The Role of Aisha in the History of Islam (volume 3)

Jariyah Ibn Qudamah a Man of the Alawite Front

Do not fight a person who does not fight you, and do not oppress the Jews and Christians who have made a pact with the Muslims.

Imam 'Ali Now we should see what Imam 'Ali did against these unmanly raids and bloody assaults of Busr, the commander of Mu'awiyah's army. As usual he stood up against wrong and injustice and asked the people's aid to remove these agents of tyranny and oppression. The Kufans as usual received his order coldly, as if they had no wish to defend their realm, which was exposed to destruction; as if the dust of death was scattered over their city. The painful 173. al-Aghani 15/45 published by Sasi.

174. al-Isti'ab 1/65-66, and Usd al-ghabah 1/180.

175. Description of Nahj 2/15 research by Muhammad Abu al-Fadl.

outcries of Imam 'Ali echoed in the mosque and city of Kufah, but it could not awaken the motionless and dead spirits of the Kufans. Some time passed until one of the remaining heirs of Islam's warriors, named Jariyah ibn Qudamah, rose and responded positively to the call of the Imam. According to al-Ya'qubi, the Imam issued the following order on dispatching him on this mission: "Never fight a person who does not fight you. Never kill a wounded person. Even if you and your men are forced to go on foot, never seize people's horses forcefully. In inhabited places and springs never take the lead over the owners of water, and consume only their extra supply of water, even then, with their approval. Never abuse or reproach a Muslim, since in such a case it would be necessary for others to admonish you. Never oppress the followers of divine books who have made pacts with the Muslims."

Another part of this order states: "Do not shed anyone's blood except where you are ordered by God, in the same way that your duty is to protect people's blood for the sake of God."176

In the book of al-Gharat we read the following about the defensive battles of Jariyah: Jariyah left Kufah and at first he went to Basra, and from there he went towards Hejaz, and advanced until he reached Yemen. At this time Busr learnt of the move made by Jariyah. So he changed his route and went to al- Yamamah. Jariyah increased his speed and did not stand long at any town or the amp they set up. He was in pursuit of Busr everywhere, while Busr cont- inued to flee in different directions, until he crossed over the border of the Imam's realm. When the people saw him in flight, they attacked him from every side, since they had been much oppressed by him. The number of those killed in Busr's savage raids was estimated at thirty thousand. He even threw number into the fire and burnt them. An Arab poet describes these painful and savage events in his poem, a part of which we will quote for you: "As far as he could lead his army,

He caused as much massacre and indecency as he could." 177

Two opposite policies Do not shed the least blood in the land unjustly. Order of Imam 'Ali Do not spare the lives of even women and children. Order of Mu'awiyah 176. al-Ya'qubi 2/143 printed Beirut.

177. al-Aghani 17/51-72 an account of Yazid ibn al-Mifragh, for his lineage refer to Jamharat Mu'awiyah also sent other sabotage and plundering groups to the realm of Imam 'Ali, the stories of which we have not narrated here. Those who are interested can refer to elaborate texts of history.178

But his armies always avoided facing the soldiers of the Imam and fighting them. They only raided those parts, which were remote, or were weak in garrison and military equipment. Whenever an army was sent from Kufah to face them, they fled, since they were only sabotage groups and bloodthirsty plunderers in the true sense of the word.

Among the destructive groups which came into conflict with the army of the Imam, was an army sent by Mu'awiyah to Mesopotamia. The commander, who had been appointed by the Imam for those parts, asked Kumayl ibn Ziyad, the governor of the city of Hit, for reinforcement. Kumayl hastened to his aid with six hundred warriors. They engaged in fighting, but the ash-Shamis as usual decided to flee leaving many of their dead behind.

Kumayl ordered not to kill the wounded, and not to pursue the fugitives. In this conflict only two of Kumayl's soldiers were killed. In another encounter, one of Imam 'Ali's commanders chased a group of Mu'awiyah's saboteurs and plunderers, but they fled, and he pursued them across the Euphrates and scattered his army in various parts of ash-Sham to engage in plunder, and advanced as far as ar-Riqqah, and left no horses, arms and quadrupeds for the supporters of 'Uthman. Mu'awiyah sent a troop to confront him, but they were unable to catch him since he had returned safely to his headquarters at Nisibis.179 This commander on his return to his own quarter wrote a letter to the Imam and reported his activities.

