Alhassanain(p) Network for Heritage and Islamic Thought

32. Hadith Al-Ikhtiyar, Examining The Verse Of The Cave

Shaykh Ibn Taymiyyah (d. 728 H) states:

يقول الله

إلا تنصروه فقد نصره الله إذ أخرجه الذين كفروا ثاني اثنين إذ هما في الغار إذ يقول لصاحبه لا تحزن أن الله معنا

و مثل هذه الفضيلة لم تحصل لغير أبي بكر قطعا و الأفضلية إنما تثبت بالخصائص لا بالمشتركات ...و قد قال العلماء ما صح لعلي من الفضائل فهي مشتركة شاركه فيها غيره بخلاف الصديق فان كثيرا من فضائله و أكثرها خصائص له لا يشركه فيها غيره

Allah says: {If you help him not, for Allah did indeed help him when the disbelievers drove him out, the second of two, when they both were in the cave, when he was saying to his companion: “Do not fear, surely Allah is with us.”} (9:40)

This merit never reached absolutely anyone other than Abu BakrAnd superiority is established only through exclusive merits, and not through shared qualities The scholars have said: “What has been authentically transmited among the merits of ‘Ali are only shared qualities, which others too share with him, as opposed to al-Siddiq, for lots of his merits and most of them areexclusive to him, and not shared with him by anyone.”515

In other words, the above verse establishes the superiority of Abu Bakr over all the Sahabah. It contains hisexclusive merit. Our Shaykh says further:

فيقال لا ريب أن الفضيلة التي حصلت لأبي بكر قي الهجرة لم تحصل لغيره من الصحابة بالكتاب و السنة و الإجماع فتكون هذه الأفضلية ثابتة له دون عمر و عثمان و علي و غيرهم من الصحابة فيكون هو الإمام

So, it is said that there is no doubt that the merit achieved by Abu Bakr during the Hijrah,none other of the Sahabah achieved it , in accordance with the Book, the Sunnah and the consensus (of the Sunni scholars). Therefore, this superiority becomes established for him, and not for ‘Umar, ‘Uthman, ‘Ali or other Sahabah. As such, he was the Imam.516

Our Shaykh’s line of argument goes like this:

1. Whichever of the Sahabah had a merit which none other possessed was the best of them.

2. Such a Sahabi was also the true Imam among them.

In line with this reasoning, he argues – citing unnamed Sunni scholars as support - that most of Abu Bakr’s “merits” wereexclusive to him, and none ofAmir al-Muminin ’s merits wasexclusive to him! This is very strange though. Throughout this book of ours, we have investigated only authenticahadith onexclusive merits of ‘Ali,‘alaihi al-salam , in the most authoritative Sunni sources! Our esteemed readers can themselves verify this. Moreover, Imam al-Nasai (d. 303 H) authored a well-known book –

KhasaisAmir al-Muminin ‘Ali (TheExclusive Merits ofAmir al-Muminin ‘Ali) – in which he compiled only Sunniahadith on theexclusive merits of Imam ‘Ali! No similar book has ever been written for Abu Bakr, ‘Umar or ‘Uthman.

Anyway, Shaykh Ibn Taymiyyah thinks that the Verse of the Cave above contains anexclusive merit of Abu Bakr, which establishes his overall superiority andImamah over the Sahabah. In our view – as we will prove – the verse actually does the direct opposite! It basically exposes Abu Bakr and all the Sunni-only “ahadith ” about him in very uncomfortable lights. It also totally brings down the Sunni creed, leaving it no chance of revival!

We will begin our analysis by looking first at the full text of the verse:

إلا تنصروه فقد نصره الله إذ أخرجه الذين كفروا ثاني اثنين إذ هما في الغار إذ يقول لصاحبه لا تحزن إن الله معنا فأنزل الله سكينته عليه وأيده بجنود لم تروها وجعل كلمة الذين كفروا السفلى وكلمة الله هي العليا والله عزيز حكيم

If you helphim not, for Allah did indeed helphim when the disbelievers drovehim out - the second of two when they both were in the cave - whenhe was saying tohis companion: “Do not fear, surely Allah is with us.” So, Allah sent down His sakinah uponhim , and helpedhim with forces which you saw not, and made the word of those who disbelieved the lowermost, while it was the Word of Allah that became the uppermost, and Allah is All-Mighty, All-Wise.517

The verse is primarily about the Messenger of Allah,sallallahu ‘alaihi wa alihi . The following points can be deduced from it:

1. The disbelievers drove him out of Makkah. So, he was ordered to migrate to Madinah by Allah.

2. He was the second of two people, when they both were together in the cave.

3. Abu Bakr was the first of the two, as he was the only one present with him in the cave. He has also been called the Prophet’s companion.

