(575-ca.661) poet, homilist
Born in Mecca, ‘All ibn Abl Talib was the son-in-law of muhammad. He is venerated by Shi’ite Muslims as the prophet’s rightful successor. The poems, sermons, lectures, and sayings that are attributed to Ali are esteemed by Shi’ites to this day.
‘All was a cousin and foster brother of Muhammad, the founder of Islam. He was among Muhammad’s supporters, serving as his secretary and marrying his daughter Fatima. After Muhammad’s death, a faction of Muslims supported ‘All as his rightful heir. ‘All did become the fourth Caliph, or leader of the faithful, in 656, only to be murdered five years later; his sons Hasan and Huseyn were later murdered as well.
‘All is considered the first great writer of sermons and an eloquent writer of aphorisms. As caliph, he was patron of moralistic poetry and of the first systematic Arabic grammarians, and he was also known as an expert calligrapher.
‘Ali’s sermons and other prose works were collected in the 11th century by al-Sayyid al-Sharif ar-Radi, an Islamic scholar, in Nahj al Balagha (Peak of Eloquence). Al-Sharif divided ‘All’s works into three categories: sermons, letters, and short sayings. In the first section, ‘All stresses spirituality, justice, ethics, and worship. The second section consists of letters ‘All wrote to friends and enemies, as well as his instructions as Caliph to government officials, stressing their role as servants and protectors of the people. Finally, the third section is a collection of ‘All’s aphorisms, which serves as a set of instructions on how to live “purely” and prosper. It is the emotional depth and wisdom of these works that have given ‘All a place in world literature.
An English Version of a Work by AlT ibn AbT Talib
Peak of Eloquence: Nahjul Balagha. Translated by Askari Jafery. New York: Tahrike Tarsile Qur’an, 1996.
Works about AlT ibn AbT Talib
Ahmad, Abdul Basit. Ali Bin Ali Talib: The Fourth Caliph of Islam. Houston, Tex.: Dar-Us-Salam Publications. No publication date given.
Chirri, Mohamad Jawad. The Brother of the Prophet Mohammad (the Imam Ali). Qum, Iran: Ansariyan Publications, 1996.
