Caliphate of Hazrat Ali

His life before becoming a caliph and his character:

According to traditions, Hazrat Ali was born in Makkah in the 28th Year of the Elephant. His Father was Abu
Talib bin Abdul Muttalib who was custodian of the Kaaba. Mother was Fatima bint Asad. Hazrat Ali is
descended from Hashim, thus Hazrat Ali‘s line is known as the Hashimites. Hazrat Ali was a first cousin of
Muhammad (PBUH), his Kunyah was Abu Turab.

At a very early age, Muhammad (PBUH) took him into his care. Hazrat Ali often accompanied Muhammad
(PBUH) on trade trips to Syria. Hazrat Ali learnt reading and writing when he was still a boy. At 10 years of
age, Hazrat Ali became the 2nd person to accept Islam. Hazrat Ali slept on Holy Prophet (PBUH)‘s bed in
the night of migration and left for Madina after returning the trusts to the owners which were entrusted by
the Makkahns to the Holy Prophet (PBUH).

He used to memorize revelations that Muhammad (PBUH) received and maintained a written record of
what he heard from Muhammad (PBUH). Hazrat Ali learnt the Holy Quran by heart. Hazrat Ali was one of
the Asharah Mubasharah.

In Madina, when brotherhood was being established between the Ansar and the Muhajirin, Muhammad
(PBUH) declared Hazrat Ali to be his brother.

Hazrat Ali married Muhammad (PBUH)‘s youngest and most beloved daughter, Hazrat Fatima. Won titles
of Asadullah (Lion of Allah) and Haider-e-Karrar (Unmatched Warrior). He was a very learned person; his
knowledge extended over mathematics, physics, and astronomy.He was a great orator and poet.

Hazrat Ali‘s source of livelihood was agriculture. Hazrat Ali participated with the Holy Prophet (PBUH) in all
battles except Tabuk. Hazrat Ali was about 22 years when he participated in the battle of Badr and killed
the first disbeliever Walid. Hazrat Ali‘s own elder brother Aqeel, became a prisoner at the hand of Muslims
in the battle of Badr.

The treaty of Hudaibiya was written by Hazrat Ali. He killed two very brave disbelievers Amr bin Abd Wudd
in the battle of Khandaq and Marhab at the time of Qamus fort‘s counter in the battle of Khaibar. Hazrat
Ali was sent by the Holy Prophet (PBUH) to preach Islam to Madhhij tribe. He was sent to destroy the idol
Falas of Tai tribe.

Hazrat Ali washed Holy Prophet (PBUH)‘s body and entered the grave before laying it there. For the two
offspring of Hazrat Ali (Hazrat Hasan and Hazrat Hussain) the Holy Prophet (PBUH) said: ―Both the young
men are the Chiefs of Paradise. Five hundred and eighty six Ahadis have been narrated by Hazrat Ali.

Main attributes of his personality:

Boldness, courage and chivalry, patience, perseverance and his capacity to forgive even when able to
wreak vengeance, generosity, kindness and compassion to all people; his humility despite his high status;
his nobility, grace and fear of the Lord, and his un-wavering commitment to the Holy Prophet (PBUH) and
to the cause of Islam.

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Election as Caliph:

After Hazrat Usman‘s assassination, rebels felt it necessary to choose a caliph before leaving Madina.
Rebels asked various people to ascend to the office of caliphate:

 Hazrat Ali, Hazrat Talha and Hazrat Zubair refused to be elected as caliphs.
 The Ansar declined, saying that in the presence of Hazrat Ali, no one else deserved to be caliph.

The rebels promised some drastic action unless a caliph was chosen within the next 24 hours. The people
of Madina gathered in the Masjid-e-Nabwi to hold council. The leader of the Egyptian rebels declared that
the next caliph should be pious, brave, learned and should have been close to Muhammad (PBUH). Only
Hazrat Ali fitted this criteria and was persuaded into becoming the 4th Caliph. Hazrat Talha, Hazrat Zubair
and others took Bayt at his hands.

Change of governors:

Hazrat Ali felt that a change of provincial governors was in the interest of the state. Hazrat Ali‘s advisors
and friends warned him against taking such a drastic step before establishing his caliphate. They especially
warned him against deposing Hazrat Ameer Muawiya, Governor of Syria, as Hazrat Umar, not Hazrat
Usman, had appointed him.

Hazrat Ali acted against their advice. Appointments made by Hazrat Ali:

Name Province

Usman bin Hanif Basra

Saad bin Ubaydah Egypt

Abdullah bin Abbas Yemen

Ummara bin Shahab Kufa

Suhail bin Hanif Syria

Basra, Egypt and Yemen came under control of Ummara bin Shahab could not take control of his office and
had to return to Madina. A Syrian army met Suhail bin Hanif and told him that they did not accept Hazrat
Ali as Caliph.

