May hamd be to Allahu ta'ala! May salat and salam be to Rasulullah! May benedictions be over each of his pure Ahl al-bayt and his just and faithful Ashab, champions of Islam!

Our Prophet 'sall-allahu alaihi wa sallam' stated that his Umma (Muslims) would break into seventy-three different groups, that seventy-two of these groups would go to Hell, and that the remaining one group would not enter Hell owing to the correct belief they would hold. Al-Imam ar-Rabbani, on the other hand, informs in his book Maktubat that the worst among these seventy-two groups are those who traduce the Ashab al-kiram. These people harbor a grudge against most of our Prophet's Ashab 'ridwanullahi ta'ala alaihim ajmain', and vituperate them. What these people are, when and how they appeared, what methods they have followed, and the harms they have done to Islam are explicated in this book of ours.

These sacrilegious people, who set brothers against brothers and provoked a number of bloodbaths in the Islamic history, culminated in their gruesome atrocities from time to time, only to be intercepted just in time by the Islamic Sultans such as Timur Khan (Tamerlane) and Yavuz Sultan Salim Khan, who inflicted on them such punitive blows that they never regained their energy to go on with their malignant activities. Nevertheless, "Water may sleep, but the enemy never will. Therefore, always keep an eye on your enemy." For many centuries, we have been doing our worships peacefully in this blessed country of ours (Turkey), yet in recent years it has been seen that these people have appeared in different new appellations here and there, making speeches and writing books. They have been striving to mislead the people and surreptitiously spoil the entirely pure belief of the younger generation. They have been perpetrating separatist activities. They have been sowing discord among the people. Our religion, however, commands us to love one another and to be kind to all people.

Of all the books and newspapers sent to us by our brothers in Islam, two were the most consternating. Their contents were the disgusting calumniations and lies fabricated by people called Hurufi, who are, in actual fact, the followers of a Jewish convert of Yaman named Abdullah bin Saba'. We shuddered as we read them. The thought that Muslims, especially our young and callow children, might hear these profane slanders, their pure hearts might be blemished and their true belief might be shocked, compelled us to spend many a sleepless night. Therefore we decided to disclose their harmful writings, confuting them one by one by means of powerful and authentic documents which we borrowed from most valuable books. The result was a book of forty-four paragraphs. We strongly hope that upon reading this book of ours, wise, reasonable and discreet youngsters will follow the sacred advice emanating from their conscience and thus will not believe these separatists. People who had fallen for the subversive and destructive allegations of Abdullah bin Saba' had been gradually decreasing in number, when an Iranian heretic named Fadlullah, adding some more blasphemous elements to his sacrilege and giving it the name Hurufi sect, began to spread it again, and this new catastrophic trend was supported by Shah Ismail Safawi. Fortunately, Sunnite and Shiite Muslims would not be taken in by them.

May Allahu ta'ala keep us true to the belief taught by scholars of Ahl as-Sunnat 'rahmatullahi ta'ala alaihim ajmain' and steady in the lightsome way guided by these superior people! May He protect us from falling for the lies and slanders of those nescient people who exploit our sacred religion as a means for their worldly advantages! May He bestow on us the fortune of loving one another, working together in the way shown by our religion and laws, and thus living in peace and comfort and in mutual brotherhood in this blessed country of ours! Amin.

OH MY BROTHER! IF YOU WISH TO DIE IN IMAN

YOU MUST LOVE THE AHL AL-BAYT AND THE ASHAB

We have received possession of a magazine and a book. The former was a magazine printed in the Autumn of 1967. Its pages contained political and historical articles. These articles were not surprising, inasmuch as there is freedom of thought. However, some of its pages consisted of lies and slanders told by a Jewish convert of Yaman who was contemporary with hadrat 'Uthman. The slanders were directed towards the Ashab al- kiram 'ridwanullahi ta'ala alaihim ajmain'. The purposeful allegations, which were like venomous daggers thrust into Muslims' hearts, were by far more of destructive, deleterious and condemnatory propaganda than of mere statements of thoughts. They were bare criminal activities. They were reminiscent of the story of "a wolf in sheep's clothing." They were intended to mislead young people who would, so to speak, read and believe them to be true and thus brothers would be inimical towards one another. We realized how right our friends and acquaintances had been in trying to persuade us. We knew that the tasks of awakening our darling compatriots and separating right from wrong had been awaiting us.

As for the book; it was printed on first quality paper, covered with cloth binding, and it had a gilded and interesting title. It had been printed in Istanbul in 1968. Its contents page was in no way informative about the book. So we had to go through its pages. It was a book of 'Ilm-i-hal (book teaching about Islam, its tenets, worships, etc.). And it went into some delicate matters, too. It was a subject of curiosity as to how it was going to cover all those matters. And all of a sudden the real subject came into our sight. It was those old allegations of the Jewish convert contemporary with hadrat 'Uthman, and they were disguised in such a way that few people could recognize them. They were staged insidiously. Ya Rabbi! What a grisly murder! They were like poison offered in a sweet covering. They had been prepared elaborately with utmost diligence. Yet the dose administered was considerably too much! It seemed necessary to answer them. In fact, it was a religious obligation. For a hadith ash-Sharif, which is recorded in the first page of the book Sawa'iq-ul-muhriqa, states, "When fitna and fasad (mischief, instigation, tumult) become widespread, when Muslims are misled, let those who know the truth tell it to others! Otherwise, may the curse of Allahu ta'ala, of angels, and of all people be on them!"

Trusting ourselves to Allahu ta'ala, we begin with the Autumn magazine and answer the lies of its Hurufi writer:

1- "As hadrat Muhammad fought against the likes of Abu Sufyan (on the one hand) and against the irreligious Meccan notables on the other hand, so hadrat Ali struggled against the same types of irreligious people contemporary with him. As a matter of fact, the unbelievers had been harboring a grudge and animosity towards hadrat Ali since the so- called earliest times," he states.

Islamic scholars have given valuable answers to Hurufis' slanders and innumerable books have been written to this effect. One of them is the book Izalat-ul-hafa an khilafat-il-khulafa, by Shah Waliyyullah Dahlawi, one of India's greatest Islamic scholars. Together with its Persian and Urdu versions, it comprises two books. It was reproduced in Pakistan in 1382 [A.D. 1962]. It explains in a splendid style and in detail how superior each and every one of the Ashab al-kiram was. We shall give our response with the translation of a passage from the book Tuhfa-i-Isna Ashariyya, which was written in Persian by Abd-ul-'aziz 'Umari Dahlawi. This scholar was Shah Waliyyullah Ahmad Dahlawi's son. He passed away in Delhi in 1239 [A.D. 1824]. The book Tuhfa exists in the library of the University of Istanbul with the code number 82024. Its Urdu version was printed in Pakistan. Abd-ul-'aziz Dahlawi states:

In a hadith ash- Sharif reported by hadrat Abu Said-i-Hudri, our Prophet 'sall-allahu alaihi wa sallam' says to hadrat Ali, "As I fight over the revelation of Qur'an al-karim, so you will fight over its interpretation." This hadith ash-Sharif shows that Sunnites are right. For it informs that in the combats of Camel and Siffin there will be disagreements in the interpretation of Qur'an al-karim, that is, there will be different ijtihads. Their quoting this hadith ash-Sharif for refuting Sunnites is an indication of sheer ignorance. For this hadith ash-Sharif shows that those who fought against hadrat Ali (in the combats of Camel and Siffin) were wrong in their interpretation of Qur'an al-karim. And it is a fact admitted by Shiites as well that wrong interpretation of Qur'an al-karim is not a cause of disbelief.

2- "While one of them was vying for the office of caliphate, putting forward his old age, another was fighting to bring others into subjection," he says.

With the expressions 'old age' and 'vying for the office of caliphate', he casts allusions to hadrat Abu Bakr. That hadrat Abu Bakr was elected Khalifa by the unanimous vote of the Sahaba and that hadrat Ali said, "I know Abu Bakr is superior to us all," are naked facts written in full detail in books by all scholars. Many a time the Messenger of Allah 'sall- allahu alaihi wa sallam' appointed hadrat Abu Bakr as the Amir. After the Holy War of Uhud some intelligence arrived informing that Abu Sufyan was going to attack Medina. Rasulullah 'sall-allahu alaihi wa sallam' sent forth hadrat Abu Bakr for a counteroffensive. During the Holy War of Bani Nadir, in the fourth year of the Hegira, one night he (the beloved Messenger of Allah) appointed hadrat Abu Bakr as the commander and he (himself) honored his home with his blessed presence. In the sixth year he (the Prophet) appointed hadrat Abu Bakr as the Amir and sent him forth against the tribe of Kura'. During the preparations for the Holy War of Tabuk, he (Rasulullah) first commanded that the army should assemble outside Medina. He appointed hadrat Abu Bakr as their commander. His blessed head ached during the Holy War of Hayber. He therefore rested and sent forth hadrat Abu Bakr to deputize him (as the commander-in-chief) and conquer the fortress. That day hadrat Abu Bakr displayed great heroism. In the seventh year he (Rasulullah) sent an army under hadrat Abu Bakr's command onto the tribe of Bani Kilab. There was a bloody combat, whereupon hadrat Abu Bakr killed many unbelievers and captured many others. After the Holy War of Tabuk, intelligence arrived that heathen troops were concentrating in the valley of Reml for a sudden raid into Medina. The Messenger of Allah 'sall-allahu alaihi wa sallam' gave the banner to hadrat Abu Bakr, appointing him as the Amir over the army. Hadrat Abu Bakr took on the task and routed the enemy utterly. They received intelligence reporting insurrection among the tribe of Bani Amr. So Rasulullah honored the place with his blessed presence in the afternoon. He stated to Bilal (Habashi), "Should I be late for the namaz, tell Abu Bakr to conduct the namaz (in jamaat) for My Sahaba." In the ninth year he sent his Sahaba for Hajj, appointing hadrat Abu Bakr as their Amir. There is no one unaware of the fact that towards his (Rasulullah's) death he appointed hadrat Abu Bakr as the imam for his Sahaba and the latter carried on this task from Thursday evening till Monday morning.

When the Prophet did not appoint hadrat Abu Bakr as Amir, he would at least make him his vizier and field marshal. He would not manage religious affairs without his counsel. Hakim, a scholar of Hadith, reports from hadrat Huzaifat-ebni-Yaman: One day Rasulullah 'sall-allahu alaihi wa sallam' said, "As Isa 'alaihis-salam' sent his Hawaris far and wide, so I want to send my Ashab to distant countries so that they teach Islam and its injunctions." When we suggested, "O the Messenger of Allah! You have Sahabis who are capable of doing this task, such as Abu Bakr and 'Umar," he stated, "I cannot do without them. They are like my sight and hearing." He stated in another hadith ash-Sharif, "Allahu ta'ala has bestowed four viziers on me. Two of them, Abu Bakr and 'Umar, are on the earth. The other two, Jabrail and Mikail, are in heaven." If having not been appointed as Amir frequently had been indicative of inaptitude for being an Imam, hadrat Hasan and Husain would not have qualified as Imams. Hadrat Ali never sent them away on any expeditions or wars during his caliphate. On the other hand, he would frequently appoint their paternal brother Muhammad bin Hanafiyya as Amir. When Muhammad was asked the reason for this he said, "They are like my father's eyes. I am like his hands and feet."

Muhammad bin Uqayl bin Abi Talib relates: One day my (paternal) uncle hadrat Ali 'radi- allahu anh' said as he was making a (speech called) khutba, "O Muslims! Who is the bravest one among the Sahaba?" "O Amir al-Muminin! It is you," was my answer. "No," he said. "Abu Bakr as-Siddiq is the bravest one among us. During the Holy War of Badr we made a brushwood shelter for Rasulullah 'sall-allahu alaihi wa sallam'. We were asking one another which one of us was to stand guard in front of the shelter to protect it against the unbelievers' attacks, when Abu Bakr sprang up in such alacrity as to leave hardly any time for anyone else to volunteer, drew his sword, and began to beat around the shelter. The enemy concentrated its attacks on the shelter. Yet Abu Bakr would not let any unbeliever approach the shelter, killing or wounding anyone who would try to do so."

On the other hand, with the expression, "struggling to bring others into subjection," he casts an allusion to hadrat 'Umar. However, hadrat 'Umar 'radi-allahu anh' was influential in hadrat Abu Bakr's becoming Khalifa not by fighting but owing to his effective speech. Thus he protected Muslims against great catastrophic events. Later, upon hadrat Abu Bakr's will and with the people's unanimous vote, he became Khalifa despite his disinclination.

3- "One of them was hearing hadrat Ali, hadrat Hasan, hadrat Husain and Salman Farisi as witnesses for the case of (the date orchard called) Fedek, and then seizing the orchard from hadrat Fatimat-uz-Zahra, discrediting the testimonies given by the Ahl al-bayt," he says.

These remarks are intended to attack hadrat Abu Bakr 'radi-allahu ta'ala anh'. Would it be possible to cover the sun with mud? See below how elegantly the book Tuhfa confutes this slanderous fabrication and reproaches Hurufis:

When a Prophet passes away, the property he leaves behind is not inherited by anybody. This fact is written in Shiite books as well. It would have been irrational to make a will on uninheritable property. Consequently, it would be wrong to say that Rasulullah 'sall-allahu alaihi wa sallam' bequeathed the orchard called Fedek to hadrat Fatima. For Rasulullah 'sall-allahu alaihi wa sallam' would not have done something which would have been wrong. It is stated in a hadith ash-Sharif, "What we leave behind is to become alms." The so-called allegation of will could not be true in spite of this hadith ash-Sharif. If there had been such a will and hadrat Abu Bakr had not heard about it, he would have been held excusable unless it had been proven by testimony. If there had been such a will and hadrat Ali had known about it, it would have been necessary and permissible for him to fulfill it during his caliphate. However, he followed hadrat Abu Bakr's example and dealt the property out to poor, destitute and stranded people. If it should be maintained that he dealt out his share, then why did he deprive hadrat Hasan and Husain 'radi-allahu anhuma' of the property they were to inherit from their blessed mother? Shiites answer this question in four different ways:

1) "Members of the Ahl al-bayt will not resume property usurped from them. As a matter of fact, when Rasulullah 'sall-allahu alaihi wa sallam' conquered Mecca, he did not take his home back from the Meccans who had usurped it from him," they say.

