Ali's Missions to Kufa

Abu Musa Ashari

Before Ali could proceed to Basra, he had to tackle the problem of Kufa. The people of Kufa had played a leading role in the revolt against Othman. After the assassination of Othman, they offered the caliphate to Zubair, but on his refusal, they supported the caliphate of Ali. When Ali was elected as the Caliph, the people of Kufa took the oath of allegiance to him. Abu Musa Ashari was the Governor of Kufa appointed by Othman. When Ali deposed the Governors of the previous regime, and sent his nominee to assume the charge of the governorship of Kufa in place of Abu Musa Ashari, the people of Kufa refused to accept the new Governor, and wanted Abu Musa to continue in his office. Ali accepted the demand of the people of Kufa and allowed Abu Musa Ashari to continue as the Governor. Abu Musa Ashari took the oath of allegiance to Ali. The situation in Kufa was intriguing. Though the Kufans had taken the oath of allegiance to Ali, they believed themselves to be strong enough to act independently. In this context although Abu Musa owed his appointment to Ali, he did not deem it necessary to follow the orders of Ali in all respects.

Muhammad b Jafar and Muhammad b Abn Bakr's mission to Kufa

When Muawiyah had raised the standard of revolt in the west in Syria, and Ayesha had led her forces to Basra in the east, Ali could afford to undertake a punitive expedition against Kufa to cut the Governor to proper size. Ali accordingly decided to win over the people of Kufa and their Governor through conciliatory means. From Rabda, Ali sent a mission to Kufa comprising Muhammad b Jafar and Muhammad b Abu Bakr. Both of them were the sons of Asma. Asma was originally the wife of Jafar an elder brother of Ali. After the death of Jafar, Asma married Abu Bakr. After the death of Abu Bakr she married Ali. The two Muhammads were thus the step-sons of Ali. About their mission to Kufa, Ali instructed his envoys as follows: "Should the people of Kufa respond to my call, tell them how I prefer them to all other people of the commonwealth. Give them the tidings that I intend to make Kufa the capital of the empire. Treat the Kufans with kindness, and ask them to come and arbitrate between us and those who have separated from us. Point out to them that I am putting up trust in them at this critical juncture. Let them come forward to help the religion of God and adopt such measures as may help to reunite the divided Muslims. "

The envoys of Ali were received by Abu Musa Ashari coldly. He behaved as if he was not an appointee of Ali, but was the ruler of an independent country. He wanted the envoys of Ali to carry the following message to their master: "The assumption of the caliphate has placed Ali in an awkward position. Therefore, we the people of Kufa have decided not to engage ourselves in the struggle. Let it be understood that we shall not take sides, until you have rid yourselves of the murderers of Othman,"

The mission of Ibn Abbas

The stand taken by Abu Musa Ashari was preposterous. As the Governor owing allegiance to Ali, he was under an obligation to carry out the policies of Ali. He could not sit in judgment over the command of Ali. Ali, however, took a lenient view of the matter and on the failure of the first mission he sent another mission to Kufa headed by Abdullah b Abbas, an eminent companion and a cousin of Ali as well as the Holy Prophet. This mission was also received could by Abu Musa Ashari. The mission did not succeed in making Abu Musa see reason or realize his obligation to the Caliph. He asked the delegation to carry the following message from him to Ali: "The Companions of Muhammad (peace be upon him) know more of God and His Apostle than those who have not had the opportunity of meeting him. Certainly the Companions have a right over us. My humble advice to all of you is that you should not assume the air of having God's authority with you, and should not make war on God. Let your followers who have come from Madina go back to their homes till they all agree on a unanimous decision, and they know who is to be relied upon. The present rebellion can best be epitomized in the famous saying of the Holy Prophet who predicted of the approaching time when he said, "He that sleeps is better than he who sits. He who sits is better than he who stands. He who stands is better than he who walks. He who walks is better than he who rides'. Therefore, I will give you this advice: sheathe your swords, put off your lances; cut your bow strings; and take the injured into your houses till a solution is found to the present crisis, and disturbances cease."

Mission of Imam Hasan

The failure of two successive missions to Kufa set Ali thinking. It transpired that the missions sent heretofore had merely met Abu Musa Ashari, and he had not allowed the members of the mission see the people. He had appropriated to himself the right to speak on behalf of the people of Kufa. Ali was advised that if Kufa was to be won, a bolder line of action should be followed. After a good deal of discussion and deliberation, it was decided that an effort should be made to contact the people of Kufa direct. Among the troops of Ali, there were some persons who belonged to Kufa or commanded influence with the people of Kufa. They were sent to Kufa to contact their friends and relatives and win them over to the side of Ali. This time the mission to Kufa was led by Imam Hasan. It was felt that as long as Abu Musa Ashari was the Governor of Kufa the chances of the success of the mission were slender. Ali accordingly authorized Imam Hasan that if the circumstances in Kafa were favorable, he could depose Abu Musa Ashari and appoint a new Governor.

The agents of Ali succeeded in winning over many people to the side of Ali. These agents brought home the point that as most of the people of Kufa had joined in the revolt against Othman, the cry for the vengeance of the blood of Othman was really aimed at the massacre of the people of Kufa. It was argued that in the circumstances it was in the interests of the people of Kufa that they should side with Ali and fight against those who raise the cry for the vengeance of the blood of Othman merely as a pretext for capturing power. The argument appealed to the people, and they decided to opt for Ali.

