The Secret of Imam Ali's Force of Attraction

What is the reason for the friendship and love for Ali in people's hearts? Nobody has yet discovered the secret of this love. That is, no one has been able to formulate it, and say that if it were like this then that would follow, or if it were like that then this would happen. However it does of course have a secret. There is something in the love which dazzles the one who loves and draws him towards it. This attraction and love are the highest degrees of love; Ali is the one whom people's hearts adore, whom humanity loves. Why? In what does Ali's extraordinariness lie, that it incites love and draws hearts towards itself, that it plays the tune of eternal life and lives for ever? Why do all hearts find out about themselves through him, and do not feel him to be dead but find him living?

Certainly the basis for love for him is not his body, because his body is not now among us and we have not perceived it with our senses. Love for Ali is also not hero-worship, which exists in every nation. It is a mistake, too, to say the love for Ali is by way of love for moral and human excellence, and that love for Ali is a humanistic love. It is true that Ali was the manifestation of the perfect man, and it is true that man loves great figures of humanity; but if Ali had had all those human excellences that he had - that wisdom and knowledge, that self-sacrifice and altruism, that humility and modesty, that courtesy, that kindness and mercy, that protection of the weak, that justness, that liberality and love of freedom, that respect for humanity, that generosity, that bravery, that magnanimity and mercy towards his enemies, and, in the words of Rumi:

In bravery you are the Lion of the Lord,

In generosity who indeed knows who you are? [1]

that munificence, benevolence and beneficence - if Ali had had all these, which he did have, but had not had the divine touch in him, it is quite certain that there would not have been the feeling of sympathy and awakening of love that there is today.

Ali is loved in the sense that he had the divine link; our hearts are unconsciously completely involved with, and connected to, the Truth, right in their depths, and since they find Ali to be a great sign of the Truth and a manifestation of the attributes of the Truth they are in love with him. In reality, the basis for the love for Ali is the connection of our souls with the Truth which has been laid in our primordial natures, and since our primordial natures are eternal, love for Ali is also eternal.

There are many outstanding features in Ali's being, but that which has assigned him a resplendent and shining place for ever is his faith and morality, and it is that which has given him his divine charisma.

Sawdah al-Hamdaniyah, a self-sacrificing and devoted follower of Ali, extolled Ali in front of Mu'awiyah and among other things said this verse:

May the blessing of God be vouched to him

Whom the grave took away and with whom justice was interred.

He had a pact with God that he should put no substitute in His place,

Thus he was joined with Truth and Faith.

Sa'sa'ah ibn Suhan al-'Abdi was another one of those lovers of Ali. He was one of those who took part on that night with a few others in the burial of Ali. After they had buried Ali and covered his corpse with soil, Sa'sa'ah put one of his hands over his heart, threw earth over his head and said:

"May death be agreeable to you, whose birth was pure, whose patience was firm, whose holy struggle was great! You attained your aim and your commerce was fruitful.

"You fell down before your Creator, and He gladly accepted you and His angels appeared around you. You were placed near the Prophet, and God gave you a place near him. You reached the degree of your brother, Mustafa, and you drank from his overflowing cup.

"I beseach God that I may follow you and that I may act according to your ways; that I may love those who love you, and be the enemy of those who are your enemy, that I may be gathered in the pavilion of your friends.

"You saw what others did not see, and reached what others did not reach; you pursued the holy struggle beside your brother, the Prophet, and you rose up for the religion of God as was worthy of it, till age-old habits were done away with, confusion curbed and Islam and the faith put in order. May the best of blessings be upon you!

"Through you the backs of the believers were made firm, the ways made clear and habits broken. No-one could amass your virtues and excellences in himself. You answered the call of the Prophet; you jumped ahead of others in accepting him: you hurried to help him, and protected him with your life. You struck with your sword, Dhu' l-fiqar, in places of fear and savagery, and you broke the back of oppression. You caste down the structures of polytheism and vileness, and you pulled down those who were astray into dust and blood. So may you be well pleased, O Amir al-mu'minin !

"You were the closest of men to the Prophet, you were the first person to follow Islam. You were overflowing with certainty, strong of heart and more self-sacrificing than any, your share in good was greater. May God not deprive us of retribution for your suffering, and may He not despise us after you have gone!

"By God, I swear that your life was the key to good, the lock against exil; and your death is the key to every evil and the lock against every good. If the people had accepted you, blessings would have showered on them from the heaven and the earth; but they preferred this world to the next." [46]

Truly they preferred this world, and as a-consequence they could not endure the justice and unwaveringness of Ali. In the end the hand of stiffness and stagnation came out of the sleeve of the people and martyred Ali.

Ali - may peace be upon him - is without equal in having totally selfless friends and people who loved him, who have given their lives in the path of friendship and love for him. Their wonderful, absorbing and stunning biographies honour the pages of Islamic history. The criminal hands of such despicable people as Ziyad ibn Abih and his son `Abdullah, as Hajjaj ibn Yusuf and Mutawakkil, and at the head of them all Mu'awiyah ibn Abi Sufyan, are stained with the blood of these human lives up to their elbows.

