<\/p>\n
Ayatull\u0101h Ja\u02bffar Sub\u1e25\u0101n\u012b<\/strong><\/p>\n The validity of the\u00a0a\u1e25\u0101d\u012bth<\/em>\u00a0confirming \u02bfAl\u012b as the Caliph and the Imam is beyond question. But the question remains: Why did \u02bfAl\u012b, the rightful successor to the Prophet, remain silent after the latter\u2019s death and made no effort to press his rights? Why did he not awaken society from its slumber? The answer is that Imam \u02bfAl\u012b never hesitated to press for his rights and always reminded people of the rightful place of the Prophet\u2019s Household as successors, but he never attempted to take back his rights by force. We will consider the historical reports about this in the following paragraphs.<\/p>\n When the Commander of the Faithful, \u02bfAl\u012b, was informed of the strife between the Emigrants and the Helpers in Saq\u012bfa, and also of their bragging about themselves, he asked: \u2018What was the Helper\u2019s argument?\u2019 They answered: \u2018Since we have sheltered the Prophet, one leader shall be chosen from the Helpers and one from the Emigrants.\u2019 the Imam said: \u2018if the leader were supposed to be chosen from the Helpers, why did the Prophet then urge us to be kind to those Helpers who were righteous and upright and merciful towards those of them who were sinful?\u2019 A man asked the Imam: \u2018How does this statement indicate that leadership does not belong to the Helpers?\u2019 He responded: \u2018If leadership were their due, there would be no need to advise us to treat them kindly since those in power do not need kindness.\u2019 Then, the Imam asked: \u2018What was Quraysh\u2019s argument?\u2019 They reported that the Quraysh members said that they were the Prophet\u2019s tribe. the Imam commented: \u2018They took the tree and left the fruit\u2019 (Nahj al-Bal\u0101gha<\/em>, Sermon 67). Shar\u012bf al-Ra\u1e0d\u012b quotes Imam \u02bfAl\u012b in\u00a0Nahj al-Bal\u0101gha<\/em>\u00a0as composing the following lines of poetry as a reaction to the Quraysh\u2019s stance:<\/p>\n Sometime after Saq\u012bfa, they brought \u02bfAl\u012b to the Mosque forcefully to make him pledge allegiance, but he resisted their demand and said: \u2018I am more entitled to the Caliphate than you. The right thing to do is for you to take an oath of loyalty to me. You snatched the power and caliphate from the hands of the Helpers by claiming to be the relatives of the Prophet but now you are depriving his family of their right to caliphate!\u2019<\/p>\n I do not see these qualities in the present Caliph to take an oath to him; I see them rather in myself\u2019 (al-Imama wa al-Siy\u0101sa<\/em>, 1\/11-12).<\/p>\n Amr b. Wathila says: \u2018I was eavesdropping outside the house in which the Council of Six was formed when I heard \u02bfAl\u012b saying: \u201cI will provide you with an argument so compelling that neither the Arabs nor non-Arabs can refute it.\u201d Then he said, \u201cIs there anyone among you who believed in Islam earlier than me?\u201d All of them said: \u201cNo!\u201d \u02bfAl\u012b continued, \u201cIs there anyone among you about whom the Prophet said something like this: And whoever I am the master of, then \u02bfAl\u012b is his master. O, God! Love those who love him, and be an enemy to those who are enemies to him.\u2019?\u201d Again, they all answered, \u201cNo\u201d\u2019 (al-\u1e62aw\u0101\u02bfiq<\/em>, 75(<\/p>\n In the year 35\/656, Imam \u02bfAl\u012b accepted the position of Caliph as a religious duty. On that day, the Imam said, in the presence of the Prophet\u2019s Companions: \u2018who amongst you has heard this sentence at Ghad\u012br Khumm: \u201cAnd whoever I am the master of, then \u02bfAl\u012b is his master. O, God! Love those who love him, and be an enemy to those who are enemies to him\u201d?\u2019 Some, including Ab\u016b Ayy\u016bb al-An\u1e63\u0101r\u012b, Sahl b. Han\u012bf, Khuzayma b. Th\u0101bit, \u02bfAbd All\u0101h b. Th\u0101bit al-An\u1e63\u0101r\u012b stood up and said: \u2018We heard what has just been said\u2019 (Usud al-Gh\u0101ba<\/em>, 3\/307 and 5\/205).<\/p>\n <\/p>\n The second question we might ask is why Imam \u02bfAl\u012b did not use force to press his rights? He has answered this question himself as follows: because at that time using force would have harmed the Muslim nation and would have resulted in the collapse of the state. The main threat presented by the use of force was that disaffected elements, namely the hypocrites (mun\u0101fiq\u016bn<\/em>), who had been waiting for a chance to start a rebellion and cause disorder and chaos in Muslim lands, would seize the opportunity to advance their own interests. On the other side, the Arabs living far from Medina had already started to revolt, and this posed a genuine threat to the stability of the nation. Moreover, the Prophet had warned against the risk of employing power at such times. In the same vein, we can read in one of Imam \u02bfAl\u012b\u2019s sermons:<\/p>\n O, People! Steer clear through the waves of mischief by boats of deliverance, turn away from the path of dissension, and put off the crowns of pride. Prosperous is one who rises with wings (i.e. when he has power) or else he remains peaceful and others enjoy ease. It (i.e. the aspiration for Caliphate) is like turbid water or like a morsel that would suffocate the person who swallows it. One who plucks fruits before ripening is like one who cultivated in another\u2019s field.