ACHIEVEMENTS AND EXEMPLARY LEADERSHIP STYLE OF CALIPH ‘ALĪ BN ABĪ TĀLIB (657-661) CE FOR MODERN WORLD

CALIPH ‘ALĪ BN ABĪ TĀLIB (657-661) CE

 After severally been denied the right to govern the Ummah, as well as been stripped off of all the entitlement which supposed to be his, he finally assumed to power against all odds. There were many controversies surrounding his legitimacy to be a Caliph while some shura members saw him as a threat others argued of the caliph position of been not hereditary. Something they argued is totally out of context while some few argued that the leadership should go to the family of the Prophets because of their spiritual attachment to the Prophets. These and many controversies kept Caliph Ali out of the caliph position until this period.

 

Alī’s birth, Parentage, Youth and Character

‘Alī was born some 30 years after the birth of the Holy Prophet Muhammad (S.A.W.) into the most respectable family of Quraysh the Banu Hāshim. His father was Abū Tālib an uncle of the Prophet (S). The father was the guardian and mentor of the Prophet after the death of Abdu `l-Muttalib the grandfather. Prophet Muhammad (S) took ‘Alī in his childhood from his father and brought him up like his own child. He did this in his household as a compensation for the valuable guardianship he enjoyed from his uncle Abū Tālib. When the Prophet began receiving revelations, ‘Alī was just a boy of nine years or thereabouts. ‘Alī was the first among the youth to accept Islam. In fact, when the Prophet disclosed his mission before him, he unhesitatingly accepted. The Holy Prophet (S) loved him very much. ‘Alī supported the Holy Prophet in his mission from the beginning till the end.

 

Yusuf (2012: 54) viewed that Alī’s Election as the Fourth Caliph came at a time when Madinah, the seat of Islam was in state of anarchy after the murder of Uthman for few days. The mutineers stayed back and remained in power for these few days because who is who had fled to Damascus, some to Makkah. Most of the respected citizens disappeared into thin air. This situation was so because people like Ali and other eminent Companions could never imagine the insurgents’ shameful act of assassination of the Caliph. After the rude shock, the mutineers became obsessed with the fact that the whole empire was now without a head and a government. In order not to allow the conquered provinces disintegrate into chaos, they quickly constituted central authority. They offered the Caliphate to ‘Alī which he reluctantly accepted. Thus, on 23rd of June 656CE, many swore allegiance to him as the fourth Caliph of Islam.

 

Ali’s Achievements

Ali haven spent few years in office in comparatively term to his two predecessors (Umar and Uthman) focused on rekindling the Muslim community and building on the legacies of his predecessors. He remained as the last Caliph, though he achieved little compared to his immediate predecessor, he played a significant role in contributing to the growth of the current state of Islam, his achievements are little but loud in the sense of the word loud.

 

According to Yusuf (2012: 55) Ali was the best- hearted Muslim that ever lived. He lived a very simple and ascetic life. He was so meticulous and scrupulous in maintaining the ideals of Islam. He how ever achieved the following.

1.     He adhered strictly to the principle of Baytu `l-māl and never spent a single farthing from the treasury on himself or his relatives.

2.     His death saw the end of Islamic Republic and ideal days of Islam. And the end of dynasty starting from ummyad dynasty.

 

Undoubtedly, the period within which the rightly guided Calphs ruled was the most glorious age in the history of Islam. The period lasted thirty years between 632 – 661CE. During this period, none of the traditions, ideals and policies of the Prophet Muhammad was jettisoned by his successors. His ideals and teachings were rather perpetuated by these noble successors. The period nourished and popularized the democratic ideals of Islam and initiated a State, which the Muslims looked up to with pride and satisfaction. No Caliph was ordinarily nominated for the Khilāfah; rather, they were appointed through shūrā system. They were all consensus candidates.

This is so because the institution of the Caliphate was and remains a sacred office. Thus, whoever occupies it must in fact be appointed based on Shūrā and general consent.

 

The period of the orthodox Caliphs was momentous in history. It consolidated and saved Islam. It also laid the basis of greatness of the Muslims. The pioneer Caliph Abu Bakr saved Islam from cracking and the Muslims from division on the issue of succession to leadership after the demise of the Holy Prophet (S). He also saved Islam from the great danger of apostasy and pseudo-prophets. ‘Umar like his predecessor consolidated Islam, reformed the vices- ridden Arabia and converted the wild sons of the desert into a disciplined race. He built a strong empire comprising Egypt, Iraq, Palestine, Persia and Syria. The third Caliph ‘Uthmān also added colour to the flag of Islam. His reign witnessed expansion of Islamic empire in central Asia and Tripoli. The last Caliph Ali did everything humanly possible to sustain the Caliphate. He witnessed a lot of internal squabbles and wrangling. He displayed magnanimity where he supposed to lose his head. His death eventually saw the end of State of Islam in the year 661CE.

