He inquired, “Which of you was abusing ‘Ali?

He inquired, “Which of you was abusing ‘Ali?” This time they responded, “All of us.” He said, “Bear witness that I heard the Messenger of Allah (S) saying: “He who abuses ‘Ali abuses me, and he who abuses me abuses God, and he who abuses God shall be thrown in an inverted position by God to the hellfire.” He then returned and while walking, he asked his son, “How do you see them?” His son recited this poem: ** ** نظروا اليك باعين محمّره نظر التيوس الى شفار الجازر They are looking at you with a ‘reddish look’ like the gaze of the animal to be slaughtered to the lancet of the slaughterer.

Ibn al-‘Abbas said, “You continue.” His son said: ** ** خزر الحواجب ناكسي اذقانهم نظر الذّليل إلى العزيز القادر They were humiliated and disgraced; they are looking at you like that of the subject to his master.

Ibn al-‘Abbas said, “You continue!” His son answered, “I can say nothing more.” Ibn al-‘Abbas himself recited this poem: احياؤهم خزى على أمواتهم و الميتون فضيحة للغابر Their living ones are the source of abjectness for their dead ones while their dead ones were the source of disgrace for their ancestors.

[^8] Among the companions of the Commander of the Faithful ( ‘a ), prominent figures such as Sa‘sa‘ah ibn Sawhan, Maytham at-Tammar, Kumayl ibn Ziyad, Awis Qarni, Salim ibn Qays, Harith Hamdani, and Asbagh ibn Nabatah also engaged in defending the right of ‘Ali ( ‘a ), debating with the enemies of the Imam in this regard.

Meanwhile, concerning the first person among the Shi‘ah to have written a book about scholastic theology, Ibn Nadim and Ibn Shahr Ashub regard Isma‘il ibn Maytham at-Tammar to be the first author on Shi‘ah scholastic theology as he has written the books Al-Imamah and Al-Istihqaq on this subject.[^9] The late Sayyid Hasan Sadr, however, considers ‘Isa ibn Rawdhah as the first Shi‘ah writer on scholastic theology.[^10] Of course, the oldest existing book on Shi‘ah kalam is the book Al-Aydhah of Fadhl ibn Shadhan an-Nayshaburi (died 260 AH) who was among the companions of Imam al-Hadi and Imam al-‘Askari ( ‘a ).

During the period of Imam as-Sadiq ( ‘a ), this science, like other sciences, also flourished tremendously and a number of his students such as Hisham ibn Hakam, Hisham ibn Salim, Mu’min Taq, Fadhal ibn Hasan, and Jabir ibn Yazid Ju‘fi, among others, excelled in this field writing many books and treatises in this regard. They had discussions and debates with the scholars of other schools.