His report shows that he did not consider any of his acts to be unlawful, since he regarded them as a slight vengeance for the violent and inhuman deeds of Mu'awiyah's plundering troops. He may even have expected some big reward or word of encouragement. But the Imam did not only refuse to praise him, but also reproached him for having acted contrary to his order instructing him to abstain from such acts, while it was permissible to seize the enemy's property only in case of a war and the enemy's use of arms. Such spoils, too, were to be confined to the clothes, weapons, mounts and military equipment of the enemy.180

Thus we see that in those periods two opposite policies were adopted in the 178. These plunderers preceded Busr, Ibn al-Athir 3/153.

179. It is a large and flourishing town on the trade route of Mosul to ash-Sham, within six days' journey to Mosul. (Mu'jam al-buldan 5/288-289).

180. Ibn al-Athir in al-Kamil fi at-tarikh 3/152-153.

world of Islam.

A) Policy of Imam 'Ali

"Fight with warmongers only. Do not usurp people's quadrupeds, even if you be compelled to go on foot. Do not consume the waters of springs and wells in various inhabited places unless their people agree; even then consume what remains above their demand, and never to excess. Do not abuse a Muslim, and do not oppress allies, even if they are not Muslims. You can shed a person's blood only according to what is right and lawful. You cannot seize the property of enemy fighters except what they have brought with them for fighting, such as horses and weapons."181

B) Policy of Mu'awiyah

"Kill anyone who does not hold your opinion or belief. Destroy all the inhabited places and plunder their property. Forcefully seize the property of everyone who is rich and does not obey us. Do not abstain from molesting people. Kill 'Ali's supporters, and even spare no woman or child."182

An Analysis of the above policies

Of the above two policies, obviously the policy which orders the plunder of property must vanquish the policy which enjoins a respect for people's property; for, naturally it seems easier to win a war in which no recognition of laws and regulations are observed because they would resort to every mean act to gain victory. But for those binds by the laws of Islam, who recognize virtue and humanness there exists limitations. This is not, of course, a true victory, but an apparent and transient victory which the first group obtain in attaining their goal because they abstain from no action however wrong it may be, whereas the second group are bound by humane laws which forbid certain actions.

The army of the Imam showed negligence towards the limitations which existed in the Islamic Alawite front, and did not respond positively to the divine and right-seeking call of the Imam, since in the war which was ahead of them they had no expectation but death. If they became victorious, they were not allowed to seize the property of the conquered, and they could not kill freely; or take women and children captive. In that case why should they fight? They had no material profits to expect, whereas they were faced with a constant threat of death. Therefore without a divine motive or a human virtue it would 181. al-Ya'qubi 2/143.

182. Description of Nahj 213-14, and al-Ya'qubi 2/141.

be useless to go to war. But the people of ash-Sham could give a quick and positive answer to the call of Mu'awiyah, since in the forthcoming war all their animal instincts would be satisfied. They could kill freely; they could seize as captive and slave anyone they wished; and they could obtain much profit by plundering people's property. In that case, why should they not obey Mu'awiyah's order, and carry out his wishes? This was true especially as the people of ash-Sham were totally ignorant of an Islamic education, and next to the emperor of Rome they were ruled by a man like Mu'awiyah!

Naturally if on the basis of an impossible supposition the Imam could give up his way of seeking right and truth, and, God forbid, if he could, in the way of Mu'awiyah forget God and Islam, and if he could, in the way of Mu'awiyah, give an absolutely free hand to his army, then all the wicked and cunning plots and fraudulent conduct of Mu'awiyah would have become null and void. But the Imam was not a man to adopt such a way. He said to the people of Kufah: "I swear to God, I am aware of everything that can reform you, but I see my own depravity in the bad action of the wicked."183

Indeed the Imam could buy the people off with money. He could by means of dissimulation and disregard of divine injunctions, win over the powerful elders of the tribes. He was in a position to meet the wishes of the people, and thereby organize a huge army, but he saw in all these acts his own depravity and corruption of his own faith and his hereafter. He never contaminated himself with such deeds since he had tasted virtue and piety with all its depth and strength.

