Nasb-and-the-Nawasib

Akin to his situation was the situation of Ibn Jarīr al-Ṭabarī. 1 When he learnt that
some scholars of Baghdād reject the ḥadīth of the pond of Khum, which is from
the very clear narrations regarding the merits of ʿAlī I, he began narrating
the merits of ʿAlī I and the various transmission of the ḥadīth of the pond.
Then when the people thronged around him and his gathering started buzzing,
he realised that amongst those present were a group of Rawāfiḍ as well, and thus
he started narrating the merits of Shaykhayn L.
Conversely, when he returned to Ṭabrastān 2 he was appalled to find that the
denigration of the Ṣaḥābah M was on the rise due to spread of Rafḍ, hence he
started dictating the merits of Abū Bakr and ʿUmar L. 3
Nonetheless, despite the insight of these scholars and their immense wisdom in
the approach they had adopted, there still remained a group of the scholars of
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Hence whoever reviles the Ṣaḥābah M actually targets Islam itself, akin to a person who knocks on
the door wanting to enter the house.” He further says, “Whoever targets Muʿāwiyah I has indeed
targeted the Ṣaḥābah M.” (Tahdhīb al-Kamāl 1/239).
Some scholars, however, do not accept this explanation, they offer an alternate explanation and
suggest that the reason for responding in this way was that he was tainted with a light form of
Shiasm. Hence al-Dhahabī says, “He had a little bit of Tashayyuʿ and was thus averse to the opponents
of Imām ʿAlī, like Muʿāwiyah and ʿAmr L. May Allah E forgive him for that.” (Siyar Aʿlām al-
Nubalāʾ 14/133.
1 Muḥammad ibn Yazīd ibn Kathīr al-Ṭabarī, Abū Jaʿfar. A polymath who was unmatched in his
knowledge in his time. He was born in 224 A.H. He was a very devout worshipper, disinclined from this
world, pious and a person who stood for the truth. A fitnah ensued between him and the Ḥanābilah
owing to which the latter dubbed him a Rāfiḍī falsely. He passed away in 310 A.H. Some of his works
are: Tārīkh al-Umam wa al-Mulūk, Jāmiʿ al-Bayān and Tahdhīb al-Ᾱthār. See: Tārīkh Baghdād 2/162; Siyar
Aʿlām al-Nubalāʾ 14/267; al-Wāfī bi al-Wafayāt 2/212; al-Bidāyah wa al-Nihāyah 11/145.
2 Ṭabrastān, the mountainous area which surrounds the southern side of the Caspian Sea. It includes
many cities and the mountains that expand around it are known as Jibāl al-Burz (the Al-Borz mountain
range). Another name for Ṭabrastān is also Māzindarān which is now the popular name by which it is
known. See: Muʿjam al-Buldān 4/13; Muʿjam mā Ustuʿjim 3/887.
3 Muʿjam al-Buldān 5/269.
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