Al-Zuhrī said: Qāsim ibn Muḥammad told me that when Muʿāwiyah reached Madinah on his way to the ḥajj, he visited ʿĀʾishah and spoke with her in private; no one heard their conversation except Dhakwān Abū ʿAmr, ʿĀʾishah’s freedman.
ʿĀʾishah said, “Are you sure I could not conceal a man to kill you in retribution for your killing of my brother Muḥammad?” Muʿāwiyah replied, “You speak the truth.” When their conversation was over, ʿĀʾishah pronounced the shahādah, recalled the guidance and true religion with which Allah had sent His Prophet ﷺ, and the practice established by the caliphs after him. She urged Muʿāwiyah to act with justice and to follow their example, speaking so persuasively that she left him no excuse.
When she had finished, Muʿāwiyah said, “By Allah, you are indeed the learned woman who acts upon the command of the Messenger of Allah ﷺ, the sincere, compassionate adviser whose admonition is eloquent. You have urged goodness and commanded it, and you have only ordered what is in our own best interest. You are worthy to be obeyed.” She and Muʿāwiyah then spoke at length. When Muʿāwiyah rose to leave, he leaned on Dhakwān and said, “By Allah, I have never heard an orator—apart from the Messenger of Allah ﷺ—more eloquent than ʿĀʾishah.” (1)
Muḥammad ibn Saʿd said: Khālid ibn Makhlad al-Bijlī related to us; Sulaymān ibn Bilāl related to us; ʿAlqamah ibn Abī ʿAlqamah told me, from his mother, who said: “Muʿāwiyah ibn Abī Sufyān arrived in Madinah and sent word to ʿĀʾishah, ‘Send me the anbijāniyyah (cloak) of the Messenger of Allah ﷺ and a lock of his hair.’ She sent them with me and I brought them to him. He took the anbijāniyyah and put it on, then took the hair, asked for water, washed the hair in it, drank the water, and poured it over his skin.” (2)
Al-Aṣmaʿī narrated, from al-Hudhalī [from al-Shaʿbī] (3): “When Muʿāwiyah came to Madinah in the Year of Unity, some of the leading men of Quraysh met him and said, ‘Praise be to Allah, who has strengthened your victory and raised your authority.’ He gave them no reply until he entered the city, made for the mosque, and mounted the pulpit. He praised Allah and extolled Him, then said:
‘To proceed: By Allah, when I assumed authority over you I knew you were not happy with my rule and did not love it; I am fully aware of what you harbor in your hearts. Yet I seized it from you with this sword of mine. I tried to force myself to do the deeds of Ibn Abī Quḥāfah, but I found I could not meet that standard, nor was I capable of it. I sought to follow the conduct of Ibn al-Khaṭṭāb, but my soul recoiled and fled from that even more strongly. I attempted to imitate the gentle ways of ʿUthmān, but it refused me. And where is the like of those men? Who can equal their deeds? Far indeed—no one who comes after them can reach their virtue. May Allah’s mercy and good pleasure be upon them.
Nevertheless, I have adopted a course that brings benefit to me and benefit to you alike: in it everyone receives an agreeable share of provision and a pleasant draught, so long as the conduct remains upright and obedience sound. If you do not find me the best among you, then at least I am the best for you. By Allah, I will not raise the sword against one who carries no sword, and as for what has gone before—you already know it…’