Reports on the Khawarij

The Kharijites were once mentioned before Sayyiduna Ali (may Allah be pleased with him), and he said: "Among them is a man whose hand is incomplete. Were I not concerned that you would become exultant, I would certainly tell you what Allah Almighty has promised, on the tongue of His Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him), to those who fight the Kharijites." The narrator said: I said: "Did you yourself hear this from the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him)?" Sayyiduna Ali (may Allah be pleased with him) said: "By the Lord of the Ka'bah, I did hear it." He said this three times.

Yusayr bin Amr said: I asked Sayyiduna Sahl bin Hunayf (may Allah be pleased with him): "Have you heard the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) mention the Kharijites?" He said: "I heard the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him)." He pointed with his blessed hand toward the east and said: "From here will emerge a people who recite the Qur'an with their tongues, but the Qur'an will not go down beyond their throats. They will pass out of the religion of Islam as swiftly as an arrow passes through its target."

It is narrated from Sayyiduna Abdullah (may Allah be pleased with him) that the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "At the end of time a people will appear who are young in age and blind of intellect. When they speak, they will say the finest of what people say. They will recite the Qur'an with their tongues, but the Qur'an will not go down beyond their throats. They will pass out of the religion of Islam as swiftly as an arrow passes through its target. Whoever encounters them, let him kill them, for killing them earns a great reward with Allah."

It is narrated from Sayyiduna Ibn Abi Awfa (may Allah be pleased with him) that the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "The Kharijites are the dogs of Hell."

The Khawarij were mentioned in the presence of Sayyiduna Abu Hurayrah (may Allah be pleased with him), and he said: "These are the worst of people."

Sayyiduna Abu Sa'id al-Khudri (may Allah be pleased with him), in his old age when his hands were trembling, said: "Fighting the Khawarij is dearer to me than fighting an equal number of the Turks."

Nafi' said: When Sayyiduna Ibn Umar (may Allah be pleased with them both) heard about Najdah, that he was coming to Madinah, taking women captive and killing children, Sayyiduna Ibn Umar (may Allah be pleased with them both) said: "Then we cannot allow him to do that." Then he resolved to fight him and urged the people to do so. It was said to him: "The people will not be prepared to fight alongside you, and we fear that you will be left alone." After that, Sayyiduna Ibn Umar (may Allah be pleased with them both) gave up his intention of confronting him.

Al-A'mash said: I heard the predecessors saying that Abd al-Rahman bin Yazid fought against the Khawarij.

It is narrated from Sayyiduna Abu Dharr (may Allah be pleased with him) that the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "After me there will be a people from my Ummah who will recite the Qur'an, but the Qur'an will not go down past their throats. They will leave the religion as an arrow passes out of its target. They will not return to the religion. They are the worst of creation and the worst in character."

Abdullah bin al-Samit said: I mentioned that to Sayyiduna Rafi' bin Amr (may Allah be pleased with him), the brother of al-Ghifari, and he said: "I too have heard it from the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him)."

Amr bin Salamah al-Hamdani said: We were sitting at the door of Sayyiduna Abdullah (may Allah be pleased with him), waiting for him, and he came out and said: "The Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) narrated to us that a people will recite the Qur'an, but the Qur'an will not go down past their throats. They will leave Islam as an arrow passes out of its target." After narrating this hadith, Sayyiduna Abdullah (may Allah be pleased with him) said: "By Allah, I do not know; perhaps most of those connected with them are from among you."

He said: Amr bin Salamah said: We saw most of those people fighting against us alongside the Khawarij on the day of Nahrawan.

Abu Tahya said: Sayyiduna Ali (may Allah be pleased with him) heard a Khariji reciting this verse of the Qur'an in the Fajr prayer: "And it has certainly been revealed to you and to those before you: If you associate partners with Allah, your deeds will surely become worthless, and you will surely be among the losers." [Al-Zumar: 65] Hearing this, Sayyiduna Ali (may Allah be pleased with him) left the surah he was reciting and recited from here: "So be patient. Indeed, the promise of Allah is true. And let not those who have no certainty unsettle you." [Al-Rum: 60]

