After the incident of arbitration, in which A’mr Ibn A’as tricked Abu Musa Asha’ri and deposed Ali (a.s.) from the caliphate, the Imam (a.s.) used to curse him, Mua’wiyah and Abu Musa after the morning and Maghrib prayers.
A’mr Ibn A’as was also part of the group that was involved in the incident of the night of A’qabah4 and had subsequently been cursed by the Holy Prophet (peace be upon him and his holy progeny) too.
When the dispute between Imam Ali (a.s.) and Mua’wiyah intensified, it was decided that the issue should be resolved by means of arbitration. Unfortunately, the people of Iraq selected Abu Musa Asha’ri to represent the Imam (although, the Imam himself was not happy at this selection), whereas Mua’wiyah decided on A’mr Ibn A’as as his representative.
Abu Musa, who was in one of the villages of Shaam, was asked to present himself in Siffeen and four hundred people, amongst them Shuraih Ibn Haani and Ibn A’bbas, accompanied him to Daumah al-Jundal. A’mr Ibn A’as also arrived there with four hundred of his companions.
All the counselling and recommendations provided to Abu Musa proved futile since A’mr Ibn A’as, with the evilness of intention and wickedness of character that he possessed, was far more powerful than him in shrewdness and deception.
One of A’mr Ibn A’as’s techniques was to exhibit exaggerated deference towards Abu Musa. He sat him in the front of gatherings and insisted that he lead the prayers, while Amr himself prayed behind him, and all the while addressing him as O’ Companion of the Prophet of God! He used to say to him: “You have had a precedence over me with regards to the companionship of the Holy Prophet (s.a.w.) and are elder to me and thus, it is unbecoming of me to speak on something before you have done so”.
He presented such an elaborate display of respect that the simple-minded Abu Musa was convinced of his uprightness and became certain that his only intention was to set aright the existing state of affairs. As part of his cunning plan, A’mr Ibn A’as initially took Abu Musa to a secluded place and spoke to him in solitude so as to prevent others from influencing Abu Musa in making a decision.
A’mr Ibn A’as asked him, “Abu Musa, what is your opinion regarding Ali (a.s.) and Mua’wiyah?”
“Let us depose Ali (a.s.) and Mua’wiyah from the caliphate and allow the issue of caliphate to be managed by a Counsel,” responded Abu Musa.
Hearing this A’mr Ibn A’as said, “By God! Your opinion is absolutely correct and we must put it into execution.”
After agreeing to this course of action, they came out in public.
Abu Musa rose up first and began to speak when Ibn A’bbas cried out, “Be wary, for I fear A’mr Ibn A’as has tricked you. Allow him to speak before you.”
But Abu Musa paid no heed and said, “O’ People! A’mr Ibn A’as and I remove Ali and Mua’wiyah from the caliphate and shall (only) approve of a caliph selected by means of a Counsel. I hereby remove Ali (a.s.) from the caliphate.”
Then, the wicked A’mr Ibn A’as stood up and said, “I too remove Ali from the caliphate but appoint Mua’wiyah in his place; Mua’wiyah seeks to avenge U’thman’s death and is therefore most deserving of this rank.”
“You are like a dog,” Abu Musa shrieked out, “that attacks if one approaches it and does the same if one turns away from it.”
A’mr Ibn A’as retaliated, “And you are like a donkey, which carries a hoard of books (but does not benefit from them in the least).”
In short, A’mr Ibn A’as, supported by his evilness, emerged the victor in the issue of arbitration! Later, Ibn A’bbas used to say: “May God disgrace Abu Musa! I had warned him of the guiles and the evil intentions of A’mr Ibn A’as and advised him rightly, but he turned a deaf ear and refused to take heed.”( Paighambar Wa Yaaraan, vol. 1, pg. 139 – 153; Bihaar al-Anwaar, vol. 8, pg. 544.)