النص المفهرس

Abū 'I-Faraj Ibn al-Jawzī
Historical Writings
Ibn al-Jawzī did not only criticize the scholars for not being well versed in
history. He also wrote a comprehensive history of Islamic peoples from
the inception of Islam till 574/1178 in ten volumes. In this work, entitled
Al-Muntazam fi Tārīkh al-Mulūk wa 'I-Umam (An Arrangement of the History
of Nations), Ibn al-Jawzī first gives the year and then narrates the important
incidents and events of that year along with the preeminent figures who died
in it, followed by an account of their achievements. This work thus combines
chronicle with scientific history, interwoven with a harmonious account of
the lives of notable personalities.1
Another historical work of smaller size by Ibn al-Jawzī is Talqīh Fuhūm
Ahl al-Athar fi 'Uyun al-Tarikh wa 'I-Siyar (Fertilizing the Perceptions of the
Hadith Scholars Concerning the Springs of History and Biographies). This
is a compilation of historical information that has also been published.2
Oratory of Ibn al-Jawzī
The historians of his time agree that Ibn al-Jawzī was a gifted orator who
could draw large crowds. In his book Şayd al-Khatir he mentioned his internal
struggle, which once almost prevailed upon him to pay absolutely no attention
to the style and choice of words in his speeches, as this could be construed as
a rhetorical show. However, he gave up the idea because, on further reflection,
he concluded that eloquence was a gift from Allah, a distinction and not a
defect, which ought to be employed for the propagation of faith. Similarly,
Ibn al-Jawzī entertained a desire, more than once, to give up preaching and
withdraw himself into a life of complete seclusion and meditation. However,
he won over his self to follow the right path by arguing the issue with it. He
ultimately decided that this was a suggestion hinted by Satan, who did not
like to see thousands of persons carried away by his eloquence toward the
path of moral and spiritual reformation. The prophets of Allah (upon them
be Allah's mercy) were primarily preachers and they also associated with the
people. Man's self, being indolent and abhorring exertion, wants to turn its
back upon the world. It is also tempted by love of fame, honor, and popularity,
which can easily be gained through winning over the hearts of the people by
retiring from the world. Thus, Ibn al-Jawzī reasoned with his self to counter
1 The last five volumes of this book were published by Da'irat al-Ma'arif, Hyderabad, Andhra
Pradesh, India.
2 Published by Sayyid Muhammad Yusuf of Tonk, India.
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SAVIOURS OF ISLAMIC SPIRIT
the whisperings of Satan, who wanted him to abandon his mission of preach-
ing and inviting people toward the path of divine guidance. Ibn al-Jawzī thus
continued to press his intellectual gifts for more than half a century to the
task of serving his people and the revival of the faith.
Death
Ibn al-Jawzī died on a Friday night in 597/1201. The entire population of
Baghdad suspended its work to attend his funeral prayer, which was held in
the grand mosque of Mansur. It was a memorable day in the history of the
city. Innumerable people were found weeping for the departed teacher. It
was Ramadan, and historians report that quite a few inhabitants of Baghdad
spent their nights for the rest of the month at his grave, offering prayers and
reciting the Qur'an for the peace of his soul.
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CHAPTER 10
Nür al-Din Zangī
& Salah al-Din al-Ayyūbī
The Crusaders
The Umma of Islam devoted its attention to educational and intellectual pur-
suits on the one hand, while Christendom consolidated its might to wipe out
the entire Islamic world on the other. Europe had nourished an intense hatred
for Islam ever since the Arabs had taken arms against the eastern possessions
of the Byzantine Empire. All the holy places of Christendom, including the
birthplace of 'Isa , were under Muslim rule. This alone was sufficient cause
for Europe to yearn for vengeance against Islam, but the existence of power-
ful Islamic states and their continued inroads into the Christian countries
prevented them from developing the heart to hope for Muslim territories.
However, the decline of the Seljuq Empire and the insecure conditions in Asia
Minor and Syria toward the end of the fifth/eleventh century were in many
respects to Europe's advantage. At the same time, Christian lands received a
wandering preacher, Peter the Hermit, who could move thousands of poor
Christians from one corner of Europe to another through his eloquence and
fiery zeal. In addition, numerous other social and economic factors combined
to cover the religious venture of the Crusaders with a veneer of romance,
albeit tainted with avarice, ambition, and lust.1
The first eastward march of the Crusaders toward Syria commenced in
490/1197. Within two years the great cities of Edessa (Ruha),2 and Antioch and
several fortresses were captured, and by 492/1099 the Christians had taken
possession of Jerusalem itself. Within a few years the greater part of Palestine
1 For detailed account of these reasons, see "Crusades," Encyclopedia Britannica.
2 Present-day Urfa in southeastern Turkey.
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SAVIOURS OF ISLAMIC SPIRIT
and the coast of Syria, Tortosa, Acre, Tripoli1 and Sidon fell into the hands
of the Crusaders. "The Crusaders penetrated like a wedge between the old
wood and the new," wrote Stanley Lane-Poole, "and for a while seemed to
cleave the trunk of the Mohammedan empire into splinters."> The capture of
Jerusalem threw the fanatical horde of Crusaders into a frenzy, and gave rise
to their wildest passions; such savagery even their own writers were ashamed
to confess, yet unable to deny. Here is a graphic account of the massacre of
Muslims after the fall of Jerusalem:
So terrible, it is said, was the carnage which followed that the horses of the
Crusaders who rode up to the mosque of Omar were knee-deep in the
stream of blood. Infants were seized by their feet and dashed against the
walls or whirled over the battlements, while the Jews were all burnt alive in
the synagogue.
