Beautiful Egypt 194 – Lenience and Strictness – February 19, 2017

   In a previous article entitled “The Victim of Calumny” we spoke of al-Ma’mun’s reign in Merv: whereby the State’s affairs were run by al-Fadl bin Sahl who caused the conditions of Iraq to deteriorate and the rebellion of Mohammed bin Ibrahim to break out, lasting for about ten months. Then, we tackled the death of commander Hartamah due to the rift between him and al-Ma’mun. Moreover, we spoke of the tumult that was aroused in Baghdad owing to al-Ma’mun’s declaring Ali al-Reda, the Alawite, heir apparent. Afterwards, al-Ma’mun left Merv, proceeding to Baghdad together with al-Fadl, his chief minister who was killed during the journey. This was followed by the sudden death of Ali al-Reda and al-Ma’mun’s informing the people of about this, demanding their allegiance after the reason of their rebellion was no more, and their compliance to him.

Al-Ma’mun in Baghdad

   Al-Ma’mun entered Baghdad in 204 Hijri (819 A.D.) in a great cortege. He was welcomed by the people, after which he gathered statesmen and met their needs. Thus, joy overwhelmed the country, and al-Ma’mun made Baghdad his premise. Historians consider this incident the true beginning of his tenure.

A Sound Reign

   Al-Ma’mun’s adeptness manifested itself clearly at that time, whereby historians assert that, “He ruled the State with lenience without weakness and strictness without violence. Baghdad was revived in like manner she was during his father’s tenure. She witnessed a boom in knowledge.” Al-Ma’mun was also tolerant: for he pardoned al-Fadl bin al-Rabi’, his brother’s chief minister who had supported Ibrahim bin al-Mahdi’s rebellion. Likewise, he pardoned whoever had caused riots.

   Some historians assert that al-Ma’mun was just and humble. It is said that some people presented him a petition saying that a rich man died and had no heir save an infant who, if bequeathed the money, might be extravagant. They said that the Caliph was entitled to the money. So, al-Ma’mun took the petition and wrote on its back, “The child was created and nurtured by God; the money was gained and burgeoned by God. May God rest the dead in peace and curse whoever wants me to acquire the money.” It is also said that when he presented a petition after the death of his chief minister Amr bin Mas’ada, saying that he had left eighty million dirhams, al-Ma’mun wrote on its back, “This is too little for a man who was close to us and served us for a long time.”

Tahir bin al-Hussein 

   Tahir bin al-Hussein was assigned Baghdad’s affairs by al-Ma’mun, al-Raqqa’s affairs were assigned to his son Abdullah. Yet, Tahir and the Caliph did not remain on good terms. Their relationship deteriorated for some reason which made the Caliph appoint him proconsul of Khorasan. Tahir ruled Khorasan strictly and wisely, which is why he settled down and became quite powerful. In 207 Hijri (822 A.D.), Tahir yearned for the caliphate. So, he rebelled against the Caliph and dropped his name from Friday prayers. Yet, no sooner had al-Ma’mun got to know than Tahir died. Historians had not consented regarding the way Tahir died, though many of them agreed that one of the Caliph’s supporters poisoned him to death, after which the former appointed Talha bin Tahir proconsul of Khorasan in his father’s stead.

Internal Rebellions

   Al-Ma’mun was on good terms with the Alawites. Yet, it was not until Abdul Rahman bin Ahmed rebelled against him in Yemen in 207 Hijri (822 A.D.) than the relation deteriorated. So, the Caliph dispatched commander Dinar bin Abdullah to overcome the rebellion. Ever since, the relationship between the Caliph and the Alawites had worsened. So much so that he ordered they be prohibited from his audience. Moreover, he ordered that they be dressed in black, instead of green. Yet, some historians assert that he commanded his brother al-Mu’tasim to treat them well.

Nasr bin Shabath’s Rebellion

   Nasr bin Shabath rebelled against al-Ma’mun. So, the latter dispatched Tahir to overcome it, but he did not fight that seriously: for he was shocked by al-Ma’mun’s deposing him from Iraq by his chief minister al-Fadl bin Sahl. Nasr’s rebellion lasted until the Caliph sent his commander Abdullah bin Tahir to overcome it and make Nasr succumb. War lasted for about five years until Nasr gave up, having lost many of his commanders. Thus, his rebellion, which caused a lot of tumult, came to an end. Al-Ma’mun rejoiced for overcoming Nasr. He brought him defeated and relinquished in a great procession in 210 Hijri (825 A.D.) It came to pass that Ibrahim bin Mohammed bin Abdul Wahhab, also known as Bin Aisha, conspired to remove al-Zawariq bridge from off River Tigris during the passage of Nasr’s cortege to arouse riots and restore Ibrahim al-Mahdi to the caliphate. Yet, the conspiracy was discovered and Ibrahim and his accomplices arrested and put to death.

   Likewise, al-Ma’mun overcame the rebellion of a gang called “Al-Zatt”. One historian maintains that the word, as per Bin Khaldun, “that refers to an ethnic mix who controlled Basra road and devastated the place… They are Indians by origin who used to inhabit the coast of the Persian Gulf. They gathered and raided Bara road at the time of the schism between al-Amin and al-Ma’mun.” Thus, their rebellion continued during al-Ma’mun’s tenure through al-Mu’tasim’s.

   Another rebellion broke out during the Abbasid era in 201 Hijri (816 A.D.). It was led by Babak al-Khurmi (Bābak Khorramdin) who came from Babek (Tazakend), northern Persia. His followers spread the Khorram-Dinān which was an immoral creed that allowed them to do whatever they desired: be it murder, rape, warfare, and such depravities. Bin al-Nadim writes, “Khorram-Dinān falls into two types. The first is attributed to Mazdak, while the second to Babek (Papak) who used to tell his followers he was a god, allowing them to practice murder, rape, and coercion which they never did before.”

   Babek was very close to the king of Tazakend and the chief of the Khorram-Dinān, Javidan Shahrak, after whose death Babek married his wife and took his place. From then onward, he started spreading his creed. When al-Ma’mun got to know, he sent commander Yahya bin Ma’th who failed to overcome him. So, he sent another commander, Eissa bin Mohammed bin Abu Khalid, who also failed. Consequently, he sent a third one who overcame Babek and arrested him. In 214 Hijri (829 A.D.), al-Ma’mun sent a fourth commander, Mohammed bin Humayd al-Tussi, who could not overcome Babek. A huge number of the Abbasid soldiers was killed, which made matters worse. Babek became quite powerful, and many mountain dwellers followed him. Al-Ma’mun could not overcome him due to his preoccupation with other affairs. Matters remained this way until al-Ma’mun died, commanding his brother al-Mu’tasim to resist Babek.

Egypt’s Conditions

   During that tumultuous era, Egypt also witnessed a great deal of turmoil, thus, bringing no end to stories in Beautiful Egypt.

General Bishop

Head of the Coptic Orthodox Cultural Center