Peace Treaty of Imam al-Hasan (a): Difference between revisions

After [[Imam 'Ali (a)]], his followers ([[Shi'as]]) pledged allegiance to his son [[Imam al-Hasan (a)]], however, it was clearly revealed, by the first day of his caliphate, that he had to face many difficulties of his time. Some of them are:

* Mu'awiya's rulership over Syria and his disposition to dominate other areas of Iraq by making further aggressions.

Mu'awiya's agents devised schemes and attempted to stir up people against [[Imam al-Hasan (a)]] in those days. The agents of the ruler of [[Damascus]] in [[Hijaz]], [[Yemen]], [[Egypt]] and even in Iraq were engaged in plotting numerous conspiracies against their governments. This was Mu'awiya's hidden plot to crawl his way to power. The agents had to:

* Conciliate the top men in tribes.

* Offer bribes or murder the top men in tribes.

Mu'awiya arrived in Iraq along with his army and settled in Maskin. Imam 'Ali (a) had prepared an army in the last days of his lifetime to attack Syria (but this went unfinished due to his martyrdom). This army had to carry on with its unfinished mission despite the fact that it could not be without an appropriate commander. There were [[Qays b. Sa'd b. 'Ubada]] and [['Ubayd Allah b. 'Abbas]], but it was unclear who was going to be the next commander in chief.

Qays became ready to go to Syria. Meanwhile, Imam al-Hasan (a) went to [[Madain]]. But, almost every day, the camp could not live without new incidents since its establishment. In one incident, it was said that Qays had been killed. After this rumor was spread, uproar broke out. The soldiers attacked their Imam's tent and took whatever existed in there with them. They even took the rug on which their Imam sat. They cut their (Imam's) thigh with a hack when he was trying to escape to find a shelter amid the attacks on his tent. According to [[Muhammad b. Jarir b. Rustam al-Tabari|Muhammad b. Jarir al-Tabari]], when Imam al-Hasan (a)'s tent was plundered, he went to Sa'd b. Mas'ud al-Thaqafi ([[al-Mukhtar]]'s uncle). Sa'd had been elected as the ruler of Madain by Imam (a). Al-Mukhtar, who was young at that time, asked Sa'd:

[[Al-Mukhtar b. Abi 'Ubayd al-Thaqafi]] is the one who took the leadership of [[Uprising of al-Mukhtar|Shi'a's uprising]] against Umayyads 25 years later. Perhaps [['Abd Allah b. al-Zubayr]]'s supporters had made up these stories to accuse al-Mukhtar, however, it is also possible to be an authentic one. Anyhow, fact says that there was a group of people in Kufa who prioritized their personal benefit to Muslim's goodness. This is a reality behind every revolution or movement.

Imam al-Hasan (a) thought resistance is pointless due to the disobedience and rebelliousness of the people claiming to be his friends. He was certain, that in case of resistance, his army (if there was any army) would run away before passing Madain, and would even make al-Mukhtar's thought practical and hand him to Mu'awiya. Ultimately, Imam al-Hasan (a) had to sign a peace treaty with Mu'awiya.