Sunni Feedback on The Issues of Infallibility and Ahulbayt [Electronic resources] نسخه متنی

Tragedy of Karbala as reported by the Sunnis (Part II) The events that transpired with Muslim b.
Aqil
Al Husayn, peace be upon him, summoned Muslim b.
Aqil
and
despatched him with Qays b.
Mushir al Saydawi and
Umara b.
Abd
Allah al Saluli, and Abd Allah and Abd al Rahman, sons of
Shaddad al Arhabi.

He enjoined him to be pious
before God and to
conceal his affair, and to act in a kindly way.

If
he saw that the
people were united and had commited themselves to an
agreement, he
should speedily inform him of that.

Muslim, the mercy of God be on him, departed until he came to
Medina.

There he prayed in the mosque of the
Apostle of God, may
God bless him and his family, and said farewell to the
dearest
members of his family.

Then he hired two guides.

These
two set out
with him, but they missed the way and got lost.

Both
were struck by
severe thirst and were unable to continue their journey.

They
indicated
the path to him after it again appeared clear to them.

Muslim
carried
on along the path and the two guides died of thrist.

Muslim
b.
Aqil,
the mercy of God be with them both, wrote a letter from the
place
known as al Madiq and sent it with Qays b.
Mushir:
I set out from Medina
with two guides and they missed the way
and got lost.
Both
were overcome by thirst and soon died.
But
we kept going until we
came to water.

We were only saved at the
last moment of our
lives.
That water is in a place called al-
Madiq in a low valley.

I
have taken this as a bad omen for my
mission.

If
you consider it so, you could relieve me and send
another in my place.

Greetings.
Al-Husayn, peace be upon him, wrote (back):
I am afraid that your
urging me in the letter to relieve you from
the task which I sent
you on is only cowardice.
Therefore go on
with your task which I
gave you.

Greetings.
Muslim read the letter, he said: It is not for myself
that I am
afraid.

So he continued (once more) until he came
to a well
belonging to (the tribe of) Tayyi'.
He stayed there
(the night) then as
he rode off (he saw) a man hunting.

He saw him
shoot a fawn as it
came into his sight, and kill it.

Muslim said:
(Thus), will we kill our
enemies, God willing.
He went on until he entered Kufa.
There he stayed
in the house of
al-Mukhtar b.
Abi Ubayda, which is called today the
house of
Muslim b.
al-Musayyib.
The Shia began to
come regularly to (see)
him.

Whenever a group of them gathered together
with him, he would
read the letter of al-Husayn, peace be upon him, and they
would
weep.

The people pledged allegiance to him (on
behalf of al-Husayn)
to the extent that eighteen thousand men made such a pledge
to him.
Therefore Muslim wrote to al-Husayn, peace be upon him,
informing
him of the pledge of allegiance to him of the eighteen
thousand and
urging him to come.

The Shia began to visit Muslim b.
Aqil so
frequently that his place
(of residence) became well-known.

Al-Numan b.
Bashlr,
who had
been Muawiya's governor of Kufa and had been confirmed in
office
by Yazid, knew of his where abouts.

He went up on
the the pulpit and
after praising God said: Servants of God, fear God and
do not rush
into rebellion and discord.

For in that men will be
destroyed, blood
will be shed, and property will be plundered.

I do
not combat anyone
who does not combat me, nor do I disturb those of you who
remain
quiet.

I do not oppose you, nor do I apprehend (you
merely) on
grounds of suspicion, accusation or hearsay.

However,
if you turn
your faces away from me, violate your pledge of allegiance
and
oppose your Imam, by God, other than Whom there is no deity,
I will
strike you with my sword as long as its hilt remains in my
hand, even
though I do not have any of you to help me.

Yet I
hope that those
among you who know the truth are more numerous than those
whom
falsehood will destroy.

Abd Allah b.
Muslim b.
Rabi'al al-Hadrami,
an ally of the Banu
Umayya stood before him and said: O governor, what you
see can
only be adequately dealt with by violence; for the view which
you
hold about what (should be done) between you and your enemy
is
that of the weak.