4. Abu Bakr exhibited fear. So, the Messenger ordered him not to fear. The meaning of the phrase “Allah is with us” will be discussed in detail soon.

5. Allah ignored Abu Bakr, and sent down His sakinah upon His Prophet alone, and further helped him alone with unseen forces.

6. Through these actions, Allah made the plan of the disbelievers to fail, and His Own Plan to succeed.

Particular attention must be paid to this part:

إلا تنصروه فقد نصره الله إذ أخرجه الذين كفروا ثاني اثنين إذ هما في الغار إذ يقول لصاحبه

If you helphim not, for Allah did indeed helphim when the disbelievers drovehim out - the second of two when they both were in the cave - andhe was saying tohis companion

The expression “the second of two” is a description of the one who was driven out by the disbelievers and helped by Allah. He was the second of two people in the cave, and it was he who said what he said to his

companion. This is so obvious from the text of the verse. Meanwhile, Prof. Ibn Yasin, a contemporary Sunni mufassir, also states in support of our proposition under the verse:

أخرج الطبري بسنده الصحيح عن مجاهد: (إلا تنصروه) ذكر ما كان في أول شأنه حين بعثه يقول الله: فأنا فاعل ذلك به وناصره، كما نصرته إذ ذاك وهو ثاني اثنين.

Al-Tabari records withhis sahih chain from Mujahid that he said: “(If you help him not) He mentioned what was his affair since He appointed him (on a prophetic mission). Allah says: I do that with Him and I am his Helper, and I helped him when he was like that,and he was the second of two .518

In very simple terms, the Messenger of Allah was the second of two as we have stated. Abu Bakr was the first. Getting this part of the verse straight is extremely crucial to our discussion. This is because the alleged “exclusive merit” of Abu Bakr in it is only a widespread Sunni misconception that he was the one referred to as “the second of two”! For instance, Imam al-Bukhari (d. 256 H) records:

حدثنا إبراهيم بن موسى أخبرنا هشام عن معمر عن الزهري

أخبرني أنس بن مالك رضي الله عنه أنه سمع خطبة عمر الآخرة حين جلس على المنبر وذلك الغد من يوم توفي النبي صلى الله عليه و سلم فتشهد وأبو بكر صامت لا يتكلم قال كنت أرجو أن يعيش رسول الله صلى الله عليه و سلم حتى يدبرنا يريد بذلك أن يكون آخرهم فإن يك محمد صلى الله عليه و سلم قد مات فإن الله تعالى قد جعل بين أظهركم نورا تهتدون به بما هدى الله محمدا صلى الله عليه و سلم وإن أبا بكر صاحب رسول الله صلى الله عليه و سلم ثاني اثنين فإنه أولى المسلمين بأموركم فقوموا فبايعوه وكانت طائفة منهم قد بايعوه قبل ذلك في سقيفة بني ساعدة وكانت بيعة العامة على المنبر

Ibrahim b. Musa – Hisham – Ma’mar – al-Zuhri – Anas b. Malik, may Allah be pleased with him:

I heard ‘Umar's second sermon which he delivered while he was sitting on the pulpit on the day following the death of the Prophet, peace be upon him. He testified while Abu Bakr was silent and did not say anything. He (‘Umar) said, “I wish that the Messenger of Allah, peace be upon him, had outlived all of us. But if Muhammad is dead, Allah nonetheless has kept a light amongst you from which you can receive the same guidance as Allah guided Muhammad, peace be upon him, with that.And Abu Bakr is the companion of the Messenger of Allah, peace be upon him. He is (also) the second of two . He is the most entitled person among the Muslims to manage your affairs. Therefore get up and swear allegiance to him.”519

Imam ‘Abd al-Razzaq (d. 211 H) has recorded the same report with the same chain:

أخبرنا عبد الرزاق قال: أخبرنا معمر عن الزهري قال: أخبرني أنس بن مالك ثم قال عمر: أما بعد فإن يك محمد قد مات فإن الله قد جعل بين أظهركم نورا تهتدون به، هذا كتاب الله فاعتصموا به، تهتدون لما هدى الله به محمدا صلى الله عليه وسلم ثم إن أبا بكر رحمه الله - صاحب رسول الله صلى الله عليه وسلم وثاني اثنين، وإنه أولى الناس بأموركم، فقوموا، فبايعوه

‘Abd al-Razzaq – Ma’mar – al-Zuhri – Anas b. Malik:

