Part Six: Fabrication of tradition and tradition-makers
A brief glance at the life of Mu‘awiyah
A summary of previous discussions
In pagan times the Umayyads showed envy to the Banu Hashim.
During the pagan times Umayyah and his descendants were deeply envious of the greatness and headship of Hashim and his descendants, and this jealousy produced many unpleasant results. But before the advent of Islam the opposi¬tion and hostility of the Umayyads were not so hard and acute. Time passed and the grandson of ‘Abd al-Muttalib ibn Hashim brought Islam, the great religion of God, as souvenir to the world of humanity. It was at this time that Abu Sufyan, grandson of Umayyah assumed the leadership of Quraysh combat against Islam, and directed most of the anti-Islamic combats of the Meccan infidels. During the whole time of the apparent weakness of Islam, Abu Sufyan imposed severe and deadly tortures upon the weak and impotent followers of this new religion and did his worst to molest them.
Naturally the conditions could not remain such forever, and eventually God Almighty helped His prophet and opened the gates of Mecca for him and Muslim combatants and brought them success and victory. Thenceforth the Quraysh no longer dominated Arab tribes, and they were given the epithet of“freed ones”
and a stain of disgrace on their character. Abu Sufyan was vanquished in the same way that Arab idols had been smashed and destroyed, and those same weak and rejected individuals of pagan times such as ‘Ammar, Abu Dharr and Bilal, were now greatly respected and had rightfully become the heirs of all the political and social power of the time. Abu Sufyan passed by them and they said regretfully:“The swords of God did not cut the head of this enemy of God in the way he deserved.”
Abu Sufyan lived long enough to see the caliphate of Abu Bakr. At this time one day the caliph treated him so harshly that Quhafah, Abu Bakr’s father, was worried. Abu Bakr gave the following explanation to his father:“God has granted greatness and glory to your house for the sake of Islam, and lowered his house from the height of mastery.”
Abu Sufyan also lived long enough to be compelled by ‘Umar one day to carry stones on his back in Mecca, the seat of his former domination. Another day, too, he dealt Abu Sufyan strokes of the lash His wife, Hind, who was greatly vexed at this incident, spoke sharply to ‘Umar and said:“By God! There was a time that if you dared to beat him, the land of Mecca would have trembled under your feet!”
‘Umar answered:“You are right, but God has elevated some and abased others for the sake of Islam!”
Time passed and ‘Uthman became caliph, and once more the Umayyads assumed power, and like children who pass a ball to one another, the Umayyads transferred ranks and positions to each other. In each province one member of the Umayyad house assumed the seat of governorship and was greatly proud of his position. It was at this period that the darlings of the Prophet’s time, namely the chaste devouts, had become inferiors and weakened individuals like ‘Ammar who were harshly treated, or like Abu Dharr and Malik al-Ashtar who were exiled to arid deserts!
Now the Qurayshis had once more regained their former pride and haughtiness, and one of the Umayyads exclaimed:“The green lands of Iraq are one of the garden of the Quraysh.”
All this conceit, haughtiness and injustice led the Islamic realm towards a revolt, and this revolt and riot were so wide and deep that they culminated in the assassination of the caliph, and even then in his own house!
After this bitter experience, the Muslims joined hands, and despite the Umayyads’ wish, they brought the camel of caliphate to the door of the Banu Hashim. Now began the just rule of the Alawites and once more in Medina the Umayyads lost their power and glory, and the Quraysh guardians of paganism were humbled. But they could not keep quiet, and every day they opposed the Alawite government in one way or another, since they cherished in their hearts the hope of recovering domination and rule from the time of ‘Uthman onward. Gradually they paved the way for a war against the Imam’s rule, which caused much bloodshed in Basra, but they gained no profit from it.
During the whole of this period Mu‘awiyah had governed ash-Sham since the time of ‘Umar, and now he wanted to make the foundation of his rule stronger at every opportunity. Consequently he wrote to the Imam demanding the governorship of Egypt and ash-Sham, but as the Imam refused to comply with his demand, he gathered together thousands of supporters in Siffin in the name of avenging ‘Uthman’s blood, and started a cruel and bloody battle!
But the battle did not settle the question, and the matter of arbitration was brought up, and Mu‘awiyah returned to ash-Sham after consolidating his position. Then he began dispatching successive groups of plunderers to the Islamic lands of Iraq and Hejaz to seize innocent Muslim women as captives and kill the young and old, burn, massacre, pillage and demolish. The result of the wicked raids of one group of plunderers was the death of thirty thousand Muslims who were caught innocently in the clutches of the unjust and bloodthirsty raiders of Mu‘awiyah.
After the martyrdom of Imam ‘Ali, Mu‘awiyah again refused to show allegiance to Imam al-Hasan al-Mujtaba, and with a large army invaded Iraq.
At the same time Mu‘awiyah tried to buy off the guards and companions of Imam al-Hasan with money and position in order to kill the Imam. As the Imam did not succeed in persuading his supporters to engage in war with Mu‘awiyah and was also badly wounded, he concluded a truce with him, and stipulated heavy conditions in this pact, none of which was fulfilled by Mu‘awiyah.
After his arrival in Kufah, Mu‘awiyah declared:“I swear to God that I have not fought you for the sake of fast and prayer. You can please yourselves in performing these acts. My only reason for this combat has been to rule you, and so I trample upon every condition that I have made in my pact with al-Hasan.”
In his first days and years of his rule, Mu‘awiyah was compelled to follow a policy of caution and moderation. He made peace with the emperor of Rome, and even paid tributes to him. He sent bags of money from Damascus to all parts of the country. He deceived the chiefs and dignitaries of tribes and crafty Arabs with money, position and ties of kinship until his rule was consolidated on the basis of materialism and tyranny. It was then that he revealed his real visage and nature. He revived the customs of the tyrannical emperors of the world. Gold and silver from one side, and property, gardens and springs from another side were brought under his bloody hands from all parts of the great Islamic realm. He issued the order, like Iranian kings, that on the new year and Mehrgan festivals gifts should be offered to him, an act which was the heritage of the two great neighboring empires, namely Iran and Rome.
Tradition making and its motives in the time of Mu‘awiyah
Many loads of wine were carried for Mu‘awiyah.
Historians
With the commencement of the rule of Mu‘awiyah, the friends and companions of the Prophet who had gathered round Imam ‘Ali during the Alawite rule, were scattered in different parts of the Islamic realm. After the truce of Imam al-Hasan al-Mujtaba with Mu‘awiyah, as this group had lost their strong support and were now a weakened party, they were dispersed in various lands of Islam.
If we have used the phrase ‘the friends round the Imam’ it is because reliable historians have spoken of a large group of the Prophet’s companions as supporters of Imam ‘Ali in the battles of al-Jamal and Siffin, whereas they mention the names of only three companions in Mu‘awiyah’s army who had the honour of association with the Prophet.
adh-Dhahabi writes in his book of“History of Islam”
: On the day of the battle of al-Jamal there were present in ‘Ali’s army eight hundred of the Ansar and seven hundred of those who had participated in the ar-Ridwan allegiance and also one hundred and thirty of the men who had fought in the battle of Badr under the Prophet.
Ibn Khayyat writes in his history:“Eight hundred of those who had shown allegiance until death with the Prophet at ar-Ridwan,
accompanied Imam ‘Ali in the battle of Siffin.”
Nasr ibn Muzahim writes in his book of the event of Siffin: Qays ibn Sa‘d ibn ‘Ubadah, the valiant and devoted friend of the Imam in the event of Siffin, one day said to an-Nu‘man ibn Bashir who accompanied Mu‘awiyah together with Muslamah ibn Mukhallad:“O an-Nu‘man! Do you see anyone with Mu‘awiyah but a freed-slave or an ignorant desert Arab or a deceived Yemeni? Look carefully! Where are the Emigrants and Ansar and devout followers with whom God is satisfied? Then look again! Who else is with Mu‘awiyah but you and your two friends, whereas you are neither among the combatants of Badr, nor among the allegiants of ‘Aqabah, nor among the warriors of the battle of Uhud, nor have you a record in Islam and religion, nor has a verse of the Qur’an descended in your praise? Upon my life, if you are fighting us and causing mischief to day, your father, too, had acted in the same way in the past!”