Abu Ghalib said: I was in the Jami' Mosque of Damascus when people came with the heads of seventy Khawarij (Haruris). These heads were set up on the steps of the mosque. When Sayyiduna Abu Umamah (may Allah be pleased with him) came and looked at their heads, he said: "These are the dogs of Hell. Beneath the sky, these are the worst of those who have been slain, and those whom they killed are the best of the slain beneath the sky." Then he wept, looked at me and said to me: "O Abu Ghalib, are you from the city of these people?" I said: "Yes." He said (I think he said): "May Allah protect you from them." Then he said: "Do you recite Surah Al Imran?" I said: "Yes." He said: "Allah Almighty says: 'In it are verses that are precise; they are the foundation of the Book, and others that are ambiguous. As for those in whose hearts is deviation, they follow what is ambiguous in it, seeking discord and seeking its interpretation. And none knows its interpretation except Allah and those firm in knowledge.' [Al Imran: 7] And Allah Almighty says: 'On the Day when some faces will turn white and some faces will turn black. As for those whose faces turn black: Did you disbelieve after your faith? Then taste the punishment for what you used to deny.'" [Al Imran: 106] Abu Ghalib said: I said: "O Abu Umamah, I saw tears flowing from your eyes; what is the reason for this?" He said: "Yes, tears are flowing from my eyes out of mercy for them. They were among the people of Islam. The Children of Israel divided into seventy-one sects, and this Ummah will have one sect more; all of them will go to Hell except the great majority. Upon them is what they were charged with, and upon you is what you were charged with. If you obey him (the Messenger), you will be guided, and upon the one who conveys the message is only to make it clear. Listening and obeying is better than falling into division and disobedience." A man said to him: "O Abu Umamah, are you saying this from your own opinion, or have you heard it from the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him)?" He said: "If I said this from my own opinion, I would be someone audacious in matters of religion! I heard this from the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) not once or twice, but seven times."

Abu Mijlaz said: Sayyiduna Ali (may Allah be pleased with him) forbade his companions from engaging the Khawarij in battle until they themselves caused trouble. So the Khawarij passed by Abdullah bin Khabbab and seized him. Then one of them picked up a date that had fallen from a palm tree and began to eat it, and another man rebuked him, saying: "This is the date of a dhimmi; how do you consider it lawful?" So he threw the date out of his mouth. Then they passed by a pig, and a man struck it with his sword. Another man rebuked him, saying: "This is the pig of a dhimmi; how do you consider it lawful for yourself?" Abdullah bin Khabbab said: "Shall I not tell you of something more sacred than these things?" They said: "Tell us." Abdullah bin Khabbab said: "It is I." They went forward and cut off the neck of Abdullah bin Khabbab. Then Sayyiduna Ali (may Allah be pleased with him) sent a message to them: "Send the killer of Abdullah bin Khabbab to me." They replied: "How can we send his killer to you? All of us killed him." Sayyiduna Ali (may Allah be pleased with him) asked: "Did all of you kill him?" They said: "Yes." Sayyiduna Ali (may Allah be pleased with him) said "Allahu Akbar" and then ordered his companions to attack them. And he said: "By Allah, ten of you will not be killed, and ten of them will not survive." So the people fought them. Sayyiduna Ali (may Allah be pleased with him) ordered them: "Look for Dhu al-Thudayyah among them." The people searched for him, and he was brought to Sayyiduna Ali (may Allah be pleased with him). He asked: "Who knows him?" Only one man could be found who knew him. He said: "I saw him in al-Hirah. I asked him: 'Where are you going?' He said: 'That way,' and pointed towards Kufah, while I had no knowledge of him." Sayyiduna Ali (may Allah be pleased with him) said: "He is from the jinn; he spoke the truth."

Abu Mijlaz said: When Sayyiduna Ali (may Allah be pleased with him) attacked the Khawarij, the Muslims also fell upon them. By Allah, only nine Muslims were martyred before they annihilated the Khawarij.

Sa'id bin Jumhan said: The Khawarij invited me to join their group, and I was close to joining them. Meanwhile, the sister of Abu Bilal saw Abu Bilal in a dream, covered in shaggy hair, and asked him: "O my brother, what has happened to you?" He said: "After you, we have been made the dogs of Hell."

