He died by assassination in the Mosque at Baghdad ...

He died by assassination in the Mosque at Baghdad ; death occasioned by his own generous fairness, confidence in the fairness of others; he said, If the wound proved not unto death, they must pardon the Assassin ; but if it did then they must slay him straightway, that so they too in the same hour might appear befort God, and see which side of that quarrel was The just one! (TB., IA., AF., Gibns., W.

Smith., Amir Ali and others) Thus the Holy Prophet had proclaimed the authority of Ali, as next only to his own and had enjoined his followers to listen to what Ali said and to obey him even in the very lifetime of his (the Ho1y Prophet's) own.

Besides the above historic ceremonial event, there are the in- numerable other instances when the Holy Prophet gave the practical demonstration of Ali's position as next only to him, and had made innumerable verbal announcements about the unique position of Ali, in relation to him. A few of those instances and the declarations are:- Ali's being left in the bed of the Holy Prophct on the eve of his migration to Madina.

Ali's being entrusted with the deposits of the people of Mecca, which were with the Holy Prophet, to he restored to the respective owners, the next day to the Emigration. Ali's being declared as the Brother of the Holy Prophet, when at Madina , each believer according to his personal merits, was made the brother of another like him. Ali's being given the hand of the Holy Lady Fatema the only surviving issue and the most loved one of the Holy Prophet.

Ali's being sent to take away the verses of the Sura-e- Tauba (i.e., Immunity) from Abu Bakr who was already sent with it, to be read out to the infidels in Mecca, as one of the Holy Prophet himself. Ali's being left in charge of the affairs at Madina, in the place of the Holy Prophet, during his absence on the ex- pedition to 'Tabuk.' The Holy Prophet's declaring:- I and Ali are of one and the same divine Light." "0' Ali!

Thou art to me as Aaron was to Moses, save that there is no apostleship after me." "I am the City of knowledge and Ali is its Gate." "0' Ali! Thou art my brother in this world and in the next." "0' Ali! Thou art to me, as is a head to a body." "0' Ali! Thou art to me, as is a soul to a body." "0' Ali! Thy flesh is my flesh and thy blood is my blood, thou seest what I see and thou hearest what I hear, save there is no apostleship after me. 8.