On the next day the horrors of that which had preceded it were delib-
erately repeated on a larger scale. Tancred had given a guarantee of safety
to 300 captives. In spite of his indignant protest these were all brought out
and killed; and a massacre followed in which the bodies of men, women and
children were hacked and hewn until their fragments lay tossed together in
heaps. The work of slaughter ended, the streets of the city were washed by
Saracen prisoners.3
The fall of Jerusalem marks the beginning of the decline of Muslim power and
the increasing strength of the Christian West, which succeeded in establishing
four Latin kingdoms in Jerusalem, Edessa, Antioch, and Tripoli in the territory
bordering the eastern end of the Mediterranean from the Euphrates to Egypt,
placing the entire Muslim world in danger of annihilation. The ambition of
the Warriors of the Cross ran so high that Reginald (Raynald) of Châtillon
once expressed the desire to cross over to Arabia with the clear design of
sacking Makka and Madina, taking the body of the blessed Prophet
out
of his grave.4 Never since the rise of the Apostates following the death of the
Messenger of Allah
had such a grave danger threatened Islam. With the
existence of Islam at stake for the second time in history, its adherents had
to take the field for a decisive battle with the Latin West.
1 Tripoli (or Țarabulus), a city in the northwest of present-day Lebanon. This was known as
the Tripoli of the East while its namesake in Libya was known as the Tripoli of the West.
2 Stanley Lane-Poole, Saladin, 25.
3 "Crusades," Encyclopedia Britannica, 6:627.
4 Saladin, 177.
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Nur al-Din Zangī & Salah al-Din al-Ayyūbī
Dissension of the Muslim East marked the opening decades of the sixth/
twelfth century. After the death of Malikshah, the last great Seljuq ruler, civil
war broke out among his successors and the empire split into many separate
principalities. There was no one ruler with the capacity to unify the forces of
Islam in order to stand on the defensive against the increasing pressure from
the West. Stanley Lane-Poole rightly said:
It was a time of uncertainty and hesitation-of amazed attendance upon the
dying struggles of a mighty empire; an interregnum of chaos until the new
forces should have gathered their strength; in short, it was the precise moment
when a successful invasion from Europe was possible.1
Atābek Imād al-Dīn Zangī
At this critical moment, when the despair of the Muslims was at its height,
a star rose in the eastern horizon. As had happened earlier, Islam received
a champion for its cause from an unexpected quarter, who appeared on the
scene to save the situation. Lane-Poole writes:
It was but necessary to preach the Jihad-the Holy War-and to show them
a commander whose courage and military genius all must respect, and the
Turkoman chiefs and vassals would at once become a Church Militant with
whom the Crusaders would have very seriously to reckon. The leader was
found in Imad-ed-din Zengy.2
'Imad al-Din Zangī had been indulged and pandered by the Seljuqs. He
was the tutor of the princes of the Seljuq Sultan Mahmud II, hence known
by the title Atabek (Tutor of the Princes). The Sultan conferred on him the
government of Mosul. After consolidating his power in Syria and Iraq, 'Imād
al-Din advanced against Edessa, one of the strongest fortresses held by the
Crusaders and the one serving as the base for their aggressive inroads into the
neighboring territories held by the Muslims. 'Imad al-Din captured Edessa on
6 Jumādā'l-Ukhrā 539 (4 December 1144). It was the "conquest of conquests,"
according to Arab historians, for Edessa was regarded by the Christians as
the "stoutest prop of the Latin Kingdom." The valley of the Euphrates was
thus finally saved from the marauding excursions of the Crusaders. Shortly
after achieving this brilliant victory, 'Imad al-Din was assassinated by a
slave on 5 Rabī“ al-Thani 541 (14 September 1146). Thus perished one of the
1 Ibid., 25.
2 Ibid., 34.
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SAVIOURS OF ISLAMIC SPIRIT
greatest heroes of Islam, who had opened the way for a counterattack against
the Crusaders. However, the task, left incomplete by the great Atabek, was
advanced by his illustrious son, Al-Malik al-'Adil Nūr al-Din Zangī.
Al-Malik al-Ādil Nur al-Dīn Zangī
The responsibility of championing Islam now fell to Nur al-Din Mahmud
Zangī,' then the sultan of Aleppo. The constant aim he held firm throughout
his life was the expulsion of the Crusaders from Syria and Palestine. For him,
jihad with the Crusaders was the greatest act of piety, crowned with divine
blessings. In 559/1164 Nur al-Din Zangī captured Harim,2 a stronghold of the
Crusaders in the north, after defeating the united armies of the Franks and
Greeks. It is related that ten thousand Crusaders were slain in this battle and
innumerable Crusaders were taken prisoner along with most of their chief-
tains, such as Bohemond Prince of Antioch, Raymond III Count of Tripoli,
Joscelin III Count of Edessa, and the Greek general Duke of Calamar. Soon
afterward the fortress of Banias (Caesarea Philippi), at the foot of Mount
Hermon,3 fell before the arms of Nur al-Din, and on the other side was Egypt
with the Muslims now encircling the Crusaders from two sides.4 Lane-Poole
describes the significance of this political change:
The possession of the Nile by Nur-ed-din's general [Salah al-Din] placed
the Kingdom of Jerusalem as it were in a cleft stick, squeezed on both sides
by armies controlled by the same power. The harbours of Damietta and
Alexandria5 gave the Moslems the command of a fleet, and enabled them to
cut off the communications of the Crusaders with Europe, stop the annual
pilgrim ships and seize their supplies.6
Nur al-Din had thus outmaneuvered the Crusaders in Palestine, but his great-
est ambition was to drive them out of Jerusalem. However, even though he
had laid its foundations, Salah al-Din would complete the task; Nur al-Din
died in 596/1174, aged fifty-six, due to the quinsy .? The news of his death,
writes Lane-Poole, "fell like a thunderbolt among the Saracens."
