Imâm al-Bukhârî narrated on the authority of Qatadah, who said: “Umm Sulaim said to the Prophet: “Anas is your servant.” The Prophet said: ‘O Allâh! Increase his wealth and offspring, and bless (for him) whatever you give him”.
Imâm at-Tirmidhî narrated on the authority of Abû Khaldah, who said: “I said to Abî al-‘Aliyah: “Has Anas heard the Hadîth from the Prophet?” He said to me: “He served him for ten years, and the Prophet made Du’â’ for him. ‘Anas had an orchard, which produced fruit twice a year, and he also had Basil plants -in that orchard- which had Musk-like fragrance”.
It was also narrated that Anas had almost a hundred boys and girls or even more.
In another narration, it was reported that the Prophet said: “O Allâh! Make him live a long life”. Anas, then lived a 100 years.
The Prophet also made Du’â’ for his mother Umm Sulaim and her husband Abû Talhah, and so they were given 9 sons, who were all reciters of the Qur’ân by heart
His Du’a’ for Abû Huraira’s mother to follow the right path:
Imâm Muslim narrated on the authority of Abû Hurairah, who said: “I invited my mother, who was a polytheist, to Islâm. I invited her one day and she said to me something about Allâh’s Messenger which I hated. I came to the Prophet weeping and said: “Allâh’s Messenger, I invited my mother to Islâm but she did not accept (my invitation). I invited her today but she said to me something, which I did not like. (Kindly) supplicate Allâh that He may set the mother of Abû Hurairah right. Thereupon, Allâh’s Messenger said: “O Allâh! Set the mother of Abû Hurairah on the right path”. I came out quite pleased with the supplication of Allâh’s Messenger and when I came near the door, it was closed from within. My mother heard the sound of my footsteps and she said: “Abû Hurairah, just wait, and I heard the noise of water falling. She took a bath and put on a garment and quickly covered her head with a headdress and opened the door and then said: “Abû Hurairah, I bear witness to the fact that but Allâh and Muhammad is His bondsman and His Messenger. He (Abû Hurairah) said: “I went back to Allâh’s Messenger and (this time) I was shedding tears of joy. I said: “Allâh’s Messenger, be happy, for Allâh has responded to your supplication and He has set on the right path the mother of Abû Hurairah. He (the Holy Prophet) praised Allâh, and extolled Him and uttered good words. I said: “Allâh’s Messenger, supplicate to Allâh so that He may instill love of mine and that of my mother in the hearts of the believing servants and let our hearts be filled with their love, whereupon Allâh’s Messenger said: “O Allâh, let there be love of these servants of yours, (i.e. Abû Hurairah and his mother) in the hearts of the believing servants and let their hearts be filled with the love of the believing servants”. (Abû Hurairah said: This prayer) was so fully granted by Allâh that no believer was ever born who heard of me and saw me, but they loved me.
The second part or stage of the role of Imam Hasan [a] in the life of the Muslims commenced when his father appointed him as the next Imam. In the wake of the cruel attempt on his life by Abdul-Rahman bin Muljim and his cohorts, the dying Imam [a] said his last will to his son, Hasan [a]:
“… my son, the Messenger of Allah [s] ordered me to inform you of my last will, and hand over my books and weapons to you, exactly as he told me his last will and gave me his books and weapons. He ordered me to order you to give them to your brother, Husayn, when death approaches you…
Then he turned to his son, Husayn, and said:
“And the Messenger of Allah [s] ordered you to hand them to this son of yours.”
Thereupon, he took hold of the hand of Ali bin Husayn [a] and said to him:
“And the Messenger of Allah [s] ordered you to give them to your son, Muhammad bin Ali. Remember, the Messenger of Allah [s] and me to him.”[20]
Then he named as the witnesses to his last will, Husayn, his son Muhammad, all of his sons, and the chiefs and leading men of his Shi’ites (followers).
The last days of Imam Ali [a] teemed with many of his moral guidelines, which were aimed at establishing the right, and sticking to it. Most of them were addressed to his sons and particularly to Imam Hasan [a]. He emphasized his son’s Caliphate and Imamate after him.