Mu'awiyah waged a war against the Imam in the name of 'Uthman and under the pretext of avenging his blood. But had these remote Muslim settlements throughout Iraq and Hejaz or even Yemen been guilty of taking part in 'Uthman's assassination? Were tens of thousands of those people guilty who had been killed by the ash-Shami plunderers in revenge for the blood of 'Uthman who was one victim anyhow? Were the captive Muslim women, and murdered small children guilty of shedding 'Uthman's blood? No, never! But Mu'awiyah, in accordance with his father's will and for the sake of satisfying his ambitions, was seeking domination as a ruler. He wished to govern the whole wide realm of Islam, and he regarded the employment of every possible means legitimate for the attainment of his objective. He did not shun any wickedness and meanness in this course. In fact the claim for avenging 'Uthman's blood was only a cover to attain that goal. That was a small picture of Mu'awiyah's evil role during Imam 'Ali's rule. 183. al-Ya'qubi 2/142.

Mu'awiyah in the time of Imam al-Hasan al-Mujtaba

I did not fight you for religion's sake but only to govern you. Mu'awiyah When Imam 'Ali was martyred with the sword of Ibn Muljam, one of the wickedest men of all ages and eras, and for the second time in their history the Muslims chose a ruler for themselves through a free allegiance and Imam al- Hasan al-Mujtaba succeeded his father as caliph, he wrote a letter to Mu'awiyah asking for his allegiance; for, on the one hand he was a rightful Imam, and on the other hand he was freely elected as a ruler by the people with their open allegiance. But Mu'awiyah, as we know him, would not submit to the right, and as he had always been accustomed to reject the right and the truth, now he refused to obey the Imam's demand, and proceeded towards Iraq with a large army to fight the Imam.

Imam al-Hasan al-Mujtaba, too, left Kufah with his army to confront that guardian of paganism and infidelity, and as a preliminary step he dispatched his cousin, 'Ubayd Allah ibn al-'Abbas with twelve thousand of the finest warriors of Iraq and Kufah, and let Qays ibn Sa'id ibn 'Ubadah, his loyal, valiant and devout companion, to accompany him. 'Ubayd Allah was ordered not to disregard the views of ibn Sa'id and to benefit from them in all matters. The two armies camped facing each other for several days during which some small clashes took place. But Mu'awiyah preferred to resort to cunning rather than to the sword. Therefore he pulled a trick which caused some disruption in the Imam's army.

One night Mu'awiyah's envoy secretly visited 'Ubayd Allah, delivering this message of Mu'awiyah: "al-Hasan has sent me a letter for peace. If now, before it is too late, you obey us, you will gain high position and command, but if you hesitate and come to us after the question of peace is settled, you cannot obtain any position as others may do, and nothing will be left for you but inferiority and obedience. If you come to us now, you will be paid one million drachmas, half of which you will receive now, and the other half on the entry of our army to Kufah."

'Ubayd Allah was caught in the webs of Mu'awiyah's trickery which was so attractive. He thought: If the reasoning of Mu'awiyah is correct, now that the Imam is seeking peace, I have only two alternatives: "Either I obtain money, position and respect if I join Mu'awiyah or I may lose my life and suffer the dangers of the war if I maintain this position and show resistance. In that case, why should I lose my life or bear the hardship of war?" In this way the materialistic attitude and inner temptation of 'Ubayd Allah had their effect, and during the night he fled to the Umayyad front with his family and a group of his army, and left the main army without a commander.184 Another strategy which Mu'awiyah adopted during those days was to send secret envoys to 'Amr ibn-Harith, al-Ash'ath ibn Qays, al-Hajjar ibn Abjar and Shabath ibn Rub'i. These men were influential chiefs of the tribes but they lacked loyalty and personality and cherished rancor towards the Prophet's household.

