2823 – ʿAbd al-Rahman ibn ʿUbayd Allah al-Harbi reported to us; he said: Hamzah ibn Muhammad ibn al-ʿAbbas related to us; he said: so-and-so related to us; he said: Wahib ibn Baqiyyah al-Wasiti narrated to us; he said: Muhammad ibn Hujayr al-Bahili, from ʿAbd al-Rahman ibn Malik ibn Mighwal, from his father, said:

Al-Shaʿbi declared, “O Malik! Had I wished, they would have handed me their very necks as slaves, or filled my house with gold, so long as I would forge lies for them against ʿAli. I could have done it, but by Allah I have never lied about him—not once.

“O Malik, I have examined every deviant sect, and I have never seen a people more witless than the Khashabiyyah. If they were beasts they would be donkeys, and if they were birds they would be vultures.

“I caution you against misguided passions; the worst of them are the Rafidah. Among them ⦗1550⦘ are Jews who disparage Islam so that their own misguidance might survive—just as Paul son of Saul once belittled the religion of Jesus in order to gain the upper hand. They did not enter Islam out of longing for it nor fear of Allah; rather, they did so out of hatred for the Muslims and in order to attack them. ʿAli ibn Abi Talib therefore burned them with fire and banished them from the lands. Among them were ʿAbd Allah ibn Sabaʾ, whom he exiled to Sabat; ʿAbd Allah ibn Shabab, whom he expelled to Jazat; and Abu al-Kurush and his son.

“The ordeal of the Rafidah is the very ordeal of the Jews. The Jews said, ‘Kingship is fitting only for the descendants of David,’ and the Rafidah say, ‘Authority is fitting only for the descendants of ʿAli.’ The Jews said, ‘There is no jihad in the path of Allah until the Antichrist appears or Jesus descends from heaven,’ and the Rafidah say, ‘There is no jihad until the Mahdi appears and a caller proclaims from heaven.’ The Jews delay the Maghrib prayer until the stars are tangled together, and so do the Rafidah—despite the hadith of the Messenger of Allah ﷺ: ‘My community will remain upon the natural disposition so long as they do not delay Maghrib until the stars are entangled.’

“The Jews turn slightly away from the qiblah, and so do the Rafidah. The Jews let their garments hang low ⦗1551⦘, and so do the Rafidah—even though the Messenger of Allah ﷺ passed by a man whose garment was trailing and gathered it up for him. The Jews distorted the Torah, and the Rafidah have distorted the Qur’an. The Jews hold the blood of every Muslim to be lawful, and so do the Rafidah. The Jews regard triple divorce as nothing, and so do the Rafidah. The Jews impose no waiting period on women, and so do the Rafidah. The Jews hate Gabriel and say, ‘He is our enemy among the angels,’ and likewise a faction of the Rafidah say, ‘Gabriel erred in bringing the revelation to Muhammad.’

“The Jews and the Christians are, in two matters, better than the Rafidah: The Jews were asked, ‘Who are the best people of your faith?’ They replied, ‘The companions of Moses.’ The Rafidah were asked, ‘Who are the worst people of your faith?’ They answered, ‘The companions of Muhammad.’ The Christians were asked, ‘Who are the best people of your faith?’ They said, ‘The disciples of Jesus.’ The Rafidah were asked, ‘Who are the worst people of your faith?’ ⦗1552⦘ They said, ‘The disciples of Muhammad.’ They were commanded to seek forgiveness for them, yet they reviled them.

“Thus the sword is unsheathed against them until the Day of Resurrection: they will never gain a firm footing, no banner of theirs will stand, their word will never unite; their call is void, their gathering scattered. Whenever they kindle a fire for war, Allah — Mighty and Exalted — extinguishes it.”