Rejection of Sectarianism

The society in which Ja'far al-Sadiq was born and lived was one divided by proUthman/pro-Umayyad versus pro-'Ali sentiments. Almost a century of rule by the Umayyads, an exclusively Arab caliphate that paid only lip service to Islam, had enormous and enduring effects on Muslim religious culture throughout the lands of the caliphate.

The two holy cities of Mecca and Medina were at the center of this rift. The people of Medina had some respect for the House of the Prophet but the pro-'Uthman faction had the upper hand in Mecca. The decidedly less than friendly atmosphere toward the 'Alids in Mecca was the product not only of sustained and vigorous Umayyad propaganda but also that of 'Abd Allah b. al-Zubayr, who ruled Mecca from 64 to 73 as a rival to the Umayyad caliphate but, like them, was staunchly anti-'Ali. As Ja'far al-Sadiq visited the town annually for the hajj, his practice as the chief representative of the House of the Prophet at the time came under periodic scrutiny, and there were always some who complained that he did not act as did the previous generations. His uniform answer was that he did not care about previous generations, but he acted according to what religion and law required.^[396]

'Abbad b. Kathir (d. 141), a Basran ascetic who lived in Mecca, was one of these complainers. Lacking sufficient knowledge of law and tradition to be a religious scholar himself, he nonetheless used to follow and frequently criticize both Muhammad al-Baqir and Ja'far al-Sadiq for their practice if it differed in any way from the community's customary practice.

The jurist Sufyan al-Thawi (d. 161)386 and others^{[398] [399] questioned Ja'far's practice during the hajj on a number of points, most prominently his failure to touch the Black Stone while circumambulating the Ka'ba, a ritual that the Prophet performed as confirmed by Ja'far himself.[400] Ja'far's response was that the pilgrims would allow the Prophet to approach the stone easily but did not do the same for Ja'far, who did not like the unpleasant jostling.[401]}

عبد الرجن ين الحجاج عن أبي عبد الله قال: كنت أطوف وسفيان الثوري قريب مي، فقال: يا أبا عبد الله! كيف كان رسول لله — صلى لله عله [وآل[ وسلم — يصنع بالحجرإذا انتش إيه؟ فقلت: كان رسول لله — صلى لله عله وآل وسلم — يتلمه في كل طواف فريضة ونافل.

- صلى لله عله [وآل[ وسلم — كان يتلم الحجر في كل طواف فريضة ونافل؟ قده: بلى! قال: قد مررت به فلم تستلم. فقده: إن الناس كانوا ;رون لرسول لله - صلى لله عله وآل وسلم — ما لا ;رون لي فكان إذا انض إلى الحجرأفرجوا ل حى يتلمه [وأنا لائفرج لي[،^[402] وى أكره الزحام.^[403]

['Abd al-Rahman b.

A variant of the report contains additional material in which Ja'far explains how his practice, though different from the Prophet's precedent, nonetheless follows the latter's instructions:

عبد الحميد ين سعيد قال: دخل سغبان الثوري على أبي عبد الله فقال: أصلحك الله! بلغني أنك صنعت أشياء خالفك فيها البئ - صل الله عله [وآل] وسلم.

['Abd al-Hamid b. Sa'id:] Sufyan al-Thawri came to Abu 'Abd Allah and said, “May God put you on the right path! I heard that you did some things contrary to the [practice of] the Prophet (may God's prayer and peace be upon him [and his Family]).” The Imam said, “What are they?” He said, “I heard that you entered the state of pilgrim sanctity (ihram) in Juhfa, whereas the Prophet (may God's prayer and peace be upon him [and his Family]) entered the state of pilgrim sanctity in [the Mosque of] Shajara; and I heard that you did not touch the [Black] Stone during the obligatory circumambulation, whereas the Prophet (may God's prayer and peace be upon him [and his Family]) touched it; and I heard that you sacrificed [the requisite animal that is part of the pilgrimage] in your home rather than at the [ordinary] site of sacrifice." The Imam said, “I did so!" He said, 'What made you do that?" He said, “The Prophet (may God's prayer and peace be upon him and his Family) prescribed Juhfa for the ill and the weak [as a site at which to enter the state of pilgrim sanctity], and I had just recovered from an illness, so I wanted to make use of God's dispensation. As for touching the Stone, people would make room for the Prophet (may God's prayer and peace be upon him and his Family), but they do not make room for me. And as for leav­ing the site of sacrifice and sacrificing in my home, the Prophet (may God's prayer and peace be upon him and his Family) said, ‘Mecca in its entirety is a site of sacrifice.'^[405] So wherever you sacrifice, it will suffice."

