‘Ali’s Guardianship in the Holy Qur’ān Allah, the Exalted, said: Your guardian can be only Allah; and His Messenger and those who believe, who establish worship and pay the poor-due while bowing down (in prayer). And whoso taketh Allah and His Messenger and those who believe for guardian (will know that), lo! The party of Allah, they are the victorious. (5:55,56) In his al-Tafsir al-kabir, al-’Imām Abu Ishāq al-Tha‘labi[70] is reported, with his isnād (chain) reaching back to Abu Dharr al-Ghifāri, to have said: I heard the Messenger of Allah (may God’s peace and benediction be upon him and his Progeny) with my two ears, otherwise they be deaf, and saw him with my own eyes, otherwise they be blind, saying: ‘Ali is the leader of the pious, slayer of the disbelievers, victorious is that who helps him, and defeated is that who disappoints him.” Once upon a day I was praying with the Messenger of Allah, when a beggar came to the Prophet’s mosque. No one responded to his pleas. ‘Ali (‘a) was bowing down (in prayer) at that time. He pointed his little finger, on which was a ring, towards the beggar, who came forward and took away the ring. This incident occurred in the Prophet’s presence, who raised his hands towards the Heavens and prayed My God! My brother Moses had begged of You saying: “My Lord! Relieve my mind. And ease my task for me. And loose a knot from my tongue. That they may understand my saying. Appoint for me a henchman from my folk. Aaron, my brother. Confirm my strength with him. And let him share my task. That we may glorify Thee much. And much remember Thee. Lo! Thou art ever Seeing us.” Then you revealed to him: “Thou art granted thy request, O Moses.” O Allah! I am your bondman and prophet, relieve my mind and ease my task for me, and appoint for me a henchman from my folk, ‘Ali, and confirm my strength with him. Abu Dharr then said: By God, the Messenger of Allah (S) had not yet finished his prayers, when Gabriel descended upon him revealing the following verse: “Your Guardian can be only Allah; and His Messenger and those who believe, who establish worship and pay the poor-due, while bowing 44 down (in prayer). And whoso taketh Allah and His Messenger and those who believe for guardian (will know that), Lo! the party of Allah, they are the victorious. (5:55,56).[71] There is no disagreement among the Shi‘ah that this verse was revealed in ‘Ali’s regard, according to the reports of Ahl al-Bayt (peace be upon them), which being among the unanimously accepted akhbār (reports), that were referred to in many considerable Shi‘ah books, like: 1. Bihar al-’anwār, by al-Majlisi. 2. Ithbāt al-hudāt, by al-Hurr al-‘Amili. 3. Tafsir al-Mizān, by al-‘Allāmah al-Tabātabā’i. 4. Tafsir al-Kāshif, by Muhammad, Jawād Maghniyyah. 5. Al-Ghadir, by al-‘Allāmah al-’Amini. Beside numerous other books. Its revelation in ‘Ali’s regard was reported too by a large number of Ahl al-Sunnah ‘ulamā’, among whom we refer only to the exegets: 1. Tafsir al-Kashshāf by al-Zamakhshari, vol.I, p.649 2. Tafsir al-Tabari, vol.VI,-P.288 3. Zād al-masir fi ‘ilm al-tafsir, by Ibn al-Jawzi, vol.II, p.383 4. Tafsir al-Qurtubi, vol. VI,p.219. 5. Tafsir al-Fakhr al-Rāzi, vol,. XII, p. 26 6. Tafsi Ibn Kathir, vol.II, p.71 7. Tafsir al-Nasafi, vol. I. p.289 8. Shawāhid al-tanzil, by al-Hasakāni al-Hanafi, vol. I, p.161 9. Al-Durr al-manthur fi al-tafsir bi al-ma’thur, by al-Suyuti, vol.II.p.293 10. Asbāb al-nuzul, by al-’Imām al-Wāhidi, p.148 11. Ahkām al-Qur’ān, by al-Jassās, vol.IV. p.102 12. Al-Tashil li ‘ulum al-tanzil, by al-Kalbi, Vol.I, p.181. Beside other unmentioned Sunnah books, numbering more than those I referred to. 2) The Almighty Allah said: 45 “O Messenger! Make known that which hath been revealed unto thee from thy Lord, for if thou do it not, thou wilt not have conveyed His message. Allah will protect thee from mankind.” (5:67) It is reported by some exegetes from among Ahl al-Sunnah, that this verse was revealed in the early days of Da‘wah (invitation), when the Messenger of Allah was having some bodyguards to protect him against murder and assassination. But when the verse “and Allah will protect thee from mankind,” was revealed, he (S) said: “Go away, Allah has protected me.” Ibn Jarir and Mardawayh have reported from ‘Abd Allāh ibn Jarir that he said: “The Messenger of Allah (S) was pursued by some of his Companions, and when the words” and Allah will protect thee from mankind,” he came out and said: “O people, go and reach your pursuants, as Allah has protected me from mankind.”