What Qays meant by the allies of ‘Aqabah were men of Ansar who concluded a pact with the Prophet at ‘Aqabah
and embraced Islam, and what he meant by the opposition and combat of an-Nu‘man’s father, was his taking the lead in as-Saqifah for allegiance to Abu Bakr. This action of an-Nu‘man’s father helped to consolidate the caliphate of Abu Bakr.
In the statements that we have quoted from old and reliable historians, you have noted that the devout and true supporters of the Prophet who were trained by Islam, served under the banner of the Alawite government, whereas Mu‘awiyah had only two of the Prophet’s companions with him neither of whom had a record in Islam, nor had they shown any self- sacrifice, nor did they possess a good reputation.
Now after the martyrdom of Imam ‘Ali ibn Abi Talib, all those friends were scattered in various lands of Islam. Of course wherever these men went, loyal Muslims gathered around them, and heard and sometimes wrote down the traditions that these companions quoted from the Prophet, and thus they became familiar with the teachings of their faith.
It can, of course, be easily imagined that the hot topics of those days were related to the battles of Siffin and al-Jamal, the revolt of ‘Uthman’s time and such events, in all of which reference was made to the defects, treason’s and black deeds of the Umayyads. Sometimes, too, they talked of the time of the first two caliphs and the victories gained in that period when no virtue or excellence could be attributed to the Umayyad house. Similarly there was an occasional talk of the Prophet’s time and the wars and battles of that period, and of the tortures inflicted upon devout Muslims by the Quraysh, impressing the hearts with the greatness and glory of the time, and rousing a feeling of humility in the listeners. Obviously in these conversations there was always a mention of the virtue and fine qualities of the Banu Hashim, and the reproach and berating the conduct and deeds of the Umayyads.
They narrated the story of Badr for interested Muslims and showed how Mu‘awiyah’s grandfather, uncle, brother and other members of his house were killed, and how seventy or more of the Quraysh and kins and friends of the Umayyads were taken captive. They narrated the story of the battle of Uhud when Abu Sufyan, father of Mu‘awiyah, directed the combat, and his liver eater mother, Hind, ripped open the body of Hamzah, the Prophet’s noble and valiant uncle, and bit his liver with her teeth. They narrated how on that day Abu Sufyan cried out: ‘Long live Hubal!’ (the idol), and then how the men recited a poem of al-Hasan composed in reproach of Hind in which reference was made to the illegitimate birth of Mu‘awiyah!
One day they talked of the capture of Mecca and the apparent conversion of Abu Sufyan and his offsprings to Islam, and explained why Abu Sufyan had no sincerity towards Islam and took nothing into consideration but the expediency of the time.
Then they narrated how the holy Prophet sent Mu‘awiyah and his sons much of the spoils of war as a consolation and softening of their hearts towards Islam, but the efforts of the Prophet to win them over truly to Islam proved to be of no avail. After embracing Islam, Abu Sufyan had declared:“I wish I could mobilize warlike groups against this man!”
On the day of battle when in the first hours of combat the Muslims retreated, Abu Sufyan said to his friends:“The rout and flight of these men will continue as far as the shores of the Red Sea!”
On the day of the battle of al-Yarmuk after the Prophet’s decease, when he observed the retreat of the Muslims, he cried out:“Long live the Romans!”
and when the Romans retreated, he cried out:“Woe upon you!”
and at the same time here regretfully recited these lines:
“Of the noble Romans and emperors of Rome
No single member seems to have remained.”
All these talks went on during the tyrannical rule of Mu‘awiyah, whereas for the Arabs of the Arabian peninsula nothing was so worthy and noble as the memory of their fathers and ancestors and the story of their glory, greatness and courageous deeds. Arabs loved this, and did their utmost for its sake. Despite all the combats of true Islam against this attitude, it had not lost its force and had not been vanquished. The number of those, who truly followed Islamic verdicts and injunctions and had forgotten those pagan and super¬stitious ideas and customs, was very small.
It is quite clear that Mu‘awiyah belonged to this group of notorious Muslims. During the short period of his association with the Prophet and his stay among the Muslims in Medina, no change of attitude had taken place in him. We discover this fact well from his conduct during his rule in ash-Sham he engaged in usury, and stored skins full of wine in his house; he gave away Muslims’ public fund for his own whims and fancies as if they were his own property. The orators of the city sang his praises to his face. He arranged parties similar to those of pagan times for a narration of futile and imaginary stories of pride and greatness, and proudly and pompously said to those present:“All the Quraysh know that Abu Sufyan is the greatest man of them and the son of the noblest of them, of course, with the exception of the Prophet who was chosen and exalted by God. In my opinion, if all people were to be considered the descendants of Abu Sufyan, they would all have been far¬sighted and discerning individuals.”
Is there any self-conceit greater than this claim of Mu‘awiyah that if his father had been the father of all human beings, then no one but wise and discerning creatures would have existed in the world? He imagined that his father was the noblest man of the Quraysh, with the exception of the Prophet. Could anyone make a higher claim in that time than speaking of himself? Well, during his rule Mu‘awiyah showed this degree conceit and haughtiness to others!
Freed persons and the caliphate or the judgment of the great about Mu‘awiyah and his house
Mu‘awiyah and his father were leaders of the wars against Islam.
During his caliphate Mu‘awiyah became more conceited, pompous and haughty than ever. On these days he did not think only of the glory and greatness of his tribe and of its propagation, but his mind was also occupied with another important matter. He was constantly endeavoring to con¬solidate the basis of his rule as an emperor, and how he could accomplish this purpose.
Among the Muslims, Sa‘sa‘ah ibn Sawhan, the loyal friend of the Imam, speaks of it bravely to Mu‘awiyah’s face and says:“You and your father belonged to that group of fighters who went to combat the Prophet of God, and you are the freed son of another freed man who were indebted to the Prophet for granting you your freedom. How could the caliphate be right for a freed captive?”
Similarly ‘Abd ar-Rahman ibn Ghanam al-Ash‘ari said to Abu Hurayrah and Abu ad-Darda’ at the time they were sent to the Imam on a mission by Mu‘awiyah:“How can after all Mu‘awiyah enter the caliphate’s council while he is one of those who is not qualified to be elected caliph? He and his father have been among the leaders of the groups fighting against Islam.”
How could the caliphate be consolidated for him when ‘Umar had said during his own rule:“In the question of caliphate there is no share for a freed captive or the son of a freed captive or for other Muslims of Mecca after its capture’? Such persons are not allowed to assume that position.”
The people also remembered the declaration of Imam ‘Ali who had said:“Mu‘awiyah is a man for whom God has prescribed no precedence in religion, and he has no backing of chastity and honesty this faith. He is the freed son of another freed captive who has taken part in all the wars against Islam. He and his father have always been hostile to God, His Prophet and Islam, so much so that they unwillingly embraced Islam and abstained from proclaiming it.”
Another time the Imam said to Mu‘awiyah:“Remember that you are one of those freed captives who are never allowed to become caliph, and do not merit the crown of allegiance, and have not the right of entry into the Muslims’ council.”
‘Abd Allah ibn Badil, a commander of the Alawite army in the battle of Siffin, said about Mu‘awiyah:“Mu‘awiyah is claiming something which does not belong to him, and combats someone to whom the caliphate belongs and has no similarity to Mu‘awiyah. Fight this oppressive group who are combating a person who has the merit of being caliph, while they themselves have no merit for it. I have fought them in the company of the Prophet, and today they are the same creatures who are no better nor chaster individuals than those days. (Meaning in fighting the Imam they are no better than the days when they fought the Prophet). They are the enemy of God and you. Rise up and may God bless you!”
‘Ammar ibn Yasir, a true Muslim and a devoted supporter of the Imam, cried out in the battle of Siffin about Mu‘awiyah:“O Muslims! Do you wish to have a look at the enemy of God and His prophet, and a man fighting them and oppressor of Muslims and an accomplice of infidels? A man who came to the Prophet embraced Islam when God Almighty willed that His religion should be victorious and His prophet be aided, whereas God knew that he has turned to this direction for fear, not owing to ardor and willingness! Moreover, at the time the Prophet of God departed this world, we knew him to be an enemy of the Muslims and a friend of the wicked. Know that that creature is this same Mu‘awiyah! Curse him, for, may God damn him! Fight him since he is one of those who is intent on extinguishing the light of God, and collaborates with the enemies of God.”
al-Aswad ibn Yazid said to ‘A’ishah about this matter:“Are you not amazed at a man who is a freed captive and fights for seizing the caliphate against the true friends of the Prophet?”
