Tribute, Spoils, and Rulership (Kitab Al-Kharaj, Wal-Fai' Wal-Imarah)

‘Abdullah ibn ‘Umar (may Allah be pleased with him and his father) reported that the Messenger of Allah (may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him) said: "Every one of you is a guardian and responsible for his subjects. The leader in charge of the people is a guardian and is responsible for them; the man is a guardian over his household and is responsible for them; the woman is a guardian over her husband's house and his children and is responsible for them; the slave is a guardian over his master's property and is responsible for it. Verily, each of you is a guardian, and each of you is responsible for his subjects."

‘Abdur-Rahmān ibn Samurah (may Allah be pleased with him) reported that the Messenger of Allah (may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him) said to him: "O ‘Abdur-Rahmān ibn Samurah, do not ask for a position of authority, for if you were granted such authority upon your request, you would be left (to manage it) unaided. However, if you were granted such authority without requesting it, you would be provided with aid (to manage it). If you ever make an oath but then found a better alternative, expiate your oath and go for the better alternative."

‘Ā’ishah (may Allah be pleased with her) reported that the Prophet (may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him) said: "If Allah wills to do good to a ruler, He appoints for him a truthful adviser, who will remind him if he forgets and help him if he remembers. And if Allah wills otherwise for him, He appoints for him a bad adviser who will not remind him if he forgets, nor will he help him if he remembers."

Abu Humayd as-Sā‘idi (may Allah be pleased with him) reported: The Messenger of Allah (may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him) appointed a man named Ibn al-Lutbiyyah, to collect the charity of Banu Sulaym. When the man returned, he held him accountable. he said: This is your wealth, and this is a gift. The Messenger of Allah (may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him) said: "Why do you not sit in the house of your father and mother and wait to see if that gift comes to you, if you are truthful?" Then he addressed us, praised Allah, and said: "To proceed, I appoint one of you to a task that Allah has entrusted to me, and he comes back and says: This is your wealth and this was gifted to me. Why does he not sit in the house of his father and mother and wait to see if that gift comes to him? By Allah, no one of you takes anything unlawfully except that he will meet Allah carrying it on the Day of Judgment. I will certainly recognize one of you who meets Allah carrying a camel that is groaning, or a cow that is mooing, or a sheep that is bleating.” Then he raised his hand until the whiteness of his armpit could be seen and said: “O Allah, have I conveyed (the message)?”My eyes have seen, and my ears have heard.

Abu Maryam al-Azdi reported: When I went to see Mu‘āwiyah, he said: "How good your visit is to us, O father of so-and-so." (This is an idiom used by the Arabs on such occasions). I said: "I will tell you a Hadīth that I heard. I heard the Messenger of Allah (may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him) say: 'If Allah, the Exalted, puts someone in the position of authority over the affairs of Muslims and he secludes himself, not meeting their needs, deficiencies, and poverty, Allah will keep Himself away from him, not fulfilling his needs, deficiencies, and poverty.'" He said: “He appointed a man to meet people’s needs.”

Al-Miqdām (may Allah be pleased with him) reported that the Messenger of Allah (may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him) said: ''If anyone leaves behind a debt or a helpless family, I shall be responsible. But if anyone leaves wealth, it goes to his heirs. I am the heir of him who has none, paying blood money on his behalf and inheriting from him. And a maternal uncle is the heir of him who has none, paying blood money on his behalf and inheriting from him.''

Ibn ‘Umar (may Allah be pleased with him) reported that the Messenger of Allah (may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him) said: "Indeed, Allah has put the truth upon the tongue and in the heart of ‘Umar." Ibn ‘Umar added: "Never did something occur among people, regarding which they judged and ‘Umar judged, except that the Qur’an was revealed about it in line with what ‘Umar had said."

Abu Hurayrah (may Allah be pleased with him) reported: Many delegations came to Mu‘āwiyah in the month of Ramadan and we would prepare food for one another. Abu Hurayrah was one of those who frequently invited us to his dwellings. I said: "Should I not prepare food and invite them to my home?" So I ordered food to be prepared and when I met Abu Hurayrah in the evening I said: "I’m inviting you to my house this evening." He said: "You preempted me!" I said: ‘Yes.’ and invited them. (After they had eaten) Abu Hurayrah said: "Shall I tell you a tradition from your traditions, O you assembly of the Ansār?" He gave an account of the Conquest of Makkah and said that the Messenger of Allah (may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him) had proceeded until he reached Makkah. He dispatched Az-Zubayr on his right flank, Khālid on his left, and Abu ‘Ubaydah with a force that had no armor. They advanced to the interior of the valley. The Messenger of Allah (may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him) was in the middle of a large contingent of fighters. He saw me and said: “Abu Hurayrah.” I said: “I am here at your service, Messenger of Allah.” He said: “Let no one come to me except the Ansār; (only) call the Ansār to me." Abu Hurayrah continued: "So they gathered around him. The Quraysh also gathered their ruffians and their (lowly) followers, and said: 'We will send these (men) forward. If they get anything, we will be with them (to share it) and if misfortune befalls them, we will pay (as compensation) whatever we are asked for.' The Messenger of Allah (may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him) said (to the Ansār): 'You see the ruffians and the (lowly) followers of the Quraysh.' And he indicated by (striking) one of his hands over the other that they should be killed and said: 'Meet me at As-Safa.' Then we went on (and) if any one of us wanted a certain person to be killed, he was killed, and none of them could offer any resistance." Abu Hurayrah continued: "Then came Abu Sufyān and said: 'O Messenger of Allah, the blood of the Quraysh has become very cheap. There will be no Quraysh from this day on.' Then the Prophet (may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him) said: 'Whoever enters the house of Abu Sufyān, he will be safe.' Some of the Ansār whispered among themselves: 'Love for his city and sympathy for his clan have overpowered him.' Abu Hurayrah said: "A revelation came to the Prophet (may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him) and when he was going to receive the revelation, we understood it, and when he was receiving it, none of us would dare raise his eyes to the Messenger of Allah (may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him) until the revelation ended. When the revelation came to an end, the Messenger of Allah (may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him) said: 'O you assembly of the Ansār!' They said: 'Here we are at your service, Messenger of Allah.' He said: 'You were saying that ‘Love for his city and people has overpowered this man.'' They said: 'So it was.' He said: 'No, never. I am a slave of Allah and His Messenger. I migrated to Allah and to you. I will live with you and I will die with you.' So, they (the Ansār) turned towards him in tears, saying: 'By Allah, we said what we said because of our attachment to Allah and the deep desire to have His Messenger among us.' The Messenger of Allah (may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him) said: 'Surely, Allah and His Messenger testify to your assertions and accept your apology.'" The narrator continued: "People came to the house of Abu Sufyān and locked their doors. The Messenger of Allah (may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him) proceeded until he approached the (Black) Stone. He kissed it and circumambulated the Ka‘bah. He reached an idol by the side of the Ka‘bah that was worshiped by the people. The Messenger of Allah (may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him) had a bow in his hand that he was holding from a corner. When he came near the idol, he began to pierce its eyes with the bow, saying: {The Truth has come, and falsehood has perished} [Sūrat al-Isrā': 81]. When he had finished the circumambulation, he came to the Mount Safa, climbed it to a height from where he could see the Ka‘bah, raised his hands (in supplication), and began to praise Allah and prayed what he wished to pray.''