Ali ibn Abi Talib

Historian Hassan Abbas sums up the dilemma at the heart of Caliph Ali ibn Abi Talib's reign in the following way:

This quote aptly encapsulates the two sides of Imam Ali. On one hand, he is regarded by many as a supremely spiritual religious scholar. He was beloved by the Prophet Muhammad, who raised him like a son. And yet when he became caliph, many Muslims opposed his rule, and his legacy has been one of violence. Let's read on to find out more about Ali's life and legacy.

Ali ibn Abi Talib: Facts

These top ten facts about Ali ibn Abi Talib give an overview of the key information about this controversial caliph.

Fig. 1 - An artist's depiction of the marriage between Ali ibn Abi Talib and Fatimah, the daughter of the Prophet Muhammad.

1. Ali ibn Abi Talib reigned as caliph for five years between 656 and 661.
2. Ali ibn Abi Talib was married to the Prophet Muhammad's daughter, Fatimah. This made him the Prophet's son-in-law.
3. Ali ibn Abi Talib's mother was the aunt of the Prophet Muhammad.
4. Ali was raised by the Prophet Muhammad and his wife.
5. When the Prophet Muhammad learned of an assassination attempt on his life, he fled to Medina in 622. Ali stayed behind in Muhammad's bed as a decoy. By doing so, he successfully tricked the assassins into believing that Muhammad had not left the city. Ali joined the Prophet and the other Muslim believers in Mecca at a later date.
6. Ali largely withdrew from public affairs after Muhammad's death during the reigns of the first three Rashidun caliphs.
7. Ali became caliph in 656 when Caliph Uthman was assassinated. Unlike Uthman, Ali was not appointed by a committee but was chosen by popular demand in the city of Medina.
8. The manner by which Ali had become caliph sparked the First Fitna - the first civil war within Islam.
9. Ali was assassinated in 661. This was the end of the Rashidun Caliphate.
10. Imam Ali is the key figure at the centre of the Sunni/Shia split in Islam. Shias believe that only Ali and his descendants had the right to become caliphs because of their close relationship with the Prophet Muhammad. Sunnis believed that any faithful Muslim had the right to become caliph. They did not see Ali's death, nor the fact that the caliphate passed to Muawiya I instead of Ali's son, as removing leadership from the Prophet's rightful heir.

Ali and the History of Early Islam

After the Prophet Muhammad died in 632, four successive leaders had all been close companions or relatives of the Prophet: Abu Bakr, Umar, Uthman, and Ali.

The reigns of these four caliphs became known as the Rashidun Caliphate - the first caliphate in Islam. Rashidun means 'rightly guided', and it refers to the fact that most Muslims believe that these caliphs were pious moral exemplars who represented a golden age within Islam.

Ali ibn Abi Talib: Biography

This section gives a comprehensive overview of Ali's life from his birth in Mecca to his assassination and secret burial.

Early life

Ali ibn Abi Talib was born in 600 in Mecca. His father, Abu Talib, was the leader of the Banu Hashim tribe and uncle to the Prophet Muhammad. When Abu Talib's finances became difficult, Muhammad offered to take in the boy and raise him in his own home. Ali was raised by the Prophet Muhammad.

The Prophet Muhammad's first divine revelation occurred when Ali was about ten years old. Ali believed Muhammad's words, becoming one of the very first Muslim believers.

The Medinan Years

In 622, the Muslim community in Mecca migrated to Medina because of the ongoing religious persecution against the Prophet Muhammad and his followers.

The story goes that the Prophet learned of an assassination attempt on his life and decided to flee the city. Ali put on Muhammad's cloak, climbed into his bed, and pretended to be the Prophet so that the assassins wouldn't know that Muhammad had left Mecca already. The plan worked - the Prophet Muhammad escaped Mecca and Ali was able to join the Muslims in Medina at a later date.

Fig. 2 - Ali fighting for the Prophet Muhammad with his sword Zulfiqar at Medina.

Ali was a key participant in the battles that the Prophet Muhammad fought between 622 and 632 during the Medinan years. He took on many important administrative and religious tasks for the Prophet, such as writing down the terms of the Treaty of Hudaybiyyah in 628 and becoming one of the scribes of the Qur'an.

Ghadir Khumm

One of the most contested sayings by the Prophet Muhammad was made about Ali in an event called the Ghadir Khumm in 632, not long before Muhammad died. While he was giving a sermon, Muhammad is reported by both Sunni and Shia sources to have said:

Muslims interpret this in different ways:

After Muhammad's Death

During the 24 years between the Prophet Muhammad's death and his succession as caliph in 656, Ali took very little part in public affairs. Unlike during Muhammad's years, he fought in none of the battles waged by the three Rashidun caliphs who came before him.