‘A’ishah answered:“No! There is no question of amazement in this matter; for, this is a position, which God may grant to a good or bad individual! The pharaoh who claimed divinity, ruled Egypt many long years, and others, too, have assumed such a position.”
Imam al-Hasan al-Mujtaba wrote to Mu‘awiyah in a letter:“It is very surprising, O Mu‘awiyah, that to-day you have encroached upon a position for which you have no merit at all; for, you possess neither an excellence in religion, nor a good precedence in Islam, since you are the son of one of high leaders of anti-Islamic wars, and the most hostile creature towards the Qur’an and Prophet of God.”
Shu‘bah ibn Ghurayd said to Mu‘awiyah:“You have been a destroyer of right in both pagan and Islamic times. In pagan times you continued to combat the Prophet and divine revelation so long that God nullified your plots with the victory of Islam. Now in the Islamic period, too, you prevent the son of the Prophet of God from assuming the position of caliph! What business have you in this matter as a freed son of a freed captive?”
With all that disgrace and lack of purity, nobility and virtue, how could the rule of a man like Mu‘awiyah remain stable? The above remarks had been uttered about him by exalted men of Islam and clear-sighted contemporaries. His record was so black that when ‘A’ishah wanted to defend him, she said:“God may grant the rule to a good or bad person!”
Indeed, how could the garment of Islamic rule fit the unseemly body of Mu‘awiyah, and then enable him to make it hereditary for his descendants, while he was judged in the above manner by the worthy leaders and influential men of Islamic society, whereas there existed in that community such personalities as Imam al-Hasan and Imam al-Husayn, who were the heirs of all the glory and greatness of the Banu Hashim, and descendants of the holy Prophet, and loved so deeply by the Muslims?
Therefore, in order to preserve his position as a ruler and consolidate its foundation on the one hand, and to make it hereditary in his house on the other hand, Mu‘awiyah was compelled to disperse the people by every possible means from around the Prophet’s and ‘Ali’s household, and turn their hearts away from them, in order to attract them towards himself and his own house! For this reason he started such a war against that household and their devoted followers that children were aged with fear, and the whole land was colored with Muslim blood, and Muslim women were sold in the slave markets!
To this end Mu‘awiyah employed everything which was at his disposal, such as money, power, plot, cunning and political genius. Moreover, as he possessed a very black record in the history of Islam, he resorted to every pretext in the attainment of his goal, to capture the simple hearts of the people and dominate their immature minds, such as the claims for avenging the blood of ‘Uthman, whom he called an innocent and martyred caliph!
Tradition making or a cover for Inferiority complexes
Mu‘awiyah had no scruple about lying and calumny.
Mu‘awiyah used two pillars for his evil propaganda: On the one hand he tried to steal genuine things by means of brain-washing and rob the primary cultures and fundamental beliefs of the Muslims from them, and on the other hand replace those beliefs by his own ideas which had their source in the Arab pagan culture and Christian culture of ash-Sham, and fill the vacant minds of the Muslims with them.
In this discussion we shall see how Mu‘awiyah employs every possible means in order to carry out his wicked purpose of blemishing the household of the Prophet, the Qur’an and the guardians of Islam, especially the most outstanding of them, namely Imam ‘Ali, all of whom had conquered people’s hearts with their peerless chastity and virtue. He did his utmost to misrepresent their fine qualities and brilliance, and influence people with the propagation of misinterpreted ideas and topics, and take control of the minds of simple-minded people in such a way as to make it impossible for them to return to the clear spring of Islam and the Qur’an, and unable to find the true path of the Qur’an and Islam by reference to the Prophet’s descendants. He could then succeed in infusing those altered ideas as a constant element in people’s minds.
at-Tabari writes: Mu‘awiyah appointed al-Mughayrah ibn Shu‘bah as governor of Kufah, but before the latter departed for that destination, he summoned him and said to him:“I intended to make several recommendations to you which I desist from, because of your great intelligence and discernment. I leave it all to your intelligence to carry out, but there is one thing that I must not forget to point out to you. As a first recommendation never cease to reproach and speak ill of ‘Ali, and also to beg God’s favour and salvation for ‘Uthman.
In the second place never abstain from finding fault with ‘Ali’s friends and companions and being strict to them, but at the same time bringing ‘Uthman’s supporters close to you and showing kindness to them.”
al-Mughayrah said:“I have already been tried, and have gained much experience. I have also rendered many services for others before your time, and no one has reproached me! You, too, will test me, and see whether you approve and praise my deeds or consider them unworthy and reproach me.”
Mu‘awiyah said:“No, with God’s Will, I shall praise you.”
al-Mada’ini writes in his book of“al-Ahdath”
: After he became caliph, he wrote a decree to all his governors and officials to the effect that whoever speaks of the excellence and virtue of Abu Turab (‘Ali) and his family, it will mean his having no respect for his own life and property, and will lose his blood!
Meanwhile the people of Kufah, who loved the Alawite house, suffered more than others.
Once again Mu‘awiyah wrote to his agents in all parts of the realm, not to accept the testimony of the Shi‘ites of ‘Ali and his household, and to find out those who were attached to ‘Uthman and those who spoke of his fine qualities in the land under their administration, in order to show them favors and a greater respect. Then these agents were ordered to write down for him the words of such givers of praise together with their names and their parents’ names.
This order was carried out to such an extent and so many traditions were forged by the self-sold and worldly individuals for the sake of worldly profits, that ‘Uthman’s virtues were given no bounds. For this purpose Mu‘awiyah offered money, robes of honour, property and everything else under his control. Every unknown and worthless fellow who found his way to Mu‘awiyah to offer a word or tradition in praise of ‘Uthman, was shown much favour, and his name was recorded and he was granted a position in the governmental organization!
After some time another decree was issued by Mu‘awiyah to his agents, stating:“As the narrations about ‘Uthman’s excellence have become plentiful and are heard in every city, on the receipt of my letter invite the people to recite the virtues of the Prophet’s companions and early caliphs, without any mention of Abu Turab’s qualities except something to his detriment. This will be preferable for me and will please me more, since this is a better means of refuting the arguments of Abu Turab and his Shi‘ites, and more smashing and harder to digest for them than the traditions cited about the excellence of ‘Uthman.”
The decree of Mu‘awiyah was proclaimed to the people, and immediately false narrations about the virtues of the companions became very abundant without having a trace of truth. Simple people heartily accepted these traditions, and they spread so quickly that they were quoted on every pulpit, and were distributed among teachers to instruct children according to them. Young people became so accustomed to them, that parallel with the Qur’an, they memorized these false traditions. Then they penetrated the circles of full-grown adult men, and reached the instruction sessions of women where teachers were engaged in teaching them to women and girls. These traditions were also propagated among servants and slaves.
In this way the Islamic society spent many long years of its life, and thus many false and forged traditions remained for future generations, and they were learnt by Jurisprudents, judges, men of learning, governors etc. and also believed in.
Ibn ‘Arafah Naftuyah, who is a great scholar in the field of tradition, mentions certain points in his history which are in agreement with the statements of al-Mada’ini. He writes: Most of the false traditions concerning the qualities of the companions, have been fabricated in the time of the Umayyads, so that their forgers may find their way into the caliph’s organization and be favored by the Umayyads, thereby humiliating the Banu Hashim.
It was not, of course, only in this period that Mu‘awiyah had resorted to forging traditions. He had long been engaged in this task before this time, too. at-Tabari writes: when Mu‘awiyah met with disappointment at the refusal of Qays ibn Sa‘d, the valiant and wise governor of the Imam in Egypt, to collaborate with and assist him, he was worried about this matter and was seeking a solution. At last he resorted to a cunning plan, namely to spread the rumor that Qays had agreed to co-operate with him, and Mu‘awiyah asked the people to pray for Qays. Then he read a false letter on behalf of Qays to the people, which said:
“In the Name of God, the Beneficent, the Merciful. This is a letter to Emir Mu‘awiyah ibn Abi Sufyan from Qays ibn Sa‘d. Greetings to you. The assassination of ‘Uthman has been a very great event in Islam. I looked at myself and considered my religion. I realised that I could not cooperate with a group who have killed their chaste Imam and their beneficent Muslim leader! There fore we beg God forgiveness for our sins and wish Him to preserve our religion. Remember that I am at peace with you, and also I declare my readiness to assist you in the war with the assassins of ‘Uthman who was the Imam of guidance and was killed innocently. Therefore inform me of the amount of money and number of soldiers that you need, so that I provide and dispatch them to you at once. Greetings to the Emir, with God’s blessing and favors.”
