al-Tafdil bayn al-Khulafa al-Arbaa - ضمن "Athar al-Muallimi
- Author died
- 1386 AH
- Editions
- Dār ‘Ālam al-Fawā’id lil-Nashr wa-al-Tawzī‘
al-Tafdil bayn al-Khulafa al-Arba‘a (Preference among the Four Caliphs) is a concise theological treatise by the Yemeni scholar Abd al-Rahman al-Mu'allimi (1311–1386 AH / 1894–1966 CE) examining the question of comparative excellence and the order of succession among the Rightly Guided Caliphs.
Composition and Manuscript
The author did not assign a specific title to the work; it was designated al-Tafdil bayn al-Khulafa al-Arba‘a by its editor and published as the ninth treatise in the collection of creed-related works within his multi-volume collected writings, Athar al-Mu‘allimi. The text spans eight printed pages and is preserved in a single holographic manuscript in al-Mu'allimi's handwriting, consisting of two folios held in the Library of the Holy Mosque in Mecca (Maktabat al-Haram al-Makki al-Sharif) under collection number 4696.
Content and Method
al-Mu'allimi opens by stating that although determining rank was originally part of religion to accord people their rightful standing, disputation over relative superiority has become a distraction exploited by Satan. He argues that absolute ranking lacks a decisive metric:
- If assessed by standing before God, it belongs to the unseen realm (al-ghayb) known only to God.
- If evaluated by their service in establishing the religion and benefiting Muslims, all four Caliphs contributed profoundly, and the full extent of such benefit cannot be definitively measured.
- If judged by textual reports, abundant narrations exist indicating or explicitly asserting the virtues of each of them, while sectarian bias (ta‘assub) has compromised historical traditions through suppression and fabrication.
He notes that the Caliphs themselves did not occupy themselves with debating their relative superiority, but rather acknowledged one another's virtues. Regarding interpersonal grievances that arose among them, he explains that temporary estrangement occurred even among righteous figures and prophets—such as Moses and Aaron, or the sons of Jacob—and that any friction between the Caliphs dissolved during their lifetimes.
Succession and the Order of Caliphate
al-Mu'allimi observes that leadership (imamah) in Islam is determined by practical aptitude and competence for the circumstances of the time rather than strict absolute superiority in personal virtue, citing the Prophet's appointment of Amr ibn al-As over senior Companions due to his military expertise.
He outlines four distinct aspects of divine wisdom behind the historical sequence of caliphs and the delay of Ali ibn Abi Talib's rule:
- Prophets were generally commissioned at forty years of age, and Ali was under forty at the deaths of the Prophet ﷺ and Abu Bakr.
- Divine knowledge decreed that each of the four possessed a rightful role in governance; had Ali assumed office first, given his longer lifespan, the other three would not have ruled unless he died prematurely or was deposed, the latter of which would have caused severe strife. Thus, their succession was arranged according to their respective lifespans.
- Had Ali assumed the caliphate immediately as the Prophet's close relative, opponents, hypocrites, and non-Muslims would have claimed Islam instituted hereditary dynastic monarchy, creating a pretext for subsequent rulers to designate their sons or relatives.
- God endowed each Caliph with innate temperaments suited to the specific crises of his era, such as Abu Bakr's firmness during the Apostasy Wars (Riddah) and Umar's suitability for the period of Islamic consolidation.
al-Mu'allimi concludes that these considerations do not aim to establish a definitive assertion of Ali's superiority, but rather to demonstrate that multiple factors are plausible, thereby necessitating suspension of judgment (tawaqquf) regarding categorical ranking.
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