The Prophet's Heir: The Life of Ali Ibn Abi Talib by Hassan Abbas

Author:Hassan Abbas [Abbas, Hassan]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: Biography & Autobiography, Religious, History, Middle East, General, Religion, Islam
ISBN: 9780300229455
Google: WLQTEAAAQBAJ
Publisher: Yale University Press
Published: 2021-02-22T19:00:00+00:00

Ali ibne Abi Talib is Muhammad’s trustee (wasi) and the heir to his knowledge. O community perplexed at the death of your prophet! Truly if you had put forward him whom God put forward and had put back him whom God put back, and had established the guardianship and inheritance in your Prophet’s family . . . God’s friend (wali Allah) would not have been reduced to poverty; no share of God’s ordinances would have gone astray . . . Now that you have done what you have done, taste the evil effects of your conduct.91

Given the times, this was approaching blasphemy. Abu Dharr had enjoyed immunity for a long time as the Prophet’s statement about his truthfulness was well known, as is recorded by leading Sunni hadith collection Ibn Majah as well as at-Tirmidhi: ‘There is no one on earth, or under the sky, who speaks more truthfully than Abu Dharr.’92 Muawiya told Caliph Uthman that he could no longer bear him. Back in Medina, Abu Dharr directed his guns towards Uthman’s excesses and was consequently forced out of Medina again, this time to live in exile in the desert with his family. Ali had great respect for Abu Dharr for his courage, and he travelled with him to the outskirts of Medina to bid him farewell. Ali must have felt helpless, otherwise he would have made him stay. The harsh environment in the al-Rabadha desert was too hard for Abu Dharr to bear, and he died a difficult death in 652.93 His daughter, who was with him, was naturally very distressed, as they were alone in a desert with no help around. Moments before his death, Abu Dharr comforted her by sharing that she must not worry about burying him, as a band of believers would arrive to take care of his body. She looked around to find no one. Soon, she was heartened to see some riders heading their way from a distance. On hearing this, Abu Dharr said, ‘God is great! God and His Messenger have spoken the truth’, indicating that probably the Prophet had made this prediction. He told his daughter to offer them food and convey his greetings to them on their arrival. He then closed his eyes, never to be opened again. The men who arrived included the Prophet’s companions Hudayafa ibn al-Yaman and Malik al-Ashtar al-Nakhai, who both grieved and buried Abu Dharr.94 All these men were among Ali’s closest friends.

Uthman’s half-brother Walid ibn Uqba, whom he had appointed as the governor of Kufa in Iraq, was among the most corrupt and scandalous of all. He was treating the local population quite disdainfully, and the Muslims of Kufa could no longer bear it when Walid appeared dead drunk in the mosque to lead prayers and vomited in front of the worshippers.95 The locals sent a delegation to Medina complaining about his terrible and totally inappropriate behaviour and demanding punishment under Islamic law. Uthman, unfortunately, was dismissive when it came to the faults of his tribe and family.

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