Ghadir Khum (Part 2 of 3)====================================The Meaning Wali. Mawla and Wilayah====================================No Muslim scholar could ever cast any doubt in the documentation of thetradition of Ghadir Khum for it has been narrated with as much as 150authentic chains of transmitters by the Sunnis alone. (Please see Part IIIfor the evidences in this regard). A Mutawatir report is a report which hasbeen narrated unbrokenly and independently by so many people so that nodoubt can be entertained about their authenticity. Even the students of IbnTaymiyyah such as al-Dhahabi and Ibn Kathir who have proven their enmitytoward the Shia emphasized that the tradition of Ghadir Khum is Mutawatirand Sahih (authentic) (See al-Bidayah wan Nihayah). However some people didtry to interpret the tradition in a different way. They particularly triedto translate the words WALI (master/guardian). MAWLA (master/leader) andWILAYAH (mastery/leadership/guardianship) as friend and friendship. Dictionaries give a minimum of 20 meanings for the Arabic word WALI,depending on context most have to do with the position of leadership andguardianship. Only in one instance it could mean a friend. Arabic References:- Elias' Modern Dictionary by Elias A. Elias. Arabic-English p815-816,Lebanon.- al-Munjid fi al-Lughah v1. Some suggested that what really the Prophet (PBUH&HF) wanted to say was:"Whoever I am his friend. Ali is his friend."There was no doubt that Imam Ali (AS) had a very high status in comparisonwith all other people. He was the first male who embraced Islam (SahihTirmidhi v5 p642; Musnad Ahmad Ibn Hanbal v4 p317; Mustadrak by al-Hakim v3 pp 111,136; Sirah Ibn Hisham p345; Tabaqat by Ibn Sa'd v3,p71,72; al-Istiab by Ibn Abd al-Bar v3 p30). He received the title ofthe "brother" of Prophet (Sahih Tirmidhi v5 p363; Sirah Ibn Hisham p504;Tahdhib v4 p251). He was the one for whom Prophet said: "Loving Ali isbelieving hating Ali is hypocrisy." (Sahih Muslim v1 p48; SahihTirmidhi v5 p643; Sunan Ibn Majah v1 p142; Musnad Ahmad Ibn Hanbal v1,pp 84,95,128). Thus it does not seem to be logical for the Prophet(PBUH&HF) to keep more than a hundred thousand people in such unbeatableheat and keep them waiting in such condition until those who have leftbehind reach the place and then all to tell them was that "Ali is thefriend of believers!"Moreover how can we justify the revelation of Verse 5:67 which was revealedbefore the speech of the Prophet in which Allah said: "O 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 notconvey 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 thefriend of believers"? Then what danger from the side of people is the aboveverse referring to?Furthermore how can the phrase "Ali is the friend of believers" completethe religion? Is the verse of completeness of religion (5:3) which wasrevealed after the speech of Prophet suggesting that without saying "Ali isthe friend of believers" the religion is not complete?Also as we quoted in the first part. Umar and Abu Bakr congratulated Aliby saying: "Congratulations O son of Abu Talib! Today you became the MAWLAof all believing men and women." If here the word MAWLA means friendthen why the congratulations? Was Ali the enemy of all believers beforethat time so that Umar said that this day you BECAME the friend of them?!In fact every WALI is a friend but the reverse is not always true. Thisis why the Arabs use "Wali al-Amr" for the rulers meaning the master ofthe affairs. Thus logically speaking the word MAWLA can not beinterpreted as friend and we should rather use its other more-frequently-used meanings which are Leader and Guardian. Perhaps one would ask why Prophet didn't use other words to further explainhis intention. In fact people asked him the same question and thefollowing Sunni documentations are the answers of the Prophet (PBUH&HF):1. When the Messenger of Allah (s) was asked about the meaning of "whomever I am his MAWLA then Ali is his MAWLA". He said: "Allah is my MAWLA more deserving of me (my obedience) than myself. I do not dispute him. I am the MAWLA of the believers more deserving in them than themselves they do not dispute me. Therefore whomever I was his MAWLA more deserving in him than himself (and) does not dispute me then Ali is MAWLA more deserving in him than himself he does not dispute him."Sunni references:- Shamsul Akhbar by al-Qurashi. Ali Ibn Hamid p38- Salwat al-'Arifin by al-Muwaffaq billah al-Husain Ibn Isma'il alJurjani.2. During the reign of Uthman. Ali 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: "O' Messenger of