(This is) an account of the children of the Commander of the Faithful, peace be on him, their number and names, and a selection of reports about them. The Commander of the Faithful, peace be on him, had twenty-seven children, male and female:

 

1. Al-Ḥasan

2. Al-Ḥusayn

3. Zaynab the elder

4. Zaynab the younger, who was given the kunya Umm Kulthūm. Their mother was Fāṭima, the blessed, mistress of the women of the worlds, daughter of the master of those sent by Allāh and the seal of the prophets, the Prophet Muhammad.

5. Muḥammad, who was given the kunya Abū al-Qāsim. His mother was Khawla, daughter of Ja‘far b. Qays al-Ḥanafī.

6. ‘Umar

7. Ruqayya They were twins. Their mother was Umm Ḥabīb, daughter of Rabī‘a.

8. Al-‘Abbās

9. Ja‘far

10. ‘Uthmān

11. ‘Abd Allāh (The last four) were martyrs with their brother al-Ḥusayn on the plain of Karbalā’. Their mother was Umm al-Banin, (she commonly known as Umm al-Banin (“mother of several sons”). daughter of Ḥizām b. Khalid b. Darim.

12. Muḥammad, the younger, who was given the kunya Abu Bakr.

13. ‘Ubayd Allāh Both of these were martyrs with their brother al-Ḥusayn on that plain. Their mother was Layla, daughter of Mas‘ud al-Darimi.

 

14. Yaḥyā His mother was Asmā ̓, daughter of ‘Umays al-Khath‘amī, may Allāh be pleased with her.

15. Umm al-Ḥasan

16. Ramla The mother of these two was Umm Sa‘īd, daughter of ‘Urwa b. Mas‘ūd al Thaqafī.

17. Nafīsa

18. Zaynab, the youngest

19. Ruqayya, the younger

20. Umm Hānī ̓

21. Umm al-Kirām

22. Jumāna, who was given the kunya Umm Ja‘far.

23. Umāna

24. Umm Salama

25. Maymūna

26. Khadīja

27. Fāṭima These, the blessings of Allāh be on them, had different mothers.

 

Among the Shī ̔a, there are those who mention that Fāṭima, the blessing of Allāh be on her, after the Prophet had a miscarriage with a son, whom the Prophet, may Allāh bless Him and His Family, had (already) named during her pregnancy as Muḥsin.2

 

• (2 There were many sources that clearly confirm the presence of Mohsen among the children of Fāṭima and ‘Alī peace be upon them, this is not confined within the limits of Shī‘ite books, Indeed, many of the books of the non-Shī‘a (‘āmma) mention this matter, and they agreed to his existence without comment or hesitation, see: Al-Kafi, 6:18/2; Al-Khisal, 634; Tarikh Ya‘qubi, 2:213; Manaqib by Ibn Schahrashub, 3:358; Tarikh al-Ṭabarī, 5:153; Tarikh by Ibn Athir, 3:397; Ansab al-Ashraf of al-Baladhiri, 2:189; al-Asaba by Ibn Hajar, 3:471; Lisan al-Mizan of al- Dahabi, 268; Mizan al-I‘tidal, 1:139; al-Qamus al-Muhit of Firuzabadi, 2:55, and other various sources)

 

According to this group there were twenty-eight children of the Commander of the Faithful, the blessing and peace of Allāh be on him. Allāh knows and judges best.

 

 

 

 (This is) an account of the Imam after the Commander of the Faithful, peace be on him, the date of his birth, the evidence for his Imamate, the period of his succession, the time of his death, the place of his grave and the number of Children. (It also provides) a brief summary of the reports about him.

 

 The Imam after the Commander of the Faithful, peace be on him, was his son al-Ḥasan, the son of the mistress of the women of the worlds, Fāṭima, daughter of Muḥammad, the Lord of Messengers, may Allāh bless Him and His Family. (Al-Ḥasan’s) Kunya was Abū Muḥammad. He was born in Medina, on the night of the middle day of the month of Ramaḍān, three years after the Hijra (624). His mother, Fāṭima, peace be on her, brought him to the Prophet, may Allāh bless Him and His Family, on the seventh day in a silken shawl from heaven, which Gabriel had brought down to the Prophet, may Allāh bless Him and His Family. He called him Ḥasan and sacrificed a ram for him (in the ceremony of ‘aqīqa). ( ‘Aqīqa is a ceremony in which the child’s hair is shaved and a sheep sacrificed)

 

[It is reported by a group (of authorities), including Aḥmad b. Ṣāliḥ al-Tamīmī, on the authority of ‘Abd Allāh b ‘Īsa on the authority of Ja‘far al-Ṣādiq b. Muḥammed, peace be on him:] Al-Ḥasan, peace be upon him, was the most similar person to Apostle of Allāh, may Allāh bless Him and His Family, in form, manner and nobility. [It is reported by a group (of authorities), including Ma‘mar on the authority of al-Zuhrī on the authority of Anas b. Malik, who said:] No one was like the Apostle of Allāh, may Allāh bless Him and His Family, than Al-Ḥasan b. ‘Alī, peace be on them.