Shortly after the passing away of Imam Ali [a], the people of Kufa hurried to the mosque, dumbfounded and shocked at that great adversity. The grandson of the Messenger of Allah [s], Imam Hasan [a], stood amid
this multitude, promulgating the first of his comm parture of his great leader. He said: muniqués, after the de
“… this night, a man has died whom the first Muslims did not outrun with good deeds, nor did the last ones catch up with him in pleasing acts. He used to fight by the side of the Messenger of Allah [s], risking his own life for the sake of the Prophet’s. The Messenger of Allah [s] would send him as his standard-bearer. Jibra’il would protect him by fighting on his right, and Mika’il on his left. He would not return from the battlefield until Allah had given him victory. He died in this night, on which Isa bin Maryam [a] ascended to heaven, and Yusha’ bin Noon, the trustee of Musa [a], passed away. He has left no dirhams or dinars besides the 700 Dirhams which were left over from his pay.”[21]
At this point Imam Hasan [a] halted his speech for his tears choked him. The image of the great departing man, with his eternal deeds and stances, loomed before his eyes. The Muslims could not help crying bitterly with him. Then he resumed his speech. He said:
“O people! Who has recognized me, that is that. Who has not, let him know that I am Hasan bin Ali. I am the son of the Holy Prophet. I am the son of the Trustee. I am the son of the bearer of the good news, and the warner. I am the son of the Caller to Allah by His permission. I am the son of the bright lamp. I am from the house at which Jibra’il used to descend to us, and ascend from us, and from the Ahlul Bayt whom Allah kept away from uncleanness and totally purified them. I am from a household whose love Allah made an obligation on every Muslim. Allah, the Blessed and the Most High, said to His Prophet:
‘… say: I do not ask of you any reward for it but love for my near relatives;… 111
Holy Qur’an (42:23)
Imam Hasan [a] concluded his speech by saying, ‘Doing a good deed means loving us, the Ahlul Bayt.'[22]
In this speech, Imam Hasan [a] spelled out the qualities of the late leader. Also he presented his own qualifications and stature in the Muslim world, and asserted the fact that he, and not any other person, was entitled to be the next leader of the Muslims.
No sooner did Imam Hasan [a] wind up his speech, than Bin Abbas rose to his feet urging the people to give their pledge of allegiance to the new Imam. And that was exactly what the people did.
Imam Hasan [a] received the pledge of allegiance from the people, and was acknowledged as the caliph and the ruler of Kufa, and later of the other Muslim cities. The news of the demise of Imam Ali [a] and the
passing of the caliphate to his son, the grandson of the Messenger of Allah [s], soon spread.
Mu’awiyah rejoiced at the death of Ali [a]. His capital witnessed noisy festivals. Happiness flooded it! On the other hand, Mu’awiyah was greatly shaken by the announcement of Imam Hasan [a] as the new caliph, and at the pledge of allegiance which he had received. He sent for his advisors, and his leading men. They got together in an emergency meeting at his palace to discuss the latest developments and draw the policy which they would adopt in challenging Imam Hasan [a]. The participants decided to send spies to the Muslim community, under the rule of Imam Hasan [a] to frighten the people and float rumours against the rule of Ahlul Bayt [a], to the interest of the Syrian sedition.
Meanwhile the Umayyad party was busy winning over the leadership and the influential chiefs, who could influence the course of events in Iraq to the advantage of the Umayyad rule. They were generous in bribery, promising the people good rewards, presenting gifts to them, threatening them… and so on.