There were still other conversations of this nature between the two. Here is just one more example:

عبد الرجن ين الحجاج عن أبي عبد الله قال: إن سفيان فقيهكم أتاني فقال: ما يخملك على أن تأمرأصحابك يأتون الحعورنة فيحرمون متها؟ فقلت ل: ي وقت من مواقيت رسول لله — صلى لله عله وآل وسلم. فقال: وأي وقت من مواقيت رسول الله — صلى الله عله [وآل[ وسلم - ي؟ فقتال: أحرم متهاحين قسم غتاثم حتين ومرجعه من الطائف. فقال: إنا هذا شيء أخذئه من [رواية[ عبد لله ين عمر. فقتا: أليس قد كان عتدكم مرضئا؟ قال: بلى١ ولكن أما علمت أن أصحاب رسول الله — صلى الله عله [وآل[ وسلم — إدا أحرموا من المسجد؟ فقتا: إن أولئك كانوا متمتعين ني أعناقهم الدماء، ون هؤلاء قطنوا بمكة فصارواكأنهم من أهل مكة، وأهل مكة لا متعة لهم، فأحببت أن يخرجوا من مكة إلى بعض المواقيت وأن يستغبوا به أجاهتا. فقال لي — وأنا أخبره أنها وقت من مواقيت رسول الله — صلى الله عله وآل وسلم — : ياأبا عبدالله١٠ فإني أرى كل أن لاتفعل. فضحكت وقلحئ: ولكى أرى لهم أن يفعلوا.^[406]

[‘Abd al-Rahman b. al-Hajjaj:] Abu ‘Abd Allah said, “Sufyan, your [local] jurist, came to me and said, ‘What makes you order your fol­lowers to go to Ji'rana to assume the state of pilgrim sanctity there?' I said to him, ‘It is one of the hajj stations assigned by the Messenger of God (may God's prayer and peace be upon him and his Family).' He said, ‘Which of the hajj stations of the Messenger of God (may God's prayer and peace be upon him [and his Family]) is it?' I said to him, ‘He entered the state of pilgrim sanctity there when he distributed the booty from Hunayn on his way back from Tif.' He said, ‘This is some­thing you learned from [the transmission of] 'Abd Allah b. 'Umar.'^[407] I said, ‘Was he not an admirable person in your view?' He said, ‘Yes! But did you not know that the companions of the Messenger of God (may God's prayer and peace be upon him [and his Family]) assumed the state of pilgrim sanctity at the Mosque [of Shajara]?' I said, ‘They [the Companions] were performing the hajj of tamattu' and had to offer sacrifice [and so were bringing their animals to sacrifice from Medina]. But these people [whom I advise to go to Ji'rana] reside in Mecca, so it is as if they are of the people of Mecca, and the people of Mecca do not perform tamattu'.^[408] So I like for them to leave Mecca for one of the hajj stations and be away from their ordinary life for a few days.' While I was informing him that it was one of the hajj stations of the Messenger of God (may God's prayer and peace be upon him and his Family), he said to me, ‘O Abu 'Abd Allah, I think you should not do that!' I laughed and said, ‘But I think they should do that!'”

