The Book of Stations

1. Mawqif 296 · “Let the killers of ʿUthmān stand up”

   In brief✦AI

   Starting from Q 17:33, which gives the next of kin of one wrongfully killed authority and victory, the Emir answers scholars puzzled that Muʿāwiya prevailed over ʿAlī. No Muslim of ʿAlī's time, Muʿāwiya included, disputed ʿAlī's superiority and right to rule. ʿUthmān's killers had mingled with the clans that made up ʿAlī's army, so retaliation was impossible. Muʿāwiya, as next of kin, sought outwardly only ʿUthmān's blood, God knowing what is hidden; he prevailed only over the killers, and erred in independent judgment, with a single reward.

   Context: the Emir argues about the early dispute between ʿAlī and Muʿāwiya after ʿUthmān’s killing from a Sunni standpoint; other traditions read these events differently.

   See the print: Damascus 1966, p. 925, Damascus 1966, p. 926 (archive.org)

   قَالَ تَعَالَى: «وَمَنْ قُتِلَ مَظْلُومَاً فَقَدْ جَعَلْنَا لِوَلِيِّهِ سُلْطَاناً فَلَا يُسْرِفْ فِي ٱلْقَتْلِ إِنَّهُ كَانَ مَنْصُوراً⁽¹⁾».

   God, exalted is He, says: “And whoever is killed wrongfully, We have given his next of kin authority; so let him not go to excess in killing. He is indeed helped to victory.” (Q 17:33)✦

   ¶ 3660

2. اعْلَمْ أَنَّ كَثِيراً مِنَ الْعُلَمَاءِ يَتَعَجَّبُونَ مِنْ عَدَمِ اجْتِمَاعِ كَلِمَةِ الْمُسْلِمِينَ عَلَى عَلِيٍّ– عَلَيْهِ السَّلَامُ– وَمِنْ نُصْرَةِ حَالِ الْمُسْلِمِينَ مُعَاوِيَةَ– رَضِيَ اللَّهُ عَنْهُ– وَمَا بَانَ لَهُمْ وَجْهُ الْحِكْمَةِ فِي ذَلِكَ،

   Know that many of the scholars wonder at the Muslims' not uniting their word upon ʿAlī (peace be upon him), and at the state of the Muslims' affairs giving victory to Muʿāwiya (God be pleased with him), and the aspect of wisdom in that has not become clear to them,✦

   ¶ 3661

3. مِنْ أَنَّ مُعَاوِيَةَ– رَضِيَ اللَّهُ عَنْهُ– لَيْسَ لَهُ لَا مِنَ السَّابِقَةِ فِي الْاِسْلَامِ مَا لِعَلِيٍّ– عَلَيْهِ السَّلَامُ– وَلَا لَهُ عِلْمٌ كَعِلْمِهِ، وَلَا زُهْدٌ كَزُهْدِهِ، وَلَا وَرَعٌ كَوَرَعِهِ، وَلَا شَجَاعَةٌ كَشَجَاعَتِهِ، وَلَا قَرَابَةٌ مِنْ رَسُولِ اللَّهِ– صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ– كَقَرَابَتِهِ، وَلَا مَنْقَبَةٌ كَمَنَاقِبِهِ،

   given that Muʿāwiya (God be pleased with him) has neither the precedence in Islam that ʿAlī (peace be upon him) has, nor knowledge like his knowledge, nor renunciation like his renunciation, nor scrupulousness like his scrupulousness, nor courage like his courage, nor kinship with the Messenger of God (God bless him and grant him peace) like his kinship, nor any merit like his merits,✦

