Event of Ghadir Khumm (Part 2)

بسم الله الرحمن الرحيم

والصلاة والسلام على رسوله الكريم

وعلى اهل بيته الطيبين الطاهرين المظلومين

والعاقبة للمتقين

Continuing from the previous entry, the Shi’ah claim that Allah revealed the following Ayah of the Quran in connection with the Prophet’s ﷺ duty to announce the succession of Amir ul-Mu’minin Ali bin Abi Talib ؓ:

يَا أَيُّهَا الرَّسُولُ بَلِّغْ مَا أُنزِلَ إِلَيْكَ مِن رَّبِّكَ ۖ وَإِن لَّمْ تَفْعَلْ فَمَا بَلَّغْتَ رِسَالَتَهُ ۚ وَاللَّـهُ يَعْصِمُكَ مِنَ النَّاسِ ۗ إِنَّ اللَّـهَ لَا يَهْدِي الْقَوْمَ الْكَافِرِينَ

O Messenger, convey that which has been revealed to you from your Lord. And if you do not then you have not conveyed His message. And Allah will protect you from the people. Verily, Allah does not guide the disbelieving people.

(Surah 5:67)

According to the Shi’ah narrative, when the Prophet ﷺ was initially ordered to designate and proclaim to the world the succession of sayyidina Ali bin Abi Talib ؓ, he became apprehensive and fearful, lest his companions turn back from Islam and accuse him of lying. So in order to comfort the Prophet ﷺ and reassure him, Allah revealed this Ayah. It was only then that the Prophet ﷺ was able to proclaim the succession and wilayah of sayyidina Ali ؓ at Ghadir Khumm with the words: “for whomsoever I am his mawla, then Ali is his mawla.” Hence it is narrated in the Shi’ite Hadith:

علي بن إبراهيم، عن أبيه، عن ابن أبي عمير، عن عمر بن أذينة، عن زرارة والفضيل بن يسار، وبكير بن أعين ومحمد بن مسلم وبريد بن معاوية وأبي الجارود جميعا عن أبي جعفر عليه السلام قال: أمر الله عز وجل رسوله بولاية علي وأنزل عليه " إنما وليكم الله ورسوله والذين آمنوا الذين يقيمون الصلاة ويؤتون الزكاة " وفرض ولاية أولي الامر، فلم يدروا ما هي، فأمر الله محمدا صلى الله عليه وآله أن يفسر لهم الولاية، كما فسر لهم الصلاة، والزكاة والصوم والحج، فلما أتاه ذلك من الله، ضاق بذلك صدر رسول الله صلى الله عليه وآله وتخوف أن يرتدوا عن دينهم وأن يكذبوه فضاق صدره وراجع ربه عز وجل فأوحى الله عز وجل إليه " يا أيها الرسول بلغ ما أنزل إليك من ربك وإن لم تفعل فما بلغت رسالته والله يعصمك من الناس " فصدع بأمر الله تعالى ذكره فقام بولاية علي عليه السلام يوم غدير خم

Ali ibn Ibrahim from his father from Ibn Abu 'Umayr from 'Umar ibn Udhaynah from Zurarah and Fudayl ibn Yasar and Bukayr ibn A'yan and Muhammad ibn Muslim and Burayd ibn Muiawiyah and Abu '1- Jarud, together, that Abu Ja'far (p.b.u.h.) said: "Allah, to Whom belong Might and Majesty, charged His Messenger with the Mastership of Ali, and sent down to him: Your Master is only Alldh, and His Messenger and those who believe who perform the prayer and pay zakat. He decreed the Mastership of those in authority, although they (the people) did not understand what it was. Allah command Muhammad (p.b.u.h.a.h.p.) to interpret (and explain) Mastership for them as he had interpreted (and explained) prayer, zakat, fasting and hajj. When this came to him from Allah, the mind of the Messenger of Allah (p.b.u.h.ah.p.) became straitened by it and he became afraid lest they (the people) abandon their religion and come to deny it. So his mind was staitened and he consulted with his Lord, to Whom belong Might and Majesty; and Allah to Whom belong Might and Majesty revealed to him: O Messenger, deliver that which has been sent down to thee from thy Lord; for if thou cost not, thou wig not have delivered His Message. Allah will protect thee from men (al-Ma'idah, 5:67). He complied with the command of Allah, may remembrance of Him be exlated, and endorsed the Mastership of Ali on the day of Ghadir Khumm. (al-Kafi: ch.64 h.4)