[72] Ibn Hibbān and Ibn Mardawayh have reported from Abu Hurayrah that he said: When being in the company of the Messenger of Allah (S) on a journey, we used to dedicate for him the greatest and most shadowy tree to sit under. One day he sat under a tree, hanging his sword on it, when a man came and took it, saying: O Muhammad, who can protect you against me? The Prophet (s) replied: Allah protects me against you… put away the sword. So he returned it to its place. Thereat the verse “and Allah will protect thee from mankind” was revealed.[73] Further, al-Tirmidhi, al-Hākim and Abu Nu’aym have reported from ‘A’ishah that she said: The Prophet (S) used to be guarded till the words and Allah will protect thee from mankind were revealed, whereat he brought out his head from the dome saying: O people, go away, Allah has verily protected me. Al-jabarrāni and Abu Nu’aym in al-Dalā’il, narrates that Ibn Mardawayh and Ibn ‘Asākir have reported from Ibn ‘Abbās that he said: The Prophet (S) was having a bodyguard, and his uncle Abu jālib used to send with him every day some men from Banu Hāshim to safeguard him. One day he (S) said (to him) O uncle! Allah has protected me, so I am in no need any more for those you send. 46 When pondering upon these traditions and interpretations, we would realize their being incompatible with the denotation or even the context of the noble verse, as all these narrations show that they were revealed at the outset of the invitation (da‘wah) to Islam. Some of them even declare their being revealed during the lifetime of Abu jālib, that is, many years before the Hijrah (migration of the Prophet), particularly Abu Hurayrah’s narration in which he says: When being in the company of the Messenger of Allah on a journey, we used to dedicate for him the greatest tree… etc. This narration is explicitly fabricated, since Abu Hurayrah was never acquainted with Islam or the Messenger of Allah but only in the seventh year after Hijrah, as he himself testified.[74] So how can this be accepted, while all the exegetes, Sunnah and Shiah, unanimously concur that Surat al-Mā’idah (The Table Spread) was revealed at al-Madinah, and its being the last surah revealed of the Quran??? Ahmad and Abu ‘Ubayd in Fadā’il, al-Nahhās in his Nāsikh, and al- Nisā’i, Ibn al-Mundhir, al-Hākim, Ibn Mardawayh and al-Bayhaqi in their Sunan, have reported from Jubayr ibn Nufayr that he said: I made the pilgrimage to Makkah, and when I entered upon ‘A’ishah, she said: O Jubayr, do you read (Surat) al-Mā’idah? I said: Yes. Then she said: It is the last surah revealed (of the Qur’ān). Deem lawful whatever you find lawful in it, and deem unlawful whatever you find unlawful (harām) in it.[75] Also it is reported by Ahmad and al-Tirmidhi, and was improved and revised by al-Hākim, with Ibn Mardawayh and al-Bayhaqi in their Sunan, from ‘Abd Allāh ibn ‘Umar that he said: Surat al-Mā’idah is the last surah revealed of the Qur’ān.[76] It is reported by Abu ‘Ubayd, from Muhammad ibn Ka’b al-Qartani that he said: Surat al-Mā’idah was revealed unto the Messenger of Allah during Hajjat al-Wadā‘, while being on his camel between Makkah and al-Madinah, whereat it (the camel) was cracked, and then the Messenger of Allah (S) got down.