Essays On Ghadir

5- "allegiance" of People With Imam Ali (a.s.) in Ghadir Tradition

"[0 MESSENGER!] PROCLAIM THE MESSAGE THAT HAS BEEN SENT DOWN TO YOU FROM YOUR CREATOR & NURTURER. AND IF YOU DID NOT, THEN YOU WOULD NOT HA VE FULFILLED YOUR DUTY AS ALLAH'S MESSENGER? [KNOW THAT] ALLAH WILL PROTECT YOU FROM [THE MISCHIEVOUS] PEOPLE. VERITY, ALLAH DOES NOT GUIDE THE DISBELIEVERS." (Quran 5:67)

Ghadir is one of the two most important historical events in the history of Islam, the other being Mubahela.

Like all other historical events of national importance, the tradition of Ghadir has ever since been the talk of the entire Muslim nation, and has been consecutively transmitted to this day. The Prophet (p.b.u.h), made extraordinary arrangements for the transmission of this tradition. The occasion was the return journey from his last pilgrimage, ten years after the migration. The messenger of Allah ordered his close followers to call all the different people from different places to join them in his last pilgrimage, whereby he taught them how to perform the pilgrimage in a correct and unified way.

This was the first time that the Muslims, with the magnitude, gathered in one place in the presence of their leader, the messenger of Allah. On his way to Mecca more than seventy thousand people followed Prophet (p.b.u.h). By the fourth day of Dhul hajjah, more than one hundred thousand people had entered Mecca. Ali (a.s) also joined the Holy Prophet.

On their return journey, the Prophet (p.b.u.h.) was leaving Mecca towards Medina, where he and the crowd of people reached to a place called GHADIR KHUM (which is close to today’s Johfah). It was a place where people from different provinces and countries said good bye to each other and took different routes for their homes.

It was in this place that the above verse of the Quran was revealed. The Prophet spent approximately 5 hours addressing the people out of which three hours were on the pulpit. He recited nearly 100 verses from the Holy Quran, and reminded and warned the people of their deeds and future. Then he gave a long speech. The following is a part of the speech as narrated by Sunni traditionists. The Messenger of Allah declared:

"O People! Know that Gabriel came down to me several times bringing me an order from the Lord, the merciful; that I should stop at this place and inform you. Behold! It is as if the time has approached when I shall be called away (by Allah) and I shall answer. "O people! Don't you witness that there is no diety but Allah, Muhammed is his servant and his apostle, paradise is truth and that the Day (of judgment) shall certainly arrive, and Allah shall raise people from the graves?" People replied "Yes we believe in them".

The Prophet then said "Behold! I am leaving among you two precious symbols, that if you adhere to them, you shall never go astray after me. Each of these two surpasses the other in its grandeur."

The Prophet then said "One of them is the book of Allah and the other one is my selected progeny (itrat) that is family (Ahlul Bayt)." "Behold" he said, "I am your predecessor at the pool (of Paradise), and 1 shall be a witness over you. Thus be careful how you treat these two precious things after me. Do not stray away from them, for you will perish".

Then he grasped the hand of Ali (a.s) and raised it and said:

"WHOEVER I AM HIS MASTER, ALl IS HIS MASTER (repeating three times). O, God! Love those who love him. Be hostile to those who are hostile to him. Help those who help him, and keep the truth with him wherever he turns. "

"Ali, the son of Abu Talib is my brother, my executor (WASI), my successor (caliph), and the leader (Imam) after me. His position to me is the same as the position of Haroon to Moses, except there shall be no Prophet after me. He is your Master. "

"O, people! Verily Allah has appointed him to be your Imam and ruler. Obedience of him is obligatory for all immigrants (Muhajerin) and helpers (Ansars), those who follow virtues, the dwellers of the cities and the nomads, the Arabs and the non Arabs, the freeman and the slave, the young and the old, the noble and the poor, the white and the black."