1 Known to the West as Noradinus.
2 Harem, in Arabic Harim, a city in Syria situated on the border with modern Turkey, 55 km
west of Aleppo on route to Antioch.
3 This is in the Golan Heights, Syria.
4 Saladin, 84; Al-Tārīkh al-Kāmil, 11:124.
5 Both cities are in Egypt.
6 Saladin, 103.
7 A complication of tonsillitis.
206

Nur al-Dīn Zangī & Salah al-Din al-Ayyūbī
Character of Nur al-Din
Muslim historians remember Nur al-Din as a chivalrous, just, and generous
ruler; most tender-hearted, pious, and high-minded, and a fearless warrior
ready to risk himself at the front of every battle. True to his name "Mahmud,"
he was acclaimed as one of the best of the kings; as the historians describe
him, he was more capable and enlightened than his predecessors.
Ibn al-Jawzī, who was a contemporary of Nur al-Din, writes of him in
his Muntazam:
Nur al-Din marched upon the enemy at the frontiers of his domain and
succeeded in regaining more than fifty towns from the enemies. He led a life
better than most of the kings and sultans. Peace and tranquility reigned in his
kingdom. There is, in fact, a lot to be said in his praise. He always considered
himself a subordinate of the caliph at Baghdad. Before he died he abolished
all oppressive and illegal imposts within his territories. He was extremely
simple in his habits and loved the pious and scholars.1
Another historian, Ibn Khallikān, who is known for his objective assessment
of characters and events, says:
He was a just and pious king, always eager to follow the observances prescribed
by the Shari'a, and a generous patron of scholars in whom he took great
interest. He was distinguished for his keen desire to take part in the jihad; he
spent his income on the pious foundations and welfare of the poor; and had
set up educational institutions in all the principal cities of the Levant. It is
difficult to enumerate all of his qualities or the monuments by way of public
works left by him."2
Ibn al-Athīr al-Jazarī, the reputed historian and author of Al-Tārīkh al-Kāmil
(The Complete History), writes:
I have studied the careers of the rulers of the past, but excepting the first four
rightly-guided caliphs and 'Umar ibn 'Abd al-'Aziz, there has been no ruler so
excellent in character and in pursuit of justice [as Nur al-Din].3
Ibn al-Athir's testimony carries a special weight because he was in his
fourteenth year when Nur al-Din died. He writes about the character and
disposition of Nūr al-Dīn:
1 Al-Muntazam. 10:248-249.
2 Wafayat al-A'yan, 4:272.
3 Al-Tārīkh al-Kāmil, 9:163.
207

SAVIOURS OF ISLAMIC SPIRIT
He met his personal expenses from the property he had acquired out of the
proceeds of his own share in the booty taken in war. He had set apart three
shops situated in Homs which accrued an annual rent of twenty dinars for
meeting his household expenses. Once, when his wife complained to him that
the income from the shops was insufficient, he dryly replied, "I have nothing
more to give you. Whatever else you see, I hold in sacred trust for the Muslims
and I am no more than their trustee. I would not like to be consigned to Hellfire
for your sake by spending anything on ourselves out of the public funds."
He used to devote a greater part of his time after the nightfall in prayers
and had a regimen of remembrance that was set for him. He was a scholar of
the Hanafi school but was not blindly zealous, and had studied hadiths which
he transmitted for the sake of reward and granted authorization to others.
He was distinguished by his remarkable love for justice, which could be
seen, for example, in the fact that he had abolished all customs, dues, and tithes
throughout his vast kingdom comprising Egypt, Syria, North Iraq and Mosul.
He was always eager to observe, in exact details, the disciplines and injunc-
tions of the Shari'a. Once, he was summoned to appear before a court. He
sent the word to the judge that no preferential treatment should be accorded
to him when he appeared before the court as a defendant. Although he won
the case against the plaintiff, he gave up his claim in favor of his opponent,
saying, "I had already decided to do so, but I thought that perhaps my vanity
wanted me to avoid attending the court of law. So I decided to appear before
the court and now give up what has now been decided in my favor." He had
set up a special tribunal known as the Court of Justice (Dar al-'Adl), where he,
along with a judge, personally heard cases against arbitrariness on the part
of high officials, princes, etc.
In battle his valor earned everyone's admiration. He always took two bows
and quivers to the battlefield. Once, somebody said to him, "For Allah's sake,
don't expose yourself as well as Islam to danger!" "Who is Mahmud," retorted
Nur al-Din, "that you speak thus of him? Who defended the country and
Islam before me? Verily, there is no defender save Allah."
He held scholars in high esteem and always stood up to receive them. He
took keen interest in their affairs and patronized them with generous gifts;
but despite his humility and simplicity, he had such a commanding personal-
ity that people were seized with awe in his presence. The fact is that it is not
possible to relate all his qualities in the limited compass of this book.1
1 Ibid., 11:163-164.
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Nur al-Din Zangī & Salah al-Din al-Ayyūbī
Unflinching Faith
Nur al-Din had set his heart on the expulsion of the Crusaders from the Holy
Land. He had unflinching faith in this mission and firm conviction that he
would ultimately succeed.
