The Shi'ah Are (the Real) Ahl Al-sunnah
- Ayesha Daughter of Abu Bakr "mother of the Faithful" 11. Abdullah Ibn Umar =============================================================================
He is one of the famous sahaba who played a major role in shaping the events that took place during the reign of the third caliph as well as that of Banu Umayyah. Suffices him the fact that his father was Umar ibn al-Khattab to be glorified and loved by "Ahl al-Sunnah wal Jama`a" who consider him as one of the greatest faqihs and of all those who learned the "Prophet's ahadith." Even Imam Malik relies on him in deducting most of his ahkam, filling his book Al-Muwatta' with his traditions. And if we turn the pages of the books of "Ahl al-Sunnah wal Jama`a," we will find them referring to him quite often, full of his praise.
Yet if we read the same that with researchers' discerning eyes, it will become clear to us that he was far from being just or truthful; rather, he was distant from the Prophet's Sunnah, from fiqh, and from the Shari`a.
Our first observation will be his extreme enmity and hatred towards the master of the Prophet's Progeny, Commander of the Faithful Ali ibn Abu Talib: he went as far as instigating others against him and regarded as a commoner.
We have already indicated that he circulated many false ahadith the gist of which is that the sahaba during the lifetime of the Prophet used to compare each one of them with the other in the presence of the Prophet heard, saying that the best of people was Abu Bakr then Umar then Uthman, then people after the latter were all alike, and that the Prophet used to hear all of thais comparison without denying it. This is a blatant lie derided by any rational person. We researched the life of Abdullah ibn Umar during the Prophet's lifetime, and we found out that he was too young to reach adolescence. He had no influence whatsoever among those who had a say, nor was his view taken into consideration. The Messenger of Allah died when Abdullah ibn Umar was, according to the best estimates, nineteen years old; so, how could he have said that they (the sahaba) used to compare each one of them with the other? This could only be children gossiping among themselves, the children of Abu Bakr, Uthman, in addition to his own brothers. Nevertheless, it cannot be right to say that the Prophet was listening to such comparison without voicing his objection to it. This proves that this "tradition" is false and is indicative of ill intentions.
Add to the above the fact that the Prophet never permitted Abdullah ibn Umar to accompany him during his battles with the exception of the Battle of the Moat (khandaq) and the other campaigns that followed it, when Abdullah was fifteen years old.[^218]
There is no doubt that he was present at the Battle of Khaybar which took place in 7 A.H./628 A.D. and saw with his own eyes how both Abu Bakr and his father fled from the battle field. He undoubtedly heard the Messenger of Allah saying, "I shall give the standard tomorrow to a man who loves Allah and His Messenger and who is loved by Allah and His Messenger, a brave one who attacks and never flees, a man the conviction of whose heart Allah has ascertained." When it was morning, he gave it to the one who terminated the pleasure of those who indulged therein, who dispersed the groups, who dispelled the clouds of calamities, who was adorned with graces, the ever-victorious Lion of Allah Ali ibn Abu Talib.[^219]
The tradition of the standard referred to above clearly highlights Ali's merits and superiority over all other sahaba. It demonstrates his status with Allah and His Messenger and his having won the love of Allah and His Messenger. Because of his hatred towards Ali, Abdullah ibn Umar regarded Ali as one of the commoners! We have already indicated that "Ahl al-Sunnah wal Jama`a" acted upon this tradition which their master Abdullah ibn Umar inspired to them, so they did not rank Ali ibn Abu Talib among the righteous caliphs. No, they did not do that, nor did they even recognize his caliphate except during the time of Ahmad ibn Hanbal as we proved above. They were exposed when traditions and traditionists became quite numerous, and when fingers were pointed at them accusing them of being Nasibis and of hating the Ahl al-Bayt of the Prophet, and when all Muslims came to know that hating Ali was one of the most obvious signs of hypocrisy. It was then that they felt compelled to recognize Ali's caliphate. It was only then that they added his name to the list of the "righteous caliphs." It was only then that they pretended, being pretentious and perfidious, to love Ahl al-Bayt.
We wish there had been someone to ask Ibn Umar the following question: "Why did all, or most of, Muslims after the demise of the Prophet dispute about who deserved most to be the caliph and narrowed their dispute to only Ali and Abu Bakr, and why neither your father [Umar ibn al-Khattab] nor Uthman ibn Affan had any popularity at that time?"
Was there anyone to ask the son of Umar ibn al-Khattab, "If the Prophet agreed with your view that nobody was the peer of Abu Bakr then Umar then Uthman, then why did he two days before his death choose a young man who grew no beard nor a moustache to be their leader, ordering them to march under his order and command? Was he then hallucinating, as your father described him of doing?"
We wish someone had asked Abdullah ibn Umar this question: "Why did the Muhajirun and the Ansars, having witnessed Abu Bakr swearing his oath of loyalty to Fatima al-Zahra, say to her: `By Allah! Had your husband and cousin come to us before Abu Bakr, we would not have equated him with any man at all,' which is an admission from the most prominent of the sahaba that they did not equate Ali with anyone else, had they not already sworn their oath of allegiance to him, an oath which they later called a mistake?" What is the value of the view of Abdullah ibn Umar, the conceited teenager who did not know how to divorce his wife, compared to that of such prominent sahaba?
Finally, was there anyone to ask Abdullah ibn Umar, "Why did not the sahaba choose Ali ibn Abu Talib to be their caliph after Umar's murder and prefer him over Uthman, had it not been for his own refusal of the condition put forth by Abel-Rahman ibn Awf that he had to rule them according to the "Sunnah" of both shaykhs?"[^220]
But Abdullah ibn Umar was influenced by his father. He lived during the caliphate of Abu Bakr, Umar, and Uthman, and he noticed how Ali ibn Abu Talib was kept at bay, having no place among the ruling group nor any government post, with the people turning away from him after the death of his cousin and wife, the Leader of all Women, having had no material gains to attract people thereby.
