( 236 )
SERMON 58Addressing the Kharijites Amir al-mu'minin said:Storm may overtake you while there may be none to prick you (for reforms). Shall I be witness to my becoming heretic after acceptance of Faith and fighting in the company of the Prophet?! "In that case I shall be misguided and I shall not be on the right path." (Qur'an 6:56). So you should return to your evil places and get back on the traces of your heels. Beware! Certainly you will meet after me overwhelming disgrace and sharp sword and tradition that will be adopted by the oppressors as a norm towards you. (1)
(1). History corroborates that after Amir al-mu'minin
the Kharijites had to face all sorts of ignominy and disgrace and wherever they
raised their heads for creating trouble they were met with swords and spears.
Thus Ziyad ibn Abih 'Ubaydullah ibn Ziyad al-Hajjaj ibn Yusuf Mus'ab ibn
az-Zubayr and al-Muhallab ibn Abi Sufrah left no stone unturned in annihilating
them from the surface of the globe particularly al-Muhallab chased them for
nineteen years routed them thoroughly and rested only after completing their
destruction.
At-Tabari writes that when ten thousand Kharijites collected in Silla wa
sillibra (the name of a mountain in Ahwaz) then al-Muhallab faced them so
steadfastly that he killed seven thousand Kharijites while the remaining three
thousand fled towards Kirman for life. But when the Governor of Persia noticed
their rebellious activities he surrounded them in Sabur and killed a good number
of them then and there. Those remained again fled to Isfahan and Kirman. From
there they again formed a contingent and advanced towards Kufah via Basrah.
Al-Harith ibn Abi Rabi'ah al-Makhzumi and 'Abd ar-Rahman ibn Mikhnaf al-Azdi
stood up with six thousand combatants to stop their advance and turned them out
of Iraq's boundaries. In this way successive encounters completely trampled
their military power and turning them out of cities compelled them to roam about
in the deserts. Afterwards also when they rose in the form of groups they were
crushed. (at-Ta'rikh Vol. 2 pp. 580-591); Ibn al-Athir Vol. 4 pp. 196-206)
|
|
( 238 )
As-Sayyid ar-Radi says: In the words "wala baqiyah minkum abirun" used by Amir al-mu'minin the "abir" has been related with "ba'" and "ra'" and it has been taken from the Arab saying "rajulun abirun" which means the man who prunes the date-palm trees and improves them. In one version the word is "athir" and its meaning is "relator of good news." In my view this is more appropriate as though Amir al-mu'minin intends to say that there should remain none to carry news. In one version the word appears as "abiz" with "za'" which means one who leaps. One who dies is also called "abiz". * * * * *SERMON 59When Amir al-mu'minin showed his intention to fight the Kharijites he was told that they had crossed the bridge of Nahrawan and gone over to the other side. Amir al-mu'minin said:Their falling place is on this side of the river. By Allah not even ten of them will survive while from your side not even ten will be killed. (1) As-Sayyid ar-Radi says: In this sermon "nutfah" implies the River Euphrates and for water this is the nicest expression even though water may be much.
(1). This prophecy cannot be attributed to wit and
farsightedness because farsighted eyes may forecast victory or defeat and
preconceive the outcome of war but to tell about the correct figures of the
killed on either side is beyond their capacity. This can be done only by one who
can unveil the unknown future and see the coming scene with his eyes and who
sees the sketches yet to appear on the page of the future with the help of the
light of knowledge possessed by him as Imam.Consequently events occurred just
according to what this inheritor of the Prophet's knowledge had said and from
among the Kharijites all except nine persons were killed. Two of them fled away
to 'Uman two to Sijistan two to Kirman and two to al-Jazirah while one escaped
to Tall Mawzan. Of Amir al-mu'minin's party only eight men fell as martyrs.
|