 

[Ibrāhim ibn ‘Alī al-Rāfi‘ī reported on the authority of his father, on the authority of his grandmother Zainab, dauther of Abū Rāfi‘ī, and Shabīb b. Abī Rāfi‘ al-Rāfi‘ī on the authority of those who told him - she said:] Fāṭima, peace be on her, brought her two sons, al-Ḥasan and al-Ḥussain, peace be on them, to the Apostle of Allāh, may Allāh bless Him and His Family, at the time when he was suffering from the sickness from which he died.

“Apostle of Allāh,” she said, “these are your two (grand)sons. Give them something as an inheritance”

 

“As for al-Ḥasan”, he replied, “he has my form and my nobility. As for al Ḥusayn, he has my generosity and my bravery” Al-Ḥasan b. ‘Alī, peace be on him, was the testamentary trustee (waṣī) of the Commander of the Faithful, peace be on him, over his family, his children and his followers.

 

He bequeathed him to look after his position and (the position of) his taxes (ṣadaqāt) and he wrote him a covenant (of succession) which is well known. His testamentary trustee is obvious in terms of the outlines of religion, the essential characteristics of wisdom and good-breeding. A great number of scholars have reported this trusteeship and many of the men of understanding have realised the truth of this through his (attitude to) the world.

 

 

 

 When the Commander of the Faithful, peace be on him, died, Al-Ḥasan addressed the people. He reminded them of his right (to authority). The followers of his father pledged allegiance to him in terms of fighting those he fought and making peace with those with whom he made peace. [Abū Mikhnaf Lūt b. Yaḥyā al-Azdī reported: Ash‘ath b. Suwār told me on the authority of Abū Isḥāq al-Sabī‘ī and others, who said:] 2

 

• (2 The isnād is not as full as Abū al-Faraj al-Iṣfahānī’s but the rest of the account follows his, with occasional variations, c.f. Maqātil al-Ṭālibiyyīn, 51-70.)

 

Al-Ḥasan b. ‘Alī, peace be upon them, addressed the people towards dawn on the night in which the Commander of the Faithful, peace be on him, died. He praised and glorified Allāh and blessed the Apostle of Allāh, may Allāh bless Him and His Family. Then he said: “There has died tonight a man who was the first among the early (Muslims) in (good) actions. Nor did any later (Muslims) attain his level in (good) actions.

 

He used to fight alongside the Apostle of Allāh, may Allāh bless Him and His Family, and protect him with his own life. The Apostle of Allāh, may Allāh bless Him and His Family, used to send him forward with his standard while Gabriel supported him on his right and Michael supported him on his left. He would not return until Allāh brought victory through his hands.

 

He, peace be on him, has died on this the night on which Jesus, Son of Mary, was taken up (to Heaven), on which Joshua, son of Nūn, the testamentary trustee (waṣī) of Moses, peace be on him, died. He has left behind him no gold and silver except seven hundred dirhams of his stipend (‘aṭā’), with which he was intending to buy a servant for his family.” Then tears overcame him and he wept and the people wept with him. Then he continued: “I am the (grand)son of the one Who brought the good news. I am the (grand)son of the warner. I am the (grand)son of the man who, with Allāh’s permission, summoned (the people) to Allāh. I am the (grand)son of the light which shone out (to the world). I am of the House, from whom Allāh has sent away abomination and whom Allāh has purified thoroughly. I am of the House for whom Allāh has required love in his Book, when Allāh, the Most High, said: Say: I do not ask you for any reward except love for (my) near relatives; Whoever earns good, will increase good for hmself (XLII 23). The good is love for us, the House.” Then he sat down.

 

‘Abd Allāh b. al-‘Abbās, may Allāh have mercy on him, arose in front of him and said: “People, this is the son of your Prophet, the testamentary trustee (waṣī) of your Imam. So pledge allegiance to him” The people answered him saying: “No one is more loved by us nor has anyone more right to succession (khilāfa).” They rushed forward to pledge allegiance to him as successor. That was on Friday on the eleventh of the month of Ramaḍān in the year 40 A H. (660). Then he assigned (the posts of) the tax collectors and he gave instructions to the governors (or the provinces). He sent ‘Abd Allāh b. al-‘Abbās to Basra.

 

He took charge of all the matters. When Mu‘āwiya b. Abī Sufyān learnt of the death of the Commander of the Faithful, peace be on him, and the people’s pledge of allegiance to his son, al Ḥasan, peace be on him, he sent a man of Ḥimyar secretly to Kūfa and a man from Banū al-Qayn to Baṣra. They were to write reports to him to undermine affairs for al-Ḥasan, peace be on him. Al-Ḥasan, peace be on him, learned of that. He ordered the Ḥimyarī to be brought out from among (the tribe) of Lakhm in Kūfa. He had him brought out and executed. (Al-Ḥasan) wrote to al-Baṣra, ordering the Qaynī to be brought out from among the Banū Sulaym. He was brought out and executed.