Allah! What does WALAA mean? and how?" Prophet replied: "The same way that I am your WALI (Wala-un ka wala'i). Whomever (considered me) I was more deserving in him than himself then Ali is more deserving in him than himself."Sunni reference: Fara'id al-Samtain by Hamawaini (Abu Is'haq Ibrahim Ibn Sa'd al-Din Ibn al-Hamawiyia) section 58.3. Ali Ibn Abi Talib was asked about the saying of the Messenger of Allah "Whomever I am his MAWLA then Ali is his MAWLA". He said: "He erected me chief ['alaman]. To the time I am up there whomever contradicts me then he is lost (misguided in religion)."Sunni reference: Zain al-Fata by al-Hafiz al-'Asimi4. On the commentary of Verse: "And stop them they are to be asked (Quran 37:24)" al-Daylami narrated that Abu Sa'id al-Khudri said: The Messenger of Allah (PBUH&HF) said: "And stop them they will be asked of WILAYAH of Ali." Also al-Hafiz al-Wahidi commented on the above verse saying: "This WILAYAH that the Prophet (PBUH) affirmed to Ali will be asked about on the Day of Judgment. It is said that WILAYAH is what Allah meant in the verse 37:24 of Quran where He said: "And stop them they are to be asked [37:24]". This means that they will be asked about the WILAYAH of Ali (RA). The meaning is: They will be asked if they truly accepted him as their WALI as they were instructed by the Prophet (PBUH)? or did they loose and ignore it?"Sunni references:- al-Sawa'iq al-Muhriqah by Ibn Hajar al-Haythami. Ch. 11 subheading 1,p229 quoted from al-Wahidi; also quoted from al-Daylami on the authorityof Abi Sa'id al-Khudri.- Fara'id al-Samtain by Hamawaini (Abu Is'haq Ibrahim Ibn Sa'd al-Din Ibnal-Hamawiyia) section 14- Nudhum Durar al-Samtain by Jaml al-Din al-Zarandi- al-Rashfah by al-Hadhrami p24Countless scholars of Quran. Arabic grammar and literature haveinterpreted the word MAWLA as Awla which means "having more authority."The following Sunni specialists all confirmed the above meaning:1 al-Wahidi (d. 468) in "al-Wasit"2 al-Akhfash Nahwi (d. 215) in "Nihayat al-Uqul"3 al-Tha'labi (d. 427) in "al-Kashf wal Bayan"4. Ibn Qutaybah (d. 276) in "al-Qurtayan" v2 p1645 al-Kalbi (d. 146 quoted in "Tafsir al-Kabir" by al-Razi v29 p227)6 al-Farra' (as quoted in "Ruhul Ma'ani" by al-Alusi v27 p178)7 al-Nasafi (d. 701) in his "Tafsir" v4 p2298 al-Tabari (d. 310) in "Tafsir al-Tabari" v9 p1179 al-Bukhari (d. 215) in "Sahih al-Bukhari" v7 p27110 al-Zamakhshari (d. 538) in "Tafsir al-Kashshaf" v2 p43511. Qazi Nasiruddin al-Baydawi (d. 692) in "tafsir al-Baydawi" v2 p49712 al-Khazin al-Baghdadi (d. 741) in his "Tafsir" v4 p22913. Muhib al-Din al-Afandi in "Tanzil al-Ayat"14. Mu'ammar Ibn Muthanna al-Basri (as quoted in "Sharh al-Mawaqif" by al-Sharif al-Jurjani v3 p271)15. Abul Abbas Tha'lab (as quoted in "Sharh al-Sab'ah al-Mu'allaqah" by al-Zuzani)16. Ibn Abbas in his "Tafsir" written on the margin of Durr al-Manthur v5 p35517. Abu al-Saud al-Hanafi (d. 972) in his "Tafsir"18 and many more such as Yahya Ibn Zaid Kufi (d. 207). Abu Ubaida Basri (d. 210). Abu Zaid Ibn Aus Basri (d. 125). Abu Bakr Anbari (d. 328). Abul Hasan Rummani (d. 384). Sa'd al-Din Taftazani (d. 791). Shaba Uddin Khafaji (d. 1069). Hamzawi Maliki (d. 1303). Husain Ibn Mas'd (d. 510). Abu Baqa Ukbari (d. 616). Ibn Hajar al-Haythmai (d. 974). Sharif Jurjani (d. 618). Abdul Abbas Mubarrad (d. 285). Abu Nasr Farabi (d. 393) and. Abu Zakariya Khateeb Tarizi (d. 502),... Thus the word WALI or MAWLA in the tradition of Ghadir Khum does not mean asimple friend rather it means master and guardian who has more authorityover believers than what they have over themselves as Prophet himselfmentioned by saying "Don't I have more authority (Awla) on believers thanwhat they have over themselves?". At least 64 Sunni traditionists havequoted this preceding question of the Prophet among them are al-Tirmidhi,al- Nisa'i. Ibn Majah. Ahmad In Hanbal. Therefore the opinion of the aboveSunni scholars accords with what Prophet (PBUH&HF) said by using the wordAwla before the word MAWLA. In fact when a word has more than one meaning,the best way to find out its true connotation is to look at the association(qarinah) and the context. The word Awla (having more authority) used bythe Prophet gives a good association for the word MAWLA. Also the prayer of Prophet after his declaration in which he said: "O' 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 (AS) on that day was entrusted with a responsibility(rulership) which by its nature would make some people his enemy and incarrying out that responsibility he would need some helpers and supporters. Are helpers ever needed to carry on a "friendship"?Moreover. The declaration of Prophet (PBUH&HF) that "It seems the time isapproached when I will be called away (by Allah) and I will answer thatcall" clearly shows that he was making arrangements for the leadership ofMuslims after his death. Also when at the end of his speech the Prophet (PBUH&HF) said twice:"Behold! Haven't I conveyed the message of Allah?" or "It is incumbent uponevery one who is present to inform the absent for they may understand itbetter than those who are present" (Sahih al-Bukhari. Arabic-English,traditions 5.688. 