عبد الله بن خليفة

I heard Jabir ibn Yazid reporting from Abu Ja’far Muhammad ibn ‘Ali, peace be upon him, who reported from his father, and from his grandfather, peace be upon them all, that when Amirul Mu’mineen, peace be upon him, left Madinah for Basrah to confront the renegades, he stopped at al-Rabdhah. And then as he left from there, he was met by Abdullah ibn Khalifa al-Taee, at a place called Qudaid. Amirul Mu’mineen, peace be upon him, welcomed him. Then Abdullah said:"Praise be to Allah who restored the right to its owner and kept it in its rightful place, regardless of whether some people were pleased or displeased. By Allah, they had hated Muhammad, peace be upon him and his progeny, resisting and fighting against him. But Allah turned their guile against them, and made the disaster to befall them. By Allah, we shall fight by your side in every situation, protecting (the message of) the messenger of Allah, peace be upon him and his progeny." Amirul Mu’mineen, peace be upon him, welcomed him and made him sit by his side, for he was indeed his helper and friend. Then he started inquiring about people till he mentioned Abu Musa al-Ashari. He said: "By Allah, I do not trust him, and I do not see you secure against him if he finds support." Amriul Mu’mineen, peace be upon him, replied: "By Allah, he was neither trustworthy nor a good counsel in my estimation. But those who preceded me were captured by his fancy and gave him authority to govern the people. And I had decided to remove him, but al-Ashtar asked me to confirm him, so I did it reluctantly. Thereafter, I had to sustain his dismissal." He said: He (i.e. Amirul Mu’mineen) remained with Abdullah this way, till a great multitude was seen coming from the mountains of Tay. Amirul Mu’mineen said: "Look out, who are they?" So, some of the horsemen ran to find out, and soon came back to report that they were the people of Tay who had come with their sheep and camels and horses. Some of them had come with their gifts for ‘Ali, and some intended to go with him to fight his enemy. So Amirul Mu’mineen, peace be upon him, said: "May Allah reward the people of Tay a good reward, and ’He (i.e. Allah) has a far richer reward for those who fight for Him than for those who stay at home.’(4:95)" And when they drew close to him, they greeted him. Abdullah ibn Khalifa said: "By Allah, I was pleased with what I experienced from their group, and by their excellent form. They spoke and confirmed their stand. By Allah, I have not seen a more eloquent speaker than their spokesman." And Adi ibn Hatim al-Taee stood up, praised Allah and lauded Him and then said: "I had embraced Islam in the days of the Prophet, peace be upon him and his progeny, and I paid my Zakat (dutifully) in his time, and after he had departed, I fought the apostates. I did all that to earn the pleasure of Allah, and indeed, the reward of one who does good and guards against evil is from Allah. We are informed that some men of Makkah have reneged on your loyalty, and have turned against you as aggressors. So we have come to help you on the right path, and here we are, before you. So command us to do whatever you wish." Then he recited the following: "And we have helped (the cause of) Allah before you, and you have come to us with truth, so you will be helped. All of us shall be sufficient for you against them all, And indeed, of all man, you deserve this most." Then Amirul Mu’mineen, peace be upon him, said: "May Allah reward you on behalf of Islam among all living people, and on behalf of all Muslims. You have indeed submitted voluntarily and fought the apostates, and are determined to help the Muslims." Then Saeed ibn Ubaid al-Bahtari from the tribe of Bani Bahtar rose and said: "O Amirul Mu’mineen, some men are able to say what they have in their minds, while others are unable to express what they think in their hearts. And if they are forced to do it, they find it extremely difficult. And if they keep silent, the grief torments them and makes them restless. As far as I am concerned, I can not convey to you all that I have in my mind, but I will try my best to be explicit, and Allah is the custodian of success! I am surely your best counsellor, privately and in open, and I will fight by your side in every situation; and I see you with the Truth, the way I never saw those who preceded you, nor any other person among your contemporaries! This is because of your merit and excellence in Islam, and your relation to the Prophet. I shall never part from you till you win, or I die before you." Amirul Mu’mineen, peace be upon him, said: "May Allah bless you with mercy, Your tongue has indeed expressed what you conscience has concealed. I pray to Allah that He may bless you with good health, and reward you with Paradise." Then others from them spoke, but I do not remember the speech of any other but these two men. Then Amirul Mu’mineen decamped, and from them six hundred followed him till they reached Zuqar. When he arrived there, he had One thousand and three hundred men.