History of Khulafah Rashideen by Jalal ad-Din as-Suyuti - translated by Abdassamad Clarke

He was the first to accept Islam, the first to collect the Qur’an together, the first to name it a mushaf (written copy) -The proof of that has already been mentioned - and he was the first to be named “khalifah Ahmad narrated that Abu Bakr ibn Abi Mulaykah said: It was said to Abu Bakr, ‘Khalifah of Allah!’ He said, ‘I am the Khalifah of the Prophet, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, and I am content with that.’ He was the first to rule the khilafah while his father was alive.

He was the first khalifah whose subjects allocated him a sum.

Al-Bukhari narrated that cA’ishah, may Allah be pleased with her, said: When Abu Bakr was appointed khalifah he said, ‘My people know that my profession is not incapable of providing for my family, and I have become occupied with the command and the affairs of the Muslims so the family of Abu Bakr will eat from this property while he works professionally for the Muslims.’ Ibn Sacd narrated that cAta’ ibn as-Sa’ib said: When Abu Bakr was pledged allegiance he arose in the morning and upon his forearm there were some garments and he was going to the market place. cUmar said, ‘Where are you going?’ He said, ‘To the market place.’ He said, ‘What are you going to do, when you have been put in charge of the affairs of the Muslims?’ He said, ‘What am I going to do to feed my family?’ He said, ‘Let us go. Abu cUbaydah will allocate a sum for you.’ So they went to Abu cUbaydah and he said, ‘I allocate you the supplies of a man among the Muhajirun, not the best of them nor the least of them, and the clothing of winter and summer. If you wear out something, return and take something in its place.’ The two of them allocated him half a sheep everyday and what would clothe his head and his person.

Ibn Sacd narrated that Maymun said: When Abu Bakr was appointed khalifah they allocated him two thousand, so he said, ‘Increase me, for I have dependants and you have kept me busy so that I cannot engage in trade,’ so they increased him five hundred.

At-Tabarani narrated in his Musnad that al-Hasan ibn cAli ibn Abi Talib said: When Abu Bakr was near to death, he said, ‘cA’ishah, look to the milch camel whose milk we used to drink, the bowl in which we used to prepare food, and the outer garments we used to wear, for we used to benefit from that when we were in charge of the command of the Muslims. When I die, return them to cUmar.’ When Abu Bakr died she sent them to cUmar. cUmar said, ‘May Allah show mercy to you, Abu Bakr! You have exhausted the one who comes after you.’ Ibn Abi’d-Dunya narrated that Abu Bakr ibn Hafs said: When lie was close to death, Abu Bakr said to cA’ishah, may Allah be pleased with her, ‘My little daughter, we were put in charge of the affairs of the Muslims, and we didn’t take for ourselves a dinar nor a dirham, but we ate of the coarse flour of their food in our bellies, and we dressed with their rough clothing upon our backs. Nothing remains with us of the booty of the Muslims, neither a little nor a lot, but for this Abyssinian slave, this camel for drawing water, and this threadbare worn-out outer garment. When I die, send them to ‘Umar.’ He was the first one to make a bait al-mal (a building in which zakat and other revenues were stored while they were being distributed).

Ibn Sacd narrated that Sahl ibn Abi Khaythamah and others said that Abu Bakr had a bait al-mal at as-Sunh which no-one guarded.

Someone said to him, ‘Will you not put someone in charge of it to guard it?’ He said, ‘There is a lock on it,’ and he used to give away what was in it until it was empty. When it was moved to Madinah, he changed it and put it in his house. Property came to him and he used to divide it up among the poorest of the people and he would divide it equally among them. He would buy camels, horses and weapons and put them there to be used in the way of Allah. He would buy outer garments which came from the outlying desert tracts and distribute them among the widows of Madinah. When Abu Bakr died and was buried, cUmar summoned the trustees, amongst them cAbd ar-Rahman ibn cAwf and cUthman ibn cAffan, and with them entered the bait al-mal of Abu Bakr. They opened the bait al-mal and found nothing in it, neither a dinar nor a dirham.

I say that this tradition refutes the words of al-cAskari in al-Awa’il (Firsts), ‘The first to take a bait al-mal was cUmar. The Prophet, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, had no bait al-mal nor had Abu Bakr, may Allah be pleased with him.’ I had refuted this in my book which I composed on ‘firsts’, then later I saw that alcAskari alluded to this in another part of his book saying, ‘The first to take charge of a bait al-mal was Abu cUbaydah ibn al-Jarrah on behalf of Abu Bakr.’ Al-Hakim said: The first affectionate nickname in Islam was the nickname of Abu Bakr, may Allah be pleased with him, ‘cAteeq.’

The two Shaykhs narrated that Jabir, may Allah be pleased with him, said: The Prophet, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, said, ‘If the wealth of Bahrain were to come, I would give you so much and so much.’ So when the wealth of Bahrain came after the death of the Prophet, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, Abu Bakr said, ‘Whoever was owed anything by the Prophet, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, let him come to us.’ I came and told him. He said, ‘Take.’ I took and found it to be five hundred.

Then he gave me one thousand and five hundred.