'Abd Allah b. Wal al-Taymi
| Full Name | 'Abd Allah b. Wal al-Taymi |
|---|---|
| Companion of | Imam Ali (a), Imam al-Hasan (a) |
| Religious Affiliation | Shi'a |
| Lineage | Banu Taym |
| Place(s) of Residence | Kufa |
| Death/Martyrdom | 65/684-5, 'Ayn al-Warda |
ʿAbd Allāh b. Wāl (Waʾil) al-Taymī (Arabic:عَبدُالله بن وال (وائل) التَیمي) was among the chiefs of Shi'a in Kufa. He was among the companions of Imam Ali (a) and Imam al-Hasan (a). After Imam al-Husayn (a) was martyred, 'Abd Allah b. Wal became one of the chiefs of Tawwabun movement and was martyred in 'Ayn al-Warda in 65/684-5.
In A'yan al-Shi'a, he has been counted among Shia poets.
Position
'Abd Allah b. Wal was among distinguished Shia personalities in Kufa who was always a pioneer in Shia activities and was respected by Shia especially because of his sincerity and sacrifice for the Ahl al-Bayt (a).[1]
In A'yan al-Shia, his name has been mentioned among Shia poets[2] and Ibn Athir has mentioned him among jurists and men of worship.[3] He was from Banu Taym tribe. Some sources have recorded his name as 'Abd Allah b. Wa'il.[4]
During the Rule of Imam Ali (a)
Al-Shaykh al-Mufid has mentioned his name among the Shia who pledged allegiance to Imam Ali (a) in Medina for caliphate.[5]
After the Arbitration in the Battle of Siffin, Imam Ali (a) sent 'Abd Allah b. Wal who was young, to Basra with some others to suppress the revolt of Khirrit b. Rashid. When 'Abd Allah asked Imam (a) for permission to participate in the battle, Imam (a) told him,
- "Go O son of my brother! By God I swear that I expect that you would be among my helpers in the path of truth and help me against oppressors."[6]
At the Time of Imam al-Hasan (a)
During the short caliphate of Imam al-Hasan (a), 'Abd Allah b. Wal was among the companions of Imam al-Hasan (a) who became ready to fight with Mu'awiya.[7]
Inviting Imam al-Husayn (a)
After Mu'awiya's death and succession of Yazid, when the people of Kufa were informed that Imam al-Husayn (a) had gone out of Medina to Mecca to avoid pledging allegiance to Yazid, wrote letters to him and invited him to Kufa. 'Abd Allah b. Wal and 'Abd Allah b. Misma' al-Hamdani delivered the first letters to Imam (a). They reached Imam (a) in Mecca on Ramadan 10th, 60/June 14, 680.[8]
In the Movement of Tawwabun
Most of the people of Kufa who wrote letter to Imam al-Husayn (a) and promised to help him, did not participate in the Event of Karbala with different reasons. After Imam (a) was martyred, the Shia of Kufa so much regretted for not helping Imam (a) and tried to make up for their dereliction. Thus, distinguished Shia personalities including 'Abd Allah b. Wal gathered and decided to make an uprising and take revenge from the murders of Imam al-Husayn (a).[9]
During arrangements of the uprising, 'Abd Allah was appointed as the treasurer so that donations of Shia for the uprising would be given to him.[10]
After the formation of the army of Tawwabun, Sulayman b. Surad al-Khuza'i who was the leader of the uprising, appointed 'Abd Allah b. Wal as the third commander of war (in case of the martyrdom of preceding commanders).[11]
Tawwabun first went to Karbala and visited the grave of Imam al-Husayn (a). It is reported that beside the grave of Imam (a), 'Abd Allah said:
- "By God I swear, I know Husayn (a), his father (a) and his brother (a) best of intercessors of the people of Muhammad (s) to God on the day of Judgement. Do not you become surprised what a calamity has befallen upon the people regarding them. People killed two of the three (Imam Ali (a) and Imam al-Husayn (a)) and they were close to kill the third (Imam al-Hasan (a))."[12]
In the battle of 'Ayn al-Warda between Tawwabun and the army of Syria led by Ibn Ziyad, after Sulayman b. Surad, Al-Musayyib b. Najaba and 'Abd Allah b. Sa'd b. Nufayl were martyred, 'Abd Allah b. Wal took the command and raised the flag and urged the army to jihad and fight.[13]
Martyrdom
'Abd Allah was martyred in the last moments of the battle. Adham b. Muhraz, one of the commanders of the army of Syria, saw 'Abd Allah reciting this verse, "Do not suppose those who were slain in the way of Allah to be dead;" [14]. Adham became angry of hearing this verse and attacked 'Abd Allah and first cut one of his hands and then pierced his spear in 'Abd Allah's body and killed him.[15]
Notes
- ↑ Jaʿfarī, Tashayyuʿ dar masīr-i tārīkh, p. 262.