Undoubtedly, Abdullah ibn Umar was the closest person to his father. He used to listen to his views, and he knew his friends and foes; hence, he grew up nurtured in hatred, grudge and animosity towards Ali in particular and Ahl al-Bayt in general. Once he saw Ali receiving the oath of allegiance from the Muhajirun and Ansar following Uthman's murder, and he could not tolerate it. He, then, revealed his hidden animosity and refused to swear the oath of allegiance to the Imam of the righteous and the wali of the faithful. He could no longer tolerate living in Medina, so he left it for Mecca pretending to perform the `umra.
Then we see Abdullah ibn Umar doing all he could do to discourage people and dissuade them from supporting the truth or fighting the oppressive group the fighting of which was ordered by Allah Himself till it reverted to His command. He, therefore, was among the earliest to betray the Imam of his time whom he was required to obey.
Once Imam Ali was killed, and Mu`awiyah attained victory over Imam al-Hasan ibn Ali, thus usurping the caliphate from him, Mu`awiyah delivered a speech to people in which he said, "I did not fight you so that you may pray or fast or perform the pilgrimage; rather, I fought you in order to take charge of you, and Allah has given me just that."
We then see Abdullah ibn Umar racing to swear the oath of allegiance to Mu`awiyah under the pretext that people were united in accepting his leadership after their disunity! I think it was he who named that year "Am al-jama`ah," year of the group, for he and his group of Banu Umayyah became "Ahl al-Sunnah wal Jama`a" and will remain so till the time of the Hour.
Was there anyone to ask Abdullah ibn Umar and those who held his views from "Ahl al-Sunnah wal Jama`a": "Had there ever been any consensus in history such as the one attained for the Commander of the Faithful Ali ibn Abu Talib ?" Abu Bakr's caliphate was "a mistake whose evil Allah shunned,"[^221] and it was boycotted by a large number of the sahaba. Umar's caliphate was by recommendation; rather, it was a promise granted by Abu Bakr, and the sahaba had neither view, nor say, nor anything else to do with it. And Uthman's caliphate was achieved through a committee of three persons selected by Umar; rather, it was due to Abd al-Rahman ibn Awf forcing his own view over the rest.
As for Ali's caliphate, it was done through the voluntary and peaceful oath of allegiance of the Muhajirun and the Ansar; he wrote all Islamic domains asking those in charge of them to grant him their oath of allegiance, which they all did with the exception of Mu`awiyah in Syria.[^222]
What Ibn Umar and "Ahl al-Sunnah wal Jama`a" were supposed to do was to kill Mu`awiyah ibn Abu Sufyan for declaring his mutiny and demanding the caliphate for himself according to the narrations which they themselves have recorded in their Sahih books. One of these traditions states that the Messenger of Allah said, "If two caliphs receive oaths of allegiance, one after the other, you should kill the second."[^223] He has also said, as recorded in Muslim's Sahih and in other books of hadith, "Whoever swears the oath of allegiance to an Imam, shakes his hand, and grants him his heart, let him grant him his all, but if another person comes to dispute with him, you should kill the latter."[^224]
But Abdullah ibn Umar did exactly the opposite: Instead of acting upon the Prophet's tradition, submit to his orders, fight and kill Mu`awiyah for having contested the caliph of the Muslims and lit the fire of dissension, he, we find out, refused to swear the oath of allegiance despite the Muslims' consensus in its regard. Instead, he swore it to Mu`awiyah who declared his mutiny, who disputed with the Imam and killed a number of innocent people, causing dissension the aftermath of which lingers till our time.
For this reason, I think that Abdullah ibn Umar was Mu`awiyah's accomplice in all the crimes and sins the latter had committed because he erected his authority and assisted him in forcing people to accept it, and in his confiscation of the caliphate which Allah and His Messenger decreed to be out of the reach of the promiscuous and the sons of the promiscuous according to the sacred hadith.
Abdullah ibn Umar was not satisfied with doing all of that, so he rushed to swear the oath of allegiance to Yazid ibn Mu`awiyah, the Yazid of wines, corruption, and apostasy, the promiscuous son of the promiscuous father, the cursed one and the son of the accursed.
Since Umar ibn al-Khattab, according to Ibn Sa`d who discusses him in his Tabaqat, used to say, "Caliphate is not suitable for a promiscuous person, nor for the son of a promiscuous person, nor for those who accept Islam after being vanquished,"[^225] then how did Abdullah contradict his own father with regard to this principle which he himself had recorded? If Abdullah ibn Umar thus contradicted the Book of Allah and the Sunnah of His Messenger with regard to the issue of caliphate, we will not then be surprised to find him doing the opposite of what his father had stated.
We would like to ask Abdullah ibn Umar this question: "What consensus was there with regard to swearing the oath of allegiance to Yazid ibn Mu`awiyah from whom the righteous in the nation and the remnants of the Muhajirun and Ansar, including the master of the youths of Paradise Imam al-Husayn ibn Ali, Abdullah ibn al-Zubayr, Abdullah ibn Abbas, and all those who kept them company and shared their views, dissociated themselves?"
What is well known is the fact that he himself used to be among those who in the beginning denounced Yazid receiving the oath of allegiance, but Mu`awiyah knew how to win him over: He sent him one hundred thousand dirhams which he accepted as a gift. When it was mentioned to him that the sender was soliciting his oath of allegiance to his son Yazid, he said, "Is this what he wanted? My creed, then, must be quite cheap..."[^226]
Yes, Abdullah ibn Umar sold his creed very cheaply as he himself admitted. He ran away from having to swear it to the Imam of the righteous but rushed to swear it to the leader of oppressors Mu`awiyah, then to the leader of the fornicators Yazid, thus bearing on his shoulders the burdens of the crimes committed by Mu`awiyah's oppressive government. He, no doubt, carried the burdens of Yazid's crimes on his head for violating the sanctity of the Messenger of Allah and for killing the fragrant flower, the master of the youths of Paradise and of the Progeny of the Prophet, together with the righteous among the sons of the nation whom he killed in Karbala in the Battle of the Harra.
Abdullah ibn Umar was not satisfied with this much of the oath of allegiance to Yazid, so he pressured people to follow in his footsteps, terrorizing anyone who contemplated doing otherwise.