Nur al-Dīn suffered a defeat at Hisn al-Akrād' in 558/1163 when he was
taken unawares by the Christians.2 Soon thereafter he made camp near Homs,
a few miles from the enemy encampment. Some of his well-wishers advised
Nur al-Din that it was not wise to remain so near to the enemy after suffering
defeat. Nur al-Din told them to keep quiet: "I wouldn't care about the enemy
if I had only a thousand horses with me. By Allah, I will not go under a roof
until I have taken revenge on the enemy."
Even after this defeat, Nur al-Din continued with his generous grants to
the learned, the poor, and the pious. When it was suggested to him that the
amount earmarked for such charitable purposes be diverted to strengthening
the forces at that critical juncture, Nur al-Din replied angrily:
But I hope for the support of Allah Almighty only on account of their pleasure
and prayers. The hadith says that Allah causes sustenance and assistance to
come down to earth through the poor and the oppressed. How can I desist
from helping those who fight for me when I am fast asleep? And lo! They
never miss their targets! Yet you want me to help those who fight only when
they see me in their midst on the battlefield, and they often succeed or fail in
their endeavors. The poor have a right to derive benefit from public revenues,
and so how can I ask them to forgo what is due to them?3
Nūr al-Dīn made preparations to avenge his defeat. He distributed large
sums to his followers, sent letters to all the chiefs and governors requesting
fresh levies, and at the same time asking the pious to pray for his success. His
efforts created a new upsurge throughout his vast dominion to fight against
the Crusaders in defense of Islam. Nur al-Din met the united armies of the
Franks and the Greeks in one of the harshest battles, which took place under
the walls of Harim, where he achieved a splendid victory over his foes, gain-
ing control over Harim and a few other fortresses.4
1 Hișn al-Akrād ("Fortress of the Kurds"), a castle in Syria known in Europe by the name of
"Crac des Chevaliers." The castle crowns a rounded and almost isolated summit, mount Khalil, the
last southerly inclination of the Jabal Ansariyya, some 60 km northwest of Homs.
2 Al-Tārīkh al-Kāmil, 11:119.
3 Ibid., 11:119.
4 Ibid., 11:122-123.
209

SAVIOURS OF ISLAMIC SPIRIT
The unflinching faith of Nur al-Din may be imagined considering an
incident reported by historians. While he was laying siege to Banias, his
brother, Nusrat al-Din lost an eye. Nur al-Din, on meeting his brother, said,
"If you only knew the divine reward for losing your eye, you would ardently
desire to lose the other one too."1
SULTAN SALAH AL-DIN AL-AYYŪBĪ
Salah al-Din al-Ayyūbī2 was, in fact, a continuing miracle of the Messenger
of Allah
and a manifest sign of the truthfulness and authenticity of his
message.
Salah al-Din was brought up like other Kurd youths of moderate means,
studying the conventional sciences and the art of warfare. Before Salah al-Din
captured Egypt and confronted the Crusaders, nobody could have predicted
that this young man would one day emerge as the conqueror of Jerusalem
and a great defender of the religion, and that he would achieve such histori-
cal eminence as to be looked upon by posterity as a brilliant example for
his fervor and valor in battle or for his sterling virtues, which could rightly
be envied by the most pious and pure souls. Describing the youth of Salah
al-Din, Lane-Poole says:
As the favoured governor's son, he naturally enjoyed a privileged position,
but far from exhibiting any symptoms of future greatness, he was evidently
a shining example of that tranquil virtue which shuns "the last infirmity of
the noble minds."3
But Allah had destined for him to become the most renowned leader of his
time; and when Allah wills a thing, He provides the means therefor. Salah
al-Din's master, Nur al-Din, ordered him to proceed to Egypt. Qādī Baha'
1 Ibid., 11:123.
2 Șalāķ al-Dīn Yūsuf ibn Ayyūb ibn Shādī al-Ayyūbī was not a descendant of Abū Ayyub
al-Anșārī, the famous companion of the Messenger . Salah al-Din called himself Ayyubi after the
name of his father, Ayyub, who was a Kurd hailing from Dawin in eastern Azerbaijan. They were
from the Rawwadiyya branch of the extensive Hadhdhaniyya tribe. It appears that his grandfather
Shādī had migrated to Baghdad with his two sons Ayyub Najm al-Din and Sherkoh Asad al-Din,
and thereafter settled in Tikrit where he died. Ayyub and Sherkoh entered into state service
under Mujahid al-Din Bahroz, the police chief under the Seljuq Sultan Mas'ud ibn Ghiyath al-Din
Muhammad ibn Malikshah. Najm al-Dīn Ayyub was later employed by 'Imād al-Din Zangī, who
made him the custodian of the Baalbek castle. Even today, Kurds exist in Iraq, Syria, Turkey, and
Iran (Muhammad Farīd Abū Jadīd, Salah al-Din al-Ayyūbī wa Aşruhū, 45-47).
3 Saladin, 72.
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Nur al-Dīn Zangī & Salah al-Din al-Ayyūbī
al-Din ibn Shaddād, a trusted counselor to Salah al-Din, writes that the lat-
ter had confessed to him that he had gone to Egypt against his own will and
that it was as it says in the Qur'an: "But it may happen that you hate a thing
which is good for you, and it may happen that you love a thing which is bad
for you" (Q 2:216).1
Transformation of His Life
Salah al-Din, however, completely changed after assuming power in Egypt.
He understood that Allah required a certain type of work from him and that
could not be accompanied by leisurely pleasure and comfort.
