Hadith 134

(The book) ‘Nahj Al Balagah’ –
‘And from a letter of his-asws to Al-Ash’as Bin Qays, office bearer of Azerbaijan: ‘And surely your administration isn’t for you as a morsel, but it is an entrustment in your neck, and you are a shepherd for the ones above you. It isn’t for you that you spy among your citizens nor take a risk except with a document (as evidence), and in your hands is from the wealth of Allah-azwj Mighty and Majestic, and you are my-asws treasurer until you submit it to me-asws, perhaps I-asws will not happen to be an evil ruler to you. And the greetings’’. [32]
Explanation – Ibn Maysam said, and others have reported it from Al Shaby, ‘When he-asws arrived at Al-Kufa, and Al-Ash’as Bin Ways was a governor upon a border town of Azerbaijan from the direction of Usman, he-asws wrote to him for the allegiance and sought the wealth of Azerbaijan with Ziyad Bin Marhab Al-Hamdany and the outline of the letter was: ‘In the Name of Allah-azwj the Beneficent, the Merciful. From a servant of Allah-azwj, Ali-asws Amir Al-Momineen-asws, to Al-Ash’as Bin Qays. As for after, had there been no congratulations, and congratulations coming for you, you should have been the first in this matter before the people, and perhaps the last of your affairs carry its first one, and part of it’s part, of you had feared Allah-azwj Might and Majestic. And it has happened from the allegiances of the people to me-asws what has reached you, and Talha and Al-Zubeyr were the first ones to pledge allegiance to me-asws, then they broke my-asws allegiance from without there having been anything new occurring, and they brought out Ayesha and travelled with her to Al-Basra. So, I-asws went to them among the Emigrants and the Helpers and we met (in battle). I-asws called them to return to what they had exited from, but they refused. I-asws reached