   ¶ 3662

4. حَتَّى اِنَّ بَعْضَ الصَّحَابَةِ، مِنْهُمْ سَلْمَانُ الْفَارِسِيُّ، وَأَبُو ذَرٍّ، وَالْمِقْدَادُ، وَخَبَّابٌ، وَجَابِرٌ، وَأَبُو سَعِيدٍ الْخُدْرِيُّ، وَزَيْدُ بْنُ أَرْقَمَ، وَبَعْضَ التَّابِعِينَ، وَأَتْبَاعَ التَّابِعِينَ، وَبَعْضَ الْأَئِمَّةِ، كَسُفْيَانَ... اِلَى هَلُمَّ جَرّاً، يُفَضِّلُونَ عَلِيّاً– عَلَيْهِ السَّلَامُ– عَلَى الصِّدِّيقِ– رَضِيَ اللَّهُ عَنْهُ–

   to the point that some of the Companions (among them Salmān al-Fārisī, Abū Dharr, al-Miqdād, Khabbāb, Jābir, Abū Saʿīd al-Khudrī and Zayd ibn Arqam), and some of the Followers, and the followers of the Followers, and some of the imams, such as Sufyān … and so on down to the present, rank ʿAlī (peace be upon him) above al-Ṣiddīq (God be pleased with him).✦

   ¶ 3663

5. فَاَخْبَرْتُهُمْ اَنْ لَايُمْكِنُ لِاَحَدٍ مِنَ الْمُسْلِمِينَ، مِمَّنْ فِي عَصْرِ عَلِيٍّ أَنْ يُخَالِفَ فِي أَفْضَلِيَّةِ عَلِيٍّ– عَلَيْهِ السَّلَامُ– وَأَحَقِّيَّتِهِ بِالْأَمْرِ، مِنْ جَمِيعِ الْمَوْجُودِينَ فِي ذَلِكَ الْوَقْتِ،

   So I informed them that it is not possible for any of the Muslims who lived in ʿAlī's time to dissent concerning ʿAlī's (peace be upon him) superiority and his greater right to the command over all who were living at that time;✦

   ¶ 3664

6. وَلَا يُخَالِفُ فِي ذَلِكَ مُعَاوِيَةُ نَفْسُهُ، وَلَا يُنْكِرُهُ– رَضِيَ اللَّهُ عَنْهُ–

   nor does Muʿāwiya himself dissent from that, nor does he deny it (God be pleased with him).✦

   ¶ 3665

7. وَمَا يَنْقُلُهُ بَعْضُ كَذَبَةِ الْمُؤَرِّخِينَ الْمُتَعَصِّبِينَ؛ فَهُوَ افْتِرَاءٌ عَلَيْهِ– رَضِيَ اللَّهُ عَنْهُ–

   And what some lying, partisan historians report is a fabrication against him (God be pleased with him).✦

   ¶ 3666

8. وَاِنَّمَا كَانَ مَا كَانَ، وَحَصَلَ مَا حَصَلَ لِكَوْنِ قَتَلَةِ عُثْمَانَ– رَضِيَ اللَّهُ عَنْهُ– الْمُتَمَالِئِينَ عَلَى خَلْعِهِ وَقَتْلِهِ كَانُوا مُؤَلَّفِينَ مِنْ أَكْثَرِ قَبَائِلِ الْعَرَبِ.

   What happened happened, and what came about came about, only because the killers of ʿUthmān (God be pleased with him), who had conspired together to depose and kill him, were drawn from most of the tribes of the Arabs.✦

   ¶ 3667

9. وَلَمَّا أَفْضَتِ الْخِلَافَةُ اِلَى عَلِيٍّ– عَلَيْهِ السَّلَامُ– اخْتَلَطُوا بِعَشَائِرِهِمْ.

   When the caliphate passed to ʿAlī (peace be upon him), they mingled with their clans.✦

   ¶ 3668

10. وَكَانَتْ عَشَائِرُهُمْ أَكْثَرَ أَتْبَاعِ عَلِيٍّ– عَلَيْهِ السَّلَامُ– فَحَمَلَتْهُمْ عَشَائِرُهُمْ لِلْعَصَبِيَّةِ الْمَعْرُوفَةِ فِي الْعَرَبِ،

    Their clans made up most of ʿAlī's (peace be upon him) followers, and their clans took them on themselves out of the tribal partisanship well known among the Arabs,✦

