By: Seyyed Ali Shahbaz
     
 “Hasan and Husain are Imams (Divinely-Designated Leaders), whether they sit (make peace) or rise (with the sword against deviation).”
This statement from no less a personality than the Almighty’s Last and Greatest Messenger to all mankind with the universal message of Islam, is proof of the unrivalled merits of his two grandsons, whom he also hailed as “Leaders of the Youth of Paradise”.
The merits of these two brothers who salvaged Islam in two different ways within a period of twenty years in accordance with the political conditions of their times against two avowed enemies of the mission of Prophet Muhammad (SAWA), are mentioned in books of hadith and history of even Sunni Muslims.    
In 41 AH, if Imam Hasan’s (AS) masterstroke of truce to relinquish political rule that was worthless when compared to his spiritual authority unmasked the hypocrisy of the Omayyad rebel Mu’awiyya ibn Abu Sufyan, in 61 AH brother Imam Husain’s (AS) martyrdom on the battlefield exposed Yazid ibn Mu’awiyya as a heathen with no connection to Islam.
In other words, as Imam Husain (AS) supported his elder brother’s decision to kick away the caliphate in order to uncover Mu’awiyya as a crafty criminal undermining Islam, had Imam Hasan (AS) seen the Godless Yazid seize the reins of caliphate, he would have risen like his younger brother to court martyrdom on the battlefield in order to save Islam.
To be more precise, the mission of a Divinely-Designated Leader is to preserve the genuine teachings of Prophet Muhammad (SAWA) in the face of apostasy, hypocrisy, distortion, and deviation, through political prudence on the firm basis of spirituality and as per the changing circumstances, as was demonstrated by the Commander of the Faithful, Imam Ali ibn Abi Taleb (AS).
In 11 AH when his right of political leadership so clearly specified by Prophet Muhammad on 18th Zilhijja 10 AH at Ghadeer-Khom, was usurped by a group of neo Muslims, Imam Ali (AS), the person who had single-handedly won many a crucial battle, didn’t unsheathe his sword. He instead allowed the self-styled caliphs to continue their rule of the Islamic state, apprehensive that an armed encounter would make the majority of the Arabs revert to paganism. In addition, it would have indicated that he was thirsty for power at all costs.
Yet, a quarter century later when the caliphate came begging at his doorstep, and Imam Ali (AS) reluctantly assumed political power to save a leaderless society, he did not sit quiet against the oath-breakers, seditionists, and renegades. He had to crush their rebellions on the battlefields of Jamal, Siffeen, and Nahrwan, for the sake of preserving Muslim unity and the genuine teachings of Prophet Muhammad (SAWA), even if it required martyrdom.
Thus, as the Divinely Designated Heirs to their Immaculate Father, both Imam Hasan (AS) and Imam Husain (AS), for the sake of Islam adopted prudent policies, irrespective of the loss of the caliphate for the elder brother, or the loss of life for the younger brother.
Since today, the Seventh of Safar -- according to a narration – is the anniversary of the martyrdom of Imam Hasan al-Mujtaba (AS) in 50 AH, it will not be out of context to focus briefly on his political perspectives, which he brilliantly outlined in his sermons:
“Politics means observing the rights of God and the rights of the living, and the rights of the dead. The rights of God mean that you should obey His orders, and avoid what He forbids. The rights of the living mean that you should observe your duty to your brethren and not tarry in serving your people. You should be faithful to the one in (legitimate) authority among you as long as he is faithful to the people. You should speak up in his face should he deviate from the right path. The rights of the dead mean that you should remember their good deeds and overlook their bad ones. They have a Lord, Who shall ask them about whatever they did.”
Imam Hasan (AS), following the martyrdom of his father on 21st Ramadhan 40 AH, was acknowledged by the masses as the caliph of a realm stretching  from North Africa to the borders of China (presently made up of at least 20 countries). It was a vast realm whose western parts were being gradually seized by the thirst for political power of Mu’awiyya and his comrade-in-crimes against Islam, Amr bin Aas.
