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Imam Ali (A.S)
ALI IBN AB TALIB, AMIR AL-MU'MININ
( Peace be on him )
Name: 'All.
Title: al-Murtada.
Agnomen: Abu ' l-Hasan.
Father's name: Abu Talib ibn 'Abd al-Muttalib.
Mother's name:
Fatimah bint Asad.
Birth: In the Holy Ka'bah in Mecca on Friday,
13th Rajab 23 BH.
Death: Died at the age of 63, in Kufah (Iraq)
on Monday, 21st Ramadan 40 AH; murdered by an assassin who
mortally wounded him with a poisoned sword in the mosque of Kufah
during the morning prayer on 19th Ramadan; buried in an-Najaf
al-Ashraf (Iraq).
IMAM 'ALI was the cousin of our Holy Prophet. He was born in
the Sacred House (Ka'bah). Providence alone had a hand in
bringing his mother towards the Ka'bah. When his mother came to
Ka'bah, she felt weighed down by intense pain of pregnancy. She
knelt down before the Holy Structure and prayed humbly to God.
'Abbas ibn 'Abd al-Muttalib, saw 'Ali's mother praying to God. No
sooner had she raised her head from supplication, then the wall
of the Sacred House split by a solemn miracle. Fatimah entered
the Ka'bah and that portion returned to its normal position.
'Abbas and his companions flocked at the gate of the Sacred House
which was locked, and tried to open it, but in vain. They then
decided to give it up, considering the miraculous nature of the
event and the Divine Will in action. The news of this miraculous
incident soon spread like wild fire in Mecca. 'Ali was born
within the Ka'bah with his eyes closed and his body in humble
prostration before the Almighty. Fatimah stayed in the Ka'bah for
three days and as the fourth day approached she stepped out,
carrying her gem in her arms. To her great surprise, she found
the Holy Prophet awaiting to receive the newly-born child in his
anxious arms. Imamate feeling the subtle touch of prophethood,
'Ali opened his eyes and saluted the Divine Prophet:
as-Salamu 'alayka ya Rasula'lldh (Peace be on you, O
Messenger of Allah). 'Ali's birth in the Ka'bah is unique in the
history of the world. Neither a prophet nor a Divine saint was
ever blessed with such an honour. He was brought up under the
care and affection of the Holy Prophet. As 'Ali says: The
Holy Prophet brought me up in his own arms and fed me with his
own morsel. I followed him wherever he went like a baby-camel
following its mother. Each day a new aspect of his character
would beam out of his noble person and I would accept it and
follow it as a command. (Nahju 'I-balaghah). Ten years in
the company of the Holy Prophet had kept him so close and
inseparable, that he was one with him in character, knowledge,
self-sacrifice, forbearance, bravery, kindness, generosity,
oratory and eloquence. From his very infancy, he prostrated
before God along with the Holy Prophet. As he himself said:
I was the first to pray to God along with the Holy
Prophet. 'Ali presented in the footsteps of the Holy
Prophet, says al-Mas'udi, all along his
childhood. Allah created him pure and holy and kept him
steadfast on the right path. Though 'Ali is undisputably the
first to embrace Islam when the Holy Prophet called upon his
listeners to do so, yet by the very fact that since his infancy
he was brought up by the Holy Prophet and followed him in every
action and deed including prostration before Allah, he can be
said to be born a Muslim, just like the Holy Prophet himself.