    ¶ 3669

11. حَتَّى اِنَّهُ نُقِلَ أَنَّ عَلِيّاً ـ عَلَيْهِ السَّلَامُ ـ قَالَ يَوْماً فِي جَيْشِهِ: «لِيَقُمْ قَتَلَةُ عُثْمَانَ» فَقَامَ الْجَيْشُ كُلُّهُ اِلاَّ بَعْضَ أَفْرَادٍ ـ

    to the point that it is reported that ʿAlī (peace be upon him) said one day among his army, “Let the killers of ʿUthmān stand up,” and the whole army stood up except a few individuals.✦

    ¶ 3670

12. فَرَأَى ـ عَلَيْهِ السَّلَامُ ـ أَنَّ الْقَوَدَ فِي ذَلِكَ الْوَقْتِ غَيْرُ مُمْكِنٍ

    So he (peace be upon him) saw that retaliation was not possible at that time.✦

    ¶ 3671

13. فَمَا تَخَلَّفَ مَنْ تَخَلَّفَ عَنْ عَلِيٍّ ـ عَلَيْهِ السَّلَامُ ـ اِلاَّ كَرَاهِيَةَ الِاجْتِمَاعِ مَعَ قَتَلَةِ عُثْمَانَ ـ رَضِيَ اللَّهُ عَنْهُ ـ

    Those who held back from ʿAlī (peace be upon him) held back only out of aversion to being gathered together with the killers of ʿUthmān (God be pleased with him).✦

    ¶ 3672

14. وَلَا انْتَصَرَ مُعَاوِيَةُ ـ رَضِيَ اللَّهُ عَنْهُ ـ اِلاَّ عَلَى قَتَلَةِ عُثْمَانَ ـ رَضِيَ اللَّهُ عَنْهُ ـ لَا عَلَى عَلِيٍّ ـ عَلَيْهِ السَّلَامُ ـ

    And Muʿāwiya (God be pleased with him) was victorious only over the killers of ʿUthmān (God be pleased with him), not over ʿAlī (peace be upon him),✦

    ¶ 3673

15. فَاِنَّ اللَّهَ ـ تَعَالَى ـ وَعَدَ وَلِيَّ الْمَقْتُولِ ظُلْماً بِالنَّصْرِ،

    for God, exalted is He, has promised the next of kin of one slain wrongfully victory,✦

    ¶ 3674

16. وَمُعَاوِيَةُ ـ رَضِيَ اللَّهُ عَنْهُ ـ مَا كَا نَيَطْلُبُ أَوَّلاً فِي الظَّاهِرِ، وَاللَّهُ يَتَوَلَّى السَّرَائِرَ؟ اِلاَّ دَمَ عُثْمَانَ مِنْ قَتَلَتِهِ، وَهُوَ وَلِيُّهُ،

    and Muʿāwiya (God be pleased with him) was at first seeking, outwardly (and God takes charge of what is hidden), nothing but ʿUthmān's blood from his killers, and he was his next of kin,✦

    ¶ 3675

17. وَاِنْ كَانَ يُوجَدُ مَنْ هُوَ أَقْرَبُ مِنْهُ قَرَابَةً، وَلَكِنْ رَأَى مُعَاوِيَةُ ـ رَضِيَ اللَّهُ عَنْهُ ـ مَنْ هُوَ أَقْرَبُ مِنْهُ عَاجِزاً عَنْ طَلَبِ دَمِ عُثْمَانَ،

    even if there was someone closer to him in kinship; but Muʿāwiya (God be pleased with him) saw that the one closer than he was unable to seek ʿUthmān's blood,✦

    ¶ 3676

18. فَكَانَ مُجْتَهِداً مُخْطِئاً لَهُ أَجْرٌ وَاحِدٌ.

    So he was one exercising independent judgment who erred, and he has a single reward.✦

    ¶ 3677

Translations, word glosses and term notes are AI-generated (Claude) and marked as such; no published translation is reproduced.Word analysis is automatic (CAMeL Tools), guided by the text's vowelling. How this text was established.