I would prefer to be one of the weak (while remaining)
in
obedience to God than to be one of the mighty (while at the
same time
being) in rebellion against God, answered al-Nu'man.
Then
he went
down (from the pulpit).

Abd Allah b.
Muslim went out and wrote the
(following) letter to
Yazid b.
Mu'awiya:
Muslim b.
Aqil
has come to Kufa and Shia have pledged
allegiance
to him on behalf of al-Husayn b.
Abi Talib,
peace be on
them.

If you have any need for Kufa, then send it a
strong man,
who will carry out your orders and act in the same
way as you
would against your enemy.

Al-Nu'man b.
Bashir
is a
weak man, or
he is acting like a weak man.

Umara b.
Uqba wrote to him in a similar vein, as
did Umar b.
Sa'd b.
Abi Waqqas.

When the letters
reached Yazid, he summoned
Sarjun, a retainer (mawla) of Muawiya and asked (him):
What is
your view (of the fact) that Husayn has sent Muslim b.
Aqil
to Kufa
to receive pledges of homage on his behalf? I have (also)
learnt that
Numan is weak,and had other bad reports of him.

Who
do you think
that I should appoint as governor of Kufa?
Now Yazid was angry with 'Ubayd Allah b.
Ziyad so
Sarjunp/>
answered him, Do you think, if Muawiya was alive and
advising
you, that you would take his advice?
Yes, he answered.

Sarjun produced a (letter of) appointment for 'Ubayd Allah b.
Ziyad (as governor) of Kufa, and said: This
is the advice of
Mu'awiya, which he ordered before he died.

So join
the two cities of
Basra and Kufa (under the authority) of Ubayd Allah.

I'll do that, replied Yazid.

I'll
send the letter of authority
(which my father wrote) for 'Ubayd Allah b.
Ziyad
to him.

After this he summoned Muslim b.
'Amr al-Bahili and
he sent him
to 'Ubayd Allah with the following (letter):
My Shia
among the people of Kufa have informed me that Ibn
'Aqil is
there gathering units in order to spread rebellion among
the Muslims.

Therefore,
when you read this letter of mine, go to
Kufa and
search for Ibn Aqil as if you were looking for a bead
until you
find him.

Then bind him (in chains), kill him or
expel
him.
Greetings.
In this way he gave him authority over Kufa.
Muslim
b.
'Amr went
to Ubayd Allah at Basra and brought him the authorization and
the
letter.

'Ubayd Allah ordered that preparations
should be made
immediately and that the departure for Kufa would take place
on the
next day.

He himself left Basra after he had made
his brother,
'Uthman, his deputy.

He took with him Muslim b.
Amr,
Sharik b.
al-
A'war al-Harithi, together with his entourage and household.
When he reached Kufa, he was wearing a black turban and he
was
veiled.

News of al Husayn's departure had reached
the people and
they were expecting his arrival.

When they saw
Ubayd Allah, they
thought that he was al-Husayn.

He (i.
e.
Ubayd
Allah) did not pass a
group of people without them greeting him.

They
were saying:
Welcome, son of the Apostle of God, your arrival is a
happy
(event).

He saw in their welcoming of al Husayn something which
(greatly)
troubled him.

Muslim b.
Amr said, when
their number had become
so great (that) they were delaying them: This is the
governor 'Ubayd
Allah b.
Ziyad.

He went on so that he was approaching the (governor's) palace
at
night.

With him was (still) a great crowd who had
gathered round him
and who did not doubt that he was al-Husayn.

Al-Numan
b.
Bashir
had (the palace) bolted against him and against his
entourage.

One of
those with him called on him to open the door to them.

But
al-Numan, still thinking that he was al-Husayn, went up to
the
balcony and called down: I invoke God before you,
unless you
withdraw (from me), by God, I will not hand over my of fice (amana)
to you but I have no wish to fight you.

(Ibn Ziyad) did not answer him.

But he went closer
while al-
Nu'man was hanging over the balcony of the palace.
Then
he began
to say to him: Open, you have not opened yet and you
have already
had a long night (in which you have slept instead of
governing).

