AFFAIRS OF EGYPT AND OF THE EGYPTIANS IN THE DAYS OF THE KHALIFATE OF A’LI THE COMMANDER OF THE FAITHFUL—P. B. O. H.—AND ACCOUNT OF THE EVENTS OF THAT TIME.
There is a tradition that Muhammad B. Abu Khodhyfah B. O’tbah B. Rabya’h had been spending all his time in ascetic and religious exercises. After his father Abu Khodhyfah had attained martyrdom in the battle of Yamâmah, Muhammad hastened to wait on O’thmân—may Allah be pleased with him—and having attracted the consideration of Dhu-n-nûryn,72 he obtained influence and dignity at the residence of the Khalifate. After some time he requested O’thmân to bestow an appointment on him, whereon he sent him to Egypt. At that time, however, also Muhammad B. Abu Bakr had by order of the Khalifah of the period departed to that country. Both these men, although they openly pretended to be on good terms with A’bdullah B. Sa’d B. Abu Sarj, who was governor of the province of Egypt on behalf of O’thmân, were entirely devoted secretly to A’li the Commander of the Faithful. When the inhabitants of Egypt had witnessed the great piety, valour, and liberality of Muhammad B. Abu Khodhyfah, they entertained great respect for him, and he was thereby emboldened to reprove the behaviour of A’bdullah in public assemblies, saying: ‘I do not know why O’thmân has appointed a tyrant like this to govern the Musalmâns.’ When A’bdullah perceived that the utterances of Muhammad B. Abu Khodhyfah were likely to excite disloyalty towards the Khalifah, he sent a letter to Madinah to complain of this state of affairs, whereon O’thmân [instead of blaming] sought to reconcile Muhammad by sending him a costly robe, and ordering thirty thousand dirhems to be paid to him from the land-tax of Egypt. Having received this sum, he went to the cathedral mosque where he had assembled the Egyptians, and said: ‘My enemies have written something against me to O’thmân, but with the result that he has presented me with thirty thousand dirhems and with this robe, which is worth a thousand dirhems, as you may see, in order to bribe me.’ The Egyptians, having obtained this information, lengthened their tongues of reproof against O’thmân, withdrew their hands from the skirt of loyalty to him, became partisans of Muhammad B. Abu Khodhyfah, and openly proclaimed their enmity against O’thmân. When Dhu-n-nûryn was apprised of what had taken place, he sent him the following reproachful letter: ‘I have cherished thee a long time, and, expecting due regard from thee, have sown the seeds of affection into thy heart; but I now perceive that it has borne quite different fruit than that which I expected, and I do not know what the reason for thy opposition and thy restraining the people from loyalty to me may be.’ This letter arrived in Egypt, but produced no effect.
When A’bdullah B. Sa’d had, at the time of the rebellion and the besieging of O’thmân the Amir of the Faithful, departed from Egypt to Madinah for the purpose of aiding and supporting him, the supreme authority in Egypt devolved upon Muhammad B. Abu Khodhyfah. After O’thmân had attained martyrdom, and A’li the Commander of the true believers had become established on the couch of the Khalifate, he appointed Qays B. Sa’d B. A’bâdah, who was one of the Arab ascetics and intelligent men of the period, to the governorship of Egypt, as has been jotted down above by the reed of explanation. Qays obeyed orders, departed to Egypt, and when he arrived there invited the inhabitants, in pleasing language and with heart-ravishing eloquence, to pay homage to his holy lordship the Amir of the Faithful. The people of Egypt adopted his advice, and accordingly preferred to walk on the straight road. Some inhabitants, however, of the surrounding districts, whose hearts were replete with affection for O’thmân, refused to do so, saying: ‘We shall pay the land-tax, but keep our homage in abeyance until A’li has killed the murderers of O’thmân.’ As this party was bold and strong, Qays deemed it prudent, for the time being, to accept what they had promised, and not to oppose them.
It is on record that before the arrival of Qays B. Sa’d in Egypt, Moa’wiah B. Abu Sofiân had despatched A’mru B. A´ass with some men to that province, with instructions to get hold of the then governor by some stratagem. When A’mru B. A´ass had arrived near Egypt, he sent a courier with the following message to Muhammad B. Abu Khodhyfah: ‘I have repented of paying homage to Moa’wiah, and A’li being superior to him in every respect for elevating the banners of Islâm and destroying unbelievers and tyrants, as is evident to everyone, I have turned away from Moa’wiah, and come here to make a covenant and agreement with thee, so that we may aid and support A’li according to our best ability as long as a spark of life remains in our bodies, and discharge our duties towards the Khalifate in partnership with thee. The upshot of these preliminary remarks is, that we ought to have an interview in a suitable place, so that we may tell to each other what we have to say.’ Muhammad B. Khodhyfah, deceived by these words, fell into the trap, left the city, and met A’mru B. A´ass in an arbour, where both engaged in conversation till the men who had been placed in ambush rushed from every side into the arbour, took hold of Muhammad, fettered him, and conveyed him to Syria under the leadership of A’mru B. A´ass, where Moa’wiah cast him into prison. A few days afterwards the spouse of Moa’wiah, who was the daughter of Muhammad’s uncle, concealed a file in the victuals which she sent to Muhammad, so that he filed off the bonds from his legs and escaped. In his flight he took refuge in a cave, where he was, however, discovered by A’bdullah B. A’mru Khusha’my, whom Moa’wiah had sent in pursuit of him, and caught. As, however, A’bdullah apprehended that, being a close relative of Moa’wiah, the latter would spare his life, he therefore killed him himself on that very spot, and returned to Damascus.
When his sacred lordship the Amir of the Faithful had vanquished the army of Bossrah, and Qays B. Sa’d had become confirmed as Governor of Egypt, Moa’wiah was much dismayed and grieved, because he apprehended that if A’li the Commander of the true believers were to march from the Arabian E’râq, and Qays B. Sa’d—who had during the lifetime of the prince of existences—u. w. bl.—been a commandant of the Anssâr, and was distinguished by valour as well as intelligence—from Egypt to Syria, his authority would be imperilled; he therefore grasped with his hand the skirt of cunning and stratagem, and desired to induce Qays B. Sa’d, by fair promises and sweet words, to side with him in his opposition to the rightful Khalifah; but it did not occur to his mind that—
The cavalier of the world, the son of Destân-Sâm,
Will not in sport put his head into the snare.73
The statement just made is confirmed also by the following letter which he despatched to Qays: ‘It is evident to the denizens of the world that the Lord O’thmân, whose exploits and laudable acts the calculator of imagination is unable to enumerate, has been killed by the sword of tyranny, and in this matter the Lord A’li took his full share. It is hoped that thou, who hast among others also been a partner in this crime, wilt repent and turn back to God, and wilt, according to thy power and best ability, aid and support me. If thou agreest with me and helpest me, the government of the Arabian and of the Persian E’râq will devolve upon thee as soon as we have attained our object and unveiled the countenance of our aspirations; but even before that time arrives I shall grant thee all thy desires and respond to all thy wishes.’ When Qays had become acquainted with the contents of this letter, he wrote in reply: ‘He who knows what is invisible and visible is aware that I have in no way agreed with the opponents of O’thmân, and that I have not assented to the murder of his lordship; neither do I know whether A’li the Commander of the Faithful has instigated anyone to kill him. I keep my adherence to thee in abeyance; be, however, aware for a certainty that I shall never do anything which displeases thee.’ When Moa’wiah had concluded from the perusal of this letter that Qays meant to impose upon him, he sent the following reply: ‘Imposture and fraud will make no impression upon me. Be either my friend or my foe.’ Afterwards Qays revealed his mind by despatching to him this message: ‘I am astonished that thou advisest me to oppose a man who is more worthy than others, and has a greater right to the Khalifate and government, and is nearest to the apostle of Allah in character and relationship. Thou invitest me to obey one who is noted for qualities contrary to these. I shall by no means rebel against so blessed an individual, to become a partisan of Satan and to enrol myself in the army of Eblis.’74 When Moa’wiah had despaired of enrolling Qays in his own interest, he resorted to a new stratagem, so that he effected his removal from the governorship of Egypt by the command of A’li the Amir of the Faithful. The details of this affair are: That after Moa’wiah had been disappointed in his efforts to bring over the Governor of Egypt to his own side, he often vented the following sentiments in public assemblies: ‘Although Qays B. Sa’d outwardly pretends to be loyal to A’li, he gives me advice and makes professions of sincerity to me in every letter he sends me; and my allegation [that he only pretends to be loyal] is confirmed by the fact that he cultivates the friendship of, and associates with, such men as Yazid B. Hâreth, and Muslim B. Muhammad, and Bashir B. Artlah, and others of the people of Egypt, who have delayed to pay allegiance to A’li; and here is a letter which he has written to me: “The first man to fight against thy opponents and for thee will be myself.”’—He uttered many sentiments of this kind, and when the relations of Qays with the hypocrites and opponents were brought to the notice of the Commander of the Faithful, who entertained suspicions of the Governor of Egypt, he stated them to Muhammad B. Abu Bakr and to A’bdullah B. Ja’fer, asking them for their opinion. They replied: ‘If the Amir of the true believers has lost confidence in Qays, let him draw the line of removal over the page of his duties, and, removing him from his post, appoint another man to be Governor of Egypt. Thou must, however, first prove and try him by ordering him to attack those people upon the river banks of whose minds the trees of affection for O’thmân have been flourishing so that up to this time they have not paid allegiance to thee. If he cheerfully does his best to obey thy command, all will be well; but in the contrary case another governor must supersede him, to free thy noble mind from apprehensions.’ A’li the Amir of the Faithful approved of this suggestion, and wrote the following letter to Qays: ‘It is rumoured that the people of such and such a locality have up to this time not yet stretched forth the hand of allegiance, and have not yet placed the foot of obedience into the circle of loyalty to me. Thou art to invite them to pay homage to me: if they do so, all will be well; but if not, thou must attack them.’ When Qays received this letter, and had understood its contents, he wrote in reply: ‘The people whom the Amir of the Faithful commands me to attack are bold and powerful; they have many friends and adherents in the province of Egypt. If I engage in waging war against them and extirpating them, I shall be so occupied as to be unable to attend to any other business. At present circumstances require that I leave the opponents as they are, and have nothing to do with them.’ When A’li the Commander of the Faithful had become acquainted with the contents of this letter, his suspicions about Qays increased, so that he consulted Muhammad B. Abu Bakr and A’bdullah B. Ja’fer Ttayyâr, and removed him from the governorship of Egypt, appointing thereto Muhammad B. Abu Bakr, who was the maternal brother of A’bdullah B. Ja’fer Ttayyâr. Then Qays returned in dismay and sorrow to Madinah, on which occasion Hasân B. Thâbet, who was somewhat ill-disposed towards A’li B. Abu Ttâleb, said to Qays: ‘Thou, being an accomplice in the murder of O’thmân, hast been removed from thy post by A’li, but that great crime remains on thy neck.’ Qays replied: ‘O thou whose heart and whose eyes are blind, be off from my assembly; and I swear by God that if I apprehended no hostilities between my people and thy tribe, I would deliver thy body from the load of thy head!’ Merwân B. Hukum having likewise uttered words of the same purport to Qays, the latter waited in spite of them on A’li the Commander of the Faithful, and departed to Ssafyn. When Moa’wiah had been apprised of this act, he sent the following message to Merwân: ‘If thou hadst sent a hundred thousand lion-killing men to aid A’li, I would have felt it less than thy sending Qays B. Sa’d to him.’
Muhammad B. Abu Bakr having arrived in Egypt, read out the letters patent appointing him governor to the nobles and magnates of Egypt, took his position on the masnad of the administration, and sent a courier with the following message to the partisans of O’thmân: ‘Select one of two things, and either pay homage to A’li the Commander of the Faithful or emigrate from this province.’ They replied: ‘We must be given some respite that we may see what turn affairs will take.’—According to one tradition, Muhammad B. Abu Bakr was displeased with this answer, and despatched one of the Amirs with troops to attack those people, who, having drawn their hands out from the sleeve of bravery, vanquished these forces. Muhammad B. Abu Bakr then again sent troops, who were likewise defeated; whereon he sent a letter to A’li the Commander of the Faithful, to inform him of the state of affairs. When his lordship had ascertained that there was no other remedy except conciliation, he sent a message to Muhammad B. Abu Bakr, not to attack those people until the proper opportunity arrived, when they could be suppressed. After A’li the Commander of the true believers had become acquainted with the affairs of Egypt, and with the trick played by Moa’wiah to remove Qays therefrom, the latter rose in his esteem, and he repented of having sent Muhammad B. Abu Bakr to that province. When the people of Syria had resolved to adhere to Moa’wiah [and to support his claim to the Khalifate], he despatched an army to Egypt, and they killed Muhammad B. Abu Bakr, as will be narrated in these pages if it pleaseth Allah —who be exalted.
THE REBELS JOIN MOA’WIAH B. ABU SOFIÂN, AND INCITE
HIM TO AVENGE THE BLOOD OF O’THMÂN.
The recorders of events—A. h. m. o. t.—have narrated in their writings that when O’thmân was slain, and the duties of the Khalifate and administration devolved on A’li the Commander of the Faithful, the treacherous disposition of certain people induced them to accuse him of having shed the blood of the third Khalifah. They departed to Syria, where they instigated not only Moa’wiah, but all classes of the population to retaliate, and one of the rebels exhibited the fingers of Nâylah with the blood-stained robe of O’thmân to the inhabitants. As Moa’wiah knew that no conciliation between him and A’li the Commander of the Faithful was possible, he determined to rebel against him and to alienate the population from him. He therefore ordered the blood-stained robe of O’thmân and one-half of the severed fist of the spouse Nâylah to be exhibited in the cathedral mosque of Damascus, narrating to the people that these things had all been perpetrated by the intervention of A’li the Commander of the Faithful, and excited them to such a degree that the champions of the province swore not to drink cold water nor to rest on soft beds until they had avenged the blood of O’thmân. When A’mru B. A´ass arrived from Falesttyn in Damascus, and witnessed this state of affairs, he said to Moa’wiah: ‘If this exhibition takes place every Friday it will produce no effect, and it will be best hereafter not to show the garment of O’thmân and the fingers of Nâylah to anyone, except at the time of a combat, so as to incite the people to fight.’ This suggestion being approved of by Moa’wiah, he ordered the articles to be locked up, and to be produced only at the time of a battle, as A’mru had advised him.—It is related that at the time O’thmân was besieged, A’mru B. A´ass departed from Madinah with his children to Falesttyn, where he took up his residence. In that town there happened to be a man who possessed knowledge of future events and communicated information about them. One day A’mru B. A´ass inquired of him what he thought about O’thmân, and on his replying that he had been slain, he queried further: ‘Upon whom will the duty of the Khalifate devolve after his martyrdom?’ He replied: ‘After O’thmân has deposited his furniture in the corner of non-existence an individual will take his position on the couch of the Khalifate, the like of whom the world will not see till its own destruction; he will, however, be killed by the sword of violence before the whole population has paid him allegiance; and the supreme power will be usurped by him who is at present the Governor of Syria, namely, Moa’wiah B. Abu Sofiân.’ These words having become fixed in the mind of A’mru B. A´ass like an engraving upon a stone, he went, after that great catastrophe [i.e., the murder of O’thmân] to Moa’wiah to make preparations with him for waging war against A’li the Commander of the Faithful.
It is on record that after the murder of O’thman, A’mru B. A´ass consulted his two sons, namely, A’bdullah and Muhammad, one of whom was pious, of the U’lamâ, and one of the honoured companions [of the prophet], and the other a valiant cavalier of the day. He asked them whether it would be best to hasten to wait on A’li or to go to Moa’wiah in Syria. They replied: ‘The nobility, virtue, lineage and pedigree of A’li the Commander of the Faithful are evident to thee as to everyone, and it would be good to adhere to him.’ After considering the matter for a long while, A’mru said to his sons: ‘A’li is not in need of men like ourselves, he being fully distinguished above all his contemporaries by the soundness of his discernment and perfect intellect, and by the adornment of bravery and of generosity. I am convinced that although we may do our utmost to serve him and to fight his enemies, we shall not attain our object, and our aspirations will in no way be fulfilled by attending on him.’ A’bdullah replied: ‘Loyalty to A’li will make us worthy of entering paradise, but adherence to Moa’wiah will make us denizens of hell. Now make thy choice!’ A’mru B. A´ass, having scorned the advice of his well-directed son, determined to proceed to Damascus, and started. When he had reached the spot where the roads leading to Erâq and to Syria meet, he asked his slave Wurdân where each of them was leading to. Wurdân, pointing to the road of E’raq, said: ‘This is the road by which a traveller reaches beatitude and the abode of permanency.’ Pointing to the road of Syria, he continued: ‘The traveller on this road becomes subject to the fire of hell and to eternal punishment.’ A’mru then applauded Wurdân, and recited verses on the subject, in some of which he extolled the virtues and exploits of A’li B. Abu Ttâleb, his worthiness to be Emâm and Khalifah, as well as his relationship to Muhammad the elect—u. w. bl. A’mru said: ‘This is clear to me like the sun in the fourth quarter of the day, but wickedness, envy and greediness for the vanities of the world are hindrances to walking on the straight road, and causes of deflection from the right direction.’ A’bdullah said: ‘O father, dread the displeasure and wrath of God the Most High and Glorious, and do not make thyself worthy of the flames of Sai’yr.75 Be certain that if thou joinest Moa’wiah I shall not accompany thee.’ A’mru B. A´ass continued: ‘Obedience to parents is one of the duties incumbent on children.’ A’bdullah rejoined: ‘This means a time when father and mother do not enjoin disobedience to the boundless Giver; but to oppose A’li and to wage war against him is a great crime.’ A’mru continued: ‘Thou hast only to accompany me in the journey, not with the intention of fighting A’li.’ Then A’bdullah went with his father to Syria, and when A’mru B. A´ass arrived in Damascus, Moa’wiah was pleased with his arrival, beguiled the people to be friendly to him, and sent him by way of a gift fifty thousand dinârs, a horse and a camel, presenting his sons Muhammad and A’bdullah with equal amounts; the latter, however, would not accept his share, and sent it back with the message: ‘The money of the poor and of the adherents of Islâm are not thy property, and therefore not to be given away by thee.’—Let it not remain hidden from those who listen to [the reading of] histories, that some chroniclers have described the meeting between A’mru B. A´ass and Moa’wiah in another way, as will appear further on.
FIGHT OF MÂLEK ASHTAR WITH THE REBELS; AND ACCOUNT OF SOME TRANSACTIONS BETWEEN A’LI THE COMMANDER OF THE FAITHFUL AND MOA’WIAH.