A man of Banu Abd al-Qays said: I was with the Khawarij, and I saw among them things that I disliked. So I parted from them on the condition that I would not add to their numbers. I was still with a group of them when they saw a man who had come out as if terrified, with a river between them and him. They crossed the river to seize this man and said: "Perhaps we have frightened you." He said: "Yes, something like that." They asked: "Who are you?" The man said: "I am Abdullah bin Khabbab bin al-Aratt." They said: "You have a hadith that you narrate on the authority of your father." He said: "Yes, my father narrated to me from the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him): 'A tribulation is coming. The one sitting in it will be better than the one standing, and the one standing will be better than the one walking. When you meet them, if you can be Allah's slain servant, then be so, but do not be Allah's slaying servant.'" Then they took Abdullah bin Khabbab near the river and cut off his neck. I saw his blood flowing on the water like a sandal strap, not mixing with the water until it passed out of sight. Then they called for a pregnant slave-woman of Abdullah bin Khabbab and ripped open her belly.

Jabalah bin Suhaym and Ibn Nadlah said: Sayyiduna Ali (may Allah be pleased with him) sent an army towards the Khawarij and said to them: "Do not fight the Khawarij until they have been invited to accept the annual stipend they had before and the protection of Allah and His Messenger." But they refused this and reviled us.

Zayd bin Wahb said: Sayyiduna Ali (may Allah be pleased with him) delivered a sermon to us at al-Mada'in, on the bridge of al-Dayzajan. In this sermon he said: "I have been informed that a group is going to come out from the direction of the east, and among them is Dhu al-Thudayyah. I do not know whether these are those people or others." The narrator said: Those people set off to meet one another. The Haruriyyah said: "Do not talk to them the way you talked to them on the day of Harura'. Then they talked to them and you turned back." Then spears began to be used between them. Some of the companions of Sayyiduna Ali (may Allah be pleased with him) said: "Cut the spears." Then they came around and fought them. Twelve or thirteen of the companions of Sayyiduna Ali (may Allah be pleased with him) were martyred. Then he said: "Look for him." They looked for him and found him. Then he said: "By Allah, you did not lie, nor were you lied to. Act and rely. If it were not that you would rely on it, I would tell you what Allah Almighty has decreed for you on the tongue of His Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him)." Then he said: "Some people in Yemen were also with us." The people said: "How is that, O Commander of the Believers?" He said: "Their desires were with us."

Abu Barakah al-Sa'idi said: When Sayyiduna Ali (may Allah be pleased with him) killed Dhu al-Thudayyah, Sayyiduna Sa'd (may Allah be pleased with him) said: "Ibn Abi Talib has killed the snake of the hole."

Abu Razin said: When the arbitration took place at Siffin, the Khawarij left Sayyiduna Ali (may Allah be pleased with him) and went away, abandoning him. The Khawarij were in one army and Sayyiduna Ali (may Allah be pleased with him) in another army. When Sayyiduna Ali (may Allah be pleased with him) returned to Kufah with his army and they went to Harura' with their army, Sayyiduna Ali (may Allah be pleased with him) sent Sayyiduna Ibn Abbas (may Allah be pleased with them both) to them, and he spoke to them, but it had no effect on them. Then Sayyiduna Ali (may Allah be pleased with him) went out to talk to them, discussions took place with them, and all became content with one another. And they returned to Kufah. This contentment lasted two days or so. Then Sayyiduna al-Ash'ath bin Qays (may Allah be pleased with him), who often used to visit Sayyiduna Ali (may Allah be pleased with him), came and said: "The people are saying that you have turned back, for their sake, from disbelief." The next day, or on Friday, Sayyiduna Ali (may Allah be pleased with him) ascended the pulpit, praised and glorified Allah Almighty, and in the sermon admonished them. He mentioned their separation from the people and the matter over which they had separated. Sayyiduna Ali (may Allah be pleased with him) condemned them and their way. When he came down from the pulpit, voices began to come from the corners of the mosque: "There is no rule except Allah's!" Sayyiduna Ali (may Allah be pleased with him) said: "I am waiting for Allah's ruling concerning you." Then, on the pulpit, he signalled to them with his hand to be silent. Meanwhile, one man of the Khawarij came with his fingers on his ears, reciting this verse: "If you associate partners with Allah, your deeds will surely become worthless, and you will surely be among the losers." [Al-Zumar: 65]

Sayyiduna Ibn Abbas (may Allah be pleased with them both) was told about the Khawarij, and their worship and exertions were mentioned. He said: "They do not strive harder than the Jews and the Christians, and yet those too pray."

It was mentioned before Sayyiduna Ibn Abbas (may Allah be pleased with them both) what the Khawarij experience when the Qur'an is recited. He said: "They believe in its clear verses and are destroyed by its ambiguous ones."

