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Shiavault - a Vault of Shia Islamic Books The Voice of Human Justice (Sautu'l 'Adalati'l Insaniyah) Mu`awiya and his successors Mu`awiya son of Abu Sufyan was a perfect specimen of the qualities and characteristics of Bani Umayyah. When we study the characteristics of Mu`awiya carefully we come to know that he did not possess even an atom of Islamic human values and did not have any quality of the Muslims of that neat and clean age.

If we consider Islam to be a revolt against the ways and manners of the Arabs of the age of ignorance (for example acting with personal interests in view and treating common people to be animals and a source of income for the nobility and aristocracy) it can be said with certainty that, as we shall explain later, Mu`awiya had nothing to do with Islam.

And alternatively if Islam is the name of the religion whose orders apply to every individual it is quite clear that Mu`awiya had also no connection with Islam of this type. This was admitted by Mu`awiya himself. He used to wear silken dress and eat his food in gold and silver vessels. Abu Darda, a companion of the Prophet objected to this and said: “I have heard the Prophet saying that hell-fire will be poured into the belly of one who takes his meals in gold and silver utensils”.

Mu`awiya, however, replied unconcernedly: “I do not consider it to be objectionable”. When we find that the early Muslims were very strict in religious matters, paid due respect to what was ordered or prohibited by the Prophet, and sacrified even their lives for the sake of their faith, and then look at the impudent reply which Mu`awiya gave to Abu Darda in clear defiance of the Prophet we are convinced that Mu`awiya never joined the group of those Muslims who sincerely believed in the moral and spiritual teachings of Islam.

The conduct of Mu`awiya after embracing Islam was identical with that of his father Abu Sufyan during the age of ignorance viz. that of an aristocrat who took forced labour from the people and treated them like slaves. He became a Muslim reluctantly and also continued to remain a Muslim reluctantly. Who can be more aware of the mentality of Mu`awiya and the worth of his faith in Islam than his contemporaries who had seen him with their own eyes.

Did all his contemporaries not accuse him of the things which we shall mention later?