This answer of theirs is not sound. 'Umar bin Abd-ul-'aziz, during his caliphate, gave the orchard called Fedek to Imam Muhammad Baqir, who accepted it, so that it was possessed by the Imams until it was seized by Abbasid Khalifas. Then, in the two hundred and third year of the Hegira, Khalifa Mamun wrote to his official Qusam bin Jafar and thus the orchard was given again to one of the Imams, namely to Imam Ali Rida, and upon his death the same year, it was given to Yahya, a grandson of Zayd, who was hadrat Husain's grandson. This person should not be mistaken for his namesake, Zayd, who was hadrat Sayyidat Nafisa's grandfather and at the same time hadrat Hasan's son. The orchard was usurped again by Khalifa Mutawakkil, who was Mamun's grandson. Later on Mu'tadid gave it back again. If members of the Ahl al-bayt would not take back their usurped property, why did these Imams, (who were members of the Ahl al-bayt), take the orchard back? By the same token, it is asserted that hadrat Abu Bakr usurped the office of caliphate which belonged to hadrat Ali by rights 'radi-allahu anhuma'. Why did hadrat Ali accept this usurped right later? Furthermore, why did hadrat Husain 'radi-allahu ta'ala anh' try to win his usurped right of caliphate back from Yazid so earnestly that he attained martyrdom in the end?

2) "Hadrat Ali imitated hadrat Fatima 'radi-allahu anhuma' and did not accept any share from Fedek," they say.

This answer of theirs is even more unsound. Then why did the Imams who accepted Fedek (afterwards) not imitate hadrat Fatima? If it was a fard to imitate her, why did they ignore this fard? If it was supererogatory and not fard, then why did hadrat Ali do this supererogatory act at the cost of omitting an act that was fard? For it is fard to give everyone his or her due. Moreover, it might be reasonable to imitate someone's optional behavior. If this behavior is a result of coercion it should not be imitated. If hadrat Fatima's 'radi-allahu ta'ala anha' not utilizing Fedek was due to someone else's oppression, then she had to waive her right because she had no other way. In this case it would have been senseless to imitate her.

3) "Hadrat Ali 'radi-allahu ta'ala' had witnessed Fedek's being bequeathed to hadrat Fatima. In order to show that this witnessing was done for Allah's sake and not for worldly advantages, he did not accept any advantage from Fedek," they say.

This answer of theirs is weak, too. Those who knew about hadrat Ali's witnessing and those who rejected it were dead by the time he became Khalifa. Furthermore, some Imams' accepting the orchard named Fedek made the group called Khariji consider that hadrat Ali might have done this witnessing in order to obtain advantages for his children. In fact, in matters concerning real estates, such as fields, houses, vineyards and orchards, one thinks of one's children's advantages rather than one's own. Perhaps, hadrat Ali might have advised his children not to utilize Fedek lest his witnessing be tarnished. And his children might have refused Fedek both to imitate hadrat Fatima and to fulfill this secret advice. Such is scholars' comments on the matter.

4) "Hadrat Ali's not accepting the orchard called Fedek was intended for Taqiyya. Taqiyya is necessary for Shiites," they say. Taqiyya means to get on well with people one does not like.

This statement of theirs is untenable, too. For, according to Shiites, "when an Imam takes the battlefield and begins to fight it is haram for him to do Taqiyya. It was for this reason that hadrat Husain did not do Taqiyya." To say that hadrat Ali did Taqiyya during his caliphate would mean to say that he committed haram.

Ibni Mutahhir Hulli, a Shiite scholar, states in his book Menhej-ul-kerama, "When Fatima said to Abu Bakr that Fedek had been bequeathed to her, Abu Bakr wrote an answer asking for witnesses. When no witnesses were produced he dismissed the case." If this report is correct, the case of Fedek, like any other case pertaining to inheritance, gifting or bequeathing, lapses from hadrat Abu Bakr 'radi-allahu anh'. So there is no reason for blaming hadrat Abu Bakr. At this point two questions occur:

A- The cases of inheritance, gift and will pleaded by hadrat Fatima were found wrong by hadrat Abu Bakr, but why did he not prefer to please her by giving her the orchard she demanded? Thus the problem would have been settled by mutual concession, she would not have been offended, and there would not have been so many rumors.

This matter cost hadrat Abu Bakr very much hard thought and heavy excruciation, and he really did want to solve it in the manner suggested above. If he had chosen to appease hadrat Fatima's blessed heart by this way, two grave wounds would have gaped in Islam: people would have gossiped about him, saying, for instance, that "The Khalifa shows favoritism in religious affairs. He prefers pleasing his acquaintances to doing justice. He fulfills his friends' wishes in a case that has been lost. When it comes to workers and peasants, he makes all sorts of difficulty with respect to documents and witnesses before they win a case." Such gossips, when widespread, would have caused tumults that would last till the end of the world. Moreover, judges and Qadis would have followed the Khalifa's example, showing indulgence and partiality in their decisions. As for the second wound; if he had donated the orchard of Fedek to hadrat Fatima, he would have made her repossess something of which the Messenger of Allah had dispossessed his inheritors of by saying that property left from Prophets is alms. He did not do so because he knew about the hadith ash-Sharif that warned, "A person who takes the alms (he has given before) back is like a dog eating its tale." He would not commit such a dreadful act deliberately. Aside from these two wounds which the Islamic religion would have suffered, a number of worldly problems would have emerged, too. Hadrat Abbas and Rasulullah's blessed wives would have sued for their rights, too, each demanding a similar orchard or farm. All these problems would have produced other problems which in turn would have been too difficult for hadrat Abu Bakr to cope with. He therefore risked the grief of having been unable to please hadrat Fatima than venture upon these various catastrophic adventures. It is stated in a hadith ash-Sharif, "When a believer confronts a dilemma, let him choose the alternative which seems less unwelcome." Hadrat Abu Bakr did so. For this alternative was remediable. And it was remedied, too. The other alternative, on the other hand, would have caused incurable wounds. Religious matters would have become complicated.

B- As for the second question: It is stated in both Sunnite and Shiite books that this disagreement between hadrat Abu Bakr and hadrat Fatima 'radi-allahu ta'ala anhuma' was settled. Yet why did Fatima-t-uz-Zahra wish that hadrat Abu Bakr not attend her funeral? And why did she request in her last will that hadrat Ali bury her at night (after her death)?

This we would answer as follows: hadrat Fatima's wish to be buried at night was a result of her excessive feeling of shame. As a matter of fact, she stated towards her death, "I feel very much shame whenever I remember that when I die they will take me among men without any cover." In those days it was customary to wrap a dead woman's corpse in a shroud only, so that the corpse in the shroud would be taken out of the coffin without any cover. Esma binti Umeyr relates: "One day I told her that I had seen people interlace date branches like weaving tents in Abyssinia. Hadrat Fatima said, 'Let me see you do it.' When I did it to show her, she liked it very much and smiled. She had never been seen smiling since Rasulullah's passing away. She made this will to me: 'When I am dead, you wash me. Let Ali be present too. Do not let anyone else in.' " It was for this reason that hadrat Ali did not invite anyone to her funeral. According to a narration, after performing the namaz of janaza for her, (hadrat Ali), hadrat Abbas and a few other members of the Ahl al-bayt buried her at night. According to other narratives, the following day Abu Bakr Siddiq, 'Umar Faruq and many other Sahabis came to hadrat Ali's house to pay a visit of well-wishing. When they knew that hadrat Fatima had passed away and had already been buried, they expressed their sorrow, saying, "Why didn't you send for us so that we could perform the (janaza) namaz for her and help the funeral services?" Hadrat Ali apologized and said that he had done so to carry out her will to be buried at night lest other men should see her. It is stated in the book Fasl-ul-hitab: Abu Bakr as-Siddiq and 'Uthman Zinnureyn and Abd-ur-rahman bin Awf and Zubair bin Awwam were in the mosque for night prayer, when (they heard that) hadrat Fatima had passed away some time between evening and night prayers. It was the second day of the blessed month of Ramadan and the following day was Tuesday. She was twenty-four years old and the Messenger of Allah (her blessed, beloved father) had passed away only six months before. Upon hadrat Ali's request, hadrat Abu Bakr became the imam and conducted the namaz (of janaza) for her with four takbirs:

Hadrat Abu Bakr's not being present at the burial was for the reasons explained above. If there had been disagreement between them, hadrat Abu Bakr would not have conducted the namaz of janaza for her. According to a report, which is written in Shiite books as well as in Sunnite ones, hadrat Husain beckoned to hadrat Said bin As, who was hadrat Muawiya's governor in the blessed city of Medina, to conduct the namaz of janaza for (his elder brother) Imam Hasan, and said, "Were it not the sunnat of my grandfather (Rasulullah) that the Amir should conduct the namaz of janaza, I would not let you conduct it." Hence, hadrat Fatima did not state in her last will that hadrat Abu Bakr should not conduct the namaz for her. If she had made such a will, hadrat Husain would not have done something contrary to this will of hadrat Fatima's. It is obvious that Said bin As was thousands of times lower than hadrat Abu Bakr in being an imam. Only six months earlier hadrat Fatima's superior father, Rasulullah 'sall-allahu alaihi wa sallam' had appointed hadrat Abu Bakr as the imam (to conduct the namaz in jamaat) in front of all the Muhajirs and Ansars. Hadrat Fatima could not have forgotten this in such a short time as six months.

4- "One of them broke the ribs and the arm of this beloved child of the Messenger of Allah. Not only that. Attacking our mother hadrat Fatima because she refused to see his black face and tried to shut the door to him, he said, "I will burn and destroy your house if you do not pay homage." Pressing that defenseless mother between the door and the wall, he caused the (expected) innocent and pure baby, which had already been named Muhsin, to be lost," he says.

Hasan Qusuri attributes these lies to two books titled Najm- ul-qulub and Qumru and alleged to have been written by a person named Dislikli Hasan Effendi.

Through these slanders he strives to give a shock to those hearts that are full with love and respect for the noble Amir of Muslims, i.e. for our master hadrat 'Umar-ul-Faruq 'radi-allahu anh', who is very much loved by Muslims, who is praised and lauded in ayat al-karimas, who was given the good news through hadith ash-Sharifs that he would go to Paradise, and whose justice, honor and fame occupy vast spaces in the world's histories. Since the person he puts forward is not among scholars, neither Sunnite nor Shiite, and the two books he names appear to exist only in his repertory, we shall not smear our pen with them. Let us harken to what the book Tuhfa says in answer to these sordid lies:

These lies of Hurufis meet with outright objection, not only by the Ahl as-sunnat, but also on the part of Shiites, who acknowledge that they have been spread by a few lowly, ignoble, shameless heretics. Shiites, however, have insisted in their aberrant credo by saying, "He wished to burn the house, but he did not attempt to do it." On the other hand, wishing is a feeling, which in turn is the heart's business. No one except Allahu ta'ala can know this. If these aberrant people mean to say that "He said he would burn the house in order to threaten them," yes, hadrat 'Umar threatened a few people by saying so. These people had crowded around hadrat Fatima's house. "No one can harm us a long as we are here," they were saying. Their purpose was to disarray the caliphate election by arising fitna and tumult. Their noise annoyed hadrat Fatima very much. Yet her excessive feeling of shame would not let her hold out her head and tell them to leave the place. At that moment 'Umar-ul-Faruq, who was passing by, saw them and knew at once what was going on. In order to frighten them away, he said, "I'll pull the house down on you." This type of threat was customary in Arabia. As a matter of fact, Rasulullah 'sall-allahu alaihi wa sallam' stated, "If they do not rid themselves of this remissness I shall pull their houses on them," in order to warn those who would not attend public prayers of namaz. Hadrat Abu Bakr had been appointed by our master the Messenger of Allah 'sall-allahu alaihi wa sallam' as the imam to conduct the public prayers of namaz. Some people, who considered that they might as well not follow him, did not join the jamaat. So Rasulullah 'sall-allahu alaihi wa sallam' threatened them. Therefore, this statement of hadrat 'Umar's possesses expressive subtlety. Moreover, on the day when Mecca was conquered, an unbeliever named Ibn Hatal was reported to have been reciting poems of vituperation against our master the Prophet. Lest he should be punished, the heathen took asylum in Kaba-i- muazzama and hid himself under its cover. "Do not hesitate. Kill him there, right away!" was the blessed Prophet's order. When people who were against the religion of Allahu ta'ala could not take asylum in the home of Allah, how could they take shelter behind hadrat Fatima's wall? How could it be possible for hadrat Fatima not to feel worried about their sheltering there? For that pure daughter of the Messenger of Allah 'radi-allahu ta'ala anha' had equipped herself with the beautiful moral values exemplified by Allahu ta'ala. Also, authentic reports show that hadrat Fatima, too, ordered them to leave the place.

