The martyrdom of the Commander of the Faithful, Ali (PBUH) was in the holy month of Ramadan when he was struck by a poisoned sword at the prostration position in Subhi prayer. In this article, we shall briefly discuss the life and martyrdom of Hazrat Ali, the son of Abu-Ṭālib.
His Lineage
The Commander of the Faithful, Ali (PBUH) is the son of Abu-Ṭālib. His grandfather was Abd al-Muṭṭalib, the son of Hāshim, the son of Abdul-Manaf from the Quraysh tribe. The family of Hāshim was known for their magnanimity and generosity among the Quraysh, even though they did not have a status like that of the Abd al-Shams clan.
His mother was Fatima the daughter of Asad, the son of Hāshim, and the son of Abdul-Manaf. For some time, Fatima was in charge of the upbringing of the Messenger of Allah (PBUHH) and was like a mother to him. The Messenger of Allah (PBUHH) always honoured her and when she died, he covered her with his shirt.
His Nicknames and Titles
Ali’s famous teknonym is Abu al-Hasan (i.e., The Father of Hasan) and he has several nicknames. Among those nicknames, the most famous among the Iranians are Asadullah and Haydar. The Messenger of Allah (PBUHH) gave him the nickname “Asadullah”, while his mother called him “Haydar”, which means “Lion” in Arabic.
His Birth
Ali (PBUH) was born inside the House of Allah (Ka’bah) and this honour is exclusively for him. His birthday was on Friday, the thirteenth or the twenty-third of the month of Rajab, while the middle of the month of Sha’ban was documented by some historians.
His Upbringing
Ali (PBUH) was brought up by the Messenger of Allah (PBUHH) as he was raised in Muhammad’s house, and he (Ali) himself said the following about this: “I was following him the way a baby camel follows its mother, he set up a manifestation of his morality for me every day and ordered me to follow it.” Also, he said: “When I was a child, he used to put me next to him and placed me on his chest. And he made me sleep on his bed such that my body becomes his, and his pleasant smell got me.”
His Acceptance of Islam
When the Messenger of Allah (PBUHH) ascended to the rank of prophethood on the Mount of Hira and returned home, Khadijah, Ali and Zayd son of Haritha were staying in his house. He told these three people about his situation and mission before he told others, and all three of them accepted him without any hesitation. It is believed that Ali (PBUH) was the first man to accept Islam.
His Martyrdom
According to the reports by both the Shias and Sunnis historians, it is documented that Imam Ali (PBUH) was martyred by the conspiracy of the Kharijites. After the end of the battle of Nahrwan, a group of Kharijites gathered and wept over their dead members, who were described with worship and piety. At that point, they said that these seditions [in the Muslim nation] arose from three people: Ali, Amr son of ‘As and Mu’awiya. They believed that the affairs of Muslims will not be right as long as these three people were alive. And three of them took it upon themselves to kill these three persons.
Abd al-Rahman son of Muljam from Bani Murad took it upon himself to kill Ali. There is no doubt that Ali (PBUH) was hit by Ibn Muljam on the 19th eve of the month of Ramadan. However, was his killer only the Kharijite? It is doubtful. What seems more correct to us is that the root of this conspiracy should be sought first in Kufa, then in Damascus. As it was documented, Mu’awiya knew that he couldn’t attain the caliphate as long as Ali was alive. Ash’ath, son of Qays, as it was mentioned that he did not agree with Ali. We wrote earlier that Ash’ath was also not satisfied with Ali. Because Ali (PBUH) had stopped him from ruling over the people of Kinda, and he also called him a hypocrite son of an infidel in the pulpit.
On the morning of Ramadan 19 (40/January 26, 661), Ibn Muljam took his sword and came to the mosque and lay down among the sleeping people. Ali (PBUH) made the call to prayer, entered the mosque and woke up the sleeping ones, then he went to the altar and started the prayer, bowing and then prostrating. When he raised his head from the first prostration, Ibn Muljam hit him with a poisoned sword in the same spot he was hit by Amr son of AbdulWadd in the battle of the Trench [Khandaq]. Ibn Muljam fled and Ali fell on the altar. The people shouted that the Commander of the Faithful had been assassinated. According to his narration from Hasan ibn Bazee’, Balādhurī said: “When the son of Muljam hit him, he said: By the Lord of Ka’bah, I am prosperous and his last words were these verses: So, whoever does an atom’s weight of good will see it, and whoever does an atom’s weight of evil will see it (Qur’an 99: 7-8).” Ali died two days later on 21 Ramadan 40 AH (28 January 661) at the age of 62.
His Last Will
Imam was taken home from the mosque. It didn’t take long for the murderer to be apprehended and brought to him. He said to him: “You are the son of Muljam?” He responded: “Yes.”
“O Hasan, feed him well and fasten him tightly! If I die, send him to me, so that I will make a case with him in front of Allah, and if I am alive, I will either forgive or take revenge.”
In the last moments of his life, Imam asked for his children and gave them the following pieces of advice:
“Fear Allah in your relations with your neighbours. Your Prophet often recommended them to you, so much so that we thought he would make them heirs (of our heritage).” “Fear Allah in respect to the Holy Qur’an Remain. (Take care that) no one should surpass you in following its tenets.” “Fear Allah in relation to your prayers, as it is the pillar of your religion.” “Fear Allah in relation to your Lord’s House (Ka’abah), do not forsake it so long as you live, because if you do, you will not be looked upon with respect.” “(Fear) Allah in respect to Jihad in the cause of Allah with your wealth, your souls and your tongues.”
“Maintain mutual communication and exchange of opinion among yourselves. Beware of disunity and enmity. Do not desist from bidding good deeds and forbidding evil ones, lest vicious people may overrule you, and then in such a case, your invocations will not be responded to by Allah.” “O children of Abdul Muttalib! Do not shed the blood of the Muslims under the pretext that the Commander of the Faithful has been assassinated. Know that no one should be killed except my killer. Wait till I die by this stroke of him, then strike a single stroke against him, and do not mutilate him, for I had heard the Holy Prophet (PBUHH) saying: “Mutilate not even a rabid dog.”
Gradually, his aspiration was becoming a reality as he was coming closer to what he desired. For a long time, he wanted martyrdom and used to say: “O Allah! Give me better than these people and give them leaders worse than me!”
The Imam’s soul then left his body towards the Paradisiacal Abode surrounded by the angels, the Prophets, and the Prophets’ successors. Ali (PBUH) returned to his Lord and justice lost its faithful guardian and upholder and it remained helpless. The oppressors opened their hands from all directions to its sanctity and stole little by little as much as they could until nothing was left of it. Then they put oppression in its place, and it will continue to take its place until Allah wants the earth to be filled with justice and equity after it has been filled with oppression and injustice.
When Ali was buried, Imam Hasan ascended the pulpit and said: “O People! A man has passed away among you who will not be equalled by anyone before or after him. The Messenger of Allah used to give him the flag and send him to his battlefield and he would not return except with victory. Gabriel was on his right and Mikail was on his left-hand side.”
Imam Al-Hasan and his brothers performed the ritual bathing of the body of their father. In the last hours of the night, they, accompanied by a group of the most virtuous believers, carried the body and buried it where the grave is now there. Thus, the burial place of Imam Ali (PBUH) changed into the most handsome religious seminary in Islam. Imam Al-Hasan (PBUH) and his brothers then returned home, sinking in sorrow and grief.
May the peace and salutations of Allah be upon the noble soul of the Commander of the Faithful, Ali the son of Abu-Talib.