The spy of Mu'awiyah delivered the message of Mu'awiyah as follows: "If you kill al-Hasan ibn 'Ali, you will receive one hundred thousand drachmas in cash as well as the command of one of the armies of ash-Sham and governorship of a city, and possess one of my daughters as reward!" This secret plot was reported to Imam al-Hasan, and so thenceforth he wore a chain mail under his garment, to be secure against the sudden attacks of these unmanly creatures. He even went to prayer dressed in the same manner without removing the chain mail. It was a proper idea and precaution since on one occasion one of those self-sold men shot an arrow at the Imam while he was in prayer, but as he had his chain mail on, no injury was caused and he was saved from death.185

al-Ya'qubi writes: Mu'awiyah secretly sent a group amidst the army of the Imam to propagate this idea among the soldiers that Gheyss ibn-Sa'ed, too, who had taken the command of the army after 'Ubayd Allah, had made a peace agreement with Mu'awiyah and had reached terms with him. On the other hand he sent another group amidst Qays's army to spread the rumor that Imam al- Hasan had made peace with Mu'awiyah. His purpose was to disrupt the solidarity and discipline of both armies and cause dispersion between all their units.

Another plot of Mu'awiyah was to send an official group to the Imam consisting of al-Mughayrah ibn Shu'bah, 'Abd Allah ibn 'Amir and 'Abd ar- Rahman ibn al-Hakam. They visited Imam al-Hasan in the city of Madain, which was the headquarters of his military columns. They talked for some time in the Imam's tent, and then emerged pretending to be glad and satisfied and said loudly within the hearing of other people: "God has preserved people's blood through the son of the Prophet and has quelled riot and mischief by establishing peace."

When the soldiers heard this, they became full of anxiety especially as a large number of the Imam's army consisted of the Khawarij (outsiders) who thought of war only, and had joined the Imam only because he was going to fight Mu'awiyah. They felt no special devotion and sanctity towards the Imam, and did not unquestionably regard him as a leader. It seemed that the soldiers allowed no doubt about the words of such men as al-Mughayrah who, in addition to their own wickedness and black record, represented a tyrannical and 184. Abu al-Faraj al-Isfahani in Maqatil at-Talibiyin 50-65, a brief accounts.

185. Bihar al-anwar 10/107 quoted from 'Ilal ash-Sharayi' of as-Saduq.

mischievous man as Mu'awiyah. Thus they were roused to such a great protest that they rushed to the commanders' tent and plundered everything which was there.

The Imam aiming to deliver himself from un-Islamic rioters mounted a horse and proceeded towards the center of the city of Madain and the governor's building. In the darkness of Sabat, a place near Madain, a villainous creature named Jarrah ibn Sanan al-Asadi who was of the Khawarij, lay an ambush in order to make an attempt on the life of the Imam and kill him. As the Imam was passing by, this man jumped and rushed upon the Imam and delivered a severe blow with his dagger causing a mortal injury. But the people, who were around, prevented the man from making any more move, and killed him on the spot. As the Imam was badly wounded, he was carried to the governor's palace in Madain and was treated. He was very weak owing to the loss of much blood, and it took him long time to recuperate. Meanwhile his army, which was left without a commander and without a plan of action and also owing to their lack of steadfastness, soon dispersed in various directions. 186

At-Tabari describes these events as follows: After the people showed allegiance to the Imam, they accompanied him to fight against Mu'awiyah. He departed Kufah towards Madain where he set up his camp. As he was trying to mobilize an army there, a voice among the army declared: "Listen! Qays ibn Sa'id is killed! Run away everybody!"

Much confusion followed and opportunist rioters plundered the Imam's tent, and the even forcefully pulled out the carpet on the Imam sat and pillaged it away.187 According to another narration they even seized the anklet-rings of his slave-girls and plundered them.188 At-Tabari adds: Not many days had passed since they had shown allegiance to the Imam when they made an attempt on his life and wounded him severely.

