Abu Talib (a.s)

Chapter Two : in the Conscience of History

AFTER THE DEATH

The Prophet (s), who was the highest example of loyalty, fealty and fairness, would never deny a favor of any one; therefore the death of Abu Talib had left a deep effect upon him. He became so distressed and felt the great gap the absence of his uncle caused. As soon as Imam Ali told him of the bad news of the disaster, his eyes began to flow with tears. After he wiped off his tears, he ordered Ali in a sad voice saying: "Go to wash him, enshroud him and bury him! May Allah forgive him and have mercy upon him." (1)

This was another evidence besides many other evidences proving the faith of Abu Talib. The Prophet (s) ordered Ali, and no one at all would think that Ali was not a Muslim, to wash his father (to do the ghussl). (2) Islam wouldn't permit a Muslim to wash an unbeliever. The Prophet (s) prayed Allah to forgive his uncle and prayed Allah to have mercy upon him. It was definitely

____________ 1 Refer to As-Seera an-Nabawiyya, vol.1 p.84, al-Ghadeer, vol.3 p.99, vol.7 p.373, Sheikhul Abtah p.44, Al-Hujja p.67, Mo'jamul Quboor, vol.1 p.204, Tathkiratul Khawass p.10, Eeman Abu Talib p.10 and A'yan ash-Shia, vol.39 p.161. 2 Ghussl means washing the dead in a certain way according to the laws of the Islamic Sharia.

that the Prophet (s) was so strict against the unbelievers and he was merciful and kind to the believers only. After Ali had washed his dead father and the body of the supporter of Islam had been carried on the shoulders of the men, Ali came back to tell the Prophet (s). The Prophet (s) stood up in front of the body of his uncle to escort him with signs of praise and glorification and to be sincere to his favors he had done to Islam. The Prophet (s) said: "O uncle! Mercy may be upon you and you may be rewarded with good. You brought me up and adopted me when I was a child and you assisted and supported me when I became a man." (1) The Prophet (s) participated in the funeral until his uncle was buried then he said: "By Allah, I will pray Allah to forgive you and I will intercede for you that the mankind and the jinn will be surprised." (2) The Prophet (s) mentioned the virtues of his uncle, prayed Allah to forgive him and promised to intercede for him in the Day of Resurrection that would surprise the mankind and the jinn.

What would that intercession be? Let's suppose that Abu Talib was unbeliever -although it was not so and would never be accepted by the rightness and the fair conscience- and didn't support the Prophet (s) at all but the Prophet (s) would intercede for him to be in Paradise. This intercession wouldn't surprise the two groups of mankind and jinn because the Prophet

____________ 1 Sharh Nahjol Balagha, vol.3 p.314, Biharul Anwar, vol.6 p.445, 523, 529, Sheikhul Abtah p.43, al-Ghadeer, vol.7 p.374, 387, Al-Hujja p.67, Abu Talib p.89, Mo'jamul Quboor, vol.1 p.191, 204, Tafseer Ali bin Ibraheem p.355, Tathkiratul Khawass p.10, Eeman Abu Talib p.10, A'yan ash-Shia, vol.39 p.139, 161. 2 Sharh Nahjol Balagha, vol.3 p.314, Biharul Anwar, vol.6 p.445, 523, 529, Sheikhul Abtah p.43, al-Ghadeer, vol.7 p.374, 387, Al-Hujja p.67, Mo'jamul Quboor, vol.1 p.204, Eeman Abu Talib p.10, A'yan ash-Shia, vol.39 p.161.

(s) would never intercede for an unbeliever.

But if Abu Talib would be rewarded with entering Paradise for his virtues and good deeds, hence the intercession of the Prophet (s) would be further than entering Paradise and this world surprise man and the jinn. The Prophet (s), besides being loyal to his uncle's favors, wanted by saying this to refute those who wrongly thought that Abu Talib hadn't believed in the mission just because that he sometimes concealed his faith when the circumstances were not suitable for him to announce his faith openly in order to be able to carry out his tasks in the interest of the mission without obstacles.

Then the Prophet (s) added to his word this lament: "Ah father! Ah Abu Talib! O uncle, how bitter my sorrow is! How can I forget you! You brought me up when I was a child, responded to me when I was and I was for you as the pupil for the eye and as the soul for the body." This was another evidence by the Prophet (s) proving the faith of Abu Talib when saying: "... responded to me when I was a man ..."

Let's ponder about this delicate expression of the Prophet (s): he said that his position in his uncle's heart was like the eye and the soul. What an accurate imaging showing how much Abu Talib had loved the Prophet (s) and what a great position he had in his uncle's heart. Would such a man, who had all that love and that respect to the Prophet (s), not believe in the Prophet's mission? Certainly not! It would be beyond impossibility!

