In 1368 AH / 1948 AD, a black American citizen named George McLouin (d. 1388 AH / 1968 AD) enrolled at the University of Oklahoma in the United States of America; he was the first student of African descent to join it! Racial segregation laws educationally isolated white students from blacks, but McLouin struggled to enter this university, which allocated him a bathroom, a solo place in the restaurant, and a far corner of the classroom so that he would not mix with white students, which made him the forefront of pioneers who opposed color discrimination in knowledge and education within American society.
But apart from the state of Oklahoma and its cognitive shortness of breath, and even existential in its country, which suffered - decades later - his compatriot and another named him George Floyd, who was suffocated under the pressure of the knee of a white American policeman in May 2020, we go back hundreds of years to the "state" of Mecca, whose governors "at the time of the Umayyads commanded [in] the pilgrim (= pilgrims) shouting: that people should not give fatwas except 'Ata' ibn Abi Rabah (d. 115 AH/734 CE)", as the historian al-Fakhani (d. 272 AH/885 CE) says in his Akhbar Makkah.
This Mufti Ataa was a black slave of a woman from the people of Mecca and yet he received the title of "Master of the Jurists of the People of Hijaz"!! Al-Khatib al-Baghdadi (d. 463 AH / 1071 CE) narrates in his book al-Faqih wal-Mutafiqah (The Faqih wal-Mutafiqah) that this "black faqih" was brought to him by the Umayyad caliph Silman ibn Abd al-Malik (d. 95 AH/715 CE) with his two sons. So they stood up and said: "O my son, do not neglect (= fail) to seek knowledge, for I will not forget our humiliation in the hands of this black slave"!!
This striking paradox between the two previous positions – separated by nearly 1400,<> years – reveals the approach of Islamic culture to the value of human equality, and the techniques of dissolving the differences put forward by Islam between races and races while preserving the value of difference and diversity to the point of celebration, where the presence of blacks and their contribution to Islamic civilization was not only a tangible reality, but also became a scene and a line in a unique literature devoted to monitoring the patterns and characteristics of this presence.
Islam has succeeded not only in overturning the criterion of sovereignty in the Arab Bedouin society, but also against the criteria of differentiation within surrounding cultures such as Judaism, Christianity, Greek and Persian, so that a jurist from groups whose children are subject to slavery and slavery is averse to the education of kings! The criteria for acclamation differentiation are crowding out and advancing the criteria of tribal and financial mastery, occupying positions of influence and guidance within the Islamic community.
The founding "black vanguard" represented the hearth of the largest dash of blacks in history; no civilization knew the presence of this good and pure color as happened with Islam, where the black forces inhabited the heart of Islamic civilization, and the virtues of the black companions - with their jihad, science and literature - had a great impact on a large crowd of slaves and loyalists - from the generations of followers and after them - in order to acquire the means of social, cultural and cognitive sovereignty.
This article deals with some of the roles of blacks and their contributions to Islamic history, and attempts to provide multiple entrances to monitor aspects of the experiences of 25 black figures who played scientific, militant, literary and political roles, thus contributing to advancing the Muslim movement at various levels and for many centuries, while restricting the monitoring of these roles to the borders of the Arab region of the Islamic East, where blacks represented a "minority" that was striking and admirable.
Between two
systems, the majority of the first Muslim vanguard were poor and slaves, and this was natural with a call that presented the virtues and morals of man over his social and financial status, and the opportunity was ripe for the pious group of oppressed in the Arabian desert to be leaders in the new religious call.
The most prominent of these was the great companion Bilal ibn Rabah (d. 20 AH/642 CE), so "Umar used to say: Abu Bakr is our master, and he freed our master, meaning Bilala" (Sahih al-Bukhari). Bilal is the "worshipper and stripper master", as Abu Na'im al-Isfahani (d. 430 AH/1040 CE) describes him in Hilayat al-Awliya. Omar's eagerness to use "Sayyidna" seems to have an eloquent expression of new rising values.
Therefore, his negotiating position with the Romans - in the year 13 AH / 635 AD during the siege of Caesarea in Palestine, whose archaeological place is located about 37 km south of Haifa - embodies a kind of value confrontation between an emerging culture, the messenger of Islam, and a declining one, the culture of the Romans. Muslims were represented by a black man who was a slave yesterday, while the Romans were represented by the son of their great king, with an invitation to negotiation carried by a great white priest, the central essence of Christian culture at the time, who carried "in his hand a cross of essence."
It is reported in Futuh al-Sham by al-Waqidi (d. 207 AH/822 CE) that the leader of the Romans, Palestine, ibn Heraclius, "called a priest of great destiny among Christianity – a priest of Caesarea and its scholar – and said to him: Ride to these people and speak to them which is best, and tell them that the king's son asks you to go to him. And he shall not be one of the tyrants (= Aradhil) of the Arabs. So the priest rode He walked until he reached the Muslims, and stood so that they could hear his words, and communicated to them the message of his leader."
Bilal submitted to the commander of the Muslim army, Amr ibn al-As (d. 43 AH/664 CE), a request to represent the Muslims in the negotiation of the commander of the Roman army, and his commander replied: "Go and seek the help of God and do not give him in the speech, and I will reveal the answer and magnify the laws of Islam, and Bilal said you will find me hopefully where you want."
Al-Waqidi adds that when "Bilal emerged from the Muslim army and the pastor looked at him, he denied him, and said that the people had come to them, so we invited them to address them, and they sent us their slaves because of our small destiny with them, and then he said: O slave, inform your king and tell him that the king wants a prince from you so that he can address him with what he wants, and Bilal said, "O pastor, I am Bilal, the mawla of the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) and his muezzin, and I am not unable to answer your friend." Stand in your place until the king is informed of your order, and the pastor returned to the king to inform him of what had happened, and then he returned to him and the translator returned to Bilal and said to him: O lion! The king says to you: We are not one of those who address the slaves, but the owner of your army or the conspirator comes to us, and Bilal returned while he was broken"!!
