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The Ahl al-Bayt

Chapter 6 

The Ahl al-Bayt

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       The best way to introduce the ahl al-bayt to the Muslim nation is to recall what the Holy Qur'an says about them.  Several verses of the Holy Qur'an refer specifically to the virtues of the ahl al-bayt and their outstanding position in Islam.  Whenever the Holy Qur'an refers to the ahl al-bayt, it refers to a specific group of people who were related not only by blood but most importantly by ideology and faith to the Holy Prophet (pbuh&hf).  It does not refer to all of his blood relations, nor his friends or his wives, and the Holy Prophet (pbuh&hf) defines who they are himself as will be seen.

       The Verse of Purity (taharah):  "Allah only desires to keep away uncleanliness from you, O People of the House (ahl al-bayt), and to make you as pure as possible."[65]  The prominent scholars of Islam and the narrators of the Prophetic tradition unanimously agree that ahl al-bayt (the household of the Prophet (pbuh&hf)) which Almighty Allah uses in the Holy Qur'an refers to the daughter of the Holy Prophet (pbuh&hf), Lady Fatima al-Zahra' (pbuh); his cousin, 'Ali ibn Abi Talib (pbuh); and their children Hasan and Husayn (pbut).[66]  Tabarani narrates from one of the respected wives of the Holy Prophet (pbuh&hf), Um Salamah, that the Messenger of Allah (pbuh&hf) once told his daughter Lady Fatima (pbuh) to call her husband 'Ali and their two sons, Hasan and Husayn.  When they came, the Messenger of Allah (pbuh&hf) covered them with a cloak, put his hand on them, and said: "O Allah, these are the Al-i-Muhammad (the family of Muhammad), so shower Your blessings and favors upon the Al-i-Muhammad just as You showered them on the Al-i-Abraham.  You are the Praiseworthy, the Glorious."  Um Salamah says that she raised the cloak to join them, but the Holy Prophet (pbuh&hf) took it from her hand, saying: "You are also on the right."[67]

       Although the beginning of this verse addresses the wives of the Holy Prophet (pbuh&hf), and this verse occurs in the middle of Allah's commands to the wives of the Holy Prophet (pbuh&hf), it excludes them from this particular statement.  While the previous and subsequent statements to the wives of the Holy Prophet (pbuh&hf) are in the feminine pronouns and gender, this verse referring to the ahl al-bayt is in the masculine or mixed gender and thus is clearly not addressed to the wives of the Holy Prophet (pbuh&hf).  However, even without the grammatical evidence, the relationship between some of the wives of the Holy Prophet (pbuh&hf) does not fit the spirit of this verse which asserts the physical, mental, and spiritual purity of the family of the Holy Prophet (pbuh&hf). 

       To emphasize that the phrase ahl al-bayt in this verse refers only to five people - Muhammad, 'Ali, Lady Fatima, Hasan, and Husayn - narrators say that the Holy Prophet (pbuh&hf), when passing his daughter Lady Fatima's house on the way to the mosque for the dawn prayers, used to stop there and call: "To prayer, O ahl al-bayt, to prayer.  Allah desires to keep away uncleanliness from you, O ahl al-bayt, and to make you as pure as possible."[68]  Imam Anas ibn Malik adds that the Holy Prophet (pbuh&hf) did this for six months every day on his way to the morning prayers at the mosque.[69]

      The Verse of Affection (muwaddah):  "Say: I do not ask of you any reward for it (preaching the message) but love for my relatives (qurba).[70]"  (Qurba here refers to the ahl al-bayt [71])  When explaining this verse, Fakhr al-Din al-Razi says: "Without doubt, no one was as near to the Prophet (pbuh&hf) as Lady Fatima, 'Ali, Hasan, and Husayn.  This is a well-known fact of all chains of narration, and these are his 'al'."  Thus, 'al' or 'ahl' refers only to the immediate family of the Holy Prophet (pbuh&hf) - namely, Lady Fatima, 'Ali, Hasan, and Husayn.

