precious to me
than anything else ."
After quoting the above remark, al-Mas'udi narrates
the story with a slight difference from what we said,
and then concludes by quoting the following words
of Sa'd: "By God! I shall never enter your house
as long as lam alive!" Then he rose and left
Mu'awiyah's gathering.(378)
Ibn 'Abd Rabbih al-Andulisi quotes the following story
from his book in his account of Mu'awiyah: When Imam
al-Hasan al-Mujtaba departed this world, Mu'awiyah
came on pilgrimage as a caliph, and then visited Medina.
He intended in this journey to curse the Imam from
the Prophet's pulpit in Medina. His companions said
to him: "In this town there is Sa'd ibn Abi Waqqa,
the victor of Iran and an old influential companion
of the Prophet. He will not approve of your action.
You had better summon him and ask his view."
Mu'awiyah sent for Sa'd and informed him of his intention.
Sa'd said: "If you do so, I will leave the mosque
and will not return there." (Meaning that he
refuses to go to a mosque where 'Ali has been cursed.
The significance of this remark becomes clear when
we remember that the mosque referred to, have been
the mosque of the Prophet.)
Mu'awiyah who was apprehensive of Sa'd's great influence,
abandoned his intention, and waited until Sa'd died.
(379) It was then that Mu'awiyah was able to curse
the Imam of the chaste from the Prophet's pulpit in
Medina. It was also in these times that he wrote to
all his agents to abuse the Imam from pulpits. After
some time a letter was sent by Umm Salamah to Mu'awiyah,
saying: "O Mu'awiyah! In cursing 'Ali ibn Abi_Talib
and his friends, you are cursing God and His Prophet
from your pulpits! I take God to witness that God
and His Prophet love him."
But the letter of Umm Salamah had no effect on Mu'awiyah,
and he did not pay the least attention to it.(380)
