Hasan Arabia
Hasan ibn 'Ali ibn Abi Talib of Arabia, Male 624 - 680
Born, Medina, Arabia.
Son of 'Ali Arabia and Fatimah Muhammad.
a), a grandson of the Prophet Muhammad (the founder of Islam), the elder s
on of Muhammad's daughter Fatimah. He belongs to the group of the five mo
st holy persons of Shi'ah, those over whom Muhammad spread his cloak whi
le calling them "The People of the House." After his father, 'Ali, he w
as considered by many of his contemporaries to be the rightful heir to Muh
ammad's position of leadership.
r's death in 632 he was politically inactive until the end of the rei
gn of the caliph 'Uthman ibn 'Affan (the caliph was the titular lead
er of the Islamic community). 'Uthman was murdered in 656, an action in w
hich Hasan took no part. 'Ali, Hasan's father, became the next caliph, a
nd in the civil wars that soon broke out Hasan was sent to the important I
raqi city of Kufah to secure acceptance of 'Ali's rule and, if possible, o
btain military reinforcements. Later he fought in the Battle of Siffin, w
hich, although not a defeat, did mark the beginning of a steady deteriorat
ion in 'Ali's position. After 'Ali was murdered in 661, never having chos
en a successor, a large number of his followers pledged their loyalty to H
asan, and Hasan himself stressed his own close connections with the Proph
et Muhammad.
ion against 'Ali, refused to acknowledge Hasan as caliph and began to prep
are for war, Hasan was able to offer considerable resistance: he dispatch
ed a force to meet Mu'awiyah and then himself headed a larger force. Wi
th little money left, Hasan, not a warlike person, was plagued by defectio
ns from his army. Although some of his followers resented it fiercel
y, he opened peace negotiations and later in 661 abdicated the calipha
te to Mu'awiyah. Hasan ibn 'Ali obtained a generous pension and was allow
ed to live quietly the rest of his life in Medina.
Sources
- Alder, Kay A..ged - provided by LifeTimes Research
Created by LifeTimes Research ...