When hadrat Ali became Khalifa upon hadrat 'Uthman's 'radi-allahu anh' martyrdom, a few people from Mecca went to Medina in order to cause tumult. Taking refuge in the home of hadrat Aisha the mother of believers, they demanded retaliation against hadrat 'Uthman's murderers and stated that they were ready for combat. There was not a single member of the Ashab al-kiram among them. As soon as hadrat Ali was reported to about this, he had these men killed there. He did not consider that doing so would be an act of irreverence towards the blessed wife of the Messenger of Allah. The statement which hadrat 'Umar made as a mere threat would be quite insignificant when compared with this behavior against the sacred wife of the Messenger of Allah were it considered as a sacrilege. Yes, hadrat Ali's action was quite appropriate. He could not be expected to observe such insignificant subtleties while suppressing a fitna and instigation which would otherwise have infected all Muslims. If he had observed these trivialities at the cost of not nipping the fitna in the bud, all the religious and worldly states of affairs would have been jumbled into a mess. Respect was due not only to hadrat Fatima's house but also to the blessed wife of the Messenger of Allah. All hadrat 'Umar did was to make a few dissuasive remarks. He did not take action. Hadrat Ali, on the other hand, took the gravest action. Since hadrat 'Umar's remarks were far less momentous than hadrat Ali's action, censuring him on account of his remarks could be nothing but sheer bigotry and obduracy. Scholars of Ahl as-sunnat say that hadrat Ali was the Khalifa and therefore did not observe the respect due to hadrat Aisha because the people's future was at stake. They do not justify criticizing him. According to Hurufis' lies, on the other hand, because hadrat Abu Bakr's caliphate was not rightful it was a very grave sin to defend him at the sacrifice of the respect due towards hadrat Fatima's house. This opinion of theirs is the expression of an extremely ignorant and idiotic thought. For both caliphates were rightful according to the Ahl as- Sunnat. Furthermore, hadrat 'Umar knew that hadrat Abu Bakr's caliphate was rightful and no one was against his caliphate. It was the earliest days of Islam yet and the young tree of religion and faith was sprouting. Those who attempted to impair this rightful caliphatic order and thus to raise fitna and confusion deserved to be killed. And yet hadrat 'Umar only tried to dissuade them by verbal threat. Why should he be blamed for it? Another appalling paradox is some Shiite scholars' stating that Zubair bin Awwam, the son of Rasulullah's paternal aunt, was among those youngsters who were threatened by hadrat 'Umar. Do not these people ever think? How could it be possible that Zubair bin Awwam, who was some time later killed on account of the harsh talks he made concerning the retaliation he and his friends demanded upon the martyrdom of hadrat 'Uthman, not be blamed for being among the mutinirs? While his arousing fitna and attempting instigation in hadrat Fatima's house is tolerated, why is it considered a grave felony for him to complain about hadrat 'Uthman's murderers in the presence of hadrat Aisha and to demand retaliation against them 'radi-allahu ta'ala anhum ajmain'? These inconsistencies are all results of wrong beliefs.

Performing the namaz in jamaat is for one's personal benefit. A person's not joining the jamaat will not harm any other Muslim. However, Rasulullah 'sall-allahu alaihi wa sallam' threatened those who would not join the jamaat with pulling their houses down on them. Then, why should it not be permissible for hadrat 'Umar to threaten with burning their houses those instigators whose mutiny would have otherwise infected all Muslims and damaged Islam thoroughly? Our master the Messenger of Allah 'sall-allahu alaihi wa sallam' did not honor hadrat Fatima's house with his blessed presence till after the curtains with pictures of living creatures on them had been removed. In fact, he would not enter Kaba al-muazzama unless the statues which were said to be of hadrat Ibrahim and hadrat Ismail were taken out. Why should hadrat 'Umar be blamed for threatening the instigators with "pulling the house down on them" in order to dissuade them from arousing a strife near hadrat Fatima's blessed and sacred house? If it should be said that he should have observed the rules of manner and should not have done this threat; no one can observe the rules of manner at times of very important problems and serious dangers. For instance, hadrat Ali 'radi-allahu anh' did not observe the rules of manner due to hadrat Aisha-i- Siddiqa. As it is seen, even the Shiite sect does not justify vituperating or criticizing hadrat 'Umar on account of behavior agreeable with that of the innocent imam (hadrat Ali).

5- "The oppressors carried on their cruelty. Another one conferred governorship on his step brother, the ignoble and frothy-mouthed person named Uqba bin Walid, who had spat at the face of the Messenger of Allah. On the other hand, he promoted people who had been banished by the Messenger of Allah to positions secondary to caliphate. He revenged for all these by throwing, and having others throw, arrows at the coffin of hadrat Hasan-i- Mujtaba," he says.

This time he attacks 'Uthman Zinnureyn 'radi-allahu anh'. Fortunately, the loop he tries to put round the neck of the Ahl as-sunnat catches him by the feet and destroys him. He reveals his ignorance by attacking the third Khalifa through the false accusation that he appointed his step brother Uqba bin Walid as a governor although that person had spat at Rasulullah's face. For one thing, the person who threw his filthy saliva at the blessed face of the Messenger of Allah was Utayba, Abu Leheb's son. Abu Leheb, who was hadrat Ali's paternal uncle, was an implacable enemy of the Messenger of Allah. When the Tabbat yada sura was revealed to inform that this person and his wife Umm-i- Jamil, who had heaped thorns in front of the door of Rasulullah's house, would go to Hell, he went all the more berserk. He sent for his sons Utba and Utayba and ordered them to divorce Rasulullah's daughters. These two villains were polytheists and missed the very high honor of becoming sons-in-law to the Messenger of Allah. Utayba not only divorced Umm-i-Ghulthum 'radi-allahu anha', but also entered the blessed presence of the Messenger of Allah and said, "I do not believe you. I do not like you. And you do not like me, either. So I divorce your daughter." He attacked the Messenger of Allah, pulled his blessed collar and tore his shirt. Pouring down his repulsive saliva, he went away. Rasulullah 'sall-allahu alaihi wa sallam' supplicated to Allahu ta'ala, "Ya Rabbi! Send one of Thine wild beasts onto this man!" Janab-i-Haqq accepted the prayer of His Prophet. This abominable person was traveling to Damascus, when his caravan stopped to spend the night at a place called Zerqa. As everyone was asleep, a lion smelled him out and tore him to pieces, and only him in the group. It was before their wedding when these ignoble people divorced the two beautiful girls. Their purpose was to put the Messenger of Allah into financial straits. Yet hadrat 'Uthman 'radi-allahu anh' seized the opportunity, marrying hadrat Ruqayya divorced by Utba virginal as she was and attaining the honor of becoming Rasulullah's son-in-law. Hadrat 'Uthman was very good looking. He was blonde haired and white complexioned. And he was much richer than Abu Leheb's bastards. Another person who tormented Rasulullah very much was Uqba bin Abi Muayt. The Messenger of Allah was performing namaz in the Masjid al-Haram, when this villain came and put animal stomachs on his blessed head. At another time he attacked him and squeezed his blessed throat with his blessed shirt. Hadrat Abu Bakr, who was passing by, saw this and helped the Messenger of Allah, reproaching the unbeliever, "Are you killing a person who says: Allah is my Rabb?" Rasulullah 'sall-allahu alaihi wa sallam' named the unbelievers being there and supplicated to Allahu ta'ala, "Ya Rabbi! Put these people into a hole of torment in the ground!" Abdullah Ibni Masud relates, "In the Holy War of Badr I saw all these people being killed and thrown into a hole in the ground. Only Uqba bin Abi Muayt was killed on his way back from the Holy War." As is seen, the unbelievers named Utayba and Uqba, who persecuted Rasulullah 'sall-allahu alaihi wa sallam' very much, did not live long enough to see the times of Khalifas. They went to Hell before. The allegation that the Khalifa promoted them to caliphate is an acknowledgement of ignorance.

Yes, hadrat Muawiya 'radi-allahu anh' appointed his brother Utba's son as the governor of Medina. Yet his name was Walid bin Utba. After Walid became governor in the year 57, he respected hadrat Husain and many other Sahabis very highly. In fact, when Yazid became Khalifa, he dismissed Walid from office for failing to execute his order that the people of Medina be made to obey him and setting hadrat Husain free.

It is obvious that this writing in the autumn magazine is an aspersion cast on hadrat 'Uthman 'radi-allahu anh'. For hadrat 'Uthman appointed his step brother, that is, his brother from the same mother, as the Amir of Kufa. Yet, contrary to this author's allegation, he was not Uqba bin Walid. He was Walid bin Uqba. That is, he was the son of the unbeliever named Uqba. He writes the name the other way round. This Walid became a believer at the conquest of Mecca. He was not the person who committed the despicable deed. In the ninth year (of the Hegira) the Messenger of Allah gave him the duty of collecting zakat from (the tribe of) Bani Mustalaq. Supposing that the author confuses names, we shall answer this, too.

Sad Ibni Abi Waqqas 'radi-allahu anh' borrowed some property from Abdullah Ibni Masud 'radi- allahu anh', who was in charge of the Bayt-ul-mal (Treasury Department of the Islamic government). He failed to pay it back. This matter became a public rumor that spread throughout the city of Kufa. Upon hearing about this, 'Uthman 'radi-allahu anh', who was the Khalifa at that time, dismissed hadrat Sad from office as the Amir. He appointed Walid, whom he trusted, for his place. Walid was a person gifted with administrative talents. He put an end to the gossips. He managed to become popular among the people. The people of Azarbaijan rose in rebellion. Walid recruited soldiers and appointed competent commanders for the dispatch of troops. Hadrat Huzaifa-i-Yamani, the Amir of Medayn, joined the army, too. Walid himself commanded the army and quelled the insurrection. Performing ghaza against disbelievers, he obtained many booties. Intelligence came that a great Byzantine army was approaching towards Sivas and Malatya. Walid sent forth Iraqi forces to help the Damascene forces. Many places were conquered in Anatolia. In the thirtieth year of the Hegira, those who envied Walid brought a complaint against him to hadrat Abdullah Ibni Masud, saying that he was addicted to alcohol. When Abdullah Ibni Masud rejected the complaint he said that he "would not take action against a person who did not sin in public," they made another complaint, this time to the Khalifa. Hadrat 'Uthman called Walid to Medina. An investigation was conducted and it was found out that Walid was a wine drinker. He was chastised with what was termed Hadd in the Islamic penal code, and Said bin As was appointed for his place. Earlier, Walid had been assigned a duty in Jazira by hadrat 'Umar. Later on we shall give detailed information about the governors appointed by hadrat 'Uthman 'radi-allahu ta'ala anh'. As for the slander that they threw arrows at hadrat Hasan's coffin; it is one of the blatant lies fabricated by Hurufis, enemies of the Ahl as-Sunnat. The truth is as follows, as it is communicated in the book Qisas-i-Anbiya:

In the forty-ninth year of the Hegira Hadrat Husain 'radi-allahu anh' was preparing to bury (the corpse of) his elder brother hadrat Hasan in the Hujra-i- saadat, when Marwan, who had been dismissed from some office and was dwelling in Medina, said that they would not let anyone to be buried there. He gathered around himself all the Umayyads living in Medina. Upon this the Hashimites took up arms to fight them. So hadrat Husain, advised by Abu Huraira 'radi-allahu anhuma', took his brother to the cemetery of Baki', thus preventing a tumult. Said bin As, the governor of Medina, who was an Umayyad, attended the funeral. As it was customary, he conducted the namaz of janaza.

Another writer who criticizes hadrat 'Uthman 'radi-allahu anh' is an Egyptian named Sayyid Qutb, whose style of criticism betrays the fact that he was misled by the Hurufi publications. This man, who is being represented as an Islamic scholar, a mujtahid, and whose books are being translated into Turkish (and English) and proposed to the younger generation by a certain group of people, calumniates this blessed Khalifa, who is loved very much by Muslims, through a very sordid and profane language in the hundred and eighty-sixth and later pages of his book Al-adalat-ul-Ijtima'iy-yat-u-fi-l-islam, printed in 1377 (A.D. 1958). Our Islamic education would not let us quote all his slanders. We shall therefore translate only a few lines from a few pages:

"'Uthman's taking the office of caliphate at such an old age was an unfortunate event. He was incapable of administering Muslims' matters. He was vulnerable to Marwan's tricks and to the stratagems of Umayyads. He spent Muslims' property in a haphazard way. This conduct of his was often a subject of common gossip. He appointed his relatives to positions to preside over the people. Among them was Hakem, who had been dismissed by Rasulullah. When he married his son to the daughter of this man's son Haris, he gave them two hundred dirhams as a gift from the Bayt-ul-mal. The following morning the treasurer of Bayt-ul-mal Zayd bin Erqam came to him, weeping, and asked to be dismissed from office. Realizing that Zayd decided to resign because he (hadrat 'Uthman) was transferring property from the Bayt-ul-mal to his relatives, he asked him, 'Are you weeping because I am doing favors to my relatives?' 'No,' was Zayd's answer. 'I am weeping because I think you are taking these things in return for the property you donated for the sake of Allah when Rasulullah was alive.' Angered by this answer, 'Uthman said, 'Leave the keys belonging to the Bayt-ul-mal and go! I shall find someone else.' There are many other events exemplifying 'Uthman's extravagance. He gave six hundred thousand dirhams to Zubair, two hundred thousand to Talha, and one - fifth of the taxes collected from Africa to Marwan. He was reproached for this behavior by the Sahaba, particularly by Ali bin Abi Talib.