Abu al-Faraj al-Isfahani, the well-known historian and a man of letters, writes: Mu'awiyah sent an envoy to the Imam to ask for a truce pact, and in his letter he promised to stick certain conditions, namely that he would not molest anyone for their past actions, and also to leave alone the supporters of the Imam, and lastly to speak well of the Imam in future.

When owing to the cunning and unmanly plots of Mu'awiyah on the one hand, and the perfidy of the Kufah people and their lack of devotion in the way of right on the other hand, the truce was concluded, Mu'awiyah entered as a powerful Umayyad statesman to the city of Kufah, the capital of the Alawite caliphate, and delivered a public oration in which he said: "I swear to God that I did not fight you because you pray and observe fast 186. al-Ya'qubi 2/156.

187. at-Tabari 6/69.

188. Bihar al-anwar 10/116 quoted from Ibn Abi al-Hadid.

nor because you go on pilgrimage and pay tithes. These tasks are your own duties. But my only purpose was to rule and govern you! God has granted me my wish, whereas you are not pleased with it."189 Then he added shamelessly: "Remember that I will trample upon what al- Hasan has stipulated with me and I have concluded with him." 190

Motives for peace

Mu'awiyah would have taken me captive and them set me free, and this would have been a mark of disgrace on the brow of the Banu Hashim until the day of resurrection. Imam al-Hasan In the question of Imam al-Hasan's peace, namely in his truce with Mu'awiyah, many significant consequences can be observed which, similar to the uprising of Imam al-Husayn, have been effective in the survival of the foundation of religion and Islamic principles. For the sake of the brevity which we have observed throughout the discussions of this book, we will deal only with three reasons about the necessity of abandoning the combat, while a survey of all the aspects and reasons requires an independent book which is beyond the scope of this topic.

Here are the three reasons:

1-We have already seen how Mu'awiyah was able, by means of relying on the bloody shirt of 'Uthman and his skillful scene-making, to accuse the chaste and sacred person of Imam 'Ali of the assassination of 'Uthman, and mobilize a large number of the people of ash-Sham under the pretext of avenging the blood of the so-called innocent and martyred caliph, and bring them to the field of battle at Siffin. His lies, cunning and plots which formed the basis of all his acts, was enough to deceive the simple-minded people of almost the whole of the Islamic realm, or at least expose them to doubt and hesitation. Even the personality of such a man as 'Ammar ibn Yasir who, was in those days regarded as the embodiment of the rightfulness of the Alawite front, and was many a times praised by the Prophet, had been unable to influence the people fully owing to their credulity and Mu'awiyah's cunning and trickery. Therefore another plan was required to bring Mu'awiyah out of his deceptive shell and reveal his evil and wicked identity.

One of the main results of Imam al-Hasan's truce was the above point. The oration of Mu'awiyah, quoted above, was a clear evidence of his wicked

189. Maqatil at-Talibiyin 70, and Ibn Kathir 8/131, and Ibn Abi al-Hadid 4/16.

190. Maqatil 69, and Ibn Abi al-Hadid 4/16.

thoughts and evil deeds. It showed that all the bloodshed's and plunders carried out in the name of avenging 'Uthman's blood were in fact for the sake of his ambition and desire to rule, and for his material greed, and the story of claiming 'Uthman's blood was nothing but a lie and a plot.

This went on, and as it was gradually proved, those people who ran away from the justice and equality of the Alawite government and took refuge in ash- Sham, now heartily desired justice and every day in some corner or other they rose against the Umayyads under the leadership of a descendant of 'Ali.191 In fact Mu'awiyah and his successors had during their rule committed so many crimes and evil deeds that even slothful and right-repelling people, too, began to feel that the Alawite government with all its justice and equality had been the only government, which could bring them true happiness.192 2-Another important reason for the truce was the weakness of the people of Kufah and their mental and practical dispersion. As we saw, this spirit was so dominant among the men of the said army that a chaos reigned over an army of several thousands at the smallest incident and destroyed all order and discipline. Even the killing of the son of the Prophet and Imam and leader of the people, was received as a very simple matter, and if it had not been checked and had been carried out, all the plots of the guardians of paganism would have been accomplished.