After the martyrdom of O’thmân the people of Jazirah A’rab, which expression is a metaphor designating several well-known towns, described in detail in certain books, paid allegiance to Moa’wiah and became his tributaries. When A’li the Commander of the Faithful had become aware of the attitude they had assumed, he appointed Mâlek Ashtar to govern that country, but Dzohâk B. Qays occupied that position in those days on behalf of Moa’wiah. When Dzohâk heard of the approach of Mâlek Ashtar, he asked the population of Raqqah to aid him to repel Mâlek, whereon they despatched a number of valiant men to reinforce him. When Mâlek Ashtar had arrived near Bahrân, Dzohâk issued with a great crowd from the fortress, arranged it in battle-array, and fought from morning till evening, but was at last put to flight by Mâlek and retired into the fortress, whereon the army of Kûfah surrounded it and commenced to besiege it. Moa’wiah, having been apprised of what was taking place, appointed A’bdu-r-rahman B. Khâled B. Wolyd with an army to repel Mâlek Ashtar, who, when he learnt that A’bdu-r-rahman was approaching, abandoned the siege, marched against him, met him, defeated him, put him to flight, pursued the fugitives and slew many of them. When Mâlek Ashtar had thus got rid of his opponent, he marched to Raqqah, and the population having taken refuge in the fortress, he laid siege to it. Moa’wiah, having obtained cognizance of this event, despatched Ayman B. Harym Alasdy with numerous troops to reinforce Dzohâk, so that they might, in concert with each other, liberate the people of Raqqah from the siege, and expel Mâlek Ashtar from the province of Jazirah. When Ayman had joined Dzohâk crowds of people from the adjoining localities also came to their aid, so that the chiefs, emboldened by the large number of their troops, became confident of victory, and hastened together to Raqqah. Mâlek, on his part, trusting in Divine favour, departed from Raqqah, and marching against his opponents, encountered them. The warriors of both parties then worked with their swords, arrows and daggers, till at last, according to the verse, ‘Our armies should surely be the conquerors,’76 the victory-boding army vanquished the black-hearted denizens of Syria, and the rebels, having been disgracefully routed, fled, and reached Moa’wiah in the worst plight. Having defeated the enemy, Mâlek Ashtar stretched out his hands for plunder, slaying everyone who offered resistance, and subjugating the province of Jazirah with his bright scimitar. Having consigned to writing all that had taken place, he sent an account of the victory to Kûfah.
When A’li the Commander of the Faithful had been apprised of the obstinacy and renewal of hostilities by Moa’wiah, he summoned the nobles and magnates of the country to an assembly, and the following words flowed from his pearl-dropping mouth: ‘God—who be praised and exalted, and who is the Creator of all beings—approves only of those of His worshippers who walk on the right path, and as long as the bonds of love and friendship are cherished by them. As long as they abstain from insulting, striking, and persecuting each other, they will not cease to enjoy power, and their affairs will be well regulated; if, however, the denizens of the world speak and act contrary to what I have just advocated, and they engage in blamable acts and utter unbecoming words, they will not prosper, and will ultimately be doomed to eternal perdition. What I have just said is confirmed by the fact that Moa’wiah has thrown the population of Syria into the vortex of doubt and uncertainty, and has averted them from loyalty to me by propagating the rumour that O’thmân B. O’ffan had been slain by me. He has accused me of this vile crime, and has despatched an army to attack Mâlek Ashtar, who is governor of the province of Jazirah on my behalf, and a disgraceful contest has taken place between the two parties. Not content with this result, he is at present doing his utmost to fit out an army in Syria for the purpose of waging war against me. It is my intention to send him a letter to advise and reprove him, so that he may perchance be admonished and restrain the antagonism which has taken possession of his mind. What is your opinion in this matter?’ This harangue of A’li the Commander of the Faithful was greeted with loud applause by the whole assembly, and all exclaimed: ‘The opinion of the Commander of the Faithful is our own; nothing can be added to it, and we shall obey him as if he were the apostle of Allah.’ After a consultation, A’li the Amir of the true believers despatched the following letter to Moa’wiah B. Abu Sofiân: ‘In the name of Allah the Merciful, the Clement! From the worshipper of Allah, the Prince of the Faithful, A’li makes the following declaration: He [i.e., Moa’wiah] is to know that although he was absent on the day when the various classes of Mohâjer and Anssâr paid allegiance to me in Madinah, loyalty to me was incumbent on him, because those who had paid homage to Abu Bakr, to O’mar, and to O’thmân—Allah be pleased with them— and had agreed to their becoming Khalifahs, assented also to my Emâmship, willingly and gladly, deeming obedience to me to be incumbent on them. As those of the Mohâjer and the Anssâr who were present manifested no desire for delay, opposition or enmity, those who were absent had likewise no grounds for opposing me. But as to the slaying of O’thmân, it was an intricate event, and he who would narrate it is like a blind man, whilst those who listen are either such as have blamed O’thmân and killed him, or have been his friends, but had not the courage to rescue him. Afterwards the higher and the lower classes have paid me allegiance, and everyone who fails to do so is acting against the dictates of reason and justice; it is, however, expected that such persons will consult their own safety, will abstain from opposition, and will reveal their intentions. Farewell.’ Having indited this letter, he despatched it by Hajjâj B. Hozymah the Anssâri, who, when he had performed the journey, arrived in Damascus, waited on Moa’wiah, and observed in the course of conversation: ‘Thou art one of those of whom O’thmân expected aid in quelling the rebellion, but they have failed to comply, and abandoned him.’ Moa’wiah, getting angry at these words, said: ‘Return instantly and do not expect me to send a letter by thee. One of my confidential men will go to Kûfah and will deliver my reply.’ Then Hajjâj necessarily returned to A’li the Commander of the Faithful and reported what had passed between him and Moa’wiah.
When Wolyd B. O’tbah B. Mo’ytt heard that Moa’wiah was at enmity with A’li the Commander of the Faithful, and had dismissed his envoy without a reply, he was glad, and his heart being full of grudges against A’li, he incited Moa’wiah to kill him, and sent him some verses to that effect. When Moa’wiah had perused the letter and the verses, he manifested great pleasure, and joining several [blank] papers, without writing anything upon them of peace or war, sealed them and wrote on them the address: ‘From Moa’wiah to A’li B. Abu Ttâleb: salutation to him.’ Then he gave this roll of paper to a man of the Bani A’ys who was distinguished by eloquence and temerity, telling him to carry it to A’li the Commander of the Faithful, and entrusting him also with an oral message. The man accordingly took possession of the blank paper,77 departed to Kûfah, and when he arrived there the rumour was propagated that an envoy had come from Moa’wiah with a sealed letter. After this news had spread, the messenger was introduced into an assembly consisting of Mohâjer, Anssâr, magnates and chiefs of Kûfah, and, having been presented to A’li the Commander of the Faithful, he asked him: ‘Who art thou? Whence comest and what news hast thou?’ He replied: ‘I am a man of the Bani A’ys, an envoy of Moa’wiah, from Syria, and have brought a letter with a seal.’ From these words of the envoy, the members of the assembly concluded that the chiefs of Syria had paid allegiance to the Amir of the pious, and that their names were contained in the document; the paper, however, being opened, was found to contain no names:
I expected a list of the free from my contemporaries:
They gave a paper into my hands, but it was blank!
The envoy was then questioned whether he knew what opinions the people of Syria entertained of A’li, and he replied: ‘Fifty thousand good and pious men have congregated around the robe of O’thmân and are keeping their cheeks and beards moist with tears, shedding bloody ones day and night from grief for having lost him! They have drawn forth the scimitar of vengeance from the scabbard, and have made a covenant not to let go hold of the hilts of their swords until they have exterminated the murderers of O’thmân. They are so earnest in this matter that they are enjoining their children to avenge the blood of O’thmân, and mothers instruct their infants how to do it. In this way children are growing up, and those who had hitherto cursed Satan, at present curse the slayers of O’thmân.’ His holy lordship A’li the Commander of the Faithful then asked: ‘What persons are in thy opinion, and in that of the people, guilty of the blood of O’thmân?’ He replied: ‘Thou art thyself one of them.’ His lordship rejoined: ‘May thy mouth be filled with earth! How can I be guilty of the crime of killing him?’ On this occasion one of the Bani A’ys, who bore the mark of loyalty to his lordship the Amir of the Faithful on his forehead, addressed the envoy of Moa’wiah as follows: ‘Thou art an individual unworthy to be appointed an envoy from Moa’wiah, and thy unhallowed mouth has uttered disgraceful words. Thou wast extremely shameless in trying to frighten his lordship the Amir, the Mohâjer and the Anssâr with the account of weeping around the coat of O’thmân; for that coat is not the coat of Joseph,78 nor the weeping that of Jacob. If they are now deploring his murder, why have they not rescued him when he was besieged and helpless? Their intention of waging war against the Amir of the pious, which they entertain, is futile, because he is under the protection of Divine favour and guidance, so that he will prevail and vanquish the rebels, because God is the Protector of His worshippers the true believers.’ On this occasion a disturbance ensued, and certain supporters of the Khalifate drew their swords with the intention of killing that man, but his sacred lordship A’li the Commander of the Faithful prohibited them, saying: ‘All intelligent men consider it proper not to slay or imprison ambassadors and messengers.’ The envoy of Moa’wiah, who had witnessed this scene, now rose to his feet, and said: ‘O Amir of the Faithful, on account of the many disparaging words uttered against thee by the adherents of Islâm in Syria, I had up to the present time hated no man more than thee! Now, however, as I have attained the felicity of kissing thy feet, and have listened to thy heart-ravishing words, have beheld thy perfect meekness and compassion, I love no man more than thee! I am convinced that the population of Syria is drowned in the sea of aberration, and that the Amir of the Faithful is, with his adherents, walking on the right path. I swear by God that I shall never separate from thee, and never follow anyone besides thee.’ On that occasion he recited likewise some poetry concerning the deflection of Moa’wiah from the straight road, and the progress of A’li the Commander of the Faithful, with his adherents, in the true direction. He sent those verses to Syria, and when Moa’wiah obtained cognizance of them, he was disappointed, astonished, and said: ‘Would that I had not despatched this eloquent man as my envoy! That ungrateful fellow will undoubtedly inform A’li of the state of affairs in these parts, and will incite him to wage war against us.’ After Moa’wiah had despaired of the return of his messenger, he sent another, who was one of the ascetics of Yemen living at that time in Syria, and gave him a letter to the residence of the Khalifate, the contents of which were as follows: ‘God, who be praised and exalted, has selected the apostle of Allah from among the denizens of the world, enjoining the simple and the gentle of the Arabs to aid and to support him, the most excellent and the most judicious among them being Abu Bakr the Khalifah [i.e., successor] of the apostle of Allah, who was followed by O’mar and O’thmân. Thou, however, hast envied each of them, and hast delayed paying homage to all of them, doing so at last unwillingly, and professing loyalty to those blessed men in thy confusion. Thou hast envied O’thmân more than the others, although he was nearer to thee in kinship than all the others; thou hast represented his good acts as if they had been evil, and hast deemed it proper to cut the bonds of consanguinity. Thou hast instigated persons to kill him in thy district, and hast excused thyself from the duty of succouring him. The true indication and just testimony for my allegations are that his murderers are enrolled among thy supporters and adherents. I desire and expect thee to send the murderers of the unjustly slain and martyred Khalifah to me, that I may chastise them for what they have done, but in the contrary case there will be no arbiter between us except the sword and dagger. Be aware that I shall search for the murderers of O’thmân by sea and land, in mountains and dales, and that I shall not rest until I slay them all, or cause them to be slain.’ When the envoy of Moa’wiah had, after duly traversing the distance, attained the felicity of an interview with A’li the Commander of the Faithful, he was, on account of his reputation for sanctity, received with great demonstrations of honour, and spoke thus: ‘I testify that I know of no one more worthy than thyself to be adorned with the garland of the Khalifate and to be confirmed on the couch of dominion, there being no one equal to thee in heroic exploits, nor in external and internal laudable qualities. I know, moreover, that O’thmân has been killed by the sword of unrighteousness, and that Moa’wiah is on this ground basing his opposition towards the Amir of the Faithful. If there be any of the murderers sojourning at the threshold of the exalted castle of Emâmship, it would be easy, if the knot-solving intellect of his sublime lordship were to consider it proper to surrender them [to Moa’wiah], so that the dust of rebellion might be laid and the rope of contention torn.’ His sacred lordship Ali the Commander of the true believers replied: ‘I imagined thee to be adorned with the decoration of understanding and endowed with intellect! Who is Moa’wiah that I should surrender to him those who have encompassed the death of O’thmân, that he may judge them? It is, on the contrary, incumbent upon him to obey me, and to assent to the decision of the Mohâjer and the Anssâr. After that the friends and children of O’thmân may be assembled to point out those whom they suspect of having slain him, whereon the legitimate Khalifah will decide between them according to the tenets of the noble law.’ A few days afterwards, when A’li the Commander of the Faithful dismissed the envoy of Moa’wiah, he gave him the following letter: ‘Thy epistle has arrived, and I have learned the contents thereof; nobody entertains any doubt concerning the good acts and noble character of Abu Bakr, described by thee; but as to O’thmân, if he has acted well, he has reached the proximity of the mercy of the Nourisher, who requites beneficent men in the handsomest manner; if, however, he was distinguished by the contrary of what I allege, he has likewise been received in the pavilions of the glory of the Lord, whose grace and magnanimity are boundless. As it is known for certain that the Lord, who is the most merciful of the merciful, will reward the acts of beneficent men in conformity with their efforts, I entertain hopes that I and the members of the family of the apostle of Allah will be rejoiced by an abundant share of beatitude; for we have been the first to believe in his apostolate and prophetship; in the beginning of the mission, when the opponents intended to slay the lord of apostleship, we have disregarded the safety of our own life, and desired in this matter to gain the approbation of the Lord Most High, and of the apostle. At the time when the Qoraish had made a covenant with each other in writing to bear him enmity, and his lordship had entered the Shi’b,79 we followed him; and when God—who be exalted and glorified —had delivered him from that calamity, we gave thanks for the favour, and remained in attendance on the threshold of prophecy, till the apostle received the [Divine] command to emigrate, and when he honoured Madinah by his presence, we likewise departed from our accustomed abode and joined him. When hostilities began, we likewise jeopardized our lives in attendance on his heaven-aspiring stirrup, and in this manner my cousin, O’baydah B. Alhâreth B. A’bdu-l-muttalleb was on the day of Bedr despatched by the swords of the unbelievers from this perishable to the eternal mansion; my uncle Hamzah attained martyrdom in the battle of Ohod; my brother Ja’fer likewise perished in the fight of Mowtah, and I myself combated and strove in the battles which the apostle of Allah had honoured with his presence. I always desired to attain martyrdom, and would that I had perished in one of these contests, so that I might have escaped from thy letters and messages, and might have been delivered from the insults and enmity with which thou persecutest me and my friends. It is very strange that thou hast written me a letter extolling the virtues of the companions of the apostle, but hast not mentioned those members of his family who have jeopardized their lives for the sake of gaining the approbation of God the Most High and of the apostle. As to what thou hast written about my envy of, and opposition to, the Khalifahs, it is wholly untrue, and far from deflecting to the road of futility like thyself, and opposing them, my delay in paying homage to them was evident to all and excused by everybody: because when the most holy soul of the lord of apostleship had been taken away, the notables of Islâm and the honoured companions were embarrassed, because the Anssâr said to the Mohâjer: “Let there be an Amir from you and an Amir from us.” It was their privilege to elect a suitable man for the Khalifate, because they had offered their breasts as targets to the arrows of misfortune in the service of the apostle, disregarding their property and the claims of their own families. When, however, the Qoraish represented to them that the best of men had been selected for the [Divine] mission from their own tribe, the Anssâr ceased their opposition and assented. Now, if the claim of the Qoraish was deemed by them to be valid, I think you ought to be convinced by the same argument, so that I, being the nearest of the companions and the most worthy of the sons of Adam, ought to have been the successor of the apostle. O Moa’wiah, if thou wilt look with the eye of discernment, and lay aside arrogance, it will be clear like the sun to thee that I ought to occupy the masnad and position of his lordship; but if thou still doubtest, inquire whether, at the time the apostle of the Lord of both worlds joined the proximity of the Most Merciful, thy father Abu Sofiân and my beloved uncle A’bbâs B. A’bdu-l-muttalleb had not assented to my homage. I was, however, displeased with the dissensions of the companions, abstained from compliance, and, striving to tranquillize the people, said: “The waves of disturbance are now rising, and you must take refuge in the ship of Divine grace to save your lives from this fearful vortex in order to reach the shore of security. Abstain from walking on the path of enmity, and thus manifest your noble disposition; throw off from your heads the diadem of pride, ambition and boasting. Whoever soars upwards on the wings of trust, and submits to the Divine command, will attain his object, and the bird of his soul will be liberated from the bonds of lust and covetousness, because the enjoyments of the world are like water, the taste and colour of which are changeable, and like a morsel which sticks in the throat of him who swallows it. If I desire to be Khalifah, the people will say, ‘He is ambitious for dominion,’ and if I do not aspire to it, but sit down in the corner of safety, they will say, ‘He fears death.’ Alas, alas! I swear by God that I, the son of Abu-Ttâleb, covet death more than a suckling the breast of his own mother, because I have become aware of mysteries and of hidden secrets, which, if I were to promulge them, would make people tremble and oscillate like a slender cord in a deep well.” But as to what thou hast said about my inciting people to slay O’thmân, thy words are untrue and false, without a particle of verity, because at the time he was besieged I despatched my two beloved sons, [who were] the pupils of the eyes of the apostle, to protect O’thmân in his calamity, but their ability having been unable to resist the Divine predestination, they could effect nothing. Thou, however, O Moa’wiah, hast abandoned O’thmân and departed to Syria to become a governor, and now thou seekest to attain supreme power on the pretext of striving to chastise his murderers; if thou really desirest to get hold of them, thou must first pay allegiance to me, that they may be dealt with according to my orders and in conformity with the brilliant law.’ This letter was given by A’li the Commander of the Faithful to Turmâj B. A’dy Hâtim Ttây for conveyance to Moa’wiah, in whose assembly he uttered strange words, which are recorded in detail in various chronicles.
A’LI THE COMMANDER OF THE FAITHFUL—U. W. P.—SENDS JARYR B. A’BDULLAH ALBAHLY AS AN ENVOY TO MOA’WIAH, WHEREON THE LATTER SUMMONS A’MRU B. A´ASS FROM FALESTTYN, AND CONSULTS HIM ABOUT RESISTANCE TO A’LI THE COMMANDER OF THE FAITHFUL —U. W. P.