       Some argue that Hasan and Husayn are not sons of the Holy Prophet (pbuh&hf) since they are sons of Imam 'Ali (pbuh) and traced their direct lineage to the Holy Prophet (pbuh&hf) through their mother, Lady Fatima al-Zahra' (pbuh).  It has been narrated that the 'Abbasid caliph Harun al-Rashid asked the seventh imam of the school of ahl al-bayt, Imam Musa ibn Ja'far, how he could attribute himself to the Holy Prophet (pbuh&hf) while he was the child of 'Ali with Lady Fatima only carrying the children in her womb.  How could he be related to the Holy Prophet (pbuh&hf)?  The Imam then recited to him this verse, which speaks of the Prophet Abraham (pbuh) and says: "And from his progeny were David (Dawud), Solomon (Sulayman), Job (Ayyub), Joseph (Y

usuf), Moses (Musa), and Aaron (Harun) - thus do We reward the good-doers - and Zachariah (Zakariyya), and John (Yahya), and Jesus ('Isa), and Elias (Ilyas) - each one of them was of the righteous."[72]  The Imam then asked the caliph who the father of 'Isa was.  Harun answered that he had no father; he was fatherless.  The Imam replied: "Then you can see that Allah linked him to Abraham through his mother, and Allah did the same for us, linking us to the Prophet Muhammad (pbuh&hf) through our mother Lady Fatima al-Zahra'."[73]

       In many instances, the Holy Prophet (pbuh&hf) refers to Lady Fatima (pbuh) 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 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'."  This milestone event in Islamic history has been narrated by all the historians, narrators, and commentators of the Qur'an and is an event which reveals the exalted status of the Family of the Prophet (pbut).  The narrations say that a delegation of Christians from Najran came to the city of Madinah in order to meet with the Holy Prophet (pbuh&hf) to discuss his prophethood and the new religion he was bringing.  The Holy Prophet (pbuh&hf) proved to them that Jesus (pbuh) was the son of Mary - a human being, a prophet, and a servant of Allah, as the Qur'an states - and that regarding him as the son of God is blasphemy since Allah, the Exalted, is high above such human characteristics.  After discussing these points fully and convincingly, when the Prophet (pbuh&hf) found them still deliberately persisting in their false beliefs and traditions - namely, the deification of Prophet Jesus (pbuh) - Allah revealed this verse which was a major challenge to the Christians to pray and invoke 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 Hijjah, in accordance with Allah's command, the Holy Prophet (pbuh&hf) arrived at the meeting holding Husayn in his arms and leading Hasan by his hand, followed by his beloved daughter Lady Fatima, behind whom came his son-in-law and cousin 'Ali ibn Abi Talib carrying the banner of Islam.  Seeing that the Prophet (pbuh&hf) was accompanied only by his immediate family, the Christians were convinced that he was truthful; otherwise, he would never have dared to bring his dearest kin along.  The Christian delegation backed away from the maledictory confrontation and agreed to retreat back to Najran.

       Although other women were present in the family the Prophet (pbuh&hf) at that time, all the commentators, narrators, and historians agree that, in this Qur'anic verse, "our women" refers only to Lady Fatima al-Zahra' (pbuh), "our children" refers only to Hasan and Husayn (pbut), and "ourselves" refers only to the Holy Prophet (pbuh&hf) and Imam 'Ali (pbuh).

   Zamakhshari, in his Tafsir al-Kashshaf, narrates the event in this way:

  When this verse was revealed, the Holy Prophet (pbuh&hf) asked the Christians to the malediction to invoke the curse of Allah upon the liars.  The Christians held a discourse among themselves that night in which their leader, 'Abd al-Masih, states his views as follows.  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 would they perish, but their children would also be afflicted with the curse."  Saying this - that it is better to reach a compromise with the Holy Prophet (pbuh&hf) 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 Holy Prophet) and return to your land."  The next day, the Holy Prophet (pbuh&hf), carrying Husayn in his arms, leading Hasan by the hand, followed by his daughter Lady Fatima, behind whom came 'Ali, entered the appointed place and was heard saying to his family: "When I invoke Allah, second this invocation."  The Pontiff of Najran, upon seeing the Holy Prophet (pbuh&hf) and his family, addressed the Christians: "O Christians!  I am beholding 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 would remain no Christians on the face of the earth till the Day of Resurrection." [74]  Heeding his advice, the Christians said to the Holy Prophet (pbuh&hf): "O Abul-Qasim, we have decided not to hold malediction with you.  You keep your religion, and we will keep ours."  The Holy Prophet (pbuh&hf) 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.  The Prophet of Islam (pbuh&hf) accepted.