Bishr bin Shaghaf said: Sayyiduna Abdullah bin Salam (may Allah be pleased with him) asked me about the Khawarij, and I said: "They are the longest in prayer and the most frequent in fasting. But when they leave the bridge behind them, they shed blood and seize wealth." He said: "You will be asked about them only this. I told them: 'Do not kill Sayyiduna Uthman (may Allah be pleased with him); leave him alone. By Allah, if you leave him for eleven nights, he will die in his bed.' But they did not do so. When any prophet is killed, seventy thousand people are killed in retaliation for him, and when any caliph is killed, thirty-five thousand people are killed in retaliation for him."

Sayyiduna Abu al-Tufayl (may Allah be pleased with him) said: A boy was born in the time of the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him). He prayed for him, took hold of the skin of his forehead and did like this, pressed his forehead and prayed for blessing for him. The narrator said: A hair like the coarse hair of a horse grew on the boy's forehead. Then the boy grew up, and when the time of the Khawarij came, he inclined towards the Khawarij. Then that hair fell from his forehead. His father seized him and tied him up, because he feared that he would join the Khawarij. We met him once, admonished him and said to him: "Do you not see that the blessing of the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) has fallen from your forehead?" We kept on counselling him in this way until he turned back from his opinion. Then Allah Almighty returned the hair to his forehead, and he repented and reformed himself.

The Khawarij were mentioned in the presence of Sayyiduna Abu Hurayrah (may Allah be pleased with him), and he said: "These are the worst of creation."

Abu Barakah al-Sa'idi said: When Sayyiduna Ali (may Allah be pleased with him) killed Dhu al-Thudayyah, Sayyiduna Sa'd (may Allah be pleased with him) said: "Ibn Abi Talib has killed the snake of the hole."

Asim bin Damrah said: The Khawarij rose up against the arbitration and raised the slogan: "There is no rule except Allah's." On this Sayyiduna Ali (may Allah be pleased with him) said: "Indeed, there is no rule except Allah's, but these people say that there is to be no leadership at all, whereas people must have a leader, whether righteous or wicked. The believer works under his leadership, the disbeliever lives his life under it, and Allah Almighty brings it to its appointed term."

Mughirah said: Umar bin Abd al-Aziz debated with the Khawarij, and those of them who were to return returned. One band of them refused to return. Umar bin Abd al-Aziz sent an army of horsemen towards them and ordered them to go to wherever the Khawarij stopped, and not to interfere with them or provoke them. If they killed and spread corruption in the land, they were to attack them and fight them; and if they did not kill and did not spread corruption in the land, they were to leave them and let them go on their way.

Abu Salamah said: I said to Sayyiduna Abu Sa'id al-Khudri (may Allah be pleased with him): "Have you ever heard the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) mentioning the Haruriyyah?" Sayyiduna Abu Sa'id (may Allah be pleased with him) said: "Yes, I heard the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) mentioning a people who would worship. He said: 'You will consider your prayer insignificant in comparison with their prayer, and your fasting insignificant in comparison with their fasting. They will leave the religion as an arrow passes out of its target. He will take his sword, then look at the head of his arrow and find nothing there, look at its rear part and find nothing there either, look at the shaft of his arrow and find nothing there either, then look at the arrow's feathers and be in doubt whether he has seen anything or not.'"

Ghaylan bin Jarir said: I intended to go to Makkah with Abu Qilabah. I asked his permission and said: "May I come in?" He said: "Yes, if you are not a Haruri."

Ka'b said: The one whom the Khawarij kill will have ten lights, and he will be given eight lights more than the light of the martyrs.

Sayyiduna Ibn Umar (may Allah be pleased with them both) said: Najdah and his companions attacked others besides us; had I been among them with my weapon, I would have fought them.

The father of Hasan said: The letter of Umar bin Abd al-Aziz was read out to us. It was written in it that if the Haruris shed inviolable blood and commit highway robbery, then we are free of them; and he ordered that they be fought.

