Contents
Nahjul Balaghah is a collection of the letters, sermons, and maxims of Imam Amir al-Mu’minin, Ali ibn Abi Talib (a). The third sermon, known as Shiqshiqiyya, meaning the bubble that is blown under the throat of a camel and then bursts when it is angry, is about complaints about the matter of the caliphate, the preference of his patience over it, and people’s allegiance to Imam Ali (a). In this article on Islam4U, we will explore this eloquent sermon.
The Usurped Caliphate Explained
By Allah, indeed the son of Abu Quhafah (Abu Bakr) donned it, and he certainly knows that my position in relation to it is like the axis in the grinding mill; the flood descends from me, and no bird can ascend to me. I, therefore, draped a cloak over it, folded away from it my flank, and I began to ponder whether to attack with a severed hand or to endure the blinding darkness, where the elder grows decrepit, the young goes gray, and the believer toils until he meets his Lord.
At the beginning of the Shiqshiqiyya sermon, Imam Ali (a) tells people how he was the only one who deserved to wear the “garment of caliphate.” Those who usurped it knew that it was the right of Imam Ali (a) to be the caliph. Then his holiness speaks about his knowledge and high status that made him worthy of caliphate. Finally, in this part of his sermon, Imam Ali (a) says how he had to make a choice between claiming his right to caliphate without any support (severed hand), or exercising patience with all the difficulties and sufferings.
Patience is of the Essence
I then saw that patience in this is wiser, so I endured with grit in my eye and a thorn in my throat, watching my heritage being plundered, until the first one went his way, and he cast it down to another after him.
Then he recited, reflecting on the words of the poet al-A’sha:
How different my day as I face its distress [riffing a camel’s back] *** And the day of Hayyan, the brother of Jabir.
Oh, what a wonder! While he was asking people to excuse him from it in his life, he arranged for someone else to take over it after his death – how much her udders have split apart! He then placed it in the care of a coarse guardian, whose speech is harsh, touch rough, and whose errors and excuses are frequent. Its keeper is like one riding a difficult mount; if he tightens its reins, he will split its nostrils, and if he loosens them, it will plunge him. Indeed, by the life of Allah, people have been afflicted with confusion and hardship, and with changes and opposition.
Imam Ali (a) describes the difficulties he endured during the caliphate of the so-called first and second caliphs. He explains how incompetent they were in managing the caliphate. He explains how the second caliph was harsh in speech, committed much error, and made many excuses. People during this period where confused and were witness to many changes in religion, meaning the innovations that were introduced by the second caliph. In preaching the Shiqshiqiyya sermon, Imam Ali (a) appears very outspoken.
The Sinister Council
I endured the long duration and the severity of the ordeal, until after his passing [the second caliph], he put it in a group, claiming I was one of them. Oh Allah, and to the council! When did doubt about me arise the first of them, until I was paired with these peers? But I lowered myself when they did, and soared when they flew, so one of them yielded to his grudge, and another inclined towards his kinship, and other matters I don’t want to mention.
Until the third of the group stood up, inflating his chest between his fodder and his feed, and with him stood the sons of his father, devouring the wealth of Allah like camels devour the spring’s vegetation, until his thread snapped upon him, his deeds hastened his end, and his own belly overthrew him.
After the death of the second caliph, the next caliph was chosen by a council once again. Instead of choosing Imam Ali (a) as the rightful successor to the Prophet (s), people forgot his right to the caliphate and ultimately chose Uthman, one of the Umayyads, as the caliph. As he continues the Shiqshiqiyya sermon, the Imam describes the third caliph’s character and method of rule. He would do nothing but to fill his belly with food and empty it. He along with the Umayyads looted the public treasury. These actions of his caused him to meet his end.
Allegiance to Ali
What astonished me was that people flocked to me like the bristles of a hyena, converging on me from every side, until even Hassanain were trampled, and my shoulder garments were torn, gathering around me like a sheepfold.
This part of the Shiqshiqiyya sermon is probably the climax of it. After the death of Uthman, people realized that there is no one better than Imam Ali (a) to assume the caliphate. What were they thinking until now?! Did Imam Ali (a) himself declare his right to caliphate? No, he didn’t. Rather, it was the people who rushed to him and pledged their allegiance to him. Therefore, there was no council to choose the next caliph. This time, it was the people who wanted a person to rule over them. The way Imam Ali (a) compares them to flocks of sheep shows that these people still did not understand the status of Imam Ali (a) and were not committed to him.
The Traitors in the Shiqshiqiyya Sermon
But when I took charge of the affairs, one group broke their pledge, another defected, and others became openly disobedient, as if they had not heard Allah, the Exalted, saying: ‘That home of the Hereafter We shall assign to those who seek neither high-handedness nor mischief on earth, and the end is for the God-fearing.’ Yes, by Allah! They did hear it and understood it, but the allure of this world adorned their eyes, and its glitter pleased them!
Imam Ali (a) makes reference to those who betrayed him in the battles of Jamal, Siffin, and Nahrawan. The glitters of the world beguiled these people. The Shiqshiqiyya sermon, despite not being too long, is a very detailed summary of the events that occurred over several decades after the martyrdom of the Prophet (s).
Why Ali (a) Accepted to Rule
By the One who splits the seed and creates the soul, were it not for the presence of supporters, the establishment of proof through the existence of helpers, and what Allah has taken upon the scholars not to acquiesce to the oppression of a tyrant nor the hunger of the oppressed, I would have thrown the reins of the caliphate over its back (and let it go) and quenched its end with the same cup as its beginning, and you would find this world of yours has less value to me than what comes from the sneeze of a goat!
If it weren’t for people’s eagerness to accept Imam Ali (a), Imam Ali (a) wouldn’t be interested in assuming the caliphate. This shows that without people’s support, a caliph wouldn’t be able to govern a nation effectively and efficiently. This doesn’t mean that Imam Ali’s (a) right to caliphate was dependent on people’s support. He had full right over the successorship to the Prophet (s) and was a divinely appointed Imam. However, if people didn’t support him, how could he have come to power?
Similarly in our time, Imam Mahdi (a) will only reappear when he has enough supporters who would further his cause. The reason his reappearance is constantly delayed is that we do not reform ourselves and do not prepare for his reappearance.
The Shiqshiqiyya Sermon Ends Abruptly
They said: And a man from the people of Al-Sawad (Iraq) approached him when he reached this part of his speech and handed him a letter. He began to read it, and when he finished, Ibn Abbas said to him: ‘O Commander of the Faithful, would that you had continued your speech from where you left off!’ To which he (peace be upon him) replied:
‘Far it is, O Ibn Abbas! That was a camel foam bubble that burst and then settled!’
Ibn Abbas said: ‘By Allah, I have never regretted any speech as much as I regret that speech, that the Commander of the Faithful (peace be upon him) did not continue it to where he intended.’[3]
Imam Ali (a) suffered many pains at the hands of his people. The Shiqshiqiyya sermon of his could have continued incessantly due to his broken heart. However, a person interrupted and made him finish his sermon. The sermon of Shiqshiqiyya is all about Imam Ali’s (a) deep sorrow at a group of ingrates who did not listen to the Prophet (s) and followed their desires by not accepting the caliphate of Ali at the very beginning and disobeying him grudgingly in the end. We can learn many lessons from this eloquent sermon of Imam Ali (a) not to be like those who were ungrateful.