"His command should be obeyed, and his word is binding. His order is obligatory on everyone who believes in one God. Cursed is the man who disobeys him, and blessed is the one who follows him. He who believes in him is a true believer. His WALlYAH (belief in his mastery) has been made obligatory by Allah, the powerful, the exalted."

He then went on to talk about the Holy Quran and to reflect on the verses and not to presume the meanings by saying "by Allah, nobody can explain them to you, the warnings and its meanings, except me and this man(i.e Ali) whose hand I am lifting up in front of myself."

After that he went on to talk about the 11 successors after Ali (p.b.u.h.) "O People! This is the last time I shall stand in this assembly. Therefore listen to me and obey and submit to the command of God. Verily Allah, He is your Lord and God. After Him, his Prophet Muhammed who is addressing you is your master. Then after me, this Ali is your master and leader (Imam) according to Allah's command. Then after him leadership will continue through some selected individuals in my descendents till you meet Allah and his Prophet".

"Behold! Certainly you shall meet your Lord and he will ask you about your deeds. Beware! Do not become infidels after me by striking the neck of one another. It 'is incumbent upon those who are present to inform what I said, to those who are absent; perhaps the informed one might comprehend it (understand it) better than some of the present audience. Behold! Haven't I conveyed the Message of Allah to you?" People replied: "Yes" The Prophet said "O God bear witness."

("A'alam al Wara" P.132-133, "Tazkirat al Khawas", Sibt Ibn al Jawzi al Hanafi pp28-33, "al sirah al Halabiyyah", by Noor al Din al Halabi v3, p273) Revelation of Qur'anic Verse 70:1-3

Some Sunni commentators further report that the first three verses of the chapter of al-Ma'arij (70:1-3) were revealed when a dispute arose after the Prophet's speech.

When Harith Ibn Nu'man al-Fahri (or Nadhr Ibn Harith according to another tradition) came to know of this appointment, he went to the Messenger of Allah and said to him: "You commanded us to testify that there is no deity but Allah, and that you are the Messenger of Allah. We obeyed you. You ordered us to perform the prayers five times a day and we obeyed. You ordered us to observe fasts during the month of Ramadhan and we obeyed.

Then you commanded us to offer pilgrimage to Makkah and we obeyed. But you are not satisfied with all this, and you raised your cousin by your hand and imposed him upon us as our master by saying' Ali is the mowla of whom I am mowla.' Is this imposition from Allah or from you?" The Prophet said: "By Allah who is the only deity! This is from Allah, the Mighty and the Glorious."

On hearing this Harith turned back and proceeded towards his camel saying: "O Allah! If what Muhammad said is correct then fling on me a stone from the sky and subject me to severe pain and torture." He had not reached his camel, when Allah, who is above all defects, flung at him a stone which struck him on his head, penetrated his body and passed out through his lower body and left him dead. It was on this occasion that Allah, the exalted, caused to descend the following verses:

"A questioner questioned about the punishment to fall. For the disbelievers there is nothing to avert it, from Allah the Lord of the Ascent." (Quran 70:1-3) However some people did try to interpret the tradition in a different way. They particularly tried to translate the words WALl (master), MOWLA (master/ leader), and WILA Y AH (mastery/leadership) as friend and friendship.

Dictionaries give 20 meanings for the Arabic word WALl, depending on context, most have to do with the position of leadership. Only in one instance it could mean a friend. According to them, the meaning of the tradition is: “Whoever I am his friend, Ali is his friend.”

There was no doubt that Imam Ali had a very high status in comparison with all other people. He was the first male who embraced Islam (Sahih Tirmidhi) He received the title of "brother" of Prophet He was the one for whom Prophet said: "Ali is the friend of believers!"

Moreover, how can we justify the revelation of Verse 5:67 which were revealed before the speech of the Prophet in which Allah said:

"0 Apostle! Deliver what has been sent down to you from your Lord; and if you don't do it, you have not delivered His message (at all); and Allah will protect you from the people..." (Quran 5:67).

