Hadith Ghadeer Khumm Hadith Ghadeer Khumm is the most widely quoted hadith by Shiahs in support of Alis claim to imamate. Here is its text as quoted from a Shiah source: According to a mutawatir hadith(52), when the verse, O Messenger, proclaim what has been revealed to you(53) was sent down, he(Sallallahu Alaihi Wasallam) addressed a congregation of people at Ghadeer Khumm, saying, O people, am I not preferred to all of you? They said, Yes, certainly you are. He said then, To whomever I am mawla[patron], Ali too is his mawla. He then prayed, O Allah, befriend whoever befriends Ali and be the enemy whoever bears his enmity and help whoever helps him and disgrace whoever causes him indignity. Umar then said to Ali, Congratulations! You are my mawla and the mawla of all believing men and women.(54) Shiahs claim that the word mawla here signifies wali and that the Prophet(Sallallahu Alaihi Wasallam) had nominated Ali to be his wali(trustee), giving him the right to be his successor and imam after him. Shiahs claim this hadith to be mutawatir, that is, narrated by so many diffent chains that its authenticity cannot be doubled. It may be pointed out, however, that this hadith is not reported in the authentic sources of hadith of al-Bukhari, Muslim, Abu Dawud or an-Nasai. Only Ibn Majah and at-Tirmidhi have reported it, and at-Tirmidhi has classified it as a weak hadith. An objective study of older Shiah sources reveals that the early Shiah scholars did not use this hadith as a mandate for Alis claim of imamate. The following citations clearly prove this point: a) During his very last sermon the Prophet(Sallallahu Alaihi Wasallam) said: Whoever assumes leadership after me - it is incumbent upon him to be kind to those Ansar(Madinites) who are virtuous and to forgive those Ansar who may not be virtuous. That was the last time the Prophet(Sallallahu Alaihi Wasallam) came out of his home and spoke to the people from the pulpit.(55) It is evident from this Shiah hadith that the Prophet(Sallallahu Alaihi Wasallam) did specify his successor. Had he nominated Ali to be his successor, there would have been a general announcement and instruction to the public. b) Another narration from a Shiah source reads as follows: Amir bin at-Tufayl and Zayd bin Qays went to the Prophet(Sallallahu Alaihi Wasallam) with the intent to kill him. When the Prophet(Sallallahu Alaihi Wasallam) entered the mosque, Amir asked him, What shall be my reward if I choose to be a Muslim? The Prophet(Sallallahu Alaihi Wasallam) replied, The same that will be the reward of other Muslims. Amir then said, I would like you to make me your successor. The Prophet(Sallallahu Alaihi Wasallam) answered, Only Allah has that right.(56) According to another Shiah hadith(57), the Prophet(Sallallahu Alaihi Wasallam) had nominated Ali to be his successor and heir at the very beginning of his Prophetic mission in Makkah. This declaration was then repeated at the assembly of Ghadeer Khumm before a crowd of several thousand. If these stories were true, the Prophet(Sallallahu Alaihi Wasallam) would have boldly answered Amir that Allah had already nominated Ali to be his successor.. A third narration from an early Shiah source reads as follows: One night [after the election of Abu Bakr to the caliphate] when it became dark, Ali took al-Hasan and al-Husayn with him and went from door to door among the houses of the residents and emigrants [in Madinah] but none except four (and according to another narration only three) agreed to his claim for the caliphate.