In May 657 AD, the armies of Ali (رَضِيَ ٱللَّٰهُ عَنْهُ) (70,000 to 90,000 troops) and Muawiya (رَضِيَ ٱللَّٰهُ عَنْهُ) (slightly smaller) met at Siffin in Syria. Negotiations began and went on for many months, as the companions of the Holy Prophet Hazrat Muhammad ﷺ (PBUH) were reluctant to fight amongst themselves and sought a peaceful solution.
In July, the negotiations failed
and fierce fighting erupted. Ali's (رَضِيَ ٱللَّٰهُ
عَنْهُ) army being superior in strength, began to gain ground, and
Muawiya's (رَضِيَ ٱللَّٰهُ عَنْهُ) began to retreat.
Muawiya's (رَضِيَ ٱللَّٰهُ
عَنْهُ) soldiers brought the combat to a halt by tying pages of the
Quran to their spearheads. Now a court of arbitration was set up, which was
scheduled to meet in February 658. Ali (رَضِيَ ٱللَّٰهُ
عَنْهُ) appointed Abu Musa Asharir and Muawiya (رَضِيَ ٱللَّٰهُ
عَنْهُ) nominated Amr bin al-Asr respectively, as their arbitrators.
At this point, several thousand soldiers of Ali's (رَضِيَ ٱللَّٰهُ
عَنْهُ) army broke away and formed a rebel army, which became known as
'Kharijites'. They were opposed to the idea of the court of arbitration.
The negotiations failed, and the
causes have by now been shrouded in the mysteries of time. There are
conflicting reports as to who was to blame, but the hidden hand of conspirators
cannot be ruled out. As Muslims, it is improper for us to take sides, as doing
so would result in criticism of either one of the two noted companions of the
Holy Prophet Hazrat Muhammad ﷺ (Peace Be Upon Him). Therefore, we move on
to the next phase in history.
The rivalry between the two
continued until a short-lived truce was called in January 660, but fighting at
different fronts resumed soon after. Ali (رَضِيَ ٱللَّٰهُ
عَنْهُ) Amr bin Asr (رَضِيَ ٱللَّٰهُ عَنْهُ),
and Muawiya (رَضِيَ ٱللَّٰهُ عَنْهُ) were attacked in an assassination attempt
by Kharijites on the same night in a synchronized effort to wipe out the
leadership of that time. Muawiya (رَضِيَ ٱللَّٰهُ
عَنْهُ) escaped, Amr (رَضِيَ ٱللَّٰهُ
عَنْهُ) was injured, but Ali (رَضِيَ ٱللَّٰهُ
عَنْهُ) was fatally wounded. On 19th Ramadan 40AH, Jan 661, Ali bin
Abi Talib (رَضِيَ ٱللَّٰهُ عَنْهُ), the last of the four Rightly-Guided
Caliphs, succumbed to the wounds.
Read more:
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sent before Hazrat Muhammad (PBUH)
- Difficulties faced by Prophet Muhammad ﷺ & early Muslims sets an example for Muslims today
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