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Ali belonged to the clan of banu hashim, the most distinguished clan in all Arabia; and in Banu Hashim, he belonged to the most distinguished family – the family of Abdul Muttalib. Abdul Muttalib had ten sons. Two of them were Abdullah, the father of Muhammad Mustafa, and Abu Talib, the father of Ali. Abdullah and Abu Talib were the children of the same mother whereas their other brothers ...
- Overview
- Names and sources
- Early years
- From Mecca to Medina
ʿAlī, Muhammad’s cousin and son-in-law, was the fourth caliph and first imam (in Shiʿism) of the Muslim ummah (community). A faction of the ummah asserted that he and his descendants (known as Ahl al-Bayt) were the only rightful successors to Muhammad. This faction is known as the Shiʿah, short for shīʿat ʿAlī (”ʿAlī’s faction”).
What was ʿAlī’s early life like?
ʿAlī was the son of Abū Ṭālib, Muhammad’s uncle and adopted guardian. After Abū Ṭālib became impoverished, young ʿAlī was taken in by Muhammad. At age 10, ʿAlī became the second person to accept Islam, after Khadījah, according to tradition. From then, he was a dedicated servant of the early Muslim ummah (community).
How did ʿAlī die?
After ʿAlī became caliph, some of his erstwhile supporters resented his willingness to negotiate his status with Muʿāwiyah and his forces, believing such concession to be a repudiation of his duty to fight against rebels. ʿAlī was struck in the head with a poisoned sword by a member of this movement (known as the Khārijites).
What was ʿAlī’s legacy?
ʿAlī is known within the Islamic tradition by a number of titles, some reflecting his personal qualities and others derived from particular episodes of his life. They include Abū al-Ḥasan (“Father of Ḥasan” [the name of his eldest son]), Abū Turāb (“Father of Dust”), Murtaḍā (“One Who Is Chosen and Contented”), Asad Allāh (“Lion of God”), Ḥaydar (“Lion”), and—specifically among the Shiʿah—Amīr al-Muʾminīn (“Prince of the Faithful”) and Mawlāy-i Muttaqiyān (“Master of the God-Fearing”). The title Abū Turāb, for example, recalls the time when, according to tradition, Muhammad entered a mosque and, seeing ʿAlī sleeping there full of dust, said to him, “O father of dust, get up.”
Except for Muhammad, there is no one in Islamic history about whom as much has been written in Islamic languages as ʿAlī. The primary sources for scholarship on the life of ʿAlī are the Hadith and the sīrah literature (accounts of the Prophet Muhammad’s life), as well as other biographical sources and texts of early Islamic history. The extensive secondary sources include, in addition to works by Sunni and Shiʿi Muslims, writings by Christian Arabs, Hindus, and other non-Muslims from the Middle East and Asia and a few works by modern Western scholars. However, many of the early Islamic sources are coloured to some extent by a bias, whether positive or negative, toward ʿAlī.
ʿAlī’s life, as recorded especially in the Sunni and Shiʿi texts, can be divided into several distinct periods separated by major events. The son of Abū Ṭālib and his wife Fāṭimah bint Asad, ʿAlī was born, according to most older historical sources, on the 13th day of the lunar month of Rajab, about the year 600, in Mecca. Many sources, especially ...
The second period of ʿAlī’s life, lasting slightly more than a decade, begins in 610, when Muhammad received the first of his revelations, and ends with the migration of the Prophet to Medina in 622. During this period ʿAlī was Muhammad’s constant companion. Along with Zayd ibn Ḥāritha, who was like a son to the Prophet, Abū Bakr, a respected member of the ruling Quraysh tribe of Mecca, and Khadījah, he helped to form the nucleus of the earliest Meccan Islamic community. From 610 to 622 ʿAlī spent much of his time providing for the needs of believers in Mecca, especially the poor, by distributing what he had among them and helping them with their daily chores.
Both Sunni and Shiʿi sources confirm the occurrence in 622 of the most important episode of this period. Muhammad, knowing that his enemies were plotting to assassinate him, asked ʿAlī to take his place and sleep in his bed; Muhammad then left Mecca secretly with Abū Bakr and reached Medina safely several days later (his arrival marks the beginning of the Islamic calendar). When the plotters entered Muhammad’s house with drawn daggers, they were deeply surprised to find ʿAlī, whom they did not harm. ʿAlī waited for instructions and left sometime later with Muhammad’s family. He arrived safely in Qubā on the outskirts of Yathrib, which soon became known as Mādinat al-Nabi (“City of the Prophet”) or simply Medina, on the instructions of the Prophet. According to some sources, he was one of the first of the Meccan followers of Muhammad to arrive in Medina.
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Upon the death of the Prophet, the Ansars and Muhajirs of Medina, numbering about 300 to 325, had assembled at Saqeefa Banu Sa'd to choose their leader. There was not a single man from Banu Hashim. Abu Bakr and Umar bin Khattab also joined during the time when the people were about to take an oath of allegiance from Abu Ubaidah as their caliph.
May 25, 2020 · Ali ibn Abi Talib, or simply Ali, (l. 601-661 CE) was among the first Muslims, a cousin and son-in- law of the Islamic Prophet Muhammad (l. 570-632 CE), and later reigned as the fourth Caliph of Islam from 656 CE to 661 CE, when he was murdered. Much of his tenure was spent bringing the empire to order during the first civil war of the Islamic ...
The documents indicated that Ali (R.A.) was born in Makkah on Friday, 13th of Rajab, thirty years after the incident of the Elephant, corresponding 17th of March, 599 CE. Ali Ibn Abu Talib (R.A.) was one of the ten men given the tidings of Paradise, he married the Prophet's daughter Fatimah and he embraced Islam so early.
Ali bin Abi Talib (r.a.) Hz. Ali was the son of Abu Talib, the paternal uncle of the Prophet. Abu Talib brought up the Prophet and took care of him for a long time though he was poor. He would not let anyone from his family start eating before Hz. Muhammad came to the table. He knew through experience that Hz. Muhammad was a source of abundance.
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Hazrat Ali - 4th caliph of Islam. The 4th caliph of Islam, Ameer-ul-Mu`mineen, Sayyiduna Maula ‘Ali Mushkil Kusha رَضِىَ اللهُ تَعَالٰی عَـنْهُ, the Lion of Allah عزّوجلّ, was born inside the Holy Kaaba on the 13th of Rajab, when the Holy Prophet Muhammad صلی اللہ علیہ واٰلہ وسلم was 30 ...