Battle of Camel (Jamal):

Even after the rebels had left for home and Hazrat Ali had become caliph, peace had not returned to
Madina. Umayyads had become quite powerful in Syria and raised a cry of revenge for the blood of Hazrat
Usman. Hazrat Usman‘s bloodied shirt and the fingers of his wife that were stuck to it was shown in the
mosque at Damascus.

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People in Makkah and Madina also demanded that the murderers of Hazrat Usman be punished. Keeping
the political situation in view and that the assassination was not the work of just a few people, Hazrat Ali
declined to do anything until peace had been restored in the empire.

Hazrat Talha and Hazrat Zubair were discontented with Hazrat Ali‘s inaction. They contacted Hazrat
Ayesha, who herself was deeply grieved at Hazrat Usman‘s murder. Hazrat Talha and Hazrat Zubair raised
an army and persuaded Hazrat Ayesha to accompany them. Hazrat Ali‘s son, Hazrat Hassan, also managed
to raise an army of 10,000 from Kufa.

The two armies met at Basra. Hazrat Ali assured Hazrat Ayesha that he could not yet execute the
murderers because of lack of evidence and that he really wanted to punish the guilty. As both parties did
not want bloodshed, negotiations were started and hostilities were suspended.

Mischief-makers from both armies were alarmed as peace meant their own doom. They raided forces on
each side and thus started a general battle. Hazrat Talha and Hazrat Zubair left the battlefield, but were
caught and murdered by the treacherous mischief-makers. In this battle, Hazrat Ayesha mounted a camel
and battle ensued around it. When her camel was wounded and Hazrat Ayesha was brought down unhurt,
the fighting stopped.

Hazrat Ali treated Hazrat Ayesha with respect and honor and sent her back to Madina, escorted by her
brother, Muhammad bin Abu Bakr. Hazrat Ayesha retired to a quiet life and never took part in politics
again.

In this battle, thousands of men from each side were killed. As a result of this battle, Hazrat Ali‘s Caliphate
came to be acknowledged in every province except for Syria.

Battle of Siffin:

Muawiya had refused to leave his post as governor of Syria. Under his influence, no one in Syria had taken
the oath of allegiance to the new caliph. Muawiya started a campaign, seeking revenge for the blood of
Hazrat Usman. He declared the election of Hazrat Ali to be illegal and said that it had been under the
influence of the rebels that he had become caliph.

He even accused Hazrat Ali of being an accomplice to the murder of Hazrat Usman. As a result, Syria, Iran
and Iraq were won over by Muawiya. Not wanting to shed Muslim blood, Hazrat Ali offered peace to
Muawiya and said that since the people who had selected Hazrat Abu Bakr, Hazrat Umar and Hazrat
Usman as caliph had also accepted him, Muawiya and his followers must accept him as well.

In return, Hazrat Muawiya demanded that Hazrat Ali hand over the assassins of Hazrat Usman first before
negotiations. Since war became inevitable, the Caliph Hazrat Ali raised an army of 80-90,000. Hazrat
Muawiya also marched with a large army.
The two armies met at Siffin.

They stood facing each other for months. When negotiations broke down, general fighting started. The
main battle began on 8 Safar, 37 AH. On the fourth day, Hazrat Muawiya‘s army was nearing defeat. He
ordered his soldiers to tie the Quran on their lances as a sign of a cease-fire.

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Hazrat Ali was forced to stop fighting. After the battle, Hazrat Abu Musa Ashari and Hazrat Amr bin Aas
were chosen as arbiters, to decide the matter in accordance with the Quran and Sunnah by the month of
Ramadan.

Kharijites:

As a result of the Battle of Siffin, a new sect called the Kharijites was born. This term means
‘separatists’/’renegades’.

On the way to Kufa, they insisted that Hazrat Ali should attack the Syrians. When Hazrat Ali replied that he
could not break the agreement, 12,000 men separated from him. The separatists marched towards
Harwara, where they formed a party and started their activities against the caliph. That is why they are
called Kharijites.

These people were involved in the murder of Hazrat Usman. They had allied themselves with Hazrat Ali in
the Battle of Jamal. They said that they were the only true believers and had a right to kill unbelievers.
They considered only Hazrat Abu Bakr and Hazrat Umar as true caliphs and regarded others as usurpers.

Arbitration:

Hazrat Abu Musa Ashari and Hazrat Amr bin Aas met at Dumat-ul-Jandal to discuss the case of Hazrat Ali
and Hazrat Muawiya. Hazrat Abu Musa wanted to depose both Hazrat Ali and Hazrat Muawiya and let the
people choose their next caliph. Hazrat Amr wanted to depose Hazrat Ali alone. Hazrat Ali did not abide by
the judgement as he felt that it was one-sided.

