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105-719: The founder of the dynasty was Muhammad ibn Yusuf al-Ukhaidhir ibn Ibrahim ibn Musa al-Djawn ibn Abd Allah al-Kāmil ibn Al-Hasan al-Mu'thannā bin Al- Hassan al-mujtaba bin Ali al Murtaza bin Abi Talib . Muhammad's brother Isma'il had launched a rebellion in the Tihamah in 865 against the Abbasid government and temporarily occupied the city of Mecca . After Isma'il's death the following year, Muhammad began stirring up trouble along

210-574: A battle with the Qarmatians. Isma'il was succeeded by his son al-Hasan, and at this point the amirate likely subordinate to the Qarmatians. After the rule of al-Hasan's son Ahmad, the history of the Banu 'l-Ukhaidhir becomes obscure. When the traveler Nasir-i Khusraw arrived in al-Yamamah in 1051, the Banu 'l-Ukhaidhir were still ruling there, but at some point after this the Banu Kilab took over

315-504: A conditional curse, for instance, "May I be cursed if...," together with a purifying oath. As a last resort, mubahala remains a lawful option to resolve disputes in Islamic jurisprudence ( fiqh ). With the rise of Islam in the Hejaz , Muhammad wrote to nearby personages around the year 9 AH (631–632 CE ) and invited them to Islam. One such letter was apparently addressed at

420-576: A council ( shura ) after Mu'awiya, and preference for the Banu Hashim over the Banu Umayyad in pensions. Another condition was that Mu'awiya should end the ritual cursing of Ali in mosques, writes Mavani. Jafri similarly notes that the terms are recorded differently and ambiguously by al-Tabari, Dinawari, Ibn Abd al-Barr, and Ibn al-Athir, while al-Ya'qubi and al-Mas'udi ( d.  956 ) are silent about them. In particular, Jafri finds

525-495: A letter, which he refused. As the news of the mutiny against Hasan and the attempt at his life arrived, however, both sides abstained from fighting and awaited further developments. Veccia Vaglieri writes that the Iraqis were reluctant to fight and a group deserted every day. By one account, 8,000 men out of 12,000 followed Ubayd Allah's example and joined Mu'awiya. When Hasan learned about this, al-Ya'qubi writes that he summoned

630-498: A mutiny at his military camp near al-Mada'in . Among the five surviving accounts, Jafri prefers the one by Abu Hanifa Dinawari ( d.  895 ), which states that Hasan was concerned about his troops' resolve by the time he reached the outskirts of al-Mada'in. He thus halted the army at Sabat and told them in a speech that he preferred peace over war because his men were reluctant to fight. According to al-Mada'ini ( d.  843 ), Hasan also quoted Ali as saying, "Do not loathe

735-518: A peace treaty with Mu'awiya on the condition that the latter should rule in compliance with the Quran and the sunna , a council should appoint his successor, and Hasan's supporters would receive amnesty. Hasan retired from politics and abdicated in Medina where he died either from illness or poisoning, though the early sources are nearly unanimous that he was poisoned. Mu'awiya is commonly viewed as

840-490: A peace treaty, either immediately, or when Muhammad arrived for the mubahala with his family, according to the majority of Islamic traditions. This episode has been linked to certain verses of the Quran , the central religious text of Islam , particularly verse 3:61. The event is particularly significant for Shia Muslims because Muhammad was accompanied by his daughter Fatima , her husband Ali , and their two sons, Hasan and Husayn , who are pivotal to Shia beliefs . At

945-454: A pretext for him to seize the caliphate, according to Jafri. In the surrender ceremony, Mu'awiya demanded Hasan to publicly apologize. Hasan rose and reminded the people that he and Husayn were Muhammad's only grandsons and the right to the caliphate was his and not Mu'awiya's, but he had surrendered it to avoid bloodshed. Mu'awiya then spoke and recanted his earlier promises to Hasan and others, saying that those promises were made to shorten

1050-407: A problem for Mu'awiya, who planned to designate his son Yazid ( r.  680–683 ) as his successor, in violation of the peace treaty with Hasan. Jafri thus believes that Mu'wiya should be suspected in the murder of Hasan, which removed an obstacle to the succession of his son. This view is echoed by Momen and Madelung. Hasan did not disclose who he suspected of his poisoning, fearing that

1155-508: A request from Mu'awiya to subdue a Kharijite revolt near Kufa. He wrote back to Mu'awiya that he had given up his claim to the caliphate for the sake of peace and compromise, not to fight on his side. Between his abdication in 41/661 and his death in 50/670, Hasan lived quietly in Medina and did not engage in politics. In compliance with the peace treaty, Hasan declined requests from (often small) Shia groups to lead them against Mu'awiya. He

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1260-469: A share of five thousand dirhams in Umar's system of state pension. According to Ibn Isfandiyar , Hasan also took part in an expedition to Amol during the caliphate of Umar, though the veracity of such reports have been questioned by Paktchi et al. Defying Uthman, Hasan joined his father in bidding farewell to Abu Dharr al-Ghifari ( d.  652 ), who was exiled from Medina after he preached against

1365-485: A territory that extended as far north as Qurran . The early rule of the Banu 'l-Ukhaidhir was characterized by a sustained economic depression. Thousands of people are recorded as having emigrated from al-Yamamah to various provinces of the caliphate in order to escape the turmoil. Muhammad has been blamed for this period of hardship due to his oppressive rule, although it has been noted that reports of mass emigration from al-Yamamah began years before his arrival. Muhammad

1470-417: A tradition cited by Muqatil, Muhammad reflects hypothetically that he would have taken with him to the mubahala his daughter Fatima, her husband Ali, and their two sons Hasan and Husayn. Ibn Sa'd writes that two leaders of the delegation later returned to Medina and converted to Islam, which might explain their earlier refusal of the mubahala . Yet according to other reports, Muhammad did appear for

