From The Prophet (s) to Yazid: What Went Wrong - Mizan Institute Shaykh Amin Rastani

Muawiyah made the most of the martyrdom of Imam Ali (as), and quickly took complete power after the ceasefire with Imam Hasan (as), becoming the undisputed caliph of the Muslims for the next twenty years. Bani Umayyah now had total power and to no one’s surprise, Yazid was made successor to Muawiyah, and the rest is history. Ashura could now be seen in the horizon.

Although the Battle of Nahrawan against the Khawarij wasn’t a big deal and they were easily defeated by Imam Ali’s army, yet strategically, it was a big problem; after this battle, the army of Imam Ali (as) was no longer interested in fighting Muawiyah despite the imam (as) pushing for it as hard as he could. The sudden martyrdom of the imam (as) made matters much worse, and as a result, the uncontested power of Muawiyah was cemented.

The Battle of Siffin can be seen as the natural outcome of the Battle of Jamal. The Battle of Jamal paved the way for those who were enemies of Islam to now have an excuse to fight the caliph of the Muslims, even if they were absolutely inferior to Imam Ali (as) when it came to companionship of the prophet (s). The worst part of this battle was the imposed arbitration that led to the added strength to Muawiyah and his rule.

The first of its kind, the Battle of Jamal was a grave mistake that opened the door to civil conflict among the Muslims. Till then, the Muslims had never experienced such a phenomenon, but this battle proved that it was ‘okay’ to fight the caliph of the Muslims, something totally unacceptable during the time of the previous three caliphs.

Arguably one of the most impactful incidents in early Islamic history, the assassination of Uthman opened up a whole new chapter therein. It became the excuse for ensuing civil strife and the root of all the problems Imam Ali (as) had to deal with once he became caliph. Imam Ali (as) himself had warned that this assassination would have such repercussions, but it only fell on deaf ears.

History is filled with different accounts and stories of some of the unacceptable things that took place during the rule of Uthman at the hands of the Bani Umayyah. To mention some examples, the laws of God were trampled, unqualified individuals were put in positions of power, great companions of the prophet (s) were hurt and even expelled from Madinah, and the public treasury of the Muslims was unlawfully and unequally distributed.