How do the Shi‘ah view the Sahabah {Companions}?

By: Sayyid Rida' Husayni Nasab
Reply: According to the Shi‘ah, those who happened to meet and accompany the Prophet (S) can be divided into some groups. Before explaining this statement in detail, we had better define the word, “sahabi” {companion}.
There are various definitions of the word “Companion” of the Prophet (S). Below are some of them:
1. Sa‘id ibn Musayb says: “Sahabi is referred to the person who kept company with the Prophet for one or two years and fought alongside him one or two battles.”[1][141]
2. Waqidi says: “Scholars are of the opinion that whoever saw the Prophet, embraced Islam, thought of the religion, and was pleased with it, even if that was for only one hour, is regarded as among the Companions of the Prophet.”[2][142]
3. Muhammad ibn Isma‘il al-Bukhari states: “Any Muslim who accompanied the Prophet and saw him is regarded as one of his Companions.”[3][143]
4. Ahmad ibn Hanbal says: “Anyone, who accompanied the Prophet for a month, a day or an hour, or saw him, is considered among the Companions.”[4][144]
Some of the ‘ulama’ of Ahl as-Sunnah acknowledge that the justice of the Companions is an indisputable principle in the sense that whoever kept companionship with the Prophet (S) is just![5][145]
Now, taking into consideration the explicit verses of the Qur’an, we shall examine this statement to point out the Shi‘ah viewpoint which is derived from the logic of revelation: History has recorded the names and descriptions of more than 12 thousand people as the Companions of the Prophet (S) including people of various personalities. The station of companionship of the Prophet is, without doubt, a great honor granted to a certain group, and the Muslim ummah always holds the Companions in high esteem because they are the first group of Muslims to hoist Islam’s banner of glory and grandeur.
The Holy Qur’an also hails those pioneering standard-bearers (of Islam), stating:
لاَ يَسْتَوِي مِنكُم مَّنْ أَنفَقَ مِن قَبْلِ الْفَتْحِ وَقَاتَلَ أُوْلٰئِكَ أَعْظَمُ دَرَجَةً مِّنَ الَّذِينَ أَنفَقُوا مِن بَعْدُ وَقَاتَلُوا

“Not equal {to others} are those of you who spent and fought before the victory. They are greater in rank than those who have spent and fought afterward.”[6][146]
We should also confess that the companionship of the Prophet of God is not an alchemy that transforms man’s disposition, ensures his piety throughout his life or causes him to be one of the just.
In order to clarify this point, it is worth concentrating on the Qur’an, which is accepted by the Muslims all over the world, and resort to this sacred book for solving this issue:
Sahabi {Companion} from the viewpoint of the Qur’an
In the logic of revelation, those who happened to meet the Holy Prophet (S) and accompany him are divided into two groups:

The first group
The people of this group are hailed and praised by the everlasting verses of the Qur’an and described as the founders of the castle of the glory and grandeur of Islam. The following are some of the Qur’anic verses regarding this group of the Companions:

1. The first followers
مِنَ الْمُهَاجِرِينَ وَالأَنصَارِ وَالَّذِينَ اتَّبَعُوهُم بِإِحْسَانٍ رَّضِيَ اللّهُ عَنْهُمْ وَرَضُواْ عَنْهُ وَأَعَدَّ لَهُمْ جَنَّاتٍ تَجْرِي تَحْتَهَا الأَنْهَارُ خَالِدِينَ فِيهَا أَبَدًا ذَلِكَ الْفَوْزُ الْعَظِيمُ

“The early vanguard of the Emigrants and the Helpers and those who followed them in virtue- Allah is pleased with them and they are pleased with Him, and He has prepared for them gardens with streams running in them, to remain in them forever. That is the great success.”[7][147]

2. Those who swore allegiance under the tree
لَقَدْ رَضِيَ اللَّهُ عَنِ الْمُؤْمِنِينَ إِذْ يُبَايِعُونَكَ تَحْتَ الشَّجَرَةِ فَعَلِمَ مَا فِي قُلُوبِهِمْ فَأَنزَلَ السَّكِينَةَ عَلَيْهِمْ وَأَثَابَهُمْ فَتْحًا قَرِيبًا

“Allah was certainly pleased with the faithful when they swore allegiance to you under the tree. He knew what was in their hearts, so He sent down composure on them, and requited them with a victory near at hand.”[8][148]

3. The Muhajirun {Emigrants}
لِلْفُقَرَاء الْمُهَاجِرِينَ الَّذِينَ أُخْرِجُوا مِن دِيارِهِمْ وَأَمْوَالِهِمْ يَبْتَغُونَ فَضْلًا مِّنَ اللَّهِ وَرِضْوَانًا وَيَنصُرُونَ اللَّهَ وَرَسُولَهُ أُوْلَئِكَ هُمُ الصَّادِقُونَ

“{They are also} for the poor Emigrants who have been expelled from their homes and {wrested of} their possessions, who seek grace from Allah and {His} pleasure and help Allah and His Apostle. It is they who are the truthful.”[9][149]

4. The Companions who fought alongside the Prophet (S)
مُّحَمَّدٌ رَّسُولُ اللَّهِ وَالَّذِينَ مَعَهُ أَشِدَّاء عَلَى الْكُفَّارِ رُحَمَاء بَيْنَهُمْ تَرَاهُمْ رُكَّعًا سُجَّدًا يَبْتَغُونَ فَضْلًا مِّنَ اللَّهِ وَرِضْوَانًا سِيمَاهُمْ فِي وُجُوهِهِم مِّنْ أَثَرِ السُّجُودِ

“Muhammad, the Apostle of Allah, and those who are with him are hard against the faithless and merciful among themselves. You see them bowing and prostrating {in worship}, seeking Allah’s grace and {His} pleasure. Their mark is {visible} on their faces, from the effect of prostration.”[10][150]

The second group
The other group of those who accompanied the Prophet (S) consist of two-faced and sick-hearted men the reality of whose nature the Holy Qur’an has revealed and of whose danger it has warned the Prophet (S). Here are some examples of this group:

1. Known hypocrites
إِذَا جَاءكَ الْمُنَافِقُونَ قَالُوا نَشْهَدُ إِنَّكَ لَرَسُولُ اللَّهِ وَاللَّهُ يَعْلَمُ إِنَّكَ لَرَسُولُهُ وَاللَّهُ يَشْهَدُ إِنَّ الْمُنَافِقِينَ لَكَاذِبُونَ

“When the hypocrites come to you they say, ‘We bear witness that you are indeed the apostle of Allah.’ Allah knows that you are indeed His Apostle, and Allah bears witness that the hypocrites are indeed liars.”[11][151]

2. Unknown hypocrites
وَمِمَّنْ حَوْلَكُم مِّنَ الأَعْرَابِ مُنَافِقُونَ وَمِنْ أَهْلِ الْمَدِينَةِ مَرَدُواْ عَلَى النِّفَاقِ لاَ تَعْلَمُهُمْ نَحْنُ نَعْلَمُهُمْ سَنُعَذِّبُهُم مَّرَّتَيْنِ ثُمَّ يُرَدُّونَ إِلَىٰ عَذَابٍ عَظِيمٍ

“There are hypocrites among the Bedouins around you and among the townspeople of Madinah, steeped in hypocrisy. You do not know them; We know them, and We will punish them twice, then they shall be consigned to a great punishment.”[12][152]

3. Sick-hearted ones
غُرُورًا إِلاَّ وَرَسُولُهُ اللهُ وَعَدَنَا مَّا مَّرَضٌ قُلُوبِهِم فِي وَالَّذِيْنَ المُنَٰفِقُونَ يَقُولُ وَإِذْ

“And when the hypocrites were saying, as well as those in whose hearts is a sickness, ‘Allah and His Apostle did not promise us {anything} except delusion’.”[13][153]

4. Sinners
وَآخَرُونَ اعْتَرَفُواْ بِذُنُوبِهِمْ خَلَطُواْ عَمَلاً صَالِحًا وَآخَرَ سَيِّئًا عَسَى اللّهُ أَن يَتُوبَ عَلَيْهِمْ إِنَّ اللّهَ غَفُورٌ رَّحِيمٌ

“{There are} others who have confessed to their sins, having mixed up righteous conduct with other that was evil. Maybe Allah will accept their repentance. Indeed Allah is all-forgiving, all-merciful.”[14][154]
In addition to the noble verses of the Qur’an, many traditions have been narrated regarding the Holy Prophet’s (S) reproaching some of the Companions. We shall cite two examples:
1. Abu Hazim narrates on the authority of Sahl ibn Sa‘d that the Holy Prophet (S) is reported to have said:
يظمأ لم شرب من و شرب ورد من الحوض علىٰ فرطكم أنا .بينهم و بيني يُحال ثمَّ يعرفونني و أعرفهم أقوام عليّ ليردنّ و أبدًا

I will send you toward the Pool; whoever comes upon it will drink from it, and whoever drinks from it will no longer feel thirsty. There will come to me some people; I know them and they know me, but they will be separated from me.
Abu Hazim has said: “While I was narrating this hadith, Nu‘man ibn Abi ‘Ayyash heard it and asked me, ‘Did you hear it from Sahl like that?’ I said, ‘Yes’. He said: ‘I bear witness that Abu Sa‘id al-Khudri says that the Prophet has also said’:
سحقًا فأقول: بعدك أحدثوا ما لاتدري انّك فيقال مِنِّى إنَّهُم . بعدي بدَّل لمن سحقًا

“They are from me.” Then someone says, “You do not know what they did after you!” So I shall say, “Damn those who have changed (the truth) after me.”[15][155]
It is obvious that such words like, “I know them and they know me,” or, “Damn those who have changed (the truth) after me,” refer to the Companions of the Prophet (S) who were in his company for a time. This hadith has also been narrated by al-Bukhari and Muslim.
2. Al-Bukhari and Muslim narrate that the Prophet (S) is reported to have said:
ـ أمّتي من قال أو ـ أصحابي من رهطٌ القيامة يوم عليّ يرد لاعلم إنّه فيقول أصحابي ربّ يا فأقول الحوض عن فيحلؤون .القهقري أدبارهم علىٰ ارتدّوا أنّهم بعدك أحدثوا بما لك

On the Day of Resurrection, a group from among my Companions—(or, “my ummah”) shall come to me but they shall be prevented from reaching the Pool (of Kawthar). Then, I shall say, ‘O Lord! They are my Companions.’ Then He shall say, ‘You do not know what they did after you; they returned to their former state (state of jahiliyyah or ignorance)’.”[16][156]
Conclusion
From the Qur’anic verses and Sunnah of the Prophet (S), it is clear that the Companions of the Prophet (S) and those who accompanied him were of more than one type or category; a group of them were refined men at the apex of merit whose valuable services led to the fruition of the nascent bud of Islam and another group composed of individuals who were two-faced, hypocrites, sick-hearted, and sinners from the very beginning.[17][157]
The aforementioned observations make clear that the view of the Shi‘ah regarding the Companions of the Prophet (S) is the same as that of the Book of God and the Sunnah of the Prophet (S).
Ref: Imam Reza Network