"He enlarged Muawiya's personal property and gave Palestine to him. He appointed Hakem and his foster brother Abdullah bin Sad and his other relatives as governors. Seeing that he was gradually getting away from Islam's essence, the Sahaba assembled in Medina. The Khalifa was very old and weary and things were in Marwan's control. The people sent Ali bin Abi Talib to advise 'Uthman. There was a long talk between them. 'Uthman asked, 'Wasn't Mughira, who is a governor now, a governor in 'Umar's time, too?' 'Yes, he was,' was Ali's answer. 'Uthman asked again, 'Didn't 'Umar appoint Muawiya as a governor throughout his caliphate?' Ali answered, 'Yes, he did. But Muawiya feared 'Umar very much. Now he is carrying on intrigues without you knowing. He is doing all these by saying that they are your orders. You hear about all these but do not say anything to Muawiya.' In the time of 'Uthman right and wrong, good and bad were mixed with each other. If 'Uthman had become Khalifa earlier he would have been young enough. If he had held the office later, that is, if Ali had become Khalifa instead of him, it would have been better because in that case the Umayyads would not have interfered," he says. Then he vituperates the Islamic Khalifas, particularly hadrat Muawiya, asserts that they squandered the Bayt-ul-mal for their personal pleasures and dissipations, and adds that all these things were caused by hadrat 'Uthman.

It is proven with documents in the book Tuhfa that these allegations of Sayyid Outb's are false and wrong. Hadrat 'Uthman 'radi-allahu anh' was elected Khalifa through the unanimous vote of the Ashab al-kiram. And hadrat Ali was among those who voted for him. By censuring hadrat 'Uthman, Sayyid Qutb opposes the unanimity of the Ashab al- kiram and even the hadith ash-Sharif which states, "My Ummat (Muslims) will not agree on something wrong."

It is stated as follows in the book Mirat-i-kainat: "Hadrat 'Uthman bin Affan bin Ebil'as bin Umayya bin 'Abd-i-Shams bin 'Abd-i-Menaf bin Quzay, who was the third Khalifa, was the fourth man to have iman in the Messenger of Allah. When hadrat 'Uthman's paternal uncle Hakem bin Ebil'as tied him and told him that he was not going to untie him unless he returned to his grandparents' religion, he said he would rather die than go back (to the former false religion). Upon this his uncle gave up hope and untied him. He was Rasulullah's 'sall-allahu alaihi wa sallam' clerk of Wahy, (that is, it was his duty to write down the ayats revealed to the Prophet). The Messenger 'alaihis-salam' married his daughter Ruqayya to him with the command of Allahu ta'ala. When Ruqayya passed away in Medina during the Holy War of Badr, the Prophet gave him his second daughter Umm- i-Ghulthum. When she, too, passed away, in the ninth year of the Hegira, the Messenger stated, 'If I had other daughters I would give them, too, to 'Uthman!' When he gave his second daughter Umm-i-Ghulthum, he said to her, 'O my daughter! Your husband 'Uthman resembles your ancestor Prophet Ibrahim and your father Muhammad 'alaihim-as-salam' more than anyone else does.' No one except hadrat 'Uthman has had the lot of marrying a Prophet's two daughters. When hadrat 'Uthman came near the Messenger 'alaihis-salam' the Prophet covered his blessed feet with his skirts. When hadrat Aisha asked him why he did so he stated, 'Angels feel shame in front of him. Should I not?' He stated in a hadith ash- Sharif, ''Uthman is my brother in Paradise and will always be with me.' In the Holy War of Tabuk the number of Muslim soldiers was too high for the food and equipment available. Trouble was ahead. Hadrat 'Uthman brought three thousand camels, seventy horses and ten thousand golds out of his own commercial property. After distributing these to the soldiers, Rasulullah stated, 'From today on, no sins will be recorded for 'Uthman.' It is stated in a hadith ash-Sharif, which exists in the book Jami'us-saghir by hadrat Imam-i- Suyuti 'rahmatullahi ta'ala alaih': 'With 'Uthman's intercession, seventy thousand Muslims who are to go to Hell will enter Paradise without any questioning.' Hadrat 'Uthman possessed very much religious lore. He and hadrat 'Umar would have such ardent discussions on religious knowledge that people who heard them would think they were quarrelling."

It is stated in the book Tuhfa: During his caliphate hadrat 'Uthman would employ everyone at a place suitable for his personality. He would assign everyone a duty within his capability. The Khalifa is not supposed to know the unknown. Hadrat 'Uthman appointed people he trusted, people he knew as good businessmen, people he considered to be trustworthy and just, and people he thought would obey his commands to administrative positions. No one has the right to censure him on account of this. People who are against him are trying to misrepresent his rightful behavior as unrighteous. Hadrat 'Uthman's governors and commanders were the choicest people in their attachments to him, in doing his commandments, in military skills, in conquering countries, and in their studious habits. In his time they widened the Islamic countries to Spain in the west and to Kabel and Balh in the east. They carried the Islamic armies from one victory to another at sea and on land. Iraq and Khorasan had become hubs of fitna and instigation during the reign of the second Khalifa. They purged these places so efficiently that it was impossible for the mischief makers to recover. If some of these governors displayed behavior contradictory with hadrat 'Uthman's expectations, why should the blame be put on him? He would never be silent when he saw such behavior. Or he would make an investigation to find out whether it was only a matter of slander spread by the enviers. For statesmen naturally have many enemies and those who envy them. Replacing officials upon a mere complaint will throw a country's administrative system into disorder. Therefore, he would first investigate and, if the complaints proved true, immediately dismiss the official concerned. Indeed, he dismissed Walid. Hadrat Muawiya did not revolt against him. He was very popular in Damascus. No one under his authority suffered the smallest harm. He was governing Muslims with justice and performing Jihad against disbelievers. Who would dismiss such a hero? Why should he have dismissed Abdullah bin Sad, the governor of Egypt? After hadrat 'Uthman, this person resigned and stood away from commotions. The complaints against him which Medina received from Egypt were all fabrications of the Jew named Abdullah bin Saba'. In short, hadrat 'Uthman did his duty perfectly. However, destiny's disposition acted against his proposition and he failed to extinguish the fire made by Jews.

The case with hadrat 'Uthman is similar in many respects to that of hadrat Ali. Various precautions taken by hadrat Ali, for instance, came to naught. Only, hadrat 'Uthman's governors were always attached and obedient to him. They regularly sent the booties to the Khalifa. All Muslims had sufficient property and lived in peace and comfort. In fact, these well-to-do conditions contributed to the arising of fitna. Hadrat Ali's governors, on the other hand, revolted against him. They did not do their duties. State administration was impaired. Hadrat Ali's own relatives, e.g. his paternal first cousins, joined this remiss. If those people who attempt to vilify hadrat 'Uthman will not believe Sunnite scholars, let them read Shiite books. Then they will realize the facts. The book Nahj-ul-belagha, which is valued very highly by Shiites, quotes a letter which hadrat Ali wrote to his paternal first cousin. In this letter he expresses the trust he put on that munafiq. Then the book Nahj-ul- belagha goes on and gives a detailed account of that man's acts of treason. Munzir bin Jarut, another governor appointed by hadrat Ali, proved to be a traitor. The letter of threat which the Khalifa wrote to him exists in most Shiite books. Hadrat Ali could not be vilified on account of these governors of his. Even Prophets fell for the soft words of munafiqs. However, Wahy would be sent to Prophets and thus the inner malice of most munafiqs would be revealed. Shiites maintain that Imams have to be aware of the unknown. And they blame hadrat 'Uthman for failing to do so. With this conviction of theirs, they denigrate hadrat Ali 'karram-allahu wajhah', too. According to their fallacy, hadrat Ali appointed traitors to positions over Muslims although he knew that they would turn into treason. The infamous villain named Ziyad bin Abih was another governor appointed by hadrat Ali.

Another event they use as a ground for casting aspersions on hadrat 'Uthman is his admitting Marwan's father Hakem bin As into Medina. Rasulullah 'sall-allahu alaihi wa sallam' had deported Hakem from Medina because he had made friends with munafiqs and aroused fitna among Muslims. During the reigns of the first two Khalifas disbelievers were purged and there were no munafiqs left. Therefore, it was not necessary for Hakem to live in exile any longer. The former two Khalifas would not allow him to return home. For he was likely to resume his former mischievous acts. Hakem belonged to the Bani Ummayya tribe. And the two Khalifas belonged to the Tamim and Adiy tribes. They could relapse into the tribal hostilities prevalent in the era of nescience (before Islam). Hadrat 'Uthman, however, was Hakem's brother's son. There was therefore no longer any reason for such anxiety. Hadrat 'Uthman explained this decision as follows: "I had had Rasulullah's permission to bring him back to Medina. When I told Khalifa Abu Bakr, he asked me to prove it by witnesses. I was silent because I did not have any witnesses. Hoping that Khalifa 'Umar would accept my statement, I told him, too. Yet he, too, asked for witnesses. When I became Khalifa, I gave him permission (to return to Medina) because I knew." Rasulullah 'sall-allahu alaihi wa sallam' stated during his illness, "I wish someone pious came to me and I said something to him." When they asked if they should send for Abu Bakr, the Messenger said, "No." They asked if he would like to see 'Umar, he said, "No" again. Their third suggestion was Ali and the Prophet's answer was again, "No." Finally they suggested to send for 'Uthman. This time the answer was, "Yes." When hadrat 'Uthman came, Rasulullah said something to him. In the meantime, perhaps he interceded for Hakem and his intercession was accepted. It is a known fact that Hakem gave up his habits of instigation and mischief and made tawba towards his death. Besides, he was too old to do anything when he was back in Medina.

On the other hand, the gifts he gave to his relatives were not from the Bayt-ul-mal as is alleged by Hurufi books and by Sayyid Qutb. They were from his personal property. Hadrat Abd-ul-Ghani Nabulusi states as follows in the seven hundred and nineteenth page of the second volume of his book Hadiqa: "Three of the four Khalifas received their salaries from the Bayt-ul-mal, that is, from the state treasury. Hadrat 'Uthman would not accept a salary because he was very rich. He did not need a salary." The book Bariqa, after giving the same information in its fourteen hundred and thirty-first page, adds the following statement: "On the day when 'Uthman 'radi-allahu anh' was martyred, one hundred and fifty thousand dinars of gold, one million dirhams of silver and clothes that were worth two hundred thousand golds were found among his servant's personal belongings." He was a cloth-merchant. His gifts were not only to his relatives. He was generous to everybody. He would do many charitable deeds for Allah's sake. He would emancipate a slave every Friday. He would give a feast to the Ashab al-kiram every day. No one would say that property given for Allah's sake is property squandered. And it is stated in a hadith ash-Sharif that alms given to one's relatives will earn one twice as much thawab. Hadrat 'Uthman convened the Ashab al- kiram. Ammar bin Yaser was among them. Hadrat 'Uthman said, "I call you to witness that the Messenger of Allah 'sall-allahu alaihi wa sallam' granted precedence to the Quraish and Bani Hashimi (tribes) among people who deserve kindness. If they gave me the keys to Paradise I would put them all into Paradise. I would not leave any one of them outside." The Ashab al-kiram 'radi-allahu ta'ala anhum ajmain said nothing in response to these statements of hadrat 'Uthman's. It would be sheer bigotry and pertinacity to suppose that he gave all his gifts from the Bayt-ul-mal. It is a symptom of enmity against him. When he was asked, his answer was, "Do not burden me with something incompatible with justice and taqwa." When hadrat 'Uthman married his son to Marwan's brother Haris' daughter, he sent one thousand dirhams of silver out of his own property. As he married his daughter Ruman to Marwan he gave them one thousand dirhams, too. Neither of these gifts were from the Bayt-ul-mal.

The allegation, "He donated one-fifth of the booties coming from Afrikiyya to Marwan," which Sayyid Qutb adopts from Hurufi books and Abbasid histories, is another falsification. In the (Hijri) year 29 hadrat 'Uthman sent Abdullah bin Sad to Africa with one thousand strong army of cavalry and infantry troops under his command. Upon this, bloody combats took place in the Tunisian capital city Afrikiyya. Muslims won and obtained many booties. Abdullah Marwan went to the Khalifa with one- fifth of the booties. The number of coins alone was more than five thousand golds. It was a distance of several months' traveling and therefore it would be difficult and dangerous to transport all these booties to Medina. Marwan sold one thousand dirhams of these and brought the remainder to Medina. He also reported the good news, which in turn earned him earnest benedictions. In return for Marwan's onerous trek and the good news he gave, the Khalifa forgave him for failing to deliver all the money he had received for the property sold on the way. It was within the Khalifa's authority to do so. Moreover, all this happened in the presence of the Sahaba 'radi-allahu ta'ala anhum ajmain'. If a person is sent one thousand golds and he donates one or more golds as a tip to the person who brings them, no one will call this extravagance. As a matter of fact, Allahu ta'ala commands that the zakat-collector be paid as much as he needs. Another slanderous allegation is that "he gave Abdullah bin Khalid one thousand dirhams." He ordered that this person be lent some money. Abdullah paid his debt later. When he heard that his son-in-law Haris was doing injustice in collecting the zakat from the merchants in Medina, he dismissed him from office and punished him.

