Muawiya ibn Abi Sufyan Amir al-Muminin wa Katib Wahy al-Nabi al-Amin - Kashf Shubuhat wa Radd Muftarayat
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- Dar al-Khulafa' al-Rashidin
Muʿāwiya ibn Abī Sufyān Amīr al-Muʾminīn wa-Kātib Waḥy al-Nabī al-Amīn: Kashf Shubuhāt wa-Radd Muftarayāt (Arabic: معاوية بن أبي سفيان أمير المؤمنين وكاتب وحي النبي الأمين ﷺ - كشف شبهات ورد مفتريات, lit. 'Muʿāwiya ibn Abī Sufyān, Commander of the Faithful and Scribe of the Faithful Prophet's Revelation: Unveiling Doubts and Refuting Fabrications') is a contemporary Arabic biographical and apologetic work compiled by the Egyptian author Shehata Saqr . The book presents a defense of the Companion and first Umayyad caliph Muʿawiya ibn Abi Sufyan from a Sunni perspective, highlighting his virtues, political career, and merits while refuting historical accusations and polemical claims directed against him .
Background and Purpose
The compiler prepared the book in response to sectarian and modern polemics concerning early Islamic history, arguing that Muʿawiya has been subjected to extensive distortion, fabricated accounts, and partisan misrepresentations in historical sources . The text is framed around orthodox Sunni theological principles asserting the collective probity (taʿdīl) of the Companions of the Prophet, the prohibition of reviling them, and the necessity of adhering to sound chains of transmission when assessing historical events and interpersonal disputes among early Muslims .
The work includes a foreword and linguistic review by Anwar al-Sanūsi, head of the Arabic Department at the Faculty of Education in Damanhur .
Structure and Content
The book combines biographical history with systematic polemical refutations:
- Biography and Virtues: The introductory sections provide an overview of Muʿawiya's lineage, family, conversion, physical description, and role as a scribe of prophetic revelation . It compiles scriptural virtues and prophetic supplications reported in his favor—such as leading the early naval expeditions—along with praises from early Companions, Successors, and classical scholars .
- Political History and Governance: The historical narrative covers his twenty-year tenure as governor of Syria under the caliphates of Umar ibn al-Khattab and Uthman ibn Affan, followed by his twenty-year rule as caliph . It addresses his military conquests (futūḥāt), administrative conduct, the events of the civil strife with Ali ibn Abi Talib, the Arbitration (al-taḥkīm), and the subsequent peace treaty with Al-Hasan ibn Ali .
- Refutation of Doubts (Kashf al-Shubuhāt): The central part of the book addresses thirty-five distinct polemical doubts and allegations predominantly advanced by Shiʿi and critical sources . The author responds to specific hadith narrations (such as contextualizing the supplication لَا أَشْبَعَ اللهُ بَطْنَهُ ["May Allah not satisfy his belly"]), the classification of Muʿawiya among the ṭulaqāʾ (freed captives of Mecca), claims concerning his motives in the conflict with Ali, and allegations that he instituted cursing from the pulpits .
Sources and Distribution
The compilation relies on classical Sunni historiographical and theological works, including Ibn Kathir's Al-Bidaya wa-l-Nihaya, Ibn Asakir's Tarikh Dimashq, and Abu Bakr ibn al-Arabi's Al-Awasim min al-Qawasim, alongside contemporary studies by authors such as Ibn Taymiyya (as edited by Muhammad Mal-Allah), Uthman al-Khamis, and Abd al-Muhsin al-Abbad .
The book was distributed in Egypt through Dar al-Khulafa' al-Rashidin in Alexandria, Maktabat al-Usuli in Damanhur, and Maktabat Dar al-Ulum in Abu Hummus .
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