Mu’awiya’s Motive behind Appointing his Fasiq Son Yazeed as Khalifah

Mu’awiya was fully aware of Yazeed’s Transgression

As evidence we shall rely on the following texts of Ahl’ul Sunnah:

1. Al Bidayah wa al Nihaya (Urdu) Volume 8 page 1156 “Dhikr Yazeed”
2. Tareekh Ibn Khaldun page 176 Dhikr Bayya
3. Thatheer al Janaan page 52
4. Nasa al Kaafiya page 38
5. Tadkhira al Khawwas page 161 Dhikr Yazeed
6. Serra al Alam’an naba Volume 3 page 105
7. Tareekh Tabari Volume 2 page 174 Events of 56 Hijri

We read in Al Bidayah wa al Nihaya (urdu) Vol 8 page 1156 “Dhikr Yazeed bin Muawiyah”:

Yazeed in his youth indulged in alcohol consumption and used to do other things youth would do, and this came to the attention of Mu’awiya who wanted to advise him warmly so he said to him: ‘O my son, you do have capability of achieving what you want without disgrace and debasement, which will destroy your youthfulness and value, and will make your enemy happy at your adversity and your friend will treaty you badly’. He then stated: ‘O my son, let me recite to you some couplets, try to learn manners from these couplets and learn them by heart’. Thus, Muawiyah recited:

“Stay all the day long in the pursual of heights and have patience on the departure of a close mate, until the darkness of night appears and your enemy falls asleep, thus, do whatever you wish to do throughout the night, night is like a day for the wise, there are plenty of Fasiq people whom you deem pious, but they spend their nights commiting strange things, night has provided veils to their acts and he has spent the night with calm and pleasure, while the wish of a stupid person is of a visible nature.”

Al Bidayah wa al Nihaya (Urdu) Vol 8 page 1156 (published by Nafees Academy Karachi)

The advocate of Mu’awiya then seeks to defend this action by stating:

“Mu’awiya’s advice that Yazeed hide his acts is in accordance with Hadith wherein Rasulullah (s) said that one should seek to cover up the faults of others”.

This proves that Mu’awiya was fully aware of his son’s disgraceful acts.

We also read in al Bidaya Volume 8 page 79:

وكتب معاوية إلى زياد يستشيره في ذلك ، فكره زياد ذلك لما يعلم من لعب يزيد وإقباله على اللعب والصيد

“Mu’awiya wrote to his [bastard] brother Ziyad to seek advice on securing the bayya for Yazeed. Ziyad was not receptive of this since he knew that he [Yazeed] was fond of hunting and had done bad deeds.”

Yazeed’s own uncle was aware of his bad acts. Hence to suggest that his dear father had no idea that his son possessed bad traits is an utter lie, after all he was the King over the nation who kept news of all developments throughout his empire. Is it believable he had no idea of the deeds of his own son? It is a testament to the truth that Mu’awiya’s own advocate Ibn Kathir highlights the fact that Mu’awiya knew of his son’s faults.

Mu’awiya’s motive behind appointing his Fasiq son as Khalifah

Abu Sulaiman al Nasibi in his article on Mu’awiya sought to apply conjecture, seeking to defend Mu’awiya’s appointment of his son by stating:

Perhaps the reason that pushed Mu’awiyah to take allegiance to Yazeed was to push away the disagreement and to be one in this crucial time at which the Ummah lived and where a lot of people claimed the caliphate. Hence, Mu’awiyah thought that by giving the leadership to Yazeed would be a good thing for the Ummah and it would prevent another affliction of happening

These Nawasib dig up the most bizarre excuses – the reason Mu’awiya made Yazeed his son was not for these namby-pamby ‘maybe’ reasons. It’s because all kings want to make their sons the king after them. It’s called monarchy and nepotism. It’s why all the scholars say Mu’awiya made Yazeed khalifa. Do the Ansar team live on another planet?

It is a fickle effort to cover up Yazeed’s Nasibi father’s sin. If we really want to know Mu’awiya’s motive, why use guesswork when we have his own testimony. We thus read in al Bidayah Volume 8 page 118 that prior to his death, Mu’awiya admitted his appointment of his son was based on his love for him, nothing else.

“If it was not my love for Yazeed, I would have known the path of guidance.”

This proves that Mu’awiya’s motive to appoint Yazeed was not to prevent affliction as this Nasibi claims, rather his aim was only based on the love of his son and his regret that he was blinded by love is proof that Mu’awiya was fully aware that his son was a transgressor who had no right to be deemed as the Guide over Muslims. Here Mu’awiya confesses to being misguided – so the Nasibi cult reveres and follows an imam who admits he is misguided!

