Some of the U’lamâ of histories have narrated that for the space of eleven months the antagonistic forces were encamped opposite each other; almost every day an officer sallied forth with a detachment for the purpose of fighting, the sacred months only excepted,* but, fearing too great loss of life, they never engaged in a general battle of the two armies. It is [nevertheless] recorded in the ‘Mostaqassa’ that in those contests nearly seventy thousand men of the Amir of the Faithful, and one hundred and twenty thousand men of the forces of Moa’wiah, [gradually] perished. One of the celebrated men slain of the adherents of truth was A’mmâr B. Yâser, as has been narrated, and the following: Awys Qarny, and Hozymah B. Thâbet Dhu-l-Shahâdatyn, whom his sacred and prophetic lordship—u. w. bl.—had considered to be equivalent to two witnesses, and A’bdullah B. Hozyl Alkhozâa’yi, and Hâshem B. O’tbah B. Abu Woqqâss, who was the cousin of Sa’d, and Abu-l-hashym Shaybâni the herald of the apostle—u. w. bl.—with many others, to enumerate whose names would be an occasion of prolixity.
The author of the ‘Mostaqassa’ states that seventy men who had been present in the fight of Bedr, and had come to aid the Amir of the Faithful, were slain in these hostilities. —The most noted of the adherents of futility who perished were Dhu-l-Kalâgh the Hemyarite and Khosheb B. Dhu-l-Tzalym, with many others, whose names are recorded in books on the campaigns.
It is recorded in various books of the U’lamâ and of campaigns, that at the end of the hostilities at Ssafyn A’li the Commander of the Faithful had mounted the horse of the apostle—u. w. bl.—placed the turban of his lordship on his head, donned his lordship’s cuirass on his breast, grasped his whip called Mamshûq, and spoke to Mâlek Ashtar as follows: ‘O Mâlek, I possess a banner of the lord of apostleship with which he fought at the promulgation of Islâm, and which I have not brought out up to this time, but this day I shall fight with it; and at the time of his death his lordship said to me: “O A’li, thou wilt fight with the Mâqathyn, the Qâsattyn, and the Mâre??n; and what troubles will the people of Syria inflict on thee!” Let it not remain hidden that the word Mâqathyn has been explained as referring to Ttolhah and Zobeyr, who broke their allegiance. It is said that the expression Qâsattyn means the partisans of rebellion and insurrection—namely, Moa’wiah and his companions; whilst Mâreqyn refers to the Khowârej,* some account of whom will be given in these pages, if Allah the Most High willeth.—After A’li the Amir of the Faithful had spoken the above words, he ordered it to be proclaimed that whoever was desirous to sacrifice his life in the cause of God the Most High and Glorious must prepare for a battle. When the victory-allied army had heard this proclamation, multitudes assembled, and the Amir of the Faithful produced the banner of the apostle—u. w. bl.—which was old and in shreds; but when the eyes of the great companions alighted thereon they were unable to restrain themselves from weeping, and everyone who went to see the banner touched with it his face and eyes [in token of respect]. Then A’li the Amir of the Faithful ordered the people to fight, and they attacked the tribe which was drawn up opposite to them.
At that time, when Moa’wiah ascended the pulpit and incited his adherents to fight, nearly twelve thousand men of the Qoraish [tribe] and from the Hejâz [country] were standing around him in lines. A’li the Commander of the Faithful, however, drew the Dhu-l-fiqâr from its scabbard, whereon the cavaliers and valiant men of various regions who had sallied forth with the legitimate Khalifah shouted the Takbyr in concert with him, so that the noise shook the earth and the time; whereon the lines of the Syrians became confused, and the banners of their dominion were turned upside down.