The impulses of the poor and vulnerable were an example of the new values, and this was evident in the first decisive battle of Islam, the Great Battle of Badr in 2 AH / 624 CE, with its strong symbolism in the march of Islam, and the place occupied by its heroes in the conscience of Muslims. Among the black symbols participating in it was the great companion Mahdama (d. 2 AH/624 CE), who was the mawla of Umar al-Faruq (d. 23 AH/645 CE), and became "the first killed for the sake of Allah" on the day of Badr, as Imam al-Dhahabi (d. 748 AH/1347 CE) says in Biographies of the Nobles.
They also include the companion al-Faris al-Miqdad ibn al-Aswad (d. 33 AH/655 CE), who quoted al-Dhahabi – in al-Sir – a narration stating that he was a slave. Black in color", and the day of Badr was the only one of the companions who had a horse, as Al-Dhahabi narrated that "Alia (may Allah be pleased with him) (d. 40 AH / 661 AD) said: You saw us on the night of Badr. There is no one of us who is a knight at that time except Miqdad." He witnessed all the invasions and was nicknamed "Knight of the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him)".A new normative that militant doctrine of that good crowd continued to feed the vigor of the new
religion as it followed after the full moon of the glorious habitats. Not all black companions were of African ethnicity; there were outspoken Arab companions who were black, adding their touches to the diversity team that represented the founding rule of Islam. One of the most prominent of these was Ubadah ibn al-Samit al-Khazraji (d. 34 AH/655 CE), who was black, and the new religion's appearance on the land of Egypt again represented Bilal's position in the Levant, this time with al-Muqooqas Azim al-Qibt.
The commander of the army of the conquest of Egypt, Amr ibn al-Aas, sent worship at the head of a delegation to negotiate with al-Muqooqas, when he entered it worship, "Haba al-Muqoukas for his blackness, he said [to the Muslims]: Forget about me this black and presented others to speak to me, and they all said: This black is the best of us in opinion and knowledge, and he is our master and our best and the provider of us, but we all return to his words and opinion, and the prince has ordered him without us what he ordered him, and ordered us not to contradict his opinion and saying. He said, "How did you accept that this black should be the best of you, but he should be below you?" They said: No, even if he is black, as you can see, he is one of the best of us and the best of us in terms of precedent, reason and opinion, and there is no denial of blackness in us. Al-Muqoukas said to Abadah: "Come forward, O lions, and speak to me gently"!! as stated in Futuh Misr wa al-Maghrib by Imam Ibn Abd al-Hakam (d. 257 AH/871 CE).
In fact, if there is a point of difference between the culture of conquest and the values of conquest, it is the point from which the black companions Bilal and Ubadah – may God be pleased with them – started their negotiations with the leaders of the Romans and the Copts, and the Muslims practically embodied in the two positions their saying that "there is no denial of blackness in us"!
Since the beginning of Islam, blacks in Medina's society have been so close to the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) that they played their popular games in the Prophet's Mosque, as in Sahih Ibn Habban. Many black companions performed important work in the service of the nascent state, including Rabah Mawla of the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him), who sometimes had the honor of occupying the task of "Hajib al-Nabi", that is, who regulates people's entry into it at his own times.
Al-Hafiz Ibn 'Abd al-Barr (d. 463 AH/1071 CE) says in al-Ta'sab fi 'Arif al-Sahib (The Assimilation in the Knowledge of the Companions) that this Rabbah "was black and perhaps he had permission (= taking permission) on the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) sometimes if the Messenger of Allaah (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) was alone", so that the historian Ibn al-Atheer (d. 630 AH/1233 CE) mentions – in 'Lion of the Forest' – that he "asked permission for 'Umar ibn al-Khattab... on the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him)."
Among them is also the companion Jalibib, of whom the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) said on the day of his murder: "He killed seven and then they killed him, this is from me and I am from him, this is from me and I am from him" (Sahih al-Bukhari). The same applies to the companion jurist Salim Mawla Abu Hudhaifah (d. 12 AH/634 CE), who was "leading the Muhajireen... from Mecca when he came to Medina, because he was reading them."
When mentioning the virtues of the Companions, the mother of Ayman al-Habashi (died in the caliphate of Uthman ibn Affan), the custodian of the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) and the mother of Usama ibn Zayd (d. 54 AH / 675 CE), from whom he inherited the blackness of his color, and who was visited by the caliphs Abu Bakr (d. 13 AH / 635 CE) and Umar after the death of the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him), used to cry in front of them and say: "I only weep for the revelation because it has been cut off from us from heaven"!!Available
glory The founding black vanguard represented a hearth for the largest rush of blacks in history; no civilization knew the presence of this good and pure color as happened with Islam, where the black forces inhabited the heart of Islamic civilization, and the virtues of the black companions - with their jihad, science and literature - had a great impact on a large crowd of slaves and loyalists - from generations of followers and after them - in order to acquire the means of social, cultural and cognitive sovereignty. Its driving castles.
One of the most famous men of science and thought in Islamic culture is Yazid ibn Abi Habib al-Nubi (d. 128 AH/747 CE), whom al-Dhahabi describes – in 'History of Islam' – as "one of the flags... And he was Abyssinian lions. He was the Grand Mufti of Egypt. Was this more an echo of the call of Ubadah ibn al-Samit al-Qaymi in his meeting with al-Muqooqas?
History books mention that Yazida Nubian This upset the mood of Egypt and brought about a major cognitive shift in the scientific interests of Egyptians, when he pushed their knowledge in the direction of reason and sober science, after its scientific spirit was stuck with what prevailed in Egypt from the influence of ancient cultures fond of strangeness, tales and the ends of history;
وقد تخرجت على يديه طائفة من أئمة العلم بمصر؛ من أبرزهم المحدِّث عبد الله بن لَهِيعة (ت 174هـ/790م) وإمام مصر الأكبر ومفتيها الأشهر الليث بن سعد (ت 175هـ/791م)، الذي كان يقول عن يزيد: "هو عالمنا وسيدنا". ولنتأمل مرة أخرى هذا اللقب التشريفي البالغ الدلالة من رجل عالي المكانة مثل الإمام الليث!!