Shabba b. 'Iqal al-Bas, an Umayyad agent,^[409] objected to a legal opinion of Ja'far. In response, Ja'far pointed out that the opinion was shared by the jurists of the Hijaz, and that the Umayyad Walid b. Yazid b. 'Abd al-Malik (r. 125-26), the caliph at the time, preferred their opinion over the opinion of the jurists of Iraq and Syria, following it in a case that involved the caliph and his wife Salama.^[410]

For his part, Ja'far, like his predecessors among the Imams of the House of the Prophet, held that people had tampered with much of the Sunna and he tried to correct the situation wherever he could:

عبيد ين زررة عن أبي عبد هللا: ما من شيء عله الناس الوم إلاوهوحرف عمتا نزل

به الوح.^[411]

['Ubayd b. Zurara:] Abu 'Abd Allah said, “There is nothing that the peo­ple adhere to today that has not been changed from what was revealed [by God]."

بشير الدهان عن أبي عبد الله قال: لا والله! ما هم على شيء مغتا جاء به رسول الله

- صل هللا عله وآل وسلم — إلااستقبال الكعبة فقط.^[412]

[Bashir al-Dahhan:] Abu 'Abd Allah said, “No, by God! They are not in line with anything that the Messenger of God (may God's prayer and peace be upon him and his Family) conveyed, except in facing the Ka'ba."

The same position had been taken by the Companion Anas b. Malik (d. 93) a few decades earlier:^[413]

أنس قال: ما أعرى شيئا الوم متئاكنا عله على عهد رسول اهللا — صلى اهللا عله وسلم.^[414]

[Anas:] I do not recognize anything today that we used to follow during the time of the Messenger of God (may God's prayer and peace be upon him).

أنس قال: ما أعرى فبنكم الوم شيئاكنت أعهده على عهد رسول اهللا — صلى اهللا عله وسلم - ليس قولكم لا إل إلا هللا.^[415]

[Anas:] I do not recognize today anything that I used to witness during the time of the Messenger of God (may God's prayer and peace be upon him), other than your pronouncement that “There is no deity but God.”

أنس قال: ما شيء شهدته على عهد رسول هللا — صلى هللا عله وسلم — إلا وقد أتكرته الوم، إلاشهادتكم هذه.^[416]

[Anas:] There is nothing that I witnessed during the time of the Mes­senger of God (may God's prayer and peace be upon him) that I recog­nize today, save this testimony of yours.

A similar statement is quoted from the Companion Abu al-Darda' way- mir b. Malik (d. 32), who died too early to witness the Umayyad period. If the report is authentic, it means that the trend had already started by the time of the Umayyads.

عن أبي الدرداء قال: واهللا ما أعرف فيهم شيئا من أمرمحتئد — صلى اهللا عله وسلم — إلا أنهم يصلون جميعا.^[417]

[Abu al-Darda':] By God, I do not recognize any of [the teachings and practice of] Muhammad (may God's prayer and peace be upon him) among these people except that they pray in congregation.

402

403

404

405

Other reports confirm the existence of the same mentality among senior members of the Muslim community around the same time and earlier. Con­sider the following example:

مطرى عن عمران ين حصين قال: صلى مع علي — رض هللا عنه — بالمه فقال: ذكرنا هذا الرجل صلاة كنا نصبها مع رسول هللا — صلى هللا عله وسلم.^[418]

[Mutarraf (b. 'Abd Allah):] 'Imran b. Husayn prayed with 'All in Basra^[419] and said, “This man reminded us of the prayer we used to perform with the Messenger of God (may God's prayer and peace be upon him).”

مطؤرف بن عبد الله قال: صلت لحلف على بن أبي طالب — رض الله عنه — أنا وعمرن بن حصناً. فلتنا قعض الصلاة أخذ سدي عمران بن حصين فقال: قد ذكرني هذا صلاة محمد — صلى الله عنه وسلم — أوقال: لقد صلى بنا صلاة محمد — صلى هللا عله وسلم.^[420]

[Mutarraf b. 'Abd Allah:] I prayed behind 'All b. Abi Talib with 'Imran b. Husayn. When he finished the prayer, 'Imran b. Husayn took my hand and said, “This reminded me of the prayer of Muhammad (may God's prayer and peace be upon him),” or he said, “he led us in the prayer of Muhammad (may God's prayer and peace be upon him).”

