Hadith 433

ng from him-asws and submitting him-asws to his-asws enemies? ’ He said, ‘Glory be to Allah-azwj! No, by Allah-azwj, I do not like that’. He said, ‘They have said to him-asws and sworn upon it, ‘Either you-asws send a message to Al-Ashtar and bring him back or we will kill you-asws by our swords just as we have killed Usman, or we will submit you-asws to your-asws enemy’’. Al-Ashtar came back until he ended up to them. He shouted, ‘O people of disgrace and weakness! Is it when you are higher than the people and they are thinking that you are subduing them, they raise the Qurans calling you all to what is in it, and by Allah-azwj, they have neglected what Allah-azwj has Commanded them in it, and neglected the Sunnah of the one-saww it was Revealed upon. Do not answer them, give me some time to overrun (them), for I have sensed the victory’. They said, ‘We will not give you any time’. Give me some time, to gallop the horses, for I have coveted regarding the victory’. They said, ‘Then we will be included in your sin’. He said, ‘Then narrate to me about you, and the likes of you have already been killed, and there remain your lowly ones. When were you rightful? Is it when you were killing the people of Syria, so now you are withholding from fighting them, you are false, or are you rightful now in your withholding from the fighting? So, your slain ones then are those you cannot be denying their merits, and they would be better than you in the Fire’. They said, ‘leave us from you, O Ashtar! We fought them for the Sake of Allah-azwj, and we leave fighting them for the Sake of Allah-azwj. We are not obedient to you, so stand aside from us’. He said, ‘You have been deceived, and Allah-azwj will (now) Deceive you, and you are being called to drop the war and you answered. O companions of the dark foreheads (due to Sajdahs)! We used to think your Salats were asceticism in the word, and desire to meet Allah-azwj, but I do not see your fleeing except to the world, from the death. Indeed! It is an ugliness, O resembles of the majesty! You will not be seeing any honour after this, ever! You will be remote just as the unjust people are remote! ’
They reviled him and hit the face of his animal with their whips, and he hit the faces of their animal with his whip, and Ali-asws shouted at them, so they stopped. And Al-Ashtar said, ‘O Amir Al-Momineen-asws! I shall carry the row upon row and knock down the people’. They (started) shouting, ‘Amir Al-Momineen-asws has accepted the judgment and has agreed with the judgment of the Quran! ’
Al-Ashtar said, ‘If Amir Al-Momineen-asws has accepted and agreed, so I am pleased with whatever Amir Al-Momineen-asws is pleased with’. Then people came saying, ‘Amir Al-Momineen-asws has agreed! Amir Al-Momineen-asws has accepted! ’ And he-asws was silent, not revealing a word, lowering his-asws head to the ground. Then he-asws stood up, and the people were silent, all of them. He-asws said: ‘O you people! My-asws command has not ceased to be with you all upon what I-asws love until when the war took its toll from you, and by Allah-azwj it has taken from you and left, and it has taken from your enemies and it did not leave, and among them are exhausted and you are exhausted. Indeed! And yesterday I-asws was commander of the Momineen and I-asws woke up this morning as a commanded one, and you all were the ones forbidden and you have (now) become forbidders, and you have loved the life, and it isn’t for me-asws that I-asws carry you upon what you are disliking’. Then he-asws sat down. Then the chiefs of the tribes spoke, and each one said what he viewed as, and his personal opinion, either from the war or from the peace’’. [59]