1575-405: A truce and then offering Ubayd Allah a million dirhams to switch sides. Ubayd Allah accepted and deserted at night to Mu'awiya, who fulfilled his promise to him. The next morning, Qays ibn Sa'd took charge of Hasan's troops as the second-in-command and denounced Ubayd Allah in a sermon. Mu'awiya now sent a contingent to force surrender but was pushed back twice. He then offered bribes to Qays in

1680-480: A vanguard under Ubayd Allah ibn al-Abbas to block Mu'awiya's advance until he arrived with the main army. Meanwhile, Hasan was severely wounded in an abortive assassination attempt by the Kharijites , a faction opposed to both Ali and Mu'awiya. This attack demoralized Hasan's army and led to widespread desertion. Ubayd Allah and most of his troops also defected after Mu'awiya bribed him. In August 661, Hasan signed

1785-522: Is considered the most reliable, reporting that Hasan had fifteen sons and nine daughters with six wives and three known concubines. His first marriage was contracted with Ja'da , daughter of the Kinda chief al-Ash'ath ibn Qays , soon after Ali relocated to Kufa. Madelung suggests that Ali with this marriage intended to establish ties with the powerful Yemeni tribes in Kufa. Hasan had no children with Ja'da, who

1890-445: Is described as a good orator, he might have also suffered from a speech defect, according to Abu al-Faraj al-Isfahani. In contrast to Hasan, Madelung suggests that Husayn might have inherited his father's "fighting spirit." The sources hostile to Hasan interpret his peace treaty with Mu'awiya as a sign of weakness, saying that Hasan intended to surrender from the beginning. Some authors instead suggest that Hasan's decision to abdicate

1995-503: Is often accused of poisoning him. Umm Bashir was Hasan's second wife and bore him his eldest son Zayd, his daughter Umm al-Husayn, and probably another daughter Umm al-Hasan. Umm Bashir was the daughter of Abu Mas'ud Uqba ibn Amr , who had opposed the Kufan revolt against Uthman. Madelung writes that Ali was hoping to bring Abu Mas'ud to his side with the marriage. After his abdication and return to Medina, Hasan married Khawla, daughter of

2100-476: Is verse 3:61, sometimes known as the verse of mubahala , which instructs Muhammad to challenge his opponents to mubahala , perhaps when the debate had reached a deadlock: فَمَنْ حَآجَّكَ فِيهِ مِنۢ بَعْدِ مَا جَآءَكَ مِنَ ٱلْعِلْمِ فَقُلْ تَعَالَوْا۟ نَدْعُ أَبْنَآءَنَا وَأَبْنَآءَكُمْ وَنِسَآءَنَا وَنِسَآءَكُمْ وَأَنفُسَنَا وَأَنفُسَكُمْ ثُمَّ نَبْتَهِلْ فَنَجْعَل لَّعْنَتَ ٱللَّهِ عَلَى ٱلْكَـٰذِبِينَ And to whomsoever disputes with thee over it, after

2205-534: The sayyid s ( lit.   ' chiefs ' ) of the youth in the paradise. Madelung adds that this hadith is widely reported, while Veccia Vaglieri ( d.  1989 ) notes that its authenticity was disputed by the Umayyad Marwan ( r.  684–685 ). The same source and the canonical Shia source Kitab al-Irshad narrate the prophetic hadith, "He who has loved Hasan and Husayn has loved me and he who has hated them has hated me." Similarly,

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2310-549: The Qur'an , which acknowledges the miraculous birth of Jesus but rejects the Christians' belief in his divinity, "Truly the likeness of Jesus in the sight of God is that of Adam ; He created him from dust, then said to him, 'Be!' and he was." Indeed, this and some other verses of the third chapter ( surah ), perhaps even its first seventy to eighty verses, are said to have been revealed to Muhammad on this occasion. Among these

2415-605: The event of the mubahala . During the caliphate of Ali ( r.  656–661 ), Hasan accompanied him in the military campaigns of the First Fitna . Following Ali's assassination in January 661, Hasan was acknowledged caliph in Kufa . His sovereignty was not recognized by Mu'awiya I ( r.  661–680 ), the governor of Syria, who led an army into Kufa while pressing Hasan for abdication in letters. In response, Hasan sent

2520-556: The road running between the Hejaz and Iraq , but was defeated by the road's governor Abu 'l-Saj Dewdad . Fleeing from the government forces, he made his way in al-Yamamah and established himself there in 867. Al-Yamamah at the time was nominally part of the Abbasid Caliphate, but the central government had largely neglected the area for years due to its remoteness. With the exception of the occasional raid by government forces,

2625-457: The "Umayyad propaganda" reflected in the account of al-Zuhri, quoted by al-Tabari. Since Ali and his house rejected the conduct of Abu Bakr and Umar in the shura after Umar in 23/644, Jafri believes that the clause about following the Rashidun caliphs was inserted by later Sunni authors. That Mu'awiya agreed to an amnesty for the supporters of Ali indicates that the revenge for Uthman was

2730-600: The Banu Hashim and Banu Umayyad, respectively, soon gathered with weapons. Muhammad ibn al-Hanafiyya reportedly intervened and reminded Hasan's burial request. He was then buried in al-Baqi. Dinawari writes the Umayyads shot arrows at the body during the standoff, and this is also the Shia view. Madelung suggests that Mu'awiya later rewarded Marwan for his stand by reinstating him as the governor of Medina. As Hasan's body

