Jarud b. Mu'alla
| Personal Information | |
|---|---|
| Full Name | Bishr b. 'Amr b. Hanash b. Mu'alla al-'Abdi |
| Teknonym | Abu Mundhir, Abu 'Attab, Abu Ghiyath, and Abu l-Hakam |
| Lineage | 'Abd al-Qays |
| Well-Known Relatives | Mundhir b. Jarud (son) |
| Place(s) of Residence | Bahrain, Kufa |
| Death/Martyrdom | During caliphate of 'Umar b. Khattab |
| Cause of Death/Martyrdom | Killed in battle |
| Religious Information | |
| Conversion to Islam | 9/630-1 or 10/631-2 |
Bishr b. ʿAmr b. Ḥanash b. Muʿallā al-ʿAbdī (Arabic: بِشْر بن عَمْرو بن حَنَش بن مُعَلّی العَبْدي) known as Jārūd b. Muʿallā (Arabic: جارود بن مُعَلّی) was a companion of Prophet Muhammad (s) and the head of 'Abd al-Qays tribe. In the period of Jahiliyya, Jarud was a Christian. He converted to Islam in 9/630-1 or 10/631-2. After the demise of the Prophet (s), he prevented his tribe from apostasy. He is praised by scholars of rijal.
Mundhir, Imam 'Ali (a)'s agent in Istakhr, who was ousted by the Imam (a) because of a mistake, was Jarud's son. In a letter to Mundhir, Imam 'Ali (a) expressed his admiration for Jarud. Mundhir was later assigned the rule of Thaghr by 'Ubayd Allah b. Ziyad. Another son of his was 'Abd Allah b. Jarud al-'Abdi who rioted against Hajjaj b. Yusuf al-Thaqafi.
His Title
Bishr b. 'Amr b. Hanash b. Mu'alla al-'Abdi was a companion of Prophet Muhammad (s). It is said that "Jarud" was his title. He is said to be called so because there was an epidemic disease in his land which killed camels. Jarud went to his maternal uncles with the few camels left for him. His uncles' camels were also infected and killed by the disease. Thus, he was called "Jarud" (depriver).
According to some later sources, the reason behind the title was that Jarud attacked and defeated the Bakr b. Wa'il tribe, and then disarmed them.
The name of Jarud's great grandfather is said to be "'Ala'" or "Nu'man", but according to Ibn Hibban, the correct version of his great grandfather's name is "Mu'alla". In some hadiths, Jarud's name is mentioned as "Mutarraf". The attribution of Jarud to his great grandfather, Mu'alla, or the elimination of "Bishr" from his name, as well as his great grandfather's name being written as "'Ala'" or "Ya'la" in some sources, have led some scholars to mistakenly take Jarud b. 'Amr b. Hanash b. Ya'la al-'Abdi and Jarud b. Mu'alla to be two different persons.
Jarud b. Mu'alla's kunya is mentioned differently in sources, as "Abu Mundhir", "Abu 'Attab", "Abu Ghiyath", and "Abu l-Hakam". "Al-'Abdi" in his name (as an attribution to "'Abd") was because of his greater grandfather, 'Abd al-Qays, a head of Adnanite tribes. Jarud b. Mu'alla's mother was Darmaka or Darimaka, the daughter of Ruwaym b. Yazid from Banu Shayban.
Jahiliyya
In the period of Jahiliyya, Jarud b. Mu'alla was a nobleman and a Christian. There are some ironic accounts according to which Jarud was a Persian pagan who went to Arabian coasts from Banu Kawan Island and attributed himself to 'Abd al-Qays, and after a while, his sister was married to a Persian nobleman, Muka'bir.
On Muhammad b. Ishaq's account, Jarud b. Mu'alla knew about interpretations of books and the practices and sayings of Persians. He knew philosophy and medicine, and was clever, literate, good-looking, and wealthy.
Islam
According to some accounts, Jarud b. Mu'alla had relationships with people, such as Salama b. 'Ayyad al-Asadi, who practiced the Hanafi faith in the period of Jahiliyya. He visited the Prophet Muhammad (s) together with Salama. The Prophet (s) told them about the questions they wanted to ask and thus, they believed in him and converted to Islam.
The first meeting between Jarud b. Mu'alla and the Prophet (s) occurred, according to some sources, in 9/630-1 or Sanat al-Wufud, and according to other sources, in 10/631-2 after the Hijra. Jarud b. Mu'alla and a group of people from the 'Abd al-Qays tribe went from Bahrain to Medina to meet the Prophet (s). The Prophet (s) called him to Islam. Jarud asked the Prophet (s) to guarantee his religious faith in converting from Christianity to Islam, and the Prophet (s) told him: "I guarantee that God has guided you to the better". The Prophet (s) also recommended him not to ride wandering and unowned camels on his way back home. Jarud and his companies converted to Islam. The Prophet (s) honored him and made him the head of his people. After learning Islamic teachings, Jarud returned to his people and called them to Islam, and they all converted to Islam.
Sahaba
Jarud b. Mu'alla is mentioned in some sources as one of the Sahaba. It is said that he strongly and faithfully believed in Islam until his death. Some of his poems support this claim.
