Al-Huda
Foundation, NJ U. S. A
the Message Continues ... 3/130
Article 1 - Article 2 - Article 3 - Article 4 - Article 5 - Article 6 - Article 7 - Article 8 - Article 9 - Article 10 - Article 11 - Article 12
Newsletter for June 2012
The Ahlul Bayt
(Excerpted from the book: Inquiries about Shi'a Islam, by Sayed
Moustafa al-Qazwini)
The best way to
introduce the Ahlul Bayt to the Muslim nation is to
recall what the Noble Quran says about them. Several verses of
the Noble Quran refer specifically to the virtues of the Ahlul
Bayt and their outstanding position in Islam. Whenever the Noble
Quran refers to the Ahlul Bayt, it refers to a specific group of
people who were related not only by blood, but more importantly,
by ideology and faith to the Prophet. However, it does not
refer to all of his blood relations, his friends or his wives.
Allah only
desires to keep away uncleanliness from you, O People of the
House (Ahlul Bayt), and to make you as pure as possible.[70]
The prominent
scholars of Islam and the narrators of the Prophetic tradition
unanimously agree that Ahlul Bayt (the household of the Prophet
) which Almighty Allah uses in the above verse of the Noble
Quran refers to the daughter of the Prophet Muhammad, Lady
Fatima al-Zahra, his cousin, Ali ibn Abi Talib, and their
children Hassan and Husayn.[71] Tabarani narrates
from one of the respected wives of the Prophet, Um Salamah that
the Messenger of Allah once told his daughter, Lady Fatima to
call her husband Ali and their two sons, Hassan and Husayn. When
they came, the Messenger of Allah covered them with a cloak, put
his hand on them and said, “O Allah, these are Al-e-Muhammad
(the family of Muhammad), so shower Your blessings and favors
upon Al-e-Muhammad just as You showered them on Al-e-Ibrahim.
You are the Praiseworthy, the Glorious.” Um Salamah says that
she raised the cloak to join them, but the Prophet took it from
her hand saying, “You are also on the right.”[72]
Although the
beginning of verse 33:33 addresses the wives of the Prophet and
continues to address them up until the middle part of the verse,
but upon reaching “Ahlul Bayt” it excludes them.[73] The previous and
subsequent statements which are directed towards the wives of
the Prophet are in the feminine pronouns and gender, but this
verse referring to the Ahlul Bayt is in the masculine or mixed
gender; thus it makes it clear that it is not addressed to the
wives of the Prophet. However, even without the grammatical
evidence, the relationship between some of the wives of the
Prophet does not fit the spirit of this verse which asserts the
physical, mental, and spiritual purity of the family of the
Prophet Muhammad.
To emphasize
that the phrase “Ahlul Bayt” in this verse refers only to five
people—Prophet Muhammad, Ali, Lady Fatima, Hassan, and Husayn—narrators
say that whenever the Prophet used to pass by his daughter, Lady
Fatima's house on the way to the masjid for the dawn prayers he
would stop there and proclaim, “Come to prayer, O Ahlul Bayt, to
prayer. Allah desires to keep away un-cleanliness from you, O
Ahlul Bayt, and to make you as pure as possible.”[74]
Imam Anas ibn Malik adds that the Prophet did this for six
months every day on his way for his morning prayers at the
masjid.[75]
The Verse of Affection (Muwaddah)
Say, I do not
ask from you any reward for it (preaching the message) but love
for my relatives (qurba which here refers to the
Ahlul Bayt[76]).[77]
When explaining
this verse, Fakhr al-Din al-Razi says, “Without doubt, no one
was as near to the Prophet as Lady Fatima, Ali, Hassan, and
Husayn. This is a well-known fact for all the chains of
narration, that these were his 'al'.” Thus, 'al'
or 'ahl' refers only to the immediate family of the
Prophet—namely: Lady Fatima, Ali, Hassan, and Husayn.