Historical Roots of the Sahaba's Ultimate Decency Conception

By: Ahmad Husain Yaqub
A. THE CLANS OF QURAISH
The Quraish consist of twenty five clans. The best and the most honorable clan is the sons of Hashim Bin Abd Menaf. They are directly followed by the sons of Abdul-Muttelib Bin Abd Menaf,... Al-Harith Bin Abd Menaf,..., Umaya Bin Abd Shams Bin Abd Menaf and Nawfel Bin Abd Menaf respectively. The Hashemites are the celebrities of Quraish. They succeeded their father in management. They are named ‘Al-Mujebbirun -The healers-’. They are regarded as the foremost in holding peace treaties with the kings of that time. Hashim held a peace treaty with the kings of Syria. Abd Shams held an alike one with Nejashi, the king of Abyssinia. Nawfel held an alike one with the kings of Persia. Abdul-Muttelib held an alike one with the kings of Himyer; Yemen. According to such treaties, people of Quraish could settle in various areas of this world. For the high standing and the mastery of the Hashemites upon the Arabs, they were called ‘Aqdahun-Nedhar -Cups of Gold.-’
B. THE POLITICAL FORM
The Quraishi clans concluded a political form respecting distributing positions, such as the leadership, the pennon, the assemblies, watering the pilgrimages, hosting the guests... etc. This form was the furthest thing the clans could achieve. They, as a whole, were convinced that that had been too satisfactory to abuse any one's rights. The political positions are estimated as the fate of those clans that it is none's benefit to alter or change, since it is impossible to recognize the consequences of such attempts of altering or changing. It might, at least, result in losing what had been achieved. The entire clans, in addition, were pleased to such a form that arranged the affairs of the pilgrimage and the Holy House. Gradually these positions and missions became a significance of a political belief and a heritage of the forefathers. It became impermissible for any to stand against such missions.
C. ENDEAVORS FOR SHAKING THE FORM
In the years of starvation, Hashim was the only individual who committed himself to providing food to people. He was named the master of Bat'ha. His food-tables were spread in times of amenity and distress. He was wont to host the guests and the passers-by and secure the troubled. Umaya Bin Abd Shams feared and envied him. He failed in imitating Hashim; therefore, the other Quraishi people criticized and imputed dishonor to him. Hashim rejected his challenge to argue about the more honorable of them. Owing to Umaya's insistence, he accepted it. They agreed that the loser should undergo fifty she-camels and banished. As the arbiter ruled of Hashim's being more honorable, fifty she-camels of Umaya were slaughtered and he was deported to Syria. This was the first seed of hostility between the sons of Hashim and those of Umaya. It seems that the motive beyond Umaya's challenge was his envying Hashim and the apprehension that he would be a serious danger against the political form according to which the sons of Abd Shams had been the leaders. Furthermore, He might have realized that the fame of Hashim would shake the form as a whole and would, as a result, cause people to follow him.
D. THE AUGURY OF PROPHESY
In Mecca, it was commonly spread that soon there would be a prophet to be assigned by God, and that he would be a successor of Abd Menaf. Abu Sufian was one of those who believed in this foretelling and worked depending on it. He established distinguishable relations with Abdullah Bin Abis-Salt. According to his conception, Abu Sufian was certain that the intended prophet should cancel the political form -of the Quraishi clans-, the leadership of which was in his hand. Hence, this prophet would be forming the most hazardous factor against the sons of Umaya. After a long period of panic and suffering, he could have a term of tranquillity since he believed that the prophet would be a successor of Abd Menaf, and there was none, from among the successors of Abd Menaf, fitter than him in undergoing such a mission. On that account, he should certainly be the very one intended.
E. THE DECLARATION OF PROPHESY
Mohammed, the successor of Hashim, declared his being the anticipated prophet whom had been favored by God for leading the Arabs and the mankind to the right path. He declared that the evidence of his prophesy had been God's words. A little group of eloquent individuals and those who were harshly treated in this world, followed Mohammed.
F. THE HASHIMITES' GUARDING MOHAMMED
With all their forces, the Hashemites embraced Mohammed. The leaders of Quraish threatened that they would kill him. In fact, they spread a rumor of Mohammed's being killed. Abu Talib gathered the Hashemite men and gave each a hard bar. Walking with the sons of Hashim and his, Abu Talib raised his voice at the people of Quraish: “O people of Quraish! Do you realize what I am to do?” “No, we do not.” they answered. Abu Talib ordered his people to show what they were keeping in their hands. Each showed the hard bar he had. Abu Talib commented: “By God I swear, if you kill him -Mohammed- I will never keep any of you alive unless we both are terminated.” Accordingly, people of Quraish were defeated. Abu Jahl countered the largest share of that defeat.
G. NOT FOR THE FAVOR OF THE PAGANS, IT WAS ENVY, AND PRESERVING THE POLITICAL FORM
Led by Abu Sufian, the other clans of Quraish exerted all their efforts for the sake of facing Mohammed. Nevertheless, they could not intercept him. For countering the importunity and the rejection of the Hashemites, the clans of Quraish unanimously agreed on the following decisions:
1. Issuing a total boycott against the Hashemites. The Quraishi clans, including Teim and Edi, ostracized the Hashemites. They restricted them in the cols of Abu Talib for three continuous years. The Hashemites, during that period, had to have from the leaves of the trees due to the starvation they suffered. Their children, likewise, had to suck the sands due to their thirstiness. This is an indisputable fact that is as clear as sunlight. Neither Mohammed nor did the Hashemites submit to the Quraishi people. Finally, God refuted the trickeries of the Quraishi people and leaders. After a three year boycott, the blockade proved its failure.
2. As they realized that Mohammed would soon immigrate to Yathrib, where he could find supporters and could establish a base for his advocacy, the clans of Quraish decided unanimously to kill him. They selected a man from each tribe so that they would strike him together that his blood would be distributed among the entire tribes equally. The purpose beyond such a cabal was obliging the Hashemites to miss out any opportunity to revenge Mohammed. They believed that Mohammed would achieve his goals and, in sequence, divest them from their leadership and authority, if he reached in Yathrib.
They applied this cabal so accurately, but they were astonished when they found Ali Bin Abi Talib sleeping in Mohammed's bed. The leaders of Mecca became so perturbed that they offered big prizes as a remuneration for those who would be able to capture Mohammed, alive or dead.
In the other side, Mohammed, his companion and the guide were pushing their way to Yathrib in safe, by God's will. This is an indiscussible fact that is as clear as sunlight.
H. NOT FOR THE FAVOR OF THE PAGANS, THE WARS WERE DUE TO ENVY AND PRESERVING THE POLITICAL FORM
Neither the Quraishi clans led by the Umayids, nor were the Hashemites, Mohammed and his group despondent from achieving triumph against the adversary party. The Arabs were three parties; one was supporting people of Quraish and their joint commandment. The other, even few, was supporting Mohammed. The third was waiting for the outcome for supporting the victorious. In Badr and Uhud, wars broke up between the two parties. A third war broke out when the leadership of the Quraishis raised armies and allied the Jews forming the multipartite army. They advanced towards Al-Madina, the Prophet's capital. Precisely, these multipartite armies failed. A while later, the Quraishi were surprised by the armies of God in Mecca, their capital. Hence, the leaders of Quraish were submitted and they had to embrace Islam. Owing to this submission, the entire Arabs were dominated by the Prophet's government and, consequently, they embraced Islam in groups.
I. THE HASHEMITE PROPHESY IS AN INESCAPABLE FATE
Sparing no single sort of rejection and resistance, the clans of Quraish, led by the Umayids, opposed the religion established by Mohammed, the Hashemite. Apart from their loyalty to their pagans, the main reason beyond this resistance was their abhorrence that a Hashemite would be the one to whom this religion had been revealed. They disliked the Hashemites’ leadership. The shade of the old political form was another motive towards their resisting this advocacy.
Finally, Abu Sufian was surprised by God's soldiers on the doorsteps of Mecca. Al-Abbas detains him so that he should see God's soldiers with his own eyes. “I have never seen such a domination alike of which is not existed neither at Khosrow, Caesar nor the Romans.” expresses Abu Sufian. Before the Prophet (peace be upon him and his family), Abu Sufian is dragged by Al-Abbas. “O Abu Sufian! Woe is you! Is it not the appropriate time to realize that there is no god but Allah?” the Prophet addresses at him. “I do conceive that Allah would not affect me in any sort if there was another god besides Him.” answers Abu Sufian. “O Abu Sufian!” the Prophet (peace be upon him and his family) reasks, “Is it not the proper time to realize that I am the messenger of God?” “Regarding this, my soul, by God, cannot receive it completely!” admits Abu Sufian. Al-Abbas shouts: “Woe is you, Abu Sufian! Declare your being Muslim and admit that there is no god but Allah and Mohammed is surely the messenger of Allah, lest you shall be beheaded.” Only after mentioning beheading, surrounding and hopelessness, Abu Sufian declares his being Muslim for nothing other than saving his soul. He was gazing at the Prophet (peace be upon him and his family) surprisingly when he said to himself: “By which weapon did this man overcome?” God, informed His Apostle of Abu Sufian's wonderment; therefore, he came to him and said: “By Allah I overcame.”
Thus and so, the Quraishi clans realized the following facts:
The Hashemite prophesy is an inescapable and determined fate.
They, as clans, had no role, at all, in this preference. They would never agree upon this option if only they had any role in the operation.
The prophesy is a one time phenomenon.
No single clan of Quraish will be catching or joined to the Hashemites.
The political form was not only shaked, but also was it completely blasted.
Hence, the Quraishi clans worked furtively for occluding this (Hashemite) advancement towards governing the royalty besides the prophesy, the matter which results in gaining the integrity as a whole.
The most enthusiast clan towards occluding the Hashemite advancement: The clans of Quraish, altogether, believed that the Hashemite prophesy had certainly shaked the political form of distributing roles of celebrity among them in an unprecedented form. Saving the Al-Muttelib Bin Abd Menaf who supported the Hashemites, the Quraishi clans, as a whole, rejected this Hashemite prophesy. The Umayids, however, were the most enthusiast and denying against this Hashemite advancement. They did their best for the sake of intercepting the Hashemite from joining headship to the divine prophesy. The following are some of the reasons beyond such an enthusiastic situation:
1. Before Islam, the Umayids were engaged in considerable hostility, enmity and envy against the Hashemites.
2. Owing to the Hashemites' prophesy, the Umayids lost the headship they had enjoyed.
3. It was the Hashemites who killed the chiefs of the Umayids. Utbeh, Al-Waleed and Sheibeh were killed by Hamzeh, Ali and Ubeidullah. In addition to their abhorrence, the Umayids bore malice to the Hashemites. The amount of this malice is evidently reflected by Hind, Muawiya’s mother and Abu Sufian’s wife. Being not sufficed by killing Hamzeh, she corrupted his celibate corpse. On account of the victory and the expansion of Mohammed's prophesy, besides the Umayids retardation to join Islam and their long and famous history in antagonizing, they could not have any opportunity to declare their plan of intercepting the Hashemites from gaining the authority, beside the prophesy, of this nation.
J. THE PREEMINENT TREND
The notion of the unacceptability for the Hashemites to join headship to prophesy became the preeminent trend, although it was stable only in the hidden because of the presence of the Prophet (peace be upon him and his family), the dominion of legality and the unification of the Prophet's virtuous companions. As soon as any of these three factors is missed, the legality will be shaked and the virtuous companions will be (the like of a single white hair in a black bull's skin) as Muawiya describes. The authority, then, will be the prevailing's.
K. THE IMMACULATE KINSHIP IS THE STATUTORY BASE OF CALIPHATE
The following is the argument of the three Muhajirs -immigrators to Yathrib- in the Saqeefeh of Bani Sa'ideh:
Abu Bakr stated: “We are the Prophet's clan while you are his supporters. Thus, you are our supporters in this religion.”
Omar stated: “Two swords cannot be put in the same seath. Nay, by God. The Arab shall never accept your being the leaders while the Prophet is another clan's. The Arab should never select but those from whom the prophesy came forth. The evident argument and the manifest evidence is ours against our opposers. Who dare to litigate with us about the authority and the heritage of Mohammed while we are his backers and people? None but the wrong, the sinful or the involved in a disaster may do so.”
The Ansar -the supporters; people of Yathrib who supported the Prophet and his followers.- shouted in one voice: “We shall select none other than Ali.” Ali, however, was absent. Some of the Ansar shouted: “We shall select none other than Ali.”
Without any respite, the matter of Mohammed's succession became in the hands of As-Siddiq, Abu Bakr. As he was called for declaring his fealty to Abu Bakr, Ali stated: “I am the most rightful in this affair. I am not to submit to your leadership. It is you whom are to be submitted to my leadership. You seized it from the Ansar claiming of the Prophet's kinship. Now, you intend to seize it from the Prophet's household coercively?! Have you not argued before the Ansar that you are more rightful in holding this affair of leadership due to your relation to the Prophet? And they complied to your claim and gave it to you. Now, I do provide the very same argument before you; we are the most rightful in enjoying the Prophet's authority and heritage in and after his life.. etc.”
L. THE REBELLION AND THE DISSIPATION OF THE PREEMINENT TREND
Bed-ridden, Omar were engaged in planning for the future of Mohammed's nation. Evading no single face, he stated: “Had Abu Ubeideh, Me'ath Bin Jabal, Khalid Bin Al-Waleed or Salim the slave of Abu Hutheifeh been alive, I would have nominated as my successor.
Salim is a non-Arab slave whose lineage is unknown. Me'ath is one of the Ansar whom were impermitted to have the authority in the meeting of Saqeefeh. Khalid is from Bani Makhzum. He is a ten class companion since he immigrated in the period between the Hudeibiyeh peace treaty and the conquest of Mecca.
Once, in his reign, Omar argued Ibn Abbas:
“O Ibn Abbas! Do you realize the reason beyond your people's neglecting your nominating for managing the Islamic state?” Evading the anticipated consequences, Ibn Abbas escaped from the answer. “Well, Ameerul-Mu'mineen! If I ignore the answer, you are definitely in full awareness of it.” commented Ibn Abbas. “Your people disliked the matter that you would have the prophesy and the authority altogether and then, you would have been unjust to them. People of Quraish selected for themselves. Indeed, they succeeded as they opted for the right one.” expressed Omar. “O Ameerul-Mu'mineen!” Ibn Abbas worded, “May I speak provided that you shall not be irate?” “Yes, you may.” permitted Omar. Ibn Abbas signified: “Regarding your saying (People of Quraish selected for themselves. Indeed, they succeeded as they opted for the right one.), they would have been right absolutely and without litigant if only they had clung to what God had opted for. Regarding your saying: (Your people disliked the matter that you would have the prophesy and the authority altogether.), God, the Exalted, described a people who disliked; saying: (That is because they hated what Allah revealed, so he rendered their deeds null.)” “Far it is, Ibn Abbas!” replied Omar, “I have been informed of some news about you, but I do not like to discipline you about so that your status would not be lessened.” Ibn Abbas answered: “O Ameerul-Mu'mineen! My status at you must not have been lessened in case these news were true, otherwise, I am one of those who obviated the ill deeds from approaching towards their entities.” Omar said: “Well, I was informed of your claim that the general authority had been taken away from you, Mohammed's clan, due to envy, aggression and injustice.” “Respecting the injustice,” responded Ibn Abbas, “it had been realized by the level-headed, as well as the ill-minded. Respecting envy, Adam was envied, and we are his envied sons.” “Far it is. Far it is.” expressed Omar, “Your hearts, sons of Hashim, are filled in with an immovable envy.” Ibn Abbas answered: “Slow down, Ameerul-Mu'mineen! Do you impute such a description to hearts that God has (kept away uncleanness from them and purified them a thorough purification?)”
The event recorded by Al-Mas'udi in his Muroujut-Theheb, regarding the conversation of Omar and Ibn Abbas, does reveal the intellectual rebellion and the disclosure of the preeminent trend which was hidden during the Prophet's lifetime before the foundation of the caliphate. The following is a literal quotation of this narrative:
The literal quotation of this narrative:
Ibn Abbas related:
I responded Omar's summon. I was before him when he addressed at me: “O Ibn Abbas! The governor of Hims has just died. He was one of the rare virtuous people. Except for the matter I have against you, I do regard you with those rare virtuous ones. Do you accept my offer to be the governor of Hims?” “I will not work for you unless you tell of the matter you have against me.” I said unto him. “What for are you asking so?” asked Omar. “I do desire to know it. I will be cautious if it is a real thing, and if not, I will realize that I do not have it. Then, I will accept your offer. I noticed you have hardly asked for a matter with respite.” I answered. Omar expressed: “O Ibn Abbas! I anticipate that I will face my fatal chance while you are keeping your position, then you may call people to select you as the new leader. I noticed the Prophet (peace be upon him and his family) had neglected assigning you, his household, in any position.” “Yes, by God. I noticed so, too. Do you realize the reason?” I wondered. “I do not know exactly. Was it for the reason that he had been too cautious to give you official positions to which you are certainly authorized, or was it for that he anticipated that you would be elected for the leadership because of your relation to him? Only then, blame would fall. Inevitably, blame shall fall. That is it. What do you see now?” commented Omar. “I see I should not accept this position.” I said. “What for?” questioned Omar. “I shall be a permanent mote in your eyes as long as you bear this opinion...”
Even after his decease, Omar, the excessively careful for the Muslims' interests, must be sure that the Hashemites shall never be having dominion over people, and shall never be ruling Mohammed's nation.
In general, the saying of the abomination of the Hashemites' joining headship to prophesy was changed into a preeminent trend. This trend could find a ground to show and impose itself as a common conception adopted by the authorities and the priority of people. It is considered as the ultimate way against the Hashemite injustice and the apt course that enables the Quraishi clans to enjoy headship respectively as a compensation to be undergone by the authorities of the Hashemite prophesy. As Al-Faruq describes: “This conception is one of the appearances of the divine discrimination of Quraish. By inducing Abu Sufian to the ruling regime, giving him the right to dispose in the alms he had levied, nominating Yazeed, his son, as the commander of the army of Syria and nominating Muawiya, his other son, as a commander and, then, as the governor of Syria; all these procedures resulted in the formation of a factual alliance between the ruling regime and the ‘released.’ Both parties have the same access to intercept the Hashemites from joining headship to prophesy. This alliance eradicated the opposition and worked seriously for rehearsing the conception of the impermissibility of the Hashemites’ joining headship to prophesy.
Thus, the Prophet's immaculate household, besides their having been completely deposed and blocked, lost every thing including the privilege of honorability granted by the political form according to which Mecca was ruled before Islam. This seems clear in Al-Faruq's saying to Ibn Abbas: “By God, we did not refer to you due to need, but we disliked you to object against the matter on which people agreed unanimously. That would cause them, as well as you, suffer catastrophic consequences.”
The degree of humiliating the Prophet's progeny attained such a great level that even Abdullah Bin Az-Zubeir menaced to put the Hashemites' houses on fire with their inhabitants. Without the intercession of some virtuous individuals, this would have happened.
This proposes that every clan among those who imposed a blockade on the Hashemites in the cols of Abu Talib for three continuous years, and participated in the congregational cabal of assassination against the Prophet (peace be upon him and his family), became in a state better than that enjoyed by the Hashemites themselves. Likewise, every individual of such clans became more rightful in coming to power than the Hashemites. Headship and authority is practically licit for every one except the Hashemites. All these procedures were taken for one goal only; occluding the Hashemites from joining headship to prophesy. Is the reward of goodness aught but goodness?!
M. STATUTORY GROUND OF INTERCEPTING THE HASHEMITES FROM JOINING HEADSHIP TO PROPHESY CONCEPTION
Totally, the conception is uncivilized. It is completely contradictory to the divine texts and the political regulations derived from the divine beliefs. The Prophet David, was inherited by Solomon, his son. Both joined headship to prophesy. None objected against the prophets and their progenies who had been gifted judiciary, prophesy and divine manuscripts. Privilege is in God's hand. Caliphate is a religious and, in the first place, mundane position. A Caliph is the prophet's representative. Stating arguments and setting forth rules that are completely methodological processes, are the main missions of prophets.
It is effortlessly probationary for the aware of the basic components of the Islamic political strategy, to recognize that the conception of intercepting the Hashemites from joining headship to prophesy has entirely blasted that strategy, as being divine, and has totally extricated its constituents. It is also proved that the conception involved has practically changed it into an ordinary positive strategy that is different from others in the political form only. Moreover, the leadership of the state became a prey obtained exclusively by the prevailing whoever he was. After achieving prevalence, that one occupies the Prophet's chair (reed mat, in fact), attires the cloak of Islam and, hence, becomes the new caliph. In case any one of the ‘released’ who fought against Islam as much as possible till he was surrounded and had to show his being Muslim to save his soul, prevails, he will openly impose his orders upon the Muhajir who participated in every battle supporting the Prophet (peace be upon him and his family). Similarly, God's representative who is, according to divine regulations and texts, the president of the Islamic state will become an ordinary citizen under the authority of such a ‘released’. Thus, for the sake of seeking justice of the other clans and intercepting the Hashemites from joining headship to prophesy or, in other words, reviving the old political form of distributing missions in a new dress, the illiterate ruled and the learned's mouth was shut up.
As the old political form distributed missions among the clans, the new one, when applied, ranted such clans to come to power in turn and, in the same time, to share positions of headship. Regarding the divine regulations appertained to the Islamic political strategy, they were reckoned with other irrelevant topics since they were unfitting the political form established before Islam.
N. EFFECTS OF PRACTICING THE CONCEPTION OF INTERCEPTING THE HASHEMITES FROM JOINING HEADSHIP TO PROPHESY
The first effect was the total disappearance of the discrimination between those who fought against Islam and those who fought for its sake till triumph was achieved. From the political side, the two categories are Muslims of the same credit. Consequently, the all shall be in the same Paradise. The Hashemite individual, in a like manner, who was occluded in cols of Abu Talib for three years, is not different from that previously polytheist who imposed this blockade upon him since he declared his being Muslim!! Islam does erase what precedes it! Had Hamzeh been alive again, he should have been as same as Wahshi -his killer-. This is from the practical political side. The killer and his victim are enjoying the very same rank. The Muhajir and the ‘released’ are enjoying the very same rank, too. The same is said about the illiterate and the most learned. Supposing this illiterate predominates, it shall be politically obligatory upon that most learned to obey and comply to. This is not regularly; on the assumption there is a most learned Hashemite, like Ali Bin Abi Talib, to compete with an Ansari with a less degree of knowledge, the latter will certainly be preferred. This is evident from Al-Faruq's following saying: “Had Me'ath Bin Jabal or Khalid Bin Al-Waleed been alive, I would have nominated as the caliph.” This was said with the presence of Ali Bin Abi Talib! Besides the battle of Uhud, Khalid fought against Islam in many positions, while Ali fought for the sake of Islam in all of its positions. Nonetheless, Khalid is preferred. Al-Faruq, also would have opted for Salim, the slave of Abu Hutheifeh, if only he had been alive. He would have made this non-Arab slave the chief of Ali Bin Abi Talib who is “the master of Omar, Abu Ubeideh and every male and female believer,” as Al-Faruq himself had declaratorily confessed.
The second effect was seeding and sheltering the unceasing discrepancy. As long as there is no discrimination between the Muhajir and the ‘released’ or the killer and his victim, and it is rightful for every one to take in Islam according to his idiosyncratic elucidation, this will result in the existence of various sources of jurisconsultance, notions and independent impressions. Hence, every party claims of being the right, and takes a path not taken by others. With the absence of a leading jurisconsult, whose judgments are followed by the all considering it as juristic doubtless evidences, the seed of discrepancies was planted in a fertile land. Supposing Ali and one of the ‘released’ judge in a certain issue, the receiver of these two judgments will be having the full prerogative to opt for any. This is by the reason that practically they, Ali and the ‘released’, are indiscriminately Muslims of the same rank. They both shall be in the same Paradise. So, both are Sahaba. Practically also, there is no statutory preference for Ali's judgment; how, then, is it to make preference between the equal, or how is it to make a distinction between the completely alike? In the same manner, to take any of the two pieces of gold that are having the very same size, shape, amount and value, is practically acceptable. Making any discrimination is a cautioned matter. The harmony involved is external, while the discrepancy is developing under that exterior. Sooner or later, this discrepancy will certainly be grown into a fatal malignancy that shall tear the unification of this nation and pull them out of their frame into mystery and the unknown.
The third effect was excluding the Hashemites particularly from coming to power. This meant that there was no obstacle at all against any Muslim to have the leadership of the Islamic state, provided that this position could be attained by any means including the illegal. This gives the opportunity to come to power using any methods if it becomes liable to subject people. A condition that forms an obstruction against this process is the belongness to the Hashemites, whom were exclusively granted with prophesy. So, they are fully sufficed with prophesy.
This general privilege turned the avarice for authority into a horrible nightmare and an irksome approach that made the nation lose their decision and settlement, and an experimental program for all those who looked forward to coming to power. Owing to such a privilege, the constitutional political strategy of the Islamic state became off. Regarding discerning this new ruler's lineage, knowledgeability, beliefs or preference to Islam; these matters became a second class affairs that are practically valueless and no-good since the predominating ruler has already prevailed, and the prevailed's satisfaction is a matter of an idiosyncratic interest.
Thus, what should prevent Yazeed, the notorious lascivious, from being the head of the state since he is the son of Muawiya, the former chief? What should prevent Al-Hussein Bin Ali Bin Abi Talib who is, according to categorical divine texts, (the master of the youth of the Paradise,) (the dweller of the Paradise,) (the Prophet's basil) and (the constitutional imam of this nation), from being an ordinary citizen in Yazeed's state? Both, Al-Hussein and Yazeed are Muslims of the same rank that shall be in the Paradise. Yazeed, the murderer, and Al-Hussein, the victim, will both be in the same Paradise. Both are Sahabi!! Those who criticize this notion are miscreants whom should be neither shared in food or drink nor offered the funeral Prayer when they perish!!
The fourth effect is confusedness. The good has been confused with the bad, the right with the wrong, the sweet with the bitter. The precedent became as same rank as the tardy, the attacker as same rank as the absconder, the killer as same rank as his victim and the supporter of Islam as same rank as the antagonist. They all embraced Islam and saw or were seen by the Prophet (peace be upon him and his family); therefore, the all are Sahaba, the all are in the Paradise.
The virtuous ones hid themselves in the numerous provinces of the state and became “the like of a single white hair in a black bull's skin”, as Muawiya describes. The Islamic political strategy collapsed. The preferred became tardy and the tardy preferred. (And Allah's is the end of affairs.)
CHAPTER TWO
POLITICAL ROOTS OF THE SAHABA'S ULTIMATE DECENCY CONCEPTION
A. CONTRADICTION BETWEEN IDEALISM AND REALITY
There is a complete difference between the Islamic political system adopted since the Prophet's decease till the period of the last Ottoman caliph, and the divine political system constituted by God's revelation to Mohammed, His slave, for managing Muslims' affairs in every time.
Insisting on the factual existence of such a difference, we, hereby, are to prove that there is a diversity among persons and reigns regarding size of this difference. It is trivial to assert on existence of this difference since it is a matter facilely realized by every sane provided that partisan imitation is abandoned. If the Islamic political system, with its divine form and contents, had been literally applied after the Prophet's decease, the Islamic state would not have collapsed; those seditious matters and massacres would not have occurred; the Islamic nation would not have been engaged in discrepancies; the glorious Islamic extension would not have stopped at this mass and, finally, Islam would have prevailed this whole globe causing a radical changing in the mankind history. In his An Experiment In The General History, the English Philosopher, Wales, one of the most notable thinkers of modern history, says that Islam would have conquered the whole world if only it had been kept on its first procession and the seditious matters avoided. While the Arab scholars -as far as they could conceive- misthink of caliphate system as the factual Islamic political system and, hence, they demand with re applying it. It is proved that the factual Islamic political system is only that applied in the Prophet's reign. This occurred before the formation of the caliphate system, since it means succeeding the Prophet (peace be upon him and his family). Considering the Islamic system is caliphate; what was, then, the system applied in the Prophet's reign? Certainly, the political system applied in the Prophet's reign was the actual divine Islamic political system. This was utterly applied before the formation of caliphate. It is the origin and the ideal. Other strategies are not more than branches or forms of that ideal, which can be extended or acclimatized according to remoteness or closeness to the original.
B. THE ISLAMIC POLITICAL SYSTEM
The Islamic political system is that applied by the Prophet (peace be upon him and his family) during his divine solicitation for organizing relations with his followers. As this solicitation was developed into a government, the Prophet applied the same system during his leadership which lasted for ten years.
God perfected the religion and completed His grace upon people and explicated absolutely everything before the Prophet's decease. By extrapolating this system, it is believable to describe it as a divine system that is prepared and formulated to be the ideal international system leading to an ideal world. It is indeed divine in its ideal form and ultimate composition.
C. PILLARS OF THE ISLAMIC POLITICAL SYSTEM
The Islamic political system is based upon four pillars connected to each other in such a way that any is impossibly separated from the others. In case any separation occurs, the system entirely loses its Islamic characteristics. This is by the reason that these pillars are the distinguishing feature of the system. Perfection of such pillars is the only method by which fruits of application of the system are given.
FIRST PILLAR- POLITICAL LEADERSHIP
As a matter of fact, political leadership in every divine doctrine, among which is Islam, is nominated or elected directly by God. Applied to this fact is the prophets David, Solomon and Mohammed. It was none but God, the Elevated, who selected them as prophets and presidents of states of God's oneness. This divine decision is notified directly or indirectly. An instance on the indirect notification of God's selection is Saul, when elected as the Israelites’ political leader. One of the Israelite prophets declared God's decision of electing Saul as the assigned king. They protested claiming that Saul had not been fit enough for such a position. God revealed the many reasons owing to which this man was elected. Among these was Saul's superlative objective and physical competence. In addition, preference is God's concern; he, the Elevated, does know to whom He should give. Another example -on the indirect notification of God's selection- is God's nominating Ali Bin Abi Talib as the successor of Mohammed, the leader of the nation. This preference had been widespreadly declared by Mohammed in the sight and hearing of one hundred thousand Muslims. That was in the Prophet's last ritual pilgrimage; the Farewell Pilgrimage.
PURPOSE OF THE DIVINE ELECTION FOR POLITICAL LEADERSHIP
As regard to the question of leadership, the pure impeccable necessity of ordinary people is having the most learned, the most favorable and the fittest in positions of authority. Realizing such an individual with such qualifications, that are hidden for everybody, is an impracticable matter. Hence, God, as a sort of His mercy to His believing creatures, has shown them the very intended individual provided that they are honest in their searching for the most qualified. Leadership, as a matter of fact, is a technical process of specialization. In most cases, it is succession of prophesy. Guidance, advocacy, solicitation, wide-heartedness and decisive judgments parallel to the exact divine purpose beyond the entire rules of the divine juristic policy, are considerable qualifications of prophesy. It is not pertinent to commit these affairs to people's various fancies and tempers.
This pillar, in truth, is the only practical factor that demarcates the Islamic political system among other positive ones. Allowing conjecture and guess, positive strategies decide according to people's intents and humors in matter of electing the fittest for political leadership. This election will not be resulted from perfect precision that is exclusively gained by following the divine approach.
SECOND PILLAR -ORGANIC RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN DIVINE DOCTRINE AND SELECTED LEADERS
Thoroughly every divine manuscript is revealed to an individual, every divine guidance is committed to a director and every divine missive is revealed to selected messenger. Depending on so, relation between the divine manuscripts, guidance and missives, from one side, and the individuals, directors and messengers, from the other side, is organic in such a way that it cannot be incoherent.
It is inevitable to substantiate divine manuscript, explicate guidance and display missive for enabling followers to pursue, as well as altering the space between the beginning and the end result into a calling of interpretation and a field of application of the texts contents. By this operations, a fertile probation that betters and demonstrates the divine missive, manuscript and guidance will be progressed. Unless process of prophesy is technical and specialized, God may convey a copy for each individual. Mohammed, none else, is the qualified skilled in this field. He is the unique expert in field of calling for Islam in such a way that is fully concurrent to the divine intendment of the whole texts. He is the most learned of the divine missive, script and guidance, the superior follower and the fittest political leader who directs his followers pursuant to policies of the divine revelation. He whom is nominated by the Prophet, according to God's divine order, is the unshared authorized for keeping perpetuity of the organic relation between the divine doctrine and its political leadership.
THIRD PILLAR -THE DIVINE JURISPRUDENTIAL FORMULATION
According to the Islamic political system, the imam -political leader- is restricted to the divine jurisprudential formulation. Hence, he does not enjoy any sort of self-determination in the field of issuing judgments. The imam's judgment, however, must be fully and identically concurrent to the divine will in both characterization and components. The jurisprudential formulation is God's making. It is the operative law to which every individual under leadership of the imam -political leader- is submitted. Repeatedly, the jurisprudential formulation is not the constituting of the imam or the mandate people, it is God's making. As a matter of facts, Mohammed's sayings are not more than forms of explicating and expounding upon the divine revelation. This is regarded as another difference between the Islamic political system and positive ones which are issued and organized by some individuals and imposed upon followers. The jurisprudential formulation of the Islamic political system, on the other hand, is made by Allah, and imposed upon both leaders and followers in the same degree under the supervision of the Maker, Allah. Those submitted to, implementing and judging the Islamic system are, on even terms, slaves of God, the Maker. Both are imposed to the system. Both are to submit to God only.
FOURTH PILLAR -THE COMMONALTY'S CONTENTMENT
The public, usually, count on having an ideal jurisprudential formulation that is capable of determining general, as well as private, goals, and capable of delving into the apropos means for attaining such goals. They, as well, look forward to having the most favorable and fittest political leader that is most knowledgeable of constituents of the jurisprudential formulation. In favor of saving people from this grievance, the Divine Care provided the solution by explicating the most agreeing jurisprudential formulation. The solution was Islam with all its components; the Holy Quran and the Prophet's traditions; words, deeds and signature. The leader who is most familiar with that jurisprudential formulation, as well as the most favorable and the fittest, was Mohammed. After Mohammed's decease, the succeeding leader must be the one nominated by Mohammed according to God's command through revelation. The same is repeated after the decease of the current divinely assigned leader.
The public's contentment to this divine characterization of the jurisprudential formulation, as well as the political leadership, shall lead to sublime welfare and guidance to the right path. This result is attained only by accepting the divine characterization which means applying the formulation and acceding to the leadership. In adversary conditions, God shall certainly leave the public for undergoing and suffering penalty of disobedience if they reject the divine mandate, formulation and leadership by opting for one not assigned and decided by Allah.
SIMPLICITY OF THE ISLAMIC SYSTEM
How can one realize that he is on the divine right path? It is an undiscussible rule that he whoever accedes to political leadership assigned by Allah is with Allah. In a like manner, it is logic that those who supported Mohammed are forming the party of Allah, while those antagonizing are the party of the Satan even if they continuously adhere themselves to performing the duties God has imposed. This is by reason that acceding and following the divine leadership is the criterion with respect to which is membership of any of the two previous parties is determined. The very same thing is said about those who pursue or antagonize the divine successor of Mohammed.
Following Mohammed was the exact distinction between the truthful and the liar. There was a great deal of people who performed ritual prayers, established mosques, gave alms and could find excuses for their failing to appear in fields of battles led by the Prophet. Yet, they were decided, by Allah, as hypocrites. This was for nothing other than the fact that their following Mohammed had been incorrect.
POLITICAL CIRCUMSTANCES OF INVENTING THE SAHABA'S ULTIMATE DECENCY CONCEPTION
Othman Bin Affan held leadership of the Islamic nation after the assassination of Al-Faruq. Othman, as a nature, was fond of caring for his relatives. The Umayids began their journey to throne consecutively. The caliph himself accredited their being his men and consults; so, he gathered them around him. Practically, the entire affairs of the state became in the hands of Marwan Bin Al-Hakam who, later on, issued the orders of assassinating Mohammed Bin Abi Bakr and his associates, using the caliph's seal without seeking permission or authorization. This situation is precisely described in Ali's saying: “After his being old-aged, Othman, the previous companion of the Prophet, handed his sword to Marwan directing it as he liked.”
Who was Marwan? He is one of the ‘released’ and classified with the inclined-hearted group. Those are individuals given a share of the alms for making their hearts attached to Islam. His father, Al-Hakam Bin Al-Aas, was deported out of Al-Madina all over the reigns of the Prophet, Abu Bakr and Omar. When Othman came to power, Al-Hakam was permitted to return to Al-Madina with full respect and dignity. Besides, he was gifted one hundred thousand dirhams as a compensation.
Abdullah Bin Abi Sarh was one of those who played a considerable role in establishing the Umayid state. He was the governor of Egypt; that rich province. Who was Abdullah Bin Abi Sarh? He was the very one who had forged lies against God. Therefore, the Prophet (peace be upon him and his family) sentenced him to death penalty in absence. It was fully legally to kill that man whenever found even if he hangs to the Ka'ba's curtains. (This is recorded in As-Seeretul-Halabiya, Section: Mecca Conquest.) On the day of conquest of Mecca, Othman accompanied the man as he was seeking the Prophet's canceling the death penalty. For a considerable period, the Prophet kept silence hoping that the man would be killed by any. None could implement the Prophet's will; thus, he had to secure him. It is not unacceptable to say that the seed; Muawiya, that had been planted by Abu Bakr -by assigning him as the governor of Syria- had been rooted in the land firmly. For twenty years, Muawiya kept the position of governing Syria. He had full authority to do anything in that valuable land. So, he levied and gifted without supervision.
Marwan, Muawiya, Abdullah Bin Abi Sarh and Al-Waleed Bin Aqaba, the governor of Kufa who performed the Fajr prayer with four Rak'as -units of prayer-; those four released’ persons were the best students of Abu Sufian's school. Even Othman, the caliph, was about to be given a graduating certificate from that school.
Al-Jawhari records the following:
When Othman was named for caliphate, Abu Sufian addressed at him: “This affair -authority- was Taim's. They were originally unfitting. Then, it became in the hands of the Edi's. They were more unfitting than the previous. Only then it returned to its proper place and settled for its original people. Yes, like a ball, receive it and hand it to one another.”
On another occasion, Abu Sufian addressed at Othman: “My father and mother I do sacrifice for you! Spend over and do not be the like of Abu Hajar. O sons of Umaya! Hand it one another, just like children's handing a ball one another. By God I swear, there is no Paradise and no Hell.” Az-Zubeir was attendant in this situation; therefore, Othman had to rebuke Abu Sufian. “Is any body else here, my son?” wondered Abu Sufian. Az-Zubeir shouted: “Yes, there is. By God I swear, I will never keep it secret!!”
Precisely, In his Al-Kamilu Fit-Tarikh, part 3, Chapter: Events Preceding Othman's Assassination, Ibnul-Atheer records: (Once, Marwan Bin Al-Hakam shouted: “Deformed be your faces! Do you intend to strip our sovereignty?”)
In the last quarter of Othman's caliphate, authoritarian affairs became absolutely in the hands of the Umayids. It became hardly to see a province ruled by other than the Umayids, if not the ‘released’. Thus, it became reasoning that any who would succeed Othman should certainly be an instrument operated by the Umayids, lest he should engage himself in a lightless night and an uneven mined land.
As a result of large expansion of the Islamic state, owing to the conquests, numbers of the fresh Muslims and pocket beneficiaries of the state became greatly large. In a like manner, number of the honorable Sahaba on whose shoulders the Mohammedan government was established was in continuous deficiency. Thus, the foremost Sahaba became as sparse as a single white hair in a black bull's skin. As Imam Sharafuddin Al-Amili expresses: “Sahaba, in that period, became the like of alarmed sheep in a winter night.” This was because of the abundant catastrophic misfortunes they had to encounter sooner or later. Muawiya, the crafty, had full acquaintance of these matters. Before assassination of Othman, he menaced the Sahaba: “You are as scanty as a black spot in a white bull's skin.”
The situation became in this form; the whole provinces were loyal to or governed by the Umayids. Muawiya Bin Abi Sufian, son of the previous leader of the parties conflicting the Prophet (peace be upon him and his family), and the one suckled by Hind Bint Utbeh, became the only leader. He was governor of Syria, centre of the circle and guardian of the Umayids. Besides, he granted himself the right of avenging Othman. In fact, demanding with taking vengeance of Othman was not more than a game plan aimed at guaranteeing continuity of the Umayids' rule. It was certainly a case of continuity of the Umayids' rule which, actually and practically, began on the day when Abu Bakr assigned Yazeed Bin Abi Sufian as a governor. All matters went well after assassination of Omar, and none demanded with taking vengeance. This rule became firmer and firmer till it attained climax in the last of Othman's reign. It was turned into a decided sovereignty. This is the very meaning intended by Marwan's saying: “Deformed be your faces! Do you intend to strip our sovereignty?”
It became proved that Othman's assassination was forming no crux at all. So, insistence on condemning the assassinators was not pivot of the case. This is confirmed by the fact that Muawiya, when became the authoritative caliph, did not demand with condemning Othman's assassinator. As a matter of fact, it was a case of domination! For the Umayids, killing blameless people is not that incompatible matter. Marwan Bin Al-Hakam issued a decision of sentencing Mohammed Bin Abi Bakr and his group to death penalty without being condemned to anything. Muawiya did kill Al-Hadrami whom was accused, by Ibn Ziyad, of acceding to Ali. It was Muawiya who killed Amr Bin Al-Hamq whose face was distorted due to his distinctive worship. It was Muawiya who killed Hijr Bin Edi and his associates; those godly pious groups who enjoined good and forbade evil. It was Muawiya who gave authority to Ibn Ziyad in massacring people and crucified them on trunks of date palm trees. Hence, Muawiya's most important concern is sovereignty and taking revenge for killing his grandfather, maternal uncle, cousin and his brother.
Seizing the opportunity of Al-Jamal battle, Muawiya goaded Talha, Az-Zubeir and A'isheh. He promised Talha and Az-Zubeir to be assigned as rulers of Basra and Kufa. When they were defeated in this conflict, Muawiya enlisted for breaking a war against Ali.
In his Muawiya Bin Abi Sufian Fil-Mizan, Abbas Mahmud Al-Aqqad says: “A certain trickery by which wonderful achievements were attained, was frequently practiced by Muawiya against Muslim, as well as non Muslim, rivals. This trickery was mainly depending upon ceaseless work of creating discrepancies and despondency among the adversary party. This was carried out by throwing seditious matters and arising malice in the lines of the adversary party. The same trickery was actually used against people of his family and relatives. He could not tolerate noticing any concord between any two individuals. The natural competition between his most remarkable enemies could support him in accomplishing the trickery of throwing animosity among them.”
Muawiya went on practicing this easygoing plan. He would spare no effort for creating as much as possible variant trends and parties. He would be surely described as the sower of discord if he was accurately balanced historically. The authentic signification of men and deeds is determined by the straight readers of history especially in matters like some historians’ accounting the year of Muawiya's full domination of the Islamic state as ‘year of congruity’. This was because he had been the direct and main reason beyond Muslim's discrepancies and discord. Owing to so and the like, it is so unfamiliar to constitute forms of agreement with the existence of such claims. Being not sufficed by seeding discrepancies, Muawiya left people in plenteous discrepancies; each follows a definite norm.
He used Bishr Bin Arta'a and sent him to Al-Madina where he terrified and humiliated the Sahaba.
Precisely, by means of killing, destroying, firing, creating discrepancies and reviling at the Prophet's supporters and companions, Muawiya could gain people's swear of allegiance. He used the wealth he had illegally levied and expended in Syria for twenty years, for solidifying his dominion. One of his strategies was naming a definite salary to be given to the military officials of the state at nominating the new caliph.
DISREGARDING THE ANNOUNCED GOAL FOR DISSENTING THE LEGALITY
Muawiya and A'isheh, Ummul-Mu'minin, mutinied against the legitimate caliph demanding with condemning Othman's assassinators. When Muawiya came to power by force, neither Ummul-Mu'minin nor did he practice or demand with this affair.
RENAISSANCE AFTER INADVERTENCE
Although his father and he were among the ‘released’ and they led conflicts against Islam with an unexampled enthusiasm till they had to profess Islam for saving their souls, Muawiya, the son of Abu Sufian, became the authoritative leader, the representative and the successor of Mohammed on people.
How had such a revolution occurred? How had the right been defeated? How had the right become retarded while the wrong advanced? How had the ‘released’ become preferred to the Muhajir? How had those who restricted Islam become favored to those on whom this restriction fell, for the sake of Islam?
The most astonishing matter is that the year in which strength defeated legality has been named ‘year of congruity.’ Thus and so, the virtuous people failed. They were heavily depressed as they felt of deep sorrow and nonsuccess. Anyhow, it was too late to repent. They had matters within their hands. As is they were living in an inadvertence, they wake up on effects of a horrible nightmare. When they opened their eyes and minds, they found the nightmare a reality.
HYPOTHESES SERVING THE FACTUALITY
People were engaged in analyzing what had been occurring. A great deal of variant hypotheses and conception were come forth. For instance, Sufism, the conception of imputing matters -good and evil- to Allah, fatalism and the Sahaba's ultimate decency; these faiths were originated. The Umayids, together with their supporters, were the main incentive beyond emanation of such conceptions. They were used as a high quality weapons for defending the Umayid royalty. Besides, they were used for dispersing the rivals' efforts for the sake of establishing pillars of the Umayid royalty and substantiating its false legality.
CHAPTER THREE
PURPOSE OF INVENTING THE SAHABA'S ULTIMATE DECENCY CONCEPTION
1. SUBSTANTIATION
1. Substantiating the process of the wrongful seizure of power: Muawiya, the ‘released’, the son of the ‘released’ and one of the inclined-hearted category, found himself the president, or the king, of the Islamic state, the representative and, officially, the successor of God's messenger. This is incredible and unbelievable! It is unacceptable according to the entire intellectual, doctrinal and positive criteria. The father, Abu Sufian, was the head of the parties opposing Islam and the director of polytheism during the entire battles. His sons, supporters and he exerted all efforts and used all weapons for resisting Islam. They had to confess Islam only when they had been completely surrounded. Here is his son, Muawiya. He is preceding all those who had preceded him to Islam and whose shoulders were the pillars on which Islam was established.
There should be a justification of this revolution. The best way selected was ruling of decency of all of the Prophet's companions. As long as Muawiya and his faction are reckoned with Sahaba, according to terminological and the lexical meaning of this idiom, who are entirely decent, and shall be in the Paradise, and none of them shall be in the Hell, and there is no difference between them because of the total qualifications they, indistinctly, enjoy, then what should prevent Muawiya from being the caliph and the Muslims' juristic leader? What, in the same manner, should prevent his faction, who are Sahaba terminologically and lexically, from being his close entourage? They are so decent that all of them shall be in the Paradise and none shall be in hell-fire. The far-reaching conception of the Sahaba's ultimate decency is the most ideal substantiation of Muawiya's royalty. This wide-spreadingness shows evidently a real view of Muawiya’s artfulness and evil cunning.
2. Substantiating deeds of Muawiya and his faction: The most catastrophic misfortunes Islam and Muslims had faced were on the hands of Muawiya and his faction. Bishr Bin Arta'a and Muslim Bin Aqaba, for instance, committed the most terrible crimes from which even the heavens complained and the most hard hearts bled. In the Harra collision, the whole warriors of Badr were killed. Seven hundred men of Quraish and the Ansar were killed. From ordinary people, about ten thousand souls were killed in that collision. Nothing intercepted those commanders from killing the children. This crime was perpetrated by Bishr Bin Arta'a when he killed the babies of Ubeidullah Bin Abbas. In addition, battles against Imam Ali prove the criminal conduct of Muawiya and his faction. The most offensive matter, however, was Muawiya's planning for terminating Mohammed's progeny inclusively. In executing so, his faction and he used several devious devices for murdering. He poisoned Al-Hassan Bin Ali (peace be upon him), Abdurrahman Bin Khalid Bin Al-Waleed, as Ibn Abdil-Berr records in his Alisti'ab, and Abdurrahman Bin Abi Bakr As-Siddiq. Malik Al-Ashtar was also poisoned by Muawiya. For this, Amr Bin Al-Aas said: “Allah does have soldiers of honey!” Furthermore, Muawiya made Muslims engaged in various discrepancies and discord. Al-Aqqad says that Mohammed's nation had been absolutely incapable of achieving unanimity whatever they attempted. Certainly, the Islamic jurisprudence was deformed on the hands of Muawiya. (The truth is that the Umayid reign was not Islamic..,), Dr. Ahmed Amin says.
Is there any way of substantiating these ill deeds other than the invention of the Sahaba's ultimate decency conception? As the entire Sahaba are so decent that they shall be in the Paradise, Muawiya and his faction, then, had not committed any mistake. Had they been mistaken, the Prophet (peace be upon him and his family), the indisputably authentic and true-tongued who does never speak out of desire, would not have declared the entire Sahaba’s being in the Paradise. Considering him as an elicitor Sahabi, Muawiya is rewarded in all cases. He shall be double rewarded if he kills rightfully, otherwise, he shall be once rewarded. Muawiya is the right, whether he fights or opts for peace, attacks or absconds, takes or gives. This is because he is a Sahabi; and Sahaba are entirely decent.
2. IMMUNITY AGAINST CRITICISM, MALIGNING, REVILING AND IMPUTING DISHONOR
Accompanying substantiation of Muawiya's usurpation of leadership, the Sahaba's ultimate decency conception verifies crimes and offenses committed by his faction and him. Likewise, the conception grants immunity against any sort of criticism, including the constructive, railing, maligning and detracting from the estimate of such individuals since they are Sahaba and, consequently, decent. He whoever criticizes, maligns or rails at any of the Sahaba, especially those who are presidents of the state, is reckoned with the miscreants whom are to be not shared in food and drink and to neglect offering their dead bodies the ritual funeral prayer. This (juristic) rule is recorded in At-Thehbi's Al-Mizan. There is no other conception or plan that can immunize Muawiya such as this Sahaba's ultimate decency conception.
3. CONFRONTING RIVALS OF MUAWIYA AND HIS FACTION
Adopting the Sahaba's ultimate decency conception secures victory, or tie at least, of Muawiya and his faction in any conflict against rivals. For example, if Mohammed's progeny affirm that they are those from whom God has removed -mental and physical- uncleanness and purified them a thorough purification, Muawiya and his faction will immediately submit that simultaneous answer of considering Mohammed's companions -Sahaba- as decent that they do never lie, since they all shall be in the Paradise and none of them shall be sent to the hell-fire. If Mohammed's progeny assert that those who cause harm to them should be reckoned with those who cause harm to God, Muawiya and his faction shall provide that immediate answer that the Prophet (peace be upon him and his family) say: “They are harming me those who harm any of my companions..” In such a manner, the right is mixed with the wrong, the obedient with the disobedient and the virtuous with the sinful.
ENGAGING MUSLIMS IN DISCREPANCIES
In case Muawiya obtains the ability of emanating and broadcasting of the Sahaba's ultimate decency conception with its wide-spreading features, a party of Muslims will adopt, and another will contravene. Controversy, accompanied by fanaticism, will arise in each party's convictions. This will lead to discrepancy and that each party record convictions that shall certainly be followed by a great deal of successors pursuing partisan imitation, claiming of defending the right and their own viewpoints. Regarding the conception involved, those who support such a conception are not necessarily supporting Muawiya. They claim of supporting the Prophet's companions. Those who disagree to the conception, on the other hand, are acquitting themselves from the view of dissenting the Prophet's companions, indicating that their aim is divulging trickeries and political cabals hidden for the other party. Practically, each party has actually stood in the face of the other shunning Muawiya who, in that case, is watching the two cheerfully, preparing himself to be the arbiter whenever necessary. This is the very artfulness intended by Al-Aqqad in his Muawiya Bin Abi Sufian Fil-Mizan
GROUNDS OF THE SAHABA'S ULTIMATE DECENCY CONCEPTION
Ibn Arafa -Naftawayih, one of the most notable hadithists- records that most of narratives appertained to merits of the Prophet's companions were forged in the Umayid reign, as the forgers intended attaining the rulers' satisfaction since they conceived that such falsity would submit the Hashemites. These false narratives were formed in such a way that every Sahabi, lexically or terminologically, would be the most virtuous guide in this world and that curses are continuously thrown on those who malign or accuse any of the Sahaba of any matters.
Unanimously, historians assert that the origination of forging lies against the Prophet was in the last of Othman's reign and after occurrence of the revolution that prejudiced the caliph's soul. This falsity was extended and spread after people's swearing allegiance to Ali as he became the legitimate caliph. As soon as Muslims selectively declared their fealty to Ali, the Umayid's devil moved its horn for usurping the affair from its rightful owner. At any rate, events went on and some of declarants of fealty broke their allegiance to the fourth Rashidite caliph. The consequence of such a repeal was a good many battles and conflicts between Muslims, that were ended by the Umayids' dominating power. Due to so, in fact, structure of Muslims' conformity was seceded, ring of the their unification was ruptured, many contradictory sects were originated. besides, the many irreconcilable parties went on advocating their ideas by words and deeds on the account of the other party. Ground of founding the false hadiths and exegesis of the Holy Quran was quite proper. So, each party exaggerated in defending its ideology that discrepancy, in its highest rank, occurred. Nothing was more catastrophic to Islam than forging false sayings and imputing erroneous and heretic matters to its doctrine. These were the elements that spoiled Muslim's intellects and caused others to mistrust fundamentals of Islam. Misfortunes and detriments of such false narratives were chiefly undergone by those who lived under dominion of the Umayids. In that reign, the number of hadithists had recorded a great typical progress, while the number of authentic people had been in gradual retardation. Majority of the moral Sahaba ceased reporting the Prophet's narratives unless they had full acquaintance of decency of the one they were to report to.
Imam Mohammed Abduh referred to the procedures taken by Muawiya for himself. He asserted that Muawiya had used a mass of the Sahaba and their successors for fabricating ill news against Ali (peace be upon him). The composition of such mendacious sayings falsely imputed to the Prophet (peace be upon him and his family), was referring to maligning and repudiating Ali. As Muawiya set a considerable remunerative prize for forging such lies, those individuals did their best for seeking his satisfaction. Abu Hureira was one of those narrators.
In His Dhuhal-Islam, Dr. Ahmed Amin says: “It is to mention that the Umayids did actually forge or employ people to forge lies against the Prophet (peace be upon him and his family) that flow in the service of their policies from various sides. Muawiya gifted Abu Samara Bin Jundub, the Sahabi, with five hundred thousand dirhams for inventing the lie of the Prophet (peace be upon him and his family) stating that Ali Bin Abi Talib had been the one intended in the Verse: (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.) In a like manner, Abu Samara forged the lie of the Prophet’s having saying that Abdurrahman Bin Muljim, the assassinator of Ali (peace be upon him), had been the one intended in God's saying: (And among men is he who sells himself to seek the pleasure of Allah; and Allah is affectionate to the servants.)”
NARRATORS
Abu Hureira Ad-Dusi, is one of Muawiya's associates and followers. He imputed 5374 sayings to the Prophet (peace be upon him and his family). Only 446 sayings of them are recorded by Al-Bukhari. Abu Hureira accompanied the Prophet (peace be upon him and his family) for less than 18 months. The Prophet's grand companions who had adhered to him from the first moment of his divine envoy till his being transmitted to the Elevated Associate, reported less than one hundred hadiths -narratives-. The grand Sahaba are Abu Bakr, Omar, Othman, Ali, Abdurrahman Bin Awf, Talha Bin Ubeidillah, Me'ath Bin Jabal, Selman, Zeid Bin Thabit and Ubey Bin Ka'b. This is an evident example.
MUAWIYA'S MERITS
In his Al-Fawa'idul-Majmu'a Fil-Ahadithil-Mawdu'a, Ashawkani, who proves falsity and unauthenticity of the entire (hadiths) regarding praising or mentioning Muawiya's credits, says: “Having reckoned hadiths appertained to Muawiya's virtues with the forged ones, Ibnul-Jawzi excused that Isaaq Bin Rahawayih, Al-Bukhari's most authentic narrator, confessed of the fact that none of the hadiths respecting Muawiya's virtues had been authentic at all.”
An-Nisa'i had that famous story pertaining Muawiya's virtues. Ad-Darqutni relates:
An-Nisa'i's companions asked him about Muawiya's preference. He answered: “How come is it not sufficient for him to be equated with any, that he seeks preference?” For this reason, he was pushed out of the mosque..
ASHAFI'I'S IMPRESSION ON MUAWIYA
Abul-Fida relates that Ashafi'i informed Ar-Rabee, secretly, of the fact that testimonies of four individuals from among the Prophet's companions should not be admitted. Those four are Muawiya, Amr Bin Al-Aas, Al-Mugheera and Ziyad.
This might have been the incentive that made Ibn Muin ruled of dishonesty of Ashafi'i in narrating hadiths.
AL-HASSAN AL-BASRI'S SAYING
At-Tabari mentions that Al-Hassan Al-Basri used to say:
“Four ill deeds, any of which is sufficiently periling, are Muawiya's. They are his using the ill-minded ones -with the existence of the Prophet's companions and virtuous individuals- as rulers of this nation till he could dominate and cancel principal of advisory. His nominating Yazeed, his son, the drunkard who dresses silky clothes and plays on drums, as his successor. His avowing Ziyad as his brother, whereas the Prophet (peace be upon him and his family) had said: 'Babies are for the bed, and the prostitutes' share is stones.' His killing Hijr and his companions. Woe will be him due to killing Hijr and his companions. Woe will be him due to killing Hijr and his companions.”
THE ENTIRE SAHABA'S ULTIMATE DECENCY CONCEPTION IS HAVING UMAYID FLAVOR
According to the content of the entire Sahaba's ultimate decency conception, Mohammed's progeny must have been reckoned with the decent. This should definitely make the Umayids stop their maligning and reviling at them.
Nonetheless, it is noticeable that regarding to his situations towards Imam Ali, Muawiya, the chief of the despotic party, adopted the very situation his father had against the Prophet (peace be upon him and his family). Yazeed, the son, made no difference in his situation against Al-Hussein Bin Ali. As soon as he came to power, the first procedure Muawiya took was writing missives to his governors and officials, ordering them of declaring cursing Ali during prayers and from pulpits. Furthermore, sessions of sermons, in Syria, were programmatically ended with reviling at Ali. Testimonies of those who accede to Ali or any of his progeny were inadmissible. Names of such individuals, who showed loyalty to Ali or any of his sons, were erased from the general record of the province. Hence, they were discriminated and intercepted from receiving any of the governmental salaries everybody joined.
In his Muawiya Bin Abi Sufian Fil-Mizan, Al-Aqqad records: “Even if only the preponderant reports regarding Muawiya's orders of cursing Ali from pulpits of the Umayid state, are accepted, this will be acceptably sufficient to prove authenticity of the other reports involved in the same topic.”
CHAPTER FOUR
THE JURISPRUDENTIAL ROOTS OF THE SAHABA'S ULTIMATE DECENCY CONCEPTION
The Sahaba's ultimate decency conception was formulated and concluded in such a secure approach that it perfectly ensures the inventors' past, present and future, and deem lawful all their manners. The conception was also prepared so accurately that its effective presence is secured at any matter that might influence the inventors, in any form, or modify their remoteness or closeness to legality, or originate or obliterate discrepant locations in the rivals' camp, or, finally, misguide rivals in the midst of suspicion, mystification and unstability.
The most inexplicable matter, indeed, is that we see the adopters of the conception, nowadays, hold it as their signification to adoring to Mohammed and his companions. Those modern adopters of that false conception take charge of supporting it and engage themselves in discrepancies on behalf of the origin inventors of the conception who kept themselves out of the ring as if the matter does, in no means, not concern them.
Those who demand with adjusting the conception are, in fact, not of less affection of Mohammed and his companions. They only demand with depending upon intellectual and doctrinal grounds for keeping this affection in the frame of Islam, neglecting partisan fanaticism and imitation since these two things do incapacitate the role of intellect and the grace of functional conversation dedicated to the godly elected individuals.
THE JURISPRUDENTIAL AUTHORITY
Previously, we could prove that the majority of hadiths regarding merits of the Prophet's companions was forged in the Umayid reign, seeking their amenity as the forgers considered their ill deeds as helpful factors in submitting the Hashemites. This fact is asserted by Ibn Arafa, one of the most notable hadithists. We could prove also that the historians unanimously agreed upon the fact that invention of forged lies against the Prophet (peace be upon him and his family) had been originated in the last stage of Othman's reign and, in a greater size, after the sedition of his assassination. This size of forging lies and false sayings attained its climax when people swore allegiance to Ali Bin Abi Talib (peace be upon him). As soon as the legitimate valid declaration of fealty to Ali was acted, the Umayid devil moved its horn for usurping authority from its owner. As the Umayids came to power, an organized art of forging lies and intriguing false sayings against the Prophet (peace be upon him and his family) was officiated. “The Umayid rulers offered rewards so precious that many might hunger for, for those who showed skillfulness in the art of forging lies and intriguing false sayings against the Prophet (peace be upon him and his family).” Mohammed Abduh describes.
Such false and forged sayings, besides the authentic ones related by virtuous Sahaba, were regarded as sources of citation depended on by Sunnis with all of their various sects and trends.
THE TWO AUTHORITIES
1. THE SUNNIS' AUTHORITY IS THE ENTIRE SAHABA
In addition to reports of the virtuous Sahaba, the forged and false sayings originated in the epoch of sedition and perfectly formed in the Umayid reign were depended on by those who believed that the entire Sahaba had been decent of the same rank since they all were to be in the Paradise. Logically, those who should be in the Paradise should never forge lies. Sahaba, then, are source of citation of such people whom were prevalently named Ahlus-Sunneh. So, those Sunnis took and conceived their religion from those who are terminologically and lexically entering under the name of Sahaba. The closest to the Umayid royal palace were those who related the greatest number of false hadiths. Abu Mohammed Bin Hazm mentions that Abu Abdirrahman Bin Mukhelled Al-Andalusi's record of hadiths contained about 5374 sayings narrated by Abu Hureira alone. Not more than 446 sayings of them are recorded by Al-Bukhari. The close relationship between Muawiya and Abu Hureira is a matter too famous to illustrate. It is to mention that the period Abu Hureira spent with the Prophet (peace be upon him and his family) extended for less than eighteen months. In brief words, for Sunnis, every (hadith) narrated by any of the Sahaba, in both terminological and lexical meanings, is taken in consideration and highly regarded as reckoned as a part of the religion, since the entire Sahaba are ultimately decent and absolutely not liable to prevarication, as they all are to be in the Paradise. Principally, narrators should be authentic as long as they show no agreeableness to Ali or the Prophet's household, lest they are inauthentic and irreliable.
Yahya Bin Muin records:
As he ruled of authenticity of Sa'eed Bin Khalid Al-Bujeli, they protested against him claiming that Sa'eed had been a Shiite. “Yes, he is Shiite and authentic!!!” He asserted. However, the Jumhour* had never used these two descriptions concurrently since the last years of the first century -A.D-)
WHAT IS THE DOCTRINAL BASE UPON WHICH SUNNIS RELIED IN REFERRING TO THE SAHABA AS
LEGAL AUTHORITY?
Sunnis claim that the Prophet (peace be upon him and his family) had said: “My companions' like is the stars; you shall be guided to the right path if you refer to any of them.” or “..if you rest upon the words of any.”
Ibn Teimiyeh, the named ‘Master of Islam’, comments: “The saying ‘My companions' like...’ is ruled as doubtful by the most notable hadithists. Hence, it cannot be regarded as an evidence.” This fact is written down in At-Thehbi's Hujjetul-Munteqa, page 55. The saying, however, is ruled as incorrect according to the unanimity of the hadithists.
2. THE SHIAS' AUTHORITY IS THE IMAMS AND THE AUTHENTIC SAHABA
In addition to the Book of God, Shias rested upon sayings of the Imams of the Prophet's household and narratives related by the virtuous Sahaba as the jurisprudential sources of citation in regarding the entire principal and secondary questions and matters Islam had referred to. Imams of the Prophet's progeny did inherit their entire jurisprudence, fundamentals and instructions in all of its stages and chapters from Ameerul-Mu'minin, their grandfather, about whom the Prophet (peace be upon him and his family) had stated: “I am the city of knowledge. Ali is the door to that city. He whoever intends the city, must, first, see the door.” Such an authority enjoyed a constant restraints. Imams (peace be upon him) used to say: “Whatever we say is concordant to the Holy Book of God. You are to shun any saying imputed to us if it is contradictory to the Holy Book of God.” Imam As-Sadiq was wont to say: “My saying is my father's. My father's saying is his father's. His father's saying is the Prophet's. The Prophet's saying is God's.”
WHAT IS THE DOCTRINAL BASE UPON WHICH SHIAS RELIED IN REFERRING TO THE IMAMS AS
LEGAL AUTHORITY?
Decisive doctrinal texts of the holy Quran and the Prophet's traditions, in its three categories; words, deeds and signature, that are unanimously agreeable by both Sunnis and Shias, are the doctrinal base upon which Shias relied in referring to the Imams of the Prophet's household as the legal authority. In Quran, Imams of the Prophet's progeny are those meant in God's saying: (Allah only desires to keep away the uncleanness from you, O people of the house and to purify you a thorough purifying.) The Prophet (peace be upon him and his family) said: “They -the Prophet's household- are the minor weighty thing as the Quran is the major.” Guidance to the right path cannot be attained unless adherence to these two weighty things is reached. In a like manner, deviation from the right path cannot be avoided unless adherence to the two weighty things is reached. As the Prophet (peace be upon him and his family) describes, the Imams' like is Noah's ark. He shall be certainly saved that who takes it, while those who eschew shall certainly sink. They are also Mohammed's nation's secure against discrepancies.
ROLE OF THE TWO AUTHORITIES
Role of the authority at Sunnis: Sahaba, lexically and terminologically, are the authority referred to by Sunnis in questions of understanding the Quranic texts. The entire Sahaba, without citing any discrimination, are intended, since they all are equally decent and, then, to be in the Paradise. In the first stages following the Prophet's decease, the Sahaba's concern was not more than reporting the Prophet's sayings and deeds. When sects became numerous and widespread in various provinces, narrations were including the Prophet's words and deeds, as well as the Sahaba's. The Sahaba's opinions occupied the third position after the Quran and the Prophet's tradition, in sources of Islamic legislation. The Shafi'ite sect was less fanatic than the other three; the Hanbalite, the Malikite and the Hanafite. Although he was so enthusiast to principal of analogy he regarded as the second source of Islamic legislation after the Holy Quran, Abu Haneefeh used to prefer the Sahaba's opinions to the analogy in cases of inconsistency. The following saying is imputed to him: “In case I could not find the text involved in the Quran or the Prophet's traditions, I go straightly to the Sahaba's opinions. Supposing that there were various opinions of various Sahaba, I, then, have full option to adopt any provided that I do not prefer their followers' opinions to theirs.”
In his I'lamil-Muwaqqi'in, Ibnul-Qeyyim writes down: “For Imam Ahmed, principals of legislation are five. The first and the second are the -doctrinal- texts and the Sahaba's verdicts respectively. Hanafites and Hanbalites ruled of allocating the Holy Book of Allah to the Sahaba's deeds. Their argument is that the learned Sahabi would not neglect applying a general text unless he has an evidence. Hence, applying on the contrary of a doctrinal text is an evidence on allocation of such a text. A Sahabi's deeds, however, are as same valuable as his words.
As far as one can see, Sunnis have intensely exaggerated in sanctifying Sahaba. As a matter of fact, this sanctification is identical to principal of sinlessness.
With diffusion of the juristic sects, this intense exaggeration was used as a weapon in the face of assenting Imams of the Prophet's progeny. The Sahaba's sayings were treated as if they were revealed from the heavens; therefore, they were used in allocating general significations of the Holy Book of Allah and generalizing a restricted meaning.
Role of the authority at Shias: The Holy Quran was revealed as an explanation of everything at all. Reports related to the Prophet (peace be upon him and his family) in such a decisive proved way that no doubt is arisen about, are reckoned with the doctrinal texts. In other cases, it is impermissible to refer contingently to the Prophet's traditions in matters of legislation except traditions supported by a Quranic text. This is by reason that the Quran has an explanation of everything thoroughly. The Quran was revealed in Arabic; the Arabs' tongue, and in a style easily conceived by everyone. The Prophet's tradition is related by ordinary people who might be authentic or dishonest in the same rank. Those individuals were engaged in discrepancies with each other to the degree that some rejected others' reports and each followed his own conclusion. They accused each other of the worst misdeeds and ruled of legality of killing one another.
In brief words, the Holy Quran is decided as the indisputable judge for Shias since it has a manifestation of every thing thoroughly. Secondly, the Prophet's traditions; deeds, words and signature, the authenticity of which is decisively proved in such a way that no doubt is arisen around, is also regarded in authority.
DIFFERENCE IN BASE IS DIFFERENCE IN EFFECTS
1. Sunnis count on the principal that the entire lexical and terminological Sahaba, including babies who saw or was seen by the Prophet (peace be upon him and his family) once only, are totally so decent that it is impossible for them to lie or forge lies since they, unexceptionally, shall be in the Paradise and none of them shall be in the hell-fire. By this generalization, Al-Hakam Bin Al-Aas whom, with his two companions, had been banished by the Prophet, and Abdullah Bin Abi Sarh who had forged lies against the Prophet (peace be upon him and his family) and Muawiya; they all are decent, impossible to lie and their fate shall, beyond any dispute, be the Paradise. Effect of counting on such a principal is not quite different from the principal itself. Whatever is said by a Sahabi, after proving his having been a Sahabi, is definitely correct that inelegance cannot approach. In case there are various opinions of various Sahaba concerning a certain question, the elicitor -of juristic rules- is fully free to opt for any without any flaw at all. For instance, if Al-Hakam Bin Al-Aas, Abu Hureira, Hutheifeh Bin Al-Yeman and Abu Bakr had different opinions in a certain question, it is perfectly optional to take in any's. This is by reason that they all are decent of the same level as they all are Sahaba. Hence, it is illicit to criticize or malign any of them like Sunnis' conducts towards the narrators of other sects!
A more considerable matter is that Hanafites and Hanbalites ruled of dedicating the Quranic texts to a Sahabi's deed. They claim that a Sahabi would not shun practice decided by the Quran unless he had an evidence. Hence, a Sahabi's deed that is contrary to the Quranic text is an evidence on the dedication of that text. A Sahabi's word, in addition, is ruled as same as his deed.
The most extraordinary matter is that Sunnis mean by Sahaba all those individuals that meet the lexical, as well as the terminological, signification of this term. This means that they rule of sinlessness of the entire Sahaba, that any of them is a legal legislator, if not playing a considerable role in legislation.
From this side, the matter is very different at Shias. They assent Mohammed's companions who did their best for the sake of backing this religion, and strove with their wealths and souls. The well known supplication frequently repeated by Shias for the sake of Mohammed's supporters is a highly considerable evidence on their honest loyalty and sincere tenderness. The following is a piece of that long supplication:
(..O God, and as for the companions of Mohammed especially those who did well in companionship, who stood the good test in helping him, responded to him. When he made them hear his message's argument, separated from mates and children in manifesting his word, fought against fathers and sons in strengthening his word, fought against fathers and sons in strengthening his prophecy, and through him gained victory; those who were wrapped in affection for him, hoping for a commerce that comes not to naught in love for him; those who were left by their clans when they clung to his handhold and denied by their kinsfolk when they rested in the shadow of his kinship; forget not, O God, what they abandoned for Thee and in Thee, and make them pleased with they good pleasure for the sake of the creatures they drove to Thee while they were with Thy Messenger, summoners to Thee for Thee. Show gratitude to them for leaving the abodes of their people for Thy sake and going out from a plentiful livelihood to a narrow one, and [show gratitude to] those of them who became objects of wrongdoing and whom Thou multiplied in exalting Thy religion..)
Those are Mohammed's companions whom are greatly respected by Shias who believe in loyalty to them and refer to them in their religious beliefs after proving authenticity of the narration.
In brief words, Shias rule of decency only after attaining its probation. The origination of decency of every Sahabi is invalid and lacks evidences. In full freedom of expressing one's own impressions, Shias debate and criticize the ill deeds of such Sahaba, and contemplate each according to his actual importance. They do never befriend those who antagonize God and His messenger. They declare their acquittal from those who betook their oaths as a protection for the sake of occluding the path to Allah. Following such a trend, Shias do not counter the Book of Allah and the Prophet's traditions and norm and the virtuous ancestors' course of discriminating the Sahaba, and garbling the decent from the indecent. This was the exact reason beyond which Shias went on encountering and suffering false accusations.
Because they adopted grounds other than these adopted by Sunnis, Shias could attain different results.
PLURALITY OF AUTHORITIES
NUMEROUS AUTHORITIES :-
Recurrently, during the reign of the Prophet (peace be upon him and his family), a many opinions about a certain case was provided. And he had been wont to listen to them all before rendering the doctrinal judgment through a Quranic text or his prophetic tradition. The honest acceded to this judgement. Hence, they were united after discrepancy, and taken to the field of certitude after their suspicion. Frequently, occurrences were repeated and settling solutions were rendered. This made the numerous opinions about a certain question an appearance of intellectual enrichment. That was by reason that there was a unique fair and decisive authority the entire people referred to. Identity of authority is the base on which social and doctrinal unity rely. Banned discrepancies fall only when there was more than a unique authority. Since discrepancy is opposite to unity and for the sake of achieving unity, the ruler will be having to confiscate people's rights of expressing their ideas.
Objectively, authorities were copious as a result of establishment of the Sahaba's ultimate decency conception. There were thousands of authorities with various opinions, conceptions and understanding, originated in the Islamic society. Due to such a multiplicity, people were engaged in various sects and parties; each supporting their authority and believing of its being the only rightful and the only path to Allah. Practically, ruling authorities, as they are dominators of mass media of the state, have the capability of focusing lights on a definite authority, or authorities, and regarding them as the only honest and rightful and seeker of the straight path to Allah. Encircling verdicts and conceptions of a selective authority with an aura of respect and esteem, the ruling regime may lead ordinary people, indirectly, to trust that authority apart from considering eligibility. Abu Hureira, for instance, was an unfamiliar Sahabi who lacked any role in the Rashidite reign. His job was serving people. The period he had spent with the Prophet (peace be upon him and his family) was not more than eighteen months. Yet, he became an enormous authority whose excessively numerous sayings were regarded as the absolute right, beside which wrong can never approach. This was because of his seeking favors of the Umayid royalty. In that period, Abu Hureira publicized about seven hundred (hadiths) exceeding the entire grand Sahaba twofold. These achievements would not have been progressed if the ruling regime had not adopted and elected that man for being their representative in an authority attracting all the other ones.
THE DOCTRINAL JUDGMENT ABOUT THE VARIETY OF AUTHORITIES
No religion exists without authority. No doctrine exists without authority. Mohammed is the unique authority of Islam and its doctrine. His judgment is decisive. In case there is another authority, according to God's mandate, he should be basically related to the first one considering the most knowledgeability and the most familiarity of the doctrine.
Jewism had a unique authority. Moses (peace be upon him) was the authority and Aaron was his follower. Aaron would be Moses' successor in case the latter was absent. When he returned, Aaron returned to his fellowship.
In a like manner, Christianity has a single authority. He was Jesus (peace be upon him). The Disciples were related and working for the sake of that religion under authority of Jesus (peace be upon him). Just after Mohammed, Moses or Jesus had been transmitted to the Elevated Associate, the existence of a unique authority for each of these doctrines, nominated by the first main one, was necessarily falling. Leaving the religion or the doctrine without an authority is contrary to perfection of the divine religions and an act of disregard that prophets are honorably released from.
As to Islam, the authority of Muslims is the Prophet's household and, markedly, the chief of this dignified clan in every generation. This is proved by many doctrinal decisive texts. Regarding the wonderment why those individuals of the Prophet's clan had been defined; we may say, first, that this is God's grace. He bestows to whomever He wills. Secondly, the Prophet did set them practically. Reciprocally, the Prophet and they embraced and supported each other. God shows us that they have been the best and the most favorable at every period of time. This is one of specifications of authority. After the Prophet's decease, it was so clear that the chief of his household, Ali Bin Abi Talib, would be the authority to whom Muslims should refer. Each individual Muslim was informed of the decision that Ali would be his master and the master of every male and female Muslim. This is obvious in Al-Faruq's saying: “This is my master, your master and the master of every male and female Muslim.” This is the doctrinal authority.
CANCELLATION OF THE DOCTRINAL AUTHORITY NECESSARILY ENTAILS FOUNDING A SURROGATE ONE
It is noticeable that the doctrinal authority was ceased just after the Prophet's decease. The caliph occupied the role of the doctrinal authority. Three decades later, the doctrinal authority could recover his position. Great problems were proceeded till he was assassinated. When Al-Hassan came to power he realized that these problems had been still arisen, and that it would not be stabilized unless he would be assassinated. So, he abandoned that affair. Al-Hussein, together with his immaculate household, was surrounded in Kerbela and terminated. Thus, people lost the doctrinal authority. The Umayid rulers spared no efforts for assigning themselves as the doctrinal authority since authority is an essential pillar of unificating societies. They worked for persuading people of their being the doctrinal authority. It is natural that great numbers of seekers of mundane affairs agreed with them for achieving that purpose.
THE ONLY WAY OF FOUNDING A SURROGATE AUTHORITY WAS FABRICATING THE ENTIRE SAHABA'S ULTIMATE DECENCY CONCEPTION
The entire Sahaba's ultimate decency conception had been lexically and terminologically designed in such a way that it included the Umayid rulers. Thus, decency had been imputed to the entire Sahaba. Like the doctrinal authority, the Sahabi is decent and impossibly forging lies that he should certainly be in the Paradise. That led to the belief that the Umayid rulers are decent and fully legible to be the doctrinal authority of Mohammed's nation. This was the clue to the following events.
THE CONCEPTION WOULD HAVE PROVED ITS FAILURE IF IT HAD BEEN INVENTED BY OTHER THAN THE RULERS
The Sahaba's ultimate decency conception would have been completely frail in case ordinary people had fabricated. With a mental and fiscal support of the ruling authorities, individuals known as the Prophet's companions had argued for the conception. The ruling regime did provide a remuneration for forging false hadiths regarding criticizing the doctrinal authority succeeding the Prophet (peace be upon him and his family). They favored the adopters of the Sahaba's ultimate decency conception and conferred them with wealth and credits in addition to utilizing the whole mass media of the state for publicizing their thoughts.
The Virtuous Sahaba could naturally conceive the whole play; yet, they were too short to do anything as their hands were enchained, the nation was engaged in discrepancies and the ruling authorities held fast on every thing. The grand Sahaba, however, denied the whole conspiracy suing their tongues and hands. Unfortunately, these forms of denial were sentenced to death in a dark corner of poor houses as soon as they attempted to arise. On the other side, a remarkable support of the conception was occupying the entire mass media of the state. Courses of maligning, cursing and reviling at the real doctrinal authority of the nation became such a daily activity coercively practiced by people. The fate faced by Hijr Bin Edi would be the same of those whoever object the ruling regime in this regard. The fate, however, was a form of holding up the monthly pays and the earnings, if not killing.
So quietly, the process of founding a surrogate authority was keeping its straight way.
THE SURROGATE AUTHORITY BECAME LEGITIMATE
The generation of the virtuous Sahaba was extinct. The virtuous followers of the Sahaba were deceased. The opposition was terminated. So, argument of all of those categories became null. A very little size of those arguments remained. The thing remaining with all its details was the intact information necessary for imputing legality to the counterfeit surrogate authority. Those details were considered as a part of the preserved documents of the state. By this, the counterfeit surrogate authority became apparently actual and legitimate. This occurred only after the decease of those who realized the truth, and whose arguments and objection had been completely hidden. The current generation, hence, believed that the authority they were noticing through the ruling regimes were identical to that doctrinal one of which God had ordered and founded. In this manner, opposing this conception ware regarded as an opposition to the religion itself, not the founders. Moreover, the conception became an undicussible truth. As a judgment, he whoever disputed, opposed or criticized this conception was ruled as a miscreant and that it was haram -forbidden- for people to share him in a food or a drink, or offer his soul the funeral prayer. The Shias' being forming the main opposition against such a conception, they, led by the Prophet's household, were the field of throwing curses as they were regarded as the principal foes of this religion, disbelievers and evildoers. This is the view planted in the mentality of people including the who had been graduated from institutes adopting the Sahaba's ultimate decency conception. The whole history were re related through this conception.
THE SOLUTION
The solution, in this stage, is nothing other than tolerance. It is the course of Mohammed (peace be upon him and his family) who was opposed by the whole people. Yet; he did not submit. Using wisdom, suitable logical reasoning, legitimate methods, decisive arguments and clear proofs, Mohammed could cleave the curtains of partisan imitation, and purify the truth. In the end, people were convinced. This is the only procedure to be taken by adorers of the doctrinal truth.
IN THE ABSENCE OF THE DOCTRINAL AUTHORITY
People confess that the Islamic nation would indisputably assent to seventy three parties. Saving one, the whole would be sent to hell-fire. Nevertheless, they were divided into various discrepant sects and parties each of whom was claiming of being the right alone. They all believed in the fact that there is only one right which is followed by that saved party. The saved party is that ensuing the doctrinal authority. This division was one of the excuses of the foundation of the Sahaba's ultimate decency conception.
THE JURISPRUDENTIAL DISSENT
In the absence of the doctrinal authority whose mission is explicating the actual intendment of the doctrinal texts and harmonizing such texts with actuality, Muslims were engaged in tens of jurisprudential sects and parties each of which was necessarily showing a political attributes. These jurisprudential parties were mainly concentrated in five powers:
1. Ahlul-Beit sect: It is the foremost Islamic sect. It is the sect of the saved party, as we shall certainly prove. It was called the Jafarite sect in regard to Imam Ja'far As-Sadiq (peace be upon him).
2. The Hanafite sect: It is appended to Abu Haneefeh who had been a student of Imam Ja'far As-Sadiq before he established his own school.
3. The Malikite sect: It is appended to Malik. Before he established his own sect, Malik had been receiving his studies from Abu Haneefeh.
4. The Shafi'ite sect: It is appended to Ashafi'i. In the same manner, Before Ashafi'i had his own school of jurisprudence, he had been receiving his studies from Malik.
5. The Hanbalite sect: It is appended to Ahmed who had received studies of jurisprudence from Ashafi'i before he established his own school.
Pursuant to the previous, it is conspicuous that Imam Ja'far As-Sadiq was the master of the four founders of Islamic sects. They did take pride in this fact. Followers of those four sects ruled of the deviation of the followers of Imam Ja'far As-Sadiq.
ROOTS OF THE AGGRESSIVE PROSECUTION AGAINST THE PROPHET'S HOUSEHOLD
The following are the purposes beyond the permanent aggressive prosecution against the Prophet's household:
1. Insistence of the prosecuting groups on compelling the Prophet's progeny to abandon the mission they are exclusively charged with by Allah.
2. Lexical and functional misrepresentation of properties, the Prophet's household are exclusively granted by Allah.
3. Founding topical properties that are competing the divine property of the Prophet's household for distorting the signification and the functions of their exclusive properties.
4. The entire Sahaba's ultimate decency conception has been established as the topical property confronting the exclusive properties of the Prophet's household.
5. Supposing the infallible Prophet's progeny broke off their divine properties and submitted to the falling matters, they would not be left alone. They would be enduringly prosecuted by ruling regimes.
6. The previous fact is based on the habit that although rulers espoused the attractive beautiful mastery by force after they had robbed from its rightful owners, the spirit, as well as the heart, of that charming mastery is still with the legitimate spouse. Therefore, mastery frequently declared this fact in the face of the usurpers. This matter set fire in the rulers' hearts all that period. This fire incited them to commit shameful misdeeds.
PROPERTY OF THE IMMACULATE KINSHIP TO THE PROPHET
The Hashemite race is the most honorable among all people in general and the Arab in particular. This is proved by doctrinal texts. The house of Abdul-Muttelib is, in the same manner, the most honorable among all people in general and the Arab in particular. This is also supported by doctrinal texts. The Hashemites are sons of Hashim Bin Abdi Menaf Bin Qusay Bin Kelab.
Mohammed's household is the most honorable and the most favorable. God, in His Holy Book, imposed cherishing those individuals upon the all. Likewise, He, the Exalted, rendered blessing them as a pillar part of the ritual obligatory prayers. This meaning is cited in Ashafi'i's poetic verses:
O the household of Allah's prophet! Your affection
Is a mandate of Allah, revealed in the Quran
It is sufficiently a great pride that
He who does not bless you is false performer.
Mohammed's household is indeed the nucleus of this nation, and the tree of healing. They are the Prophet's most favorable individuals.
God has purified the Prophet's household and removed mental and physical uncleanness away from them. The Verse of Tatihir -purification- is obviously visible to every single Muslim. Thanks to God, the Exalted, and due to their hard striving for the sake of Allah, they preceded the all. They are the doctrinal authority of Islam and Muslims. They are the political leadership. These are unattainable glory and untouchable honor and properties of Mohammed's family.
PROSPECT OF THIS PROPERTY
Property of kinship can be looked at as a matter of ennobling. In essence, it is a mandate of definite meaning and functions.
MEANINGS OF PROPERTY OF THE IMMACULATE KINSHIP
This immaculate kinship is the leaning point of Muslims. They are the element that is lonlily able to complete the circle and define its center. They assemble the Islamic nation in cases of discrepancies. By referring to that divine leaning point, Muslims are provided with the proper solution of their discord. Hence, they will not take east or west or any other direction. They will immediately encompass and direct towards the immaculate kinship of the Prophet (peace be upon him and his family), who are the doctrinal reference of this religion and Muslims. Those immaculate relatives of the Prophet (peace be upon him and his family) explicate the beliefs so evidently that the whole Muslims, as well as non Muslims, will conceive. As another mission, they may provide the most ideal understanding of the religion, that is absolutely simultaneous to the divine intendment, after they listen to the various viewpoints of Muslims.
FUNCTIONS OF THE IMMACULATE KINSHIP OF THE PROPHET
The following are the main functions of the infallible progeny of the Prophet (peace be upon him and his family):
1. They are regarded as a point of leaning and assembling Muslims.
2. They are regarded as authority of the religion who solicit for Islam before other nations and explicate it the Muslims.
3. They are regarded as the minor weighty thing -of this doctrine-, as the Quran is the major. Being guided to the right path cannot be attained unless these two weighty things are clung. Similarly, deviation cannot be avoided unless these two weighty things are held fast. Deviation from the right path shall be certainly falling if people cohere the Holy Quran and shun the Prophet's immaculate progeny. This is by reason that the Quran is the remedy, and the Prophet's progeny are the physician. Physic, however, is a process of specialization.
4. They are prepared to be the political leadership of this nation. People, as a whole, will certainly accede to the leadership of Mohammed's progeny since they are representing radical solutions that abolish any discrepancy or discord. In the same time, the Prophet's progeny stand for the source of settlement and the annihilator of greed and illegal rivalry. The divine doctrine took the charge of nominating the one to whom authority is transmitted, and way of transmission.
REASONS BEYOND GRANTING PROPERTY
Why was it Mohammed, not Abu Sufian, to whom the Divine mission was set forth? This is God's grace; He grants whomever He opts. Why were some prophets preferred to others? This is a matter of God's grace. Why was the Prophet selected from among the Hashemites, not the sons of Teim, Edi or Umaya? It is God Who favors and bestows favor to whomever He opts. A deep look to the history of Islam, we, however, may notice some incentives beyond such an option.
INCENTIVES
1. God, the Elevated, showed that Mohammed's kinsmen had been the most honorable and favorable. It is better for creatures to be led by the most honorable and favorable. This particularity has been previously documented.
2. The warning issued by the Hashemites and addressed at the other Quraishi clans when they attempted to assassinate Mohammed. This warning was declaimed by Abu Talib saying: “By God I swear, if you kill him I will never keep a single one of you alive till you and we shall be entirely terminated.” By this form, Abu Talib asserted that he would slay the entire Quraishi celebrities when it was rumored that Mohammed had been killed.
3. The Quraishi clans decided, in unison, boycotting and ostracizing the Hashemites. They cut the social and commercial relations with them. They agreed upon a covenant containing forbiddingness of espousing, dealing and associating with the Hashemites. Hence, the Hashemites were occluded in Col of Abu Talib for three years. The Quraishis ruptured supplying them with alimonies. During these three years, the Hashemite could leave that Col only once a year. Cries of their babies could be heard a few yards away from that col. The Quraishis, however, had one demand only; the Hashemites would hand them Mohammed for killing, or they might give him up. Importunately, this demand was rejected. The Hashemites sacrificed with their souls, wealth, sons and settlement for Mohammed.
4. With the failure of that blockade, the clans of Quraish planned for a new matter. As they took fright of Mohammed's immaculate relatives, they selected a man from each clan for assassinating Mohammed. In this way, every clan would be a partner in the murder and that the Hashemites would lack the capability of retaliating the entire clans. Practically, those selective men moved for killing him, but God saved him.
5. The Prophet's immaculate kinsmen were the head of Quraish that no step would be taken without their consultance.
6. The Prophet's kinsmen are the single means of safety and the shield. This is proved by decisive doctrinal texts. For these reasons and others, in addition to the divine grace and the heavenly methodical and educational preparation of their heads, the Prophet's kinsmen were treated so exclusively that they were granted this property.
THIS PROPERTY WAS USED AS A POLITICAL ARGUMENT IN VARIOUS AGES
Addressing at the Ansar, Abu Bakr stated: “People are our subordinates. We are the Prophet's kinsmen.”
In the same occasion, Omar Al-Faruq addressed at the Ansar: “It is most surely, by Allah, that the Arab shall never submit to your leadership when their Prophet is of another clan. They should never elect other than those among whom prophesy was arisen. This is our evident argument and bright justification against any of the Arab who may dispute us. Who dares to dispute us in Mohammed's heritage and authority while we are his people and clan?! It is none but the wrong disputant, the sinful seeker or the engaged in a catastrophic affair.”
Commentating on the addresses of As-Siddiq and Al-Faruq, Bashir Bin Sa’d discoursed at the Ansar: “Mohammed, peace be upon him and his progeny, was a man from Quraish. His people is the most meritorious of his heritage and authority. By God I swear, none shall see me in a situation disputing them in this affair. Beware of Allah. Dispute not them. Oppose not them.”
While Ali was engaged in the misfortune of the Prophet's household, the Ansar submitted to the argument, asserting that they would not swear allegiance to anyone other than Ali. The majority of the attendants at the Saqeefeh of Bani Sa'ideh declared their loyalty to Abu Bakr as the caliph. Thus, the meeting of Saqeefeh was closed at selecting Abu Bakr as the Muslims' caliph, Omar as the first councilor of the caliph, Abu Ubeideh as the second councilor and the groups who had just elected Abu Bakr as the caliph's armed forces.
When the heir apparent, Omar Bin Al-Khattab, demanded Ali, who was shocked by these events, with declaring his fealty to the new caliph, Ali addressed at the caliph and his councilor: “I am the most rightful of managing this affair. I do not declare fealty to you. It is you who are to declare fealty to me. You drew this affair from the Ansar claiming of your having been the Prophet's kinsmen. Now, you intend to seize it from us, the Prophet's household. Have you not argued, before the Ansar, that you had been more meritorious of this authority since Mohammed had been one of you. They gave you their submission and handed the authority. I, by now, do use the very same argument you have provided. Whether in his life or after his death, we are the most meritorious of the Prophet's heritage and authority. You should treat us with justice if you are believers, lest, let you live in injustice while you do realize the fact.” “We are not to leave you before you declare allegiance to Abu Bakr.” Omar answered him. Ali, here, orated: “You are milking for gaining half of the product, and strengthening his position so that he will hand it for you in the morrow. By God I ask you, Muhajirs! Do not take Mohammed's sovereignty of the Arab out of his area and his own house, and transmit it to your areas and houses. Do not push his people away from his standing and right among people. O groups of Muhajirs! We, by God, are the most meritorious in him. We are his household and we are the fittest to this position whilst the perceiver of God's Book, the studious of God's religion, the most familiar to traditions of God's Apostle, the well-acquainted of people's affairs, the defender of people in misfortunes and the distributor between them in full justice is among us. He is, by God, among us that who carries such attributes. Follow not your fancies that you shall be certainly deviated and be remoter and remoter from the right.”
As Sa'd Bin Basheer heard Ali's words, he commentated: “O Ali! If only had the Ansar heard your current words, they should never have agreed upon declaring fealty to Abu Bakr and, as a result, no any two of them would have litigated about your meritoriousness in this position.”
Just after the decease of Fatima (peace be upon him), Ali summoned Abu Bakr. The Hashemites were attendant when Ali addressed at Abu Bakr: “Praised and thanked be Allah. O Abu Bakr! It was neither a matter of denying your favor nor was it an envy. We saw that we had been having a privilege in the position, that you tyrannically usurped.” Going on mentioning his relation to the Prophet (peace be upon him and his family), Ali spoke so detailedly that Abu Bakr wept. “The Prophet's relatives are more adorable to me than my relatives.” Abu Bakr said.
Responding to Al-Mugheera Bin Shu'beh's suggestion of giving Al-Abbas a position in their government for blocking the road of argument repeatedly arisen by Ali and Al-Abbas, Abu Bakr, Omar, Abu Ubeideh and the suggester visited Al-Abbas for providing him a position. In their session, Abu Bakr addressed a long oration in the middle of which he said: “Slow down, sons of Abdul-Muttelib! God's messenger was one of us as same as he was one of you.”
Al-Abbas answered the entire points he had arisen. Regarding the previous, he said: “The Prophet is from the tree we are its branches while you are but neighbors.”
Owing to Abu Bakr's nominating him as his successor besides his being from Quraish, Al-Faruq became the masterful caliph. For the same reasons, Othman came to power after him. Practically, Omar nominated him. In addition, he was indeed from Quraish. For Ali and Al-Hassan (peace be upon him), they came to power because they were the fittest and people elected them. When Muawiya seized power by force, he claimed that he had been from Quraish and one of the Prophet's relatives. Hashim is Abd Shams's brother. For the entire Umayid rulers, they alleged of their being the Prophet's kinsmen although they betook duress as their means of dominating the government. The Abbasids used the same weapon of kinship. They played on the cords of the suffering faced by the Prophet's progeny, such as murders of assassinating Ali, Al-Hassan, Al-Hussein and the immaculate progeny of the Prophet (peace be upon him and his family). Using force, they dominated and ruled.
One of the pillar sides of coming to power after the Prophet (peace be upon him and his family) was depending upon the base that leaders should be Quraishis. Quraishis are the Prophet's relatives. At any rate, it is evidently noticeable that the Prophet's household were continuously deprived of the privilege of the Prophet's kinship, while the far did use it.
THE RULERS' POLITICAL TREATMENT WITH THE PROPHET'S IMMACULATE PEOPLE
A group led by Omar Bin Al-Khattaab (God be pleased to him) went towards Ali's house and took him out neglecting the weeping of Fatima Az-Zahra. They brought him before Abu Bakr.
Abu Bakr - Declare your allegiance to this government.
Ali - What if I do not?
Abu Bakr - We will behead you.
Ali - Then, you are to kill the slave of Allah and the brother of His apostle.
Omar, here, urged Abu Bakr to issue the order of killing him. Abu Bakr answered: “As long as Fatima is next to him, I am not to drive him to any matter.”
Thus, Ali went directly towards the Prophet's tomb weeping and crying: “(Son of my mother! Surely the people reckoned me weak and had well-nigh slain me.)” Fatima arouse his voice with: “O my father! O God's messenger! See what we had suffered after you from son of Al-Khattab and son of Abu Quhafeh!”
Omar, Abu Bakr's emissary to the group who boycotted the ceremony of swearing allegiance, called upon them to come out from Ali's house. As they sheltered at that place, Omar ordered his companions to bring firewood: “By my soul's Prevailing I swear, I will set fire in that house and all of its occupants.” he asserted. “O Abu Hafs! Fatima is there.” some reminded. “So what?!” he answered.
Responding to this menace, the rebellious group left that house, and Omar ceased burning it.
Fatima, however, was dead. She was buried at night underhandedly since she willed that Abu Bakr should never offer the ritual funeral prayer to her soul. Only after Fatima's decease, Ali declared his fealty to Abu Bakr who nominated Omar as his successor. During reigns of those two caliphs, they were wont to precede the Prophet's household at distributing imports of the state. As Al-Belathiri records in his Futouhul-Buldan, Omar began, in distributing imports of the state, with Mohammed’s family, Abu Bakr’s family and Omar’s family respectively. The two caliphs used to seek consultancy of Imam Ali, and refer to him in affairs of the state. In a side, it is acceptable to regard reigns of Abu Bakr and Omar as the golden period of the Prophet's progeny, if it is measured to other reigns.
The Umayids came. They fought against Ali, poisoned Al-Hassan and completely terminated Al-Hussein and his present household. They prevented them from drinking from the Euphrates. This calamity is detailedly recorded in Al-Belathiri's Tarikhul-Ashraf. The Umayids poured their range on those who acceded to Mohammed's family. Just after his coming to power, Muawiya wrote missives to the entire governors of provinces, in which he ordered of declaring reviling at Ali from every pulpit. This fact is recorded by Al-Aqqad in his Muawiya Bin Abi Sufian Fil-Mizan, page 16.
Ibn Asakir, in his At-Tarikh, part 3, page 407, records that in addition to cataclysmic procedures taken by the Umayids against the Prophet's family, every single session of sermons in Syria was ended by reviling at Ali. The Umayids ruled of inadmissibility of testimonies of the acceders to Ali. They canceled names of Ali's family and followers from the general record of the state. Hence, Ali's family and followers were deprived of receiving any of the imports distributed on the entire citizens of the state.
The Umayids were followed by the Abbasids. Abu Bakr Al-Khawarzmi says: “In brief words, Harun did not die before he had reaped the tree of prophesy and uprooted the plant of Imamate.”
As he intended to kill Imam Ja'far As-Sadiq, Al-Mansur expressed his hidden while he was meticulously furious: “A thousand or more individuals I had killed from Fatima's progeny. Yet, I left their head and master; Ja'far Bin Mohammed.” Orally, he addressed at Imam As-Sadiq: “I will certainly kill you, and kill your people so completely that none of you I will keep on this earth. I will surely abolish Al-Madina so thoroughly that no single wall I will keep.”
In his book of history, At-Tabari writes down: “A cabinet full of heads of Alawid individuals was within the heritage of Al-Mansur to Al-Mahdi; his crown prince. Hanged to each of these heads, there was a sheet of paper on which name of that head's owner had been written. In addition to old-aged ones, there were heads of young and children individuals in that cabinet.” Al-Mansur used to locate the Alawids in cylinders used for stabilizing walls of building. As a means of torture, he used to stabilize them to the walls with hooks. These methods of physical torture adopted by Al-Mansur is recorded in Al-Ya'qubi's book of history. Other methods of physical torture were leaving those Alawids without food till they die due to starvation, and leaving them in places too malodorous to be tolerated. The tortured were detained in a single narrow place that they had no place special for defecation. They were kept in small underground cells that after a period of that detention those cells were collapsed on their enchained occupants that some of them might have been dead some weeks ago, but left without burying.
Ar-Rasheed took a bond on himself of eradicating Mohammed's progeny and their followers. In this regard, he says: “Till when should I bear the progeny of Abu Talib? I, by God, will massacre them and massacre their followers in an unparalleled ways of killing.” He, however, was so cruel to the Alawids that he pursued them everywhere for killing.
Al-Mansur sent a missive to Imam As-Sadiq inviting him to visit him often like other people. “We do not have what we should fear you for. You do not have what we want you for, from affairs of the Hereafter. You are neither in an elegance that we should congratulate on, nor are you in a misfortune that we should console you for. What do we have at you, then?” the Imam answered. “We mean that you associate us for advice.” Al-Mansur commented. Imam As-Sadiq answered: “Seekers of mundane affairs do never advise you, and seekers of heavenly affairs do never associate you.”
CATEGORIES OF THE PROPHET'S KINSHIP
1. The close relatives. They are Fatima, Ali, Al-Hassan and Al-Hussein. Their progeny is attached to this property of close relation. Those individuals did suffer the entire sorts of agonies and calamities. This is the reward of Abu Talib's attitudes to Islam and its Prophet, and Ali's situations during battles of Islam. They endured the entire difficulties and, as a result, results went to their enemies.
2. The remote relatives. Those relatives were the rulers for the claim that they had been the Prophet's clan (Quraish.) So, they received the whole prizes, while the close relatives suffered the whole distress.
DISMISSAL OF THE IMMACULATE PROGENY
As a logical result, Imam Ali was dismissed after the decease of Fatima. As an appearance of the ruling authorities' aspiration of dismissing the Imam was their endeavors to attract Al-Abbas, as well as his descendants, to take a part in their authorities, and urge him on accepting a good position in their government. Al-Abbas rejected this offers so definitively that he used decisive words in showing his situation towards their efforts. Gradually, the close relatives of the Prophet (peace be upon him and his family) were isolated from the Hashemites, the Prophet's clan and people. Pursuant to topical criterion, supposing following either the ruling authorities or their rivals, the earlier should be naturally opted regarding their capability of dominating the whole affairs. This was the reason beyond the fact that most of people followed the ruling regime, while a minority followed the Prophet's close relatives. In other words, a poet expressed this meaning by saying: “Hearts are in the side of the Prophet's household, while swords are in the other.”
As he accomplished the Fajr prayer during which he obligatorily had to say (O Allah! Bless Mohammed and Mohammed's household.), Omar Bin Sa'd Bin Abi Waqqas, the commander of the caliph's army against Al-Hussein's, went straightly for massacring all of Mohammed's household and progeny present at that place. Being not sufficed by killing them, the caliph's army beheaded the Prophet's household's dead bodies and robbed their clothes. In addition, horsemen spurred their horses to step on Al-Hussein's dead body as well as the other individuals of Mohammed's progeny. This was for seeking the good will of Ibn Ziyad and Yazeed Bin Muawiya. God, however, had His own affairs in his creatures. This was one of the fruits of the impracitcability of the Hashemites’ joining leadership to prophecy.
REPRESENTATION OF THE PROPHET'S PROGENY'S PROPERTY
No human can shiver what God has stabilized. No creature can change what the Creator has cited. Rulers have already realized that the exclusive property of the Prophet's progeny cannot be changed whatever they do to those individuals. Blessing them is an obligatory ritual precept. Their purity is mentioned in a candid text of the Holy Quran. Their leadership of this nation is authentically proved. The divine texts regarding their merits are imposing. Even if the Prophet's progeny are completely terminated, their divine property shall remain as the nightmare that chases rulers permanently. Hence, there is no substitute for the divine property of the Prophet's progeny.
CHAPTER FIVE
PROSPECTS ATTACHED TO THE SAHABA'S ULTIMATE DECENCY CONCEPTION
The innovators of the Sahaba's ultimate decency conception attached the following prospects to their fabrication:
1. Misrepresenting the divine property of the Prophet's progeny in such a way that it would lose its content and function.
2. Descrying a surrogate property competing the Prophet's progeny's one and backing affairs of the rulers by imitating functions of the Prophet's progeny.
3. Inventing confused matters and giving rise to states of perplexity and suspicion among people for keeping them away from affairs of the ruling authorities, by finding a subordinate discrepancies that, gradually, would be deep, menacing and perpetual.
FINDING COMPETITIVE SPECIFICATIONS
God has removed squalor away from the virtuous household of the Prophet (peace be upon him and his family) and purified them thoroughly. Fatima, Ali, Hassan and Hussein are, according to all criteria, within the Prophet's household at least. God has purified those individuals mentally and physically and foretold of their being in the Paradise before those definite individuals foretold of their being in the Paradise. According to divine texts, the Prophet's household are masters of occupants of the Paradise. They are, by the logic rule of the less is gained by gaining the more, indisputably decent.
The most honorable Sahaba, who had showed honesty to God, are dignified people who had been decided, by God, as decent. Rulers were not among those honorable Sahaba. Most of them were classified as ‘released’ who declared their Islam only after they had been surrounded by Muslims. There is no single policy in the whole world that has the techniques of regarding those ‘released’ individuals as same honorable as the Prophet's household, except the invention of the entire Sahaba's ultimate decency conception, with regard to looking upon the lexical, as well as the terminological, meaning of Sahaba. According to this conception, there is no difference at all between a Muslim who embraced Islam before conquest of Mecca and fought, and another who declared his being Muslim only after the conquest. This conception equates the killer with his victim; the applicant of the blockade with that upon whom the blockade had been imposed; the Muhajir with the ‘released’ and the faithful believer with the hypocrite. Those individuals, as a whole, are enjoying the very same qualification; decency. Ali Bin Abi Talib, one of the Prophet's household, is a Sahabi in the same weight of Muawiya, the Sahabi. Both are decent. Both are legislators. Both are to be in the Paradise. Both are infallible. Ali is the foremost to Islam. He is God's devotee in the divine texts.. the carrier of the Prophet's pennon during the whole battles. He is the headmost knight of Islam during the entire battles. This man is not different from Muawiya who, accompanied by his father, fought against Islam in the entire battles, and embraced Islam only after they had been surrounded.
Topical justice does reject such a characterization. The divine justice, with stronger reason, rejects it, too. Allah and His Apostle and deeds did differentiate between the two. Who, then, did order us of regarding the two as equal? Saving the Sahaba's ultimate decency conception, which was originally invented for eradicating distinction between the foremost and the tardy; the fighters and the absconders and the first and the last, what is the evidence on such an equalization?
Invention of the Sahaba's ultimate decency conception and allegation of the entire Sahaba's decency were originally founded for competing property of purification exclusively gifted the Prophet's household.
A FACTUAL EXAMPLE
With respect to divine texts, Ali is the head of the Prophet's household, the disciple of this nation, the foremost to Islam and the pursued by the right. Loyalty to Ali is regarded as same as loyalty to God, and antagonizing him is as same as antagonizing God. Moreover, he is a Sahabi admitted by inventors of the Sahaba's ultimate decency conception. He is foretold of being in the Paradise.
Regarding Ali as a Sahabi, for what reason, then, did you, originators of the Sahaba's ultimate decency conceptions, impose people to curse him from pulpits in the entire provinces of the Islamic state? For what reason did you curse and revile at him actually? Was it not you who decided the penalization of reviling at Sahaba? You decided that the revilers at Sahaba are miscreant whom should be not shared in a food or a drink, and that the ritual funeral prayer should not be offered to their souls.
Does the entire Sahaba's decency work for benefit of the whole except Ali and his household? Does it stop when it reaches Ali and his household in order that characteristic of decency should not be ascribed to them?
ANOTHER FACTUAL EXAMPLE
Al-Hassan Bin Ali and Al-Hussein Bin Ali are, according to divine texts, the masters of the youth of the Paradise. They are basils and sons of God's messenger. According to divine texts, God made the offspring of every prophet from his own backbone, while Mohammed's was made from Ali's. At any rate, Al-Hassan and Al-Hussein are decent since they are Sahaba. It is illicit for any to malign, criticize or revile at any of Sahaba. He whoever commits such a thing is decided as a miscreant that he should not be shared in a food or a drink or offered the ritual funeral prayer. What about, then, those who poisoned Al-Hassan Bin Ali, the Sahabi? What is your judgment about those who murdered Al-Hussein and occluded his household and him from having a single drop from water of the Euphrates, the river from which beasts, birds and animals including dogs, drink freely? Is it not to reckon murdering with maligning? What do you say about those who killed the entire progeny of Mohammed and robbed their luggage while they were dead, and captured the harem of Mohammed's progeny and the Sahaba's progeny?
EXPOUNDING UPON THE PREVIOUS STATES
Lexically and terminologically, those who poisoned Al-Hassan were Sahaba. Those who assassinated Ali were Sahaba. Those who murdered Al-Hussein were Sahaba. Those who terminated the Prophet's progeny in Kerbela were Sahaba. Those who cursed and reviled at Ali and his associates were Sahaba. Those who ruled of inadmissibility of testimonies of Ali's assenters were Sahaba.
A STRIKING SURPRISING AND A WONDERMENT
Al-Hassan Bin Ali, the Sahabi, is one of the decent. Those who poisoned him to death are decent because of their being Sahaba. Al-Hussein Bin Ali, the Sahabi, is decent. Those who murdered him are decent because of their being Sahaba. Mohammed's progeny who were completely terminated in Kerbela were decent. Those who practiced termination against them were decent because of their being Sahaba.
The poisoner and the poisoned are equally in the Paradise since both are decent Sahaba! The killer and his victim are both in the Paradise since they are decent Sahaba! The robber and the robbed are in the Paradise since both are decent Sahaba!
This equalization raises a real flouting of mankind intellect. It is forming an appearance of shameful slavery of imitation.
FULFILLMENT OF THE MISSION
The mission intended by the Sahaba's ultimate decency conception was fully accomplished. Ali became as same as Muawiya since both were decent Sahaba who should be in the Paradise. Both are rightful with the difference that the victorious should be the legitimate ruler of the nation. The year of victory had been named ‘year of congruity.’
FINDING COMPETITIVE PROTECTION
The saying that he whoever hurt the Prophet's household would be hurting the Prophet (peace be upon him and his family) himself, is faced by the one that he whoever hurt the Sahaba would be hurting the Prophet (peace be upon him and his family). In a like manner, he whoever bears malice against Mohammed's household is one of people of the Hell, is faced by the saying that he whoever bears malice against any of the Sahaba extensively is one of people of the Hell. Exceeding the protection given exclusively to the Prophet's household, it was ruled that those who defame any of Sahaba is reckoned with the miscreant, and that it is obligatory to avoid sharing him in a food or a drink and avoid offering his soul the ritual funeral prayer. Just like a carcass, such an individual should be cast aside. Thus, the Sahaba's ultimate decency conception granted the Sahaba a protection identical to that given exclusively to the Prophet's household, but with a little higher degree.
IN RESPECT OF PROCLAMATION
The Quran is the major weighty thing. Mohammed's family is the minor. Being guided to the right path cannot be attained unless these two weighty things are adhered. Deviations cannot be eluded unless these two weighty things are cohered. This fact is decided by incontrovertible divine texts. The Prophet's household are the Ark of Noah; he shall be most surely saved that who takes it, while that who lags behind shall be certainly drowned. This fact is documented by conclusive divine texts. They are the door to acquittal of sins; he shall be certainly forgiven that whoever passes through that door. They are the shelter of this nation. Stars are the shelter of people of this earth, and Mohammed's household are the protection against discrepancies of this nation. This is also quoted from undiscussible divine texts. Without them, this nation shall be like a donkey the backbone of which is broken. The head of the Prophet's household takes that task of settling discrepancies established in this nation after the decease of the Prophet (peace be upon him and his family). These facts are documented by indisputable divine texts.
EXAMPLES ON WHAT THE SAHABA GAIN FROM THE ENTIRE SAHABA'S ULTIMATE DECENCY CONCEPTION
(The like of my companions is salt. Food is valueless without salt.) This (hadith) is recorded in Alisti'ab, in the margin of Ibn Hajar's Al-Isabetu Fi Tamyizis-Sahaba, part 1, page 7.
In the (hadith) numbered 33792, of Kenzul-Ummal, part 12, page 22, the following is recorded: (Quraish is means of amending people. People cannot be amended by other that Quraish. Except them, none should be referred to. Their like is salt. Food cannot be accepted by anything other than salt.) This (hadith) is related to A'isheh. Ibn Edi, in his Al-Kamil, relates it to A'isheh.
The (hadith) numbered 33807, of Kenzul-Ummal, part 12, page 25, is the following: (Quraish is security from drowning for all people of this earth. Loyalty to Quraish is security of people against being engaged in discrepancies. Quraish is people of God. People of Iblis -the Satan- are the Arab tribes who confront them.) This (hadith) is quoted from At-Tabarani's Al-Kabeer and Al-Hakim's Al-Mustedrak.
In his Al-Issabeh, page 19, Ibn Hajar, as At-Tirmithi and Ibn Hebban quotes, records the following (hadith): The Prophet (peace be upon him and his family) said: “I ask you by God to take care of my Sahaba. Betake not them as an advantage. It is just for my cherishing, they are cherished, and it is just for my hatred, they are hated. He whoever hurts them, shall be hurting me. He whoever hurts me shall be hurting God. He whoever hurts God shall be taken in an unexpected time.”
TEXTS FOR REFLECTING ON
The Prophet (peace be upon him and his family) stated: “O Ali! He is departing God that whoever departs me. He is departing me that whoever departs you.” “He whoever hurts Ali shall be hurting me.” “He whoever cherished Ali is cherishing me. He whoever bears malice against Ali is bearing malice against me.” “Your adherent is adherent to me. My adherent is adherent to Allah. Your enemy is an enemy to me. My enemy is an enemy to Allah. Woe is those who will bear malice against you after my departure.” “Blessedness is those who cherish and accept you. Woe is those who bear malice against you and belie you.” “I do counsel every one who believed and confided in me to cling to leadership of Ali Bin Abi Talib. He whoever accedes to him shall be acceding to me. He shall be acceding to Allah that who accedes to me. He whoever cherishes him shall be cherishing me. He is cherishing Allah that who cherishes me. He whoever bears malice against him shall be bearing malice against me. He is bearing malice against Allah that who bears malice against me.” “Stars are shields of people of this earth against drowning. My household are shelters of my people against discrepancies. Any Arab tribe who confront my people shall be the party of the Satan.”
See the Prophet's saying: “Stars are shelters of occupants of the heavens. My household are the shelters of my people.”
WONDERMENT
Supposing a Sahabi hurt or bore malice against Ali, or Ali hurt or bore malice against a Sahabi; what should the situation be? Whom should we follow? Who should be the right, and who should be the wrong?!
Supposing Quraish and the Prophet's household each claimed of being shelter of this nation; how should the situation be? Whom should we confide on?!
Supposing a party of this nation followed Quraish and another followed the Prophet's household, and both claimed of being the right; what should the situation be? Which party should be regarded as the right and the bearer of the truth?!
Hint at the false saying spuriously imputed to the Prophet (peace be upon him and his family): “Stars are the like of my companions. Guidance to the right path is concluded by following any of them.” This false saying is deceitfully arisen.
In At-Thehbi's Al-Munteqa, page 551, the following saying of Ibn Teimiyeh is recorded: “The hadith is ruled, by the most learned hadithists, as doubtful. Hence, it cannot be taken as an evidence.”
Providing a group of Sahaba supported Ali, another supported Muawiya, a third were non-partisan and a fourth were waiting for results so that they would follow the victorious. Is it rationally and conventionally acceptable that the followers of any of these four groups would be rightful? Who would be the wrong, then?!
On condition a Sahabi claims that the right is in the east, and another Sahabi claims, in the same time, that the right is in the west, and a third claims that the right is in the south, and a fourth claims that the right is in the north and so on that the nation is divided into seventy three parties each with a definite argument, as we are foretold by the Prophet (peace be upon him and his family). Will it be rationally and conventionally acceptable that the entire parties are rightful and following the right although there is only one right?! Contrariety is a crime. Unification is a matter of seeking God's favor. Is it, then, rational that the Prophet (peace be upon him and his family) engages his nation in discrepancies?!
IMPARTING THE ARGUMENT BY A MEDIUM
The Prophet (peace be upon him and his family) said unto Ali: “After me, you convey my mission and make them hear my voice and explicate for them matters they will be discrepant about.”
Despite the fact that he was enthusiast to Al-Abbas, Abu Haneefeh was wont to prefer any Sahabi's opinion to Al-Abbas's when being variant in a certain question. It is recorded that Abu Haneefeh used to say: “I will refer to the Sahaba's opinions if I lack the ability to infer from the Quran and the Prophet's traditions. In case there are different opinions of different Sahaba, I will take from any indiscriminately, in order not to neglect their opinions and opt for the followers'.” In his A'lamul-Muwaqqi'in, Ibnul-Qeyyim mentions the following: “For Imam Ahmed, sources of legislation are five: 1. The text. 2. The Shaba's verdicts.. Hahafites and Hanbalites ruled of allocating the Quran's judgments to the Sahaba's deeds. This is for the reason that the Sahaba would not neglect applying the Quran's judgments unless they had an evidence. Hence, whenever the Sahaba contradicted the Quran, this item must have been allocated for a specific state or manner. The Sahaba's deeds, however, are as same as their words.”
By the way, the Prophet's traditions are his words, deeds and signature. Regarding the saying that the Sahaba's deeds are as same as their words, this means that lexical and terminological Sahabi's words allocate the Quran's judgment and generalize the Quran's specific situations. This reckons the Sahaba's words with the heavenly revelations that wrong does never approach from any side. The main catastrophe, here, is that every Sahabi, whether in lexical or terminological meaning, is included in this (rule). As a matter of fact, the entire Sahaba's ultimate decency conception granted the Sahaba's what the Doctrine has not granted to the Prophet's household.
Ibn Khuldoun says: “Not the entire Sahaba were juriscounsults. Doctrinal laws were not taken from all of them. This task was private to the Quranists, who had full knowledge of positions of repealing and repealed Verses, decisive and allegorical Verses and other evidences elicited from the Quran that they had received from the Prophet (peace be upon him and his family) directly or indirectly. For this reason, such individuals were named ‘Qurra -reciters-’ since the Arab were generally illiterate. For a considerable period, this concern was preserved.”
Mohammed Bin Sehl Bin Abi Kheithemeh, related the following saying to his father: “Three from the Muhajirs and three from the Ansar were the only individuals who had authority of issuing judgments and rulings in the Prophet's reign. They were Omar, Othman, Ali, Ubey Bin Ka'b, Me'ath Bin Jabal and Zeid Bin Thabit.”
Abdurrahman Bin Qasim relates the following saying to his father: “A number of Muhajirs and Ansar were usually summoned by Abu Bakr whenever he had a question to seek advisory about. He used to summon Omar, Othman, Ali, Abdurrahman Bin Awf, Me'ath Bin Jabal, Ubey Bin Ka'b and Zeid Bin Thabit. Those individuals had authority of issuing verdicts in the reign of Abu Bakr. People received rulings and verdicts from those individuals only. When Omar became the caliph, he followed the same policy.”
EXPANSION IN ISSUING VERDICTS
It is noticeable that the entire Sahaba's ultimate decency conception collapsed the whole traditions relied upon in reigns of Abu Bakr and Omar and mutinied against the whole conceptions familiar in reign of the Prophet (peace be upon him and his family). According to this conception, every Sahabi, in lexical and terminological meaning, had the opportunity of expressing his own opinion towards any question. In the same manner, it became lawful for every researchist or scholar of jurisprudence to refer to the idea of any Sahabi at all in any question. This was by reason that the entire Sahaba were equally decent. They all shall be in the Paradise. It is impossible for them to forge lies. Hence; matters were commingled so heavily that it became impossible to discriminate. The foremost to Islam became of the same rank of the tardy. The ‘released’ became as same as the Muhajir. The whole enjoyed the same attribute of decency. A Sahabi is flawless. It is impermissible to comment on verdicts, words and deeds of the Sahaba. These rulings are deduced from the general frame of the entire Sahaba's ultimate decency conception. What is authentically related to the Sahaba is the right that wrong does never approach from any side. This is because it was traditions of the decent who had the capability of restricting a general rule frankly mentioned in the Holy Quran and, similarly, generalize a restricted Quranic rule. Consequently, efforts were exceedingly exerted for the sake of surveying and detecting the life account of the narrators from many sides like the good general behavior, honesty of their believing and authenticity of their sayings. As soon as such attributes are available in personality of a narrator and the saying is truly ascribed to that Sahabi, then such a text shall be considered as the indisputable right since it had been issued by a decent Sahabi.
A PRINCIPAL RESTRAINT ON THE NARRATORS
It is fully acceptable for any narrator to accede to Abu Bakr, Omar or any other Sahabi at all. This loyalty will not injure honesty and authenticity. It also does not occupy any position of confusedness. Confusedness falls only on those who show any sort of loyalty to Ali and the Prophet's household. It is impracticable to regard such narrators who accede to Ali or the Prophet's household as authentic and then, it is impossible to accept narratives of such individuals. As a rule, it is to neglect totally the hadith among the authentic narrators of which there is an individual who shows loyalty to the Prophet's household. The acceptable narratives are only those related by authentic men. Authenticity and loyalty to the Prophet's household do never concur.
Abu Amr Bin Abdil-Berr says: “Mohammed Bin Waddah related that Yahya Bin Mu'in ruled of the unauthenticity of Mohammed Bin Idris Ashafi'i.” Yahya Bin Mu'in is one of the most remarkable hadithists whose decision about a person is undiscussibly regarded. Ashafi'i, the founder of a notable sect, is not authentic narrator in the opinion of Ibn Mu'in. This is an unimaginable matter! This judgment of Ibn Mu'in was issued because of Ashafi'i's carrying a little loyalty to the Prophet's household. Realizing the unacceptability of this ruling, At-Thehbi commented: “Ibn Mu'in's words about Ashafi'i were mere a flaw of the tongue due to following whim and fanaticism.”
Imam Ja'far As-Sadiq, however, is the tutor of founders of the four sects. He is the director of a four thousand graduate school. He is the founder of the sect of the Prophet's household and an elevated name in the sky of the Prophet's people. Although Al-Bukhari, who had recorded narratives related by Marwan Bin Al-Hakam, neglected regarding Imam As-Sadiq's narratives as an evidence on authenticity of a hadith, Abu Hatem and An-Nisa'i ruled of the Imam's authenticity (in narrating hadiths.)
Yahya Bin Mu'in: (As he ruled of authenticity of Sa'eed Bin Khalid Al-Bujeli, they protested against him claiming that Sa'eed had been a Shiite. “Yes, he is Shiite and authentic!!!” He asserted. However, the Jumhour had never used these two descriptions concurrently.)
Authentic people are only those disloyal and remote from the Prophet's progeny. As for Omar Bin Sa'd Bin Abi Waqqas, the commander of Yazeed's army who massacred Imam Al-Hussein and his household in Kerbela, Al-Ujeli decides him as (one of the Sahaba’s followers. He is honest. People reported his narratives.)
Imran Bin Hattan was decided as an honest by Al-Ujeli. This Imran composed a number of poetic verses praising Ibn Muljim (Cursed be him), the murderer of Imam Ali for his murder.
Ref: Imam Reza Network