This was Mu‘awiyah! He never abstained from lies and forgery and used all such means to promote his policy. But when his dominion became extensive enough to include the whole of the Islamic realm, he was in a greater need of falsehood and fabrication, and was thus compelled to seek the help of villains.
This war was a cold war of propaganda, which took the form of a contest in forging traditions in the interest of one group and to the loss of another group. Meanwhile, a group of so-called companions, too, responded positively to the ill-omened and faith-destroying call of Mu‘awiyah. Such people were al-Mughayrah ibn Shu‘bah, ‘Amr ibn al-‘As, Samara ibn Jundab and Abu Hurayrah who were enamoured of money and position, and had no worth at all from the viewpoint of religion and personality.
Ibn Abi al-Hadid, famous Sunni Mu‘tazilite scholar, quotes his teacher, Abu Ja‘far al-Iskafi as follows:
Mu‘awiyah employed a number of the companions and their pupils to fabricate reports against ‘Ali in order to blemish the Imam’s character, and thus make others shun association with him. Obviously much money was earmarked for these tradition forgers to entice them to take up their task eagerly and seriously. These creatures wholly performed what was expected of them. Among this group were some companions such as Abu Hurayrah, ‘Amr ibn al-‘As, al-Mughayrah ibn Shu‘bah and their pupils such as ‘Urwah ibn az-Zubayr.
az-Zuhri narrates that ‘Urwah ibn az-Zubayr quoted a tradition from ‘A’ishah in which she says:
“I was with the Prophet of God when ‘Ali and al-‘Abbas arrived and came towards us. The Prophet said: ‘O ‘A’ishah! These two will depart this world remote from my nation and my religion.’ “
‘Abd ar-Razzaq quotes Mu‘ammar, saying that az-Zuhri had two traditions, which had been quoted from ‘A’ishah by ‘Urwah. These two traditions were about Imam ‘Ali. Mu‘ammar says: One day I asked az-Zuhri about those two (‘Urwah and ‘A’ishah). He answered: “What is your business with those two and their tradition? God knows them better. They are accused by me of falsehood about the Banu Hashim.”
The first of these two traditions was the one quoted above, and in the second one quoted by ‘Urwah, ‘A’ishah says:“I was with the holy Prophet when ‘Ali and ‘Abbas arrived. The Prophet said: ‘O ‘A’ishah! if you wish to look upon two men of fire, look at these two who are coming towards us.’ I looked up and saw ‘Ali and al-‘Abbas.”
Among the traditions fabricated by ‘Amr ibn al-‘As is a tradition, which is quoted from him by al-Bukhari in his book of Muslim. He says:“I heard the Prophet say aloud: Abi Talib’s descendants are not among my friends. My friends are God, and benevolent and honest believers.”
In another tradition al-Bukhari makes an addition to the above tradition and says: The Prophet continued to say:“But they have a kinship with me and I observe bonds of kinship with them.”
Among the traditions invented by Abu Hurayrah by the order of Mu‘awiyah, there is one quoted from him by al-A‘mash, as follows: When after the truce of Imam al-Hasan with Mu‘awiyah, Abu Hurayrah accompanied Mu‘awiyah on his journey to Iraq and entered the mosque of Kufah, seeing the large number of welcomers, he sat down on his knees and after slapping his own face and head several times, he said:“O people of Iraq, do you suppose that I attribute a falsehood to God and His prophet and burn myself in the fire of hell? I swear to God that I heard the Prophet say: ‘For every prophet there is a sanctity, and my sanctity is between the mountains of ‘Ayr and Thawr,
and he who causes unpleasant events to occur in this sanctity, may the curse of God, angels and all people descend upon him!’ “ Then he added: “I take God to witness that ‘Ali has caused mischief in this sacred land.”
The news of his speech and quoting this tradition reached Mu‘awiyah who in return for this great service showed Abu Hurayrah much favour and ap¬pointed him governor of Medina.
As for the story of Samara ibn Jundab, Abu Ja‘far al-Iskafi, teacher of Ibn Abi al-Hadid, says: Mu‘awiyah gave Samara one hundred thousand drachmas to cite the following narration for the people in the name of the Prophet:“The verses ‘And among men is he whose speech about the life of this world causes you to wonder, and he calls on Allah to witness as to what is in his heart, yet he is the most violent of adversaries. And when he turns back, he runs along in the land that he may cause mischief in it and destroy the tilth and the stock, and Allah does not love mischief-making.’
are descended about ‘Ali and the verse: ‘Among men is he who sells himself to seek the pleasure of Allah’
is descended about Ibn Muljam, the killer of ‘Ali.”
Samara refused the proposal, and so Mu‘awiyah sent him two hundred thousand drachmas, and again Samara refused. The offered sum was raised to four hundred thousand, and this time Samara agreed to cite for the people the above false narration as a quotation from the Prophet.
The fate of the noble persons who refused to co-operate with Mu‘awiyah
Chain him heavily and throw him into prison.
Mu‘awiyah
It was a fearful turmoil, and the foundation of faith had been destroyed by the whirlwind of that turmoil. A group of companions and their followers had responded favorably to the call of Mu‘awiyah, and supplied themselves with the provisions of his wide and long realm in proportion to their appetites. Gold and silver of the Muslim public fund and government over Islamic lands were offered to buy off necessary individuals, and these filled their bags or ascended the high seats of their positions.
There was also a small group who refused to co-operate with Mu‘awiyah. They loved their honour and religion more. Consequently they were involved with torture, banishment and death, and lost their life and property for the sake of guarding divine heroism’s and Islamic virtues.
The consequence of this terrible battle was on the one hand thousands of false traditions which the Islamic society inherited from that dark period with the result that the recognition of true and proper Islam became extremely difficult, and on the other hand thousands of devout and loyal Muslims lost their lives under the most terrible conditions.
As we have already said, Samara ibn Jundab was one of those who agreed to co-operate with Mu‘awiyah and carry out his order. His reward was the deputyship of the governor of Basra. In addition to his wicked deeds in the past, he started a terrible massacre in that city.
at-Tabari writes: Ibn Sirin, well-known scholar, was asked:“Did Samara ibn-Jundab kill anyone at all?”
He answered:“Could those who were killed by him be counted at all? Once Ziyad on going to Kufah, chose Samara and his deputy, and when he returned after six months, Samara had killed eight thousand innocent people! It is said that one morning he killed forty-seven men all of whom were memorizes of the Qur’an.”
at-Tabari adds that when Ziyad died, Samara was acting as his deputy in Basra. Mu‘awiyah allowed him to govern that city for some months and then dismissed him. For that reason Samara had said:“May God damn Mu‘awiyah! By God! If I had obeyed my God in the way I obeyed Mu‘awiyah, I would never have been punished by Him.”
Another of those self-sold creatures was al-Mughayrah ibn Shu‘bah. He governed Kufah for seven years and a few months, and never ceased his insult and reproach towards the Imam and his devout followers and caviling at the killers of ‘Uthman, and praying for ‘Uthman and presenting his supporters and companions as virtuous individuals. Of course al-Mughayrah, owing to his political understanding, adopted a relatively lenient and moderate method with occasional strictness. at-Tabari says: One day al-Mughayrah addressed Sa‘sa‘ah ibn Sawhan, devout friend of the Imam and said:“Take care and let me not hear one day that you have criticized ‘Uthman. Similarly you must abstain from a public declaration of ‘Ali’s virtues. For, I am more aware of everything than you about this matter, but what can I do? The Umayyad ruler is in control of the affairs and we have been charged with the task of reproaching ‘Ali. Naturally in many cases we desist from it unless we are compelled to do so, in which case we say a few things for our own protection. If you wish to speak of ‘Ali’s good qualities, you could do so privately with your relatives and close friends and in your houses and secret gatherings. But public and open declarations in a mosque is a matter which is neither tolerated by the caliph, nor does he forgive us for it.”
Then there was Ziyad ibn Abihi who was more strict and persevering than other was governors in the execution of Mu‘awiyah’s order. We are already familiar with his cruel conduct towards Hujr and his noble friends. One such an incident is what took place between him and Sayfi ibn Fusayl. One day this man was brought to Ziyad’s presence by his order. Ziyad said to him:“O enemy of God! What do you say about Abu Turab?”