Some argue that
Hassan and Husayn were not the sons of the Prophet because they
were the sons of Imam Ali. According to old Arab custom, the
mother was considered as only a means to deliver a child, but
nonetheless, their direct lineage to the Prophet is through
their mother, Lady Fatima al-Zahra. It has been narrated that
the 'Abbasid caliph Harun al-Rashid asked the seventh Imam
of the school of Ahlul Bayt, Imam Musa ibn Ja'far how he
could attribute himself to the Prophet while he was the child of
Ali and Lady Fatima - thus, how could he be related to the
Prophet? The Imam then cited to him a verse that refers to the
descendants of Prophet Abraham (Ibrahim), “And from his progeny
were David (Dawud), Solomon (Sulayman), Job (Ayyub), Joseph
(Yusuf), Moses (Musa), and Aaron (Harun)—thus do We reward the
good-doers—and Zachariah (Zakariyya), and John (Yahya), and
Jesus (Isaa), and Elias (Ilyas)—each one of them was of the
righteous.”[78] The Imam then
asked the caliph who the father of Isaa (Jesus) was. Harun
answered that he was fatherless. The Imam replied, “Then you can
see that Allah linked him to Ibrahim through his mother, Mary
and Allah did the same for us, linking us to Prophet Muhammad
through our mother Lady Fatima al-Zahra.”[79]
In many
instances, the Prophet refers to Lady Fatima with intense love
and affection, such as when he says, “Fatima is a part of me.
Her happiness is my happiness, and her pain is my pain.” The
Prophet would also point towards the children of Fatima - Hassan
and Husayn - and say on many occasions, “These are my sons,” or
“This is my son.” That is why the community of the companions in
Madina referred to both Hassan and Husayn as the 'sons of
Prophet Muhammad.'
The Verse of Malediction (Mubahilah)
But whoever
disputes with you in this matter after what has come to you of
knowledge, then say, 'Come, let us call our sons and your sons,
and our women and your women, and ourselves and yourselves, and
let us beseech Allah and invoke His curse upon the liars.'[80]
This milestone
event in the Islamic history has been narrated by all the
historians, narrators, and commentators of the Quran. It is an
event which reveals the exalted status of the Family of the
Prophet. The narrations say that a delegation of Christians from
Najran came to the city of Madina in order to meet with the
Prophet to discuss his prophethood and the religion he was
preaching. The Prophet proved to them that Jesus (Isa) was the
son of Mary; he was a human being, a Prophet, and a servant of
Allah as the Quran states and that regarding him as the son of
God is blasphemy, since Allah, the Exalted is much higher than
such human characteristics. After discussing these points
extensively, the Prophet found them still deliberately
persisting in their false beliefs and traditions—namely on the
deification of Prophet Jesus—thus, Allah revealed the verse,
which was a major challenge to the Christians, to pray and
invoke upon Allah that a curse may overtake the party that
insists on falsehood. Early the next morning, on the 24th of the lunar month of Dhul al-Hijjah,
in accordance with Allah's command, the Prophet arrived at the
meeting carrying Husayn in his arms, while holding Hassan by the
hand, followed by his beloved daughter, Lady Fatima and behind
them was his son-in-law and cousin, Ali ibn Abi Talib carrying
the banner of Islam. Seeing that the Prophet was accompanied
only by his immediate family, the Christians were convinced that
he was truthful otherwise he would have never dared to bring his
dearest kin along with him. The Christian delegation backed away
from the malediction argument and returned back to Najran.
Zamakhshari, in
his Tafsir al-Kashshaf, narrates the event as:
When this verse
was revealed, the Prophet invited the Christians to the
malediction, to invoke the curse of Allah upon the liars. The
Christians held a discourse among themselves tmhat night in
which their leader, 'Abd al-Masih stated his views. He said, “O
Christians, know that Muhammad is a God-sent Prophet who has
brought you the final message from your Lord. By God, no nation
ever dared to challenge a Prophet with malediction but that woe
befell them. Not only will they perish, but their children will
also be afflicted by the curse.” Saying this—that it is better
to reach a compromise with the Prophet rather than challenge his
truth and perish—'Abd al-Masih advised his party to stop
hostilities and retain their religion by submitting to the
Prophet's terms. “So if you persist (for a confrontation) we
will all perish. But if you, to keep your faith, refuse (to have
a showdown) and remain as you are, then make peace with the man
(the Prophet) and return to your land.” The next day, the
Prophet, carrying Husayn in his arms, leading Hassan by the
hand, followed by his daughter Lady Fatima, behind whom came
Ali, entered the appointed place and the Prophet was heard
saying to his family, “When I invoke Allah, second the
invocation.” The pontiff of Najran, upon seeing the Prophet and
his family, addressed the Christians, “O Christians! I am
witnessing such faces that if God wishes, for their sake, He
would move mountains for them. Do not accept their challenge for
malediction, for if you do, you would all perish and there will
not remain any Christians on the face of the earth till the Day
of Resurrection.”[81]
Heeding his advice, the Christians said to the Prophet, “O
Abul-Qasim, we have decided not to hold malediction with you.