2835-598: The Family of the Prophet. Ali's commander Qays ibn Sa'd was the first to pledge his allegiance to Hasan. Qays offered his oath based on the Quran, precedent ( sunna ), and jihad against those who declared lawful ( halal ) what was unlawful ( haram ). Hasan, however, avoided the last condition by saying that it was implicit in the first two. About this episode, Jafri ( d.  2019 ) suggests that Hasan

2940-583: The Fazara chief Manzur ibn Zabban. Khawla already had two sons and a daughter from Muhammad ibn Talha , who was killed in the Battle of the Camel. After her father protested that he had been ignored, Hasan presented Khawla to her father and remarried her with his approval. Khawla bore Hasan his son, Hasan . Hasan in Medina also married Hafsa bint Abd al-Rahman ibn Abi Bakr . It is said that al-Mundhir ibn al-Zubayr

3045-642: The Imam victorious. Hasan was born in Medina in c.  625 . Sources differ on whether he was born in the Islamic months of Sha'ban or Ramadan , though most early works give his birthdate as 15 Ramadan 3 AH (2 March 625 CE), which is annually celebrated by the Shia. Hasan was the firstborn of Muhammad's daughter Fatima and his cousin Ali . Their union holds a special spiritual significance for Muslims, write Nasr and Afsaruddin , and Muhammad said he followed divine orders to marry Fatima to Ali, narrates

3150-620: The Iraqi nobles and reproached them for their unreliability and fickle-mindedness, echoing the speeches of Ali after Siffin. Mu'awiya now sent envoys to propose that Hasan abdicate in his favor to spare Muslim blood. In return, Mu'awiya was ready to designate Hasan as his successor, grant him safety, and offer him a large financial settlement. Hasan accepted the overture in principle and sent his representative(s) to Mu'awiya, who sent them back to Hasan with carte blanche , inviting him to dictate whatever he wanted. Hasan wrote that he would surrender

3255-573: The Islamic belief in the oneness of God. By some reports, the delegation did not accept the challenge and instead negotiated a peace treaty with Muhammad, either because they thought possible that he was truthful in his claims, or because they were intimidated by the military might of Muslims. This is reported by the Sunni exegete Muqatil ibn Sulayman ( d.  767 ), and by the Sunni historian Ibn Sa'd ( d.  845 ) in his Tabaqat . In

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3360-514: The Muslim rule to Mu'awiya if he would comply with the Quran and sunna , his successor would be appointed by a council ( shura ), the people would remain safe, and Hasan's supporters would receive amnesty. His letter was witnessed by two representatives, who carried it to Mu'awiya. Hasan thus renounced the caliphate in August 661 after a seven-month reign. This year is considered by a number of

3465-550: The Quran. There was no response at first, possibly because some tribal chiefs were bribed by Mu'awiya. Hasan's companions now scolded the crowd and inspired them to leave in large numbers for the army campgrounds in Nukhayla. Hasan soon joined them and appointed Ubayd Allah ibn Abbas as the commander of a vanguard of twelve thousand men tasked with holding Mu'awiya back in Maskin until the arrival of Hasan's main army. Ubayd Allah

3570-485: The Shia reports. The verse of mubahala is often cited by Shi'a scholars to support their claims concerning the prerogatives of the ahl al-kisa . In particular, if the word 'ourselves' in the verse is a reference to 'Ali and Muhammad, as Shi'a authors argue, then the former naturally enjoys a similar authority as the latter. Likewise, the Shi'a exegete Muhammad Husayn Tabataba'i ( d.  1981 ) contends that

3675-500: The Shia who might have transferred the blame to his daughter. Alternatively, the Sunni al-Haytham ibn Adi identifies the daughter of Suhayl ibn Amr as the murderer . Another account by the Sunni al-Waqidi pins the crime on a servant of Hasan at the instigation of Mu'awiya. Yet another account is that Yazid proposed to Zaynab bint Ja'far ibn Abi Talib , who refused and instead married Hasan. The enraged Yazid subsequently had Hasan poisoned. A recent article by Burke et al. examined

3780-532: The Shia-leaning historian Ibn Ishaq ( d.  767 ) in his al-Sira al-Nabawiyya , the Sunni exegete Fakhr al-Din al-Razi ( d.  1210 ) in his Tafsir , the Sunni traditionist Muslim ibn al-Hajjaj ( d.  875 ) in his canonical Sahih Muslim , the Sunni traditionist Hakim al-Nishapuri ( d.  1014 ) in his al-Mustadrak , and the prominent Sunni exegete Ibn Kathir ( d.  1373 ). This indeed appears to be

3885-658: The Sunni Ibn 'Abd al-Barr ( d.  1071 ) lists Hasan as a commander at Siffin and the Shia Nasr ibn Muzahim ( d.  827-8 ) narrates that Mu'awiya offered Hasan to switch sides at Siffin but was rejected. Haj-Manouchehri writes that Hasan persuaded some neutral figures to support Ali at Siffin, including Sulayman ibn Surad al-Khuza'i. He adds that Hasan vigorously opposed the arbitration process after Siffin, alongside his father. In November 658, Ali placed Hasan in charge of his land endowments. In January 661, Ali

3990-602: The Sunni al-Suyuti ( d.  1505 ), among others. Ali reportedly had chosen another name in Sunni sources but deferred to Muhammad who named the child Hasan ( lit.   ' good, virtuous ' ). To celebrate his birth, Muhammad sacrificed a ram, while Fatima shaved Hasan's head and donated the weight of his hair in silver. Hasan was raised in Muhammad's household until the age of seven when his grandfather died. Early sources widely report Muhammad's love for Hasan and his brother Husayn, saying that Muhammad allowed