But now as the fortress, which protected the prophet (s) from the evils of Quraysh, was ruined when the defending lion was put in the grave, the beasts of Quraysh

____________ 1 Sheikh Abtah p.44 quoted from al-Majlisi, al-Mufeed and ibn Hajar in his Issaba, vol.7 p.112.

found the way empty and guardless. So they began to harm the Prophet (s) with all kinds of harm, torment, mockery and bitter insult; therefore the image of Abu Talib would have never left the mind of the Prophet (s) especially at this moment when he felt that he was in extreme need of him. Once he came into his house and his hair was stained with dust that some of the impudents of Quraysh had poured upon his head. His daughter became sad and began to cry. She tried to remove the dust from her father's head. He calmed her down saying: "Don't cry my daughter! Allah protects your father."

Then he added after remembering the past of his uncle Abu Talib when no one could dare to touch a hair of him: "Quraysh couldn't hurt me until Abu Talib died!" (1) On every occasion such words came out of his mouth expressing his longing to his uncle and his need of him and of his glorious past: "O uncle! How sudden I felt your absence!" (2) Allah willed to try his messenger. It was fated that he had to face two disasters each of them was bitterer that the other. Nearly in the same days he lost two supporters, who so often assisted and supported him in his distresses; Abu Talib, with his powerfulness and strength, who had

____________ 1 As-Seera an-Nabawiyya, vol.1 p.88, 281, as-Seera al-Halabiyya, vol.1 p.291, as-Seera al-Hishamiyya, vol.2 p.58, at-Tabari's Tareekh, vol.2 p,80, ibnul Atheer's Tareekh, vol.2 p.63, al-Manaqib, vol.1 p.38, Biharul Anwar, vol.6 p.430, 528, Sheikhul Abtah, p.51, Abu Talib, p.91, al-Ghadeer, vol.7 p.377, Imam Ali, the Voice of Justice, p.36 (vol.1 p.60), A'yan ash-Shia, vol.39, p.127. 2 As-Seera an-Nabawiyya, vol.1 p.88, 281, as-Seera al-Halabiyya, vol.1 p.291, as-Seera al-Hishamiyya, vol.2 p.58, at-Tabari's Tareekh, vol.2, p.80, ibnul Atheer's Tareekh, vol.2 p.63, al-Manaqib, vol.1 p.38, Biharul Anwar, vol.6 p.430, 528, Sheikhul Abtah, p.51, Abu Talib, p.91, al-Ghadeer, vol.7 p.377, Imam Ali, the Voice of Justice, p.36 (vol.1 p.60), A'yan ash-Shia, vol.39, p.127.

prevented Quraysh from daring to do any harm to the Prophet (s) and Khadeeja, (1) with her money, kindness, emotion, loyalty and devotedness, who so often assisted him against the distresses, eased his pains and nursed his wounds. He lost both of them in a very critical time. The wide space would be narrow and the existence would be dark to him, unless he didn't trust in Allah and depend upon Him besides the full mercy of Allah.

He lost them after those hard years they had spent in the Shi'b when his uncle was more than eighty years old. Those years were full of strife and struggle and therefore they gave good fruits and left a great glory, which became greater and greater later on. (2) In one of the moments of his pain, an over-burdened sad word came out of his mouth but was full of trust in Allah, gull of hope in His contentment, full of patience towards the fate ... complaining to his God what harms, contempt and pains he got from people: "O Allah! To You I complain my weakness, my little supports and my being disdained by people! O Allah, the Most Merciful! You are the Lord of the weak; You are my Lord; to who You leave me? To an opponent frowning at me ... or to an enemy overcoming me? If You are not angry with me, I will never mind ... but Your blessing will be better to me ... I resort to the light of Your face, with which the darkness becomes shiny and the affairs of the life and the afterlife become virtuous, so that not to let Your rage afflict me and Your wrath befall on me. I

____________ 1 She was the Prophet's wife. 2 There were different news about the death of Abu Talib and Khadija (s). Some historians said that Abu Talib died in Rajab, Ramadan, Shawwal or Thul-Qi'da and whether in the tenth or eleventh year after the mission. The historians where different about who had died before the other and how many days were between their deaths.

request Your forgiveness until You become pleased with me. There is no power save in You..." (1) After Abu Talib no shelter remained for the Prophet (s) to resort to in Mecca. That defensive fortress, which protected him from the disasters, was demolished and the supporter, who sacrificed everything for him, was no longer alive. In the midst of his distress and pain, the angel revealed to him this divine order: "Go out of it (Mecca)! Your supporter has died." (2)

____________ 1 At-Tabari's Tareekh, vol.2 p.81, ibnul Atheer's Tareekh, vol.4 p.64, Sharh Nahjol Balagha, vol.3 p.322, as-Seera al-Halabiyya, vol.1 p.353, As-Seera an-Nabawiyya, vol.1 p.286, al-Seera al-Hishamiyya, vol.2 p.61-62, al-Manaqib, vol.38, p.1, Biharul Anwar, vol.6 p.529, Sheikhul Abtah, p.52, Ala Hamish as-Seera, vol.3 p.149-150, Muhammad, the Arab Prophet, p.65-66. 2 Sharh Nahjol Balagha, vol.1 p.10, Al-Hujja, p.17, 64, 103, Biharul Anwar, vol.6 p.543, Sheikhul Abtah, p.51, Mo'jamul Quboor, vol.1 p.197, A'yan ash-Shia, vol.3 p.7, vol.39, p.127.

