Part 68

They do not like to be known by these names, rather they say, "We are the Isma'eeliyah (Ismailis) because we are distinguished from the other Shiites by this name."448 The Rafidi Fatimid state was established in 296 AH/909 CE in North Africa by 'Ubayd-Allah the Shiite, after Qayrawan fell to his troops and Ziyadah at-Taghlibi fled to Egypt in Jumadah II 296 CE.449 The pledge of allegiance to 'Ubayd-Allah al-Mahdi took place in Qayrawan in 297 AH/910 CE and the rule of 'Ubayd-Allah the Shiite lasted for ten years, according to some historians.450 'Ubayd-Allah al-Mahdi 'Ubayd-Allah Abu Muhammad was the first of the Batini dissident 'Ubaydi caliphs who turned Islam upside down and declared themselves to be Rafidis. They concealed their Ismaili madh-hab451 and sent preachers to deceive the hill folk and ignorant people.452 Adh-Dhahabi mentioned what was said about his lineage, then he commented: According to scholars, his father was not known, because when asSayyid ibn Tabataba asked al-Mu'izz, who was one of them, he said, "Tomorrow I will tell you about it." The next day, he heaped up a pile of gold then pulled his sword halfway out of its scabbard and said, 'This is my lineage." Then he told them to plunder the gold and said, "This is my noble descent."453 The mufti of Libya, Shaykh Tahir az-Zawi (may Allah have mercy on him), said in his biography of 'Ubayd-Allah al-Mahdi: He was the founder of the 'Ubaydi state and the first of its rulers. He was of Iraqi origin; he was born in Kufa in 260 AH, and hid in the city of Salamiyah, the centre of the Batini Ismailis in northern Syria. From the day he was born until he settled in Salamiyah he was known by the name of Sa'eed ibn Ahmad ibn Muhammad ibn 'Abdullah ibn Maymoon al-Qaddah. It was in the region of Salamiyah, the focal point of the Ismailis, that 'Ali ibn Hasan ibn Ahmad ibn Muhammad ibn Isma'eel ibn Ja'far as-Sadiq had died, and the Ismailis built a shrine to him in secret, and decided to transfer the imamate from the descendants of Isma'eel ibn Ja'far as-Sadiq to their son by means of a spiritual marriage.454 He added, "This is the origin of 'Ubayd-Allah al-Mahdi and this is the origin of the 'Ubaydis who are named after him."455 It is said that when 'Ubayd-Allah entered Ifreeqiyah ('Africa', meaning Tunis), he showed his Shiism and openly reviled the Companions of the (Messenger (SAAW) and his wives, except 'Ali ibn Abi Talib, al-Miqdad,' Ammar ibn Yasir, Salman al-Farisi and Abu Dharr al-Ghifari, and he claimed that the Companions of the (Messenger (SAAW) after his death except for these few whom they mentioned.456 People who followed the Sunnah in Qayrawan at the time of Banu 'Ubayd (the 'Ubaydis) were subjected to extreme persecution and had to keep a low profile.457 On many occasions they were put to severe trials. When Banu 'Ubayd prevailed and appointed Husayn al-A'ma ('the Blind'), he started the practise of open slander and insult in the marketplaces, in chanted verse, which indirectly reviled the Messenger of Allah (SAAW) in phrases which were recorded458 such as, "Curse the cave and what it contained and the cloak and what it covered," and so on. What is meant by 'the cave' is the cave of Thawr where the (Messenger (SAAW) and Abu Bakr (') hid from the polytheists who were pursuing them during the Hijrah. These words revile the (Messenger (SAAW) (') and Abu Bakr equally; they also revile the (Messenger (SAAW)'s family who were "covered by the cloak".459 Heads of rams and donkeys were hung up at the doors of shops with pieces of paper attached to them on which were written the names of the Companions. Times were very difficult for people who followed the Sunnah; anyone who spoke up or objected was killed and their bodies mutilated.460 'Ubaydi crimes in North Africa The Rafidi Shiites committed numerous abhorrent crimes, including the following: Exaggerated claims about 'Ubayd-Allah al-Mahdi They raised him even to the level of divinity, saying that he had knowledge of the unseen, or that he was a Messenger. Badr ad-Deen ibn Qadi Shahbah explains: He (al-Mahdi) had preachers in North Africa who called people to him and to obey him; they took covenants and pledges from people and told them different things about him according to their levels of understanding. They would tell some people that al-Mahdi was the son of the Messenger of Allah (SAAW) and the proof from Allah for His creatures; they told others that he was Allah, the Creator and Provider.461 The fact that they claimed that he was a god can be seen from the actions, words and poetry of his preachers. There was a man called Ahmad al-Balawi an-Nahhas, who prayed facing the direction of Ruqadah when 'Ubayd-Allah was there, and it was located to the west. When he moved to al-Mahdiyah, which was in the east, he prayed in that direction,462 as if it were Makkah al-Mukarramah. This belief was prevalent among many people at that time. Among the poems that spoke of his divinity were the lines of Muhammad ibn al-Badeel: The Messiah has come to Ruqadah. Adam and Noah have come there. Ahmad al-Mustafd463 came there. The ram and the sacrifice (Ismd'eel) came there. Allah the Most High came there. Everything else is as nothing.