These two reports, as well as others,^[421] suggest that people at the time did not perform their prayers in the way that the Prophet had done.

Notwithstanding this fact, Ja'far al-Sadiq constantly urged his followers to maintain harmonious relations and solidarity with other Muslims and to avoid sectarianism.^[422] He argued that all Muslims—whom he characterized in different reports as those who bear witness to the unity of God,^{[423] [424] ahl al-qibla,412 or man kana ‘ala fitrat al-Isldm[425]—wil enter Paradise.[426] The long list of his students and transmitters, who display a wide spectrum of sectarian backgrounds,[427] attests to his solidarity-oriented approach.}

This stance was in line with Ja'far's respect for earlier and contemporary authorities of the Islamic tradition and his justification of their differences of opinion:

منصور ين حازم قال: قلت لأبي عبد هللا: أخبرني عن أصحاب رسول هللا — صلى هللا عله وآل وسلم — صدقوا على محشد — صلى هللا عله وآل وسلم — أم كذبوا؟ قال: بل صدقوا. قال: قارئ: فما بالهم اختلفوا؟ قال: أما نغلم أن الرجل كان يأني رسول الله — صلى الله عله وآل وسلم — فيسأل عن مسأل فيجيبه فيها بالجواب، ثما يجيئه بعد ذلك ما ينسخ ذلك الجواب، فنسخت الأحاديث بعضها يعصا.^[428]

[Mansur b. Hzim:] I said to Abu 'Abd Allah, “Tell me about the com­panions of the Messenger of God (may God's prayer and peace be upon him and his Family)—did they speak the truth or lie about Muham­mad (may God's prayer and peace be upon him and his Family)?” He said, “Nay, they spoke the truth.” I said, “Then why did they disagree?” He said, “Do you not know that a man would go to the Messenger of God (may God's prayer and peace be upon him and his Family) and ask him about something, and he would give him an answer, and then the Prophet would receive [a revelation] that abrogated that answer, so some hadiths abrogated others.”

The Prophetic Sunna was subject to abrogation through changing cir- cumstances.^[429] A hadith, therefore, could reflect the situation before the emergence of conditions that required the Prophet to issue a new com­mand, whereas another, seemingly contradictory hadith pertained to the post-change situation.

And as for the following generations of the Muslim jurists:

عمرين أذيئة قال: كتبت إلى أبي عبد هللا أسأل عن رواية الجسن البرصي ;مويها عن على — عله السلام — في عنعن ذات لاح قواثم: إذا فقئت رع قنتنها؟ قال: صدق الجسن. قد قال على ذلك.^[430]

['Umar b. Udhayna:] I wrote to Abu 'Abd Allah asking him about the report that Hasan al-Basri narrated from 'All regarding the restitution of one quarter of [an animal's] value for damage inflicted on the eye of a four-legged animal. He said, “Hasan spoke the truth. 'All indeed said that.”

أبوخديجة قال: [قلطا لأبي عبد الله] إن رجال مات وتزلئ أخا عبدا وأوصى ل بألف درهم فأبى مواله أن يجيزوا ل. فارفعوا إلى عمر ين عبد العزيز« فقال للغلام: ألك ول؟ قال: غم! فقال: أحرر؟ قال: أحرر فقال: تزى من جميع المال بآلف درهم هم يزون عمنهم؟ فقال أبوعبد لله: أصاب عمربن عبد العزيز 41

[Abu Khadija:] I said to Abu 'Abd Allah, “A man died, leaving behind a slave brother to whom he bequeathed one thousand dirhams, but his [the brother's] patrons did not permit him to receive it. The two sides took the case to 'Umar b. 'Abd al-'Aziz. He said to the slave, ‘Do you have children?' He said, ‘Yes!' He said, ‘[Are they] free?' He said, ‘[They are] free.' He said, ‘Will you be happy if they inherit the one thousand dirhams from their uncle?'” Abu 'Abd Allah said, “'Umar b. 'Abd al-'Aziz was correct.”^{[431] [432]}