Sayfi said:“I know of no one called Abu Turab!”
Ziyad said:“Oh, no! You know him very well.”
Sayfi said:“But I don’t.”
Ziyad aid:“Don’t you know ‘Ali ibn Abi Talib?”
Sayfi aid:“Yes, I do.”
Ziyad aid:“He is Abu Turab.”
This conversation went on, and then Ziyad ordered to bring him a stick, and turning to this man of Kufah, he said:“What do you say about ‘Ali, now?”
He said:“I can say the best words that one can utter about a servant of God!”
Ziyad ordered to beat him on the neck with the stick until he was knocked down. The order was carried out, and then he told them to stop, and again asked Sayfi:“What was your view about ‘Ali?”
He answered:“I swear by God that if you tear me to pieces with your knives and swords, you will hear nothing but what I said!”
Ziyad said:“You must either curse him or I will behead you!”
Sayfi said:“Even if you behead me, you shall not hear from my tongue what you want. And if you kill me, I shall attain happiness and you will receive misery and adversity!”
Ziyad ordered to chain him heavily and throw him into prison. Eventually this courageous and loyal man was martyred together with Hujr and his friends.
On another occasion Ziyad sent two men of Hadhramaut
with a letter to Mu‘awiyah, writing that they follow ‘Ali’s religion. Mu‘awiyah answered in a letter:“Kill every person who is a follower of ‘Ali’s faith and idea, and cut up his body after death.”
That tyrannical governor carried out the order and hanged them by the doors of their houses.
In another letter Mu‘awiyah ordered him to bury alive a Khath’ami man who had praised ‘Ali to Mu‘awiyah’s face and had criticized ‘Uthman. Thus this man, too, was buried alive so that no one else would dare to speak of the excellence of ‘Ali.
Historians have described the end of Ziyad’s life as a great scene of villainy. Ibn ‘Asakir writes: One day he ordered to assemble all the people of Kufah, and a big crowd filled the mosque and governor’s palace. He intended to speak in this gathering about immunity from ‘Ali.
al-Mas‘udi writes: Ziyad assembled all the people of Kufah at the gate of his palace, and then ordered everyone to curse ‘Ali, and if anyone refused to do so, he should be put to the sword. Fortunately before the order was executed, he was struck down by plague and died soon after, and the people were delivered from his molestation.
‘Amr ibn al-Himaq al-Khuza‘i a chaste and devoted man, was one of those who was involved with a tragic death during Ziyad’s rule. In order to avoid carrying out that intolerable order, namely taking immunity from the Imam, he fled to the desert, but the functionaries of the governor of Kufah searched every spot for him, and at last they found him in a cave in the hot desert of Iraq. As he had never bowed to tyrants, he met with a tragic death. They cut off his head and carried it to Mu‘awiyah who ordered to hang it in the market as a lesson to others.
After a few days they sent the head to his wife in prison where she had been kept on a similar charge, and threw it on her lap. The bereaved woman said sorrowfully:“You had kept him away from me for such a long time, and now you have brought me his severed head as a gift! What a worthy and precious gift!”
Imam ‘Ali is cursed on Islamic pulpits
Imam ‘Ali was cursed from the pulpits in all the eastern and westerns parts of the Islamic realm.
The plan of annihilating the Imam’s supporters and the propagation of false traditions for the purpose of defaming the good, and attributing a good reputation to the wicked to conform with Mu‘awiyah’s intentions, was carried out in the whole of the Islamic realm. Ziyad ibn Abihi and other governors of Mu‘awiyah
put his order into force and did their utmost to execute it success-fully and wholeheartedly.
Historians have narrated many bloody events related to the deeds of those agents, and the whole of the Umayyad period has witnessed the execution of this policy. Accordingly, to give the Muslims a complete brain-wash, Imam ‘Ali was cursed from every pulpit in the east and west of Islamic lands, and only the province of Sistan disobeyed the order of Mu‘awiyah, and only once was the Imam cursed from the pulpit there. Later on the people of this zone made a pact with the Umayyad government that they should be exempted from this order, whereas at the same time the Imam was being cursed from the pulpits in the most powerful cities of Islam, namely Mecca and Medina.
Hired orators cursed the noble Imam sometimes in the presence of the Alawite household. History remembers painful incidents related to this matter, but here we confine ourselves to the narration of a single incident. Ibn Hajar writes in the book of“Tathir al-lisan”
that ‘Amr ibn al-‘As began to criticize Imam ‘Ali from the pulpit. He was followed by al-Mughayrah on the pulpit uttering evil words. At this time it was suggested to Imam al-Hasan al-Mujtaba, who was present there, to climb the pulpit and answer those two. The Imam stated that he would be willing to do so if the people promise to confirm his words if he told the truth, and if, God forbid, his words were false, they should contradict him. They agreed, and the Imam climbed the pulpit and after praising God Almighty, he addressed both ‘Amr ibn al-‘As and al-Mughayrah, and said:“I ask you in the name of God: Do you not remember that the Prophet cursed the position of that horseman, one of whom was that fellow (meaning Mu‘awiyah)?”
They said:“We do.”
Then he turned to ‘Amr and al-Mughayrah and said:“Don’t you know and don’t you remember that the Prophet cursed ‘Amr ibn al-‘As for every line of his poem?”
They said:“By God! You are right!”
Of course as the Muslim supporters of the Prophet’s households were never prepared to listen to a sermon in which the Imam was reproached, abused or cursed, they immediately left the mosque after the prayer and before the sermon. So Mu‘awiyah and his governors changed the procedure which was prescribed by God and His prophet, and delivered the sermon before the prayer.
Ibn Hazm writes in his book of“al-Muhalla”
: For the first time the Umayyad made the sermon prior to the Friday prayer. They accounted for this unlawful action of theirs by saying that as the people left the mosque immediately after the end of the prayer, they do not wait to listen to the sermon. But the truth was that they cursed Imam ‘Ali from the pulpit, and as the people disliked this action, they left the mosque, and they were indeed right in doing so.
In Sahih of al-Bukhari and Muslim and other reliable books of tradition it is quoted from Abu Sa‘id al-Khudri as follows: I accompanied Marwan, then governor of Medina, out of the city on the Sacrificial (Qurban) or al-Fitr festival. At the spot chosen for the festival prayer, a pulpit had been put up by Kathir ibn as-Salt. On arriving there, Marwan wanted to climb the pulpit and deliver a sermon before the prayer. I caught his robe and tried to check him from doing so, but Marwan released himself by pulling his robe Out of my hand, and quickly ascended the pulpit, and recited the festival sermon.
When he descended the pulpit, I said to him:“By God! You have produced a change in the religion!”
He answered:“O Abu Sa‘id! Those things with which you were familiar in the name of religion, have disappeared.”
I said:“By God! What I knew was much finer than these innovations and unfamiliar ways!”
Marwan said:“The people never lingered our sermons. So we were compelled to place the sermon before the prayer.”
A group of people refuses to curse
O Mu‘awiyah! In cursing ‘Ali you are cursing God and the Prophet from the pulpit.
Umm Salamah
The governors and administrators of the Umayyad caliphate’s organiza¬tion did not confine themselves to this step. They also ordered the Prophet’s friends, who, in addition to their superior knowledge of Islam, had a deeper attachment to it, to follow the ways of these innovators.
Sahl ibn Sa‘d says: A man of Marwan’s house
ruled Medina. One day he summoned me and ordered me to abuse. ‘Ali, but I refused. He said:“Now that you refuse to Abuse ‘Ali, at least say: May God curse Abu Turab.”
I said:“Imam ‘Ali could not have chosen a better name than Abu Turab for himself, and when they addressed him by that name, he was very pleased.”
The governor said:“Tell us the story of this name and the reason for his gladness.”
I said:“One day the great Prophet of Islam went to visit his daughter, Fatimah, and did not find ‘Ali there. He said to his noble daughter: ‘Where is your cousin?’ She said: ‘Something has occurred between us that made both of us uneasy. So he left the house without taking his afternoon nap.’
The Prophet asked a man to go and search for ‘Ali. The man returned after some time and reported that ‘Ali was asleep in the mosque. The Prophet went to the mosque and saw ‘Ali asleep on his side while his robe, which covered him, had slipped away and his body was on the earth. The Prophet with utmost kindness and affection wiped the dust from ‘Ali’s body and said: ‘Get up, O Abu Turab! Get up, O Abu Turab!’ “
(Turab means “earth”
, and Abu Turab’ means A friend of the earth! The Umayyads supposed that this nickname was humiliat¬ing for ‘Ali, whereas it was a proof of the Prophet’s utmost affection for ‘Ali. Thus the Umayyads ordered the people to curse Abu Turab!)