Al-Bukhari in his Sahih and other compilers of hadith state that Abdullah ibn Umar gathered his offspring, servants, and slaves when the people of Medina rejected Yazid ibn Mu`awiyah and said to them, "We swore the oath of allegiance to this man acting upon swearing it to Allah and His Messenger[^227], and I have heard the Messenger of Allah saying, `One who betrays will have a standard erected for him on the Day of Judgment, and it will be said to him: This is the betrayal of so-and-so,' and the worst type of betrayal, after associating someone with Allah, is one who swears the oath of allegiance to Allah and His Messenger then betrays it,[^228] and none of you should unseat Yazid, nor should anyone among you see such unseating as honorable, else something tragic should happen between me and him."[^229]
Yazid's oppression received a boost when Abdullah ibn Umar supported him and urged people to swear the oath of fealty to him, so he raised an army under the command of Uqbah, one of the leading adulterers of his time, ordering him to assault Medina, the city of the Prophet, permitting him to do whatever he wished in it. Uqbah, therefore, killed ten thousand sahabis and took their wives as captives then confiscated their property. He also killed seven hundred huffaz of the Holy Qur'an according to al-Baladhuri, permitting his army to rape many free Muslim women to the extent that the latter gave birth to an estimated one thousand illegitimate babies. Then he forced them to swear that they were all slaves of his master Yazid...
Was not Abdullah ibn Umar his accomplice in all of that, since he supported and empowered him? I leave the researchers to derive their own conclusion.
Abdullah ibn Umar was not satisfied with all of that; rather, he went beyond it to swear the oath of allegiance to Marwan ibn al-Hakam, the bedeviled accursed one, the promiscuous adulterer, who fought Ali openly and killed Talhah and did so many horrible things such as burning the House of Allah and shelling it with catapults, demolishing one of its corners and killing in that incident Abdullah ibn al-Zubayr, in addition to other shameful actions.
Then Ibn Umar reaches in swearing his oath of allegiance new heights when he swore it to al-Hajjaj ibn Yusuf al-Thaqafi, the greatest apostate who used to make fun of the Holy Qur'an and label it as Arab martial poetry, preferring his master Abdul-Malik ibn Marwan over the Messenger of Allah. This al-Hajjaj is the same one who was known by the elite as well as the commoners as having belittled all Islamic tenets.
In his Tarikh, the hafiz Ibn Asakir indicates that two men disputed with one another about al-Hajjaj. One of them said that he was a kafir, an apostate, whereas the other said that he was a daall mu'min, a believer who went astray. When they persisted, they asked al-Sha`bi about his view. Al-Sha`bi said, "He is a mu'min [believer] in as far as oppression and tyranny are concerned, a kafir [disbeliever] in Allah, the Great."[^230]
This criminal al-Hajjaj is the one who violated everything which Allah decreed not to be violated. Historians record that he was excessive in killing, torturing and mutilating the corpses of the righteous of the nation, especially Shi`a followers of Muhammad's, for these suffered at his hands more than at the hands of anyone else.
In his Tarikh, Ibn Qutaybah says that in one single day, al-Hajjaj killed more than seventy thousand men to the extent that the blood flow reached the mosque's door as well as the highways.[^231] And in his Sahih, al-Tirmidhi, having counted those executed by al-Hajjaj, says, "After his [al-Hajjaj's] death, eighty thousand prisoners were found in his jail, including thirty thousand women."[^232] Al-Hajjaj used to compare himself to the Lord of Might and Honor: whenever he passed by the jail and heard the prisoners crying of pain and pleading for mercy, he used to say to them [what the Almighty says in the Holy Qur'an]: "Remain in abjection therein, and do not speak to me" (Holy Qur'an, 23:108).
Such is al-Hajjaj who was prophesied by the Messenger of Allah before his demise; he said, "There is in [the tribe of] Thaqeef a liar and an annihilator." What is strange is that the narrator of this tradition is none other Abdullah ibn Umar himself![^233]
Yes, Abdullah ibn Umar was reluctant to swear the oath of allegiance to the best of mankind after the Prophet and did not support him, nor did he even pray behind him; therefore, Allah, Glory to Him, humiliated him. He went to al-Hajjaj once and said, "I have heard the Messenger of Allah saying, `Whoever dies owing an oath of allegiance will die the death of jahiliyya.'" Al-Hajjaj the accursed, thereupon, despised him and pointed his foot at him saying, "My hand is busy right now; so, swear your oath of allegiance to this." He used to pray behind al-Hajjaj, the apostate, and behind his wali Najdah ibn Amir, head of the Kharijites.[^234]
There is no doubt that Abdullah ibn Umar preferred to pray behind these men only because they were famous for cursing and denouncing Ali after the prayers. Ibn Umar used to gratify his hidden grudge and animosity whenever he heard such cursing, feeling very contented at heart and very satisfied therewith. For this reason, we find the sect of "Ahl al-Sunnah wal Jama`a" enjoining prayers behind the righteous as well as the promiscuous based on what their master and the faqih of their sect Abdullah ibn Umar doing likewise and praying behind the apostate al-Hajjaj and the Kharijite Najdah ibn Amir.
As for the Prophet's statements such as these: "The one who should be the Imam of people is their best in reciting the Book of Allah. If they all recite it equally well, he should be the most knowledgeable of the Sunnah. If they all know the Sunnah equally well, he should be their foremost in having participated in the Hijra. If they had all participated in the Hijra at the same time, he should be the foremost in having accepted Islam...," they surely are discarded...
None of these four merits, namely reciting the Holy Qur'an, safeguarding the Sunnah, early participation in the Hijra, and early acceptance of Islam, applies to those to whom Ibn Umar swore his oath of allegiance and behind whom he prayed: neither in Mu`awiyah, nor in Yazid, nor in Marwan, nor in al-Hajjaj, nor in Najdah, the Kharijite...
This, of course, is only one of the Sunnah injunctions which Abdullah ibn Umar violated. He discarded them altogether and acted exactly to their contrary. He abandoned the master of the Prophet's purified Progeny, namely Ali, in whom all these and many more merits were combined. Rather, he turned his back to him and went to join the corrupt ones, the Kharijites, the apostates, the enemies of Allah and His Messenger, praying behind them!
