Page:William Muir, Thomas Hunter Weir - The Caliphate; Its Rise, Decline, and Fall (1915).djvu/221

 192 ʿOmar was the first who assumed the title Amīr al-Muʾminīn, or "Commander of the Faithful." "Khalīfa (Caliph, Successor) of the Khalīfa (Abu Bekr) of the Prophet of the Lord was too long and cumbersome a name," he said, "while the other was easier, and fitter for common use."

According to his desire, ʿOmar was buried side by side with the Prophet and Abu Bekr, in the chamber of ʿĀisha. Ṣoheib, as presiding over the public Prayers, performed the funeral service, and the five Electors, with the Caliph's son lowered the body into its last resting-place.

The Muslim annalist may well sigh as, bidding farewell to the strong and single-minded Caliph, he enters on the weak, selfish, and stormy reign of his successor.