'Ali, at all times, accompanied the Holy Prophet to help and
protect him from his enemies. He used to write down the verses of
the Holy Qur'an and discuss them with the Prophet as soon as they
were revealed by the Holy Messenger, the Gabriel. He was so
closely associated with the Holy Prophet that as soon as a verse
was revealed to him during the day or night, 'Ali was the first
to hear it. The Holy Prophet has said of 'Ali: O 'Ali, you are my
brother in this world as well as in the Hereafter. I am the city
of knowledge and 'Ali is the gate. Nobody knows 'Ali except Allah
and I. Nobody know me except Allah and 'Ali. If you want to see
the knowledge of Adam, the piety of Noah, the devotion of
Abraham, the awe of Moses, and the service and abstinence of
Christ, look at the bright face of Ali. When the Holy Prophet
reached Yathrib (Medina) and met his followers who had come from
Mecca at his call, he immediately appointed for each such
followers a person from the people of Yathrib known as Ansar
(Helpers), who had accepted his prophethood, to be a brother to
him. His appointment of brothers was a great act of help for the
refugees known as Muhajirun (Emigrants), who left their home and
come to Yathrib. He made brothers of people who followed the same
trade so that the Muhajirun could be usefully employed
immediately. While the Prophet was appointing an Ansar a brother
to a Muhajirun 'Ali who was present there, was not appointed as a
brother to any Ansar. On being questioned as to why he had not
appointed a brother for 'All, the Prophet said: He shall be
a brother to me. The character and calibre of 'Al; as
judged by al- Mas'udi is, If the glorious name of being the
first Muslim, a comrade of the Prophet in exile, his faithful
companion in the struggle for faith, his intimate associate in
life, and his kinsman; if a true knowledge of the spirit of his
teachings and of the Book; if self-abnegation and practice of
justice; if honesty, purity, and love of truth; if a knowledge of
law and science, constitute a claim to pre-eminence, then all
must regard 'Al'i as the foremost Muslim. We shall search in vain
to find, either among his predecessors (save one) or among his
successors, those attributes. Gibbon says: The
birth, the alliance, the character of 'Ali which exalted him
above the rest of his country- men, might justify his claim to
the vacant throne of Arabia. The son of Abu Talib was in his own
right the chief of Banu Hashim and the hereditary prince or
guardian of the city and the Ka'bah. 'AIi had the
qualifications of a poet, a soldier, and a saint; his wisdom
still breathes in a collection of moral and religious sayings;
and every antagonist, in the combats of the tongue or of the
sword, was subdued by his eloquence and valour. From the first
hour of his mission to the last rites of his funeral, the Apostle
was never forsaken by a generous friend, whom he delighted to
name his brother, his vicegerent, and the faithful Aaron of a
second Moses.
* * *
Marriage:
Under Divine instruction, the Apostle of Allah married his
beloved daughter Fatimah to 'Al;, though others vainly tried for
her hand. Among their children, Imam Hasan, Imam Husayn, Zaynab
and Umm Kulthum have left their marks on the history of the
world. After the death of Hadrat Fatimah, 'Ali married Ummu
'I-Banin. 'Abbas was born out of this wedlock and was so handsome
that he was fondly called Qamar Banu Hashim. He personified
loyalty and bravery and proved it in the battlefield at Karbala'.
* * *
Death:
In the 40th year of Hijrah, in the small hours of the morning
of 19th Ramadan, 'Ali was struck with a poisoned sword by a
Kharijite while offering his prayers in the mosque of Kufah. (See
photo on p. 56) The Lion of God, the most brave-hearted and
fentle Muslim that ever lived began his glorious life with
devotion to Allah and His Apostle and ended it in the service of
Islam.
And do not speak of those who are slain in Allah's way
as dead; nay they are alive but you do not perceive. (Qur'an,
2:154)
* * *
THE IMAMS AND LEADERS OF ISLAM
(By al-Allamah at-Tabatabai)
The previous discussions lead us to the conclusion that in
Islam, after the death of the Holy Prophet, there has
continuously existed and will continue to exist with- in the
Islamic community (ummah), an Imam (a leader chosen by God).
Numerous prophetic hadlths have been transmitted in Sh;'ism
concerning the description of the Imams, their number, the fact
that they are all of the Quraysh and of the Household of the
Prophet, and the fact that the promised Mahdi; is among them and
the last of them. Also, there are definitive words of the Prophet
concerning the Imamate of 'Al; and his being the first Imam and
also definitive utterances of the Prophet and 'Al; concerning the
Imamate of the Second Imam. In the same way the Imams before have
left definitive statements concerning the Imamate of those who
were to come after them. According to these utterances contained
in Twelve- lmam Shi'ite sources the Imams are twelve in number
and their holy names are as follows: ( I ) 'Ali ibn Ab; Talib;
(2) al-Hasan ibn 'Ali; (3) al-Husayn ibn 'Ali; (4) 'Ali ibn
al-Husayn; (5) Muhammad ibn 'Ali;(6) Ja'far ibn Muhammad; (7)
Musa ibn Ja'far; (8) 'Ali ibn Musa; (9) Muhammad ibn 'Ali; (10)
'Ali ibn Muhammad; (11) al-Hasan ibn 'Ali; and (12) the Mahdi.
