Account of the second siege1
Balazari has narrated on the authority of Abu Mikhnaf that: After Uthman’s
promise when the people of Egypt marched forward and reached Eela2 or a
station before that. They saw a rider behind headed towards Egypt. They
apprehended him and asked: “Who are you?”
He replied: “I am a messenger of chief of believers to Abdullah bin Saad. I
am a slave of the chief of believers.”
That man was a black. Some people said to others. It is better to make him
dismount and investigate, perhaps his master [Uthman] his written something
about us. They did that and did not find anything. Some of them said to others.
“Let him go.”
But Kinana bin Bashar said: “Know that by God, I will not leave him before
I look into his water vessel.”
They said: “Great! Would they place a letter in water?”
Kinana said: “People employ various tricks.”
Then he opened the water vessel. They was a sealed bottle in it; or the
narrator said: It was tied in it – and inside it was a rolled up letter in lead.
They brought it out and read it. It was written therein:
“So to say: After Amr bin Budail comes to you, strike off his head and cut
off both the hands of Ibne Adees, Kinana and Urwah and leave them to writhe in
their blood till they die. Then hang them from the trunk of date palms.”
It is said that Marwan wrote this letter without informing Uthman.
When came to know about the matter of Uthman’s letter they said: “The
killing of Uthman is lawful.”
Then they returned till they entered Medina, showed that letter to Ali (a.s.)
and the seal of Uthman was in lead. Ali (a.s.) brought the letter to Uthman and he
swore by God that it was not his letter and he did not know anything about it. He
said: “Its writing is like the handwriting of my scribe and the seal is like my
seal.”
Ali (a.s.) asked: “Whom do you blame?”
He replied: “You and my scribe.”
So Ali (a.s.) came out in rage saying: “On the contrary this letter was sent
under your instructions.”
Abu Mikhnaf says: Before that, the seal of Uthman was with Humran bin
Aban and when he went to Basra, Marwan took it from him and it was with him.
It is mentioned in the narration of Jahim Fehri that: I was present during the
affair of Uthman. So he said something and people returned satisfied, after that
they found a letter addressed to their governor in Egypt, in which it was
mentioned that the heads of the leaders should be struck off. So they returned and
gave that letter to Ali (a.s.). He brought that letter to Uthman and Uthman swore
that he had not written it and knew nothing about it.
Ali (a.s.) said: “Whom do you accuse of this?”
He replied: “My scribe and you, O Ali, because these people are obedient to
you and you have not removed them from me.”
The people of Egypt came to Uthman’s palace, laid siege to it and said to
Uthman who was inside the building: “O Uthman, this is your letter.”
He denied it and swore. They said: “This is worse than the fact that you
don’t know what is written in your name. The like of you should not be at the
helm of affairs of Muslims. Relinquish the post of Caliphate.”
Uthman said: “I will not take off the garment which God has made me
wear.”
Bani Umayyah said: “O Ali, you have spoiled our issue, resorted to deceit
and instigated people against us?”
He replied: “O fools, you know well that there is neither a female nor a male
camel for me in this matter [that I have no vested interest] and I removed
Egyptians from Uthman. And reformed his circumstances twice. What else
should I have done?”
Then he returned from there saying: “O God, I am immune from what they
say and I am immune of his blood if something happens to him.”
The narrator says: “When Uthman was in siege, he wrote a letter, so that the
son of Zubair may read it to the people and it was mentioned therein: By God, I
have not written this letter and neither did I order it to be written, and I am
unaware of this issue. And you will be satisfied about everything, which has
angered you. So you may appoint whoever you like as governor of your city and
these are the keys of your Public Treasury, you can give them to whoever you
like.”
They said: “We accuse you for this letter, so go away from us.”