Imam Hasan arrived at Kufa on a Friday at the time of noon day prayers, and he proceed straight away to the main mosque. The agents of Ali had brought the supporters of Ali to the mosque in large numbers. As Imam Hasan entered the mosque, he was given a standing ovation by the people. Abu Musa Ashari who was present in the mosque welcomed Imam Hasan to Kufa. Imam Hasan took the stage, and after praising God and the Holy Prophet conveyed the message of goodwill of Ali for the people of Kufa. He exhorted the people to strengthen the hands of Ali in his fight against those who wanted to sow discord among the Muslims. Some of the people raised shouts in favor of Ayesha. To these people, Imam Hasan posed the question: "Did God not enjoin upon Ayesha the duty of living quietly in her house, and leaving it to the men to fight in the battle-field until the sedition was quelled? What an irony of fate that she should command us to do her part, and has taken upon herself to do our part."

At this stage, Zaid b Sehwan a prominent citizen of Kufa rose up to say that he had received a letter from Ayesha wherein she had advised the people of Kufa to remain in their houses and not to take part in any fight. At this Imam Hasan put the following question to the assembly: "Is it not strange that she should advise the citizens of Kufa to abstain from fighting while she is herself leading a fight against the citizens of Basra." Abu Musa Ashari took the stage, and said that in this crisis when two parties of the Muslims were at logger heads, the best course for the people of Kufa was to remain neutral. Thereafter a long dialogue followed between Imam Hasan and Abu Musa Ashari. Imam Hasan asked Abu Musa Ashari the question: "Did Talha and Zubair not take oath of allegiance to Ali?" Abu Musa said that they had taken the oath. Then Imam Hasan asked the question, "What wrong had Ali done to justify Talha and Zubair revolt against him?" Abu Musa said that he was not aware of any reason which could justify the revolt of Talha and Zubair?" Imam Hasan next asked "If some one revolts against established authority, will such authority not be authorized to take action against those who have revolted?" Abu Musa answered the question in the affirmative. "Then on what ground you do not justify the action that Ali, the duly elected Caliph, has taken against those who have rebelled against his authority?" Abu Musa said that his ground was that it would lead to bloodshed among the Muslims. "But why should the Muslims help those who have rebelled against authority, when God has enjoined the faithful to obey those in authority?" asked Imam Hasan, and to this question Abu Musa had no reply. Imam Hasan next inquired of Abu Musa whether he had taken the oath of allegiance to Ali, and Abu Musa replied to this question in the affirmative. "You owe your office of the Governor to Ali" was the next question, and to this question again Abu Musa answered "Yes". "Are you not under an obligation to obey the command of the Caliph, and not to do any act which helps his enemies directly or indirectly," Imam Hasan asked, and this question was also answered in the affirmative. Imam Hasan thereafter posed the following question: "Your Caliph asks you to help him in his fight against his enemies. His enemies have asked the people of Kufa to remain confined to their houses and not to participate in the war. You also ask the people of Kufa to abstain from war. This means that by your acts you are helping the enemies of the Caliph although you have taken the oath of allegiance to him and owe your appointment to him, This is sedition." To this Abu Musa had no answer.

At this the supporters of Ali raised the cry, "Down with the Governor. He is a traitor". Some voices were raised in support of Abu Musa, and there was exchange of blows and hot words between the two sides. The fight between the parties spread outside the mosque. A party led by Ashtar took possession of the Governor's House and captured the Baitul Mall, that was the end of the governorship of Abu Musa Ashari. He escaped to Makkah and under the authority delegated to him by Ali, Imam Hasan appointed Qarda b Kaab as the new Governor of Kufa.

Pro-Ali Government in Kufa

With the departure of Abu Musa Ashari from Kufa, a pro-Ali government was set up in Kufa. The new Government proclaimed their full support to Ali. The new Governor addressed the people of Kufa in the mosque, and exhorted them to enroll themselves in the ranks of Ali and strengthen his hands to enable him fight for the truth. Imam Hasan also addressed the people. He said: "Ali has sent me to you with his message of goodwill for you. Of all the people in the commonwealth he has the greatest regard for you. He intends to make Kufa the capital of the Muslim Empire. This is a great honor, but Kufa deserves it. You are the people who can distinguish truth from falsehood. The way in which you have risen in the cause of Ali is a positive proof of your love for the truth. Your Caliph needs your assistance. It is both in your interest and duty incumbent on you to help him. Can you give any reason for refusing his help? Is there any one who can reasonably accuse him of having shown any covetous inclinations, or withholding or perverting justice? Can any one amongst you say that he thrust himself into the Caliphate or that he proved himself unworthy of this dignity in any way? Beware of those rebels who pretend to have taken up arms to avenge the murder of Othman. O ye people of Kufa, the avenging of the murder of Othman is merely a pretext to dethrone the Caliph Ali. Ali was elected as the Caliph unanimously by the people of Madina. Talha and Zubair who now lead the rebels took the oath of allegiance to him. Indeed they were the first to support him. Now they are the first to forswear him. Therefore O ye the people of Kufa, it is incumbent on you to come and do what is good and forbid what is evil. Islam expects you to do your duty, and your duty lies in supporting your Caliph."

The magnetic personality of Imam Hasan, and his inspiring address won the hearts of the people of Kufa, and they declared that they would stand by their Caliph through thick and thin. The people began to flock to the standard of Imam Hasan in large numbers, and enrolled themselves as volunteers. Within a week, a force ten thousand strong was raised from Kufa to support Ali.