Al-Sindi ibn Shahak
Abbasid Governor of Syria
In office
792–793
MonarchHarun ar-Rashid
Abbasid Governor of Baghdad
Sahib al-Shurta
In office
802–813
MonarchsHarun ar-Rashid
al-Amin
Personal details
BornAbbasid Caliphate
Died819
ChildrenIbrahim ibn al-Sindi (son)
Nasr ibn al-Sindi (son)
Kushajim (grandson)
ParentShahak
Military service
AllegianceAbbasid Caliphate
Years of service792–813
Battles/warsFourth 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

Ibn Shahak was apparently from Punjab.[1] He was a client (mawali) of Abbasid caliph al-Mansur.[2] and under him, served as governor of Syria.[2] In 792 or 793, he was sent by Harun al Rashid to quell the revolt of Abū al-Hadhām in Damascus[3] as commander of Khurasani troops,[4] where he is mentioned as governor for Musa ibn Isa.[5] Ibn Shahak commanded the garrison of Damascus (Jund Dimashq) for a few years.[6]

A decade later, ibn Shahak is mentioned as the governor of Baghdad in 802 (186 H) by Ibn al-Jawzi.[7] During the reign of Harun, ibn Shahak was the sahib al-shurta,[8] and oversaw the destruction of Barmakids in 802.[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 a house arrest in the mansion of ibn Shahak instead of prison. He was treated well,[11] and sister of ibn Shahak reportedly looked after him.[1] Imam had died in his custody in September 799.[1]

Ibn Shahak was one of the leading supporters of al-Amin in his civil war.[5][12] Not much is known about him after the defeat and execution of al-Amin in 813.

Family

The family of ibn Shahak continued to serve Abbasid caliphate for multiple decades. His son, Ibrahim ibn al-Sindi, was reportedly a polymath with more than a dozen occupations attributed to him.[13] His friend al-Jahiz stated him to be a philosopher of mutakallimun.[14] According to Jahiz, he was well-versed in grammar, poetry, astrology and medicine.[14] He was also employed in the intelligence service of caliph al-Ma'mun,[2] and served some time as governor of Kufa.[15] 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

References

  1. 1 2 3 Ess, Josef van 2017, p. 102.
  2. 1 2 3 Crone, Patricia 1980, p. 194.
  3. Cobb, Paul M. 2001, p. 33.
  4. Cobb, Paul M. 2001, p. 85.
  5. 1 2 3 Crone, Patricia 1980, p. 195.
  6. Cobb, Paul M. 2001, p. 137.
  7. 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.
  8. al-Tabari 2015, p. 89.
  9. Kohlberg 2012.
  10. Madelung 2002, p. 243.
  11. Ess, Josef van 2017, p. 101.
  12. Kennedy, Hugh 2016, p. 128.
  13. MacLean 1989, p. 281.
  14. 1 2 Ess, Josef van 2017, p. 71.
  15. 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
  16. MacLean 1989, p. 407.
  17. "On a Miswak by Kushajim – Y'alla". University Blog Service.
  18. 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

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