PLEASANT MENTION

The sayings of the Prophet (s) The situations of Abu Talib would never be away from the Prophet's mind nor would his image leave his sight. He didn't forget his uncle for a while. He still remembered him, praised him and prayed to him for his eternal deeds and his glorious situations in order to be grateful to that man, who had done him many favors.

The Prophet (s) would never be indifferent to any favor done to him. So he often mentioned that to be grateful on one side and on the other side he wanted to encourage the others to follow the same way. One day a nomad, with signs of sorrow and sadness appeared on his face, came to Prophet (s) hoping to get something that might relieve some of his sorrow. He said to the Prophet (s): "O messenger of Allah! We have come to you and we have no any camel nor any of our children can find anything to eat." Then he recited some verses of poetry:

We have come to you and our virgin's breast disappeared, and the mother ignored her baby. (1) The hands of the child dangled and he fainted to the ground, he could do nothing nor could he move, Nothing to eat we have save colocynth, blood and hair of camels. We don't have save you to resort to. Do people resort but to the prophets?

The merciful Prophet (s) stood up deeply affected by this tragic scene dragging his feet towards the minbar. After praising Allah, he began to pray Him: "O Allah! Send us abundant rain pouring plentifully to produce the

____________ 1 He described the famine they were suffering.

plants, to fill the udders and to give life to the earth after its death ... and thus shall you be brought forth." As soon as the Prophet (s) finished his praying, the sky began to lighten and the ground began to receive the abundant rain. A man came to the Prophet (s) crying: "O messenger of Allah! It is the flood! It is the flood!" The Prophet's hands, whose hopes would never be refused, stretched towards the Heaven and his lips, whose praying would never be disappointed by Allah, uttered: "Let it be around us and not upon us!"

The heavy clouds began to leave taking with them the terror out of the people's hearts. The Prophet (s) became delighted and his lips smiled but he remembered the near past and sighed: "What a man Abu Talib was! If he is alive, he will be delighted. Who will recite us his poetry?" His cousin Imam Ali stood up and said: "O messenger of Allah! You may mean his saying:

And a white-faced, with whose face it is prayed, so that the clouds bring goodness. He is the shelter of the orphans and the guardian of the widows.

As the Prophet (s) said: "Yes" Ali kept on reciting other verses of his father's poem and the Prophet (s) from above the minbar kept on praying Allah to forgive his sincere uncle. Would we stop here with the Prophet when praying Allah to forgive his uncle after his death? The Prophet (s) mentioned his uncle when every occasion passed by him because his mind was always busy with his good deeds and he always remembered his great situations. Quite often the Prophet (s) praised his uncle with worthy words and it was definitely that the Prophet (s) wouldn't praise any one, who didn't deserve that. He kept on praying Allah to forgive his uncle when Ali was reciting his father's poetry and it was definitely that the Prophet (s) would never pray Allah to forgive anyone, who was not faithful.

The Prophet (s) said: "Being loyal to a man (after his death) is by being loyal to his children." And who would be worthier than the Prophet (s) to achieve his own sayings?

The Prophet (s) remained loyal to his uncle Abu Talib by being loyal to his son Ali. Once he said to Imam Ali: "No one is worthier than you of my position; you are the first in being a Muslim, you are my cousin and may son-in-law. You have Fatima, the head lady of the believing women. Before that, your father was my guardian and supporter when the Quran was revealed and I am so careful to keep that for him by taking much care of his offspring after him." (1)

Did you see what position Abu Talib had in the Prophet's heart? The Prophet (s) considered the situation of Abu Talib during the revelation of the Quran as one of the virtues of Ali. He thought that it imposed upon him to consider that Ali was the worthier one of his position -the position of prophecy. He added this virtue to the other virtues of Ali like his preceding in being a Muslim, being his cousin and his son-in-law ... The Prophet (s) revealed to Ali that he would keep on being grateful to Abu Talib by taking much care of his sons. So no one but Ali was to be the successor of the Prophet (s) for there was no one worthier than him of all these virtues! Once again he said to Aqeel (2): "O Abu Yazeed, (3), I love you twice; once for your kinship with me and the other

____________ 1 Refer to Yanabee'ul Mawadda, p.263 (vol.2 p.141), Ghayatul Maram, p.497 and al-Ghadeer, vol.7 p.378, 388. 2 He was the elder brother of Ali. 3 Abu Yazeed was Aqeel's surname.