Hamza b. Abdul Muttalib

With Abu-Jahl
Al-Hamza set off for the hills overlooking Makkah. His strong horse was going up the sand hills. It was galloping along the valleys. Al-Hamza was looking carefully at the lovely scenery.
The sky was blue and clear. The hills were covered with sunshine. So the grains of sand were glittering in the sun.
Al-Hamza was thinking about our Master Muhammad's mission. His heart was with Allah's Apostle. He was repeating to himself:
Really there's no god but Allah. Al-Lat, al-Uzza and Munat are rocks. Man has made them with his hand. So why does he worship them?
The horse was roaming through the desert. The horse ran away when it saw a man holding a bow and looking for the lions.
Our Master Muhammad (S.A.W.) sat on a rock on the road to al-Masa between al-Safa Mount and al-Marwa Mount. As usual, he was absorbed in thinking.
He was always thinking about his people and those who disbelieved in him and Allah's mission.
There was a house near the road to al-Masa. The house had a balcony overlooking the road. Two young girls were sitting in the balcony. They saw our Master Muhammad (S.A.W.) thinking and looking at the sky and the mountains.
At that moment, Abu Jahal and some foolish persons from Makkah appeared. They were laughing loudly.
Abu Jahal looked at our Master Muhammad (S.A.W.). His eyes glittered out of spite. He wanted to sneer at him. So, he shouted:
Look at this magician! Look at this madman! He doesn't laugh as we do! He's silent!
The foolish persons laughed. Their satanic laughter filled the space.
Ha, Ha, Ha!
The two girls sadly watched what was happening. They saw Abu Jahal going round and round our Master Muhammad (S.A.W.) laughing and being silly.
Abu Jahal took a handful of dust. He put the dust on the Prophet's head. The dust fell on the Prophet's face and clothing.
Abu Jahal and his foolish friends laughed. But our Master Muhammad (S.A.W.) kept silent. He was sad.
The two young girls felt pain and sadness for our Master Muhammad (S.A.W.). Abu Jahal and his foolish friends went away. So, our Master Muhammad (S.A.W.) stood up. He dusted his head and face and clothing. Then he went home.
The two girls decided to tell al-Hamza. So, they waited for him.
In the distance, al-Hamza appeared. He was coming down the hills riding his horse.
The girl shouted:
Hamza, come back!
The girl said to her sister:
Come on! Let's tell him!
The girl shouted:
Aba Amara!
Al-Hamza stopped and looked at the girl. The girl sadly said:
Aba Amara, Abu Jahal mistreated your nephew Muhammad.
Al-Hamza asked:
Did he mistreated him?
The girl said:
He came across him on the road. He abused him and put some dust on his head.
Al-Hamza was filled with anger. He hit his horse with the bow. The horse jumped angrily. Al-Hamza headed for the Ka'aba. He used to pass by the men and greet them when he came back from hunting. This time, he was angry for our Master Muhammad (S.A.W.). So, he did not greet anyone and went directly to Abu Jahal.
Al-Hamza jumped off his horse like the lion. He raised his bow and hit Abu Jahal on the head. Abu Jahal was afraid when he saw al-Hamza angry. So, he said humbly:
Aba Amara, he has abused our gods and stultified our thoughts.
Al-Hamza shouted angrily:
Answer me if you can!
The outcry of truth sounded in the yard of the Ka'aba. Al-Hamza said loudly:
I confess that there's no god but Allah and that Muhammad is Allah's Apostle.
Al-Hamza angrily looked at Abu Jahal and said:
Why did you abuse him? Don't you know that I follow his religion.
Abu Jahal bent his head humbly and kept silent. The foolish persons escaped with alarm.
While al-Hamza was in tears, he embraced our Master Muhammad (S.A.W.). Our Master Muhammad (S.A.W.) became happy when his uncle al-Hamza became Muslim. So, he named him the Lion of Allah and the Lion of His Apostle.

