Name: Ali ibne Abi Talib (as)

Father: Abu Talib bin Abdul Muttalib bin Hashim.

Mother: Fatimah bint Asad bin Hashim bin Abd Munaf.

Kunniyat (Patronymic): Abul Hasan and Husayn, Abu Turab

Laqab (Title): Al-Wasi, Amir al-Mu'minin

Birth: He was born in the Ka'ba , in thirty 'Am al-Fil (the year of the elephant).

Martyrdom: He was martyred by the Khwariji named Abd al-Rahman ibn Muljam at Kufa during the month of Ramadhan in the fortieth year of Hijrah and is buried in Najaf on the outskirts of Kufa.


Biography

Amir al-mu'minln Ali (upon whom be peace) was the son of Abu Talib, the Shaykh of the Banu Hashim. Abu Talib was the uncle and guardian of the Holy Prophet (sawas) and the person who had brought the Prophet (sawas) to his house and raised him like his own son. After the Prophet (sawas) was chosen for his prophetic mission, Abu Talib continued to support him and repelled from him the evil that came from the infidels among the Arabs and especially the Quraysh.

According to well-known traditional accounts Ali was born ten years before the commencement of the prophetic mission of the Prophet (sawas). When six years old, as a result of famine in and around Mecca, he was requested by the Prophet (sawas) to leave his father's house and come to the house of his cousin, the Prophet (sawas). There he was placed directly under the guardianship and custody of the Holy Prophet (sawas).

A few years later, when the Prophet (sawas) was endowed with the Divine gift of prophecy and for the first time received the Divine revelation in the cave of Hira', as he left the cave to return to town and his own house he met Ali on the way. He told him what had happened and Ali accepted the new faith. Again in a gathering when the Holy Prophet (sawas) had brought his relatives together and invited them to accept his religion, he said the first person to accept his call would be his vicegerent and inheritor and deputy. The only person to rise from his place and accept the faith was Ali and the Prophet (sawas) accepted his declaration of faith. Therefore Ali was the first man in Islam to accept the faith and is the first among the followers of the Prophet (sawas) to have never worshipped other than the One God.

Ali was always in the company of the Prophet (sawas) until the Prophet (sawas) migrated from Mecca to Medina. On the night of the migration to Medina (hijrah) when the infidels had surrounded the house of the Prophet (sawas) and were determined to invade the house at the end of the night and cut him to pieces while he was in bed, Ali slept in place of the Prophet (sawas) while the Prophet (sawas) left the house and set out for Medina. After the departure of the Prophet (sawas), according to his wish Ali gave back to the people the trusts and charges that they had left with the Prophet (sawas). Then he went to Medina with his mother, the daughter of the Prophet (sawas), and two other women.

In Medina also Ali was constantly in the company of the Prophet (sawas) in private and in public. The Prophet (sawas) gave Fatimah, his beloved daughter from Khadijah, to Ali as his wife and when the Prophet (sawas) was creating bonds of brotherhood among his companions he selected Ali as his brother.

Ali was present in all the wars in which the Prophet (sawas) participated, except the battle of Tabuk when he was ordered to stay in Medina in place of the Prophet (sawas). He did not retreat in any battle nor did he turn his face away from any enemy. He never disobeyed the Prophet (sawas), so that the Prophet (sawas) said, "Ali is never separated from the Truth nor the Truth from Ali."

On the day of the death of the Prophet (sawas), Ali was thirty-three years old. Although he was foremost in religious virtues and the most outstanding among the companions of the Prophet (sawas), he was pushed aside from the caliphate on the claim that he was too young and that he had many enemies among the people because of the blood of the polytheists he had spilled in the wars fought alongside the Prophet (sawas). Therefore Ali was almost completely cut off from public affairs. He retreated to his house where he began to train competent individuals in the Divine sciences and in this way he passed the twenty-five years of the caliphate of the first three caliphs who succeeded the Prophet (sawas). When the third caliph was killed, people gave their allegiance to him and he was chosen as caliph.

During his caliphate of nearly four years and nine months, Ali followed the way of the Prophet (sawas) and gave his caliphate the form of a spiritual movement and renewal and began many different types of reforms. Naturally, these reforms were against the interests of certain parties that sought their own benefit. As a result, a group of the companions (foremost among whom were Talhah and Zubayr, who also gained the support of A'ishah, and especially Mu'awiyah) made a pretext of the death of the third caliph to raise their heads in opposition and began to revolt and rebel against Ali.