أبان بن تغلب قال: قلت لأبى عبد لله: إزإهيم يزعم أن دية ايهودي والصرابى والمجوسي سواء. فقال: نعم! قال الحق.^[433]

[Aban b. Taghlib:] I said to Abu 'Abd Allah, “Ibrahim says that the blood money for a Jew, a Christian, and a Magian is the same.” He said, 'Yes! He has spoken the truth.”^[434]

الحكم قال: قدت، لأبى عبد لله: إدن والدي صدق علي بدار ثمي بدا ل أن يزجع فيها، وإن قضاتنا يقضون أنها لى وليس ل أن يزجع فيها وقد صدق بهاعلي، ولست أدرى هل ما يقضون به علي من اصواب أم لا؟ فقال: دعقاً ما قضت به قضانكم وبئس ما صنع والدك! إندا الصدقة هلل عزوجل، فما جعل هلل فلارجعة ل فيه.^[435]

[Hakam:] I said to Abu 'Abd Allah, “My father gave me a home as a charitable gift and then wanted to change his mind about it. Our [local] judges hold that it belongs to me and that he cannot change his mind, as he gave it to me out of charity. I do not know whether their judgment in my favor is correct or not.” He said, “How good is the decision of your judges, and how improper was what your father did! Charity is for God, the Mighty and Majestic, and whatever is done for God cannot be taken back.”

زر قال: [سألت أبا عبد هللا عنتا] يروي الناس أن الصلاة ئ جماعة أفضل من صلاة الرحل وحده بخمسة وعشرن صلاة؟ فقال: صدقوا,^[436]

[Zurara:] I asked Abu 'Abd Allah about what people [meaning the majority Sunnis] report to the effect that prayer in congregation is twenty-five times better than prayer alone. He said, “They have spo­ken the truth.”^[437]

عبد هللا ن سنان قال: شهدت صلاة المغرب للة مطيرة ئ مسجد رسول هللا — صلى هللا عله وآل وسلم — فحين كان قرسا من الشفق نادوا وأقاموا للصلاة فصلوا المغرب، بم أمهلوا الناس حى صلوا ركعتين، بم قام المنادي ئ مكانه ئ المسجد فأقام للصلاة فصلوا العشاء، بم انصرى الناس إلى منازلهم, فسألن أبا عبد هللا عن ذلك فقال: نمم! قدكان رسول هللا — صلى هللا عله وآل وسلم — يحمل هذا,^[438]

['Abd Allah b. Sinan:] I attended the maghrib prayer on a rainy evening in the Mosque of the Messenger of God (may God's prayer and peace be upon him and his Family). When dusk drew near, they announced [in the form of idhan] and pronounced the call to prayer [in the form of iqama] and prayed the maghrib prayer. People were then given time to pray two rak'as [of supererogatory prayer]. The muezzin then stood up in his place in the mosque and pronounced the call to prayer, and they prayed the ‘ishcf prayer. People then went home. I asked Abu 'Abd Allah about this, and he said, “Yes! The Messenger of God (may God's prayer and peace be upon him and his Family) used to do that.”

Ja'far al-Sadiq's approach in respect to the Companions of the Prophet and their next generation was informed by that of Ja'far's grandfather, 'All b. al-Husayn Zayn al-'Abidin, as reflected in his prayers:

الهم واع الرتل ومصدؤوخم من أخل الأرض... ى كل ذخر وان أرتك نيه رسولأ، وثث ألهل ذيلآ، مئ تذنآذم إل كئد صد هللا عله وله... قاذكزخم منك بهئغزة ويضوان‘ الهم وأصخادب كئد خاصة ائدئ أختثوا الصخابة، واذئ أئلؤا ابدء الخشئ ى رصرصه... واستجابوا له... فال نس 'هم الأغم ما قركوا كلق وضيق، وأرضهم مئ يصؤاهللا... أللغم ؤأؤيل إل امس لغم إختان اذئ يعولون: ورئتا اغفيؤذ لتا ولاحوايئا الب٠ئئ تبعوئا لايتان^خيو جزالق.^[439]

