Abu al-Tufayl

Abu al-Tufayl Amir ibn Wathila al-Kinani ( –732) was a poet, and a companion of the Islamic prophet Muhammad.

Abu al-Tufayl went to Kufa during the reign of Hudhayfah ibn al-Yaman and then to Al-Mada'in. For many years, he was a companion of Ali, and learned a lot from him. After the death of Ali, he returned to Mecca and stayed there until the end of his life, around 102 AH (732 CE).

Life His full name was Abu al-Tufayl Amir ibn Wathila ibn Abdullah ibn Umayr ibn Jabir ibn Humays ibn Juday ibn Sa'ad ibn Layth al-Kinani, was born in the year that coincided with the battle of Uhud, and was present in the last eight years of Muhammad's life.

He was considered a reliable narrator of hadiths, a limited number of which was narrated from Muhammad, and a large number from his important companions, including Hudhayfah ibn al-Yaman, Muadh ibn Jabal and Abd Allah ibn Mas'ud. Among the imams, he narrated hadiths from Ali, Hasan ibn Ali, and Zayn al-Abidin. It is stated in Kitab al-Kafi that he narrated hadith from Muhammad al-Baqir.According to Ibn Babawayh in his book, Ilal al-sharayi', Abu al-Tufayl narrated hadiths from Ja'far al-Sadiq too. The narrations of Abu al-Tufayl from Jafar al-Sadiq were before al-Sadiq reached the Imamate and was during the life of Muhammad al-Baqir.

When Abd Allah ibn al-Zubayr asked for allegiance from Muhammad ibn al-Hanafiyya, who refused, Ibn al-Zubayr imprisoned him along with some of his companions, including Abu al-Tufayl, in the branches of Bani Hashim. Abu al-Tufayl was in prison until the uprising of Mukhtar al-Thaqafi. He was the standard-bearer of the army in Mukhtar's uprising to avenge the blood of Hussein.

In response to Mu'awiya's question regarding his presence in the murder of Uthman, Abu al-Tufayl answered in the assembly of Mu'awiya I that he was present at the scene of Uthman's murder but he did not participate in it. He emphasized his strong friendship with Ali to Mu'awiya.

Abu al-Tufayl and his son, whose name was al-Tufayl, participated in the uprising that Ibn al-Ash'ath started against Al-Hajjaj ibn Yusuf. In the war that took place in Muharram 82, his son al-Tufayl was killed, and Abu al-Tufayl wrote a poem in grief over his death. The last of Muhammad's companions to die was Abu al-Tufayl, in 732.