Meesam Tammar
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Meesam Tammar was a slave belonging to a woman of Banu Asad. Ali ibn Abi Talib (The first Shi’ah Imam and the fourth Sunni Caliph) purchased this slave from the woman and set him free in the way of Allah. He was a man of high character and a true lover of Allah, the Islamic Prophet Muhammad and his Ahl al-Bayt.
Meesam Tammar proved to be one of the nearest disciples of Ali ibn Abi Talib. He used to sell dates and on this account he was known as Meesam-e-Tammar. He used to take lessons from Ali ibn Abi Talib, and Ali ibn Abi Talib acquainted him with a good many secrets of the faith. Ali ibn Abi Talib taught him many branches of knowledge which included ilm-e-Manaya wal Balaya (the knowledge of death and future calamities) and ilm-e-Taweel (Interpretation and exegesis of Quran). At times with the permission of his master, Meesam used to acquaint the public about the deep secrets learnt by him. At times on account of the frank speech of Meesam people used to think that Meesam had lost his head. They could hardly understand the depth of his words.
Once Ali ibn Abi Talib, told Meesam that he would be hanged on account of the love for the Imam of his time. He also gave the address and told him that he would be hanged in a farm next to the house of Amr lbn Huraith. The tree on which he would be hanged was the smallest of the ten trees existing in the farm at that time. Meesam was also informed that his tongue would be cut out because he would not stop praising his Imam of time (Ali ibn Abi Talib). After getting this information, it is recorded in history that, Meesam used to go to the tree pointed out by Ali ibn Abi Talib, clean the place and water the tree and offer prayers saying, "Oh tree! You are for me and I am for you. Months and years passed by, Ali was martyred then Hassan ibn Ali (the second Shi’ah Imam) was martyred and Meesam kept waiting for the time.
Finally on 60 A.H., when Ubayd-Allah ibn Ziyad was appointed as the Governor of Kufa, things started to get complicated. Meesam then went to perform Hajj and there after returned to Kufa. One day, Ubayd-Allah ibn Ziyad, called him and asked him to come to his Court, and said, "Oh Meesam! Inform me where your Allah is?" Meesam immediately replied. "He is in quest of an opportunity to punish the transgressors." Ubayd-Allah ibn Ziyad then asked him about his connections with Ali ibn Abi Talib. Meesam replied that Ali ibn Abi Talib was his master and that he loved him. Ubayd-Allah ibn Ziyad then asked him, "Did your master tell you anything about your end?" Meesam replied, "Yes, he informed me that I would be hanged and that my tongue would be cut." Ubayd-Allah ibn Ziyad sent a roar of laughter and said, "I will see that your master did not tell you the truth. I will see that his prophecy is belied." Meesam said, "My master's words are true because he got that information from Allah. The Islamic Prophet Muhammad was informed by Jibril, and Jibril came with the message of Allah."
Ubayd-Allah ibn Ziyad ordered Meesam to be jailed. Meesam escaped from jail and joined Al-Mukhtar. Al-Mukhtar had risen in revolt to avenge the massacre of Karbala. Discussions took place between Al-Mukhtar and Meesam. Revenge was planned. But Meesam was caught by the order of Ubayd-Allah ibn Ziyad and was ordered to be hanged. Meesam was brought to the same tree to be hanged as pointed out by Ali ibn Abi Talib. Meesam began singing the praises of his master, and about a thousand people gathered to see Meesam being hanged. Even after being hanged, the tongue of Meesam went on singing the praises of Ali ibn Abi Talib. Ubayd-Allah ibn Ziyad was informed about this and the tyrant ordered that the tongue of Meesam to be cut and thus the prophecy of Ali ibn Abi Talib came true and Meesam died after his tongue was cut out.
[edit] Discrepencies
The account of the martyrdom and the circumstances surrounding it remain true. However, some discrepancies with the dates are acute as follows.
It is stated that Meesam Tammar went for Hajj during the year he died. The annual Hajj pilgrimage ends on the 12th of Dhul Hijjah.
If it takes 17 days by camel to reach Kufa, and if he left (hypothetically) on the 12th immediately after the hajj, he should have arrived around the 29th-30th (or even 1st) into Kufa. His death could not be immediate, because all accounts state he died on the third day after hanging. The minimum date to translate the timeline would be that his death could have occurred, at the earliest, on the 3rd of Muharram.
The book Nafasul Mahmoom, http://www.aimislam.com/ashura/nafasul.html#Martyrdom%20of%20Meesam%20bin%20Yahya%20at%20Tammar states that "Meesam was martyred ten days before Imam Husain (a.s.) came to Iraq." Imam Hussein entered Sharraf, on the border of Iraq and Saudia (then Hijaz) on the 25th of Dhul Hijjah 60AH.
So therefore, in conclusion, the dates are not adding up and need to be rectified for informational purposes. It needs to be stood corrected though.
[edit] See also
- Islamic Prophet Muhammad
- Ali ibn Abi Talib
- Hasan ibn Ali
- Husayn ibn Ali
- Ali ibn Hussayn
- Muhammad al-Baqir
- Ja'far al-Sadiq
- Musa al-Kazim
- Ali al-Rida
- Muhammad al-Taqi
- Ali al-Hadi
- Hasan al-Askari
- Muhammad al-Mahdi
- Abbas ibn Ali
- Muhammad ibn al-Hanafiyyah
- Shiites
- Hashemites
- Ahl Al-Bayt
- Nahj al Balagha
- Misconceptions about the Shi'a
- Sahaba
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