كما قام يزيد النوبي بحسم سياسي في موقف المصريين من حكم الأمويين وكسب ولائهم للدولة الجديدة؛ ولنترك الحديث ليزيد يكلمنا عن هذا التحول حسبما يرويه عنه الذهبي: "كان أبي من أهل دُنْقُلة (تقع اليوم في السودان)، ونشأت بمصر وهم علوية فقلبتُهم عثمانية".
ورغم تلك النزعة الأموية ليزيد فإنه عُرف بصرامته مع وُلاة الأمويين على مصر؛ فتلميذه ابن لهيعة يخبرنا أنه "مرض يزيد بن أبي حبيب فعاده حَوْثرة بن سُهيل (الباهلي المتوفى 132هـ/751م) أمير مصر، فقال: يا أبا رجاء! ما تقول في الصلاة في ثوب فيه دمُ البراغيث؟ فحوّل [يزيد] وجهه ولم يكلمه، فقام فنظر إلى يزيد؛ فقال [له يزيد]: تقتل خلقا كل يوم وتسألني عن دم البراغيث"!!
وكان يزيد مظهرا لمكانة العلماء عند أصحاب السلطة والنفوذ متمسكا باستقلاليتهم عنهم وبمهابة العلم، كيف لا وهو "أحد الثلاثة الذين جعل عمر بن عبد العزيز (ت 101هـ/720م) إليهم الفتيا بمصر". ومن ذلك أن زيادا نجل الأمير الأموي عبد العزيز بن مروان (ت 85هـ/705م) أرسل إليه يوما قائلا: "ائتني لأسألك عن شيء من العلم..، فأرسل إليه [يزيد]: بل أنت فائتني، فإن مجيئك إليّ زينٌ لك ومجيئي إليك شَيْنٌ عليك"!!إمامة للأمة
لقد أسَّس يزيد بما فعله لموقف التابعي عطاء بن أبي رباح -المشار إليه في صدر المقال- الحامي لمكانة العلم وحملته أمام كبرياء أصحاب السلطة، وكأنهما قد شربا من ماء واحد!! كان عطاء هذا أسود ولم يمنعه ذلك من تحصيل مجد جعل الإمام أبو الحسن العجلي (ت 261هـ/875م) يقول عنه -في كتاب ‘معرفة الثقات‘- إنه "كان مفتي أهل مكة في زمانه"، ويصفه الذهبي -في السِّيَر- بـ"شيخ الإسلام مفتي الحرم".
ولم يكن عطاء نموذجا فقط في تصدر السود من أهل الثقافة لإمامة المسلمين بجميع ألوانهم وأعراقهم، بل كان أيضا من ذوي الاحتياجات الخاصة من أصحاب الإعاقات؛ فقد كان "أعور أشلّ أفطس أعرج، ثم عمي بعد ذلك"؛ كما في كتاب ‘المعارف‘ لابن قتيبة الدينَوَري (ت 276هـ/889م).
وحين أثبت له تلك الصفاتِ المؤرخُ ابن قُنفذ القسنطيني (ت 810هـ/1407م) -في كتابه ‘الوفيات‘- علّق عليها -بعبارة مدهشة موصولة تمام الوصل بالقيم الجديدة- قائلا: "فالعلم ليس بالجمال ولا بالمال وإنما هو نور يضعه الله في صدر من يشاء"!!
ومن رموز تلك النخبة الرفيعة من المسلمين السود إمامُ التابعين سعيد بن جُبير (ت 94هـ/714م) الذي حاز مكانة علمية بالغة العلو؛ فالذهبي يقول في ‘تذكرة الحفاظ‘: "كان يقال لسعيد بن جبير ‘جهبذ العلماء‘"، ويضيف أنه "كان أسود اللون، وكان ابن عباس (ت 68هـ/688م) إذا حج أهل الكوفة وسألوه يقول: أليس فيكم سعيد بن جبير؟!".
ومع مكانته العلمية تولى ابن جبير وظيفة القضاء في الكوفة والكتابة لقضاتها من أمثال أبي بُردة الأشعري (ت 103هـ/722م)؛ حسبما يورده ضمن ترجمته الدينوري في ‘المعارف‘. وحين قامت ثورة الفقهاء على الحجاج بن يوسف (ت 95هـ/715م) -حاكم الأمويين في العراق- شارك فيها سعيد بن جبير. ورغم فشل هذه الثورة؛ ظل سعيد متمسكا بموقفه المؤيد لها حتى قتله الحجاج في القصة المعروفة.
ومن علماء السود البارزين في مجال القراءات القرآنية صاحب مَقْرَأِ مدينة رسول الله ﷺ: أبو رُوَيْم نافع بن عبد الرحمن المدني (ت 170هـ/786م)، الذي يصفه الإمام ابن الجَزَري (ت 833هـ/1430م) -في ‘غاية النهاية في طبقات القراء‘- بأنه كان "أحد القراء السبعة والأعلام..، وكان أسود اللون حالكا صبيح الوجه، حسن الخلق فيه دُعابة، أخذ القراءة عرْضاً عن جماعة من تابعي أهل المدينة، [وكان] يقول: قرأت على سبعين من التابعين".