- ↑ Amīn, Aʿyān al-Shīʿa, vol. 1, p. 168.
- ↑ Ibn al-Athīr, al-Kāmil fī l-tārīkh, vol. 4, p. 184.
- ↑ Ibn Ṭāwūs, al-Luhūf, p. 33.
- ↑ Mufīd, al-Jumal, p. 109.
- ↑ Thaqafī, al-Ghārāt, vol. 1, p. 342.
- ↑ Āl Yāsīn, Ṣulḥ al-Ḥasan, p. 94.
- ↑ Mufīd, al-Irshād, vol. 2, p. 36-37.
- ↑ Ṭabarī, Tārīkh al-umam wa l-mulūk, vol. 5, p. 552-553.
- ↑ Ṭabarī, Tārīkh al-umam wa l-mulūk, vol. 5, p. 555.
- ↑ Dhahabī, Tārīkh al-Islām, vol. 5, p. 48.
- ↑ Ṭabarī, Tārīkh al-umam wa l-mulūk, vol. 5, p. 590.
- ↑ Ṭabarī, Tārīkh al-umam wa l-mulūk, vol. 5, p. 601-602.
- ↑ Qur'an 3:169
- ↑ Ibn al-Athīr, al-Kāmil fī l-tārīkh, vol. 4, p. 184.
References
- Āl Yāsīn, Rāḍī. Ṣulḥ al-Ḥasan alayhi salām. Beirut: Muʾassisat al-Aʿlamī, 1412 AH.
- Amīn, al-Sayyid Muḥsin al-. Aʿyān al-Shīʿa. Beirut: Dār al-Tʿāruf li-l-Maṭbūʿāt, 1403 AH.
- Dhahabī, Muḥammad b. al-Aḥmad al-. Tārīkh al-Islām wa wafayāt al-mashāhīr wa l-aʿlām. 2nd edition. Beirut: Dār al-Kitāb al-ʿArabī, 1409 AH.
- Ibn al-Athīr al-Jazarī, ʿAlī b. Abī l-Karam. Al-Kāmil fī l-tārīkh. Beirut: Dār Ṣādir, 1385 AH-1965.
- Jaʿfarī, Ḥusayn Muḥammad. Tashayyuʿ dar masīr-i tārīkh. 11 edition. Tehran: Daftar-i Nashr-i Farhang-i *Islāmī, 1382 Sh.
- Mufīd, Muḥammad b. Muḥammad al-. Al-Irshād fī maʿrifat ḥujaj Allāh ʿalā l-ʿibād. Qom: Kungira-yi Shaykh al-Mufīd, 1413 AH.
- Mufīd, Muḥammad b. Muḥammad al-. Al-Jumal wa al-nuṣra li sayyid al-ʿitra fī ḥarb al-baṣra. Qom: Kungira-yi Shaykh al-Mufīd, 1413 AH.
- Ṭabarī, Muḥammad b. Jarīr al-. Tārīkh al-umam wa l-mulūk. Beirut: Dār al-Turāth, 1387 AH.
- Thaqafī, Ibrāhim b. Muḥammad. Al-Ghārāt. Qom: Dār al-Kitāb, 1410 AH.