You keep your religion, and we will keep ours.” The Prophet told
them, “If you refuse to hold malediction, then submit to Allah,
and you will receive what the Muslims receive and contribute
what the Muslims contribute.” The Christians delegates, saying
that they had no desire to fight the Muslims, proposed a treaty
asking for peace which the Prophet of Islam accepted.
Although other
women were present in the family of the Prophet at that time,
all the commentators, narrators, and historians agree that in
reference to the Quranic verse, “our women” referred only to
Lady Fatima al-Zahra, “our children” referred only to Hassan and
Husayn, and “ourselves” referred only to the Prophet and Imam
Ali.
Surely Allah
and His angels bless the Prophet. O you who believe, call for
divine blessings upon him, and salute him with a becoming
salutation.[82]
In the five
obligatory prayers, during the tashhahud (testimony),
those offering their prayers must salute the Prophet and his
progeny—a term exclusively reserved for Ali, Lady Fatima,
Hassan, Husayn, and their righteous descendants. The emphasis on
the Prophet's family in salutation is another indication of
their pivotal position after the Prophet. By asking the
believers to exalt these noble personalities, Allah, the
Almighty reminds the Muslim nation that He has chosen the Ahlul
Bayt for the role of leading the Muslim nation.
One of the most
prominent commentators of the Quran, Fakhr al-Din al-Razi
narrates the response of the Prophet when he was asked by some
of his companions how to send blessings upon him. He said, “Say,
'O Allah, send blessings on Muhammad and on the progeny of
Muhammad as you sent blessings on Ibrahim and on the progeny of
Ibrahim. And send grace on Muhammad and on the progeny of
Muhammad just as you sent grace on Ibrahim and on the progeny of
Ibrahim. You are the Praiseworthy, the Glorious.'”[83]
Al-Razi comments that if Allah and His angels send their
blessings upon the Prophet, then what need is there for our
blessings? He answers his own question by saying that when we
send blessings on the Prophet Muhammad it is not because he is
in need of them, because he already has the blessings of Allah
and thus, he does not even require the blessings of the angels.
When we send blessings on him, we send them to glorify Allah and
also to reveal our gratitude towards Allah such that He may have
compassion on us and reward us. Thus, the Prophet says, “Whoever
sends blessings on me once, Allah will send blessings on him ten
times.”
Another verse
in the Noble Quran asserts the same teaching when Allah the
Almighty sends His blessings on the family of the Prophet by
saying, “Peace be upon the Al-e-Yasin!”[84]
According to some commentators, “Yasin” is one of the names of
the Prophet, as stated in Surah (chapter) Ya Sin when it
addresses the Prophet as, ”Yasin, by the Quran full of
wisdom, truly you are one of the messengers….”[85]
Truly, the
righteous drink of a cup tempered with camphor, a fountain from
which the servants of Allah drink, flowing in abundance. They
(the Family of the Prophet) fulfill vows and fear a Day, the
evil of which is widespread. And they give food out of love for
Him to the poor and the orphan and the captive. 'We feed you for
Allah's sake and pleasure only. We desire from you neither
reward nor thanks. Surely, we fear from our Lord a stern,
distressful Day,' so Allah will ward off from them the evil of
that Day and cause them to meet with splendor and happiness and
reward them for their steadfastness with a garden and with silk.[86]
Surah 76 in the
Noble Quran descended to honor a sacred gesture performed by the
Ahlul Bayt. Allah entitled this Surah, Insan (Mankind) to
draw attention of the people to the beauty of mankind's deeds on
earth, and to tell them that they should not be selfish or
greedy; rather, they should be caring and thoughtful people who
spend their time thinking of other human beings around them. The
chapter begins, “Has there not been over man a period of time
when he was nothing to be mentioned? Verily, We and created man
from drops of mixed semen in order to try him, so We made him
hearing, seeing. Verily, We showed him the way, whether he be
grateful or ungrateful.”
This
introduction prepares our minds for the big sacrifice of the
Family of the Prophet—Ali, Lady Fatima, Hassan, Husayn, and
their maidservant Fiddah. The incident provoking these verses
began when Hassan and Husayn fell ill, and Lady Fatima al-Zahra
asked her father what to do. The Prophet advised her to make a
vow with Allah that if He cured them then the entire family
would fast for three days. Hassan and Husayn were cured, and the
process of fasting began. At that time there was nothing in
their house to eat, so Imam Ali went to a Khaybarian Jew named
Shimon and borrowed three measures of barley. His wife, Lady
Fatima milled one measure into flour and baked it into five
loaves of bread, one for each of them. Ali, Lady Fatima, and
their two sons, Hassan and Husayn along with their maidservant
Fiddah fasted for three consecutive days. On the first day, at
the time of breaking the fast, a destitute (miskin)
person came to the door asking for some food. They took the food
they intended to eat—a loaf of bread each—and gave it to him.