'Uthman-i-Zinnureyn 'radi-allahu anh' would give the uncultivated lands in Hijaz and Iraq to people he trusted and to his relatives, buy them agricultural implements and have them cultivate these lands, thus providing arable land for the people. He improved agriculture and reared vineyards and orchards. He had wells dug and canals opened. The arid lands of Arabia became the most fertile places in his time. This consequently brought safety and peace to the country. Thieves and wild beasts were now historical subjects. Guest-houses and inns were built in the places formerly occupied by their dens. And all these gave birth to consequent facilities in traveling and transportation. These were tremendously wonderful events for Arabia. These feats cannot be accomplished with the motorized tools of the twentieth century. It seemed as if the hadith ash-Sharif, "Crack of doom will not happen unless rivers flow in Arabia," had been uttered to point to the degree of civilization that would be attained in the time of hadrat 'Uthman. In another hadith ash-Sharif the Messenger of Allah had stated to Adi bin Hatem Tai: "If your life is long enough, you will see how a woman travels from the city Hira to Kaba easily and without fearing anyone except Allah." There are many hadith ash-Sharifs foretelling that in the time of hadrat 'Uthman, there will be an increase in property and wealth and improvements in business life. When the Ashab al-kiram saw this prosperity and peace they admired hadrat 'Uthman's administration and accomplishments. They began to work like the Khalifa. Hadrat Ali tilled fields and made vineyards at places called Yenbu' and Fedek and Zuhra, Talha followed his example at Ghabed, and Zubair did so at Zihasheb. The land of Hijaz became prosperous. If hadrat 'Uthman's caliphate lasted a few years longer, the rose gardens of Shiraz and the woods of Hirat would have been surpassed. It is permissible for any person to till dead lands as if they were his own property, provided he be granted permission by the Khalifa. Why should it not be permissible for the Khalifa himself, then? And why should the crops he thus raises not be halal for him? Hadrat 'Uthman enlivened many lands with his own property. He made vineyards and orchards. He had many wells dug. He had many irrigation systems built. He set an example for others. He provided business for people. He established a new precedent. As it is expressed in the saying, "Property will breed property," the people's revenues became many times more. In his time there was no one who did not cultivate the land or rear vineyards. If Mawdudi of India or Sayyid Qutb of Egypt had read Islamic histories, or at least the book Tuhfa, which was written in India, they would feel shame to defame Rasulullah's Khalifas 'radi-allahu ta'ala anhum ajmain'. Realizing that they could not even praise and laud those great people in due manner, they would mind their manners.

The allegation that "he donated one thousand dirhams to Zayd bin Thabit 'radi-allahu ta'ala anh' from the Bayt-ul-mal" is an expression of looking at the events from the evil side. One day he (hadrat 'Uthman) ordered distribution of property from the Bayt-ul-mal to those who deserved payment. His order was carried out. When it was seen that one thousand dirhams was in excess, he ordered that this money be used in public services. Zayd used this money in repairing the Masjid an-Nabi.

A hadith ash-Sharif, which exists in the book Mashihat written by Hafiz Ahmad bin Muhammad Abu Tahir Silafi, a Shafi'i scholar who passed away in 576, and which is reported also by Ibni Asakir Ali bin Muhammad, states, "Loving Abu Bakr and thanking him is wajib for all my Ummat." Imam-i-Munawi also quotes this hadith ash-Sharif from Dailami. It is stated in a hadith ash-Sharif, which exists in the book Wasila by Hafiz 'Umar bin Muhammad Erbili, "As Allahu ta'ala has made namaz, zakat and fasting fard for you, so He has made it fard for you to love Abu Bakr, 'Umar, 'Uthman and Ali." Another hadith ash-Sharif, which is reported by Abdullah Ibni Adi and written in Munawi, states, "Loving Abu Bakr and 'Umar is from iman. And enmity towards them is being munafiq." According to a report given by Imam-i-Tirmuzi, a janaza (dead person ready for interment) was brought to the Messenger of Allah. He would not perform the namaz of janaza for him, and said, "This man felt animosity towards 'Uthman. Therefore, Allahu ta'ala bears animosity towards him." The hundred and first ayat of Tawba sura purports, "Allah loves the early believers among the Muhajirs and Ansar and those people who follow them. And they love Allah. Allah has prepared Gardens of Paradise for them." The first three Khalifas are among the early believers. And hadrat Muawiya and Amr Ibni As are among those people who followed them. Those who malign these great Islamic leaders are opposing the ayat al-karima and the hadith ash-Sharifs by doing so. And a person who opposes an ayat al-karima or a hadith ash-Sharif, in his turn, will go out of Islam and become a disbeliever. His claiming to be a Muslim will only betray the fact that he is a munafiq or a zindiq.

6- "Another old woman fabricated a story of a lost bracelet, with an attempt to cover the desert love affair she had had with Safwan. While doing so, she imposed the cause of divorce on hadrat Ali. This gave birth to the event of Camel," he says.

At this point the magazine shamelessly assails hadrat Aisha-i-Siddiqa 'radi-allahu ta'ala anha', believers' mother and Rasulullah's beloved wife. See what hadrat Abd-ul-haqq Dahlawi, a scholar of Hadith, says in his book Medarij-un-nubuwwa:

The merits and virtues possessed by Aisha-i-Siddiqa 'radi-allahu ta'ala anha' are innumerable. She was one of the scholars of fiqh among the Ashab al-kiram. She would speak very clearly and eloquently. She would give fatwa to the Ashab al-kiram. According to most scholars, one- fourth of the knowledge of fiqh was communicated by hadrat Aisha. It was stated in a hadith ash-Sharif, "Learn one-third of your religion from Humeyra!" Because Rasulullah 'sall-allahu alaihi wa sallam' loved hadrat Aisha very much, he called her Humeyra. Most people among the Ashab al-kiram and the Tabiin reported the hadith ash-Sharifs they had heard from hadrat Aisha. Hadrat Urwat-ubni Zubair states: I have not seen anyone more learned in the meanings of Qur'an al-karim, in halals and harams, in Arabic poetry, or in genealogy. The following two couplets eulogizing the Messenger of Allah (translated into English) belongs to her:

Had the Egyptians heard about the beauty of his cheeks,

They would not have paid money for buying Yusuf 'alaihis-salam'.

(That is, they would have kept all their money for being able to see his cheeks.)

Had the women who blamed Zaliha seen his luminous forehead,

They would have cut their hearts instead of their hands.

(And they would not have felt pain at all.)

Another honor hadrat Aisha had was that she was Rasulullah's darling. Rasulullah 'sall- allahu alaihi wa sallam' loved her very much. When Rasulullah was asked who he loved most, his answer was: "Aisha." When he was asked who was the man he loved most, he said: "Aisha's father." That is, he stated that he loved hadrat Abu Bakr most. When hadrat Aisha was asked who the Messenger of Allah loved most, she said (he loved) Fatima (most). When she was asked who was the man he loved most, she said it was Fatima's husband. This comes to mean that among his wives, hadrat Aisha was the one he loved most; among his children he loved hadrat Fatima most; among his Ahl al-bayt hadrat Ali was most beloved to him; and among his Sahaba hadrat Abu Bakr was his most beloved companion 'radi-allahu ta'ala anhum ajmain'. Hadrat Aisha relates, "One day Rasulullah 'sall-allahu alaihi wa sallam' was unfastening the thongs of his blessed sandals and I was spinning yarn. I looked at his blessed face. Sweat was dropping from his bright forehead. And each drop of sweat was spreading light all around. They were dazzling my eyes. I was bewildered. He turned to look at me. "What is the matter with you? What makes you so pensive,' he asked. I said, 'O the Messenger of Allah! looking at the brightness of the haloes on your blessed face and the lights spread by the drops of sweat on your blessed forehead, I have lost myself.' Rasulullah stood up and came near me. He kissed between my eyes and said, 'Ya Aisha (O Aisha)! May Allahu ta'ala bless you with goodness! I have not been able to please you the way you have pleased me.' That is, he said, 'Your pleasing me has been more than my pleasing you'." His kissing between hadrat Aisha's blessed eyes meant awarding and honoring her for her loving the Messenger of Allah, seeing and recognizing his beauty. A line:

I congratulate my eyes on seeing thine beauty!

And a couplet:

How good those eyes are for looking at the beauty.

How fortunate that heart is for burning with His love!

Imam-i-Mesruq, one of the greatest members of the Tabiin, whenever he was to give a report from hadrat Aisha, would begin as follows: "Hadrat Siddiqa the beloved one of the Messenger of Allah and the blessed daughter of Abu Bakr as-Siddiq, states that... ." Sometimes he would say, "The darling of the beloved ones of Allahu ta'ala and of the inhabitants of heaven states that... ." Aisha 'radi-allahu anha' would say that she was the highest one of the Azwaj-i-tahirat (the Prophet's pure wives) and boast about the blessings Allahu ta'ala had bestowed on her. She would say, for instance, "Before the Messenger of Allah (told my father that he) wanted to marry me, Jabrail 'alaihis-salam' showed (him) a picture of me and said: This is your wife!" Drawing pictures of living beings had not been made haram yet. Besides, the picture was not drawn by a human being. Why should it be a sinful act, then? In a hadith ash-Sharif which exists in the books Bukhari and Muslim, Rasulullah 'sall-allahu alaihi wa sallam' said to our mother Aisha 'radi-allahu anha', "For three nights I saw you in my dreams. The angel showed me your picture drawn on white silk. He said: This is your wife. I do not forget the picture the angel showed me in my dream. It is you, exactly." Our mother Aisha states, "Rasulullah was performing tahajjud (after midnight) namaz and I was lying by his side. This honor was peculiar to me only. [She would boast with this honor.] As he prostrated, his blessed hands would touch my feet and I would pull my feet back." One of the honors conferred on hadrat Aisha was that they (Rasulullah and she) made ghusl together and used the same container. This shows the degree of love the Messenger of Allah had for hadrat Aisha. Rasulullah did not receive Wahy in any of his wives' beds except hadrat Aisha's. And this shows the degree of value Allahu ta'ala has attached to hadrat Aisha. Hadrat Umm-i-Salama said something about Aisha to the Messenger of Allah. He stated, "Do not hurt me through Aisha. I have received Wahy in her bed." Upon this Umm-i-Salama, "I shall never hurt you again. I make tawba, o the Messenger of Allah." One day he asked hadrat Fatima, "Will you love someone whom I love?" When she said she would, the Messenger stated, "Then, love Aisha!" 'radi-allahu ta'ala anhuma'.

Hadrat Aisha would boast that "It was revealed by Allahu ta'ala that the slander spread against me was a lie." Allahu ta'ala sent down the seventeen ayats in the Nur sura to declare that those who calumniated hadrat Aisha would go to Hell. These ayat al-karimas are another indication of the greatness and very high honor of hadrat Aisha.

Calumniation of hadrat Aisha took place during the Holy War of Mureysee' in the fifth year of the Hegira. This Holy War is also called Bani Mustaliq. Rasulullah left for this Holy War with a thousand strong army. He took hadrat Aisha and Umm-i-Salama along. A number of munafiqs joined in order to get booties. The Messenger appointed hadrat 'Umar as the commander of the army. After a bloody combat, five thousand sheep and ten thousand camels were taken in addition to more than seven hundred captives. Juwayriyya was among them. Rasulullah bought her and married her. Upon seeing this, the Ashab al- kiram said, "How can we keep relatives of the Messenger of Allah as our captives?" and emancipated the captives they had been keeping 'radi-allahu ta'ala anhum ajmain'. Juwayriyya must have been a very fortunate girl, for she caused her tribe to be saved from captivity. It was in the same year when the blessed Messenger bought Selman-i-Farisi from his Jewish owner and emancipated him. Hadrat Selman became a Muslim in the first year of the Hegira.

The following account is given in the book Alti-Parmak, which is the Turkish translation of the Persian book Me'arij-un-nubuwwa: Before leaving for a Holy War Rasulullah would draw lots among his wives and would take along the winner. Hadrat Aisha relates, "It was after the revelation of the ayat commanding women to cover themselves. A tent was made for me and I rode my camel in this tent. On our way back from the Holy War we made a halt at a place close to Medina. At dawn the noises we heard meant that we were to move again. I left the encampment for a short while to relieve nature. When I was back I found out that I had lost my bracelet. I went back, looked for it, and found it. When I was back at the encampment I could not find the army. They were gone. They must have put my tent on the camel, thinking that I was in the tent. At that time I used to eat very little. I was weak. I was fourteen years old. I was confused. Then, saying to myself that they would soon notice my absence and come back to look for me, I began to sit and wait, falling asleep after a short while. Rasulullah 'sall-allahu alaihi wa sallam' ordered Safwan bin Mu'attil Sulemi to go back and look for me. When this person found me sleeping he shouted. His shouting woke me. When I saw him I covered my face. He made his camel kneel down, walked away, and said, "Mount the camel!" I did. Safwan held the halter. It had already become hot when we caught up with the troops. The first people we met were a group of munafiqs. They had some unpleasant conversation among themselves. They were provoked by Ibni Abi Selul. Of the Muslims, Hassan bin Thabit and Mistah joined them, too. When we were back, I became ill. The rumor spread everywhere. Yet I did not know about it. Only, Rasulullah would not visit me as frequently as he had done before, nor at least would he come to see how I was. And I did not know why. One night I went out to the toilet, accompanied by Mistah's mother. Her skirts entangled her feet and she fell down. She cursed her son [Mistah]. When I asked why she was swearing, she would not say why. I asked the same question several times. She said, 'O Aisha! Haven't you heard the rumors he is spreading?' When I asked her what they were, she told me all about the calumniation, whereupon my illness was aggravated at once. My fever was augmented, so that I felt as if my head were emitting fire. I became unconscious and fell down. When I recovered I went back home. I asked for Rasulullah's permission to go to my father's home, which he accepted. My purpose was to find out what was going on. I asked my mother. She said, 'My dear! Don't worry! Things are easy for you. Every woman who is pretty and who is loved by her husband may undergo such calumniations.' I was astonished. I wondered if these rumors had reached Rasulullah's blessed ears, and what was going to happen if my father had heard about them? These thoughts made me so sad that I sobbed bitterly. My father was reading Qur'an al-karim in the room. He heard my sobbing and asked my mother why. My mother told him how deeply distressed I had felt upon hearing for the first time about the gossips being spread. Upon this my father, too, began to weep. Then he came near me and said, 'My dear child! Be patient! Let us wait for the ayat which Allahu ta'ala will reveal.' That night I did not sleep till morning. Nor did my tears come to an end."