[77] Ibn Jarir reports from al-Rabi ‘ibn Anas that he said: Surat al-Mā’idah was revealed upon the Messenger of Allah (S) on his way back from his last pilgrimage, while being on his mount, and his mount kneeled down due to its (surah’s) heavy burden.[78] Abu ‘Ubaydah reports from Damrah ibn Habib and ‘Atiyyah ibn Qays that they said: The Messenger of Allah (S) said: “Al-Ma’idah (the 47 Table spread) is the last of the Qur’ān in revelation, so deem lawful what it considers lawful (halāl) and deem unlawful what is considered unlawful (harām) in it.[79] So, how can any sane equitable man accept then, the claim of one believing in its being revealed in the early days of the Prophetic mission (al-Bi‘thah al-Nabawiyyah)? The aim of this move is clear, being to divert people from its real meaning. Added to this, the Shiah concur that Surat al-Mā’idah being the last surah revealed of the Qur’ān, and that the verse “O Messenger! Make known that which hath been revealed unto thee from thy Lord… ”, which is called Ayat al-Balāgh (Verse of proclamation), was revealed unto the Messenger of Allah on the eighteenth of Dhu al-Hijjah, in the wake of the last pilgrimage at Ghadir Khumm, before designating al-’Imām ‘Ali as a master for people and his successor after him. This incident was on Thursday, and Gabriel (‘a) has brought it down after the elapse of five hours of the day, saying to the Prophet: O Muhammad Allah sends you His greetings and says to you. “O Messenger! Make known that which hath been revealed unto thee from thy Lord, for if thou do it not, thou wilt not have conveyed His message. Allah will protect thee from mankind.” (5:67) But the Almighty’s saying: “… for if thou do it not, thou wilt not have conveyed His message” explicitly indicates that the message has come to an end or was about to, though some very significant thing is left, without which religion can never be perfected. Further, the noble verse tells that the Messenger feared being belied by people, when inviting them to this serious affair. But Allah — the Glorified — has not respited him, since his hour has approached, and that was the best opportunity, of the greatest position since those who gathered around him (S) numbered more a hundred thousand, accompanying him in Hajjat al- Wadā‘, whose hearts were still vivid through the offerings consecrated to Allah, recalling to mind the Messenger’s telling them the approaching of his death hour. Also we can refer to his saying to them: I may not meet you after this year, and imminently my Lord’s messenger (death angel) is to come, so as to summon me and I should respond. And since after this awful situation all people will separate and return to their homelands, with a very little chance to meet such a huge multitude, and as Ghadir Khumm 48 being a crossroad, so it was not, in any way, for Muhammad (S) to miss such an opportunity. How would he do so while it was revealed for him, in a threatening-like way that the message in a whole, was dependent upon this proclamation, with Allah’s ensuring him protection from mankind, leaving no reason for him to fear his being belied by them. This was due to his awareness that many messengers before him were belied, but without being dissuaded from propagating that which was entrusted to them, since the duty of any messenger being only to convey the message. And had Allah known in advance that most of them were hateful unto the truth, and that some of them being the beliers (denying the message), He — the Glorified — would have never forsaken them without establishing an authority (hujjah) over them, that there might not remain any argument (excuse) for people against God (ref.4:165). Whereas the Messenger of Allah (S) has a good example for his brethren the messengers who preceded him, and who were denied by their communities. Allah, the Exalted, said: “If they deny thee (Muhammad), even so the folk of Noah, and (the tribes of) Ad and Thamud, before thee, denied (Our messengers). And the folk of Abraham and the folk of Lot. And the dwellers in Midian. And Moses