Mu’awiyah lost no time in implementing the resolutions of the meeting. He set up a network of spies, and appointed two men to surprise them. One of them was named Humairi. He made for Kufa. The other was called Qeeni. He headed for Basrah… [23]
Imam Hasan’s [a] plans of solidifying the government system, and establishing it on a firm ground, were soon effective in unearthing the plots of the Umayyads.[24]
In the wake of that, Imam Hasan [a] sent a letter to Mu’awiyah warning him, and threatening him with war:
“1 Mind you. You have sent stealthily men to me. It is as if you like to go to war. I have no doubt about it. Then anticipate it, Allah willing. I have heard that you rejoiced about what the wise men do not gloat over. Your parable is like the one of whom the poet says: “I and the one who had died are like someone who goes home, goes to sleep, to wake up the following day. So, tell him who remains behind that who departs: ‘Prepare for something like this. You, too, will be something of the past.”[25]
Mu’awiyah, in a responding letter, dodged and denied that he had rejoiced at the death of Imam Ali [a], something which we will not discuss in length here. They exchanged letters. The most important of the letters was that which was sent by Imam Hasan [a] in which he called on Mu’awiyah to stop opposing him and submit to him as he was the legitimate leader. Tension heightened between the two parties, so much so, that Mu’awiyah wrote a letter in which he called on Imam Hasan [a] to abdicate and join him, with the promise that the caliphate would be his after Mu’awiyah’s death!
Imam Hasan [a] sent a short letter which displayed his insistence and determination:
“Mind you, your letter has arrived. You mention in it what you mention and I did not answer you… I take refuge with Allah from that. Follow the right, you will know that I am its follower. I will be a sinner if I tell a lie. And peace be upon you.”[26]
That was the last letter. The situation went from bad to worst. War was declared between the two parties.
Mu’awiyah was the first to declare the state of war. He began to advance his armies towards Iraq. The Muslims communicated the news of Mu’awiyah’s move to one another. Imam Hasan [a] took due measures to face the coming enemy.
Imam Hasan [a] announced, in a statement, the next move. He called the ummah to mobolize and prepare for war:
“Mind you, Allah ordained jihad on His creatures, and made it a duty which they receive reluctantly. Then He said to the combatants; ‘Be patient, Allah is certainly with the patient.’ You, O people, will not win what you love without enduring what you do not like. Go out, may Allah have mercy on you, to your camp at al-Nukhailah, till we think and you think, and see and you see.”[27]
It brings excruciating pain to know that the multitudes of people who listened to the statement of Imam Hasan [a] were susceptible to the Umayyad rumours and lies.
Instead of preparing themselves to defend the clear right, they were shocked and flustered. They responded coldly to the statement of their Imam. They did not accept his call to prepare for war and shoulder their responsibilities.
Some of the people were resigned to the status quo and they appeared drawn to life. Others were lured into apathy by Umayyad money. Imam Hasan [a] was disappointed when he saw the true feeling of the masses which he led, and in which he saw the base on which he was depending to ward of the dangers encircling the Islamic message because of the hostile activities of the Umayyad party.
Those listless multitudes were stolid. They lost their vitality because of only a slight shock. It was because of their weak faith. The followers of the Imam [a] were unaware of their historical responsibility to keep the Divine Message intact and keep it safe from sedition. They were oblivious to the line of Imamate represented by Imam Hasan [a], and to the fact that they should obey him and defend him because he was the actual representative of the same Islam which was revealed to the Messenger of Allah [s].
Amid those stunned, defeated lumps of people, the call of the few faithful of Islam and the true committed men who attached themselves to Ahlul Bayt [a], thundered. They expressed their deep loyalty. They reproached those cowardly multitudes, and spoke their minds uncompromisingly and daringly.
At the top of the list of those faithful, pious men were: Uday bin Hatim, Qais bin S’ad bin Ubadah, Ma’qal bin Qais, and Ziyad bin Sa’sa’ah al-Timeemi. [28]
They scolded, reprimanded and urged the people to take on their religious responsibility. At the same time they did not forget their Imam [a]. They took his hand and made a pledge to march forward in support of right and face tyranny and sedition fearlessly until they achieved martyrdom or victory.
Imam Hasan [a] praised them for their true stance, and addressed them in these words:
“You are truthful, may Allah have mercy on you. I still know of your true intention and loyalty, your approval and true love. May Allah reward you the best of rewards.”[29]
The committed people hastened to al-Nukhailah and encamped there, in obedience to their Imam [a]. Imam Hasan [a], afterwards, followed them with an army, estimated by some historians, at 4,000 men. [30] The rest of the people were to join him.