* * *
The First Imam:
Amir al-Mu'minin, 'Ali (upon whom be peace) was the son of Abu
Talib, the Shaykh of the Banu Hashim. Abu Talib was the uncle and
guardian of the Holy Prophet and the person who had brought the
Prophet to his house and raised him like his own son. After the
Prophet was chosen for his prophetic mission. Abu Talib continued
to support him and repelled from him the evil that came from the
infidels among the Arabs and especially the Quraysh. According to
well-known traditional accounts 'Ali was born ten years before
the commencement of the prophetic mission of the Prophet. When
six years old, as a result of femine in and around Mecca, he was
requested by the Prophet to leave his father's house and come to
the house of his cousin, the Prophet. There he was placed
directly under the guardianship and custody of the Holy Prophet.
A few years later, when the Prophet was endowed with the Divine
Gift of prophecy and for the first time received the Divine
Revelation in the cave of Hira', as he left the cave to return to
town and his own house he met 'Ali on the way. He told him what
had happened and 'Ali accepted the new faith. Again in a
gathering when the Holy Prophet had brought his relatives
together and invited them to accept his religion, he said the
first person to accept his call would be his vicegerent and
inheritor and deputy. The only person to rise from his place and
accept the faith was 'Ali and the Prophet accepted his
declaration of faith. Therefore, 'Ali was the first man in Islam
to accept the faith and is the first among the followers of the
Prophet to have never worshipped other than the One God. 'Ali was
always in the company of the Prophet until the Prophet emigrated
from Mecca to Medina. On the night of the emigration to Medina
(Hijrah) when the infidels had surrounded the house of the
Prophet and were determined to invade the house at the end of the
night and cut him to pieces while he was in bed. 'Ali slept in
place of the Prophet while the Prophet left the house and set out
for Medina. After the departure of the Prophet, according to his
wish 'Ali gave back to the people the trusts and charges that
they had left with the Prophet. Then he went to Medina with }:is
mother, the daughter of the Prophet, and two other women. In
Medina also 'Ali was constantly in the company of the Prophet in
private and in public. The Prophet gave Fatimah, his sole,
beloved daughter from Khadijah, to 'Ali as his wife and when the
Prophet was creating bonds of brotherhood among his companions,
he selected 'Ali as his brother. 'Ali was present in all the wars
in which the Prophet participated, except the battle of Tabuk
when he was ordered to stay in Medina in place of the Prophet. He
did not retreat in any battle nor did he turn his face away from
any enemy. He never disobeyed the Prophet, so that the Prophet
said: 'Ali is never separated from the Truth nor the Truth
from 'Ali. On the day of the death of the Prophet, 'Ali was
thirty- three years old. Although he was foremost in religious
virtues and the most outstanding among the companions of the
Prophet, he was pushed aside from the caliphate on the claim that
he was too young and that he had many enemies among the people
because of the blood of the polytheists he had spilled in the
wars fought alongside the Prophet. Therefore, 'Ali was almost
completely cut off from public affairs. He retreated to his house
where he began to train competent individuals in the Divine
sciences and in this way he passed the twenty-five years of the
caliphate of the first three caliphs who (came to power after the
Prophet; the first by election of few Muslims; the second
appointed by the first; and the third, chosen out of six unequal
candidates nominated by the second caliph. . .?!). When the third
caliph was killed, people gave their allegiance to him and he was
chosen as Caliph. During his caliphate of nearly four years and
nine months, 'Ali followed, exactly, the way of the Prophet and
gave his caliphate the form of a spiritual movement and renewal
and began many different types of reforms. Naturally, these
reforms were against the interests of certain parties that sought
their own benefit. As a result, a group of the companions
(foremost among whom were Talhah and Zubayr, who also gained the
support of 'A'ishah, and especially Mu'awiyah) made a pretext of
the death of the third caliph to raise their heads in opposition
and began to revolt and rebel against 'Ali. In order to quell the
civil strife and sedition, 'Ali fought successfully aware near
Basrah known as the Battle of the Camel, against
Talhah and az-Zubayr in which 'A'ishah, the Mother of the
Faithful, was also involved. He fought another war against
Mu'awiyah on the border of Iraq and Syria which lasted for a year
and a half and is famous as the Battle of Siffin. He
also fought the Khawarij at Nahrawan, in a battle known as the
Battle of Nahrawan. Therefore, most of the days of
'Ali's caliphate were spent in overcoming internal opposition.