How many are the violations of the faqih of "Ahl al-Sunnah wal Jama`a" Abdullah ibn Umar, violations of both the Book of Allah and the Sunnah of His Messenger?! If we wish, we can gather them in a separate book, but the following examples, which are quoted from their own books and Sahihs, should suffice to back our argument:
Violations of Abdullah ibn Umar of the Book and the Sunnah
Allah, the Most Exalted One, has said in His Glorious Book, "Fight the one [party] that acts wrongfully till it returns to obeying Allah's Command" (Holy Qur'an, 49:9). The Messenger of Allah has said, "O Ali! You shall fight after me the renegades, those who equal others with Allah, and the heretics."
Abdullah ibn Umar violated this text of the Holy Qur'an as well as the above quoted tradition, and he violated the consensus (ijma`) of the nation, of the Muhajirs and the Ansar who fought beside the Commander of the Faithful, following his own view and saying, "I shall not fight in the dissension, and I shall pray behind whoever wins."[^235] Ibn Hajar has indicated that Abdullah ibn Umar was of the view that one should avoid fighting during a dissension even if one of the two parties is right and the other is wrong.[^236]
Truly strange, by Allah, is the case of Abdullah ibn Umar who sees one party being right and the other being wrong yet refraining from supporting the right one or from curbing the wrong party till it returns to obedience to Allah! He performed his prayers behind whoever won, albeit if the winner was a wrong doer! This is exactly what happened to Ibn Umar, for Mu`awiyah won and subdued the nation, forcing his authority on it. Ibn Umar then came and swore the oath of allegiance to Mu`awiyah and prayed behind him despite all the crimes and sins which he had committed and which are beyond one's imagination and with which Ibn Umar was fully familiar.
The wrong doers from the leaders of oppression, due to their numerical superiority, won victory over the leaders of the truth who were the Imams of Ahl al-Bayt. So the latter were excluded from authority, whereas the promiscuous, the adulterers, the straying criminals, came to rule the nation with force and oppression.
Ibn Umar abandoned the truth all of it, so history does not record any friend for him nor any affinity towards Ahl al-Bayt five of whose Imams were his contemporaries. He did not pray behind a single one of them. He did not quote one of their ahadith, and he did not recognize a single virtue or merit of any of them.
We have come to know, while discussing the Twelve Imams in this book, what his view with regard to the ones whom he labelled as the twelve caliphs was. He regarded as authentic the caliphate of Abu Bakr, Umar, Uthman, Yazid, al-Saffah, Salam, al-Mansour, Jabir, al-Mahdi, al-Amin, and their team head [Mu`awiyah], saying, "All these twelve are descendants of Banu Ka`b ibn Luayy, and they are all unmatched in righteousness."[^237]
Do you see among these men any of the Imams of guidance from the Prophet's Progeny who were described by the Messenger of Allah as the ark of salvation and the peers of the Qur'an?!
For this reason, you cannot trace any presence for them among "Ahl al-Sunnah wal Jama`a," nor is there even one Imam from Ahl al-Bayt on the list of imams and caliphs they emulate. Such is the case of Abdullah ibn Umar in his violation of the Book of Allah and the Sunnah of His Messenger. As for his own ignorance of the same, you may say whatever you wish.
Among the indications of such ignorance is his being unaware of the fact that the Prophet permitted women to wear sandals when wearing the ihram garb; Ibn Umar issued fatawa prohibiting it.[^238]
Another is the leasing of his farms during the lifetime of the Messenger of Allah as well as during the reign of Abu Bakr, Umar, Uthman, and Mu`awiyah to the extent that one of the sahaba talked to him near the end of Mu`awiyah's reign and told him that the Messenger of Allah had prohibited it.[^239]
Yes; such is the faqih of "Ahl al-Sunnah wal Jama`a;" he did not know that it was haram to lease farms, and there is no doubt that he used to issue his verdicts permitting it during that entire period which lasted from the time of the Prophet to the end of Mu`awiyah's reign, a period of about fifty years...
Yet another example is Ayesha denouncing his verdict that a deceased person is tormented because of the weeping of the living over him, and also with regard to morning athan, and his saying that the month is twenty-nine days. She opposed him in several other issues as well.
Other examples are recorded by both shaykhs, namely al-Bukhari and Muslim, in the Sahih of each one of them: Abdullah ibn Umar was told that Abu Hurayra used to say, "I heard the Messenger of Allah saying, `Whoever walks behind a coffin will receive one karat of rewards.'" Ibn Umar responded by [sarcastically] saying, "Abu Hurayra has surely been generous with such karats!" Ayesha, however, testified to the authenticity of Abu Hurayra's tradition saying, "I heard the Messenger of Allah saying so." It was then that Ibn Umar said, "We surely have missed quite a few karats!"[^240]
Suffices us in this regard the testimony of Umar ibn al-Khattab with regard to his son Abdullah: On his death bed, Umar was asked by a flatterer, "Why don't you recommend Abdullah ibn Umar to be the next caliph?" Umar said, "Shall I recommend a man who does not know even how to divorce his wife [according to the Shari`a]?!"
Such is Abdullah son of Umar ibn al-Khattab, and nobody knew him better than his father.
As for the false traditions whereby he served his master Mu`awiyah, these are quite numerous indeed. We would like to mention a few of them by way of sampling:
He said, "The Messenger of Allah said, `A man from the people of Paradise will soon come to you,' whereupon Mu`awiyah came. Then he said, `Tomorrow, a man from the people of Paradise will come to you;' Mu`awiyah came. Then he repeated the same about the next day, whereupon Mu`awiyah came."
Another is his saying, "When the Ayat al-Kursi was revealed, the Messenger of Allah told Mu`awiyah to write it down. `What shall I get if I do so?' asked Mu`awiyah. He said, `Whenever anyone recites it, you will receive the reward of its recitation.'"
Another is his saying, "Mu`awiyah will surely be resurrected on the Resurrection Day outfitted with a robe of the light of iman."
