Transcript Ashuraa and Men of Valor

Ali
After Siffin: Nahrawan
A.S. Hashim, MD
From: www.wikipedia.com
Sources of Reference
ibn Jarir al-Tabari,
Ibn Qutaybah,
Nasr, Seyyed Hossein. "Ali".
Madelung,
Encyclopaedia of the Holy Prophet and Companions
Tabatabaei,
Lapidus,
The History of the Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire by Edward
Gibbon
Al-Shaykh Al-Mufid
Dakake
Nahj Al-Balagha, Sermon 3
Holt, P.M.; Lambton, Ann K.S.; Lewis, Bernard. Cambridge History of
Islam.
Watt, William Montgomery. Muhammad at Mecca. Oxford University Press.
In this Slide Show
The Kharijis ‫الخوارج‬
Ali Sends an Envoy
Ali’s Argument
Kharijis hopeless Demand
Danger of the Kharijis
Ali’s Speech Warning the Kharijis
The Kharijis Attack Ali’s Army
Following Nahrawan
Ibn Muljim before Siffin
Ibn Muljim the Assassin
Ali, While Wounded
Burial
The Kharijis ‫الخوارج‬
Battle of Nahrawan ‫ النهروان‬was a battle:
between Ali ibn Abi Talib (the fourth Sunni Caliph and the 1st Shi'a
Imam)
and the Kharijis ‫الخوارج‬.
After the unsatisfactory conclusion to the Battle of Siffin,
Ali returned with his army back to Kufa on the 13th of
Safar 37H (30 July 657AD)
During the march,
a group of 12,000 men kept themselves at a distance from the
main part of the army.
They came to be known as Kharijis (‫ )الخوارج‬or the dissenters
‫المارقين‬
The Vacillating Kharijis
The Kharijis were furious at their role in Siffin and
its consequences, i.e. the way Siffin was
concluded.
The Kharijis mean dissenters ‫ المارقين‬.
They were the same people who had put down their
weapons on Siffin battlefield forcing Ali to halt the battle.
Now they put the blame on Ali, accusing him of betraying
Islam by agreeing to the truce and
should have referred judgment to the Quran alone or
continued to fight.
They demanded that he repents for this.
On Approaching Kufa
When Ali’s army neared Kufa,
the Kharijis camped at a village named Harura
‫حروره‬.
They started saying that all Muslims were
equal and nobody could rule over the other.
In this way, they denounced both Ali ibn Abi
Talib and Mu'awiya
They said their belief was in "‫"ال حكم إال هلل‬,
meaning, "No Rulership but by Allah alone."
Ali Sends an Envoy
Ali sent Sa'sa'a ibn Sauhan
and Ziyad ibn Nazr al-Harithi in the company of ibn
Abbas towards them.
and afterwards Ali himself went to the place of their
stay
and tried to explain to them that they were misunderstanding
the words of "La Hukma Illa Lillah“‫ال حكم إال هلل‬,
and that in accepting the arbitration (peace talks) at Siffin,
Ali had not gone against the teachings of the Quran.
Ali’s Argument
Ali pointed out that they themselves were at fault,
because they should never have laid down their arms
to begin with at Siffin
and force him to call back Malik al-Ashtar,
who was at the point of securing victory over Mu’awiya.
Ali reminded them that they themselves had pressed
for the arbitration and
had forced him to appoint Abu Musa al-Ash'ari as their
representative.
He told them that he found their present behavior very
strange, considering their involvement in Siffin.
To this they admitted that they had sinned but now they
had repented for it and he should do the same.
The Kharijis Await the Arbitration
Ali ibn Abi Talib assured them of his firm Faith,
and they dispersed after the discussion.
The Kharijis, however refused to accept the
words of Ali and
They awaited the decision of the Arbitration by Amr alAas and Abu Musa al-Ash'ari.
When finally they learned of the decision, they were
enraged and decided to revolt,
They set up their headquarters at Nahrawan ‫النهروان‬,
Nahrawan is twelve miles from Baghdad.
Some people came from Basra to join these rebels.