‘Amir, son of Sa‘d ibn Abi Waqqas who was a witness of the following incident says: One day Mu‘awiyah summoned my father, Sa‘d, and asked:“Why do you abstain from reproaching and abusing Abu Turab?”
Sa‘d answered:“As long as I remember three remarks of the Prophet about ‘Ali, I shall never abuse him, since those words of the Prophet are more precious to me than the best property of the Arab people, namely; red-haired camels!
When the Prophet decided not to let ‘Ali accompany him in one of the wars (battle of Tabuk), and left him in charge of the city of Medina against the malicious deeds of hypocrites, ‘Ali came to the Prophet with tearful eyes and said: ‘O Prophet of God! Are you leaving me amidst women and children, and depriving me of keeping your company in this war?’ I heard the Prophet say to him: ‘Are you not glad that your relation to me is like the relation of Aaron to Moses, except that there will come no Prophet after me?’
Another time I heard the Prophet say on the day of the battle of Khaybar: ‘I will entrust this banner to a man who loves God and His Prophet, and is loved by God and his Prophet.’ We all stretched our necks and looked eagerly at the Prophet to see who is meant. The Prophet said: ‘Bring ‘Ali to me.’ They found and brought him to the Prophet, while he was suffering from a painful eye-ache. The Prophet touched his painful eye with the saliva of his own mouth. Then he handed him the banner, with the result that God granted us victory on that day.
I remember also that at this time the following verse descended: ‘Then say: Come let us call our sons and your sons, and our women and your women and our near people and your near people...’
The Prophet summoned ‘Ali, Fatimah, al-Hasan and al-Husayn, and said: ‘This is my household!’ “
al-Mas‘udi quotes the story of this meeting from at-Tabari as follows: When Mu‘awiyah had come on pilgrimage to Mecca, he went with Sa‘d ibn Abi Waqqas to circumambulate the House of God, and after that ceremony he visited Dar an-Nudwah, the gathering place of the Quraysh dignitaries in Pagan times, and let Sa‘d sit by him. Then he began to insult and abuse the Imam. Sa‘d was greatly vexed at this conduct of Mu‘awiyah and stood-up, saying: “You are seating me in your place and engage in abusing such a man as ‘Ali? I swear to God that if I possessed only one of his virtues and fine qualities, it would be more precious to me than anything else.”
After quoting the above remark, al-Mas‘udi narrates the story with a slight difference from what we said, and then concludes by quoting the following words of Sa‘d:“By God! I shall never enter your house as long as lam alive!”
Then he rose and left Mu‘awiyah’s gathering.
Ibn ‘Abd Rabbih al-Andulisi quotes the following story from his book in his account of Mu‘awiyah: When Imam al-Hasan al-Mujtaba departed this world, Mu‘awiyah came on pilgrimage as a caliph, and then visited Medina. He intended in this journey to curse the Imam from the Prophet’s pulpit in Medina. His companions said to him:“In this town there is Sa‘d ibn Abi Waqqas, the victor of Iran and an old influential companion of the Prophet. He will not approve of your action. You had better summon him and ask his view.”
Mu‘awiyah sent for Sa‘d and informed him of his intention. Sa‘d said:“If you do so, I will leave the mosque and will not return there.”
(Meaning that he refuses to go to a mosque where ‘Ali has been cursed. The significance of this remark becomes clear when we remember that the mosque referred to, have been the mosque of the Prophet.)
Mu‘awiyah who was apprehensive of Sa‘d’s great influence, abandoned his intention, and waited until Sa‘d died.
It was then that Mu‘awiyah was able to curse the Imam of the chaste from the Prophet’s pulpit in Medina. It was also in these times that he wrote to all his agents to abuse the Imam from pulpits. After some time a letter was sent by Umm Salamah to Mu‘awiyah, saying:“O Mu‘awiyah! In cursing ‘Ali ibn Abi Talib and his friends, you are cursing God and His Prophet from your pulpits! I take God to witness that God and His Prophet love him.”
But the letter of Umm Salamah had no effect on Mu‘awiyah, and he did not pay the least attention to it.
The ultimate goal of Mu‘awiyah
No! By God, I shall not rest until! Bury the name of the Prophet!
Mu‘awiyah suffered from irremediable complexes which were formed within him owing both to the lineage which had been attributed to him and also to the defects heaped on him and his family concerning their resistance and opposition to Islam. These complexes became more intense when he saw that Islam had humbled him and his house who had possessed a high rank and material opulence in Pagan times, and the Prophet had placed him, his father and brother in the rank of freed captives.
Against the low name of himself and his house in Islam, he saw the popular and immortal names of their rivals, namely the Banu Hashim. So these inferiority complexes were a very heavy burden on his back to bear, and he fervently sought a way to emerge from them. As we have already seen in past events and in his encounters with the Prophet’s companions, he was not able to reveal these internal rancours and hostilities on every occasion and in every place, since they were not harmonious with the personality he had somehow acquired and exposed his life and position to danger. But in private sessions with al-Mughayrah, whom he considered as one of the guardians of Paganism
and as both of them had collaborated with each other for many long years in wicked deeds, these complexes came to the surface and revealed his real beliefs and nature.
az-Zubayr ibn Bakkar quotes the son of al-Mughayrah ibn Shu‘bah in his book of“al-Muwaffaqiyat”
, as follows:
I had accompanied my father al-Mughayrah on his travel to ash-Sham to see Mu‘awiyah. My father went to him every day and talked with him for a long time. Whenever he returned home he spoke of the amazing intelligence and shrewdness of Mu‘awiyah and of what he had seen. But one night when he returned, he refused to eat anything and he was very despondent. I waited for some time thinking that his despondency was due either to some actions of ours or to some hitch in our affairs. When I asked him why he was so dejected, he said:“My boy, I have come back from the presence of the wickedest and most infidel of all people!”
I asked:“How and who?”
He said:“It was a private session with Mu‘awiyah I said to him: O Amir al-Mu’minin, You have attained your wish. Now it would be fitting if in your old age you act justly and treat others kindly: If you favour your kith and kin of Banu Hashim and observe your bonds of kinship with them, you will leave a good name behind. I swear to God that today they have nothing left to frighten you with (meaning that they are remote from assuming the position of caliph).”
Mu‘awiyah answered:“What you say is quite remote. Abu Bakr became caliph and acted justly, and bore so much trouble. By God, when he died, his name, too, died with him unless someone may one-day call: ‘Abu Bakr!’ Then ‘Umar assumed the rule, and endeavored much and suffered many pains for ten years. But a few days after his death, nothing of him remained except an occasional word of someone, saying: ‘ ‘Umar!’ Then our brother ‘Uthman became caliph, a man whose lineage nobody could rival, and he acted as he did, and was treated as we know. But by God, as soon as he was killed, his name, too, died, and his deeds were forgotten!
But you see that this Hashimi man’s (The Prophet) name is spoken loudly and respectfully five times a day in the whole of the Islamic realm (referring to the Muslim prayer and the call for it). What deed, do you think, will leave a memory and what good name can last long? By God! I shall never rest until I bury that name!”
Mu‘awiyah’s breast was burning with a flame of rancor and envy at the popular name of the Prophet who had destroyed his brother, uncle and grandfather and other relatives of his in the battle of Badr. He longed to bury that name. To attain that goal he had two plans: His first scheme could be summoned up in this sentence:“Not even one member of Banu Hashim should remain alive.”
This is not only our understanding of it. Imam ‘Ali himself says explicitly:“I swear to God that Mu‘awiyah desires that not even one of the Banu Hashim should survive. He wishes to extinguish the light of God in this way, but God will not allow this light to be extinguished even if infidels are not pleased with His wish.”
The second plan of Mu‘awiyah was to dispatch their names to oblivion. To attain this end he created the large organization of forging tradition, biography and history to defame those chaste personalities, and remove the signs of defects and shortcomings from the Umayyads. Consequently opposite the traditions, which existed from the Prophet damning Mu‘awiyah and his father and Umayyad household and such creatures as al-Hakam ibn Abi al-‘As, similar but false traditions were offered to the people as quotations from the Prophet, saying:“O God! I am only a human being exposed to error, oblivion and anger! If I have cursed or reproached a Muslim on account of my anger, consider that curse and abuse as expiation for his sins so that he may be cleansed of them.”