... Then ‘Umar said: “... But if Muhammad is dead, Allah nonetheless has kept a light amongst you from which you can receive guidance. This is the Book of Allah. So, hold fast to it. You will receive the same guidance as Allah guided Muhammad, peace be upon him, with that.Then, Abu Bakr, may Allah be merciful to him, is the companion of the Messenger of Allah, peace be upon him, AND the second of two . He is the most entitled person among mankind to manage your affairs. Therefore get up and swear allegiance to him.”520

Commenting on these reports, al-Hafiz (d. 852 H) states:

قوله) وان أبا بكر صاحب رسول الله صلى الله عليه وسلم الخ (قال ابن التين قدم الصحبة لشرفها ولما كان غيره قد يشاركه فيها عطف عليها ما انفرد به أبو بكر وهو كونه ثاني اثنين وهي أعظم فضائله التي استحق بها ان يكون الخليفة من بعد النبي صلى الله عليه وسلم ولذلك قال وانه أولى الناس بأموركم

His statement (Abu Bakr is the companion of the Messenger of Allah, peace be upon him, etc): Ibn al-Tin said: “He mentioned the companionship first due to its honour. However, since others shared it with him (i.e. Abu Bakr), he (‘Umar) conjoined it withwhat was exclusive to Abu Bakr, and that was his being the second of two, and it is the greatest of his merits which entitled him to be the khalifah after the Prophet, peace be upon him. This was why he (‘Umar) said: “He is the most entitled person among mankind to manage your affairs”.521

It is apparent that the Ahl al-Sunnah, based upon the submissions of ‘Umar and others, consider Abu Bakr to have been the one referred to by Allah as “the second of two” in this verse:

إلا تنصروه فقد نصره الله إذ أخرجه الذين كفروا ثاني اثنين إذ هما في الغار إذ يقول لصاحبه لا تحزن إن الله معنا فأنزل الله سكينته عليه وأيده بجنود لم تروها

If you helphim not, for Allah did indeed helphim when the disbelievers drovehim out - the second of two when they both were in the cave – whenhe was saying tohis companion: “Do not fear, surely Allah is with us.” So, Allah sent down His sakinah uponhim , and helpedhim with forces which you saw not.

If the Sunni theory were correct, then the following would be true:

1. Allah helped Abu Bakr when the disbelievers drove him out. Allah did not help His Messenger.

2. It was Abu Bakr who said to the Prophet “Do not fear, surely Allah is with us”. The Messenger was the “companion” of Abu Bakr.

3. Allah sent down sakinah upon Abu Bakr and helped him with unseen forces. He did not send sakinah upon His Prophet and did not strengthen him with any forces.

Would a believer ever make any of the above submissions? This is the grand Sunni dilemma!

The patent Sunni logic is this:

1. Abu Bakr was the second of two in the cave with the Messenger.

3. Therefore, he was second in rank only to the Prophet.

The truth, however, is that Abu Bakr was actually the first of two, while the Messenger of Allah was the second! By the Sunni logic, the Prophet was in reality second in rank to Abu Bakr!

Well, let us agree, for the sake of argument, that Abu Bakr was the one referred to as “the second of two” in the Verse of the Cave. In that case, the Messenger was the first of two. By Sunni logic, Abu Bakr then is the second highest ranking Muslim in thisUmmah , after the Prophet, due to his status in that verse. In other words, the first of two is the first in theUmmah ; and the second of two is the second in theUmmah . But, does this arrangement really help the Ahl al-Sunnah? The best way to find out is through thishadith recorded by Imam al-Bukhari:

حدثنا محمد بن سنان حدثنا همام عن ثابت عن أنس عن أبي بكر رضي الله عنه قال :قلت للنبي صلى الله عليه و سلم وأنا في الغار لو أن أحدهم نظر تحت قدميه لأبصرنا فقال ما ظنك يا أبا بكر باثنين الله ثالثهما

Muhammad b. Sinan – Hamam – Thabit – Anas – Abu Bakr, may Allah be pleased with him:

I said to the Prophet, peace be upon him, while I was in the cave, “If any of them should look under his feet, he would see us.” He said, "O Abu Bakr!What do you think of two, the third of whom is Allah? ”522

So, the Messenger is first of three, Abu Bakr the second, and Allah the third. By Sunni logic therefore, Abu Bakr is superior to Allah?! May Allah forgive us and save us from such blasphemies. The above question of the Prophet was picked from this verse:

ألم تر أن الله يعلم ما في السماوات وما في الأرض ما يكون من نجوى ثلاثة إلا هو رابعهم ولا خمسة إلا هو سادسهم ولا أدنى من ذلك ولا أكثر إلا هو معهم أين ما كانوا

Have you not seen that Allah knows whatsoever is in the heavens and whatsoever is on the earth?There is no private conversation of three, except He is their fourth, nor five except He is their sixth , nor of less than that or more, exceptHe is with them wherever they may be .523

Let us connect everything now. First, we have the verse:

إذ يقول لصاحبه لا تحزن إن الله معنا

When he was saying to his companion: “Do not fear,surely Allah is WITH US.”

