Ali was born in the sacred sanctuary of the Kaaba in Mecca, the holiest place in Islam, a distinction shared by only one other person, Hakim ibn Hizam. In 661, Ali was attacked one morning while praying in the Great Masjid of Al-Kufah, and died two days later. In Muslim culture, Ali is respected for his courage, knowledge, belief, honesty, unbending devotion to Islam, deep loyalty to Muhammad, equal treatment of all Muslims and generosity in forgiving his defeated enemies, and therefore is central to mystical traditions in Islam such as Sufism.
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