Hasan ibn Ali

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Hasan ibn Ali ()‎ (c. 625 – 669) was the son of Ali ibn Abu Talib and Fatima Zahra, and the first grandson of Muhammad. He is considered the second Shia Imam by most Shi'a Muslim sects; other sects accept his brother Husayn ibn Ali as the second Shia Imam. Nonetheless, he is an important figure in both Sunni and Shi'a Islam as a member of the Ahl al-Bayt, the household of Muhammad.

His birth and family life

Hasan ibn Ali was born two years after the Hijra (622 CE), the migration of the early Muslim community from Mecca to Medina. His parents were Ali, Muhammad's cousin and trusted lieutenant, and Fatima Zahra, Muhammad's daughter.

Hasan ibn Ali was Muhammad's first grandchild. According to Shi'a tradition, he was named by his grandfather, who acted on divine inspiration. Hasan means "handsome" in Arabic.

Hasan and his brother Husayn ibn Ali are said to have been greatly beloved by their grandfather. There are numerous hadith, or oral traditions, that make this claim. Other hadiths say that Hasan and Husayn will be the leaders of the youth in paradise. Shi'a believe that Hasan is one of the four persons included in the Hadith Of The Cloak.

The Caliphate

Upon the death of Ali at Kufa, the Muslim garrison town in what is now southern Iraq, a number of Ali's Kufan supporters swore allegiance to Hasan as caliph. This threatened the ambitious Muawiyah I, who been fighting Ali for the caliphate. Mu'awiya summoned all the commanders of his forces in Syria, Palestine, and Transjordan to join him in preparation for war. He also attempted to negotiate with Hasan, sending the young heir letters asking him to give up his claim. If he could persuad Hasan to renounce his claim to the caliphate, then Muawiyah could avoid having to kill fellow Muslims and would have a much stronger claim to the caliphate himself. If Muawiyah were forced to defeat Hasan in battle, Muawiyah would gain absolute power, but questions regarding his legitimacy would linger.

Negotiations stalled, and Mu'awiya marched against Hasan with an army said to number sixty thousand men . Hasan too marched his army towards Mu'awiya. The two armies faced each near Sabat.

During this period of suspense, Hasan is said to have given a sermon in which he proclaimed his hatred of schism and appealed to his men to follow his orders even though they did not agree with him. Some of the troops took this as a sign that Hasan was preparing to surrender, and attacked Hasan. Hasan was wounded, but loyal soldiers surrounded him and killed the mutineers. Another one of Hasan's commanders, Ubayd Allah, deserted and joined Mu'awiya's forces.

The two armies fought a few inconclusive skirmishes. Hasan, wounded, facing disaffection in his own army, finally negotiated a settlement with Mu'awiyah. Hasan stipulated that Mu'awiyah should follow the Qur'an and the Sunnah, allow a shura to be held after his death, and refrain from any acts of revenge against Hasan's followers. Mu'awiyah is said to have later repudiated this agreement as extorted from him, hence not binding.

Mu'awiyah proceeded to Kufa and demanded that the Muslims there swear allegiance. He also attempted to force Hasan to fight for him against the rebellious Kharijites. Hasan is said to have written:

"I have abandoned the fight against you, even though it was my legal right, for the sake of peace and reconciliation of the Community. Do you think that I shall fight together with you?"

Was he a Sunni Caliph?

Most caliph chronologies do not include Hasan. Hasan claimed the caliphate only briefly and was recognized by only a small portion of the Islamic empire. He resigned his claim, and recognized Mu'awiya. However, a handful of the older Sunni historians, such as Suyuti, Ibn al-Arabi, Ibn Taymiyya, and Ibn Kathir accept Hasan as a caliph . Shi'a Muslims also regard Hasan as a caliph.

Retirement to Medina

Hasan retired to Medina. He received a pension from Mu'awiyah and also some income from the properties he had inherited.

Three hundred concubines?

Some Islamic historians, such as Al-Madā'inī and Muhammad Al-Kalbī, claimed that Hasan lived a life of indulgence and ease, marrying and divorcing numerous wives (said to number sixty to ninety) and accumulating three hundred concubines. Some scholars still accept these stories (Encyclopedia of Islam, Second Version, per Madelung 1997: 330).

One contemporary Sunni scholar, Ali Muhammad Sulabi, claims that the isnad of Sunni traditions on this matter are calumny. He points out that Hasan had fewer than twenty children, which would suggest that he couldn't have married as many times as Al-Madā'inī and Muhammad Al-Kalbī claim.

Wilferd Madelung, a contemporary expert in early Islam and Shi'a studies, also regards those stories as base slander and devotes a whole section of his book on the succession to refuting them (Madelung 1997: pp. 380-387).

Death

Historians believe that Hasan died in Medina in 669 (or in some accounts, 670). He is buried at the famous Jannat al-Baqi cemetery across from the Masjid al-Nabawi, the Mosque of the Prophet.

Was Hasan poisoned?

Some early Arab historians give a more detailed story. They say that Muawiyah wished to pass the caliphate to his son Yazid, and saw Hasan as an obstacle to his plans. Muawiyah plotted to kill Hasan. He secretly contacted Hasan's wife Ja'da binte al-Ash'ath ibn Qays, and asked her to poison her husband. Ja'da did as Muawiyah suggested, giving her husband poison mixed with honey. Madelung (pp. 331-333) notes other traditions suggesting that Hasan had been poisoned by another wife, the daughter of Suhayl bin 'Amr, or perhaps by a servant. Madelung also cites the early historians (Baladhuri, Waqidi, etc.) who recounted these traditions. Madelung, who is more accepting of Shi'a traditions than most Western academic historians, believes that Hasan was poisoned and that the famous early Islamic historian Tabari suppressed the tale out of concern for the faith of the common people.

Shi'a accounts have embroidered this basic story. Ja'da was promised much gold and marriage to Yazid. Seduced by the promise of money and power, she poisoned her husband, then hastened to the court of Muawiyah in Damascus to receive her reward. Muawiyah reneged on his promises and married her to another man. ^*," target="_blank" >[http://www.al-imam.net/forums/lofiversion/index.php?t1056.html

Sunni writers believe that all these reports are fables, got up to slander Muawiyah ^*.

Burial of Hasan

Shi'a also say that Hasan had asked to be buried next to his grandfather, the Islamic prophet Muhammad, if it could be done. Muhammad was buried in his widow Aisha's rooms, which were attached to the main mosque of Medina. According to one story, Aisha refused to let Hasan be buried where he wished. The governor of Medina, who had been appointed by Muawiyah, sent soldiers to prevent a burial next to Muhammad. Hasan's family was forced to bury him in Jannat ul-Baqi.

Legacy

The shrine of his tomb was destroyed by the Salafi Saudis .

Sunni view

Sunnis honour Hasan ibn Ali as one of the ahl al-Bayt and one of the Sahaba.

Shi'a view

Shi'as hold Hasan ibn Ali in a very high postive view. Shi’as regard Hassan ibn Ali ibn Abu Talib as their second Imam and they also regard his as a martyr because Hassan ibn Ali ibn Abu Talib was killed by Ja'da (his wife) on the urging of Muawiyah (the enemy of Islam and Islamic Prophet Muhammad).