A man behind him heard this and withdrew to the people from
Kufa who had followed (Ibn Ziyad) (believing) him to be al-Husayn.
He said: O people, it is Ibn Murjana, by Him other than
Whom
there is no deity.

Al-Numan opened the door for him
and he
entered.

They slammed the door in the faces of the
people and they
dispersed.
In the morning the call was made among the people: Al
Salat
jamia (the prayer is a general prayer which all should gather
for).

The people gathered and he went out to them.
He
praised and
glorified God and said: The Commander of the faithful (Yazid)
has
appointed me to be in charge of your town and your
frontier-station
and the distribution of your booty (fay).

He has
ordered me to give
justice to the oppressed among you, to be generous to those
of you
who are deprived, and to treat the obedient among you with
generosity like a good father, but to use the whip and the
sword
against those who abandon my commanus and oppose my
appointment.

Let each man protect himself.
True
belief (sidq) should
declare itself on your behalf, not the threat of punishment (wadis).

Then he went down, he took the group leaders (arifs) and
(some
of) the people forcibly and he said: Write to me about
the strangers,
those among you who supported the Commander of the faithful
(i.
e.
'Ali b.
Abi Talib), those among you who support the
Haruriyya (i.
e.
Kharijites), and the trouble-makers whose concern is discord
and
turmoil.
Whosoever of you makes these lists for us
will be free from
harm.
But those of you who do not write anyone,
will have to
guarantee that there is no opponent in his group (irifa) who
will
oppose us, and no wrongdoer who will try to wrong us.
Anyone
who
does not do so, will be denied protection and his blood and
his
property will be permitted to us.

Any group leader
(arif) in whose
group is found anyone with partisanship for the Commander of
the
faithful, who has not been reported to us, will be crucified
at the door
of his house, and I wil abolish the pay (atal) of that group
(irafa)
When Muslim b.
Aqil heard of the coming of Ubayd
Allah to
Kufa, of the speech he had made and his treatment of the
arifs and
(other) people, he left the house of al-Mukhtar and went to
the house
of Hani' b.
Urwa and went in (to stay) there.

The
Shia began to visit
Hani's house secretly to keep it hidden from Ubayd Allah and
they
enjoined that it should be kept secret.

Ibn Ziyad summoned a retainer (mawla) of his called Maqil.
Take three thousand dirhams, he told him,
and look for Muslim
b.
'Aqil and search out his followers.
If
you get hold of one or a group
of them, give them these three thousand dirhams.

Tell
them to use it
to help in the war against your enemy.

Let them
know that you are
one of them.

For if you give them it, they will be
sure of you and have
confidence in you, and they will not keep any of their
information
from you.

So go (looking) for them and continue
until you find where
Muslim b.
'Aqll is staying and you have met him.

He did that.
He came (to a place where) he sat near
Muslim b.
Awsaja al-Asad; in the great mosque.
The latter was
praying, and he
(Maeqil) heard some people saying that this (was one of those
who)
had pledged allegiance to al-Husayn.

He went up and
sat right next to
him until he had finished praying.

O servant of God, he said, I am a Syrian
whom God has blessed
with love for the House and love for those who love them.

He pretended to weep (in front of) him.

Then he
continued: I have
three thousand dirhams with which I want to meet a man from
them
(the House) whom I have learnt has come to Kufa to receive
pledges
of allegiance on behalf of the son of the daughter of the
Apostle of
God, may God bless him and his family.

I have been
wanting to meet
him but I have not found anyone who will direct me to him and
I
don't know the place (where he is staying).
While I
was sitting (here), I
heard a group of the faithful saying that this is a man (i.
e.
Muslim
b.
Awsaja) who is acquainted with this House.
Therefore
I have come
to you so that you may take this money from me and introduce
me to
your leader (sahib); for I am one of your brethren and
someone you
can trust.

If you wish, you may receive my pledge
of allegiance to him
before my meeting him.

I thank God for you meeting me, replied (Muslim)
b.
'Awsaja,
and it gives me great joy to get (you) what you desire,
and that God
should help the House of His Prophet, peace be on them,
through
you.

