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Bay'a to Abu al-Abbas al-Saffah

البيعة لأبي العباس السفاح

132 AH

Al-Tabari reports that the pledge to Abu al-Abbas Abd Allah ibn Muhammad ibn Ali was on the night of Friday, thirteen nights into Rabi' al-Akhir of 132 AH 1. Al-Waqidi reported that it was in Jumada al-Ula, and Abu Ma'shar said it was in Rabi' al-Awwal 1. According to al-Suyuti, he was given the caliphate in Kufa on the third of Rabi' al-Awwal 132 AH; he led the people in the Friday prayer and preached, and at its end he said: O people of Kufa, you are the place of our love and the home of our affection; I have increased your stipends by a hundred each, so get ready, for I am al-Saffah al-Mubih, the shedder, and the avenger who destroys 2

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Overview

The reports differ on the date of the oath of allegiance to Abu al-Abbas Abd Allah ibn Muhammad ibn Ali, known as al-Saffah, in 132 AH. 1

Disagreement over the date

al-Tabari says that the oath was on the night of Friday, thirteen days into Rabi' al-Akhir. He quotes al-Waqidi that it was in Jumada al-Ula, and Abu Ma'shar that it was in Rabi' al-Awwal. 1

al-Suyuti says that he was given the caliphate in Kufa on the third of Rabi' al-Awwal of the same year. 3

The sermon

al-Suyuti relates that he led the people in the Friday prayer and gave a sermon, and at the end of it he said that he had increased the stipends of the people of Kufa by a hundred hundred, and that he was "the shedder of blood, the destroyer, the one who lays waste." 3

For this reason the date is recorded here by year only, and its status is "disputed".

Sources

  1. Tarikh al-Rusul wa'l-Muluk — al-Tabari (ed. Abu al-Fadl Ibrahim) , j.7 p.420
  2. Tarikh al-Khulafa — al-Suyuti (Dar al-Minhaj edition) , p. 418-419
  3. Tarikh al-Khulafa — al-Suyuti (Dar al-Minhaj edition) , p.418-419
Cite this page

islam.museum contributors. “Bay'a to Abu al-Abbas al-Saffah”. islam.museum, https://islam.museum/en/event/bayat-abu-al-abbas-al-saffah/. CC BY-SA 4.0. Last updated 2026-10-22.

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