In order to quell the civil strife and sedition, Ali fought a war near Basra, known as the "Battle of the Camel," against Talhah and Zubayr in which Ummul Mu'mineen A'ishah, was also involved. He fought another war against Mu'awiyah on the border of Iraq and Syria which lasted for a year and a half and is famous as the "Battle of Siffin." He also fought against the Khawarij at Nahrawan, in a battle known as the "Battle of Nahrawan." Therefore, most of the days of Ali's caliphate were spent in overcoming internal opposition. Finally, in the morning of the 19th of Ramadan in the year 40 A.H., while praying in the mosque of Kufa, he was wounded by one of the Khawarij and died as a martyr during the night of the 21st of Ramadan.

According to the testimony of friend and foe alike, Ali had no shortcomings from the point of view of human perfection. And in the Islamic virtues he was a perfect example of the upbringing and training given by the Prophet (sawas). The discussions that have taken place concerning his personality and the books written on this subject by Shi'ites, Sunnis and members of other religions, as well as the simply curious outside any distinct religious bodies, are hardly equalled in the case of any other personality in history.

In science and knowledge Ali was the most learned of the companions of the Prophet (sawas), and of Muslims in general. In his learned discourses he was the first in Islam to open the door for logical demonstration and proof and to discuss the "divine sciences" or metaphysics (ma'arif-i ilahlyah). He spoke concerning the esoteric aspect of the Quran and devised Arabic grammar in order to preserve the Quran's form of expression. He was the most eloquent Arab in speech (as has been mentioned in the first part of this book).

The courage of Ali was proverbial. In all the wars in which he participated during the lifetime of the Prophet (sawas), and also afterward, he never displayed fear or anxiety. Although in many battles such as those of Uhud, Hunayn, Khaybar and Khandaq the aides to the Prophet (sawas) and the Muslim army trembled in fear or dispersed and fled, he never turned his back to the enemy. Never did a warrior or soldier engage Ali in battle and come out of it alive. Yet, with full chivalry he would never slay a weak enemy nor pursue those who fled. He would not engage in surprise attacks or in turning streams of water upon the enemy. It has been definitively established historically that in the Battle of Khaybar in the attack against the fort he reached the ring of the door and with sudden motion tore off the door and cast it away. Also on the day when Mecca was conquered the Prophet (sawas) ordered the idols to be broken. The idol "Hubal" was the largest idol in Mecca, a giant stone statue placed on the top of the Ka'bah. Following the command of the Prophet (sawas), Ali placed his feet on the Prophet (sawas)'s shoulders, climbed to the top of the Ka'bah, pulled "Hubal" from its place and cast it down.

Ali was also without equal in religious asceticism and the worship of God. In answer to some who had complained of Ali's anger toward them, the Prophet (sawas) said, "Do not reproach Ali for he is in a state of Divine ecstasy and bewilderment.

" Abu Darda'', one of the companions, one day saw the body of Ali in one of the palm plantations of Medina laying on the ground as stiff as wood. He went to Ali's house to inform his noble wife, the daughter of the Prophet (sawas), and to express his condolences. The daughter of the Prophet (sawas) said, "My cousin (Ali) has not died. Rather, in fear of God he has fainted. This condition overcomes him often." There are many stories told of Ali's kindness to the lowly, compassion for the needy and the poor, and generosity and munificence toward those in misery and poverty. Ali spent all that he earned to help the poor and the needy, and himself lived in the strictest and simplest manner. Ali loved agriculture and spent much of his time digging wells, planting trees and cultivating fields. But all the fields that he cultivated or wells that he built he gave in endowment (waqf) to the poor. His endowments, known as the "alms of Ali," had the noteworthy income of twenty-four thousand gold dinars toward the end of his life.

Ali ibn Abi Talib
Commander of the Faithful
(Amir al-Mu'minin)
Artistic depiction of Ali
Reign 656-661[1]
Full name Ali ibn Abi Talib
Titles Father of Hasan (Arabic: Abu al-Hasan)
Father of Dust/Soil (Arabic: Abu Turab)
Murtadha ("One Who Is Chosen and Contented")
Lion of God (Arabic: Asad-ullah)
Lion (Arabic: Haydar)[1]
First ʿAlī
Born October 23, 598,[2]March 17, 599 or March 17, 600[1]
Mecca[1]
Died January 28, 661 (aged 62)
Kufa[1]
Buried Imam Ali Mosque, Najaf, Iraq
Predecessor Uthman Ibn Affan (as Sunni Islam Caliph); Muhammad (as Shi'a Imam)
Successor Hasan[3]
Wives Fatimah[1]
Fatima bint Hizam al-Qilabiyya ("Ummu l-Banin")
Offspring Hasan
Husayn
Zaynab
(Seeescendants of Ali ibn Abi Talib)
Father Abu Talib
Mother Fatima bint Asad