Habib bin Abi Thabit said: I came to Abu Wa'il and asked him about those people whom Sayyiduna Ali (may Allah be pleased with him) fought. I said: "Why did they leave Sayyiduna Ali (may Allah be pleased with him)? Why did they consider his blood lawful? To what did Sayyiduna Ali (may Allah be pleased with him) invite them? And on what basis did Sayyiduna Ali (may Allah be pleased with him) declare their blood lawful?" He said: "When the killing became fierce among the people of Syria at Siffin, Sayyiduna Mu'awiyah (may Allah be pleased with him) and his companions took refuge on a mountain. Sayyiduna Amr bin al-As (may Allah be pleased with him) said: 'Send a copy of the Qur'an to Sayyiduna Ali (may Allah be pleased with him); by Allah, he will not refuse it.' So a man brought the copy of the Qur'an, announcing: 'Between us and you is the Book of Allah: "Have you not seen those who were given a portion of the Scripture? They are invited to the Book of Allah so that it may judge between them, then a party of them turns away, averse."' [Al Imran: 23] Upon this Sayyiduna Ali (may Allah be pleased with him) said: 'Yes, between us and you is the Book of Allah, and I am more bound to act upon it than you.' (2) Then the Khawarij came, and in those days we used to call them 'Qurra'' (reciters). They came carrying their swords on their shoulders and said: 'O Commander of the Believers, shall we not advance against these people so that Allah may judge between us and them?' Upon this Sayyiduna Sahl bin Hunayf (may Allah be pleased with him) said: 'O people, blame your own selves. We were with the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) on the occasion of al-Hudaybiyah. Had we considered fighting good, we would have fought. That was the treaty of peace concluded between the polytheists and the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him). On that occasion Sayyiduna Umar (may Allah be pleased with him) came to the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) and said: "Are we not on the truth and our enemy on falsehood?" The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "Certainly, that is so." Sayyiduna Umar (may Allah be pleased with him) said: "Will our slain not go to Paradise and their slain to Hell?" He (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "That is so." Sayyiduna Umar (may Allah be pleased with him) said: "Then why should we accept humiliation in our religion and turn back, when Allah has not judged between them and us?" The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "O son of al-Khattab, I am the Messenger of Allah, and Allah will never let me be lost." (3) Then Sayyiduna Umar (may Allah be pleased with him), in a state of anger, came to Sayyiduna Abu Bakr (may Allah be pleased with him) and said: "O Abu Bakr, are we not on the truth and our enemy on falsehood?" Sayyiduna Abu Bakr (may Allah be pleased with him) said: "Certainly, that is so." Sayyiduna Umar (may Allah be pleased with him) said: "Will our slain not go to Paradise and their slain to Hell?" Sayyiduna Abu Bakr (may Allah be pleased with him) said: "That is so." Sayyiduna Umar (may Allah be pleased with him) said: "Then why should we accept humiliation in our religion and turn back, when Allah has not judged between them and us?" Sayyiduna Abu Bakr (may Allah be pleased with him) said: "O son of al-Khattab, he is the Messenger of Allah, and Allah will never let him be lost." (4) Then Allah Almighty revealed Surah al-Fath to the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him). He sent someone to call Sayyiduna Umar (may Allah be pleased with him) and recited this surah before him. Sayyiduna Umar (may Allah be pleased with him) said: "O Messenger of Allah, is this a victory?" He said: "Yes." Then he became happy and went back.' (5) After this Sayyiduna Ali (may Allah be pleased with him) said: 'O people, this is a victory.' Then Sayyiduna Ali (may Allah be pleased with him) accepted this decision and went back, and the people also went back. (6) After Sayyiduna Ali (may Allah be pleased with him) accepted this decision, more than ten thousand of the Khawarij went off to Harura'. Sayyiduna Ali (may Allah be pleased with him) adjured them by Allah to come back, but they refused. Then Sa'sa'ah bin Suhan came to them, adjured them by Allah and asked them: 'On what basis will you fight your caliph?' They said: 'We fear tribulation.' He said: 'Then do not hasten to this year's misguidance out of fear of next year's tribulation.' They went back and said: 'We are going to our own region. If Sayyiduna Ali (may Allah be pleased with him) accepts the decision, we will fight them as we fought on the day of Siffin, and if he breaks it, we will fight alongside him.' (7) Then they set off, and when they reached Nahrawan, a party separated from them and began to cut people down with killing. Their companions said: 'Woe to you! Was it for this that we parted from Sayyiduna Ali (may Allah be pleased with him)?' When this news of them reached Sayyiduna Ali (may Allah be pleased with him), he stood among the people and delivered a sermon, saying in it: 'What do you think? Will you go to the people of Syria, or will you turn back to those who have come in your absence upon your children?' They said: 'No, rather we will turn back to them.' Then he mentioned their matter and narrated about them what the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) said concerning them: "A party will emerge at the time of the people's disagreement; the nearer of the two groups to the truth will kill them. Their sign is a man among them whose hand is like a woman's breast." So they marched until they met at Nahrawan and fought a fierce battle. The cavalry of Sayyiduna Ali (may Allah be pleased with him) could not stand against them. Sayyiduna Ali (may Allah be pleased with him) stood up and said: 'O people, if you are fighting only for me, then by Allah I have nothing with which to reward you; and if you are fighting only for Allah, then let this not be your fighting.' Then the people made a single charge, and the cavalry cleared away from them, and they lay prone on their faces. Sayyiduna Ali (may Allah be pleased with him) said: 'Look for the man among them.' The people searched but did not find him, until some of them said: 'Ibn Abi Talib has deceived us about our brothers until we killed them.' Tears came to the eyes of Sayyiduna Ali (may Allah be pleased with him). He called for his mount, rode it and set off until he came to a hollow in which the slain lay one upon another. He began to pull at their feet until he found the man beneath them, and they dragged him out. Sayyiduna Ali (may Allah be pleased with him) said: 'Allah is the Greatest!' The people rejoiced and went back. Sayyiduna Ali (may Allah be pleased with him) said: 'I will not go on campaign this year,' and he returned to Kufah and was killed. Sayyiduna al-Hasan (may Allah be pleased with him) was appointed caliph after him and followed the way of his father, and then he sent the pledge of allegiance to Sayyiduna Mu'awiyah (may Allah be pleased with him)."