Then thehadith :

فقال ما ظنك يا أبا بكر باثنين الله ثالثهما

He said, “O Abu Bakr!What do you think of two, the third of whom is Allah? ”

Both sentences are then connected by Allah Himself:

ما يكون من نجوى ثلاثة إلا هو رابعهم ولا خمسة إلا هو سادسهم ولا أدنى من ذلك ولا أكثر إلا هو معهم أين ما كانوا

There is no private conversation of three, except He is their fourth , nor five except He is their sixth,nor of less than that or more,except He is WITH THEM wherever they may be .524

It is obvious. Allah was with His Prophet and Abu Bakr, only in the sense that He was present with them both in the cave. He was with them solely on account of His being their third. However, this was no merit at all, much less anexclusive achievement! Allah is similarly present with every single individual, or any number of individuals, staying secretly anywhere. As such, He is present with even pagans and criminals whenever they plot their disbelief and evil deeds!

Here, we get to the most serious aspect of the Verse of the Cave. The first undeniable fact, at this stage, is that Allah ignored Abu Bakr and did not help him, even though there were two of them together in the cave:

إلا تنصروه فقد نصره الله إذ أخرجه الذين كفروا ثاني اثنين إذ هما في الغار

If you help him not, for Allah did indeed helphim when the disbelievers drove him out - the second of two when they both were in the cave.

We ask: why? Allah has made a promise in His Book:

O you who believe! If you help Allah, He will help you.525

So, was Abu Bakr a believer? Was he helping the Cause of Allah with his Hijrah? If the answers to both questions were “yes”, then why did Allah refuse to help him? Or, is it that Abu Bakr actually needed no help? In that case, why was he hiding with the Prophet in the cave? The fact that Allah ignored Abu Bakr and did not help him raises red flags concerning hisiman and his real intentions with his migration.

Allah provided two kinds of help in the cave:

فأنزل الله سكينته عليه وأيده بجنود لم تروها

So, Allah sent down His sakinah uponhim , and helpedhim with forces which you saw not.

Al-Hafiz Ibn Kathir (d. 774 H) comments:

{فأنزل الله سكينته عليه} أي : تأييده ونصره عليه ، أي : على الرسول في أشهر القولين ولهذا قال : {وأيده بجنود لم تروها} أي: الملائكة ،

{So, Allah sent down His sakinah upon him}: meaning, (He sent down) His assistance and help upon him, that his, upon the Messenger according to the more popular of two views This is why He said: {and helped him with forces which you saw not}, that is, the angels.526

When this verse was revealed – about ten years after the incident – some (if not all) of the disbelievers who wanted to kill the Prophet that day had

become Muslims. So, the phrase “which you saw not” was apparently directed at them. Allah sent His sakinah upon His Messenger, and further helped him with unseen forces, namely the angels. Abu Bakr was ignored. The foundational fact to note about sakinah is that it is revealed into the heart:

هو الذي أنزل السكينة في قلوب المؤمنين ليزدادوا إيمانا مع إيمانهم

He it isWho sent down sakinah into the hearts of the believers, that they may grow more in faith (iman) along with their (present) faith (iman ).527

The following points are clear from the verse:

1. Sakinah is revealed into the heart.

2. It only strengthens the already existingiman (faith) in the heart.

3. As such, it never enters a heart with noiman (faith), since there would be nothing for it to strengthen.

In particular, before Allah sends down sakinah to any heart, He first looks at what is inside it to findiman :

لقد رضي الله عن المؤمنين إذ يبايعونك تحت الشجرة فعلم ما في قلوبهم فأنزل السكينة عليهم

Indeed, Allah was pleased with the believers when they gave their ba’yah to you (O Muhammad) under the tree.He knew what was in their hearts. Therefore, He sent down sakinah upon them .528

The question is: why did Allah send down sakinah into the heart of His Prophet alone, despite the presence of Abu Bakr with him? In similar cases, He had equally revealed it to whichever believer was with him:

فأنزل الله سكينته على رسوله وعلى المؤمنين

So, Allah sent down His sakinah upon His Messengerand upon the believers .529

And:

ثم أنزل الله سكينته على رسوله وعلى المؤمنين وأنزل جنودا لم تروها

Then Allah sent down His sakinah upon His Messengerand upon the believers , and sent down forces which you saw not.530