They then broke their fast only with water. On the second day,
at the time of breaking their fast, an orphan came to their
door, and they again gave him all their food. On the third day,
at the time of breaking the fast, a prisoner of war (a
non-Muslim who had been captured in the defensive wars of Islam
and was living in the city of Madina) came to their door and
asked for some food, and again, they took all five loaves of
bread and gave it to the man, breaking their fast for the third
consecutive day with only water. Afterwards, the Messenger of
Allah made a visit and saw his daughter, Lady Fatima al-Zahra
and her two children, Hassan and Husayn were pale and too weak
to speak, and he saw that they were trembling from hunger. Lady
Fatima herself was sitting hollow-eyed on her prayer mat, her
stomach sunk into her back. As he was asking them the reason for
their state, angel Jibril (Gabriel) immediately came to the
Prophet with Surah 76, “O Muhammad, Allah congratulates you for
the sacrifice of your household.”[87]
These verses
not only translate the generosity and steadfastness of the Ahlul
Bayt but also reveal the total submission of the Family of the
Prophet and their immaculate and pure personalities.
Commentators of the Quran have a consensus that these verses
speak of the Ahlul Bayt and place them at the highest level of
piety and show them as models for the generosity of mankind.
Humanity would be rightly guided if they followerd their
parable.
O you who
believe! Obey Allah, and obey the Messenger, and those vested
with authority over you ('ul ul-'amr minkum). And if you
quarrel about something, refer it to Allah and the Messenger.10
This verse, as
explained in the previous section, refers to the guardianship of
Imam Ali, and subsequently, the rest of the Ahlul Bayt. The
Prophet has said about “those vested with authority over you,”
that “They are my successors and the leaders of the Muslims
after me. The first of them is Ali ibn Abi Talib, then al-Hassan
and al-Husayn, then Ali ibn al-Husayn, then Muhammad ibn Ali,
who is known as al-Baqir, then al-Sadiq Ja'far ibn Muhammad,
then Musa ibn Ja'far, then Ali ibn Musa, then Muhammad ibn Ali,
then Ali ibn Muhammad, then al-Hassan ibn Ali, then the one who
bears my name—Muhammad. And he will be the proof (hujjah)
of Allah on the earth.”[88]
The Hadith of the Two Weighty Things (Thaqalayn)
It is probable
that I will be called soon, and I will respond. So I leave
behind me two weighty (very worthy and important) things, the
Book of Allah (the Quran), which is a string stretched from the
heaven to the earth; and my progeny, my Ahlul Bayt. Verily
Allah, the Merciful, the Aware, has informed me that these two
will never be separated from each other until they meet me at
the Fountain of Abundance (the Hawdh of Kawthar, a
spring in heaven). Therefore, be careful of how you treat these
two in my absence, said the Messenger of Allah.[89]
This hadith was
declared on, at least five occasions—the first being the
farewell speech during the last hajj, the second at Ghadir Khum,
the third after the Prophet left the city of Ta΄if near Makkah,
the fourth at the pulpit in Madina, and the fifth—just before he
died—in his room which was full of his companions.
Given the high
importance of the Noble Quran, why would the Prophet associate
the Ahlul Bayt with the Noble Quran and place them second in
importance to it? The answer is that Ahlul Bayt are the best to
explain the true meaning and interpretation of this Noble Book.
The Noble Quran, as it states itself, contains both clear (muhkam)
and unclear (mutashabiah) verses, and so the correct
interpretation of these unclear verses must be passed on from
the Prophet himself, as he did to his Ahlul Bayt. In addition,
the Ahlul Bayt, due to their closeness to the Prophet, had an
unparalleled knowledge of his traditions.
Similar Narrations from the Prophet Muhammad about his Ahlul
Bayt
The parable of
my Ahlul Bayt is similar to that of Noah's ark. Whoever embarks
it will certainly be rescued, but the one who opposes boarding
it will certainly be drowned.[90]
Just like the
stars protect mankind from losing its way in travel, so are my
Ahlul Bayt; they are the safeguard against discord in matters of
religion.[91]
Acknowledgement
of the Al-e-Muhammad means salvation from the Hellfire;
the love of Al-e-Muhammad is a passport for crossing the
bridge of Sirat; and obedience to Al-e-Muhammad is
protection from divine wrath.[92]
[70]
Noble Quran, 33:33
[71]
al-Suyuti, al-Durr al-Manthur
[72]
Tirmidhi, Manaqib Ahlul-Bayt, Vol. 2, 308
[73]
It is not uncommon to find a group of verses discussing one
theme and having one verse in the middle that discusses another
theme. For example see Quran, Surah 5, verse 3 and Surah 5, v.