<\/p>\n If I speak out they would call me greedy towards power but if I keep quiet they would say I was afraid of death. It is a pity that after all the ups and downs (I have been through). By All\u0101h, the son of Abu T\u0101lib is more familiar with death than an infant with the breast of its mother. I have hidden knowledge, if I disclose it you will start trembling like ropes in deep wells. (Nahj al-Bal\u0101gha<\/em>, Sermon no. 5).<\/p>\n The concluding sentence of the sermon indicates that the Imam, whether through divine guidance or the Prophet\u2019s instructions, was aware that using force at that time would have a disastrous effect on Islamic society.<\/p>\n In a letter written towards the end of his caliphate, Imam \u02bfAl\u012b sheds more light on the issue:<\/p>\n By All\u0101h, it never occurred to me, and I never imagined, that after the Prophet the Arabs would snatch away the caliphate from his Household nor that they would take it away from me after him, but I suddenly noticed people surrounding the man to swear him allegiance.<\/p>\n I, therefore, withheld my hand till I saw that many people were reverting from Islam and trying to destroy the religion of Muhammad (may All\u0101h bless him and his descendants). I then feared that if I did not protect Islam and its people and there occurred in it a breach or destruction, it would mean a greater blow to me than the loss of power over you which was, in any case, to last for a few days of which everything would pass away as the mirage passes away, or as the cloud scuds away. Therefore, in these happenings, I rose till wrong was destroyed and disappeared, and religion attained peace and safety. (Nahj al-Bal\u0101gha<\/em>, letter no. 62)<\/p>\n Ab\u016b al-\u1e24asan Mad\u0101\u02bein\u012b quotes \u02bfAbd All\u0101h b. Junayd as saying: \u2018I was performing the rites of\u00a0\u02bfUmra\u00a0<\/em>when I entered Medina and walked toward the Prophet\u2019s Mosque. Suddenly, I heard the call of Friday Prayer, which caused people to gather. Then, \u02bfAl\u012b entered carrying his sword. His entry has caught people\u2019s attention, he started to speak. He began by praising God and blessing the Prophet: \u2018After the death of the Prophet, we are his descendants, heirs, and close friends; no one can stand equal to us on this ground. And no one can dare to usurp our right. But suddenly, people started to stand against us; they took Prophet\u2019s authority from us, so others took it\u2026 I swear to God that if it were not due to my fear of dissension and discord among the Muslims, and also the fear of the return of disbelief to this nation and the debilitation of religion. If it were not because of these, we would have acted otherwise, and those who in doing good to people do not hesitate would have been in the position of power as rulers\u2019 (quoted in Ibn Ab\u012b al-\u1e24ad\u012bd, 1\/307).<\/p>\n Ibn Is\u1e25\u0101q in his biography has quoted Zubayr b. Bakk\u0101r as saying: \u2018When people swore the pledge of allegiance to Ab\u016b Bakr, the Ban\u016b Taym tribe took pride and satisfaction from this pledge, but the majority of the Emigrants and the Helpers were quite certain that after the Prophet it was \u02bfAl\u012b who was entitled to the caliphate. A number of notable persons from the Ban\u016b H\u0101shim composed poems criticizing the selection of the new Caliph. However, when \u02bfAl\u012b was told about these poems he asked them to desist, and added, \u2018the stability and security of religion is the most pleasing for us.\u2019 (Shar\u1e25 Nahj al-Bal\u0101gha<\/em>\u00a06\/21; Bi\u1e25\u0101r al-Anvar 28: 353 )<\/p>\n This shows that the Imam avoided undertaking or endorsing any divisive actions in order to preserve the outward unity and order of the Muslim nation. During this time, the Imam was aware that a group of neighboring Arabs were on the brink of quitting the faith and that the hypocrites in Medina were waiting for a chance to strike and revive pre-Islamic values. But in spite this, the Imam could not do act alone. He had no choice but to cooperate with the Caliphs, so long as this cooperation brought an advantage for Islam. So he guided the Caliphs in solving thorny issues and also met with delegations coming to Medina; he taught the laws and teachings of the Qur\u2019an to both Emigrants and Helpers, and to their sons as well. In any case, \u02bfAl\u012b spent twenty-five years in this way, until the year 35\/656, when \u02bfUthm\u0101n was killed before the eyes of the Emigrants and the Helpers as a result of the distortions he had made in the religion. the Imam had informed the second Caliph of such an ominous fate beforehand.