 

Then al-Ḥasan, peace be on him, wrote to Mu‘āwiya: You sent men to use deception and to carry out assassinations and you sent out spies as if you want to meet (in battle). That is something which will soon happen so wait for it, if Allāh wills. I have learnt that you have become haughty in a way that no wise man would become haughty. In that you are just as al-Awwal described: Say to him who desires the contrary of the one who has died: Prepare for another like him as if (from the same) root. 

 

I and the one among us who has died are like the one who goes in the evening so that (the other) may come in the morning. Mu‘āwiya replied to him with his letter, which there is no need to mention. There followed between him and al-Ḥasan, peace be on him, correspondence, messages and disputes regarding the right of al-Ḥasan, peace be on him, to authority, and the unlawful seizure of power of those who came before his father, peace be on him, and of Mu‘āwiya’s attempt to strip the cousin of the Apostle of Allāh, may Allāh bless Him and His Family, from his authority and of their (the House’s) right to it apart from them. (All these) matters would take too long to describe.3

 

Mu‘āwiya set off towards Iraq. When he reached the bridge of Manbij, al-Ḥasan, peace be on him reacted. He sent Ḥujr b. ‘Adī to order the leaders (‘ummāl) to set out and to call the people together for war. They were slow to (answer) him and then they came forward. al-Ḥasan had a mixed band of men: some of them belonged to his Shī‘a and to his father’s; some of them were members of the Muhakkima (i.e. Khārijites) who were influenced by (the desire of) fighting Mu‘āwiya with every means (possible); some of them were men who loved discords and were anxious for booty; some of them were doubters; others were tribal supporters who followed the leaders of their tribes without reference to religion.4

 

He set off until he came to Ḥammām ‘Umar, then he went on to Dayr Ka‘b. He stopped at Sābāṭ, just before the bridge and spent the night there. In the morning, He peace be on him, wanted to test his followers and make their situation clear with regard to obedience to him, so that in that way he might be able to distinguish his friends from his enemies and be in a clear mind (about his position) to meet Mu‘āwiya and the Syrians.5 He ordered the call to be made: “The prayer is a general one (which all should attend) (al-ṣalāt jāmi‘a).” They gathered and he went up on the pulpit and addressed them. He said: “Praise belongs to Allāh whenever a man praises Him. I testify that there is no God but Allāh whenever a man testifies to Him. I testify that Muḥammad is His servant and His apostle whom He sent with the truth and whom He entrusted with revelation, may Allāh bless Him and His Family.

 

By Allāh, I hope that I shall always be with Allāh’s praise and kindness. I am the sincerest of Allāh’s  creatures in giving advice to them. I have not become one who bears malice to any Muslim, nor one who wishes evil or misfortune for him. Indeed what you dislike about unity (jamā‘a) is better for you than what you like about division. I see what is better for you better than you see for yourselves. Therefore do not oppose my commands and do not reject my judgement. May Allāh forgive both me and you and may He guide me and you to that in which there is love and satisfaction.”

 

•  (3.A fuller version is given in Maqātil al-Ṭālibiyyīn, 53-60.
• 4 This paragraph is not in Maqātil al-Ṭālibiyyīn. It probably represents al-Mufīd’s explanation of some reluctance shown by the Kūfans. cf. Maqātil al-Ṭālibiyyīn, 61.
• 5 This sentence appears to be al-Mufīd’s explanation and is not in Maqātil al-Ṭālibiyyīn)

 

 [He reported:] The people began to look at one another and asked each other, “What do you think he intends by what he has just said?” “We think that he intends to make peace with Mu‘āwiya and hand over the authority to him” they answered. “By Allāh, the man has become an unbeliever,” they declared and they rushed towards his tent. They plundered him to the extent that they even took his prayer mat from under him. Then ‘Abd al-Raḥmān b. ‘Abd Allāh b. Ja‘āl al-Azdī set on him and stripped his silk cloak from his shoulder. He remained sitting, still girt with his sword but without his cloak. He called for his horse and mounted it. Groups of his close associates and his Shī‘a surrounded him and kept those who wanted (to attack) him away from him. He said: “Summon (the tribes of) Rabī‘a and Hamdān to me.”

 

They were summoned to him and they surrounded him and defended him, peace be on him, from the people. A mixed group of others went with him (as well). When he was passing through the narrow pass of Sābāṭ, a man of Banū Asad called al-Jarrāḥ b. Sinān caught hold of the reins of his mule. He had an axe in his hand. He cried: “Allāh is greater (Allāhu akbar)! You have become a polytheist, Ḥasan, just like your father became a polytheist before.” Then he stabbed him in the thigh. It penetrated right through to the bone.