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" Selling a Product Is Easy For Marketer, but difficult to sell himself"

FROM BIRTH TO HIJRA
Birth of Ali(A.S,)

Hazrat Ali(A.S,) was born in the Holy Kaaba at Mecca on Friday, the 13th day of Rajab, 600 A.D. Both the Holy Prophet and Hazrat All belonged to the same clan. They were Hashimites, the clan of Bani Hashim. Muhammad's father was Abdulla, and that of Hazrat Ali, Abu Talib. They were brothers and their father was Abdul Muttalib. Thus the Holy Prophet and Hazrat Ali were cousins. Hazrat Ali had two brothers, Ja'far and Aquil.

Hazrat All's mother Fatima was the daughter of Asad,a famous magnate of the Quraish clan. She was also the aunt of the Holy Prophet, being the wife of Abu Talib, the Prophet's paternal uncle. When she was pregnant, she promised Muhammad to make over to him whatever child was born to her, be it male or female. Muhammad, brought forth, gladly accepted the offer.

Ali's holy personality began its wonderful manifestation even during the period of his mother's pregnancy. At that time, Muhanunad had not yet announced his prophetshood, and yet when he passed before Fatima, who being his aunt was senior to him, she used to stand up in reverence and respect for him, and somehow something within her never allowed her to turn her face away from Muhammad as long as he was around.
When people asked her about this peculiar behaviour of hers, she would say that she could not help it, that some irresistible urge from within made her do so.

This statement was disbelieved by those who wished to test her. So one day they made her sit and they asked two strong men to hold her down when Muhammad passed by. Then they asked Muhammad if he would walk in front of her, to which he gladly agreed. As he came in front of her, Fatima began to rise and she stood erect throwing both men aside. Muhammad who alone was aware of this mystery, used to smile.

He was keenly awaiting the birth of his cousin Ali.

During her pregnancy whenever Fatima was alone, she heard from within her a mysterious whisper which was to the glorification of God.

To understand the significance and importance of his place of birth, it is essential to know a little of the history of the Kaaba.

The first House of God was rebuilt and renovated at the command of Allah by the Prophet Abraham assisted by his worthy successor, his son Ismail, under the supervision and guidance of the Angel Gabriel. The verses of the Koran say :

"And remember when Abraham raised the foundation of the House with Ismail, (Praying) Our Lord! accept (this service) from us; verily Thou and Thou (alone) art the All-hearing and All-knowing.

Chap. 2-Verse 127.
"And remember when we made the House a resort for mankind and a sanctuary (saying), Take ye the station of Abraham a place of prayer (For you); and covenanted with Abraham and Ismail (saying) purify ye two my House for those who make the circuit, and for those who prostrate (adoring) .

Chap. 2-Verse 125.
This verse clearly depicts the purpose of the Kaaba, namely that it was to be a place of worship and that it was pure and sacred.

It was to this sacred place, the Holy Kaaba, that Providence led the mother of Hazrat Ali. She felt weighed down by intense pain when Ali was due to be born. She knelt to pray. When she raised her head from her supplication, the wall of the House split as if by a miracle, to admit her within, and a portion of the wall returned to its normal position. The Kaaba was sealed, with Fatima within.

This news spread fast all over Mecca. The keys of the shrine wore brought to unlock the door but all efforts ended in failure.

On the third day of this happening, with awe the wonder- struck crowds surrounding the Kaaba witnessed the lock falling of its own accord, and to their surprise Fatima emerged radiant from the sacred premises, cheerfully holding her new-born babe in her arms. Muhammad Was waiting to receive her and her new-born child, and the first face that little All saw in this world was the smiling

face of the Apostle of Cod, Muhammad, whom he greeted thus:

"Assalaamo alaika ya Rasoolallah (Peace be upon thee 0 Prophet of Allah). Thus it is an undisputed fact that Ali was born a Muslim, and his first words testified to the Prophethood of Muhammad. Muhammad lovingly took him into his arms. Ali's first bath after his birth was given by Muhammad with a prediction that this babe would give him his last bath. This Prophecy was fulfilled on the death of the Holy Prophet. The child accepted no other food other than the moisture of Muhammad's tongue, which he sucked for several days after his birth. Muhammad fondled him in his lap in his infancy, and chewed his food and fed Ali on it; he often made him sleep by his side, and Ali enjoyed the warmth of Muhammad's body and inhaled the holy fragrance of his breath.