محمد بن يحيى، عن أحمد بن محمد ومحمد بن الحسين جميعا، عن محمد بن إسماعيل ابن بزيع، عن منصور بن يونس، عن أبي الجارود، عن أبي جعفر عليه السلام قال سمعت أبا جعفر عليه السلام يقول: فرض الله عز وجل على العباد خمسا، أخذوا أربعا وتركوا واحدا، قلت: أتسميهن لي جعلت فداك؟ فقال: الصلاة وكان الناس لا يدرون كيف يصلون، فنزل جبرئيل عليه السلام فقال: يا محمد أخبرهم بمواقيت صلاتهم، ثم نزلت الزكاة فقال: يا محمد أخبرهم من زكاتهم ما أخبرتهم من صلاتهم، ثم نزل الصوم فكان رسول الله صلى الله عليه وآله إذا كان يوم عاشورا بعث إلى ما حوله من القرى فصاموا ذلك اليوم فنزل شهر رمضان بين شعبان وشوال، ثم نزل الحج فنزل جبرئيل عليه السلام فقال:

أخبرهم من حجهم ما أخبرتهم من صلاتهم وزكاتهم وصومهم.

ثم نزلت الولاية وإنما أتاه ذلك في يوم الجمعة بعرفة، أنزل الله عز وجل " اليوم أكملت لكم دينكم وأتممت عليكم نعمتي " وكان كمال الدين بولاية علي ابن أبي طالب عليه السلام  فقال عند ذلك رسول الله صلى الله عليه وآله: أمتي حديثوا عهد بالجاهلية ومتى أخبرتهم بهذا في ابن عمي يقول قائل، ويقول قائل - فقلت في نفسي من غير أن ينطق به لساني - فأتتني عزيمة من الله عز وجل بتلة (2) أوعدني إن لم أبلغ أن يعذبني، فنزلت " يا أيها الرسول بلغ ما انزل إليك من ربك وإن لم تفعل فما بلغت رسالته والله يعصمك من الناس إن الله لا يهدي القوم الكافرين  " فأخذ رسول الله صلى الله عليه وآله بيد علي عليه السلام فقال: أيها الناس إنه لم يكن نبي من الأنبياء ممن كان قبلي إلا وقد عمره الله، ثم دعاه فأجابه، فأوشك أن ادعى فأجيب وأنا مسؤول وأنتم مسؤولون فماذا أنتم قائلون؟ فقالوا: نشهد أنك قد بلغت ونصحت، وأديت ما عليك فجزاك الله أفضل جزاء المرسلين، فقال: اللهم اشهد - ثلاث مرات - ثم قال: يا معشر المسلمين هذا وليكم من بعدي فليبلغ الشاهد منكم الغائب