         The Verse of Prayer (salat):  "Surely Allah and His angels bless the Prophet.  O ye who believe, call for divine blessings upon him, and salute him with a becoming salutation."[75]  During the five obligatory prayers, during the tashhahud (testimony), those offering their prayers must salute the Holy Prophet (pbuh&hf) and his progeny (pbut) - a term exclusively reserved for 'Ali, Lady Fatima, Hasan, Husayn, and their righteous descendants.  The emphasis on the Prophet's family in salutation is another indication of their pivotal position after the Prophet (pbuh&hf).  By asking the believers to exalt them, Allah the Almighty reminds the Muslim nation that He has chosen the ahl al-bayt for the role of leading the Muslim nation.  One of the most prominent commentators of the Qur'an, Fakhr al-Din al-Razi, narrates the response of the Prophet (pbuh&hf) 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 Abraham and on the progeny of Abraham.  And send grace on Muhammad and on the progeny of Muhammad just as you sent grace on Abraham and on the progeny of Abraham.  You are the Praiseworthy, the Glorious'."[76]  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, it is not because he is in need of them; since he already has the blessings of Allah, 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 so that He may have compassion on us and reward us.  Thus, the Prophet (pbuh&hf) says: "Whoever sends blessings on me once, Allah will send blessings on him ten times."

       Another verse in the Holy Qur'an asserts the same teachings when Allah the Almighty sends His blessings on the family of the Holy Prophet (pbuh&hf) by saying: "Peace be upon the Al-i-Yasin!"[77]  According to some commentators, Yasin is one of the names of the Prophet (pbuh&hf), as stated in the chapter Ya Sin, when it addresses him: "Yasin, by the Qur'an full of wisdom, truly you are one of the messengers...."[78]

       The Verse of Feeding.  Chapter 76 in the Holy Qur'an descended to honor a sacred gesture performed by the ahl al-bayt.  Allah entitled this chapter "Mankind" to draw the attention of people to the beauty of mankind's deeds on earth and to tell them that they should not be selfish or greedy but rather 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 have 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 (pbut) - 'Ali, Lady Fatima, Hasan, Husayn, and their maidservant Fiddah - described in verses 5-13:

  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.

  Qur'anic commentators have a consensus that these verses speak of the ahl al-bayt and place them at the top of piety and show them as models for the generosity of mankind.  Humanity would be rightly guided by their parable.  The incident provoking these verses began when Hasan and Husayn fell ill, and Lady Fatima al-Zahra' asked her father what to do.  The Holy Prophet (pbuh&hf) advised her to make a vow with Allah that, if He cured them, the entire family would fast for three days.  Hasan and Husayn were cured, and the process of fasting began.  At the time there was nothing in their house to eat, so Imam 'Ali (pbuh) went to a Khaybarian Jew named Shimon and borrowed three measures of barley.  His wife Lady Fatima ground one measure into flour and baked it into five loaves of bread, one for each of them.  'Ali, Lady Fatima, and their two sons, Hasan 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 the fast, an orphan came to their door, and they again gave him all their food.  Once again, on the third day, at the time of breaking the fast, a prisoner of war (who had been captured in the defensive wars of Islam and was living in the city of Madinah) came to their door and asked for some food; again, they took all five loaves of bread and gave them to that man, breaking their fast for the third consequtive day only with water.  At that time, the Messenger of Allah (pbuh&hf) came and saw his daughter Lady Fatima al-Zahra' and her two children Hasan 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 for the reason, Jibril came to the Holy Prophet (pbuh&hf) with Chapter 76, saying: "O Muhammad, Allah congratulates you for the sacrifice of your household."[79]

       These verses not only translate the generosity and steadfastness of the ahl al-bayt but also reveal the total submission of the Family of the Prophet (pbut) and their immaculate and pure personalities.

       The Verse of Guardianship:  "O ye 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."[80]  This verse, as explained in the previous section, refers to the guardianship of Imam 'Ali (pbuh) and, subsequently, the rest of the ahl al-bayt.  The Holy Prophet (pbuh&hf) has said about 'those vested with authority over you': "Those are my successors, and the leaders of the Muslims after me.  The first of them is 'Ali ibn Abi Talib, then al-Hasan 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-Hasan ibn 'Ali, then the one who bears my name - Muhammad.  And he will be the proof (hujja) of Allah on the earth."[81]

         The Hadith of the Two Weighty Things (Thaqalayn):  The Messenger of Allah (pbuh&hf) has said: "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 Qur'an), which is a string stretched from the heaven to the earth; and my progeny, my ahl al-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 how you treat these two in my absence."[82]

     This hadith was declared on at least five occasions - the first during the farewell speech during the farewell hajj, the second at Ghadir Khum, the third after the Holy Prophet (pbuh&hf) left the city of Ta'if near Makkah, the fourth at the pulpit in Madinah, and the fifth - just before he (pbuh&hf) died - in his room which was full of his compaions.