Battle of Nahrawan:

While Hazrat Ali was planning to attack Hazrat Muawiya, the Kharijites started creating problems. Hazrat
Ali marched on them and a battle ensued at Nahrawan. Out of the 4,000 Kharijites, only a few dozen
managed to escape. This was a hollow victory as it diverted Hazrat Ali‘s attention from his campaign
against Hazrat Muawiya.

Fall of Egypt:

After the victory at Nahrawan, Hazrat Ali wanted to attack Hazrat Muawiya. However, his troops deserted
him. Taking advantage of this situation, Hazrat Muawiya ordered Amr bin Aas to attack Egypt. Egypt was
re-conquered by Hazrat Amr bin Aas.
After this, rebellion broke out in all provinces. Hazrat Ali was forced to sign a peace treaty with Hazrat
Muawiya. It was decided that Hazrat Muawiya should rule over Syria and Egypt, while Hazrat Ali ruled over
the rest.

Martyrdom of Hazrat Ali:

Alarmed by this new peace, the Kharijites plotted the murder of Hazrat Ali. In 40 AH, some of them
assembled in Makkah, with the intention to murder Hazrat Ali, Hazrat Muawiya and Hazrat Amr bin Aas
simultaneously.

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On 18 Ramzan, 40 AH, while Hazrat Ali was leading the morning prayers, Ibn Muljim attacked him with a
poisonous sword. These wounds proved fatal and the caliph died on 21 Ramadan, naming no successor and
leaving the choice to the people.

His blood was avenged by his son, Hazrat Imam Hassan, who killed Ibn Mujlim. There are varying accounts
as to where he is buried. The majority holds that he was buried at Najaf.

Summary

Introduction

He was the cousin of the holy prophet (s.a.w). According to the prophet, he had a huge retentive memory
and was known for his education and intelligence. According to history, he was one of the first, not to say
the first, to have memorised the whole of the Holy Qur‘an practically the same time of the prophet (s.a.w).

Life before acceptance of Islam

He was the son of Abu Twalib and as mother Faatima. He was a descendant of Hashim, cousin and in-law of
Holy Prophet (s.a.w). He was 30 years younger than the Holy Prophet (s.a.w). Due to his surroundings, he
obtained formal education by which he was able to read and write. He was learned, intelligent and
studious. He learned the Qur‘an by heart and was pious well before his acceptance of Islam. He had a good
guide in the person of the holy prophet (s.a.w)

Life after acceptance of Islam

He was the first free boy to accept Islam on the same day the prophet was given wahy. He was always by
the side of the prophet (s.a.w) and as such he maintained a written record of the sayings of the Holy
Prophet (s.a.w). The latter accepted to get his daughter Hazrat Bibi Faatima (r.a) to Ali. The prophet‘s
(s.a.w) lineage was continued through him. He held the post of Chief Justice and was a member of Majlis
Shurah.

Life of Caliphate and Achievements

After the death Uthman (killed by hypocrites after siege of his house – by Amr Bin Hamq) there were 3
days where no caliph was ruling over the Islamic dominion. The hypocrites – Khawarij – gave an ultimatum
of 24 hours to elect a caliph. There were 3 names cited for the caliphate – namely Ali, Talha and Zubair. Ali
was then elected. Ali was able to force the rebels to withdraw from Madinah and to establish peace and
order in the city. The powerful governor of Syria, Mu'awiyah, challenged Ali and refused to pay homage to
him. Mu'awiyah insisted that Ali should arrest the murderers of 'Uthman and hand them over to him.

Ali was a man with a deep sense of justice and did not want to accuse the wrong people. He needed a
peaceful period to trace the culprits. But, Mu'awiyah began accusing him of protecting the murderers, and
in this way the old enmity between the two families was revived. When he came to power he wanted to
change governors for a better control and he went against all advices from his friends not to go ahead. But
it was too late to manage and change the situation. Due to the last 6 bad years of Hazrat Uthman, it was
difficult to contain all problems.

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Problems he faced

There was a demand for the head of those who murdered Uthman. But Ali wanted to settle first and then
find out the culprits. But Talha and Zubair wanted the hypocrites and murderers of Uthman immediately.
So they met Aisha to wage an army. Ali didn‘t appreciate that move and a fight was planned between both
armies. It was known as the battle of camel because during the battle Aisha‘s camel‘s feet were cut off.
The war was stopped and she was escorted to Madina. Sayyiduna Ali (radi Allahu anhu) had to crush all
opposition. A bloodybattle took place near Basrah on the 9th of December 656 A.C.