So, why did He exclude Abu Bakr in the cave? It is obvious that He checked the latter’s heart, alongside that of His Prophet. Then, He decided to send His sakinah to His Messenger only. We again ask our Sunni brothers: why? According to the Ahl al-Sunnah, Abu Bakr was thesayyid of believers. If that were true, then hisiman would be the greatest among the Sahabah. In that case, Allah would certainly have blessed him with His sakinah as He did with His Messenger. But, He did not! We ask once more: why would Allah refuse to send sakinah into a heart filled with strong, undilutediman ? Looking at everything, the only logical explanation is that Allah looked at the heart of Abu Bakr and found noiman there. Therefore, He decided to send down His sakinah upon His Prophet alone.

Expectedly, Shaykh Ibn Taymiyyah feels severely troubled by this conclusion:

وأما قول الرافضي إن القرآن حيث ذكر إنزال السكينة على رسول الله صلى الله عليه و سلم شرك معه المؤمنين إلا هذا الموضع ولا نقص أعظم منه

فالجواب أولا أن هذا يوهم أنه ذكر ذلك في مواضع متعددة وليس كذلك بل لم يذكر ذلك إلا في قصة حنين وقد ذكر إنزال السكينة على المؤمنين وليس معهم الرسول في قوله إنا فتحنا لك فتحا مبينا سورة الفتح 1 إلى قوله هو الذي أنزل السكينة في قلوب المؤمنين سورة الفتح 4 الآية وقوله لقد رضي الله عن المؤمنين إذ يبايعونك تحت الشجرة فعلم ما في قلوبهم فأنزل السكينة عليهم سورة الفتح 18

As for the statement of the Rafidhi that “the Qur’an, whenever it mentions the descent of sakinah upon the Messenger of Allah, peace be upon him, always conjoined the believers with him, except in this one place (i.e. in the cave), and there is no disgrace worse than it.”

The first answer is that this one (i.e. the Rafidhi) hallucinates that it (i.e. the Qur’an) mentions that (i.e. the descent of sakinah upon the Prophet and the believers together) as having occurred at several places. But this is not so. Rather, it has not mentioned that except in the story of Hunayn... It has (also) mentioned the descent of sakinah upon the believers and the Messenger was not included with them in His Statement {Verily, We have given you [O Muhammad] a manifest victory} (48:1) until His Statement {He it is Who sent down sakinah into the hearts of the believers} (48:4) and His Statement {Indeed, Allah was pleased with the believers when they gave their ba’yah to you [O Muhammad] under the tree. He knew what was in their hearts, and He sent down sakinah upon them} (48:18)531

First and foremost, the Rafidhi did not claim that sakinah was revealed upon the Prophet and the believers together at several places. His statement is very clear:

وأما قول الرافضي إن القرآن حيث ذكر إنزال السكينة على رسول الله صلى الله عليه و سلم شرك معه المؤمنين إلا هذا الموضع ولا نقص أعظم منه

As for the statement of the Rafidhi that “the Qur’an,whenever it mentions the descent of sakinah upon the Messenger of Allah, peace be upon him, always conjoined the believers with him , except in this one place (i.e. in the cave), and there is no disgrace worse than it.

To refute him, our Shaykh only has to show us a single place in the Qur’an where Allah has revealed His sakinah upon His Prophet alone, without joining the believers with him. The truth is: the Rafidhi was correct! The only instance where sakinah descended upon the Messenger alone was during his stay in the cave with Abu Bakr. That indeed is a severe slur on the latter.

Secondly, our Shaykh’s claim that sakinah descended upon the Prophet and the believers together only at Hunayn (8 H), and at no other place, is equally untrue! The same thing occurred at al-Hudaybiyyah (6 H) too:

إذ جعل الذين كفروا في قلوبهم الحمية حمية الجاهلية فأنزل الله سكينته على رسوله وعلى المؤمنين وألزمهم كلمة التقوى وكانوا أحق بها وأهلها وكان الله بكل شيء عليما لقد صدق الله رسوله الرؤيا بالحق لتدخلن المسجد الحرام إن شاء الله آمنين محلقين رءوسكم ومقصرين لا تخافون فعلم ما لم تعلموا فجعل من دون ذلك فتحا قريبا

When those who disbelieve had put in their hearts pride and haughtiness, the pride and haughtiness of Jahiliyyah,then Allah sent down His sakinah upon His Messenger and upon the believers , and made them stick to the Word of Piety, and they were well entitled to it and worthy of it. And Allah is the All-Knower of everything. Indeed Allah shall fulfil the true vision which He showed to His Messenger. Certainly you shall enter the Masjid al-Haram (in Makkah), insha Allah, secure, (some) having your heads shaved, and (some) having your hair cut short, having no fear. He knew what you knew not, and He granted besides that a near victory.532

This was two years before Hunayn, when the unbelievers – who were still in control of Makkah – arrogantly prevented the Messenger and the believers from performingHajj there. Instead, the Muslims, headed by the Prophet, entered into a peace agreement with the pagan Makkans, granting the latter lots of concessions. Allah then promised the believers of a near conquest of Makkah. It happened soon thereafter, in a bloodless manner.