Some of the U’lamâ of histories—A. h. m. o. t.—have related that A’li the Commander of the Faithful had ordered Jaryr B. A’bdullah Albahly, who had during the sway of O’thmân been governor of the province of Hamdân, to pay him allegiance, and had also invited Asha’th B. Qays Alkindy, who had governed the province of Adharbâyjân during the Khalifate of O’thmân, to pay him homage, so that both of them were, after the battle of Jamal, exalted in Kûfah by kissing the threshold of the nest of the Khalifate.—When Turmâh [supra Turmâj] returned from Syria, and had narrated the state of affairs prevailing there, A’li the Commander of the Faithful said to his intimate friends: ‘Although I am of opinion that the hardness of heart and levity of mind will not allow Moa’wiah B. Abu Sofiân to enroll himself in the ranks of those who have paid allegiance to me, I nevertheless mean to send to him one of the most glorious companions of the apostle of Allah as an envoy, in order to discuss the matter with him, and to induce him to become friendly.’ Thereon Jaryr B. A’bdullah, being very desirous to undertake this function, spoke as follows: ‘O Amir of the true believers, this business is my business. I have many relatives and tribesmen in Syria, and Moa’wiah will not deem it prudent to act contrary to my advice.’ Mâlek Ashtar then said to his lordship: ‘Do not send Jaryr as an envoy, because I suspect his duplicity.’ Jaryr, incensed at these words, rejoined: ‘What deficiency hast thou heretofore discovered in my loyalty to the Khalifate, that thou suspectest me of treachery?’ Mâlek replied: ‘At the very beginning of the ascendant of the affairs of A’li the Commander of the Faithful, I invited thee to wait upon him, but thou hast delayed, and remained in the governorship of Hamdân; when, however, his lordship had in Bossrah vanquished the army of Zobeyr and of Ttolhah, thou hadst no other escape but to take refuge in the shadow of his protection.’ A’li the Commander of the Faithful, however, disregarded the words of Mâlek, and having loaded the ears of Jaryr with pearls of advice and admonition, said: ‘O Jaryr, do not mind the troubles of the road and fatigues of the journey, but hasten to Moa’wiah and invite him to adhere to me. If he becomes ennobled by the honour of paying allegiance to me, all will be well, and in the contrary case we shall obtain a proof [of disloyalty] against him.’ When Jaryr had been nominated envoy to Syria, he borrowed the speed of lightning, departed to that province, and duly reached it after traversing the distance. Moa’wiah, being desirous to show honour to Jaryr, ordered his people to lodge him in a high castle. When Jaryr had rested himself from the fatigues of the journey, he paid a visit to Moa’wiah, presented himself as an ambassador, and invited him in eloquent terms to pay homage to A’li the Commander of the Faithful. Moa’wiah, however, asked for delay, his intention being to ascertain how the nobles and respectable classes of Syria were disposed towards him. He despatched Shorahbyl B. Shamatt to various parts of the country for the purpose of inciting the inhabitants to avenge the blood of O’thmân. When Moa’wiah had learnt that the people of Syria agreed with him on this point, he assembled them, and said: ‘There is no doubt that O’thmân had been unjustly killed. Do you assent that his blood should remain unavenged?’ They replied in conformity with his expectations, and agreed with him to oppose A’li the Commander of the Faithful.
Abu Hanifah Dinwari and some other historians narrate that when Jaryr B. A’bdullah had gone to Syria and delivered to Moa’wiah his message which dealt with peace and war, promises and threats, Moa’wiah assembled the nobles and the members of his own house to consult them on the matter, and his brother, O’tbah B. Abu Sofiân, said on this occasion: ‘It is my opinion that thou shouldst seek the aid of A’mru B. A´ass in this affair.’ Moa’wiah having approved of this suggestion despatched a letter to A’mru of this purport: ‘Thou must have heard what has befallen Zobeyr, Ttolhah, and A´ayshah from A’li, and now Jaryr B. A’bdullah has by his orders arrived in this province to receive my allegiance, but my reply in this matter will depend upon thy knot-solving intellect; my request, therefore, is that thou shouldst favour us with thy presence, so that we may act in conformity with thy advice.’ When A’mru had ascertained that Moa’wiah stood in need of him, he departed without delay from Falesttyn with his two sons, A’bdullah and Muhammad, and reached Damascus after traversing the distance, whereon Moa’wiah said to him in a private interview: ‘At present three emergencies have arisen which are distasteful to me: The first is, that Muhammad B. Khodhyfah has broken his bonds and fled to Bossrah or Egypt; the second is, that the Byzantine emperor has collected an army to wage war against me; and the third is, that A’li B. Abu Ttâleb has sent Jaryr B. A’bdullah with the message: “If Moa’wiah and the people of Syria do not pay allegiance to me, let them be prepared for hostilities.”’ A’mru B. A´ass replied: ‘The flight of the son of Khodhyfah is a small matter; some people ought to be sent in pursuit of him; if they are able to capture him, so much the better, but be not dismayed in the contrary case, because he can do thee no harm at all. Neither be much concerned about the intention of the Byzantine emperor, because as soon as thou surrenderest to him the Byzantine prisoners who have accumulated in Syria, and beginnest negotiations for peace, he will be only too glad to conclude it; I am, however, somewhat perplexed concerning the difficulty with A’li B. Abu Ttâleb, because the adherents of the religion consider him superior to thee in lineage, as well as in hereditary and in acquired qualifications, deeming them to be more excellent and preferable to those of a man like thyself.’ Moa’wiah replied: ‘A’li desired O’thmân to be killed, fomented dissensions, and filled the vessel of harmony with the chaff of opposition.’ A’mru B. A´ass said: ‘But A’li enjoys priority in Islâm, and consanguinity with his lordship the best of creatures, of which thou art void.’ Moa’wiah continued: ‘What thou hast said is quite true, but it is possible to beguile men, and cunningly to dress up for them falsehoods in the garb of truth, and if I am inclined I may send a man like thee [to do so] who has no equal in discernment and intelligence.’ A’mru said: ‘I am well acquainted with thy tricks and stratagems, in which Satan himself is taking daily lessons from thee, but when I look at thee I become aware of the workings of thy mind, and thou canst by no means deceive me.’ Moa’wiah pretended to disregard this insinuation, and conversing on various subjects, afterwards said: ‘Bend thy head towards me that I may tell thee something in thy ear.’ A’mru complied, whereon Moa’wiah took hold of his ear with the teeth, and then said: ‘Behold how I have deceived thee, there being no one here except we two, and how thou hast lent thine ear to hear a secret. Now, let alone quibbling and act with me, so that we may get rid of A’li and attain supreme power.’ A’mru replied: ‘It is a hazardous thing to forfeit our prospects of the next world for mundane advantages, it being plain to everybody that to side with thee in this matter and to wage war against A’li will entail disastrous consequences and abasement at last; but if I am, nevertheless, to act in concert with thee, thou must comply also with my wishes and fulfil my aspirations.’ Moa’wiah said: ‘There will be no difficulty in complying with thy aspirations. State them.’ A’mru continued: ‘My wish is that when thou hast obtained possession of Egypt, with all its dependencies, thou shouldst surrender it to me.’ Moa’wiah rejoined: ‘How can I dispense with Egypt? It is equal to E’râq.’ A’mru continued: ‘As the whole world [sic] will belong to thee, thou mayest as well give Egypt to me.’ Moa’wiah being displeased with this remark said nothing, but some allege that A’mru had replied to Moa’wiah: ‘When I obtain possession of Egypt thou wilt reign in the country; this, however, can take place only after thou hast vanquished A’li.’ As Moa’wiah still demurred to comply with the demand of A’mru, he departed and returned to his domicile. When O’tbah B. Abu Sofiân had heard of the refusal of Moa’wiah, he reproved his brother for it, saying: ‘Why hast thou not placed under obligations a man like A’mru, who is distinguished above his contemporaries by shrewdness and intellect, and hast not promised to give him Egypt, which thou knowest not whether it will ever fall into thy possession? To oblige him thus would make him obedient and subject to thy behests.’ Moa’wiah approved of the suggestion of his brother, and had next day an interview with A’mru, showed him much respect, and gave him the promise he coveted, which, having been consigned to writing, the nobles of Syria affixed their signatures to it. When harmony and friendship had thus been established between A’mru and Moa’wiah, the latter asked him: ‘What are, in thy opinion, the means of getting rid of A’li, who is the best and most excellent man of the period?’ A’mru replied: ‘At this time, when Jaryr B. A’bdullah Albahly, who is the best man in E’râq, has been deputed by A’li the Commander of the Faithful to receive professions of allegiance to him, it will be expedient to persuade the inhabitants that O’thmân B. O’ffan has been slain at the instigation of A’li B. Abu Ttâleb, and for that purpose to invite Shorahbyl B. Shamatt Alkindy, who is connected with the administration of Syria, to hold meetings with the notables of the country, and to explain to them, in such a manner as will admit of no doubt, that the son of Abu Ttâleb was an accomplice with the murderers of O’thmân—nay, the prime mover and instigator to the commission of the foul deed.’ Moa’wiah thereon not only sent a courier in haste to call Shorahbyl, but also despatched Zaid B. Ans, and Bashar B. Arttâ, and Sofiân B. A’mru, and Muhâraq B. Alhâreth, and Hamzah B. Mâlek, and Hâbes B. Sa’d, with several others, whom he ordered one by one to meet Shorahbyl, and to narrate to him the accusations against A’li. They obeyed, and when the administrator of Syria had heard the same tale from all of them he became angry, hastened to the assembly of Moa’wiah, and said: ‘I have heard from numerous men, whose words may be trusted, that the son of Abu Ttâleb had a hand in the murder of O’thmân. I swear by God that if thou payest allegiance to him, we shall expel thee from the country of Syria.’ Moa’wiah replied: ‘How could I oppose you? I am one of yourselves, and have no other support besides you.’ Shorahbyl then wanted Jaryr B. A’bdullah to be dismissed in order to convey to A’li the information that the inhabitants of Syria were unanimous in their opposition to him; Moa’wiah, however, delayed sending him away, and replied to Shorahbyl: ‘What we aim at will be accomplished when the population of this country agrees with us. Now it will be proper for thee to travel about to invite the people to pay allegiance to us, and to avenge the blood of O’thmân upon A’li and upon his adherents.’ Shorahbyl then went by the direction of Moa’wiah into the localities surrounding Damascus, persuading the inhabitants that A’li, having killed O’thmân with the pitiless sword of tyranny, had now subjugated the whole country except this province, and was marching at present with an army bent on hostilities to Syria, for the purpose of exterminating the denizens thereof, but that no one was more able or powerful to ward off this calamity than Moa’wiah. After expatiating abundantly on this subject, he continued: ‘It will now be proper for you to hasten, for the purpose of avenging the blood of O’thmân, to Moa’wiah, so that you may attain glory in this world and an eternal reward in the next.’ Shorahbyl had been so profuse in his beguiling speeches that he decoyed the people into the desert of aberration; and they, having responded to his call, made preparations for war, and expected orders from Moa’wiah to attend on him. When the readiness of the inhabitants of Syria to follow him had become known to the foe of the chief of Islâm [i.e., to Moa’wiah], he summoned Jaryr B. A’bdullah to his presence, and said: ‘Return now to Kûfah, and tell A’li to wash his hands of the loyalty of the Syrians, and inform him also that they are unanimous in the desire to avenge the blood of O’thmân, who had been their oppressed Khalifah. They are prepared to wage war against thee. Be thou ready to fight, because the time for negotiations has elapsed.’ After Jaryr had been four months in Syria he departed, made haste to wait on A’li the Commander of the Faithful, and represented to him the state of affairs. Mâlek Ashtar said: ‘O Amir of the Faithful, I swear by God that if thou hadst sent me to Moa’wiah, instead of Jaryr, this matter would have terminated to thy satisfaction, because I would have so grasped his throat as to stop his breath and make an end of the quarrel. I would have defeated all his stratagems, explained his character to the people of Syria, and destroyed his authority. I advised thee in the beginning of this affair not to send Jaryr as an envoy and messenger, because he is an easy-going man, and has no perseverance; he considered this important subject to be of little account, and spent four months in the company of Moa’wiah without caring for any business, yielding to him in every matter. His mission has injured the affairs of the country and of the religion, and shaken the foundations of both.’ Jaryr rejoined: ‘O Mâlek, by Allah! if A’li the Commander of the Faithful had deputed thee to Syria, the day of thy life would have been changed into evening by the wounds from bloodthirsty warriors, because they consider thee to have been one of the murderers of O’thmân.’ Mâlek retorted: ‘Restrain thyself from such childish words; and I swear by God that if I had been in thy place, I would have arranged this matter in such a handsome way, and would have so dealt with Moa’wiah, that, willingly or not, he would have acted according to my advice, and the negotiations would have ended satisfactorily. Thou hast been there, hesitated all the time, and, after being deceived by the cunning words of Moa’wiah, hast returned without effecting thy purpose, and hast in reality allowed thy friendship for Moa’wiah to overpower thy mind; and the truth of what I am saying is confirmed by the fact that thou art constantly rehearsing to A’li the Commander of the Faithful the unanimity of those people in their enmity to him, and art attempting to intimidate us with the vast multitude of those erring men.’ Jaryr asked: ‘Why goest thou not now, so that thy ability may become manifest?’ He queried in his turn: ‘What is the use of my going after thou hast spoiled the transaction?’ Jaryr being dismayed at what he had done, Mâlek continued: ‘I swear by God that, if the Amir of the Faithful will permit, I shall retain thee and others who cannot be trusted in this assembly, and not allow you to leave it until the quarrel with Moa’wiah has been settled.’ These words so incensed Jaryr that he departed that very night from Kûfah with some of his family, without permission from the residence of the Khalifate.
A’BDULLAH B. O’MAR B. ALKHATTÂB GOES TO SYRIA, AND EXCHANGE OF LETTERS AND MESSAGES BETWEEN THE GREAT COMPANIONS AND MOA’WIAH B. ABU SOFIÂN.
It has been recorded before that, after A’bdullah B. O’mar had slain Hormyzân, who was living under the protection of the Bani Hâshem, O’thmân had paid the blood-ransom from the public treasury. When the couch of the Khalifate had become embellished by the person of [A’li,] the governor of the city of the Vicariate, A’bdullah, fearing retaliation, took refuge in Syria, where Moa’wiah, pleased with his arrival, took him to a private apartment, condoled with him for the loss of O’thmân, and desired to make him assent that A’li the Commander of the Faithful had been an accomplice in the martyrdom of Dhu-n-nûryn.80 A’bdullah, however, replied: ‘How could A’li B. Abu Ttâleb, who is adorned with the decorations of high lineage, personal accomplishments, and Divine favours, distinguished and unique, be accused of faults, and by what reasonable or fictitious arguments can the mouth of blame be opened against him? Am I to consider him guilty of the blood of O’thmân to please a few chiefs?’ A’mru B. A´ass observed: ‘The original intention and the whole object [of the above allegation] is to persuade those who are near and far to blot out affection for A’li from their minds, and to imbue them with interest for Moa’wiah.’ Hearing these sentiments, A’bdullah departed from the assembly; whereon Moa’wiah said to A’mru B. A´ass: ‘I swear by God that if it had not been for fear of the sword of A’li, no one would have seen this man in Syria, considering the way in which he extolled the qualities and perfections of the son of Abu Ttâleb in our presence.’ A’mru B. A´ass queried: ‘O Moa’wiah, deniest thou, perchance, the excellent character, the good qualities, and the beautiful genealogy of A’li? By Allah! A’li is such as A’bdullah has described him, and even more excellent. There is no doubt that we have been deceived by worldly aspersions, have deflected from the right path, and have abandoned the service of a blessed man, which is fraught with temporal and eternal happiness. We shall do penance for our acts when it will be of no avail; and it is an old saying, “Verily, thou repentest now, when repentance is of no use.”’ This conversation which had passed between Moa’wiah and A’mru B. A´ass was reported to A’bdullah, who, when the people had assembled, addressed them, according to a promise he had made to Moa’wiah. He mounted the pulpit, lauded God the Most High, uttered salutations to his lordship Muhammad the elect—u. w. bl.—spoke a few words of advice and admonition, and then came down from the pulpit without having uttered a single word about his lordship O’thmân the Commander of the Faithful. Moa’wiah then asked: ‘Was fatigue or weakness the cause of thy silence in the matter of the treachery of A’li towards O’thmân, and of not keeping thy promise?’ A’bdullah replied: ‘I was ashamed before the majesty of the Lord Most High, and the pure, sacred spirit of his lordship the apostle of Allah, to speak a lie in the pulpit, and to accuse the Amir’s lordship [i.e., A’li] of an act which he was very far from committing, and to bear witness in such an assembly to what has never taken place. If I had uttered this falsehood, I and thyself would be reproved in this, and chastised in the next, world.’ Moa’wiah, being disgusted with these sentiments of A’bdullah, henceforth took no more notice of him. When a few days had elapsed in this manner, A’bdullah composed a piece of poetry about O’thmân, his having been killed by the sword of injustice, and this contained also the names of a number of men who had striven to encompass the death of O’thmân. The verses having been brought to the notice of Moa’wiah, he was pleased, called him, apologized to him, and held him in great esteem until he was killed in the battle of Ssafyn.
At this time Moa’wiah consulted A’mru B. A´ass whether it would not be advisable to write a letter to the inhabitants of Madinah, inviting them to follow him; but A’mru replied: ‘That would be of no use, because those people are divided into three factions, one of which boasts of its adherence to A’li B. Abu Ttâleb, and will for the sake of thy message not abandon that great beatitude, but will more intensely adhere to him and reject thee; the other faction consists of the friends of O’thmân, which is extremely weak and helpless, so that its love or enmity is of no account in the affairs of this world; and the third faction has chosen solitude, aiming only at security and tranquillity of mind; it has bidden farewell to A’li and to O’thmân, knows that neither love for Abu Bakr nor for A’li will improve its livelihood, and it will not be influenced by thy letter; as thou art, however, bent on writing one, send it, and if no profit results therefrom neither will loss ensue.’ After holding a consultation on the subject, Moa’wiah despatched a letter to the inhabitants of Madinah, the contents of which were as follows: ‘I was not in Madinah at the time when the people rebelled and assailed O’thmân, and possess no knowledge of the state of affairs then prevailing; but you must be aware that A’li B. Abu Ttâleb co-operated with the inimical faction in destroying the fabric of the Khalifate, and now the murderers of the Khalifah are his intimate friends. I am the legate of O’thmân, and mean to avenge his blood by requiring A’li to surrender his murderers, so that I may retaliate upon them without injuring A’li. I shall entrust the election of a Khalifah to a consultative assembly, as O’mar had submitted it to one, it being a lawful ordinance. If A’li fails to send the murderers to me I shall wage war against him. After these preliminary remarks I invite those of you who loved O’thmân to come to Syria, and by no means to be tardy.’ When the people of Madinah received this letter of Moa’wiah they imagined that it had been written by the advice of A’mru B. A´ass, and they despatched the following reply: ‘Let it be known to A’mru B. A´ass and to Moa’wiah that they have committed a grievous mistake in seeking aid from a distance. What has the affair of the Khalifah to do with words and invitations like these? O Moa’wiah, thou art in reality an escaped convict; and, A’mru B. A´ass, thou art a traitor to the religion! Abstain henceforth from importuning us, and addressing such letters to us.’ When Moa’wiah had perused this answer, he said: ‘Considering that A’bdullah B. O’mar B. Alkhattâb, and Sa’d B. Abu Woqqâss, and Muhammad B. Moslamah the Anssâri, who were great companions of the apostle of Allah [have not been consulted by us], we have acted wrongly in writing a letter to the vagabonds of Madinah. It will now be proper to send a letter to each of those blessed men who have separated from A’li, and to request them to adhere to us.’ It is recorded in several traditions that A’bdullah B. O’mar Alkhattâb had instigated Moa’wiah to write to his brother and to those two honoured men a letter of invitation to follow him. When A’mru B. A´ass had heard of this intention, he said by way of advice: ‘Keep clear of this business, because when A´ayshah, Ttolhah and Zobeyr, who are superior to thee, invited their co-operation, they, being disinclined to assent, placed the hands of refusal upon this request, and their feet upon the skirts of retirement and separation, deeming it incumbent on themselves not to side with either of the two parties [i.e., of A´ayshah and of A’li].’ Moa’wiah desired to have with him a number of the companions of his lordship the apostle—u. w. bl.—but the majority of those blessed men had preferred to attach themselves to his sacred lordship A’li the Commander of the Faithful, so that not more than four of them had intercourse with Moa’wiah, namely, Abu Haryrah, and Abu Durdah, and Abu Asâmah Albâhy, and No’mân B. Bashar, the Anssâri.—Moa’wiah, disregarding the advice of A’mru B. A´ass, sent one letter to A’bdullah B. O’mar, another to Sa’d B. Abu Woqqâss, and a third to Muhammad B. Moslamah, the contents of each of them being as follows: ‘Your lordships are requested to aid your Musalmân brothers in avenging the blood of O’thmân, and to join the camp, so as to become deserving of eternal reward.’ Opposition to A’li the Commander of the Faithful having been attributed, in one of the letters, to the son of O’mar, and his approbation of the insinuation expected, A’bdullah B. O’mar wrote to Moa’wiah in reply: ‘Thy letters have arrived, and their contents have become known. I am astonished at thy inviting me to follow thee, to pay thee allegiance, and to wage war against the Mohâjer and Anssâr. It is known for certain that thy seeking to avenge the blood of O’thmân is nought but a pretext for accomplishing thy ambition to attain dignity [and become Khalifah]. If thou thinkest that I will abandon the side of A’li and will be commanded by thee, thou art grievously mistaken, and thy writing that we have chosen opposition to his lordship, and have retired to our houses, is another mistake. Allah forbid that I should ever oppose A’li and be at enmity with him. Be it known to thee, O Moa’wiah, that although I refrain from partaking in strife and war with Musalmâns, I am mentally with A’li; and if I give my aid to anyone, he is more worthy of it than thyself, his authority in Islâm being more great, and his dignity in the world more exalted than thine; his position with Allah the Most High is more secure, his worthiness to be Khalifah more patent, his striving to elevate the banners of the religion more evident, and his relationship to the prophet the closest of all. He excels all the companions of his lordship the apostle in virtues; he is his cousin and the husband of his daughter. He will be the best of youths in paradise, and his character is the purest. No one prospered who attacked him, and no one who opposed him enjoyed security. As I was unwilling to draw the sword against my own tribe, I remained sitting in my house, and as it is against my nature to fight Musalmâns, I closed my door. How can I, being more excellent than thyself, pay allegiance to thee? and my father as well as my mother are more noble than thy parents. I have now transformed my house into a chapel for worshipping God the Most High and Glorious, till I join the proximity of His mercy. Would that I could live in a place where I could witness neither the dissensions nor the treachery of my contemporaries!