Nahrawan ‫نهروان‬
Ali Raises a Force to Face Mu’awiya
On the other side, after hearing the verdict of the
Arbitration:
Ali ibn Abi Talib raised a force for fighting the army of
Mu’awiya
Ali wrote to the Kharijis about the verdict passed by the
two arbitrators
And that verdict was not acceptable to him,
that he had therefore decided to fight it
And they should support him for crushing the enemy.
Kharijis hopeless Demand
But the Kharijis gave him this reply,
“By having agreed to the Arbitration,
in our view you had turned against the Faith.
So if you admit that and offer repentance
we will think this matter over, and decide what we should do."
Ali ibn Abi Talib understood from their reply that their disobedience
and misguidance had become very serious.
To entertain any kind of hope from them now would be futile.
Consequently, ignoring them, he encamped in the valley of alNukhaylah
With a view to marching towards Syria to fight against Mu’awiya.
Ali Changes Direction
Ali and his force had already started towards Mu’awiya
when he received the news that the Kharijis had butchered
the governor of Nahrawan (Abdullah ibn Khabbab)
and have killed his slave maid with the child in her womb,
and have killed three women of Banu Tayyi and Umm Sinan
as-Saydawiyyah.
Ali sent to them al-Harith ibn Murrah for investigation
but he too was killed by them.
When their rebellion reached this stage it was necessary to deal
with them.
Danger of the Kharijis
There was a danger that the Kharijis might attack
Kufa as Ali and his men were marching towards
Mu’awiya,
So Ali decided to stop his march and:
He changed his course eastward,
crossed the river Tigris and approached Nahrawan.
On reaching there Ali sent a messenger to the
Kharijis
Demanding that those people who had murdered
innocent Muslims around their camp should be
surrendered.
The Kharijis replied that they were all equally
responsible for killing these sinners.
Al-Ansaari Convinces Some
There was some reluctance in the army of Ali to fight the
Kharijis,
because they had been their companions against Mu'awiya at
Siffin.
Ali himself did not desire the bloodshed of these misguided
fanatics,
so he sent Abu Ayyub al-Ansaari with a message of peace.
who spoke to them aloud,
"Whoever comes under this banner or separates from that party and
goes to Kufa or al-Mada'in
would get amnesty and he would not be questioned”.
The Leftover Kharijis
As a result of this
Farwah ibn Nawfal said that he did not know why they were at war
with Ali to begin with.
Saying this he separated from the Kharijis along with five hundred
men.
Similarly, group after group began to separate and
Some of them even joined Ali’s forces.
In the end, only a core of 1,800 die-hards were left (some claim
3000)
They were under the command of Abdullah ibn Wahab.
These Kharijis swore that they would fight Ali at any cost.
Ali’s Speech Warning the Kharijis
Nahjul Balaaghah - Sermon 36: Warning the people of Nahrawan of
their fate:
"I am warning you that you will be killed on the bend of this canal
and on the level of this low area while you will have no clear
excuse before Allah nor any open authority with you.
You have come out of your houses and then divine decree
entangled you.
I had advised you against this arbitration but you rejected my
advice like adversaries and opponents till I turned my ideas in
the direction of your wishes.
You are a group whose heads are devoid of reason and
intelligence. Allah's woe be to you! I have not put you in any
adversity nor wished you any harm."
The Kharijis Attack Ali Army
The Kharijis attacked Ali army with desperation.
However, they did not stand a chance against Ali’s superior army
and they were all killed except nine men.
These nine managed to flee to Basra and elsewhere, where they
spread the fire of their hatred, thus recruting more followers.
From Ali’s army there were only eight casualties, people
whom Ali's followers regard as martyrs.
The battle took place on the 9th Safar, 38 A.H.
Two years later, in 40H, it was the Kharijis who sent out
three assassins to kill Ali, Mu’awiya and Amr ibn al-Aas.
Looking for Someone
When the battle was over Ali was looking for someone in
a feverish manner, but he couldn't find him.
People asked for whom he was searching and he
answered;
Prophet Muhammad (pbuh) told me about this 30 years
ago, saying:
that among these people there will be a man
whose forearm is without bone,
will have a hairy round lump on it,
and if you pulled at it, it would stretch down to the fingers
and if left it will fill again.