In connection with these words of Mu’awiya, his great advocate Ibn Hajr al Makki in Thatheer al Janaan page 52 stated:

“Mu’awiya’s saying had it not been my love for Yazeed in my heart, although I know the path of guidance, serves as testimony against him [Mu'awiya]. He placed his fasiq son over the people. Mu’awiya’s love for his son destroyed his thinking and political astuteness. Mu’awiya’s allowing his personal feelings / love to decide how the Deen should be led, to the point that his son’s transgressions [which were beyond the pale of the Sharia and merited the death penalty] were an irrelevancy constitutes a major sin for which he shall be called to answer for on the Day of Judgement”.

We read in Siyar Alam al Nubla:

“Mu’awiya said to his son, ‘The thing that I fear most of all is my act of making you my successor”.

Mu’awiya indulged in all manner of act to secure a smooth transition of power for his son: threats, intimidation, and he even had Imam Hasan (as) martyred by poison. Such methods to make his fasiq son Khalifah over the Muslims are definitely a major sin.

The Qur’an deems singing Raag (Scales) to be a major sin

We know that Yazeed was fond of listening to music and hired girls for the same purpose. Advocate of Mu’awiya, Ibn Khaldun, stated in Tareekh Ibn Khaldun:

حدث في يزيد من الفسق أيام خلافته فإياك أن تظن بمعاوية رضي الله عنه أنه علم ذلك من يزيد فإنه أعدل من ذلك وأفضل

“Yazeed showed Fisq during his Caliphate, therefore don’t think that Mu’awiya [ra] knew that about Yazid (and remained silent), surely he is just, nay he (Mu’awiya) used to make him (Yazeed) refrain from listening to songs during his (Mu’awiya’s) life time.”

Now the method Muawiyah adopted to make his Fasiq son refrain from singing and other sins has already been cited earlier from Al Bidayah wa al Nihaya (Urdu) Vol 8 page 1156 according to which Muawiyah asked Yazeed to refrain from all the sins during daylight and conduct them uinder the protection of nights! As for the forbiddance of listening music, we read in Surah Luqman verse 6 (Yusuf ‘Ali transliteration):

But there are among men those who purchase idle tales (Lahw Al-Hadith) without knowledge (or meaning) to mislead (men) from the Path of Allah and throw ridicule (on the Path): for such there will be a humiliating Penalty.

As evidence we shall advance the following texts of Ahl’ul Sunnah that have commented on this verse:

1. Tafseer Mazhari Volume 7 page 260 al Luqman verse 6
2. Tafseer Madarik Volume 3 page 25 Part 21
3. Tafseer Ibn Katheer page 221 al Luqman verse 6
4. Tafseer Fath’ul Qadeer Volume 4 page 226
5. Tafseer Janan Volume 4 page 177 al Luqman verse 6
6. Rafseer Ruh al Ma’ani page 67 Part 21 al Luqan verse 26
7. Tafsser Tabari page 39
8. Tafseer Qurtubi, commentary of verse 6 al Luqman

In Tafseer Mazhari we read:

“The scholars have deemed Raag (singing scales) to be haraam on the basis of this verse.

We read in Tafseer Ibn Katheer:

Ibn Masud commented about the Ayah: (And of mankind is he who purchases Lahu Al-Hadith to mislead (men) from the path of Allah), “This — by Allah — refers to singing.”

Imam of the Salafies Ibn Qayim records in Eghathat al-Lahfan, Volume 1 page 241:

“You never find some one that cares about songs and music save those who are misguided from the right path”

Mu’awiya’s own admission that Yazeed did not deserve to be khalifa

For this section we shall rely on the following texts of Ahl’ul Sunnah:

1. Al Bidaya wa al Nihaya Volume 8 page 118
2. Thatheer al Janan page 52
3. Nasa al Kaafiya page 38
4. Tadhkira Khawwas page 161 Dhikr Yazeed
5. Syiar al alam al Naba Volume 3 page 105

In al-Bidayah, we read the following about Muawiyah:

وقد أصابته لوقة في آخر عمره، فكان يستر وجهه ويقول: رحم الله عبدا دعا لي بالعافية، فقد رميت في أحسني وما يبدو مني ولولا هواي في يزيد لابصرت رشدي

In the end of his life, he got a blot (on his face) and would cover his face and say: ‘May Allah’s mercy be upon the one who invocates for my health, I have been blotted on my best body part had it not been my love for Yazeed, I would have known the path of guidance.’