‘The world being faithless, happy are the fawns of the desert
Who have made their resting place in solitude.’
It is recorded in some books that, at the end of his life, A’bdullah B. O’mar had said: ‘I have never regretted anything so much as my failing to do three acts, namely: to pay homage to A’li B. Abu Ttâleb, to wage war against his opponents, and to fast when the weather was hot.’—In the ‘Mostaqassa,’ a tradition of Abu Dhar Ghuffâry is reported to the effect that the apostle of Allah had said: ‘Who opposes the accession of A’li to the Khalifate is to be attacked by you, no matter who he may be; you must kill him.’—As to Sa’d B. Abu Woqqâss, he wrote the following reply to Moa’wiah: ‘I have perused thy letter, and learnt to what a futile behaviour thou invitest me. Thou hast stated that O’thmân has been unjustly killed; be, however, aware that the Lord of both worlds is the wisest Judge, and the best Separator of truth from falsehood. I swear by God that I shall never wage war against A’li B. Abu Ttâleb. I do not assent to thy opposition to A’li, and I have, for fear of the disturbance which has arisen among the adherents of Islâm, preferred to retire and to sit alone in my house.’ Moa’wiah had, in his letter to Sa’d B. Abu Woqqâss, also written: ‘Ttolhah and Zobeyr, who were thy equals in genealogy, and like thee in Islâm, rose to avenge the blood of O’thmân, and A´ayshah co-operated with them, therefore thou must approve of what they approved of.’ Sa’d wrote in reply: ‘If Zobeyr and Ttolhah had not broken faith with A’li B. Abu Ttâleb, it would have been better for them, and if they had not waged war against him it would have been more becoming to their position: may God the Most High and Glorious pardon them, and may the most merciful Lord pass over what the mother of the faithful has done! Farewell.’ As to Muhammad B. Moslamah, his reply to Moa’wiah was this: ‘I am certain that thy purpose in undertaking this business was to attain supreme power, and not to wreak vengeance on those who had a hand in the murder of O’thmân. Be informed that I shall never prefer thy side to that of A’li, and that I shall not oppose him to please thee.’ Moa’wiah had, in his letter to Muhammad B. Moslamah, inserted the following accusation: ‘Thou hast thought proper to delay repelling the assailants at the time of the insurrection, and hast kept aloof till O’thmân perished ignominiously.’ Therefore Muhammad B. Moslamah wrote the following rejoinder: ‘Moa’wiah, when I perceived that disturbances were arising during the Khalifate of O’thmân, I was not able to quell them, and the authority of persons like myself being of no account, I broke my sword, sat down in a corner, and was joined by a number of the friends of the Mussttafa— u. w. bl.—because they also knew that their efforts would be of no avail in settling any affair of this kind; moreover, the prophet—u. w. bl.—had informed me of the catastrophe which would befall O’thmân, and this is the excuse for our remissness to succour him. It is wonderful that thou takest no blame upon thyself in this matter, since O’thmân had, at the time when he was greatly perplexed and closely besieged by the insurgents, sent courier after courier to Syria expecting thy aid, which thou hast delayed and failed to afford, in spite of thy ability to do so, because thy desire was to augment thy own power and authority. Thou hast utterly disregarded thy obligations towards him, and allowed his foes to vanquish him, that thou mightest realize thy own aspirations. Now thou desirest, under the pretext of avenging the blood of O’thmân, to place the crown of dominion upon thy head, and the ring of government on thy finger.’
When the answers of the honoured companions had reached Moa’wiah, he perused them, and A’mru B. A´ass blamed him; then he said: ‘The right was on thy side when thou hast advised me not to write any letters to them; now, however, we must make preparations for hostilities, because we cannot expect any help from those men.’ On this occasion, Moa’wiah ordered the population to assemble in the cathedral mosque of Damascus, and when it had congregated he mounted the pulpit, offered laudations to the Most High, salutations to his lordship the Mussttafa—u. w. bl.—and said: ‘It is evident to the denizens of the world that O’thmân has been unjustly slain, but God the Most High and Glorious will grant victory to his heir, as He said in His revelation: “Whosoever shall be slain unjustly we have given his heir power” [to demand satisfaction].81 But I am the heir of O’thmân, and he, being the successor of O’mar, had vouchsafed to bestow on me the governorship of Syria, and had not removed me from my post. The people who agree with me are walking in the path of rectitude and right direction, and whoever opposes me is a transgressor and rebel. Those are insurgents who slew the Khalifah of the period, and, abandoning him, failed to succour him. At present A’li B. Abu Ttâleb, whom I hate more than anyone in the world, is sitting on the couch of the Khalifate, and making the murderers of O’thmân his intimate friends and courtiers. He has collected an army, is stirring up disturbances, and is marching to wage war against me. I cannot maintain order in the province of Syria without your being loyal and obedient to me. The people of E’râq are more brave in combat than the Syrians, but I am delighted that you are superior to them in patience and firmness. Now, take hold of the jugular vein of forbearance, “for Allah is with the patient.”’82 On this occasion Abu-l-a´ur Salymy said: ‘Moa’wiah, I swear by God that thou canst never do to A’li what he will do to thee, and thou canst not excel in the battlefield like him. We shall, nevertheless, not abandon thee if thou refusest to fight; on the contrary, we incite thee to fight the murderers of O’thmân because our allegiance is still due to him. He was killed by the sword of injustice, thou art his heir and cousin, whilst A’li bore enmity to him, and failing to aid him to ward off his enemies, had abandoned his side. If thou wilt permit, we shall do our best in waging war.’ When Abu-l-a´ur had done speaking, Dhu-l-Kalâgh the Hemyarite said: ‘Moa’wiah, listen to my true words: Although O’thmân had bestowed on thee the governorship of Syria and had exalted thee, thou hast paid no attention to his words and hast afforded him no aid when he was in distress and asked for it. In this behaviour thy aim was that the people should stand in need of thee, have recourse to thee in their affairs, and knock at the door of thy high castle for the solution of their difficulties. Now thou hast attained thy object, and found what thou hast sought. Although thy failing to succour O’thmân was improper, it will now be proper to avenge his blood. Though perchance all the Arab tribes may oppose thee, we shall, with our relatives and confederates, gird our loins of service and exert ourselves to the utmost, until this affair is settled to thy heart’s content.’ After Dhu-l-Kalâgh another Hemyarite continued: ‘O ye people of Syria, there is no one among you who prefers the approbation of the Creator to the approbation of men, and would speak on this subject purely for gaining the approbation of Allah. There is no doubt that A’li B. Abu Ttâleb is—on account of his relationship to his lordship the refuge of the apostolate— u. w. bl.—on account of his character, his person, his noble exile, his daring in battle, and his heroic exploits which would take long to enumerate—the most deserving of the Khalifate and Emâmship. If he attains supremacy in this province the wishes of everyone will be fulfilled. I am not ashamed to utter these words, because they are perfectly true and proper, “for Allah is not ashamed of the truth.”’83 When Moa’wiah heard these words he ordered him to be taken and to be hanged by the neck; as, however, several interceded for him, this man was not punished; afterwards, however, he found an opportunity and escaped to Kûfah, where he narrated the transactions of this assembly of Moa’wiah to his sacred lordship A’li the Commander of the Faithful. It is related that Moa’wiah again addressed that assembly as follows: ‘I desire you to tell me why A’li B. Abu Ttâleb is more worthy and deserving than myself, and in what virtue he excels me? The apostle—u. w. bl.—had appointed me to register the legal alms; my sister is enrolled among the number of the pure spouses of his lordship; I was a lieutenant and governor during the reigns of O’mar and O’thmân in Syria; my father is Abu Sofiân B. Harb, and my mother Hind is the daughter of O’tbah B. Rabya’h. If the notables of Erâq and of the Hejâz have paid allegiance to A’li, the people of Syria have paid it to me, and there is not much difference between him and me. If two men strive for one thing, it will belong to him who vanquishes.’ When he had terminated this speech he wrote a letter to the following effect and sent it to Kûfah: ‘But after [the preliminary greeting], O A’li, if thy behaviour had been like that of the preceding Khalifahs, and if thy life had been in conformity with theirs, I would have followed and not opposed thee, but the wrong thou hast done to O’thmân impeded me from paying homage to thee. As the chiefs of the Hejâz had in former times adhered to sincerity and truth in the affairs of the Khalifate and the government, the keys of regulating the administration remained permanently and worthily under their authority; as they have, however, now swerved from the right way and are walking on the path of intrigue and folly, the important duty of assuming supremacy has devolved on the chiefs of Syria, so that they are engaged in administering the ordinances of the religion and strengthening the edifice of the [sacred] law of the prince of apostles. The argument which thou hast brought forward against Ttolhah and Zobeyr thou canst not use against me, because those two men had paid allegiance to thee; but the case was the contrary with me, although no adherent of Islâm can deny thy knowledge of, and thy consanguinity with, the apostle of Allah, and this is all I have to say.’ When his lordship A’li the Commander of the Faithful had perused this letter, he sent the following reply: ‘But after [the preliminary salutation, I state that] I have received the letter of a man who has gone astray in the desert of aberration, and is drowned in the ocean of lust! He has neither a guide to show him the way, nor a leader who might rescue him from the sea of lust. His passions have beguiled him, he has responded to them, and the hand of greediness has sewn up his eyes, in spite of the wrong which is on his, and the right which is on our side. O Moa’wiah, thou hast written that the wrong I had committed in the times of O’thmân hindered thee from paying me allegiance; but this allegation is unjust, because when that catastrophe occurred I had no work nor occupation, and possessed neither a male nor a female camel, but I was one of the Mohâjer [i.e., exiles], and acting in all circumstances with them. It is patent to all adherents of Islâm that those meek, truthful, and kind men would never embroil themselves in an affair portending aberration and tending to extremities. As to the distinction which thou hast made between thy case and that of Ttolhah and Zobeyr, it is futile, because when those who had been present at Bedr, the Mohâjer and the Anssâr have paid allegiance to a man [i.e., to me], it becomes incumbent on all men to do so. Thou acknowledgest my relationship to the apostle of Allah, but if thou hadst been able thou wouldst have robbed me of that noble privilege.’ After these letters several more passed between A’li the Commander of the Faithful and Moa’wiah, but to avoid prolixity only two more of them are here subjoined:
MOA’WIAH SENDS A LETTER TO THE SHÂH OF MEN AND LION OF GOD, A’LI B. ABU TTÂLEB—P. O. H.—AND RECEIVES AN ANSWER BY THE AID OF ALLAH—WHO BE SANCTIFIED AND EXALTED.
‘But after [the usual preliminary, I say that,] having done thy utmost in riding the horse of aberration, thou art running on the plain of extremes, but shunning the field of battle and contest. In menaces and threats thou art like a roaring lion, but art a runaway fox in hostilities; in writing letters thou art full of boasting, but remiss and dilatory in time of war. If thou wilt leave off these tricks and venture into the lines of battle, thou wilt see men of sincere aspirations and true intentions, able to prostrate elephants, to contend with roaring lions, and skilled enough with the lance to pick off the mole from the countenance of the moon. If the mercy of God is withheld from thee, and thou persistest to such an extent in darkness and injustice that the vicissitudes of time drive thee into the battlefield, and thou beholdest my just-mentioned champions drawn out in battle-array, thou wilt be overtaken by the chastisement due to thy acts, so that thy life will come to an end, and the denizens of the world will be delivered of thy arrogance.’ When A’li the Commander of the Faithful—p. o. h.—had perused this distasteful letter of Moa’wiah, he sent him the following reply: ‘From the servant of Allah, the Commander of the Faithful, to Moa’wiah, the son of Ssakhrâ! But after [this preliminary, I say that] I am astonished at the futile, vain, and ridiculous allegations thou hast written in detail and sent. I have taken the measure of thy intellect, am acquainted with thy capacity, and know how disastrous thy end will be. In conformity with the saying that “affairs depend upon their times,” the fight between me and thee will take place at a season for which I look, but thou abhorrest. Now I expect with the eye of certainty the time when I shall see the champions enter the battlefield, and I shall so work with my Dhu-l-fiqâr that thou wilt groan like a camel under a heavy load. O son of her who was eating livers,84 I mean to say that when thou standest in the battle thy voice of lamentation will strike my ear, thou wilt implore me and say to me: “How long will these straight arrows, curved swords, flying javelins, and cutting scimitars be wounding and slaying us?” Confused by the dreadful onslaughts of the warriors, thou wilt take hold of the skirt of supplication and run to and fro in thy distress. This fate will befall you, it having been predestined in the Preserved Table and established according to the Divine volume; but you disbelieve it, and place no faith therein. Peace be unto him who follows the true guidance.’ When this letter arrived in Syria, and Moa’wiah with A’mru B. A´ass had perused it, the latter said: ‘How long wilt thou write hard and bitter words to A’li, who will reply to thee even in more angry terms? By God! if all the writers of Syria were to combine, they would be unable to vie with his eloquence and oratory. Advance if thou desirest war, but negotiate if thou art inclined for peace, because A’li himself means nothing more than this. It is at any rate certain that this correspondence and exchange of messages will only result in vexations, and not in the settlement of difficulties.’ These opinions of A’mru B. A´ass having been approved of by Moa’wiah, he ceased writing letters, and ordered his troops to be in readiness.
HIS SACRED LORDSHIP A’LI THE COMMANDER OF THE FAITHFUL — U. W. P. — AND MOA’WIAH MARCH TO SSAFYN, AND ACCOUNT OF SOME EVENTS WHICH TOOK PLACE.
When it became evident to the world-adorning mind of the Khalifah of the period that the ardour of the dark-hearted people of Syria could not be appeased except by the bright scimitars of blood-drinking warriors, and that the enmity and hostility of Moa’wiah B. Abu Sofiân could not be put an end to except by using the sword and the lance, he despatched couriers into all parts of the country, ordering all valiant and bold men to hasten to the threshold of the Khalifate and court of Emâmship. Thus numbers of troops assembled in a short time in the district of Kûfah, the like of which had seldom congregated in past ages. It being the intention of A’li the Commander of the Faithful to attack the professors of schism and enmity, he mounted the pulpit after the Friday prayers, praised the Omnipotent Sovereign, addressed greetings to the prophet, and poured forth limpid streams of admonition and advice to irrigate the gardens of the hopes of sincere believers. When he had finished his brilliant sermon, the like of which the best orators of the bright religion confessed their inability to produce, he addressed the nobles and prominent men who were present in the cathedral mosque as follows: ‘O men, set your minds on the annihilation and extirpation of the rebels and enemies, and hasten to wage war against them, because they are the foes of religious ordinances and of the Qurân; they are the slayers of Mohâjer and Anssâr, the assassins of good and of righteous men. Some of them have professed Islâm from fear, and some to gain worldly advantages; some possess very little knowledge of the religion, and some none at all.’ On this occasion a man of the Bani Qorârah, Azyd by name, turned towards the Amir of the Faithful, and said: ‘O A’li, thou desirest us to wage war against the people of Syria, who are our brothers in Islâm, in the same way as we have fought with the troops of Bossrah and the mother of the faithful; I swear by God that we shall never do such a thing.’ Incensed at the words of Azyd, Mâlek Ashtar impatiently said: ‘Take hold of this man, for what he has said is bad.’ Azyd then ran away from the mosque, but was pursued, and struck down with blows of sandals in such a manner that he died on the spot, but as it could not be ascertained who had killed him, A’li the Commander of the Faithful paid the blood-ransom to his heirs from the public treasury. After Azyd had been slain, Mâlek Ashtar spoke in the same meeting as follows: ‘O Amir of the Faithful, think not that we shall, on account of these foolish words which have reached thy noble audition, take off our hands from the skirt of loyalty to thee, and incur the blame of tardiness in serving and aiding thee, because the people here assembled, whom thou hast honoured with thy regard and favour, are thy well-wishers, and do not consider it permissible to abandon thy heaven-aspiring retinue, and they do not wish to live one moment after thy death, which God forbid. We must proceed to extirpate the foes with pure intentions and a firm determination to do our utmost to annihilate them.’ After the notables of the government and the buttresses of the religion, such as A’mmâr B. Yâser, and Sohayl B. Hanyf, and Qays B. Sa’d, and A’dy B. Hâtim Ttây, and many others whose names are registered in works of biography and of campaigns, had corroborated the declaration of Mâlek, and professed their eagerness to combat the foes of the victorious government, the representatives of the tribes who were present in that assembly accepted the invitation of his sacred lordship the Commander of the Faithful, excepting only a small party of the companions of A’bdullah B. Masu’d and the readers of the words of the affectionate Sovereign,85 who said: ‘O Emâm of the Musalmâns, although we admit thy perfect and laudable qualities, we cannot see how we might wage war against our tribesmen; if thou orderest us to guard some frontiers of Islâm, and allowest us to fight unbelievers, it will be a great favour.’ His lordship assented to their request, ordered them to march in the direction of Qazwyn and Ray; and having tied a flag for those men, appointed Rabyi’ B. Khusha’m to be their commander. On this occasion it reached the most noble audition of the Shah of the Vicariate that a number of leaders of the troops, such as Hajar B. A’dy and Muhammad B. Alhamy, had lengthened their tongues with reprobations and curses against Moa’wiah: but this information displeased his august nature, and he prohibited them from using such language, but they replied: ‘The right is on our side, and Moa’wiah with his adherents being wrong, why should we be hindered [to curse him]?’ His lordship replied: ‘I swear by the Lord of the Ka’bah that the case is such; I do not want you, however, to curse and swear, but you must raise your hands in prayer, and say: “O God, spare their blood, and vouchsafe to bring on peace between them and us. Guide those who are walking on the path of error to the straight road. Change their folly and ignorance into knowledge, and convey those, who are thirsting in the desert of hostility, to the fountain-head of grace.”’