I do not know why "Ahl al-Sunnah wal Jama`a" did not add Mu`wiyah's name to the list of the ten men who received the glad tidings of going to Paradise since their master Ibn Umar emphasized thrice, in three consecutive days, that Mu`awiyah was to go to Paradise. Since people on the Resurrection Day will be raised bare-footed, naked, Mu`awiyah will be their very best because he will be outfitted with a robe made of the light of iman! So read such statements and wonder!
Such is Abdullah ibn Umar; such is the extent of his knowledge; such is his fiqh and violation of the Book of Allah and the Sunnah of the Prophet; such is his enmity towards the Commander of the Faithful and the pure Imams from the Progeny of the Prophet, and such is his loyalty and flattery of the enemies of Allah and His Messenger, the enemies of humanity. 12. Abdullah ibn al-Zubayr
His father, al-Zubayr ibn al-Awwam, was killed during the Battle of the Camel, a battle labelled in the Prophet's Sunnah as the "War of the Perfidious." His mother was Asmaa daughter of Abu Bakr ibn Abu Quhafa. His aunt was mother of the faithful Ayesha daughter of Abu Bakr and wife of the Prophet. He was one of the main opponents of Imam Ali and of those who hated him most.
He may have prided himself in the caliphate of his grandfather Abu Bakr and in his aunt Ayesha, so he inherited from both of them such hatred which lasted all his life. Imam Ali, peace be upon him, used to say to al-Zubayr, "We used to consider you as one of the offspring of Abd al-Muttalib till your evil son created dissension between us and you."
It is well known in history that he was during the Battle of the Camel one of the most prominent elements and immediate commanders, so much so that Ayesha introduced him to lead people in the prayers after having dismissed both Talhah and al-Zubayr for disputing with one another, each desiring to lead it. It is also said that he is the one who brought his aunt Ayesha fifty men to falsely swear that the place where she had arrived was not called Hawab. This is why she consented to continue her march towards the Battle of the Camel.
Abdullah is the one who reproached his father for deciding to retire from the battle after having been reminded by Imam Ali, peace be upon him, of one particular hadith of the Prophet wherein he informed al-Zubayr that he, being oppressive, would fight Ali. He kept reproaching his father to the extent that the latter said to him, "What is wrong with you?! May Allah shame you for being such an ominous son!" It is said that he continued to reproach and excite his father till he succeeded in getting him to attack Ali's army; he was killed and his father's calling him an ominous son proved to be quite right.
This is the tale which we have chosen for you due to its accuracy, and due to its being descriptive of al-Zubayr's spiteful psychology as well as that of his ominous son Abdullah. Al-Zubayr could not have so easily pulled himself away from that battle, leaving behind Talhah and his men in addition to slaves and servants whom he had brought all the way from Basra. He could not have left the mother of the faithful Ayesha, sister of his wife, in such peril. If we accept that he abandoned them, they would not have let him get away with it that easily especially his son Abdullah the forcefulness of whose determination we have already come to know.
Historians indicate that Abdullah ibn al-Zubayr used to curse and condemn Ali. Once he said about him: "The mean villain is approaching you." He once delivered a speech to the people of Basra urging them to fight Ali in which he said, "O people! Ali killed the rightful caliph Uthman oppressively, then he raised armies to take control over you and to take your city; so, be men who demand revenge for your slain caliph, protect your women, and defend your daughters, kinfolks, and tribes. Surely Ali does not consider in this issue anyone's view other than that of his own and, by Allah, if he achieves victory over you, he will annihilate your creed and world."[^241]
His hatred and animosity reached the limit where he abandoned invoking Allah's blessings unto His Prophet; so, no blame should be put on him, nor should his lies to people surprise us, nor his thus charging Imam Ali, peace be upon him, whom he accused of everything abominable such as the accusations in his speech cited above when he addressed the people of Basra and said to them, "... by Allah, if he achieves victory over you, he will annihilate your creed and world." It is nothing but blatant falsehood and a great defamation coming from Abdullah ibn al-Zubayr to whose heart the truth could not find a way.
What testifies to the above is the fact that when Ali ibn Abu Talib won victory over the people of Basra and arrested most of them, and among those arrested was Abdullah ibn al-Zubayr himself, he forgave all of them and set them free and was generous to Ayesha, protecting her honor and sending her back to her home to Medina. He also prohibited his men from taking any booty or taking women or children captive or killing the wounded, so much so that such prohibition cost him the mutiny of some of his forces and doubts were cast at his judgment.
Ali, peace be upon him, was the embodiment of the Sunnah of the Prophet and the most knowledgeable of the Book of Allah, the Book which none then knew it better than him. Hypocrites and infiltrators in his army instigated rebellion against him; they said, "How could he permit us to fight them yet prohibit us from taking their women captive?" Such talk duped a large number of his fighting men, but he, peace of Allah be upon him, argued with them through the Book of Allah saying, "Place your bets on who among you will take your mother Ayesha as his captive!" It was then that they realized that he was right; so, they said to him, "We seek Allah's forgiveness [against doing so]; you are right while we are wrong."
What Abdullah ibn al-Zubayr had said about the Imam was a lie and obvious defamation: his hatred towards Ali, peace be upon him, blinded both his eyes and mind, bringing him out of conviction. Ibn al-Zubayr never repented after that incident, nor did he learn any lesson, nor did he derive any wisdom from that war to the benefit of his soul... No, indeed; rather, he rewarded a good deed with a bad one, and his grudge and hatred against the descendants of Hashim in general and the master of the Purified Progeny in particular increased, and he did all he could to put out their light and to put an end to them.
Historians narrate saying that he, following the assassination of Imam Ali, started seeking to be the caliph of the faithful, and some people rallied behind him, so he grew stronger. He managed to have Muhammad ibn al-Hanafiyya, son of Imam Ali (peace be upon him), jailed together with al-Hasan ibn Ali and seventeen other men belonging to Banu Hashim. Then he wanted to burn them alive, so he gathered in front of the jail a great deal of fire wood then set it on fire. Had it not been for the arrival of al-Mukhtar's army at the right moment and its putting the fire out, the son of al-Zubayr would have achieved his evil objective.[^242]
Marwan ibn al-Hakam then sent him an army led by al-Hajjaj who surrounded his house, killed him, then hanged his corpse at the mosque. Thus ended the life of Abdullah ibn al-Zubayr just as the life of his father had ended before. Each one of them loved this life and did his best to attain power and authority and to receive people's oath of allegiance, fighting others for its sake, killing many in the process till he himself was killed falling short of achieving his objective.