They Find him
They kept looking and looking for this man
and finally they saw his body
and his lump was indeed quite large,
and it could be pulled down then reduced in
size with pressure,
as we see in cases of huge hemangioma!
Truly it is amazing how accurate it is what
Jubra'eel told Prophet Muhammad (pbuh).
The Prophet’s Prediction
The Prophet had predicted that Ali would fight the Kharijis with the
words:
"In truth there will be, among you, one who shall fight over the
Interpretation of the Quran just as I fought over its Revelation."
Abu Bakr and Omar asked:
"Am I he?"
The Prophet said: "No, it is the one who is mending the shoes.“
He had given his shoes to Ali to mend.
The Prophet also predicted Ali’s martyrdom with the words:
"This shall be dyed red from this"
and he pointed to Ali’s beard and head respectively.
Following Nahrawan
Having disposed of the Kharijis at Nahrawan, Ali
left to resume his march to Syria.
However, the chiefs of his followers urged him to stop
at Kufa
to let the men rest before the long and arduous journey and
to enable the army to repair its weapons and armor.
Ali agreed to this request and camped at al-Nukhaylah ‫نخيله‬
outside Kufa.
The soldiers were allowed to leave the camp for a day.
The Dispersion of Ali’s Fighters
On the next day,
hardly any of the men returned,
and at length, Ali entered Kufa and
gave a stern sermon to the people.
However, nobody came forward and his call was not
heeded
Finally, Ali turned away from them in disappointment.
The Syrian expedition had to be abandoned, never to
be resumed.
The Prophet About Ali’s end
30 years earlier, the
Muhammad said to Ali:
The most evil of
evildoers is the one
who will wet this
(beard) with the blood
from this (forehead)
‫إنَّ أشقى األشـقـيين َمن‬
‫يُخضِّبُ هذه بهذه‬
‫وأشار إلى لحيته ثم رأسه‬
Ibn Muljim before Siffin
Ibn Kathir writes in Usudu'l-Ghaiba, Vol 4, Pg 25 (and others
also have reported) that
Ibn Muljim came to Ali, and he recited some verses in praise
of Amir al-Mu'minin in the presence of the companions.
He said:
"You are the true guide, free from all faults and doubts. You
are generous and kind and are the son of those lion-hearted
and gallant ancestors, who were so distinguished in bravery
from the very beginning.
O successor of the Prophet! Allah has given you this rank and
bestowed upon you that virtue and greatness present in the
Holy Quran."
Ali replied: "I advise you to love me open-heartedly, even
though I know that inside you are just the opposite."
Ibn Muljim, After Nahrawan
Ibn Muljim, one of the Kharijis,
Along with 2 other Kharijis met in Mecca after Haj to set the plan to
kill:
Ali
Mu’awiya
Ibn Aas
These Kharijis were involved in Nahrawan.
Two relatives of the would–be wife of Ibn Muljim were killed in
Nahrawan by Ali’s fighters.
They planned to avenge
Mu’awiya and Ibn Aas escaped being killed
But Ali was the only one killed
Ibn Muljim the Assassin
It was the month of Ramadhan, the month of fasting.
It was the time of the morning prayer; the Kufa mosque was full of
Muslims.
One man called Ibn Muljim, pretended to be sleeping, with his face
downward.
He had hidden a poisonous sword under him.
Ali was in Sujood,
When as he raised his head, a terrible blow fell upon him
giving him a deep wound from Ibn Muljim’s sword.
There was a great commotion in the Kufa mosque.
Ibn Muljim started to run but was arrested and brought before Ali.
Ali was on the prayer rug drenched in blood and reclining upon his sons.
Ali’s Assassination
Upon being so wounded Ali said:
‫فزت ورب الكعبه‬
I have won by the Lord of the Ka’ba
A lot of commotion ensued
Taken home, Ali gave final advice to his
son Al-Hasan, and other children
Two days later Ali died on Leilatul Qadr 21st
of Ramadhan
Ali, While Wounded:
Though severely wounded:
Ali ordered his sons not to attack the Kharijis,
even though a single member of these Kharijis tried to
kill him.