The Birthday
Al-Hamza was born in 570 AD., namely in the year of the Elephant. He was our Master Muhammad's foster brother, for a woman called Thwaibah suckled them.
Al-Hamza was brave and strong. He became Muslim in the second year of our Master Muhammad's mission.
The men knew that al-Hamza believed in Islam. So, the Muslims became happy. But the polytheists became sad.
Some Muslims hid their belief in Islam because they were afraid of Quraish. When al-Hamza became Muslim, a new time began - our Master Muhammad's followers became strong, so the Quraish were afraid of them and had a thousand apprehensions about them.

The Ninth Year after the Mission
Nine years after our Master Muhammad's mission passed. The number of the Muslims increased.
Umar bin al-Khattab was very sensitive. One day, he took his sword to kill our Master Muhammad (S.A.W.). He asked about him. It was said to him:
He's with his Companions in a house near al-Safa Mount.
So, Umar headed for him. On the way to al-Safa Mount, a man belonging to the tribe of Umar named Naeem came across and asked him:
Umar, where are you going?
Umar rudely answered:
I want to kill Muhammad because this boy has abused our religion.
Naeem believed in Islam secretly So, he said to him:
If you hurt Muhammad, Bani Hashim won't leave you alive. Besides your sister and her husband have believed in Islam.
Umar shouted angrily:
What? My sister Fatimah?
Umar went to his sister's house. when he stopped at the door, he heard a man reading the Qur'an. The Divine Words were impressive:
In the Name of Allah, the Beneficent, the Merciful. Taha, we have not revealed the Qur'an to you so that you may be unsuccessful.
Umar knocked at the door and entered. His sister hid the page of the Qur'an for he wanted to tear it up. He hit his sister. So, blood flowed out of her face.
Umar felt regret, So, he went out.
Our Master Muhammad (S.A.W.) and some Companions were in a house near al-Safa Mount. He was teaching them the Qur'an and wisdom. He was reading to them of the Divine verses.
In the meantime, they heard a man knocking loudly at the door. One of the Muslims got up. He looked through a hole in the door.
Al-Hamza asked:
Who is it?
The Muslim answered
It's Umar holding a sword.
Al-Hamza said:
Do not be afraid. Open the door. If he wants good we'll give it to him. If he wants evil, we'll kill him with his sword!
Al-Hamza stood up to receive the newcomer. He opened the door and asked:
Bin al-Khattab, what do you want?
Umar answered:
I've come to confess that there's no god but Allah and Muhammad is Allah's Apostle!
Our Master Muhammad (S.A.W.) said:
Allah is great!

The Migration
The people of Yathrib belonged to the tribe of al-Khazraj and the tribe of al-Aus. They promised our Master Muhammad (S.A.W.) to support Islam with their lives and money.
When the Quraish harmed the Muslims severely, our Master Muhammad (S.A.W.) ordered them to immigrate Yathrib.
So, the Muslims began leaving Makkah secretly, one by one, or group by group. Al-Hamza bin Abdul Muttalib immigrated, too.
The immigrants and the supporters in Yathrib were eagerly waiting for our Master Muhammad's immigration. They were looking forward to his arrival.

The Sacrifice
The polytheists decided to kill our Master Muhammad (S.A.W.). Jibreel came down from the sky to tell him about the plot of the polytheists.
So, Allah's Apostle asked his cousin Ali bin Abu Talib (A.S.) to sleep in his bed so that he would be able to immigrate to Yathrib safely.
Ali(A.S.) asked our Master Muhammad (S.A.W.):
Allah's Apostle, will you be safe?
Our Master Muhammad (S.A.W.) answered:Yes.
Ali(A.S.) rejoiced when the Holy Prophet (S.A.W.) immigrated safely. He was not thinking about himself when the polytheists attacked our Master Muhammad's house.
Jibreel came down from the heavens reading the following holy verse:
And among them men is he who sells himself to seek the pleasure of Allah.
This verse meant there was a person who sacrificed his life to please Allah, the Glorified. Besides this verse has praised the attitude of Imam Ali (A.S.) and his sacrifice.
Our Master Muhammad (S.A.W.) arrived in Yathrib. After the Prophet (S.A.W.) arrived, the Muslims named it al-Madina al-Munawwara (the Illuminated City).

In Makkah
The polytheists in Makkah attacked the Muslims houses and robbed them. The immigrants were sad to hear that.
So, our Master Muhammad (S.A.W.) decided to send some groups of the Muslims to face the Quraishi trading caravans to punish them.
In Ramadhan, the first year after Hijra, our Master Muhammad (S.A.W.) called al-Hamza, the Lion of Allah, and gave him the first banner in the history of Islam.
Our Master Muhammad (S.A.W.) ordered al-Hamza to take his group, thirty immigrants, to the seaside were the caravans passed.
Al-Hamza found Abu Jahal at a district called al-Ais.
Three hundred fighters went with Abu Jahal, namely, ten times as many as the Muslims.
But al-Hamza, may Allah be pleased with him, and his group were not afraid of the Quraish. They were ready to clash with them.
But Majdy bin Amru al-Jahny, who had good with the Quraish and the Muslims, came between them to prevent them from clashing.
Al-Hamza was proud that he was the first to receive the banner of Islam from Allah's Apostle. Concerning this, he said pretty lines of poetry (the meaning only):
By the order of Allah's Apostle, a banner waved over me.
It had not waved before me.
The banner has victory from the owner of dignity,
The dear Allah whose action is the best action.
Then he referred to his clashing with Abu Jahal:
On the night when they (the polytheists marched, they were many.
And we all were his boilers that boiled because of the anger of his friends.
And when we saw one another, they made their camels kneel down and fettered them.
And we understood the range of the arrows target. And we said to them:
Our supporter is the robe of Allah. But you have not any robe but misguidance.
There Abu Jahal became stirred up unjustly.
So, he became unsuccessful.
And Allah drove back Abu Jahal's plot.
We were only thirty riders,
And they were over three hundred.

With Our Master Muhammad(S.A.W.)
In the Assault of al-Asheera, our Master Muhammad (S.A.W.) led, Hamza bin Abdul Muttalib was holding the banner.
The Muslim Army's companies and patrols succeeded to threaten the trade of the Quraish.
The Quraish announced the economic war against the Muslims. So, they attacked the Muslims' houses who immigrated from Makkah to Madina. They intensified their war against the Muslims everywhere.
In the meantime, the Quraish urged the Arab tribes to attack Yathrib.
Our Master Muhammad (S.A.W.) wanted to punish the Quraish. He thought that the best way to punish them was to threaten their trading caravans going to Shaam.
Al-Hamza went with our Master Muhammad (S.A.W.) on each assault.

The Battle of Badr
Our Master Muhammad (S.A.W.) heard that a trading caravan headed by Abu Sufyan was coming back from Shaam to Makkah. So, our Master Muhammad (S.A.W.) asked the Muslims to face the caravan.
On Ramadhan 12th, 2 A.H., our Master Muhammad(S.A.W.) with 313 immigrants and supporters went outside Madina.
Abu Sufayn heard about the movement and the aim of the Muslims who wanted to face the caravan. So, he quickly sent man to the Quraish to tell them about the dangerous situation.
Abu Jahal found that action a suitable chance to destroy Islam and the Muslims. So he began urging the Quraish to fight the Muslims. He and the Quraishi leaders called up nine hundred and fifty fighters. Abu Jahal headed the fighters and marched towards the springs of Badr, where the Muslims had camped.
On Ramadhan 17th, the two armies came together. The polytheists were beating the war drums. But the Muslims were remembering and glorifying Allah.
Jibreel came down from the heavens. He read him this verse:
And if they incline to peace, then incline to it
The Holy Prophet (S.A.W.) asked the Quraish to make peace but Abu Jahal refused. He thought that he would destroy Islam, for his army was three times as many as the Muslim Army.
The two armies got ready to clash. One of the polytheists shouted:
Muhammad, let your brave men come out to fight us!
So, our Master Muhammad (S.A.W.) said:
Ubaidah bin al-Harith, al-Hamza bin Abdul Muttalib, and Ali bin Abu Talib, stand up.
They moved briskly. They were ready to die for Allah's way. Ubaidah stood before his opponent Utbah bin Rabeeah.
Ali stood before al-Waleed bin Utbah.
Hamza stood before Shaiba bin Rabeeah. So, the first battle in the history of Islam broke out.
Immediately, al-Hamza hit and knocked down his opponent. Ali hit the enemy of Islam and killed him.
Ubaidah hit his opponent, but his opponent hit him too. He fell to the ground. Al-Hamza and Ali killed Utbah. Then they took Ubaidah to the camp to tend to him.
When the polytheistic heroes fell over the ground one by one, Abu Jahal ordered his fighters to launch a general attack.
The Muslims faced the attack with spirits filled with belief confidence in Allah. So, Allah granted the Muslims a victory.
Abu Jahal and the polytheistic leaders fell over the ground. So, the other polytheists escaped with alarm.

The Revenge
The people of Makkah heard about the news of the defeat. So, the women wept over the killed polytheists. But Hind, Abu Sufyan's wife, kept silent.
The people said to Hind:
Why don't you weep over your brother, your father and your uncle?
She said:
I don't weep over them lest Muhammad and his companions rejoice at our misfortune!
Hind thought about a way to get her revenge on our Master Muhammad (S.A.W.) or Ali bin Abu Talib (A.S.) or al-Hamza bin Abdul Muttalib.
Hind urged the polytheists to get their revenge on them. Three thousand polytheistic fighters got ready. Hind bint Utbah, Abu Sufyan's wife, was with them. There were fourteen women around her. They were beating drums.
In Makkah there was a strong slave called Wahshy. Hind went to him. She promised to give him a lot of gold and money if he killed our Master Muhammad (S.A.W.) or Ali bin Abu Talib (A.S.) or al-Hamza (May Allah be pleased with him).
Wahshy said:
I can't hit Muhammad because his companions surround him. I can't kill Ali because he is very alert. I may kill al-Hamza because anger makes him see nothing.
Hind gave Wahshy some gold before hand. She was always looking at the spear Wahshy prepared to kill al-Hamza.
The polytheistic army arrived at al-Abwaa (an area near Madina where Aminah, our Master Muhammad's mother was buried fifty years ago).
Hind wanted to dig up Aminah and insisted on that. But the Quraishi leaders refused her action so that the Arabs would not dig out their dead.
Our Master Muhammad (S.A.W.) headed the Muslims. Abu Sufyan headed the polytheists.
Our Master Muhammad (S.A.W.) ordered fifty skilled bow men to stay at the foot of al-Ainain Mount to protect the Muslims' back troops. He ordered them not to leave their places under any circumstance.
The polytheists began attacking the Muslims. Uthman bin Abi-Talha, the banner holder, was in advance.
Hind and some women were surrounding him. They were beating the drums, and encouraging the fighters to fight.
They were singing the following lines of poetry (the meaning only):
We, Tariq's daughters, walk on the cushions.
Like the walking of bright sand grouse,
Musk is in the partings.
The pearls are round the necks.
If you advance, we'll embrace you.
And if you escape, we'll abandon you.
And the abandonment will be sorrowful.
Hamza shouted with enthusiasm:
I'm the son of the water carriers of pilgrims!
He attacked the banner holder. He hit him and cut off his hand. So the banner holder retreated. Then, his brother took the banner.
The Muslims were attacking them intensely. The banner holders were falling over the ground one by one.
When the banner fell to the ground, the polytheists became dismayed. So, they ran away. The great idol, which they took to grant them a victory fell off the camel!
The Muslims chased the runaway. The archers forgot the Holy Prophet's orders and left the foot of the mountain to collect booty. So, the lines of the Muslim Army was subjected to being surrounded and attacked.
Khalid bin al-Waleed, a polytheist then, took the Muslims aback. The surprise left the Muslim Army in chaos.
Wahshy, a slave from Makkah, was holding a long spear and looking for al-Hamza. He was thinking about nothing but to kill al-Hamza.
During the strong clashes, Wahshy was behind a big rock looking at al-Hamza.
While al-Hamza was busy fighting, Wahshy aimed his spear and threw it at the Prophet's uncle. The spear hit al-Hamza on the belly.
Al-Hamza tried to attack Wahshy. But he fell to the ground and became a martyr.
Wahshy ran fast to tell Hind about his action.
Hind rejoiced. She took off her gold and gave it to Wahshy and said:
I'll give you ten Dinars when we go back to Makkah.
Hind hurried to al-Hamza's body. She cut off his ears and nose to make a necklace. Then she drew a dagger and cut open the martyr's belly She took out his liver savagely and bit it like the dog.
Then Abu Sufyan came and tore al-Hamza's body with his spear.

The Master of Martyrs
The polytheists withdrew from the battlefield. Our Master Muhammad (S.A.W.) and his companions came down the mountain to bury the martyrs.
The Prophet (S.A.W.) asked his companions about the place of al-Hamza.
Al-Harith said:I know his place.
Our Master Muhammad (S.A.W.) asked al-Harith to show him al-Hamza's body
The man went about looking for him. He found his body torn. So, he hated to tell the Holy Prophet (S.A.W.) about it.
Our Master Muhammad (S.A.W.) ordered Ali(A.S.) to look for al-Hamza's body. He found him. He did not tell the Holy Prophet because he did not want to hurt him.
So, our Master Muhammad (S.A.W.) himself went to look for him. He found him in a sorrowful condition.
Our Master Muhammad (S.A.W.) wept very much when he saw what they had done to al-Hamza's body.
The wolves did not do what Hind and Abu Sufyan did.
Our Master Muhammad (S.A.W.) was very angry. So, he said:
Uncle, may Allah have mercy upon you. You had done good deeds and maintained close relations with your relatives! If Allah grants me a victory, I'll maim seventy persons of the Quraish.
The Muslims swore by Allah to do that. So, Jibreel came down and read this verse:
And if you take your turn, then retaliate with the like of that which you were afflicted; but if you are patient it will certainly be best for those who are patient.
So Allah's Apostle forgave them. He was patient. And he prevented the Muslims from maiming.
Our Master Muhammad (S.A.W.) took off his gown and covered the martyr and said to him:
Uncle, The Lion of Allah, the Lion of His Apostle, doer of good deeds, remover of worries, defender of Allah's Apostle, and saver of his face.
Safiyah, al-Hamza's sister and our Master Muhammad's aunt, went with Fatima aI-Zahra(A.S.) to make sure of the Holy Prophet's safety.
Ali bin Abi Talib (A.S..) came across Safiyah and said to her:
Aunt, come back!
He did not want her to see her brother in that condition. But she said:
I won't came back till I see Allah's Apostle.
In the distance, the Holy Prophet (S.A.W.) saw her. So, he ordered her son al-Zubair not to allow her to see her martyred brother.
Al-Zubair received her and said:
Mother, come back.
She said:Till I see Allah's Apostle.
When she saw our Master Muhammad (S.A.W.) and made sure of his safety, she asked him about al-Hamza:
Where's my brother?
The Holy Prophet (S.A.W.) kept silent. So, Safiyah knew that her brother became a martyr. So, she and Fatima al-Zahra(A.S.) wept over their martyred brother and uncle.
So, our Master Muhammad (S.A.W.) condoled them:
Be cheerful! Jibreel told me that Hamza has been regarded as the Lion of Allah and the Lion of His Apostle in the Heavens!
Uhud Mount stands as evidence for al-Hamza's bravery, the Master of the Martyrs, and the polytheists' savageness.
Ref: Imam Reza Network

Maitham al-Tammar

It was dawn. As usual, Maitham went to the date-palm trunk. He splashed it with water. The good ground sent out a sweat smell. Maitham said two Rakaas. Then he put his back against the date palm trunk.
Maitham had visited the date palm for more than twenty years. It had not been a mere dry trunk. It had been a tall date palm before twenty years. Days, months, and years passed. Maitham said two Rikaas near the date palm. Then he addressed it:
"Allah has created you for me. And He has created me for you." Maitham liked that date palm. He watered it when it was green. One day, he came to the date palm. He found it a dry trunk. He cut the top of the trunk. That tall date palm became a mere short trunk. Still Maitham went on visiting that dry trunk. Who was Maitham? What was the relationship between him and that date palm?

Maitham's Origin
Maitham was born at Nihrawan near Kufa. He belonged to Iran. A woman from bani Asad bought him. One day, Imam Ali (A.S.) bought and gave him his freedom. Maitham became free. He sold dates in Kufa Market. Maitham lived a simple life.
Two things grew in his heart: faith in Islam and love for Imam Ali (A.S.). Imam Ali (A.S.) taught him that Islam was the only way to freedom. Imam Ali (A.S.) liked Maitham because he was a good man. The Imam went to Maitham's shop. He taught him about Islam.

The Real Name
Imam Ali (A.S.) bought Maitham from a woman belonged to bani-Asad. The Imam asked Maitham:
"What is your name"? "Saalim",
he replied.
The Imam said:
"Allah's Apostle (P.B.U.H.) has told me that the Iranians call you Maitham."
Maitham was astonished because no one knew his real name. So, he said:
"Allah and His Apostle are truthful."
Since that day, Maitham had not left the Imam.

In the Desert
Whoever goes to the desert at night will see the sky full of stars. His heart will be afraid of Allah. Imam Ali (A.S.) went to the desert at night to say his prayers. He took a friend of his to that desert to teach him a lesson about Islam.
Sometimes, Imam Ali (AS.) took Maitham to the desert. He told him about future matters. The Imam did not know the unseen. He learnt future matters from our master Muhammad (P.B.U.H.). Maitham listened to Imam Ali's words. The Imam said his prayers. Maitham said them behind him. He listened with awe to the Imam's prayers.

At al-Tammar's Shop
Imam Ali (A.S.) went to the market to meet Maitham al Tammar. He sat and talked with him. Some people passed by them. They did not know the Imam. And some knew him. They were astonished to see the Imam sitting with a dates-seller.
One day Imam Ali (A.S.) went to the market. He sat with Maitham. After a while, Maitham wanted to go to by something. He asked the Imam's permission and went away. The Imam stayed behind to sell dates. In the meantime, a man came to buy some dates for four dirhams. The man took the dates and went away. Maitham came back. He was astonished to see the Dirhams because they were false. The Imam smiled and said:
"The owner of the Dirhams will come back."
Again Maitham became astonished. He wondered: The man bought the dates by false Dirhams! How will he come back? After an hour, the owner of the Dirhams came back. He said with annoy: "I do not want these dates! They are bitter! Why are they bitter"? The Imam said:
"Because your Dirhams are false."
The man was full of astonishment. He took the Dirhams and went away.

The Nation's Scholar
Maitham was a brilliant. He learnt his knowledge from Imam Ali (A.S.). One day he said to Abdullah bin Abbas, the nation scholar: "Ask me whatever you want to know about the Koran explanation. I've learnt everything from Imam Ali (A.S.)."
So, bin Abbas sat before Maitham to learn lessons about the Quran's explanation.
Amru bin Huraith Amru bin Huraith was a leader from Kufa. Maitham said to him:
"I'll be your neighbour. Treat me kindly."
Amru said:
"Do you want to buy bin Masoud's house or bin al-Hakim's"? Maitham kept silent. Amru bin Huraith was puzzled. He wondered: What does Maitham mean? Days and years passed. Unjust rulers succeeded each other over Kufa. They treated people rudely.

The Market
Zyyad bin Abeeh became a ruler over Kufa. He began killing Imam Ali's companions. He carried out Mu'awiyah's orders. Mu'awiyah was full of spite.
He ordered people to abuse Imam Ali (A.S.). The ruler appointed a man to look after the market. The man was unjust. The people complained of his bad treatment. The people were afraid of the man. Thus, they went to Maitham.
They asked Maitham to go with them to the Prince. They said to him:
"Maitham, come with us to the prince."
Maitham went with them. He met the Prince and told him about the rude treatment in the market. A policeman in the Palace was displeased with Maitham's words. He said to the Prince:
"Your Highness, the Prince, do you know this man?"
The Prince said:
"No"
He's a liar! The supporter of the liar! said the policeman. The policeman meant that Maitham was one of Imam Ali's companion. Maitham said:
"Surely, I'm truthful! I'm supporter of the truthful man. Really, he's Amirul-Momineen! (The Commander of the faithful)."

A Meeting on the Road
Habeeb bin Muzahir was a good companion. After our master Mohammed's demise, Habeeb had a close relationship with Imam Ali (A.S.).
One day, Maitham was riding a horse. Habeeb bin Muzahir was riding a horse, too. They met each other before bani-Asad. They had a short talk. Bani-Asad listened to their talk. Habeeb said with a smile:
"I predict that a bald man with a big belly will sell melons at Dar al-Rizk. The man will be killed for the love of his Prophet's family." Maitham said:
"I know that a red man with two plaits would appear. The man will support the son of the daughter of his Prophet. The man will be beheaded. His head will be carried through the streets of Kufa." The two friends saw off each other. Bani Asad said:
"They are liars."
In the meantime, Rasheed al-Hajry passed by bani-Asad. He asked them about Habeeb and Maitham. Bani-Asad said:
"They have just gone away."
Then bani Asad told Rasheed about Habeeb and Maitham's predictions. Rasheed said with a smile:
"May Allah have mercy on Maitham. He's forgotten who brings the head will be given an extra hundred dirhams."
Rasheed went away. Bani Asad were astonished at his words. Then they said:
"Rasheed is a liar too."
Days passed. In Muharram, 61 A.H., bani Asad saw Habeeb's head. It was tied to a long spear. They saw bin Zyyad's policeman carrying the head and walking through the streets of Kufa.

The Caravan
Mu'awiyah bin Abu-Sufyan died. His son Yazeed succeeded him. Yazeed was a young man aged thirty. He drank alcohol. He amused himself with dogs and the monkeys. So, Imam Hussein (A.S.) refused to pay Yazeed homage. Meanwhile, the Kufians were tired of Mu'awiyah's persecution.
Thus, they sent Imam Hussein (A.S.) many letters. In their letters, they asked the Imam to come to save them from Umayyad persecution. The spies told Yazeed about the situation in Kufa. Yazeed had a spiteful Christian doctor called Sergon. He asked the advice of the doctor. Sergon advised him to appoint Ubaidullah bin Zyyad a ruler over Kufa.

The Prison
Many companions of Imam Ali (A.S.) supported Imam Hussein (A.S.). Many Muslims supported him too. Ubaidullah bin Zyyad arrived in Kufa. He began arresting and imprisoning Imam Hussein's supporters.
Maitham, al-Mukhtar al-Thaqafy, and Abdullah bin al-Harith were in the same prison. Imam Hussein (A.S.) died a martyr for Islam. The prisoners felt pain for him. Al-Mukhtar said to his two friends: "Be ready to meet Allah! After Imam Hussein's killing, Ubaidullah bin Zyyad will kill the Imam's supporters."
Abdullah bin al-Harith said:
"Yes, he will kill us sooner or later."
Maitham said:
"No, he won't kill you. My dear Imam Ali (A.S.) has told me that you (al-Mukhtar) will get revenge of Imam Hussein's killers. And you will kick Ubaidullah's head with your foot."
Then Maitham said to Abdullah bin al-Harith:
"You'll rule Basra."
Faith Maitham deeply believed in Allah. He was not afraid of the unjust. People were afraid of bin Zyyad. They shook with fear when they saw him. But Maitham did not pay attention to him. He knew that Ubaidullah's death was certain.
He knew that the unjust would not stay alive forever. Mu'awiyah and his son Yazeed prevented people from loving Imam Ali (A.S.). The police arrested and killed the Imam's companions. Imam Ali (A.S.) had told his companions about the Umayyad police. One day he said to Maitham:
"The Umayyads will order you to disown me. Will you do that"? Maitham said
"No."
Maitham thought that to disown Imam Ali (A.S.) meant to disown Islam. And to disown Islam meant to disown Allah. The Imam said: "Surely, you'll be killed."
Maitham said:
"I'll be patient! Death is little for Allah."
The Imam said:
"You'll be with me in the Paradise."

The Martyrdom
Ubaidullah bin Zyyad ordered the police to bring Maitham. He said to him:
"I've heard that you're a companion of Ali's."
Maitham said:
"Yes."
Ubaidullah bin Zyyad said to Maitham:
"Will you disown him"?
Maitham said:
"By Allah, Imam Ali (A.S.) has told me that you will kill me! He has told me that you will cut my hands, legs, and tongue."
Ubaidullah bin Zyyad angrily said:
"Your Imam is a liar."
Maitham jeered at that foolish person (Ubaidullah bin Zyyad). Ubaidullah bin Zyyad ordered the police to tie Maitham to the date palm trunk near the house of Amru bin Huraith. Besides, he ordered them to cut off his hands and legs.

The Neighbour
Maitham was tied to the date palm trunk. Amru bin Huraith saw him. Amru remembered Maitham's words:
"I'll be you neighbour. Treat me kindly."
So, Amru bin Huraith ordered one of his daughters to sweep the ground around the date palm trunk. He also ordered her to splash it with water. A person looked at Maitham and said:
"Disown Ali to save your soul."
Maitham said with a smile.
"By Allah, this date palm has been created for me! And I've been created for it."
Thus, the people knew the secret of Maitham's visit to the date palm throughout the long years.

People
Maitham addressed the people:
"People, If you want to hear some information about Ali bin Abu-Talib, then come to me."
The people crowded around Maitham. He began teaching them various kinds of knowledge. The spies told Ubaidullah bin Zyyad about Maitham's words.
Ubaidullah bin Zyyad ordered a policeman to cut off Maitham's tongue.
Maitham said:
"Amirul-Momineen has told me about that
Then the policeman cut off Maitham's tongue. Another policeman stabbed him with a sword. Thus this Mujahid's life put out as the candles did!

Maitham's Body
Maitham did a lot good for the people. The people loved him very much. They wanted to take Maitham's body to bury it, but the police strictly prevented them from approaching it.
One night, seven dates-sellers came. They saw the policeman burning a fire. Two of them sawed the trunk. The seven dates-sellers carried Maitham's body outside Kufa. They buried it at a known place. Then they came back home. Six years passed. Al-Mukhtar announced his revolution in Kufa. His army met Ubaidullah's on Al-Khazir Riverbank.
Ibraheem al-Ashtar could behead Ubaidullah bin Zyyad. Some fighters brought al-Mukhtar Ubaidullah's head. He stood up and kicked Ubaidullah's head. He remembered Maitham's words in the prison:
"Al-Mukhtar, you'll get out of prison. You'll get revenge on Imam Hussein's killers."
Days passed. Imam Hussein's killers parished. People have cursed them throughout history. Today, the visitor leaves the Holy Najaf City. He goes to see Kufa ruins. On the way he sees a beautiful dome. The dome decorates Maitham's shrine
Ref: Imam Reza Network

The Famous Sahaba of the Holy Prophet Muhammad (SAWA)

Compiled By: Syed Ali Shahbaz
Martyrdom of Ammar Yasser
On 9th of the Islamic month of Safar in 37 AH, Ammar Yasser, one of the close disciples of Prophet Mohammad (SAWA), attained martyrdom at the age of 93 during a battle in the War of Siffin, in defence of Islam, while fighting hypocrisy and sedition in the company of the Prophet ’s First Infallible Successor, Imam Ali (AS). He was killed in cowardly manner from behind by one of the commanders of the Omayyad rebel, Mu’awiyah ibn Abu Sufyan, and thus the Prophet’s prediction that Ammar will be martyred by a heretical group came true. His parents, Yasser and Somayyah, were the first martyrs of Islam.
They were tortured to death by the pagan Arabs of Mecca, such as Abu Sufyan, for believing in the monotheist message of Prophet Mohammad (SAWA). Ammar stood firm against the persecutions of disbelievers and on several occasions accompanied the Prophet in the expeditions against the pagan Arabs. After the passing away of the Prophet, he stood firmly beside Imam Ali (AS) and refused to accept the regime in Medina that had usurped political power through the coup at Saqifa Bani Sa'da, and among whose ranks were many of the same pagan Arabs such as Abu Sufyan and Mu’awiyah who now hypocritically claimed to be Muslim. Ammar’s mausoleum is situated in Reqqa, Syria, at the site of his martyrdom, and is visited by pilgrims.
Owais Qarani, the devout follower of Prophet Mohammad (SAWA) from Yemen
On 18th of of the Islamic month of Safar in 37 AH, Owais Qarani, the devout follower of Prophet Mohammad (SAWA) from Yemen, who personally did not meet the Prophet, attained martyrdom during a battle of the War of Siffin in defence of the cause of the Prophet's First Infallible Successor, Imam Ali ibn Abil Taleb (AS). He was a victim of the treachery of the Omayyad rebel, Mu'awiyah ibn Abu Sufyan, who had incited civil war amongst Muslims.
Owais was born in Qaran in Yemen and lived a life of piety. On hearing of the message of Islam, he became a Muslim and journeyed to Medina to meet the Prophet who was not in Medina, and Owais had to return to Yemen without meeting him since his mother was very sick. When the Prophet heard about this he blessed Owais and prayed for him. After the passing away of the Prophet, the devout Owais gave his pledge of allegiance to Imam Ali (AS), and was an ardent supporter of the cause of the Ahl al-Bayt. When seditionists started civil wars amongst Muslims, he stood steadfastly beside the Imam, until he attained martyrdom. His tomb in Reqqa near the Syrian city of Aleppo is a site of pilgrimage today.
Ref: Imam Reza Network

The Encyclopedia of the Sahaba (Companions) of the Holy Prophet (S.A.W.A.)

Imam Baquir al-Ulul (A.S.) Research Institute in the Hawzah Ilmiyyah (Islamic Seminary), Qum on April 18, 2013 released the “The Encyclopedia of the Sahaba of the Holy Prophet (S.A.W.A.)” in seven volumes in Farsi language, which deals with the life and works of the Sahaba (Companions) of the Holy Prophet (S.A.W.A.).
This comprehensive documented research work on the Sahaba (Companions) of the Holy Prophet (S.A.W.A.) was compiled by a group of historians of the Hawzah Ilmiyyah (Islamic Seminary) of Qum under the supervision of the renowned scholar of Islamic history, Allamah Muhammad Hadi Yusefi Gharavi.
Shia Muslims along with deep love and reverence for the Holy Ahlul Bayt (A.S.) of the Holy Prophet (S.A.W.A.) also respect the Sahaba (Companions) of the Holy Prophet (S.A.W.A.).
Three centuries ago a prominent Shia scholar Ayatullah Allamah Syed Ali Madani Shirazi, compiled the life and works of the Sahaba (Companions) of the Holy Prophet (S.A.W.A.) in Arabic titled “Darajat al-Rafiah” . About sixty years ago the leading Shia scholar Shaykh Abbas Muhadith Qummi, compiled the life and works of the Sahaba (Companions) of the Holy Prophet (S.A.W.A.) in Arabic titled “Tuhfah al-Ahbab fi Nawadir Asaar al-Ashaab”.
Ref: Imam Reza Network