 

He seized (al-Ḥasan) by the neck and they both fell to the ground. A man from al-Ḥasan’s Shī‘a called ‘Abd Allāh b. Khaṭal al-Ṭā’ī pulled the axe away from his hand and struck him with it in the stomach. Another man called ẓubyān b. ‘Umāra attacked him, struck him upon the nose and killed him. Another man who had been with (al-Jarrāḥ) was caught and killed. Al-Ḥasan, peace be on him, was carried on a stretcher to al-Madā’in where he was lodged with Sa‘d b. Mas‘ūd al-Thaqafī. The latter was the governor of (‘Alī), the Commander of the Faithful, peace be on him, there and al-Ḥasan had confirmed him in that position.

 

Al-Ḥasan, peace be on him, was distracted by his own (discomfort) and with treating his wound. (In the meantime) a group of the tribal leaders wrote secretly to Mu‘āwiya offering to accept his authority (lit. to listen and obey). They urged him to come to them and they guaranteed to hand over al-Ḥasan, peace be on him, when they got to his camp, or to kill him treacherously. Al-Ḥasan, peace be on him, learnt of that when a letter came to him from Qays b. Sa‘d, may Allāh be pleased with him. He had sent Qays with ‘Ubayd Allāh b. ‘Abbās (to go on ahead) when he had set out from Kūfa to meet Mu‘āwiya and to drive him out of Iraq, and make himself a commander of a unified people (jamā‘a). He had said to ‘Ubayd Allāh: “If you are struck down, then the commander will be Qays b. Sa‘d.”

 

Qays b. Sa‘d’s letter arrived informing him that they had stopped Mu‘āwiya at a village called al-Ḥabūbiyya opposite Maskan. Then Mu‘āwiya had sent to ‘Ubayd Allāh b. ‘Abbās, urging him to come to him and offering him a million dirhams, half of which he would give him immediately, and the other half on his entry into Kūfa. ‘Ubayd Allāh had slipped away in the night with his close associates to (join) Mu‘āwiya’s camp. In the morning the people found their leader missing. Qays b. Sa‘d, may Allāh be pleased with him, said the prayer with them and took charge of their affairs.6

 

 Al-Ḥasan's awareness of the people’s desertion of him increased; (as did his awareness) of the corrupt intention of the Muḥakkima (the Khārijites) against him, which they made obvious by cursing him, accusing him of disbelief, and declaring that it was lawful to shed his blood and plunder his property. There remained no one to protect him from his unfortunate predicament except the close associates from his father’s Shī‘a and his own Shī‘a, and they were a group which could not resist the Syrian soldiers.

 

Mu‘āwiya wrote to him about a truce and peace treaty. He also sent him the letters of his followers in which they had guaranteed to kill him treacherously or to hand him over. He offered him as many conditions as he wanted, to answer his (call) for peace and he gave his (sworn) covenant by whose fulfilment everybody’s interests would be served. Al-Ḥasan, peace be on him, did not trust him. He was aware of his deception and his attempts at assassination.

 

However he could find no escape from assenting to his demands to abandon the war and bring about a truce because of the weakness of his followers’ understanding of his right, their corrupt attitude towards him and their opposition to him. (In addition, he was aware) of the view of many of them in declaring it lawful to shed his blood and to hand him over to his rival. (He also knew) of his cousin’s desertion (of him) and his joining his enemy, as well as the inclination of the people towards the immediate present and their reluctance (to show concern) for the future.

 

Therefore he, peace be on him, bound himself (in a treaty) with Mu‘āwiya as a result of the confirmation of the proof (of his situation) and with the excuses before Allāh, the Most High, and all the Muslims, of what had taken place among them, He stipulated: That the cursing of the Commander of the Faithful, peace be on him, should be abandoned and the practice of using the personal prayer (qunūt) in the formal prayer (ṣalāt) (as prayer) against him should be set aside; That his Shī‘a, may Allāh be pleased with them, should be given security and that none of them should be exposed to any evil; That each of them who had certain rights should attain those rights.7

 

• 6 This summarises Maqātil al-Ṭālibiyyīn, 64-5. The next section is omitted by al-Mufīd.
• 7 The reasons for the treaty are not included in Maqātil al-Ṭālibiyyīn and terms are slightly different. cf. Maqātil al-Ṭālibiyyīn, 66-7.

 

Mu‘āwiya accepted all that and made a treaty with him to observe that. He swore to him that he would fulfil it. When the truce had been concluded, Mu‘āwiya went on until he reached al-Nukhayla. That was on a Friday; he prayed the mid morning prayer (ḍuḥā al-nahār) with the people, and he addressed them. In his address, he said: “By Allāh, I have not fought against you to make you pray, nor to fast, nor to make the pilgrimage, nor to pay zakāt. Indeed you do that (already).

 

I fought so that I might have power over you and Allāh has given that to me when you were reluctant to (obey) Him. Indeed I have been requested by al-Ḥasan, peace be on him, (to give him) things and I have given things to him. All of them are now under my foot. And from now on I will not fulfil anything.” Then he went on until he entered Kūfa. He resided there for several days. When the pledge of allegiance by its inhabitants had to be carried out, he went up on the pulpit and addressed the people.