In the light of the above fact, the fallacy of this submission of Shaykh Ibn Taymiyyah also comes to the fore:

وقد ذكر إنزال السكينة على المؤمنين وليس معهم الرسول في قوله إنا فتحنا لك فتحا مبينا سورة الفتح 1 إلى قوله هو الذي أنزل السكينة في قلوب المؤمنين سورة الفتح 4 الآية وقوله لقد رضي الله عن المؤمنين إذ يبايعونك تحت الشجرة فعلم ما في قلوبهم فأنزل السكينة عليهم سورة الفتح 18

It has (also) mentioned the descent of sakinah upon the believers and the Messenger was not included with them in His Statement {Verily, We have given you [O Muhammad] a manifest victory} (48:1) until His Statement {He it is Who sent down sakinah into the hearts of the believers} (48:4) and His Statement {Indeed, Allah was pleased with the believers when they gave their ba’yah to you [O Muhammad] under the tree. He knew what was in their hearts, and He sent down sakinah upon them} (48:18)

All of those verses were revealed about al-Hudaybiyyah! Allah mentions His revelation of sakinah, on that occasion, upon His Prophet only once, and mentions its descent upon the believers on the same occasion thrice – all of them in the same Surah which was specifically sent down about that singular event. Yet, the bottomline remains that the sakinah came upon the Messenger and the believers together at Hudaybiyyah!

Shaykh Ibn Taymiyyah’s lowly attempt to wreck the verses out of context and to impose a misleading tag upon them does not augur well for his image as a scholar. The truth remains: whenever sakinah descended upon the Prophet, it always also descended upon all believers with him,

excluding only the hypocrites and the pagans. Moreover, Allah never excluded His Messenger from His sakinah while sending it upon the believers present with him.

This takes us back to the beginning. Why did Allah exclude Abu Bakr from His sakinah, even though he was with His Prophet?

Having failed woefully in his “first answer”, our Shaykh attempts a second:

ويقال ثانيا الناس قد تنازعوا في عود الضمير في قولهتعالى فأنزل الله سكينته عليه سورة التوبة 40 فمنهم من قال إنه عائد إلى النبي صلى الله عليه و سلم ومنهم من قال إنه عائد إلى أبي بكر لأنه أقرب المذكورين ولأنه كان محتاجا إلى إنزال السكينة فأنزل السكينة عليه كما أنزلها على المؤمنين الذين بايعوه تحت الشجرة والنبي صلى الله عليه و سلم كان مستغنيا عنها في هذه الحال لكمال طمأنينته بخلاف إنزالها يوم حنين فإنه كان محتاجا إليها لانهزام جمهور أصحابه وإقبال العدو نحوه وسوقه ببغلته إلى العدو

It is said, secondly: people disagree on exactly who was intended with His statement {So Allah sent down His sakinah upon him) in Surah al-Tawbah (9), verse 40 [i.e. the Verse of the Cave]. Some of them say that it refers to the Prophet, peace be upon him, and some of them say it refers to Abu Bakr, because he was the last mentioned character before the statement, and because he needed the descent of sakinah. Therefore, He sent down sakinah upon him as He sent it down upon the believers who gave the ba’yah under the tree. And the Prophet, peace be upon him, did not need it in this condition, due to his perfect calm, as opposed to its descent on the Day of Hunayn, for he was then (i.e. at Hunayn) in need of it due to the flight of the majority of his Sahabah (from the battlefield), and the approach of the enemy troops, and his drive with his female mule towards the enemy troops.533

This one is even far worse! To begin with, suggesting that the sakinah descended upon Abu Bakr in the Verse of the Cave, and not the Prophet, is high blasphemy. Let us have a renewed look at the verse:

إلا تنصروه فقد نصره الله إذ أخرجه الذين كفروا ثاني اثنين إذ هما في الغار إذ يقول لصاحبه لا تحزن إن الله معنا فأنزل الله سكينته عليه وأيده بجنود لم تروها

If you help him not, for Allah did indeed help him when the disbelievers drove him out - the second of two when they both were in the cave – when he was saying to his companion: “Do not fear, surely Allah is with us.” So, Allah sent down His sakinah upon him,and helped him with forces which you saw not .