Rasulullah 'sall-allahu alaihi wa sallam' sent for hadrat Ali and Usama 'radi-allahu anhuma' and said, "How is this matter going to end?" Usama said, "O the Messenger of Allah! We have only a good opinion of your wife." And hadrat Ali said, "There are many women on the earth. Allahu ta'ala has not made the earth narrow for you. Ask Aisha's jariya Burayda about Aisha!" When she was asked she said, "I swear by Allah that I have never seen her do anything wrong. From time to time she took some sleep. When the sheep came, she kneaded dough with some flour and ate it. Most of the time I was with her. I did not see anything wrong with her. If the rumors had been true Allahu ta'ala would have let you know." One day the Messenger of Allah was sitting in his home. He was very sad. Hadrat 'Umar-ul-Faruq came. The Messenger of Allah asked him what he thought. He said, "O the Messenger of Allah! I know very well that the munafiqs are lying. Allahu ta'ala does not let a fly alight on your body. He protects you lest it should alight on something filthy and then smear the filth on you. Allahu ta'ala, who protects you against a small filth, will definitely protect you against the worst filth." These statements of hadrat 'Umar's pleased Rasulullah. His blessed face smiled. Then he sent for hadrat 'Uthman and asked him. He said, "I do not doubt that this rumor is a lie spread by munafiqs. It is a slander completely. Allahu ta'ala never lets your shadow fall on the ground. He protects even your blessed shadow from falling on a dirty place or being trodden on by an abominable person. Would He let such a dirt enter your blessed home?" These statements also relieved his blessed heart. Then he sent for hadrat Ali and asked him. Hadrat Ali said, "These rumors are lies, slanders. They are munafiqs' fabrications. (One day) you and we were performing namaz. You took off your blessed sandals during the namaz. And we took off ours, too, to follow you. You said, 'Why did you take off your sandals?' When we answered that we had done so in order to follow you, you said, 'Jabrail 'alaihis-salam' came and informed me that there was some najasat (Any sort of dirt which must be cleaned from one's clothes before performing namaz.) on my sandals. So I took them off.' Is it possible for Allahu ta'ala, who protects from dirts by sending you Wahy even during namaz, to allow your blessed wives to smear themselves with such a dirt? Had such an atrocity been committed, He would have let you know immediately. Let your blessed heart not feel sad. Allahu ta'ala will definitely send the Wahy and inform you that your blessed wife is pure." These statements pleased Rasulullah all the more. He immediately honored hadrat Abu Bakr as-Siddiq's 'radi-allahu ta'ala anh' home with his presence.

Hadrat Aisha relates: That day I wept continuously. I had a woman visitor from the Ansar. She was weeping, too. My mother and father were sitting with me. All of a sudden Rasulullah came and greeted us. He sat beside me. He had never come to see me since that event, which had taken place a month before. Nor had any Wahy been revealed. Sitting down, the Messenger of Allah paid hamd-u-thena (thanking, praising and lauding) to Allahu ta'ala. He said the Word Shahadat. Then he turned to me and said, "O Aisha! They told me so about you: If you are not as they say, Allahu ta'ala will inform soon that you are true. If a sin has taken place, then make tawba and istighfar! Allahu ta'ala will accept the tawba of those people who make tawba for their sins." Upon hearing Rasulullah's blessed voice, I stopped weeping. I turned to my father and told him to answer. My father said, "Wallahi (I swear on the name of Allah that) I do not know how I should answer the Messenger of Allah. We were idolaters in the era of nescience. We used to worship human statues. We did not know how to worship properly. No one could say such things about our women. Now our hearts have been brightened with the halo of Islam. Our homes have been illuminated with the light of Islam. And yet all people are spreading such rumors about us. What should I say to Rasulullah?" Then I turned to my mother and told her to answer. She said, "I am astonished. I am at a loss as to what to say. You explain it." Then I began to talk. I said: I swear by Allahu ta'ala that the rumors that have reached your blessed ears are all lies. If you believe them, you will not believe me whatever I say. Allahu ta'ala knows that I am quite innocent. If I say 'Yes' about something I have not done, I will have slandered myself. Wallahi I have nothing else to say. Only, I would like to quote Yusuf's (Joseph) 'alaihis-salam' statements: "Patience is good. I hope for help from Allahu ta'ala against what they say." I was so badly confused that I said Yusuf 'alaihis-salam' instead of Yaqub (Jacob) 'alaihis-salam'. Then I turned my face and leaned. I was always hoping for the sake of Allah that my Rabb would rehabilitate my reputation. For I was certain about myself. I was innocent. Yet I did not think Allahu ta'ala would send ayat al-karimas for me. I could not imagine that ayat al-karimas would be read (and recited) for me everywhere till the end of the world. Because I was conscious about the greatness of Allahu ta'ala versus my humility, I never expected that He would reveal an ayat al-karima for me. I only hoped that He would inform His Prophet in his dream or inspire into his blessed heart that I was sinless, that my heart was clean. In the name of Allah I am telling the truth that Rasulullah had not yet stood up from where he had been seated, and no one had left the room, when signs of Wahy appeared on his blessed face. All the people sitting in the room knew that Wahy had arrived. We had a leather cushion. When my father saw what was happening, he put this cushion under Rasulullah's blessed head. He covered him with a muslin bed-sheet. When the revelation was over, he took the cover off his blessed face. He wiped the drops of sweat, which were shining like pearls, off his rose-red face with his blessed hands. Smiling, he said, "good news to you, o Aisha! Allahu ta'ala has proven you innocent. He has borne witness to the fact that you are pure." Presently, my father said, "Stand up, o my daughter! Thank the Messenger of Allah right away!" I said, "Wallahi I shall not stand up! Nor shall I thank anyone except Allahu ta'ala! For my Rabb has revealed ayat al-karimas for me." Then Rasulullah 'sall-allahu alaihi wa sallam' recited ten ayat al-karimas, which are now the ones beginning with the eleventh ayat al-karima of Nur sura. My father got up at once and kissed my head.

Before the revelation of ayat al-karimas about Aisha 'radi-allahu anha', Abu Ayyub Khalid's wife had asked hadrat Khalid what he thought about the rumors being spread about hadrat Aisha. Hadrat Khalid said, "For Allah's sake, these rumors are lies. Would you do a vice of this sort against me?" When his wife, answered, "No, never, may Allah protect me against it," hadrat Khalid said, "Then, could Aisha, whose faith is firmer than ours, do a vice of this sort against the Messenger of Allah? We have not said so. These rumors are slanders." And Haqq ta'ala sent down ayat al-karimas exactly agreeable with these statements of hadrat Khalid's. Presently, Rasulullah 'sall-allahu alaihi wa sallam' convened his Sahaba in the Masjid (or masjid=mosque): He recited the ayat al-karimas revealed to him. With the barakat of these ayat al-karimas, the believers were relieved from the doubts pestering their hearts. Mistah was a relative of hadrat Abu Bakr's. He was poor. Formerly hadrat Abu Bakr used to help him with his subsistence. When Mistah joined the munafiqs in this squalid act, he (hadrat Abu Bakr) took an oath not to help him any longer. Upon this, Allahu ta'ala sent down the twenty-second ayat al-karima of Nur sura. When Abu Bakr as-Siddiq heard this ayat al-karima, he said, "I would love Allahu ta'ala to forgive me," and helped Mistah as he had done before. When the ayat al-karimas restoring hadrat Aisha's 'radi-allahu ta'ala anha' reputation came, Rasulullah 'sall-allahu alaihi wa sallam' ordered that the slanderers be chastised with the punishment called Hadd for the Qazf (accusing a woman with fornication). Four people were flogged with eighty stripes each. One of them was a woman and Rasulullah's wife's sister. This is the end of the part we have borrowed from the book Me'arij.

The book of Tafsir called Mawakib explains the first of the ayat al-karimas about hadrat Aisha as follows: "Slanderers of Aisha 'radi-allahu anha' are only a few among you. Do not take this slander as a harm inflicted on you! It will be auspicious for you. [You have attained much thawab because of this slander. Their falsification has been divulged and your honor has been promoted. The ayat al-karima has declared your innocence]. The slanderers deserve punishment equal to the sin they have acquired. Those who cast the grave aspersion and say the very abhorrent thing shall be tormented bitterly in this world and in the Hereafter." After these people were clogged in accordance with (the prescribed punishment called) Hadd, Abdullah bin Abi fell into utter disrepute. Hassan became blind and remained so till his death. And Mistah became one-handed. The twelfth ayat al-karima purported, "Upon hearing about this slander, Muslim men and women should have an optimistic opinion of their families. They should say that it is an obvious lie and slander." The nineteenth ayat al-karima purported, "Those who mean disrepute for believers shall be tormented bitterly in the world and in the Hereafter." And the twenty-sixth ayat al-karima purported, "Uttering foul words is worthy of foul men. Foul speech befits foul men." Rasulullah and hadrat Aisha and Safwan are far from the allegations of those ignoble people. They deserve (Allah's) forgiveness and compassion, and blessings in Paradise. Safwan is praised in a hadith ash-Sharif. He was martyred at the conquest of Erzurum in (the Hijri year) 17.

Allahu ta'ala states that He will subject the slanderers of hadrat Aisha to very painful torments. Since Allahu ta'ala answers these base people exactly in a manner they deserve, we need not add anything. However, we shall present a fatwa, which exists in the two hundred and ninety-second page of the book Mirat-i-kainat:

It is stated in the book Hasais ul-habib that hadrat Abdullah Ibni Abbas has given the fatwa that "A person who commits 'Qazf' against one of Rasulullah's blessed wives, (that is, who accuses one of them with an act of impurity), becomes a disbeliever, and his tawba will not be acceptable." Accusing hadrat Aisha with impurity, on the other hand, means contradicting Qur'an al-karim, which, in its turn, is disbelief according to a unanimous report. And imputing immodesty on the mother of one of the Sahaba, [e.g. on Hind] deserves chastisement double the punishment for Qazf. May Allahu ta'ala protect our Alawi and Shiite brothers and all Muslims from falling into such a disastrous error! Amin.

7- "Utba's daughter Hind, the notorious heroine of numerous men's love adventures, chewed hadrat Hamza's lungs during the amorous hours she shared with an Abyssinian slave. She had been divorced by her husband Ibni Mughira on account of her prostitution and admitted as a wife by Abu Sufyan. Hind's marriage with Abu Sufyan could not make her cease from other men. She continued her notorious way of life. This marriage gave birth to Muawiya the accursed, who of all the probable fathers was finally ascribed to Abu Sufyan. This man grew to be a cruel tyrant and oppressed the people ruthlessly," he says.

One would feel shame to use such dirty and squalid language even against Abu Jahl and Iblis (Satan), the two most implacable and accursed enemies of the Messenger of Allah 'sall-allahu alaihi wa sallam'. Yet it is stated in Qur'an al-karim that "Foul speech befits foul men." One's speech is one's mirror. We could not expect fragrance from sewerage! The dirty, repulsive, slanderous writings quoted above cannot defame those people whom Allahu ta'ala has forgiven and promised Paradise and blessings. They cannot be completely disignored, however, inasmuch as they betray the abject characters of their utterers. The hadith ash-Sharif, "Iman cleans, extirpates (one's) past sins," is an unshakable evidence proving the fact that hadrat Muawiya and his blessed father Abu Sufyan 'radi-allahu ta'ala anhuma', and the blessed woman Hind 'radi-allahu anha', who proved her chastity and nobility in the presence of the Messenger of Allah on the day when Mecca was conquered, are extremely pure people.

There are innumerable books writing about the greatness and superior virtues of these three Sahabis. At this point we shall quote a few lines from Qisas- i-Anbiya (A History of Prophets), since it is a book available for anybody:

"Among the Arabs, family life was very important and spirit of kinship was very strong. Every Arab would demonstrate wonderful zeal in guarding the honor of his tribe and relatives." "The Arabs would recite poems and preach sermons at market places and meetings." "Fakhr-i- 'alam 'sall-allahu alaihi wa sallam' climbed mount Safa and sat there. Hadrat 'Umar-ul- Faruq sat beside and below him. First men and then women came and became Muslims one by one. Hadrat 'Ali's sister Umm-i-Hani and hadrat Muawiya's mother Hind was among the women. When Rasul-i-akram 'sall-allahu alaihi wa sallam' said to the women to 'Promise not to steal,' Hind came forward and said, 'If I were the person to steal, I would have stolen a lot from Abu Sufyan's property.' Upon this, Fakhr-i-'alam 'sall-allahu alaihi wa sallam' recognized Hind and said, 'Are you Hind?' 'I am Hind. Forgive (for) the past (offenses) so that Allah will forgive you,' she said. When Rasul-i-akram 'sall-allahu alaihi wa sallam' said the injunction of not committing fornication, Hind said, 'Does a free woman commit fornication?' And when the Messenger said that another injunction is not to kill one's children, Hind said, 'They were small and we raised them. They were grown up and you killed them at Badr. It is between you and them now.' Hadrat 'Umar was a stern and serious person. Yet he could not help laughing at these words of Hind's. When the Messenger enjoined not to slander, Hind said, 'Wallahi, slandering is a wicked deed. You enjoin beautiful morality on us.' And finally, when he enjoined not to revolt, Hind promised, 'We have not entered this exalted presence with the intention of revolting' Thus Hind, who was to be killed according to an earlier directive, attained forgiveness and became a true believer. Presently, she went home and broke to pieces all the idols and icons, saying, 'We have been idiotically believing you for such a long time.' Rasul-i-akram 'sall-allahu alaihi wa sallam' pronounced benedictions over the women being there." Hind's attaining forgiveness and iman provided encouragement for all the other people who were considering to seek safety in flight. They came back and asked for forgiveness. Their request was accepted. It was so lucky for Hind that she caused many people to escape death and to become believers. Another line from Qisas-i-Anbiya states, "Abu Sufyan and his sons became staunch Muslims. Rasul-i-akram 'sall-allahu alaihi wa sallam' employed them as clerks." 'radi-allahu ta'ala anhum'

Hurufis, being at a loss as to how to traduce hadrat Muawiya despite the services he rendered to Islam and his being praised through the Prophet's blessed utterances, rake his past and nag at his family life, thus to revile him. No matter how successful they could be in their efforts of vilification, they could not lower his father to the grade of the unbeliever named Abu Lahab (or Leheb)! Utba, who was the son of this unbeliever named Abu Lahab, (who was such an avowed enemy of the Messenger of Allah that) an ayat wherein his name was mentioned was revealed, would formerly persecute the Messenger of Allah very much. And not only that: He divorced his blessed daughter in order to put him into financial straits. As is stated in Qisas-i Anbiya, "This very Utba became a believer and begged for forgiveness of the day of Conquest (of Mecca). Rasulullah forgave him and pronounced a benediction over him. Even at the hottest moments of the Holy War of Hunayn, Utba would not leave his guarding position in front of Rasulullah." Now these people do not even criticize the disbeliever named Abu Lahab. Nor do they blame Utba for having been a son of that foul being or for having tormented the Messenger of Allah so much. For Utba was (one of those people who were) of the opinion that hadrat 'Ali should be the first Khalifa. He would express this opinion of his in poetry. This comes to mean that the criteria applied by the author (of the calumniatory statements written in the so- called magazine) are not based on the essential matters such as Islam, disbelief, serving Rasulullah, or persecuting him. They are based on the matter of voting for hadrat 'Ali. What he is after, then, is a political cause and has nothing to do with Islam. Or rather, all his endeavour stems from his obnoxious desire to misrepresent the Ashab al-kiram as nasty people hard to get on with.