Ibn Shaddad recorded that "no sooner had he assumed rulership of Egypt
than the world and its pleasures lost all significance in his eyes. With a heart-
felt sense of gratitude for the favor bestowed upon him by Allah, he repented
from drinking, renounced the temptations of pleasure, and took to a life of
sweat and toil, which increased with the passage of time."2 Lane-Poole has
the same story to tell. He writes:
On his side, Saladin began to order his life more rigorously. Devout as he had
always shown himself, he became even more strict and austere. He put aside
the thought of pleasure and the love of ease, adopted a Spartan rule, and set
it as an example to his troops. He devoted all his energies henceforth to one
great object-to found a Moslem empire strong enough to drive the infidels
out of the land. "When God gave me the land of Egypt," said he, "I was sure
that He meant Palestine for me also." It may well be that natural selfish ambi-
tion quickened his zeal, but the result was the same: thenceforward his career
was one long championship of Islam. He had vowed himself to the Holy War.3
Enthusiasm for Jihād
The constant aim of his efforts was to fight in the way of Allah. Describing
the enthusiasm of Salah al-Din for jihad, Ibn Shaddad writes:
Fired with enthusiasm to wage war against the Crusaders, jihad was his favorite
topic of discussion. Always seen making preparations for strengthening his
forces, seeking out men and materials, and paying attention to anyone who
spoke about jihad, he gladly abandoned his hearth and home, family and
children. He took to the life of the camp, where a wind could uproot his tent.
1 Ibn Shaddād, Al-Nawādir al-Sulțāniyya, 31.
2 Al-Nawādir al-Sultāniyya, 32-33.
3 Saladin, 99.
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SAVIOURS OF ISLAMIC SPIRIT
Anybody encouraging him in his ambitions could easily win his respect."1
One could make a solemn oath that after he started the war against the
Crusaders, he never spent a single cent on anything save preparing for war
and helping his men.2
Ibn Shaddād continues:
The Sultan appeared a bereaved mother on the battlefield, deprived of her only
child by the cruel hands of death. He trotted on his horse from one end of the
battlefield to the other, exhorting the people to fight for the sake of Allah. He
would himself go around all the detachments with tears in his eyes, asking
people to come forth for the aid of Islam.3
The same writer describes how Salah al-Din spent his days during the siege
of Acre: "Except a sweet drink on which his physician insisted, the sultan
did not take anything for the whole day."4 "The royal physician told me that
the sultan had taken only a few morsels of food from Friday to Sunday as
he was unable to pay attention to anything apart from the happenings on
the battlefield."s
Conclusive Battle of Hattin
After a series of fights and forays, a hotly contested battle was fought in the
neighborhood of Tiberias beneath the hills of Hattin6 on Saturday 25 Rabi'
al-Akhir 583 (4 July 1187), which gave a death-blow to the power of the
Crusaders and a clear victory to the Muslims. The victory achieved by the
sultan has been described thus by Lane-Poole:
The flower of chivalry was taken. The king [of Jerusalem, Guy of Lusignan]
and his brother, Reginald of Châtillon, Joscelin of Courtenay, Humphrey
of Toron,7 the Masters of the Temple and Hospital, and many other nobles
were among the prisoners. . .. The rest of the chivalry of Palestine was under
Moslem warders. Of the rank and file, all who were alive were made prisoners.
1
Al-Nawādir al-Sultāniyya, 17.
2 Ibid., 16.
3 Ibid., 155.
4 Ibid., 155.
Ibid., 90.
6 In Arabic Hittin. A northern Palestinian village located 8 km west of Tiberias, now with
some Jewish villages founded on its site.
7 Toron (now Tibnin or Tebnine) in southern Lebanon, was a major Crusader castle, built in
the Lebanon mountains on the road from Tyre to Damascus.
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Nur al-Din Zangī & Salah al-Din al-Ayyūbī
A single Saracen was seen dragging some thirty Christians he had himself
taken, tied together with a tent-rope. The dead lay in heaps, like stones upon
stones, among broken crosses, severed hands and feet, whilst mutilated heads
strewed the ground like a plentiful crop of melons. .. .
The field long bore the marks of the bloody fight where "30,000" Christians
were said to have fallen. A year afterwards the heaps of bleaching bones could
be seen from afar, and the hills and valleys were strewn with the relics of the
horrid orgies of wild beasts.1
Religious Ardor of the Sultan
The fateful fight at Hattin came to a close with an incident that illustrates Salah
al-Din's desire to protect the religion. This is how Lane-Poole describes it:
Saladin camped on the field of battle. When his tent was pitched, he ordered
the prisoners to be brought before him. The King of Jerusalem and Reginald
of Châtillon [Lord of Karak] he received in his tent; he seated the King near
himself, and seeing his thirst, he gave him a cup of water iced in snow. Guy
drank and passed the cup to the lord of Karak: but Saladin was visibly annoyed.
"Tell the king," he said to the interpreter, "that it was he, not I, that gave that
man drink." The protection of "bread and salt" was not to baulk his vengeance.
Then he rose and confronted Reginald, who was still standing: "Twice have I
sworn to kill him; once when he sought to invade the holy cities, and again
when he took the caravan by treachery.2-Lo! I will avenge Mohammed upon
thee!" And he drew his sword and cut him down with his own hand, as he had
sworn. The guard finished it and dragged the body out of the tent.
The King, trembling at the sight, believed his own turn was now coming,
but Saladin reassured him: "It is not the custom of kings to slay kings; but that
man had transgressed all bounds, so what happened, happened."3
Ibn Shaddad's version of Reginald of Chatillon's execution adds that Salah
al-Din offered him the choice of Islam and on his refusal cut off his head.
