Recordings › Karbala & it's precursors | Mufti Abu Layth · 16 Oct 2020 › Segment 9 of 18
Why did Muawiya make Yazid his heir?
muftis sahabah sahaba sahabi sahabiyyah sahabiyatMuawiya names Yazid as heir, and the political adoption of Ziyad
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This segment29:43 to 32:04 · 2 min 21 sGeneral teaching
What this part covers
machinesummary, machine-writtenMuawiya named Yazid heir while senior companions lived, and Mufti Abu Layth feels his recognition of Ziyad as Abu Sufyan's son was a political move.
In more detail
Mufti Abu Layth says that as Muawiya approached death he set up his son Yazid as heir, although great companions were still alive, among them Abdullah ibn Umar, Abdullah ibn Abbas, Husayn and Abdullah ibn al-Zubayr, none of them of Banu Umayya. He says he feels Muawiya must have believed that in the end it was Banu Umayya who called the shots, given their air of authority. Before that, he says, Muawiya brought in and consolidated members of his clan, among them Ziyad, an alleged son of Abu Sufyan never recognised in his lifetime, a formidable warrior from Ali's army who was captured and then declared Muawiya's brother, which he feels was a political move.
Position stated
Mufti Abu Layth says he feels that the recognition of Ziyad as Abu Sufyan's son was a political move.
“And then somebody tells him that, you know, he's the alleged son of Abu Sufyan. He's your alleged brother. But really, I feel that this was a political move.”
Category: historical claim
Kind: general teachingTranscript
machine29:43 to 32:04 · click a time to seek · dotted terms open the glossary
So, they become just they're really cemented. Now, you have to remember they have this history of feeling that we really were the the real chiefs. They do have this that they feel that look ultimately in the time you know, pre-Islam we were the you know, we were the daddies.
They do have this kind of attitude. So, what happens as Muawiyah is to pass away? He says that I will I'm setting about an heir to the throne. The heir is none other than Yazid. That's his son. So, Muawiyah just has one son. And this is, you know, it's Yazid.
So, and keeping in mind that they were great people alive. You know, they were great companions still alive. Abdullah ibn Umar is alive. Abdullah ibn Abbas is alive. Hussein, Hassan is alive. Abdullah ibn Zubair is alive. And many many companions are still alive at this time. So, all great people nominees. But the truth is they are not Bani Umayya.
And to them, they did feel I I do accept that I feel that Muawiyah did have this thing that he felt that, you know, at the end of the day it was Bani Umayya who called the shots. I I feel that he must have felt like that. Uh because there was that kind of air of um that authoritarian kind of like throwing your weight around that Bani Umayya had.
That they they felt it was their, you know, part of their own legacy. So, he gives this to his Yazid. But before he does that, this he brings in other I'd mention he brings another uh other members of his clan and consolidates them. But one of the people he brings in is called Ziyad. And I've mentioned this in my previous thing, who was an alleged son of Abu Sufyan.
During Abu Sufyan's lifetime or prior to this, he was never recognized. And Ziyad used was an incredible fighter. And he was actually a a warrior from Sayyidna Ali's army. Who is captured by Muawiyah. And then somebody tells him that, you know, he's the alleged son of Abu Sufyan. He's your alleged brother. But really, I feel that this was a political move.
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Cite this segment
Stable id, transcript version and tier are part of the citation. Every change to a transcript is logged.Mufti Abu Layth Archive, segment 2020-10-16-S09, auto-transcribed, may contain errors. https://muftiabulayth.org/r/iabl5vis3rg/s/9/ (accessed 1 November 2026)
- APA 7
Mufti Abu Layth. (2020, October 16). Why did Muawiya make Yazid his heir? [Video, segment 2020-10-16-S09, auto-transcribed, may contain errors]. Mufti Abu Layth Archive. Retrieved November 1, 2026, from https://muftiabulayth.org/r/iabl5vis3rg/s/9/
- Chicago author-date
Mufti Abu Layth. 2020. "Why did Muawiya make Yazid his heir?" Video, segment 2020-10-16-S09, auto-transcribed, may contain errors. Mufti Abu Layth Archive. Recorded October 16, 2020. Accessed November 1, 2026. https://muftiabulayth.org/r/iabl5vis3rg/s/9/
- BibTeX
@misc{abulayth-2020-10-16-S09, author = {Mufti Abu Layth}, title = {{Why did Muawiya make Yazid his heir?}}, year = {2020}, month = {10}, date = {2020-10-16}, howpublished = {\url{https://muftiabulayth.org/r/iabl5vis3rg/s/9/}}, url = {https://muftiabulayth.org/r/iabl5vis3rg/s/9/}, organization = {Mufti Abu Layth Archive}, urldate = {2026-11-01}, note = {Segment 2020-10-16-S09, auto-transcribed, may contain errors} }
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