The Outset of Dissension in Islam — Page 93
93 Madinah and besieged the mosque as well as the home of Hadrat ‘Uthm a n ra. It was announced in all the streets of Madinah that whosoever cherished his life should quietly sit at home and not confront the rebels, or else. 79 Their arrival was so sudden that the people of Madinah were unable to fight back. Hadrat Imam H asan ra states: “I was sitting in the mosque, when all of a sudden there was a clamour and cries of takb i r 80 (this was the Muslim slogan for war) began to resonate in the streets of Madinah. All of us were shocked and we began to look for the cause of this noise. I stood up on my knees and began to look. In no time, these people suddenly raided the mosque and occupied it along with the surrounding streets. ” As a result of their sudden attack the force of the companions and the people of Madinah, was scattered. They were unable to fight the rebels or engage in battle with them, because the rebels had besieged the mosque and all the passages of the city. Now there were only two possibilities: firstly, that aid arrived from the exterior; secondly, that the people of Madinah gathered somewhere and then fought them in an organised manner. As for the first case, the rebels were satisfied that Hadrat ‘Uthm a n ra would not do such a thing because he was very generous in his mercy and thinking well of others and because he always gave the benefit of the doubt to them despite their apparent mischief. As regards the second case, the rebels made an 79. T a r i khu t-T abar i , vol. 5, pp. 153-154, Dhikru Mas i ri Mann S a ra Il a Dh i Khashabin Min Ahli Mi s ra. . . . . , Published by D a rul-Fikr, Beirut, 2002 edition [Publishers] 80. To proclaim the greatness of Allah. [Publishers]