In the biography of Hajjaj Ibn Yusuf Thaqafi – the bloodthirsty Umayyad, it has been reported that his mother, Fari’ah, had initially been the wife of Harith Ibn Kaldah – a well-known doctor, who divorced her when she picked her teeth at an inopportune time; it was later that she entered into the wedlock of Yusuf Ibn ‘Aqil Thaqafi.
Hajjaj, at the time of his birth, did not possess an excretory opening; left with no other option, his parents were forced to create an opening in his rear.
In addition to this, he would also not drink the milk from the breast of his mother and this left the parents worried and wondering as to what should be done.
One day, an evil person approached them and instructed them that in order to remedy this problem they should kill a black goat and make Hajjaj drink its blood. When the goat was killed and the blood put into his mouth, Hajjaj began sucking and licking it. The following day the person directed them to kill a goat and pour its blood into his mouth. On the third day he ordered them to kill a black snake, pour its blood into his mouth and rub it upon his face as well whereupon from the fourth day onwards Hajjaj began feeding himself with the milk of his mother.
As a result of this ignorant act, he grew up into such a savage and bloodthirsty individual that he would say: “I derive maximum pleasure by shedding blood – especially the blood of the descendents of the Noble Prophet (s.a.w).”
He was appointed governor and the commander of the army by ‘Abdul Malik Ibn Marwan and ruled for twenty years till he died in the year 95 ah (during the rule of Walid Ibn ‘Abdul Malik) at the age of fifty four.
In the course of this period he killed a hundred and twenty thousand people, and at the time of his death, his roofless prison contained fifty thousand male and thirty thousand female prisoners – majority of them bare and unclothed.
Amongst those killed by this cruel tyrant were Kumail Ibn Ziyad Nakha’i – the companion of ‘Ali (a.s), Qambar – the slave of ‘Ali (a.s), Yahya Ibn Umm al-Tawil – a companion of Imam Sajjad (a.s), Sa’id Ibn Jubair, who has been greatly praised and commended by Imam Sajjad (a.s) and numerous other celebrated personalities.( Tatimmah al-Muntaha, pg. 66 )