Is it logical to say that Allah warned his Prophet that if he does not convey the message of "friendship of Ali", he has spoiled all he has done?! Also what danger can be imagined for Prophet if he states "Ali is the friend of believers"? Then what danger from the side of people is the above verse referring to?

Furthermore, how can the phrases "Ali is the friend of believers" complete the religion? Is the verse of completeness of religion (5:3) which was revealed after the speech of Prophet suggesting that without saying "Ali is the friend of believers" the religion is not complete?

Also, as we quoted in the first part, Umar and Abu Bakr congratulated Ali by saying: "Congratulations 0 son of Abu Talib! Today you became my MOWLA, and the MOWLA of all believing men and women. “If, here, the word MOWLA means friend then why the congratulations? Were the other people over there enemy of believers at that time, so that Umar said that "you BECAME the friend of them?!”

In fact, every WALl is a friend, but the reverse is not always true. This is why the Arabs use "Wali al-Amr" for the rulers, meaning the master of the affairs. Thus, logically speaking, the word MOWLA can not be interpreted as friend, and we should rather use its other more-frequently- used meanings which are Leader and chief.

Perhaps one would ask why Prophet didn't .use other words to further explain his intention. In fact, people asked him the same question, and the following Sunni documentations are the answers of the Prophet: 1. When the Messenger of Allah was asked about the meaning of "whoever I am his MOWLA then Ali is his MOWLA". He said:

"Allah is my MOWLA, more deserving of me (my obedience) than me, I do not dispute him. I am the MOWLA of the believers, more deserving in them than themselves, they do not dispute me. Therefore, whomever I was his MOWLA, more deserving in him than himself (and) does not dispute me, then Ali is MOWLA, more deserving in him than himself, he does not dispute him."

2. During the reign of Uthman, Ah protested by reminding people the following tradition. Also, he reminded it again during the war of Siffin. When the Messenger of Allah spoke of (Tradition of Ghadir)..., Salman stood up and said: "0' Messenger of Allah! What does W AL mean? And how?" Prophet replied: "In the same way that I am your WALl (Wala-un ka wala'i). Whoever (considered me) I have more authority over him than himself; then Ali has more authority over him than himself."

3. Ali Ibn Abi Talib was asked about the saying of the Messenger of Allah "Whoever I am his MA WLA then Ali is his MA WLA". He said: "He erected me chief. To the time I am up there, whoever opposes me, and then he is misguided in religion."

4. On the commentary of Verse: "And stop them, they are to be asked (Quran 37:24)", Daylami narrated that Abu Sa'id al-Khudri said: The Messenger of Allah said: "And stop them, they will be asked of Leadership of Ali;"

Also, Hafiz al-Wahedi commented on the above verse saying: "This WILAYAH that the Prophet (p.b.u.h.) affirmed to Ali will be asked about on the Day of Judgment. It is said that WILA Y AH is what Allah meant in the verse 37:24 of Quran, where He said: "And stop them, they are to be asked /37:24J". This means that they will be asked about the WILA Y AH of Ali. The meaning is: They will be asked if they truly accepted him as their WALl as they were instructed by the Prophet? Or did they loose and ignore it?"

Countless scholars of Quran, Arabic grammar, and literature have interpreted the word MOWLA as "Awla" which means "having more authority." '

Thus the word WALl or MOWLA in the tradition of Ghadir Khum does not mean a simple friend; rather it means master and guardian, who has more authority over believers than what they have over themselves as Prophet himself mentioned by saying "Don't I have more authority (Awla) on believers than what they have over themselves?” At least 64 Sunni traditionists have quoted this preceding question of the Prophet. Among them are Tirmidhi, Nisa'i, Ibn Majah, and Ahmad Ibn Hanbal. Therefore, the opinion of the above Sunni scholars accords with what Prophet said by using the word Awla before the word MOWLA. In fact, when a word has more than one meaning, the best way to find out its true connotation is to look it in the context. The word Awla (having more authority) used by the Prophet gives a good association for the word MOWLA.