The U’lamâ who wrote histories have recorded that when the magnates of the country had determined to march to Syria, his sacred lordship A’li the Commander of the Faithful issued orders for a proclamation to the troops to assemble in the locality of Nakhylah, commanding Habyb Alyarbuu’y, who was the quartermaster-general of the army, to assign a suitable place to each of the chiefs, appointing Abu Masu’d, the Anssâry, to be his own lieutenant in Kûfah. Then he started himself with the magnates of Kûfah and some of the great companions of the apostle of Allah to Nakhylah, where he remained several days, till he was joined by Ebn A’bbâs and the troops from Bossrah, and according to one tradition, ninety thousand warriors tried in battle assembled under the victory-boding standards of the Amir of the Faithful. It is related that on this occasion eighty men who had been present at Bedr, and eight hundred of those blessed individuals who attended on his holy and prophetic lordship—u. w. bl.—when he marched to Mekkah, and had attained felicity by paying him allegiance under the tree at Hodaybiah, were enrolled among the companions of A’li the Commander of the Faithful.—It is known to be true that, when the Emâm of the pious A’li B. Abu Ttâleb marched to Ssafyn, Awys Qarn, whom it is not necessary to make known, sought the company of his lordship and considered it a great blessing, and also the Lion of Allah, being much pleased with his arrival, showed him much respect and honour, listening during that march to the blessed utterances of Awys, who on his part likewise greatly profited by learning from him the arcana of science, until he departed to paradise from the wounds which he had received from the enemies in the battle of Ssafyn—may Allah have mercy on him.
In short, Ali the Commander of the Faithful marched with his army in good order from Nakhylah. When the time for the anterior prayers had arrived, he alighted at a mosque which was on the road, and held short orisons, whereon he continued to march on the wings of celerity till he arrived at the convent of Abu Mûsa, and having recited the afternoon prayers on the bank of the Euphrates, departed. He held the sunset prayers at Madâin-Sâbâtt where also the troops allied to victory encamped, and the landholders of the place arrived with gifts, which were, however, not accepted. After having spent the night there, he marched again till he entered the metropolis of Kesra Naushirwân, from which he continued his march from stage to stage till he arrived on the frontiers of Jazirah Arab, at a monastery which had a steeple on the top of it, and was inhabited by one monk. His lordship halted there and shouted to the monk, who, having heard the dreadful voice, made his appearance on the top of his cell. He was a lean man of sallow complexion, dressed in black, and A’li the Amir of the Faithful asked him: ‘Hast thou any water, for my people are thirsty?’ The monk replied: ‘Wait a moment, and I shall bring a bucket of sweet water.’ The Amir continued: ‘That quantity of water will not suffice.’ The monk said: ‘I shall bring water enough for twenty persons.’ The Amir of the Musalmâns continued: ‘I have a great multitude with me.’ The monk replied: ‘I have three vessels full of water, all of which I shall present to you, pouring out at your feet whatever I possess.’ The Amir of the Faithful continued: ‘O monk, near this steeple there is a spring, of which six men of the sons of Israel drank water; that fountain is, however, not visible at present, but concealed, like the Water of Life.’86 The monk having heard these words, came down from the roof and said: ‘I have a tradition from my father, which he had from his, that there is a concealed spring in this place, which no one can open except the prophet or his legatee, namely, his lordship the Amir.’ The Commander of the Faithful replied: ‘I shall discover this spring if it pleaseth Allah the Most High.’ The monk asked: ‘What is thy name?’ He replied: ‘A’li, the son of Abu Ttâleb.’ The monk continued: ‘I possess a writing of my father, wherein the name of the prophet of latter times, and the name of him who will discover this fountain, is written; and if this problem is solved by thy efforts, I shall make my profession of Islâm at thy hands.’ Then the Amir of the Faithful walked to the east side, and drew a circle of about twenty cubits in circumference, the interior of which he ordered to be dug up. When the people had begun excavating, they found a big stone, which the strongest of them were unable to move from its place. The Amir of the Faithful hereon said: ‘If God—who be exalted and glorified—is willing, I shall remove this stone from the spring.’ The monk asked: ‘How canst thou undertake such a task, since a number of strong men doing their best were unable to move the stone?’ A’li the Commander of the Faithful said: ‘O monk, one day I was walking with the apostle of Allah, when the eye of that prince suddenly alighted on some Qoraish chiefs who were unable to move a stone by their combined efforts. The apostle then addressed them as follows: “You imagine that this is strength, whereas that is strength which when you are overpowered by anger enables you to subdue it.” After that he mounted to the top of the hill Abu Qabys, and rolled down a big stone?? When that stone remained fixed on the ground, he asked with his wonderfully eloquent tongue: “Who will lift up this stone?” They replied: “No one is strong enough to do it.” The apostle of Allah continued: “Let all of you rise [and try], except my uncles Hamzah and Abbâs and my cousin A’li.” The accursed Abu Jahl laughed at these words, and asked: “Who is this child, that thou hast not reckoned him among thy uncles?” When the prophet— u. w. bl.—had observed the sneering of Abu Jahl, he said: “I know something which you do not know;” and continued: “O A’li, utter the words, ‘Lâ haul wa lâ quwat,’87 and raise the stone.” I spoke these words and lifted the stone in the easiest manner.” O monk, we are the keepers of Divine treasures and heirs of celestial revelations.’ Having said these words, Ali the Commander of the Faithful placed his breast against the stone, made an effort, and having lifted the stone in spite of its size, threw it to a distance, whereon pure wholesome water gushed, and the soldiers as well as the cattle having quenched their thirst, the faith of the people in the Vicariate of his lordship increased on account of that miracle. After the monk had seen what took place, he donned the garment of Islâm, and asked permission to show the writing which had descended to him from his ancestors to his lordship. That document, which was in the Syriac language and has been translated, bore the following information: ‘Shima’ûn has a tradition that the Messiah—p. o. h.—said: “After me God the Most High, who is to be praised, will send a prophet who is to be the seal [i.e., the last] of the prophets and apostles. He will be kind and never harsh; will not raise his voice in public thoroughfares, will not requite evil, but pardon it, and pass over it in mercy. His people will be secretly and openly engaged in praise of the Lord—who be blessed and exalted. When he departs from this perishable world, his adherents will, after contending, again harmonize with each other. Some time afterwards, hostilities will a second time arise among them, and an individual of his nation will pass near the shores of this sea with people from the east, with the intention of attacking the people of the west. That individual will resemble the said prophet—u. w. bl.—in form and character more than any other person. That individual will judge according to truth and righteousness; he will abstain from intrigues and bribery in the transaction of affairs, and will consider the accumulation of wealth more despicable than that of rubbish. Death will be more acceptable and easier to him than water flowing into a thirsty throat. He will fear God secretly and openly, deal equitably and justly, and let everyone living in his time obey him, because who pleases him will also gain the approbation of the Lord Most High, and blessed is he who will live to see him.”’ After his sacred lordship Ali the Commander of the Faithful had obtained cognizance of this document, he opened his propitious mouth in laudations to the Self-existent,88 and said: ‘How shall I render thanks for this favour, that I am in His sight one of the recorded, and not of the excluded?’ The monk said: ‘O Amir of the Faithful, I shall never leave thy service and shall attend on thy heaven-aspiring stirrup all my life in prosperity or calamity, despite any trouble or injury which may befall me in this world.’ Hâbybat Alghurby states that this youth remained with the Amir of the Faithful until he attained martyrdom in the battle of Ssafyn, where his lordship held general funeral prayers over his corpse, and said: ‘He is one of my family.’
It is recorded in certain histories that when A’li the Amir of the Faithful departed from Madâin he left Sa’d B. Masu’d, who was the uncle of Mukhtâr B. Abu O’baydah Thaqfy, in charge of that locality, and sent Moa’qal B. Qays with three thousand cavalry towards Maussul, ordering him to join his lordship at Raqqah, while he himself marched [directly] to that town; the people of which, however, who were the well-wishers of O’thmân and adherents of Moa’wiah, openly manifested enmity, and refused to construct a bridge across the Euphrates which they had been ordered to make for the army to cross the river, whereon the Amir of the Faithful went to another ferry. Mâlek Ashtar then threatened the inhabitants of Raqqah, saying: ‘If you disobey the order of the Khalifah of the period to which obedience is due, I shall cause the sharp sabre and blood-shedding scimitar to be your judge, shall take possession of your children and property, ravaging and devastating your country.’ This menace caused the people of Raqqah to tremble in all their limbs, so that, placing their heads upon the line of submission, they constructed a bridge over the Euphrates, whereon A’li the Commander of the Faithful returned and crossed the river by means of that bridge with his victory-allied army.
Some chroniclers state that when Moa’wiah received the news that A’li the Commander of the Faithful had crossed the bridge at Raqqah, he convoked the officers of his army and addressed them as follows: ‘Be it known unto you, that the lion of the army, and incomparable warrior, A’li B. Abu Ttâleb, has, with the champions of E’râq, the troopers of the Hejâz, the braves of Kûfah, the strife-seeking men of Bossrah, the Anssâri lancers and valiant swordsmen, marched forth and is bent on destroying you. He has also brought with him every one whom he considered to possess some valour and boldness. If the vagabond Arab tribes, greedy to plunder and to devastate Syria, also join his army, it is certain that they will be ready to wage war against you. If you are inclined to fight, you must take firm hold of the handle of patience in order to gain the victory.’ After Moa’wiah B. Abu Sofiân had spoken these words, Merwân B. Alhukum and Dhu-l-kalâgh, the Hemyarite, and Hausheb Dhi Ttelym, and Abu-l-a´ur Salmy, with all the officers, willingly and gladly exclaimed: ‘We shall fight in attendance on thee and sacrifice our lives, doing our utmost to wreak vengeance on the enemies of O’thmân. Not only ourselves, but the whole population of Syria, the simple and the gentle, are waiting for thy orders, to which obedience is due.’ On that occasion the information arrived that A’li the Commander of the Faithful had cast his anchor of permanency on the bank of the river Euphrates, opposite to the town of Raqqah, making that locality the camp of his army. This information excited the ardour of Moa’wiah, and he ordered Abu-l-a´ur to march in that direction with numerous troops, so as to gain some advantage when an opportunity presented itself. When A’li Murtadza had been informed of the approach of Abu-l-a´ur, he despatched Zyâd B. Nassar and Sharykh B. Hâny, with a portion of the army, to attack those ill-starred men. Zyâd and Sharykh obeyed orders, marched, reached the vicinity of the camp of Abu-l-a´ur, and having ascertained that his troops were numerous, they halted in the place they were in, and asked the Amir of the Faithful for reinforcements. When the ray of this news had touched the front of his lordship’s luminous mind, he knew that none of the Amirs and notables of the army would go to their assistance except Mâlek Ashtar, therefore he said to him: ‘Zyâd and Sharykh have sent a courier with the message: “Abu-l-a´ur has girded his loins for war with a large army, imposing like the revolving sphere, and is ready to fight; we, however, apprehending that the Evil Eye89 might affect us, have delayed hostilities until we are reinforced by a trustworthy and brave company of warriors.” Now, O Mâlek, the aversion of a catastrophe depends upon thy far-seeing discernment and strong arm! Thou must quickly march to aid and reinforce them with thy friends according to thy disposition, but do not forestall the enemy in the conflict; if, however, thou perceivest them to be bent thereon, thou art first to give them salutary advice and invite them to pay me allegiance. If they accept thy proposal, so much the better; in the contrary case, however, thou must implore aid at the Court of Monotheism in thy conflict with the partisans of schism and opposition, and must, trusting in Divine favour, do thy utmost to annihilate them. Inform me of the results of the battle which will take place, and shouldst thou stand in need of assistance, fail not to let me know it without delay, because we shall not hold ourselves excused from promoting thy interests and fulfilling thy hopes.’ Mâlek Ashtar having cheerfully accepted the instructions of the Shâh and refuge of the Vicariate, marched with a number of brave men, and never halted in any place till he reached the vicinity of the enemy’s camp.
Some of the U’lamâ of histories have recorded that A’bdullah B. Abbâs, having left Abu-l-aswad Dylamy as his lieutenant in Bossrah, joined A’li the Commander of the Faithful at Nakhlah [supra Nakhylah] with the troops of that district. Then his lordship ordered Zyâd B. Nassar and Sharykh B. Hâny, each in command of six thousand cavalry, to march in advance of the victory-allied army to Syria. The said two officers of high dignity departed from Nakhlah in conformity to the orders to which obedience was due, and sent, on the third day after their departure, information to the troops, that the next day A’li the Amir of the Faithful would follow, marching after this vanguard, and that no man was to lag behind. On the fourth day the drum of departure was struck, and the [main body of the] army started from Nakhlah, and when it had reached the neighbourhood of the city of Bâbel [Babylon], A’li the Commander of the Faithful said: ‘This is a town which has many times been by turns populated and deserted; you must quickly impel your quadrupeds, so that we may hold our second prayers outside this locality.’ Accordingly the people marched in haste, and alighting from their beasts, after passing through Bâbel, held their afternoon prayers under the leadership of the Emâm of the Musalmâns. Then they started again, and, passing the monastery of Ka’b, halted in Sâbâtt-Madâin, where they spent the night. The next day A’li the Commander of the Faithful mounted, and eighty thousand cavalry started with him besides camp-followers and servants. When Madâin had become the camping-ground of the victory-boding army, he ordered Moa’qal B. Qays to march to Nassibyn by way of Maussul, and to join his lordship at Raqqah, as has already been recorded above. When Moa’qal had reached the vicinity of Maussul, which was at that time very populous, he beheld two companies fighting, but neither of them inclined to give way till an individual arrived who separated them. A man of the Bani Khusha’m, who was with Moa’qal and had witnessed this scene, said: ‘In this march we shall conquer and not be conquered.’ Moa’qal replied: ‘May the end be prosperous! thy omen will be fulfilled if it pleaseth Allah the Most High.’ But when it reached the most noble audition of the Amir of the Faithful what the Khusha’my had said, he reproved him.
When the exalted banners, which are the signs of victory, had passed across the Euphrates, the noble order was issued to Zyâd B. Nassar and Sharykh B. Hâny to march in the vanguard, whereon they, hastening their march, encountered Abu-l-a´ur in a place called Sûd´am, but refrained from hostilities, and sent information to A’li the Commander of the Faithful that the enemies were extremely numerous. His lordship then appointed Mâlek Ashtar to the command of a force of three thousand men to fight Abu-l-a´ur, and sent after him Hâshem B. O’tbah B. Abu Woqqâss. When Mâlek Ashtar had joined Zyâd and Sharykh, he remained quiet and dignified, sending, according to the command of the Amir of the Faithful, a letter to Abu-l-a´ur, inviting him to pay allegiance. The bearer of the letter was Abu Najdah Alarzâny, who enjoyed great honour and respect with his sacred lordship the Amir of the Faithful and lion of God, on account of his asceticism, piety, and scorn of mundane wealth. A certain individual named Dâud states: ‘At the time when I was in the vanguard of the army of Abu-l-a´ur, I perceived Abu Najdah suddenly making his appearance, and imagined him to be an Arab vagabond; I therefore intercepted his way, desiring to joke with him. When Abu Najdah perceived my intention, he said: “O ye brothers of Satans, it was not enough for you to obstruct the way of the religion to those who have attained certainty, and you must forsooth now bar the road to all Musalmâns.” I replied: “The way is broad.” He continued: “There is an opening in Hind [i.e., India] and in Sind; why do you not obstruct the way of unbelievers?” I asked: “Who art thou, and what is thy intention?” He replied: “I am the envoy of Mâlek Ashtar, who commands the army of the Amir of the Faithful.”’ Dâud continues: ‘When I learnt who he was, I showed him the way, and he reached the camp of the army.’ There is a tradition of Abu Najdah that he said: ‘When I had come near the tent of Abu-l-a´ur, I saw two drunken men issuing from it; I saw also a carpet close thereto, and drove my horse on to it, whereon some persons exclaimed: “O mannerless fellow, alight!” I replied: “Humility towards profligates is not permitted.” When I entered the assembly of Abu-l-a´ur I forbore to salute him, but said: “O Abu-l-a´ur, thou, with thy companions, enjoyest forbidden things, and I have seen some of them coming out from thy tent drunk!” Abu-l-a´ur said: “Deliver thy message.” Then I gave him the letter of Mâlek with some advice, which was rejected; he wrote, however, a reply, praising Moa’wiah and the Bani Ommyah, which he handed to me, and dismissed me. When I reached Mâlek I gave him the letter of Abu-l-a´ur, which he handed to his son, saying: “Take good care of this letter that it may be an argument for me with the Amir of the Faithful.” Then he began to draw out his army, placing Zyâd B. Nassar in charge of the right, and Sharykh B. Hâny of the left wing. Then he ordered the drums to be beaten, and marched forthwith against the enemy. Abu-l-a´ur, on his part, likewise prepared for the contest, and inciting A’bdullah B. Mundhar Alshaukhy, who was a renowned warrior, to attack Mâlek, said to him: “No one can vanquish him except thyself. Make haste to slay Mâlek, because he was the murderer of O’thmân, and by killing him thou wilt rise greatly in the estimation of Moa’wiah.” A’bdullah replied: “I am reluctant to come in contact with Mâlek, but if a thousand like him encounter me, I shall vanquish them.” Abu-l-a´ur said: “His death will be a great relief to me.” After the solicitations of Abu-l-a´ur had exceeded all bounds, A’bdullah entered the list of combat, and Zyâd B. Nassar wanted to fight a duel with him, but Mâlek prohibited him, and stepped out of the line himself, approached A’bdullah, and asked: “What is thy name?” His opponent replied: “My thrusts and blows will immediately apprise thee thereof.” Mâlek continued: “Thou art one of the fools of Syria, and not my peer! Return.” Then A’bdullah revealed his personality, whereon Mâlek said: “Thou art a well-known man and a warrior; it is a pity that thou hast gone astray in the desert of aberration, and hast come out to fight against the legitimate Emâm.” A’bdullah asked: “Has not Moa’wiah been engaged during the lifetime of the prince of existences in writing down Divine revelations?” Mâlek replied: “Thou speakest the truth; but one day the apostle of Allah sent for Moa’wiah, who, being lazy, answered that he was just then engaged in eating his food. When this reply of Moa’wiah reached the exalted audition of the best of creatures, he said: ‘O Lord, may his stomach not be filled!’ Afterwards it happened that Moa’wiah retained the man till he took away the food, but said: ‘How long must I eat? for I have got tired.’ And he could by no means eat his fill.”’—Then Mâlek Ashtar enumerated the virtues and exploits of A’li the Commander of the Faithful, and A’bdullah said: ‘O Mâlek, thy words are true and sincere. I have an estate in Syria of the value of two hundred thousand dirhems, as well as a family and children. I shall neither fight with you, nor enter the battlefield for Moa’wiah.’ Having said these words, A’bdullah returned to his army, and Abu-l-a´ur perceiving this, said to himself: ‘I think he has beguiled and sent him back.’ Then Abu-l-a´ur sent a Damascus horseman to A’bdullah, to persuade him by flattery to return, whereon he, deceived by the horseman, again rode up to Mâlek Ashtar, and said: ‘Nothing but the sword can put an end to our hostility.’ Then Mâlek Ashtar placed his hand on his life-destroying spear, and the two warriors fought till they became exhausted. Then they stuck their lances into the ground, rested awhile, and again renewed the combat; at last, however, Mâlek so pierced the breast of A’bdullah with his lance that it came out at the back. Mâlek then capered about on the battle-ground, challenging Abu-l-a´ur to a duel; the latter, however, sent him O’beydullah B. Mundhar, who was the elder brother of A’bdullah, and Mâlek cut off his forearm with the fingers by one blow of his sword. O’beydullah then hastened back to his line, whereon that courageous hero again challenged Abu-l-a´ur, who sent him Hâtum Almundhar, and he was disabled by Mâlek like his predecessors. Muttraf B. A’bdullah Alqurâry then came out to fight Mâlek, who, having recognised him, said: ‘Between me and thee there are duties of acquaintance; why failest thou to observe them?’ He replied: ‘Thou speakest the truth. The duties of companionship and of salt are incumbent on us; and now, abstaining to fight with thee, I shall return.’ When, however, Muttraf turned away his face, Mâlek severed his head with one blow of the sword, and throwing it on the battle-ground, exclaimed:
‘As thou hast acted ill, be not safe from calamities,
Because nature gives an impulse to revenge.’