was denied; but I indulged the disbelievers a long while, then I seized them, and how (terrible) was My abhorrence!” (22:42-44) When abandoning the detested bigotry, and blind fanaticism, we would realize that this exposition being the reasonable one that keeps pace with the context of the verse and events that preceded and occurred after it. Many of our ‘ulamā’ have confirmed its revelation at Ghadir Khumm, in regard of designating al-’Imām ‘Ali for the post of caliphate, authenticating those narrations, concurring in this respect with their brothers among the Shiah ‘ulamā’. As an example I refer to some of the Sunni ‘ulamā’: 1. Al-Hāfiî Abu Nu’aym in his book Nuzul al-Qur’ān. 2. Al-’Imām al-Wāhidi in his book Asbāb al-nuzul, p.150 3. Al-’Imām Abu Ishāq al-Thalabi in his al-Tafsir al-kabir. 4. Al-Hakim al-Hasakani in his book Shawāhid al-tanzil li qawā‘id altafdil, vol.I,p.187 49 5. Jalāl al-Din al-Suyuti in his book al-Durr al-manthur fi al-tafsir bi alma’thur, vol. III, p. 117. 6. Al-Fakhr al-Rāzi in his al-Tafsir al-kabir, Vol.XII, p.50. 7. Muhammad Rashid Ridā in Tafsir al-manār, Vol.II, p.86; Vol. VI, p.463 8. Abu Asākir al-Shāfi‘i in Ta’rikh Dimashq, Vo. II, p.86 9. Al-Shawkāni in Fath al-Qadir, vol.II, p.60 10. Ibn Talhah al-Shāfi‘i in Matālib al-Sa’ul, vol.I.p.44 11. Ibn Sabbāgh al-Māliki in al-Fusul al-Muhimmah, p.25 12. Al-Qunduzi al-Hanafi in Yanābi‘ al-mawaddah, p.120 13. Al-Shahristāni in al-Milal wa al-nihal, vol.I.p.163 14. Ibn Jarir al-jabari in Kitāb al-Wilāyah. 15. Badr al-Din al-Hanafi in ‘Umdat al-qāri fi Sharh al-Bukhāri. Vol.VIII.P.584 16. ‘Abd al-Wahhab al-Bukhāri in Tafsir al-Qur’ān. 17. Al-’Alusi in Ruh ma‘āni, Vo..II.p.384 18. Ibn Sa‘id al-Sijistāni in Kitāb al-Wilāyah. 19. Al-Hamwini in Farā’id al-simtayn, vol.I.p.185 20. Al-Sayyid Siddiq Hasan Khān in Fath al-bayān fi maqasid al- Qur’ān, Vol. III, p.63. This is just a scanty modicum of what comes to my mind, beside a large number of other Ahl al-Sunnah ‘ulamā’ referred to by al-‘Allāmah al-’Amini in the book al-Ghadir. I wonder what did the Messenger of Allah (S) do when he was commanded by his Lord to deliver what was revealed unto him? The Shiah hold that he (S) gathered the people from all strata in that place, being Ghadir Khumm, giving a long eloquent sermon, calling them to witness against themselves and they witnessed that he(S) certainly had more right on them than they themselves had. Thereat he took ‘Ali’s hand and declared: “To whomever I am his master, this Ali also is his master (mawlā). My God befriend whoever him and be hostile to whoever is hostile to him, help whoever helps him, and forsake whoever forsakes him, and keep the haqq (truth) always with him.” [80] Then he (S) made him wear his turban, arranging a ceremony for him, commanding his Companions to congratulate him for being the leader of the believers. And so they did, at the foremost of whom being Abu Bakr and ‘Umar, who both said to ‘Ali (‘a): “Congratulation, O son of Abu 50 Tālib, within a day and a night you became a mawlā (master) of every believing man and woman.”[81] When the ceremony was over, the following verse was revealed unto him by Allah: “This day have I perfected your religion for you and completed my favour unto you, and have chosen for you Islam (to be) the Religion.” (5-3) This notion is held by the Shiah, as an indisputable fact accepted by all. Do Ahl al-Sunnah ever refer to this incident? In order not to tilt toward them, or being pleased with their opinion, Allah — the Glorified — has warned us by saying: “And among men there is he whose talk concerning the life here marveleth thee and he taketh God to witness as to what is in his heart yet he is the most violent of adversaries.” (2:204) We are asked then to be cautious, and to discuss this topic with much care, with looking honestly into the evidences given by the two sects, seeking only God’s pleasure in this respect. The answer for the previous question is: yes, many