Blinded by his love for his son, he was willing to impose his demonic fasiq son as the Khalifah over the Muslims. How considerate! Clearly Mu’awiya’s admission proves that even he did not feel Yazeed was deserving of khilafat. Nasibi Warrior Abu Sulaiman asserts the imposition was to save fitnah, but this is a lie. Mu’awiya never made such a claim, rather he stated that he made his fasiq son the Khalifah on account of his blind love for him i.e. a father’s natural love for his son. No doubt Nasibis will claim that Mu’awiya made a mistake in ijtihaad in this respect, but they should know that one of the conditions for a mujtahid to give rulings is that he has to be adil (just), and Mu’awiya was not adil, as we have proven in our article on Mu’awiya – the Ulema of Ahl’ul Sunnah have themselves defined Mu’awiya as a transgressor.

In ‘Siyar alam al Nubla’ we read:

إن معاوية قال ليزيد: إن أخوف ما أخافه شئ عملته في أمرك

Mu’awyia said to Yazeed: ‘The thing that I fear most is the fact that I have imposed you (as my successor)’.

Deobandi scholar Aadhi Zaynul Abdideen in Tareekh Milat page 55 states

“Mu’awiya was aware of the situation, having witnessed Yazeed’s acts he deemed him to be unacceptable”.

This is more proof that Mu’awiya knew of his son’s demonic personality and yet he still sought to appoint him as khalifah over the Muslims. Mu’awiya’s regret was a shame, the reality is he had a hatred for Ahl’ul bayt (as) in his heart and wanted to keep them out of power. We would like to ask these Nasibi: you assert that khilafat is not an exclusive right of the Ahl’ul bayt (as). Could you kindly tell us which merits were missing in the members of Ahl’ul bayt (as) but were present in the Banu Ummayya Clan? Did Allah (swt) keep traits of knowledge, sense, guidance away from the Ahl’ul bayt (as), and prefer to give worldly reign to the cursed tree of Banu Ummayya? Or should we blame the Muslims in general for turning their backs on religious righteousness?

The stipulation by the Ahl’ul Sunnah Ulema that the khalifah be just makes the khilafat of Mu’awiya and Yazeed batil

For this section we shall rely on the following authentic texts of Ahl’ul Sunnah:

1. Izalatul Khifa page 20 Dhikr Sharth Imamate
2. Sharh Muwafaq page 731 Muqassad Saneeh
3. Sharh Maqasid Volume 2 page 271 Fadail Imama
4. Al-Ahkam al-Sultaniya page 8 by Al Mawardi
5. Al-Ahkam al-Sultaniya page 9 by Qadi Abu Yala
6. Tauhfa Ithna Ashari page 178 Bab 7 Imamate aqeedah

We read in Izalat ul Khifa:

“The khalifah should be a man and should be adil. By ‘just’ we mean he should refrain from major sins and should not repeat minor sins. He should also be a mujtahid”.

We read in Sharh Muqassad:

“The Imam over the Ummah should possess these merits – have sense, be Muslim, be just, free, a man, a mujtahid, and brave”

We read in Sharh Muwafaq:

“It is incumbent on the Imam / Khalifah to be adil, he should not be zaalim, since a fasiq deems the treasury to be his personal wealth, and will waste money”.

Ahl al Sunna believe that no khalifa has the right to appoint his son as khalifa without shura (consultation)

Al Mawardi in Al-Ahkam al-Sultaniya page 8 states:

“When a khilafah intends on appointing a successor the khilafah should make efforts to locate the individual that is most deserving, and the condition of khilafat is if after this extensive search a person is located, provided he is not the Khalifah’s father or son, then he can be appointed without seeking the counsel of anyone else.”

Abu Yala in this same book, echoing the words of other Salaf Ulema stated that the contract of Imamate can only go to one that is Adil, and the Qur’an stipulates that it cannot be bestowed on one that is Dhaalim. We have the consensus from the Ulema of Islam that a fasiq cannot attain the station of Imam; we can prove from the texts of Ahl’ul Sunnah that both Mu’awiya and Yazeed were not adil. Mu’awiya’s deeds throughout his reign, including efforts to secure Yazeed’s nomination via duress prove that he was not adil. When Mu’awiya was himself unjust then he had no right to appoint his fasiq son as Imam over the Ummah. Moreover his methods of intimidation to ‘win’ backing for Yazeed, makes Nasibi claims that Yazeed’s khilafat was legitimate a complete farce.

Our challenge to Sipah-e-Sahaba and Ansar.org

Our open challenge to Nasibis such as Abu Sulaiman and the followers of Azam Tariq is to produce a single reference from the Qur’an / hadith that deems the Imamate of a fasiq khalifah to be legitimate. We are aware that there are ridiculous coined traditions deeming it lawful to pray salat behind a fasiq Imam, but we want proof with regards to the Imam (khalifa) of Muslims not the Imam of a salafi / Deobandi mosque.