Moa’wiah, mounting a horse, ordered the following words to be shouted: ‘O people of Syria, where are you going? For, in war, sometimes flight and sometimes victory is the result.’ Then the men of Syria returned and attacked the people of E’râq. Moa’wiah then ordered the tribes A’k and Asha’r, who had ere this retreated from other tribes, not to advance one step further. They obeyed, but were from the side of A’li the Commander of the Faithful attacked by the Hamdân tribe, who swore that they would not return before the A’k tribe had retreated, while the latter made a similar oath that they would not retire before having put to flight the Hamdân tribe; so that for this reason many of the notables and braves were slain, their heads rolling like balls, and blood flowing like a river. At last, however, the people of Syria having been put to flight, also A’li the Amir of the Faithful retired, ordering his people to cease fighting, whereon some of his intimate friends said: ‘O Amir of the Faithful, how can the face of victory show itself upon the speculum of our hopes if thou orderest us to cease fighting when the enemies have been put to flight? Had Moa’wiah vanquished us, he would undoubtedly have pursued us, causing the sword and the lance to decide the matter.’ His lordship, however, replied: ‘Moa’wiah is not acting in conformity with the book of God and the Sonna of the apostle of Allah—u. w. bl.—whereas I never undertake anything contrary to them. If he were in possession of any practical or theoretical knowledge, he would never contend with me.’
In short, after the period of hostilities had become protracted and the fights obstinate, most of the celebrated warriors and lancers of Syria perished. Then Moa’wiah sent, in the height of his confusion and distress, the following letter to the Amir of the Faithful: ‘I am of opinion that, if thou and I had known that our hostilities would end thus, we would never have begun them. It will now be convenient for us to say nothing about the past, but to make peace with each other. As we hope to live, so thou also hopest; and as we fear death, thou likewise dreadest it. Thou knowest that good and pious men have been slain in these hostilities. I have ere this requested thee to confer upon me the governorship of Syria, but ??o excuse me from paying allegiance to thee; and I now make the same request. If this war is not put an end to, the sword will spare no one. Hostilities ought not to have subsisted between us so long, we all being descendants of A’bd Munâf, derived from one stock, and none of us enjoying preference or excellence above each other.’ When A’li the Commander of the Faithful received the epistle of Moa’wiah, he indited the following reply: ‘But after [the usual preliminary I say], O Moa’wiah, thy letter has reached me; I have understood its contents, and thy rebellious disposition, obstinacy, and injustice are evident to me. As to thy allegation that if we had known our hostilities would end thus we would never have begun them, it is false; because I am to-day more desirous to fight thee than I was yesterday, and this wish will constantly be getting more intense. Thy assertion that our and thy fears and hopes are the same is likewise wrong; because you follow doubt and hesitation, but we firmness and certainty. Moreover, the anxiety of the people of E’râq for everlasting beatitude is greater than the covetousness of the adherents of schism for the goods of this world. Thy request to be made Governor of Syria without paying homage to me is not accepted; thou hast ere this proffered this request, and it was rejected, but what merit hast thou since acquired to deserve acquiescence? Thy statement that we are both descendants of A’bd Munâf is true enough; but it was wrong to allege that none of us are more excellent or more preferable than the other, because Ommaiyah was never like Hâshem, and could never be equal in fighting to A’bdu-l-muttâlleb; neither has Ssakhar [namely, Abu Sofiân] been the equal of [my father] Abu Ttâleb; and what connection hast thou with me, for I am a freed man, and the son of a freed man? Thou canst not deem thyself to be the equal of an exile [Mohâjer], one walking in the path of Divine grace. Thou hast preceded me neither in Islâm, nor been the companion of the prophet—u. w. bl.—in his exile. What virtues or exploits canst thou adduce to the people in which thou excellest me, who am the cousin of the apostle—u. w. bl.—nay, his brother, legatee, heir in knowledge, and his Khalifah? Moreover, my relation to his lordship is like that of Aaron to Moses; and if the gate of prophetship had not been sealed with his signet, I would have become happy by general prophecy as I have been distinguished by special Vicarship. His Majesty the Bestower of gifts has honoured me by revealing several verses [of the Qurân] concerning me, thus elevating the banners of favours over my head; and how can my noble children be compared with the offspring of thy times? Let it not escape thy imperfect understanding that I am determined to fight and contend with thee, and that if thou failest to attain the felicity of harmonizing with me and paying me allegiance, a calamity will befall thee—a greater and more terrible one than which has never occurred in the world—and they who act unjustly shall know hereafter with what treatment they shall be treated.’*