Lesson 4: The Origin of Shi‘ism
Diverse views have been expressed with respect to the origin and beginning of Shi‘ism, but in general, these views can be divided into two:
1.
The writers and researchers who believe Shi‘ism was created after the demise of the Prophet (S) and who themselves can be subdivided into the following subgroups:
a.
Those who believe that Shi‘ism has come into being during the day of Saqifah—that day when a group of prominent Companions explicitly said: “‘Ali is the most deserving one to the office of Imamate {imamah
} and caliphate {khilafah
}.”1
b.
Those who regard the emergence of the Shi‘ah as being related to the latter part of Uthman’s caliphate, connecting the spread of the views of ‘Abd Allah ibn Saba’ at this period with the beginning of Shi‘ism.2
c.
Those who believe that the Shi‘ah has come into being on the day ofFitnah ad-Dar
(the day when the third caliph was murdered). Thereafter, accordingly, the followers of ‘Ali (‘a
) who were the very Shi‘ah who confronted the so-called “‘Uthmanis”, those who were avenging the murder of ‘Uthman. As Ibn an-Nadim thus writes:
When Talhah and Zubayr opposed ‘Ali and nothing could convince them but to take revenge for the murder of ‘Uthman, while ‘Ali also wanted to fight them so as to establish the truth, on that day those who followed him were called “Shi‘ah” and he himself thus described them: “They are my Shi‘ah”.3
Ibn ‘Abd ar-Rabbih al-Andalusi also says: “The Shi‘ah are those who regarded ‘Ali as superior to ‘Uthman.”4
d.
Those who believe that Shi‘ism had come into existence from the coming into power, up to the martyrdom of ‘Ali (‘a
).5
e.
Those who link the origin of Shi‘ism with the event at Karbala’ and the martyrdom of Imam al-Husayn (‘a
).6
2.
The researchers who are of the opinion that Shi‘ism can be traced back to the period of the Messenger of Allah (‘a
). Apart from all the Shi‘ah‘ulama’
,7 some of the Sunni scholars also hold such a belief, just as Muhammad Kird-‘Ali—one of the distinguished Sunni‘ulama’
—says: “A number of the Companions during the time of the Holy Prophet (S) were known as Shi‘ah of ‘Ali.”8
Keeping in view of the opinions presented so far, it can be said that the event of Saqifah, the latter part of the caliphate of ‘Uthman, the Battle of Jamal (Camel), the rule of ‘Ali (‘a
), and the events at Karbala’ are phases of the events that have influenced the history of Shi‘ism.
Although the existence of a person named ‘Abd Allah ibn Saba’ is doubtful, the formation of Shi‘ism at these stages seems incorrect because studying the Prophetic traditions, we find that the term “Shi‘ah”, has been applied by the Messenger of Allah, Muhammad al-Mustafa (S), to the sympathizers of ‘Ali (‘a
) before all these events, as recorded in manyhadith
s, some of which we shall cite below.
All thesehadith
s are accepted by the Ahl as-Sunnah as authentic and have been recorded in their
hadith
references. Take, for example, the
hadith
s which have been recorded by Suyuti—one of the Sunni exegetes
{
mufassirun
} of the Qur’an—from the Holy Prophet (S) on the commentary of the verse:
﴿ إِنَّ الَّذِينَ آمَنُوا وَعَمِلُوا الصَّالِحَاتِ أُولَئِكَ هُمْ خَيْرُ الْبَرِيَّةِ ﴾
“Indeed those who have faith and do righteous deeds—it is they who are the best of creatures.”
9
Among them is thishadith
of the Prophet (S) when he said:
والّذي نفسي بيده إنّ هذا و شيعته لهم الفائزون يوم القيامة.