The sultan said, "Lo! I avenge Muhammad, upon you."4
1 Saladin, 214-15.
2 Ibn Shaddad adds that when the pilgrim caravan was treacherously waylaid by Reginald,
some of his captives implored him to be merciful. Reginald, however, arrogantly turned down their
request saying: "Ask your Prophet Muhammad to come to your rescue." When Salah al-Din heard
of it he vowed that he would slay Reginald with his own hand if he got hold of him (Al-Nawādir
al-Sultāniyya, 127).
3 Saladin, 214-215.
4 Al-Nawādir al-Sultāniyya, 64.
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Conquest of Jerusalem
The victory at Hattin was only the prelude to the much-coveted conquest of
Jerusalem by Salah al-Din. His intense yearning to regain the holy city has
been strikingly depicted by Ibn Shaddad, who says that "the Sultan was so
keen for Jerusalem that the hills would have shrunk from bearing the burden
he carried in his heart.""
On Friday 27 Rajab 583 (2 October 1187), after a full ninety years, this
first qibla where the Prophet @ on the night of the Ascension had led the
congregational prayer of the earlier prophets, came back under the banner
of Islam. Furthermore, it was of excellent coincidence that the sultan entered
the city on the anniversary of the Messenger's Ascension (mi'raj).2
Ibn Shaddad gives a graphic account of this memorable day. He writes:
It was the victory of victories. A large crowd consisting of scholars and the
nobles, traders and the laity had gathered on this joyous occasion. A number
of people had come from the coastal lands upon news of the sultan's vic-
tory, and nearly all the notable theologians from Egypt and Syria came to
congratulate him on his victory. Hardly any noteworthy personage of the
empire was left behind. The joyful shouts of "Allah is Great" and "There is no
god but Allah" rent the skies. After ninety years, Friday prayer was again held
in Jerusalem. The cross that glittered on the Dome of the Rock was pulled
down. An indescribable event as it was, the blessings and help of Allah were
witnessed everywhere on that day.3
A costly pulpit, which had been designed under the orders of Nur al-Din
Zangī twenty years earlier, was brought from Aleppo and erected in the
Dome of the Rock.4
Benevolence of Salah al-Din
The forbearance, humanity, magnanimity, and Islamic character that Salah
al-Din exhibited on this occasion is worth hearing from the pen of the
1 Ibid., 213.
2 The miraculous event of the journey of the Messenger of Allah to the heavens has been
alluded to in the Qur'an (17:1): "Glorified be He who carried His servant by night from Masjid
al-Haram to Masjid al-Aqsa, the neighborhood whereof We have blessed, that We might show him
of Our signs!" The Messenger was brought by the Angel Jibril to Jerusalem, where he offered
the prayers, leading a congregation of all the prophets who had come before him. Thereafter, he
was taken to the heavens to be presented before Allah Almighty.
3 Al-Nawādir al-Sultāniyya, 66.
4 'Imād al-Din Isma il, Tārīkh Abī 'l-Fida', 3:77.
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Christian biographer, Lane-Poole, who acknowledges that the sultan's kind-
ness of heart had conquered his desire for revenge. He writes:
Never did Saladin show himself greater than during this memorable surrender.
His guards, commanded by responsible emirs, kept order in every street, and
prevented violence and insult, insomuch that no ill-usage of the Christians
was ever heard of. Every exit was in his hands, and a trustee Lord was set over
David's gate to receive the ransoms as each citizen came forth."?
Then, after describing how the people left in the holy city were ransomed and
how Al-Malik al-'Adil, the brother of the Sultan, the Patriarch, and Balian of
Ibelin2 were each allowed to set free a thousand slaves given by Salah al-Din,
Lane-Poole continues:
Then said Saladin to his officers: "My brother has made his alms, and the
Patriarch and Balian have made theirs; now I would fain make mine." And
he ordered his guards to proclaim throughout the streets of Jerusalem that
all the old people who could not pay were free to go forth. And they came
forth from the postern of St. Lazarus, and their going lasted from the rising
of the sun until night fell. Such was the charity which Saladin did, of poor
people without number.3
Thus did the Saracens show mercy to the fallen city. One recalls the sav-
age conquest by the first Crusaders in 1099, when Godfrey and Tancred rode
through streets choked with the dead and dying, when defenseless Moslems
were tortured, burnt, and shot down in cold blood on the towers and roof
of the temple, when the blood of wanton massacre defiled the honor of
Christendom and stained the scene where once the gospel of love and mercy
had been preached. "Blessed are the merciful, for they Shall obtain mercy"
was a forgotten beatitude when the Christians made shambles of the Holy
City. Fortunate were the merciless, for they obtained mercy at the hands of
the Moslem Sultan.
The greatest attribute of heaven is Mercy;
And'tis the crown of justice, and the glory,
Where it may kill with right; to save with pity.
1 Saladin, 230.
2 Ibelin was a castle in the Crusader kingdom of Jerusalem, built in 1141 between Jaffa and
Ascalon, near Montgisard and Ramla (at modern Yavne).
3 Saladin, 232.
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If the taking of Jerusalem were the only fact known about Saladin, it were
enough to prove him the most chivalrous and great-hearted conqueror of his
own, and perhaps of any, age.1
The Third Crusade
The fall of Jerusalem and the terrible defeat of the Crusaders at the battle
of Hattin threw the whole of Christendom into a violent commotion.
Reinforcements from Europe poured forth into Palestine. Almost all the
principal sovereigns and eminent generals of the Christian world, such as
Frederick Barbarossa, the Holy Roman Emperor; Richard the Lionhearted,
King of England; Philip Augustus, King of France; Leopold of Austria; the
Duke of Burgundy; and the Count of Flanders charged forth with their
armies against the lonely sultan and his few chiefs and relatives, who had to
defend the honor of Islam.