The pray of Prophet after his declaration in which he said:

"0' God, love those who love him, and be hostile to those who are hostile to him. Help those who help him, and forsake those who forsake him", shows that Ali on that day was entrusted with a responsibility (Leadership) which, by its nature, some people will become his enemy, and in carrying out that responsibility he would need some helpers and supporters. Are helpers ever needed to carry on a "friendship"?

Moreover, the declaration of Prophet that "It seems the time is approached when I will be called away (by Allah) and I will answer that call" clearly shows that he was making arrangements for the leadership of Muslims after his death.

Also when at the end of his speech, the Prophet (p.b.u.h.) said twice: "Behold! Haven't I conveyed the message of Allah?" or "It is incumbent upon every one who is present to inform the absent for they may understand it better than those who are present" shows that the Prophet was conveying a very important message which was going to be transferred to all coming generations. This matter could not have been a simple friendship. .

It is worth mentioning that Prophet did use the word Caliph in his speech in Ghadir Khum, but it does not appear in the majority of Sunni documents since there is no way to tamper the meaning of that word. However the Prophet also used the word MOWLA in his speech to survive this event from being wiped up from the historical records with no trace.

It is interesting to note that the words WALl and MOWLA are also used in Quran frequently with the meaning of master and guardian. For instance, the Holy Quran states:

"Allah is the WALl of those who believe; He brings them out of darkness (and takes them) into light." (Quran 2:257)

The above verse does not mean that Allah is just a friend of believers; since a simple friend who has no authority can not move anybody into light. Rather it means Allah is the Master of believers and that is why He moves them from darkness to light. In another verse Allah said: "Surely the AWLlYA of Allah have no fear, nor do they grieve." (Quran 10:62)

The word A WLIY A is the plural form of WALL Thus "WALl of Allah" is a person who has totally submitted his affairs to Allah.

Thus the verse (5:55) is actually saying that ONLY Allah is your W ALl, and then Prophet Muhammad, and Imam Ali. Thus we can conclude that the WILA Y AH (mastership/ leadership) of Imam Ali is the same as that of Prophet Muhammad (p.b.u.h.) since Allah put them beside each other. The authority of Prophet Muhammad is explained by the following verses of Quran:

"The Prophet has a greater priority/authority (Awla) over the believers than what they have over themselves" (Quran 33:6) or:

"0' you who believe! Obey Allah, and obey the Messenger and those from among you, who are given authority (by Allah)." (Quran 4:59) Ali came to the plain of Rahbah, and some people told him "Peace on you 0' our MOWLA!" Ali replied: "How can I be your MOWLA while you are free men?" They said: "We heard the Messenger of Allah on the day of Ghadir Khum who said: 'Whoever I was his MOWLA, Ali is his MOWLA.' If MOWLA means friend, then why was Ali asking the above question? Was friendship new to Arabs? In fact Imam: Ali asked this question to reiterate the importance of the word MOWLA, and showing that people at that time did not mean it friend for him, and that what they meant is master of the believers.

Concluding the above discussion, it is clear that any individual who tries to trivialize the tradition of Ghadir Khum by saying that Prophet just wanted to say "Ali is the friend of believers", is neglecting the abovementioned traditions of prophet in which he explained what he meant by WALl, and also neglecting the abovementioned verses of Quran (those which were revealed in Ghadir Khum and those which explain the importance of WALl). Finally, the following tradition from S'unni references further illuminates the fact that WALl means Imam since the tradition uses the phrase "follow them" and "Imam". Ibn Abbas narrated that the Messenger of Allah said:

"Whoever wishes to live and die like me, and to abide in the Garden of Eden after death, should acknowledge Ali as WALl after me, and should follow the Imams after me. For they are my Ahlul-Bayt; and are created from my clay, and are gifted with the same knowledge and understanding as myself. Woe unto those who deny their virtues and those who disregard their relationship and affinity with me, for my intercession shall never reach them."

Sukaina N Gulamhusein (Kenya)