaq and Ibn Sa'd, with the famous account of the sheet of Surah Ta-Ha at his sister's house. In the Sirah tier no person is depicted.
Primary sources
Ibn Ishaq via Ibn Hisham, al-Sira al-Nabawiyya: The principal narrative of the Islam of Umar (RA): the setting out, the news of his sister, the sheet of Surah Ta-Ha, and the declaration of faith.
Ibn Sa'd, al-Tabaqat al-Kubra (9th c.): The biographical record of Umar (RA), his standing among Quraysh, and his conversion.
The Qur'an, Surah Ta-Ha (20:1-16): The opening verses said to be on the sheet Umar (RA) read; cited for the content that moved him, not as a claim about the physical page.
Further reading & cross-references
Safi al-Rahman al-Mubarakpuri, al-Rahiq al-Makhtum (20th c.): Modern Sunni synthesis for the dating and the open prayer at the sanctuary that followed.
Topography of the house (city): The house of Fatima (RA) stood in Makkah; its exact site is not preserved, so the location is at city precision.
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