4095-571: The absence of his family and the majority of the Muhajirun ( Meccan Muslims). Ali, Fatima, and some supporters did not recognize the caliphate of Abu Bakr, saying that Muhammad had appointed Ali as his successor, possibly referring to the Ghadir Khumm in 632. Fatima died also in 632, within six months of Muhammad's death, at the age of about eighteen or twenty-seven years old. Shias hold that she miscarried her child and died from

4200-525: The bishops of the Christian community of Najran. A delegation of Najrani Christians later arrived in Medina to meet with Muhammad in 8, 9, or 10 AH, perhaps to ascertain his claims to prophethood. In view of their weak ties with the Sasanian Empire , these and other Christians of the south were probably in a position to independently negotiate with Muhammad. By one account, the delegation

4305-423: The boys to climb on his back while he was prostrate in prayer, and interrupted a sermon to pick Hasan up after his grandson fell. On one occasion, Hasan later recalled, his grandfather took away a date from him and explained that receiving alms ( sadaqa ) was forbidden for his family. A hadith ( lit.   ' saying ' ) in the canonical Sunni collection Sunan ibn Majah names Hasan and Husayn as

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4410-532: The caliphate within the Quraysh. Hassan also wrote that Mu'awiya had no true merit in Islam and was the son of Muhammad's arch-enemy Abu Sufyan . Mu'awiya replied that he was better suited for the caliphate because of his age, governing experience, and superior military strength, thus implying that these qualities were more important than religious precedence. Jafri comments that Mu'awiya's response made explicit

4515-432: The caliphate. Jafri suggests that he might have hoped to force Hasan to abdicate or attack the Iraqi forces before they were fortified. Mu'awiya might have believed that Hasan would remain a threat even if he was defeated and killed, since another Hashemite could continue the fight. If Hasan abdicated in favor of Mu'awiya, he writes, such claims would have no weight. The view of Momen is similar. Their letters revisit

4620-449: The caliphate. Some Shia reports add that Ali also designated Hasan as his waliu'l amr , thus giving him his own authority to command, and also his waliu'l dam , responsible for punishing his assassin. Some authors have noted that Muhammad's surviving companions were primarily in Ali's army and must have therefore pledged allegiance to Hasan, as evidenced by the lack of any reports to

4725-468: The canonical Sahih Muslim and Sahih al-Tirmidhi . Madelung suggests that their inclusion by Muhammad in this significant ritual must have raised the religious rank of his family. A similar view is voiced by Lalani. Muhammad died in 11/632 when Hasan was about seven. As his family prepared for the burial, a group of Muslims gathered at the Saqifa and appointed Abu Bakr as Muhammad's successor, in

4830-537: The canonical Sunni source Sahih al-Tirmidhi ascribes to Muhammad, "Whoever loves me and loves these two [Hasan and Husayn] and loves their mother and father [Fatima and Ali], will be with me in my station on the Day of Resurrection ." After an inconclusive debate in 10/631-2, Muhammad and the Najranite Christians decided to engage in mubuhala , where both parties would pray to invoke God's curse upon

4935-490: The circumstances surrounding Hasan's death. Using mineralogical, medical, and chemical evidence, they suggested that the mineral calomel (mercury(I) chloride, Hg 2 Cl 2 ), sourced from the Byzantine Empire , was the substance primarily responsible for Hasan's death. Because historical sources indicate that another member of Hasan's household also suffered similar symptoms, the article considers Hasan's wife to be

5040-497: The claims were by al-Mada'ini and were often vague; some had a clear defamatory intent. In particular, the ninety-wives allegation was first made by Muhammad al-Kalbi and later picked up by al-Mada'ini, who was unable to list more than eleven names, five of whom are uncertain or highly doubtful. Veccia Vaglieri holds that the marriages of Hasan received little contemporary censure. In contrast, Lammens ( d.  1937 ) suggests that Hasan married and divorced so frequently that he

5145-571: The contrary. In his inaugural speech at the Great Mosque of Kufa , Hasan praised the ahl al-bayt and quoted verse 42:23 of the Quran: I am of the Family of the Prophet from whom God has removed filth and whom He has purified, whose love He has made obligatory in His Book when He said, "Whosoever performs a good act, We shall increase the good in it." Performing a good act is love for us,

5250-542: The country. (Established in 866 by Muḥammad ibn Yūsūfūʾl-Ukhayḍir ibn Ibrāhīm ibn Mūsā al-Jawn after the unsuccessful revolt of his brother Ismā'īl ibn Yūsūf ūʾl-Ukhayḍir in April 865) After Ahmad, the list of rulers becomes uncertain, but later amirs were descendants of his son Abu 'l-Muqallid Ja'far. Hassan al-mujtaba Hasan ibn Ali ( Arabic : الْحَسَنِ بْن عَلِيّ , romanized :  al-Ḥasan ibn ʿAlī ; c.  625  – 2 April 670)

5355-545: The curse of God upon the liars. These debates took place in Medina , located in the Arabian Peninsula , between a Christian delegation from Najran , a city in South Arabia , and the Islamic prophet Muhammad , who proposed this solution probably when their discourse had reached a deadlock concerning the nature of Jesus , human or divine. The Christian delegation withdrew from the challenge and negotiated

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5460-556: The early Muslim sources as 'the year of unity' and is generally regarded as the start of Mu'awiya's caliphate. Veccia Vaglieri finds certain variants of the treaty impossible to reconcile. She lists several conditions in the early sources and questions their veracity, including an annual payment of one or two million dirhams to Hasan, a single payment of five million dirhams from the treasury of Kufa, annual revenues from variously named districts in Persia , succession of Hasan to Mu'awiya or