Zayd bin Wahb said: On the day of Nahrawan, Sayyiduna Ali (may Allah be pleased with him) encountered the Khawarij. The spears kept thrusting, and the Khawarij were killed. Sayyiduna Ali (may Allah be pleased with him) said: "Look for Dhu al-Thudayyah among them," but even after searching he was not found. Sayyiduna Ali (may Allah be pleased with him) said: "I have not lied, nor have I been lied to. Look for him." When they searched again, he was lying in a hollow in the ground with some of the slain on top of him. On his hand was something like the whiskers of a cat. On seeing this, Sayyiduna Ali (may Allah be pleased with him) and the people said "Allahu Akbar", and the people were delighted and Sayyiduna Ali (may Allah be pleased with him) was also delighted.

A man of Banu Nasr bin Mu'awiyah said: We were with Sayyiduna Ali (may Allah be pleased with him) when the Khawarij came to be mentioned. A man reviled them, and Sayyiduna Ali (may Allah be pleased with him) said: "Do not revile them. If they rebel against a just imam, then fight them; and if they rebel against an oppressive imam, then do not fight them, for they have a right to speak."

Sharik bin Shihab al-Harithi said: I wished to meet one of the companions of the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) who would tell me about the Khawarij. I met Sayyiduna Abu Barzah al-Aslami (may Allah be pleased with him) on the day of Arafah; he was with a few of his companions. I said to him: "Tell me something you heard from the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) about the Khawarij." He said: "I will relate to you about them an incident that my ears heard and my eyes saw. It so happened that some dinars were brought to the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him). He began to distribute them. With him was a black man with clipped hair, wearing two white garments, with the mark of prostrations between his eyes. He kept coming close to the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him), wanting to take those dinars from him, but he did not give them to him. He came from the direction of his blessed face, but he gave him nothing; he came from the right side, and he gave him nothing; then he came from the left side, and he still gave him nothing; then he came from behind, and still he gave him nothing. Then he said: 'O Muhammad, today you have not acted justly in the distribution.' At this the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) became very angry and said three times: 'By Allah, you will not find anyone more just towards you than me.' Then he said: 'People will rise against you from the direction of the east; this man is one of them. Their way will be that they will recite the Qur'an, but the Qur'an will not go down past their throats. They will leave the religion as an arrow passes out of its target, and then they will not return to it.' Then he placed his hand on his chest and said: 'Shaving the head will be their mark. They will keep on emerging until the last of them comes out with the Dajjal, the False Messiah.' Then he said three times: 'When you see them, kill them.' Then he said three times: 'They are the worst of people in creation and in character.'"

It is narrated from Sayyiduna Jabir bin Abdullah (may Allah be pleased with him) that the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "A people will come who will recite the Qur'an, but the Qur'an will not go down past their throats. They will leave the religion as an arrow passes out of its target, right to its notch."