     Given the high importance of the Holy Qur'an, why would the Holy Prophet (pbuh&hf) associate the ahl al-bayt with the Holy Qur'an and place them second in importance to it?  The answer is that the ahl al-bayt were the best to explain the true meaning and interpretation of the Holy Qur'an.  The Holy Qur'an, as it states itself, contains both clear (muhkam) and unclear (mutashabah) verses, and so the correct interpretation of these unclear verses must be passed on from the Holy Prophet (pbuh&hf) himself, as he did to his ahl al-bayt.  In addition, the ahl al-bayt, due to their closeness to the Holy Prophet (pbuh&hf), had an unparallelled knowledge of his tradition. 

      Similar narrations from the Holy Prophet Muhammad (pbuh&hf) about his ahl al-bayt (pbut):

  "The parable of my ahl al-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."[83] 

"As the stars protect mankind from losing its way in travel, so are my ahl al-bayt; they are the safeguard against discord in matters of religion."[84]

"Acknowledgement of the Al-i-Muhammad means salvation from the Hellfire; the love of the Al-i-Muhammad is a passport for crossing the bridge of sirat; and obedience to the Al-i-Muhammad is protection from divine wrath."[85]

      Notes:

  [65] Qur'an 33:33

[66] al-Durr al-Manthur, al-Suyuti

[67] Manaqib Ahl al-bayt, Tirmidhi, 2:308

[68] Ibn Mardawayh, Ahmad ibn Hanbal, Tirmidhi, ibn Mundir, Tabarani.  For more details, refer to al-Mizan, Tabataba'i, under the explanation of verse 33:33

[69] Fadha'il Ahl al-bayt, al-Miqrizi, p. 21

[70] Qur'an 42:23

[71] Sawa'iq ibn Hajar, 11:160; Tabaqat al-Kubra, ibn Sa'ad; also Sahih Muslim, Musnad Ahmad ibn Hanbal, Tafsir al-Durr al-Manthur

[72] Qur'an 6:84-85

[73] Ihtijaj, Tabarsi, 2:335 argument #271

[74] Musnad Ahmad ibn Hanbal, 1:185; Tafsir, Tabari, 3:192; al-Mustadrak, al-Hakim, 3:150; Dala'il al-Nubuwwah, al-Hafiz Abu Nu'aym, p. 297; Asbab al-Nuzul, al-Naysaburi, p. 74; Ahkam al-Qur'an, Abu Bakr ibn al-'Arabi, 1:115; Tafsir al-Kabir, al-Fakhr al-Razi, 8:85; Usd al-Ghabah, al-Juzri, 4:25; Tadhkira Sibt ibn al-Jawzi, p. 17; al-Jami'  li-Ahkam al-Qur'an, Qurtubi, 3:104; Tafsir ibn Kathir, 1:370; al-Bidayah wal-Nihayah, ibn Kathir, 5:52; al-Isabah, ibn Hajar al-Asqalani, 2:503; al-Fusul al-Muhimmah, ibn al-Sabbagh al-Maliki, p. 108; al-Durr al-Manthur, Jalal al-Din al-Suyuti, 4:38; Tarikh al-Khulafa', Jalal al-Din al-Suyuti, p. 115; al-Sawa'iq al-Muhriqa, ibn Hajar, p. 199; and other prominent sources.  Altogether, 47 narrators and commentators of the Holy Qur'an from the four schools of thought narrate that the immediate family of the Holy Prophet (pbuh&hf) were only Lady Fatimah, 'Ali, Hasan, and Husayn.

[75] Qur'an 33:56

[76] Tafsir al-Kabir, 3:56

[77] Qur'an 37:130

[78] al-Sawa'iq, ibn Hajar, ch. 11

[79] Tafsir al-Kashhaf, Zamakhshari, ch. 76; Tafsir al-Kabir, Fakhr al-Razi, ch. 76; Mu'jam al-Bayan, Tabarsi, ch. 76

[80] Qur'an 4:59

[81] Tafsir al-Burhan

[82] This hadith has been narrated by more than twenty companions of the Holy Prophet (pbuh&hf) and has also been narrated by over 185 narrators mentioned in Sahih Muslim, 2:238; Musnad Ahmad ibn Hanbal, 5:181-182; Sahih Tirmidhi, 2:220, and others.

[83]  This hadith has been narrated by eight companions of the Holy Prophet (pbuh&hf) and eight disciples of the compaions, by sixty well-known scholars and more than ninety authors from the brothers of the Sunni school, such as Mishkat al-Masabih, Ahmad ibn Hanbal, p. 523; Fara'id al-Simtayn, 2:242; al-Sawa'iq al-Muhriqah, p. 234; 'Uyun al-Akhbar, 1:211, and others

[84] al-Mustadrak, al-Hakim (quoting ibn 'Abbas), 3:149

[85] al-Shafa, 2:40

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