Imam Hasan [a] hoped that the people would support the right cause and so come to defend Islam. But their delay in joining him made Imam Hasan [a] return once again to his capital, Kufa, to egg on the people to join him.
He marched on, leading a tremendous army, which was paradoxically in low spirit, eaten away by weakness and disharmony. He arrived in alNukhailah, where he organized his army, and set plans for the commanders of the divisions. From there, he headed for Dair Abdul-Rahman. There he decided to send a military force ahead of his army. He elected his cousin Ubaidullah bin al-Abbas as its commander. He said to him:
“… Cousinl I am sending with you twelve thousand men, among whom there are famous horsemen of the Arabs, and the Qur’anic reciters of Kufa. Each one of them is equal to one battalion in courage. March with them, be kind to them, look at them with a smiling face, be humble to them, and consult them. They are the remaining men whom the Commander of the Faithful [a] trusted. Lead them along the bank of Euphrates. Then march till you come face to face with the army of Mu’awiyah. If you meet him, keep him there till I join you. I will go, following you closely behind. Keep me informed of your moves on a daily basis. Consult these two men, Qais bin S’ad and Sa’eed bin Qais. If you meet Mu’awiyah, refrain from engaging him in battle till he fights you. Should he do so, then fight him. If you are injured or killed, Qais bin S’ad will succeed you as the commander of the army, and if he is injured or killed, Sa’eed bin Qais will succeed him.”[31]
The vanguard took its position at Maskin, on the banks of al-Dijail river in Iraq. The main army, under the command of Imam Hasan [a], encamped at Madhlam Sabat, near al-Mada’in.
It was not long before all the hitherto hidden ills came to the surface, in the forms of disunity, frailty, sedition, chaos, and conspiracy against the leadership itself. Imam Hasan [a] was pressured to sign a treaty with Mu’awiyah.
[20] See: Shaikh al-Tabarsi, Alam al-Wara, 3rd ed., p.206, and the following pages (Reports emphasising the Imamate of Hasan [a] quoted from al-Kafi). See also: Hayat al-Imam Hasan [a], vol, 1, p. 515, Kashf alGhummah fi Ma’rifat al-A’immah (Removing the Grief About the Knowledge About the Imams). vol. 2, p.155, al-Bihar (Seas). vol. 42, p.250, and others.
[21] A’lam al-Wara (Texts indicating the Imamate of Hasan), p.206 and the following pages. Al-Qarashi, Hayat Hasan bin Ali with a slight difference, vol.2, pp.31-32.
[22] Hayat al-Imam al-Hasan [a], vol.2, p.33.
[23] Al-Fusool al-Muhimmah, chapter of Hasan [a], p.135 and the following pages.
[24] Muhammad Jawad Fadhlullah, Sulh al-Imam al-Hasan (The Peaceful Agreement of Imam Hasan), 1973 ed., p.60. [25] Tawfeeq Abu-Alam, Ahlul Bayt.
[26] Bin al-Hadeed, Sharh Nahj al-Balaghah (Commentaries on Nahj al-Balaghah), 1962 ed., vol.16, p.37.
[27] Ibid., p.38.
[28] Ibid., p.39.
[29] Ibid.
[30] Al-Nukhailah is a place near Kufa in the direction of Syria.
At the Saqifa the foundation of democracy was raised in Islam. Whatever that democracy was, couldn’t be continued with any more and nomination took its place. Therefore Hazrat Abu Bakr, in his death bed, decided to nominate Omer. He called Othman and Abd ar Rehman ibne Auf and took their advice. Abd ar Rehman said that the choice was right but Omer had an element of anger and cruelty in his nature. Othman fully supported the idea and said that it was for the betterment of the Ummat to nominate Omer as the next caliph. After this discussion Abu Bakr sent the two persons away. He again called Othman to prepare the document of nomination. When he started dictating, and only the preamble was written when Abu Bakr swooned and became unconscious. Othman knew what he was intending to dictate. Therefore during the period of the unconsciousness of the caliph Othman wrote:
“Qad astakhflat alaikum Omer ibnal Khattab “I have nominated Omer
ibnal Khattab as caliph.”