This battle was sparked off by a third force who were the real troublemakers. Just before the battle, both
parties had already reached an agreement to settle the dispute. But this third force, the real assassinators
of Sayyiduna 'Uthman (radi Allahu anhu), launched an overnight attack on both camps simultaneously.
Each side were under the impression that the other had attacked. The battle began. Several thousand men
were lost including the two Sahaba. Sayyadah Aishah (radi Allahu anha) was safe. She was riding a camel
during the battle-hence the name "Battle of the Camel." Sayyiduna Ali (radi Allahu anhu) treated her in a
most noble and dignified manner and respectfully sent her back to Madinatul Munawwarah. She praised
him and deeply regretted opposing Sayyiduna Ali (radi Allahu anhu). Kufa was now made the capital of the
Islamic world.

The same problem emerged with Mu‘awiyyah in the Battle of Siffin. Mu‘awiyah didn‘t want to accept Ali
until the latter brought the murderers of Uthman to court. The fight started through mischief-mongers. Ali
was on the point to win when Mu‘awiyah took pages of Qur‘an and stuck to sword – to stop war. By the
clever proposal of Amr bin Al As, the retreating army raised pieces of the Holy Quran on their spears
demanding judgement between the two parties. Many pious Muslims on the side of Ali refused to fight
seeing the Holy Quran displayed in the air.

Ali thought it was a trick and he ordered to continue fight. Hypocrites in the army of Ali turned against him
and he had to stop the war. There was an arbitration between Ali and Mu‘awiyah in which Amr bin Aas
representing Mu‘awiyah and Abu Musah Ash‘ari for Ali. Abu Musah Al Ash‘ari said both must be abdicated
but when it was the turn for Amr bin Aas, the latter surprisingly announced in favour of Mu‘awiyah. His
words were: "He has declared the removal of his leader, while I would confirm Muaawiyah as the Caliph."
Chaos followed. The Islamic dominion was thus divided into 2 parts with 2 caliphs. Syria was under the
control of Mu‘awiyyah and the rest under Ali.

There was also the battle of Nahrawan against the Kharijites where a few dozens of the hypocrites only
escaped. The Kharijites decided to avenge and kill Ali, Amr and Mu‘awiyah. Two escaped except Ali. It was
at the time of Fajr prayer that Abdur Rahman bin Muljim stabbed him with a poisoned dagger and he died
after 4 days. Ibn Muljim was killed the next day by Hazrat Imam Hassan (r.a).

Death of Hazrat Ali (ra)

After the battle of Nahrawan the "Khawarij" had gone underground. As a matter of fact they were as much
against Hadrat Ali (R.A.) as they were against Hadrat Mu'awiyah (R.A.). They were still working against the
Khilafat and they were greatly disgusted with the civil war that seemed endless.

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To end this state of affairs, they worked out a dangerous plot. According to them Muslims were divided
because of differences between Hadrat Ali and Amir Mu'awiyah. They also disliked 'Amr ibn 'As and
considered him as chief planner for Amir Mu'awiyah. They decided, therefore, to assassinate all the three
of them. It was planned that the three personalities would be struck at the same time on the same day.

Three persons, appointed to assassinate Ali, Mu'awiyah, and 'Amr ibn 'As (R.A.) were Abdur Rahman
Muljim, Bark ibn 'Abdullah, and 'Amr ibn Bark respectively. Early hours of the 17th of Ramadan, 40 A.H.,
was fixed for the assassination. After the Fajr Salaat of the 17th Ramadan in the year 40 A.H., the three
appointed Kharljis struck the three men. Amir Mu'awiyah escaped with a scratch, Hadrat Amr ibn 'As did
not turn out for the Imamat because he was sick that day thus was unhurt, but Hadrat Ali (R.A.) was
mortally wounded with the poisoned sword of Ibn Muljim. He passed away in the evening of Ramadan 20,
40 A.H.

Ibn Muljim was caught by the people after he had struck Hadrat Ali. Hadrat Ali asked the Muslims to slay
him if he died. At the same time of his death Hadrat Ali called his sons and advised them to serve Islam and
to be good with the Muslims. When somebody asked him should the Muslims take pledge of loyalty at the
hands of his elder son, Hadrat Hassan, he replied, "I leave this decision to the Muslims." He also advised
people not to kill any person other than the assassin to avenge him.

He was sixty three years old at the time of his death and had ruled for five years. Ali lived a simple life. He
refused any luxury food and wore simple clothes thinking of the poor. He should sleep on the ground and
even sit on the floor. He repaired his own clothes and shoes and even did manual labour. He spent nights
in Salaat and should fast for three days in a row. Honesty, piety, justice and love of truth were the main
marks of his character.

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