<\/p>\n the Imam, after twenty-five years of exclusion from power, on the Helpers\u2019 and Emigrants\u2019 insistence, reluctantly accepted the offer of the Caliphate. It was a choice that would take its toll on him. Mu\u1e25ammad b. \u1e24an\u012bfa reports: \u2018I was with my father when \u02bfUthm\u0101n was killed. The Companions of the Prophet came to \u02bfAl\u012b\u2019s house and called out altogether: \u201cThe man is slain. The people need a leader. And there is no one is better than you; there is none more experienced or learned in Islam than you, and you are the closest to the Prophet.\u201d the Imam demurred and said: \u201cI am better as your advisor than your ruler.\u201d However, they replied: \u201cBy God, we will not leave until we pledge allegiance to you.\u201d Seeing that their minds were made up, the Imam stated: \u201cThe pledge should be given openly at a mosque and with the consensus of the Muslims.\u201d\u2019<\/p>\n \u02bfAbd All\u0101h b. \u02bfAbb\u0101s reports: \u2018I was so afraid that in the mosque some would turn against \u02bfAl\u012b and defy him but he would not accept anything but taking the oath at the mosque. In the mosque, when \u02bfAl\u012b came in, both the Helpers and the Emigrants took the oath to him, then the rest of the people followed them and did the same thing.\u2019 (\u1e6cabar\u012b, 3\/450).<\/p>\n There is another account in \u1e6cabar\u012b that describes the same events: \u2018People surrounded \u02bfAl\u012b and told him: \u201cWe will pledge allegiance to you. Do you not see what they have done to Islam?\u201d \u02bfAl\u012b replied: \u201cLeave me and go to another person for we are moving towards a future uncertain. Time is pregnant with incidents which would terrorize the hearts and paralyze the minds.\u201d They responded: \u201cBy God! Are you not in agreement with us, do you not see the present state of Islam and the ongoing sedition? Do you not fear God?\u201d<\/p>\n the Imam said: \u201cI have given you my opinion. So beware! For if I accept the Caliphate, I will act based on my knowledge and learning; and if you leave me now, I would continue my life just like you, and would be obedient to the future Caliph\u2019\u2019 (\u1e6cabar\u012b, 3\/456).<\/p>\n That was \u1e6cabar\u012b\u2019s description of the event. Imam \u02bfAl\u012b, however, describes people\u2019s rush to his house in the following manner:<\/p>\n \u2018They leaped upon me as the camels leap upon each other on their arrival for drinking water, having been let loose after unfastening of their four legs till I thought they would either kill me or kill one another in front of me.\u2019<\/p>\n (Nahj al-Bal\u0101gha<\/em>, Sermon 54).<\/p>\n In another sermon, he relates:<\/p>\n \u2018At that moment, nothing took me by surprise, but the crowd of people rushing to me. It advanced towards me from every side like the mane of the hyena so much so that \u1e24asan and \u1e24usayn were getting crushed and both the ends of my shoulder garment were torn. They collected around me like a herd of sheep and goats.\u2019 (Nahj al-Bal\u0101gha<\/em>, Sermon 3)<\/p>\n Investigating the history of the election and the pledge of allegiance makes clear that such a large and harmonious mass movement, which faced such minor opposition at the time, was unprecedented. The opponents and disputants who emerged were those who used to benefit from the previous Caliph, for example, Zayd b. Th\u0101bit, \u02bfUthm\u0101n\u2019s treasurer, to whom Ab\u016b Ayy\u016bb al-An\u1e63\u0101r\u012b said: \u2018The reason behind you being against taking the oath of loyalty to \u02bfAl\u012b is that you were given substantial amounts of gold and silver by the previous Caliph.\u2019<\/p>\n Totally assured and certain, the Imam started a series of fundamental structural reforms in order to eliminate the causes of peoples\u2019 sufferings. Unfortunately, however, according to the Imam himself, there were three groups who did resist these reformations:<\/p>\n When I took up the reins of government one party broke away and another turned disobedient while the rest began acting wrongfully\u2026 Behold! By Him who split the grain and created living beings! If people had not come to me and supporters had not exhausted the argument and if there had been no pledge of All\u0101h with the learned to the effect that they should not acquiesce in the gluttony of the oppressor and the hunger of the oppressed I would have cast the rope of Caliphate on its own shoulders and would have given the last one the same treatment as to the first one. Then you would have seen that in my view this world of yours is no better than the sneezing of a goat. (Nahj al-Bal\u0101gha<\/em>, Sermon 3)<\/p>\n Shia Islam (7): Succession in the Teachings of Shi\u2019ism and Sunnism<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\nChapter 8: Why did Imam \u02bfAl\u012b remain silent for 25 years?<\/h1>\n
How the Imam pressed for his rights in different situations<\/h2>\n
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Why did Imam \u02bfAl\u012b not resort to force?<\/h3>\n
Accepting the offer of caliphate after twenty-five years<\/h4>\n