Although ‘Ali (A.

Although ‘Ali (A.S.) reckoned Abbas to be right as far as the results were concerned, he still did not accept his suggestion.” His reason was as he said: اني اكره الخلاف “I dislike discord.” Abbas said: اذا ترى ما تكره “Then you will encounter what you dislike.­” In Vol.

2 under sermon 65, he narrates as such: ­“One of the sons of Abu Lahab recited a poem regarding the virtue and the just right of ‘Ali and at the same time vilified his enemies.” ‘Ali prohibited him from reciting such poems (which in fact was a kind of provocation and threat to unity) and said: سلامة الدين احب الينا من غيره “We reckon the safety of the religion (and the continuation of the fundamentals of Islam( to be a matter more lovable and valuable than anything else.” More explicit than this is what has come down in Nahj al-Balaghah itself.

This explicitness can be seen in three different instances in Nahj al-Balaghah: (1) When Abu Sufyan intended to create…