Negotiations of Peace
Both parties, locked against each other in murderous combat for five years,
at last got tired of the fruitless, wearisome, and decimating struggle. They
came to an agreement at Ramla in 588/1192 which recognized Salah al-Din
as the sovereign of the whole of Palestine, leaving the principality of Acre in
the hands of the Christians. Thus ended the Third Crusade and with it the
task entrusted to Salah al-Din by Allah. Lane-Poole describes the ignoble
end of the Third Crusade in these words:
The Holy War was over; the five years' contest ended. Before the great victory
at Hittin in July 1187, not an inch of Palestine west of the Jordan was in the
Moslems' hands. After the Peace of Ramla in September, 1192, the whole land
was theirs, except a narrow strip of coast from Tyre to Jaffa. Saladin had no
cause to be ashamed of the treaty. The Franks, indeed, retained most of what
the Crusaders had won, but the result was contemptible in relation to the cost.
At the Pope's appeal, all Christendom had risen in arms. The Emperor, the
Kings of England, France, and Sicily, Leopold of Austria, the Duke of Burgundy,
the Count of Flanders, and hundreds of famous barons and knights of all
nations had joined with the king and princes of Palestine and the indomitable
brothers of the Temple and Hospital, in the effort to deliver the Holy City
and restore the vanished kingdom of Jerusalem. The Emperor was dead; the
Kings had gone back; many of their noblest followers lay buried in the Holy
1 Ibid., 233-34.
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Nur al-Dīn Zangī & Salah al-Din al-Ayyūbī
Land; but Jerusalem was still the city of Saladin, and its titular king reigned
over a slender realm at Acre.
All the strength of Christendom concentrated in the Third Crusade had
not shaken Saladin's power. His soldiers may have murmured at their long
months of hard and perilous service, year after year, but they never refused to
come to his summons and lay down their lives in his cause. His vassals in the
distant valleys of the Tigris may have groaned at his constant requirements,
but they brought their retainers loyally to his colors; and at the last pitched
battle, at Arsuf, it was the division of Mosul that most distinguished itself
for valor. Throughout these toilsome campaigns Saladin could always count
on the support of the levies from Egypt and Mesopotamia, as well as from
northern and central Syria; Kurds, Turkmans, Arabs, and Egyptians, they were
all Moslems and his servants when he called. In spite of their differences of
race, their national jealousies, and tribal pride, he had kept them together
as one host-not without difficulty and twice or thrice a critical waver. But,
the shrinking at Jaffa notwithstanding, they were still a united army under
his orders in the autumn of 1192, as they had been when he first led them
"on the Path of God" in 1187. Not a province had fallen away, not a chief or
vassal had rebelled, though the calls upon their loyalty and endurance were
enough to try the firmest faith and tax the strength of giants. The brief defec-
tion, quickly pardoned, of a young prince of his own blood in Mesopotamia
only emphasizes, by its isolation, Saladin's compelling influence over his
subjects. When the trials and sufferings of the five years' war were over, he
still reigned unchallenged from the mountains of Kurdistan to the Libyan
desert, and far beyond these borders the king of Georgia, the Catholicos of
Armenia, the Sultan of Konia, the Emperor of Constantinople, were eager to
call him friend and ally.
To such allies he owed nothing: they came not to aid but to congratu-
late. The struggle was waged by Saladin alone. Except at the last, when his
brother came prominently to the front, one cannot point to a single general
or counselor who can be said to have led, much less dominated, the Sultan.
A council of war undoubtedly guided his military decisions, and sometimes
overruled his better judgment, as before Tyre and Acre, but in that council
it is impossible to single out a special voice that weighed more than another
in influencing his mind. Brother, sons, nephews, old comrades, new vassals,
shrewd Kady, cautious secretary, fanatical preacher-all had their share in
the general verdict, all helped their Master loyally according to their ability,
but not a man of them ever forgot who was the Master. In all that anxious,
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SAVIOURS OF ISLAMIC SPIRIT
laborious, critical time, one mind, one will was supreme, the mind and the
will of Saladin.1
Death of Salah al-Din
On Wednesday 27 Safar 589 (4 March 1193), Salah al-Din, the faithful ally of
Islam, died in the fifty-seventh year of his life after working his way up to
the summit of his ambition.2 Thus does Ibn Shaddad describe the last days
of Sultan Salah al-Din:
It was in the night of the twenty-seventh of Safar, and the twelfth day since he
fell ill, that the sultan's illness took a serious turn. He had become too weak
by then. Shaykh Abū Ja'far, the imam of the Kallasa Madrasa, a pious and
saintly person, was requested to stay within the castle during the night so
that if the sultan were to breathe his last, he might be available for recitation
of the Qur'an at the last moment. It appeared as if the time of the sultan's
eternal rest was drawing near. Shaykh Abü Ja'far was sitting bedside, reciting
the Qur'an while the sultan lay unconscious for the last three days, regain-
ing his consciousness only for brief intervals in between. When Shaykh Abū
Ja'far recited the verse "He is Allah, other than whom there is no other god,
the Knower of the invisible and the visible" (Q 59:22), the sultan opened his
eyes and smiled; his face lit up and he said joyfully, "Indeed, this is correct."