Yet the people's knowledge of my (connection)
with this affair
before it is finished troubles me, because of (my) fear of
this tyrant
and his severity.

It would be better (if) you took the pledge of
allegiance from me
(now), Maqil told him.

So he took his pledge
of allegiance and
testaments heavily supported by oaths that he would be
sincere and
keep the matter concealed.

He (Maqil) gave him
whatever would
make him content in that way.

(Some to visit me at my house for (a few) days,
said (Muslim b.
'Awsaja), for I will seek permission for you (to visit)
your master.

He began to go to visit him frequently with the people (i.
e.
the
other
members of the Shia) and sought permission for him (to
visit).
Permission was given and Muslim b.
Aqil received (Maqils)
pledge
of allegiance.
He told Abu Thumama al Saidi to take
the money
from him.
The latter was the one who collected
money from them and
what could be used to help each other, and he used to buy
their arms.
He was a perceptive man and one of the knights (faris) of the
Arabs
and one of the notables of the Shi'a.
That man (i.
e.
Ma'qil) began to visit them
regularly.

He was the
first to enter and the last to leave, in order to become
acquainted with
(everything of ) their affairs which Ibn Ziyad wanted.

He
used to keep
him informed about that at regular intervals.

Hani' b.
Urwa began to fear for himself and he
stopped attending
Ibn Ziyad's assembly (majlis).

He pretended to be
sick.
Ibn Ziyad
asked those who did attend, Why is it I don't see Hani'?
He is sick.

they replied.
If I had been informed of his illness, I would have
paid him a sick
visit, said Ibn Ziyad.

Then he summoned
Muhammad b.
al-Ashath,
Asma' b.
Kharija and 'Amr b.
al-Hajjaj al
Zubaydi.
Ruwayha,
daughter of 'Amr was married to Hani' b.
Urwa, she
was the mother
of Yahya b.
Hani'.

What prevents Hani' from coming to visit us? he
asked them.
We don't know, they replied, but it is said
that he is sick.

I have learnt, replied (Ibn Ziyad), that he
is better and that he
sits at the door of his house.

Go and tell him that
he should not
abandon his duty towards us.

For I do not like one
of the Arab nobles
like him to ill-treat me.

They went until they stood before his (house) in the evening.

He
was sitting at his door.
What is stopping you from seeing the governor?
they asked.
For he has mentioned you and said that if he had been
told you were
ill, he would have paid you a sick-visit.

An illness has stopped me, he answered.

He has been informed, they said, that you
sit at the door of
your house every evening.

He finds you tardy and
tardiness and
churlish behaviour are things which the authorities will not
tolerate.
We adjure you to ride with us.

He called for his clothes and got dressed.

Then he
called for a mule
and rode (with them).

When he got near the palace,
he began to feel
some apprehension.

He said to Hassan b.
Asma'
b.
Kharija,
Nephew, by God,l fear this man.
What do you
think?
Uncle, by God, I do not fear anything for you.

why
do you invent
a reason (for blame) against yourself? he answered, for
Hassan did
not know why Ubayd Allah had sent for him.

(So)
Hani' went on
until he came to 'Ubayd Allah b.
Ziyad.
With
him was a group (of
people).
When he looked up, 'Ubayd Allah said (to himself): The
fool's
legs have brought him to you.

Then, when Hani' had
drawn near Ibn
Ziyad who had the qadi Shurayh, with him, Ibn Ziyad turned
towards him and recited:
I want his
friendship but he wants my death.

The one who makes excuses to you is one of your own bosom
friends from the tribe of Murad.

He was referring to his earlier kindness and gentleness to
him
(Hani').

What is that, governor? asked Hani'.
Yes, Hani', what are these matters which you have been
plotting
in your house against the Commander of the faithful and the
general
community of the Muslims? asked Ibn Ziyad.

You
have brought
Muslim b.
Aqil and taken him into your house.

You
have gathered
arms and men for him in houses around you.

You
thought that was
hidden from me.