Finally, in the morning of the l9th Ramadan in the year 40 AH,
while praying in the mosque of Kufah, he was wounded by one of
the Khawarij and died as a martyr during the night of the 21st.
According to the testimony of friend and foe alike, 'Ali had no
shortcomings from the point of view of human perfection. And in
the Islamic virtues he was a perfect example of the upbringing
and training given by the Holy Prophet. The discussions that have
taken place concerning his personality and the books written on
this subject by Shites, Sunnis and members of other religions,
as well as the simply curious outside any distinct religious
bodies, are hardly equaled in the case of any other personality
in history. In science and knowledge 'Ali was the most learned of
the companions of the Prophet, and of Muslims in general. In his
learned discourses he was the first in Islam to open the door for
logical demonstration and proof and to discuss the divine
science or metaphysics (ma'arif-e Ilahiyyah). He spoke
concerning the esoteric aspect of the Qur'an and devised Arabic
grammar in order to preserve the Qur'an form of expression. He
was the most eloquent Arab in speech (as has been mentioned in
the first part of this book). The courage of 'Ah was proverbial.
In all the wars in which he participated during the lifetime of
the Holy Prophet, and also afterward, he never displayed fear or
anxiety. Although in many battles such as those of Uhud, Hunayn,
Khaybar and Khandaq, the aides to the Prophet and the Muslim army
trembled in fear or dispersed and fled, he never turned back to
the enemy. Never did a warrior or soldier engage 'Ali in battle
and come out of it alive. Yet, with full chivalry he would never
slay a weak enemy nor pursue those who fled. He would not engage
in surprise attacks or in turning streams of water upon the
enemy. It has been definitely established historically that in
the Battle of Khaybar in the attack against the fort he reached
the ring of the door and with sudden motion tore off the door and
cast it away. Also, on the day when Mecca was conquered the
Prophet ordered the idols to be broken. The idol
Hubal was the largest idol in Mecca, a giant stone
statue placed on the top of the Ka'bah. Following the command of
the Holy Prophet, 'Ali placed his feet on the Prophet's
shoulders, climbed to the top of the Ka'bah, pulled
Hubal from its place and cast it down.
'Ali was also without equal in religious asceticism and the
worship of God. In answer to some who had complained of 'Ali's
anger toward them, the Holy Prophet said: Do not reproach
'Ali for he is in a state of Divine ecstasy and
bewilderment. Abu'd-Darda', one of the companions, one day
saw the body of 'Ali in one of the palm plantations of Medina
lying on the ground as stiff as wood. He went to 'Ali's house to
inform his noble wife, the daughter of the Prophet, and to
express his condolences. The daughter of the Prophet said:
My cousin ('Ali) has not died. Rather, in fear of God he has
fainted. This condition overcomes him often. There are many
stories told of 'Ali's kindness to the lowly, compassion for the
needy and the poor, and generosity and munificence toward those
in misery and poverty. 'Ali spent all that he earned to help the
poor and the needy, and himself lived in the strictest and
simplest manner. 'Ali loved agriculture and spent much of his
time digging wells, planting trees and cultivating fields. But
all the fields that he cultivated or wells that he built he gave
in endowment (waqf) to the poor. His endowments, known as the
alms of 'Ali, had the noteworthy income of
twenty-four thousand gold dinars towards the end of his life.
(shiite Islam)
* * *
(A Brief History of The Fourteen Infallibles, p. 59-69)
