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'''ʿAli b. al-Hussain''' b. ʿAli b. Abi Talib, Zayn al-ʿAbidin (“Ornament of the Worshippers”), is the fourth [[Imam]] of the [[Twelver Shi’a]]. His kunya is variously given as Abu ʿAbd Allah, Abu Bakr, Abu’l-Hussain, Abu’l-Hasan, etc. According to most sources, he was born in 38/658-59 in Medina. At [[Karbala]], Zayn al-ʿAbidin is said to have been too ill to join in the fighting; after the battle [[Shamir b. Dhi ‘l-Jawshan]] found him lying on a mat in the women’s tent and ordered him to be killed but was overruled by [[ʿOmar b. Saʿd]], the commander of the Syrian army. When ʿAli was brought before [[ʿObayd Allah b. Ziyad]] in Kufa, the governor ordered his execution, but relented after pleas by al-Hussain’s sister [[Zaynab]]. ʿAli and the other survivors were taken to [[Yazid]] in Damascus, and he sent them back to Medina. The mashhad ʿAli, forming part of the great mosque in Damascus, is said to have been built at the place of Zayn al-ʿAbidin’s incarceration.<ref>cf.L. Pouzet, Damas au VIIe /XIIIe siècle ,Beirut 1988, 352</ref> | '''ʿAli b. al-Hussain''' b. ʿAli b. Abi Talib, Zayn al-ʿAbidin (“Ornament of the Worshippers”), is the fourth [[Imam]] of the [[Twelver Shi’a]]. His kunya is variously given as Abu ʿAbd Allah, Abu Bakr, Abu’l-Hussain, Abu’l-Hasan, etc. According to most sources, he was born in 38/658-59 in Medina. At [[Karbala]], Zayn al-ʿAbidin is said to have been too ill to join in the fighting; after the battle [[Shamir b. Dhi ‘l-Jawshan]] found him lying on a mat in the women’s tent and ordered him to be killed but was overruled by [[ʿOmar b. Saʿd]], the commander of the Syrian army. When ʿAli was brought before [[Obayd-Allah Ibn Ziad|ʿObayd Allah b. Ziyad]] in Kufa, the governor ordered his execution, but relented after pleas by al-Hussain’s sister [[Zaynab]]. ʿAli and the other survivors were taken to [[Yazid]] in Damascus, and he sent them back to Medina. The mashhad ʿAli, forming part of the great mosque in Damascus, is said to have been built at the place of Zayn al-ʿAbidin’s incarceration.<ref>cf.L. Pouzet, Damas au VIIe /XIIIe siècle ,Beirut 1988, 352</ref> | ||
==Birth== | ==Birth== | ||
According to many sources he was born (in Medina) in 38/658-9, though the years 33, 36 and 37 are also given. If accounts that he had not reached puberty at the time of the [[Karbala]] massacre (61/680) are to be trusted, this would put his birthdate forward to the 40s/660s; these accounts are, however, rejected by al-Waqidi and other authorities. | According to many sources he was born (in Medina) in 38/658-9, though the years 33, 36 and 37 are also given. If accounts that he had not reached puberty at the time of the [[Karbala]] massacre (61/680) are to be trusted, this would put his birthdate forward to the 40s/660s; these accounts are, however, rejected by al-Waqidi and other authorities. | ||
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His mother’s name is variously given as Barra, Qazala, Solafa, Jayda, etc.; some say that she was an umm walad [q.v.] from Sind (or Sijistan), while Shiʿi tradition has it that she was a daughter of the last Sasanid emperor Yazdagird III and that her Persian name was Jihanshah, [[Shahrbanu]] or Shahzanan. Some say she threw herself into the Euphrates after the battle, but others maintain that she was among the survivors of Karbala. Shiʿis refer to ʿAli as ibn al-khiyaratayn “the son of the two elect” since, according to a tradition of the Prophet, the Quraysh are the elect of the Arabs and the Persians are the elect of the non-Arabs. | His mother’s name is variously given as Barra, Qazala, Solafa, Jayda, etc.; some say that she was an umm walad [q.v.] from Sind (or Sijistan), while Shiʿi tradition has it that she was a daughter of the last Sasanid emperor Yazdagird III and that her Persian name was Jihanshah, [[Shahrbanu]] or Shahzanan. Some say she threw herself into the Euphrates after the battle, but others maintain that she was among the survivors of Karbala. Shiʿis refer to ʿAli as ibn al-khiyaratayn “the son of the two elect” since, according to a tradition of the Prophet, the Quraysh are the elect of the Arabs and the Persians are the elect of the non-Arabs. | ||