The superstitious Arabs of those times, held that every person as he came into the world was touched by the devil, and that was why new-born babies cried at birth. Since Ali was born in the sanctuary of God, to which the devil had no access, he did not cry at birth but was found smiling. Thus God had interposed a veil between the evil spirits and the child who was to grow up to exalt His Holy Name. All has been described as having been found like a priceless pearl in the shell of the Kaaba, or a sword in the sheath of Allah's House, or as a lamp found in Allah's abode shedding light all around.

The sanctified birth of Ali, as that of Prophet Muhammad, was foretold in the scriptures, when God said to Abraham, who asked for a blessing on Jshmael; "And as for Ishmael, I have heard thee: behold I have blessed him, and will make him fruitful, and will multiply him exceedingly, twelve princes shall he beget, and I will make him a great nation. (Genesis 17 : 20).

The felicitous Prophecy in Genesis 17:20 about the advent of a prophet is said to point to the appearance of Muhammad and Ali. While the Twelve Princes' of the Mosaic Scriptures are held to be none other than the twelve Holy Imams.

Hazrat Ali's birth inside the Kaaba is unique. This is the only known occasion on which a child was born within the precincts of the holy place ever since its foundation thousands of years ago.

When Ali was about five years of age, Muhammad took him away from his uncle Abu Talib to bring him up as his own child. Thus from his earliest days, Ali came directly under the tutelage of the Apostle of God, to share his high ethics and morals. Ali was ever ready to run the risk of his own life for Muhammad at times of danger and he was affectionately attached to him with unswerving faithfulness. The cousins were so fond of each other that they lived together till death parted them.

As Hazrat Ali says: "The Holy Prophet brought me up in his own arms and fed me with his own morsel. I followed him wherever he went, like a baby camel which follows its mother. Each day an aspect of his character would beam out of his noble soul and I would accept it and follow it as a command.

Ten years in the company of Muhammad had kept him so close and inseparable that he was one with him in character, knowledge, self-sacrifice, forbearance, bravery, kindness, generosity, oratory and eloquence. From his very infancy, he prostrated himself before God along with the Holy Prophet, as he himself said, "I was the first to pray to God along with the Holy Prophet.

According to Ibne-e-.Maja page 12, Raizunnazarah Vol. II page 158, Usdul Ghulia Vol. IV page 1, and Izalathul Khofa page 252, Ali used to say : "I have prayed to God along with the Holy Prophet seven years before any other person did.

The First Believers : Ibn Abbas, Anas. Zaid bin Aqram, Salman Farsi, and others have said, "Indeed it was Ali who was the first to declare his Islam, and some say that there is a consensus for this!Major Jarret's translation of Suyuti's History of the Caliphs page 171.

The illustrious All was thus the first to readily embrace Islam and testified to Muhammad being the Apostle of God.

Muhammad used to say the three men viz., Ezekiel, Habib Najjar and Ali, who came forward first to bear testimony to the faith of their Prophets, Moses, Testis, and himself respectively, were acknowledged as 1Siddiq. Ali repudiated the claim of any other to this epithet 2.

Often did the Holy Prophet go into the depths of the solitary desert around Mecca with his wife Khadija and his young cousin and disciple, Ali, so that they might together offer their thanks to their Cod for His manifold blessings.

Once they were surprised in this attitude of prayer by Abu Talib, the father of Ali, who said unto Muhammad "0 son of my brother, what is this religion that thou art following?

"It is the religion of God, of His angels, of His prophets, and of our ancestor Abraham , answered the Prophet. "God has sent me to His servants to direct them towards the truth .

Then turning to Ali, his son, the venerable patriarch Abu Talib enquired what his religion was. "0 Father , answered Ali, "I "believe in God and His Prophet ad go with him.

"Well my son, said Abu Talib, "He will not call thee to aught save what is good, wherefore thou art free to cleave unto him .

The first occasion where the Holy Prophet nominated Hazrat Ali as his vicegerent was the meeting of Dawat-e.Asheera.

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1. Ahniad Hanbal in his Manaqib; Nasai in his Khasaes; Hakim in his Mustadrak.
2. Jbn Athir.

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" Selling a Product Is Easy For Marketer, but difficult to sell himself"