As a man of his adherents asked him about the battles of Imam Ali Amir al-Mu’minin, peace be upon him, Imam Al-Baqir (‘as) said:
God sent the Prophet Muhammad, peace be upon him and his family, with five swords three of which are unsheathed until wars are ceased. Wars will not cease unless the sun will rise from the west. When this will fall, all people will be secured. On that day,
“Its faith shall not profit a soul which did not believe before, or earn good through its faith.” (6:158).
The fourth sword is detained. The fifth is unsheathed; others unsheathe it and we judge in it.
The three unsheathed swords are as follows:
One is unsheathed against the Arab polytheists. God the Glorified says:
Slay the idolaters wherever you find them, and take them captives and besiege them and lie in wait for them in every ambush. (9:5).
But if they repent (i.e. they believe) and keep up prayer and pay the poor-rate, they are your brethren in faith. (9:11).
These people are either killed or convert to Islam. Their fortunes are regarded as spoils. Their progenies are captives according to the practices of the Prophet (S). He captured, overlooked, and accepted atonement.
The second sword is against the Dhimmis. God the Praised says:
And you shall speak to men (i.e., the Dhimmis) good words. (2:83).
This Verse was repealed afterwards by God’s saying:
Fight those who do not believe in Allah, nor in the latter day, nor do they prohibit what Allah and His Apostle have prohibited, nor follow the religion of truth, out of those who have been given the Book, until they pay the tax in acknowledgment of superiority and they are in a state of subjection. (9:29).
Nothing will be accepted from the Dhimmis, who are enjoying the protection of the Islamic state, except the tribute otherwise, they are killed, their fortunes taken as spoils, and their progenies as captives. If they accept to pay the tribute, it will be prohibited to take them as captives and to seize their fortunes. In addition, it will be lawful to marry from them. For those who declare war against us, it is lawful for us to capture them and seize their fortunes. In addition, it is prohibited to marry from them. Nothing will be accepted from them except converting to Islam, paying the tribute, or being fought to death.
The third sword is against the non-Arab polytheists, like the Turks, Daylam, and Khazar. In the beginning of the sura in which He mentions the affairs of the atheists, God says:
If you encounter the disbelievers in a battle, strike-off their heads. Take them as captives when they are defeated. Then you may set them free (after capture) as a favor to them, with or without a ransom (between the Muslims and them), when the battle is over. (47:4).
Nothing will be accepted from these people except being killed or converting to Islam. It is un-lawful for us to marry from them as long as they are in state of war against us.
The detained sword is that against people of rebel and interpretation. God says:
If two parties among the believers start to fight against each other, restore peace among them. If one party rebels against the other, fight against the rebellious one until he surrenders to the command of God. (49:9).
When this Verse was revealed, the Prophet (S) said: “One of you will fight for the interpretation of the Qur’an in the same way I fought for its revelations.” As he was asked about that one, he (S) said: “He is the repairer of the slippers [Imam Ali Amir al-Mu’minin (‘as) ].”
Ammar Ibn Yasir said: “I fought under this pennon three times with the Prophet (S). This is the fourth. By God I swear, if they beat us to take us back to Hagar (a region), we will be sure that we are the right party and they are the wrong.”
With these people, Amir al-Mu’minin (‘as) followed the same practices that the Prophet (S) with the people of Mecca when he conquered it. He did not capture their families. The Prophet (S) said: “He who closes his door and keep himself indoors will be safe. He who disarms himself will be safe.” In the same way, Amir al-Mu’minin (‘as) instructed his army (after the victory in the battle of Jamal) not to capture any one, kill any wounded, or chase any absconder. He who dis-armed himself would be safe.
The unsheathed sword is that of retaliation. God the Glorified said:
Capital punishment for the murder of a person; an eye for an eye… (5:45).
The custodians of the victim (the killed person) unsheathe this sword while the judge is ours.
These were the swords with which God sent Muhammad (S). He who denies them or even one of them or anything of their narration or rulings will be reckoned as disbelieving in that which God the Elevated revealed to His Prophet Muhammad (S).