5565-551: The early sources are nearly unanimous that Hasan was poisoned. Mu'awiya is usually identified as the instigator in the murder of Hasan. Aside from the Shia sources, this is also the view of some notable Sunni historians, including al-Waqidi ( d.  823 ), al-Mada'ini, Umar ibn Shabba ( d.   c.  877 ), al-Baladhuri , al-Haytham ibn Adi ( d.  822 ), and Abu Bakr ibn Hafs. These reports are nevertheless suppressed by al-Tabari, perhaps because he found them insignificant or far more likely because he

5670-540: The early sources. Jafri thus concludes that Hasan's final conditions in carte blanche were that Mu'awiya should act according to the Quran, sunna , and the conduct of the Rashidun caliphs , that the people should remain safe, and that the successor to Mu'awiya should be appointed by a council. These conditions are echoed by Madelung, who adds that Hasan made no financial stipulations in his peace proposal and Mu'awiya consequently made no payments to him, contrary to

5775-414: The final day, however, Hasan and most of the guards are said to have laid down their weapons at Uthman's request. Yet another report states that Hasan arrived at the scene of Uthman's murder in time to identify his assassins. According to Madelung, Hasan later criticized Ali for not doing enough to defend Uthman. Ali was elected caliph after the assassination of Uthman. Immediately after his accession,

5880-524: The five have thus become known as the ahl al-kisa ( lit.   ' people of the cloak ' ). On the same occasion, Muhammad may have defined his ahl al-bayt ( lit.   ' people of the house ' ) as Ali, Fatima, Hasan, and Husayn, according to Shia and some Sunni sources, including the canonical collections Sahih Muslim , Sunan al-Tirmidhi , and Musnad Ahmad ibn Hanbal . Alternatively, some have suggested that these claims were possibly later additions. At any rate,

5985-449: The governor to surrender Hasan to Mu'awiya but was rejected. The Kufan vanguard arrived in Maskin and found Mu'awiya camped there. Through a representative, he urged them not to commence hostilities until he concluded his peace talks with Hasan. This was likely a false claim. The Kufans, however, insulted Mu'awiya's envoy and sent him back. Mu'awiya then sent the envoy to visit Ubayd Allah privately, telling him that Hasan had requested

6090-439: The inclusion of these four by Muhammad, as his witnesses and guarantors in the mubahala ritual, must have raised their religious rank within the community. That Muhammad was accompanied to the mubahala by the above four is also the Shi'a view, and Shia sources are unanimous that the term 'our sons' ( Arabic : أَبْنَآءَنَا , romanized :  abna'ana ) in the verse of mubahala refers to Hasan and Husayn,

6195-469: The injuries she suffered in an attack on her house , intended to subdue Ali, at the order of Abu Bakr. These allegations are rejected by Sunnis, who believe that Fatima died from grief after Muhammad's death and that her child died in infancy of natural causes. Hasan did not play a major role under the first three caliphs, namely, Abu Bakr ( r.  632–634 ), Umar ( r.  634–644 ), and Uthman ( r.  644–656 ). He might have had

6300-404: The instigator in the murder of Hasan, which removed an obstacle to the succession of his son Yazid I ( r.  680–683 ). Critics of Hasan call his treaty with Mu'awiya an indication of weakness, saying that he intended to surrender from the beginning. Given Mu'awiya's military superiority, supporters of Hasan maintain that his abdication was inevitable after his soldiers mutinied and that he

6405-429: The knowledge that has come unto thee, say, "Come! Let us call upon our sons and your sons, our women and your women, ourselves and yourselves. Then let us pray earnestly, so as to place the curse of God upon those who lie." The following verse 3:63, "And if they turn away, then God knows well the workers of corruption," has been interpreted as the subsequent rejection by the Christian delegation of tawhid , that is,

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6510-499: The liar. Madelung argues that Muhammad participated in this event alongside Hasan, Husayn, and their parents. This is also the Shia view. In contrast, most Sunni accounts by al-Tabari ( d.  923 ) do not name the participants of the event, while some other Sunni historians agree with the Shia view. During the event, Muhammad gathered Hasan, Husayn, Ali, and Fatima under his cloak and addressed them as his ahl al-bayt , according to some Shia and Sunni sources, including

6615-550: The majority view in exegetical works. Here, the Islamicist Wilferd Madelung argues that the term 'our sons' ( abna'ana ) in the verse of mubahala must refer to Muhammad's grandchildren, namely, Hasan and Husayn. In that case, he continues, it would be reasonable to include also in the event their parents, namely, Ali and Fatima. Some traditions about the mubahala add that Muhammad, Ali, Fatima, Hasan, and Husayn stood under Muhammad's cloak, and

6720-400: The misdeeds of the powerful. When Uthman's half-brother al-Walid ibn Uqba was accused of drinking alcohol, Ali asked Hasan to carry out the punishment of forty lashes, though the latter reportedly refused and Abdullah ibn Ja'far instead administered the penalty. Veccia Vaglieri does not mention any disagreements and writes that Ali meted out the punishment himself. She also suggests that

6825-408: The most comprehensive account is the one given by Ahmad ibn A'tham , probably taken from al-Mada'ini, who recorded the terms in two parts. The first part is the conditions proposed by Abd Allah ibn Nawfal, who negotiated on Hasan's behalf with Mu'awiya in Maskin. The second part is what Hasan stipulated in carte blanche . These two sets of conditions together encompass all the conditions scattered in

6930-415: The new caliph faced a rebellion led by Aisha , a widow of Muhammad and daughter of Abu Bakr , and Talha and Zubayr , two companions of Muhammad. Hasan and Ammar ibn Yasir ( d.  657 ) were subsequently sent to Kufa to rally support and raised an army of some 6,000 men. He also helped remove Abu Musa al-Ash'ari from the rule of Kufa, as the latter continued to hinder Ali's efforts against