 

He mentioned the Commander of the Faithful, peace be on him, and that he had taken from him and from al-Ḥasan, peace be on him, what he had taken. Al-Ḥasan and Al-Ḥusayn, peace be on them, were present. al-Ḥusayn, peace be on him, rose to reply but al-Ḥasan, peace be on him, took him by the hand and made him sit down. Then he himself, (al-Ḥasan) arose and spoke: “O you who mention ‘Alī, I am al-Ḥasan and ‘Alī was my father. You are Mu‘āwiya and your father was Ṣakhr (Abū Sufyān). My mother was Fāṭima and your mother was Hind. My grandfather was the Apostle of Allāh and your grandfather was Ḥarb.

 

 My grandmother was Khadīja and your grandmother was Futayla. May Allāh curse him who tries to reduce our reputation and to diminish our nobility, who does evil against our antiquity and yet who has been ahead of us in unbelief and hypocrisy.” Groups of the people in the mosque shouted out: “Amen, Amen” (For the speeches cf. Maqātil al-Ṭālibiyyīn, 68-70.)

 

When the peace between al-Ḥasan, peace be on him, and Mu‘āwiya was concluded in the way we have mentioned, al-Ḥasan, peace be on him, left for Medina. He resided there, restraining his anger, staying close to his house, and awaiting the command of his Lord, the Mighty and High, until Mu‘āwiya had completed ten years of his administration. (Then) the latter decided to have the pledge of allegiance given to his son, Yazīd, (as his successor). He communicated secretly With Ju‘da, daughter of al-Ash‘ath b. Qays - she was the wife of al-Ḥasan, peace be on him - to urge her to poison him. He gave an undertaking to her that he would marry her to his son, Yazīd, and he sent her a hundred thousand dirhams. Ju‘da gave him the poison to drink but he lingered on sick for forty days. He passed along his (final) road in the month of Ṣafar in the year 50 A. H. (670). At that time, he was forty-eight years of age. His succession (to the Imamate) had been for ten years. His brother and testamentary trustee (waṣī), al-Ḥusayn, peace be on him, undertook the washing and shrouding of his body, and buried him with his grandmother, Fāṭima, daughter of Asad b. Hāshim b. ‘Abd Manāf, may Allāh be pleased with her, in (the cemetery of) al-Baqī‘.

 

 

 

‘Īsā b. Mihrān reported: ‘Ubayd Allāh b. al-Ṣabbāḥ told us: Jarīr told us on the authority of Mughīra, who said:] Mu‘āwiya sent to Ju‘da daughter of al-Ash‘ath b. Qays: “I will arrange for you to marry my son, Yazīd, on condition that you poison al-Ḥasan.”

He, also, sent her a hundred thousand dirhams. She did that: she poisoned al-Ḥasan, peace be on him. (Mu‘āwiya) gave her the money but did not marry her to Yazīd. Instead he gave her a man from the family of Ṭalḥa as a substitute. The latter gave her children.

Whenever any argument occurred between them and the clans of Quraysh, they would revile them saying: “Sons of a woman who poisons her husbands.”

(Maqātil al-Ṭālibiyyīn, 73.)

 

[‘Īsā b. Mihrān reported: ‘Uthmān b. ‘Umar told me: Ibn ‘Awn told us on the authority of ‘Umar b. lsḥāq, who said:] I was with al-Ḥasan and al-Ḥusayn, peace be on them, in the house. al-Ḥasan, peace be on him, came in from outside and then went out again. He said: “I have been given poison to drink several times but I have never been given poison like this. A bit of my liver has come out or my mouth and I began to turn it over with a stick I had.”

 

“Who gave you the poison to drink,” al-Ḥusayn, peace be on him, asked him, “and what do you want for him? Do you want him killed? If he may remain as he is, then Allāh will be more terrible in His vengeance than you. If he may not remain as he is, then I should like to be free of any blame,”

(Maqātil al-Ṭālibiyyīn, 74.)

 

 [‘Abd Allāh b. Ibrāhīm reported on the authority of Ziyād al-Makhāriqī, who said:] When death was close to al-Ḥasan, peace be on him, he summoned al-Ḥusayn, peace be on him, and said: “My brother. I am leaving you and joining my Lord. I have been given poison to drink and have spewed my liver into a basin. I am aware of the person who poisoned me and from where I have been made a subject to this deceitful action. I will oppose him before Allāh, the Mighty and High.

 

Therefore by the right I have with regard to you, say nothing about that and wait for what Allāh, the Mighty and High, will decide concerning me. When I have died, shut my eyes, wash me and shroud me. Then carry me on my bier to the grave of my grandfather, the Apostle of Allāh, may Allāh bless Him and His Family, so that I may renew my covenant with him. After that take me to the grave of my grandmother, Fāṭima, daughter of Asad, may Allāh be pleased with her, and bury me there. My brother, the people will think that you intend to bury me with the Apostle of Allāh, may Allāh bless Him and His Family. For that reason, they will gather to prevent you from doing it. I swear by Allāh that you should not shed even your blood into the cupping-glass in (carrying out) my command.”