For Allah’s sake, why would He help Abu Bakr with angels, at the expense of His Messenger?! Besides, is the verse not clear enough about who was helped? The world is strange, indeed. The context of the verse has perfectly removed any need for any grammatical acrobatics in understanding its meaning. What our Shaykh suggests only applies where there is ambiguity in the statement. There is none here. Anyway, as stated

by al-Hafiz Ibn Kathir, the majority of Sunni scholars agree with the apparent teaching of the verse:

{فأنزل الله سكينته عليه } أي : تأييده ونصره عليه ، أي : على الرسول في أشهر القولين

{So, Allah sent down His sakinah upon him}: meaning, (He sent down) His assistance and help upon him, that his, upon the Messenger according to the more popular of two views.534

Our Shaykh also suggests that sakinah is revealed to remove fear and restore calm, a submission completely contradictory to the Qur’an:

هو الذي أنزل السكينة في قلوب المؤمنين ليزدادوا إيمانا مع إيمانهم

He it isWho sent down sakinah into the hearts of the believers, THAT THEY MAY GROW MORE IN FAITH (IMAN) along with their (present) faith (iman ).535

It is not about fear. It is aboutiman . Since growth iniman is needed in both periods of calm and unrest, then the foundation of Shaykh Ibn Taymiyyah’s second “answer” collapses at this point. Besides, the Messenger of Allah was perfectly calm at al-Hudaybiyyah, as our Shaykh himself confesses. Yet, Allah sent down His sakinah upon him. Interestingly, the believers were also calm then, and He still sent down His sakinah upon them! Where has our Shaykh got his idea that the Prophet did not need sakinah at al-Hudaybiyyah or in the cave? Is he accusing Allah of doing needless things, by sending down His sakinah upon His Messenger when the latter did not need it? This reveals the extent to which some people can go to blaspheme Allah and His Prophet just to uplift Abu Bakr!

Shaykh Ibn Taymiyyah now moves to his final “answer”:

يقال على هذا لما قال لصاحبه إن الله معنا والنبي صلى الله عليه و سلم هو المتبوع المطاع وأبو بكر تابع مطيع وهو صاحبه والله معهما فإذا حصل للمتبوع في هذه الحال سكينة وتأييد كان ذلك للتابع أيضا بحكم الحال فإنه صاحب تابع لازم ولم يحتج أن يذكر هنا أبو بكر لكمال الملازمة والمصاحبة التي توجب مشاركة النبي صلى الله عليه و سلم في التأييد

It is said upon this: when he said to his companion, “Allah is with us”, the Prophet, peace be upon him, was the leader while Abu Bakr was the follower and was his companion, and Allah was with them both. So when sakinah and help got to the leader in this circumstance, it also got to the follower in the same circumstance. This is because he was a companion and a sticking follower, and there was no need here to mention Abu Bakr here, due to the perfect connection and companionship, which necessitated his benefitting in the help along with the Prophet, peace be upon him.536

Put in clearer words, Abu Bakr was a necessary beneficiary of Allah’s Help to His Messenger. So, the Qur’an sees no need to mention the former’s name again. Well, it might truly be said that Abu Bakr also benefitted from Allah’s provision of security to His Prophet. However, the same cannot be said about His sakinah, which has to do only with the growth ofiman in the heart:

هو الذي أنزل السكينة في قلوب المؤمنين ليزدادوا إيمانا مع إيمانهم

He it isWho sent down sakinah into the hearts of the believers, THAT THEY MAY GROW MORE IN FAITH (IMAN) along with their (present) faith (iman ).537

It would be very illogical to claim that a growth iniman by the Messenger of Allah somehow also means a similar situation for Abu Bakr. This is why, at al-Hudaybiyyah, despite that the believers among the Sahabah present there were also “companions” and “sticking followers” of the Prophet, Allah still saw the need to separately send down sakinah upon them:

فأنزل الله سكينته على رسوله وعلى المؤمنين

So, Allah sent down His sakinah upon His Messengerand upon the believers .538

Interestingly, the believing Sahabah at al-Hudaybiyyah – along with the Prophet - were in perfect calm, and not in fear. Nonetheless, Allah revealed His sakinah upon them. This further debunks the notion of Shaykh Ibn Taymiyyah that sakinah is sent down only to remove fears in precarious situations. How would he explain what Allah did at al-Hudaybiyyah? On the other hand, Abu Bakr displayed demeaning levels of fear in the cave:

إذ يقول لصاحبه لا تحزن إن الله معنا

Whenhe was saying to his companion: “Do not fear , surely Allah is with us.”