“By He in Whose hand my life is! Verily, this man (‘Ali) and his Shi‘ah shall secure deliverance on the Day of Resurrection.”10
The Holy Prophet (S) said to ‘Ali (‘a
): “God has forgiven the sins of your Shi‘ah and the followers of your Shi‘ah.”11
The Prophet (S) also said to ‘Ali (‘a
): “You and your Shi‘ah will meet (on the Day of Resurrection) at the Pool {hawdh
} of Kawthar while having drank from it and having bright faces, whereas your enemies will meet me while they are thirsty and enchained.”12
In a longhadith
regarding the virtues of ‘Ali (‘a
), the Holy Prophet (S) thus says to his daughter Fatimah (‘a
): “O Fatimah! ‘Ali and his Shi‘ah are the saved ones of tomorrow.”13
Similarly, the Messenger of Allah (S) said: “O ‘Ali! Your sins as well as that of your progeny, your Shi‘ah and the followers of your Shi‘ah have been forgiven…”14
Again, the Messenger of Allah (S) said: “O ‘Ali! During the Day of Resurrection, I shall cling to God while you shall hold fast to me; your descendants shall hold fast to you; and the Shi‘ah of your descendants shall hold fast to them.”15
The Prophet (S) again said to ‘Ali (‘a
): “In the hereafter, of all the people, you are the nearest one to me… and the Shi‘ah are on pulpits on light…”16
Ibn al-‘Abbas narrated that Jibra’il (Archangel Gabriel) (‘a
) gave the news that ‘Ali (‘a
) and the Shi‘ah shall be brought to Paradise along with Muhammad (S).”17
Salman al-Farsi narrates that the Most Noble Messenger (S) said to ‘Ali (‘a
):
O ‘Ali! Put a ring on your right hand so as to be with the nearest ones {muqarrabin
}.” ‘Ali (‘a
) asked: “Who are the nearest ones?” He (S) replied: “Jibra’il and Mika’il.” ‘Ali (‘a
) again asked: “Which kind of ring shall I put on?” He (S) replied: “A ring whose stone is a red‘aqiq
because‘aqiq
is a testimony that one has acknowledged and accepted the divine servitude {‘ubudiyyah
}, my prophethood {nubuwwah
}, your guardianship {wisayah
}, and your descendants’ Imamate {imamah
}. Your followers are people of Paradise and the abode of your Shi‘ah is the Garden of Firdaws {jannah al-firdaws
}.18
The Most Noble Messenger (S) again said: “Eighty thousand from myummah
shall be admitted to Paradise without reckoning.” ‘Ali (
‘a
) asked: “Who are they?” He (S) replied: “They are your Shi‘ah and you are their Imam.”
19
Anas ibn Malik thus narrates from the Holy Prophet (S):
Jibra’il said to me: “God, the Exalted, loves ‘Ali to such a degree that is not expressed to any angel. Just as thetasbih
s {glorifications to Allah} that are being uttered, God creates angels to seek forgiveness for the admirers and Shi‘ah of ‘Ali till the Day of Resurrection.”20
Jabir ibn ‘Abd Allah al-Ansari narrates that the Prophet (S) said: “By God Who sent me in truth as the Prophet! The angels are regularly seeking forgiveness for ‘Ali and they pity him and his Shi‘ah as a father does (with respect to his child).”21
‘Ali (‘a
) himself narrates that the Prophet (S) said: “O ‘Ali! Give glad tidings to your Shi‘ah that I am {their} intercessor {shafi‘
} on the Day of Resurrection—the day when neither wealth nor child is of any benefit except my intercession {shafa‘ah
}.”22
The Holy Prophet (S) said to ‘Ali (‘a
): “The first four persons to enter Paradise are I, you, Hasan, and Husayn; our descendants are behind us; our spouses are behind our descendants and our Shi‘ah are on our right and left sides.”23
Finally, many of the Sunnimuhaddithun
and historians such as Ibn al-Jawzi, Baladhuri, Shaykh Sulayman al-Qanduzi al-Hanafi, Khwarazmi, and as-Suyuti have narrated that the Messenger of Allah (S) thus said while addressing ‘Ali (‘a
): “Verily, this man (‘Ali) and his Shi‘ah shall secure deliverance on the Day of Resurrection.”24
There are even recorded traditions from the Most Noble Messenger (S) about some of the Shi‘ah and what is interesting here is that these have been narrated by the opponents of the Shi‘ah! For example, there is a tradition about Hujr ibn ‘Adi al-Kindi which has been narrated by ‘A’ishah. When Mu‘awiyah performedHajj
after killing Hujr and his companions and came to Medina, ‘A’ishah said to him:
O Mu‘awiyah! Where was your forbearance at the time of killing Hujr and his companions? Be aware that I heard that the Messenger of Allah (S) said: “There is a group that shall be killed in a place called Marj ‘Adhra’ for which Allah and the inhabitants of heaven will be filled with wrath.”25
Since thesehadith
s are undeniable and have been narrated by prominent Sunnimuhaddithun
, some Sunni writers have resorted to unjust interpretation of them. For instance, Ibn Abi’l-Hadid says:
What is meant by the Shi‘ah in manyhadith
s who have been given the glad tidings of Paradise are those who believe in the superiority and preeminence of ‘Ali (‘a
) over others. For this reason, our Mu‘tazilite‘ulama’
have thus written in their books and treatises, “We are truly the Shi‘ah” and this statement is nearer to reality and more akin to truth.26
Also, in the book,As-Sawa‘iq al-Mahriqah fi’r-Radd ‘ala Ahl al-Bid‘a waz-Zindiqah
, which is a book rejecting the Shi‘ah creeds and beliefs, while quoting thishadith
s,
Haythami has said:
What is meant by the Shi‘ah in thesehadith
s are the Shi‘ah that no longer exist. It refers to progeny and followers of ‘Ali who are neither afflicted with innovation {
bid‘ah
} nor curse and abuse the Companions of the Prophet (S).
