Siyar Aʿlām al-Nubalāʾ - Shams al‑Din al‑Dhahabi - (3/140)

Siyar Aʿlām al-NubalāʾShams al‑Din al‑Dhahabi

Yūnus reports—on the authority of Ibn Shihāb—that:

When word reached Muʿāwiya of the defeat on the Day of the Camel and of ʿAlī’s ascendancy, he summoned the people of Syria to fight at his side under the banner of consultation (shūrā) and in pursuit of vengeance for ʿUthmān’s blood. On that basis they pledged allegiance to him as a commander, though not as caliph.

In the Book of Ṣiffīn by Yaḥyā ibn Sulaymān al-Juʿfī (1), with his own chain of transmission, it is related that:

When Jarīr al-Bajalī arrived before Muʿāwiya as an envoy and, after a lengthy exchange, Muʿāwiya said to him, “Write to ʿAlī asking that he grant me Syria, and I will pledge allegiance to him for as long as I live.”

Jarīr conveyed the request in writing to ʿAlī, but the contents of his letter leaked out, whereupon al-Walīd ibn ʿUqbah wrote to Muʿāwiya:

Muʿāwiya, Syria is your Syria—hold fast to it;
Let no serpents gain access to your domain!

Guard it with catapults and spear-points,
And never let your arms grow timid or slack. (2)

For ʿAlī is watching to see how you respond;
Send him a war that will turn forelocks gray! (3)

Al-Juʿfī also said: Yaʿlā ibn ʿUbayd narrated to us from his father:

Abū Muslim al-Khawlānī and some companions came to Muʿāwiya and said, “Are you contending with ʿAlī, or are you his equal?”

He replied, “No, by Allah, I know that he is better than I am and more entitled to the office than I. But do you not know that ʿUthmān was slain unjustly, and I am his cousin and the one seeking retaliation for his blood? Go to him, then, and say to him: ‘Let him hand over ʿUthmān’s killers to me, and I will submit to him.’”

They went to ʿAlī, spoke with him, but he did not hand them over to Muʿāwiya. (4)

(1) Yahya b. Sulayman b. Yahya b. Saʿid al-Jʿufi al-Kufi, a Qurʾan-reciter and ḥafiz who later lived in Egypt. Al-Bukhari cites him, yet Ibn Hajar says in Taqrib al-Tahdhib: “reliable (ṣadūq) but prone to error.” He died in 237 AH, or the year after. (2) The word makhshūsh—spelled with the letters kh and sh—means “not hobbled,” derived from their expression khasha al-baʿīr: to insert a khashāsh (a wooden pin) in a camel’s nose so the rein can be tied to it and the animal submits more readily. The printed text has mistakenly read maḥsūs. (3) The report together with the poetical lines is found in Ibn ʿAsakir, vol. 16, fol. 355b–356a. (4) All its transmitters are trustworthy; see Ibn Kathir, al-Bidaya wa-l-nihaya, 8/129.

يُوْنُسُ: عَنِ ابْنِ شِهَابٍ، قَالَ: لَمَّا بَلَغَ مُعَاوِيَةَ هَزِيْمَةُ يَوْمِ الجَمَلِ، وَظُهُوْرُ عَلِيٍّ، دَعَا أَهْلَ الشَّامِ لِلْقِتَالِ مَعَهُ عَلَى الشُّوْرَى، وَالطَّلَبِ بِدَمِ عُثْمَانَ، فَبَايَعُوْهُ عَلَى ذَلِكَ أَمِيْراً غَيْرَ خَلِيْفَةٍ. وَفِي (كِتَابِ صِفِّيْنَ) لِيَحْيَى بنِ سُلَيْمَانَ الجُعْفِيِّ (١) بِإِسْنَادٍ لَهُ: أَنَّ مُعَاوِيَةَ قَالَ لِجَرِيْرٍ البَجَلِيِّ لَمَّا قَدِمَ عَلَيْهِ رَسُوْلاً بَعْدَ مُحَاوَرَةٍ طَوِيْلَةٍ: اكْتُبْ إِلَى عَلِيٍّ أَنْ يَجْعَلَ لِيَ الشَّامَ، وَأَنَا أُبَايِعُ لَهُ مَا عَاشَ. فَكَتَبَ بِذَلِكَ إِلَى عَلِيٍّ، فَفَشَا كِتَابُهُ، فَكَتَبَ إِلَيْهِ الوَلِيْدُ بنُ عُقْبَةَ: مُعَاوِيُ، إِنَّ الشَّامَ شَامُكَ فَاعْتَصِمْ ... بِشَامِكَ لاَ تُدْخِلْ عَلَيْكَ الأَفَاعِيَا وَحَامِ عَلَيْهَا بِالقَنَابِلِ وَالقَنَا ... وَلاَ تَكُ مَخْشُوْشَ الذِّرَاعَيْنِ وَانِيَا (٢) فَإِنَّ عَلِيّاً نَاظِرٌ مَا تُجِيْبُهُ ... فَأَهْدِ لَهُ حَرْباً تُشِيْبُ النَّوَاصِيَا (٣) ثُمَّ قَالَ الجُعْفِيُّ: حَدَّثَنَا يَعْلَى بنُ عُبَيْدٍ، عَنْ أَبِيْهِ، قَالَ: جَاءَ أَبُو مُسْلِمٍ الخَوْلاَنِيُّ وَأُنَاسٌ إِلَى مُعَاوِيَةَ، وَقَالُوا: أَنْتَ تُنَازِعُ عَلِيّاً، أَمْ أَنْتَ مِثْلُهُ؟ فَقَالَ: لاَ وَاللهِ، إِنِّيْ لأَعْلَمُ أَنَّهُ أَفْضَلُ مِنِّي، وَأَحَقُّ بِالأَمْرِ مِنِّي، وَلَكِنْ أَلَسْتُم تَعْلَمُوْنَ أَنَّ عُثْمَانَ قُتِلَ مَظْلُوْماً، وَأَنَا ابْنُ عَمِّهِ، وَالطَّالِبُ بِدَمِهِ، فَائْتُوْهُ، فَقُوْلُوا لَهُ، فَلْيَدْفَعْ إِلَيَّ قَتَلَةَ عُثْمَانَ، وَأُسْلِمَ لَهُ. فَأَتَوْا عَلِيّاً، فَكَلَّمُوْهُ، فَلَمْ يَدْفَعْهُم إِلَيْهِ (٤) .

(١) هو يحيى بن سليمان بن يحيى بن سعيد الجعفي الكوفي المقرئ الحافظ نزيل مصر روى له البخاري، ومع ذلك فقد قال الحافظ في " التقريب ": صدوق يخطئ. مات سنة ٢٣٧ هـ، أو التي بعدها. (٢) مخشوش، بالخاء المعجمة والشين، أي: ولاتك مقيد اليدين، من قولهم خش البعير: إذا جعل في أنفه الخشاش، وهو عود من خشب يجعل في أنف البعير يشد به الزمام ليكون أسرع لا نقياده. وقد تصحف في المطبوع إلى " محسوس ". (٣) الخبر مع الابيات عند ابن عساكر ١٦ / ٣٥٥ / ب، ٣٥٦ / آ. (٤) رجاله ثقات، وانظر " البداية " ٨ / ١٢٩.