7.458 and 9.539) shows that the Prophet was conveyinga very important message which was going to be transferred to all cominggenerations. This matter could not have been a simple friendship. It is worth mentioning that Prophet did use the word Caliph in his speechin Ghadir Khum but it does not appear in the majority of Sunni documentssince there is no way to tamper the meaning of that word. However theProphet (PBUH&HF) also used the word MAWLA in his speech to survive thisevent from being wiped up from the historical records with no trace. It is interesting to note that the words WALI and MAWLA are also used inQuran frequently with the meaning of master and guardian. For instance theHoly Quran states: "Allah is the WALI 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,because a simple friend who has no authority can not move anybody intolight. Rather it means Allah is the Master of believers and that is why Hemoves them from darkness to light. In another verse Allah said: "Surely the AWLIYAA of Allah have no fear nor do they grieve." (Quran 10:62)The word AWLIYAA is the plural form of WALI. The above verse does not meanthat whoever is the friend of Allah does not have any fear. Many goodMuslims may have experienced fear for some events in their lifetime whilethey are NOT the enemies of Allah. Thus the above verse suggests somethingelse than a simple friend. Here the word WALI is in the form of FAEEL withthe meaning of MAF'OOL. So the above verse means: "Those whose guardian andthe master of their affairs is Allah are not subject to fear andapprehension." So if a believer TOTALLY submits to Allah he then will nothave any fear. But ordinary believers whose submission are not perfect,will probably be subject to fear of this and that while we are stillfriends of Allah. Thus "WALI of Allah" is a person who has totallysubmitted his affairs to Allah and therefore he is totally protected byAllah from any kind of flaw and sin. This status is much higher thanposition of being just a "Friend of Allah". Nevertheless Allah uses the word AWLIYAA in its general meaning that is"protectors". The Holy Quran states: "The believers men and women are AWLIYAA of one to the other: they command to what is just and forbid what is evil" (Quran 9:71). Looking at different translations one can find that they have used theword "protectors" for the meaning of AWLIYAA. The above verse does not wantto say that believers are just friends of each other. Rather the believersare under a mutual obligation to one another and are occupied with eachother's affair. As a result of these obligations they "command each otherwhat is good and forbid each other what is evil" as the rest of above versesuggests. Thus here the meaning of AWLIYAA though is still higher than"friends" but it is clearly lower than "master" and "leader". Here AWLIYAAhas been used in its general meaning. But for a special meaning of WALI,see the following verse: "ONLY Allah is your WALI and His Messenger and those among believers who keep alive prayer AND pay Zakat while they are in the state of bowing." (Quran 5:55)The above verse clearly suggests that NOT all the believers are our WALIwith the special meaning of WALI in this verse which is "master" and"leader". Again here it is clear that WALI does not mean just friend,because all thebelievers are friends of each other. The above verse mentions that onlythree things are your special WALI: Allah. Prophet Muhammad and Imam Alifor he was the only one at the time of Prophet who paid Zakat while he wasin the state bowing (ruku'). Muslim scholars are unanimous in reportingthis event. Here are just some of the Sunni references which mentioned therevelation of the above verse of Quran in the honor of Imam Ali:(1) Tafsir al-Kabir by Ahmad Ibn Muhammad al-Tha'labi under Verse 5:55(2) Tafsir al-Kabir by Ibn Jarir al-Tabari v6 pp 186,288-289(3) Tafsir Jamiul Hukam al-Quran by Muhammad Ibn Ahmad Qurtubi v6 p219(4) Tafsir al-Khazin v2 p68(5) Tafsir al-Durr al-Manthur by al-Suyuti v2 pp 