No sooner had he uttered these words than his soul departed. It was before
dawn on Wednesday, on the twenty-seventh of Safar, when the sultan passed
away. The day of his death was, for the Muslims, a misfortune such as they had
never suffered since they were deprived of the first four caliphs. The fort, the
city, and the entire world appeared to be lamenting over his death. Whenever
I was told earlier that sometimes people longed to offer their own lives in
place of others, I thought it was just a figure of speech; but I learned on the
day the sultan died that it could really happen, for I myself was one of those
who would have gladly parted with their lives if there had been the slightest
possibility of saving the life of the sultan by our sacrifice.3
Ibn Shaddad writes that the sultan left nothing except one dinar and forty-
seven dirhams when he died; nothing else did he leave by way of houses,
goods, villages, gardens, or personal property.4 He had not even enough left
1 Ibid., 358-360.
Țārīkh Abī 'l Fida', 3:90.
3 Al-Nawādir al-Sulțāniyya, 249-50.
4 Ibid., 6; Saladin, 375.
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Nur al-Dīn Zangī & Șalāh al-Din al-Ayyūbī
to cover his burial expenses; these had to be met by obtaining a loan in his
name, while the shroud was provided by his minister and scribe, Qādī Fadil.
The Saintly Sultan
In regard to the character and disposition of Salah al-Din, Ibn Shaddad
provides the following account:
In faith and practice the sultan was a devout Muslim, ever conforming to
the tenets of the Ahl al-Sunna wa 'l-Jama'a. Regular in the performance of
religious observances, he once said, "I have not performed a single congre-
gational prayer alone for the past several years." Even during his illness he
would send for the imam and force himself to perform the prayer behind him.
Assiduous in offering the prayers founded on the practice of the Messenger
, he also performed the voluntary prayers during the night. If he could not
somehow offer them, he made them up before the dawn prayers as allowed
by the Shafi'i school [which he followed]. I have seen him standing behind
the imam during his last illness and except for the three days when he had
remained unconscious, he never missed his prayers ... . The zakāt never
became incumbent upon him since he never possessed, throughout his life,
such property in estate and effects as was necessary to make him liable to it.
Boundless in generosity, he gave away whatever he possessed to the poor; and
at the time of his death, no more than forty-seven dirhams of silver and one
dinar of gold were found in his possession. He left no other property or goods.
He punctually kept all fasts during the month of Ramadan. He had some
fasts to makeup which had been recorded by Qādī Fadil. Before his last ill-
ness he scrupulously made them up against the advice of his physician. "I do
not know when death will overtake me," he said; and true to his words, he
[passed away] soon after. The sultan deeply yearned to complete the pilgrim-
age to Makka, especially in his final year, but he never found the opportunity.
He delighted in hearing the Qur'an recited to him and often listened to
three or four chapters of it recited by the battlement guards. He listened to
the Qur'an with all his heart and soul until tears trickled down his cheeks. He
also had a fancy for listening to hadith. He would ask everybody present to
sit down and listen calmly while hadith were read out to him. If any hadith
scholar of repute visited the town, he would himself go to attend his lecture,
occasionally narrating himself his eyes brimming with tears. Sometimes he
would even pause on the field of battle, between two rows to listen to hadith,
as this was a time of great virtue. He held to the tenets of faith so reverently
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SAVIOURS OF ISLAMIC SPIRIT
that it was on his command that a heretical mystic, Shihab al-Din Yahya
al-Suhrawardī,1 was executed by the sultan's son, Al-Malik al-Zahir.
The Sultan had an unflinching trust and confidence in the benevolence of
Allah. He used to turn with his heart and soul toward Allah in difficulty. Once
in Jerusalem, which then lay almost helpless before the besieging Crusaders.
The sultan refused our request to leave the city. It was a cold winter night
before Friday when I was alone with the sultan; we spent the whole night in
prayer and supplication. Late after midnight I requested the sultan to take a
little rest but he replied, "I think you want to sleep. Go and take a nap." After a
short while, when I went to him for dawn prayers, which we usually performed
together, I found him washing his hands and feet. "I didn't sleep at all," he said.
After the prayer was over, I said, "I have had an idea which may be of benefit
to us. You should address yourself to Allah Almighty and beseech Him for
help." He asked, "What should I do for that?" "Today is Friday," said I. "You
should take a bath before leaving for the Aqsa Mosque and also make some
offerings discreetly by way of charity. When you reach the mosque, offer a
special prayer of two rak'as between the call to prayer and the congregational
prayers, at the place where the Prophet had offered prayers during the
Ascension. I have read in a hadith that the supplications made at that time
are favored with acceptance. You should thereafter beseech Allah thus: 'O my
Lord, having lost all resources, I turn to You for help. I now submit to You;
for You alone can help Your faithful devotees to attain success at this critical
moment.' I hope that Allah will accept your supplications." The sultan did so.
I was by his side when I saw his head touching the ground in prostration and
tears trickling down his beard onto the prayer carpet. I did not hear what he
beseeched unto the Lord, but I witnessed signs of his prayer being answered
before the day was over. Dissension overtook the enemy camp, from where
we got heartening news for the next few days, until they broke their camp for
Ramla by Monday morning.2
Character of Salah al-Din
Șalāh al-Din was a devout Muslim, and the dominant aspects of his character
were an acute sense of justice, forgiveness, forbearance, generosity, chivalry,
honor, charity, tenderheartedness, patience, steadfastness, courage, and high
aspiration. Ibn Shaddad writes that he held court twice a week, every Monday
1 Not to be confused with Shihab al-Din 'Umar al-Suhrawardi mentioned earlier, the disciple
of Shaykh 'Abd al-Qadir Jilānī.
2 Al-Nawādir al-Sulțāniyya, 5-10.
220