7035-527: The oath was identical to the one demanded earlier by Ali and denounced by the Kharijites. The view of Dakake is similar. Having been at war with Ali, Mu'awiya did not recognize the caliphate of his successor and prepared for war. He marched an army of sixty thousand men through al-Jazira to Maskin, about 50 kilometres (31 mi) north of the present-day Baghdad . Concurrently, Mu'awiya also corresponded with Hasan, urging him to give up his claim to

7140-413: The occasion of mubahala , accompanied by his family, as instructed by the verse of mubahala , apparently at the khatib ahmar ( lit.   ' red dune ' ) in the al-Baqi cemetery , later renamed to jabal al-mubahala ( lit.   ' mountain of the mubahala ' ). Those who accompanied him are often identified as Ali, Fatima, Hasan and Husayn. Such reports are given by

7245-399: The participation of these four, to the exclusion of other Muslims, necessitates their partnership with Muhammad in his prophetic claims, for otherwise there could have been no negative consequence to their participation as the verse of mubahala targets only the liars. Eid of the mubahala ( عِيْد ٱلْمُبَاهَلَة ) is the Shi'a commemoration of the prophet Muhammad's mubahala with

7350-717: The prime suspect. The article cites a historical document, according to which the Byzantine emperor (likely Constantine IV ) sent Mu'awiya a poisoned drink at the request of the latter. The authors thus conclude that their forensic hypothesis is consistent with the historical narrative that Hasan was poisoned by his wife Ja'da at the instigation of Mu'awiya and with the involvement of the Byzantine emperor. Before his death, Hasan had instructed his family to bury him next to Muhammad. According to Madelung, if they "feared evil," Hasan asked them to bury him near his mother in al-Baqi cemetery. The Umayyad governor of Medina, Sa'id ibn al-As ,

7455-411: The prominent Kufan tribal chief who undermined Ali at Siffin (657) by supporting the arbitration , and sabotaged Ali's campaign after being bribed by Mu'awiya, according to Madelung. As with Jafri, Veccia Vaglieri notes that many early sources hold Ja'da bin al-Ash'ath responsible for poisoning Hasan at the instigation of Mu'awiya, though she also observes that al-Ash'ath was regarded as a traitor by

7560-455: The rebels. Hasan later fought in the Battle of the Camel (656) against Aisha, Talha, and Zubayr. Hasan also fought against Mu'awiya ( r.  661–680 ) in the Battle of Siffin (657), though (Sunni) sources do not view him as a prominent participant. Madelung writes that Hasan criticized Ali's alleged aggressive war policy, saying that it stoked division among Muslims. In contrast,

7665-504: The reign of Mu'awiya," which Madelung finds incredible. Taking the speech as a sign that Hasan intended to pursue peace, Kharijite sympathizers in Hasan's army looted his tent and pulled his prayer rug from under him. Alternatively, Jafri and al-Ya'qubi ( d.  897-8 ) hold Mu'awiya responsible for the mutiny through his network of spies, about which letters were earlier exchanged between Mu'awiya and Hasan and Ubayd Allah. As he

7770-485: The second Shia Imam further justified his course of action. As the rightful successor of Muhammad in Shia Islam, Hasan's all-inclusive temporal and religious authority came from divinely-inspired designation ( nass ), which was not annulled by abdication to Mu'awiya, who usurped only the temporal authority. The imamate and caliphate are viewed as separate institutions in Shia Islam until such time that God would make

7875-469: The separation of politics and religion, which later became a tenet of Sunni Islam. In contrast, Shia Islam vested all authority in the household of Muhammad. As the news of Mu'awiya's advance reached Hasan, he ordered his local governors to mobilize and invited the Kufans to prepare for war, "God had prescribed the jihad for his creation and called it a loathsome duty ( kurh )," referring to verse 2:216 of

7980-496: The succession of Muhammad. Hasan urged Mu'awiya to pledge allegiance to him with the same arguments advanced by Ali against Abu Bakr after Muhammad's death. Ali had said that if the Quraysh could successfully claim the leadership because Muhammad belonged to them, then Muhammad's family was the most qualified to lead. Mu'awiya replied that Muslims were not unaware of the merits of the ahl al-bayt but had selected Abu Bakr to keep

8085-400: The term 'our women' ( Arabic : نِسَآءَنَا , romanized :  nisa'ana ) therein refers to Fatima, and that the term 'ourselves' ( Arabic : أَنفُسَنَا , romanized :  anfusana ) is a reference to Muhammad and 'Ali. By contrast, most reports presented by the Sunni exegete al-Tabari ( d.  923 ) are silent about the matter, whereas some other Sunni authors agree with

8190-502: The time, this event must have raised their religious rank as the partners of Muhammad in his prophetic claims. The word mubahala ( مُبَاهَلَة ) is derived from the root verb bahala , which means 'to curse', while the noun al-bahl can mean either 'the curse' or a scarcity of water. The word mubahala can also mean 'withdrawing mercy from one who lies or engages in falsehood'. The act of mubahala ( lit.   ' mutual imprecation, curse ' ) thus involves swearing

8295-440: The timing of Mu'awiya's carte blanche problematic in al-Tabari's account. Al-Tabari also mentions a single payment of five million dirhams to Hasan from the treasury of Kufa, which Jafri rejects because the treasury of Kufa was already in Hasan's possession at the time. He adds that Ali regularly emptied the treasury and distributed the funds among the public, and this is also reported by Veccia Vaglieri. Jafri then argues that

8400-495: The treatment of Christians elsewhere by Muhammad. It was not until the caliphate of Umar ( r.  634–644 ) that the Christians of Najran were expelled from the Arabian Peninsula. In Medina, Muhammad and the Christian delegation may have also debated the nature of Jesus , human or divine, although the delegation ultimately rejected the Islamic belief that Jesus was merely human, as represented by verse 3:59 of