ومن أعلام الصوفية السود: أبو الخير حماد بن عبد الله التِّينَاتِيُّ (ت 349هـ/960م) الذي أطراه الإمام الذهبي -في ‘تاريخ الإسلام‘- فقال إنه "صاحب الكرامات..، وكان أسود اللون سيدا من سادات الكون…؛ وقال القشيري: كان كبير الشأن له كرامات وفراسة حادة". وترجم الذهبي كذلك لعالم أسود آخر هو "خيرٌ أبو صالح (ت 328هـ/940م) مولى عبد الله بن يحيى التغلبي (ت قبل 328هـ/940م)…، وكان أسود.. ثقة تقبله القضاة" في أداء الشهادات.شعر وبيان
لم يكن حضور السود منحصرا فقط في فضاء معارف القرآن والحديث والفقه، بل كانت لهم أيضا إسهاماتهم البديعة في دروب الأدب والشعر وميدان الفصاحة والبيان. وقد رصد إمام اللغة والأدب الأصمعي (ت 216هـ/831م) -في كتاب ‘فحولة الشعراء‘- عددا من السود شهد لهم بالفصاحة وتميز الشاعرية، من أمثال الشاعر نُصَيب بن رباح أبو مِحْجِن النوبي (ت 108هـ/727م)، والشاعر الفكاهي أبي دلامة (ت 161هـ/778م)، والشاعر أبي عطاء السندي (ت بعد 180هـ/796م).
ثم إن من السود إمام البيان والتبيين أبو عثمان الجاحظ (ت 255هـ/869م) صاحب الموسوعية العلمية الفذة والمصنفات المشرقة، فقد "كان جَدُّ الجاحظ أسودَ يُقال له فَزارة"؛ كما يقول ياقوت الحموي (ت 626هـ/1269م) في ‘معجم الأدباء‘.
ومن أقدم الشعراء السود وأشهرهم سُحَيم المعروف بـ"عبد بني الحسحاس" (ت نحو 40هـ/661م) الذي يقول عنه عبد القادر البغدادي (ت 1093هـ/1682م) -في ‘خزانة الأدب‘- إنه كان "من المخضرمين: قد أدرك الجاهلية والإسلام، و[لكن] لا يُعرف له صحبة. وكان أسود شديد السواد"؛ ومن شعر سحيم بيته السائر:
إن كنتُ عبداً فنفسي حُرّةٌ كَرَماً ** أو أسودَ اللونِ إني أبيضُ الخُلُقِ!
ومن شعرائهم أيضا مولى العباسيين وشاعرُهم أبو فَنَن أحمد بن صالح (ت 270هـ/893م) الذي ذكره أبو عُبيد البكري الأندلسي (ت 487هـ/1094م) -في ‘سمط اللآلي‘- فقال إنه "كان أسود، وهو شاعر مُجيد من شعراء بغداد، وكانت له أغراض مستطرَفة ومعانٍ مستحكمة"، وأضاف أنه "شُهر بالشعر في أيام المتوكل (ت 247هـ/861م)، واستفرغ شعرَه في [وزير المتوكل] الفتح بن خاقان (ت 247هـ/861م)". ومن شعره المستجاد:
ولما أبَتْ عينايَ أن تملِكا البُكا ** وأن تحبِسا سَحَّ الدموع السواكِبِ
تثاءبتُ كــيلا يُنكرَ الدمعَ مُنكِرٌ ** ولكن قلـــيلا ما بقــاءُ التثـــاؤب
وكذلك الشاعر نُصَيب بن رباح أبو مِحْجِن -وكان أسود من النوبة- الذي يخبرنا إمام الأدب المبرد (ت 286هـ/899م) -في ‘الكامل‘- أنه "مدَح عبدَ الله بن جعفر (ت 80هـ/700م) فأمر له بخيل وإبل وأثاث ودنانير ودراهم، فقال له رجل: أمثل هذا الأسود يعطى مثل هذا المال؟ فقال له عبد الله [بن جعفر]: إن كان أسود فإن شعره لأبيض وإن ثناءه لعربي، ولقد استحق بما قال أكثر مما نال"!! ومن شعره الذي تناقله الرواة:
وإنْ أكُ حالـــكاً لوني فإني ** لِعَــــــــقْلٍ غيرِ ذي سَقَطٍ وِعاءُ
وما نزلتْ بي الحاجاتُ إلا ** وفي عِرضي من الطمعِ الحَياءُ
ومثله سميُّه نُصَيْبٌ الأصغر المعروف بأبي الحَجْناء (ت 175هـ/791م)، ويبدو أنه أضاف إلى الشعر مكانة سياسية لدى السلطة العباسية؛ فقد ذكر ابن المعتز (ت 296هـ/909م) -في ‘طبقات الشعراء‘- أن "الرشيد (ت 193هـ/809م).. ولّاه بعض كُوَرِ (= مناطق) الشام، وكان أسود…؛ فأفاد من ذلك مالا جزيلا. وكان الرشيد يقدمه على أكثر شعرائه وكذلك الفضل بن يحيى (ت 192هـ/808م)، وكانت صِلاتُ البرامكة [المالية] لا تنقطع عنه البتة. قال الهلالي: قلت يوما للأصمعي: ما تقول في شعر الأسود؟ قال: هو في عصرنا هذا أشعر من عبد الحسحاس في عصره. قلت: فأين شعره من شعر نُصيب [الأكبر]؟ قال: هما في قَرَن واحد لأن نمطهما واحد، وكان ذاك متقدمُ الزمانِ وهذا مُحدَث"!
ومنهم الشاعر علي بن جَبَلَة المعروف بالعَكَوَّك (ت 213هـ/828م) الذي لقبه الذهبي -في ‘السِّيَر‘- بـ"فحل الشعراء"، ثم أضاف: "قال الجاحظ: كان أحسن خلق الله إنشادا، ما رأيت مثله بدويا ولا حضريا. وكان من الموالي وقد وُلد أعمى، وكان أسود أبرص، وشعره سائر"! ومن شعر العَكَوَّك في مدح الأمير أبي دُلَف العِجْلي (ت 225هـ/840م) قصيدته الذائعة التي أثارت غضب الخليفة المأمون العباسي (ت 218هـ/833م):
إنما الدنيا أبو دُلَفٍ ** بين مغزاه ومُحْتَضَرِهْ
فإذا ولّى أبو دُلَفٍ ** ولّتْ الدنيا على أثـَـِرهْ!