Ali said to his son, (Al-Hasan) that if he lives on he will
forgive ibn Muljim and free him,
however, in the event of his death, ibn Muljim should
get one equal hit and not more,
regardless if this man dies from that hit or not, just as
Ali himself received one hit from him (ibn Muljim).
Thus, Al-Hasan fulfilled Qisas ‫ قصاص‬and gave equal
hurt to ibn Muljim as he gave it to Ali.
Ali’s Assassination II
Ali’s last words before he died quoting the Holy
Quran were:
ُ‫َف َمن َيعْ َم ْل ِم ْث َقا َل َذرَّ ٍة َخي ًْرا َي َره‬
ُ‫َو َمن َيعْ َم ْل ِم ْث َقا َل َذرَّ ٍة َش ًرا َي َره‬
He with the slightest act of goodness will so be
rewarded
And he with the slightest act of evil deeds will so
be rewarded
Site of Wounding Ali : Kufa
Ali wounded
while in
Sujood, on
Leilatul Qadr
Ali Wounded: Mosque of Kufa
Ali wounded in this mosque
Burial
According to Al-Sheikh Al-Mufid, Ali did not want his
grave to be desecrated by his enemies
and consequently asked his friends and family to bury him
secretly.
This secret gravesite was revealed later during the Abbasi
Khilaafah by Imam Ja'far al-Saadiq, his descendant and the sixth
Shi'a Imam.
Most Shi'as accept that Ali is buried at the Tomb of Imam Ali in the
Imam Ali Mosque at what is now the city of Najaf,
which grew around the mosque and shrine called Masjid Ali.
The Final Burial Place of Ali.
Non-Muslim Point of View of Ali
Thomas Carlyle
Dr. Henry Stubbe
Washington Irving
Edward Gibbon
Philip Khuri Hitti
Khalil Gibran
Ali: Thomas Carlyle (1795-1881)
Scottish historian, critic, and sociological writer:
“As for this young Ali, one cannot but like him.
A noble-minded creature, as he shows himself, now
and always afterwards;
full of affection, of fiery daring.
Something chivalrous in him; brave as a lion;
yet with a grace, a truth and affection worthy of
Christian knighthood.”
[On Heroes, Hero-Worship, And the Heroic In History, 1841, Lecture 2: The
Hero as Prophet. Mahomet: Islam. May 8, 1840)]
Ali: Dr. Henry Stubbe (1632-1676)
About Ali:
“He had a contempt of the world, its glory and pomp,
he feared God much, gave many alms,
was just in all his actions, humble and affable;
of an exceeding quick wit and of an ingenuity that was not
common,
he was exceedingly learned, not in those sciences that terminate
in speculations but those which extend to practice.”
[An Account of the Rise and Progress of Mohammedanism, 1705, p. 83]
Ali: Washington Irving (1783-1859)
"He was of the noblest branch of the noble race of Koreish.
He possessed the three qualities most prized by Arabs: courage,
eloquence, and munificence.
His intrepid spirit had gained him from the Prophet the appellation of
The Lion of God,
Specimens of his eloquence remain in some verses and sayings
preserved among the Arabs;
And his munificence was manifested in sharing among others, every
Friday, what remained in the treasury.
Of his magnanimity, we have given repeated instances; his noble
scorn of everything false and mean, and the absence in his conduct
of everything like selfish intrigue."
[Lives of the Successors of Mahomet, London, 1850, p. 165]
Ali: Edward Gibbon (1737-1794)
The British historian Edward Gibbon stated:
"The zeal and virtue of Ali were never outstripped by any recent
proselyte.
He united the qualifications of a poet, a soldier, and a saint;
his wisdom still breathes in a collection of moral and religious sayings;
and every antagonist, in the combats of the tongue or of the sword, was
subdued by his eloquence and valor.
From the first hour of his mission to the last rites of his funeral, the
apostle was never forsaken by a generous friend, whom he delighted to
name:
1. his brother ‫أخي‬,
2. his vicegerent ‫ وخليفتي فيكم‬,
3. and the faithful Aaron of a second Moses
ِّ‫ ووصي‬.".
