Al-Sindi ibn Shahak
Al-Sindi ibn Shahak | |
|---|---|
| Abbasid Governor of Syria | |
| In office 792–793 | |
| Monarch | Harun ar-Rashid |
| Abbasid Governor of Baghdad Sahib al-Shurta | |
| In office 802–813 | |
| Monarchs | Harun ar-Rashid al-Amin |
| Personal details | |
| Born | Abbasid Caliphate |
| Died | 819 |
| Children | Ibrahim ibn al-Sindi (son) Nasr ibn al-Sindi (son) Kushajim (grandson) |
| Parent | Shahak |
| Military service | |
| Allegiance | Abbasid Caliphate |
| Years of service | 792–813 |
| Battles/wars | Fourth Fitna |
Al-Sindi ibn Shahak (died 819) was a late 8th-century Abbasid general and administrator who served as the governor of Syria, Damascus and Baghdad under al-Mansur, Harun ar-Rashid and al-Amin. As the head of shurta (military police), he oversaw the destruction and confiscation of properties belonging to the Barmakids during the reign of Harun.
Biography[edit]
The origins of Al-Sindi are obscure,[1] was apparently a former slaver from Punjab who had risen to high status.[2] He was a client (mawali) of Abbasid caliph al-Mansur, and served as governor of Syria during his reign.[3] In 792 or 793, he was sent by Harun al Rashid to quell the revolt of Abū al-Hadhām in Damascus as commander of Khurasani troops, where he is mentioned as governor for Musa ibn Isa.[4][5] He commanded the garrison of Damascus (Jund Dimashq) for a few years.[6]
A decade later, he is mentioned as the governor of Baghdad in 802 (186 H) by Ibn al-Jawzi.[7] During the reign of Harun, Al-Sindi was the sahib al-shurta, and oversaw the destruction of Barmakids in 802.[8][5] Shi'a traditions also held him responsible for death of seventh Shia Imam, Musa al-Kazim in 799[9] and Yahya ibn Abdallah, a rebel Alid leader in 803.[10] However, Musa al-Kazim was probably under house arrest in the mansion of Al-Sindi instead of prison. He was treated well, and the sister of Al-Sindi reportedly looked after him.[11] Imam had died in his custody in September 799.[12]
Al-Sindi was one of the leading supporters of al-Amin in his civil war.[5][13] Not much is known about him after the defeat and execution of al-Amin in 813.
Family[edit]
The family of Al-Sindi continued to serve the Abbasid caliphate for multiple decades. His son, Ibrahim ibn al-Sindi, was reportedly a polymath with more than a dozen occupations attributed to him.[14] His friend al-Jahiz stated him to be a philosopher of mutakallimun.[15] According to Jahiz, he was well-versed in grammar, poetry, astrology and medicine.[15] He was also employed in the intelligence service of caliph al-Ma'mun,[3] and served some time as governor of Kufa.[1] His another son, Nasr ibn al-Sindi was also renowned as a historian and traditionist.[16] His grandson, Mahmūd ibn al-Hāsan ibn al-Sindi, commonly known as Kushajim (c. 902 – 970) was a famous court poet and polymath associated with the court of Sayf al-Dawla, the emir of Aleppo. Some of his well-known books include Adab an-nadīm (Etiquette of the Boon-Companion), Kitāb al-maṣāyid wa-l-maṭārid (The Book of Snares and Game), and Khaṣā’iṣ aṭ-ṭarab (The Characteristics of Music).[17][18]
See also[edit]
References[edit]
- ^ a b Pellat, Ch (2012-04-24), "Ibrāhīm b. al-Sindī", Encyclopaedia of Islam, Second Edition, Brill, doi:10.1163/1573-3912_islam_sim_3444, retrieved 2023-11-30
- ^ Ess 2017, p.102: Al-Sindī was the Abbasids’ confidant, apparently a former slaver from Punjab who had risen to high status..
- ^ a b Crone 1980, p. 194.
- ^ Cobb 2001, p. 33, 85.
- ^ a b c Crone 1980, p. 195.
- ^ Cobb 2001, p. 137.
- ^ al-Jawzī, Abū al-Faraj ʻAbd al-Raḥmān ibn ʻAlī Ibn (2016-10-04). The Life of Ibn Ḥanbal. NYU Press. p. 16. ISBN 978-1-4798-0530-3.
- ^ al-Tabari 2015, p. 89.
- ^ Kohlberg 2012.
- ^ Madelung 2002, p. 243.
- ^ Ess 2017, p. 102.
- ^ Ess 2017, p. 101–102.
- ^ Kennedy 2016, p. 128.
- ^ MacLean 1989, p. 281.
- ^ a b Ess 2017, p. 71.
- ^ MacLean 1989, p. 407.
- ^ "On a Miswak by Kushajim – Y'alla". University Blog Service.
- ^ Pellat, Ch (2012-04-24), "Kus̲h̲ād̲j̲im", Encyclopaedia of Islam, Second Edition, Brill, doi:10.1163/1573-3912_islam_sim_4561, retrieved 2023-11-30
Sources[edit]
- Crone, Patricia (1980). Slaves on Horses: The Evolution of the Islamic Polity. Cambridge University Press. ISBN 978-0-521-52940-2.
- Madelung, W. (2002). "Yaḥyā b. ʿAbd Allāh". In Bearman, P. J.; Bianquis, Th.; Bosworth, C. E.; van Donzel, E. & Heinrichs, W. P. (eds.). The Encyclopaedia of Islam, Second Edition. Volume XI: W–Z. Leiden: E. J. Brill. pp. 242–243. ISBN 978-90-04-12756-2.
- al-Tabari (2015). The History of al-Ṭabarī Vol. 28: 'Abbasid Authority Affirmed: The Early Years of al-Manṣūr A.D. 753-763/A.H. 136-145. State University of New York Press. ISBN 978-1-4384-1232-0.
- Ṭabarī (1988). The Early ʻAbbāsī Empire: The reign of Abū Jaʻfar al-Manṣūr, A.D. 754-775. Cambridge University Press. ISBN 978-0-521-32662-9.
- Cobb, Paul M. (2001). White Banners: Contention in ʿAbbasid Syria, 750-880. State University of New York Press. ISBN 978-0-7914-9109-6.
- MacLean, Derryl N. (1989). Religion and Society in Arab Sind. BRILL. ISBN 978-90-04-08551-0.
- Ess, Josef van (2017). Theology and Society in the Second and Third Centuries of the Hijra. Volume 3: A History of Religious Thought in Early Islam. BRILL. ISBN 978-90-04-35640-5.
- Kennedy, Hugh (2016). The Early Abbasid Caliphate: A Political History. Routledge. ISBN 978-1-317-35807-7.
- Kohlberg, E. (2012). "Mūsā Al-Kāẓim". In Bearman, P.; Bianquis, Th.; Bosworth, C.E.; van Donzel, E.; Heinrichs, W.P. (eds.). Encyclopaedia of Islam (Second ed.). Brill Reference Online. doi:10.1163/1573-3912_islam_SIM_5563. ISBN 9789004161214.