66-68.
[74]
Ibn Mardawayh. Ahmad ibn Hanbal. Tirmidhi. Ibn Mundir. Tabarani.
For more details see: Tabataba΄i, al-Mizan.
[75]
al-Miqrizi, Fadha΄il Ahlul-Bayt, 21
[76]
Ibn Hajar, Sawa΄iq. Vol.11, 160; Tabaqat al-Kubra, Ibn Sa΄ad;
Sahih Muslim; Musnad Ahmad ibn Hanbal; Tafsir al-Durr al-Manthur
[77]
Noble Quran, 42:23
[78]
Noble Quran, 6:84-85
[79]
Tabarsi, al-Ihtijaj, Vol. 2, Argument 271 and 335
[80]
Noble Quran, 3:61
[81]
Musnad Ahmad ibn Hanbal, Vol. 1, 185; Tabari, Tafsir, Vol. 3,
192; al-Hakim, al-Mustadrak, Vol. 3, 150; al-Hafiz Abu Nu΄aym,
Dala΄il al-Nubuwwah, 297; al-Naysaburi, Asbab al-Nuzul, 74; Abu
Bakr ibn al-‘Arabi, Ahkam al-Quran, Vol. 1, 115; al-Fakhr al-Razi,
Tafsir al-Kabir, Vol. 8, 85; al-Juzri, Usd al-Ghabah, Vol. 4,
25; Ibn al-Jawzi, Tadhkira Sibt, 17; Qurtubi, al-Jami΄ li-Ahkam
al-Quran, Vol. 3, 104; Tafsir ibn Kathir, Vol. 1, 370; Ibn
Kathir, al-Bidayah wal-Nihayah, Vol. 5, 52; Ibn Hajar al-Asqalani,
al-Isabah, Vol. 2, 503; Ibn al-Sabbagh al-Maliki, al-Fusul al-Muhimmah,
108; Jalal al-Din al-Suyuti, al-Durr al-Manthur, Vol. 4, 38;
Jalal al-Din al-Suyuti, Tarikh al-Khulafa΄, 115; Ibn Hajar,
al-Sawa΄iq al-Muhriqa, 199; Altogether 47 narrators and
commentators of the Noble Quran from the four schools of thought
narrate that the immediate family of the Prophet were only Lady
Fatima, Ali, Hassan, and Husayn.
[82]
Noble Quran, 33:56
[83]
Tafsir al-Kabir, Vol. 3, 56
[84]
Noble Quran, 37:130
[85]
Ibn Hajar, al-Sawa΄iq, Ch. 11
[86]
Noble Quran, 76:5-13
[87]
Zamakhshari, Tafsir al-Kashhaf, Ch. 76; Fakhr al-Razi, Tafsir
al-Kabir, Ch. 76; Tabarsi, Mu΄jam al-Bayan, Ch. 76
[88]
Tafsir al-Burhan
[89]
This hadith has been narrated by more than twenty companions of
the Prophet and has also been narrated by over 185 narrators
mentioned in Sahih Muslim, Vol. 2, 238; Musnad Ahmad ibn Hanbal,
Vol. 5, 181-182; Sahih Tirmidhi, Vol. 2, 220.
[90]
This hadith has been narrated by eight companions of the Prophet
and eight disciples of the companions, by sixty well-known
scholars and more than ninety authors from the brothers of the
Sunni school, such as Ahmad ibn Hanbal, Mishkat al-Masabih, 523;
Fara΄id al-Simtayn, Vol. 2, 242; al-Sawa΄iq al-Muhriqah, 234; ‘Uyun
al-Akhbar, Vol. 1, 211.
[91]
al-Hakim, al-Mustadrak (quoting Ibn ‘Abbas), Vol. 3, 149
[92]
al-Shafa, Vol 2, 40
HOME - NEWSLETTERS - BOOKS - ARTICLES - CONTACT - FEEDBACK
DISCLAIMER:
All material published by Al-Huda.com / And the Message Continues is the sole responsibility of its author's).
The opinions and/or assertions contained therein do not necessarily reflect the editorial views of this site,
nor of Al-Huda and its officers.