 

Then he made his testamentary bequests to his family and his children. (He gave him) his heirlooms and the things which the Commander of the Faithful, peace be on him, had bequeathed to him when he had made him his successor, had declared him worthy to occupy his position, and had indicated to his Shī‘a that he was his successor, and set him up as their sign-post after himself. When he passed on his (final) journey, al-Ḥusayn, peace be on him, washed and shrouded his (body). Then he carried him on his bier. Marwān and those of the beside the Apostle of Allāh, may Allāh bless Him and His Family. They gathered together and armed themselves. When al-Ḥusayn, peace be on him, approached the tomb of the Apostle of Allāh, may Allāh bless Him and His Family, with (the body of al-Ḥasan) so that he might renew his covenant with him, they came towards them with their group. ‘Ā’isha had joined them on a mule and she was saying: “What is there between you and me that you should allow someone I don’t want to, to enter my house?”

 

Marwān began to recite: O Lord, battle is better than ease.

 

 (Then he went on:) “Should ‘Uthmān be buried in the outskirts of Medina and al-Ḥasan be buried alongside the Prophet, may Allāh bless Him and His Family? That will never be while I carry a sword.”

 

Discord was about to occur between the Banū Umayya and the Banū Hāshim. Ibn ‘Abbās hurried to Marwān and said to him: “Go back to where you came from, Marwān. Indeed we do not intend to bury our companion with the Apostle of Allāh, may Allāh bless Him and His Family. But we want him to be able to renew his covenant with him by visiting him. Then we will take him back to his grandmother, Fāṭima, and bury him alongside her according to his last instructions concerning that. If he had enjoined that he should be buried alongside the Prophet, may Allāh bless Him and His Family, you know that you would be the least able to deter us from that. However, he, peace be on him, was much too aware of Allāh and His Apostle and the sacredness of his tomb to bring bloodshed to it as others have done (who) have entered it without his permission.”

 

 Then he went to ‘Ā’isha and said to her: “What mischief you bring about, one day on a mule and one day on a camel! Do you want to extinguish the light of Allāh and fight the friends (awliyā’) of Allāh? Go Back! You have been given assurance against what you fear and have learned what you wanted (to know). By Allāh, victory will come to this House, even if it is after some time.”

 

al-Ḥusayn, peace be on him, said: “By Allāh, if there had been no injunction to me from al-Ḥasan, peace be on him, to prevent bloodshed and that I should not even pour blood into a cupping-glass in (carrying out) his command, you would have known how the swords of Allāh would have taken their toll from you. You have broken the agreement which was made between you and us. You have ignored the conditions which we made with him for ourselves.”

 

Then they went on with (the body of) al-Ḥasan, peace be on him, and they buried him in (the cemetery of) al-Baqī‘ beside his grandmother, Fāṭima daughter of Asad b. Hāshim b. ‘Abd Manāf, may Allāh be pleased with her.

 

 

 

Al-Ḥasan b. ‘Alī, Peace be on him, had fifteen children, both male and female: 1. Zayd b. al-Ḥasan and his two sisters :

2. Umm al-Ḥasan

3. Umm al-Ḥusayn Their mother was Umm Bashīr daughter of Abū Mas‘ūd ‘Uqba ‘Amr b. Tha‘laba al-Khazrajī

4. Al-Ḥasan b. al-Ḥasan His mother was Khawla daughter of Manẓūr al-Faẓārī.

5. ‘Umar b. al-Ḥasan and his two brothers

6. Al-Qāsim

7. ‘Abd Allāh Their mother was a slave-wife (umm walad).

8. Abd al-Raḥmān b. al-Ḥasan His mother was a slave-wife (umm walad).

9. Al-Ḥusayn b al-Ḥasan, who was nicknamed the one with the broken tooth (al-athram) and his brother:

10. Talḥa b. al-Ḥasan and their sister:

11. Fāṭima daughter of al-Ḥasan Their mother was Umm Isḥāq daughter of Ṭalḥa b. ‘Ubayd Allāh al-Taymī

12. Umm ‘Abd Allāh

13. Fāṭima 1

4. Umm Salama

15. Ruqayya

 

These were daughters of al-Ḥasan, peace be on him, by various mothers.