I have not done that and Muslim is not with me,
he replied.
Oh yes (you have), was the answer.

After the argument between them had gone on for some time and
Hani' persisted in contradicting and denying (the
accusations), Ibn
Ziyad summoned that spy, Maqil.

He came and stood
before him.
Do you know this man? (Ibn Ziyad) asked him.
Yes, he replied.

At that (moment) Hani' realised that he had been a spy
against
them and had brought (Ibn Ziyad) all their information.

For
a
moment he was bewildered, and then his spirit returned to
him.
Listen to me, he said, and believe what I
say.
I swear by God
that I do not lie.
By God, I did not summon him to
my house.
I did not
know anything about his business until he came to me asking
to stay
with me.
I was too ashamed to refuse him.
As
a result of that, the duty
of giving (him) protection fell upon me.

Therefore
I gave him lodging
and refuge.

Then his affair developed as you have
been informed.

If
you wish,I will give you strongly sworn testaments that I
will not do
you any harm and danger, and I will come to you and put my
hand in
your hand.

If you wish, I will give you a guarantee
which will be in
your hand until I return to you.

Then I will go to
him and order him to
leave my house for wherever in the land he wants to go.

Then
he will
leave his right of protection.

You will never leave me unless you bring him,
answered Ibn
Ziyad.
No, by God, I will not bring him to you, (the
other) declared.
After the argument between them had gone on for some time,
Muslim b.
'Amr al-Bahih rose (to speak).

There
was no other Syrian
or Basran in Kufa except him.

May God make you prosper, governor, he
interjected, (please)
leave me with him (for a time) so that I can speak to him.

He arose
and took him (Hani') aside from Ibn Ziyad.
They
were (standing)
where he could see them and when they raised their voices, he
could
hear what they were saying.

I adjure you before God, Hani', said Muslim,
you are killing
yourself and bringing tribulation on your clan.

By
God, I hold you
too precious to be killed.

This man is the cousin
of (your) tribe so they
will not fight against him, nor harm him.

Therefore
give him (i.
e.
Muslim b.
Aqil) to them (the authorities).

There
will be no shame
and failure for you by that for you would only be handing him
over to
the authorities.

By God, indeed there would be shame and disgrace for
me,
answered Hani', were I to hand over one who has come
under my
protection and is my guest, while I am still alive and sound.

I
can hear;
I see well; I have a strong arm and many helpers.
By
God, if I was the
only one without any helper, I would not hand him over until
I had
died on his behalf.

He began to shout at him saying: By God, I will never
hand him
over to him.

Ibn Ziyad heard that.
Bring him to me,
he said.

They brought
him.

Either bring him to me or I will have
your head cut off,
demanded Ibn Ziyad.

Then there will be much flashing (of swords) around
your house,
replied Hani, thinking that his clan would prevent him (from
being
killed).

Come near me,demanded (Ibn Ziyad).
He
came nearer and Ibn
Ziyad struck his face with his cane and went on beating at
his nose,
forehead and cheeks so that he broke his nose and the blood
flowed
from it on to his face anal heard and the flesh of his
forehead and
cheeks was sprinkled over his beard.

Eventually the
cane broke.
Hani' stretched out his hand towards the hilt of the sword of
one of
the armed attendants but the man pulled it away and prevented
him.

You have been behaving like one of the, Haruri (i.
e.
Kharijites)
all
day long! yelled Ibn Ziyad, so your blood is
permitted to us.

Take
him away!
They took him and threw him into one of the rooms in the
building.
They locked the doors on him.

He had told them to
put guards on him
and that (also) was done.

However Hassan b.
Asma'
arose and said:

Are (we) messengers of treachery now? For you told us
to bring the
man to you.

yet when we brought him to you, you
smashed his nose
and face, and his blood flowed on his beard.

Then
you claimed that
you would kill him.

You will be for it here (and now), cried 'Ubayd
Allah and he
ordered him to be struck, shaken, and pushed aside.

We are satisfied with the governor's attitude on our
behalf and
against (those of ) us (who are wrong); the governor is only
punishing
(those who are wrong), declared Muhammad b.

al
Ashath.
However when it was reported to Amr b.
al-Hajjaj
and he learnt
that Hani' had been killed, he advanced with Madhhij and
surrounded the palace.