The Companions of the Prophet as seen by the Shia and the Sunnis

By: Muhammad Tijani Samawi
One of the most important studies which I consider to be the cornerstone for all the studies that lead to the truth is the research into the life of the Companions, their affairs, their deeds and their beliefs; because they were the foundations of everything, and from them we took the principles of our religion, and they enlightened our darkness, so that we can see the rules of Allah. Many Muslim scholars- convinced of the above - embarked on the study of the lives and deeds of the Companions, among them: "Usd al-Ghabah fi Tamyeez al-Sahabah", and "al-Isabah fi Maarifat al-Sahabah", and "Mizan al-I'tidal" and various other books which look critically and analytically at the lives of the Companions, but all from the point of view of the Sunnis.
There is a slight problem here, and that is that most of the early scholars wrote in the way which suited the Umayyad and Abbasid rulers who were well known for their opposition to Ahl al-Bayt and all their followers. Therefore, it is not fair to depend on their works alone without reference to the works of the other Muslim scholars who were persecuted and ultimately killed by these governments simply because they were followers of Ahl al-Bayt and the cause behind the revolutions against the oppressive and deviant authorities.
The main problem with all that was the Companions themselves, for they disagreed about the wish of the Messenger of Allah (saw) to write them a document which would help them to remain on the right path until the Day of Judgement. This disagreement deprived the Islamic nation of a unique virtue, and has thrown it into darkness until it was divided and plagued with internal quarrels and finally ended up as a spent force.
It was they who disagreed on the issue of the Caliphate [the successorship of the Prophet], and were divided between a ruling and an opposing party, thus dividing the nation into the followers of Ali and the followers of Muawiyah. It was they who differed in the interpretations of the Book of Allah and the sayings of His Messenger, which led to the creation of the various creeds, groups and subgroups; and from them came many scholars of scholastic theology and schools of thoughts and philosophies inspired by political ambitions with one aim in mind and that was to obtain power.
The Muslims would not have been divided and in disagreement had it not been for the Companions, for every disagreement that has been created in the past, or is being created at the present time is due to their disagreement about the Companions. There is one God, one Qur'an, one Messenger and one Qiblah, and they all agree on that, but the disagreement among the Companions started on the first day after the death of the Messenger (saw), in the Saqifah [house] of Bani Saidah, and has continued up to the present day, and will continue for as long as Allah wills it.
Through my discussions with the Shiite scholars, I discovered that, in their views, the Companions were divided into three categories:
The first category included the good Companions who knew Allah and His Messenger truly well, and they acclaimed him [the Messenger] to the last moments of their lives. They were truly his friends by words and deeds, and they never abandoned him, but rather stood their ground with him. Allah - the most High - praised them in many places in His Holy Book, and the Messenger of Allah (saw) also praised them in many places. This group of Companions are mentioned by the Shia with reverence and respect, they are also mentioned by the Sunnis with the same reverence and respect.
The second category were the Companions who embraced Islam and followed the Messenger of Allah (saw) either through choice or through fear, and they always showed their gratitude to the Messenger of Allah (saw) for their Islam. However, they hurt the Messenger of Allah (saw) on a few occasions, and did not always follow his orders, in fact they often challenged him and challenged the clear text with their points of view, until Allah, through the Holy Qur'an, had to intervene by rebuking them or threatening them. Allah exposed them in many Qur'anic verses, also the Messenger of Allah (saw) warned them in many of his sayings. The Shia mention this group of Companions only because of their deeds, and without respect or reverence.
The third type of Companions were the hypocrites who accompanied the Messenger of Allah (saw) to deceive him. They pretended to be Muslims but inside themselves they were bent on blasphemy and on deceiving Islam and the Muslims as a whole. Allah has revealed a complete Surah in the Qur'an about them, and mentioned them in many other places, and promised them the lowest level in Hell. Also the Messenger of Allah (saw) mentioned them and issued warnings about them, and even informed some of his close friends about their names and characteristics. The Shia and the Sunnis agree in cursing this group of Companions and have nothing to do with them.
There was a special group of Companions who distinguished themselves from the others by being relatives of the Prophet (saw), in addition to having possessed ethical and spiritual virtues and personal distinctions from Allah and His Messenger that no one else was honoured with. These were Ahl al-Bayt (the Prophet's Family) whom Allah cleansed and purified, and ordered us to pray for them in the same way as he ordered us to pray for His Messenger. He made it obligatory for us to pay them one fifth of our income, and that every Muslim must love them as a reward for the Muhammadan Message. They are our leaders and we must obey them; and they are people firmly rooted in knowledge who know the interpretation of the Holy Qur'an and they know the decisive verses of it, as well as those verses which are allegorical.
They are the people of al-Dhikr whom the Messenger of Allah equated with the Holy Qur'an in his saying "the two weighty things" (al-Thaqalayn), and ordered us to adhere to them [2], He equated them to Noah's Ark: whoever joined it was saved, and whoever left it drowned [3]. The Companions knew the position of Ahl al-Bayt and revered them and respected them. The Shia follow them and put them above any of the Companions, and to support that they have many clear texts as proofs.
The Sunnis respect and revere the Companions but do not accept the above classification and do not believe that some of the Companions were hypocrites, rather, they see the Companions as being the best people after the Messenger of Allah. If they classify the Companions then it would be according to their seniority and their merits and their services to Islam. They put the Rightly Guided Caliphs in the first class, then the first six of the ten who were promised with heaven, according to them. Therefore when they pray for the Prophet (saw) and his household they attach with them all the Companions without exception.
This is what I know from the Sunni scholars, and that is what I heard from the Shii scholars regarding the classification of the Companions; and that is what made me start my detailed study with the issue of the Companions. I promised my God - if He led me on the right path - to rid myself from emotional bias and to be neutral and objective and to listen to what the two sides said, then to follow what was best, basing my conclusions on two premises:
1. A sound and a logical premise: that is to say that I would only depend upon what everybody is in agreement with, regarding the commentary on the Book of Allah, and the correct parts of the honourable Sunnah of the Prophet.
2. The mind: for it is the greatest gift that Allah has given to human beings, and through it He honoured them and distinguished them from the rest of creation. Thus, when Allah protests about what His worshippers do, He asks them to use their minds in the best possible way, and He says: Do they not understand? Do they not comprehend? Do they not see? . . .etc."
Let my Islam primarily be the belief in Allah, His angels, His Books and His messengers; and that Muhammad is His servant and His Messenger; and that the Religion of Allah is Islam; and that I will never depend on any of the Companions, regardless of his relation to the Messenger or his position, for I am neither Umayyad nor Abbasid nor Fatimid, and I am neither Sunni nor Shii, and I have no enmity towards Abu Bakr or Umar or Uthman or Ali or even Wahshi, the killer of our master al-Hamzah, as long as he became a Muslim, and the Messenger of Allah forgave him. Since I had forced myself into this study in order to reach the truth, and since I had rid myself, sincerely, from all my previous beliefs, I decided to start, with the blessing of Allah, by considering the attitudes of the Companions.
[2].
Kanz al Ummal, vol 1 p 44
Ahmed's Musnad, vol 5 p 182
[3].
al Mustadrak, al Hakim (al Dhahabi's abridged), vol 3 p 151
Al Sawaiq al Muhriqah, Ibn Hajar, p 184, 234
The Companions at the Peace Treaty of al Hudaibiyah
Briefly the story is as follows:
In the sixth year after the Hijrah (emigration of the Prophet from Mecca to Madinah), the Messenger of Allah with one thousand and four hundred of his Companions marched towards Mecca to do the Umrah. They camped in "Dhi al-Halifah" where the Prophet (saw) ordered his Companions to put down their arms and wear the Ihram (white gowns worn especially for the purpose of the pilgrimage and the Umrah), then they dispatched al-Hady (an offering for sacrifice) to inform Quraysh that he was coming as a visitor to do the Umrah and not as a fighter. But Quraysh, with all its arrogance, feared that its reputation would be dented if the other Arabs heard that Muhammad had entered Mecca by force. Therefore, they sent a delegation led by Suhayl ibn Amr ibn Abd Wadd al-Amiri to see the Prophet and ask him to turn back that year, but said that they would allow him to visit Mecca for three days the year after. In addition to that, they put down some harsh conditions, which were accepted by the Messenger of Allah as the circumstances warranted such acceptance, and as revealed to him by his God, Glory and Might be to Him.
A few of the Companions did not like the Prophet's action and opposed him very strongly, and Umar ibn al-Khattab came and said to him, "Are you not truly the Prophet of Allah?" He answered,"Yes, I am." Umar asked, "Are we not right and our enemy wrong?" The Prophet answered, "Yes." Umar asked, "Why do we then disgrace our religion?" The Messenger of Allah (saw) said, "I am the Messenger of Allah and I will never disobey Him and He is my support." Umar asked, "Did you not tell us that we would come to the House of Allah and go around it?" The Prophet answered, "Yes, and did I tell you that we were coming this year?" Umar answered, "No." The Prophet said, "Then you are coming to it and going around it." Umar later went to Abu Bakr and asked him, "O Abu Bakr, is he not truly the Prophet of Allah?" He answered, "Yes." Umar then asked him the same questions he had asked the Messenger of Allah, and Abu Bakr answered him with the same answers and added, "O Umar he is the Messenger of Allah, and he will not disobey his God, Who is his support, so hold on to him."
When the Prophet had finished signing the treaty, he said to his Companions "Go and slaughter (sacrifices) and shave your heads." And by Allah one of them stood up until he had said it three times. When nobody obeyed his orders, he went to his quarters, then came out and spoke to no one, and slaughtered a young camel with his own hands, and then asked his barber to shave his head. When the Companions saw all that, they went and slaughtered (sacrifices), and shaved one another, until they nearly killed one another [4].
This is the summary of the story of peace treaty of al-Hudaibiyah, which is one of the events whose details both the Shia and Sunnah agree upon, and it is cited by many historians and biographers of the Prophet such as al-Tabari, Ibn al-Athir, Ibn Saad, al-Bukhari and Muslim.
I stopped here, for I could not read this kind of material without feeling rather surprised about the behaviour of those Companions towards their Prophet. Could any sensible man accept some people's claims that the Companions, may Allah bless them, always obeyed and implemented the orders of the Messenger of Allah (saw), for these incidents expose their lies, and fall short of what they want! Could any sensible man imagine that such behaviour towards the Prophet is an easy or acceptable matter or even an excusable one! Allah, the Almighty, said:
But no! By your God! They do not believe (in reality) until they make you a judge of that which has become a matter of disagreement among them, and then do not and any straightness in their hearts as to what you have decided and submit with entire submission. (Holy Qur'an 4:65)
Did Umar ibn al-Khattab succumb to them and find no difficulty in accepting the order of the Messenger (saw)? Or was he reluctant to accept the order of the Prophet? Especially when he said, "Are you not truly the Prophet of Allah? Did you not tell us? ..." etc, and did he succumb after the Messenger of Allah gave him all these convincing answers? No he was not convinced by his answers, and he went and asked Abu Bakr the same questions. But did he succumb after Abu Bakr answered him and advised him to hold on to the Prophet? I do not know if he actually succumbed to all that and was convinced by the answers of the Prophet (saw) and Abu Bakr! For why did he say about himself, "For that I did so many things..". Allah and His Messenger know the things which were done by Umar.
Furthermore, I do not know the reasons behind the reluctance of the rest of the Companions after that, when the Messenger of Allah said to him, "Go and slaughter [sacrifices] and shave your heads." Nobody listened to his orders even when he repeated them three times, and then in vain.
Allah, be praised! I could not believe what I had read. Could the Companions go to that extent in their treatment of the Messenger. If the story had been told by the Shia alone, I would have considered it a lie directed towards the honourable Companions. But the story has become so well known that all the Sunni historians refer to it. As I had committed myself to accept what had been agreed on by all parties, I found myself resigned and perplexed. What could I say? What excuse could I find for those Companions who had spent nearly twenty years with the Messenger of Allah, from the start of the Mission to the day of al-Hudaibiyah, and had seen all the miracles and enlightenment of the Prophethood? Furthermore the Qur'an was teaching them day and night how they should behave in the presence of the Messenger, and how they should talk to him, to the extent that Allah had threatened to ruin their deeds if they raised their voices above his voice.
[4].
Sahih, Bukhari, Book of al Shurut, Chapter: Al Shurut fi al Jihad vol 2 p 122
The Companions and the Raziyat Yawm al Khamis
(The Calamity of Thursday)
Briefly the story is as follows:
The Companions were meeting in the Messenger's house, three days before he died. He ordered them to bring him a bone and an ink pot so that he could write a statement for them which would prevent them from straying from the right path, but the Companions differed among themselves, and some of them disobeyed the Prophet and accused him of talking nonsense. The Messenger of Allah became very angry and ordered them out of his house without issuing any statement.
This is the story in some details:
Ibn Abbas said: Thursday, and what a Thursday that was! The Messenger's pain became very severe, and he said, "Come here, I will write you a document which will prevent you from straying from the right path." But Umar said that the Prophet was under the spell of the pain, and that they had the Qur'an which was sufficient being the Book of Allah. Ahl al-Bayt then differed and quarrelled amongst themselves, some of them agreeing with what the Prophet said, while others supported Umar's view. When the debate became heated and the noise became louder, the Messenger of Allah said to them, "Leave me alone."
Ibn Abbas said: The disaster was that the disagreement among the Companions prevented the Messenger from writing that document for them [5].
The incident is correct and there is no doubt about its authenticity, for it was cited by the Shii scholars and their historians in their books, as well as by the Sunni scholars and historians in their books. As I was committed to consider the incident, I found myself bewildered by Umar's behaviour regarding the order of the Messenger of Allah. And what an order it was! "To prevent the nation from going astray", for undoubtedly that statement would have had something new in it for the Muslims and would have left them without a shadow of doubt.
Now let us leave the points of view of the Shia, that is that the Messenger wanted to write the name of Ali as his successor, and that Umar realized this, so he prevented it. Perhaps because they do not convince us initially with that hypothesis. But can we find a sensible explanation to this hurtful incident which angered the Messenger so much that he ordered them to leave, and made Ibn Abbas cry until he made the stones wet from his tears and called it a "great disaster"? The Sunnis say that Umar recognized that the Prophet's illness was advancing, so he wanted to comfort him and relieve him from any pressure.
This type of reasoning would not be accepted by simple-minded people, let alone by the scholars. I repeatedly tried to find an excuse for Umar. but the circumstances surrounding the incident prevented me from finding an excuse. Even if I changed the words "He is talking nonsense" - God forbid - to "the pain has overcome him", I could not find any justification for Umar when he said, "You have the Qur'an, and it is sufficient being the Book of Allah." Did he know the Qur'an better than the Messenger of Allah, for whom it was revealed? Or was the Messenger of Allah - God forbid - unaware of what he was? Or did he seek, through his order, to create division and disagreement among the Companions - God forbid. Even if the Sunni reasoning was right, then the Messenger of Allah would have realized the good will of Umar and thanked him for that and perhaps asked him to stay, instead of feeling angry at him and telling them to leave his house. May I ask why did they abide by his order when he asked them to leave the room and did not say then that he was "talking nonsense"? Was it because they had succeeded in their plot to prevent the Prophet from writing the document, so that there was no need for them to stay any longer? Thus, we find them creating noise and difference in the presence of the Messenger, and divided into two parties: one agreeing with the Messenger of Allah about writing that document, while the other agreed with Umar "that he was talking nonsense".
The matter is not just concerned with Umar alone, for if it was so, the Messenger of Allah would have persuaded him that he could not be talking nonsense and that the pain could not overcome him in matters of the nation's guidance and of preventing it from going astray. But the situation became much more serious, and Umar found some supporters who seemingly had a prior agreement on their stand, and so they created the noise and the disagreement among themselves and forgot, or perhaps pretended to forget, the words of Allah - the Most High:
O You who believe! Do not raise your voices above the voice of the Prophet, and do not speak loud to him as you speak loud to one another, lest your deeds become null while you do not perceive (Holy Qur'an 49:2).
In this incident they went beyond raising their voices and talking loud to accusing the Messenger of Allah of talking nonsense - God forbid - then they increased their noise and differences until it became a battle of words in his presence.
I think the majority of the Companions were with Umar, and that is why the Messenger of Allah found it useless to write the document, because he knew that they would not respect him and would not abide by the command of Allah by not raising their voices in his presence, and if they were rebellious against the command of Allah, then they would never obey the order of His Messenger.
Thus, the wisdom of the Messenger ruled that he was not to write the document because it had been attacked during his lifetime, let alone after his death.
The critics would say that he was talking nonsense, and perhaps they would doubt some of the orders he passed whilst on his death-bed, for they were convinced that he was talking nonsense.
I ask Allah for forgiveness, and renounce what has been said in the presence of the holy Messenger, for how could I convince myself and my free conscience that Umar ibn al-Khattab was acting spontaneously, whereas his friends and others who were present at the incident cried until their tears wet the stones, and named the incident "the misfortune of the Muslims". I therefore decided to reject all the justifications given to explain the incident, and even tried to deny it so that I could relax and forget about the tragedy, but all the books referred to it and accepted its authenticity but could not provide sound justification for it.
I tend to agree with the Shii point of view in explaining the incident because I find it logical and very coherent.
I still remember the answer which al-Sayyid Muhammad Baqir al-Sadr gave me when I asked him, "How did our master Umar understand, among all the Companions what the Messenger wanted to write, namely the appointment of Ali as his successor- as you claim - which shows that he was a clever man?"
Al-Sayyid al-Sadr said: Umar was not the only one who anticipated what the Messenger was going to write. In fact most of the people who were present then understood the situation the same way as Umar did, because the Messenger of Allah had previously indicated the issue when he said, "I shall leave you with two weighty things: the Book of Allah and the members of my Family (Ahl al-Bayt) and their descendants, if you follow them, you will never go astray after me." And during his illness he said to them, "Let me write you a document, if you follow its contents, you will never go astray." Those who were present, including Umar, understood that the Messenger of Allah wanted to reiterate, in writing, what he had already said in Ghadir Khum, and that was to follow the Book of Allah and Ahl al-Bayt and that Ali was the head of it. It was as if the holy Prophet (saw) was saying, "Follow the Qur'an and Ali." He said similar things on many occasions, as has been stated by many historians.
The majority of Quraysh did not like Ali because he was young and because he smashed their arrogance and had killed their heroes; but they did not dare oppose the Messenger of Allah, as they had done at the "Treaty of al-Hudaibiyah', and when the Messenger prayed for Abdullah ibn Abi al- Munafiq, and on many other incidents recorded by history. This incident was one of them, and you see that the opposition against writing that document during the Prophets illness encouraged some of those who were present to be insolent and make so much noise in his presence.
That answer came in accordance with what the saying meant. But Umar's statement, "You have the Qur'an, and it is sufficient, being the Book of Allah" was not in accordance with the saying which ordered them to follow the Book of Allah and the Household [Ahl al-Bayt] together. It looks as if he meant to say, "We have the Book of Allah, and that is sufficient for us, therefore there is no need for Ahl al-Bayt." I could not see any other reasonable explanation to the incident other than this one, unless it was meant to say, 'Obey Allah but not His Messenger." And this argument is invalid and not sensible. If I put my prejudices and my emotions aside and base my judgement on a clean and free mind, I would tend towards the first analysis, which stops short of accusing Umar of being the first one to reject the Prophet's Tradition (al-Sunnah) when he said, "It is sufficient for us, being the Book of Allah".
Then if there were some rulers who rejected the Prophet's Traditions claiming that it was "contradictory", they only followed an earlier example in the history of Islam. However, I do not want to burden Umar alone with the responsibility for that incident and the subsequent deprivation of the nation of the guidance. To be fair to him, I suggest that the responsibility should be borne by him and those Companions who were with him and who supported him in his opposition to the command of the Messenger of Allah.
I am astonished by those who read this incident and feel as if nothing happened, despite that it was one of the "great misfortunes" as Ibn Abbas called it. My astonishment is even greater regarding those who try hard to preserve the honour of a Companion and to correct his mistake, even if at the cost of the Prophet's dignity and honour and at the cost of Islam and its foundations.
Why do we escape from the truth and try to obliterate it when it is not in accordance with our whims . . . why do not we accept that the Companions were human like us, and had their own whims, prejudices and interests, and could commit mistakes or could be right?
But my astonishment fades when I read the Book of Allah in which He tells us the stories of the prophets- may Allah bless them and grant them peace - and the disobedience they faced from their people despite all the miracles they produced .. Our God! Make not our hearts to deviate after thou hast guided us aright, and grant us from Your Mercy; surely You are the Most Liberal Giver.
I began to understand the background to the Shia's attitude towards the second Caliph, whom they charge with the responsibility for many tragic events in the history of Islam, starting from "Raziyat Yawm al-Khamis" when the Islamic nation was deprived of the written guidance which the Messenger wanted to write for them. The inescapable fact is that the sensible man who knew the truth before he encountered the men seeks an excuse for the Shias in this matter, but there is nothing we can say to convince those who only judge truth through men.
[5].
Sahih, Bukhari, Chapter: About the saying of the sick, vol 2
Sahih, Muslim, End of the book of al Wasiyyah, vol 5 p 75
Musnad, Ahmed, vol 1 p 335, vol 5 p 116
Tarikh, Tabari, vol 3 p 193
Tarikh, Ibn al Athir, vol 2 p 320
The Companions in the Military Detachment under Usamah
The story in brief is as follows:
The Prophet (saw) organized an army to be sent to Asia Minor two days before his death. He appointed Usamah ibn Zayd ibn Haritha, (who was eighteen years old), as its commander in chief, then the holy Prophet attached some important men, both Muhajireen and Ansar, to this expedition, such as Abu Bakr, Umar, Abu Obaydah and other well-known Companions. Some people criticized the Prophet for appointing Usamah as the commander in chief of that army, and asked how could he have appointed so young a man as their commander. In fact the same people had previously criticized the Prophet for appointing Usamah's father as an army commander before him. They went on criticizing until the Prophet became so angry that he left his bed, feverish and with his head bandaged, with two men supporting him and his feet barely touching the ground (may my parents be sacrificed for him). He ascended the pulpit, praised Allah highly then said,
O People ! I have been informed that some of you object to my appointing Usamah as commander of the detachment. You now object to my appointing Usamah as commander in chief as you objected to me appointing his father commander in chief before him. By Allah, his father was certainly competent for his appointment as commander in chief and his son is also competent for the appointment [6].
Then he exhorted them to start without further delay and kept saying,
"Send the detachment of Usamah; deploy the detachment of Usamah, send forward the detachment of Usamah." He kept repeating the exhortations but the Companions were still sluggish, and camped by al-Jurf.
Events like that made me ask, "What is this insolence towards Allah and His Messenger? Why all that disobedience towards the orders of the blessed Messenger who was so caring and kind to all the believers?"
I could not imagine, nor indeed could anybody else, an acceptable explanation for all that disobedience and insolence. As usual, when I read about those events which touch on the integrity of the Companions, I try to deny or ignore them, but it is impossible to do so when all the historians and scholars, Shia and Sunnis, agree on their authenticity.
I have promised my God to be fair, and I shall never be biased in favour of my creed, and will never use anything but the truth as my criterion. But the truth here is so bitter, and the holy Prophet (s.a.w.) said, "Say the truth even if it is about yourself, and say the truth even if it is bitter..." The truth in this case is that the Companions who criticized the appointment of Usamah disobeyed all the clear texts that could not be doubted or misinterpreted, and there is no excuse for that, although some people make flimsy excuses in order to preserve the integrity of the Companions and "the virtuous ancestors". But the free and sensible person would not accept such feeble excuses, unless he is one of those who cannot comprehend any saying, or is perhaps one of those who are blinded by their own prejudice to the extent that they cannot differentiate between the obligatory task that must be obeyed and the prohibition that must be avoided. I thought deeply to find an acceptable excuse for those people, but without success. I read the points of view of the Sunnis which provide us with an excuse based on the fact that these people were the elders of Quraysh, and were among the early followers of Islam, whereas Usamah was a young man who had not fought in the decisive battles that gave Islam its glory, such as Badr, Uhud and Hunayn; and that he was a young man with no experience of life when the Messenger of Allah appointed him military commander. Furthermore, they thought that human nature, by its inclination, makes it difficult for elderly people to be led by young men, therefore they [i.e. the Companions] criticized the appointment and wanted the Messenger of Allah to appoint a prominent and respectable Companion.
It is an excuse which is not based on any rational or logical premise, and any Muslim who reads the Qur'an and understands its rules must reject such an excuse, because Allah- the Almighty - says: "Whatever the Messenger gives you, accept it, and from whatever he forbids you, keep back" (Holy Qur'an 59:7).
"And it behooves not a believing man and a believing woman that they should have any choice in their matter when Allah and His Messenger have decided a matter; and whoever disobeys Allah and His Messenger, he surely strays off a manifest straying" (Holy Qur'an 33:36).
So what kind of an excuse could any rational person accept after reading all these clear texts, and what can I say about people who angered the Messenger of Allah, when they knew that the Messenger's anger is Allah's anger. They accused him of talking "nonsense", and they shouted and disagreed in his presence when he was ill (may my parents be sacrificed for him), until he ordered them to leave his room. That did not seem to be enough for them, and instead of returning to the right path and asking Allah's forgiveness for what they had done to His Messenger, and asking the Messenger for forgiveness as the Qur'an taught them, they went on criticizing him, despite all the care and kindness he had for them. They did not appreciate him or respect him, and two days after having accused him of talking "nonsense", they criticized him for appointing Usamah as military commander. They forced him to come out in the appalling condition which the historians describe. Due to the severity of his illness, he had to walk with the support of two men, then he had to swear by Allah that Usamah was a competent commander for the army. Furthermore, the Messenger informed us that they had criticized him previously for appointing his father as a commander, which indicates that these people had had many previous confrontations with him, and that they were not willing to obey his orders or accept his judgement, rather, they were prepared to oppose him and confront him, even if such behaviour went against the rules of Allah and His Messenger.
What leads us to believe that there was open opposition (to the orders of the Prophet), was that in spite of all the anger shown by the Messenger of Allah, and the fact that he himself tied the flag with his noble hand to the post and commanded them to march immediately, they were sluggish and reluctant to move, and did not go until he had died (may my parents be sacrificed for him). The Prophet(s.a.w.) died feeling sorry for his unfortunate nation, which he feared would go backwards and end up in hell, and no one would be saved except a few, and the Messenger of Allah described them as a handful.
I am surprised that those Companions angered the Prophet on that Thursday and accused him of talking "nonsense", and said, "It is sufficient for us that we have the Book of Allah", when the Holy Qur'an states:"Say if you love Allah, then follow me and Allah will love you" (Holy Qur'an 3:31). As if they were more knowledgeable about the Book of Allah and its rules than he to whom it had been revealed. There they were, two days after that great misfortune, and two days before he [the holy Prophet] went up to meet his High Companion, angering him even more by criticizing him for appointing Usamah, and not obeying his orders. Whereas he was ill and bed-ridden in the first misfortune, in the second one he had to come out, with his head bandaged and covered by a blanket and supported by two men with his feet barely on the ground, and address them from the top of the pulpit. He started his speech with the profession of the unity of Allah and praised Him in order to make them feel that he was not talking nonsense, then he informed them about what he knew regarding their criticism of his orders. Furthermore, he reminded them of an incident which had occurred four years previously, in which he was criticized by them. After all that, did they really think that he was talking nonsense or that his illness had overcome him so that he was unaware of what he was saying?
Praise and thanks be to You, Allah, how did these people dare oppose Your Messenger. They disagreed with him when he signed the peace treaty, they opposed him very strongly even when he ordered them to make the sacrifice and shave their heads, and even repeated it three times although no one cared to obey; and again they pulled him by his shirt to prevent him from praying for Abdullah ibn Ubay and said to him, "Allah forbade you from praying for the hypocrites!" As if they were teaching him what had been revealed to him, when You said in Your Holy Qur'an: "We have revealed to you the reminder that you may make clear to men what has been revealed to them" (Holy Qur'an 16:44).
And You said: "We have revealed the Book to you with the truth that you may judge between people by means of that which Allah has taught you"(Holy Qur'an 4:105).
And You said, and Your saying is the truth: "We have sent among you a messenger from among you who recites to you Our Verses and purifies you and teaches you the Book and the wisdom and teaches you that which you did not know" (Holy Qur'an 2:151).
I am astonished at those people who put themselves in a position higher than that of the Prophet. On one occasion they disobeyed his orders, and on another occasion they accused him of talking nonsense, and then talked loudly and without respect in his presence. They criticized him for appointing Zayd ibn Harithah to the military command, and after him his son Usamah. How could they leave the scholars in any doubt, after all this evidence, that the Shia are right when they put a question mark on the position of some of the Companions, and show their resentment towards these positions purely out of respect and love for the Messenger and the members of his Household.
I have mentioned only four or five of these controversial issues to be brief and to use them as examples, but the Shii scholars could recount hundreds of situations in which the Companions contradicted the clear texts. In all this the Shia refer to sources written in books by Sunni scholars.
When I look at a number of positions taken by a few of the Companions with regard to the Messenger of Allah, I stand astonished; not because of the attitudes of those Companions alone, but because of the position of the Sunni scholars who gave us the impression that the Companions were always right and could not be criticized. Thus they prevented any researcher from reaching the truth and left him puzzled in the midst of all these contradictions.
In addition to the examples that I have mentioned above, I will bring some more in order to establish a better picture of those Companions, so that we may understand the position of the Shia towards them.
According to al-Bukhari in his Sahih, Vol. 4 Page 47, section "The virtue of Patience when one is hurt" and the words of the Almighty "...And those who are patient, surely they will be rewarded", in the Book of Conduct he said:
Al-Amash told us that he heard Shaqiq saying that Abdullah told him: Once the Holy Prophet divided something among a group of men, as he used to do, when one man from al-Ansar stood up and said, "This division is not for the sake of Allah." I said, "For my part, I shall have a word with the Prophet (s.a.w.)." So I went to see him, and I found him with his Companions. I explained my grievances, and the Prophet's face changed and showed signs of anger, and I wished that I had not told him, then he said: "Moses was hurt more than that but he was patient."
Al-Bukhari mentioned in the same book - i.e. the book of Conduct - in the chapter concerning smiling and laughter that Anas ibn Malik was heard saying: I was walking with the Messenger of Allah (s.a.w.) who was wearing a Najrani cloak with a rather thin edge to it, and suddenly a man approached him and pulled harshly at his cloak. Anas continued: I looked at the side of the Prophet (s.a.w.) and noticed that as a result of that harsh pull, the edge of the cloak went up to his shoulder, then the man said, 'O Muhammad, give me some of what you have from Allah's wealth!" The Prophet turned to him and laughed, then he ordered his Companions to pay him something.
Al-Bukhari also mentioned the following incident in the Book of Conduct and put it in the chapter concerning "He who does not face people with blame", he said: Aisha said that the Prophet (s.a.w.) did something and made it permissible, but no one followed what the Prophet did. The Prophet (s.a.w.) happened to hear about it, so he decided to address the people. He first thanked Allah then said: "What is the matter with people who refrain from the thing I did? By Allah, I know more than any of them about Allah, and I fear Him most... !"
When we look deeply at incidents like those above we find that the Companions put themselves on a higher level than the Prophet, and thought that he was wrong and they were right. Furthermore, there were some historians who deliberately corrected the position of the Companions, even if that contradicted the action taken by the Prophet, and showed them at a level of knowledge and piety higher than that of the Prophet. As is the case when they judge the Prophet wrong in the case of the Prisoners of War at the battle of Badr, so it appears that Umar ibn al-Khattab was right. They also tell wrong stories, such as the following saying attributed to the people: If Allah decided to inflict a disaster on us, no one will escape except Ibn al-Khattab. In other words, they were saying, "If it was not for Umar, the Prophet would have perished." God protect us from such a corrupt and shameful belief, and he who adheres to this kind of belief is surely far from Islam, and ought to review his thinking or rid himself of the devil.
Allah - the most High - said:
"Have you considered him who takes his low desire for his God, and Allah has made him err having knowledge and has set a seal upon his hear and his heart and put a covering upon his eye. Who can then guide him after Allah? Will not they be mindful?" (Holy Qur'an 45:23)
I believe that those who think that the Prophet (s.a.w.) was subject to his emotions to the extent that he deviated from the right path and made a judgement not for the cause of Allah, or those who refrained from doing things which were done by the Messenger of Allah thinking that they were more knowledgeable and more pious than the Messenger, do not deserve any respect or appreciation from the Muslims. They were put at the same level as the angels, as the best people in the whole of creation after the Messenger of Allah, so that Muslims are obliged to follow them and take them as an example, just because they were the Companions of the Messenger of Allah.
That contradicts the belief of Ahl al-Sunnah, who pray for Muhammad and his family, and then add all the Companions. If Allah - praise be to Him the Most High - appreciated them and put them in their correct position and ordered them to pray for His Messenger and the purified members of his family, they should have submitted and known their place with Allah. Why should we then put them in a position which is higher than they deserve. and equate them with those people whom Allah has elevated and preferred above all people?
Let me then conclude that the Umayyads and the Abbasids, who opposed-Ahl al-Bayt and exiled them and killed them with their followers, got the gist of that distinguished position and recognized its danger for them. For if Allah - praise be to Him - would not accept the prayers of a Muslim unless he prays for them (Ahl al-Bayt): how could they justify their opposition to them. Therefore, they attached the Companions to Ahl al-Bayt in order to give the impression to the public that they are equal.
Especially when we know that their masters and dignitaries were Companions who bought some other Companions known to have weak personalities and asked them to distribute fabricated sayings (of the Prophet) in praise of the Companions and the next generation, and in particular those who reached the position of Caliphs (i.e. the Umayyad and Abbasid) and they were the direct reason behind them attaining this position and becoming rulers over all the Muslims. History is the best witness to what I am saying: Umar ibn al-Khattab, who was well known for his strictness towards his governors whom used to dismiss them on mere suspicions, was quite gentle towards Muawiyah ibn Abi Sufyan and never disciplined him. Muawiyah was appointed by Abu Bakr and confirmed by Umar throughout his life, who never even rebuked him or blamed him, despite the fact that many people complained about Muawiyah and reported him for wearing silk and gold, which was prohibited to men by the Messenger of Allah. Umar used to answer these complaints by saying, "Let him be, he is the Kisra (king) of the Arabs." Muawiyah continued in the governorship for more than twenty years without being touched or criticized, and when Uthman succeeded to the caliphate of the Muslims, he added to his authority further districts and regions, which enabled him to a mass great wealth from the Islamic nation and to raise armies to rebel against the Imam (Leader) of the nation and subsequently take the full power by force and intimidation. Thus he became the sole ruler of all Muslims, and later forced them to vote for his corrupt and alcohol drinking son Yazid, as his heir and successor.
This is a long story so I will not go into its details in this book, but the important thing is that we should understand the mentality of those Companions who reached the position of caliph and facilitated the establishment of the Umayyad state in a direct way, so as to please Quraysh which did not want to see both the Prophethood and the caliphate in the House of Bani Hashim(7). The Umayyad state had the right, or indeed was obliged to thank those who had facilitated its establishment, most of all the "story tellers" whom it hired to tell tales about the virtues of their masters. In the meantime it elevated them to a higher place than that of their enemies, Ahl al-Bayt, simply by inventing virtues and merits, which if (may Allah witness) examined under the light of logical and legal evidence mostly disappear, unless there is something wrong with our minds or we have started believing in contradictions.
For example, we hear so much about Umar's justice which the "story-tellers" attributed to him. It was even said about him "You ruled with justice, therefore you can sleep." It has also been said that Umar was buried in a standing position so that justice would not die with him, . . . and you could go on and on talking about Umar's justice. However, the correct history tells us that when Umar ordered that grants should be distributed among the people during the twentieth year of al-Hijrah, he did not follow the tradition of the Messenger of Allah, nor did he confine himself to its rules. The Prophet (s.a.w.) distributed the grants on an equal basis among all Muslims and did not differentiate between one person and another, and Abu Bakr did the same throughout his caliphate. But Umar introduced a new method. He preferred the early converts to Islam to those who came later. He preferred al-Muhajireen (immigrants from Mecca to Medinah) from Quraysh to other Muhajireen. He preferred all the Muhajireen to al-Ansar (followers of Prophet Muhammad in Medinah who granted him refuge after the Hijra). He preferred the Arabs to the non-Arabs. He preferred the freeman to the slave(8). He preferred (the tribe of) Mudar to (the tribe of) Rabia for he gave three hundred to the former and two hundred to the latter(9). He also preferred al-Aws to al-Khazraj. (10)
Where is the justice in all this differentiation, O people who have minds?
We also hear so much about Umar's knowledge, to the extent he was described as the most knowledgeable Companion, and it has been said about him that he agreed with his God on many ideas that were revealed in various Qur'anic verses, and that he disagreed with the Prophet about them. But the correct history tells us that Umar did not agree with the Qur'an, even after it had been revealed. When one of the Companions asked him one day during his caliphate, "O Commander of the Believers, I am unclean, but I cannot find water to wash." Umar answered, "Do not pray." Then Ammar ibn Yasir had to remind him about Tayammum [ritual cleaning with earth], but Umar was not convinced, and said to Ammar, "You are responsible only for the duties which have been assigned to you"(11).
Where is Umar's knowledge regarding the Tayammum verse which had been revealed in the Book of Allah, and where is Umar's knowledge of the Tradition of the Prophet (s.a.w.) who taught them how to do Tayammum as well as Wudu [ritual ablution]. Umar himself confessed on many occasions that he was not a scholar, and that all people, even women were more knowledgeable than him, and he was heard saying many times, "If it was not for Ali, Umar would have perished." And throughout his life he did not know the rule of al-Kalalah [relatives of the dead excluding the son and the father], although he passed various different judgements about it, as history witnesses.
We also hear a great deal about the courage and physical strength of Umar, and it has been said that Quraysh feared the day when Umar became a Muslim, and that Islam became even stronger when he entered the religion. It has also been said that Allah glorified Islam with Umar, and that the Messenger of Allah did not call for Islam openly until after Umar had become a Muslim.
But the correct historical references do not seem to indicate that courage, and history does not mention one famous or even ordinary person who has been killed by Umar in a dual or a battle like Badr and Uhud or al-Khandaq. In fact the correct historical references tell us exactly the opposite; they tell us that he escaped with the fugitives in Uhud, and escaped on the day of Hunayn, and that when the Messenger of Allah sent him to take the city of Khayber he returned defeated. He was never even the leader in the military detachments in which he served, and in the last one (that of Usamah) he was put under the charge of young Usamah ibn Zayd. So where is all that courage compared to these historical facts ... O people who have minds?
We also hear about Umar's piety and his great fear of Allah, to the extent of crying. It has been said that he was afraid of being accountable before Allah if a mule tumbled in Iraq because he did not pave the road for it. But the correct historical sources tell us that he was a rough man who lacked piety and did not hesitate to beat a man until he bled because he asked him about a Qur'anic verse, and even that women used to miscarry their babies out of fear when they saw him. Why did he not fear Allah when he raised his sword and threatened anybody who said that Muhammad had died, and he swore by Allah that he had not died, rather, he had gone to talk to his God in the same way as Moses did. Then he threatened to kill whoever said that Muhammad was dead(12).
Why did he not fear Allah when he threatened to burn Fatimah al-Zahra's house if those who refrained from voting for the successorship of the caliphate did not come out(13)? It has been said that when he was told that Fatimah was inside, he answered, "So what!" He violated the Book of Allah and the Tradition of the Prophet and passed rules and judgements during his caliphate which contradicted the texts of the Holy Qur'an and the noble Tradition of the Prophet (s.a.w.)(14).
So where was all that piety and fear of Allah in all these bitter and sad historical facts, O good worshippers of Allah? I took this great and famous Companion as an example, and I have summarized a great deal to avoid prolongation, but if I wanted to talk in some detail, I could have filled many volumes. But as I said I have mentioned these historical references as examples and not for specific reasons.
What I have mentioned is a small amount, but it gives us a clear indication as to the mentalities of the Companions and the contradictory attitudes of the Sunni scholars and historians. For on the one hand they forbid people from criticizing them or doubting their intentions, but on the other hand they write in their books things that make people doubt their deeds and criticize them.
I wish the Sunni scholars had not written about these matters in such a way that it clearly sullies the dignity of the Companions and ruins their integrity. If they had not we would have been spared all that confusion.
I still remember meeting a scholar from al-Najaf whose name was Asad Hayder (author of "Al-lmam al-Sadiq wa al- Madhahib al-Arbaah") and as we were talking about the Sunnis and the Shia he told me a story about his father. He (i.e. the father) had met a Tunisian scholar from al-Zaytunah during the pilgrimage season some fifty years ago, and started a debate about the Imamate of Ali - may Allah's peace be upon him - and his eligibility to the succession for the caliphate. The Tunisian scholar listened attentively as the other man mentioned four or five reasons. When he had finished, the scholar from al-Zaytunah asked him, "Have you got any other reasons?" The man answered, "No." Then the Tunisian scholar said, "Get your rosary out and start counting, then he listed some hundred reasons that my father had not known before.
Shaykh Asad Hayder added, "If the Sunnis read what is in their books, then they would say similar things to what we are saying and we would not have any differences between us for a long time."
By my life! It is the inevitable truth, if only man would liberate himself from his blind prejudice and his arrogance and submit to the clear proof.
Ref: Imam Reza Network

The Companions and the Jewish Influence

Introduction
Putting the fictitious Abdullah Ibn Saba aside, there have been some non-fictitious Jews who influenced the companions in a great deal. The attitude of Imam Ali ( as ) towards new converts from the people of the Scriptures was very alert, as he ( as ) preserved the purity of the Islamic Teachings. They didn't listen to allegations from those who adopted Islam and claimed to have knowledge in religion through the Old Testament and wanted to pass it on to Islam.

This sober attitude was taken by Imam Ali ( as ), while the prominent
companions ( in the eyes of the Sunnis ), were deceived by these
scriptural scholars. I shall mention some of them in my discussion.
Kaab al-Ahbar
A man named from Yemen named Kaab Ibn Mati al-Humyari also nicknamed as Abu
Ishaq, from the Clan of Thee Ra-een (or the Clan of Thee al-Kila a) came
to Medina during the time of Umar. He was a prominent Rabbi and came to be
known as Kaab al-Ahbar. He declared his Islam and resided in Medina until
the days of Usman. In this first part ( Part I ) I shall examine some of
the claims that he made, his deceiving Caliph Umar, his participation in
the plot of Caliph's assassination and Imam Ali's ( as ) attitude towards him.
This new Muslim was not an imaginary person as the Jew Abdullah Ibn Saba,
indeed Kaab was a real person, since he resided in Medina and was looked
upon with high prestige by the second and the third Caliphs. He narrated
many stories claiming that they were from the Old testament. Many famous
companions such as
- Abu Huraira
- Abdullah Ibn Umar
- Abdullah Ibn Amr Ibn al-Aas
- Muawiyah Ibn Abu Sufyan
reported his stories. This international Rabbi had reported many strange
tales, the contents of which testify for their own lack of authenticity.
One such tale is as follows :-
A companions named Qais Ibn Kharshah al-Qaisi reported that Kaab Al
Ahbar said :
Every event that has taken place or will take place on any
foot of the earth, is written in the Tourat ( Old Testament ),
which Allah revelaed to his Prophet Moses ( as ).
Sunni Reference :
Ibn Abdul Barr - al-Istiab, v3, p1287
Printed in Cairo 1380 A.H
Such a report should arouse the attention of the readers, because it states
that which is in-conceivable. The earth contains billions of square miles,
each mile contains millions of cubic feet (for lack of proper arithmetic),
and each part of the earth may become a place of thousands of events from
the time of Prophet Moses ( as ) until the Day of Judgment. Yet, Kaab
claimed that all these events are recorded in the Old Testament.
The parts of the Old Testament which were dictated or written by Prophet
Moses ( as ), don't come to 400 pages. Recording all the events of the
World bewteen the time of Moses ( as ) till the day of Judgment, may take
millions of pages. Furthermore, the pages of the Old Testament do not
record future events. All they contains are some past events which took
place during or before the time of the biblical Prophets. Considering these
aspects, the claim that Kaab made belies itself.
Kaab al-Ahbar counts the days of the Caliph Umar
This rabbi was able to deceive many companions through his trickery. Even a
prominent companion, such as Umar Ibn al-Khattab could not escape his
tricks. Kaab's influence had grown during the days of Umar's caliphate to
such a degree that he was able to say to Umar :
Kaab : Ameer al-Mumineen, you ought to write your will because you will
die in three ( 3 ) days.
Umar : How do you know that ?
Kaab : I found it in the Book of God, the Taurat ( Old Testament ).
Umar : By God do you find Umar Ibn al-Khattab in the Old Testament ?
Kaab : By God, no. But I found your description in the Old Testament
and your time is coming to an end.
Umar : But I do not feel any pain or sickness
On the following day Kaab came to Umar and said :
Ameer al-Mumineen, one ( 1 ) day has passed and you have only
two ( 2 ) more days.
The following day Kaab came to him and said :
Ameer al-Mumineen, two ( 2 ) days have gone and you have only
one day and one night remaining.
The following morning, Umar came out to lead the prayers at the mosque. He
used to comission men in order to arrange the rows of the worshippers. When
they were in a straight line, he started the prayer. Abu Lulu entered the
mosque carrying a dagger with two ( 2 ) heads and a handle in the middle.
He hit Umar six ( 6 ) times, one of them hit the Caliph in the navel,
killing him.
Sunni reference :
Tabari - History of al-Tabari, v4, p191
Printed by Dar al-Maarif - Cairo
Looking at the Old Testament, one does not find any names or predictions of
Umar. Also no Rabbi other than Kaab, claimed that the Old Testament
predicted the existence of Umar, his murder, or defined the time of his
death. Had information of this kind been contained in the Torah, the Jews
would have been proud of it and would have used it in an attempt to prove
that the Jewish religion is the right religion.
A part of the Conspiracy
It seems clear that Umar's assination was a conspiracy, and that Kaab was a
part of the plot. The assassination of Umar would weaken the Muslims because
an outburst of violence against the Caliphate would shake the confidence in
the Islamic regime and create confusion. Announcing the event before it
took place made the companions believe in what Kaab predicted and what he
claimed to be recorded in the Old Testament, therefore making him a
reliable source for future information. Such confidence would enable him to
interfere in major events and suggest the name of the future Caliph. A
number of prominent companions believed the information that Kaab used to
fabricate pertaining to the past and the future.
Kaab did not speak only about the events that happened on the earth, but he
also gave information concerning the heavens and the Divine throne. Al
Qurtubi in his Commentary on the Quranic Chapter of Ghafir reported that
Kaab said :
When God created his throne, the throne said : ' God didn't create any
creature greater than me. ' The throne then shook itself to show it's
glory. God roped the throne with a snake which had 70 thousand wings;
each wing had 70 thousand feathers; each feather had 70 thousand
faces; each face had 70 thousand mouths, and each mouth had 70
thousand tongues. Out of these mouths words glorifying Allah with a
quantity equal to the number of drops of rain that have fallen, and
the leaves on the trees, and the number of pieces of gravel and soil
and the number of the days of the world, and the number of angels. The
snake coiled around the throne, for the throne was much smaller than
the snake. The throne was covered by only half the snake.
Imam Ali's ( as ) attitude towards Kaab
Umar and a number of prominent companions had a very positive attitude
towards Kaab. However the most knowledgeable and the most farsighted among
them, namely, Imam Ali ( as ) discredited Kaab. Kaab did not dare to come
close to Imam Ali ( as ), despite the fact that the Imam was in Medina for
the duration of Kaab's stay. It is reported that Imam Ali ( as ) said about
Kaab : Certainly he is a professional liar !
Ibn Abbas's attitude towards Kaab
Tabari notes in his chronicles that Ibn Abbas ( as ) was told :
Kaab says that on the day of the judgment the sun and the moon will
be brought forth like two ( 2 ) stupefied bulls and thrown to hell !
Upon hearing this Ibn Abbas ( as ) was enraged and retorted three ( 3 )
times :
Kaab is a liar !
Kaab is a liar !
Kaab is a liar !
This is a Jewish notion, and Kaab wants to introduce it into Islam. Allah
is free from the things they attribute to Him. He never punishes those who
obey. Have you not heard that Allah says in the Quran :
And He has made subject you the sun and the moon, both diligently
pursuing their course [ Ibrahim 33 ]
Ibn Abbas further said :
The word 'Daibain' used in this Verse denotes constant obedience to
Allah.
Then he continued :
How can He punish these two ( 2 ) heavenly bodies whom He Himself
praises for obedience. God curse the Jewish Scholar and his
learning ! What a shameless audacity to attribute Lies to Allah,
and to impute guilt to the two ( 2 ) obedient creatures !
Having said this, Ibn Abbas said this three ( 3 ) times :
To Allah we belong and unto Him shall we return !
To Allah we belong and unto Him shall we return !
To Allah we belong and unto Him shall we return !
Then Ibn Abbas went on to narrate what the Prophet ( Peace and Salutations
to his cleansed and Pure Progeny ) had actually said about the sun and the
moon :
Allah created two sources of light ! That which He named the Sun was
like the Earth, between the points of rising and setting. And that
which He ordained to be lustreless at times, He called the moon and
made it smaller than the Sun. And both of them appear to be small
because of their height in the sky and their distance from the earth.
Sunni reference :
Tabari - History of al-Tabari, v1, p62 - 63
European Edition
This concludes my first part of the discussion, Insha Allah in the future
portions I shall further pursue these topics:
- Kaab's interference in the Caliphate
- Kaab's during the reign of the Third Caliph
Kaab Interfered in the Caliphate
Kaab took advantage of Umar's good heartedness and used all his shrewdness
to make Umar keep Imam Ali ( as ) away from the Caliphate. Kaab was
motivated by his resentment towards Islam and his hatred of Imam Ali (AS).
After all it was Imam Ali ( as ) who had brought the Jewish Influence in
Hijaz to an end in the battle of Khaibar.
It is amazing that the Caliph had so much confidence in Kaab, he even
sought his advice about the future of the caliphate. Ibn Abbas reported
that Umar said to Kaab, in the very presence of Ibn Abbas, the following
Umar asked ...
I would like to name my successor because my death is near. What
do you say about Ali ? Give me your opinion and inform me of what
you find in *your books*, because you allege that we are mentioned
in *them* ?
Kaab answered ...
As to the wisdom of your opinion, it would be *unwise* to appoint
Ali as a successor because he is *very religious*. He notices every
deviation and does not tolerate crookedness. He follows only his
opinion in Islamic rules and this is not a good policy. As far as
*our* scriptures, we find that neither he nor his children will
come to power. And if he does, there will be confusion.
Umar asked ...
Why will he not to come to power ?
Kaab answered ...
Because he has shed blood and Allah has deprived him of authority.
When David wanted to erect Walls of the temple in Jerusalem, Allah
said to him : ' You shall not build the Temple because you have
shed
blood. Only Solomon shall erect it. '
Umar asked ...
Did not Ali shed blood rightly and for the truth ?
Kaab answered ...
Ameer al-Mumineen, David also shed blood for the truth
Umar asked ...
Who will come to power according to *your scripture* ?
Kaab answered ...
We find that after the Prophet ( Peace be upon him and his Cleansed
and Pure Progeny ) and his two ( 2 ) companions (Abu Bakr and Umar)
power will be transfered to his enemies ( the Omayyads ) whom he
fought for religion.
When Umar heard this, he *sadly* said : ' We belong to God and to Him we
shall return '. Then he said to Ibn Abbas : ' Ibn Abbas, did you hear what
Kaab said ? By God, I heard the Messenger of God say something very
similar. I heard him ( Peace be upon him and his Cleansed Progeny ) say :
The Children of Omayyad shall ascend to my pulpit. I have seen them
in my dreams jumping on my puplit like monkeys.
Then the Prophet said that the following verse was revealed about the
Omayyads :
And We made that dream, which We have shown you, only as a test
to the people and the cursed tree in the Quran ...
Sunni reference :
- Ibn Abi al-Hadid in his Sharh, v3, p81
Printed by Mohammad Ali Subaih in Egypt
- Imam Fakhr ad Din al-Razi in his commentaries of the Holy Quran
Chapter 17, v5, pp 413 - 414
Second Printing by al-Matbaah al-Sarafeyah 1304 H
This dialogue should alert us to the deceptive and successful attempt on the
part of Kaab to influence future events by Satanic suggestions. It contains
a great deal of decepetion which produced many harmful results to Islam and
the Muslims. It is very easy to read the following into this dialogue : -
1. Kaab was very indictive towards Imam Ali ( as ) because he was
the one who had smashed the Jewish strong hold in the Arabic
Peninsula. Kaab thought, and rightly so, he would remove all the
Jewish influence from the Arab Society. Therefore, Kaab was very
anxious to have the leadership in the hands of the Omayyad who were
un-concerned with the future of Islam. They only concerned
Ahemselves with the materialistic aspect of the World. In addition
they were as hostile to Imam Ali ( as ) as Kaab. The Omayyads and
Kaab considered Ali their common enemy. He had destroyed their
leaders in the defense of Islam.
2. Kaab comments that Imam Ali is highly religious and he does not
close his eyes on any crokedness; nor does he tolerate any
deviation from the Islamic path, when further examined reflects
that either Kaab forgot or he deliberately deleted from his story
that the Messenger ( Peace be Upon him and his followers ) was the
most religious and the most successful head of the state in the
history of the World.
3. Kaab also found in * his * scriptures that neither Imam Ali (as)
nor his children would come to power because he has shed blood. In
addition, Kaab said that it is written that David did not build the
Temple of Jerusalem becuase he shed blood and that his son, Solomon
was destined to build it so. Kaab did not mention and he made the
Caliph forget that David, in spite of his shedding blood and being
prevented from constructing the Temple came to power and became the
Ruling King !
The Holy Quran declares that Allah said to David :
Oh David, We certainly have made you Caliph on earth. You should
judge between people rightfully ... [ Chapter 28 Verse 26 ]
Kaab also forgot that the great Prophet ( saw ) shed the blood of
enemies for truth. Infact he led several battles and this did not
prevent him from ruling and administering the affairs of the
Muslims, nor did it prevent him from building an Islamic State !
4. Furthermore, Kaab by saying that shedding blood prevents coming
to power, makes those who endeavor in the name of God less
valuable than those who do not endeavor. This contradicts the Holy
Quran which declares : -
Those believers who sit still, other than those who have
a disabling hurt, are not equal to those who endeavour in
the way of Allah with their wealth and * lives *. Allah has
conferred upon those who endeavor for religion with their
lives and wealth a rank above those who sit ( at home ).
And to each, Allah has promised good, but He has bestowed
on those who strive a great reward above the sedentary;
degrees of rank from Him, and forgiveness and Mercy. Allah
is ever forgiving, merciful. [ Chapter 4 Verse 95 ]
It would be illogical to think that Allah commands people to
endeavour in His way, then punishes the endeavours by preventing
them from coming to power.
5. It is indeed very curious that Kaab claimed that the Jewish
scriptures mention that Islamic Leadership would pass from the
Prophet ( saw ) and his 2 ( two ) companions to his enemies. There
is no mention of anything to this in the Old Testament in spite of
the fact that Kaab had said to Qais Ibn Kharsha :
There is no place on earth that is not mentioned in the Old
Testament, along with the events which will happen at that
place until the Day of Judgment.
Kaab actually did not find in his Jewish scriptures any of the
events that he had fabricated. He only stole what he overheard from
the Companions of the Prophet ( saw ). Companions including Umar,
reported that the Messenger ( saw ) of Allah said :
Banu Omayyad shall climb on my pulpit and I have seen them in a
dream jumping on the pulpit like monkeys.
Sunni reference :
- Jalal ud Din Suyuti, Tarikhul Khulafa
Translated by Major H. S. Barret, p12
Published by J. W. Thomas, Baptist Mission Press, Calcutta
- Imam Fakhr ad Din al-Razi in his Commentaries of the Holy
Quran, Chapter 17, v5, pp 413 - 414
Second Printing by al-Matbaah al-Sarafeyah 1304 H
It is amazing that the Calpih heard these words from the Messenger of God
and still did not suspect Kaab had stolen them from the Jewish scriptures.
Furthermore, Kaab said that he found in Jewish books that power will be
transfered after the Prophet ( saw ) and his 2 ( two ) companions to the
Prophet's ( saw ) enemies. This, how ever did not occur. The caliphate
passed to Usman after Umar, and Usman was not an enemy of the Prophet ( saw
). He was an important companion. Also to our surprise the claim made by
Kaab was shattered into pieces when Imam Ali ( as ) received the Caliphate.
It is more amazing that the Caliph heard all these false statements which
Kaab had attributed to the Old Testament and did not even command Kaab to
show him the Jewish book from which he received the information.
The second Caliph with all his prominence, righteousness and intelligence
took the word of Kaab as if it came from heaven and was inevitable. He
forgot the matter of his successor was in his hands. It was entirely upto
him to choose Imam Ali ( as ) or any other eprson. It was expected that the
second caliph would please the Prophet ( saw ) by preventing the Omayyads
from coming to power after seeeing the Prophet ( saw ) disturbed over his
dream in which the Omayyads were jumping on his pulpit like monkeys. One
word from Umar could have had changed the course of History.
The second caliph could have appointed Imam Ali ( as ) as his successor and
prevented the Omayyads from coming to power. Unfortunately, he kept the
Imam away from the Caliphate by forming a six member committee, most of them
who were very un-friendly to Imam Ali ( as ) and friendly to Usman, the
righteous Omayyad who was extremely attached to his clan. Contrary to what
was expected, however, the second caliph did that which Kaab liked and the
Prophet ( saw ) disliked.
Sunni reference :
- Ibn al-Atheer, al-Kamil, v3, p35
Published by Dar al-Kitab al-Lubnanai 1973 A.D
Thus a Jew, newly converted to Islam, claiming that he had knowledge of
what was in the past and what will be in the future, was able to change the
course of Islamic History through his influence on a prominent Caliph,
Umar. What a historic catastrophe !
Kaab during the reign of Uthman
The influence of Kaab continued to grow after the death of Umar. During the
reign of the Third Caliph, Kaab was able to give verdicts in Islamic
affairs. The Calpih * often * agreed with him, and no one among the
attendants of the Caliph's meetings would oppose him, except for people
like Abu Dhar who became so furious one time upon hearing Kaab's verdicts
in Islam that he hit him with his rod saying
Son of a Jewsih lady, are you trying to teach us our religion ?
To secure for himself a bigger influence and a better future after the
death of the Uthman, Kaab tried to please Muawiyah by predicting his future
arrival at the helm of the Islamic Rule. Caliph Uthman was returning from
his pilgrimage accompanied by Muawiyah and the caravan driver sang a song
in which he predicted that Ali would be successor of Uthman. Kaab belied
the singer saying :
By God, you * lie *. The ruler after Uthman will be the rider
of the blond mule.
Here Kaab was refering to Muawiyah, and he falsely attributed this
information to the Old Testament ! Muawiyah had also * ordered * Kaab to
narrate to the people of Damascus anything that puts Damascus and its
people above other provinces.
Sunni references :
- Ibn al-Atheer - Kamil, v3, p76
Known as Ali Ibn al-Sahibani - Second Print ( Mule reference )
- al-Tabari - History, v4, p343
Printed by Dar al-Maarif - Cairo ( Mule reference )
- Ibn Hajar Asqalani ( Sunni Hadith Scientist )
al-Isabah , v5, p323 ( Muawiyah ordering reference )
On Other Incidents
Ahmed reported that Jabir Ibn Abdullah reported that Umar came to the
Prophet ( Peace be Upon him and his Cleansed and Pure progeny ) with a book
which he obtained from some followers of the scripture. He read it in front
of the Prophet ( Peace be Upon him and his Cleansed and Pure progeny ).
The Prophet ( saw ) became furious and said :
Son of al-Khattab, by the One in Whose hand is my soul, if Moses
were alive, he would have to follow me.
Al Bukhari reports that Ibn Abbas said :
How do you ask the people of the scriptures about anything while
your book, which was revealed by Allah to His Messenger (Muhammad)
is the newest Book ? You read it pure without any interpolation
by any non Quranic words. The Quran has informed you that people of
the scripture tampered with and changed their book.
On the contrary other Companions, like Abu Huraira and Abdullah Ibn Amr
Al-Aas reported that the Messenger of God said :
Take from the Israelites, and you will * not * be committing a
sin.
Also al-Bukhari mentioned:
Sahih a-Bukhari Hadith: 4.667
Narrated 'Abdullah bin 'Amr al-Aas:
The Prophet said, "Convey to the people even if it were a single
sentence, and tell others the stories of Bani Israel, for it is not
sinful to do so.
It is worthy to note that Abu Huraira and Abdullah were both * students *
of Kaab. It is also reported that Abdullah Ibn Amr al-Aas acquired two (2)
camels loaded with books of people of the * scriptures * and used to give
information to Muslims from these * books *.
Ibn Hajar al-Asqalani, who is the foremost * authority * on the Hadiths in
Sahih al-Bukhari, said :
Because of this ( as mentioned above ) many prominent scholars
among the students of the companions of the Prophet ( saw )
* avoided * taking information from Abdullah Ibn Amr al-Aas.
Sunni reference :
- Fath al-Bari, Ibn Hajar al-Asqalani, v1, p167
Ref: Imam Reza Network