Abdullah ibn al-Zubayr had views with regard to fiqh which reflected a negative reaction to the fiqh of Ahl al-Bayt whom he hated. One of his most famous views was his saying that the mut`a marriage was Islamically unlawful. He once said to Abdullah ibn Abbas [the greatest traditionist], "O you blind man! If you do it, I shall most certainly stone you." Ibn Abbas responded to him by saying, "My eye-sight is blind, it is true, but you are blind in your own insight; so, if you wish to know how halal the mut`a is, go and ask your mother about it!"[^243]
We do not wish to go into details in tackling this subject which has been discussed a great deal, but we simply wanted to expose Ibn al-Zubayr's opposition to Ahl al-Bayt in every aspect, including fiqh matters where his foot was not firmly rooted.
All these twelve men have gone, in their good and in their evil, leaving the afflicted nation sailing in a sea of blood, drowning in the ocean of misguidance, with most of its members not distinguishing between truth and falsehood. This, in fact, is what Talhah, al-Zubayr, and even Sa`d ibn Abu Waqqas had admitted.
The only person who was on clear guidance from his Lord, who never doubted the truth even for the twinkling of an eye, was Ali ibn Abu Talib, Allah's peace be upon him, with whom the truth revolved wherever he revolved, accompanying him wherever he went. So congratulations to whoever follows and emulates him. In fact, the Messenger of Allah himself said, "You, O Ali, and your followers [Shi`as] are surely the victorious on the Day of Judgment."[^244]
Is He then Who guides to what is right more worthy of being followed, or he who does not guide unless he himself is guided? What is the matter with you? How do you judge? (Holy Qur'an, 10:35)
Surely Allah, the Great, has said the truth.
[^143] This statement is quoted in Ibn Kathir's Tafsir and in that of al-Khazin, in addition to Al-Tafsir al-Kabir of Jalal al-Din al-Suyuti, who all explain the verse in Surat al-Nisaa (Women) saying "They ask you for a decision; say: Allah decides for you with regard to the kalala, etc."
[^144] What proves this is the statement of the Messenger : "Let me write you a book beyond which you will never stray." Ibn Abbas has said, "Had he written it, no couple in this nation would have disputed with one another." Since it was Umar who prohibited the Messenger of Allah from writing it, accusing him of hallucinating so that he would not insist on its writing, we can conclude that he is the one responsible for the misguidance of the misguided and the one who deprived the Islamic nation of guidance.
[^145] Muslim, Sahih, Vol. 4, p. 59, commenting by saying that Ibn Abbas and Ibn al-Zubayr disputed with one another with regard to both types of mut`a. Jabir ibn Abdullah [al-Ansari] said, "We used to do both when we were in the company of the Messenger of Allah , then Umar prohibited us, so we ceased."
[^146] Ibn Sa`d, Tabaqat, Vol. 3, p. 204. Al-Suyuti, Tarikh, where the caliphate of Umar ibn al-Khattab is discussed. [^147] Ibn Qutaybah, Tarikh al-Khulafa, Vol. 8, p. 31. [^148] Al-Bayhaqi, Al-Sunan al-Kubra, Vol. 3, p. 144. [^149] Ibn Hazm, Al-Muhalla, Vol. 4, p. 270. [^150] This is stated on p. 140, Vol. 3, and also by al-Tabrani in his book Al-Mu`jam al-Kabir, and on p. 310, Vol. 2, of Ahkam al-Qur'an of al-Jassas. [^151] Al-Bukhari, Sahih, Vol. 2, p. 151, in a chapter dealing with mut`a and with combining both `umra and hajj. [^152] This statement is recorded in the tafsir books written by Ibn Kathir, al-Qurtubi, al-Alusi, and many others who all quote it while explaining the sacred verse saying, "It did not befit you to harm [the feelings of] the Messenger of Allah, nor should you marry his wives after him." [^153] This is what Ibn Qutaybah records in his book Al-Imama wal Siyasa while discussing Abu Bakr's death and his appointment of Umar as the next caliph. [^154] Ibn Abul-Hadid, Sharh Nahjul-Balagha, Vol. 1, p. 88, commenting on the Shaqshaqi sermon. [^155] In Al-Fitnat al-Kubra, al-Tabari, Ibn Abul-Hadid, and Taha Husayn all say that Talhah had borrowed fifty thousand dinars from Uthman once. One day, he said to him, "Preparations have been made to pay you your money back; so, send someone to receive it." Uthman then said to him, "I have granted it to you, O father of Muhammad, in order to assist you in your manly support [of my government]." It is also said that Uthman had also given Talhah once as much as two hundred thousand dinars.
[^156] Ibn Sa`d, Tabaqat, Vol. 3, p. 858. [^157] A bad name she coined for Uthman. [^158] These facts are recorded by: al-Tabari in his Tarikh, and by both al-Mada'ini and al-Waqidi while discussing Uthman's assassination. [^159] Taha Husayn, Al-Fitna al-Kubra, Vol. 1, p. 150. [^160] The [Egyptian] Mu`tazilite scholar Ibn Abul-Hadid, Sharh Nahjul-Balagha, Vol. 2, p. 500. [^161] Umar ibn al-Khattab had invented that idea in order to pave the way for opposition to and competition with Ali simply because the sahaba knew fully well that caliphate rightfully belonged to Ali and was usurped by Quraysh. When Fatima al-Zahra argued with them in this regard, they said to her, "Had your husband and cousin was the foremost in approaching us (seeking to be the caliph), we would not have regarded anyone as his peer." But Umar ibn al-Khattab did not feel comfortable with the idea that the caliphate would go back after his death to its rightful owner, so he thus created an opposition party against him. Hence, each one of those men coveted caliphate for himself, and they all aspired to become chiefs, trading their creed for their world; their trade was never profitable.