293-294(6) Tafsir al-Kashshaf by al-Zamakhshari. Egypt 1373 v1 pp 505,649(7) Asbab al-Nuzool by Jalaluddin al-Suyuti. Egypt 1382 v1 p73 on the authority of Ibn Abbas(8) Asbab al-Nuzool by al-Wahidi(9) Sharh al-Tjrid by Allama Qushji(10) Ahkam al-Quran al-Jassas v2 pp 542-543(11) Musnad Ahmad Ibn Hanbal v5 p38(12) Kanzul Ummal by al-Muttaqi al-Hindi v6 p391(13) al-Awsat by Tabarani narrated from Ammar Yasir(14) Ibn Mardawayh on the authority of Ibn Abbas.. and more. Paying Zakat during bowing (ruku') is not a Sunnah. This is accepted by ALLMuslim scholars. Thus the above verse does not seek to set down thedesirability or the necessity of paying Zakat during bowing (ruku') nordoes it want to lay it down as duty or something recommended legally in theIslamic sense as a kind of Divine Law (Shari'ah). Rather it is areference to an action which took place when someone did something in theexternal world and now Quran is pointing that action to indicate thatperson. In an indirect way the verse wants to say that this WALI is aspecial WALI whose authority has been put beside the authority of ProphetMuhammad (PBUH&HF) since they are jointly mentioned. One may object that even though Ali did this action a plural form has beenused in the above verse thus it might encompass some other people as well. First the history tells us that there was no other individual who did thisat the time of Prophet. Second this way of approach in Quran which usesplural form but actually referring to just one person who did thatparticular act is NOT uncommon in Quran. For instance Allah mentioned: "They say: If we return to Medina the mightier (element) will soon drive out the weaker." (63:8)Here also Quran is referring to a story which took place and uses thephrase "They say" while the speaker of the above sentence was not any morethan one person. According to Shia and Sunni commentators he was AbdullahIbn Ubayy Ibn Salul. Quran tries to avoid using names of people as much as possible. This isdone for many reasons such as generality to make it a universal book andalso to make Quran safer from any possible alteration by those who hate aspecial individual who has been praised in Quran or by those who love aperson who has been denounced in Quran. Using plural while referring to single has another application too. Sometimes the act of a single person is worthier than the deeds of a wholenation. This was the case for Prophet Muhammad. Imam Ali as well as thecase for Prophet Abraham. Quran mentions that Abraham (AS) was a nation(Ummah) meaning that his deeds was more valuable than all other people. Allah stated: "Lo! Abraham was a nation (Ummah) who was obedient to Allah by nature upright and he was not of the idolaters" (Quran 16:120)The famous and respected companion of Prophet. Ibn Abbas (RA) said: "There is no verse in Quran in which the term `Believers' unless Ali is at the top of them and the chief of them and the more virtuous one among them. Surely Allah has admonished the companions of Muhammad (PBUH) in Quran but He did not refer to Ali except with honor."Sunni references:- Fadha'il al-Sahaba by Ahmad Ibn Hanbal v2 p654 tradition #1114- al-Riyadh al-Nadhirah by Muhibbuddin al-Tabari v3 p229- Tarikh al-Khulafaa by al-Hafidh Jalaluddin al-Suyuti p171- Dhakha'ir al-Uqba by Muhibbuddin al-Tabari p89- al-Sawa'iq al-Muhriqah by Ibn Hajar Haythami. Ch. 9 section 3 p196- Others such as Tabarani and Ibn Abi HatamAnd further. Ibn Abbas said: "There hath not been revealed in the Book of God regarding any one what hath been revealed concerning Ali," and that "three hundred verses have been revealed concerning Ali."Sunni references:- Ibn Asakir as quoted in:- Tarikh al-Khulafaa by al-Hafidh Jalaluddin al-Suyuti p171- al-Sawa'iq al-Muhriqah by Ibn Hajar Haythami. Ch. 9 section 3 p196Thus the verse (5:55) is actually saying that ONLY Allah is your WALI,and then Prophet Muhammad and Imam Ali. Thus we can conclude that theWILAYAH (mastership/leadership) of Imam Ali is the same as that of ProphetMuhammad (PBUH&HF) since Allah put them beside each other. The authorityof 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: "O' you who believe! Obey Allah and obey the Messenger and those from among you who are given authority (by Allah)." (Quran 4:59)One may look at other verses with regard to the authority of Prophet suchas 4:65. 59:7. 9:103. 