References

(1). Rumi, Mathnavi, bk.l (translated by Nicholson).

(2). Biharu Anwar, vo1.42, pp.295 -296 (new ed.)

Yazid bin Muawiya Remembered in Makkah

On 11th May 2007, in his Friday sermon from the holy city of Makkah, a few feet from the door of the Ka'bah, where the consciousness of the presence of Allah should be felt at heart, the leader of the congregation emphasised the need for being bound by an allegiance to an "Imam" (a ruler) even if he is vicious. He claimed that the Prophet has said, whoever dies without being bound by an allegiance to an "Imam" (a ruler), dies the death of ignorance. On 11th May 2007, in his Friday sermon from the holy city of Makkah, a few feet from the door of the Ka'bah, where the consciousness of the presence of Allah should be felt at heart, the leader of the congregation emphasised the need for being bound by an allegiance to an "Imam" (a ruler) even if he is vicious. He claimed that the Prophet has said, whoever dies without being bound by an allegiance to an "Imam" (a ruler), dies the death of ignorance. 

Even if the "Imam" is unjust and tyrannical, the believers must obey him as Ibn Taymiyyah (the guru of the Wahhabis) has required. He said, they can advise the "Imam" and guide him!!! 

Quoting Abdullah ibn Umar's hadiths in Sahih Muslim, he said that when people wanted to rise against Yazid ibn Mu'awiyah, he stopped them because the Prophet had prohibited breaking the pledge given to an "Imam". When a companion wanted to rise against Yazid ibn Mu'awiyah, in the incidence of Hurra, Abdullah ibn Umar warned him that pledges are not given to be broken and that he had heard the Prophet saying that if anyone dies without being bound by an allegiance, dies the death of ignorance.

Hence, according to the Wahhabite rationale, allegiance to Yazid was a requirement of the Shari'ah! The leader of the congregation did not explain, what would be the position of those who broke the allegiance given in Ghadir? He did not explain why didn't Abdullah ibn Umar remember these alleged hadiths of the Prophet when he himself did not pay oath of allegiance to Imam Ali ibn Abi Talib, but felt the need to pay allegiance to a corrupt, irreligious and fasiq ruler like Yazid, who was imposed on the Muslims by his father. He did not explain what about the widely narrated mutawatir hadith of the Prophet which says "there is no obedience to the creatures in disobedience to Allah"? He did not explain that in the incidence of Hurra many Companions of the Prophet in Madina were slaughtered and thousands of their virgin daughters were rapped by the troopers of Yazid. To remain indifferent to a massacre of such a magnitude was like writing off the religious values that the Messenger of Allah (SAWW) had brought. But this is precisely the leader of the congregation was advising the worshippers.

Sahabat Nabi Yang Membunuh Ammar bin Yasir RA

Bukankah mencela sahabat Nabi SAW itu tidak dibolehkan?. Benar, tidak hanya sahabat Nabi tetapi mencela sesama Muslim itu tidak dibolehkan. Apalagi membunuh, tentu tidak boleh lagi. Kenyataan pahit dalam sejarah Islam adalah para generasi awal umat ini yaitu para Sahabat ternyata mengalami perselisihan sampai ke taraf memerangi dan membunuh. Sangat tidak mungkin kalau sejarah seperti ini mau ditutup-tutupi atau dinyatakan seolah tidak ada apa-apa.

Sebagian pihak tidak senang kalau sejarah seperti ini dibicarakan karena tidak ada gunanya membicarakan perselisihan para Sahabat. Mereka menganggap bahwa semua sahabat diridhai Allah SWT, semua sahabat tidak layak untuk dikritik atau dinyatakan salah karena itu berarti sudah mencela sahabat Nabi dan hal ini jelas diharamkan menurut mereka. Jika sahabat melakukan kesalahan maka itu berarti sahabat berijtihad dan sebagaimana ijtihad jika benar dapat dua pahala dan jika salah satu pahala. Intinya pihak tersebut akan selalu memuliakan sahabat walau bagaimanapun perilakunya. Sehingga jika orang sudah dicap sahabat maka semua perilakunya berpahala. Duhai alangkah anehnya, apakah jika sahabat menghina Ahlul Bait, meminum khamar, dan murtad maka itu dikatakan ijtihad?. Alangkah kacaunya orang yang mengatakan bahwa tindakan seperti itu berpahala hanya karena yang melakukannya adalah seorang Sahabat Nabi. Silakan renungkan..