The above-quoted statements which we have borrowed from various pages of the book Qisas-i Anbiya, show clearly that the slanders in the autumn magazine are sheer falsifications. It is stated in the book Kamus-ul-alam that "Hind bin Utba binti Rabi'a bin Abd-i-Shams was one of the nobility of Quraish. She was Abu Sufyan's wife. Before Abu Sufyan, she was Faqih bin Mughira's wife. She persistently remained a Muslim and always conducted herself as a good one. She was a prudent, far-sighted administratrix. She and her husband Abu Sufyan joined the Holy War of Yermuk and encouraged the Muslims to make Jihad against the Byzantines."

It is written in all books how firm an iman Hind 'radi-allahu anha' had and what a noble feeling of chastity she had. Marriage and family life existed in Arabia before Islam, too. Please see the thirty-sixth paragraph! The author of the autumn magazine confuses family life with his own life of cohabitation termed Mut'a. He compares other people to himself and supposes that they are fornicators, too. It is stated in the book Me'arij-un-nubuwwa, "After Hind 'radi-allahu anha' became a believer and broke all the statues in her house, she sent two lambs as a gift to Rasulullah. The Messenger of Allah accepted the presents and pronounced a benediction over Hind, asking a blessing on her. Haqq ta'ala blessed her sheep with such barakat that it was impossible to know their number. Hind would always acknowledge that they were a blessing coming through the Barakat of the Messenger of Allah." Abd-ul-Ghani Nabulusi states in the hundred and twenty-sixth page of Hadiqa, "Everyone who has iman in Rasulullah realizes his greatness to some extent and bears a degree of love for him. Yet the amount of this realization and love varies. Many a heart overflows with this love. It has been reported unanimously that Abu Sufyan's 'radi-allahu anh' wife Hind 'radi-allahu anha' said to Rasulullah, 'O the Messenger of Allah! I never used to like your blessed face. But now, that beautiful face of yours is more beloved to me than anything else'."

The author alleges that hadrat Muawiya oppressed the people. On the contrary, hadrat Muawiya's caliphate brought peace, order and quietude to the country and put an end to misunderstandings. Jihad and conquests began. His justice and kindnesses spread far and wide. History books give detailed accounts of these facts.

8- "Seeds of a mentality which caused superstitions for the purpose of reigning and thus turned the beautiful Islamic religion into a mere system of fanaticism and ummat (community) sprouted in the minds and hearts of some Ottoman emperors. All these things were intended for Shiites. For Shiites suggested unity. They knew that unity began with (Muhammad-Ali). Their aim was to love the Ahl al-bayt. When the trend of ummat (community) became dominant, the intellectuals and Shiites stood against it. Wasn't hadrat Ali the first Khalifa (rightfully) elected?" he says.

Allahu ta'ala calls Muslims 'My Messenger's Ummat (Community)." Our master, the Prophet 'sall-allahu alaihi wa sallam' states that Muslims are his Ummat. For instance, he says, "I shall intercede (shafaat) for the grave sinners of my Ummat," and "The learned ones of my Ummat are like the Israelite Prophets," and uses the expression 'My Ummat' in many other hadith ash-Sharifs. This author, on the other hand, censures Muslims' Khalifas by saying that the Ottoman Sultans 'rahmatullahi ta'ala alaihim ajmain' turned the Islamic religion into a mere system of Ummat. He rejects the system of Ummat and misrepresents it as if it were a system forged afterwards. These statements of the author's are diametrically opposed to Islam and advocate the Hurufi doctrines. All the stratagems of Hurufis are based on attacking Islam in disguise of Muslims. Their suggesting unity, for instance, is like the butcher's saying, "I love you very much. I hate having to hurt you," to the lamb he is going to slaughter. The author is trying to cloak the fact that he is a Hurufi, that is, he is following in the footsteps of Abdullah bin Saba', who is the first instigator of all the so many events in which brothers killed one another. History books give long written accounts of the thousands of Muslims massacred by Hassan Sabbah, a follower of Ibni Saba'. It only takes reading Hassan Sabbah's murders and treacheries to realize that this Hurufi is quite wrong in his writings.

It is stated as follows in the eight hundred and eighty-seventh page of Qisas-i Anbiya: Hassan Sabbah was a heretic, a mulhid following Ibni Saba'. Calling harams 'halal', he mislead many people. The fortress called Elemut (or Alamut) and its neighborhood were infested with his adherents, most of them highwaymen. They called the Ahl as-Sunnat 'Yazidis'. With the conviction that killing one Yazidi would deserve more thawab than killing ten unbelievers, they would slay hajjis, judges, scholars and soldiers by stabbing them. These people are called Batiniyya or Ismailiyya. They were godless, ferocious people. For thirty-five years Hassan Sabbah took many lives and mislead many others out of their faith. Eventually he went to Hell in 518 [A.D. 1124]. Of his successors, his grandson Ahund Hassan, who became their chief in 557, was a zindiq, more base than all the others. It is this villain who first called his adherents Alawi in order to deceive Muslims. In 559, on the seventeenth of Ramadan, which was when hadrat Ali had been martyred, he mounted the minber and said, "I have been sent by Ali. I am the imam of all Muslims. Islam does not have a foundation. Everything depends on the heart. If a person's heart is clean, sinning will not harm him. I have made everything halal. Live as you wish!" Then they drank wine, men and women altogether. It was made their new year's day. This heretic was slain by his wife's brother in 561. His grandson Jelal-ad-din Hassan gave up this aberrant way. He reported to the Khalifa that he had entered the Madhhab of Ahl as- Sunnat. He collected the heretical books written by Hassan Sabbah and had them burnt. He died in 618. He was succeeded by his son Ahund Aladdin Muhammad, the seventh ruler of the state of Ismailiyya. This person chose his ancestors' heretical way and made harams halal. His son Ahund Ruqn-ad-din had this foul person killed in his bed in 652 and appointed the Shiite scholar Nasir-ad-din Tusi, who had been imprisoned by his father, as his vizier. However, he was executed by Hulaghu's brother in Transoxiana in 654. Hulaghu put the heretics of Ismaili to the sword and relieved Muslims from these zindiqs. Thus the saying, "To an ungodly fellow, a faithless brute," manifested itself once more.

The (encyclopedic) book Kamus-ul-alam gives the following definition of the entry 'Ismailiyya': "One of the heretical groups who infiltrated among Shiites. They have been called so because they recognized Ismail, Imam Jafar Sadiq's eldest son, who died as the noble Imam was alive yet, as the last imam. They follow Ibni Saba'. They believe in reincarnation. They call harams 'halal'. They commit all sorts of immoral acts without feeling slightest shame. The heretical group called Qaramitis, who shed much Muslim blood, and the villain named Hassan Sabbah, and the State of Fatimis, who strove to demolish Islam in Egypt, were all Ismailis. The extreme ones of heretical groups and Druzis and Hurufis are their continuations." It is written in the book Munjid that they call themselves Alawi (Alevi).

Hurufis claim to come together in the unity of (Muhammad- Ali). Accordingly, the Ashab al-kiram, who are praised and lauded in Qur'an al-karim and in hadith ash-Sharifs, must have been without this unity. The three Khalifas, who were blessed with the good news that they would enter Paradise, and all those heroic fighters who spread Islam over three continents must have belonged to other unities. However, the author betrays his own insincerity in his using the term (Muhammad-Ali). For hadrat Ali loved very much the other three Khalifas and even all the Sahabis he fought against. He would acknowledge in the speeches he made as well as during all his conversations that those people were valuable believers and praised and lauded them. A person honored with the name Alawi should be so, too. They say that they follow the Ahl al-bayt. They use the blessed name Alawi, which is loved by both Sunnites and Alawis in our country, as a mask for themselves. All their writings and attitudes show, however, that they are not Alawis. The book Tuhfa, which was written at that time, gives the following information with a view to divulging their inner purposes:

1- Under the pretext of (Muhammad-Ali unity), Hurufis hold the Messenger of Allah and hadrat Ali equal.

2- They say that "Everybody who loves hadrat Ali will enter Paradise, be he a Jew or a Christian or a polytheist. On the other hand, those who love the Ashab al-kiram will go to Hell, however good worshippers they may be and even if they love the Ahl al-bayt."

3- "Sinning will not harm those who love Ali," they allege.

4- They call the Ahl as-sunnat, who are the Ummat-i-merhuma (people who have attained Allah's compassion), the Ummat-i-mel'una (people accursed by Allah.).

5- Asserting that Qur'an al-karim was changed by hadrat 'Uthman 'radi-allahu ta'ala anh', they deny many ayats.

6- Cursing hadrat 'Umar deserves, according to them, more thawab than dhikring or reading Qur'an al-karim.

7- It is a worship, in their view, to curse the Ashab al-kiram and Zawjat-i-zawil ihtiram (the blessed and honorable wives of our Prophet). "It is fard to curse these people daily," they say.

8- "Cursing (hadrat) Abu Bakr or (hadrat) 'Umar once is equal to seventy worships," they believe.

9- According to them, hadrat Ruqayya and Umm-i-Ghulthum are not Rasulullah's daughters, because they married hadrat 'Uthman.

10- They say that hadrat Abu Bakr and 'Umar and 'Uthman 'radi-allahu anhum' "were munafiqs." Thus they deny the hadith-i,Sharifs praising these three Khalifas. These hadith ash-Sharifs are written together with their documents in the book Izalat-ul-hafa, by Shah Waliyyullah Dahlawi.

11- Because hadrat Abu Bakr belonged to the tribe called Tamim and hadrat 'Umar was from the tribe called Adi, they say that Abu Bakr and 'Umar 'radi-allahu ta'ala anhuma' "worshipped idols secretly." However, hadrat Ali gave his daughter to hadrat Abu Bakr's son Muhammad and appointed him as a governor. And he gave his other daughter to hadrat 'Umar. While maintaining on the one hand that "hadrat Ali is free from errors," they vituperate on the other hand the great religious leaders to whom hadrat Ali gave his daughters and Rasulullah's father-in-law and son-in-law, and say that these people were munafiqs.

12- They think that Sunnite Muslims are inimical towards hadrat Ali and Ahl al-bayt. On the contrary, Sunnites love hadrat Ali 'radi-allahu ta'ala anh' and the Ahl al-bayt very much and say that loving these people will cause one to die in iman, (as a believer, that is). Sunnites believe that being a Wali (a person loved by Allahu ta'ala) requires loving these people (hadrat Ali and the Ahl al-bayt) and following them.

13- They allege that Sunnites look on Ibni Muljam, hadrat Ali's 'radi-allahu ta'ala anh' murderer, as a just person and that "Bukhari reports hadiths coming through him." This allegation is untrue. The book Bukhari does not contain any hadiths narrated by Ibni Muljam.

14- Because they feel animosity towards the Ahl as-sunnat, they curse the word 'Sunnat', too.

15- They say that if a person says, "wa ta'ala jad-duk," when performing the namaz, his namaz will be annulled.

16- They say that Sunnites 'rahmat-ullahu ta'ala alaihim ajmain' "are worse and fouler than Jews and Christians."

17- They claim that all their groups, inimical as they are towards one another, will enter Paradise owing to their love for hadrat Ali.

18- "It is not necessary to do the worships taught by the Ahl as-sunnat," they maintain.

19- When they begin doing something, they curse the three Khalifas instead of saying the word Basmala. They argue that "a sick person who bears on himself a piece of paper containing a written curse against the first two Khalifas, or drinks the water in which this paper has been dipped, will recover."

20- According to them, cursing hadrat Aisha and hadrat Hafsa 'radi-allahu anhuma' five times daily "is fard."

21- They say that the Messenger of Allah "gave proxy to divorce his wives. So Ali divorced Aisha (from Rasulullah) by proxy." On the contrary, ayat al-karima did not even give the right to divorce even to Rasulullah himself.