8505-540: The tribes there were largely self-governing. When Muhammad arrived in al-Yamamah, he likely gained the support of the Banu Hanifa , the largest tribe in the area, and created an independent amirate . It is not known how much of al-Yamamah was ruled by Muhammad and his descendants. Descriptions of the extent of the amirate by medieval Muslim historians vary; one source states that it controlled only al-Khidhrimah and its outskirts, while another claims that it ruled over

8610-661: The two provinces. Madelung regards this account as fictitious because Hasan had just refused to join Mu'awiya in fighting the Kharijites. He adds that Hasan had made no financial stipulations in his peace proposal and Mu'awiya consequently made no payments to him. Madelung suggests that the relations between the two men deteriorated when Mu'awiya realized that Hasan would not actively support his regime. Hasan most likely died on 2 April 670 (5 Rabi' al-Awwal 50 AH), though other given dates are 49, 50, 48, 58 and 59 AH. Veccia Vaglieri suggests that Hasan died from an illness or poisoning, while

8715-427: The usage of the term is sometimes extended to Husayn's descendants as well. Tendentious (Sunni) reports describe that Hasan married seventy (or ninety) women in his lifetime and had a harem of three hundred concubines. Madelung regards these as absurd, and Pierce believes that these accusations were made by later Sunni writers who were nevertheless unable to list more than sixteen names. Madelung writes that most of

8820-499: The view of al-Zuhri ( d.  741-2 ), the Umayyad-era historian who adopted the pro-Umayyad account that depicts a greedy Hasan eager to renounce his caliphate for money. This must have been the official Umayyad account, distributed to legitimize Mu'awiya's rule in the absence of a council ( shura ) or election or designation ( nass ), suggests Jafri. While the vanguard was awaiting his arrival in Maskin, Hasan faced

8925-493: The war. As reported by the Mu'tazilite Ibn Abi'l-Hadid ( d.  1258 ) and Abu al-Faraj al-Isfahani ( d.  967 ), Mu'awiya added that he had not fought the Iraqis so that they would practice Islam, which they were already doing, but to be their master ( amir ). Al-Baladhuri writes that Mu'awiya then gave the Kufans three days to pledge allegiance or be killed. After this, the people rushed to vow allegiance to Mu'awiya. Hasan left Kufa for Medina but soon received

9030-443: The widow of Abd al-Rahman ibn Attab, who was divorced by Abd Allah ibn Amir. Hasan had no children with Hind. Hasan's other children were probably from concubines, including Qasim and Abd Allah (or Abu Bakr), both of whom were killed in the Battle of Karbala (680), and Umm Abd Allah , who married Zayn al-Abidin and bore him Muhammad al-Baqir , the fifth Shia Imam. Hasan's descendants are usually known as sharif , though

9135-507: The wrong person might be punished. The Shia al-Mufid ( d.  1022 ) reports that Hasan's wife Ja'da bint al-Ash'ath poisoned him with the promise of 100,000 dirhams from Mu'awiya and marriage to his son Yazid. Jafri writes that the majority of Sunni and Shia reports are similar to this one, including those by Abu al-Faraj al-Isfahani, al-Mas'udi ( d.  956 ), and al-Ya'qubi. In contrast, Ahmed regards these reports as " Alid propaganda" against al-Ash'ath, Ja'da's father and

9240-399: The young Hasan and his brother Husayn lived in a state of obedience to their father Ali, following Ali whenever he opposed Uthman. In June 656, Uthman was besieged in his home by rebels. Hasan and Husayn were likely wounded while guarding Uthman's house at the request of Ali. In particular, the reports that Hasan was among the defenders are considered numerous and reliable by Madelung. On

9345-719: Was accused by al-Mundhir. Hafsa's next marriage ended similarly. When she finally married al-Mundhir, Hasan visited the couple and forgave al-Mundhir for spreading those false rumors out of love for Hafsa. Hasan also returned Khawla to her father Manzur when he objected that he had been ignored and then remarried her with his approval. Hasan is also said to have divorced his wife Hind when he saw evidence of renewed love by her former husband. For Madelung, Hasan's divorces do not indicate any inordinate sexual appetite. He also writes that Hasan comes across as noble and forbearing in dealing with his wives. Madelung cites Hasan's advice to Husayn to marry his widow Umm Ishaq after his death. When he

9450-400: Was advised not to fight unless attacked and to consult with Qays ibn Sa'd, the second in command. Wellhausen ( d.  1918 ) names Abd Allah ibn Abbas as the commander of the vanguard, but this is rejected by Madelung, who suggests that the choice of Ubayd Allah indicates Hasan's peace intentions because the former had earlier surrendered Yemen to Mu'awiya without a fight. This is

9555-492: Was an Alid political and religious leader. The eldest son of Ali and Fatima and a grandson of the Islamic prophet Muhammad , Hasan briefly ruled as Rashidun caliph from January 661 until August 661. He is considered as the second Imam in Shia Islam , succeeding Ali and preceding his brother Husayn . As a grandson of the prophet, he is part of the ahl al-bayt and the ahl al-kisa , and also participated in

9660-473: Was assassinated by the Kharijite Abd al-Rahman ibn Muljam . Hasan was subsequently acknowledged caliph in Kufa, the seat of Ali's caliphate. Madelung writes that Ali had apparently not nominated a successor before his sudden death but had often said that only members of Muhammad's household ( ahl al-bayt ) were entitled to the caliphate. As Ali's legatee, Hasan must have been the obvious choice for

