Among the eminent figures who died that year was Asʿad ibn Abī Naṣr al-Mīhanī (1), Abū al-Fatḥ, one of the leading Shāfiʿī authorities of his age. He studied under Abū al-Muẓaffar al-Samʿānī, rose to prominence above his contemporaries, and outshone his peers. Appointed professor at the Niẓāmiyyah College in Baghdad, he enjoyed esteem among both elite and commoners; from his lectures students compiled a “Treatise on Juridical Disputation.” Later dismissed from the Niẓāmiyyah, he traveled to Hamadhān, where he died in this same year—may Allah have mercy upon him.

Then came the year 524 AH.

In that year a great earthquake struck Iraq, (2) demolishing many houses in Baghdad.

In the territory of Mosul a torrential rain fell, and some of it descended as blazing fire (3), so that many houses burned and the people fled in panic.

That year as well, flying scorpions with two stingers were discovered in Baghdad, terrifying the populace.

During the same year Sultan Sanjar captured the city of Samarqand, where Muḥammad Khān (4) was residing.

In that year ʿImād al-Dīn Zangī took possession of numerous districts in al-Jazīrah and of some Frankish (5) territory. Prolonged wars and momentous encounters followed, yet he was granted victory in every engagement—praise and favor belong to Allah. He slew multitudes of the Byzantine army when they advanced into Syria, and the poets extolled him for these feats.

The Killing of the Fatimid Caliph of Egypt

On the second of Dhū al-Qaʿdah, the Fatimid caliph al-Āmir bi-Aḥkām Allah ibn al-Mustaʿlī, ruler of Egypt, was assassinated (6) by the Bāṭinīs. He was thirty-four years old, and his caliphate had lasted twenty-nine years, five months, and a half.