The Cognition of Companionship and Companions

1. THE LEXICAL MEANING OF SAHABA

A. IN LEXICONS
(As'hab, Sahaba, Sahibe, Yas'habu, Suhbeh, Sahabe.) According to the Arabic-Arabic dictionaries, these idioms mean to associate, to accompany, to sit with, to submit to, to accede to. (Sahib) means the associate, the submissive, the sitter with, the companion, the custodian or the keeper of a matter. This word (Sahib) is called on those who refer to a definite sect. It is said: the As'hab -followers- of Imam Ja'far, the As'hab of Abu Haneefeh,.. etc.

B. IN THE HOLY QURAN
Allah, the Elevated, revealed the Quran in Arabic. One of the characteristics of Quran is being the only convictional reference of Arabic. It is the words of Allah, the knowing, dogmatically, of the most accurate hiddens and the deepest secrets of this language. By reading the Holy Quran, we discover that the words derived from the idiom involved are included in the following forms: (Tussahibeni, Sahibhuma, Sahibuhu, Sahibetihi, As'hab and As'habehum.) These forms were repeated ninety seven times in the Holy Quran.
The raised point is that there in no existence for the forms (Sahaba and Suhbe) in the Holy Quran.

C. INDUCE THE QURANIC VERSES FOR PROVIDING FOR THE LEXICAL MEANING
By conjuring these words up, we find out that they are forming a perfect coverage of the entire lexical meaning previously referred to. This idiom may take a single face or aspect, or various faces and aspects. It may bear an ideal face representing the total rims of good and, in the same time, it may bear a face so ugly that it represents the gross rims of evil.

D. LEXICAL ASPECTS OF THE IDIOM
Suhbe may hint at relationship between two believers. It may hint at relationship between a man and his parents who are opposing his belief. It may hint at relationship between two companions in a journey. It may hint at relationship between a master and his slave. It may hint at relationship between a believer and a disbeliever. It may hint at comprehensive relationship between an individual disbeliever and a group of disbelievers. It may hint at relationship between a prophet and his disbelieving people who are aiming for pulling their prophet to the shed of evil. It may be compulsory. It may be a pursuing companionship that leads to an ill deed on which a general conduct is based. It may be a matter of submitting to a divine doctrine and an absolute loyalty to the political leadership of that doctrine. An example on this sort of companionship is the Prophet's family's submission and loyalty to the divine doctrine and the Prophet's political leadership, along with their notable sacrifices. Another example is the Prophet's virtuous choicest companions' submission and loyalty to the Prophet (peace be upon him and his family).
Pivot of companionship is comprehensive, based upon a doctrine, a leadership, goals and supreme idealities to the achievement of which the leader and his companions are working for submitting the whole society to the domination of that doctrine.
2. TERMINOLOGICAL MEANING OF SAHABA
The following are the words of Ibn Hajar Al-Asqalani, the Shafi'ite:
“A Sahabi includes all those who met the Prophet (peace be upon him and his family) and believed in him till death.

A. AN EXPLANATION OF IBN HAJAR'S DEFINITION
The following categories are registered under the title of Sahaba:
1. Those who met the Prophet for a considerable or a brief period.
2. Those who reported the Prophet's traditions and those who did not.
3. Those who participated in battles led by the Prophet and those who did not.
4. Those who saw the Prophet, even without a meeting.
5. Those who could not see the Prophet for an accidental obstacle; such as blindness.
The following are excluded from the list of Sahaba, for the bound of believing:
Those who met the Prophet while they were believing in other prophets; such as the faithful Scriptuaries before Mohammed's divine envoy.
Scriptuaries who met the Prophet and believed that that would be the anticipated prophet are probably included with the Sahaba. An example is Bahira, the priest and his likes.
Every mandate human being and jinn are included in bound of believing in the Prophet.
Ibnul-Atheer's objection on Abu Musa's excluding some of the jinn mentioned in the list of the Sahaba is not unacceptable.
Ibn Hazm says: “They lied to the Islamic nations those who claim of unanimity. God, the Elevated, informed us that a group of jinn had believed and listened to the Quran recited by the Prophet (peace be upon him and his family). Hence, they are Sahaba.”
Reckoning the angels with the Prophet's companions is a subject of discrepancy. As Fakhruddin Ar-Razi, in his Asrarur-Tenzil, reported the unanimous claim that the Prophet (peace be upon him and his family) had not been sent to the angels, a many scholars disagreed to him. Providing a number of arguments, Sheik Teqiyyuddin As-Sebki alleged that the Prophet (peace be upon him and his family) had been sent to the angels, too.
By bound of (believing till death), the apostates who denounced their disbelieving in the Prophet's divine message after they had met him, are excluded from the list of Sahaba. An example is Ubeidullah Bin Jahsh. With his wife, Ummu Habiba, he declared his being Muslim and immigrated to Abyssinia. Unfortunately, he embraced Christianity there till his death. Abdullah Bin Khatl who was killed while he was hanging to curtains of Ka'ba is another example.
Muslims who defected their apostasy are reckoned with the Sahaba according to bound of (believing till death), even if they had never seen or met the Prophet. Regarding the earlier part of this category, there is unanimity on the ruling that apostates who return to Islam before their death are Sahaba, while some scholars had preservations against this class. Relying upon the hadithists' agreement on reckoning Ibn Qeis, who returned to Islam in Abu Bakr's reign after he had apostatized, with the Sahaba and recording his reports in the most remarkable books of hadith, the earlier preservations are not satisfactory.

B. IBN HAJAR'S ESTIMATION OF THIS DEFINITION
Ibn Hajar's definition is extracted from the most authentic opinions adopted by supreme scholars, such as Al-Bukhari and his tutor, Ahmed Bin Hanbal and their followers. There are, however, many disorderly opinions appertained to identifying the Prophet's companions. Among these is the opinion that institutes four conditional qualifications of Sahaba. A Sahabi is only that who enjoyed a considerable period of companionship with the Prophet, and his reports, regarding the Prophet's traditions, were taken into account, and participated in the Prophet's battles or was martyred with him (peace be upon him and his family.) Others instituted maturity and sitting with the Prophet as provisories of regarding companionship. A group named every single individual who had seen the Prophet (peace be upon him and his family) as a Sahabi. Pursuant to the rule that capability of seeing cannot be imputed to the undiscerning, the previous opinion includes discerning individuals only. At any rate, those undiscerning individuals are Sahaba since they were seen by the Prophet (peace be upon him and his family.) Regarding those whose dead bodies had been seen by the Prophet (peace be upon him and his family), like Abu Thuweib Al-Hutheli, the poet, there is a discrepancy about reckoning them with the Sahaba. It is more acceptable to exclude them.

C. MEANS OF RECOGNIZING THE SAHABA
Means of proving a Sahabi is a successive narration that is well publicized and well-known. In addition, there must be a report of a Sahabi respecting reckoning that individual with the Sahaba. A single Sahaba's follower's report depending upon a Sahabi's nomination is acceptably taken into consideration of being a Sahabi. Lastly, a decent man's declaration of being a Sahabi is considered.
Al-Amudi and others put decency as a provisory condition of admitting a Sahabi. Since the entire Sahaba are decent it is imperative to admit an individual's claim of being a Sahabi. Thus, a claim of being a Sahabi is measured in the very balance of claiming of decency. This is, however, unacceptable.
Coinciding in time of the Prophet (peace be upon him and his family) is an essential base of deciding a Sahabi. That time is limited by one hundred and ten years after the Prophet's immigration to Yathrib. On that account, the imams disavowed claims after that period. A group of people were discredited in their claims of being Sahaba since their appearances proved forgery of their claims. Al-Amudi, however, decided inadmissibility of regarding such individuals as Sahaba.

D. THE ENTIRE PEOPLE ARE SAHABA
Unanimously, Mohammed's advocacy resulted in establishing the state led by him for about a decade. During this period, he (peace be upon him and his family) planted regulations of the Islamic political system and clarified thoroughly the belief of Islam by applying the total hypotheses that led to propounding the general spirit of Islam.
Constitutionally, any government consists of people, a province on which those people settle and a power policing those people. Pursuant to Ibn Hajar Al-Asqalani's definition of the Sahaba, the following two points are bases on which a Sahabi is considered:
1. Meeting the Prophet (peace be upon him and his family) by associating, talking or viewing him. He whomever saw or was seen by the Prophet, including unweaned babies, is regarded as a Sahabi.
2. Believing in prophesy of Mohammed (peace be upon him and his family.)
Considering Ibn Hajar's opinion, it is obligatory to scrutinize everyone's creed. This matter, still, is out of humans' capacity. Al-Asqalani should have discriminated between real and ostensive believing. Abdullah Bin Ubey, for instance, is one of the Sahaba agreeingly. Yet, he is chief of the hypocrites. The Prophet (peace be upon him and his family) addressed at those who suggested that Abdullah would be crucially killed: “I swear we are to respect his accompanying us as long as he is among us.” Abdullah Bin Abi Sarh, as another example, was the Prophet's registrar, but he forged lies against the Prophet who, as a penalization, legalized killing him whenever found even hanging to curtains of Ka'ba. At conquest of Mecca, Othman interceded to gain cancellation of that decision. Hence, that man embraced Islam for saving his soul. Such an individual is undiscussibly a Sahabi. The same is said about Al-Hakam Bin Al-Aas who had been banished by the Prophet (peace be upon him and his family.) After the Prophet's decease, the man asked Abu Bakr and Omar respectively to annul the Prophet's decision. They rejected his demand. Othman, when became the caliph, allowed him to be in Al-Madina with full honor and dignity. As a compensation, he gifted him one hundred thousand dirham, as he was a Sahabi.
Briefly, it is not a condition to regard the real believing in the Prophet's mission in consideration of the Prophet's companionship. It is acceptably sufficient to dissemble to be believing in him or keep such a pretence all the lifetime since the Prophet does not care for the hidden on any. Hiddens, however, is God's concern!
Totally, everybody had the opportunity to meet the Prophet through the solicitation, government, battles, declaration of fealty, ritual pilgrimage and Visitations, especially the Welfare Pilgrimage, and the complete domination of the Arab Peninsula. All of citizens of Mecca and At-Ta'if declared their being Muslims and witnessed the Farewell Pilgrimage with the Prophet (peace be upon him and his family). that was in 10 A.H. The same could be said about tribes of Aws and Khazraj. Hence, when the Prophet was dead, no single individual was showing disbelieving in his mission. Babies, as their fathers used to take them to the Prophet for seeking blessing, became Sahaba according to the fact that the Prophet (peace be upon him and his family) had seen them. Reports appertained to this matter are many. (Babies were taken to the Prophet for seeking blessings.) (Whenever a baby was born, it would be taken to the Prophet.)
The authentic reports regarding the Prophet’s being wont to walk in streets, during his leading the government he had established, without being accompanied by any guardian or the like, and wont to practice his activities himself, lead to the inevitable fact that every citizen in his state had full option to see, communicate and attend at any meeting he held. This means that the entire citizens could meet, see, hear and sit with their president.
The other Islamic sects agree with Sunnis on the lexical and terminological meanings of Sahaba. They differ with them on significance of qualifications of decency. While Sunnis generalize and unexceptionally decide the entire Sahaba as decent, the other sects figure certain justifiable prerequisites and topical qualifications for decency. Decency is imputed to those individuals who enjoy such prerequisites and qualifications only. Depending on evidences elicited from Book of God and the Prophet's traditions, they rule of those who do not enjoy such prerequisites and qualifications as indecent.
SUNNIS' CONCEPTION OF THE SAHABA'S ULTIMATE DECENCY
There is an assent among the Sunni Scholars upon the decency of all of the Prophet's companions. Except for some heretic individuals, as Ibn Hajar Al-Asqalani expresses, none has any dispute about this view. It is essential to believe in their honesty, since it has been proved that all of them shall be in the Paradise and none, among them, shall be sent into the hell-fire. The very conception of Sahaba we have referred to during inspecting Ibn Hajar Al-Asqalani's definition of this term, is meant in the previous statement.
THE SUNNI SCHOLARS’ ARGUMENT REGARDING THIS CONCEPTION
Al-Khateeb mentions that the Sahaba's ultimate decency is evidently proved through Allah's ruling, informing and opting for their decency and integrity. The following Verses are among such credentials:
(You are the best of the nations raised up for (the benefit of) men;..)*
(And thus we have made you a medium -just- nation.)
(Certainly Allah was well pleased with the believers when they swore allegiance to you under the tree, and He knew what was is their hearts..)
(And as for the foremost, the first of the Muhajirs and Ansar, and those who followed them in goodness, Allah is well pleased with them and they are well pleased with Him..)
(O Prophet! Allah is sufficient for you and for such of the believers as follow you.)
(It is for the poor who fled, those who were taken out from their homes and their possessions, seeking grace of Allah and His pleasure, and assisting Allah and His Apostle: these it is that are the truthful.. Surely Thou art Kind, Merciful)
Besides, there is a great number of Verses and hadiths pertaining to this topic.
TENOR OF SUNNIS' CONCEPTION OF THE SAHABA'S ULTIMATE DECENCY
The literal meaning of the Sahaba's ultimate decency is that it is impermissible to impute fabrication, forgery or any flaw to any of those who lived or was born during the Prophet's lifetime, even if such an individual perpetrated a massacre or committed numerous evil deeds. Accordingly, the first class of the Umayids, including Abu Sufian and his progeny, and the entire sons of Marwan, including those who were banished by the Prophet, and Al-Mugheera Bin Shu'beh and Abdullah, his son who, though was only ten year old at the Prophet's decease, had written a number of the Prophet's hadiths in a volume called ‘As-Sadiqa’ -the most truthful-, are included under name of Sahaba.
Thusly, all those and others are decided as decent, and their reports in respect to the Prophet are reckoned with the most authentic hadiths even though such reports ascribe perfidiousness to Ali and the Prophet's progeny, and refer acclamation and saintliness to Abdurrahman Bin Muljim.
According to the conception involved, it is imperative to embrace such reports and, thus, it is unauthorized to repudiate since reporters were among the decent who should never prevaricate tenaciously. Depending on the claim that the Prophet (peace be upon him and his family) had said: “The like of my companions -Sahaba- is the stars; whomever is followed, guidance -to the right path- is the result.”, the groups who pursued and kept in line with Muawiya for about three decades, including those who poisoned Al-Hassan Bin Ali to death and murdered Al-Hussein and his companions, and perpetrated abundant crimes in Kufa and other cities, all those are rightful and followers of the true guidance. The saying concerned, however, is ruled as doubtful by the most well-versed hadithists. Furthermore, Ibn Teimiyeh ruled of falsification of this saying imputed to the Prophet. Hence, it is unconvincing as a proof.
PUNITION OF DISSENTS OF THE SAHABA'S ULTIMATE DECENCY CONCEPTION
Disbelievers in the Sahaba's ultimate decency conception, in least of all, are, according to the Sunni scholars, described in the following judgments:
(He should certainly be one of the miscreants, that whoever maligned any of the Prophet's companions. They are surely miscreants those who malign any of the Prophet's companions at all. Abuse is the least form of treating them.)
(It is illegal to share those who malign or vilify at the Prophet's companions in a food or a drink, or to perform the ritual funeral prayer for them.)
THE MYSTERY BEYOND SUCH AN EXTREME HARSHNESS
According to judgment of the Sunni scholars, the Prophet is a true, and the Holy Quran is a true, and whatever in it is a true, and all these facts were communicated to us by the Prophet's companions. Those who vilify at any of them, are aiming at expelling our witnesses in order to repeal the Holy Quran and the Prophet's traditions. Consequently, casting aspersions on such individuals should be an essential procedure. Besides, they should be treated as miscreants.
RECALL
The Sunni Scholars mean by the term ‘Sahaba’, all those who fall under Ibn Hajar’s definition, commencing with Khadijah, Ali, Zaid Bin Haritha and Abu Baker, to the last child who saw or was seen by the Prophet. At any rate, it is favorable to take another look on Ibn Hajar's definition of Sahaba.
AN ATTEMPT FOR MITIGATING SUCH A HYPERBOLE
In his Sharhul-Burhan, Al-Maziri says:
“Not all those whom were seen, visited or met by the Prophet (peace be upon him and his family), even for an interest or the like, are falling under our conception of the ultimate decency of Sahaba. We, in fact, dedicate the term only to those who accompanied the Prophet, (and honored him and helped him, and followed the light which has been sent down with him, these it is that are the successful).”
DENYING AND ERADICATING THIS ATTEMPT
As a matter of fact, the above expression refers to the general idea; lest, only those who had spent or fought for sake of God are named Sahaba. Confirmed by none, Al-Maziri's opinion was denied by a group of respectful scholars.
The following is Salah Al-Illani's replication:
“This opinion is extremely unfamiliar. Accordingly, a great number of well-known Sahaba, like Wa'il Bin Hajar, Malik Bin Al-Huweirith, Othman Bin Al-Aas and many others who visited the Prophet as formal delegations without residing for a considerable period, will be excluded from list of the Prophet's companions. Besides, those who related only a single hadith -the Prophet's tradition- and Bedouins whose period of residence -at the Prophet's- is not defined, are also excluded. Precisely, opinion of generalization -regarding all those seen, visited or met by the Prophet as the Sahaba- is the most considerable and acceptable since most of the scholars have adopted for.
EFFECTS OF THIS OPINION OF GENERALIZATION
First of such effects is senseless equality. According to Sunnis' conception, the Sahaba, entirely, are enjoying an equal decency. Hence, all of them are decent in the very same degree. The fighter -for the sake of God- is not different from the withdrawer. The perfectly satisfied Muslim is not different from those embraced Islam due to fear of death. The foremost is not different from the dilatory. The distributor out of his fortune for sake of God is not different from the miser. The obedient is not different from the mutineer. The well-minded is not different from the discerning child. Correspondingly, Ali (peace be upon him) who had fought for Islam and missed no single battle, is not different from Abu Sufian who had led battles against Islam, and is not different from Muawiya Bin Abi Sufian. Hamzeh, in the same way, the master of martyrs, is not different from Wahshi, his killer. Othman Bin Affan, who had been already foretold of being in the Paradise, is not different from Al-Hakam Bin Al-Aas, his uncle, the father of the Umayid caliphs, who was banished by the Prophet (peace be upon him and his family) and his two companions. This man, as well as his son, was cursed by the Prophet (peace be upon him and his family). In the same way, Abdullah Bin Abi Sarah, who forged lies against Allah and apostatized and, thus, was sentenced to death penalty in absentia even if he hangs to curtains of Ka'ba, is not different from Abu Bakr. Abdullah Bin Ubey, chief of the hypocrites, is not different from Ammar Bin Yasir. These examples are quite true according to the Sahaba’s ultimate decency conception. They all are decent. They all shall be in the Paradise. None of them shall be in the hell-fire at all!!
WONDERMENT AND END RESULT
How is it reasonable to regard the knowledgeable as same as the ignorant, the fighter as same as the retiree and the perfectly satisfied Muslim as same as the embracer of Islam for saving his soul? Is it rational to regard the killer as same as his victim? Is it rational to regard the foremost as same as the dilatory, the distributor as same as the miser, the obedient as same as the disobedient, the true faithful as same as the ostentatious, and the honest as same as the hypocrite? Is it reasonable to regard Muawiya as same as Ali?
Neither doctrine, sense nor does logic accede to such an equality. It is, as a matter of fact, an excessive unfairness and disastrous fusion that intellect denies and sound human nature does reject.
CRITICISM OF THE CONCEPTION
UNANIMITY AND DISCREPANCY
Considering lexical and terminological meanings of the term Sahaba, the entire Islamic sects have no choice other than accepting, unanimously, the fact that the term does refer to individuals who embraced Islam, whether satisfactorily or ostentatiously, and those who heard, accompanied or saw the Prophet (peace be upon him and his family). Discrepancy, in fact, is in the opinion of generalization. While Sunnis rule of the ultimate decency of the entire Sahaba, the other sects do neither acknowledge such an opinion nor do they agree upon such a generalization.
AN ENDEAVOR FOR RECONCILING
Generally, Sahaba are the entire people of the Prophet's state, or the Islamic nation that lived under dominion of the Prophet (peace be upon him and his family). This denotation is adopted by Sunnis. Hence, those Sahaba are the very individuals at whom Verses of the holy Quran were addressed and laws were applied. He whoever declares his being Muslim and speaks out the two creeds of Islam, is reckoned with Muslims and citizens of the Prophet's state. This is by reason that it is only God Who does realize hidden intendments, and it is none but Him who shall reward for embracing Islam. On bases of this belief, the Prophet (peace be upon him and his family) was used to regarding only appearances, apart from real intendments and purposes. He left hidden aims to God. Behaviors, however, are postponed to the future, God's mercy and effects of the Islamic society, as well as situations to battles of Islam against the unbelieving groups, under commandment of the Prophet himself or the mandate leader. Evading naming any hypocrite declaratorily, the Prophet (peace be upon him and his family) wont to supplicate God to cover up His creatures' flaws and lead them to prosperity and the right path. Tens of Quranic Verses, however, are harshly reproaching hypocrites spreading all over Al-Madina, the capital, and ýýýýýýýýýthe surrounding villages. Such Verses have evidently uncovered concealments and disclosed their hidden malice and treated with actual events of Al- Madina.
Furthermore, there was a number of individuals, regarded as Sahaba, whose private states were identified by the Quran and, thus, they were sentenced to doctrinal provisions.
Substantial attributes for good and evil deeds were subjected by the Islamic Doctrine. Belonging to any of these two groups is depending upon individual qualifications and practices. Actualization of such attributes is their bearer's concern. All over the Prophet's life, conflict against atheism was ceaseless. As a nature, individuals always reflect their beliefs through their behaviors sooner or later.
After the Prophet's decease, each Muslim realized perfectly his situation in fields of devotion or hypocrisy. Despite the fact that the Islamic society, specially in Al-Madina, was a society of Sahaba in its terminological and lexical meaning, people did realize each other's standing. Who, however, should have secured feeling against God's penalty? What is, moreover, the meaning of (Situations are as to their latest)?
We should have no choice other than classifying the honorable Sahaba into two groups:
1. The virtuous Sahaba:
They are the righteous on whose shoulders the Islamic state was built and established. It is they who suffered mockery and harm of the unbelieving majority until God's right was manifest. They adhered themselves to God's concerns and acceded to the Prophet and those he ordered of acceding to. They kept on holding on God's line till their last moments. They are unanimously decent. This ruling is indisputably adopted by the whole sects of Islam.
2. The rest of Sahaba:
They are uneven. It is only Allah Who distinguishes them. Among them there is the boys and the hypocrites. God has ruled of siting the evil hypocrites in the lower class of the hell-fire, although they were showing being Muslims and classified as the Prophet's companions (Sahaba) according to subjective standards established by Sunnis.
THE BENEFIT OF SUCH A CLASSIFICATION
In fact, recognizing the virtuous Sahaba is a matter of a highly considerable importance. Dedicately, they are those who swear exceptional allegiance to the imam. besides, they are a notable pillar of the Islamic Consultance. In addition, they are the actual accomplishers of the Islamic orders. They are the imam's descriptive government whose mission is establishing bases for accepting God's instructions and applying the Islamic Shari'a and declaring public loyalty to the imam. It is essential for the public to follow them in satisfaction and displeasure. By achieving so, survival of the masses, as well as such Sahaba, is gained, while doom shall certainly be the fate if this is not attainable.
Advantage of such a classification in such a late stage is attaining a substantial review of the past for sake of inspecting mystery beyond the Muslims' present discrepancy, dissipation of attitudes and collapse of their government. This is taken as a commencing step towards enlightening their morrow and ensuring their stepping, keeping them in circle of the legal course as the only one leading to their reunification and reestablishing of a government on bases of Islamic Shari'a, the only way for achieving eternality and evading another collapse.
It is apt to add that discrimination is necessary for recognizing the most virtuous and the most meritorious for occupying public offices.
Regarding the holy Verse, (Surely Allah commands you to make over trusts to their owners), At-Tabari points to the following idea as exegesis. He mentions that making over trusts to their owners aims at referring authorities to the most meritorious. How, then, is it possible to deliver such responsibilities to the fittest without recognizing the best and the most meritorious? It is most certainly that none preceded the Sahaba to acquainting this idea, and it is none but them whom are concerned!
DISCRIMINATION IS A DIVINE NORM
Discrimination is a divine custom and one of the general constitutions of life. It is looked upon as an incentive to advancing in this life that is naturally formed, due to variance in creation, abilities, powers and understanding. It is also imposed by achievement of political and functional justice in field of finding the fittest. The legal discrimination issued by Islam is the only course for achieving such a justice, considering that discrimination as a Divine reward and encouragement.
EVIDENCE OF LEGAL DISCRIMINATION
By both the Shari'a and the general spirit of Islam, means of legal discrimination is affirmed. God says: (Allah has made the strivers with their property and their persons to excel the holders back a high degree, and to each class.) (We have made some of these apostles to excel the others.)
The legal discrimination is also determined by God even over families and tribes. In this manner God addresses at the Israelis: (In fact that I made you excel the nations.) (And certainly we have made some of the prophets to excel others, and to Dawood -David- We gave a Scripture.) (And Ismail and Al-Yasha and Yunus and Lut, and every one We made to excel in the worlds.) (See how we have made some of them to excel others, and certainly the Hereafter is much superior in respect of excellence.) (Not alike among you are those who spent before the victory and fought and those who did not: They are more exalted in rank than those who spent and fought afterwards; and Allah has promised good to all.).
Legal discrimination is necessary for identifying the fittest and the most meritorious for occupying general centers of the government. This is becoming to the Prophet's saying: (It is a treachery to God and His Apostle to assign a man as a leader of a group among whom there is a fitter.)
CLASSES OF SAHABA
Logically, legally and actually Sahaba as a group are not of the same level. Even among the faithful, there is a variance in degree of faithfulness. There are different levels among the powerful Sahaba, and there are variant levels among the feeble ones. Even hypocrites are enjoying different levels of hypocrisy.
As an instance, we may cite the Prophet's following saying to those who suggested to sentence Abdullah Bin Ubey to death penalty: (We will treat him politely so long he is among us.)
According to this text, Abdullah Bin Ubey, chief of the hypocrites, is reckoned with Sahaba. He is Sahabi on the grounds unanimously established by Sunnis. We would have accepted the life stillness and the rational deadlock if we had concurred with such a conception. Although they agreed or declared their agreement upon the Sahaba's ultimate decency conception, Sunnis had to confess, even partly, of inactiveness and illogicality of the conception that is, according to their declaration also, contradicting the Shariite intendment.
One of the clearest evidence on such a confession is their classifying the honorable Sahaba into several classes. Belonging to any of these classes covers the lawful and political role in accordance with the Shari'a. Question of classification is not a discretionary effort. Qualifications of such classes are cited by the Quran and the Prophet's traditions. Exploiting this point, Ibn Sa'd identified five classes of the Sahaba, while Al-Hakim, in his Al-Mustedrak, classified them into twelve classes.
CLASSIFICATION OF THE SAHABA AS POSITED BY AL - HAKAM IN HIS AL-MUSTEDRAK:
The First class: Individuals who embraced Islam before Hijra -The Prophet's immigration to Yathrib-. The four caliphs are cited as examples.
The second class: The Prophet's companions of Darun-Nidwa.
The third class: The immigrators to Abyssinia.
The fourth class: The Prophet's companions of the first Aqaba.
The fifth class: The Prophet's companions of the second Aqaba.
The sixth class: The first group of immigrators who arrived in Al-Madina after the Prophet.
The seventh class: The warriors of -the battle of- Badr.
The eighth class: Individuals who immigrated in the period between battle of Badr and the treaty of Hudeibiyeh.
The ninth class: Individuals of the Razwan declaration of fealty.
The tenth class: Individuals who immigrated in the period between the treaty of Hudeibiyeh and conquest of Mecca. Khalid Bin Al-Waleed and Amr Bin Al-Aas are cited as examples of this class.
The eleventh class: The ‘released’ who embraced Islam only on the day of conquest of Mecca. Abu Sufian and Muawiya, his son, are cited as examples of this class.
The twelfth class: Juveniles and children who saw the Prophet on the day of conquest of Mecca.
Hence, the first Muslim is Khadija followed by Ali (peace be upon him). (On Monday, the Prophet, peace be upon him and his family, was prophesied. On Tuesday, Ali, Zeid Bin Haritheh and Abu Bakr embraced Islam respectively.)
As a matter of fact, classification of the Sahaba into various classes is seen as an actual entry to legal discrimination. Indeed, it will be unreasonable to regard the foremost in embracing Islam as same degree of decency as a ‘released’ who declared his being a Muslim on the say of conquest of Mecca. Al-Faruq -Omar Bin Al-Khattab- directed attention towards this very point during distributing the grants among Muslims. He took the classes to which each individual belonged in consideration. So, he neither treated the foremost in Islam as equal to the latest nor did he equate those who spared no single arts in field of fighting against Islam till they were surrounded in the island of polytheism, with those who missed no single battle for the sake of Islam till God fortified His religion. Moreover, evidence of the Muhajirs -immigrators from Mecca- against the Ansar -supporters of Al-Madina- in the question of the most meritorious to leadership of Muslims after the Prophet (peace be upon him and his family), which was arisen in the Saqeefa of Bani Sa'ideh, is that they, the Muhajirs, had been the foremost in worshipping God by Islam. They also stated that they had been the Prophet's backers, clan, and hence, the most meritorious of his heritage. They also stated that it should be unjust for any to dispute them in this question since the Arab should be dissatisfied if the Ansar would take leadership while the Prophet of the nation is belonging to another group. They stated that the Arab should not be satisfied unless leadership would be the Prophet's clan's.
Is it not acceptable to conclude from Omar's saying: (Who dares to dispute us in Mohammed's heritage and authority while we are his people and clan?
, in the Saqeefa of Bani Sa'ideh, backed by Abu Bakr, that it is an accurate conceptual application of legal discrimination and, in turns, it is a radical blast to the Sahaba's ultimate decency conception?
Back to the story, the Ansar could find nothing other than submitting to this indisputable evidence; therefore, they declared that they would accept none but Ali.
As Imam Ali faced them in his substantial evidence after their declaring fealty to Abu Bakr as the caliph, Bashir Bin S'ad, who was the main reason beyond the Ansar' discordance, addressed at Ali: “No any two would have litigated about your rightfulness -in matter of leadership- if only you had made the Ansar hear your previous words before they declared fealty to Abu Bakr.) Without applying legal discrimination as a means of preceding the most learned, the best and the fittest in the entire fields of life, such contentment should never be attained. Absolutely, legal discrimination policy contravenes the Sahaba's ultimate decency conception since such a policy and a course would be nonexistent when the all are equally decent.
APPROACH OF DISCRIMINATION IN ISLAM
In order to evade dissension and discrepancy, discount the role of temper and fancies and deprecate any tyrant essay to be imposed on the nation, Islam, through undeniable and artless texts, defined the basic pillars of approach of discrimination. These bases are circumscribed in five pillars for the purpose of defining paths to virtue and justice and courses to fields of goodness. Throughout such points, Muslim's position, role and size shall be evidently outlined. Besides, these points shall be the legal answer of any question appertained to individuals' standings and values. They are, then, the only way through which the most learned, the most favorable and the fittest shall be apparently recognized. What is the objective, then, beyond issuing approach of discrimination when the Prophet's companions as a whole are unexceptionally equal? What is the objective beyond instituting doctrinal provisions and issuing rulings and judges, then?
PILLARS OF DISCRIMINATION AND COURSES OF DECENCY
Throughout an extrapolative study of the Islamic divine belief, it is clear to conclude that approach of discrimination is grounded on five pillars considered as legal standards exhibiting the estimation and the status of each Muslim:
The first pillar is the immaculate kinship to the Prophet (peace be upon him and his family). It is, by undiscussible legal texts, the spiritual and political successive leadership of the nation. Concerning the answer of the wonderment why they have been dedicately selected, we can say nothing more than it is the grace of Allah that He grants to whomever He desires. In the same way, alike questions can be put about Mohammed's being chosen for the divine revelation and mission. The same can be said about Moses' being chosen as prophet. The answer will be the same; it is the grace of Allah that He grants whomever He desires. These are, anyhow, concerns of God.
The kinship involved is regarded, according to divine texts, as the center, ‘the saving boat’, ‘the door of forgiveness’, ‘the stars of guidance to the right’, ‘the foremost to faithfulness’, ‘the godliest’, ‘the most knowledgeable’ and ‘the most misfortunate’. They are, according to divine texts too, those whose commitment is imposed upon everybody. Their chief is the legal leader of the nation at any time he is in. He is, thus, the authority of people. This is according to the logic fact that the prophet is preferred to the mission with which he is sent, and the guide is preferred to the matter he is guiding to. How should God send a messenger without a message? At which situation did God reveal a Divine Book to other than one of His slaves? This is to be proved later on. They, the Prophet's progeny, are the core and the essence of the divine leadership.
The second pillar is precedence to believing in the Prophet.
The third pillar is devoutness.
The fourth pillar is knowledgeability.
The fifth pillar is the Prophet's -or the legal leader's- nominating his successor. He is the one elected by the masses fully satisfactorily, without coercion, inducement or duplicity!
ESTIMATING THE CRITERIA
These criteria are actually topical, originated, exclusively, from the Divine Islamic law. They are manifestation of each individual's credentials of decency. Respectfully, other criteria are not more than a form of harmony between an imposed actuality and a divine ordained ensample. The criteria involved are recognized by every body. In the historical policy of caliphate, these criteria were the foremost and most acceptable argument. The following situations of Abu Bakr, Omar and Abu Ubeideh, in the conference of Saqeefeh, are good examples of our discussion. These three individuals expressed their precedence in succeeding Mohammed (peace be upon him and his family) since:
1. The Arab reject delivering leadership to people other than those from among whom prophesy appeared.
2. Mohammed's people and clan are the most preferable in his heritage and authorities. This is the very criterion of kinship.
3. They claimed of their being the first individuals who had worshipped Allah in this world. This is the criteria of precedence to believing and devotion...etc.
Omar's course in distributing the imports can be added to examples of taking the previous five criteria in consideration.
WONDERMENT
Considering the Sahaba, as a whole, are equally decent, shall be in the Paradise, none of them shall be in the hell-fire at all and are equally treated by God; what, then, intercepted the Ansar from having leadership of the Muslims? Why did most of them satisfactorily concede leadership to the three Muhajirs? Why did Omar, the just caliph, follow a policy of discrimination in distributing imports of the state on the Muslims? Why were some of Sahaba sentenced to various doctrinal provisions? Lastly, how should the just decent individual, whose pass to the Paradise is already guaranteed, thieve?!
You, who embrace the Sahaba's ultimate decency conception, are not more knowledgeable than the two Sheiks -Abu Bakr and Omar-. For you, their opinions are ruled as sufficiently satisfactory. I challenge each of you to find, or to try to find, answers to the previous questions. How should the impetuous pursuance be a path to the right? God did learn us that the impetuous pursuance should be the way to the Fire. He, the Exalted, graces us with the intellect so that we will use in obedience and exploring aims of the Islamic laws.
OUTWARD REFUTATION OF THE CONCEPTION
Formally, the Sahaba's ultimate decency conception, adopted by Sunnis, is, generally, refuted from two faces:
FIRST FACE
ADMISSION AND WITNESSES
The Holy Quran is, indisputably, the (Reminder) intended in God's saying: (Surely We have revealed the Reminder and We will most surely be its guardians). The Prophet's traditions are, beyond any dispute, explanations and interpretation of the (Reminder.) God, the tremendously Almighty, has committed Himself of guarding that Reminder all over times. In this manner, guardianship of the Reminder is divinely guaranteed. The honorable Sahaba are not involved in such a guarantee or guardianship. Without need to witnesses, this religion is under guardianship and consonant since Allah is the witness and He is the guardian and the explainer. Only after God's perfecting the religion and completing the divine grace, The Prophet (peace be upon him and his family) moved to his Elevated Associate.
Mohammed, hence, is the witness on Muslims. Muslims of every time are the witnesses on people of their time. Likewise, the Book is revealed from God and none, to any extent, can add, change or erase any single letter. This is because it is a divine arrangement.
Along with the revelation of any group of the Quranic Verses, there was the divine guidance concerning position of these Verses in the Quran book. At the Prophet's decease, the Quran, as a whole, was arranged as exactly as we have now. It was thoroughly written, not only in hearts of men, -as some brothers claim- but also on papers. View of the Sahaba's ultimate decency shall not add anything to the consonant or the defended thing and, in the same way, view of the only sincere Sahaba’s decency shall neither vibrate nor influence consonance or safe. It is really unreasonable for them to discuss matter of the divine guardianship of the Quran for the purpose of proving the ultimate decency of the Sahaba as a whole. In this manner, thanks is God's particularly, and pride is Mohammed's, his folks' and his faithful companion's, who encompassed him. As a matter of fact, the Prophet would have been killed, like many other prophets, if his folks had let him down or delivered him to chiefs of Quraish and, as a sequence, his progeny would have not suffered all those years of blockade, pains and mistreatments. By the way, I wonder where the entire Sahaba were while the Hashemites were detained in Col of Abu Talib, having from leaves of trees and their children were sucking sands due to their starvation and thirst!! It is, positively or divinely, fair to measure the detainer and the detained in the same scale? (What is the matter with you?! On which grounds are you judging?