He had a great crowd with
him.
I am 'Amr b.
al-Hajjaj, he called out,
and these are the knights
of Madhhij, and their leading men.

We have not
broken away from
obedience, nor have we separated from the community.

It had been reported to them that their colleague had been
killed,
and they regarded that as a great crime.

Ubayd
Allah was told that
Madhhij were at the gate.

He told the qadi Shurayh:
Go in to their
colleague, look at him and then go out and inform them that
he is still
alive and has not been killed.

Shurayh went in and looked at him.

When Hani' saw
Shurayh, he
said, with blood flowing down his beard: Oh what a God!
Oh what
Muslims! Has my clan been destroyed? Where are the people of
religion? Where are the people of the town? When he
heard the
tumult at the door of the palace he said: I think those
are the voices
of Madhhij and my group of the Muslims.

If ten of
them got in, they
would be able to rescue me.

After Shurayh had listened to what he had to say, he went out
to
them and told them: When the governor learnt about your
attitude
and your statements concerning your collegue, he ordered me
to go
and see him.

I went and I saw him.

Then
he ordered me to meet you
and inform you that he is still alive and that the report
that he had
been killed was false.

Praise be to God since he has not been killed,
answered CAmr b.
al-Hajjaj and his colleagues.

Then they went away.
Ubayd Allah b.
Ziyad went out and went up on the
pulpit.
(He had
brought) with him the nobles of the people, his bodyguard (shurat)
and his entourage.

He said: O people, seek
refuge in obedience to
God and your Imams.

Do not cause division, for you
will be
destroyed, humiliated, killed or harshly treated and
deprived.

Your
brother is he who speaks the truth to you.

He who
warns is excused.
After he had finished, he was about to go down but had not
gone
from the pulpit, when the look-outs at the date-sellers' gate
of the
mosque rushed in yelling: Muslim b.
Aqil has
come!
Ubayd Allah quickly went into the palace and locked the
gates.
Abd Allah b.
Hazim reported:
By God, I was Ibn 'Aqil's messenger at the
palace to see what was
done to Hani'.

When he was
beaten and imprisoned I mounted my
horse and was the first to enter the house
to bring information of him
to Muslim b.
Aqil.
There
the women of Murad had gathered and
they were crying out: O tears of
grief for him! O bereavement of
him!
I went in to see Muslim and gave him the news of him (Hani').
He
ordered me to summon his supporters.

The houses
around him were
full of them; there were four thousand men there.

He
told his
messengers to cry out: O victorious, kill! so I
cried out: O
victorious, kill! Then the Kufans gathered and
assembled before
him.
Muslim, may God have mercy on him, appointed
leaders over
the quarters, over the tribes of Kinda, Madhhij, Tamlm, Asad,
Mudar and Hamdan.

The people had answered the call
and gathered,
except for a few who had delayed so that the mosque and the
market
place were full of people.

They were full of
enthusiasm until the
evening.

Ubayd Allah's situation was grim.

All
his energy was
concentrated on holding the door, for he only had thirty
members of
his bodyguard with him in the palace, twenty nobles of the
people,
and his family and entourage.

The nobles who had
not been with him
began to come to him through the door which adjoined the
building
of the Romans.

Then those of the nobles who were
with Ibn Ziyad
began to look down on them (the people outside).

(These)
were
looking at them, while they hurled stones at them and cursed
them
and abused 'Ubayd Allah and his father.

Ibn Ziyad
summoned
Kathir b.
Shihab and ordered him to go out among
those of Madhhij
who obeyed him and to go round Kufa and make the people
desert
Ibn Aqil; he should make them afraid of (the possibility of)
war and
threaten them with the punishment of the authorities.

Then
he
ordered Muhammad b.
al-Ashath to go out among those
of Kinda
and Hadramawt who obeyed him; he should raise a standard
which
would guarantee security to those people who came to him.