[^162] Taha Husayn, Al-Fitna al-Kubra, Vol. 1, p. 147. [^163] Al-Bukhari, Sahih, Vol. 4, p. 53, in a chapter dealing with the blessing in the wealth of a living or dead participant in a ghazwa. [^164] The meaning of this title is: one whose complexion is slightly reddish. __ Tr. [^165] Al-Tabari, Tarikh,Vol. 5, p. 204. Ibn al-Atheer, Al-Kamil, Vol. 3, p. 102. [^166] Taha Husayn, Al-Fitna al-Kubra, Vol. 2, p. 37. [^167] This statement is stated by al-Tabari in the discussion of the Battle of the Camel, in al-Mas`udi's Tarikh, in A`tham's Tarikh, and by others. [^168] Ibn Abul-Hadid, Sharh Nahjul-Balagha, Vol. 1, p. 101. [^169] Ibn Abul-Hadid, Sharh Nahjul-Balagha, p. 306, quoting Muhammad Abdoh. [^170] Ibid., p. 626. [^171] Al-Tabari, Tarikh, Vol. 5, p. 205. [^172] Ibn Qutaybah, Tarikh al-Khulafa, Vol. 1, p. 18. [^173] Ibn Qutaybah, Tarikh al-Khulafa, Vol. 1, p. 48. [^174] This is indicated on p. 18 and p. 35 of Imam al-Nasa'i's Khasa'is. [^175] Muslim, Sahih, Vol. 7, p. 119, where the virtues of Ali ibn Abu Talib are discussed. [^176] Al-A`tham, Tarikh, p. 163.
[^177] Ibn Qutaybah, Al-Imama wal Siyasa, Vol. 1, p. 20.
[^178] Egyptian scholar Muhammad Abdoh, Sharh Nahjul Balagha, Vol. 1, p. 88.
[^179] Ibn Kathir, Tarikh, Vol. 8, p. 77.
[^180] This is quoted in al-Mas`udi's book of history known as Muruj al-Dhahab when the author discusses the biography of Sa`d ibn Abu Waqqas.
[^181] This is tallied by al-Tabari, al-Mas`udi, Ibn Sa`d, Taha Husayn, and others.
[^182] Al-Bukhari, Sahih, Vol. 8, p. 123.
[^183] His using the first person singular "I" indicates the forcing of his own personal view over all others, and that he did not consult the masses of the populace as others claim.
[^184] This tale is stated in several references; among them are: p. 166, Vol. 1, of Abul Fida's Tarikh, p. 57, Vol. 5, of al-Baladhuri's book Ansab al-Ashraf, and p. 261, Vol. 2, of Al-Iqd al-Fareed by the Maliki author Ibn Abd Rabbih.
[^185] According to p. 577, Vol. 12, of Ibn Manzur's lexicon Lisan al-Arab Mansham was a woman from Hamadan who used to sell perfume. Whenever the Arabs bought perfume from her, a war among them would intensify; so, she became proverbial in ill luck. __ Tr.
[^186] Ibn Abul-Hadid, Sharh Nahjul-Balagha, Vol. 1, p. 63.
[^187] Al-Bukhari, Sahih, Vol. 8, p. 91, and also in "The Book of Iman" in Muslim's Sahih.
[^188] Al-Bukhari's Sahih, Vol. 2, p. 36.
[^189] This is stated by Ibn Kathir in his Tarikh and by Ibn Abd al-Birr in his Al-Isti`ab where he discusses the biography of Hujr b. `Adi.
[^190] This is what both Ibn Kathir states on p. 136, Vol. 7, of his Tarikh and al-Hakim on p. 13, Vol. 4, of his Al-Mustadrak.
[^191] Ibn Kathir, Tarikh, Vol. 7, p. 137.
[^192] Al-Bukhari, Sahih, Vol. 7, p. 90, in a volume dealing with etiquette in a chapter discussing the Hijra.
[^193] Imam Ahmad ibn Hanbal, Musnad, Vol. 6, p. 77.
[^194] Ahmad ibn Hanbal, Musnad, Vol. 6, p. 113.
[^195] Abbas Mahmud al-Aqqad, Abqariyyat Khalid, p. 24.
[^196] On p. 61, Vol. 2, of his Tarikh, al-Ya`qubi says that Abd al-Rahman said, "By Allah! It is Khalid who killed these people though they are Muslims." Khalid responded by saying, "Rather, I have killed them to avenge your father Awf ibn Abd Awf." Abd al-Rahman then said to him, "No, you did not avenge my father, but you avenged your uncle al-Faqih ibn al-Mugheerah." See, may Allah protect you, how Khalid did not deny that he killed those people although they were Muslims but rather admitted that he killed them seeking revenge for Awf, Abd al-Rahman's father. Does this, according to Allah's creed, permit him to massacre a group of people for the murder of one single man? Is it permissible to kill several Muslims for the killing of one kafir?
[^197] Al-Tabari, Al-Riyad al-Nadira, Vol. 1, p. 100.
[^198] Al-Bukhari, Sahih, Vol. 4, p. 325.
[^199] Zaynab was one of Imam Ali's daughters.
[^200] For more details of this plot, refer to al-Tabarsi's book Al-Ihtijaj.
[^201] Al-Bukhari, Sahih, Vol. 4, p. 175, where the author quotes Abu Hurayra talking about himself in a chapter dealing with the characteristics of Prophethood.
[^202] Al-Bukhari, Sahih, Vol. 1, p. 38, in a chapter on acquiring knowledge, and also on p. 2, Vol. 3, of the same reference.
[^203] Refer to the book titled Abu Hurayra by the Egyptian author Mahmud Abu Rayyah.
[^204] Ibn Abul-Hadid, Sharh Nahjul-Balagha, Vol. 4, p. 28.
[^205] Al-Bukhari, Sahih, Vol. 2, p. 232, in a chapter dealing with a fasting person who wakes up finding himself in the state of janaba. Malik, Muwatta', Vol. 1, p. 272.
[^206] This is stated in al-Dhahabi's book Siyar A`lam al-Nubala.
