Situation in Madina

The situation in Madina

After the pilgrimage of 655 C.E. things remained quiet for some time. With the dawn of the year 656 C.E. Madina itself became a hot bed of intrigue and unrest. Muhammad b Abu Bakr, and 'Ammar b Yasir returned from Egypt to Madina. They were joined by 'Amr b Al 'Aas . They let loose a flood of propaganda, and vilified the administration of Egypt. It was given out that the administration of Egypt was guilty of tyranny and oppression. 'Amr b A1 'Aas took pains to project the view that under Abdullah b Sa'ad, the Governor of Egypt, the taxes were most oppressive, and while the she camel had been forced to give more milk its young ones had been starved. Muhammad b Abu Bakr had personal grievances against Uthman, and he condemned Uthman's Government for its inefficiency. 'Ammar b Yasir had at the outset supported the candidature of Ali for the caliphate, and he was a bitter critic of the administration of Uthman. It cannot be said why Uthman chose to send him to Egypt to inquire into the affairs of the province when it was known that he was prejudiced against the caliphate of Uthman. Perhaps Uthman considered that a report by a person who did not belong to his camp was likely to be more assuring 'Ammar b Yasir, however, did not submit any report. Instead in Egypt he joined with the malcontents, and carried on propaganda against Uthman. When 'Ammar returned to Madina he did not see Uthman. Instead he became active in creating unrest in Madina.

Marwan a cousin of Uthman acted as his Secretary. Another cousin of Uthman acted as the Superintendent of the markets in Madina. Uthman paid them for their services from the Baitul Mall This was made the subject of criticism. Uthman gave some gifts from the Baitul Mal to Zubair b Awwam and Talha b 'Ubaidah. It is not known what exactly was the occasion for the grant of such gifts but presumably such gifts were made because of their services. Criticism against Uthman took over a virulent form. People began to talk freely as to who would be the next Caliph. Many doggerals were composed supporting the candidature of Ali, Zubair and Talha as the next Caliph.

Ali's dialogue with Uthman

When the crisis deepened, Ali saw Uthman and talked to him in diplomatic terms. He said:

"I have been sent by the people to you. Many things are being said against you, but I do not know how I should tell you what they say. I cannot think of any matter about which I can advise you, nor do I know of anything more than what you know. You are aware of all this. How should I give you any information, for I am not better informed than you, nor anything has been said in secret, about which I know but you do not. We are all nothing in front of you. You have seen the Holy Prophet; heard him; and lived in close companionship with him. Neither Abu Bakr, nor Umar were superior to you in any way. In relationship to the Holy Prophet you were closer to him than all of us. The position attained by you was gained by none else. Under your caliphate the community has come to be faced with some problems. O Caliph, invoke God's help in solving these problems. I need offer you no' advice. Take heed and remember that the nearest to God is a Caliph who is just and upholds the covenant of Allah as revealed to the Holy Prophet and discards all that was discarded by him. The worst man on earth is the Imam who is cruel and one who has gone astray himself, and makes others go astray, who revives the discarded vices and discards virtues. All these things are clear to you. Right and wrong are far apart. I have myself heard the Holy Prophet say that on the Day of Judgment, a tyrant Imam will be friendless and sent down to hell. He would revolve around it like a grinder and then be plunged into the bottomless pit. I want to remind you of God's powers, and His revenge. His punishment is severe and powerful. Be careful that you do not become the murdered Imam for the flock for it is said that one of the Imams would be killed who would open door to dissension within the community. Things would come to such a pass that the Muslims would be divided into various sections. Falsehood would gain such ascendancy that people would forget what is right."

Uthman's reaction to the address of Ali

Uthman listened patiently to the talk of Ali and then said:

"All, I am grateful to you for having come and talked to me. I have always looked to you as my best support. You are a keen judge of men and matters, and you are known for your perception of the truth. I had expected that in this crisis you would discern the truth, and take measures to stop the false propaganda that is poisoning the atmosphere. Instead you have talked in the same vein as the malcontents. You have insinuated that as an Imam I had been cruel and tyrannical and that the punishment therefor is hell. This is uncharitable on your part. You have been- apparently led away by the false propaganda that is being carried by some persons who have their own axe-to grind. In my speech on the occasion of the Hajj in 655- C.E. I dealt with all the allegations that had been levelled against me. All the persons assembled corroborated what I had said. No one had the courage to stand up and say anything to the contrary. It is unfortunate that in Madina some further propaganda has been made. I have pondered over all what the people say, and I will talk about this further in the Prophet's mosque.

