Al-Mundhir b. al-Jarud
| Full Name | Mundhir b. al-Jarud b. 'Amr b. Hubaysh al-'Abdi |
|---|---|
| Companion of | Imam Ali (a) |
| Lineage | 'Abd al-Qays tribe |
| Wellknown Relatives | Sa'sa'a b. Sawhan |
| Place(s) of Residence | Kufa, India |
| Demise | 62/681-2 |
Mundhir b. al-Jārūd (Arabic: مُنذِر بن الجارود, d. 62/681-2) was Imam 'Ali (a)'s agent in Istakhr. He was part of Imam 'Ali's army in the battles Jamal and Siffin. Because the reputation of his father, Jarud, he was appointed by the Imam (a) as his agent in Istakhr (Fars province, Iran). However, he was removed from the position because of his self-indulgences. He also surrendered Imam al-Husayn (a)'s letter addressed to prominent figures of Basra, as well as his messenger, to ibn Ziyad. In the Uprising of al-Mukhtar, Mundhir did not take any sides. He also served as an agent of the Umayyad dynasty in India.
Biography
Mundhir b. Jarud b. 'Amr b. Hubaysh al-'Abdi was born during the lifetime of the Prophet (s). He was from the 'Abd al-Qays tribe, and was a relative of Sa'sa'a b. Sawhan.[1] Mundhir was a companion of Imam 'Ali (a) during his reign. However, in the last years of his life, he tended towards the Umayyad dynasty and was appointed by 'Ubayd Allah b. Ziyad as Yazid b. Mu'awiya's agent in a region in India.[2] He died in India in 62/681-2.[3]
During the Reign of Imam 'Ali
Mundhir fought alongside Imam 'Ali (a) in the battles of Jamal and Siffin. After the Battle of Jamal, Mundhir asked Amir al-Mu'minin (a) a question about the end of time, to which Imam 'Ali (a) gave an elaborate answer.[4]
In the Battle of Siffin, he played a role in encouraging people to participate in the war,[5] and in the story of Arbitration (or al-Hakamiyya), he delivered a speech in which he announced allegiance to Imam 'Ali (a).[6]
After the Battle of Siffin, Mundhir b. Jarud was appointed as the governor of Istakhr in Fars, Iran. However, when Imam 'Ali (a) received reports about his self-indulgences in Istakhr, he wrote a letter to Mundhir, in which he said that the reason why he trusted him was his father's reputation, and then enumerated his wrongdoings and removed him from his position.[7] Upon his return to Kufa, Mundhir was imprisoned, but after the intercession of Sa'sa'a b. Sawhan and the payment of a penalty of 30,000 dirhams, he was released from the prison.[8] According to some people, Mundhir agreed with the views of Khawarij.[9]
Reaction to Imam al-Husayn's Call
Mundhir b. Jarud was a prominent figure in Basra at the beginning of Imam al-Husayn's uprising.[10] In a letter addressed to prominent figures of Basra, including Mundhir, Imam al-Husayn (a) invited them to join his uprising. Mundhir surrendered the letter and the messenger (Sulayman b. Razin) to 'Ubayd Allah b. Ziyad.[11] There are two views of how he treated Sulayman b. Razin. On one view, he did so because he thought the letter was from 'Ubayd Allah b. Ziyad (b. 33/653-4, d. 67/686).[12] On another view, this was as a result of his alliance with 'Ubayd Allah. One piece of evidence for this is said to be the marriage of Mundhir's daughter with ibn Ziyad.[13]
Impartiality in al-Mukhtar's Uprising
In the battle between al-Mukhtar al-Thaqafi and Mus'ab b. Zubayr, Mundhir rejected Mus'ab's call to join him, and then fled to Kerman together with some of his close companions, and thus remained impartial. In Kerman, he invited people to pledge their allegiance to 'Abd al-Malik b. Marwan.[14]
Notes
- ↑ Ibn Aʿtham al-Kūfī, Kitāb al-Futūḥ, vol. 2, p. 488.
- ↑ Balādhurī, Futūḥ al-buldān, vol. 1, p. 418.
- ↑ Ibn Saʿd, al-Ṭabaqāt al-kubrā, vol. 6, p. 83.
- ↑ Ibn Aʿtham al-Kūfī, Kitāb al-Futūḥ, vol. 2, p. 488.
- ↑ Ibn Aʿtham al-Kūfī, Kitāb al-Futūḥ, vol. 3, p. 90.
- ↑ Ibn Aʿtham al-Kūfī, Kitāb al-Futūḥ, vol. 4, p. 203.
- ↑ Ziriklī, al-Aʿlām, vol. 7, p. 292.
- ↑ Yaʿqūbī, Tārīkh al-Yaʿqūbī, vol. 2, p. 204; Thaqafī, al-Ghārāt, vol. 1, p. 197.
- ↑ Ziriklī, al-Aʿlām, vol. 7, p. 292.
- ↑ Dīnawarī, al-Akhbār al-ṭiwāl, vol. 1, p. 232.
- ↑ Dīnawarī, al-Akhbār al-ṭiwāl, vol. 1, p. 231.
- ↑ Ibn Aʿtham al-Kūfī, Kitāb al-Futūḥ, vol. 5, p. 37.
- ↑ Makārim Shīrāzī, Payām-i Imām Amīr al-Muʾminīn (a), vol. 11, p. 384.
- ↑ Dīnawarī, al-Akhbār al-ṭiwāl, vol. 1, p. 305.
References
- Balādhurī, Aḥmad b. Yaḥyā al-. Futūḥ al-buldān. Beirut: Dār wa maktabat al-hilāl, 1988.
- Dīnawarī, Aḥmad b. Dāwūd al-. al-Akhbār al-ṭiwāl. Edited by ʿAbd al-Munʿim ʿĀmir. Cairo: Dār Iḥyāʾ al-Kutub al-ʿArabī, 1960.
- Ibn Aʿtham al-Kūfī, Aḥmad b. Aʿtham. Kitāb al-Futūḥ. Edited by ʿAlī Shīrī. Beirut: Dār al-Aḍwaʾ, 1411 AH-1991.
- Ibn Saʿd, Muḥammad. Al-Ṭabaqāt al-kubrā. Edited by Muḥammad ʿAbd al-Qādir ʿAṭā. Beirut: Dar al-Kutub al-ʿIlmiyya, [n.d].
- Makārim Shīrāzī, Nāṣir. Payām-i Imām Amīr al-Muʾminīn (a) tafsīr-i Nahj al-balāgha. Qom: Madrasat al-Imām ʿAlī b. Abī Ṭālib (a), 1386 Sh.
- Thaqafī, Ibrāhim b. Muḥammad. Al-Ghārāt. Edited by ʿAbd al-Muḥammad Āyātī. Tehran: Wizārat-i Farhang wa Irshād-i Islāmī, 1374 Sh.
- Yaʿqūbī, Aḥmad b. Abī Yaʿqūb al-. Tārīkh al-Yaʿqūbī. Beirut: Dār Ṣādir, [n.d].
- Ziriklī, Khayr al-Dīn al-. Al-Aʿlām. Beirut: Dār al-ʿIlm, 1989.