Islam Guidance

4. Attitude of the Rulers

4. Attitude of the Rulers

 Although Imam Zaynu ’l-‘Ä€bidÄ«n refrained from any political activity and dedicated his life to further the knowledge of his followers in religious and spiritual matters, the caliphs were always uneasy with him and kept a close watch on his movements and on those who visited him.

 The knowledge and character par excellence of the Imam attracted people of all kinds towards him. This was the main reason that created jealousy in the hearts of the rulers who thought that this attraction to the Imam had the potential of turning a political tide against their establishment. One incident in the life of the Imam clearly shows the hold he had on the hearts and minds of the common people:

 Once, Hisham, son of caliph ‘Abdu ’l-Malik, entered the Masjidul Haram in Mecca with his entourage for doing tawāf of the Ka’bah. There were many people doing the tawāf, but nobody gave any importance to Hisham or gave room for him to get close to the Black Stone. While he was waiting on the perimeter for the crowd to become less so that he may go and kiss the Black Stone, he noticed a sudden movement among the people who starting making way for a person who had just entered the mosque. That person went straight to the Black Stone and kissed it. It was none other than Imam Zaynu ’l-‘Ä€bidÄ«n (a.s.).

 Hisham knew him; but, out of jealousy, he asked his entourage: “Who is this?” Farazdaq, the famous and powerful poet of the time, was standing close by. When he heard Hisham’s question filled with jealousy and contempt, he could not control himself and extemporaneously started to recite a poem in praise of the Imam. That piece of poetry is of such high eloquence and clarity that even the modern anthologies of Arabic literature include it in their collections. It is a long poem, but we shall just present a few lines:

 He is the one whose footsteps are known to the holy land,

the Ka’bah knows him, so does the sanctuary and the land beyond.

He is the best of all Allah’s servants;

he is the pious, the pure, and the knowledgeable.

The father of this person is the chosen Ahmad[44] ,

may Allah shower blessings on him for ever.

If the Black Stone would know who is kissing it,

it would fall upon his footsteps and kiss the ground.

When the Quraysh see him, they say,

“With his character, nobility reached perfection.”

Your statement “Who is this?” does not diminish him,

the Arabs and others know him whom you refuse to recognise.

His mother is Fatimah, if you do not know him!

And with his grandfather ended the prophethood.

 This one incident clearly shows the attitude of the caliphs towards our Imam. And, therefore, it is not surprising that ‘Abdu ‘l-Malik ordered him to be arrested, chained and sent from Medina to Damascus and then again returned to Medina.

It was during the reign of Hisham that the holy Imam was poisoned by WalÄ«d ibn ‘Abdu ’l-Malik and died in 95 AH/712 CE after thirty-five years of imamate.

 * * *

 This lesson has been written and compiled by Sayyid M. Rizvi by using the following sources.

            1. Shi’a Islam’ of Allamah Sayyid Muhammad Husayn at-Tabataba’i.

            2. Pishway-e Chaharum: Hazrat Imam Sajjad (a.s.) by Dar Rah-e Haq, Qum.

 The main sources have been extensively edited in order to fit the requirements of our course. Also, for the sake of brevity, we have not included the references quoted by our sources. Those who are interested to know the sources may refer mentioned above.

• Prev
• Next