Imam 'ali bin 'alwi “khali' qasam”

His Lineage

He is Imam 'Ali Khali' Qasam, bin 'Alawi, bin Muhammad Sahib al-Sawma'ah, bin 'Alawi, bin 'Ubaydullah, bin al-Imam al-Muhajir il-Allah Ahmad, bin 'Isa, bin Muhammad al-Naqib, bin 'Ali al-'Uraydi, bin Ja'far al-Sadiq, bin Muhammad al-Baqir, bin 'Ali Zayn al-'Abidin, bin Husayn al-Sibt, bin 'Ali bin Abu Talib and Fatimah al-Zahra, the daughter of our Master Muhammad, the Seal of the Prophets 

Zanbal burial area in tarim

His Life 

He was born in Bayt Jubayr, not far from Tarim. He studied at the hands of his father and visited Tarim regularly until he became the first of the 'Alawi sayyids to settle there in 521 (1126), along with his brothers and cousins. 

It was he that ordered the construction of the great Ba 'Alawi Mosque. The Mosque was built with mud bricks which were transported from his land in Bayt Jubayr, as he wanted to be certain that the building materials were completely pure and lawful. 

He also bought a plot of land East of Tarim which he named Qasam after some land which his ancestors owned in Basra in Iraq. He built a house there and planted numerous date palms, thus earning the name “Khali' Qasam” or the “Planter of Qasam.” Qasam later grew into a town and the date palms he planted became a source of wealth for his descendants. 

His connection with his grandfather, the Messenger of Allah , was so strong that whenever he would give greetings to him, in his prayer and outside of it, by saying, “Peace be upon you, O Prophet, and the mercy and blessings of Allah,” he, and those around him, would hear the response directly from the Prophet: “And peace be upon you, O Shaykh, and the mercy and blessings of Allah.” People would come from far and wide to hear the greetings of the Messenger of Allah . 

His Death 

He died in Tarim around 529 (1134) and was the first of the 'Alawi sayyids to be buried in the Zanbal cemetery. He left behind a number of children, the best known of which was Imam Muhammad “Sahib Mirbat” who settled in the town of Mirbat in Oman, where he died and was buried in 556 (1160).