History of Islam Vol 3 of 3 by Akbar Shah Najeebabadi

184 The History of Islam
his creed
regarding the attributes of Allah was a mixture of Ashairah,
Sheiates and Philosphers. He could speak Arabic fluently and the
Berber language was his mother tongue. In 515 A.H. he returned to his
motherland and plunged heart and soul into preaching to his
countrymen.
Declaring Himself as Imam Mahdi
He claimed for himself the status of Imam Mahdi and formed various
classes of his followers. He called the first as Muhajirin and the second
Muminin. There were seven or eight classes in total. When the number
under the command of
Abdul Mumin and asked him to wage a war against the Almoravid
Rule. In the first encounter Abdul Mumin's Army was defeated and
of his followers increased he brought them
later due to a power struggle among the Almoravids it gave them a
hold over a considerable part of Morocco. Ibn
Tumart had started
military activities in 517 A.H. and died in 524 A.H. after 7 years of
hectic military activity. He appointed Abdul Mumin as his successor
with the title of "Amir al-Muminin'. By this time Ibn Tumart's dynasty
had become a formidable power and a rival of the Almoravids.
Abdul Mumin
At the same time, Abdul Mumin, a man from the Berbers came to him
and joined his circle of disciples. In his thoughts and feelings he was
very much like Ibn Tumart. The ruler of the country showed dislike
for Tumart's thoughts and activities and decided to do away with
him. However, Ali bin Yusuf stood in the way and argued that he saw
no reason for his elimination. Following the insistence of the Muslim
jurists, he was expelled from Morocco. Ibn Tumart set up his
headquarters in the High Atlas Mountains and shifted there with his
followers. A large number of Berbers came and joined his camp.
name was Ali who belonged to Kaumia Clan among the
His father's
Berbers of Mauritania. He was bom in 487 A.H. Shortly after the
demise of Ali bin Yusuf bin Tashqain in 537 A.H. the whole of
Morocco came under the sway of Abdul Mumin. Since the main
message of the teachings was belief in the perfect oneness of God his
followers came to be called Mowahads [(from the Arabic root of the