Afterwards Zyâd B. Nassar asked for an explanation of this behaviour, and Mâlek replied: ‘This accursed fellow entered the list on the day of Jamal, and, when he asked for a champion, was met by Qâsum, the nephew of Zaid B. Ssuhân. On that occasion Muttraf said to him: ‘Return, because thy father is my friend, and therefore I do not wish to fight with thee.’ When Qâsum, desirous to go back, turned his face, that coward slew him with one blow, and now I have repaid him for what he had done to that youth.’ After Muttraf had been killed, his nephew Hamzah stepped out to avenge him, but Mâlek wounded him on the head, so that he fell from his horse and died. After Hamzah had been slain, Abu-l-a´ur sent the following message to Mâlek: ‘In our camp there are one thousand renowned champions; and if they were one by one to enter the battle-field, the contest would be of long duration; it will, therefore, be best that the two armies attack each other.’ Mâlek, having assented to this proposal, ordered the centre, the right and the left wing to be put in motion, whereon a general battle ensued. During this fight Mâlek said to his friends: ‘I should like to see Abu-l-a´ur, to ascertain what kind of a man he is, of whose presence Moa’wiah was boasting so much.’ They replied: ‘Behold him; there he is on a gray horse, opposite to thee on a hill.’ Then Mâlek Ashtar despatched a man, Senân by name, to go and say to Abu-l-a´ur: ‘Mâlek tells thee, “Come forward, that we may caper about on the ground using our swords and lances.”’ Senân asked: ‘Shall I invite him to fight a duel with me, or with thee?’ Mâlek in his turn queried: ‘O Senân, art thou able to cope with him?’ He replied: ‘I swear by God that if thou orderest me to assail this mountain, which is opposite to us, I shall do it; I fear nothing.’ Mâlek then praised Senân, and continued: ‘I know thou speakest the truth, but possibly Abu-l-a´ur may tell thee that thou art not his peer, and then thou must tell him that I am challenging him to a duel.’ When Senân had delivered the message to Abu-l-a´ur, the latter said: ‘In the fulness of his ignorance and stupidity, he has blamed the laudable qualities and exploits of O’thmân, manifested enmity towards him, and by his efforts that persecuted Khalifah was at last deprived of the jewel of dominion and of the cask of his life. There is no doubt that he who has slain the legitimate Khalifah is not my peer, and I shall not fight with a man who is not my equal.’ Senân continued: ‘Thou hast had thy say; now listen to mine.’ Abu-l-a´ur, however, replied: ‘What hast thou to do in this matter? Return forthwith, and report what thou hast heard.’ Senân went back and told Mâlek, who smiled at his words, and said: ‘Fear for his life would not allow Abu-l-a´ur to enter the list. Had he met me, he would not have escaped the grasp of death.’ Having been disappointed in his wish to fight with Abu-l-a´ur, Mâlek Ashtar ordered the army to make a general onslaught upon the enemy, whereon a sanguinary battle ensued, which lasted the whole day; and when the monarch of luminaries was about to conquer the western realms [i.e., at sunset], Abu-l-a´ur was so frightened and dismayed that he retreated under cover of the night, joined Moa’wiah, and said: ‘It was proper to meet thee before a rout set in.’ Moa’wiah praised him, started in haste, and proceeded, ordering Sofiân B. Am’ru and Abu-l-a´ur to march more quickly than the rest of the army, and to find a suitable camping-ground for it; and after they had reconnoitred the district, they pitched on the plain of Ssafyn, in which there was a locality containing in ancient times high edifices and royal palaces. In that locality there was, however, only one road by which access could be obtained to the Euphrates; and after both [the contending] armies had reached the said locality, a battle was fought for the possession of the road to the water, as shall be narrated if Allah the Most High willeth.
SECOND BATTLE BETWEEN MÂLEK ASHTAR AND
ABU-L-A´UR.
When Moa’wiah B. Abu Sofiân had arrived in Ssafyn before A’li the Commander of the Faithful, and had encamped there with his army, he ordered Abu-l-a´ur with ten thousand experienced warriors to guard the passage to the water, and not to allow one of the people of E’râq and companions of the legitimate Khalifah to moisten his throat with a drink of water. Meanwhile, his sacred lordship A’li the Commander of the Faithful halted after his arrival in the locality with the great Mohâjer, Anssâr, and the chiefs of districts and countries in the vicinity of the camp of Moa’wiah. When numbers of servants and camp-followers of the victory-boding army were about to approach the river-bank to bring water to the camp of the army, Abu-l-a´ur, whose skirt was moist but his brains dry, interposed between those people, not allowing them to accomplish their intention. His lordship the Amir of the Faithful, who had witnessed this disgraceful proceeding, despatched Ssa’ssa’h B. Suhân A’bdy as an envoy to Moa’wiah, with the following message: ‘We have collected an army and arrived from a great distance, in order to settle the affair of the Khalifate, which is one of the important concerns of the religion. It was our intention, first, to advise you, to point out the right road to you, to abstain from hostilities, and not to begin the conflict. Now, however, some of thy soldiers have hindered the people from obtaining access to the water, which the Universal Dispenser has made free and allowed to all His worshippers. It is hoped that thou wilt order them to abstain from so improper a behaviour and to make no difficulties; if, however, thou art inclined for contention, and those men who are drowned in the sea of aberration persevere in their unworthy purpose, there is no doubt that this affair will end in a conflict, wherein the use of the Dhu-l-fiqâr and the movements of bright scimitars will cause torrents of blood to flow in the field of battle. Be it known unto thee for a certainty, O Moa’wiah, that if I had encamped in this locality before you, I would have made no difficulties about the water, and would have kept the meadow of the hopes of friends and foes equally irrigated with the outpourings of Divine abundance.’ After Ssa’ssa’h had delivered his message, Moa’wiah held a consultation with his intimate friends and pillars of his state as to what answer should be sent. He was hesitating whether he ought to place the hand of refusal upon the breast of the wishes of his lordship the receptacle of the Vicariate, or whether he ought to recall Abu-l-a´ur from the path of extreme measures to the right road. Lobeyd B. O’tbah B. Abu Mo’ytt and A’bdullah B. Abu Sarj said [in that consultation]: ‘Most of the people who have encamped opposite to us were accomplices in the murder of O’thmân, because at the time when he was besieged, as is known to everybody, they withheld their assistance from him, and it will be proper that at this time when we have the force, power, and inclination, we should distress them by keeping them away from the water, not allowing them to approach it at all, and if A’li Murtadza leaves this spot, betaking himself to another, where he can easily get water, this very fact will be a kind of flight.’ A’mru B. A´ass said: ‘O Moa’wiah, do not imagine that A’li will bear thirst, and that his troops will contemplate the water of the Euphrates with dewy [i.e., tearful, longing] eyes, considering that at present the brave cavalry of E’râq and the royal horsemen of the adjacent districts are under his command. Moreover, our objects in marching from Damascus were our love of the Khalifate, and our desire to avenge the blood of the chief of the religion, which have nothing whatever to do with this wrangling about water; and the rest [how to act] is known to thee.’ Although A’mru B. A´ass adduced other reasonable arguments, that such a proceeding would only increase the estrangement, they were of no use, and Moa’wiah, who had made prohibition and resistance his motto, said: ‘This is the first victory we have gained, and may the Bountiful Dispenser not quench the thirst of Moa’wiah on the day of requital [in paradise] from the lake of the Mussttafa—o. w. p.—if those people obtain a drink of water from the Euphrates without using force and conquering us.’ It is on record that on this occasion a man of the Azd tribe, who was in the assembly, said: ‘O Moa’wiah, thou hast disregarded the laws of philanthropy, and not fulfilled the dictates of justice and equity. If thy antagonists were Turks of the Byzantine country, humanity would require thee first to refresh them with water and bread, and then to fight; but these are men who have been present at Bedr, and have joyfully paid allegiance; noble Mohâjer and Anssâr, and respected followers. Among these men there are sons of the uncles of the prophet of the last times—u. w. bl. O Moa’wiah, fear the wrath of the Avenging Victor! Be on thy guard, and scratch not the countenance of philanthropy with the nail of impudence.’ Then, on the other hand, Wolyd B. O’tbah manifested his wickedness, saying: ‘It is necessary to keep off the troops of A’li Murtadza from the water, and I entertain hopes that on the day of the resurrection God the Most High will keep them off from enjoying the water of the lake Kawthar.’ But Ssa’ssa’h replied to him: ‘The Lord—whose name be blessed and sanctified—will in the next world deprive of water infidels and hypocrites like thee, because thou hast committed sins, drunk wine, gone to the mosque, and hast led the prayers of the Musalmâns in a state of intoxication, making in thy heedlessness four, instead of the two prescribed prayer-flexions, and being about to dismiss the congregation, thou hast said: “O friends, this day I am much pleased and delighted. If you are willing, I shall make several more flexions for you.” When O’thmân had obtained cognizance of this wicked act and disgraceful expression, he removed thee from thy post, recalled thee to Madinah, and deprived thee of thy right, but what right hast thou to utter such words? Thou, whom the Divine Majesty—whose name be sanctified—has mentioned in the glorious Qurân and stigmatized as a profligate!’ Some members of the assembly of Moa’wiah drew their sabres when they heard these words of Ssa’ssa’h, and wanted to kill him, but Moa’wiah warded them off, saying: ‘To injure an ambassador is licit in no religion.’ Although Moa’wiah considered it improper to shed the blood of the envoy of the Amir of the Faithful, he girded his loins to shed the blood of his lordship, kept the water off from those blessed men, and had no fear whatever of the wrath of God. In fine, Ssa’ssa’h, having escaped the grasp of death, was allowed to depart, and hastened, dismayed, to wait on the Amir of the Faithful, whom he informed of the refusal and obstinacy of Moa’wiah, which distressed his lordship considerably. Meanwhile, the weaker portion of the victory-allied army was in great tribulation for the want of water, another spot where it could be obtained being two farsakhs distant from the august camp. When Mâlek Ashtar perceived fear prevailing like that of the greatest day,90 he informed the Amir of the Faithful that the price of water had risen in the camp to three dirhems a bag, and that the people were in great distress, saying: ‘I hope thou wilt issue orders permitting us to expel with our bright scimitars the ambitious aspirations from the brains of the vainglorious enemies, and to transform the plain of Ssafyn by their blood into the river Jayhûn’ [i.e., Oxus]. Asha’th B. Qays likewise said: ‘O Amir of the Faithful, is it proper that while the Musalmâns are nearly perishing from thirst, and thou art our leader, our swords should remain in their scabbards? I swear by God that I shall not return, but go to the Euphrates and fight till I taste its delicious water, or quaff the potion of martyrdom.’ A’li the Amir of the Faithful replied: ‘Do whatever the circumstances demand.’ When those two heroes had obtained leave to fight with the enemies, they departed from the exalted assembly, and ordered a man to proclaim in the camp that the legitimate Emâm had given permission to the people of E’râq to begin hostilities with the partisans of rebellion in order to drive them away from the watering-place. Hereon, in less than an hour, more than ten thousand brave warriors assembled under the banner of Asha’th B. Qays Alkindy, and in the same manner many relatives and friends of Mâlek crowded around his tent, whereon both those officers marched to their destination. Mâlek ordered the infantry to precede the cavalry, leaving a short interval between them, and in this manner they advanced till they reached the army of Moa’wiah, near the bank of the river. When the encounter of the two armies was impending, Mâlek and Asha’th bared their heads, shouting: ‘Leave the river-bank, O ye rebels, and betake yourselves to the shore of safety, else you will become partners in the shedding of your own blood.’ Abu-l-a´ur, on his part, roared back: ‘The matter is not so easy. Wait till you see the strength of the arms of men, and feel the wounds from their swords.’ Then Mâlek incited the cavalry, and Asha’th the infantry, to the attack, whereon both armies commingled like the [waves of the] Indian Ocean.
Abu Hâny B. Moa’mmar says: ‘In that battle I was attending on Mâlek Ashtar, and seeing him to be very thirsty, offered him water; but he refused to accept it, saying: “I shall not comfort my soul before the thirst of the Musalmâns has been quenched.”’ Meanwhile the troops of Abu-l-a´ur began shooting arrows, and Ashtar rushed among the opponents, seven of whose champions he threw to the ground. When Ashtar with his companions had become exceedingly thirsty, and the heat of the day had increased, he ordered the water-bags to be brought forward, and to everyone who possessed a bag he said: ‘When I fight with the soldiers of Abu-l-a´ur, and scatter them about, none of you are to separate from me before you have filled your vessels with water.’ Then Mâlek Ashtar again rushed into the lines of the enemy, broke them, ran to the bank of the Euphrates, and stood there till the infantry had filled their water-bags. After the fire of the contest had been raging awhile on the river-bank, marks of weakness and despondency manifested themselves on the countenances of the wicked faction, and Abu-l-a´ur, having been driven from his position, sent a messenger to inform Moa’wiah of the state of affairs, whereon the Governor of Syria became dismayed and sad, on account of the advantage the army of the chief of the adherents of Islâm had gained, and despatched A’mru B. A´ass with three thousand men to reinforce Abu-l-a´ur. When A’mru reached the battlefield, and the eye of Mâlek had alighted on him, he said to his friends: ‘Rejoice! we are the adherents of truth and our opponents the partisans of falsehood; there is no doubt that falsehood must always be vanquished and subdued.’ Then he placed his buckler on his head and assailed A’mru B. A´ass, who, however, preferred flight to permanency, and took refuge in the lines of the army of Syria. The flames of the battle having been kindled, one portion of the adherents of rebellion and opposition perished by the sword, another was drowned in the Euphrates, and the rest, being disgracefully routed, fled to Moa’wiah, so that the victorious army took its position on the bank of the river with a relieved heart and peaceful mind. After A’mru B. A´ass had fled from the Euphrates, and rejoined Moa’wiah, he reproached him, saying: ‘If A’li the Amir of the Faithful deals to-day with us concerning the water as we have dealt with him, it will become plain to us [how he felt].’ Moa’wiah said: ‘Let alone bygones, and tell me what thou thinkest A’li will do?’ A’mru replied: ‘He will not act as thou hast acted, will not retaliate for thy unworthy doings, and will hinder no one to drink water.’ Moa’wiah, having repented of what he had done, sent twelve men of the chiefs and notables of his dominion, such as Dzohâk B. Qays, and Bashar B. Arttâ, and Muqâtl B. Zaid, and Joshub B. Tzelym, each of whom was a man of distinction, to A’li the Commander of the Faithful, to implore his lordship not to make any difficulties about the taking of water [by his enemies]. When that company arrived at the august camp, A’li the Commander of the Faithful met them and asked what they had come for. Joshub, forestalling the others, said: ‘O father of Hasan, as thou hast now obtained dominion over and possession of the water, be gracious and liberal therewith and pardon the crime of Moa’wiah.’ After him Muqâtl B. Zaid spoke as follows: ‘O Emâm of the Musalmâns! Moa’wiah has made the avenging of the blood of O’thmân his pretext for his rebellion and ingratitude, but his real object is to attain power in the world, and enjoyment in this perishable mansion. Although I am from Syria, He who knows what is hidden and what is revealed knows also that I always entertained love for thee and trusted in thee. I swear by God that I shall not rejoin Moa’wiah, but shall, as long as I live, not withdraw the hand of my service and attachment from the skirt of thy glory and felicity, and it is known to me as a certainty, that to be slain in allegiance to thee will be martyrdom’ [i.e., a happy end]. When A’li the Commander of the Faithful had become aware of the reason for which the grandees of Syria had paid this visit to the victory-portending camp, he lauded God—whose name be praised and exalted—offered salutations to his lordship the refuge of the apostolate—u. w. bl.—mentioned some of his own deeds, the virtues of Hamzah91 and of the flying Ja’fer,92 and said: ‘Go and tell Moa’wiah that he may drink of the Euphrates, and quench also the thirst of his cattle without any interference whatever on our part.’ Also another of the intimate adherents of Abu-l-a´ur, beholding the perfect kindness and mercy of A’li the Commander of the Faithful, caught hold of the skirt of remorse and penitence, repented of his opposition and enmity to his lordship, and was enrolled among the close and trustworthy adherents after apologizing for his previous conduct.