ومن هؤلاء الشعراء كافور النَّبوي (ت 503هـ/1109م) الذي ذكره المؤرخ الصفدي (ت 764هـ/1363م) -في ‘الوافي بالوفيات‘- فقال إنه "سيِّدٌ أسود شاعر مجوِّد"، ومن شعره:
حتّامَ همُّكَ في حَلٍّ وترحــــــــــالِ ** تبغي العُلى والمعالي مهرُها غـالِ
يا طالبَ المجدِ دون المجدِ ملحمةٌ ** في طــــيِّها تلفٌ بالنــــفس والمال
ولليالي صُروفٌ قلّما انجــــــذبتْ ** إلى مرادِ امرئٍ يســــــــعى لآمال
وكذلك كافور بن عبد الله الليثي الحبشي المعروف بـ‘كافور الصُّوري‘ (ت 521هـ/1127م)، وقد ذكره أبو سعد السمعاني (ت 562هـ/1167م) -في كتاب ‘الأنساب‘- فقال إنه "كان مصري المولد والمنشأ، سكن صور فنُسب إليها، طاف في البلاد وجال في الآفاق، وكانت له معرفة تامة باللغة والأدب والشعر، كتب الكثير من الحديث"، وتوفي ببغداد. ومن شعره لما دخل بيهق يمدح رئيسها محمد بن منصور البيهقي (ت 494هـ/1101م):
هل من قِرَى يا أبا سعد بن منصور ** لخادمٍ قادمٍ وافــاكَ من صُور
شعــــــارُه إن دنتْ دارٌ وإن بَعُدَتْ: ** اللهُ يُبقي أبا سعد بن منصور!نشاط سياسي
لم يقتصر حضور السود في المشهد التاريخي على الجهاد والعلم والفصاحة والشعر؛ وإنما تجاوز ذلك بعيدا حتى وصل إلى التأثير في المجال السياسي إلى حد تسنّم ذرى السلطة وزارةً وإمارةً، بل وكان لطوائفهم ممثلون أمام السلطة في مصر يسمون "عُرَفاء السودان"، على شاكلة رؤساء القبائل والعشائر العربية وزعماء المجموعات غير العربية.
ومن أشهر شخصيات السود التي ارتبطت بالسلطة في ذهن الزمان أميرَ مصر كافور الإخشيدي (ت 356هـ/967م) الذي جمع إلى السلطة حظا مذكورا من العلم والأدب؛ فقد ترجم له الصفدي فنعته بأنه "السلطان المصري الشهير…، وكان أسود.. ولم يبلغ أحدٌ من الخَدَم ما بلغه، وكان ذكيا له نظر في العربية والأدب والعلم". ولعل في هذا الثناء تصحيحا للصورة السلبية التي رسمها لكافور أبو الطيب المتنبي (ت 354هـ/965م) بشعره القادح فيه بعد قصيده المادح له.
وإلى جانب كافور الإخشيدي؛ ذكر الصفدي شخصيات أخرى من سادة السود اشتركت معه في الاسم وأحيانا في العلم والقرب من أصحاب السلطة، ومنهم "كافور شبل الدولة (ت 623هـ/1226م)… [الذي] كان من خدام القصر [الأيوبي] بالقاهرة..، دينا صالحا مهيبا..، وكان حنفيا فبنى المدرسة والخانقاه (= زاوية الصوفية)".
ونجد الذهبي يترجم -في ‘تاريخ الإسلام‘- لأحد أعلام السود ذوي المكانة العلمية والسياسية البارزة، وهو الأمير بدر الدين الحبشي الصوابي العادلي (ت 698هـ/1299م)؛ فيخبرنا بأنه "كان موصوفا بالشجاعة والرأي في الحرب، والعقل والرزانة والفضل والديانة، والبر والصدقة والإحسان إلى أصحابه وغلمانه، وكان أميرا مقدَّما من أكثر من أربعين سنة…، وقد حج بالناس غير مرة". ثم يورد الذهبي ما يفيد بأن هذا الأمير الأسود كان أحدَ شيوخه، فيقول: "قرأتُ عليه جزءا سمعه من ابن عبد الدائم (المقدسي المتوفى 726هـ/1326م)".
ومع انخراط السود في لعبة السياسة خِدمةً وإمرةً؛ نجد لهم مشاركة متعددة الأوجه في وقائعها ثوراتٍ واضطرابات وصراعات. فقد شارك السود سنة 145هـ/763م في أحداث المدينة المنورة الناجمة عن ثورة محمد بن عبد الله بن الحسن المشهور بـ‘النفس الزكية‘ (ت 145هـ/763م).
فابن كثير (ت 776هـ/1374م) يخبرنا -في ‘البداية والنهاية‘- بأنه حين قُـتل هذا الثائر العلوي بالمدينة على أيدي جيش العباسيين؛ بعث الخليفة المنصور (ت 158هـ/776م) عبد الله بن الربيع الحارثي واليا عليها "فعاث جنده في المدينة فسادا…، فثار عليهم طائفة من السودان واجتمعوا ونفخوا في بوق لهم، فاجتمع على صوته كل أسود في المدينة، وحملوا عليهم (= الجنود) حملة واحدة وهم ذاهبون إلى الجمعة، وكان رؤساء السودان: وثيق ويعقل ورمقة وحديا وعنقود ومسعر وأبو قيس وأبو النار. فركب عبد الله بن الربيع في جنوده والتقى مع السودان فهزموه".
وبعد ذلك بقرن يزيد قليلا؛ شارك السود في ثورة عارمة كانت منطقة جنوب العراق مسرحها الأبرز، وكان السود وقودها الأكبر حتى إنها ارتبطت باسمهم فعرفت بـ"ثورة الزنج"، وامتدت أحداثها العاصفة طوال سنوت 255-270هـ/869-883م.
