the son of the Messenger of Allah’s daughter, the leader of the Muslims, and one of the learned, forbearing Companions whose opinions were highly esteemed.

The proof that he was among the Rightly Guided Caliphs is the hadith we cited earlier in the section on the proofs of prophethood, transmitted through Safīnah, the freedman of the Messenger of Allah ﷺ, in which the Prophet ﷺ said:

“The caliphate after me will last for thirty years; thereafter it will become kingship.” (1)

Those thirty years were completed only by the caliphate of al-Ḥasan ibn ʿAlī—may Allah be pleased with him—for he relinquished authority to Muʿāwiyah in Rabīʿ al-Awwal of the year 41 AH. That marked exactly thirty years from the death of the Messenger of Allah ﷺ, who passed away in Rabīʿ al-Awwal of the year 11 AH. This is [among the greatest] proofs of his prophethood—may Allah’s prayers and peace be upon him in abundant measure.

The Messenger of Allah ﷺ praised al-Ḥasan for this act: for turning away from the fleeting life of this world, longing for the enduring life of the Hereafter (2), and for safeguarding the blood of this ummah. He ceded the caliphate and placed the realm in Muʿāwiyah’s hand so that the Muslims’ word might unite under a single leader (3). We mentioned this commendation earlier, and we shall quote it again in the ḥadīth of Abū Bakrah al-Thaqafī: the Messenger of Allah ﷺ once ascended the pulpit while al-Ḥasan ibn ʿAlī sat beside him. He looked at the people, then at his grandson, and back to the people, and said:

“O people, this son of mine is a leader, and through him Allah will reconcile two mighty factions of the Muslims.” Reported by al-Bukhārī (4).

[By Allah’s help and His enabling grace the seventh volume of al-Bidāyah wa al-Nihāyah is now complete. What follows is the eighth volume, whose opening words are: Then the year 41 AH of the Prophetic Hijrah commenced… All praise belongs to Allah, Lord of the worlds.]