SECOND FACE
For the following reasons, the claim of reckoning those who malign any of the Sahaba, with the miscreants, is not acceptable:
Since Islam is the last and final heavenly form of God's religion, it is presented and designed in a way enables every individual to understand it according to individual capability. Ideal understanding, however, is that fitting the legal intendment of the text so as to attain what God has exactly meant. This mission, at any rate, is not easy. It is perfectly a matter of specialization. This is why God forwards messengers with the Divine Books, and guides with the guidance. In the same way, it is the reason beyond the existence of imams and the prophets' leadership. As a result, it becomes obvious that Islam is different from our understanding of Islam which depends upon our diverse education.
Difference of opinions and variance of cognition cannot be regarded as disbelief. It is to add that there was a number of Sahaba who maligned the Prophet and criticized his justice. As an example, you may refer to Ibnul-Khuweissira's following saying: “O Mohammed! Be just. You, by God, did not seek God's satisfaction by opting for such a sort of distribution!”
The Prophet, however, did not describe him as a miscreant or a hypocrite. He only answered him with the following statement: “Woe is you! Who will be just if I am not?!”
Are the Sahaba enjoying a standing higher than the Prophet's, then? How come do you rule of ultimate decency of all of the Sahaba while the Prophet (peace be upon him and his family), the leader of mankind, says: “I am but a human. I may be right or, may be, wrong?”
Sunnis unanimously agree, or might be only showing so, that the Prophet is right, and what he has come with is right, too. As long as the Sahaba were the only persons who transferred these rights to us, they are the only witnesses on authenticity of their beliefs. Those vilifying at those Sahaba are attempting to negate the Book and the traditions we are pursuing. Those are miscreants, then. You are not allowed to share those vilifiers at any Sahabi in a meal or a drink or even perform the funeral prayer for them.
PREFATORY PERUSAL
FIRST: CONFUSION
Belief of authenticity of the Prophet, the Quran and traditions is indisputably considerable by Muslims with their various sects. In an equal degree, all of Muslims are belonging to the religion and bearing its eternal identity. The religion, however, consists of two major sections; the Prophet as a person, his sayings, deeds and signature, and the revealed Book of God. This is an unanimity among Muslims. Their discrepancy, in fact, is in their understanding of legal intendment of this religion. It is unacceptable to confuse the religion and our understanding of it. Religion is the constant center, and our understandings are variables. Our understandings are practically differing among individuals and groups. This depends upon degree of knowledgeability, capability of grasping, activity and deserting one's fancies.
Had it been effectual to impose a single understanding to a text, God would have imposed it and there have been unnecessary to pursue the unanimous agreement or, even, the understanding itself. With existence of more than a conception of a definite text, this will definitely incite individuals opting for various understandings of the same text to prove their claim of grasping the legal intendment, to re study severally for attaining a united conception since each text does have one meaning only. Any other theory will grant discrepancies and differences the mark of legality. Likewise, every sect will appoint a different path as its goal while the good of this nation is achieved only by their unification. As an addition it is to say that achievement of any understanding, other than the very one intended by God, does not flow in the good of any. The good of this nation is acquired only by gaining the very understanding meant by God and putting it into action.
It is impermissible for us to confuse our understandings with the religion in various intendments, whether good or bad. It is also inappropriate to dedicate the religion to our inferable understandings so firmly that we sentence those who disagree with us to punition. By opting for such actions we should be exceeding the area of following into that of legislation which is God's concern exclusively. The judgment of regarding individuals embracing contrary opinions as miscreant, and the decision of forbidding sharing them in food and drink, and performing the funeral prayers for their bodies, are inadmitted by religion. Such judgments are ruled as groundless punition and an aggression against others' properties. Furthermore, they are basically void and valueless.
SECOND: SUGGESTIVE WORDS
Islam is a distinct term of a definite meaning. It is:
1. Mohammed, the Prophet, as a person, his words, deeds and signature. Likewise, it is the Holy Quran with its two aspects; theory and practice. These aspects are forming the total exemplary juristic structures that God revealed to His Prophet who, in turns, explained to people. It is the divine creed intended, by Allah, to be religion of the obedient creatures. It is an idiosyncratic denotation.
2. The virtuous Sahaba who pursued the religion and acceded to the Prophet in his divine missive and establishment of the Islamic government. Neither being the religion itself nor a pillar part of it, they are mere followers.
3. The Muslims who followed and aspired to Islam. Considering them as more than followers, Muslims are not Islam itself. There is a great distance between belief and individuals embracing. The same is said about law and people and, in the same way, judges and the judged.
THIRD: PROTECTION AND COVERING UP
Benefits of Islam and Muslims is achieved by understanding the genuine intendment of the Islamic doctrine, that is exactly intended by Allah, the Elevated. Conceiving such an intendment, which is the demand of every person, requires specialization and individual talents. Unfortunately, there are some individuals who occupied others' fields and attempted, peacefully or coercively, at imposing their false conclusions on people. Furthermore, they locked the way to inspecting and searching for the true intendment, and they ruled of atheism of those who contradict them as they judged that their elicitation is the religion itself.
They, however, are not rightful to declare so since there is a great difference between religion, as a belief, and them, as individuals. It is to add that contradicting such individuals has no relation to contradiction of the religion. Opting for such a false perception is regarded as deciding the proofless choice and as an impermissive custody. This will definitely make the whole process a form of utilizing the religion for covering up and protecting a certain belief or conception.
Precisely, contrariety about the understanding of a text does not lead to apostasy of somebody or godliness of another. Such a conception is judged as a proofless preponderance and a baseless outrage. It flows only in the arteries of those who dominated the Islamic nation by discriminating them into various groups and sects using means of dishonest political trickeries. This was done by aid of the ill scholars of this nation who used to stand against consensus and unification of Muslims. It is they who used various names and attributes to the Muslims; such as unbelievers, Sunnis, Shias and the like. Even the unbelievers of the Scriptuaries disdained the naughty matters of discrimination that is detested by sound sense and pure nature. At any rate, it does show the narrow-mindedness of those opting for, and does contravene principals of Islamic fraternity and its general spirit.
The literal degree of oddity and detestability of excessive enthusiasm is recognized by God alone. In his thesis about the most authentic narrators of hadiths, At-Thehbi says:
Abu Omar Bin Abdil-Berr says: It was narrated that Mohammed Bin Weddah had said: “I sought Yahya Bin Mu'in's opinion about Ashafi'i. -Yahya Bin Mu'in is one of the most considerable scholars of evaluating narrators of hadiths and traditions whose opinion is highly taken into account and ruled as a decisive evidence-. He answered that Ashafi'i is distrustful! Regarding Ja'far Bin Mohammed As-Sadiq, except for Al-Bukhari who excluded him from the group of acceptable narrators, Abu Hatem and An-Nisa'i ruled of his authenticity.”
See how Yahya Bin Mu'in, the well known scholar, denied honesty of Ashafi'i, and how Al-Bukhari denied Imam Ja'far As-Sadiq's being among the admissible narrators, while others of less standing, were considered. Imam Ja'far As-Sadiq, however, is the chief of Ahlul-Beit Sect. He is the tutor of founders of the four schools of jurisprudence. He is the unprecedented and the most celebrated savant, from whose school four thousand students of jurisprudence and hadith were graduated. Moreover, he is the sixth Imam of the Prophet's progeny whose fathers are Mohammed, Ali Zeinul-Abidin, Al-Hussein and Ali Bin Abi Talib.
Despite all these specifications, Al-Bukhari did neither regard Imam Ja'far as one of the reliable relators nor did he rule of his authenticity! Even though they are Sahaba according to the conception of Sunnis, the Imams' narratives were ignored by Al-Bukhari.
A TOPICAL REFUTATION OF THE SAHABA'S ULTIMATE DECENCY CONCEPTION
It is a common belief among Sunnis that all of the Prophet's companions are unexceptionably decent. While this conception was invented by the dominant politicians -of that time- for a specific wicked purpose, as we are to verify sooner, they could prove to feeble people that it was a pillar part of Islam and a constant principal of this divine doctrine. They could cheat those people that he should be ruled as a miscreant and should be abandoned that who attempts to disbelieve, discuss or criticize this conception.
It is undeniable that companionship of the Prophet (peace be upon him and his family) is a remarkable honor and a high standing. According to the lexical and the terminological meaning unanimously adopted by Sunnis, all of people of the Prophet's government are included. Characteristics that defining the Prophet's companionship are:
1. Meeting the Prophet (peace be upon him and his family).
2. Declaring true believing in his message. This characteristic can easily be gotten by the hypocrites, like those who spared no efforts for fighting Islam, but they declared their being Muslims when they had been fully surrounded and when the entire doors had been locked in their faces except that of Islam. God, however, alone knows the real intents.
3. Keeping on this state till death.
Those faithful believers, the ostentatious hypocrites and the unbelievers were not of the same degree so that we can ruled of their equal decency! As a matter of fact, among them there were those who showed their Islam while they were hiding disbelief and defiance. Those are the group of the Muslim hypocrites who lived with and after the Prophet (peace be upon him and his family).
The Holy Quran divulged constancy on hypocrisy, treason, mendacity, dishonesty, prevarication, planning for rebellion, hurting the Prophet and disobedience of such individuals.
Beginning with expansion of the Islamic state, elevation of the Prophet's pennon, domination all over the Arabia, mastery over the entire people, perfection of the religion and crowning of God's grace till the Prophet's decease, situations of that faction of hypocrites showed no change at all, whereas the other Muslims were of discrepant standings in believing and sacrificing.
THE WONDER OF WONDERS
With or without political introductories, the entire individuals of the Prophet's state became Sahaba! They, as a whole, did see, or were seen by, the Prophet. They believed faithfully or ostentatiously in him and kept on such a believing to the end of their life. This conception, nevertheless, was invented in the Umayid reign before the extinction of generation of Sahaba. This is to mean that they ruled of the decency before waiting for the end!
In this manner, this mentioned conception is basically annulled.
ASPECT OF ANNULMENT
1. This conception opposes categorical Quranic texts.
2. This conception opposes traditions of the Prophet (peace be upon him and his family) in their three aspects; words, deeds and signature.
3. This conception opposes actuality.
4. This conception opposes general spirit of Islam, concept of the unforeseen end result and concept of cause finale.
EXPATIATING AND PROVING ASPECTS OF ANNULMENT
I. THE CONCEPTION OPPOSES CATEGORICAL QURANIC TEXTS.
MANIFESTATION OF HYPOCRISY
Hypocrisy was prevalently manifested during the Prophet's age. The hypocrites were forming a considerable tangible power. They are a group of people who showed their believing in the Prophet's message and admitting, by words, the two creeds of Islam besides the very statements frequently repeated by Muslims. By uttering so, they were aiming at deceiving and mocking at Muslims. God says: (And these are some people who says, We believe in Allah and the last day and they are not at all believers. They desire to deceive Allah and those who believe, and they deceive only themselves and they do not perceive.)
Manifestation of hypocrisy included deeds also. The hypocrites were performing prayers, giving alms, providing convincing excuses as they were withdrawing from battles of Islam and repeating their claims of being believers.
Sooner or later, conducts reflect substance of beliefs. Yet, intents are God's concern lonlily. The Prophet (peace be upon him and his family) who is, as a norm, kind, merciful and highly polite as he is the ideal of perfect human, is to deal with individuals according to their appearances and outwards conducts, entrusting intents to Allah. When they exceeded limits, the Holy Quranic Verses began to disclose the real peculiarities of such a group. The following is a number of such Verses:
(And they are not all believers. They desire to deceive Allah and those who believe.) (And when they are alone with their Shaitan they say: surely we are with you, we were only mocking.) (And they do not come to prayer but while they are sluggish, and they do not depend but while they are unwilling.) (And if they intended to go forth they would certainly have provided equipment for it, but Allah did not like their going forth, so He withheld them, and it was said to them: Hold back with these who hold back. Had they gone forth with you, they would not have added to you aught save corruption, and they would certainly have hurried about among you seeking dissension among you, and among you there are those who hear for their sake; and Allah knows the unjust.) (And they swear by Allah that they are most surely of you, and they are not of you, but they are a people who are afraid -of you-.) (And among them there is he who says: allow me and do not try me, Surely into trial have they already tumbled down, and most surely hell encompasses the unbelievers.)
CATEGORICAL DIVINE JUDGMENT
As God uncovered their realities and bared their intendments, He issued His just ordinance fitting their grave offenses of lying to people and God. In Addition, God enjoined His Prophet informing them of contents, recitals and causes of this divine judgment: (Say: Spend willingly or unwillingly it shall not be accepted from you.)
What for is this decision? This was by reason that they had been deceiving God and those who believed in Him, and their claims had been false and aimed for mocking. As a result, they disbelieved in God and His Messenger in spite of their claims.
As to his responsibility, the Prophet (peace be upon him and his family) declared this divine judgment without neglecting its causes and recitals. Consequently, he put such facts before everybody's eyes.
Nevertheless, the Prophet, as to his perceptible nature, went on seeking God's forgiveness and guidance to the right path for such individuals. Evidently, God answered: (Ask forgiveness for them or do not ask forgiveness for them; even if you ask forgiveness for them seventy times, Allah will not forgive them; this is because they disbelieve in Allah and His Apostle, and Allah does not guide the transgressing people.)
EXAMPLES OF CONTRADICTION BETWEEN THE HOLY QURAN AND THE SAHABA'S ULTIMATE DECENCY CONCEPTION
The first example is God's saying: (And there are those of them who made a covenant with Allah; if he give us out of His grace, we will certainly give alms and we will certainly be of the good. But when He gave then out of His grace, they became niggardly of it and they turned back and they withdrew. So He made hypocrisy to follow as a consequence into their hearts till the day when they shell meet Him because they failed to perform towards Allah what they had promised with Him and because they told lies.)
This is concerning the story of Tha'laba, the destitute Sahabi, who implored the Prophet (peace be upon him and his family) to seek God's bestowing him a considerable fortune. The story goes on in this form: “Woe is you, Tha'laba!” said the Prophet, “A thankful scantiness is better than an unbearable plenitude.” “By Him Who messaged you with the Truth I swear,” Tha'laba asserted, “I will settle the whole rights.”
The Prophet (peace be upon him and his family) supplicated God to bestow Tha'laba. Hence, the man was greatly enriched. Unwillingly, Tha'laba resisted the Prophet's demand and refrained from defraying the poor rate imposed on every wealthy Muslim. His excuse was that he had regarded the poor rate as tributes that he was not to pay. Without receiving Tha'laba's taxable sums, the Prophet (peace be upon him and his family) was deceased. Abu Bakr, Omar and Othman, during whose reign Tha'laba was deceased, rejected receiving his poor rates.
The second example is God's saying: (Is he then who is a believer like him who is a transgressor? They are not equal. As for those who believe and do good, the gardens are their abiding place; an entertainment for what they did. And as for these who transgress their abode is the fire; whenever they desire to go forth from it they shall be brought back into it, and it will be said to them, taste the chastisement of the fire which you called a lie.)
The believer, in the above Verses, is, dedicately, Ali Bin Abi Talib, while the transgressor is Al-Waleed Bin Aqaba. It is worth to mention that this (transgressor) became Othman's governor of Kufa and Muawiya's governor of Al-Madina.
The third example is God's saying: (And who is more unjust than he who forges a lie against Allah and he is invited to Islam, and Allah does not guide the unjust people.)
This Verse was reveled for the case of Abdullah Bin Abi Sarh, the governor of Egypt in the reign of Othman. He forged lies against Allah. As a result, the Prophet (peace be upon him and his family) judged of shedding his blood in impunity and going unrevenged even if he hangs to curtains of Ka'ba. This report is quoted by the Shafi'ite author of As-Seeretul-Halabiyyeh, Section: Conquest of Mecca. The author adds that Othman led him seeking the Prophet's securing him. That was on the day of the conquest of Mecca. By keeping silence, the Prophet (peace be upon him and his family) anticipated that the man would be killed by somebody. Eventually, he had to grant secure to the man as he recognized that none would kill him.
EXPLICATION OF THE EXAMPLES
1. GOD'S JUDGMENT IN THE THREE INDIVIDUALS
In the First example God rules of hypocrisy of Tha'laba's intendment.
In the second example God explicates that Al-Waleed Bin Aqaba is a transgressor who shall be certainly sent to where he shall never find any other choice or an exit.
In the third example God points out that Abdullah Bin Abi Sarh has forged lies against Allah and attempts to contort God's Book. He is, then, the most unjust. In addition, God shows that this individual shall be never following the true path since God shall not guide the unjust.
2. SUNNIS' JUDGMENT RESPECTING THE THREE
These three individuals are reckoned with Sahaba considering they are meeting qualifications of Sahaba lexically and terminologically. On that account, they are such decent persons that it is inapt for them to fabricate at all and they are ruled as honest who shall certainly be sent to the Paradise and none of them shall see the Hell. These matters are fortified by the facts that Abdullah Bin Abi Sarh had been Othman's governor of Egypt and one of his close viziers. The same is said about Al-Waleed Bin Aqaba who was the governor of Kufa who had performed the Fajr Prayer with four Rak'as -units of prayer- and showed his readiness to add any number according to desires of his followers. He was Othman's vizier and Muawiya's governor of Al-Madina. In due course, he shall be decided as a miscreant, that is forbidden from being shared in a food or a drink or prayed for his dead body, that whoever asperses any of those three individuals!!
Forthrightly, which one is to be believed? Is it God's Book and judgment, or is it partisan pursuance? From this cause, the Sahaba's ultimate decency conception is topically nullified because of its being paradoxical to decisive Quranic texts. Generalization of the ultimate decency of the Sahaba, as a whole, opposes and counteract the divine doctrines.
II. THE CONCEPTION OPPOSES THE PROPHET'S TRADITIONS
The first example is Thuthedyeh. He was one of the pious Sahaba, whose godliness and saintliness were admiring people. The Prophet (peace be upon him and his family), however, described him as “a man with a face of Satanic traces.” Abu Bakr and Omar were sent by the Prophet for killing that man, but they did not do it as they found him in a state of praying. Imam Ali, then, was charged for the mission. The man had left the place just before the arrival of Imam Ali. Thus, he survived.
This man was the leader of the Kharijites in battle of Nahrawan. At any rate, the man was killed by Imam Ali during that battle.
The second example is that group of Sahaba who used to meet in a house for driving people against the Prophet (peace be upon him and his family). Pursuant to the Prophet's orders, the house was put on fire while they were in.
The third example is Qazman Bin Al-Harth. This man fought remarkably in the line of Muslims. Before the Prophet (peace be upon him and his family), attendants mentioned Qazman's courage and great role in the battle. “Indeed, he shall be in the Hell.” commented the Prophet (peace be upon him and his family). Qazman was dying due to heavy stabs when some Muslims congratulated him for he should be in the Paradise very soon. “Is it not that Paradise of harmaline?” mimed Qazman, “I swear I fought only for the sake of the worldly benefits!”
The fourth example is Al-Hakam Bin Al-Aas Bin Umaya Bin Abd Shams, uncle of Othman Bin Affan and father of Marwan Bin Al-Hakam.
The Prophet (peace be upon him and his family) cursed this individual and his progeny; “My people shall be countering anguishes on the hands of this one's progeny.”
It is related that A'isheh addressed at Marwan: “I do attest that God's messenger did curse your father while you were in his back.”
Al-Hakam was banished to Marj, a village near At-Ta'if, and prevented from entering Al-Madina city. Abu Bakr, in the same way, rejected his request of visiting Al-Madina. Othman mediated at Omar, the caliph, to let him in Al-Madina anew. The caliph rejected strictly. Having come to power, Othman canceled the Prophet's decision of the banishment. Hence, the man entered Al-Madina with full honor and dignity. Besides, he was gifted one hundred thousand dirhams. Marwan, this man's son, was assigned as secretary of the caliph. This was the main cause of eruption of the revolution against the caliph which led to his assassination and to devastation of the regime of caliphate. It is to add that Marwan had been called ‘a thread of the wrong.’
A poet used this name when he said:
To Allah I complain against a people took a thread of the wrong as their leader..
The fifth example is (Those who built a mosque to cause harm and for unbelief and to cause disunion among the believers.) Those twelve individuals, who are reckoned with Sahaba despite their hypocrisy, declared that the aim before establishing that mosque had been seeking God's favor.
The sixth example is a number of Sahaba who had been declaratorily cursed by the Prophet (peace be upon him and his family). Al-Halabi mentions that the Prophet (peace be upon him and his family), for a considerable period, cursed some persons.
Al-Bukhari relates the following:
Salim, his father:
After reciting the statement of the last ritual genuflection of Fajr prayer, I, frequently, heard the Prophet (peace be upon him and his family) curse some names.
As-Suyouti relates:
Ahmed, Al-Bukhari, At-Tirmithi, An-Nisa'i, Ibn Jarir and Al-Beihaqi -in his Dela'ilun-Nubuwweh- record the following narrative:
Ibn Omar related: “On the day of battle of Uhud, the Prophet (peace be upon him and his family) cursed Abu Sufian, Al-Harth Bin Husham, Suheil Bin Amr and Safwan Bin Umaya.”
At-Tirmithi, who ruled of authenticity of the following narrative, Ibn Jarir and Ibn Abi Hatem write down the following narrative:
Ibn Omar related: “The Prophet (peace be upon him and his family) was wont to supplicate God against four individuals. In his Fajr prayers, he used to supplicate God to curse certain names.”
Nasr Bin Muzahim Al-Minqari records:
Abdul-Gheffar Bin Al-Qasim, Edi Bin Thabit, Al-Bera Bin Azib:
Abu Sufian and Muawiya were approaching when the Prophet (peace be upon him and his family) pointed at them and said: “O Allah! Curse the follower and the followed. O Allah! Take charge of the uneven-bodied.”
The uneven- bodied is Muawiya.
Nasr, Ali Bin Al-Aqmur records:
...The Prophet's sights fell on Abu Sufian who was riding a pack animal while Muawiya and his brother were driving and leading the animal, and said: “O Allah! Curse the rider, the driver and the leader.”
Another evidence is Mohammed Bin Abi Bakr's missive to Muawiya. The following is an excerpt of that missive:
“I saw you attempt to liken him -Ali Bin Abi Talib- and you are what we know, and he is what we know. He is the most well-meaning, father of the best progeny, husband of the finest wife and cousin of the most honorable man. He is brother of that self-sacrificer on the day of Mu'teh. He is nephew of master of martyrs on the day of Uhud. He is son of the protector of the Prophet and his group. While you are the cursed and son of the cursed. Continuously, your father and you have been waylaying the Prophet and sparing no efforts for darkening God's light. For so you have been allying the arrays, spending fortunes and instigating tribes against him. On this state, your father was deceased. You did succeed him.)
In spite of his expressive reply to this missive, Muawiya neither denied his father's being cursed nor did he deny his.
A SOLICITATION TO SCRUTINIZING THE EXAMPLES
All the six previous examples related to the Prophet (peace be upon him and his family) are contradictory to the Sahaba's ultimate decency conception. It is rational that the condemned and sentenced to death, by the Prophet, are not decent. In a like manner, those the Prophet flamed their house while they were in are not decent. Those who mock at the Paradise and fight for the sake of spoils are not decent. As well, those who are cursed, along with their progenies, by the Prophet are not decent. Those who built a mosque for the sake of harm are not decent. Ruling of decency of the previous individuals is opposite to the Prophet's holy traditions. While the blind followers posit decency of such individuals without referring to their senses, the Prophet's tradition abjure it. Which is to be believed; the Prophet's traditions or the blind followers?!
Decency of the virtuous Sahaba is unanimously acceptable. The real disagreement exists in conception of generalizing such a decency, that is thoroughly contrary to the Prophet's traditions.
THE CONCEPTION IS CONTRADICTORY TO ACTUALITY
The first example: Muawiya acquired declaration of fealty, as a caliph, by means of massacring, destroying, searing and reviling at the Prophet's supporters. He misused the Muslims' fortunes he had amassed during the twenty year dominion of Syria for the aim of fortifying his authorities. He invented an income distributed on the military at the nomination of a new caliph.
This trend became indisputably obvious after Muawiya's proposing his son, Yazeed the notorious lascivious and ill-mannered, as the caliph, in addition to the coercive procedures of acquiring people's declaration of allegiance.
The second example: Muawiya Bin Abi Sufian advised his son, Yazeed, to opt for Muslim Bin Aqaba for quelling any probable rebellion in Al-Madina. Muslim Bin Aqaba kept a list containing names of the most immaculate Sahaba, so that he would not miss any. In the centre of the Prophet's capital, Muslim perpetrated the most outrageous crimes. Marwan was the commander while Muslim and his militaries were the executors. Besides the merciless executions, results of this operation advised by Muawiya, can be counted in the following points:
1. The whole warriors of Badr were terminated.
2. Seventy men from people of Quraish and the Ansar were killed.
3. Ten thousand individuals from the Arab and the non Arab were killed.
These were incidents of Al-Harra encounter that occurred in 63 A.H. Abdullah Bin Omar, who had been withdrawing from the continuous conflict between Ali and Muawiya, declared the saying which was changed, afterward, into an institutional rule; “We are with the controlling.”
The third example: Muawiya assigned Bisr Bin Arta'a as the commander of three thousand soldiers and ordered him of acquiring fealty declaration of people of Al-Madina, Mecca and Yemen. It was the year 40 when Bisr ascended the pulpit and menaced people of Al-Madina with killing if they would reject declaring fealty to Muawiya. After having finished his mission in Mecca, Bisr advanced towards Yemen. As he could not find Ubeidullah Bin Abbas, the governor of Yemen, Bisr killed Abdurrahman and Al-Qasim, the two young children of Ubeidullah, and their maternal uncle. Bisr perpetrated heavy massacres in Al-Madina, between the two mosques, Al-Jawf and San'a. He killed every man descried as acceding to Ali Bin Abi Talib.
Juweiriyeh, the mother of the two young children killed by Bisr, used to circumambulate around her house with her hair dispersed, and eulogize her two children with excessively expressive words.
The fourth example: It is related that Ja'deh Bint Al-Ash'ath Bin Qeis killed her husband, Al-Hassan Bin Ali, with poison she had taken from Muawiya. The incentive beyond her ill deed was that Muawiya had promised her with one hundred thousand dirhams and selecting her as his son's wife. After the decease of Al-Hassan due to poisoning, Muawiya sent the sum he had promised Ja'deh of, but he broke the other promise saying: “We will chose you as our son's wife unless we do want him to live!”
It is related that during his dying, Al-Hassan said: “He, Muawiya, did achieve his goal; but he shall never make his words nor shall he fulfill his promise.“
Al-Abbas Bin Abdil-Muttelib related:
I was with the Prophet (peace be upon him and his family) when he smiled in the face of Ali Bin Abi Talib while he was approaching. As I sought an explanation, the Prophet (peace be upon him and his family) said: “O the Prophet's uncle! I do assert that Allah does love this man more than I do. The prophet's progenies are their sons. Mine is Ali's.”
People of Syria elected Abdurrahman Bin Khalid Bin Al-Waleed as Muawiya's successor. This was the reason beyond Muawiya's poisoning him. The same thing was done to Abdurrahman Bin Abi Bakr.
The fifth Example: The Grand Beatitude:
Mohammed Bin Jarir At-Tabarani, Mohammed Bin Hameed Ar-Razi, Ali Bin Mujahid, Mohammed Bin Isaaq, Al-Fadhl Bin Rabee'a:
Abdullah Bin Al-Abbas related:
I was in the mosque when I heard Muawiya recite ‘Allahu Akbar’ declaratorily. Responding this declaration, people encompassing him, recited the same statement. When people of the mosque heard so, they participated. From her place, Fakhiteh Bint Qaraza Bin Amr Bin Nawfel Bin Abd Menaf went out and wondered: “God may please you, Ameerul-Mu'mineen! What is this news that made you so jovial?” “It is the decease of Al-Hassan Bin Ali.” answered Muawiya. She was highly touched; therefore, she wept and cried: “The master of Muslims and the son of the Prophet is dead.” “The best thing you are doing.” said Muawiya, “ He was certainly as exactly as you have described.”
As soon as I was informed of the news I hurried up to Muawiya. “O son of Al-Abbas! Have you been informed of the news of Al-Hassan Bin Ali's death?” he asked. “Yes, I have. Did you recite ‘Allahu Akbar’ for this very reason?” I wondered. “Yes, it was.” Muawiya affirmed.
The sixth example: The troops led by Amr Bin Sa'd Bin Abi Waqqas, the Sahabi, advanced.. Because of the heavy numbers of troops surrounding Al-Hussein (peace be upon him), he had to fight them since he was sure he would not find an exit. He fought to death. A man from people of Mithaj decapitated Al-Hussein and took his head to Ubeidullah Bin Ziyad seeking the prize of killing that ‘deferential celebrity, son of the most honorable father and mother’ as the killer admits.
Al-Belathiri, in his Ansabul-Ashraf, relates that in addition to their robbing the apparel of Al-Hussein, the killed, horsemen executed the command of Omar Bin Sa'd, the Sahabi, of treading Al-Hussein's chest with their horses. Isaaq Bin Hubeira Al-Hadhrami and his group were mandated for this operation. Thus, they trod Al-Hussein's dead body. After having terminated the offspring of Mohammed, intercepting them from having from the near at hand River Euphrates, from which even dogs drink, Omar Bin Sa'd Bin Abi Waqqas and his troops came back bearing triumph.
The seventh example: During his meeting Muawiya, Imam Al-Hassan addressed at people of Kufa: “Saving your three acts that I can never disregard; your killing my father, robbing my gear and stabbing me in the abdomen, I would be careless for you. Thereupon I declare fealty to Muawiya.”
This occurred after he (peace be upon him) had led a twelve thousand fighter army and camped in Al-Meda'in. Aback, some of his warriors robbed his luggage and gave him up. In addition, some attempted to enchain Imam Hassan and take to Muawiya. Some, however, aimed at killing him.
EXPLICATION OF THE EXAMPLES
Massacres, destruction, flaming, terminating the warriors of -the battle of- Badr, killing eleven thousand Muslims of the capital, Al-Madina, in a single day; all these are matters contradictory to decency.
In a like manner, murdering young children and executing every one showing, even surmisingly, Ali's affection are matters opposing claim of decency.
Correspondingly, poisoning Al-Hassan, killing Al-Hussein, truding his chest with horses, terminating Mohammed's progeny and depriving them of drinking are matters violating claim of decency.
Besides others, occurrence of such matters repeals claims of those who rule of the ultimate decency of Sahaba as a whole. It repeals, likewise, their claim of the Sahaba's being in the Paradise and being saved from the Hell. Adopting for such a claim leads to the existence of rewarding those who perpetrated actions illegalized by Allah.
Actions like poisoning Imam Al-Hassan, killing Imam Al-Hussein and terminating the Prophet's progeny and companions cannot be regarded but an aggression. It cannot be decided as a sort of Ijtihad - doing the best for gaining an acceptable manner- under any circumstances. It is logically, religiously, justifiably and topically impossible to reckon perpetrators of such murders with the decent. Any commander, even paganists, will elevatedly evade committing such crimes of killing young children in the absence of their father, like that perpetrated by Bisr Bin Arta'a. As a matter of fact, existence or absence of two young children should never affect authority of Muawiya. It is, by all means, a savage unreasonable deed. Is it, then, rational that the perpetrator of such a misdeed is reckoned with the decent? It is rational that the perpetrator of such a misdeed shall be certainly in the Paradise?
As to partisan pursuance, any strange matter is acceptable. It is, however, unacceptable in accordance to laws of the infallible Divine Doctrine.
Thus, actuality, together with incidents occurred after the Prophet's decease, does perfectly repeal the Sahaba's ultimate decency conception. Occurrences are contradictory to the conception which had been established, as we shall see, only for certain political purposes, including covering up transgression against legality and the illegal transference of power. God, however, is the Prevalent. People pursued each other in respect to this conception till it became as same as transference of fashions.
THE SAHABA'S ULTIMATE DECENCY CONCEPTION OPPOSES THE GENERAL SPIRIT OF ISLAM, CONCEPT OF THE UNFORESEEN END RESULT AND CONCEPT OF CAUSE FINALE.
Indeed the Almighty Allah has created life, death, the earth and what is all over it, only for the purpose of discerning the best doers. This is shown in God's saying: (Surely We have made whatever is on the earth an embellishment for it, so that We may try them as to which of them is best in works.) (He Who created death and life that He may try you -which of you is best in deeds.)
Consequently, This life is existed as a field of testing the creatures. This field is composed of every element in this life. Process of testing commences with the mandate connected to the intellectual discernibility and ends at death. Considering all of Sahaba are ultimately decent, infallible, honest and that they shall certainly be in the Paradise and none of them shall be in the Hell, means that they, as a whole, are out of process of mundane testing. This is indisputably opposite to the cause finale of their existence. Reciprocally, this will lead to the cessation of process of the divine testing.
Furthermore, this is opposite to the general spirit of Islam since God says: (I swear by the Asr. Most surely man is in loss. Except those who believe and do good, and enjoin on each other truth, and enjoin on each other patience.)
The providence of Muslims is committing to God's commands till doom. Any error occurs to such a commitment should result in being out of realm of Islam and, also, drawing God's ire that is invariable according to sort of errors. The criterion is taken from the end result.
Providing that a Muslim apostatizes only at the last day of his life, honesty and faithfulness of his entire previous life shall be valueless. Due to God's mercy and grace, the Prophet (peace be upon him and his family) does realize the morrow. On that account, he (peace be upon him and his family) addressed at the believers in his last (Farewell) Pilgrimage: “After me, turn not into disbelieving, decapitating each other!” This statement is addressed at Sahaba, in both terminological and lexical meanings.
The following are narratives respecting this meaning:
* Al-Bukhari: Ibn Abbas:
The Prophet (peace be upon him and his family) said: “You shall be resuscitated -on the Doomsday- barefooted and naked. Some from among my companions shall be taken to the right and to the left. Then, I will say: ‘They are certainly my companions.’ I will be answered: ‘They kept on apostasy from the moment you departed them.’ Thereupon I will repeat the words of that virtuous slave -of God-: (I was a witness on them so long I was among them.)”
* The same narrative is recorded by Muslim in the following form:
The Prophet (peace be upon him and his family) said: “Individuals from among my companions shall be proceeding towards me. As soon as I realize them they will be intercepted from me. I, then, will say: ‘They are my companions.’ I will be answered: ‘You do not know what they did after you.’”
* Al-Bukhari:
The Prophet (peace be upon him and his family) said: “-On the Doomsday- While I will be standing erect, a group of people will be advancing towards me. When I realize them, a man comes out between them and me and lead to the hell-fire. I will ask about the reason, and I will be answered: ‘They apostatized and turned to their backs just after you.’ Saving very few of them, none will be saved.”
* As to another narrative recorded by Al-Bukhari:
The Prophet (peace be upon him and his family) related: “On the Resurrection Day, a crowd from my companions will be advancing towards me when they shall be intercepted from having from my Pool. Then, I shall say: ‘O Lord! These are my companions.’ I will be answered: ‘You do lack knowledge of what they did after you. They apostatized and turned to their backs.’”
* Sahl Bin Sa'd relates:
The Prophet (peace be upon him and his family) says: “Peoples I do realize as same as they do realize me, shall be intercepted from keeping advancing towards me.”
An-Nu'man Bin Eyash testifies that he heard Abu Sa'eed Al-Khidri add the following statements to the same saying: “I will say: ‘They are within my people.’ I will be answered: ‘You do not know what they did after you.’ Thereupon, I will say: ‘Remote be those who altered after me.’”
* Ibn Abbas
“..People from among my companions shall be taken to the left. I will say: ‘They are my companions. They are my companions.’ I will be answered: ‘Since you departed them, they kept on apostatizing.’”
* The same is recorded by Abu Ya'qub in his Musned Omar.
* Al-Bukhari, in Chapter: Al-Hudeibiyeh Battle, writes down: Al-Ala Bin Al-Museyyeb, his father:
“Congratulations! You accompanied the Prophet (peace be upon him and his family) and declared fealty to him under that tree.” I said to Al-Bera Bin Azib. He answered: “O my brother's son! You do not know what heresies we contrived after him!”
* Al-Bukhari: Abdullah:
The Prophet (peace be upon him and his family) said: “-On the Resurrection Day- I will be preceding you to the Pool. Some of you shall be certainly driven away from me. I will say: ‘O Lord! They are my companions.’ He shall answer: ‘You do not know what they did after you!’”
* Al-Bukhari: Asma Bint Abi Bakr:
The Prophet (peace be upon him and his family) said: “I will be standing to the Pool so that I will see who advances towards me from among you. Some peoples will be driven away from me. ‘O Lord! They are with me and within my people!’ I will be saying. I, then, will be answered: ‘Do you cognize what they did after you? They went on returning to their backs!’”
Ibn Melika used to supplicate: “O Allah! We do seek your protection against turning to our backs and being tested in our religion.”
These are a part of what is recorded in books of Muslim and Al-Bukhari about the subject. Evading elaboration, we neglected mentioning the plenteous narratives appertained.
EXPLICATION OF THE ABOVE TEXTS
From the above texts of the Prophet (peace be upon him and his family), it is proved that a number of Sahaba shall be altering his norms and turning to their backs and, consequently, sent to the hell-fire. Muslim and Al-Bukhari, whom are considered, by those who embrace the Sahaba's ultimate decency conception, as the most authentic and respectful after the Holy Quran, are among the hadithists who recorded such narratives. How should we, then, correspond between the Sahaba's ultimate decency conception and being unquestionably sent to the Paradise, and such decisive continuously related texts of the Prophet (peace be upon him and his family) that are, in addition, supported by actuality?
As long as it is impracticable to harmonize between the conception and these texts, the earlier will be regarded as null. Likewise, it opposes the cause finale which is, the testing, and the spirit of Islam that is binding the upright life to the good deeds and continuity of enjoining each other of truth and toleration. This courses should be crowned only by the satisfactory end result.
INCOHERENCE OF THE CONCEPTION
In his Sharhu Nahjil-Belagheh, Ibn Abil-Hadid records:
Ibn Arafa, the well named 'Naftawayih', who is one of the most considerable hadithists, says:
“Most of sayings reckoned with the Prophet's traditions, that are appertained to excellencies of Sahaba, had been deceitfully intrigued in the Umayid reign. It was purposed for seeking those rulers' favors, considering such acts as an effort for subjecting the Hashemites. These lies were patterned in such a compiled form that it deems every Sahabi as the most virtuous exemplar of mankind. Besides, such sayings bring all sorts of virulence to those who malign or misthink of any of them. In this manner, the following is related to Anas Bin Malik: “He whoever reviles at any of my companions is cursed by Allah, the angels and people entirely. You are not to share -in a food or drink- those whoever malign or impute dishonor to any of Sahaba. You are not to perform the ritual funeral prayer for such individuals.” Many a narratives were related in this style without showing any difference between the Prophet's companions.
REMARKS
Regarding the God’s devotee, brother of God's messenger, chief of the Prophet's household, door to the city of Divine knowledge; Ali Bin Abi Talib, all these specifications are through categorical Divine texts. He is, furthermore, a Sahabi like others. What is, then, the judgment appertained to those who malign and impose his continuous defaming on people all over the Islamic state? What is the judgement respecting those who carried on such a decision issued by Muawiya? Will they be included in the previous narrative?
In addition, Muawiya, as he was advised by some to avoid maligning Ali Bin Abi Talib and his associates, said: “Nay, by God. I will never stop maligning and reviling at him so that children will be grown up on such a manner, and the middle-aged will become old on it!”
Muawiya gifted Samara Bin Jundub, the Sahabi, five thousand dirhams in place of forging misrepresentatively that the Prophet (peace be upon him and his family) had informed of Ali Bin Abi Talib's having been the one intended in God's saying: (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.)
In a like manner, Samara was gifted a bribe for publicizing the fib that Abdurrahman Bin Muljim, Ali's killer, had been the one intended in God's saying: (And among men is he who sells himself to seek the pleasure of Allah; and Allah is Affectionate to the servants.)
What for does this conception discriminate Sahaba? What for is it applied to some and neglect others of the same class?! No single sane can negate the fact that authorities of Muawiya's regime betook maligning and reviling at Ali as an action imposed on the entire people who, in any case, will undergo a part of this sin!!
THE SAHABA'S ROLE IN LEGISLATION
In their epoch, the Sahaba and the first class of followers were not more than reporters of the Prophet's words and deeds. In epochs of plurality of sects, the Sahaba's opinions were betaken as a part of the Prophet's traditions. Hence, the Sahaba's opinions were regarded as a third source of legislation in case that a judgment of an incident cannot be inferred from the Quran and the Prophet's traditions.
It seems that founders and scholars of the Hanafite, the Malikite and the Hanbalite sects are more fanatic, in this regard, than the Shafi'ites.
Despite the fact that he was favoring and enthusing over principal of analogy, Abu Hanifa was wont to precede the Sahaba's opinions when contrasted with other items of jurisprudence. It is narrated that he said: “I will refer to the Sahaba's opinions if I lack the ability to infer from the Quran and the Prophet's traditions. In case there are different opinions of different Sahaba, I will take from any indiscriminately in order not to neglect their opinions and opt for the followers'.”
In his A'lamul-Muwaqqi'in, Ibnul-Qeyyim mentions the following:
“For imam Ahmed, sources of legislation are five: texts, Shaba's verdicts...”
The Hahafites and the Henbelites ruled of allocating the Quran's judgments to the Sahaba's deeds. This is for the reason that Sahaba would not neglect applying the Quran's judgments unless they had an evidence. Hence, whenever the Sahaba contradicted the Quran, this item must have been allocated for a specific state or manner. The Sahaba's deeds, however, are as same as their words.
It is a great remoteness between this conception adopted by Sunnis and Shias' ruling of impermissibility of referring to the Prophet's traditions, in field of legislation, unless when supported by a single Verse, at least, of the Holy Quran. They believe in the fact that the Quran is including the entire subjects; (Explaining clearly everything.) Likewise, the Quran was revealed in the tongue of the Arab that everyone can comprehend, while the Prophet's traditions were related by individuals so ordinary that they may say truth or lie.
Back the Sunni sects, they sometimes reject each other's narratives and adopted their own inference. Their disagreement reached climax when they accused each other of illegality to the degree that they ruled of legality of killing the other sects' followers.
For Sunnis, words, deeds and opinions of Sahaba are one the most perceptible sources of legislation after the Quran. As if the Sahaba's opinions are immaculately true that are revealed from the Heavens, they used to allocate the generic rules and generalize the allocate rules of the Holy Quran according to such opinions. It is well recognizable that such pictures of exaggeration in sanctifying the Sahaba are indifferent from principal of sinlessness. In this manner, this sanctification is too extensive to defer hypocrites and polytheists who showed their being Muslims coercively.
At the same epoch, this form of sanctifying the Sahaba was created and directed for conflicting jurisprudence, legislation and rites of the Prophet's household sect; the Shi'a, whose course, representing the true Islam in its entire stages and echelons, is as exactly as what they had inherited from Ali, the door to city of Divine knowledge. The twelve Imams used to say: “Whatever we say is coinciding the Holy Book of Allah. You are to disdain every word imputed to us while it is contradicting the Holy Book of Allah.”
THE SAHABA'S ULTIMATE DECENCY CONCEPTION AT SHIAS
1. Shias' acceding to the Sahaba:
Seyid Murteza Ar-Razawi says: “Shias accede to Mohammed's companions who did their best for the sake of supporting this religion and strove with their souls and wealth. Accusing Shias of maligning and regarding the entire companions of the Prophet (peace be upon him and his family) as apostates, is null and void. It is to rule of such an incorrect accusal as an informing of an unforeseen matter. It is resulted from subjection to fanaticism and sectarian extremism. Finally, it is a matter stemmed from seeking illusions and falsities.”
2. For Shias, who are the Sahaba?
All those who accompanied, saw or heard from the prophet (peace be upon him and his family) are included in the term of Sahaba. This is to mean that believers, hypocrites, the decent, the dishonest...etc., are included. The mere companionship of the Prophet (peace be upon him and his family) is not a matter that protects against misguidance or indecency. Ranks and standings of the Prophet's companions are to be measured pursuant to individual acts and conduct. There are adequate evidences on our claim inferred from the Holy Quran and the Prophet's traditions. Besides, events are good witness of our trend of comprehensiveness of the Prophet's companionship and variant standings of such companions among whom there are the decent, who attested their covenant to God, fastened their feet in the Doctrine, made the belief flow in their arteries and acted sincerely to God. Such companions could attain the acme of perfection. They are described, by Allah, in the following Verse:
(Mohammed is the Apostle of Allah, and those with him are firm of heart against the unbelievers, compassionate among themselves -each other-; you will see them bowing down, prostrating themselves, seeking grace from Allah and pleasure; their marks are in their faces because of the effect of prostration; that is their description in the Tavrat -Torah- and their description in the Injeel -Bible- like as seed produce that puts forth its sprout, then strengthens it, so it becomes stout and stands firmly on its stem, delight on the sowers that He may enrage the unbelievers on account of them; Allah has promised those among them who believe and do good, forgiveness and a great rewards.)
Surely they are the true believers; (The believers are only those who believe in Allah and His Apostle then they doubt not and struggle hard with their wealth and their lives in the way of Allah; they are the truthful ones.)
God issued ordinance of following and pursuing such true believers; (O you who believe! Be careful of (your duty to) Allah and be with the true ones.)
It is those who are the decent companions of Mohammed (peace be upon him and his family), as Shias believe.
Shias push themselves in the midst of debate on conducts of the aberrant Sahaba by means of free conviction. Each is measured according to his deeds. Shias never respect those who oppose God and His messenger. They declare their repudiation from those who betook their oaths as a protection against their acts of occluding others from taking path of God. Adopting this style, Shias are not contradictory to the Holy Book of Allah, the Prophet's traditions and the virtuous predecessors, in matter of discriminating the Sahaba.
3. The basic difference point:
Sunnis rule of decency of the entire Sahaba, according to both terminological and lexical meaning of this word. Shias rule of decency of those who were described as decent from among the Prophet's companions.
4. The Shias' supplication for Mohammed's companions:
The most decisive evidence on Shias' sincere loyalty and allegiance to the Prophet's companions is their famous supplication they have inherited from their Imams. They supplicate God for the benefit of the entire followers of apostles of God, and for Mohammed's companions especially.
5. The most well memorized supplication of the Shiite:
In the well known As-Sahifa As-Sajjadiya, Imam Zeinul-Abidin renders this famous supplication:
Blessings upon the Followers of, and Attesters to, the Messengers: O God, as for the followers of the messengers and those of the people of the earth Who attested to them unseen (while the obstinate resisted them through crying lies). They yearned for the emissaries through the realities of faith, in every era and time in which Thou didn't send a messenger and set up for the people a director from the period of Adam down to Mohammed (God bless him and his Household) from among the imams of guidance and the leaders of the godfearing (upon them all be peace) remember them with forgiveness and good pleasure! O God, and as for the companions of Mohammed specifically, those who did well in companionship, who stood the good test in helping him, responded to him. When he made them hear his message's argument, separated from mates and children in manifesting his word, fought against fathers and sons in strengthening his word, fought against fathers and sons in strengthening his prophecy, and through him gained victory; those who were wrapped in affection for him, hoping for a commerce that comes not to naught in love for him; those who were left by their clans when they clung to his handhold and denied by their kinsfolk when they rested in the shadow of his kinship; forget not, O God, what they abandoned for Thee and in Thee, and make them pleased with they good pleasure for the sake of the creatures they drove to Thee while they were with Thy Messenger, summoners to Thee for Thee. Show gratitude to them for leaving the abodes of their people for Thy sake and going out from a plentiful livelihood to a narrow one, and [show gratitude to] those of them who became objects of wrongdoing and whom Thou multiplied in exalting Thy religion. O God, and give to those who have done well in following the companions, Who say, Our lord, forgive us and our brothers who went before us in faith, Thy best reward; Those who went straight to the companions road sought out their course, and proceeded in their manner. No doubt concerning their sure insight diverted them and no uncertainty shook them from following in their tracks and being led by the guidance of their light. As their assistants and supporters, they professed their religion, gained guidance through their guidance, came to agreement with them, and never accused them in what they passed on to them. O God, and bless the Followers, from this day of ours to the Day of Doom, their wives, their offspring, and those among them who obey Thee, with a blessing through which Thou wilt preserve them from disobeying Thee, make room for them in the plots of Thy Garden, defend them from the trickery of Satan, help them in the piety in which they seek help from Thee, protect them from sudden events that come by night and day except the events which come with good, and incite then to tie firmly the knot of good hope in Thee, what is with Thee, and refrain from ill thoughts [toward Thee] because of what the hands of Thy servants' hold. Thus Thou mayest restore them to beseeching Thee and fearing Thee, induce them to renounce the plenty of the immediate, make them love to work for the sake of the deferred and prepare for what comes after death, make easy for them every distress that comes on the day when souls take leave from bodies, release them from that which brings about the perils of temptation and being thrown down in the Fire and staying forever within it, and take them to security, the resting place of the godfearing.
GROUNDS OF CONSIDERATION OF SAHABA
Ibn Abbas describes the Sahaba before Muawiya:
After he had asked Ibn Abbas about various matters, Muawiya asked about the real Sahaba: Ibn Abbas answered:
“O Muawiya! God, the Almighty, granted His Prophet, Mohammed (peace be upon him and his family) exclusively, with companions who gave priority to him upon themselves and their riches. They sacrificed themselves for him in every situation. In His Book, God described them: (Mohammed is the Apostle of Allah, and those with him are firm of heart against the unbelievers, compassionate among themselves -each other-; you will see them bowing down, prostrating themselves, seeking grace from Allah and pleasure; their marks are in their faces because of the effect of prostration; that is their description in the Tavrat -Torah- and their description in the Injeal -Bible-; like as seed produce that puts forth its sprout, then strengthens it, so it becomes stout and stands frimly on its stem, delighting the sowers that He may enrage the unbelievers on account of them; Allah has promised those among them who believe and do good, forgiveness and a great reward.)
They secured traces of the religion and advised for Muslims to excess till paths of the religion became neat, and its pillars became rigid, and God's graces became manifest, and His religion became stable, and His signs became evident. By those persons, God humiliated polytheism, beheaded it, erased its signs and, hence, God's word became the most elevated, while the disbelievers' is the most downcast.
God's peace, mercy and blessings be on these immaculate souls and elevated pure spirits. In their lives, they were favorite to God, and after their death, they have been alive. They were the advisors of God's slaves. Before they attain the other life, they migrated to it. While they were still it this world, they fled it..” “O Ibn Abbas! Change the subject!” Muawiya interrupted.
THE WILL OF HUTHEIFEH BIN AL-YEMAN, THE SAHABI
While he was ill in Kufa, in 36 A.H., Hutheifeh was informed of Othman's having been killed and Ali's having been elected for caliphate. He asked the attendants to take him out and gather people in the mosque.
After he had been reached to the pulpit, Hutheifeh orated:
“Praised and thanked be Allah. Blessed be Mohammed and his household.
O people of Kufa! Ali has been elected for caliphate. I call you for being wary of God and acceding and supporting Ali. By God I swear, he is the bearer of truth from the beginning to the end. He is definitely the ever best personality after the Prophet.”
Hutheifeh, then, put his right palm over the left and went on saying: “O Allah! Be the witness that I do declare fealty to Ali.” He, soon afterward, asked his two sons, Safwan and Sa'd, to take him back. He asked them to be always in the line of Ali. He foretold them that there would be a number of wars broken out during which a many people would be perished. “Waste no single opportunity for sacrificing yourselves for Ali in these wars. He is, by God, the right. They are the wrong those who will oppose him.” Hutheifeh advised his sons.
Seven days, or forty according to some reports, later, Hutheifeh was deceased. His two amenable sons did implement his will. They were martyred in battle of Siffine while they were fighting in the line of Ali (peace be upon him).
AZ-ZUBEIR AND THE END RESULT
Bearing no piece of arms and putting nothing on his head, Imam Ali himself came to the battle field, riding on the pack animal of the Prophet; “O Zubeir! Come out before me.”
Heavy armed, Az-Zubeir came before Imam Ali. As she was told of this situation, A'isheh cried: “O Asma! Ready for wailing for your husband!” She was relaxed only when she was told of Ali's having been bare-headed.
The two had hanged each other. Ali said: “Woe is you, Zubeir! What has made you come out against me?” “It is Othman's revenge.” answered Az-Zubeir. “God may kill the nearer to Othman's murder.” Imam Ali said, “Do you remember the day when you were accompanying the Prophet (peace be upon him and his family) on his pack animal in quarters of Banu Beyadha. It is when he, as well as you, smiled in my face as I met you both. It is then when you said: ‘Ali will never give up his elation!’ The Prophet answered you: ‘No, he does not enjoy any elation. O Zubeir! Do you cherish him?’ ‘Yes, I do cherish him, by God.’ you answered. The Prophet, then, foretold: ‘It is indeed that you shall be wronging him on that day when you shall fight him!’” Az-Zubeir, here, said: “I do seek my God's forgiveness. I would have never come out for this conflict only had I remembered this foregoing situation!”
Imam Ali, then, asked him to return back to his homeland. “How come should I withdraw now, while the two opposing bows are to be forming ring of the war. This shall certainly be the unacceptable shame!” Az-Zubeir expressed his embarrassing situation. “O Zubeir! Withdraw before you will be having the hell-fire besides the shame!” advised Imam Ali.
Concisely, Az-Zubeir withdrew from that sinful assemblage. Amr Bin Jurmuz killed him few hours later.
TALHA AND THE END RESULT
After Az-Zubeir's withdrawal, Ali (peace be upon him) shouted at Talha: “O Abu Mohammed! What for have you mutinied against me?” “It is for Othman's revenge.” answered Talha. “May God kill the nearer to his killing.” said Imam Ali (peace be upon him) and went on, “O Talha! Have you not heard the Prophet (peace be upon him and his family) said: ‘O Allah! Accede to whomever accedes to Ali, and oppose whomever opposes him.’ O Talha! You were the foremost in declaring fealty to me, and the foremost in breaking that fealty. God says: (..Therefore whoever breaks his faith, he breaks it only to the injury of his own soul.)”
Talha sought God's forgiveness and withdrew.
CONFEDERATES KILL EACH OTHER
Having been shocked by withdrawal of Az-Zubeir and Talha, Marwan Bin Al-Hakam Bin Al-Aas threw his spear and hit Talha's capillary, saying: “I do not care whether I hit this or that man.” While he was dying, Talha showed his great remorse for his past misdeeds.
Some mentioned that Abdul-Melik had injured Talha in the forehead, and Marwan Bin Al-Hakam hit his capillary due to which he was killed.
AMMAR BIN YASIR'S SATISFACTORY END RESULT
In battle of Siffine, Ammar Bin Yasir said: “I can obviously see faces of brave people who will fight against falsehood, until its followers will fall in doubt. By God, we are the right and they are the wrong even if they may defeat us and take us back to Hajr.”
After he had fought in the heart of the battle field , Ammar went back to a certain place for drinking some water. A woman from the Sheiban offered him a honey mixed with milk. He shouted: “Allah is the greatest! Allah is the greatest! It is the day I am to see my lovers under these sharp spears. He had said but the truth; that honest who foretold me of this day.”
The Prophet (peace be upon him and his family) had foretold Ammar of his being killed by the tyrant faction, and that his last drink in this world would be milk with honey. “O people!” cried Ammar, “Any one to direct to the Paradise under these dragging spears? By He, the Prevailing of my soul I swear, we shall be fighting them for the interpretation of the Quran just like that when we fought them for its revelation.”
Both Abul-Adiyeh and Ibn Jawn As-Saksaki killed Ammar. As they litigated about whose rightfulness in Ammar's spoils, the two nominated Abdullah Bin Amr Bin Al-Aas, the Sahabi, as arbiter.
MUAWIYA'S ARGUMENT
Muawiya mutinied against the legal ruler. He demanded the Imam with penalizing killers of Othman, the previous caliph. “Submit to obedience of this legal leadership so that I will issue a judgment against those people who killed Othman.” Imam Ali suggested to Muawiya who rejected and betook the case of Othman's assassination as bridge to royalty. He, however, could achieve his goal. He was crowned as the Muslim's king. The whole souls were submissive to his monarchy whether by terrorism or pleasure.
MUAWIYA PENALIZES OTHMAN'S ASSASSINATORS
In Al-Madina, Muawiya entered Othman's house where he was received by a groan from A'isheh, Othman's daughter.
“O my brother's daughter!” he addressed at her, “People gave us their submission, and we gave them our secure. We showed them a tranquillity stuffed with range. They showed us a compliance stuffed with abhorrence. Each man has his sword and realizes his supporter's place. They will break their allegiance if we break our promises. Then, we cannot guarantee the consequence. Being Amirul-Mu'minin's cousin will be certainly better than being an ordinary lady.”
AL-HASSAN AL-BASRI'S IMPRESSION ON MUAWIYA
At-Tabari mentions that Al-Hassan Al-Basri used to say:
“Four ill deeds, any of which is sufficiently periling, are Muawiya's. They are his using the ill-minded ones, with the existence of the Prophet's companions and virtuous individuals, as rulers of this nation till he could dominate and cancel principal of consultancy. His nominating Yazeed, his son, the drunkard who dresses silky clothes and plays on drums, as his successor. His avowing Ziyad as his brother, whereas the Prophet (peace be upon him and his family) had said: ‘Babies are for the bed, and the prostitutes' share is the stones.’ His killing Hijr and his companions. Woe will be him due to killing Hijr and his companions. Woe will be him due to killing Hijr and his companions.”
MUAWIYA'S ZENITH OF GLORIES
As if this (decent) Sahabi was not convinced of these previous acts, he attained the acme by cursing Imam Ali, the favorite of God. He led his people to this act. He issued orders of cursing Ali Bin Abi Talib from the pulpits.
MUAWIYA'S OFFICIALS REVILE AT ALI
Seeking Muawiya's satisfaction, officials were reviling at Ali (peace be upon him).
THE RIGHT COURSE TO RECOGNIZING THE DECENT SAHABA.
TOPICAL INTRODUCTORY
A majority of historians mentioned the following:
Just before the beginning of battle of Badr, the first armed encounter between polytheism and monotheism, Abu Jahl raised his hands towards the heavens and pray to God: “O God! The further from Thee and the most involved in cutting relations; Thou involve him in calamities of this battle..”
At the same time, the Prophet (peace be upon him and his family) raised his hands towards the heavens and supplicated: “O God! Thou shall never be worshipped on this earth if my small party is defeated today. O God! Fulfill Thy promise..”
Inspecting these two supplications, it is recognizable that both raised their hands towards the heavens.. Both implored “O God.” Both carried slogan of truth.
Abu Jahal claimed of being the nearest to God and the keeper of relations. Mohammed, in the other side, affirmed that his followers were the real protectors of the truth and the ideal connection between the Creator and His creatures. He declared that there had been promises and covenants between his Creator and him.
A wonderment: Considering both were claiming of being the truth, what for, then, were they about to fight each other? Considering both were together on the same course of Allah, which is only a united way, what for, then, were they so discrepant that they faced each other with arms?
Prospect: In accordance with criteria of mere topical debate, we have to opt for one of these three prospects or views:
1. The two parties were right. This prospect, however, is inapplicable since there is only one undoubtable course which is the right path of Allah. According to sameness of both parties' bases, they should have followed each other.
2. One of the two was the right. This prospect is expedient.
3. The two parties are wrong. For a prophet fortified by arguments and heavenly miracles, this prospect is unacceptable.
Explication: For recognizing the mere reality, it is essential to achieve the following:
1. Identifying the right.
2. Identifying the wrong.
3. Identifying the right party by means of the right itself.
4. Identifying the wrong party by same means and criteria of the right.
The solving method:
1. The existence of the right and its jurisprudential formulation. The right, here, is Islam; the Quran and the Prophet's traditions; words, deeds and signature. The jurisprudential formulation of the right is Quranic texts and the Prophet's traditions that falsehood should not come to it from any side. It is God's formulation and revelation.
2. An intellect so apt that it can consume the divine jurisprudential formulation.
3. Objectivity and pertinence. The aim should be framing thoughts with legality and achieving the very intendment of the divine texts and general spirit of the jurisprudential formulation.
4. The existence of a personality of a divine authority before whom fruits of the intellectual comprehension should be provided. This personality should be the judge in case of suggestive discrepancies. Besides, he is the organizer of capacities, guide of privileges and the true director to the right. This personality is the prophet, in reign of prophesy, and the virtuous imam defined by legal and jurisprudential bases, in succeeding reigns. He is, however, the objective criterion of right and wrong. Those who accede to Mohammed, comply to his orders and follow his instruction are the right party. Those who accede to others are the wrong party, even if they recite and retain the Holy Quran, perform the ritual prayers, fast and establish mosques. This is by reason that the constant criterion of identifying the right and the wrong in any time is affability -to the leader of the right course-.
OBSTRUCTIONS OF THE SOLVING METHODS
1. Carnal desire: It is the aspiration that all matters and all texts are going and elucidated for one's benefits.
2. Partisan imitation: It is the adaptation of the out-of-date conceptions with rejection and denial of any attempt of renewing or alteration.
3. Despotic attitude: This means the belief of justifiablility and appropriateness of one's conception, and that those who disagree with such a conception are the Satan's supporters whom should be intercepted, resisted and reckoned with foes.
4. Canceling or supplanting the legitimate leadership. This occurs by opting for a leadership other than the one God has ascribed. By such an act, the dominion leader will be supported even though he is wrong.
CONCLUSIVE JUDGMENT OF THE SAHABA'S DECENCY- RECALL AND ABSTRACT OF THE VIEWS OF SUNNIS AND SHIAS
As it has been previously mentioned, we could prove that the lexical and the terminological meaning of ‘Suhba’ -the Prophet's companionship- includes all those who met, believed or showed their believing in the Prophet's mission, provided that they kept on such an appearance all their lifetime. Sunnis, unanimously, ruled of decency of the entire Sahaba without exception. We could see also that the Sahaba's ultimate decency conception is contradictory to words, deeds and signatures of the Prophet, and the decisively jurisprudential texts of the Holy Quran. Furthermore, we could prove, by examples and means of conceivable simplification, that the conception is contradictory to the cause finale, logic of beings and the general spirit of Islam.
As a conclusion and according to legality and essentiality, we could apprehend that there are two categories of Sahaba:
1. The righteous Sahaba: These individuals are indisputably and unanimously decent.
2. The other Sahaba: There is a controversy regarding such individuals. Sunnis rule of the ultimate decency of the entire Sahaba, with no difference between the foremost to Islam and a boy saw or was seen by the Prophet. They are, the Sahaba, are entirely and unexceptionally decent. It is illicit to mention them in any way leading to any sort of criticism or maligning. He whoever takes in such a course is a sinful miscreant that every one is mandated to avoid sharing him in a drink or a food or offer the ritual funeral prayer for his soul.
Respecting Shias, they believe that the decent Sahaba are only those whose decency is judged by Allah and His Apostle. The objective legal truth is the believer's aim. The doubtless Shari'a of Islam demonstrates and guides to means of detecting the objective legal truth. Intellectual qualifications helping in achieving the aim are also gifted by the Shari'a, provided that fancies are abandoned. In consideration of their claim that the Prophet (peace be upon him and his family), may do right or wrong; what, then, would intercept an ordinary boy saw or was seen by the Prophet, from making a mistake or forging a lie? What is the location of that doctrinal judgment of interdicting the intellect from inspecting the truth here and there? Certainly there were those who murdered a number of Sahaba, thieved, fabricated, committed fornication and those who were submitted to juristic questions after the Prophet's decease. How should we delve into the facts of such deeds? How should we institute justice? How should people take stock of the past experiences for evading the wrong and taking in the right?
On that account, Shias give credence to decency of the virtuous companions of the Prophet (peace be upon him and his family) exclusively. They beg God's mercy for such individuals at every ritual prayer. Regarding the other companions, every person is measured as to his beliefs and conduct in field of the doctrinal duties. They, the Shias, believe that the Sahaba's ultimate decency conception is a completely political representation, originated, with all its grounds, under custody of the Umayid regime; the ‘released’. The ruling regime’s mass media helped greatly in publicizing and impressed bases of that conception which, imitatively and with variant intentions, was transferred to the succeeding generations.
Shias add: Concerning the penalization issued by the jurisprudents, as one of means of supporting the Sahaba's ultimate decency conception, it is, in fact, a groundless chastisement. It is unauthorized for any to condemn a Muslim unless there is a doctrinal text legalizing such a condemnation. Hence, this chastisement is unjust and void according to the entire doctrinal standards. It does result in giving stability to the state of discrepancy in which the Islamic nation is involved, and intercepting the current generation from applying past lessons and examples for discovering obstacles dug in course to the bright future and the mentally and practically illuminated unification of this nation.
CONFUSION
If the entire Sahaba had been decent:
Those seditious matters would not have occurred. The Islamic nation would not have been engaged in discrepancies. They would not kill each other since the decent should not commit murders. The concern of leadership would not have been robbed. Finally, caliphate would not have become a regime of royalty dominated by the strongest.
Believing in decency of the entire Sahaba is a matter of confusion, darkening and interdicting people's intellects. It is reasonable that any parties in conflict cannot be the right together. The right is opposite to massacres, seditious matters, discrepancies and assigning positions to other than their rightful.
It is inaccurate for us to accept invitations of making a new beginning after elapse of a thousand years, neglecting recognizing the rightful party so as to follow, and the wrong so as to avoid their paths. This leads to the fact that we are to waste the thousand year experiment and have a very new bare beginning. This is the exact confusion we mean. In the past, such a confusion resulted in benefiting and covering up a certain authority or individual. Now, what shall we gain from adopting such a confusion and covering up. What shall we gain from canceling a 1390 year experiment, especially when we realize that consequences of such a confusion, covering up and canceling will directly befit our religion since such operations are implemented under Islamic slogans.
AN EVENT FOR THE SHARIITE DISCLOSURE
After a long-time indecision, enraged groups of people rebelled against Othman Bin Affan, the third caliph, claiming of his having deviated from courses of his former associates, As-Siddiq and Al-Faruq. Thus, people of Al-Madina swore fealty to Ali (peace be upon him). Saving people of Syria governed by Muawiya Bin Abi Sufian who did not show fealty to the new caliph claiming that he should punish Othman's killers, the other provinces declared their allegiance. Muawiya rejected Imam Ali's invitation to show obedience provided that justice should be issued in the case of Othman's being killed. He used his province, Syria, as a fortress from which he began to arrange for trickeries against the Imam, declare his mutiny, shake security and constancy of the state and contrive for breaking unity up. For using so, Muawiya exploited the wealth of that province in an illegal way. He went on his trickeries causing blood to be shed and people to be scattered. At length, the Imam was assassinated. Muawiya could come to power by force. He became head of the nation within whose people there were the foremost in Islam and the Sahaba who fought against his father and him for the sake of Islam. Furthermore, he forgot or feigned forgetfulness of Othman's killers. He appointed his son, Yazeed, the notorious drunkard and monkeys breeder, the drummer, as his crown prince. Since then, power became in the hands of the strongest. Considering the saying that “Old things are old.”, domination became a Shariite means for coming to power. “We are being with the dominion.”
THE ENTIRE SAHABA'S DECENCY
It is a matter of surprising and a difficult issue to believe that those who supported Ali (peace be upon him) and those who supported Muawiya were decent Sahaba whom should never be sent to hell-fire, and are sinless religious authorities. It is illicit to malign or criticize them. He is a miscreant whom should be avoided in drinking, eating or offering a ritual prayer, that whoever reviles at any Sahabi. These rules are issued by Sunnis. Moreover, it is to say that they agree upon applauding any of those Sahaba in any form or style; but you should be ruled as miscreant if you impute a flaw to any.
This impetuous contemplation had changed into a factual tradition as if being the norm of Allah and His Apostle.
LOGICAL CHARACTERIZATION
Depending on criteria of scientific research, we have to opt for one of the following three prospects or view.
1. The two parties are right. (Ali and his group and Muawiya and his group.) This prospect, however, is irrational since there is only one undoubtable course to the right.
2. The two parties are wrong. (Ali and his group and Muawiya and his group.) this is also irrational since Ali, according to doctrinal texts, is the devotee of Allah. Ali is being with the right, and the right, being with Ali, moves wherever Ali moves.
3. A party is the right and the other is the wrong.
Wonderment: The two parties would not have fought each other and been engaged in discrepancies if had they both been the right. Forasmuch as they were engaged in discrepancy, they should never have reached stage of fighting and killing each other. Such discrepancies might have been solved depending on legal grounds. There, hence, would not have been such a large number of victims.
Abstract: In this manner, it is indispensable that one party was the right while the other was the wrong. Ruling of decency and sinlessness of both parties is a decision stemmed from artlessness and inadvertence. The option of armed fighting should not be adopted before achievement of the Shariite certitude. Murder is crime. Breaking up the nation is a crime. Rebellion against Shari'a is a crime too. It is impossible to regard those who commit assassinations due to conjecture or fancies, as decent who do never lie, mistake or disobey. Since the Prophet's companionship is not a divine prophesy, the general frame does not occlude the Sahaba from mistaking.
From this occurrence, for instance, how should we discriminate the indecent Sahaba?
1. Existence of the right and its jurisprudential formulation the mission of which is covering areas of deeds and intendments.
The right is present. The jurisprudential formulation of the right is Islam; the Holy Quran and the Prophet's traditions; words, deeds and signature. These things, all told, form the jurisprudential formulation that is “falsehood does not come to it from face or back.” It is the religion of Allah. He has accepted for His slaves. It is His revelation and formulation.
2. Existence of a divine authority who listens to the whole opinions and, in turn, whose decision is the conclusion at discrepancies. He should be the guide of liberties, coordinator of activities and director to the right. He is the leader.
This role was played by the Prophet (peace be upon him and his family) in epoch of prophesy. He nominated Ali as his successor. He stated: “He, Ali, is your leader after me. He is the leader of every male and female believer. He whose leader was I, Ali is his. O Allah! Accede to him that who accedes to Ali, and oppose him that who opposes Ali.” This is a factual truth none at all, including Muawiya himself, can deny. Later on, documentation of this truth is to be proved.
3. Inspecting the occurrences and events so objectively and topically that researchist's very goal is same as God's.
4. The intellect that can well assume the jurisprudential formulation, apply it and provide fruits of this process to the divine authority.
SUBMISSION TO THE AUTHORITY NOMINATED BY THE PROPHET IS THE CLUE TO DECENCY
Ali Bin Abi Talib was the first man who embraced Islam. He is the favorite to Allah and His Apostle's brother. He is father of the Prophet's grandsons and husband of Al-Betoul. He is commander of the military operations against polytheism, the unprecedented knight of Islam and the killer of foes of the religion. He is the grand veracious and the leading distinguisher -between right and wrong-, as I am to prove by divine texts. He is son of Abu Talib, the only one who protected the Prophet (peace be upon him and his family) before the immigration, and head of the Hashemites who was blocked by the entire Arab tribes in Col Abu Talib for three continuous years. This was done for a single purpose. The Hashemites should give up the Prophet and withdraw from protecting him against people of Quraish.
Muawiya, on the other side, is the ‘released’ son of the ‘released’, Abu Sufian, who led the parties and fought the Prophet (peace be upon him and his family) in all of battles. He tried to assassinate the Prophet (peace be upon him and his family) and led armies and waves of hostility against him. He is son of Hind, the lady who, in addition to cogitating the perfidious assassination of Hamzeh, tore his abdomen and deformed his corpse. Altogether with his father, Muawiya spared no art for sake of fighting against the Prophet (peace be upon him and his family) till the conquest of Mecca. In that conquest, those individuals were surrounded and could find no way other than surrender. He was one of those who are classified as the inclined-hearted category who were given a part of the alms for the sake of encouraging them to embrace Islam.
THE DECENT SAHABA
All the Sahaba who supported Ali are decent. Thanks to God, they are forming majority of the Prophet's companions and those who regretfully opposed him, such as Talha and Az-Zubeir who obeyed him satisfactorily before their decease. It is a sufficient honor for Islam to declare that there were only two persons from among the Ansar who supported Muawiya. Were Abu Bakr alive, he would support him. Were Omar, who said: “He is my master and the master of every male and female believer.”, alive he would join him. O Allah! Be pleased to them and reward them what they do desire.
Regarding supporters of Muawiya and his father, they are those involved in this research debated with the doctrinal means. They are, at any rate, the lowest class of the Sahaba, terminologically and lexically. For none but them, the Sahaba's ultimate decency conception was invented. This was for finding legal excuses to their deeds.
MODELS OF THE SLUGGISH IRAQI AND SYRIAN INDIVIDUALS
Al-Mas'udi records: A Syrian man was asked about Abu Turab whom is continuously cursed by the imam -Muawiya- from the pulpits. “I see he is one of the robbers!!”
Al-Jahizh records: During his journey to the ritual pilgrimage, a man was advised to be as near as possible to the Holy House of God. “So, who will come out and speak to me then?”
A man asked his companion who was saying ‘Bless be upon Mohammed and his household.’: “Who is that Mohammed? He is our Lord, isn't he?”
Thumameh Bin Ashres records: I was passing by in Baghdad when I noticed a man encompassed by a great assemblage. I rode off to see the matter. It was a man advertising for a kind of alcohol. He was alleging that that alcohol is the effective remedy of any eye disease. As I glanced at the man, I found that he had been diseased in his two eyes. “O man! Your eyes would have been cured had your advertisement been true!” I shouted at him. He looked at me and said: “O you ignorant! My eyes were not diseased here. They were diseased in Egypt!” The whole assemblage expressed their full believing in the advertiser's argument. So, I could hardly escape from their sandals that played on my body!
Another narrative: People used to attend our sessions during which we were discussing affairs of Abu Bakr, Omar, Muawiya and Ali. One day, the head and the most knowledgeable among those people showed his disgust from daily repetition of that subject. “What about your opinion, sir?” I asked the man. “About which one of them?” he asked. “About Ali.” I defined. He said: “Is he not that man, the father of Fatima?” he wondered. “Which Fatima?” I shouted. “She was the Prophet's wife, A'isheh's daughter, Muawiya's sister.” The man declared. “Well, what about Ali, then?” I asked. “A man killed in battle of Hunein with the Prophet (peace be upon him and his family)!” The man said.
THOSE WHO COMPLIED TO MUAWIYA
“They obeyed him so sincerely that he led them in the collective Friday Prayer held on Wednesday just before they reached Siffine, the battle field. They borrowed him their heads making them the fortress against him. They referred to Amr Bin Al-Aas in the claim that Ammar Bin Yasir had been killed by Ali since the latter sought his support in the battle. This obedience transferred among their generations and attained the acme when they made course of cursing Ali a norm at which they were brought up.”
This is the style adopted by such decent Sahaba in elucidating facts. It was Ali Bin Abi Talib who killed Ammar Bin Yasir!! This is the style adopted by such decent individuals for teaching people their religion and identifying Mohammed's virtuous companions; men on whose houlders Islam was established!!
By: Ahmad Husain Yaqub
Ref: Imam Reza Network

