Ya'sub al-Din

Yaʿsūb al-Dīn (Arabic: یَعسوب الدین) or Yaʿsūb al-Mu'minīn (Arabic: یَعسوب المؤمنین) is a title given to Imam Ali (a) by the Prophet (s), meaning the leader and the warden of the believers. According to a hadith, Imam Ali (a) characterized himself and Imam al-Mahdi (a) as Ya'sub al-Din.

Literal meaning

The word "Ya'sub" (Arabic: یعسوب) literally means ruler and the Queen Bee. It also means leader and senior member or head of a group. Imam 'Ali (a) was called Ya'sub al-Din or Ya'sub al-Mu'minin because, as the Queen Bee is the leader and the ruler of the bees, he is the ruler and the leader of the believers. And as bees follow their Queen, believers should follow Imam 'Ali (a). al-Sayyid al-Radi took "ya'ub" to refer to a person who has authority over people.

Hadith

The Prophet (s) gave the titles "Ya'sub al-Din" and Ya'sub al-Mu'minin" to Imam 'Ali (a). Imam 'Ali (a) also has characterized himself as "Ya'sub al-Din". Ibn Abi l-Hadid commented on the hadith in which the Prophet (s) told Imam 'Ali (a) that "You are Ya'sub al-Din and you are Ya'sub al-Mu'minin" by saying that the Prophet (s) thereby appointed 'Ali (a) as the head of Muslim believers.

The Prophet (s) said: "there will be a sedition after me; when it happens, accompany 'Ali b. Abi Talib. For he is the first person who believed in me, and he will be the first person who will shake my hands on Dooms Day, and he is al-Siddiq al-Akbar and he is the Faruq of this people, and he is Ya'sub al-Din.

Imam 'Ali (a) has characterized Imam Mahdi (a) as Ya'sub al-Din: "when it happens, Ya'sub al-Din will rise, and people gather around him just as autumn clouds gather".