(58) At that time about 10,000 companions of the Prophet(Sallallahu Alaihi Wasallam) lived in Madinah. If only one percent of these noble companions had understood the word mawla as the Shiahs explain it today, at least 100 of them, whose mother tongue was Arabic, should have agreed with Alis claim for the caliphate. The fact is, however, that the Prophets companions did not take the word mawla as a mandate for Alis caliphate. c) Below is the version of hadith Ghadeer Khumm as reported in Sunan at-Tirmidhi: The Prophet(Sallallahu Alaihi Wasallam) dispatched a military expedition under the command of Ali. With a war booty came a slave girl, whom Ali kept for himself. A few of his companions did not like this, and four of them decided to brinh it to the attention of the Prophet(Sallallahu Alaihi Wasallam). When Ali returned with his unit, one of these persons asked the Prophet(Sallallahu Alaihi Wasallam) if he knew that Ali had done such a thing. On hearing this the Prophet(Sallallahu Alaihi Wasallam) turned away his face. The first man followed by the second one, and then the third, but the Prophet(Sallallahu Alaihi Wasallam) paid no attention to any of the. The fourth man then got up and repeated the complaint. The Prophet(Sallalahu Alaihi Wasallam) turned toward him with anger showing on his face and said to him, What do you want of Ali? What do want of Ali? Ali is of me and I am of Ali. After me, Ali is the mawla of all the believers.(59) It is very clear from this hadith that although a few people were unhappy about Alis distribution of the booty, the Prophet(Sallallahu Alaihi Wasallam) was satisfied with Alis conduct. The word mawla, here, express the Prophets trust and confidence in Ali and does not relate to his future caliphate. After me refers to the rank and position, not to time or succession. It was not an occosion for the nomination of his heir but only an assessment of Alis conduct in particular situation. It should be added that the descriptions of Ali in hadith Ghadeer Khumm are not limited to him alone. The Prophet(Sallallahu Alaihi Wasallam) used the same descriptions for other people as well. For example: The Prophet(Sallallahu Alaihi Wasallam) said: Salman is the mawla of the Madinites.(60) The Prophet(Sallallahu Alaihi Wasallam) said: You are our brother and our mawla.(61) The Prophet(Sallallahu Alaihi Wasallam) said: Al-Abbas is of me, I am of him.(62) The Prophet(Sallallahu Alaihi Wasallam) said: He[Julaybeeb] is of me, I am of him.(63) The Prophet(Sallallahu Alaihi Wasallam) said: So they[the Asharis](64) are of me, I am of them.(65) The author of Minhaj al-Kiramah and a few other Shiah scholars also take the word mawla in the sense of awla, meaning deserving, preferable or worthier. If this interpretation is accepted, then the word awla has been used by the Prophet(Sallallahu Alaihi Wasallam) for Abu Bakr as well. Aishah narrated: The Prophet(Sallallahu Alaihi Wasallam) said to me during his terminal illness, Send for Abu Bakr and your brother so that I might write something, for I am afraid that someone ambitious might have intentions or someone might say, I am awla[more worthy], while Allah and the believers refuse except Abu Bakr.(66) After the demise of the Prophet(Sallallahu Alaihi Wasallam) a number of his companions, on several occasions, differed over thdm issue of the caliphate. None of the companions or his noble family members ever presented hadith Ghadeer Khumm in support of Alis right to the caliphate. Is it conceivable that all the companions of the Prophet(Sallallahu Alaihi Wasallam) including Ali himself had forgotten the Ghadeer Khumm incident or had not understood its significance and meaning? (52) A hadith reported by a large number of narrators through several chains (53) Surah al-Maidah, 5:67. (54) Minhaj al-Kiramah , p. 94. (55) Jalal al-Ayun, vol. 1, p. 64. (56) Hayat al-Qulub, vol. 1, p. 223. (57) Dawat al-Asheerah, discussed in detail on pp. 28-32 (58) Jalal-Ayun, p. 149. (59) Sunan at-Tirmidhi, vol. 2, pp. 212-213. (60) Mishkat al-Masabih, p. 293. (61) Saheeh al-Bukhari. (62) Mishkat al-Masabih, p. 570. (63) Saheeh Muslim. (64) A well-known tribe of Yemen. (65) Saheeh Muslim. (66) Ibid.
Posted on: Sat, 30 Aug 2014 10:37:46 +0000
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