Both armies drew as much water from the Euphrates as they required, and, beginning to have intercourse with each other, manifested no other intentions but such as were good and proper. When a week had elapsed after the quarrel about the water and the untoward event which ensued, Moa’wiah said to those who were near him: ‘I have decided to send a detachment for guarding the road of Erâq, so as to hinder people from conveying eatables to the camp of A’li B. Abu Ttâleb.’ A’mru B. A´ass then said: ‘This is an unfortunate and perverse intention, and the result of this improper step may be similar to that which followed after laying an embargo upon the water.’ Moa’wiah continued: ‘It is very dangerous to fight with his lordship, the Murtadza, because he has with him most of the Mohâjer, the Anssâr, and the greater portion of the followers,93 so that they would most probably conquer us, but if we deprive them of food they will be weakened, and their comfort will be destroyed.’ A’mru B. A´ass said: ‘Give up this design, because if A’li hears of it he will despatch a company of undaunted lions to repel those whom thou wilt send.’ This admonition having taken no effect on Moa’wiah, he ordered A’bdu-r-rahman B. Khâled B. Alwolyd, with a detachment of warriors from Syria, to guard the road of E’râq. A’bdu-r-rahman, however, replied: ‘Thou hast surrendered all the districts and towns of Syria to thy particular friends, and now thou abandonest me to the fangs of a tiger and to the jaws of a whale, although I have never received from thee any worldly goods, nor one Fuls94 of money. On the morn of the resurrection the Lord of glory will not blame me for not having avenged the blood of O’thmân, but for having followed thee in lieu of A’li B. Abu Ttâleb.’ Moa’wiah, displeased with the words of A’bdu-r-rahman, then sent Dzohâk B. Qays with one thousand cavalry to the road of E’râq, where they intercepted a company of men who were carrying dates, barley, fat, and oil to the august camping-ground of the army, and, capturing them, said: ‘Convey these goods to the camp of Moa’wiah, and he will pay the full price for them.’ The people of the caravan, however, replied: ‘We shall never sell anything to the enemies of A’li the Commander of the Faithful, although we may get the profit of a dinâr for the value of a dirhem.’ When the antagonists had received this throat-choking answer from the people of the caravan, concerning the sale of their goods, they made prisoners of them with all they possessed, and sent them to Moa’wiah. A man of the caravan, however, having watched his opportunity, fled, and having been made happy by kissing the feet of the Amir of the Faithful, narrated this case to him, whereon his lordship exclaimed: ‘What has this son of the liver-eater95 done to me, and what will his descendants do afterwards to my children and family?’ Then the Shâh and possessor of the Vicariate asked that man to describe the leader of the people who had taken the caravan, and he said: ‘He was a tall man with knit eyebrows, flat nose, and had a wound on his right cheek.’ His lordship said: ‘That man is Dzohâk. Now, who will give a reply to that low-bred wind-bag with a stroke of his bright scimitar?’ Zobeyr B. Qays, considering his soul to be favoured by accepting this service, marched with five hundred men to attack Dzohâk, whom they wounded when the two parties encountered each other, and killed twelve of his men. When Dzohâk presented himself to Moa’wiah, A’mru B. A´ass was pleased, but reproved him for the ill-success of his plan, and hinted at the weakness of his understanding.
After the above event, his sacred lordship the Amir of the Faithful sent envoys to Moa’wiah for the purpose of using arguments to induce him to pay homage. At that time one hundred and sixty thousand combatants had assembled in the camp of Moa’wiah, who, trusting in the numbers of his army, demurred to listen to the wise persuasion of the envoys, so that their mission was fruitless.— Let it not remain hidden to the appreciating minds of intelligent persons that historians—A. h. m. o. t.—have composed treatises and volumes giving detailed accounts of the hostilities between Moa’wiah and his lordship the Amir of the Faithful, but that there are great discrepancies in their traditions and statements. If I were to insert a variety of accounts, I would be disappointed in my object, which is the completion of this work. As, however, the statements of Abu Hanifah Dinwari are more concise, and historians place more trust in him than in other narrators, the reins of the gently ambling reed will henceforth be turned to the translation of his work, from which the stories will be taken if it pleaseth Allah—who be exalted.
BOTH PARTIES DESPAIR OF PEACE, AND RENEW
HOSTILITIES.
The tradition of Abu Hanifah Dinwari concerning the events of Ssafyn is that during the three months—namely, Rabyi’ the first, Rabyi’ the second, and Jomâdi the first— numerous letters and messengers passed between A’li B. Ttâleb the Commander of the Faithful and Moa’wiah, but all the negotiations for peace abutted in nothing. At that time both armies and the heroes of both parties were drawn out opposite to each other for the purpose of fighting; but on every occasion ascetics and memorizers of the Qurân stepped into the battle-ground, cooled the ardour of both parties with the limpid waters of advice, and would not allow them to use their arrows, bows, lances, and swords. When the month Jomâdi the first had terminated, his sacred lordship A’li the Commander of the Faithful engaged in arranging the victory-allied army, and sent the message that the next day a battle was to be fought. Moa’wiah on his part also ordered the people of Syria to get ready for action. Thereon both armies fought daily, offering to each other the unpalatable beverage of death from the latter half of Jomâdi the second till the beginning of Rajab, and ceased hostilities when the new moon was perceived, that month being considered sacred in Islâm as well as in the time of ignorance; so that neither strangers nor townspeople, nor the high and the low classes, fought with each other. On this occasion Abu-l-durdâ and Abu Asâmah, who lived in Syria, and were at that time with Moa’wiah, said to him: ‘As we are convinced that A’li the Commander of the Faithful is more worthy to sit on the couch of the Khalifate than thyself, tell us by what historical or logical reason thou wagest war against him?’ Moa’wiah replied: ‘On account of the blood of O’thmân.’ They queried: ‘Has A’li or another made a martyr of O’thmân?’ He answered: ‘The murderers of O’thmân are with him. If you can induce him to surrender them to me, I shall be the first man in Syria to pay him homage.’ Those two respected individuals thereon betook themselves to the victory-marking camp of the lion of attack, and reported to him what Moa’wiah had said. When the glorious army had been informed of the arrival of Abu-l-durdâ and of Abu Asâmah, as well as of their intention, about twenty thousand men of reputation came forward, meeting those two individuals, and shouting: ‘We are all slayers of O’thmân!’ The envoys, who were of the number of the companions of the apostle of Allah—u. w. bl.—forthwith departed from the camp on seeing this state of affairs, but also refrained from having anything to do with Moa’wiah. They preferred to remain in the corner of separation, and, according to the proverb that ‘Safety is in solitude,’ abstained from taking part in those hostilities. Moa’wiah, having again become impatient, then despatched Shorahbyl B. Shamatt, with Habyb B. Solmah and Moghan B. Zaid Allakhnas, to A’li the Commander of the Faithful with the message: ‘If thou surrenderest the murderers of O’thmân, we shall delegate the election of the Khalifah to a consultative assembly, so that he who is approved of by the Musalmâns may be appointed to that post.’ They then hastened to the abode of the Khalifate, and the first man to speak was Habyb; but as his lordship the Amir insulted him, he became angry and departed from the assembly, saying, however, before doing so: ‘A’li, I swear by God that thou wilt soon experience something which will displease thee.’ Then Shorahbyl said to the Amir of the Faithful: ‘What wisdom is there in thy not surrendering the slayers of O’thmân?’ His lordship replied: ‘It is not in my power to deliver twenty thousand sword-bearing men to the foe.’ When they learnt that this was the case, they left the victory-hoping camp, and informed Moa’wiah of what the Commander of the Faithful had said.
Abu Hanifah Dinwari states that the two opposing armies remained drawn up close to each other from the beginning of Rajab to the end of Muharram96 without any hostilities taking place between them, and that on the last day of Muharram, near sunset, A’li the Commander of the Faithful sent a herald to the camp of Moa’wiah to shout: ‘We have abstained from fighting till the month of Muharram has elapsed, and I invite you to follow the straight road and the right direction. Undoubtedly God the Most High and Glorious is not a friend to traitors.’ Arrangements and preparations for a conflict of the two armies having been made during the first night of the month Ssafar, the right and the left wings were drawn out in the morning, and the leaders of both armies entrusted them to their respective commanders. Thus his sacred lordship A’li the Commander of the Faithful appointed A’mmâr B. Yâser to command the whole cavalry, and A’bdullah B. Hozyl Khozâa’yi the infantry; Asha’th B. Qays had charge of the right flank, and A’bdullah B. A’bbâs of the left. He ordered the tribes to fight under one of the Amirs, and gave the greatest banner to Hâshem B. O’tbah B. Abu Woqqâss. The names of the Amirs of his lordship the Commander of the Faithful are as follows: Sulaymân B. Ssard Alkhozâa’yi, Hâreth B. Murrah Ala’bdy, A’mru B. Alhamaq, Hussayn B. Almundhar, Ahnaf B. Qays, Noa’ym B. Hobyrah, Hârethah B. Qudâmah, Refaa’h B. Shadâd, Abu Ayûb the Anssâry, Abu-l-hashym B. Alshybân the herald of the apostle of Allah—u. w. bl.—A’dy B. Hâtim Attâyi, A’mru B. O’ttâryd, Junayd B. Zohyrah, Khâled B. Mua’mmer, Shyth B. Rabyi’, Sa’d B. Qays B. A’bdullah B. Attufayl, A’mru B. Hanttalah, Qays B. Sa’d B. A’bâdah the Anssâry, Shaddâdu-l-hâny, Qâsum B. Hanttalah, Qays Aljuhanny, A’mru B. Mazyd, Mâlek B. Hâreth Alashtar Alnakha’yi, Sa’d B. Maswad At-thaqfy, Zyâd B. Annassar, Sharykh B. Hâny, Moa’qal B. Qays, Qabydzah B. Shaddâd, A´amer B. Wâylah, Hâreth B. Naufil, Zaid B. Ssa’ssa’h B. Ssûhân, A’mru B. Habylah, Aa’yn B. Ttyfah, Adym B. Ash-shybân, Hussyn B. Nomyr, Hajr B. A’dy, and Hozaymah B. Jâber.
Moa’wiah on his part ordered his officers to draw up the forces, saying: ‘Let the whole cavalry listen to the words of A’bdullah B. A´ass with the audition of acquiescence.’ He enjoined all the infantry not to trangress the commands of Moslamah B. O’qbah, and appointed O’beydullah B. Omar B. Alkhattâb to the command of the right wing, entrusting the left to the charge of Habyb B. Moslamah. He gave the greatest banner to A’bdu-r-rahman B. Khâled B. Alwolyd, and ordered each tribe to be under the command of an officer. The names of all the Amirs and officers of Moa’wiah are as follows: Dzohâk B. Qays, Dhu-l-Kalâgh the Hemyarite, Refa’h B. Alhâreth, Sofiân B. A’mru, Solmah B. Khâled, Bashir B. Arttâ, Hâreth B. Khâled, Hamâm B. Qytt, Khosheb B. Dhi Tzelym, Hasân B. Majdal, Hâbes B. Rabya’h, Zaid B. Bahyrah, Yazid B. Asad, Ttaryf B. O’mayr, Mohâreq B. Hâreth, Qâtel B. Qays, Hamzah B. Mâlek, Qa’qâa’ B. Azhar, A’mru B. Ala´ass, Helâl B. Abu Hobyrah, Abu-l-a´ur, and Yazid B. Ommyah.
When the two armies had been drawn out in battle array, they stood opposite to each other under their respective banners, restraining their tongues from speaking and their hands from acting, when all of a sudden a man named Juhal B. Athâl stepped out from the victory-boding army shouting for a champion, whereon his own son, who was in the army of Syria, drew forth his hand from the sleeve of boldness, and was ready for the duel. As, however, both were covered with iron armour, they failed to recognise each other. As blows with the sword took no effect on either of them, Athâl grasped the belt of his son and pulled him from his saddle, so that he fell to the ground. Then Athâl likewise alighted from his horse, and, the vizors of both having been displaced, they recognised each other. Then they separated, one returning to the army of A’li the Commander of the Faithful, and the other to that of Moa’wiah. Then the people also dispersed, returned to their places, and besides this event nothing occurred on that day.
The next day, when the scimitar-wielding sun had put to flight the hosts of the night, both armies again drew themselves up in battle-array, and took positions opposite to each other. Now, of the partisans of Moa’wiah one O’tbah B. Abu Sofiân, having tightly girded his loins to wreak vengeance on the army of E’râq, stepped into the battle-ground, and, having opened his mouth with boasts and exultations, challenged Ja’dah B. Hobyrah B. Abu Wahab, the Qoraishy, to a duel. Hereon Ja’dah also stepped out from his lines, and, having encountered each other, the fire of conflict was kindled between them; but although these two brave warriors made the greatest efforts to acquire a name and reputation in the contest, they remained fruitless, neither of them prevailing, and at last O’tbah, having been wounded by the sword of the tongue of Ja’dah, retaliated with similar follies, and both, getting angry, returned to their respective places. During that same hour, however, both again sallied forth from their lines, each at the head of a company of rank-breaking heroes, and approached each other. The spectators of this contest fixed their eyes on the combatants to see how it would end. At last Ja’dah put O’tbah to flight, thus raising his flag of bravery up to the dome of Orion.97
It is recorded in some histories that when the combat was imminent his lordship the Amir of the Faithful addressed a select assembly as follows, after having offered praises to the Almighty and salutations to Ahmad the elect —u. w. bl.: ‘We belong to the tribe of the faithful apostle and to his pure family; we have firmly trodden the straight path, and the rays of grace of the Eternal Sovereign have shone upon us. The foundations of the bright religion, and the edifices of the Faith of Islâm, have been strengthened by our efforts. The pillars of the brilliant law, the bases of the “Rukn” and the “Maqâm,”98 have been made durable by us. We are like the ark of Noah which saved those who embarked in it from all dangers, and all perished who remained outside of it.’ He also said: ‘O ye congregation of Musalmâns, be not dismayed and sorrowful, because on the morn of the resurrection you will be rejoiced by the mercy of the Nourisher, the intercession of the elect apostle, the society of the pious and the righteous. You must be diligent in reciting the words of the Lord [i.e., the Qurân], imploring the Deity to grant you the victory. Advance cautiously towards the enemy, and do not incur the shame of defeat and flight. I prohibit you to fight unless the enemy makes the beginning, and not to engage in the contest except after repeatedly urging arguments against it [and they are disregarded by the foe]. If those people are routed by the favour of God, pursue but do not kill them. Abstain from injuring the wounded, and let females alone, although they may use insulting language towards you, because their intellect is weak and sense slender; when we were fighting and striving for the religion in the time of the apostle of Allah—u. w. bl.—we were not ordered to injure women.’ He also said with his pearl-dropping mouth: ‘O Musalmâns, take awe and the fear of God—who be praised and exalted—for your motto; let piety guide your actions, be patient and forbearing; but do not give way to hesitation or confusion, and set your teeth firmly when you fight with your swords and lances.’ After he had spoken more on this subject and imparted salutary advice, he stepped into the battlefield with his noble sons, and with the chief Mohâjer and Anssâr—may Allah be pleased with them; but Awys Qarny—A. h. m. o. h.— having placed his hand upon the felicity-bringing stirrup, followed that sun of virtue and perfection like a shadow.
There is a tradition that when the two armies were standing opposite to each other, drawn up in battle-array, a man of the army of Moa’wiah shouted: ‘O ye people of E’râq, is Awys Qarny among you?’ Having received an affirmative reply, and being asked why he inquired for him, he continued: ‘I have heard the apostle of Allah say that Awys Qarny is the best of followers on account of his gratitude.’ Then this Syrian left the champions and joined the adherents of the Commander of the Faithful. It is said that on the third day of the hostilities Haryth, the freed slave of Moa’wiah, who was undaunted and furious in battle, desirous to raise the dust of disturbance in the field of the heroes, mounted the horse of his owner, donned his coat, and asked him: ‘Wilt thou give me the district of Ttabaryah if I slay the son of Abu Ttâleb?’ Moa’wiah replied: ‘Take care not to fight with A’li, because I have only two confidants, one of them being thyself and the other A’bdu-r-rahman B. Khâled B. Alwolyd. If a misfortune befalls you, I can find no substitutes for you. If the desire to fight has overpowered thy mind, attack Mâlek Ashtar, and if thou slayest him my mind will be delivered from the bonds of grief.’ When, however, A’mru B. A´ass knew that Haryth was desirous to fight A’li, he privately said to him: ‘However anxious Moa’wiah may be to see A’li killed, he is unwilling that his own freed slave should kill his cousin. Thou must make haste to attack him, and not delay to annihilate him.’ Haryth having been beguiled by the words of A’mru, forgot the advice of Moa’wiah, entered the lists of contest, and challenged A’li the Commander of the Faithful to a duel, who thereon approached him and gave him such a blow on the head with the sword that he breathed no more. Moa’wiah, grieved by the death of Haryth, said to A’mru: ‘Thou hast acted unjustly by goading him on to what I disliked, namely, to attack A’li.’ A’mru replied: ‘What is past is past; now I see no one fit to fight A’li except A’bdullah B. Musa’dah Alqarâry. Give him thy robe and horse, and send him to remove the son of Abu Ttâleb.’ Moa’wiah replied: ‘I do not know what evil Ebn Musa’dah has machinated against thee that thou shouldst seek his death, as thou hast sought that of Haryth.’ A’mru replied: ‘Nothing of the kind is the case, but those who have been adorned with the garlands of the administration of provinces must fight thy enemies.’ Moa’wiah then called Ebn Musa’dah, and made him fair promises to induce him to gird his loins and fight with A’li the Commander of the Faithful; Musa’dah, however, having placed the seal of taciturnity on his mouth, gave no reply. A’mru B. A´ass then exclaimed: ‘Allah, Allah, Allah forbid! Do not become liable to disgrace.’ Ebn Musa’dah, being helpless, assented at last, whereon Moa’wiah gave him his own horse and clothes, saying: ‘Hasten to attack A’li, and maybe by thy strenuous efforts our minds will be delivered of apprehensions.’ Ebn Musa’dah then betook himself to the battle-ground, and having reached his lordship A’li the Amir of the Faithful, was attacked by him with the sword. Perceiving that he could not escape with life from the strokes of the [sabre] Dhu-l-fiqâr, Ebn Musa’dah raised a shout of lamentation and apology, saying: ‘O Commander of the Faithful, I am not Moa’wiah, but he has compelled me to don his clothes and sent me unwillingly against thee.’ The Amir of the Faithful then exclaimed: ‘Begone, may thy mother be childless!’ When A’bdullah B. Musa’dah had returned, he presented himself to Moa’wiah, who overwhelmed him with a variety of objurgations, but A’bdullah asked: ‘O Moa’wiah, lovest thou thy life?’ Receiving an affirmative reply, he continued: ‘I also love mine. I do not stand in need of the governorship thou hast promised me if I fight A’li.’ On that occasion A’mru B. A´ass said to Moa’wiah: ‘Send Bashir B. Arttâ to attack A’li.’ Moa’wiah, having approved of this suggestion, then ordered Bashir to hasten to the side of the lion of God and to attack him, whereon that prudent individual, beguiled by the words of Moa’wiah, made preparations for the contest, but his nephew asked: ‘Knowest thou at all whom thou art going to oppose?’ He replied: ‘How can I reject the order of Moa’wiah?’ The nephew of Bashir was much grieved, and recited some poetry to him, meaning: ‘If thou feelest thyself strong enough to combat A’li Murtadza, attack him with the right intention and a firm step, or else be not deceived, because, although a rapacious animal may be self-conscious of strength, it is of little account in comparison to that of a lion, so that it becomes at last his prey. O son of Arttâ, perhaps thou art ignorant and art not aware of the awe which his lordship the receptacle of the Vicariate inspires, and of the furious blows he metes out? Thou knowest not that death sits on the top of his lance when he fights, and that destruction is abiding in the hilt of his sanguinary blade.’ However much the nephew of Bashir endeavoured to hinder him from stepping into the desert of aberration, he could effect nothing. When this foe approached his lordship the receptacle of the Vicariate and aimed a blow at him, it proved fruitless, whereon the Shâh of the abode of Vicarship became so incensed that, lifting his blessed hand, he caught hold of Bashir and threw him to the ground from his saddle, but abstained from further injuring him. A’yâsh B. Rabya’h then asked: ‘O Amir, why hast thou not altogether despatched this fellow?’ His lordship, however, replied: ‘There is a respite in his death. O A’yâsh, if thou remainest alive it will become known to thee what he is going to do to the members of my family.’ After Bashir had returned, the champions of Syria deemed it incumbent upon themselves to abstain and to refrain from further molesting the Shâh and asylum of Vicarship, and remained stationary at their posts. His lordship then returned to his station in the centre of the army, whereon Zyrqân B. Badr—who was distinguished by valour and temerity, and had by his holy and prophetic lordship —u. w. bl.—been appointed superintendent of the legal alms, and was also during the sway of Abu Bakr entrusted with the administration of the booty, and had during the time of O’mar gone by his orders to Syria to fight for the religion, where he had since established himself—went to the battle-ground and shouted for a champion. Then Hasan the Amir of the Faithful—p. o. h.—asked permission from his glorious father to encounter him. His lordship granted the request of the pupil of his eye [i.e., darling son], whose beloved brothers commenced to cry, but his lordship the Amir pacified them. When Hasan—u. w. p.—had approached Zyrqân, he asked: ‘Who art thou?’ Hasan then mentioned his name and descent, whereon Zyrqân continued: ‘O grandson of the apostle of Allah, if thy lance were to enter my bowels I would not look in anger at thee. How can I fight with thee, having seen the apostle kissing thee many times!’ Hasan the Amir of the Faithful asked: ‘If thou considerest me from such a point of view, why hast thou preferred Moa’wiah to me?’ Zyrqân continued: ‘Request A’li the Commander of the Faithful to wash off the multitude of my transgressions with the limpid waters of his mercy and pardon.’ Hasan having given assent to this proposal, Zyrqân was made happy by being allowed to kiss the victory-boding stirrup, and said: ‘The first man who was deceived by the follies of the world and excluded from the mercy of the Almighty was myself. I hope and request thee to purify me from my sins with the water of kindness.’ Then his lordship pardoned Zyrqân, but the people continued to fight that day till dark.