In 644, Ali was one of six men appointed by Umar to select the next caliph. The contest ended up being between Uthman and Ali. Uthman won more votes than Ali, partially because Uthman agreed to all the terms of the caliphate, whereas Ali only agreed to two of the three terms.

Caliph Ali ibn Abi Talib

In 656, Uthman was assassinated by a Kharijite during a siege on his home in Medina. In the chaos of the days that followed, the main groups in Medina - the Basrians and the Kufis - asked Ali to become caliph in Uthman's place. Ali thereby became caliph without having been appointed by a committee.

First Fitna

However, within a very short time, Ali faced the first conflict of his reign when the widow of the Prophet Muhammad, Aisha, joined with two of Ali's rivals, Zubayr and Talha, to form a coalition against him. They blamed Ali for Uthman's death because he took no action against the Kharijites for having murdered Uthman. They also argued that the caliph should be decided by a committee.

The two sides met at the Battle of the Camel in 656. Ali was victorious, but he acted leniently towards his opponents - none of the army was enslaved, and he treated Aisha and Zubayr well. Talha died of battle wounds.

Battle of Siffin

Next, Ali faced opposition from the governor of Syria, Muawiya. Muawiya was a close kinsman of Uthman, and he also blamed Ali for not taking revenge on Uthman's death. The two sides met at the Battle of Siffin in 657.

Fig. 3 - Illustration of the Battle of Siffin.

Ali's side had nearly won the battle when Muawiya had a stroke of genius. He ordered his soldiers to put Qur'an pages on the end of their lances in a gesture intended to communicate that Muslims should settle their disagreements by the Qur'an rather than by the sword. Ali's army refused to fight against people holding Qur'an pages, and Ali was forced to enter negotiations with Muawiya.

Battle of Nahrawan

Unfortunately for Ali, his supporters, the Kharijites, were incensed that he had agreed to enter into negotiations with Muawiya rather than continue the battle. Moreover, Ali's army hated the Kharijites because of their violent actions.

Ali demanded that the Kharijites renounce enmity and war, but they refused. The result was the Battle of Nahrawan, in which Ali killed the vast majority of the Kharijite sect in 658.

Death and Succession

In 661, Ali was assassinated in a mosque by a Kharijite who sought revenge for the Battle of Nahrawan. Ali did not appoint a successor before he was killed, but he had frequently argued that the caliphate should remain in the line of Muhammad, meaning that the natural heir to Ali was his eldest son, Hasan. Many in Medina pledged allegiance to Hasan upon Ali's death.

However, things did not go as Ali planned. Muawiya, who had declared himself caliph in Syria, rode his army into Medina and entered into negotiations with Hasan. Hasan agreed to abdicate in favour of Muawiya in exchange for a large financial settlement. Thus, leadership transferred from the Prophet's family to the Umayyad clan upon Ali's death.

Ali ibn Abi Talib as Caliph: Evaluation

Historian Hassan Abbas sums up the circumstances of Ali's rule as caliph in the following way:

Ali was also known for his decentralised approach to rule. He followed the precedent set by Muhammad in favouring an equal distribution of taxes amongst Muslims.

Ali ibn Abi Talib: Achievements

Ali's achievements lie less in his rule as caliph - which can hardly be marked as a success story given his constant failure to unify the caliphate under his rule - than in his earlier years under Muhammad and the Rashidun caliphs.

1. Military achievements under Muhammad: During the Medinan years, Ali distinguished himself on the battlefield at many of the important battles between Muhammad and the Quraysh. It is said that he was an exceptionally brave soldier.
2. Religious achievements under Muhammad: Ali spread the teachings of Islam to Yemen in 631.
3. Religious scholar: During the period of the Rashidun caliphs, Imam Ali devoted his time to the study of Islam. Many wise sayings are attributed to him, and he is considered to be a mystic by the Sufi tradition, which holds him as the spiritual successor to Muhammad.

Imam Ali ibn Abi Talib: Shrine

Ali asked to be buried secretly because he was afraid his enemies would dig up his body to humiliate him in death. It wasn't until several centuries later that Muslims found where he had been buried, in a grave in a city called Najaf.

Fig. 4 - The Sanctuary of Imam Ali.

This site became a holy shrine known as the Sanctuary of Imam Ali. Every year, millions of Muslim pilgrims visit this shrine, paying homage to Ali.