O God, as for the followers of the messengers and those of the people of the earth who attested to them in every era and time in which you sent a messenger and set up for the people a director, from the period of Adam down to Muhammad (may God's prayer and peace be upon him and his Family), remember them with forgiveness and good plea­sure. And as for the Companions of Muhammad specifically, those who did well in companionship, who stood the good test in helping him and who responded to him, forget not, O God, what they abandoned for You and in You, and make them pleased with Your good pleasure. O God, give your best reward to all those who did well in following the Companions' road, to all those who say "Our Lord, forgive us and our brotherswho wentbeforeusinfaith'.'^[440]

In contrast to some Muslims at the time who would not pray with anyone who did not belong to their own group and who harbored different doctri­nal tendencies,^[441] Ja'far al-Sadiq attended the Friday prayer with other Mus- lims^[442] and insisted that his followers attend the prayers^[443] and participate in the social events of the main body of the Muslim community:

الحسين بن سعيد عن أبى على قال: قلت لأبى عبد لله: إن لنا إماتا مخالئا وهويبغض أصحايناكلهم. قال: ما عيك من قول؟ والله لهن كشئ صادقا لأت أحق بالمسجد منه، فكن أؤال داخل و خرخارج، وأحسن حلقك لع التاس وقل خبر.^{[444] [445]}

[Husayn b. Said:] I said to Abu 'Abd Allah, 'We have a dissenting prayer leader who hates all of our associates.” He said, “Why should you care about what he says? By God, if you are truthful, then you have more right to the mosque than him. Be the first to enter [the mosque] and the last to leave, improve your character with the people, and speak nicely.”

معاوية ين وهب عن أبي عبد الله قال: سألته عن الرجل يؤم القوم وأنت لاترضى به في صلاة ;يجهر فيها بالقرإئة؟ فقال: إذا سمعت كتاب لله ببتلى فأنصت ل. قلت: فإكله يشهد على بالثرك. قال: إن ععى الله فأطع الله. فرددت عله فأبى أن يحص لي433٠

[Mu'awiya b. Wahb:] I asked Abu 'Abd Allah about a man who leads people in prayer but about whom you have reservations; [what should one do] in a prayer in which he recites aloud?^[446] He said, “When you hear the Book of God being recited, keep silent.”^[447] I said, “He testifies that I associate partners with God.” He said, “If he disobeys God, you must obey God.” I repeated what I said to him, but he refused to grant me a dispensation.

معاوية ين وهب قال: قلت لأبى عبد لله: كيف ينبى لنا أن نصنع في ما يبننا وبين قومنا وفي ما بيننا وبين خلطاينا من الناس [مقتن ليسوا على أمرنا] ؟ قال: ينظرون إلى أئتتكم الذين تقتدون بهم فتصنعون ما يصنعون، فو١لله إنهم يعودون مرضاهم، ويشهدون جنائزهم، ويقيمون الشهادة لهم وعليهم، ويؤدون الأمانةإليهم.^[448]

[Mu'awiya b. Wahb:] I said to Abu 'Abd Allah, “What should we do with regard to what is between us and our people, and what is between us and people who intermingle with us but who are not in agreement with us [in matters of doctrine]?” He said, “Look to your imams whom you follow, and do what they do. By God, they visit their [opponents'] sick ones, attend their funerals, give testimony [in their support, whether] for something or against something, and return to them what they hold in trust for them.”

إسحاق بن عمار قال: قال لي أبو عبد هللا: يا إسحاق! أتصلي معهم في المسجد؟ قلسئ: نعم! قال: صل معهم فإن المصلي معهم في الصقتا الأؤل كالشاهر سيفه في سبيل هللا.^{[449] [450]}

[Ishaq b. 'Ammar:] Abu 'Abd Allah said to me, “O Ishaq! Do you pray with these people in the mosque?” I said, “Yes!” He said, “Pray with them, for whosoever prays with them in the first row is like someone who takes up arms in the way of God.”

