The Fourth Rightly Guided Caliph – Amir al-Mu’minin, Commander of the Faithful; Asadullah, Lion of Allah(Life: 599 – 661 AD),(Caliphate: 656 – 661 AD)

Preface: This is only a summary of the life of Ali ibn Abi Talib RA and does not cover all the points of his life story. It is not intended to be a biography, but rather a glimpse of the main incidents of his life so that we can get an idea of his character. For ease of reading, i have not inserted “May Allah be pleased with him (RA)” each time his name or the name of each Companion is mentioned, but please take it that the salutations apply to all of them, may Allah be pleased with them all.
How much do we know of the last of the Rightly Guided Caliphs, the one of whom he said that the Prophet SAW gave him a promise that: “No one will love you except a believer and no one will hate you except a hypocrite?”
It has been reported by various sources that he was born inside the Ka’bah. His full name was Ali ibn Abi Talib ibn Abdul Mutalib. He was the paternal cousin of the Prophet SAW and shared a grandfather with him in Abdul-Mutalib ibn Hakim. His father was Abi Talib, the full brother of Abdullah, the father of the Prophet SAW. After the death of Abdul Mutalib, Ali’s father, Abu Talib, became the chief of the clan. Ali’s lineage to the Prophet SAW is exceptional for not only is he the Prophet’s SAW cousin, he was also adopted into the Prophet’s SAW household when he was young. He was subsequently bestowed the title of “brother” by the Prophet SAW upon migration to Medina as he undertook to care for his welfare. Soon after Ali became the Prophet‘s SAW son-in-law when he married Fatimah after the Battle of Badr. She bore him two sons Al-Hasan and Al-Husayn, and a daughter Umm Kulthoom.
Other than being the close to the companions of the Prophet SAW, Ali also fostered close ties to Umar when Ali gave his daughter Umm Kulthoom to him. It is also evident that he held a high position in Umar’s eyes for he was one of the six companions of the Prophet SAW to be nominated as Caliph upon Umar’s death.
Simplicity was the key to Ali’s existence. He was brought up in a simple and spare surrounding while he was in the Prophet’s SAW household and he continued doing so when he married Fatimah. They lived on basic food like milk, barley bread and some vegetable, although at times had to go without food for days. When Ali became a Caliph, he maintained the same austere lifestyle. Also keeping his meals simple, he said that a Caliph was entitled to two dishes, one for his family and the other for the poor.
Despite being poor and living a meager life, Ali would never let any poor man at the door leave disappointed. Such was his generosity that once, after he worked at a barley field to earn some grain, he ended up not consuming any of it as he had generously spared the portions to a beggar, an orphan and a prisoner, all three having asked him for food.
Bravery was second nature to Ali for he had fought valiantly at battles and emerged victorious, earning the title of the “Lion of Allah”. He was a party to all the battles fought with the Prophet SAW at the helm except for one.
As with all the Rightly Guided Caliphs and noble companions, Ali was educated on the basis of the Noble Qur’an, their teacher being the master of all mankind, Muhammad SAW. The verses that Ali heard directly from the Prophet SAW impacted the formation of his character. It was apparent that the words had illuminated his heart and transformed his mind and soul to become pure in faith and action. Ali memorized the Qur’an by heart and was considered to be among the top interpreters who knew every verse, line and meaning. It was narrated that Ali had said:
“By Allah, no verse of it was revealed but I know why it was revealed, when it was revealed and to whom it was revealed. My Lord has blessed me with a deep understanding and an eloquent, truthful tongue.”
Ali was always keen to teach the Noble Qur’an and the teachings of the Prophet SAW to people. He found the necessity to teach the true rulings of Islam and train the believers to follow it. As a constant companion of the Prophet SAW from a very young age, he was also well versed in the Prophet’s SAW sayings (Hadiths).
Thus his religious commitment was shaped and, among other things Ali is known for his religious endeavours and that he not only fulfilled the obligatory daily prayers but also the Nawafil (additional prayers). He has also been known to spend whole nights in prayer.

His early years in Islam

As Ali was raised in Muhammad’s SAW home, he was very much aware of the incident at Hira cave when Muhammad SAW received the Angel Jibreel AS and the calling to Islam. Even while Muhammad SAW isolated himself at the cave to worship Allah following the precepts of the religion of Ibrahim AS, Ali helped in bringing food to the Prophet SAW. According to majority, he was said to be between nine and fourteen (although majority of the reports conclude that he was between nine or ten) years old then.
Ibn Ishaq narrated that Ali ibn Abi Talib found the Prophet SAW and Khadijah praying. After enquiring after their actions, the Prophet SAW duly informed him that this is the religion of Allah. Ali was invited by the Prophet SAW to respond to this call too and to disbelieve in the pagan gods. Some accounts mention that Ali responded that as he has not heard of it before, he would not decide until he speaks to his father, Abu Talib, while other reports assert that Ali accepted Islam without hesitation. However, it is unanimously agreed that Ali ibn Abi-Talib became the first child to accept Islam and thus one of the earliest followers. By virtue of his young age, Ali was one of the few Makkans who had never worshipped the pagan idols, hence the expression Karamma-LLahu Wajhahu (May Allah honour his face) is often said upon mentioning his name.
Three years later when the Prophet SAW was ordered to proclaim their Islamic faith in public, Ali had anticipated the acceptance of such goodness and noble beliefs. Instead there was disbelief among the people of Mecca and insults were hurled at the believers, with them having to endure extensive oppression. As he was too young to help the Prophet SAW, Ali could only stop the younger boys who were instructed by the pagans to throw stones and sand at him(To be Continued).
Writer is a blogger, columnist and Student Govt. Degree college Kulgam.
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