The Sayings Of Imam Ali (s)

for I know how much my uncle had loved you." (1) What great love the Prophet (s) had for his uncle! He loved Aqeel for the kinship between them and the other love because he knew that Abu Talib had loved Aqeel too much. He thought that his uncle's love for someone imposed upon him to love that one too. It was true evidence showing us the great love the Prophet (s) had towards his uncle Abu Talib. On the day of Badr (2) while the battle was in its excitement, Abu Obayda bin al-Harth bin al-Muttalib approached to meet the polytheists defending his religion. When his leg was cut by Otba bin Rabee'a -or Shayba as it was mentioned- two drawn swords of the swords of Allah; Ali and Hamza rushed, stroke the enemy with their unavoidable swords and saved their companion and carried him to the arbor where the Prophet (s) was. Obayda's leg, which was cut and was bleeding, didn't distract him from opening his eyes to say to the Prophet (s) in a quivering voice: "O messenger of Allah! If Abu Talib was alive, he would know that he had been truthful when he had said (addressing the polytheists):

I swear by the House of Allah that you have told lies! We never give up Muhammad; we struggle and fight for him, we support him until we are killed around him. For him we ignore our wives and children.

The Prophet (s) was affected by the mention of his uncle and began praying Allah to forgive him and Abu Obayda. (3)

____________

1 Al-Istee'ab, vol.3 p.157, Sharh Nahjol Balagha, vol.3 p.312, Al-Hujja, p.34, Tathkiratul Khawass, p.15, Mo'jamul Quboor, vol.1 p.202, al-Ghadeer, vol.7 p.377, 387. 2 Badr was the first battle between the Muslims and the polytheists of Quraysh. 3 Sharh Nahjol Balagha, vol.3 p.316, 334, vol.1 p.305-306, Al-Hujja, p.84, Sheikhul Abtah, p.47-48, A'yan ash-Shia, vol.39, p.151. It was mentioned in Biharul Anwar, vol.6 p.595 in a way different from this.

When Quraysh was defeated and the battle stopped, the Prophet (s) had a pondering look at the dead bodies of the polytheist and remembered something. Abu Bakr was beside him. He said to Abu Bakr: "I wish Abu Talib was alive! He would know what our swords have done to the greats." (1) He referred to the verse of Abu Talib's poem:

By the House of Allah! You have lied. If what I foresee be serious, our swords will pierce the greats.

Once al-Abbas asked the Prophet (s): "O messenger of Allah! Do you pray for Abu Talib?" The Prophet (s) answered him: "Every good I hope for him from my God." (2) The books of Hadith mentioned a true tradition that the Prophet (s) had said: "On the Day of Resurrection I intercede for my father, my mother, my uncle -Abu Talib- and a brother of mine, who lived in the pre-Islamic age." This tradition was mentioned in different ways but it had the same meaning. (3) These traditions imposed upon us to acknowledge the faith of the Prophet's supporter, whom the Prophet (s) didn't mention unless he praised with the best of words. He often prayed His God for him. Definitely the Prophet (s) would never follow his passion but put every one in his suitable position whether good or bad.

____________ 1 Refer to al-Aghani by Abul Faraj al-Isfahani, vol.17, p.28, al-Ghadeer, vol.1 p.378, vol.2 p.4, Tilbat at-Talib, p.48 and Sharh Nahjol Balagha, vol.3 p.309.

2 Sharh Nahjol Balagha, vol.3 p.311, Al-Hujja, p.15, Tathkiratul Khawass, p.10, Mo'jamul Quboor, vol.1 p. 189, al-Ghadeer, vol.7 p.374, 387, A'yan ash-Shia, vol.39, p.136. 3 Sharh Nahjol Balagha, vol.3 p. 311, Tafseer of Ali bin Ibraheem, p.355, 490, Al-Hujja, p.3-5, al-Ghadeer, vol.7 p.379, 386.

If the Prophet (s) praised his uncle and prayed Allah to forgive him whereas his uncle had been not a Muslim -which was far away from the prophet (s)- then the Prophet (s) would disobey Allah -Allah forbid!- according to many Quranic verses as: 1. (You shall not find a people who believe in Allah and the latter day befriending those who act in opposition to Allah and His Messenger, even though they were their (own) fathers, or their sons, or their brother, or their kinsfolk; these are they into whose hearts He has impressed faith) 58:22.

The holy Quran denied that there were people, who believed in Allah and the Day or Resurrection, having a bit of love to those, who had enmity against Allah and His messenger even though there was close kinship between them.

Allah confirmed that it was impossible for believing in Him and loving the unbelievers to be in one heart. It would be better to quote the interpretation of az-Zamakhshari about this Quranic verse: "It appears that it is impossible to find believing people loving the polytheists. The purpose behind that is to make the believers avoid the enemies of Allah completely and beware of mixing with them at all. Allah has confirmed that by saying: (even though they were their (own) fathers) and : (these are they into whose hearts He has imposed faith), and by comparing His saying: (there are the Shaitan's party) with His saying: (these are Allah's party) you won't find anything more loyal in faith than to love the lovers of Allah and to avoid the enemies of Allah. In fact this is the very sincerest faith." (1) After that he mentioned a tradition had been said by the Prophet (s): "O Allah! Don't make a dissolute or an

____________ 1 Al-Kashshaf by az-Zamakhshari, vol.2 p.444, vol.4 p.396, Tafseer of ibn Katheer, vol.4 p.330.

unbeliever have a chance of getting my kindness! For I have among what has been revealed to me this verse: (You shall not find a people who believe in Allah and the latter day befriending those who act in opposition to Allah and His Messenger, even though they were their (own) fathers, or their sons, or their brothers, or their kinsfolk; those are they into those hearts He has impressed faith.)"