 

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As for Zayd b. al-Ḥasan, peace be on him, he was in charge of the (proportion of) taxes (ṣadaqāt) given to the Apostle of Allāh, may Allāh bless Him and His Family. He was the oldest (of the children) and was noble in worth, generous in character, unusual in spirit and great in piety. The poets praised him and people came to him from far and wide to seek his favour. The historians (aṣḥāb al-sīra) related that Zayd b. al-Ḥasan was in charge of the (proportion of) taxes (ṣadaqāt) given to the Apostle of Allāh, may Allāh bless Him and His Family. However when Sulaymān b. ‘Abd al-Malik came to authority, he wrote to his governor in Medina:

 

When this letter of mine comes to you, dismiss Zayd from (control over) the taxes (ṣadaqāt) of the Apostle of Allāh, may Allāh bless Him and His Family, and give them to so-and-so son of so-and-so - he was a man from his (i.e. Sulayman’s) clan. Give him (all) the help he seeks from you. Greetings.

 

However, when ‘Umar b. ‘Abd al-‘Azīz succeeded, (another) letter came from him: Zayd b. al-Ḥasan is the leader (sharīf) of the Banū Hāshim and the oldest of them. When this letter of mine comes to you, restore (control of) the taxes of the Apostle of Allāh, may Allāh bless Him and His Family, to him. Give him (all) the help he seeks from you. Greetings. Concerning Zayd b. al-Ḥasan, Muḥammad b. Bashīr, the Khārijite, recited: When the son of the chosen one comes down the valley-stream, he drives away its drought and makes its sticks green with vegetation.

 

Zayd is the spring of the people in every winter season when their rains and thunder have come. (He is) meek before those who seek the blood-price just as if he was a sun amid darkness as if its stars were joined to him.

 

Zayd b. al-Ḥasan died when he was ninety years of age. A group of poets composed elegies for him, mentioning their loss of him and his outstanding merit. Among these elegies is that of Qudāma b. Mūsā al-Jumaḥī who said: If the earth had been deprived of Zayd’s person, kindness and goodness would have been absent from it.

 

If the guarantee of the dust of the grave has come upon him, then he has been covered by it while he, the departed, was praised for his action. The One Who listens to a humble request knows that he only seeks good from Him and so He will return (good to him).

 

He was not loquacious but he undertook his journeying to search for good wherever you wanted (it). If a lowly servant was remiss, he would urge him on to praise his fathers and grandfathers. (He was one of the) generous givers to servants and (one of) those who sides with kinsmen, (one of the) lions in endurance in the face of misfortunes. When a mighty one with many ancestors is removed, they have a praise worthy inheritor to succeed as would be desired. When a lord from among them dies, another noble lord arises who builds and fortifies them after him. (Further) examples of this would make the book too long.

 

Zayd b. al-Ḥasan, may Allāh have mercy on him, departed from this world without claiming the Imamate, nor do anyone of the Shī‘a or anyone else make the claim for it on his behalf. The fact is that the Shī‘a are of two types - Imāmī and Zaydī. The Imāmī bases the Imamate on nominations (nuṣūṣ) and these do not exist for the sons of al-Ḥasan, peace be on him, with their agreement: not one of them claimed that for himself while there was any doubt with regard to it.

 

The Zaydī regards the Imamate, after ‘Alī, al-Ḥasan and al-Ḥusayn, peace be on them, as belonging (to the one who makes) a claim for it and (embarks on) war (jihād). However, Zayd b. al-Ḥasan, may Allāh have mercy on him, submitted to the Banū Umayya and accepted the actions performed by them. His attitude was (that of) precautionary dissimulation (taqiyya) towards his enemies and reconciliation and blandishment towards them. According to the Zaydī movement, this is contrary to the signs of the Imamate as we have explained.

 

The Hashwiyya adhere to the Imamate of the Banū Umayya and do not consider the Imamate as belonging to the children of the Apostle of Allāh, may Allāh bless Him and His Family, in any circumstance. The Mu‘tazila only

  consider the Imamate as belonging to those who hold their view of withdrawal (i‘tizāl) and those whose agreement (‘ahd) is made through a consultative body (shūrā) and election (ikhriyār). As we have mentioned before, Zayd was far from (conforming to) these conditions. The Khārijites do not consider the Imamate of anyone whom the Commander of the Faithful, peace be on him, appointed whereas Zayd followed both his father and his grandfather without any dispute.

 

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Al-Ḥasan b. al-Ḥasan, peace be on him, was noble, a leader, a man of merit and piety. He was in charge of the (proportion of) taxes (ṣadaqāt) give to the Commander of the Faithful, peace be on him, while he (al-Ḥasan) was alive, until al-Ḥajjāj b. Yūsuf, as they report. [Al-Zubayr b. Bakkār has reported:] Al-Ḥasan b. al-Ḥasan was in charge of the (proportion of) taxes (ṣadaqāt) of the Commander of the Faithful, peace be on him, while he was alive. One day al Ḥajjāj b. Yūsuf came in a procession - at that time he was governor of Medina. Al-Ḥajjāj said to him: “Bring ‘Umar b. ‘Alī into (association) with you in the ṣadaqāt of your father. He is your uncle and a survivor of your family.”