وبعد قرنين من نهاية ثورة الزنج؛ تلاقينا محاولة السود اليائسة لحماية نفوذهم القوي في الدولة الفاطمية المهددة بالسقوط حينها في أيدي الزنكيين بقيادة قائد جيشهم بمصر صلاح الدين الأيوبي (ت 589هـ/1193م) وكان وقتها وزيرا للفاطميين. وهي المحاولة التي عُرفت في كتب التاريخ بـ"واقعة السودان"، وقادها "خصيٌّ يدعى ‘مؤتمن الخلافة‘ متحكم في القصر" الفاطمي بالتعاون سراًّ مع الصليبيين؛ حسب رواية المؤرخ أبي شامة (ت 665هـ/1263م) في ‘كتاب الروضتين‘.
وجاء في خلاصة هذه الواقعة عند أبي شامة؛ أن ‘مؤتمن الخلافة‘ هذا أحس بخطر سقوط الدولة على يد صلاح الدين "فأجمع هو ومن معه على أن يكاتبوا الفرنج ويقبضوا على.. الصلاح، فأنهض إليه صلاح الدين من أخذ رأسه…؛ ولما قـُـتل غار السودان وثاروا وكانوا أكثر من خمسين ألفا، وكانوا إذا قاموا على وزير قتلوه واجتاحوه…، فثار أصحاب صلاح الدين.. واتصلت الحرب بين القصرين.. ودام الشر يومين"، ثم انتهت المعركة بهزيمة ساحقة للسودان بطوائفهم الثلاث المعروفة آنذاك -حسب المقريزي (ت 845هـ/1441م) في ‘المواعظ والاعتبار‘- وهي: الفرحية والحسينية والميمونية.
كتابات مناقبية
لم يكن حضور السود وإسهامهم في الحضارة الإسلامية واقعا محسوسا فقط، بل صار واقعا منظَّرا ومسطّرا في أدبيات فريدة خُصِّصت لرصد أنماط وسمات هذا الحضور. وعندما نجول بين ضفاف ما وصلنا من الكتب المصنفة عن جهود السود في حركة المجتمع الإسلامي؛ لا يسعنا إلا الاندهاش من الكم والجودة والإحكام في تناول معظمها لهذا الموضوع، فضلا عن الحس الإنساني العالي والمفارق حتى لكتابات أوروبية عريقة سطرتها أيدي فلاسفة بارزين، نظّروا لتقسيم البشر وفق معايير عنصرية متوهمة وغير علمية لتعريف الإنسان المتحضر والإنسان الهمجي.
وذلك مثل كتابات الفيلسوف الألماني إيمانويل كانط (ت 1219هـ/1804م) الذي وضع العرق الأبيض في المرتبة الأولى من سلّم المواهب، ثم جعل السود في المرتبة الثالثة بعد الهنود؛ كما يقول محمود حيدر في دراسته ‘فلسفة الإنكار‘. وكذلك موقف الفيلسوف هيجل (ت 1245هـ/1830م) العنصري من السود. وكل هذه الكتابات وقعت في إطار الحتمية الدونية للعرق والجغرافيا، وهو ما تحررت منه الكتابات الإسلامية.
إن أهم المؤلفات المستقلة التي تحدثت عن حضور السود داخل الثقافة العربية هي تلك التي ذكرها حاجي خليفة (ت 1068هـ/1657م) في كتابه ‘كشف الظنون‘، وهي حسب ترتيب وفيات مؤلفيها: ‘فخر السودان على البيضان‘ للجاحظ، و‘في تفضيل السود على البيض‘ لأبي العباس الناشئ المعروف بـ‘ابن شرشير‘ (ت 293هـ/910م)، وقد وصف حاجي خليفة هذا الكتاب بأنه "كتاب لطيف جامع"؛ مما يدل على أنه رآه وإن لم يصلنا.
ثم يأتي كتاب ‘السودان وفضلهم على البيضان‘ لابن المَرْزُبان (ت 309هـ/921م)، و‘زهد السودان‘ لابن السراج القاري (ت 500هـ/1106م)، و‘تنوير الغَبَش في فضل السودان والحَبَش‘ لابن الجوزي (ت 597هـ/1201م)، و‘نزهة العمر في التفضيل بين البياض والسود والسمر‘ و‘رفع شان الحُبشان‘ كلاهما للسيوطي (ت 911هـ/1505م)، و‘الطراز المنقوش في محاسن الحُبُوش‘ لعلاء الدين البخاري (ت بعد 991هـ/1583م).
جاءت رسالة الجاحظ -المعنونة بـ‘فخر السودان على البيضان‘- في سياق فترة برزت فيها خيارات لدى بعض السود سعوا فيها لتقديم هوُّيتهم العرقية بشكل أضيق مما يقرّه المنظور القيمي الإسلامي؛ فتم إبراز هويتهم الخاصة في سياق مفاضلة مع المحيط الاجتماعي العام.
وهو ما يذكّرنا -في عصرنا- بالحركات التي أعقبت حركة الحقوق المدنية بأميركا بزعامة مارتن لوثر كينغ (ت 1388هـ/1968م)، التي كانت تطالب المجتمع الأميركي بمعاملة السود بالطريقة التي يعامل بها البيض، ولكن بحلول نهاية الستينيات ظهرت جماعات مثل "الفهود السود" و"أمة الإسلام" جادلت بأن للسود تقاليدهم ووعيهم الخاص، وأنهم بحاجة إلى الفخر بأنفسهم وبما هم عليه؛ حسب فرانسيس فوكوياما في كتابه ‘الهوية‘.
