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Some Traditions that Appear to Conflict with Hadith al­Thaqalayn - Seek guidance with the guidance of `Ammar.

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 "Seek guidance with the guidance of `Ammar."

Another tradition mentioned by Shah `Abd al­`Aziz to contend the import of Hadith al­Thaqalayn is the following one ascribed to the Prophet (S):



    Seek guidance with the guidance of `Ammar.

Sayyid Hamid Husayn points out that such a tradition cannot be put forward to contest the import of Hadith al-Thaqalayn, for `Ammar himself was one of the staunch followers (shi`ah) of `Ali (A) and had been instructed by the Prophet (S) to obey and follow `Ali (A):



    [The Prophet (S) said to `Ammar:] O `Ammar, `Ali will not divert you from guidance. O `Ammar, obedience to `Ali is obedience to me, and obedience to me is obedience to God, Almighty and Glorious.

This tradition has been recorded in various non-Shi`i works, such as:

    Farai'd al-simtayn, i, 178;
    al-Mawaddah fi al-qurba;
    al-Khwarazmi's Manaqib, 57, 124;
    Yanabi` al-mawaddah, 128, 250;
    Miftah al-naja, MS.; and
    Kanz al-`ummal, xii, 212.

Moreover, it is strange of Shah `Abd al-`Aziz to bring this tradition as an evidence against Hadith al-Thaqalayn, for `Ammar, as mentioned by al-Ya`qubi in his Ta'rikh, ii, 114 and al-Mas`udi in Muruj al-dhahab, ii, 342, was among those who abstained from giving allegiance to the first caliph. `Umar, during his reign, rejected `Ammar's guidance and spoke to him in harsh terms when the latter suggested that one should perform tayammum when water could not be found for wudu', instead of abstaining from salat, as `Umar had ruled. This episode has been recorded by:

    Ahmad in his Musnad, iv, 265 and
    Muslim in his Sahih, i, 110,
    as well as a host of other writers such as Abu Dawud, al-Nasa'i, al-Tabari, al-`Ayni, Ibn al-'Athir and al-Shaybani.

`Uthman during his reign had `Ammar beaten until he fell unconscious and nearly died when the latter handed over a letter of protest written by a group of Muslims against the former's misrule. This episode has been recorded by:

    Ibn Qutaybah in al­'Imamah wa al-siyasah, i, 32;
    Ibn `Abd Rabbih in al­`Iqd al­farid, ii, 192;
    al-Mas`udi in Muruj al-dhahab, ii, 338;
    Ibn `Abd al-Barr in al-'Isti`ab, iii, 136; and
    al-Ya`qubi in Ta'rikh, ii, 160.

Although the Prophet (S) was known to have made several statements in `Ammar's favour - such as "The enemy of `Ammar is the enemy of God" - `Ammar was either opposed, hated and mistreated by a number of Companions such as `Abd al­Rahman ibn `Awf, Sa`d ibn Abi Waqqas, al-Mughirah ibn Shu`bah, Abu Musa al-'Ash`ari, Abu Mas`ud al-'Ansari and others. `Ammar stood firmly by `Ali's side and fought with him against `Ali's opponents, Talhah, al-Zubayr and Mu`awiyah, in the battles of Jamal and Siffin. Ultimately he was killed by Mu`awiyah's men, thus fulfilling the Prophet's well-known prophecy that `Ammar would be killed by a rebellious party (al-fi'at al-baghiyah). 

 

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