al-Amwal (1); the calamity brought on by Babak grew ever more severe—he routed the armies, and multitudes of non-Arabs adopted his creed. He encamped at Hamadhan, whereupon Ishaq al-Muṣʿabī marched out to meet him. A colossal engagement followed; it is said that sixty thousand of them were killed, while the rest fled to Byzantine territory (2).
In 219 AH Muhammad ibn al-Qasim the ʿAlid emerged, calling the people to swear allegiance to a chosen member of the Prophet’s Household. He fought several battles until Ibn Tahir chained him; he later escaped from prison, and the provinces concealed him (3).
In 220 AH al-Muʿtaṣim entrusted al-Afshin (4) with command of an immense army to fight Babak. A fierce clash ensued in which Babak was driven back to Mūghan and from there to a town called al-Badhdh (5).
During Ramadan the ordeal of Imam Ahmad over the Qur’an took place: he was flogged with whips until he lost consciousness, yet he would not concede, so they released him (6). Al-Muʿtaṣim then ordered the construction of a city
(1) Al-Tabari, History (Tarikh al-Tabari), vol. 8, p. 667.
(2) Al-Tabari, History, vol. 8, pp. 667–668; Ibn al-Athir, The Complete History (al-Kamil), vol. 6, p. 441.
(3) See al-Masudi, Meadows of Gold (Muruj al-Dhahab), vol. 7, pp. 116–117; Al-Tabari, History, vol. 9, p. 7; Ibn al-Athir, The Complete History, vol. 6, pp. 442–443; Ibn Kathir, The Beginning and the End (al-Bidaya wa-l-Nihaya), vol. 10, p. 282.
(4) Haydar b. Kawus was appointed by Caliph al-Muʿtasim to fight Babak al-Khurrami. A courageous emir, he was later accused of unbelief and idol-worship; al-Muʿtasim imprisoned him, and he died in 226 AH. See al-Dhahabi, al-Ibar, vol. 1, p. 395.
(5) For the details of this battle, see al-Masudi, Meadows of Gold, vol. 7, pp. 123–127; al-Tabari, History, vol. 9, pp. 13–14; Ibn al-Athir, The Complete History, vol. 6, pp. 449–451. Moghan (also called Mokan) was a province of Azerbaijan with many villages and lush meadows (Muʿjam al-Buldan, vol. 5, p. 225). Al-Badh was a district between Azerbaijan and Arran from which Babak al-Khurrami launched his uprising (Muʿjam al-Buldan, vol. 1, p. 361). See also p. 294, note (2) of this volume.
(6) A detailed biography of Imam Ahmad and an account of his ordeal will appear in volume 11 of this work, no. 78.