This forged tradition and similar ones were like a double-edged sword serving the interests of Mu‘awiyah. On the one hand they cleansed him and his household from all the things that the Prophet had rightly said about them, and on the other hand they presented the prophets as ordinary men subject to human failings and in most cases unable to control their rage with the result that they may utter futile and unjust words, whereas we know that God has praised the Prophet and his character in the best possible way as the worthiest human being, saying in this verse:
“And most surely you conform yourself to sublime morality.”
, and in this verse:
“Thus it is due to mercy from Allah that you deal them gently, and had you been rough and hard-hearted, they would certainly have dispersed from around you.”
He says also that all his utterances have their source in revelation, as in the following verse:
“Nor does he speak out of desire. It is naught but revelation that is revealed.”
Not many people understand this evil plan of Mu‘awiyah, and thus many simple-minded Muslims ignorantly followed and collaborated with him, and spread the traditions which had been fabricated by his hirelings. Although Mu‘awiyah was unable to publicly reveal all his rancor and hostility towards the Prophet, yet in other extensive fields he succeeded in fulfilling his wishes. Indeed he was successful in the question of defending ‘Uthman and his policy, and also in pounding ‘Ali, his household, his friends and supporters. We have already mentioned these points and seen how Mu‘awiyah treated those who did not collaborate with him in these wicked deeds. Imam ‘Ali’s friends gained nothing by supporting the Imam but torture, imprisonment, or death by hanging or being buried alive.
‘A’ishah, as the main personality under our discussion, at the moment when human feelings were dead, and human beings’s share was nothing but torture, imprisonment and execution, was greatly respected by him, and the caliph’s organization showed the greatest possible considerations to her especially at the beginning, and these two co-operated closely in the overall combat with the Imam.
In order to see the role and task of ‘A’ishah in Mu‘awiyah’s policy of forging traditions, we may speak of two incidents: A Muslim man named Sa‘d ibn Hisham asked another Muslim named Hakim ibn Aflah to visit ‘A’ishah. Hakim said:“I refuse to go to her. I had warned her against speaking of these two groups (the supporters of ‘Ali and followers of ‘Uthman), but she paid no attention to my counsel, and went her own way.”
What was the manner of ‘A’ishah’s talk about the Alawite party and ‘Uthman’s group? As we have already seen and will also see, at this time ‘A’ishah spoke well of ‘Uthman’s party and quoted some traditions from the Prophet in favour of that party, and thus she resorted also to other traditions in reproach of the Alawite party. These two matters are what Hakim had warned her against, and to which she had paid no attention.
A tradition from ‘A’ishah
‘A’ishah! Had you forgotten this tradition?
Ahmad ibn Hanbal in his book of Musnad quotes an-Nu‘man ibn Bashir, saying: Mu‘awiyah wrote a letter to ‘A’ishah. I went with the letter to her in Medina and delivered it. After she took it, she said:“My son! should I not narrate for you something that I have heard from the Prophet?”
I said:“Yes, of course!”
She said:“Hafsah and I were with the Prophet one day and he said to us: ‘How nice it would have been to have a man with us to talk to!’ I said: ‘Should I send for Abu Bakr?’ He remained silent and said again: ‘How fine it would have been to have a man with us to talk to.’ This time Hafsah said: ‘Couldn’t we send for ‘Umar?’ He did not answer, and then called a man and whispered something to him. The man went out and after some moments. ‘Uthman arrived. The Prophet began to speak eagerly with him, and I heard these words: ‘O ‘Uthman! Let us hope that God will adorn you with the garment of caliphate and greatness, and if they tried to remove it from your body, never submit to it’, and he repeated this sentence three times.”
an-Nu‘man ibn Bashir says: I said to her:“O Umm al-Mu’minin! Had you forgotten this tradition when you combatted so much with ‘Uthman, and wanted to depose him, and even incited the people to kill him?”
‘A’ishah said:“My son! I had forgotten this tradition. So thoroughly as if I had never heard it.”
The incident took place in the following way: A letter arrived for ‘A’ishah from the caliph Mu‘awiyah, and the messenger was waiting for an answer. At this moment ‘A’ishah remembered a tradition of the Prophet and quoted it for the caliph’s messenger, stating that the Prophet had predicted that ‘Uthman would in future assume the position of caliph
and in such a case he should never abdicate.
What is the connection of this letter with the tradition? Had Mu‘awiyah asked her in his letter to defend ‘Uthman? Or did ‘A’ishah intend that an-Nu‘man, Mu‘awiyah’s messenger, on his return to him, should quote the tradition for his master? Or was there some other reason for it?
Is it possible at all that ‘A’ishah had really forgotten this tradition and similar ones which she had quoted for different people during Mu‘awiyah’s rule, all the time that she combatted against ‘Uthman and incited the people to rise against him?
Whatever the reason may be, this tradition and similar ones which we will quote in the tradition section of this book, as well as the traditions that ‘A’ishah has narrated in praise of the excellence of her father Abu Bakr, and ‘Umar, and her cousin Talhah and others, place her in the rank of the most superior individuals who did their utmost in pleasing Mu‘awiyah in connection with his special policy of fabricating traditions. Naturally his greater endeavors, were directed towards the propagation of the virtue and excellence of his own kith and kin and of their supporters; for, as the proverb says: Blood is thicker than water.
In our discussion we have no intention of propagating the excellence of some, or cavilling at others. What we are investigating are the traditions, which we will mention in the last part of this book. Our task is to survey the traditions which are narrated from the Prophet, and that is why we have stepped in this course.
Conclusion and Purpose
‘A’ishah made use of the life of the Prophet in quoting traditions for the promotion of her own goals.
The Conclusion of previous discussions:
In previous chapters we made a careful survey of the life of ‘A’ishah in order to become familiar with her social and political personality and with her ideas and objectives, and discover her particular mental and social motives which roused her to quote so many traditions.
Our conclusion is briefly that ‘A’ishah was a very intelligent woman, a fine orator familiar with the way of speech making and oration, and fully aware of the effect of words in capturing the hearts and influencing the minds of people. She was a statesman well acquainted with the political and governmental affairs of the time. She was able to lead and command a large and powerful army. She possessed a great social personality, and such a wide influence among the Muslims that she could with a small effort rouse the people against the government of the time and overthrow it.
‘A’ishah was a domineering and ambitious woman who did not halt or remain idle anywhere, and sought the highest point in every course and purpose, and spared no effort and action, and no factor could check her from following her objective.
She was filled with a deep emotional attachment for her kith and kin, so much so that she showed a high degree of devotion and self-sacrifice in their favour and interest. She was at the same time violently vindictive towards those who opposed her and her household, and strict and hard and hostile to the point of desiring their death and destruction. She was a woman the like of whom has rarely been witnessed or even known by history. Sometimes she uttered brief remarks in defense of her relatives and supporters that they were then frequently repeated by people, as a lasting phrase in history. She created such a bright spot in their lives that later on it helped to win them a name, a reputation and popularity. Sometimes she spoke so smashingly against her opponents that its effect remained long on their character like a stain on the pages of history.
Her words, whether in favour or against a person, passed from mouth to mouth, and were handed on as a souvenir from one city to another, and were then transferred to books, left for future generations for many centuries as her traditions. This was the greatest evidence of ‘A’ishah’s personality in the Islamic world of those days.
Thus we have observed ‘A’ishah from the angle of the true facts of history, and depicted her as she really was. But those who have desired to build up a different greatness and personality for her, seem to have wished to introduce her as an offspring of the Prophet; a matter which is wholly wrong and untrue.
We should neither introduce the personalities of the early period of Islamic period according to our fancy, since such a picture would be illusory and fanciful, nor depict a true personality and his life differently from what he has actually been.
The purpose of the survey of ‘A’ishah’s life:
As we have repeatedly said, we point out in conclusion, too that ‘A’ishah skilfully made use of two things in order to attain her end:
1-In all her adventurous life she emphasized her being the Prophet’s consort and mother of the faithful, and used this advantage as an effective weapon against her opponents and as a means of encouraging her supporters.
2-Whenever she found it necessary, she quoted a tradition from the Prophet and his life, and made use of her overflowing talent in referring to that tradition to promote her goal.