22- They say that "Prophets would not have been created had it not been for Ali." They cannot think that a person who says that "a non-Prophet is higher than a Prophet" becomes a disbeliever.

23- They say that "on the rising day everything will depend on Muhammad and Ali's decision."

24- According to them, when 'Umar 'radi-allahu ta'ala anh' was slain, "angels did not record sins for anybody for three days."

25- They say that the stones thrown on Mina during every hajj are actually thrown towards Abu Bakr and 'Umar 'radi-allahu anhuma'.

26- "The ayat about Dabbat-ul-ard was intended to inform that hadrat Ali will come back to earth," they maintain.

27- According to them, and it is at the same time the twenty-second article in their false credo, it is a very thawab-deserving act for the host to offer his wife and daughters to another Hurufi who visits him. In Iran the Hurufi fathers pay visits as they wish, and the families they visit offer them women to choose as they wish. Thus, they believe, the children conceived on Friday nights (nights between Thursdays and Fridays) are (called) Persian Sayyids. Therefore the so called Sayyids are abundant in Iran.

28- The eighteenth of Zilhijja (month) is their greatest day of celebration. It is the day when hadrat 'Uthman was martyred.

29- Another day they celebrate is the ninth of Rabi'ul-awwal, the day when hadrat 'Umar 'radi-allahu ta'ala anh' was martyred.

30- Another day they hold sacred is the Nevruz Day, which is actually a day celebrated by Magians.

31- According to them, prayers of namaz except those which are fard can be performed in any direction. For instance, when they visit Imam-i-Ali Rida's tomb in Mashhad they perform namaz towards the grave on whichever corner of the grave they are. It is stated as follows in the three hundredth page of the summary of Tuhfa: "They perform namaz with their faces towards the graves of imams, without even considering that they may be turning their backs to the qibla (Kaba) by doing so."

32- They say that namaz can always be performed naked as you are. It is written in a frank language in their book Minhaj-us-salihin that according to them no part of one's body, with the exception of the saw'atayn (the two private parts, the urinatory and the excretory organs), is awrat (parts of the body one has to cover). Fifteenth edition of the book was published in Nejef (or Najaf) in 1386 [A.D. 1966].

33- They maintain that eating and drinking (during namaz) will not abrogate the namaz.

34- It is written in the two hundred and eighteenth page (of the book cited above, i.e. Tuhfa) that they do not perform Friday prayer and that they perform noon, afternoon, evening and night prayers all at the same time.

35- Their seventeenth credal tenet is that things touched by the innocent imam are thousands of times as valuable as Kaba.

36- "Immersing oneself in water will nullify one's fasting," they say.

37- On the tenth of Muharram they fast until afternoon.

38- "Jihad is not a worship, nor is it permissible," they say.

39- They call it Mut'a Nikah to cohabit with a woman for a certain period of time in return for money. According to them, this kind of nikah (marriage) causes much thawab. It is written in the two hundred and twenty-seventh page that life in brothels, which they call 'Mut'a-i-dawriyya (devriyye)', is permissible.

40- "It is sahih (acceptable canonically) to hand over a jariya to other men," they say.

41- It is stated as follows in the three hundred and twenty-fifth page of the Arabic book Muhtasar-i-Tuhfa-i-Isna-ashariyya, which was prepared by Sayyid Mahmud Shukru Alusi in (the Hijri year) 1302 and printed in Cairo in 1373: According to these people, "Meat or any similar kind of food cooked in water that has been used for cleaning after stool is edible and permissible to eat." It is written in their book Minhaj that water used in istinja (cleaning oneself canonically) is clean. Likewise, they say that "Water that has been used by a number of people for cleaning themselves or into which a dog has urinated is clean; it is permissible to drink it or to cook something in it. So is the case with water half of which is blood or urine."

42- "It is permissible for a hungry person to kill another person who has bread enough but will not give him any," they say.

43- Their seventy-fifth stratagem, which is written in the second chapter of the book, (Tuhfa) is their saying that "Prostration in namaz must be done on earthen sun-dried bricks. Sunnites are like devils because they do not do their prostrations on earth."

44- It is stated as follows in the two hundred and ninety-ninth page of the abridged version of Tuhfa: "As Christians forge pictures of Isa 'alaihis-salam' and hadrat Maryam (Mary) and prostrate themselves in front of these pictures in churches, so Hurufis draw or paint imaginary pictures of imams and venerate, and even prostrate themselves in front of, these pictures." It is still observed in Iran and Iraq today that they hang forged pictures of bearded people wearing turbans on walls in mosques, in their homes and shops and worship them, saying that they are pictures of hadrat Ali.

45- It is stated in the fourteenth page of the abridged version of Tuhfa that the most excessive groups of Hurufis say that hadrat Ali is a god. These excessive groups have been broken into twenty-four sub-groups. The twentieth group says that "God has entered Ali and his children. Ali is a god." People belonging to this group are mostly in Damascus, Aleppo, and Lazkiyya. Votaries of this group do not exist in Turkey.

The book Tuhfa-i- Isna-ashariyya gives a detailed account of the Hurufi beliefs explained shortly in the forty- five paragraphs above, names the books in which most of these beliefs are recorded, and proves through corroboratory documents that each and every one of these beliefs is wrong and aberrant. Alawis, who are aware of hadrat Ali's honor and value and the services he rendered to Islam, are Muslims who love that lion of Allah in a manner advised by our master, the Prophet. On the other hand, we Sunnite Muslims are Alawis, too, because we love hadrat Ali in this manner. We love other Alawis who share this same love. We know them as our brothers. It should be our debt of conscience to cooperate and love one another on these lands, which offer us freedom of worship and peace.

It has been explained in the lines above that one of the groups of religion reformers who endeavour to demolish Islam from within, and perhaps the most dangerous one, is the group called Hurufis. These people are not Shiites. Being a Shiite means disliking the three Khalifas; it does not mean feeling hostility against them. Shi'ah means jamaat, community, group, party. People belonging to this party are called Shiis. Qisas-i- Anbiya gives the following information:

The first inventor of the fitna of bearing hostility against the Ahl as-Sunnat is a Jew of Yaman named Abdullah bin Saba'. This Jew pretended to be a Muslim. First he went to Basra, where he began to spew his venomous malice, which can be outlined as "Isa (Jesus) 'alaihis-salam' will return to earth. Why should it not be possible for Muhammad 'alaihis-salam' to do so, too. He also will come back. He and Ali will rescue the world from disbelief. Caliphate belonged to Ali by rights. The three Khalifas used force to deprive him of his rights." He was deported from Basra. He went to Kufa and began to mislead the people. Then, being deported from Kufa, too, he went to Damascus. The Sahabis in Damascus would not tolerate him. So he fled to Egypt, where he managed to gather a number of ignoble and eccentric bandits around himself, such as Khalid bin Muljim, Sudan bin Hamran, Ghafiki bin Harb and Kinana bin Bishr. He presented himself as a lover of the Ahl al-bayt. The first step he took to deceive people around him was to advise them to "Love hadrat Ali and bear animosity towards people who are opposed to him." When people began to believe him, he would go a step further and say that "Hadrat Ali is the highest man after Prophets. He is the Prophet's protector, brother, and son-in-law." He would convince these people by giving wrong meanings to ayat al-karimas and fabricating hadith ash-Sharifs. People who do so are called Zindiq. And the final step he took with people who went on believing him would be to convince them that "The Prophet commanded that hadrat Ali should be Khalifa after him. The Sahaba disobeyed the Prophet. They deprived Ali of his right. They traded their faith for worldly advantages." While doing all these, he was cautious enough to warn his adherents not to reveal these secrets to strangers for his purpose was "not to make fame, but to guide people to the right way." Thus he caused hadrat 'Uthman's martyrdom. Then he tried to spread feelings of animosity against the three Khalifas among hadrat Ali's army. He was successful in this, too. People who believed him were called Saba'iyya, [and later, they began to be called Hurufis]. Upon hearing about the rumors, hadrat Ali mounted the minber and castigated the slanderers of the three Khalifas in a heavy language. He threatened some of them with flogging. Seeing his own success, Ibni Saba' managed to exploit this situation, too. He secretly intimated hadrat Ali's miracles to people he chose, interpreting "these extraordinary accomplishments (of hadrat Ali's)" as symptoms of "the fact that he is a god" and putting forward the words which hadrat Ali uttered when he was in an ecstacy called Sakr-i-tariqat as evidences. Hadrat Ali was wise to this, too. He declared that he would burn Ibni Saba' and his believers. He exiled them to the city of Medayn. Ibni Saba' would not give up there, either. Sending his men forth to Iraq and Azarbaijan, he promulgated enmity against the Ashab al-kiram. Hadrat Ali was too busy fighting Damascene rebels to struggle against these people or to carry out his administrative duties as the Khalifa.

9- Question: If hadrat Ali had made an agreement with the Sahabis who were against him in the events of Camel and Siffin, if he had not made war against them, if he had united and cooperated with those beloved Muslim brothers of his and together they had fought the disbeliever named Ibni Saba' and the munafiqs who had gathered around him, he would have added another one to the services he had rendered to Islam. Thus the Saba'iyya group, who have shed Islamic blood throughout history, would have been annihilated. How would this question be answered?

Answer: His ijtihad was not so. The destiny foreordained by Allahu ta'ala was inspired into his blessed heart. So he submitted himself to the qadar-i-ilahi. Scholars of Ahl as-sunnat explain that hadrat Ali's ijtihad was correct. The same was experienced by Abd-ul-Hamid Khan II 'rahmatullahi alaih'. As an army of pillagers prepared with Masonic plans were on their way towards the palace to dethrone the Sultan, the generals in Istanbul suggested to resist. The barracks in Istanbul were full of trained soldiers. Yet Abd-ul-Hamid Khan imitated hadrat Ali's 'radi-allahu anh' ijtihad. He submitted himself to qadar-i-ilahi (Allah's divine foreordination). He did not resist the rebels. Thus he thwarted the Party of Union's plans to avenge on him and thousands of Muslims.

Day after day the number of separatists increased and consequently hadrat Ali's 'radi- allahu anh' army was broken into four groups:

1- The first group was the Shiah, who followed hadrat Ali 'radi-allahu anh'. They did not criticize any of the Ashab al-kiram. On the contrary, they spoke about them with love and respect. They were free from the doubts inspired by the devil. They knew the group they were fighting against as their brothers. (After a very short time) they stopped fighting them. Hadrat Ali accepted their judgements. The name Shiah was attached to this group first, and people who followed this group were called Ahl as-Sunnat wal-jamaat.

2- The group who held hadrat Ali 'radi-allahu anh' higher than all the other Sahabis were called Tafdiliyya. Hadrat Ali tried to dissuade them by threatening them with flogging. The word Shiah represents this group today.

3- The group who said that all the Sahaba 'radi-allahu ta'ala anhum ajmain' were sinners and disbelievers. These people were called Saba'iyya or Hurufi.

4- The group called Ghulat, who were the most unreasonable, were the most heretical of the four groups. They asserted that Allah had entered hadrat Ali.

When hadrat Husain's son Imam Zaynalabidin Ali passed away when he was forty-eight years old in the ninety-fourth year of the Hegira, his son Zayd bin Ali 'radi-allahu ta'ala anhum ajmain' revolted against Khalifa Hisham and marched to Kufa with an army. Yet, when hadrat Zayd heard that his soldiers were swearing at the Ashab al-kiram, he advised them to stop doing so. This made most of his soldiers abandon him. Having to defend himself with the very few soldiers who remained faithful to him, he was finally martyred in 122. Those who left him called themselves Imamiyya. And the faithful ones who stayed with Zayd were called Zaydiyya.

According to the Ahl as-sunnat, who were Ali's Shiah, hadrat Ali was the highest of his time. Caliphate was his right. Those who disagreed with him were wrong and became baghis (rebels against the Khalifa). Hadrat Aisha, Talha, Zubair, Muawiya, Amr Ibni As and the other Sahabis 'radi-allahu ta'ala anhum ajmain' who fought hadrat Ali did not do so for the office of caliphate. They protested him because hadrat 'Uthman's murderers had not been found and retaliated against. They were about to come to an agreement, when Abdullah bin Saba' and his men started the fight, and everything happened after that. All the Sahabis fighting hadrat Ali were saying that caliphate was his right and that he was higher than themselves. They were praising him. And hadrat Ali loved and praised those Sahabis who fought him.

10- Hurufis say that "The Ahl al-bayt castigated the Ashab al-kiram 'radi-allahu ta'ala anhum ajmain' and lamented over the persecutions inflicted by them." They add that "Most of the Sahaba, especially (hadrat) Muawiya and his father and (hadrat) Amr bin As, were apostates, and that those who love and praise those apostates will go to Hell together with them." It is true that after the Ashab al-kiram there were governors who perpetrated cruelty and persecution. The torments inflicted in the time of Abbasids were very much worse than those done in the time of Umayyads. Some imams of the Ahl al-bayt criticized those governors. Yet these people (Hurufis) distorted these criticizations of the imams of the Ahl al-bayt and represented them as if they had been intended for the Ashab al-kiram. This act of theirs is treacherous both against the Ahl al-bayt and against the Ashab al-kiram.

They misled ignorant people by misrepresenting books censuring the Ashab al-kiram as literature belonging to the scholars of Ahl as-sunnat. For example, the author of the book of interpretation is a supporter of the groups called Tafdiliyya (see the second group explained above) and Mutazila. Ahtab Harazmi, on the other hand, is an unbridled Zaydi. Ibni Qutayba, the author of the book Marif, and Ibni Ebilhadid, who wrote an explanation of the book Nahj-ul-balagha, are in Mutazila sect. Hisham Kelabi, a writer of Tafsir, is a bidat holder. Masudi, the author of Murawwij-uz-zehe