Umayr ibn Sa'd al-Ansari

The Ascetic Governor

Umayr ibn Sa’d was an Ansari of the Aws whom Umar appointed governor of Hims. For a year no revenue or report came, and when Umar summoned him, Umayr arrived in Madinah on foot, pale and travel-worn, carrying only a sack of provisions, a bowl, a water-skin, and his staff — saying these were all he needed of the world. He had collected the public funds and spent every coin in its rightful place, bringing nothing back, and he begged not to be sent again, calling office a burden. 1 Hayatus Sahaba · Vol 2 · pp. 169–170 — Kandhlawi — Umayr returns from Hims on foot with nothing, having spent all the funds rightly; he asks not to govern again.

Integrity Tested

Suspecting hidden wealth, Umar sent a man with a hundred dinars to test him; he found Umayr in real poverty — a single barley loaf, his family hungry — and Umayr promptly gave the hundred dinars away to the orphans of martyrs and the poor. 2 Hayatus Sahaba · Vol 2 · pp. 170–171 — Kandhlawi — Umar tests Umayr with 100 dinars; finding him poor, Umayr gives the money away to the needy. When Umayr died, Umar grieved, saying he wished he had many men like Umayr ibn Sa’d to help him administer the affairs of the Muslims. 3 Hayatus Sahaba · Vol 2 · pp. 172 — Kandhlawi — Umar's grief at Umayr's death: 'I wish I had men like Umayr ibn Sa'd.'