Kali ini kami akan mengajak para pembaca untuk kembali ke peristiwa bersejarah yaitu Perang Shiffin. Pada perang ini Imam Ali AS dan sahabat yang mengikuti Beliau berperang dengan Muawiyah dan sahabat yang mengikutinya. Di antara sahabat Nabi yang setia pada Imam Ali adalah Ammar bin Yasir RA. Beliau adalah Sahabat yang mulia dimana Rasulullah SAW pernah bersabda bahwa Ammar akan dibunuh oleh kelompok pembangkang. Sejarah membuktikan bahwa Ammar RA syahid dalam perang Shiffin. Hal ini sudah cukup untuk membuktikan bahwa dalam Perang Shiffin Imam Ali berada dalam kebenaran dan Muawiyah serta pengikutnya merupakan kelompok pembangkang. Kematian Ammar RA mengundang kecemasan di kalangan pengikut Muawiyah sehingga untuk menenangkan pengikutnya Muawiyah memberikan ta’wilan yang batil bahwa Yang membunuh Ammar RA adalah orang yang membawanya ikut berperang. Dengan perkataan itu Muawiyah ingin melemparkan kesalahan kepada Imam Ali AS, sungguh perilaku yang bisa dibilang tidak terpuji.

Riwayat ini salah satunya disebutkan dalam Musnad Ahmad 2/161 no 6499:

حدثنا عبد الله حدثني أبي ثنا أبو معاوية ثنا الأعمش عن عبد الرحمن بن زياد عن عبد الله بن الحرث قال اني لأسير مع معاوية في منصرفه من صفين بينه وبين عمرو بن العاص قال فقال عبد الله بن عمرو بن العاصي يا أبت ما سمعت رسول الله صلى الله عليه و سلم يقول لعمار ويحك يا بن سمية تقتلك الفئة الباغية قال فقال عمرو لمعاوية ألا تسمع ما يقول هذا فقال معاوية لا تزال تأتينا بهنة أنحن قتلناه إنما قتله الذين جاؤوا به

“Telah menceritakan kepada kami Abdullah yang berkata telah menceritakan kepadaku Ayahku yang berkata telah menceritakan kepada kami Abu Muawiyah yang berkata telah menceritakan kepada kami ‘Amasy dari Abdurrahman bin Ziyad dari Abdullah bin Harits yang berkata “Aku berjalan bersama Muawiyah sepulang dari Shiffin dan juga bersama Amru bin Ash. Abdullah bin Amru bin Ash berkata “wahai ayah tidakkah kau mendengar Rasulullah SAW berkata kepada Ammar “Kasihan engkau Ibnu Sumayyah, engkau akan dibunuh oleh kelompok pembangkang”. Amru berkata kepada Muawiyah “Tidakkah engkau dengar perkataannya”. Muawiyah berkata “Ia selalu bermasalah bagi kita, apakah kita yang membunuh Ammar?.Sesungguhnya yang membunuhnya adalah orang yang membawanya”. 

Syaikh Syuaib Al Arnauth dalam Syarh Musnad Ahmad tahqiqnya berkata tentang hadis ini “sanadnya shahih” . Begitu pula Syaikh Ahmad Syakir dalam Syarh Musnad Ahmad tahqiq Beliau juga menyatakan hadis ini shahih. Siapa sebenarnya orang dalam kelompok Muawiyah yang membunuh Ammar bin Yasir RA?. Para ulama telah menyebutkan bahwa orang yang membunuh Ammar bin Yasir adalah Abu Ghadiyah Al Juhani dan tahukah anda siapa dia?. Para ulama menyebutnya sebagai Sahabat Nabi SAW.

Ibnu Hajar dalam Al Ishabah 7/311 no 10365 memuat biografi Abu Ghadiyah Al Juhani dan menyebutkan:

وقال الدوري عن بن معين أبو الغادية الجهني قاتل عمار له صحبة

Ad Dawri berkata dari Ibnu Ma’in “Abu Ghadiyah Al Juhani orang yang membunuh Ammar dan dia seorang Sahabat Nabi”.

Al Bukhari berkata dalam Tarikh Al Kabir juz 8 no 3557:

أبو غادية الجهني سمع النبي صلى الله عليه وسلم

Abu Ghadiyah Al Juhani mendengar langsung dari Nabi SAW.

Ibnu Abdil Barr dalam Al Isti’ab 4/1725 dan Ibnu Atsir dalam Usud Al Ghabah 5/534 juga mengatakan bahwa Abu Ghadiyah seorang sahabat Nabi yang membunuh Ammar bin Yasir RA. Adz Dzahabi dalam Tarikh Al Islam 4/135 menyebutkan biografi Abu Ghadiyah Al Juhani dan menyebutkan:

وقال الدار قطني وغيره هو قاتل عمار بن ياسر يوم صفين

Daruquthni dan yang lainnya berkata “Dia adalah orang yang membunuh Ammar bin Yasir pada perang Shiffin”.

Tahukah anda pahala apa yang akan didapat oleh orang yang membunuh Ammar?. Rasulullah SAW pernah bersabda:

قاتل عمار و سالبه في النار

“Yang membunuh Ammar dan menjarah( harta)nya akan masuk neraka”

Hadis ini telah dinyatakan shahih oleh Syaikh Al Albani dalam Silsilah Ahadits As Shahihah no 2008 dan Shahih Jami’ As Shaghir no 4294. Jika memang para Ulama menyebut Abu Ghadiyah sebagai Sahabat Nabi SAW yang membunuh Ammar bin Yasir RA maka tidak salah untuk dikatakan bahwa perbuatan Abu Ghadiyah itu telah mengantarkannya ke neraka.