27
In reply to him, the late Muzaffar says:
It is strange that Ibn Hajar imagined that what is meant here by the Shi‘ah are the Ahl as-Sunnah! And I do not know if the reason behind this is the similarity of “Shi‘ah” and “Sunni”. Or, it is because these two sects are identical. Or, it is for the reason that the Ahl as-Sunnah follow and love the family of the Prophet (S) more than the Shi‘ah do!28
The late Kashif al-Ghita’ also says: “By applying the term “Shi‘ah” to the Shi‘ah of ‘Ali (‘a
), its purport can be understood because other than this group, there is no other Shi‘ah.”29
The existence of the term “Shi‘ah” in thehadith
s and sayings of the Prophet (S) is clear and indisputable, and with these (unjust) interpretations, they wanted to conceal the truth but in the end they have deceived nobody but themselves. This is particularly true in view of the fact that the connotations of “Shi‘ah” has been clarified during the time of the Prophet (S) and a number of the Companions were known at the time as “Shi‘ah of ‘Ali”.30
The Companions of the Prophet (S) also referred to ‘Ali’s (‘a
) followers as “Shi‘ah”. Hashim Marqal thus writes concerning a person named “Mahal ibn al-Khalifah at-Ta’i”: “O Commander of the Faithful! He is among your Shi‘ah.”31
The Shi‘ah themselves used to call one another as Shi‘ah. As Shaykh al-Mufid narrates, some people came to ‘Ali (‘a
) and said: “O Commander of the Faithful! We are among your Shi‘ah.” He (‘a
) in turn said: “The faces of my Shi‘ah turn pale on account of night vigil and their eyes weak due to weeping…”32
In many instances, Hadrat33 ‘Ali (‘a
) himself, as in the abovementioned case, used to apply the word “Shi‘ah” to his followers. For example, when he heard the news of martyrdom of some of his Shi‘ah in Basrah at the hand of Talhah and Zubayr, he (‘a
) cursed the two and said: “O God! They have killed my Shi‘ah. Kill them too.”34
Even the opponents of ‘Ali (‘a
) used to refer to his followers as “Shi‘ah”, just as what ‘A’ishah, Talhah and Zubayr said during their conversation about their route from Mecca to Iraq: “We shall go to Basrah and expel the governor {amil
} of ‘Ali and kill his Shi‘ah.”35
In any case, the truth of Shi‘ism, which is the same love and fellowship to ‘Ali (‘a
) and to regard him as superior (to others), is related to the time of the Prophet (S). He (S) used to enjoin the people in his speeches to follow ‘Ali and his family as exemplified by the event in Ghadir Khumm. As Ibn Abi’l-Hadid says: “This report {akhbar
} has been narrated bymuhaddithun
none of whom has been accused ofrafdh
and Shi‘ism {tashayyu‘
} and they have not even believed in the superiority and preeminence of ‘Ali (‘a
) over others.”36
Now, we shall quote some of thesehadith
s. Buraydah Aslami says:
The Messenger of Allah (S) said: “God, the Exalted, has ordered me to love four persons and said to me that He also loves them.” They asked: “O Messenger of Allah! Tell their names.” He (S) said thrice: “‘Ali and then Abu Dharr, Miqdad and Salman.”37
At-Tabari narrates that in the course of the Battle of Uhud, the Most Noble Messenger (S) said: “‘Ali is from me and I from him.”38
It has thus been narrated on the authority of Umm Salmah: “When the Messenger of Allah (S) was angry, no one could dare to speak except ‘Ali.”39
Sa‘d ibn Abi Waqas narrated that the Most Noble Messenger (S) said: “He who loves ‘Ali loves me and he who loves me loves God. Also, he who is hostile to ‘Ali is hostile to me, and he who is hostile to me is hostile to God.”40
Ibn al-Jawzi narrated that the Holy Prophet of Islam (S) said: “O ‘Ali! You are the separator of heaven and hell. And you shall open the door of heaven and enter it without any reckoning.”41
Khwarazmi narrated inAl-Manaqib
on the authority of Ibn al-‘Abbas that the Holy Prophet (S) said:
When I was brought to the heavenly ascension {mi‘raj
}, I saw that it is thus written on the gate of heaven:
لا الٰه الاّ الله، محمّد رسول الله، علىّ حبيب الله، الحسن والحسين صفوة الله، فاطمة امة الله، على مبغضهم لعنة الله.