وهذا تقريبا ما وقعت فيه رسالة الجاحظ التي أضاءت -رغم نزعة محتواها الخاصة- جانبا مهمًّا من حياة السود المسلمين وإسهاماتهم في الحضارة الإسلامية، رغم سعي بعض السود في زمن الجاحظ إلى تخطي قيمة المساواة نحو نزعة التفاضل. والحقيقة أن العنوان المتبادر من رسالة الجاحظ هذه يقطع الشك باليقين بشأن رغبة كاتبها في تفضيل جنس على آخر، وقد يكون سبب ذلك عاطفته الحارة تجاه أصوله العرقية.تمهيد ثوري
ويبدو أن السياق كان يختمر بشيء ما يوقد تلك العواطف، مضافا إلى النزعة الاحتجاجية التي طغت على معظم السود بمن فيهم أكابر فقهائهم كعطاء ويزيد النوبي وابن جبير؛ فقد أعقبت ظهورَ الرسالةِ -التي كانت من أواخر إنتاج صاحبها- ثورةُ الزنج المذكورة سابقا، والتي اندلعت في البصرة مدينة الجاحظ في رمضان 255هـ/869م، أي بعد وفاته بستة أشهر فقط.
This opens the way for the possibility that this message is one of the factors that encouraged blacks – in the stronghold of their abundance in southern Iraq – to engage in the revolution, in response to the promises of its leader Ali bin Muhammad "Al-Alawi" (d. 270 AH / 883 AD) to obtain emancipation and social justice, and thus Al-Jahiz formulated - albeit unknowingly - the content of the "first statement" of this revolution.
The letter, as understood from its introduction, came in response to an unknown person who Al-Jahiz said asked him to write about the feats and virtues of blacks because he ignored them in another letter. The letter began with a talk about the eloquence of words attributed to "a black nation in the desert", and starting with a woman from the desert is an indication of what Al-Jahiz wants to aim at him that the salvation of blacks is not limited to their men.
It is noteworthy that when Al-Jahiz tried to list the names of the black companions we find him predominantly equestrian people such as Mahdormitory, Miqdad, Wahsh, Jalibib and Faraj al-Hajjam, while Bilal did not mention to him only the virtue that he is "our master", as Omar said.
It seems that Al-Jahiz tried to make his idea a deeper differential basis, as he referred to the black Umayyad poet Al-Hiqtan (= the name of a bird), who said, "A poem protested by the Yemeni on the Quraysh and Mudhar, and protested by the non-Arabs and the Abyssinians against the Arabs", and the poem talks about the king of Abyssinia Al-Najashi (d. 9 AH / 631 AD) as the only king who converted to Islam among the kings of Bani al-Bayd such as Al-Muqoukas in Egypt, Khosrau Persia, Caesar of the Romans and the sons of Al-Jalanda in Oman, "But the Negus became Muslim before the conquest, so he lasted for his king and God removed of these grace."
For example, in one of its passages, it refers to the invasion of Abyssinia to Mecca and the defeat of the Quraysh in front of them, in saying: Luqman of them, his son, his mother's son ** and Abraha the king, who does not deny
your conquest Abu Yaxom in the mother of your house ** and you are like a sand grip or is more
Al-Jahiz says, commenting: "It means the owner of the elephant when he came to destroy the Kaaba, he says:
You were in the number of sand and you did not escape from it and none of you met it until it led to Mecca. Or the villages and Dar al-Arab?.. If you invade – which is the mother of villages and has the sacred house that is your honor – all of you have invaded."
Al-Jahiz then refers to the characterization of the sons of Arab Negroes – some of whom were brave celebrities called "Agrabah of the Arabs" and their number in the pre-Islamic era reached 13 Arabs, five of whom were Muslim – as horsemanship "when they tended to Zanj in valor and nose; he mentioned Khafaf ibn Nadbah (a companion who died 20 AH / 642 CE), Abbas bin Mirdas (a companion who died around 18 AH / 640 AD), and Ibn Shaddad: Antara al-Fawares (d. 608 CE)."Rehabilitation
Al-Jahiz believes that people are unanimous in the Zanj having a range of "qualities of honor", from which they have acquired what no other nation has had, for "there is no nation on earth where generosity is more general and on which there is most of the Zanj, and these two cells have never existed except in Karim... There is no better throat on earth than them, and there is no language on earth that is lighter on the tongue than theirs... And the man among them preaches to the king in Zanj from sunrise to sunset, so he does not seek the help of a gesture or a stroke until he finishes his words. There is no nation on earth that is more powerful than they are."
A reading of Al-Jahiz's explanation of the virtues and virtues of blacks reveals a prior correction of some of the views that remained prevalent among philosophers in the West, such as the Germans Hegel and Immanuel Kant (d. 1319 AH / 1804 CE), about blacks and their mental abilities.
Al-Jahiz strongly refuted the statement of those who attribute the generosity of blacks to the weakness of their minds and ignorance of the consequences, for if this were true, he would have been "the wisest of people and the most knowledgeable [are] the meanest of people. We have seen the Skalbas (= Slavic peoples) meaner than the Romans (= Byzantines), and the Romans farther and more sane. And according to what you say... The Saqlaba should have been more generous and more generous than them... How did lack of reason become the cause of the generosity of the Zanj?"
Al-Jahiz reflects – in his message – a revolutionary attitude towards the Arabs, saying on their tongue: "It is your ignorance that you saw us for you competent in the pre-Islamic era in your women, when the justice of Islam came, you saw that corrupt... Although the desert among us is full of those who have married, and the head of the pillow, and the dhimmar (= honor) and your shoulder (= your protection) are prevented from the enemy."
This strongly supports the great revolutionary context in which this message emerged, if we take into account two things: the first is Al-Jahiz's attempt to make the Hashemites among the blacks, because "the family of Abu Talib is the most honorable of creation and they are black." The second is the claim of the leader of the Zanj revolution that he is of the Hashemite Alawite dynasty, and was collected by the Zanj who inhabited the sabakh.