The author of Majma'ul Bayan said: "It means that loving the unbelievers and faith won't be together in one's heart." (2) 2. (O you who believe! do not take My enemy and your enemy for friends: would you offer them love while they deny what has come to you of the truth) 60:1.

In this verse Allah had forbidden the believers from taking the unbelievers as friends, loving them, supporting them or asking them for support. 3. (O you who believe! do not take your father and your brother for guardians if they love unbelief more than belief; and whoever of you takes them for a guardian, these it is that are the unjust Say: If your fathers and your sons and your brethren and your mates and your kinsfolk and property which you have acquired, and the slackness of trade which you fear and dwellings which you like, are dearer to you than Allah and His Messenger and striving in His way, then wait till Allah brings about His command: and Allah does not guide the transgressing people) 9:23-24. In these verses Allah had forbidden the believers from taking their fathers and brothers as guardians if they were unbelievers. Faith would be the cause of preventing the sentiment between the believer and the unbeliever even if the unbeliever was the believer's father or brother, who were be the closest relatives of him. Then Allah said that loving the unbelievers or regarding them as guardians ____________ 1 Al-Kashshaf by az-Zamakhshari, vol.2 p.444, vol.4 p.396, Tafseer of ibn Katheer, vol.4 p.330. 2 Vol.28, p.19

would bring the believer out of the sphere of faith and join him to the unjust people. Then Allah threatened the unbelievers of waiting for His punishment because they were not but transgressing people.

Az-Zamakhshari when interpreting these verses mentioned that the Prophet (s) had said: "No one of you become a faithful until he loves for the sake of Allah and hates for the sake of Allah; he loves the farthest one to him and hates the closest one to him for the sake of Allah." (1) This is a very severe verse or it may be the severest one that blames people for their leniency in the firm of faithfulness ... let the most pious men try themselves, will they find that they are strict in obeying the obligations of Allah, will they prefer the religion of Allah to their fathers and children ...? (2)

The author of Majma'ul Bayan said: "The matter of religion is preferred to kinship even if it leads to cut the relationship of the parents because the faithful foreigner is better than the unfaithful relative. Al-Hassan said: He, who follows the polytheists, is a polytheist." (3) 4. (O you who believe! whoever from among you turns back from his religion, then Allah will bring a people. He shall love them and they shall love Him, lowly before the believers, mighty against the unbelievers) 5:54. 5. (And had they believed in Allah and the prophet and what was revealed to him, they would not have taken them for friends but! most of them are transgressors) 5:81. Allah had made among the conditions of faithfulness the cordiality and the familiarity among the believers to be as one hand or as the compact structure; each part

____________ 1 Al-Kashf p.548 (vol.2 p.201-202). 2 Ibid 3 Vol.10 p.34

tightened the other. The mightiness and severity against the unbelievers would restrain them from ravaging the tight structure of the believers and from separating their firm unity.

Ibn Abbas said: "You find that the believers are kind and lenient to each other as the child to his father and as the slave to his master and you found them severe and rough towards the unbelievers like the beast towards his prey." (1) In the second verse Allah denied the faith of those, who took the unbelievers as friends and hence they deserved rage and wrath of Allah. They would remain in Hell for ever.

"Supporting the unbelievers by some of the believers is a sufficient evidence proving their hypocrisy and that their faith is not true but they still keep on their unbelief and hypocrisy." (2) 6. (Muhammad is the Messenger of Allah, and those with him are firm of heart against the unbelievers, compassionate among themselves) 48:29. The interpreters mentioned after this verse a saying of al-Hassan: "They -the believers- avoided the unbelievers and the polytheists to a degree that they tried to evade even their cloths not to touch their own cloths and their bodies not to touch their own bodies." (3) After some sayings mentioned by az-Zamakhshari he added: "The Muslims at every age have to pay much attention to this avoidance. They have to be strict towards those, who don't believe in their own religion and beliefs, and have to avoid them. (4) They have to be

____________ 1 Majma'ul Bayan, vol.6 p.122. 2 Al-Kashshaf by az-Zamakhshari, vol.1 p.430 (vol.1 p.520). 3 Majma'ul Bayan, vol.26, p.80, al-Kashshaf, vol.3 p.115 (vol.4 p.375). 4 Islam doesn't accept such strictness and inflexibility that one may think that Islam calls for boycott and fighting anyone, who is not a Muslim.