Abu Hanifah Dinwari states that one day when A’mmâr B. Yâser stepped with a detachment of champions from E’râq into the battle-ground, he was encountered by A’mru B. A´ass with a number of Syrian warriors.—A’mru had with him a black standard, and the people [recognising it] said: ‘This is the banner which the apostle of Allah has tied for him.’ A’li the Commander of the Faithful said: ‘I shall inform you about this flag,’ and continued: ‘On the day when the apostle—u. w. bl.—knotted this standard, he turned to his companions and asked: “Who will take this banner with its duties?” A’mru B. A´ass asked: “What are the duties of this banner?” He replied: “The owner of it must not flee from an unbeliever, and not fight against a Moslem.” The fact, however, is that during the lifetime of his lordship the apostle—u. w. bl.—he had engaged in hostilities with unbelievers and fled, and to-day, having encountered Musalmâns, he is waging war against them.’
On that day A’mmâr B. Yâser and A’mru B. A´ass fought with each other till the night set in, but neither of them prevailed over his antagonist. It is related that the next day Ahmar, the freed man of Abu Sofiân, who was celebrated everywhere for his bravery, and a worthy combatant, entered the battleground and challenged his sacred lordship A’li the Commander of the Faithful to a duel, but Zaid B. Ssa’ss´ah B. Ssûhân shouted at him, saying: ‘The curse of God the Most High be on the man who has sent a dog like thee to challenge the best of worshippers.’ Ahmar replied: ‘Words like these are uttered from cowardice and malevolence.’ Meanwhile, Shuqrân, the freed man of the apostle of God, hastened to attack Ahmar, but attained the honour of martyrdom. After he had slain Shuqrân, Ahmar shouted: ‘I do not want to fight anyone except his lordship A’li Murtadza, and shall not return until I have severed his head from his body.’ Some persons replied: ‘O dog, who art thou? Return to thy place, for thou art not his equal.’ He continued: ‘No, by Allah! I shall not return unless I obtain possession of the head of [A’li] the son of Abu Ttâleb, or lose my own in this contest.’ When Ali the Commander of the Faithful had become aware of the folly of Ahmar, he turned the reins of his intention towards him, and, catching him by the arm, threw him to the ground with such force that the unhallowed caitiff surrendered his life to the owner of hell. After that Karyb B. Abrahah, who was a very athletic man of the tribe Muzam, entered the lists and challenged the Amir of the Faithful to a duel.—It is said that Karyb was so strong that he could rub off with his fingers the design from a dirhem.—Murtfa’ B. Alradzâh then encountered Karyb, shouting out his name and genealogy, whereon Karyb acknowledged him to be his equal, attacked him and slew him. Then Hâreth Shybâny, who used to spend his days fasting and his nights praying, assailed the cursed fellow, but was killed by him. When A’li the Commander of the Faithful perceived that the wickedness of this malefactor could not be coerced except by the action of his Dhu-l-fiqâr, he intended to step into the list, but A’bdullah B. A’dy Alhâreth said: ‘I adjure thee by the right of thy consanguinity to allow me to attack this accursed fellow! If I vanquish him it is all I desire; or else I shall taste the potion of martyrdom while I attend on thee.’ The request of A’bdullah having been granted, he approached Karyb, recited some poetry extolling the perfections of A’li, and attacked him, but received a lethal wound, so that he departed to the eternal mansion. Thereon the Commander of the Faithful, touched by the misfortunes of his friends, drove his horse into the field of contest, threatened Karyb with Divine wrath and punishment, advising him to come to the straight road, but he replied: ‘With the sabre I hold in my hand I have taken many like thee off their legs.’ After these words he aimed with his sword a blow at the Amir of the Faithful, who, having warded it off with his buckler, struck that wanderer in the desert of aberration with such force on the head that the sword divided his body in twain and came down to the pommel of the saddle. Both armies then raised a shout of applause, ascending to the zenith, on account of this performance with the Dhu-l-fiqâr. After having slain Karyb, the Amir of the Faithful returned to his post; he said, however, to Muhammad Hanifah: ‘Remain awhile on the battle-ground till one arrives to avenge the blood of Karyb.’ Then this well-directed son remained at the spot at the suggestion of his praiseworthy father. Then one of the cousins of Karyb approached Muhammad Hanifah, and asked: ‘Where has the horseman gone to who has slain my cousin?’ He replied: ‘Behold, I am standing here to take his place!’ The cousin, then becoming excited, rushed at Muhammad, and they fought till the latter prostrated the former on the ground. Others then attacked him in succession, so that he at last despatched seven champions to the road of non-existence. After that a youth, issuing from his lines, said to Muhammad: ‘Thou hast slain my uncles, and I have now arrived to avenge them, or to meet them [in death].’ That lord, being astonished at the temerity of the youth, tried to dissuade him, but finding his efforts to be useless, this true son of A’li the Commander of the Faithful slew him. There is a tradition that Muhammad Hanifah had been asked: ‘How was it that the Amir of the Faithful had encouraged thee to a contest fraught with danger, as he is taking such great care of Hasan and of Husain?’ He replied: ‘They are to him like his two eyes, and I like his two hands. He preserves his two eyes by means of his two hands.’
It is related that one day his holy and prophetic lordship —u. w. bl.—said to A’li the Commander of the Faithful: ‘God—who be glorified and exalted—will give thee a son of the Bani Hanifah, and I present him with my name and sobriquet. Call that boy by my name and surname.’ When that child was born, A’li the Commander of the Faithful acted according to the injunction, and God the Most High bestowed upon Muhammad Hanifah the gifts of knowledge and bravery, which are the noblest of all qualities. It is said that Muhammad Hanifah taught his son Hâshem the sciences of interpretation;99 and Assal B. A’ttâ, who was the head and front of the Mota’zelites, had learnt these sciences from him, but, having afterwards swerved from the straight road, became a Mota’zelite.100
It is related that one day A’bdu-r-rahman B. Khâled B. Wolyd, coming out from his lines, asked for a champion, whereon Mâlek Ashtar met him and broke his helmet, so that he returned and said to Moa’wiah: ‘We have no longer the strength and power to avenge the blood of O’thmân, which will not cease to boil till we have all been slain.’ Moa’wiah replied: ‘Thou hast quickly become tired of war, and hast been disheartened by a wound which is as trifling as one inflicted by children on each other in sport; this thou knowest not, although thou art fighting in the cause of a Khalifah of great dignity, who has been abased and unjustly slain. Be patient and firm in this matter, because “Allah is with the patient.”’101 A’bdu-r-rah-man continued: ‘Thou art sitting as a leisurely spectator on the couch of government, whilst our lot is to fight. If thy words be true and sincere, take up thy arms and step out:
‘How long wilt thou repose, wearing easy clothes?
Why donnest thou not the cuirass of battle sometimes?’
Moa’wiah, nettled by the words of A’bdu-r-rahman, put on his armour and helmet, advanced towards the forces of the A’mir, chanting verses in the rajaz measure, and asking for a champion from the Hamdân tribe. Thereon Sa’yd B. Qays Hamdâny walked out from the victorious army, and knowing his opponent to be Moa’wiah, forthwith impelled his horse and assailed him, but he ran like a fox, and reached the door of his own tent in great haste, where he alighted. Being overpowered by terror, he did not say a word to anyone, and, as fear acted on his bowels, he visited the privy thrice. After Moa’wiah had fled, Mâlek Ashtar stepped into the battlefield and called for a champion, whereon A’bdullah B. Omar B. Alkhattâb, not knowing him, girded his loins for a duel, and having approached him, asked: ‘What is thy name? because I do not fight with any but my equals.’ Mâlek replied: ‘I am called Mâlek B. Hâreth.’ A’bdullah remaining awhile silent, afterwards said: ‘If I had known that thou art Mâlek, I would not have come to fight thee. I shall now return with thy permission.’ Mâlek continued: ‘Consider that people will say, “The son of O’mar has retreated from the field of contest, and was unwilling to fight his equal.”’ A’bdullah said: ‘I care for my life, and in comparison to that, the gossip of people counts for little.’ Mâlek continued: ‘As this is thy opinion, return in peace, and refrain hereafter from fighting with a man whom thou knowest not.’ O’beydullah [supra A’bdullah], happy to have escaped with his life, then retraced his steps, and Moa’wiah said to him: ‘Why all this fear and fright, there being no difference between thee in virility and bravery?’ O’beydullah asked: ‘Why fightest thou not with him?’ Moa’wiah replied: ‘I have fought with a man who is not inferior to him, namely, Sa’yd B. Qays Hamdâny.’ O’beydullah retorted: ‘Thou speakest the truth, but the fact is that after thou hadst come near to him thou hast fled from him, as a fox runs away from a lion.’ Moa’wiah continued: ‘If I step into the list with A’li B. Abu Ttâleb, I swear by God that I shall not return.’ During this conversation Moa’wiah and O’beydullah heard his lordship the A’mir of the Faithful shouting: ‘O son of Hind, forbear shedding the blood of Musalmâns, and abstain from injuring them, but approach me for a moment that we may contend with each other on this battlefield. If thou art victorious, a realm will become subjected to thee, but if the Lord of Glory vouchsafes me His aid, the people will be delivered from these fatigues and miseries.’ When Moa’wiah knew that A’li Murtadza was addressing him, he placed the seal of taciturnity on his lips, whereon O’beydullah said to him: ‘Do not mind what thou hast said before, but listen to what the Amir says! If thou art brave, and the true son of Abu Sofiân, then step out, that we may behold the strength of thy hand, and witness the consequences of thy valour and championship.’ Although O’beydullah spoke much to this effect, Moa’wiah would by no means open his lips to give a reply. A’li the Commander of the Faithful repeated his challenge several times, and capered about on the battle-ground, but when he had ascertained that Moa’wiah would not fight, he galloped straight into the lines of the opponents from the right flank to the left, shouting for a champion, prostrating several of them to the ground, and then returned to his own army, in the centre of which he took up his position. When O’beydullah B. O’mar saw Moa’wiah greatly impressed by the undaunted courage of the lion of attack, he said: ‘We imagined thee to be more brave and stout-hearted than to flee from Sa’yd B. Qays, and to defile a privy with thy evacuations. After that thou hast [nevertheless] boasted that if A’li B. Abu Ttâleb encounters thee, thou wilt grasp his belt with thy hand; but when he challenged thee to combat thou hast trembled in all thy limbs, and thy complexion has changed, and I do not know how thou wilt extricate thyself from this affair.’ Moa’wiah, becoming incensed at these words of O’beydullah, then addressed A’mru B. A´ass in this strain: ‘Hearest thou what the son of O’mar B. Alkhattâb says concerning me, and how bold he is?’ A’mru B. A´ass replied: ‘He speaks the truth, because the son of Abu Ttâleb had entered the field and challenged thee, but thou hast considered thyself excused [from fighting].’ Moa’wiah continued: ‘A’mru, perhaps thou desirest to become Khalifah by speaking in this way, because I have seen no one fighting A’li and escaping with life.’ A’mru B. A´ass replied: ‘I swear by God that I do not covet the Khalifate, and if I were to covet it, no one would consider it strange or impossible; but I fear the men who will say that the son of thy uncle, having entered the list, challenged thee to fight, and thou, having ignored and disregarded the call, hast not budged from thy place. Be aware that this behaviour is a great reproach and shame to thee.’ Moa’wiah only laughed at these words, and engaged in conversation with another Amir. Meanwhile A’li the Commander of the Faithful, having changed his dress, stepped incognito into the field, and shouted for a champion. Then A’mru B. A´ass advanced several steps in perfect ignorance of his antagonist, because if he had known him he would have lost his strength and died of fright. The Amir rode about near A’mru, wishing to decoy him a little further from the lines of Moa’wiah, and that whale of the sea of fraud and eminent boaster [i.e., A’mru], imagining that his antagonist, being cowardly, would fail to attack him, advanced a few steps more, and recited verses in the rajaz measure of the following purport: ‘O ye chiefs of the army of Kûfah! O ye partisans of dissension! O ye slayers of O’thmân! I shall attack you and shall cut your limbs to pieces with my blood-dripping sword, although the father of Hasan—namely, A’li the Commander of the Faithful—may be among you.’ When his lordship had heard the rajaz verses of A’mru B. A´ass, he replied with his wonderfully eloquent mouth in the same measure and rhymes, but as soon as A’mru B. A´ass had ascertained who had given him this replication, he turned his reins towards his own lines, and whipped his horse, but A’li the Amir of the Faithful, having pursued him with great celerity, touched A’mru with his lance in such a manner that, falling to the ground, he was sprawling on his back with both his legs in the air, and, as he had no izâr,102 his sexual parts were bared. A’li the Commander of the Faithful, seeing him in this condition, refrained from injuring A’mru, and turned his face away from him. There is a tradition that after the Amir of the Faithful had seen the uncovered parts of A’mru, he said: ‘Begone, O son of the thirsty woman; for thou hast been made safe by thy own parts as long as thou livest, and hast been delivered from the grasp of death.’ He then returned to Moa’wiah, who laughed, and said: ‘Thou hast played a cunning trick, and executed a nice stratagem, for no one has escaped death except thyself by baring his posterior and sexual organ. Thou must henceforth all thy life be thankful to this organ and keep it in honour. O A’mru, what a disgrace is this thou hast brought on thyself!’ A’mru replied: ‘Moa’wiah, hadst thou been in my place, A’li would have destroyed thee, making a widow of thy wife and orphans of thy children. At the time, however, when he challenged thee, I saw thy face turning yellow, and it is yet so, up to the tips of thy ears; thou hadst [on that occasion] lost the power of motion. Thou excellest me not so much in bravery as to be entitled to sneer at me.’ A’mru being confused and restless, the people railed at him, and Moa’wiah said, laughing: ‘How didst thou feel with thy back on the ground and thy feet sprawling in the air, for not having put on an izâr, as thou knewest that thou wouldst fall on thy back?’ A’mru [ironically] replied: ‘The occasion has not yet occurred that I encountered an enemy and fled.’ Moa’wiah continued: ‘It is no shame to run away from a man like A’li Murtadza, but it is very disgraceful to lift up one’s legs and to display the sexual parts.’ A’mru rejoined: ‘It does not matter; A’li is the son of my uncle, and when he recognised me he pardoned me.’ Moa’wiah retorted: ‘This is a most shameless allegation, because I heard the apostle of Allah—u. w. bl.—say: “O A’li, I and thou are of one nature!” And this is his high dignity up to Adam —u. w. p. His father was a chief of the Bani Hâshem, but thine a butcher of the Qoraish.’ A’mru replied: ‘By Allah! thy words are more painful than wounds of arrows and sabres. Had I remained sitting in my house, not come to thee, and not bartered my religion for [the goods of] the world, I would not have heard words like these from thee, nor would I have suffered all this trouble and misery. As thou art aware of his position and high dignity, of what use is all this gossip, and how can the fountain of the sun be obscured by throwing mud at it? The best thing for thee to do will be to walk on the straight road, to abandon covetousness, to fold up this carpet of dissension, to pay him allegiance, and to squabble with me no more.’
Abu Hanifah Dinwari states that once A’li the Commander of the Faithful sent the following message to Moa’wiah: ‘Step into the battle-ground, that I and thou may place our hands on each other’s belts, and that one of us may be killed, whereon the slayer will take his position in the court of the Khalifate and government, so that all worshippers [of God] will be delivered of trouble and misery.’ Moa’wiah, having listened to the reading of this letter, consulted A’mru B. A´ass in the matter of fighting with his lordship the receptacle of the Vicariate. A’mru B. A´ass replied: ‘A’li is making a perfectly just proposal.’ Moa’wiah rejoined: ‘Thou art deceiving and beguiling me, being desirous that I should engage in a contest with a furious elephant and roaring lion.’ Then Moa’wiah excluded A’mru B. A´ass from his society, who, wishing to reconcile Moa’wiah, said a few days afterwards: ‘I shall go to-morrow and attack A’li Murtadza.’ Moa’wiah then became pleased, and gave him permission, so that the next day A’mru B. A´ass perfectly armed himself, and, standing in the lines, shouted: ‘O father of Hasan, come forth against A’mru B. A´ass!’ A’li the Commander of the Faithful then approached him, and they attacked each other with their lances; these, however, producing no effect, his lordship the Amir drew forth his Dhu-l-fiqâr from the scabbard, and attacked A’mru, who, getting frightened at the shining blade, leapt from his horse, but one of his feet being raised in the fall, his sexual parts were uncovered. Then A’li the Amir of the Faithful looked in another direction, and A’mru escaped; when, however, he had rejoined Moa’wiah, the latter said: ‘O courageous hero and brave combatant, give thanks to God, and consider thyself under obligations to thy sexual parts, and always keep them in honour, because they are the reason of thy deliverance.’ These words became a subject for joking, whereon A’mru, having become ashamed, made several replies, which have been recorded already above.