Sulayman ibn Sard

[glorfindel]

Salam all,

I have been reading about the tawwaboun movement that emerged after the tragedy of Kerbala, there is a claim that Sulayman bin Sard, who was one of the leaders of the group, was a companion of the prophet (saw) can anyone verify whether he was a tabi' or a companion.

[muslim720]

Wa alaykum as salaam wa rahmatullah,

On a hunch, especially after I recently heard Syed Ali of Bayat-al-Ghadeer reference him during a discussion with brother Adnan Rashid, I went in research mode.  By the way, Syed Ali pronounced his name as "ibn Sard" and said he is also known as "ibn Surad".  So "ibn Sard" or "ibn Surad", same thing (according to Syed Ali).

Whether he was a Sahabi or not, it is established that he was a Shia.  In "The Origins and Early Development of Shi`a Islam", SHM Jaffari reports: "Let us give command of our affairs to Shaykh ash-Shi`a, the companion of the Prophet, possessor of priority in Islam, Sulayman b. Surad, the one praised for his intrepidity and for his religion and the one who has been dependable and reliable in his judiciousness and prudence (Hazm)."  Source: http://www.chiite.fr/en/history_07.html

Furthermore, WikiShia also lists him as "an honorable Shi'a of Kufa".  It says that Al-Tusi listed Sulayman as a Sahabi but may have done so in accordance with Sunni sources.  Source: http://en.wikishia.net/view/Sulayman_b._Surad_al-Khuza%27i

In other words, as far as Shi'i sources are concerned, he is a Shia.  As for their claim that Sunni sources list him as a Sahabi, I would let someone knowledgeable shed light on it. 

[muslim720]

The Wikipedia article paints a much colorful picture of Sulayman ibn Surad.  While it says he was, according to some sources, one of the second generation of Muslims (tabi'un), majority of sources assert that he was a Sahabi. 

But, here is where it gets interesting!  He fought alongside Imam Ali (ra) in the Battle of Siffin and when Imam Ali (ra) sought reconciliation with Muawiya, Sulayman strongly opposed the decision.  He was also critical of Imam Hassan (ra) for having entrusted Muawiya with the Caliphate and when Imam Hassan (ra) died, he tried to persuade Imam Hussain (ra) to revolt against Muawiya.  In fact, he, and other prominent pro-Alids of Kufa, urged Imam Hussain (ra) to lead them in revolt against Yazid but failed to aid him.  Why did he fail to aid Imam Hussain (ra)?  Allahu aalim!

From that bit alone, he sounds like an expert in Shi'i switch-and-bait tactic.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sulayman_ibn_Surad