Islam has given (ahlul-thimmah) the Jews and the Christians, who live in the state of the Muslims, same rights like the rights of the Muslims; such as keeping their properties, their lives and their honors. Islam has legislated ideal laws to control the relation between the peoples of different religions and beliefs but this strictness is to be towards those, who don't keep to or obey those rules. Then those ones have to be fought as enemies whether they are clear or covered with hypocrisy and deceit. There was a great difference between the monotheists (the Jews and the Christians) and the polytheists or the unbelievers. The polytheists and the unbelievers must be avoided and treated severely and there was no any way of being kind to them. It was these people, who were means by these Quranic verses. Hence Abu Talib, according to the thought of the evil-willed fabricators, was not one of the monotheists but was one of the polytheists and unbeliever; therefore he would be, according to their malicious thinking, among those, who must be avoided. 1 kind to their brethren in Islam, to treat them benevolently, to defend them against any harm, to help them, to be lenient to them and to be very polite and honest with them." (1)

But unfortunately the Muslims did the opposite. As if the verse was reversed in their minds. They became kind to their opponents and strict and severe among themselves. Some of them sacrificed their brothers in religion for the sake of their enemies. Some of them did evil to each other that even the enemy wouldn't do. Unfortunately they submitted to the enemies of their religion whether in the same country they were or abroad; in the west or in the east and loved them more than their fellow people. The exceeded in committing crimes and treason to achieve their private interests, which were, in fact, the interests of the enemy of their religion. They sacrificed their citizens and presented their nation as delicious bite to the odious colonist.

Such people, at last, would never get save bad rewards

____________ Al-Kashshaf, vol.3 p.115 (vol.4 p.275).

for the sins they committed. Hence the ties of the umma split and the unity crumbled. The fire of disagreement crept into everything like the flame when breaking out in the dry firewood.

Let's go back to our subject of the verses mentioned above. Was it possible for the Prophet of Islam to be kind and merciful to a polytheist unbeliever just because that polytheist was his relative and to deny all those verses that were revealed to him by the Heaven? Would he accept to be defended by a polytheist unbeliever whereas he himself had said; "O Allah! Don't make a dissolute or an unbeliever have a chance of getting my kindness" ...? The truth was that this man, who assisted, supported and did the Prophet (s) favors, and then the Prophet (s) had to be grateful to him and had to love him and to praise him often and often ... this truth would contradict the meanings of these verses, which were full of threat, severity, warning and wrath.

This wouldn't be justified unless we said -Allah forbid!- that the Prophet (s) didn't pay any attention to the orders of his God that were revealed to him and that he indifferently contradicted the principles of the holy Quran! We would say so to justify the saying of the fabricators that Abu Talib was unbeliever after it had been proved that he had assisted and protected the Prophet (s) and his mission so firmly and bravely. Since no one could dare to say this, so one would be obliged to confess that Abu Talib was a faithful after it was proved without any doubt that the Prophet (s) had often prayed for him, praised him and glorified him whenever mentioning him. All that, away from the great deeds Abu Talib had done and the acknowledgement he had left on the page of the existence, made the light of Abu Talib's faith shine with the rays of certainty.

The Sayings of Imam Ali (s)

When we move to the sayings of Imam Ali (s) about his father, we will find many evidences confirming the true faith of his father to confute all the fabricated lies about his unfaithfulness. When his father closed his eyes and his soul went high to the better world, he came to tell the Prophet (s) of the sad news. The Prophet (s) instructed him of what to do. He washed his father's body (did the ghusl), embalmed it and enshrouded it and then he escorted his father towards the tomb as the Prophet (s) had ordered him to do. Would these things have been done for other than the Muslims? I don't know what to say ...! Then he saw the Prophet (s) standing in front of his father's body; praising him with the best of words, his tears coming down from his eyes and the sighs of pain stumbling in his chest.

Days passed. The Prophet (s) became so distressed. Difficult conditions surrounded him from every side. He became in a critical situation. He began to sigh with complaint and pain for the great loss of his kind uncle. The image of Abu Talib passed by Ali's mind. He remembered his father's brave situation towards the mission and how he had defended and protected the Prophet (s). His emotions began to boil and the thorn of his inner pain began to sting him. Tears came down of his eyes while uttering these verses of poetry:

O Abu Talib! The shelter of resorters! The rain for barren lands! The light in darkness! Losing you undermined us. Allah may have mercy upon you Allah may please you;

that you were a good uncle for al-Mustafa. (1) The years passed and the Umayyads tried their best to fabricate false traditions, whose flames reached Imam Ali (s). One day Imam Ali was in the yard of the mosque surrounded by the people, when a man of those, who had heard the fabricated traditions until he became confused between the truthfulness and the falseness, came to him and said: "O Ameerul Mo'mineen! You are in this high position, which Allah has put you in, while your father has been tortured in Hell ...?"