[^207] Ibn Abul-Hadid, Sharh Nahjul-Balagha, Vol. 4, p. 68.
[^208] Ibn Kathir, Al-Bidaya wal Nihaya, Vol. 8, p. 108..
[^209] Al-Bukhari, Sahih, Vol. 7, p. 31.
[^210] Al-Bukhari, Sahih, Vol. 6, p. 190, in a chapter dealing with spending on the wife and children.
[^211] Ibn Abul-Hadid, Sharh Nahjul-Balagha, Vol. 4, p. 67.
[^212] Ibn Sa`d, Tabaqat, Vol. 2, p. 63.
[^213] Al-Bukhari, Sahih, Vol. 1, p. 38, in a chapter dealing with learning.
[^214] Ibid., Vol. 1, p. 37.
[^215] Al-Bukhari, Sahih, Vol. 1, p. 30.
[^216] Ibid.
[^217] Abu Hurayra was bi-lingual. He spoke Arabic (his mother tongue) and Amharic. __ Tr.
[^218] Al-Bukhari, Sahih, Vol. 3, p. 158, in a chapter dealing with children reaching the age of adolescence. It is also mentioned in a chapter on adolescence in the Book of Government of Muslim's Sahih.
[^219] The tradition of the standard is mentioned by al-Bukhari, Muslim, al-Tirmidhi, al-Nasa'i, Imam Ahmad ibn Hanbal, Abu Dawud, and all other traditionists.
[^220] Al-Tabari, Tarikh, Vol. 5, p. 40. Al-Suyuti,, Tarikh al-Khulafa, p. 104. Ibn Qutaybah, Tarikh. Ahmad, Musnad, Vol. 1, p. 75.
[^221] This statement was made by Umar ibn al-Khattab at the Prophet's Mosque in Medina shortly before his death. __ Tr.
[^222] Ibn Hajar, Fath al-Bari, Vol. 7, p. 586.
[^223] Muslim, Sahih, Vol. 6, p. 23. Al-Hakim, Mustadrak, Vol. 2, p. 156. Al-Bayhaqi, Sunan, Vol. 8, p. 144.
[^224] This is recorded in Muslim's Sahih, in al-Bayhaqi's Sunan, and in Ibn Majah's Sunan.
[^225] Ibn Sa`d, Tabaqat, Vol. 3, p. 248.
[^226] Al-Baladhuri, Ansab al-Ashraf, Vol. 5, p. 31. Ibn Abd al-Birr, Al-Isti`ab, Vol. 2, p. 396. Usd al-Ghabah, Vol. 3, p. 289.
[^227] Did Allah and His Messenger enjoin swearing the oath of allegiance to adulterers and criminals? Or did He enjoin swearing it to the righteous when He said, "Surely Allah is your Wali and His Messenger and those who believe who uphold the prayers and who pay the zakat even as they prostrate"?
[^228] How we wish Ibn Umar had said the same to Talhah and al-Zubayr who reneged from their oath of allegiance to Ali and fought him, and how we wish "Ahl al-Sunnah wal Jama`ah" acted according to this tradition in classifying men! If violating the oath of allegiance is one of the greatest sins which follow apostasy, what is the fate of Talhah and al-Zubayr who did not only violate their oath of allegiance but also violated people's honor, killed innocent people and confiscated their wealth, and betrayed the promise?
[^229] Al-Bukhari, Sahih, Vol. 1, p. 166. Ahmad, Musnad, Vol. 2, p. 96. Al-Bayhaqi, Sunan, Vol. 8, p. 159.
[^230] Ibn Asakir, Tarikh, Vol. 4, p. 81.
[^231] Ibn Qutaybah. Tarikh al-Khulafa, Vol. 2, p. 26.
[^232] Al-Tirmidhi, Sahih, Vol. 9, p. 64.
[^233] Al-Tirmidhi, Sahih, Vol. 9, p. 64. Imam Ahmad ibn Hanbal, Musnad, Vol. 2, p. 91.
[^234] Ibn Sa`d, Al-Tabaqat al-Kubra, Vol. 4, p. 110. Ibn Hazm, Al-Muhalla, Vol. 4, p. 213.
[^235] Ibn Sa`d, Al-Tabaqat al-Kubra, Vol. 4, p. 110.
[^236] Ibn Hajar states this fact on p. 39 of his book Al-Fath al-Bari.
[^237] Al-Suyuti quotes this statement in his book Kanz al-Ummal, and it is quoted in the history books of both Ibn Asakir and al-Dhahabi. To know the other references with the number of their pages and volumes, refer to the chapter in this book dealing with the twelve successors according to the Sunnis.
[^238] Abu Dawud, Sunan, Vol. 1, p. 289. Al-Bayhaqi, Sunan, Vol. 5, p. 25. Imam Ahmad ibn Hanbal, Musnad, Vol. 2, p. 29.
[^239] Al-Bukhari, Sahih. Muslim, Sahih, Vol. 5, p. 21. [^240] This is recorded by al-Bukhari in his Sahih in a chapter dealing with the virtues of walking behind borne coffins in his Kitab al-Janaaiz (Book of Borne Coffins).
[^241] Ibn Abul-Hadid, Sharh Nahjul-Balagha, Vol. 1, p. 358. Al-Mas'udi, Tarikh, Vol. 5, p. 163.
[^242] Al-Mas`udi, Tarikh, Vol. 5, p. 185. Ibn Abul-Hadid, Sharh Nahjul-Balagha, Vol. 4, p. 487.
[^243] In his old age, Ibn Abbas grew blind. As for telling Abdullah ibn al-Zubayr to go and ask his mother, it is due to the fact that his father, Ibn al-Zubayr, had a mut`a marriage with Asmaa, and Abdullah himself was the product of that mut`a marriage. It is said that Abdullah did, indeed, go to his mother whom he asked about it. She said to him, "Did I not prohibit you from coming in contact with Ibn Abbas who best knows the Arabs' defects?"
[^244] Jalal al-Din al-Suyuti quotes this hadith in his exegesis of the Holy Qur'an titled Al-Durr al-Manthur as he explains the meaning of Surat al-Bayyinah.