That might be your version. Most historians who have analyzed Muawiyah have concluded that his advice to Aisha, Talha and Zubair, as well as his strategy with Siffeen and the subsequent raising of the Qurans on spearheads was all to further his own political cause. He wanted power. Plain and simple. The murder of Usman was a convenient ruse.
Got any references for that Tech?
Ali's own thoughts on Muawiyah are well captured in his own writings and his speeches. These speeches and writings confirm that Ali too believed Muawiyah to be a power hungry politician who would stop at nothing to ascend the "throne".
Again... Got any references for that... Or do we accept your word for it... What are you trying to do... rewrite history...
And as for your final paragraph, so you agree that the Caliphate, even in the earliest history of Islam - a mere 60 years after the passing of the Prophet - resulted in significant bloodshed. Your earlier assertion stands disproved, then.
Your statement makes no sense... What earlier assertion disapproved?
Most of the Caliphs that followed Yazid were nothing more than Kings. Go to Topkapi museum some day and look at the riches the Sultans (who declared themselves Caliphs), lavished on themselves.
Disagreed... and proven wrong by the following statement of the Prophet saw...
Muslim reported on the authority of Abu Hazim, who said: "I accompanied Abu Hurairah for five years and heard him talking of the Prophet's saying: The Prophets ruled over the children of Israel, whenever a Prophet died another Prophet succeeded him, but there will be no Prophet after me.
There will be Khulafa'a and they will number many. They asked: What then do you order us? He said: Fulfill the bay'ah to them one after the other and give them their due. Surely Allah will ask them about what He entrusted them with."
4 (as in Khulafah e Rashida) is not described as
many in the Arabic language...
The Caliphate is not a system inscribed in the Quran. There is a single verse in the Quran that uses the word Khalifa but not to describe the head of a government, rather to describe righteous people. But those who would wanted to twist the words of the Quran to pretend that they had some sort of divine right to rule obviously did so.
and you have read the Quran?
You missed this then...
"O you who have believed, obey Allah and obey the Messenger and
those in authority among you". The Holy Quran, Surah 4. Verse 59
Now Tech... You think those in authority amongst you was talking about Zardari? heres a hint... Its refering to Caliphate...
and plz... Quran is not the only source of legislation in Islam... You also look at what the Prophet saw did... This is how we know what the Quran is saying... Salat in Arabic literally means to shake one's hips but we take it as Nimaz... So the detail of Ulil Amr (those in authority) is in the Sunnah... and its basis is in the Quran...
On the authority of Muslim Nafi'a reported saying: "Umar said to me that he heard the Prophet saying:
Whoso takes off his hand from allegiance to Allah (swt) will meet Him (swt) on the Day of Resurrection without having any proof for him, and whoso dies whilst there was no bay'ah (allegiance or a pledge) on his neck (to a Khaleefah), he dies a death of jahiliyyah."
The Prophet made it compulsory upon every Muslim to have a bay'ah on his neck, and described that whoever dies without a bay'ah on his neck dies a death of jahiliyyah. This does not mean that he dies as a kafir, rather, it means that he dies as if Islam had never reached him.
The bay'ah cannot be for anyone except the Khaleefah, and the Prophet made it obligatory upon every Muslim to have on his neck a bay'ah to a Khaleefah.
The Prophet did not make it an obligation upon every Muslim to give bay'ah to a Khaleefah. The duty is the existence of a bay'ah on the neck of every eligible Muslim, i.e. the existence of a Khaleefah who accordingly deserves a bay'ah upon the neck of every Muslim. So it is the presence of the Khaleefah which places a bay'ah on the neck of every Muslim, whether the Muslim gave a bay'ah to him in person or not, as silence signifies acceptance of the bay'ah from the Ummah.
Therefore, this hadith of the Prophet is an evidence that the appointment of the Khaleefah is an obligation and not a proof that giving the bay'ah is obligatory. This is so because the Prophet rebuked the Muslim who has not
a bay'ah on his neck until he dies,
not the one who did not give
Hisham ibn 'Urwa reported on the authority of Abu Saleh on the authority of Abu Hurairah that the Prophet said:
"Caliphs will take charge of you after me, where the pious (one) will lead you with his piety and the impious (one) with his impiety, so listen to them and obey them in everything which conforms with the truth. If they act rightly it is for your credit, and if they acted wrongly it is counted for you and against them."
Muslim narrated on the authority of al-A'araj, on the authority of Abu Hurairah, that the Prophet said:
"Behold, the Imam is but a shield from behind whom the people fight and by whom they protect themselves."
Ibn 'Abbas narrated that the Prophet said:
"If anyone sees in his Amir something that displeases him let him remain patient, for behold, he who separates himself from the sultan (authority of Islam) by even so much as a hand span and dies thereupon, has died a death of the days of jahiliyyah".
You often talk about Quran yet clearly dont understand that the very definition of the Quran includes the manuscript or the copy of the manuscript over which there is consenses of the companions of the Prophet saw... This manuscript is called the Utmani Mushaf...
The Ijma' of the Sahabah is a legitimate daleel shar'i (evidence) like the Quran and Sunnah of the Messenger of Allah (saw). In regard with the Ijma'a of the Sahabah they all agreed upon the necessity to establish a successor or Khaleefah to the Prophet after his death, and they all agreed to appoint a successor to Abu Bakr, then to 'Umar, then to 'Uthman, after the death of each one of them. Also, all the Sahabah agreed throughout their lives upon the obligation of appointing a Khaleefah. Although they disagreed upon the person to elect as a Khaleefah, they never disagreed upon the appointment of a Khaleefah, neither when the Prophet died, nor when any of the Khulafa'a ar-Rashidun died. Therefore the Ijma'a of the Sahabah is a clear and strong evidence that the appointment of a Khaleefah is obligatory. The extent of the inevitable obligation to establish the Khaleefah and the extent of awareness about this obligation among the Sahabah, is clearly reflected in the actions which they performed at the time.
This I think would be enough for tonight...