Ali: Philip Khuri Hitti (1886-1978)
Professor of Semitic Languages at Princeton
University:
“Valiant in battle, wise in counsel,
Eloquent in speech, true to his friends, magnanimous to
his foes,
He became both the paragon of Muslim nobility and
chivalry (futuwah ‫) فتوه‬
And the Solomon of Arabic tradition,
around whose name poems, proverbs, sermons and
anecdotes innumerable have clustered.”
[History of the Arabs, London, 1964, p. 183]
Ali: Khalil Gibran ‫ خليل جبران‬View
The poet Khalil Gibran said of him:
"In my view, Ali was the first Arab to have contact
with and converse with the universal soul.
He died a martyr of his greatness,
He died while prayer was between his two lips.
The Arabs did not realize his value until
appeared among their Persian neighbors
some who knew the difference between gems
and gravels."
In Sermon 125,
Ali: About the Kharijis
Certainly the best man before Allah is he
who loves most to act according to the Right
(even though it causes him hardship), rather
than according to the Wrong, (even though it
is to his advantage).
So, where are you being misled and from
where have you been brought to this state?
Be prepared to march to people who have
deviated from the Right and do not see it,
have been entangled in Wrong-doing and are
not corrected.
They are aliens to the Book and had turned
away from the right path.
ْ‫للا َمن‬
ِ ‫اس ِع ْن َد‬
َ ‫إِنَّ أَ ْف‬
ِ ‫ض َل ال َّن‬
‫ان ْال َع َم ُل ِب ْال َح ِّق أَ َحبَّ إِلَ ْي ِه ـ‬
َ ‫َك‬
‫اط ِل‬
ِ ‫ص ُه َو َك َر َث ُه ـ ِم َن ْال َب‬
َ ‫َوإِنْ َن َق‬
،ُ‫َوإِنْ َجرَّ إِلَ ْي ِه َفا ِِ َد ًة َو َزا َده‬
‫َفأَي َْن ُي َتاهُ ِب ُك ْم؟! َو ِمنْ أَ ْي َن‬
!‫أ ُ ِتي ُت ْم؟‬
‫ير إِلَى َق ْوم‬
ِ ‫اسْ َت ِع ُّدوا لِ ْل َم ِس‬
َ‫ارى َع ِن ْال َح ِّق ال‬
َ ‫َح َي‬
‫ين ِب ْال َج ْو ِر‬
ِ ‫ُيب‬
َ ‫ َومُو َز ِع‬،ُ‫ْصرُو َنه‬
،‫ون ِب ِه‬
َ ُ‫الَ َيعْ ِدل‬
‫ ُن ُكب َع ِن‬،‫ب‬
ِ ‫ُج َفاة َع ِن ْال ِك َتا‬
َّ
.‫يق‬
ِ ‫الط ِر‬
In Conclusion
Ali: and the Kharijis:
The Kharijis ‫الخوارج‬
Ali Sends an Envoy
Kharijis hopeless Demand
Danger of the Kharijis
Ali’s Speech Warning the Kharijis
The Kharijis Attack Ali Army
Following Nahrawan
Ibn Muljim before Siffin
Ibn Muljim the Assassin
Ali, While Wounded
Finally we quote the Quran:
By the Token of Time
Verily Man is in loss,
Except those who
believe and do good
works, and exhort one
another to Truth and
exhort one another to
patience.
‫من الرَّ ِح ِيم‬
ِ ‫ِبسْ ِم‬
ِ ْ‫للا الرَّ ح‬
‫َو ْال َعصْ ِر‬
‫ان َل ِفي ُخسْ ٍر‬
َ ‫إِنَّ ِاالن َس‬
‫ين آ َم ُنوا َو َع ِملُوا‬
َ ‫إِال الَّ ِذ‬
‫ص ْوا ِب ْال َح ِّق‬
ِ ‫الصَّالِ َحا‬
َ ‫ت َو َت َوا‬
‫صب ِْر‬
َّ ‫ص ْوا ِبال‬
َ ‫َو َت َوا‬
THANK YOU
Be in God’s Care
Dr. A.S. Hashim