==In Karbala== | ==In Karbala== | ||
ʿAli was present at the massacre of his family at [[Karbala]] in 61/680 but did not participate in the fighting, since he was ill, and thus survived the battle. Zayn al-ʿAbidin was not the only son of [[al-Hussain]] called ʿAli; another was killed at Karbala and is known as ʿAli al-Shahid. Some historians, including Ibn Saʿd, Ibn Qutayba, al-Baladhuri and al- Tabari, refer to him as ʿAli al-Akbar and to Zayn al-ʿAbidin as ʿAli al-Asqar. Others (e.g. al-Qazi al-Nuʿman) maintain that Zayn al-ʿAbidin was the older of the two, and accordingly refer to him as ʿAli al-Akbar and to his martyred brother as ʿAli al-Asqar. For many Twelver authors, the title [[ʿAli al-Asqar]] refers to an infant brother who was also killed at Karbala; some of these authors maintain that Zayn al-ʿAbidin was the middle brother (hence ʿAli al-Awsat), while the eldest was ʿAli al-Shahid; others reverse the position of the two older brothers. | ʿAli was present at the massacre of his family at [[Karbala]] in 61/680 but did not participate in the fighting, since he was ill, and thus survived the battle. Zayn al-ʿAbidin was not the only son of [[Hussain ibn Ali|al-Hussain]] called ʿAli; another was killed at Karbala and is known as ʿAli al-Shahid. Some historians, including Ibn Saʿd, Ibn Qutayba, al-Baladhuri and al- Tabari, refer to him as ʿAli al-Akbar and to Zayn al-ʿAbidin as ʿAli al-Asqar. Others (e.g. al-Qazi al-Nuʿman) maintain that Zayn al-ʿAbidin was the older of the two, and accordingly refer to him as ʿAli al-Akbar and to his martyred brother as ʿAli al-Asqar. For many Twelver authors, the title [[Ali Al-Asqar ibn Husayn|ʿAli al-Asqar]] refers to an infant brother who was also killed at Karbala; some of these authors maintain that Zayn al-ʿAbidin was the middle brother (hence ʿAli al-Awsat), while the eldest was ʿAli al-Shahid; others reverse the position of the two older brothers. | ||
According to the battle accounts, [[Shamer b. Dhi’l-Jawshan]] wanted to kill him despite his illness but was prevented by others, including [[ʿOmar b. Saʿd]]. When he was led as a prisoner before [[ʿObayd-Allah b. Ziad]] in [[Kufa]], the latter ordered his execution but left him alive at the entreaty of his aunt, [[Zaynab]]. He was taken with the women to [[Yazid]] in Damascus, and he sent them back to Medina. | According to the battle accounts, [[Sham|Shamer b. Dhi’l-Jawshan]] wanted to kill him despite his illness but was prevented by others, including [[ʿOmar b. Saʿd]]. When he was led as a prisoner before [[Obayd-Allah Ibn Ziad|ʿObayd-Allah b. Ziad]] in [[Kufa]], the latter ordered his execution but left him alive at the entreaty of his aunt, [[Zaynab]]. He was taken with the women to [[Yazid]] in Damascus, and he sent them back to Medina. | ||
==The Aftermath of Karbala== | ==The Aftermath of Karbala== | ||
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*[https://referenceworks.brillonline.com/entries/encyclopaedia-of-islam-2/zayn-al-abidin-SIM_8144 Encyclopaedia of Islam, Second Edition] | *[https://referenceworks.brillonline.com/entries/encyclopaedia-of-islam-2/zayn-al-abidin-SIM_8144 Encyclopaedia of Islam, Second Edition] | ||
*[http://www.iranicaonline.org/articles/ali-b-hosayn-b-ali Encyclopædia Iranica] | *[http://www.iranicaonline.org/articles/ali-b-hosayn-b-ali Encyclopædia Iranica] | ||
==References== | ==References== | ||
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[[Category:The Fourteen Infallibles]] | [[Category:The Fourteen Infallibles]] | ||
[[Category:Ahl al-Bayt]] | [[Category:Ahl al-Bayt]] | ||
<references /> | |||