of the two arbitrators: “Do not appoint the Ashʿarī as arbiter, for with him is a man who is cautious, seasoned, and battle-hardened,(1) so station me right beside him,(2) that he may not loosen a knot without my fastening it, nor fasten a knot without my undoing it.”

He replied, “Ibn ʿAbbās, what am I to do? It is my own companions who have brought me to this; their resolve has weakened and they have grown weary. Here is al-Ashʿath saying, ‘There must never be two men of Mudar involved; one of them has to be a Yemeni.’”

Ibn ʿAbbās continued, “So I excused him, realizing that he was under duress.(3)

ʿIkrimah narrated that when Muʿāwiyah appointed ʿAmr as arbiter, al-Ahnaf said to ʿAlī, ‘Appoint Ibn ʿAbbās, for he is a man of proven experience.’ ʿAlī replied, ‘I will.’ But the Yemeni faction refused and said, ‘Not unless one of us is appointed.’

Ibn ʿAbbās then came to ʿAlī and said, ‘Why are you appointing Abū Mūsā? You know his view of us. By Allah, he has never aided us, even though he hopes to gain what we are seeking. Now you are bringing him into the very knots of our affair, and he is not the man for it! If you refuse to set me opposite ʿAmr, then appoint al-Ahnaf ibn Qays, for he is tried and tested among the Arabs and a peer of ʿAmr.’

‘Very well,’ ʿAlī said. Yet the Yemenis still refused, and when he was overruled he appointed Abū Mūsā instead.(4)

Abū Ṣāliḥ al-Sammān reported that ʿAlī said, ‘Abū Mūsā, give the ruling—even if it concerns the cutting…’