Imam Ali's face reddened with anger about what lies the Umayyads had been fabricating. He answered the man: "Hush up! May Allah shut your mouth! By Allah, who had sent Muhammad as Prophet, if my father would intercede for every guilty on the earth, Allah would respond to his intercession! Has my father been tortured in hell whereas his son is the diviner between (the people of) Paradise and Hell? The light of Abu Talib, in the Day of Resurrection, will put out the lights of all the creatures except five lights ..." (2)

Such a man like Imam Ali with his high position, qualities, virtues and excellences, who had been at the top of faithfulness and who had never been polluted with the dregs of polytheism, would be some how affected by his father if he was not faithful or he was polytheist for something of that would defect the pure page of the son, demean his virtue and hurt his high position. Once again Imam Ali said: "By Allah! Neither my father nor my grandfathers Abdul Muttalib, Hashem or

____________ 1 Al-Mustafa is one of the Prophet's surnames. Refer to Al-Hujja, p.24, Tathkiratul Khawass, p.12, Sheikhul Abtah, p.50, Mo'jamul Quboor, vol.1 p.206, al-Ghadeer, vol.3 p.99, vol.7 p.379, 389 and A'yan ash-Shia, vol.39 p.140. 2 Al-Hujja, p.15, Tathkiratul Khawass, p.11, Sheikhul Abtah, p.32, al-Ghadeer, vol.7 p.388.

Abd Manaf had worshiped an idol at all. They offered prayers towards the House (the Kaaba) according to the religion of Prophet Abraham (s), to whose beliefs they had kept." (1) Abut-Tufayl Aamir bin Wa'ila narrated a tradition that Imam Ali had said: "When my father was dying, the Prophet (s) was with him. Then the Prophet (s) told me of something about my father that was better to me than this worldly life and all what it has." (2)

Another time he said showing why his father Abu Talib hadn't announced his faith openly:"By Allah, Abu Talib (Abd Manaf bin Abdul Muttalib) was a faithful Muslim, but he kept his faith secret fearing for the Hashemites that Quraysh many harm them." (3)

Once again he said: "Abu Talib didn't die until he made the Prophet (s) pleased with him." (4)

These were the sayings of Imam Ali about his father. They were sufficient evidences confirming his father's faith. Imam Ali announced his sayings intendedly after he had heard the lies accusing his father of unbelieving.

Did Imam Ali say so just out of the sentiment of fatherhood or the enthusiasm of kinship without concerning the reality and the truth? I don't think that any one, who believes in Islam sincerely, will dare to say so because he will violate the excellent position of the imam of the Muslims and the true guardian of Islam besides that he will contradict the traditions had been said by the Prophet (s) talking about the virtues of Imam Ali.

____________ 1 Al-Ghadeer, vol.7 p.388, al-Abbas, p.18, Mo'jamul Quboor, vol.1 p.200. 2 Al-Hujja, p.23, al-Ghadeer, vol.7 p.388. 3 Ibid, p.389, Mo'jamul Quboor, vol.1 p.200 4 Al-Ghadeer, vol.7 p.370, 389, Al-Hujja, p.23, A'yan ash-Shia, vol.39, p.136.

Ali would never deviate from the rightness whatever happened. The Prophet (s) said: "Ali is with the rightness and the rightness is with Ali. It turns with him wherever he turns." We don't need to mention every tradition said by the Prophet (s) about his loyal guardian Ali for these traditions were as clear as the light of the sun.

If there was someone justifying Imam Ali's sayings as they were out of kinship, he would certainly criticize the Prophet (s) for the Prophet (s) had praised a man, whose sentiment overcame his faith and who preferred his relatives to his religion and consequently he would follow the falseness and change the rightness! The sacred duty of Imam Ali was to disavow his father if he was polytheist when died. His father would be considered as enemy of Allah and then Imam Ali did never have to praise him because the right of the father would never be above the right of Allah. He had to follow the conduct of his father Prophet Abraham (s) as the holy Quran said: (... but when it became clear to him that he was an enemy of Allah, he declare himself to be clear of him) 9:114.

He wouldn't have to follow an enemy of Allah if he was a true faithful but he had to follow his God's orders if he wanted to be near to Him. No one among the Muslims, all in all, would be equal to Ali in his faith and in obeying Allah and His Apostle. The Islamic history showed us excellent examples of sincere faithfulness among the Muslims, who trod upon their emotions towards their close relatives, whether their fathers or brothers, if the kinship would contradict their belief. Nothing would stand against the powerfulness of the true faithfulness whatever it was.

The history mentioned the situations of Abdullah bin Abdullah bin Ubayy bin Salool (1) towards his father, who uttered some words of hypocrisy during the battle against the tribe of al-Mustalaq and caused a kind of separation among the Muslims.

When Abdullah heard of that, he went to the Prophet (s) and said; "O messenger of Allah! I heard that you want to kill my father. If it is true, you order me to do that. I myself will kill him and bring you his head. I fear, if you order someone else to kill him, that my self won't let me look at my father's killer walking among the people and then I may kill him and so I will kill a believer for the sake of an unbeliever and hence I go to Hell." (2)

He begged the Prophet (s) that no one would kill his father other than him! He feared, if the task would be carried out by other than him, that he might revenge on the killer and so he would commit what would bring him the wrath of Allah! But if he himself killed his father, his sincerity towards Allah wouldn't be affected by any rage against his father's killer, although he would suffer too much when killing his father with his own hands. The merciful Prophet relieved Abdullah from the two when he

____________ 1 Az-Zamakhshari said: "The name of this Abdullah was Hubab bin Abdullah bin Ubayy but the Prophet (s) changed it into Abdullah and said: Hubab is a name of the Satan."