الحلى عن أبي عبد هللا قال: من صلي معهم في الصقتا الأول كان كمن صلي خلف رسول هللا - صلي هللا عله وآل وسلم -438 [في الصفا الأؤل].^[451]

['Ubayd Allah al-Halabi:] Abu 'Abd Allah said, 'Whoever prays with these people in the first row is like someone who prays behind the Messenger of God (may God's prayer and peace be upon him and his Family) in the first row.”

Once, when he noticed that some of his followers left the mosque and did not participate in the prayer with other Muslims, he sent this angry mes­sage to them through one of his associates:

عن يونس ين يعقوب قال: قال لي أبو عبد هللا: بتا يوتس^! قل لهم: بتا مؤثفة.' قد ريت ما تصنعون. إذا سمعتم الأذان أخذتم نعالكم وخرجتم من المسجد؟^[452]

[Yunus b. Ya'qub:] Abu 'Abd Allah said to me, “O Yunus! Say to them, ‘O you, those whose hearts are reconciled, I saw what you did. When you hear the call to prayer, you take your sandals and leave the mosque?”^[453]

سعيد الأعرج قال: دخلت على أبي عبد الله وهومغضب وعنده نغرمن أصحابنا وهو يغول: تصلون قبل أن تزول الشمس؟ وهم سكوت. فقلت: أصلحك هللا! ما نصلى حى يؤذن مؤذن مكة. قال: فلابأس. أما إنه إذا أذن فقد زلت الشمس.^[454]

[Sad al-A'raj:] I came upon Abu 'Abd Allah while he was upset. A group of our companions were sitting with him and he was saying to them, 'You pray before the sun has passed its zenith?” They were silent. I said, “May God put you on the right path! We do not pray until the muezzin of Mecca pronounces the call to prayer.” He said, “If so, there is no problem. Know that when he pronounces the call to prayer, then the sun has passed its zenith.”

ذدخ المحاربي قال: قال لي أبؤ عد هللا: صل الجمعة بأذان هؤلاء فإنهم أشد شء مواظبة على الوقت.^[455]

[Dharih al-Muharibi:] Abu 'Abd Allah said to me, “Pray the Friday prayer when these people pronounce the call to prayer, for they strictly adhere to the time.”

Some of his visiting followers did not participate in congregational prayers in Mecca and Medina, because they shortened their prayers by half as travelers are supposed to do. They were, however, reluctant to break the prayer rows by finishing and leaving early. According to Ja'fari law, a Mus­lim has a choice to pray a full or a shortened prayer in the two sacred pre­cincts of Mecca and Medina. The Imam thus ordered his visiting followers to take the first option and offer the full prayer so they could participate in the communal prayers without problem.

معاوية بن وهب قال: سألى أبا عبد هللا عن التقصير ي الحرمين والتمام، فقال: لا تخبمي حى تجمع على مقام عرسة أقام« فقلى: إنأصحابنا رووا عنك أنك أمرتهم بالتمام« فقال: إن أصحابك كانوا يدخلون المسجد فيصلون ويأخذون نعالهم ويخرجون والناس يستقبلونهم يدخلون المسجد للصلاة، فأمرتهم بالتمام«^[456]

[Mu'awiya b. Wahb:] I asked Abu 'Abd Allah about performing the prayers in full or shortening them [by half] in the two sacred precincts. He said, "[It is preferable that you] do not pray them in full unless you decide to stay for ten days.” I said, "Our companions reported that you ordered them to pray in full.” He said, "Your companions would enter the mosque, pray, and take their sandals and leave while people were coming to enter into the mosque for prayer, so I ordered them to pray in full.”