He
gave
similar instructions to al-Qa'qa al-Dhuhli, Shabath b.
Rib'i
al-
Tamimi, Hajjar b.
Abjar al-'Ijli and Shamir b.
Dhi
al-Jawshan al-
Amin.
He kept the rest of the nobles of the people
with him, not
wishing to be without them because of the small number of
people
who were with him.

Kathir b.
Shihab went
out (and began) making
the people desert Muslim.

Muhammad b.
al-Ashath
went out until
he reached the houses of the Bana Umara.

Ibn 'Aqil
sent 'Abd al-
Rahman b.
Shurayh al-Shibami to Muhammad b.
al-Ashath
from
the mosque.

When Muhammad b.
al-Ashath
saw the great number
of those who had come to him (Muslim), he lingered where he
was
(i.
e.
he did not carry out Ibn Ziyad's
instructions).

Then he-
Muhammad b.
al-Ashath- Kathir b.
Shihab,
al-Qaqa b.
Shawr al-
Dhuhli, and Shabath b.
Ribi began to make the
people withdraw
from their close adherence to Muslim for they made them
afraid of
the authorities so that a great number of their tribesmen and
others
gathered to them and they went to Ibn Ziyad through the house
of the
Romans.

The tribesmen went in with them.
May God make the governor prosperous, said Kathir
b.
Shihab,
you have many of the nobles of the people with you, (as
well as) your
bodyguard, family and servants.

Let us go out
against them.

Ubayd Allah refused but he gave Shabath b.
Ribi a
standard and
he sent him out.
The people with Ibn Aqil remained
numerous until
evening.

Their situation became strong.

'Ubayd Allah sent
for the nobles
and he assembled them.

They (went up to the roof
to) look down on
the people.

They offered additional (money) and
kind treatment to
those who would obey and they terrified the disobedient with
(threats
of) dispossession and (dire) punishment.

They told
them that the
army from Syria was coming against them.

Kathir b.
Shihab
spoke
until the sun was about to set.
He said: O
people, stay with your
families.
Do not hurry into evil actions.
Do
not expose yourselves to
death.
These are the soldiers of the Commander of
the faithful Yazid,
who are approaching.

The governor has given God a
promise that if
you persist in fighting him and do not go away by nightfall,
he will
deprive your children of their (right to a) state allotment
of money
fate') and he will scatter your soldiers in Syrian campaigns.

He
will
make the healthy among you responsible for the sick and those
present responsible for those who are absent until none of
those
rebellious people will remain who has not tasted the evil
consequences of what their hands have earned.

The (other) nobles spoke in a similar vein.

After
the people had
heard what they had to say, they began to disperse.
Women
began to come to their sons and brothers (saying): Go, the
people will be
enough (without) you.

Men were going to their sons
and brothers
and saying: Tomorrow, the Syrians will come against
you.

What are
you doing, causing war and evil? Come away.

Thus (a
man) would
be taken away or would leave.

They continued to
disperse so that by
the time evening came and Muslim b.

Aq'il prayed
the evening
prayer, he had only thirty men with him in the mosque.

When
he saw
that it was evening and he only had that group with him, he
left the
mosque and headed for the gates of Kinda.

He
reached the gates with
only ten of them (left) with him.

When he left the
gate, there was no
one with him to guide him.

He looked around but
could see no one to
guide him along the road, to show him to his house and to
give him
personal support if an enemy appeared before him.

He wandered amid the lanes of Kufa without knowing where he
was going until he came to the houses of the Banu Jabala of
Kinda.
He went on until he came to a door (at which was) a woman
called
Tawa.

She had been a slave-wife (umm walad) of al-Ashath
b.
Qays
and he had freed her.

She had, then, married Usayd
al-Hadrami and
had borne him (a son called) Bilal.

Bilal had gone
out with the people
and his mother was standing at the door waiting for him.
Ibn 'Aqil greeted her and she returned the greeting.

Servant of God, give me water to drink, he asked
her.
she gave
him a drink and he sat down.

she took the vessel
inside and then came
out again.

Servant of God, haven't you had your drink? she
asked.