 

“I will not change the conditions laid down on me,” al-Ḥasan told him, “nor will I bring anyone else into (association) in it, who need not be brought in.” “Then I will bring him into association with you,” retorted al-Ḥajjāj. However, al-Ḥasan b. al-Ḥasan withdrew it from him when al-Ḥajjāj was distracted (with other matters). Then he went to ‘Abd al-Malik. He came to him and stood at his door seeking permission (to enter). Yaḥyā b. (Umm) al-Ḥakam passed him. When Yaḥyā saw him, he turned towards him, greeted him and asked him about his reason for coming. (Al-Ḥasan) told him. “I will try to favour you with the Commander of the faithful,” Yaḥyā said - he was referring to ‘Abd al-Malik. When al-Ḥasan b. al-Ḥasan went in to ‘Abd al-Malik, the latter welcomed him and questioned him kindly. Al-Ḥasan’s hair had grown white quickly. Yaḥyā b. (Umm) al-Ḥakam was in the gathering. “Your hair has grown white quickly, Abu Muḥammad,” ‘Abd al-Malik said to (al-Ḥasan) “The whitenes of his half would not prevent him from carrying out the desires of the Iraqis, Commander of the faithful.” said Yaḥyā, “should their riders come to him to inspire him with desire for the caliphate.”

 

Al-Ḥasan b. al-Ḥasan went to him and said: “Shame on you! By Allāh, the gift that I ask for is not as you have said. But we, the members of the House, grow white (in our hair) quickly.” ‘Abd al-Malik had been listening. He came towards him and asked: “Come on, why have you come?” (Al-Ḥasan) told him about what al-Ḥajjāj had said. “He has no right to do that,” (‘Abd al-Malik) said. “I will write to him a letter which he will not ignore.” He wrote to him and gave gifts to al-Ḥasan b. al-Ḥasan and treated him generously. When he left him, Yaḥyā b. (Umm) al-Ḥakam met him.

 

Al-Ḥasan reproached him for his bad testimony. He said to him: “What was it that you promised me?” “Stop that,” retorted Yaḥyā. “He still fears you. If I had not made him fear you, he would not have carried out your request and thus was I able to help you.” Al-Ḥasan b. al-Ḥasan had been present with his uncle, al-Ḥusayn. peace be on him, at the battle on the banks (of the Euphrates). When al-Ḥusayn, peace be on him, was killed and the rest of his family had been taken prisoner, Asmā’ b. Khārija had come to him and taken him from among prisoners. She had said: “By Allāh, don’t ever let him go to Ibn Khawla.” “Let him go to Abū Ḥassān, the son of his sister” said ‘Umar b. Sa‘d. It was said that he was captured when he had received a wound from which he was (later) cured.

 

It is reported that al-Ḥasan b. al-Ḥasan sought to become engaged to one of two of the daughters of his uncle, al-Ḥusayn, peace be on him. “Choose, my son,” al-Ḥusayn, peace be on him, told him, “the one of them which is preferable to you.” Al-Ḥasan became shy and could not make a choice in answer. So al-Ḥusayn, peace be on him, said: “I have chosen my daughter, Fāṭima, for you. Of the two, she is the most like my mother, Fāṭima, daughter of the Apostle of Allāh, may Allāh bless Him and His Family.”

 

 Al-Ḥasan b. al-Ḥasan died when he was thirty-five years of age, may Allāh have mercy on him. His brother, Zayd b. al-Ḥasan was still alive but he appointed his brother on his mother’s side, Ibrāhīm b. Muḥammad b. Ṭalḥa, as his trustee. When al-Ḥasan b. al-Ḥasan, may Allāh be pleased with him, died, his wife, Fāṭima, daughter of al-Ḥusayn b. ‘Alī, peace be on them, pitched a tent at his tomb and she used to stand in prayer at night and fast during the day. She was like a houri of heaven in her beauty. At the beginning of the new year, she said to her retainers: “When the night becomes dark, pull down the tent. “ Then when the night became dark, she heard a voice saying: “Have they found what they had lost?” She answered: “Nay, they have despaired so they have reversed things.” Al-Ḥasan b. al-Ḥasan passed away without making any claim for the Imamate. Nor was any claim for it made on his behalf, just as we have described in the case of his brother, Zayd, may Allāh be pleased with him.

 

 

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As for ‘Umar, al-Qāsim and ‘Abd Allāh, sons of al-Ḥasan b. ‘Alī, peace be on them, they died as martyrs in front of their uncle, al-Ḥusayn b. ‘Alī, peace be on them, on the banks (of the Euphrates) - may Allāh be pleased with them and grant them satisfaction and reward their bravery on behalf of religion and Islam and His family. ‘Abd al-Raḥmān b. al-Ḥasan went on a pilgrimage with his uncle, al-Ḥusayn, peace be on him, and he died at al-Abwā’ while still in a pilgrim state (muḥrim), may Allāh have mercy on him. Al-Ḥusayn b. al-Ḥasan, known as ‘the one with the broken tooth’ (al-athram) had great merit but there was no other record of him with regard to that. Ṭalha b. al-Ḥasan was an excellent man.

 

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