O' brother of Banu Asad! Your girth is loose and you have put it on the wrong way. Nevertheless you enjoy in-law kinship and also the right to ask, and since you have asked, listen. As regards the oppression against us in this matter although we were the highest as regards descent and the strongest in relationship with the Messenger of Allah. It was a selfish act over which the hearts of people became greedy, although some people did not care for it. The Arbiter is Allah and to Him is the return on the Day of Judgement.
"Now leave this story of devastation about which there is hue and cry all round." (1)
Come and look at the son of Abu Sufyan (Mu`awiyah). Time has made me laugh after weeping. No wonder, by Allah; what is this affair which surpasses all wonder and which has increased wrongfulness. These people have tried to put out the flame of Allah's light from His lamp and to close His fountain from its source. They mixed epidemic-producing water between me and themselves. If the trying hardships were removed from among us, I would take them on the course of truthfulness otherwise:
"... So let not thy self go (in vain) in grief for them; verily Allah knoweth all that they do." (Qur'an, 35:8)
(1). This is a hemistich from the couplet of
the famous Arab poet Imriu'l-Qays al-Kindi. The second hemistich is:
"And let me know the story of what happened to the riding
camels."
The incident behind this couplet is that when the father of Imriu'l-Qays
namely Hujr ibn al-Harith was killed, he roamed about the various
Arab tribes to avenge his father's life with their help. In this
connection he stayed with a man of Jadilah (tribe) but finding
himself unsafe left that place, and stayed with Khalid ibn Sadus
an-Nabhani. In the meantime a man of Jadilah named Ba`ith ibn
Huways drove away some of his camels. Imriu'l-Qays complained
of this matter to his host and he asked him to send with him his
she-camels then he would get back his camels.
Consequently, Khalid went to those people and asked them to return
the camels of his guest which they had robbed. They said that
he was neither a guest nor under his protection. Thereupon Khalid
swore that he was really his guest and showed them his she-camels
that he had with him. They then agreed to return the camels. But
actually instead of returning the camels they drove away the she-camels
as well. One version is that they did return the camels to Khalid
but instead of handing them over to Imriu'l-Qays he kept them
for himself. When Imriu'l-Qays came to know this he composed a
few couplets out of which this is one. It means 'now you leave
the story of these camels which were robbed but now let me know
about the she-camels snatched from my hands.'
Amir al-mu'minin's intention in quoting this verse as an illustration
is that "Now that Mu`awiyah is at war, we should talk about
and should leave the discussion about the devastation engendered
by those who had usurped my rights. That time has gone away. Now
is the time for grappling with the mischiefs of the hour. So discuss
the event of the moment and do not start untimely strain."
Amir al-mu'minin said this because the man had put the question
to him at the time of the battle of Siffin, when the battle was
raging and bloodshed was in full swing.