Khayzuran: Romance of a Dancing Slave Became Abbasid Caliphate Queen of The Ruler Al-Mahdi

 

This is story of "Rags to riches"of a dancing slave concubine.

Arabian Nights conjure up images of romantic love stories of slave girls’ rags to riches journeys of the heart.  It was not only Al-Khayzuran’s physical beauty - slender and graceful as a reed - but also her intelligence, wit and sense of humor that conquered the heart and mind of Caliph Al-Mahdi in the mid-8th century.

Harun al-Rashid (r. 786-809), arguably one of the greatest of the Abbasid caliphs, is well known to many historians and history enthusiasts for his deeds and for presiding over the “golden age” of the Abbasid caliphate.

 

However, his mother, Khayzuran, does not lay as much claim to fame as her illustrious son, despite the fact that she was the power behind his throne (while she lived) and that of his father and brother before him.

 

During her life and career Khayzuran rose from the status of slave to becoming the caliph, al-Mahdi’s (r.775-785, third Abbasid Caliph) favorite concubine, and then his legal wife and a queen in her own right who wielded an immense amount of political power and whose wealth was second only to that of her husband’s in the entire caliphate.

 

This achievement was impressive not only because Khayzuran was able to elevate herself from slavery to royalty, but also because she did it during an era when social mobility, for both men and women, was very limited or in most cases impossible.

None of the women of the Abbasid caliphate have gone down in history quite like Al-Khayzuran. She was a slave who captured the heart of the Caliph Al-Mahdi.

 

The third Abbasid Caliph, who reigned from 775 to his death in 785.Al-Mahdi who proceeded to break all conventions of the Abbasid dynasty by freeing her and making her his wife.

Al-Khayzuran was sold by her family into slavery, either as a mean of reducing the financial burden on the family or to pay familial debts.

 

Al-Khayzuran became the slave of an unnamed Arab who purchased her from the Yemen region and sold her to the ruling caliph Al-Mansur for his son Al-Mahdi during his pilgrimage to Mecca.

 

Khayzuran rose from the status of slave to that of queen mother. She was the power behind the throne of three caliphs and had a major, albeit hidden, impact on the politics of the caliphate as well as the private affairs of the court.

The name Khayzuran means “bamboo“and symbolizes “both beauty and suppleness, and also a deceptive fragility“.Moreover, Khayzuran was known for her diligence and intelligence, and later for being the shadow ruler throughout three reigns.

 

In former times, the so-called “jaryats” were slave girls and through their roles within the harem acquired a great knowledge of artistic skills and intellectual knowledge by which they could entertain a man.

 

When she died choking on a pomegranate seed, the story goes that Yazid was so affected by her death that he refused to see anyone for a week. He neglected his duties and died not long after.

Jaryats like Khayzuran rose to the top of the harem and amassed a great amount of wealth and power, only second to the caliphe, during a period when most women had little power.

 

She had such an influence on him that she was able to convince him to name her sons, Musa al-Hadi and Harun al-Rashid, his heirs and make her his legitimate wife.

 

Khayzuran also ran numerous enterprises and factories. On her pilgrimages to Mecca, she was generous and charitable with the poor, purchased the house of the Prophet (PBUH), turned it into a mosque, and dug drinking water wells. (Adam Ali)

 

At al-Mahdi’s untimely death, Khayzuran took control of the situation and ensured a smooth transition of power to her older son Musa al-Hadi.

She took control of the government along with her allies, stopped a military mutiny by paying the restive soldiers their overdue salaries from the royal treasury, had all the dignitaries, military officers, and court officials swear allegiance to her son in absentia, and held everything together until al-Hadi, who was governing one of the provinces returned to Baghdad.

 

Despite all that she had done for her son, Khayzuran and al-Hadi had a falling out shortly after he assumed power. The new young caliph did not want to be controlled by his mother and tried to limit her power and to confine her away from the public sphere.

Al-Hadi’s reign lasted a little over a year. He died at the age of 24 and several historians believe that it was a frustrated and fearful Khayzuran who was the architect of his death.

 

Some accounts state that she had some of her pretty female slaves smother al-Hadi with cushions while sitting on them. Al-Tabari aslo claims that al-Hadi tried to have his mother killed by sending her poisoned food and that Khayzuran’s actions were retaliatory.

 

Harun al-Rashid was the next caliph on the throne. Being his mother’s favorite, he was more than happy to share the power with her. Khayzuran was at the peak of her power during the early part of Harun’s reign and the last part of her life.

At her death, Harun mourned her publicly and without shame, when he, as the caliph, was supposed to show restraint and moderation in such matters.

 

The greatest of the Abbasid caliphs had shown no shame for sharing power and seeking counsel from his mother during the first half of his reign and now he would not feel any shame mourning her either.

 

As great and mighty a man as he was, he nevertheless accompanied his mother’s casket barefoot to the burial site. He then said the funeral prayer and went down into her tomb one more time to pay his respect and say his farewell before leaving the cemetery.

 

Khayzuran was an exceptional and extraordinary woman. She rose from the status of slave to that of queen mother through her strong will, determination, intelligence, wisdom, perseverance, and ruthlessness.

She was the power behind the throne of three caliphs and had a major, albeit hidden, impact on the politics of the caliphate as well as the private affairs of the court.

 

The only factor limiting her was the fact that she had to exercise her will and power through men(her sons and husband)  and could not seize the throne for herself and rule in her own right,

 

Although she had to exercise her will and power through men (her sons and husband) and could not seize the throne for herself, she remained a fundamental ruling party.

The End