Some one suggested to Umar that he should nominate his son Abdullah as his successor. That evoked a violent reaction from Umar. He said:
"May God curse you for tempting me to nepotism by nominating my son, when I am going to meet my Creator. The caliphate is an affair affecting the entire Muslim community, and I would not like to make it an hereditary affair in my family. I swear by God that I never coveted the caliphate for myself. Therefore what I never coveted for myself, I would not like to pass on to my family. If the caliphate is something good, then by holding the office for the last ten years, I have had the blessing for my family. If the caliphate is bad, then why should I pass on this bad thing to my family? God is my witness that during my caliphate I showed no favor to my family members. On the other hand, I was more hard with them than with the other Muslims. I have always tried to fulfil the obligation of the office under the shadow of the fear lest I may at any stage falter in the performance of my duties. I do not know whether I have succeeded in my purpose, but I will be happy if my achievements and failures just balance so that I am neither rewarded nor punished for holding the office of the caliphate. Remember ye men that if I nominate a successor, a better man than me, namely Abu Bakr also nominated a successor. And again if I do not nominate a successor, remember that the best of men, namely the Holy Prophet of Islam did not nominate a successor. Whatever the case Allah Himself would protect the interests of Islam and the Muslim community".
