The Conditions of the Peace Treaty
The peace treaty between (Imam ) Hasan bin Ali (as) and Moawiya bin Abee Sufyan was signed on the following terms and conditions:
1. Hasan (as) would hand over the rule, or government, to Moawiya provided he acts according to the Holy Book of God, the Sunnah of the Holy Prophet (saww) and the character of pious and virtuous caliphs;
2. Moawiya does not have a right to nominate anyone after him. The rule would be handed back to Hasan (as) after him, or according to some narrations, it would be left to a consultative body ('shoora') of Muslims;
3. The life, property and honour of the general public, whether black or white, belonging to Syria, Iraq, Tihama, Hijaz or which ever area, would be safeguarded;
4. The life, property, and honour of Shias of (Imam) Ali (as) and their family members, will be protected and Moawiya bin Abee Sufyan is bound by the covenant of Almighty God in this respect and he will honour his covenant with Almighty God in this regard;
5. Moawiya will not take any open or secret action against (Imam) Hasan bin Ali (as) or against Ahle Bait (as) of the Holy Prophet (saww) and he will not try to terrorize them anywhere on earth;
6. (Imam) Ali (as) will be remembered with honour and dignity and he will not be reviled; according to some narrations, in the life time of (Imam) Hasan (as) no abusive language against Hazrat Ali (as) will be used;
7. Moawiya will hand over the Bait-ul-Maal of Koofa and the revenue of Darab Jard (Darabgard) to him (Imam Hasan (as)) so that he may meet his expenses from the same and may repay the debt and other dues;
"Hasan (as) would hand over the rule, or government, to Moawiya provided he acts according to the Holy Book of God, the Sunnah of the Holy Prophet (saww) and the character of pious and virtuous caliphs;" 11
In the above first condition, many points have to be thoroughly studied: The Imam (as), by demanding Moawiya to follow the Book and Sunnah as the first condition of the Treaty, proved that acting according to the Book and Sunnah was the ideal goal of the Imam (as), and if he was handing over the reign temporarily to Moawiya, then only his steps in accordance with the Shariah would be considered legal. Accordingly, if Moawiya went against the said condition and Imam Hasan (as) were able to rule again, then he would have the legal right to claim it back from Moawiya. In fact, the Imam (as) had restricted the actions of Moawiya to be within law and constitution. Incidentally, by adding the virtuous character of pious caliphs as a condition, he had by implication also proved that his father was a pious and virtuous caliph and the feelings and ideas of Moawiya about him were wrong. If earlier his father had not accepted the condition (of following the previous caliphs) in the 'Shoora' of Hazrat Umar, it was due to the fact that he did not consider their style in accordance with religious standard and he himself had better grasp and understanding than them of the issues relating to the Holy Quran and Sunnah.
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11. Ibne A'sam - 'Al Futooh', vol. 4, p.160; Bala Zari - Al-Ansaab al Ashraaf, vol. 3 p....; Ibne Abee al Hadeed, 'Sharhe Nahjul Balagha', Cairo: Dar Ahya al Kutub al Arabia, 1962, vol. 16, p.22; Hasan Kamil al Maltavi - 'Al Imam al Hasan bin Ali', p.121; Raazi Aale Yasin - 'Sulh-ul Hasan', Qum, Manshooraat al Razi, 1993, p.259. Husain Mohammad Ja'fari - 'The Origins and Early Development of Shia Islam', Qum, Ansarian Publications, p.152;
Adpted from the book: "Imam Hasan and Caliphate" by: "Qurrat-ul-Ain Abidiy"