The Essay

This is the essay that was due yesterday.

I have endnotes with references, but for the purposes of online posting, I've removed them.

Click on the [+] Expand link at the bottom of this post to read the entire essay.



Essay Question:

If we consider the primary sources for the early Islamic period along with Shaban’s and Rahman’s treatment of this period, what would you say were the main points of tension which afflicted the Muslims of this time? How did they deal with it?

During the early Islamic period, several points of tension burdened the Muslims. These issues were not only restrained to difficulties with the pagan Qurayshites but also include complications within the Muslim community as well, the latter being more destructive to the future of the Ummah. Persecution at the hands of the Meccans, questions surrounding successorship, ‘Uthman’s assassination followed by the First Fitna, ‘Ali’s assassination followed by the Second Fitna, the massacre at Karbala and the resulting divisions among the Muslims are among the most important issues to be considered. Other minor problems did exist although they may or may not be explored based on their relevancy to the previously mentioned points.


When the Prophet initially began propagating his message he, along with his followers were met with harsh criticism. With the passing away of Abu Talib, protection from physical persecution was no longer available. Torture and punishment of Muslims who refused to denounce their faith became increasingly problematic. Verses of the Quran were revealed to comfort the oppressed Muslims but when the aggressive tactics intensified, the Muslims first emigrated to Abyssinia, then to Medina and thereafter began taking up arms in defense. After the migration, the issue of the Hypocrites arose; however they were more of a nuisance than a major problem.

It was not until after the death of the Prophet that the Muslims would be faced with one of their biggest complications; leadership of the Community. Those who supported ‘Ali enforced their opinion with the events of Ghadir Khum, while the supporters of Abu Bakr pointed out that he had been selected by the Prophet to lead the congregation in prayer, although Shaban disagrees with both of these justifications. He states that the Prophet’s indecision to explicitly name a successor implied that he wanted the matter to be resolved by the Muslims. Eventually—as history testifies—the decision was made to select Abu Bakr, although it came after heavy deliberation amongst the more “elite” of the Companions. Further opposition to this decision was not as vocal as it would become later on, especially during the Caliphate of ‘Uthman. It appears that although Abu Bakr was the most eligible candidate based on his qualifications, the dissatisfaction amongst those who favored ‘Ali was not dealt with properly. If their concerns had been adequately addressed, the seeds of division and disunity may not have been sown. Consequently, we may not have seen the wars and bloodshed that ensued.

While the question of successorship was a major issue to be resolved, so to was the matter of the apostates. Abu Bakr dealt with this almost immediately after accepting office as it posed an important threat to the unity of the Muslims. Had he adopted a more relaxed approach to a solution, the structure of the still fragile community would have almost absolutely reverted back to previous customs and quarrels amongst tribes.

Attempts to win the Caliphate for ‘Ali were made when Abu Bakr died, and subsequently when ‘Umar was murdered, however it was ‘Uthman b. Affan that was selected. What disturbed his critics the most was his preferential treatment of his Umayyad kinsmen and favoring them for political offices above others. In his defense, ‘Uthman may have been acting upon Quranic injunctions, however his opposition felt that the Umayyads were unworthy of the positions given to them, as they had once been staunch opponents of Islam and were only relatively recent converts. Furthermore, they leveled charges of tyranny, corruption, and oppression against him. In 656, dissidents from Iraq and Egypt arrived in Medina for discussions with ‘Uthman, which escalated into a violent form and resulted in the assassination of the third Caliph. ‘Ali was the next choice for Caliph, and amongst the first problems he faced was the issue of bringing ‘Uthman’s assassins to justice. Aisha, the wife of the Prophet was at the forefront of this demand and was able to rally the support of Talha and Zubayr with whom she met the forces of ‘Ali at the Battle of the Camel. It is considered that the matter relating to ‘Uthman’s murder and the failure of bringing the perpetrators to justice represents a shortcoming in ‘Ali’s rule as it served to strengthen the growing divide between the Muslims. ‘Ali himself had felt that taking action against the dissidents would cause greater problems at a time already rife with chaos. However, had ‘Ali listened to the demands of Aisha and her supporters, perhaps the two factions would have been able to settle their differences and began healing the two halves of the community back together.

This however, was not the case and soon, Mu’awiya emerged as a vocal opponent to ‘Ali. He refused to give allegiance to the latter citing that he had failed to avenge ‘Uthman’s death. This confrontation between the two led to the First Fitna, which was a significant problem upon the Muslims. The civil war, which ended in arbitration led to the emergence of a third party of Muslims, the Kharijites. The other two parties, the Sunnis and Shi‘is became more distinct. It is for these reasons that, in hindsight, the issues facing the Muslims at this point were not dealt with properly. ‘Ali had been criticized by some of his own supporters for giving in to the request for an arbitration and they subsequently broke off from his group. Although the differences that existed amongst the parties were mainly political in nature, they would later evolve into a set of hardened theological teachings.

Upon Mu‘awiya’s death, he named his son Yazid as his successor and in doing so, began the “disintegration of the regime that he had so painstakingly tended to”. Al-Hasan, who had backed away from his claim to Caliphate after the death of this father, now found an opportune moment to make his claims once more. Leading what was deemed as a revolt against Yazid, Hasan rallied support from his family and a few supporters and set out for Kufa. It may be seen as a mistake on his part to venture out against Yazid without first strengthening his force, however the bigger accountability rests upon Yazid for having the descendants of the Prophet massacred in such a brutal manner. If the actions of those who came before him caused a drift in the Muslim community, the actions of Yazid ensured that the two major sides in the conflict would not be able to reconcile.

There were many other conflicts and points of tension amongst those that were explored above, however these are the main issues that are notable to have caused a significant difference in the Muslim community. The persecution of the Muslims by the Meccans served to strengthen and unify them as one body, while the major events after the death of the Prophet mainly caused and strengthened divisions—whether or not that was the intent. Although both sides of the conflict could never be completely satisfied, the manner that some of the disputations were dealt with were not always effective in upholding the “overall good’ for the Muslim community and actions like those of Yazid served only to strengthen animosity.