Siyar Aʿlām al-Nubalāʾ - Shams al‑Din al‑Dhahabi - (12/32)

Siyar Aʿlām al-NubalāʾShams al‑Din al‑Dhahabi

The qāḍī of Basra, Ibrāhīm ibn Muḥammad al-Taymī, used to say:

“Caliphs are three: Abū Bakr on the day of the Ridda, ʿUmar ibn ʿAbd al-ʿAzīz when he restored the properties usurped by the Umayyads, and al-Mutawakkil for eradicating innovations and championing the Sunnah.” ⦗1⦘

Yazīd ibn Muḥammad al-Muhallabī reported that al-Mutawakkil said to him, “The caliphs before me made themselves formidable so that people would obey them, whereas I show gentleness so that they will love me and obey me.” ⦗2⦘

Al-Aʿsam ⦗3⦘ related that ʿAlī ibn al-Jahm entered upon al-Mutawakkil while the caliph was turning two pearls over in his hand. The poet recited a qaṣīdah of his, whereupon the caliph rolled ⦗4⦘ one of the pearls toward him. I examined it ⦗5⦘, and he said, “Do you think it trivial? By Allah, it is worth more than one hundred thousand.” I replied, “No, by Allah; I was only reflecting on some verses that might earn me the other one,” and I began to say:

In Surr-Man-Raʾā a just imām (6) … from whose ocean even the seas draw;
Hoped for and feared in every crisis … as though he were Paradise and Hellfire.
Kingship is his and his sons’ (8) … for as long as night and day alternate;
Nothing issues from his right hand … without its like coming from the left (9).

(1) Fawat al-Wafayat 1:290; Tarikh al-Khulafa, p. 346; al-Nujum al-Zahira 2:375. (2) Fawat al-Wafayat 1:291 reads: “…she would become angry with the populace so that they might obey her.” (3) In Tarikh Baghdad the name is mistakenly written al-Aatham (with the letter thaa’). (4) I.e., he threw it toward him and handed it over. (5) The base manuscript has fa-qabiltaha (“so I accepted it”), which is erroneous; the correct wording follows Tarikh Baghdad 7:167 and Tarikh al-Khulafa, p. 349. (6) Tarikh Baghdad reads: amir. (7) Omitted in Tarikh Ibn Kathir. (8) Tarikh Baghdad has: abihi (“his father”). (9) The verses are also found in Tarikh Baghdad 7:167; Tarikh Ibn Kathir 10:350; and Tarikh al-Khulafa, p. 349, which all precede the final couplet with: “His two hands, rivals in generosity, each begrudges the other for his sake.”

وَكَانَ قَاضِي البَصْرَةِ؛ إِبْرَاهِيْمُ بنُ مُحَمَّدٍ التَّيْمِيُّ يَقُوْلُ: الخُلَفَاءُ ثَلاَثَةٌ: أَبُو بَكْرٍ يَوْمَ الرِّدَّةِ، وَعُمَرُ بنُ عَبْدِ العَزِيْزِ فِي رَدِّ المظَالِمِ مِنْ بَنِي أُمَيَّةَ، وَالمُتَوَكِّلُ فِي مَحْوِ البِدَعِ، وَإِظْهَارِ السُّنَّةِ (١) . وَقَالَ يَزِيْدُ بنُ مُحَمَّدٍ المُهَلَّبِيُّ، قَالَ لِي المُتَوَكِّلُ: إِنَّ الخُلَفَاءَ كَانَتْ تَتَصَعَّبُ عَلَى النَّاسِ ليُطِيْعُوهُمْ (٢) ، وَأَنَا أُلِيْنُ لَهُمْ ليُحِبُّونِي وَيُطِيْعُونِي. وحَكَى الأَعْسَمُ (٣) : أَنَّ عَلِيَّ بنَ الجَهْمِ دَخَلَ عَلَى المُتَوَكِّلِ وَبِيَدِهِ دُرَّتَانِ يُقَلِّبُهُمَا، فَأَنْشَدَهُ قَصِيْدَةً لَهُ، فَدَحَا (٤) إِلَيْهِ بِالوَاحِدَةِ فَقَلَّبْتُهَا (٥) ، فَقَالَ: تَسْتَنْقِصُ بِهَا؟ هِيَ وَاللهِ خَيْرٌ مِنْ مائَةِ أَلْفٍ. فَقُلْتُ: لاَ وَاللهِ، لَكِنِّي فَكَّرْتُ فِي أَبْيَاتٍ آخُذُ بِهَا الأُخْرَى، وَأَنْشَأْتُ أَقُوْلُ: بِسُرَّ مَنْ رَأَى إِمَامٌ (٦) عَدْلٌ (٧) ... تَغْرِفُ مِنْ بَحْرِهِ البِحَارُ يُرْجَى وَيُخْشَى لِكُلِّ خَطْبٍ ... كَأَنَّهُ جَنَّةٌ وَنَارُ المُلْكُ فِيْهِ وَفِي بَنِيْهِ (٨) ... مَا اخْتَلَفَ اللَّيْلُ وَالنَّهَارُ لَمْ تَأَتِ مِنْهُ اليَمِيْنُ شَيْئاً ... إِلاَّ أَتَتْ مِثْلَهَا اليَسَارُ (٩)

(١) " فوات الوفيات " ١ / ٢٩٠، " تاريخ الخلفاء ": ٣٤٦، و" النجوم الزاهرة " ٢ / ٣٧٥. (٢) في " فوات الوفيات " ١ / ٢٩١ ... كانت تغضب على الرعية لتطيعها. (٣) تحرفت في " تاريخ بغداد " إلى: الاعثم، بالثاء. (٤) أي: رماها إليه ودفعها. (٥) في الأصل: فقبلتها، وهو تحريف، والمثبت من " تاريخ بغداد " ٧ / ١٦٧، و" تاريخ الخلفاء ": ٣٤٩. (٦) في " تاريخ بغداد ": أمير. (٧) سقطت من " تاريخ ابن كثير ". (٨) في " تاريخ بغداد " أبيه. (٩) الابيات في " تاريخ بغداد " ٧ / ١٦٧، و" تاريخ ابن كثير " ١٠ / ٣٥٠، و" تاريخ الخلفاء ": ٣٤٩. وجاء في هذه المصادر قبل البيت الأخير: يداه في الجود ضرتان * عليه كلتاهما تغار