My Journey with the Book of Asad Bin Hafiz’s “Crusade Series”: Salahuddin Ayyubi, the Great Men of Islam-By Md. Naimul Islam Farhan
“If you want to destroy any nation without war, make adultery or nudity common in the young generation”- Salahuddin Ayyubi.
It was the famous sentence of Salahuddin Ayyubi which I like so much, and which is very much related to the current world. Crusade Series was written by the Asab Bin Hafiz which was a story of Yusuf ibn Ayyub, commonly known as Saladin Ayyubi who was born to parents of Kurdish ancestry in Tikrit, Iraq in 1137 AD. Since 2017, I started to read “Crusade Series” where I have very deep experience on Islam, Christianity, Jerusalem, Muslim civilization and history and of course, the warrior of Islam, Salahuddin Ayyubi.
However, Saladin Ayubi was born into the Islamic world which at the time was in much turmoil. Almost all the major coastal towns on the East Mediterranean were captured and ruled by the Crusader invaders. Jerusalem (the claimed target of Crusaders) was of course already under foreign ruthless domination (World Bulletin, 2015).
The Wars against Crusaders and the Capture of Jerusalem: A Great Warrior in Islam Needs No introduction
Sultan Salahuddin Ayyubi, the hero of hundreds of battles, was the person who fought for twenty years braved the storm of the Crusaders and ultimately pushed back the combined forces to Europe. The Crusades represent the maddest and the longest war in the history of mankind, in which the storm of savage fanaticism of the Christian West burst in all its fury over western Asia. He defeated the Crusaders, known to Muslims as the Franks, and recaptured Jerusalem in 1187. In 1099 Jerusalem fell to the First Crusaders. They slaughtered its Christian, Muslim and Jewish inhabitants, after promising them safety. In 1187, Salahuddin destroyed King Guy’s army at the Horns of Hettin and recovered Jerusalem.
Contribution and Nobility of Salahuddin Ayyubi
When Islam faced a massive attack from Crusader Europe, it was Salahuddin who united the Muslims and led them to victory over the enemy. Salahuddin rescued Jerusalem from the Crusaders and fought off one of the most menacing enemies that Muslims have ever faced. In stark contrast to the Crusades, Salahuddin, adhering to the teachings of Islam, did not slaughter the city’s Christian inhabitants. Salahuddin’s noble act won him the respect of his opponents throughout the world including Richard the Lionheart. His generosity and sense of honor in negotiating the peace treaty that ended the Crusade won him the lasting admiration and gratitude of the Christian world.
Legacy of Salahuddin Ayubi
Salahuddin Ayubi known as Saladin in the Western World, this great Muslim sultan is widely revered as the ideal of a warrior who is fierce in battle and generous to his enemies. Saladin used to perform the five obligatory prayers on time, along with the supererogatory prayers. He never prayed except in congregation, and he never delayed a prayer. He died aged 57, March 4, 1193. His estate was only 47 dirhems and one dinar (World Bulletin, 2017).
Md. Naimul Islam Farhan is a student of Dhaka University Laboratory School and College.