Imam Hasan (AS) showed his political astuteness by mobilizing a force of 40,000 and marching to meet the enemy. When, however, he found that the satanic stratagem of Mu’awiyya, whose killing and pillaging of Muslims, coupled with pretensions for peace, had weakened the faith 
of the Iraqis and made them lose the stomach to fight deviation, he decided to relinquish the caliphate, but on certain conditions, in order to expose falsehood.
In addition to the hypocrites within his own ranks who twice attempted to assassinate him, and the treason of his military commander Obaidollah ibn Abbas, who bribed by Mu’awiyya, deserted and demoralized the army, Imam Hasan (AS) was aware of the fact that Emperor Constantine IV of Byzantine (Eastern Roman Empire) was closely watching events in the Islamic world. 
The Christian power was looking for an opportunity to seize Bayt al-Moqaddas (Jerusalem) by taking advantage of the intended civil war of Mu’awiyya in Iraq.
This is further proof of the political foresight of Imam Hasan (AS), whose God-given spiritual powers no political usurper could seize nor any traitor harm. He thus deemed it prudent to give up political power in order to save Islam and Muslims from both Omayyad hypocrisy and European hegemony.
Mu’awiyya was a pagan at heart and a reluctant convert to Islam (as late as 8 AH at the peaceful surrender of Mecca to Muslims), but the fall of Palestine to the Byzantines would make Syrians, and even of Egyptians (new converts to Islam), to return to Christianity and place their countries again under Romans. 
Moreover, Imam Hasan (AS), like his father Imam Ali (AS), had neither attachment to worldly rule as power-hungry and unprincipled politicians have, nor was heedless of the people’s needs and sufferings in an atmosphere where beliefs were still confounded because of the sedition wrought at Saqifa Bani Sa’da no sooner had his grandfather left the world.         
Thus on 26th Rabi al-Awwal 41 AH, after six months as caliph, he took the politically prudent step of concluding the treaty with Mu’awiyya that was as decisive as the Prophet’s Treaty of Hudaybiya with the Meccan infidels, which God hails as “Fath al-Mobeen” (Manifest Victory) in the Holy Qur’an (48:1).
It is worth recalling that at Hudaybiya in 7 AH, while the 4-year old Imam Hasan (AS) was endeared by Muslims as “Rayhanat ar-Rasoul” (Basil of the Prophet), the 27-year old Mu’awiyya was still a pagan and an open enemy of Islam, along with his equally accursed parents, Abu Sufyan and Hind.
The treaty that Mu’awiyya soon breached, stipulated rule of the realm in accordance with the Holy Qur’an and Prophet’s Sunnah. Ending the pagan practice of insulting the name of Imam Ali (AS); refraining from shedding Muslim blood; no right to nominate a successor; return of the caliphate to Imam Hasan (AS); assignment of the revenues of Darabgard near Shiraz for the upkeep of the families of martyrs of the wars imposed upon Imam Ali (AS).
Mu’awiyya trampled the terms of the treaty, but soon, to the horror of the deceived Iraqis, threatening them with mass massacre if they oppose Omayyad policies. The ingrates learned the hard way not to trust the occupiers and the enemies of the Ahl al-Bayt.
For his part, Imam Hasan (AS) retired to Medina to carry on the mission of his grandfather, but continued to warm Mu’awiyya of the consequences, as is clear from the following letter:
“Woe to you, Mu’awiyya! The true caliph is that who adheres to the Sunnah (practice and behaviour) of the Messenger of God (SAWA) and his actions prove his obedience to God. By my life, we (the Ahl al-Bayt) are surely the Signs of Guidance and the Lampposts of Piety. You Mu’awiya are one of those who distorted the Sunnah, revived heresies, mistreated God’s servants as slaves and God’s wealth as means of play... You will live for a short time and bear the burden of your evildoings.”
In 50 AH, Imam Hasan (AS) attained martyrdom due to a fatal dose of poison by a hireling of Mu’awiyya, who in 60 AH imposed his libertine son, Yazid, as heir – an abominable crime in the history that was defeated at Karbala by Imam Husain (AS) who sacrificed his life to salvage Islam in 61 AH.