History ~ An interesting incident in history

After the killing of 'Ali ibn Abi Talib(radhi'Allahu `anhu), there was
a crackdown on the khawarij and one man in particular named 'Imran ibn
Hattan was being chased. He had escaped from the ruler 'Abd al-Malik
ibn Marwan (some say Hajjaj ibn Yusuf) and was being sought out in the
land in order to be punished – as he was a khariji who saw the killing
of 'Ali (radhi'Allahu `anhu) to be legitimate. Now 'Imran, despite his
views, was well-versed in poetry and knowledgeable of the Arab tribes
and lineages, and one of the reasons he was able to evade capture for
so long was that whenever he approached a certain tribe, he would
immediately ascribe to a near kindred of theirs, or ascribe to a near
clan of theirs. Due to the great number of subclans and branches
within a tribe, no-one really suspected him to be lying. This gave him
protection under their refuge although in reality, they had no idea
who he was and had never seen him before. But as is the age old
custom, they honoured the near kindred and hosted him as their guest.
It's said that during his plight as he fled, he settled with Rawh ibn
Zinba' who was from one of the Yemeni tribes. When Rawh asked about
his origin, he said he was from al-Azad, i.e. a Yemeni just like Rawh,
and this allowed him tobe accepted as near blood. Now, coincidentally,
Rawh used to attend the gatherings of 'Abd al-Malik ibn Marwan (the
ruler!), and listen to poetry and stories etc. Whenever Rawh heard a
peculiar or rare poem, he'd ask 'Imran about it, and 'Imran would not
only know the rare piece, but he'd also continue in its stanzas and
give Rawh more of its rare insights.
Rawh once went to 'Abd al-Malik and said to him "I have a neighbour
from al-Azad who, whenever I hear something from you O leader of the
faithful, he seems to know it well and in fact increases in it!" 'Abd
al-Malik said, "Recite some of his poetry to me." Rawh said a few
lines and 'Abd al-Malik (also of quick intellect) said, "The language
is 'Adnaniyyah (of North Arabia andnot Yemen), and I think the man is
no other than 'Imran ibn Hattan!" That night, in their gatherings,
they mentioned somelines of poetry but no-one in the gathering who
knew the author/poet was:
يا ضربة من تقي ما أراد بها
إلا ليبلغ من ذي العرش رضوانا
إني لأذكره حينا فأحسبه
أوفى البرية عند الله ميزان ا
'It was but a strike from a pious one who intended only
To attain the Pleasure of the Owner of the Throne
I remember him from time to time and think him to be
The closest to Allah when (deeds are) weighed on the Scale'
'Abd al-Malik said to Rawh, "Ask your friend about these lines of
poetry." When Rawh returned home, he asked 'Imran about the poem and
he said, "These are the lines of 'Imran ibn Hattan whereinhe praises
'Abdur-Rahman ibn Muljim, the murderer of 'Ali ibn Abi Talib
(radhia'Allahu `anhu)!" He exposed himself without knowing who he was
up against! So Rawh returned to 'Abd al-Malik and told him the answer
whereupon 'Abd al-Malik said, "Your companion is in fact 'Imran ibn
Hattan. Go and bring him to me." He went and said to 'Imran, "The
leader of the faithful would like to see you." Imran said, "I too
wanted to see him butI was too shy of asking you (!). Go ahead of me
and I will follow straight afterwards." So Rawh went back to 'Abd
al-Malik and told him the news. 'Abd al-Malik then said, "He will not
come and when you return, you shall not find him." He went back and
sure enough, 'Imran had fled but he left behind him a piece of
writing/poem…
يا روح كم من أخى مثوى نزلت به
قد ظن ظنك من لخم وغسان
حتى إذا خفته فارقت منزله
من بعد ما قيل عمران بن حطان
'O Rawh! How many of a brother's home have I settled in,
Who thought the same as you from the tribes of Lakhm and Ghassan!
Until I feared for myself and departed his home,
After it was said 'Imran ibn Hattan!
فاعذر أخاك ابن زنباع فإن له
في النائبات خطوبا ذات ألوان
يوماً يمان إذا لاقيت ذا يمن
وإن لقيت معدياً فعدناني
لو كنت مستغفراً يوماً لطاغية
كنت المقدم في سري وإعلاني
لكن أبت لي آيات مطهرة
عند التلاوة في طه وعمران
Excuse your brother O ibn Zinba' for he has,
Grave matters of varying colours to attend to!
One day Yemeni when I do meet a Yemeni,
And if I meet an 'Adnani, then I am 'Adnani too!
If I were ever to seek forgivenessfor a tyrant,
Then I would've done so openly and in secret!
But I've been halted by the pure verses,
Within the recitation of Ta-Ha and'Imran!'
(i.e. he cannot accept the leadership of 'Abd al-Malik and other
'tyrants' due to verses in Surah Ta-Ha and Aal 'Imran, hencehis khuruj
against the rulers).
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