of Ahl al-Sunnah ‘ulamā’ refer to this incident with all its stages. The following are some of evidences quoted from their books: 1) Al-’Imām Ahmad ibn Hanbal has reported a hadith narrated by Zayd ibn Arqam, saying: We got down with the Messenger of Allah (S) in a valley called Khumm Valley, and he ordered congregational prayer to be held, performing it in meridional heat. Then, while being shaded by a garment over a brown tree, from the sun, the Messenger of Allah addressed us saying: “Aren’t you aware, or don’t you give witness that I have more right on every believer than he himself has? They said: Yea. Then he said: Of whomever I am his master (mawlā) ‘Ali also is his master. O God, befriend whoever befriends him and be the enemy of whoever is hostile to him… ”[82] 2) In al-Khasā’is al—’Imām al-Nasā’i reports (from Abu al-jufayl) from Zayd ibn Arqam that he said: “When the Messenger of Allah (May God’s peace and benediction be upon him and his Progeny) returned from the last hajj pilgrimage and came down at Ghadir Khumm, he ordered (us) towards the big trees, and (the ground underneath them was swept. Then he declared: ‘I am about to answer the call (of death). Verily, I have left two precious things (thaqalayn) among you, one of which is greater than the other: the Book of Allah and my ‘Itrah, my Ahl al-Bayt. So watch out how you treat them after me. For, indeed, they will never separate until they return to me by the side of the Pond.” Then he said: ‘Verily, Allah is my master (wali) and I am the master of every believer.’ Then he took ‘Ali’s hand and declared: “To whomever I am his wali, this one is also his wAli. My God, befriend whoever befriends him and be hostile to whoever is hostile to him.” Abu al-jufayl says: “I said to Zayd: “Did you hear it from the Messenger of Allah?’ He replied, “There was no one in the caravan who did not see it with his eyes and hear it with his ears.”[83] 3) Al-Hākim al-Naysāburi reports from Zayd ibn Arqam, through two sahih (correct) chains according to the requirements of the Shaykhayn (al-Bukhāri and Muslim), that he said: When the Messenger of Allah (S) returned from the last hajj and came down at Ghadir Khumm, he ordered (us) towards the big trees, and (the ground) underneath them was swept. Then he said: ‘I am about to answer the call (of death) Verily, I have left behind two precious things amongst you, one of which is greater than the other. The Book of Allah, the Exalted, and my ‘Itrah (Kindred). So watch out how you treat these two after me, for verily they will not separate from each other until they come back to me by the side of the Pond.’ Then he said: ‘Verily, Allah, the Almighty and the Glorious, is my master (mawlā) and I am the master of every believer (mu’min). Then he took Ali by the hand and said: This (‘Ali) is the master of whomever I am his master. O God, love whoever loves him and be the enemy of his enemy’… 4) This hadith was also narrated by Muslim in his Sahih with his sanad (chain) reaching back to Zayd ibn Arqam, in an abridged form, saying: One day the Messenger of Allah upon whom be Allah’s peace and benediction, addressed us near a pond called Khumm between Makkah and Madinah. He praised God and extolled Him and preached and reminded (us). Then he said: Lo, O people, I am only a human being and I am about to respond to the messenger of my Lord (i.e. the call of death). I am leaving behind two precious things (thaqalayn) among you. The first of the two is the Book of Allah. In it is guidance and light. So get hold of the Book of Allah and adhere to it. Then he urged and motivated (us) regarding the Book of Allah. Then he said: “And my Ahl al-Bayt (family). I urge you to remember Allah regarding my Ahl al-Bayt. I urge you to remember Allah regarding my Ahl al-Bayt I urge you to remember Allah regarding my Ahl al-Bayt.”[85]
Posted on: Thu, 24 Jul 2014 15:16:15 +0000
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