When Abu Bakr revived from his unconsciousness he asked what was written. Othman read to him what he had written down. He asked Othman whether he hurried writing down the name fearing that he might not revive and pronounce the name of his successor and that might cause unrest and differences amongst the Muslims? Othman nodded his agreement. Abu Bakr said that Allah would Bless Othman for what he did!
After this document of succession was completed, Abu Bakr called Omer and gave him the document for safe keeping.and to follow the decree recorded therein. Hazrat Omer took the document from him and asked people to pledge that they would abide by the decree of the first caliph! One person asked Omer, what was written in the document? Omer said he wasn’t aware of what was written in the document.but affirmed that the contents of the document were binding for him. The person said:
“But by Allah! I know what is written in the document. Last year you made him the caliph and now he is leaving creating you the caliph!” Ref: Kitab al Imamat wal Siasat, Vol 1, Page 33
When this news spread, some people remained quiet out of discretion and some started protesting against the nomination. Therefore a group of Mohajirs and Ansaar came to Hazrat Abu Bakr and said:
“O Deputy of the Prophet! Nominating Ibne Khattab as your succerssor you have placed a ruler over our heads! When you go to the presence of Allah, what reply will you give Him?”
Ref: Talqees al Jabeer, Page 348
Talha ibne Obaid Allah too expressed dissatisfaction on the nomination and said:
“You have imposed Omer over the people as caliph and ruler. You know fairly well that with you around how much hardship he was putting them to! Now he will have total authority to do what he wished to do! What reply will you give to Allah when He asked you questions about the people?”
It has been the attitude of the democratic regimes to beat the drums about the peoples’ right to elect their representatives. But when they are elected, they keep aside the people’s rights and do what suits their own interests. Then the democracy gets restricted to one or a few persons only. The democracy of Saqifa Bani Saaeda came to such a pass. In about two years and half it got restricted to two or three persons! If the process of nomination is accepted, we shall have to acknowledge that the selection of the caliph is not determined by the opinion of the populace. Even if Abu Bakr was the people’s representative, he was not given the authority to nominate his successor unilaterally. In no democratic regime such an authority is ever given. Even if Abu Bakr expressed his choice, it was only to Abd ar Rehman ibne Auf and Othman and none else. One of them thought it futile to oppose the nomination and the other wholeheartedly supported the nomination to reap the benefits in the future! The opinion of two persons cannot be termed as the opinion of all the people. If he really wanted advice of the men of wisdom, he could have consulted Abbas ibne Abd al Mutallib about whom the Prophet (s.a.) had said that he was his uncle and his ancestors’ representative. Even Ali Ibne Abi talib (a.s.) was available who had been with the Prophet (s.a.) from the beginning of his Annunciation. They had an excuse that he wasn’t invited to come to Saqifa bani Saaeda because he was preoccupied with the last rites of the Prophet (s.a.) at that time. Butfor this nomination process Abu Bakr had why he avoided consulting Ali (a.s.) on this very important matter. It is surprising that Ali (a.s.) was consulted on all important matters like the Ghazwaat etc., and his wisdom was praised by everyone, including the new coterie, but now he was totally forgotten in this very vital decision. According to the opinion of the Prophet (s.a.), Ali (a.s.) was having the first right to be the caliph. But here he wasn’t even consulted on the matter! excuse
Anyway, those who accepted the caliphate on the flimsy democratic process concluded at the conclave of Saqifa, surrendered themselves to the rule of Omer as well. Hazrat Abu Bakr, after being on the throne for two years, three months and ten days, left this world on 22 Jamadi Thani 13 H leaving the reins of power in the hands of Hazrat Omer.
Aal-e-Qutub Aal-e-Syed Abdullah Shah Ghazi 