Uthman's address at the Prophet's mosque

On the following Friday, Uthman addressed the congregation in the Prophet's mosque. After praising God and the Holy Prophet, Uthman said:

"It has come to my notice that many false things are being said against me and my administration. You know after the Holy Prophet, Abu Bakr became the Caliph and after him Umar became the Caliph. I served both of them, and they were happy with me. After Umar I was chosen as the Caliph. I swear by Allah that I did not covet the office. You know I was already very rich and the office of the Caliph could not be a matter of any material advantage for me. You know Umar was harsh and stern. He was not hard with the people alone; he was hard with his own person. May God bless him. His services to the cause of Islam cannot be forgotten. When I became the Caliph, I felt that the people wanted some change in policies. I consequently followed liberal policies and relaxed some of the harsh measures that had been in force in the time of Umar. I increased the stipends of the people. I withdrew the restraints that had been imposed in the time of Umar. The rule of any Imam is to be judged on the basis of the prosperity of the people. Look around you and say honestly whether you are not more prosperous today than what you were at the time of my succession. The Muslim dominions today are much more extensive than what they were twelve years ago. The people now are wealthier and richer than what they were before. As a result of military operations there has been much of booty. All such booty has been distributed among the people according to the formula laid down by the Holy Prophet. After such distributions there are ample funds in the Baitul Mal to meet our future needs. I have served the people to the best of my ability. It is however a matter of regret to note that instead of appreciating the good that I have done, a malicious propaganda is being carried out in some quarters to malign me. I chose to be kind and liberal. I tried to be a benevolent ruler. It is very unfortunate that undue advantage has been taken of my liberality and my kindness has been mistaken for my weakness. It is given out that I am weak and fickle, that I am led by others around me. It is true that I have some persons around me who help me in State affairs, but it is not correct that I play into their hands. I take all decisions myself. It is said that such and such persons are my evil genius who are leading me on the wrong path. Every person has the right to choose his own advisers, and if I have to my own satisfaction chosen certain persons as my advisers, it is not for any one to say that I should not have appointed such and such a person as my adviser. You merely cavil at persons; you do not bring out in specific terms what wrong has been done. You take pleasure in distorting facts. You give currency to rumors and do not care to verify facts. You say that I gave one lakh dirhams to Harith b Hakam out of the Baitul Mall I have married my son to his daughter and I gave him this money out of my pocket for financing the marriage. The money was not paid out of the Baitul Mall You say that I gave one lakh dirhams to Marwan b Hakam out of the Baitul Mall This is sheer falsehood. I have married my daughter to a son of Marwan and I gave one lakh dirhams in dowry. This money was paid out of my pocket and not from the Baitul Mall It is said that I paid Abdullah b Khalid 3 lakh dirhams from the Baitul Mall He has taken this money as a loan from the Baitul Mal and he will repay it according to the terms of the loan. It is said that I deposed Abdullah b Arqam from his office of the custodianship of the Baitul Mal because he had protested against my grants from the Baitul Mall There is no truth in this allegation. Abdullah b Arqam had held this office for the last twenty-five years, and being old he has retired of his own freewill. Again it is said that I have diverted funds from the Baitul Mal for the construction of private property. This is a tissue of falsehood. I have constructed my private property with my own money, and all know that I have ample resources of my own. It is alleged that I have gifted the entire surplus money in the Baitul Mal to Zaid b Thabit the new Treasurer. This is again a sheer lie. After distributing the money in the Baitul Mal, there was a surplus amount of 1,000 dirhams in the Baitul Mall I asked Zaid b Thabit to utilize this amount for some public purpose, and he utilized this amount for the repair of the Prophet's mosque.

O people I exhort you to fear God, and not to indulge in false propaganda. All the Muslims are one community. Do not create dissension among the Muslims. If you are tired of me, you may rest assured that being an old man, I do not have long to live. If you want me to abdicate, let you know that this is duly assigned to me by God, and I would never run away from duty whatever the pressure used against me. If you think of employing any force against me, you should be beware that I have my supporters who will support me through thick and thin. I appeal to you not to be misled by false rumors. I assure you of full justice. I expect justice from you. Do not be unnecessarily critical. If you have any legitimate grievance I will certainly redress it; if you are swayed by imaginary grievances, that would lead to mere confusion "