Ali ibn Abi Talib

From open-encyclopedia.com - the free encyclopedia.

Ali ibn Abi Talib (علي بن أبي طالب) (c. 600 – 661) was the fourth Caliph or successor of Muhammad. He was born at Mecca where his father, Abu Talib, was an uncle of the Prophet. Ali himself was adopted by Muhammad and educated under his care.

While a boy, he distinguished himself by being the very first male to declare his adherence to the cause of Muhammad, who some years afterwards gave him his daughter Fatima al-Zahra in marriage. Ali proved himself to be a brave and faithful soldier, and when Muhammad died without a surviving son, a significant minority thought Ali to have the best claim to succeed Muhammad. However, the first caliph was Abu Bakr, followed by Umar and Uthman. It was not until 656, after the murder of Uthman, that Ali assumed the title of caliph. Certain conspirators later claimed that he took no steps to prevent this murder, and use this story as perhaps the only blot upon his character. However, some stories also claim that Ali sent his sons Husayn and Hassan to defend Uthman, and was angered when they were unable to protect him.

Almost the first act of his reign was the suppression of a rebellion under Talha and Zubair (two eminent companions of Muhammad), who were instigated by Aisha, Muhammad's widow, a bitter enemy of Ali, and one of the chief hindrances to his advancement to the caliphate. The rebel army was defeated at the Battle of Basra (also known as the Battle of the Camel); the two generals were killed, and Aisha was escorted with all respect to Medina and was allocated a pension.

He dismissed several provincial governors, many of whom had amassed small fortunes, and replaced them with companions of the Prophet such as Salman al-Farsi or trusted aides such as Malik al-Ashtar.

Ali soon afterwards made Kufa his capital. His next care was to get rid of the opposition of Mu'awiyah, the governor of Syria, who had established himself at the head of a renegade army. A prolonged battle took place in July 657 in the plain of Siffin (Suffein), near the Euphrates; the fighting was at first, in favour of Ali, when suddenly a number of the enemy, fixing copies of the Quran to the points of their spears, exclaimed that "the matter ought to be settled by reference to this book, which forbids Muslims to shed each other's blood". The soldiers of Ali refused to fight any longer, and demanded that the issue be referred to arbitration. Abu Musa was appointed umpire on the part of Ali, and `Amr-ibn-al-As, a veteran diplomat, on the part of Mu'awiyah. It is said that `Amr persuaded Abu Musa that it would be for the advantage of Islam that neither candidate should reign, and asked him to give his decision first. Abu Musa having proclaimed that he deposed both Ali and Mu'awiyah, `Amr declared that he also deposed Ali, and announced further that he invested Mu'awiyah with the caliphate. This treacherous decision greatly injured the cause of Ali, which was still further weakened by the loss of Egypt.

It chanced, however — according to a legend, the details of which are quite uncertain — that three of the sect of the Kharijites had made an agreement to assassinate Ali, Mu'awiyah and `Amr, as the authors of disastrous feuds among the faithful. The only victim of this plot was Ali, who died at Kufa in 661, of the wound inflicted by a poisoned weapon. A splendid mosque called Mashad Ali was afterwards erected near the city at Najaf, the place of his burial (although some believe he is buried at Mazar-e-Sharif in Afghanistan). He had eight wives after Fatima's death, and in all, it is said, thirty-three children, one of whom, Hassan, a son of Fatima, is said to have waived his right to the caliphate to prevent further bloodshed among Muslims. Muawiyah I thus became the caliph and established the Umayyad dynasty of caliphs, against Hasan's explicit wishes. Ali's descendants by Fatima are known as the Fatimids.

The question of Ali's right to succeed to the caliphate is an article of faith which divided the Muslim world into two great sects, the Sunni and the Shi'a. The Sunnis believe that the prophet chose Abu Bakr to be the first caliph, while the Shia believe that he chose Ali and announced it in public in Ghadir Khum. Whatever the case, Ali did not challenge Abu Bakr or any of the later caliphs, rather he served as an advisor to them.

Ali is greatly respected by all Muslims, both Sunni and Shi'a. The Shi'a in particular venerate him as second only to the prophet, calling him among several titles the "Leader of the Faithful" (Amir-ul-mu'mineen) and the "Lion of God" (Asadullah), and celebrate the anniversaries of his martyrdom and birth; the Shia version of the adhan also includes an explicit reference to Ali. Ali is described as a bold, noble and generous man, "the last and worthiest of the primitive Muslims, who imbibed his religious enthusiasm from companionship with the prophet himself, and who followed to the last the simplicity of his example." (See further Caliphate.)

In the eyes of the later Muslims he was remarkable for learning and wisdom, and there are extant collections of proverbs and verses which bear his name: the Sentences of Ali. The most famous collection of Ali's speeches and letters is the Nahj al Balagha meaning "The peak of eloquence".

His sons Hassan and Husayn are also revered by Muslims, especially the Shi'a.

See also

• Shiites
• Ismailis
• Fatimids
• Hashemites
• Shia Imams
• Wali

External links

Wikiquote has a collection of quotations by or about Ali ibn Abi Talib.

• Imam Ali in the eyes of non-Muslims
• The First Imam

ar:علي بن أبي طالب de:Ali ibn Abi Talib fr:Ali he:עלי אבן מוטלב nl:Imam Ali ja:アリー・イブン＝アビー＝ターリブ sv:Ali ibn Abi Talib uk:Алі ібн Абі Таліб