2 Az-Zamakhshari said: "When Abdullah bin Ubayy (the father of the Abdullah) wanted to enter Medina, his son objected him and said to him: "Go back! By Allah, you won't enter Medina unless you say: The messenger of Allah is the most honored and I am the meanest." He was still captive under his son's control until the Prophet (s) ordered to be freed. It was also said that he said to his father: "If you don't declare that all honor is for Allah and His messenger, I will kill you." His father said: "Woe unto you! Do you do that?" He said: "Yes, I do." When he saw that his son was determined, he said; "I witness that honor is for Allah, his messenger and the believers." Then the Prophet (s) said to Abdullah (the son): "May Allah reward you with all goodness."

forgave this hypocrite and set him free just for the sake of his faithful son. (1)

This is another event showing the dominance of the religious enthusiasm over the sentiment of the kinship. After the battle of Siffeen, Adiy bin Hatim with his son Zayd passed by the killed soldiers. Among the killed soldiers of the army of Mo'awiya there was Zayd's uncle (his mother's brother). Zayd went looking for his uncle's killer. When he found the killer he killed him with his spear. Then Adiy became so angry with his son Zayd and he scolded him, blamed him and abused him and his mother severely. He said to his son: "O son of obscene woman! I am not on the religion of Muhammad, unless I hand you over to them to kill you."

But Zayd fled from his father and joined Mo'awiya, who received him well and safeguarded him. Then Adiy raised his hands towards the Heaven cursing his son. He said: "O Allah! Zayd has parted with the Muslims and has joined the unbelievers. O Allah, hit him with an arrow of Yours that never misses him! By Allah, I will never talk with him a single word at all and I will never live with him under one roof at all." (2)

However great the sentiment of fatherhood towards the son was but you found that Adiy wanted to kill his son because he had committed a sin by killing an innocent faithful Muslim, but he had not but to pray Allah against him when he fled from him towards the unjust band of Mo'awiya. This was not the only event of this kind in the battle of Siffeen. There was another one mentioned by the

____________ 1 Refer to ibnul Atheer's Tareekh, vol.2 p.131-132, at-Tabari's Tareekh, vol.2 p.260-263, al-Kashshaf, vol.2 p.461-462 (vol.4 p.423-424), Tafseer Ali bin Ibraheem p.680-682, Majma'ul Bayan, vol.28, p.85-87. 2 Refer to Waq'at Siffeen p.599-600 and ibnul Atheer's Tareekh, vol.3 p.165.

historians:

A warrior from among the oppressive army of Mo'awiya came out challenging to duel with one of the army of Imam Ali. They fought for a while of time until the soldier of Imam Ali could throw his enemy to the ground and sit on his chest. Before he tried to kill him, he uncovered his face and it appeared that he was his brother but he heard many voices of his army asking to kill him. He waited a while and said to them: "He is my brother." They answered him: "Leave him alone." But he wouldn't do that without being satisfied with a true justification for he wouldn't prefer brotherhood to his religious duty. He answered: "Never! Until ameerul mo'mineen permits me to leave him alone!" When Imam Ali was told of that, he said to him: "Let him go!" (1)

Unless He didn't receive the order of his leader Imam Ali, he would definitely kill his brother for the sake of his faith and belief. These men wouldn't be, at all, more faithful or sincere than Imam Ali, on whose shoulders Islam was erected and by whose sword, which overthrew the great heads of the polytheists, Islam became so strong.

Imam Ali definitely would never let his father alone if he knew that he was unbeliever nor would he praised him falsely at all. It was he, who was the highest example, after the Prophet (s), of faithfulness and devotedness in the pure way of Allah and His Apostle. If Ali was not certain about his father's faith, he would never deny the lies fabricated against him nor would he praise him with the best of words. He was worthier than anyone else to say the truth even though it was against his father. His great faith and devotedness would never let him deviate from the clear way of rightness.

____________ 1 Waq'at Sifeen p.308.

He was the worthier, after the Prophet (s), in keeping to the orders of the holy Quran and refraining from its prohibitions. We saw that the Quranic verses mentioned above were full of terrible meanings of threat against those, who would follow the unbelievers ... and certainly Ali, who was the ideal example of rightfulness, would never contradict a single word of the holy Quran! It would be better to mention for the reader this passage of one of Imam Ali's speeches said in front of the all in one of the days of the battle of Siffeen:

"When we had been with the Prophet (s), we killed our fathers, sons, brothers and uncles and that strengthened our faith and our submission to the orders of Islam. We tolerated the bitterest of sufferings for the sake of the jihad and dueling the heroes of the enemy ..." (1) What a wonderful image it was! It showed us the powerfullness and the firmness of the Muslims in realizing the rightness and defeating the falseness even if the victims were their fathers and sons as they were described by the holy Quran.