La ilaha illallah, Muhammadan Rasulullah, ‘Aliyyun Habib Allah Al-Hasan wa’l-Husayn Sifwat Allah, Fatimah Ummat Allah, ‘ala mabghadhuhum la‘nat Allah
.42
Zubayr ibn Bakkar—who is among the grandchildren of Zubayr and known for deviation from the Commander of the Faithful (‘a
)—has narrated that the Most Noble Messenger (S) said: “I enjoin anyone who believe in God and confirm my apostleship {risalah
} to love ‘Ali ibn Abi Talib and recognize his guardianship {wilayah
}. He who loves him loves me and he who loves me loves God.”43
Ibn Abi’l-Hadid narrates on the authority of Zayd ibn al-Arqam that the Most Noble Messenger (S) said: “I shall guide you to something which if it would be known to you, you shall never go astray. Your guardian {wali
} and Imam is ‘Ali ibn Abi Talib. Acknowledge him as Jibra’il thus informed me of it.”
After narrating thishadith
, Ibn Abi’l-Hadid thus says:
If they would say, “This is an explicit proof for (Imam ‘Ali’s) Imamate {imamah
},” how will then the Mu‘tazilites solve this problem? In reply, we say: It is possible that the Prophet means that ‘Ali is their Imam in religious edicts {fatawa
} and laws {ahkam
} and not in caliphate {khilafah
}.
Similarly, what we quoted in the explanation of the statements of the great and leading Mu‘tazilite figures of Baghdad can be the answer, the gist of which is as follows: The Imamate and caliphate belonged to ‘Ali with the condition that he would show inclination to it and fight others for it. As he relinquished it to somebody and kept silent, we do accept the guardianship {wilayah
} of the other person and believe in the legitimacy of his caliphate.
As the Commander of the Faithful did not raise any opposition against the three caliphs, did not unsheathe his sword and call on the people against the three, it follows then that he has approved their caliphates. It is based on this that we do accept them and believe in their purity, goodness and righteousness. If he would have waged war against them and called on the
people to fight them, we would then believe in their transgression, deviation and misguidance.44
Lesson 4: Summary
Some writers regard Shi‘ism to have emerged on the day of Saqifah while others regard the same to be on the latter part of ‘Uthman ibn al-‘Affan’s caliphate. The third group believe that Shi‘ism came into being after the murder of ‘Uthman while the fourth group say that it has come into existence after the martyrdom of ‘Ali (‘a
). The fifth group is of the opinion that Shi‘ism originated after the event in Karbala’.
Apart from the Shi‘ah‘ulama’
as a whole, some Sunni scholars such as Muhammad Kird-‘Ali maintain that the root of emergence of Shi‘ism is during the lifetime of the Messenger of Allah (S) and it was the Prophet (S) who first applied the term “Shi‘ah” to the comrades of ‘Ali (‘a
).
A number of Companions of the Prophet (S) were also known during that time as “Shi‘ah of ‘Ali (‘a
)”.
In addition to this, Shi‘ism is the same love and fellowship to ‘Ali (‘a
) to which the Prophet (S) had enjoined his Companions on many occasions.
Lesson 4: Questions
1. How many views have been expressed regarding the emergence of Shi‘ism? Explain.
2. Who was the first person to apply the name “Shi‘ah” to the comrades of ‘Ali (‘a
)?
3. Write twohadith
s from the Messenger of Allah (S) regarding the Shi‘ah.
4. What has Ibn Abi’l-Hadid said regarding thehadith
s pertaining to the Shi‘ah?
5. What is Ibn Hajar al-Haythami’s opinion with regard to thehadith
s relating to the Shi‘ah?
6. What is the truth of Shi‘ism?
7. Write the opinion of Ibn Abi’l-Hadid concerning thehadith
narrated by Zayd ibn al-Arqam.
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Author: Ayatullah Sayyid Abdul Husayn Dastghaib Shirazi
