Bayhaqi 16740 — The Khawarij are not fought first until they are asked

It is narrated from Sayyiduna Abdullah bin Abbas (may Allah be pleased with them both) that when the Haruriyyah came out, they were six thousand. I came to Sayyiduna Ali (may Allah be pleased with him) and said: "O Commander of the Believers, delay the Zuhr prayer until it is cooler, so that I may go to these people and speak with them." He said: "I fear for you." I said: "Not at all." He says: I went out, put on an excellent Yemeni robe (hullah), and went to them. They were all gathered in a house. I greeted them with salam; they welcomed me and asked: "What is this robe?" I said: "You find fault with this robe! I have seen the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) in a finer robe than this, and this verse was also revealed: 'Say: Who has forbidden the adornment of Allah which He has brought forth for His servants, and the good things of provision?' [Surah al-A'raf: 32]." They said: "Why have you come?" I said: "I have come from the Companions, the Muhajirun and the Ansar, to convey their words to you and yours to them. The Qur'an was revealed in their time, they know the revelation better than you, and there is not one of those people among you." Some of them said: "Do not argue with Quraysh, for Allah says: 'Rather, they are a quarrelsome people' [Surah al-Zukhruf: 58]." Sayyiduna Abdullah bin Abbas (may Allah be pleased with them both) says: I have never seen people exceed them in striving (in worship): their faces were swollen from staying awake at night, their hands and feet seemed dried up, and on their bodies were garments soaked with sweat. Some of them said: "We will certainly speak with him and consider what he says." I said: "Tell me, what grievance do you have against Sayyiduna Ali (may Allah be pleased with him), his group, the Muhajirun and the Ansar?" They said: "Three." I said: "Which are they?" The first is that he made men judges in the affair of Allah, whereas Allah says: 'The judgment belongs only to Allah' [Surah al-An'am: 57]; so what have men to do with judgment? I said: "That is one." I said: "The second grievance?" They said that they fought one another, yet no one took anyone captive nor seized any spoils: if one side were disbelievers, why were they not taken as captives and spoils? And if both were Muslims, how did fighting them become lawful? I said: "That makes two; tell me the third." They said that he erased 'Commander of the Believers' from beside his name — so is he then the commander of the disbelievers? I said: "Do you have any other objection?" They said: "No." I said: "If I answer your objections from the Qur'an and the Sunnah, will you accept?" They said: "Yes." So I said to them: "As for your objection that he made men judges in the affair of Allah (that is, had them decide): I will recite to you a verse of the Qur'an in which judgment was referred to men, concerning a quarter of a dirham's worth, regarding a hare and other game like it. He said: 'O you who believe, do not kill game while you are in the state of ihram' [Surah al-Ma'idah: 95]. So tell me: you accept their judgment concerning a hare, yet why do you not accept them as judges over their own blood and for reconciliation among themselves? (This) if you know that, had Allah willed, He would have judged between them Himself and not referred it to men. And concerning husband and wife Allah says: 'And if you fear a breach between the two, then send an arbiter from his family and an arbiter from her family; if they both desire reconciliation, Allah will bring about agreement between them' [Surah al-Nisa': 35]. So appointing arbiters among people is an established way of Allah. Is this objection of yours refuted by this?" They said: "Yes."
And as for your saying that they fought one another but took no captives and seized no spoils: I ask you, would you take your mother, Sayyidah Aishah (may Allah be pleased with her), captive, and would the same things then become lawful with her that are lawful with others? If you say yes, it is lawful, you are disbelievers, for she is your mother; and if you deny that she is your mother, you are disbelievers then too, for the Lord of the worlds says: 'The Prophet is closer to the believers than their own selves, and his wives are their mothers' [Surah al-Ahzab: 6]. You are in misguidance on both sides; now fall into whichever misguidance you please. They began looking at one another. Sayyiduna Abdullah bin Abbas (may Allah be pleased with them both) asked: "Have I answered this one too?" They said: "Yes." He said: "As for your third objection, that he removed the title 'Commander of the Believers' from his name, I will give you a proof that you will surely accept. You have heard the hadith of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) which says that on the day of al-Hudaybiyah, when the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) drew up a written agreement with the polytheists — on whose side were Suhayl bin Amr and Abu Sufyan — the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said to the Commander of the Believers: 'O Ali, write: This is a peace agreement from Muhammad, the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him).' The polytheists said: 'No, by Allah! If we accepted you as the Messenger of Allah, what would the quarrel be about?' He (peace and blessings be upon him) said: 'O Allah, You know that I am Your Messenger.' O Ali, write it thus: 'This is a peace agreement from Muhammad bin Abdullah (peace and blessings be upon him).' And the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) is more virtuous and better than the Commander of the Believers; so when the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) had these words erased from his name, did his prophethood come to an end?" Sayyiduna Abdullah bin Abbas (may Allah be pleased with them both) says: Two thousand men from that group came back, and all the rest were killed upon misguidance.