The number of such cases when ‘A’ishah used her position as the Prophet’s consort is so large that it is beyond the scope of this book. But the following incident illustrates the above point. We read in the story of the battle of al-Jamal that ‘A’ishah wrote a letter to Zayd ibn Sawhan asking his aid, and to rouse his ardor, she began her letter with this phrase:“From ‘A’ishah Umm al-Mu’minin daughter of Abu Bakr and consort of the prophet of God.”
We have repeatedly seen in our discussions how ‘A’ishah made use of the title“Umm al-Mu’minin”
and“The Prophet’s consort”
in order to produce great events on that basis and impress people. Even up to now it is still used as an effective weapon in the hands of her supporters and in her defense.
As for the cases when ‘A’ishah relied on the details of the Prophet’s life to attain her purpose and forge a tradition, there are many of them, some of which are as follows:
1-Muslim narrates in his book of Sahih: ‘A’ishah said:“When the Prophet was in his deathbed, he said to me: Call your father and brother to write down my will, for, I fear that a claimer may claim that he has a greater merit to be caliph, whereas God and believers accept none but Abu Bakr as caliph.”
2-al-Bukhari says in his book of Sahih that ‘A’ishah said: When the Prophet fell seriously ill, he said to ‘Abd ar-Rahman son of Abu Bakr:“Fetch a shoulder blade
or a tablet to write a letter to Abu Bakr so that no one opposes his caliphate.”
When ‘Abd ar-Rahman rose to bring writing materials, the Prophet said:“O Abu Bakr! God and believers do not wish any disagreement to arise about your right.”
As you see, ‘A’ishah has made use of the Prophet’s illness and concurrent incidents to create these two traditions for the purpose of consolidating her father’s position as caliph.
3-At a time when ‘A’ishah’s relation with ‘Uthman was friendly and co-operative, she made a similar use of forged traditions in his favour on the basis of the Prophet’s private and family life. Muslim quotes ‘A’ishah in his book of Sahih, saying: ‘The Prophet and I were lying down under the same cloak when Abu Bakr arrived and asked leave to enter. The Prophet gave him permission, and when he left, ‘Umar asked leave to enter and he was allowed to see us in that condition. When ‘Umar left, ‘Uthman asked leave to meet the Prophet. This time the Prophet rose and arranged his clothes and then admitted ‘Uthman to his presence. After ‘Uthman left, I said to the Prophet:“You allowed Abu Bakr and ‘Umar to see you in your former state of lying down, whereas in admitting ‘Uthman, you rose and arranged your clothes. There must be a mystery in this behaviour.”
The Prophet said:“As ‘Uthman is a shy and modest person, I was afraid he would not divulge his request on seeing me in that condition.”
4-In his book of Sahih, Muslim narrates this story differently, and says: One day the Prophet was lying down in his bed and had spread ‘A’ishah’s robe on himself. When ‘Uthman arrived, the Prophet ordered ‘A’ishah to cover herself. ‘A’ishah said:“O Prophet! When Abu Bakr and ‘Umar came to see you, you made no change in your state, whereas you were at a loss to what to do when ‘Umar arrived and you re-arranged your garment!”
5-We read in another narration of Muslim in his Sahih that ‘A’ishah says: When I asked the Prophet this question, he said:“Why should I not be coy of ‘Uthman, and show no respect, whereas I swear to God that God’s angels are shy and respectful towards ‘Uthman?”
The same ‘A’ishah who makes so much use of the Prophet’s private life to support the caliphate of ‘Uthman, very soon uses the same weapon to vanquish ‘Uthman. When a leaf of history was turned over and the relation of ‘A’ishah with ‘Uthman was darkened, ‘A’ishah held up the shirt of the Prophet and to rouse the people against ‘Uthman, she addressed the Muslims, saying:“O Muslims! This is the Prophet’s shirt, which is not worn-out yet, but ‘Uthman has so soon altered the Prophet’s ways and tradition, and has made his religion old and worn-out.”
Another time, too, she showed the Prophet’s slippers to the people in the mosque, and third time a hair of the Prophet, in support of her accusation. Thus we see her making use of the tangible things of the Prophet to incite the people against ‘Uthman.
For, at this time ‘A’ishah is pursuing other motives and goals, which necessitate a change in the use of the means!
With the assassination of ‘Uthman another leaf history is turned over, and now ‘A’ishah forgets the past and once more she begins to eulogise ‘Uthman, and again she employes the details of the Prophet’s life in support and praise of ‘Uthman and because of fresh goals and motives!
6-At a time when Mu‘awiyah had made it obligatory for all the people to sing the praises of ‘Uthman, and by his order the machinery for fabricating traditions about ‘Uthman’s personality was functioning, ‘A’ishah quoted in amazing tradition about ‘Uthman in the presence of the deputy of Mu‘awiyah’s court, saying: Hafsah and I were in the Prophet’s presence, when he said:“I wish someone were here to talk with me!”
I suggested my father Abu Bakr as a talking companion, and Hafsah proposed her father ‘Umar, but he remained silent about our suggestions. Then he summoned a man and whispered something to him. Very soon ‘Uthman arrived and the Prophet was greatly pleased and began talking with him. I heard him with my own ears, saying:“O ‘Uthman! God will adorn you with the garment of caliphate, and if they try to remove this garment from you, you must resist and not take off with your own hands the garment with which God has adorned you!”
7-‘A’ishah had her own particular view about sucking and said that five times sucking of a stranger creates a legitimate intimacy as a relative. She advised her own sisters and kith and kin to follow her example. In issuing this verdict, her intention was to create intimacy with those whose aid she needed socially, so that no one could protest against this relationship. But the other wives of the Prophet rejected this view and said that this sucking must be related to early babyhood and be repeated ten times, not five times.
‘A’ishah claimed against this protests saying:“In a verse descendent to the Prophet it is stated that the creation of legitimate intimacy by sucking adult boys is possible with ten times’ sucking, and this verdict was written on a piece of paper placed under my bed, but during the Prophet’s illness when I was busy nursing him, a domestic animal came in and ate the paper on which this subject was written!”
In another narration of Muslim in his book of Sahih, ‘A’ishah says that there was a verse declaring legitimate intimacy with ten definite sucking, and then the number was reduced to five times’ sucking, thus abrogating the previous verse. Then ‘A’ishah adds: When the Prophet died the verse related to five times’ sucking existed in the Qur’an and it was even recited.
She meant that the above number of sucking was adequate for creating legitimate intimacy, since such a Quranic verse confirmed it in the Prophet’s time but it has been forgotten now!
The above traditions were examples of the kinds of things fabricated and presented to the Islamic society by this lady on the basis of the Prophet’s life. In future discussions where ‘A’ishah’s traditions will be surveyed and evaluated independently, we shall see that no one has spoken so abundantly about the Prophet’s life as ‘A’ishah has, and in her descriptions of him she has depicted an astonishing picture to the extent of lowering him even below the level of an ordinary human being!
What is even more important is that since the time of ‘A’ishah’s influence in the Islamic society till today, all the Muslims except the followers of the Prophet’s household seek the true character and real life of the Prophet in ‘A’ishah’s narrations. The result is that the real character of the Prophet has remained unknown even for the Muslims, since they have relied only on ‘A’ishah’s narrations in this matter, and have shown the same way to others to pursue, whereas these traditions have misrepresented and wholly reversed the true personality of the Prophet.
The conclusion is therefore that to know the real character of the Prophet we should make a careful study and investigation of ‘A’ishah’s traditions in order to remove all obscurities and alterations in it. Moreover, to have a proper understanding of Islam, too, depends on a real recognition of the Prophet’s true visage.
Therefore in this book, which is translated into three volumes, we have made a survey of ‘A’ishah’s life from the viewpoint of reliable history, and will continue this survey by investigating her traditions, too.
In this course and this survey we apologize to those who are attached to ‘A’ishah, and we hope for their forgiveness. We have stepped on a very hard and painful route in our search for the true character of the Prophet and his faith, and have honestly tried to render a service in presenting the true facts of Islam and real visage of Islamic personalities.
The above point has been our goal and purpose, which took the form of the study of ‘A’ishah’s life in the first part, and will continue to deal with her traditions in the second part. May we succeed in winning God’s satisfaction in following this objective! May God be a witness to what we have narrated!
Sayyid Murtada ‘Askari
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Author: Allamah Sayyid Murtadha Askari