In view of the above point, it is quite clear that Mu'awiyah could, by buying off some of the army commanders, as we saw in the incident of arrow shooting, arrest of the Imam with the complicity of his own soldiers and after gaining complete victory claim that as a great favour he would grant pardon to the Imam and set him free. Thus this disgrace would have always remained for the Imams of the Prophet's household and for the leaders of human and Islamic societies, to be considered as the freed captives of the symbols of infidelity and hypocrisy, and to be indebted for their lives to the Umayyads who were the descendants of their captive grandfathers who were freed by the Prophet on the capture of Mecca.193

3-In the battle of Siffin, as we shall see, a large number of the Prophet's companions accompanied Imam 'Ali whose number was said to be more than two thousand, including seventy warriors of the battle of Badr who were the oldest friends of the Prophet, and 700 or 800 of those who had taken part in the ar-Ridwan allegiance whom God has p raised in the Holy Qur'an, and about 191. Refer to Maqatil at-Talibiyin 51-117 printed an-Najaf, and Maqalat al-Islamiyin 2/150-166 printed Egypt.

192. The repeated uprisings, which occurred under the Alawites, were a proof to this fact.

193. Refer to the reasons given by Imam al-Hasan al-Mujtaba himself the truce with Mu'awiyah, Bihar al-anwar 44/25-29, compare with al-Akhbar at-tiwal 220-221.

194. al-Ya'qubi 2/164, and History of Ibn Khayyat 1/180.

1400 men of the Emigrants and Ansar.194

All these men had the honour of association with the Prophet, and were present in the time of the descent of the Holy Qur'an, and had felt authentic Islam in the person of the Prophet himself. Consequently they were intimately familiar with the Holy Qur'an and the Prophet's tradition. After-wards, too, they had for many years been associated with Imam 'Ali who was an incarnation of Islam and parallel with the Qur'an. All these conditions enabled the said group to be acquainted with various aspects of Islam and propagate it properly whenever it was necessary and possible.

But Mu'awiyah had only a few of the Emigrants and Ansar of polluted and evil nature with him195 and with the aid of these wicked hirelings he was able later on to prepare the scheme of a new perverted Islam in harmony with his whim and fancies, since he had no liking for an authentic Islam and cherished in his heart nothing but envy and rancor towards it!

With the aid of Abu Hurayrah, Anas ibn Malik, al-Mughayrah ibn Shu'bah, 'Amr ibn al-'As, 'Abd Allah ibn 'Umar and especially 'A'ishah he succeeded in creating a major resource for the fabrication of traditions. Each of these wicked creatures was able during Mu'awiyah's rule to contaminate some aspect of the beautiful visage of genuine Islam. If it had not been for the persistent and devoted endeavors of the Imams of the Prophet's household, the numerous traditions which were quoted from Abu Hurayrah and 'Abd Allah ibn 'Umar about various matters, might have transformed Islam altogether, and fulfilled the evil wishes and desires of the guardians of paganism and infidelity.

The first step to confront with Mu'awiyah's scheme (being the transform of genuine Islam) was the truce of Imam al-Hasan al-Mujtaba, since he was thus able to save from certain death a number of true Muslims and friends of the Prophet and of Imam 'Ali, since it was this same devoted and steadfast group who were his true friends, and if he had persisted in his combat, all of them would have been killed either in the war, or at its conclusion they would have been annihilated by Mu'awiyah in the name of avenging 'Uthman's blood. In that case Mu'awiyah could in all tranquility of mind carry on his assault upon the heart of the truth of Islam, without meeting the smallest obstacle and check in this course.

These points show that the only way of preserving true Islam from the danger of alteration was a truce with Mu'awiyah, and this was the way adopted by Imam al-Hasan al-Mujtaba and he went ahead with it. 194. al-Ya'qubi 2/164, and History of Ibn Khayyat 1/180.