Al-Mughira b. Shu'ba
Full Name | Al-Mughira b. Shu'ba b. Abi 'Amir al-Thaqafi |
---|---|
Teknonym | Abu 'Isa or Abu 'Abd Allah |
Lineage | Thaqif tribe |
Birth | 2 or 3 years after Bi'that/612 or 613 |
Place of Birth | Ta'if |
Places of Residence | Ta'if • Medina • Bahrain • Basra • Kufa • Azerbaijan |
Death/Martyrdom | 50/670-1 |
Burial Place | Kufa |
Era | Early Islam |
Known for | Participation in attack to the house of Lady Fatima (a) • enmity towards Imam Ali (a) |
Notable roles | Governor of Bahrain, Basra, Kufa and Azerbaijan |
Al-Mughīra b. Shuʿba (Arabic: مغيرة بن شعبة) (b. 2 or 3 years after Bi'that/612 or 613 - d. 50/670-1) was a companion of Prophet Muhammad (s). He played a role in the attack on Lady Fatima's (a) house. Mughira was appointed as the governor of Bahrain, Basra and Kufa by the order of 'Umar b. al-Khattab. Later, in the time of Mu'awiya, he became the governor of Kufa. Al-Mughira cursed 'Ali b. Abi Talib (a) and his followers in the Masjid al-Kufa. Abu Lu'lu'a the murderer of 'Umar b. al-Khattab was the slave of al-Mughira.
Lineage, Birth and Death
Al-Mughira b. Shu'ba b. Abi 'Amir b. Mas'ud was a member of Thaqif tribe. Abu Isa or Abu Abd Allah was the teknonym of al-Mughira.[1] He was born in the 2nd or the 3rd year after Bi'that/612 or 613[2] and died in Kufa in 50/670-1.[3] Al-Mughira was described as a clever man.[4]
In the Time of Prophet Muhammad (s)
Al-Mughira converted to Islam in 5/626-7 and was present in Hudaybiyya Peace Treaty and Pledge of al-Ridwan.[5] In 9/630-1, when the Thaqif tribe converted to Islam, Prophet Muhammad (s) ordered al-Mughira and Abu Sufyan to go to Ta'if and break al-Lat idol.[6]
After the Demise of Prophet Muhammad (s)
According to al-Shaykh al-Mufid, al-Mughira b. Shu'ba played a role in the attack on Lady Fatima's (a) house to force 'Ali b. Abi Talib (a) and his close companions to take the oath of allegiance to the first caliph, Abu Bakr.[7] Based on al-Ihtijaj, Imam al-Hasan (a) condemned al-Mughira and said: "You hit Lady Fatima (a) so harsh that she was injured and it led to miscarry (Muhsin b. Ali)."[8]
In the Time of Caliphs
Al-Mughira attended the battles in the time of the first and the second caliphs, Abu Bakr and Umar b. al-Khattab, including the Battle of Yamama against the followers of Musaylama al-Kadhdhab and the Battle of Yarmuk against the Romans. He also fought in the battles of the conquest of Syria and Iraq.[9]
Umar b. al-Khattab appointed him governor of Bahrain, but people refused to accept him and complained to 'Umar. Then he was dismissed and appointed the governor of Basra. When some people attested that al-Mughira had committed adultery, Umar removed him and appointed him as the governor of Kufa.[10] He is regarded as the first called 'Umar b. al-Khattab, "Amir al-Mu'minin".[11] According to sources, Abu Lu'lu'a who killed 'Umar b. al-Khattab was the slave of al-Mughira.[12]
When Uthman b. Affan came to power, he removed al-Mughira from Kufa after a year[13] and sent him to Armenia and Azerbaijan as the ruler of the region.[14]
In the time of Ali b. Abi Talib (a), Mughira did not take the oath of allegiance to Imam (a), and he did not attend the battles as well.[15] After the Arbitration, he took the oath of allegiance to Mu'awiya, and again he was appointed as the governor of Kufa, where he lived for the rest of his life until 50/670.[16] In the time of the Peace Treaty of Imam al-Hasan (a) and Mu'awiya, he brought Mu'awiya's letter to Imam al-Hasan (a).[17]
Based on historical sources, al-Mughira was among the first to propose the succession of Yazid b. Mu'awiya[18] which took place in 56/676. However, it cannot be accurate as Mughira died in 50/670.
Opposition against Ali b. Abi Talib (a)
Al-Mughira is mentioned as an opponent of Ali b. Abi Talib (a);[19] he also cursed Imam (a) When he was appointed as the governor of Kufa by Mu'awiya, he gave speeches in the Masjid al-Kufa in which he cursed Imam Ali (a) and Shi'a Muslims.[20]
Once al-Mughira addressed Sa'sa'a b. Sawhan, a companion of Imam Ali (a) and an orator, says: "Avoid fault-finding with 'Uthman. Avoid mentioning Ali's virtues. I know his virtues more than you. But the power is in this ruler [Mu'awiya] who will punish anyone criticising Uthman."[21]
Notes
- ↑ Ibn Ḥajar al-ʿAsqalānī, al-Iṣāba, vol. 6, p. 156; Maqrizī, Imtāʿ al-asmāʿ, vol. 6, p. 162.
- ↑ Diyār al-Bakrī, Tārīkh al-khamīs, vol. 1, p. 293.