After the Prophet (s)
Jarud was alive during Ridda Wars (wars against apostates). After the demise of the Prophet (s), when many tribes abandoned Islam and returned to their original beliefs, some people of Bahrain, including the Rabi'a tribe, also abandoned Islam in 11/632-3 under the leadership of Gharur (or Ma'rur) Mundhir b. Nu'man b. Mundhir, but Jarud remained a Muslim and prevented the 'Abd al-Qays tribe from apostasy.
In wars between the 'Abd al-Qays tribe and the Bakr b. Wa'il tribe under the headship of Hutam b. Dubay'a (the head of the Banu Qays b. Tha'laba clan), the 'Abd al-Qays tribe was defeated, and so, they moved to the Juwatha Fort (in the land of Hajar). The fort was tightly sieged by the Bakr b. Wa'il tribe. 'Abd al-Qays asked the Caliph for help, and the caliph sent 'Ala' b. 'Abd Allah al-Hadrami as the ruler to Bahrain. At the command of 'Ala', Jarud and people of 'Abd al-Qays went down near Hutam's camp. 'Ala' and his army were settled in an area adjacent to Hajar. After one month of war, the army of 'Ala' defeated the apostates, Hutam (the head of polytheists) was killed and Mundhir b. Nu'man was imprisoned.
Death
It is certain that Jarud b. Mu'alla died during the caliphate of 'Umar b. Khattab (r. 13/634-23/644) in Fars when it was being conquered, but there are different accounts of the date of this event.
- According to Sayf b. 'Umar's account, Muslims of Bahrain attacked Fars in 17/638-9. 'Ala' b. Hadrami helped the Muslim army cross the sea without receiving 'Umar's permission. They advanced to Istakhr. Under the leadership of Herbad, people of Fars blocked their access to their own ships. In a place called "Tawus", a serious war took place, in which Jarud b. Mu'alla, who was the commander of a section of the Muslim army, recited some paeans and fought until he was killed.
- According to another account, a while after Ridda Wars and the construction of the city, Basra, in 17/638-9, Jarud b. Mu'alla resided in the city. According to another account, Jarud lived a few years after this. It is said that Jarud moved from Bahrain to Medina in 20/640-1, testified to 'Umar that Qudama b. Maz'un, the ruler of Bahrain, drank wine. Thus, 'Umar removed Qudama from the rule of Bahrain and executed the hadd of wine-drinking (that is, whipping) on him. Moreover, according to Ibn Sa'd, Hakam b. Abi l-'As, who apparently worked under his brother 'Uthman b. Abi l-'As, commissioned Jarud to fight against Shahrig (or Sharak), a Sasanid prince. In 20/640-1, Jarud was killed in the Battle of 'Aqabat al-Tin (a place in Fars), and since then, the place came to be called 'Aqabat al-Jarud.
- Ibn Sa'd's account has been cited with slight differences in some later sources. In these sources, the event is said to have happened in 21/641-2.
- On some other accounts, according to which the first conquest of Istakhr occurred in 23/643-4, Shahrig rioted in this year by gathering an army of people from Fars. The Muslim army under the commandership of 'Uthman b. Abi l-'As (or his brother, Hakam) encountered the army of Fars. In this battle, the army of Jarud b. Mu'alla, who was the commander of the right wing of the Muslim army, collapsed, but soon after that, the Muslim army gained a victory, with Shahrig and his son killed after an intense war.
Reliability
Prominent scholars of rijal have praised the character of Jarud b. Mu'alla. In his letter to Jarud's son, Mundhir, Imam 'Ali (a) characterized Jarud as a righteous person. Ibn Hibban mentioned Jarud among reliable Sahaba. Jarud transmitted some hadiths from the Prophet (s). Abu Muslim al-Jadhami has transmitted Jarud's hadiths. Hadiths transmitted by Jarud b. Mu'alla have been cited by Tirmidhi, Darimi, and Ahmad b. Hanbal. 'Umar b. Khattab so highly regarded of him that he said: "I would leave the caliphate to Jarud b. Bishr b. Mu'alla after me had I not heard the Messenger of God saying that the caliphate shall only be in the Quraysh."
Family
Jarud's family was considered as noblemen of Basra. For example, Mundhir b. Jarud al-'Abdi was a companion of Imam 'Ali (a) and a commander of his army in the Battle of Jamal. He was also the head of the 'Abd al-Qays tribe. Imam 'Ali (a) sent Mundhir to Mu'awiya for a mission, and after a while, he appointed him as the commander of Istakhr, but when he found him disqualified for the position, he wrote him a letter in which he reproached him and summoned him to Medina, and then he removed him from power, imprisoned him, and financially punished him.
'Abd Allah b. Jarud al-'Abdi was appointed by Sulayman b. 'Abd al-Malik al-Umawi (reign: 96/714-5 to 99/717-8) as the ruler of Basra for a while. He then rioted against Hajjaj b. Yusuf al-Thaqafi (the ruler of Iraq), but in the battle of Rustaqubad, he was defeated and then hanged by Hajjaj.
References
- The material of this article is mainly taken from جارود بن معلی in Farsi WikiShia.