 

CONCLUSION

Abu-Bakr was the first man to accept Islam and this  made him earned the title Alsiddiq which means the true believing person due to his unflattering faith in prophet Muhammad, he was a generous man, kind hearted, merciful, loving, and honest and truthful. Abu baker was the good representative of Islamic ethics; he established the authority of islamic state by gathering the Muslim among whom conflicts occurred.

Abu-Bakr was always loved and respected by the public due to his characteristics. He had a character that did not welcome people’s arrogant attitudes and that helped the poor and the need in the Ummah. He saved many slaves by paying significant amounts to their masters in order to set them free. He had a short period and was buried next to the prophet.

Umar was the second caliph of Islam; he was born 580 AD and was ten years younger than the Prophet. He was among the few educated people in Mecca at that time. In his youth, he was physically strong and was considered to be a proven wrestler. He accepted Islam when was going to kill the prophet but after listening to the recitation of the Quran verses in his sister’s house, he acknowledged and embraced Islam. Due to his extraordinary ability of fairness, the Apostle of God gave him the title of Al farooq ( the one who distinguished between the right and the wrong)

Umar led a simple life with truthfulness and honesty. During his caliphate, he conquered many nations, opened Jerusalem and paved roads for Muslim in Medina. His major achievements include implementation of peace and justice in Muslim society. The formation of Baytulmal for maintenance of provision of finance and he was also know to start Islamic calendar during his reign.

Immediately after Umar fell under the assassin’s dagger, Uthman been nominated as his successor took over the mantle of leadership of the Muslim Ummah. Uthman was sworn in by the consultative forum (Shura) comprises of six members in which Ali was involved. Uthman acceptance of Islam came when his friend Abu-Bakr told him about it. He had the honour of marrying two daughters of Prophet Muhammad, which earned the title of Dhun Nurain ( bearer of two light). He was a wealthy man and he spent most of it in the true service of Islam like buying a well from Jew in Medina and making it free for use for all Muslim and acquiring a portion of land in order to enlarge the capacity of masjid Nabawi.

One of the greatest services of Uthman to Islam was the reproduction of the Quran. During the period a committee was established and the only copy of the Quran was reproduced because some people pronounce the verses differently due to differences in dialects. After tit reproduction, one copy was kept in Medina and the other copies were sent to the other provinces like Mecca, Damascus, Kufai, Basra and Egypt. During his period many people accepted Islam and one of the remarkable of this period was that many Muslim became rich and started to live a better life. His caliphate ended in 656 CE when he was murdered. He was buried in Jannatul bagi a graveyard in Medina.

After the death of caliph Uthman, the leadership of the Ummah became empty and questions started coming up on who should be the leader of the Ummah. After several consultation and consensus Ali emerged as the fourth caliph. A cousin of Prophet Muhammad and the youngest first person to accepted Islam. Ali was also the son in law of Prophet Muhammad (SAW), husband of Fatimah the beloved daughter of the Prophet. He was known for his bravery as a soldier of Islam. Ali earned the title of Asadullah ( the lion of Allah) due to his great valour. He lived a very simple life with gratefulness to the other worldliness. Ali was made caliph after the assassination of caliph Uthman.

Been the fourth Caliph Ali tried his best to unite the Muslim and make peace but this acme with a deadlock because of resistance from the Ummayad who accused him of failing to persecute the people who killed Uthman their relative. He fought them and destroyed most of the rebellion movements, defeating the Ummayads in the battle of Nahrawan and introduction of reforms in taxes. Ali was killed with a poisonous sword by one of the rebels while was going to perform Fajar Sala in the Mosque on the 20^th of Ramadan, 40 AH.

His death marked the end of the rightly guided caliph and the beginning of another era in Islamic world. It leads to the emergence of dynasty in Islamic community. The first dynasty came with force of innovation into the religion, the Ummayyads dynasty spent a lot of time ruling the Ummah, their dynasty made wave with Islam and expanding the religion in different ways and pattern. They hold the Muslim Ummah for long period and were brought to an end by the Abbasids. The Abbasids is a group which belongs to the family lines of Abbas the Uncle of Prophet Muhammad, who argued and believed that the Ummah should be held be the family line of the Prophet and not just any body. They cajole the shi’it and many other groups and used them to capture the state. The empire also collapsed when Ottoman Empire emerged strong. The trend continued till Islam became pronounce in the world today.

 

 

 

 

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