- ↑ Ibn Ḥajar al-ʿAsqalānī, al-Iṣāba, vol. 6, p. 157; Maqrizī, Imtāʿ al-asmāʿ, vol. 6, p. 162.
- ↑ Ibn Ḥajar al-ʿAsqalānī, al-Iṣāba, vol. 6, p. 156.
- ↑ Ibn Ḥajar al-ʿAsqalānī, al-Iṣāba, vol. 6, p. 156; Maqrizī, Imtāʿ al-asmāʿ, vol. 6, p. 162.
- ↑ Ṭabarī, Tārīkh al-umam wa l-mulūk, vol. 3, p. 99.
- ↑ Mufīd, al-Jamal, p. 117; Ṭabrisī, al-Iḥtijāj, vol. 1, p. 83-84.
- ↑ Ṭabrisī, al-Iḥtijāj, vol. 1, p. 278.
- ↑ Ibn Ḥajar al-ʿAsqalānī, al-Iṣāba, vol. 6, p. 156.
- ↑ Ibn Ḥajar al-ʿAsqalānī, al-Iṣāba, vol. 6, p. 157; Maqrizī, Imtāʿ al-asmāʿ, vol. 6, p. 162; Dhahabī, Tārīkh al-Islām, vol. 4, p. 121.
- ↑ Ibn Ḥajar al-ʿAsqalānī, al-Iṣāba, vol. 6, p. 157.
- ↑ Ibn Saʿd, al-Ṭabaqāt al-kubrā, vol. 3, p. 266.
- ↑ Ibn Ḥajar al-ʿAsqalānī, al-Iṣāba, vol. 6, p. 157; Ṭabarī, Tārīkh al-umam wa l-mulūk, vol. 4, p. 244.
- ↑ Ibn Aʿtham, al-Futūḥ, vol. 2, p. 346.
- ↑ Dhahabī, Tārīkh al-Islām, vol. 4, p. 121.
- ↑ Ibn Ḥajar al-ʿAsqalānī, al-Iṣāba, vol. 6, p. 157.
- ↑ Yaʿqūbī, Tārīkh al-Yaʿqūbī, vol. 2, p. 215.
- ↑ Ṭabarī, Tārīkh al-umam wa l-mulūk, vol. 5, p. 301-302.
- ↑ Thaqafī, al-Ghārāt, vol. 2, p. 516.
- ↑ Abū l-Faraj al-Iṣfahānī, al-Aghānī, vol. 17, p. 90; Ibn Kathīr, al-Bidāya wa l-nihāya, vol. 8, p. 50.
- ↑ Ibn Athīr, al-Kāmil, vol. 3, p. 429.
References
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- Dhahabī, Muḥammad b. Aḥmad al-. Tārīkh al-Islām. Second edition. Beirut: Dār al-Kitāb al-ʿArabī, 1409 AH.
- Diyār al-Bakrī, Ḥusayn b. Muḥammad. Tārīkh al-khamīs fī aḥwāl anfus al-nafīs. Beirut: Dār al-Ṣādir, [n.d].
- Ibn Aʿtham al-Kūfī, Muḥammad b. ʿAlī. Al-Futūḥ. Beirut: Dār al-Aḍwāʾ, 1411 AH.
- Ibn Athīr, ʿAlī b. Muḥammad. Al-Kāmil fī l-tārīkh. Beirut: Dār al-Ṣādir, 1385 AH.
- Ibn Ḥajar al-ʿAsqalānī, Aḥmad b. ʿAlī. Al-Iṣāba fī tamyīz al-ṣaḥāba. Beirut: Dār al-Kutub al-ʿIlmīyya, 1415 AH.
- Ibn Kathīr, Ismāʿīl b. ʿUmar. Al-Bidāya wa l-nihāya. Beirut: Dār al-Fikr, [n.d].
- Ibn Saʿd, Muḥammad b. Manīʿ al-Baṣrī. Al-Ṭabaqāt al-kubrā. Second edition. Beirut: Dār al-Kutub al-ʿIlmīyya, 1418 AH.
- Maqrizī, Aḥmad b. ʿAlī al-. Imtāʿ al-asmāʿ bi-mā li-l-nabīyy min al-aḥwāl wa l-amwāl wa l-ḥafdat wa l-matāʿ. Beirut: Dār al-Kutub al-ʿIlmīyya, 1420 AH.
- Mufīd, Muḥammad b. Muḥammad. Al-Jamal. Qom: Kungira-yi Shaykh al-Mufīd, 1413 AH.
- Ṭabarī, Muḥammad b. Jarīr al-. Tārīkh al-umam wa l-mulūk. Second edition. Beirut: Dār al-Turāth, 1378 AH.
- Ṭabrisī, Aḥmad b. ʿAlī al-. Al-Iḥtijāj ʿalā ahl al-lijāj. Mashhad: Nashr-i Murtaḍā, 1403 AH.
- Thaqafī, Ibrāhīm b. Muḥammad al-. Al-Ghārāt. Qom: Dār al-Kitāb, 1410 AH.
- Yaʿqūbī, Muḥammad b. Abī Yaʿqūb al-. Tārīkh al-Yaʿqūbī. Beirut: Dār al-Ṣādir, [n.d].