9765-581: Was being escorted away to safety, the Kharijite al-Jarrah ibn Sinan attacked and wounded Hasan while shouting, "You have become an infidel ( kafir ) like your father." Al-Jarrah was overpowered and killed, while Hasan, bleeding profusely, was taken for treatment to the house of Sa'd ibn Mas'ud al-Thaqafi, the governor of al-Mada'in . The news of this attack further demoralized Hasan's army and led to widespread desertions. Sa'd's nephew Mukhtar ibn Abi Ubayd ( d.  687 ) reportedly recommended

9870-787: Was called mitlaq ( lit.   ' the divorcer ' ) and his behavior earned Ali new enemies. Madelung rejects this claim, saying that Hasan – living in his father's household – could not enter into any marriages not arranged (or approved) by Ali. In particular, the narratives in which Ali warns the Kufans not to marry their daughters to Hasan are fabricated. Madelung believes that Hasan's marriages in Ali's lifetime were intended to strengthen political alliances, as evidenced by Hasan reserving his kunya (Abu Muhammad) for his first son with his first freely-chosen wife Khawla. When Muhammad died in childhood, Hasan chose Khawla's second son Hasan as his primary heir. Hasan divorced his wife Hafsa out of propriety when she

9975-503: Was carried to al-Baqi, however, Marwan reportedly joined the procession and paid tribute to a man "whose forbearance ( hilm ) weighed mountains." Following the norms, Hasan's funeral prayer was led by Sa'id ibn al-As , the governor of Medina . Hasan's tomb was later made a domed shrine, which was destroyed twice by the Wahhabis first in 1806 and then 1927. Sources differ about Hasan's wives and children. The account of Ibn Sa'd

10080-401: Was concerned for the faith of the common people ( awamm ) in this and similar instances, as suggested by Madelung and Donaldson ( d.  1976 ). Some other early Sunni sources deny the poisoning, saying that Hasan died of "consumption." At the time of his abdication, Hasan was about thirty-eight years old while Mu'awiya was fifty-eight. Jafri suggests that the age difference presented

10185-413: Was in love with her and his rumors compelled Hasan to divorce her. The rumors also ended Hafsa's next marriage and she eventually married al-Mundhir. Hasan also married Umm Ishaq bint Talha ibn Ubayd Allah . Mu'awiya reputedly asked her brother Ishaq ibn Talha to marry her to Yazid but Ishaq married her to Hasan instead and she bore a son named Talha . Another wife of Hasan was Hind bint Suhayl ibn Amr,

10290-515: Was led by Abd al-Masih, Abu al-Harith ibn Alqama, and Sayyid ibn al-Harith. There a peace treaty was finally reached by which the Christians agreed to pay an annual poll-tax ( jizya ) but were not required to convert to Islam or partake in Muslims' military campaigns, and remained in charge of for their own affairs. This was perhaps the first such treaty in Muslim history, but also resembled

10395-447: Was motivated by the desire for unity and peace among Muslims, which was reportedly predicted by Muhammad in a Sunni hadith . Another Sunni hadith, also attributed to Muhammad, predicted that the prophetic succession would last for thirty years, which may have been interpreted by some early Sunni scholars as evidence that Hasan's caliphate was rightly-guided ( rāshid ). In Shia theology, the divine infallibility ( isma ) of Hasan as

10500-438: Was motivated by the lure of the life of ease and luxury, while Western historians tend to criticize Hasan for ceding the caliphate. Event of the mubahala The event of the mubahala ( Arabic : مُبَاهَلَة , romanized :  mubāhala , lit.   'mutual cursing') was an aborted attempt to resolve a theological dispute between Muslims and Christians in c.  632 CE by invoking

10605-498: Was nevertheless considered the head of the house of Muhammad by the Banu Hashim and Ali's partisans, who had probably pinned their hopes on his succession to Mu'awiya. The Sunni al-Baladhuri in his Ansab writes that Hasan sent tax collectors to the Fasa and Darabjird provinces of Iran in accordance with the treaty but the governor of Basra, instructed by Mu'awiya, incited the people against Hasan and his tax collectors were driven out of

10710-483: Was not opposed to burying Hasan near Muhammad, whereas Marwan ibn al-Hakam strongly opposed it, arguing that Uthman had been buried in al-Baqi. In his opposition, Marwan was joined by Muhammad's widow Aisha , who is often considered hostile to Ali. Muhammad's companion Abu Hurayra unsuccessfully attempted to persuade Marwan to allow Hasan's burial next to Muhammad by reminding him of Muhammad's high esteem for Hasan and Husayn. Supporters of Husayn and Marwan from

10815-443: Was poisoned, Hasan also reputedly refrained from disclosing the suspect in his household to Husayn. Hasan has been described as closely resembling Muhammad in his appearance. Madelung suggests that Hasan might have also inherited Muhammad's temperament and describes him as a pacifist. Veccia Vaglieri writes that he was of mild disposition ( halim ), generous, pious, and known to have made several pilgrimages on foot. While Hasan

10920-454: Was probably already apprehensive about the Kufans' support and wanted to avoid unrealistic commitments. The oath stipulated that people "should make war on those who were at war with Hasan, and should live in peace with those who were at peace with him," writes the Sunni al-Baladhuri ( d.  892 ), adding that this condition astonished the people, who suspected that he intended to make peace with Mu'awiya. In contrast, Madelung notes that

11025-481: Was succeeded as amir by his son Yusuf, who was himself succeeded by his son Isma'il. Isma'il established an alliance with the powerful Qarmatians of neighboring Al-Hasa . He participated in the capture of Kufa in 925 and was given command of the town by the Qarmatian leader Abu Tahir . Relations between the two sides, however, subsequently soured, and in 928 Isma'il and several members of his family were killed in

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