33:21. Putting all these verses beside the verse5:55 one can derive that this priority and authority will also be for ImamAli after the demise of the Messenger of Allah al-Nisa'i and al-Hakim have also recorded other versions of the traditionof Ghadir Khum with different wordings which provide more insight to themeaning of the tradition. They narrated on the authority of Zaid Ibn Arqamthat: Prophet added: "Certainly Allah is my MAWLA and I am WALI (master/ guardian) of all the faithful." Then he grasped the hand of Ali and said: "He (Ali) is the WALI of all those of whom I am WALI. O Allah! Love those who love him and hate those who hate him."Sunni references:- Khasa'is by al-Nisa'i p21- al-Mustadrak by al-Hakim v3 p109In another wording: Prophet (PBUH) asked three times: "O' people! Who is your MAWLA? They replied: Allah and His Messenger." Then he grasped the hand of Ali and raised it and said: "Whoever his WALI is Allah and his Messenger then this man is his WALI also."Sunni reference: Khasa'is by al-Nisa'i p6If WALI means friend then why people answered only Allah and HisMessenger are WALI? They should have answered all the believers are WALI. This clearly shows that people got it right but they later chose to actotherwise. Now let us look at the following tradition: Ali came to the plain of Rahbah and some people told him "Peace on you O' our MAWLA!" Ali replied: "How can I be your MAWLA while you are Arabs (free men)?" They said: "We heard the Messenger of Allah (PBUH) on the day of Ghadir Khum who said: `Whoever I was his MAWLA he (Ali) is his MAWLA.'"Sunni reference: Musnad Ahmad Ibn Hanbal v5 p419If MAWLA means friend then why was Ali (AS) asking the above question?Was friendship new to Arabs? In fact Imam Ali was asking this questionto reiterate the importance of the word MAWLA and showing that peopleat that time did not mean it friend for him and that what they meant ismaster of the believers. Concluding the above discussion it is clear that any individual who triesto trivialize the tradition of Ghadir Khum by saying that Prophet justwanted to say "Ali is the friend of believers" is neglecting the above-mentioned traditions of prophet in which he explained what he meant byWALI and also neglecting the above-mentioned verses of Quran (those whichwere revealed in Ghadir Khum and those which explain the importance ofWALI). Finally the following tradition from Sunni references furtherilluminates the fact that WALI means Imam since the tradition uses thephrase "follow them" and "Imam". Ibn Abbas (RA) narrated that theMessenger 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 WALI after me and take his WALI (i e.. Imams after him) as WALI 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."Sunni references:(1) Hilyatul Awliya' by Abu Nu'aym v1 pp 84,86(2) al-Mustadrak by al-Hakim v3 p128(3) al-Jamiul Kabir by al-Tabarani(4) al-Isabah by Ibn Hajar al-Asqalani(5) Kanzul Ummal v6 p155(6) al-Manaqib by al-Khawarizmi p34(7) Yanabi' al-Mawaddah by al-Qunduzi al-Hanafi p149(8) History of Ibn Asakir v2 p95===========================Ali vs truth (right path):===========================In some versions of the Tradition of Ghadir Khum there is an extra sentencethat is he Prophet (PBUH&HF) said: "Wa dara al-haqq ma'ahu haithu dar" literally: "And the truth (the right path) turns with him (i e. Ali) wherever way he turns."Sunni reference: Tafsir al-Kabir by Fakhr al-Din al-Razi under the commentary of "al-Bismilah"Similarly in Sahih al-Tirmidhi it is narrated that: The Messenger of God said: "O God have Thy Mercy on Ali. O God make the right and the truth with Ali in all situations."Sunni reference: Sahih al-Tirmidhi v5 p297In Arabic linguistically the wording (balagha) could play tricks on thelistener. Logically truth is absolute and not variable. A person relativeto the truth could be variable in action. In this case the person (i e. Imam Ali) is placed as the absolute fixedaxes around which the event is taking place; such that if anything changesin the person's decision the event is the thing that will change its track-- truth in this case!!! Since such change is not logically reasonabledue to the absolute nature of truth then one can conclude that the two aremarried and are inseparable. Hence. Ali (AS) stands for truth at alltimes. Thus the saying of the Prophet (PBUH&HF) is a metaphoric way to stressAli's importance and attachment to the truth (right path) such thatAli (AS) and the "right path" are indistinguishable. Whereas if put in the reverse order (i e. Ali turns with truth...) itwould leave room theoretically for Ali to make other possible turns byvirtue of Ali being the moving object. This would sound weaker and wouldimply the nature of a non-infallible person. End of part 2 of 3
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