Yes, was the answer
Then go to your people, she said.
But
he was silent.
She repeated
it but he was still silent.

A third time she said:
Glory be to God,
servant of God, get up - may God give you health - (and go)
to your
people.

For it is not right for you to sit at my
door and I will not
permit you to do it.

(At this) he got up and said: Servant of God, I have
neither house
nor clan in this town.

Would you (show) me some
generosity and
kindness? Perhaps I will be able to repay it later on.

What is it, servant of God? she asked.

I am Muslim b.
Aqil, he replied.
These
people have lied to me,
incited me (to action) and then abandoned me.

You are Muslim, she repeated.
Yes, he answered.

Come in, she said and he was taken into a room in
her house but
not the room she used.

She spread out a carpet for
him and offered
him supper but he could not eat.

Soon her son returned.

He saw her going frequently
to and fro
between the rooms and exclaimed: By God, the number of
times
which you have gone into and come out of that room this
evening,
makes me suspect that you have something important (there).

My little son, forget about this, she answered.

By God, tell me, he replied.

Get on with your own business and don't ask me about
anything, she retorted.

However he persisted
until she said: My
little son, don't tell any of the people anything about what
I am going
to tell you.
Indeed, he answered and she made him take an
oath.

When he
swore (not to do) that, she told him.

He went to
bed without saying
anything.
After the people had deserted Muslim b.
'Aqil, a
long time passed
for Ibn Ziyad without him hearing the voices of the
supporters of Ibn
Aqil as he had heard them before.

He told his
followers to look down
at them and see whether they could see any of them.
They
looked
down and did not see anyone.

Then he told them to
see whether they
were in the shadows and were lying in ambush for them.

They
removed the (bamboo) roof covers of the mosque and began to
lower
the torches of fire in their hands, and to look.
Sometimes
the torches
gave light for them and sometimes they did not give (as much)
light
for them as they would have wished.

They let down
the torches and
sticks of cane tied with rope on which was fire.

They
were let down
until they reached the ground.

They did this in
(places in which was)
the deepest darkness, (as well as) those parts which were
closer and
those which were in between.

They (also) did that
in the darkness
around the pulpit.

When they saw that there was
nothing, they
informed Ibn Ziyad that the people had dispersed.

Then
he opened
the gateway which (went) into the mosque.

He came
out and went up
on the pulpit.

His followers had come out with him.

He
told them to
sit for a little while before the night prayer.

He
ordered 'Amr b.
Nafi
to call out that there would be no guarantees of security for
any man
of the bodyguard, the arifs, the supporters and the fighters
who
prayed the night prayer (anywhere) except in the mosque.

Not
an
hour passed before the mosque was full of people.

After
ordering his
caller (to call for prayer), he rose for the prayer.

His
guard rose
behind him but told them to guard him against anyone coming
in
(to try) to assassinate him.

After praying with the
people, he went up
on the pulpit, When he had praised and glorified God ,he
said:
Ibn 'Aqil, stupid and ignorant (man as he
is) has attempted the
opposition and rebellion which you have
seen.

There will be no
security from God for a man in whose house
we find him.
Whoever
brings him, will have the reward for his
blood.

Fear God, you
servants of God, and keep to obedience and
your pledge of allegiance.
Do not do (anything which will be) against
yourselves.

Husayn b.
Numayr, your mother will lose you, if any
of the gates of the lanes of
Kufa is open or this man gets away, and
you do not bring him to me.
I give you authority over the houses of the
inhabitants of Kufa.

Send
lookouts (to inspect) people on the roads.

Tomorrow
morning clear
out (the people from) the houses and
search them thoroughly so that
you bring me this man.

Al-Husayn b.
Numayr was in charge of the bodyguard
and was of
the Banu Tamim.

After this, Ibn Ziyad went back
into the palace.
He
gave Amr b.
Hurayth his standard and put him in
charge of the
people.

In the morning he held an assembly and gave
permission for
the people to come to him.

Muhammad b.
al-Ash'ath
approached.
Welcome to one of those whose loyalty is above
suspicion, he
said to him and sat him by his side.