Muslims in Ja'far's time could still accept one another and tolerate diver­sity within their community, a tendency that persisted to some degree throughout the early Islamic period, especially in Kufa. A number of reports from Ja'far al-Sadiq suggest that he encouraged this attitude. To give an example, an Iraqi follower of his met him in Hira, near Kufa, right after the Abbasid takeover and referred to a discussion that he and his fellow Shia had had about an unnamed Muslim group:

?ناًجرى ذكرقوم فقلى: جعلنى فداك! إنا نتنيوتأمنهم« إنهم لايقولون ما نقول« فقال: نتوونا ولايقولون ما تقولون، تتبرؤون منهم؟ قلى: نعم! قال: فهو ذا عندنا ما ليس عندكم فينض لنا أن نتبر منكم؟ قلى: لا، جعلى فداك! ما نقعل؟ قال: تونوهم ولا مرؤوامنهم«^[457]

Then a group of people were mentioned, so I said, "May I be made your ransom! We disassociate ourselves from them. They do not hold the positions we do.” He said, "They have affection for us but do not adopt your views, so you disassociate yourselves from them?” I said, "Yes!” He said, "Well, I hold views that are different from those you hold, so should I disassociate from you?” I said, "No! May I be made your ran­som! What should we do [then]?” He said, "Take them as friends and do not disassociate from them.”

A third-century Zaydi-Mu'tazili scholar of Kufa, Muhammad b. Mansur al-Muradi, explained this idea in a book called Kitab al-Jumla wa'l-ulfa.4⁴⁶ In the following passage, he describes the spirit of acceptance of diversity that existed in his town thanks to the teachings and precedent of his predeces­sors, as well as his own earlier experience with Kufan scholars:

رأيت أحمد ين عيس يهزم على من يقول يخلق القرآن ومن لايقول به. ورأت المتغرقين وعاشرت المختلفين من احلنانصة والعامة من علماء آل الرسول وأهل الفضل منهم، ومن غيرهم من أهل اعللم والفضل من الشيعة الموجبين لإنكارالمنكروحياطة الدين، فما رأيتهم بخر بعضهم بعضا ولا يستحلون ذلك ولا يتبرأ بعضهم من بعض، بل قد رأت بعضهم يتوق بعضا ويهزم علبه بعد المعرفة منهم بمخالقة بعضهم لبعض. وقد عاشربت رؤساء المعزلان ومن لاأحص منهم ممن يقول بهذا القول (يعي خلق القرآن)، منهم جعفرين حرب وجعفرين مبئرالثقفي ومحمد بن عبد هللا الإسكافي، فما سألي أحد منهم قط عما يختلف الناس فيه ولا كاشفوني عن شتئ من ذلك. وكذلك سمعنا عن إبراهيم ين عبد الله أئه سئل عن معي ما يختف الناس فيه على مذاهب، فلم يجبه وقال: أعينوني على ما اجتمعنا عله حي تتفرغ قبته لما اختلفنا. وروي عن جعفرالصادق أئه قال: ألزم ما اجتمع عليه المتفارقون.^{[458] [459]}

I saw Ahmad b. 'Isa^[460] asking God to bless with His mercy those who argued that the Qur'an was created as well as those who rejected this view. And I saw people who were divided and disagreed [with one another] among both the elect and the common scholars of the House of the Prophet as well as the people of merit among them, and other people of knowledge and merit among the Shia, who believed in the obligatoriness of forbidding wrong and protecting the religion. I did not, however, see them declare one another disbelievers or deem doing so to be permissible, nor did they disassociate themselves from one another. Instead, I saw them support each other and each ask God to bless the other with His mercy while knowing of disagreement among them. And I kept company with the leaders of the Mu'tazilis and count­less others who held this view [that is, that the Qur'an was created] such as Ja'far b. Harb, Ja'far b. Mubashshir al-Thaqafi, and Muhammad b. 'Abd Allah al-Iskafi.^[461] None of them ever asked me about what peo­ple disagreed over, nor ever attempted to uncover my belief about any of that. We also heard as much about Ibrahim b. 'Abd Allah,^[462] who was once asked about the nature of that about which people disagreed in the different schools, but he did not answer and said, “Support me on matters on which we all agree until we find free time for matters about which we disagree.” And it is reported from Ja'far al-Sadiq that he said, “Adhere to what the differing groups agree on.”^[463]

VII.