Muhammad ibn Yahya from Ahmad ibn Muhammad and Muhammad ibn al-Husayn, the two together from Muhammad ibn Isma'il ibn Bazi' from Mansur ibn Yunus that Abu 'I-Jarud said: "I heard Abu Ja'far (p.b.u.h.) say: Aliah, to Whom belong Might and Majesty, made five things incumbent on (his) servants: they accepted four and rejected one.' I said: 'May I be made your ransom, name them for me.' He said: 'Prayer; but the people did not understand how to pray, then Jibril (pb.uh.) came down and said: "O Muhammad, inform them of the timings of their prayers." Then zakat was sent down, and He said: "O Muhammad, inform them of their zakit as you have informed them of their prayer." Then fasting was sent down, and, when the day of 'Ashura came, the Messenger of Allah (pb.uh.ah.p.) sent a message to the villages around it (Medina), and they fasted on that day. Then (the fasting) of the month of Ramadan, between (the months of ) Sha'ban and Shawwal, was sent down. Then hajj was sent down, and Jibril (p.b.uh.) came down and said: "Inform them of their hajj as you informed them of their prayer, their Rabat and their fasting." Then the Mastership was sent down, and when this came to him on Friday at 'Arafah (or 'Arafat, the gathering place for the pilgrims on the 9th of Dhu 'l-Hijjah, near Mecca), Allah, to Whom belong Might and Majesty, sent down: Today I have completed your religion for you, and I have perfected My blessing upon you (al-Ma'idah,5:3). The completion of the religion was through the Mastership of Ali ibn Abu Talib (p.b.uh.). Then the Messenger of Allah (pb.uh.ah.p.) said together with this (verse): "My community has recently experienced the jahiliyyah (the period of ignorance before Islam), and whenever I inform them of this concerning my cousin, one speaker will say this and another will say that. I say (this) to myself without my tongue speaking out: a decisive obligation came to me from Allah, to Whom belong Might and Majesty, with finality; He threatened me that if I did not make (this) reach (the people), He would punish me." Then was sent down: O Messenger, deliver that which has been sent down to thee from thy Lord; for if thou cost not, thou wilt not have delivered His Message. Allah will protect thee from men. Allah guides not the people of the unbelievers (al-Matidah, S :67). Then the Messenger of Allah (p.b.uh.a.h.p.) took the hand of Ali (pb.uh.) and said: "O people, there was no prophet among the prophets who were before me to whom Allah did not grant a span of life, then tie called him and he answered Him. The time is now near when I shall be called and I will answer. I shall be questioned and you will be questioned, and what will you say?" They said: "We bear witness that you have delivered (what you had to deliver) and advised sincerely, and conveyed what you had. May Allah reward you with the best of the rewards of those who were messengers." He said: "O Allah, I call you to witness"—three times —then he said: "O assembly of believers, that this man is your Master (wall) after me. Let the one among you who witnesses this convey (what he has seen) to the one who is absent." (al-Kafi ch.64 h.6)

Incidentally, this latter narration confirms that the Prophet ﷺ and his companions fasted on the day of Ashura, which is something the Shi’ite polemicist Ammar Nakshawani accuses the Sunnis of having fabricated. These two preceding narrations from the Shi’ite book al-Kafi, claim that the Prophet ﷺ was apprehensive about announcing the succession of Amir ul-Mu’minin Ali bin Abi Talib ؓ. He feared that his people would accuse him of lying and apostate from the Religion. It is mentioned in the latter narration that he was commanded to do this on the day of Arafah, on the 9^th of Dhi-l-Hijjah, but he became apprehensive (God forbid), and neglected his duty. It was nine days later after Allah revealed the verse (5:67) that the Prophet ﷺ felt reassured and proclaimed the Wilayah of Ali ؓ at Ghadir Khumm. The problem with this Shi’ite narrative is that it necessarily implies that the Prophet ﷺ never designated or proclaimed the succession of sayyidina Ali ؓ before the event of Ghadir Khumm. Why then do the Shi’ah quote the event of Da’wat al-Ashirah, when the Prophet ﷺ gathered his closest relatives in Makkah and allegedly stated that Ali ؓ was his successor, or the Hadith al-Manzilah, which was uttered before the expedition of Tabuk. If the Shi’ah insist that this Ayah, the Ayat at-Tabligh (5:67) was revealed concerning the succession of sayyidina Ali, they will necessarily have to forsake the quoting of the event of Da’wat al-Ashirah and Hadith al-Manzilah as proof that the Prophet ﷺ appointed sayyidina Ali ؓ as his immediate successor, because these events were prior to the event of Ghadir Khumm and the revelation of Ayat at-Tabligh.