Simon Ockley –(Professor of Arabic at the University of Cambridge) says-“One thing particularly deserving to be noticed is that his mother was delivered of him at Mecca, in the very temple itself; which never happened to any one else.”(History of the Saracens, London, 1894, pg 331).
Thomas Carlyle -(Scottish historian and sociological writer) says- “As for this young Ali, one cannot but like him. A noble-minded creature, as he shows himself, now and always afterwards; full of affection, of fiery daring. Something chivalrous in him; brave as a lion; yet with a grace, a truth and affection worthy of Christian knighthood.” (On Heroes, Hero-Worship, And The Heroic In History, 1841, Lecture 2: The Hero as Prophet. Mahomet: Islam., May 8, 1840).
Edward Gibbon -(British historian) says- “The zeal and virtue of Ali were never outstripped by any recent proselyte. He united the qualifications of a poet, a soldier, and a saint; his wisdom still breathes in a collection of moral and religious sayings; and every antagonist, in the combats of the tongue or of the sword, was subdued by his eloquence and valour. From the first hour of his mission to the last rites of his funeral, the apostle was never forsaken by a generous friend, whom he delighted to name his brother, his vicegerent, and the faithful Aaron of a second Moses.” (The Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire, London, volume 5, pp. 381-382).
Washington Irving -(American Author, Biographer and Columnist) says- “He was of the noblest branch of the noble race of Koreish. He possessed the three qualities most prized by Arabs: courage, eloquence, and munificence. His intrepid spirit had gained him from the prophet the appellation of The Lion of God, specimens of his eloquence remain in some verses and sayings preserved among the Arabs; and his munificence was manifested in sharing among others, every Friday, what remained in the treasury. Of his magnanimity, we have given repeated instances; his noble scorn of everything false and mean, and the absence in his conduct of everything like selfish intrigue.”(Lives of the Successors of Mahomet, London, 1850, p. 165)
“He was one of the last and worthiest of the primitive Moslems, who imbibed his religious enthusiasm from companionship with the Prophet himself, and followed to the last the simplicity of his example. He is honorably spoken of as the first Caliph who accorded some protection to Belles-Letter He indulged in the poetic vein himself, and many of his maxims and proverbs are preserved, and have been translated in various languages. His signet bore this inscription: ‘The kingdom belongs to God’. One of his sayings shows the little value he set upon the transitory glories of this world, ‘Life is but the shadow of a cloud – the dream of a sleeper’.”(Lives of the Successors of Mahomet pp. 187-188).
October 30th, 2010 at 5:17 am
We are thankful to all above significiant writers, historians and philosophers about their views about Imam Ali. His truthfulness, wisdom and knowledge cannot be campared with anybody except prophets.