Three centuries after this letter of Al-Jahiz, Imam Ibn al-Jawzi came and wrote his book 'Enlightenment of Al-Ghabsh fi Fadl Al-Sudan and Al-Habash' for a specific goal, which the author explains by saying: "I saw a group of good people from Abyssinia (= Abyssinia) breaking their hearts for the blackening of colors, so I informed them that consideration is charity and not good images, and I put this book for them in mentioning the virtue of creating many Abyssinians and Sudan."
In this writer, Ibn al-Jawzi, the most famous preacher of Baghdad, is keen to reaffirm the Islamic standard that the balance of differentiation is the good deed for which God Almighty is held accountable, and therefore the differentiation between races - such as differentiation between individuals in each sex - is due to the hereafter and has nothing to do with the world.
This statement of values represents a huge human leap and emancipation from the families of the cultures surrounding the Islamic call, whether Greek, Persian or Roman, as well as the Arab reality at the time, which established strict divisions that prevent races and races and represent the values of equality, justice and fairness. Imam Ibn al-Jawzi cited many prophetic sayings that support this philosophy, which transfers the differentiation between people from this world to the hereafter.
The author also tried to expand the field of discussion on this issue, transferring the phenomenon from human differentiation to the cosmic and existential meanings of the existence of the color black, and then establishing a narrative that may not be accurate in its historical meaning but accurate in its value role, with its support and activation of the ideas proposed by Islam of equality. The author attributed the multiplicity of colors among human beings to an objective reason, the nature of the geographical environment in which each nation inhabits, with the establishment of brotherhood and the same human origin common to all races of humanity.Virtues of the University Ibn al-Jawzi – in the fifth chapter of his book – has outlined the character of the blacks, he said while reformulating what Al-Jahiz said, speaking about "virtues gathered in the character of Sudan, including: the strength of the body and the
strength of the heart, and that yields courage, and reminds Abyssinia of generosity abundant, good manners and lack of harm, laughter age and good mouths, ease of phrase and sweetness of speech."
This imam alluded to a clever idea, which is the presence of the black color in nature, and considering this one of the aesthetics and variations of life, so he mentioned - in the sixth chapter - some of the virtues that were mentioned for the color black but in nature, including "blackness of the eye" which is the subject of consideration, and "blackness of the liver" which is the most honorable organ, and blackness of hair, which is "the crown of human beauty". He then transferred the conversation to the world of blackness in plants and stones, employing the religious symbolism of the "Black Stone".
Ibn al-Jawzi spoke about the country of Abyssinia – a land of black nations – as it is a land of great honor, as it sheltered the oppressed of the first Muslims from the injustice of the people in Mecca, mentioning what was stated in the Prophet's impact that the reason for migration to Abyssinia is that "it has a king who does not oppress the people in his country, so you will be with him until God brings you relief from him."
In fact, the good relationship with Abyssinia – the home of the black color among the Arabs – left in Islamic memory a positive impression in Islamic history about the country of Abyssinia and its king, and therefore about the majority of them view the color black in general.
The "white" Arabs, as Ibn al-Jawzi explains, are not the intercourse of virtues, but are competed with by people and colors, the first of which is the people of Abyssinia, but the Negus surpassed them in dignity and neighborliness, as evidenced in his dialogue with the envoys of the Quraysh to recover the Muslims from his land by force: Abdullah bin Abi Rabia al-Makhzoumi (companion d. 35 AH / 656 AD) and Amr bin al-Aas (d. 43 AH / 664 AD).
The Negus refused to hand over the underdogs, saying, "I will not hand them over to them. They came to me and descended into my country and chose me over those other than me, so that I might call them and ask them what these two say about them, and if they are as they say, I will hand them over to them and return them to their people, and if they are otherwise, I will prevent them from them, and secure their neighborhood with what they are next to me."
The memories of the Muslims' stay in Abyssinia remained uninterrupted in the hadiths of the Muslims, so the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) asked to hear their anecdotes and addressed the immigrants returning from Abyssinia, saying: "Didn't you tell me the marvels of what you saw in Abyssinia?!" (Sahih Ibn Majah).
Likewise, it is not possible to overlook the special relationship that the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) had with the Negus and their exchange of messages, and that the Negus became Muslim when the Book of the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) reached, as he "took the Book of the Messenger of Allaah and put it on his eyes, and got off his bed and sat on the floor in humility." In fact, the Negus was the suitor of um Habiba bint Abu Sufyan (d. 44 AH/665 CE) to the Prophet (peace be upon him), who had migrated to Abyssinia with her husband Ubayd Allah ibn Jahsh al-Asadi (d. circa 6 AH/628 CE), who is said to have renounced Islam and became Christianized and died there.
It was strange Ibn al-Jawzi mentioned some of the well-known words in the Abyssinian language and was mentioned in the Holy Qur'an, such as "Kaflin" and "Mishkah", and pointed out that "Taha" in the tongue of Abyssinia means: Say, man, and "Oh" meaning in their language: the believer.
In fact, this Qur'anic phenomenon is part of a major phenomenon that Al-Suyuti talked about – in 'Al-Itqan fi 'Ulum al-Qur'an' – when he attributed to Ibn al-Naqib al-Maqdisi (d. 698 AH / 1299 AD) his saying in his interpretation that "one of the characteristics of the Qur'an over all other books of God Almighty is that it was revealed in the language of the people to whom it was revealed, and nothing was revealed in the language of others, and the Qur'an contained all the languages of the Arabs, and it was revealed in the languages of others - from the Romans, Persians and Abyssinia - a lot of things."
Perhaps the intention is to liberate the message of the Qur'an and the universality of Islam from any linguistic or chromatic exclusivity that prevents unity. This Islamic partnership between nations is not only linguistic, but also functional; Ibn al-Jawzi quoted the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) as saying: "The king is in Quraysh, the judiciary is in the Ansar, the call to prayer is in Abyssinia, and the trust is in Azd" (narrated by al-Tirmidhi). This is a model of thinking about the distribution of roles that remains a year and a value that does not stop and is built on the basis of it to ensure the consolidation of partnership between human beings!!