Saeed bin Jubayr

The Beginning
The people in the palace slept. The guards and the soldiers stayed up. They were walking through the porches. They were carrying torches, swords and spears. Two guards stood at the door of a big hall. Al-Hajjaj bin Yousif al-Thaqafy, the Iraqi ruler, slept in the hall. The guards said to his friends:
I've heard that the prince has become crazy
The other said:
His behaviour shows his madness. He has not slept since he killed Saeed bin Jubayr. He always wakes and shouts with alarm: "Why have I killed him?" I heard him saying to Dr. Tyyadok: "I am always dreaming that I see Saeed bin Jubayr pulling my neck. I heard him saying: "Allah's enemy, why have you killed me?" The Prince has killed over one hundred thousand men and women. There are fifty thousand men and thirty thousand women in his prisons.
In the meantime, they heard a yell of fear. They heard al-Hajjaj saying:
Why have I killed Saeed bin Jubayr?
The guard said to his friend:
I think that Saeed bin Jubayr has appeared again. The other asked: Who was that good man?

Saeed bin Jubayr
His name was Saeed bin Jubair. His surname was Abu Abdullah. He came from al0Habasha. He joined bani-Asad. He lived in Kufa. He was God-fearing. He was one of the companions of Imam Zaynul Abideen, Ali bin al-Husayn [a].

Saeed loves Prayer
Saeed loved nothing but prayer. He lived a good life with his parents. He obeyed and treated them kindly. Saeed woke when the rooster crowed. He performed the ritual ablution. He said his morning prayers.
Then he read the Qur'an till the sun shone. One day the rooster did not crow. So, Saeed did not say his morning prayers punctually. He woke after the sunrise. He was sad because he did not say his prayers at the right time. Meanwhile, he was angry at the rooster because it did not crow. When Saeed looked at the rooster, he said angrily:
Why didn't you crow? May Allah not make you crow again!
The rooster had not crowed since then. Saeed's mother saw the rooster. She said to her son:
Saeed, Allah accepts your prayer. So, don't invoke Him against anyone.
Saeed obeyed his mother. He did not invoke Allah against anyone but one time. When did he do that? Let's read Saeed's story together!

Abd al-Malik bin Marwan
Abid al-Malik bin Marwan became a Caliph. He closed the Holy Qur'an and said:
I won't read you forever!
Abd al-Malik bin Marwan began practicing a strict policy to continue his government. He appointed unjust people to rule. For example, he appointed Khalid bin Abdullah al-Qasry over Kufa. Then he appointed him over Makkah. And he appointed al-Hajjaj bin Yousif al-Thaqafy over Hejaz. Then he appointed him over Kufa. In the meantime, Abid al-Malik bin Marwan ordered his rulers to kill people.

Al-Hajjaj
Al-Hajjaj got to Kufa. He was masked. He went up the pulpit. He kept silent for a while. Then he removed the mask and addressed the Muslims:
Iraqis! Disobedient! Hypocrites!
He abused them and said:
Abid al Malik bin Marwan has given me a whip and a sword! The whip has dropped! The sword has remained!
Namely, Abid al-Malik ordered al-Hajjaj to kill and torture the Iraqis! The whip was used for torturing. The sword was used for killing. The time of terrorism started.
He began killing and imprisoning. He killed many companions. Kumail bin Ziyad was among them. Along his rule al-Hajjaj killed one hundred and twenty thousand men and thirty thousand women. There were children in his prisons, too.

The Mad Man
Al-Hajjaj persecuted people everywhere. The people in the deserts were afraid of his name. One day, al-Hajjaj went to a desert. He found a man there. He said to the man:
What do you think about al-Hajjaj?
The man said:
He's unjust!
Al-Hajjaj said:
What do you think about Caliph Abid al-Malik bin Marwan?
The man said:
He's more unjust than him!
Al-Hajjaj said:
Do you know me?
The man said:
No, I don't! Who are you?
Al-Hajjaj said:
I'm al-Hajjaj.
The man shook with fear and said:
Your Highness, the Prince, do you know me?
Al-Hajjaj said:
No! Who are you?
The man said with fear:
One of the Bani Thour. I get crazy twice a year! This is one of them!
Al-Hajjaj smiled and let the man go. Th man pretended madness. So, al-Hajjaj let him go.
The Revolution Al-Hajjaj busied the Muslims with fights on the borders. He tried to occupy the nearby countries and robbed them of their possessions. In the meantime, he wanted to kill the Muslims to get rid of them. For this reason, he ordered the Muslims to fight continuously.
One day, al-Hajjaj sent a big army to fight Ratbil, the Turkish King. Abd al-Rahman bin al-Ashath headed the army. Abid al-Rahman defeated Ratbil. Then he sent a man to al-Hajjaj. The man said to him:
Abd al-Rahman wants to see the conquered lands. He has ceased fighting to refresh the fighters.
Still al-Hajjaj sent Abid al-Rahman a letter. In the letter, he condemned him. And he ordered him to go on fighting. Abid al-Rahman understood al-Hajjaj's bad aims. So, he told his fighters about him.
The Muslims hated al-Hajjaj because he was unjust. Besides they hated Abid al-Malik bin Marwan because he appointed him ruler over them. Abid al-Rahman revolted against al-Hajjaj. The fighters stood by him. Abid al-Rahman came back to Iraq to topple the unjust ruler. The Muslims supported him.

The Qur'an Readers Battalion
The Qur'an Readers were the most knowledgeable at the explanation of the Qur'an and other Qur'anic sciences. Many of them joined Abd al-Rahman. So, they formed a special battalion called the Qur'an readers Battalion. Kumail bin Ziyad headed the battalion.
The revolutionaries freed vast lands from al-Hajjaj's and Abid al-Malik's persecution. They freed Afghanistan, Kirman and Fars (in Iran), Basrah and Kufa (in Iraq). Abd al-Rahman's Army took part in several fights. It won victories at them.

The Battle of Deer al-Jamajum
Abd al-Malik was afraid of that great revolution. He tried to cheat the Muslims. He said:
If the revolutionaries hand over their weapons, I'll dismiss al-Hajjaj.
Abd al-Malik appointed al-Hajjaj and other unjust rulers. He was the cause for all those disasters. So, the Muslims refused his suggestion. And they ordered him to resign.
Abd al-Malik sent a big army to help al-Hajjaj. The two armies met at a place near Kufa called Deer al-Jamajum. A grim foght happened between the two armies.
Al-Hajjaj won the the fight. Abd al-Rahman bin al-Ashath escaped to Turkey. Al-Hajjaj's army captured many revolutionaries and executed them. Kumayl bin Ziyad, the leader of the Qur'an Readers' Battalion, disappeared for a time. He heard about about his people's sufferings. So, he gave himself up to al-Hajjaj. Al-Hajjaj ordered a man to execute him.

To Makkah
Saeed bin Jubayr escaped to Makkah to live there. He chose a valley near Makkah so as no one would know him. Al-Hajjaj's spies looked for him everywhere. Abid al-Malik was even more spiteful than al-Hajjaj with Saeed.
So, he sent his private messanger Khalid bin Abdullah al-Qasry to Makkah. Khalid bin Abdullah al-Qasry arrived in Makkah. The ruler of Makkah was Muhammad bin Salama. Muhammad was addressing the people. Khalid interrupted him and went up the pulpit. He took out a letter. Abid al-Malik had sealed the letter. Khalid read the Makkans Abd al-Malik's letter. The letter was as follows:
From Abd al-Malik bin Marwan, To the people of Makkah; I have appointed Khalid bin Abdullah al-Qasry ruler over you. Hear and obey him. We'll kill the person who aids Saeed bin Jubayr!
After reading Abd al-Malik's letter, Khalid said stormily:
If I see Saeed in a house, I'll demolish the house. And I'll demolish the nearby houses!

In the Valley
Saeed knew that Khalid would kill anyone who would help him. So, he did not ask anyone for help. Therefore, he took his small family and lived in a valley near Makkah.
One day, a spy knew Saeed's place. The spy hurried to Khalid to tell him about Saeed. The Ruler of Makkah ordered his guards to capture Saeed. Some horsemen with swords set out for the valley. They saw a little tent among the rocks. Saeed bin Jubayr was saying his prayers. The horsemen dismounted.
They approached his tent. Saeed's son knew that the horsemen came to arrest his arrest. The son wept to see his father in that terrible state. The father said:
Son, why are you weeping and I've lived for seventy five years. This is a long age.
The father said good-bye to his son. He asked him to be patient. Saeed advanced bravely towards the horsemen's leader. The leader admired Saeed's personality. He was sad to see him praying in the desert. He was sad to see him saying the final good-bye to his son. The leader said:
The Prince has ordered me to arrest you. Escape to any country you like. I'll go with you.
Saeed asked the horsemen's leader:
Have you a family?
The leader answered:
Yes.
Saeed said:
Aren't you worried about them?
The leader said:
Allah will save them!
Saeed refused to escape so that the leader would not punish the innocent people. So, he went with the soldiers.

The Ka'aba
The Prince of Makkah was sitting by the Holy Ka'aba waiting for the horsemen's coming. The horsemen brought Saeed bin Jubayr. Khalid bin Abdullah al-Qasry, the Prince of Makkah, ordered the guards to tie Saeed's legs to his neck.
A man from Shaam said:
Your Highness, the Prince, release Saeed, release him. Don't send him to al-Hajjaj. He'll kill him. Saeed is a good man. May Allah be pleased with you.
The Prince said:
If Abd al-Malik ordered me to demolish the Ka'aba thoroughly, I would do to please him.
Abd al-Malik appointed unjust rulers over the Muslims. They did not think about Allah's satisfaction. They thought about Abid al-Malik's.

Wasit
Al-Hajjaj built a new town between Kufa and Basrah. The town was Wasit. He built a big palace in its center. Besides he built he big prison to torture innocent people. There were thousands of men, women and children in his prison.
Al-Hajjaj was sitting in his palace. There was a Christian doctor with him. The doctor's name was Tyyadok. The headsman was standing. He was waiting for Saeed. Saeed came into the palace full of the smell of blood. Al-Hajjaj said:
What's your name?
Saeed answered:
Saeed bin Jubayr.
(Saeed = happy, Jubayr = unbroken)
No! You're Shaqy bin Kusair.
(Shaqy = unhappy, Kusair = broken)
My mother knows my and my father's name. May you and your mother be unhappy!
No one knows the unseen but Allah. Al-Hajjaj kept silent. Then he clapped. Some bad men came and made funny movements. Al-Hajjaj and his guards laughed loudly. Saeed kept silent. Al-Hajjaj asked him:
Why don't you laugh?
Saeed said:
There's nothing to laugh at.
Al-Hajjaj said:
I laugh! Thus Allah has created us to be different.
Al-Hajjaj ordered his guards to bring him a big jewel box. Al-Hajjaj began piling the jewels before Saeed. Then he asked him:
What do you think about those jewels?
To teach him a lesson, Saeed said:
They are good if you spend them for Allah! Why? To be safe on the Judgement Day.
Again al-Hajjaj kept silent. Al-Hajjaj beckoned the headman to kill him. The headsman advanced towards the great companion. Saeed turned towards the Ka'aba with a certain heart. He asked the headsman permission to say two Raka'as. He turned towards the Ka'aba and said:
Surely, I have turned myself, being upright, wholly to Him who originated the heavens and the earth, and I am not of the polytheists.
Al-Hajjaj shouted
Turn him away from Ka'aba!
The headsman changed his direction. Saeed said:
And Allah's is the East and the West, therefore, whither you turn, thither is Allah's purpose.
Al-Hajjaj shouted:
Lay on your belly on the ground!
Saeed said:
From it We have originated You. And in it We will bring you back. And from it We will take you out again.
Al-Hajjaj said with spite:
Behead him!
At that moment, Saeed looked at the sky and said:
Allah, don't forgive him for persecuting me! Punish him for my blood! And make me the last person he kills of Muhammad's nation! Immediately, the headsman beheaded him. The head fell to the ground and said:
There's no god but Allah!
Al-Hajjaj began looking at the continuous flowing of the blood. He was astonished to see the plentiful blood. So, he asked Dr. Tyyadok about the secret. The doctor said:
All those you killed were afraid. Their blood stopped in their veins. So, there was no bleeding. But Saeed was not afraid. His heart was beating normally.
Saeed's heart was full of faith. He was not afraid of death. So, he passed away a martyr

Al-Hajjaj's End
After that time, al-Hajjaj got crazy. When he slept he saw nightmares. He woke with alarm and said:
Why have I killed Saeed bin Jubayr?
Fifteen days passed after that crime, al-Hajjaj died. Allah accepted Saeed's prayers. So, he was the last person al-Hajjaj killed during his life full of crimes and persecution. When the Muslims opened the door of the prisons, they found fifty thousand men, women and children. Saeed and al-Hajjaj died in the same year. Their story became a lesson for generations. History praises Saeed and dispraises al-Hajjaj
Ref: Imam Reza Network