He imposed austerity on their lives, limiting them to short, few clothes. He obliged them to respect each other's property, to answer the call of the oppressed, and to be courteous in their dealings. Whoever did not behave as he was instructed was beaten once or twice with a whip. If he showed stubbornness and refused to obey, he was killed. Whoever betrayed his brother, father, or son was killed. This was a path of severity and firmness, reflecting the Mahdi's keenness on the purity of the society he intended to build.

Alongside this, he used to establish brotherhood between individuals and tribes for affection and to facilitate sound social relations spontaneously. It also appears that he worked to reduce the intensity of narrow tribal fanaticism by encouraging intermarriage between tribes, as he did with Abd al-Mu'min, whom he married to a girl from Tinmal. She bore him Abu Ya'qub Yusuf, who became his successor. He ensured that social justice prevailed in his community, returning Zakat from the rich to the poor. He also divided the spoils equitably among them.

Ibn Tumart spent a decade laying the foundations of this revolution in its three aspects, in an effort that was not weakened by events or discouraged by many inhibiting factors, until he was able to provide the right conditions for the growth of the seed he had sown. However, before witnessing the success of the revolution and the spread of its intellectual, political, and military influence, which was only achieved through his successor Abd al-Mu'min, he answered the call of his Lord, having reached only fifty years of age.

Ibn al-Athir, Al-Kamil: (69) Ibn al-Qattan, Nazm: (70) Al-Jumman: 128 Perhaps the killing referred to is in cases where there is a legal determination. We have known the Mahdi to be keen on applying punishments according to legal determination. Ibn al-Qattan, Nazm. Quoted from Al-Ansab: See Abu al-Qasim al-Masri (71) Al-Jumman: 38 Ibn al-Khatib, Al-Hallal: (72) 97 See Al-Marrakushi, Al-Mu'jib: (73) 127