He did not say it once! He was repeatedly saying it to him. The meaning would have been different if Allah had said “while he was saying....” or “when he said.... ”. Abu Bakr, apparently, did not have sufficient belief in the words of the Messenger of Allah. This was why he did not calm down even though the Prophet had assured him of Allah’s Presence. Allah was certainly aware of their situation, and would surely help them both if He foundiman and sincerity in their hearts. But, even after repeated assurances by the Messenger of Allah, Abu Bakr was still in fear.

What exactly did he doubt? The presence of Allah with them? The existence of Allah? Thenubuwwah of Muhammad? His owniman and sincerity? Is there really any justification for Abu Bakr’s failure to believe the Prophet? That was thirteen years after he supposedly accepted Islam! Since he was like that after so many years, what guarantees were there that he became better during the ten, more prosperous and more politicized years of the Madinan era? How could he even have doubted at all a single letter uttered by the Messenger if he really was a believer? No wonder, when Allah looked into Abu Bakr’s heart during his stay in the cave, He refused to send down His sakinah upon him.

11. Hadith Al-Qadha, ‘Ali Versus ‘Umar

Shaykh Ibn Taymiyyah (d. 728 H) launches a spirited campaign to bring down ‘Ali’s status as the best judge in theUmmah in order to place ‘Umar above him. He simply cannot stomach the possibility ofAmir al-Muminin ‘Ali,‘alaihi al-salam , surpassing the second Sunnikhalifah in anything, especially in such highly sensitive, knowledge-based areas as justice dispensation. The reason for these panicky moves can be discerned from these words of our dear Shaykh:

و في الترمذي و غيره عنه عليه الصلاة و السلام انه قال لو لم ابعث فيكم لبعث فيكم عمر و لفظ الترمذي لو كان بعدي نبي لكان عمر قال الترمذي حديث حسن

In (Sunan ) al-Tirmidhi and others, it is narrated from him, peace and blessings be upon him, that he said,“If I had not been sent as a messenger among you, ‘Umar would have been sent as a messenger among you instead.” The text of al-Tirmidhi reads,“If there were to be a prophet after me, it would have been ‘Umar” . Al-Tirmidhi says: Ahasan hadith .143

Elsewhere, he reiterates this:

وفي الترمذي لو لم أبعث فيكم لبعث فيكم عمر ولو كان بعدي نبي لكان عمر

It is recorded in (Sunan ) al-Tirmidhi: “If I had not been sent as a messenger among you, ‘Umar would have been sent as a messenger instead and if there were to be a prophet after me, it would have been ‘Umar”.144

Those two one-sided, sectarian reports establish two realities:

1. ‘Umar and the Messenger of Allah,sallallahu ‘alaihi wa alihi , had equal credentials and abilities to be the master of the prophets, sent to the entirety of mankind till the Hour. Therefore, ‘Umar was a perfect replacement for the Prophet.

2. Due to ‘Umar’s status as the sole match – in qualification – to the Messenger, he was the only one qualified to be the first prophet after Muhammad, had prophethood not ceased.

The bottom-line is that ‘Umar was far better than Abu Bakr in all ways and in all things! So, if ‘Ali were superior to ‘Umar, then he was the master of both the first and the secondkhalifah s. In any case, those twohadith s are one-sided (and therefore of no probative value in our research), and contradict the Verse ofIstafa , the Verse ofTaṭhir and severalsahih andmutawatir ahadith (such asHadith al-Ghadir, Hadith al-Manzilah, Hadith al-Tayr, Hadith al-Thaqalayn , etc). The most important part is that both reports about ‘Umar go against well-established historical facts about him, his knowledge and his abilities. From all angles, bothhadith s were motivated by polemical motives, and manufactured to “raise the stakes” for the secondkhalifah .

Shaykh Ibn Taymiyyah makes an interesting strike:

و قد وجد لعمر و علي و غيرهما فتاوى كثير ة تخالف النصوص حتى جمع الشافعي مجلدا في خلاف علي و ابن مسعود و جمع محمد بن نصر المروزي كتابا كبيرا في ذلك

There were LOTS of fatwas from ‘Umar, ‘Ali and others that contradicted the revealed texts (i.e the Qur’an and Sunnah), such thatal-

Shafi’i compiled a whole volume on the contradictions of ‘Ali and Ibn Mas’ud (to the Qur’an and Sunnah), and Muhammad b. Nasr al-Maruzi compiled a huge book on that .145

He concedes that both ‘Umar and Ibn Mas’ud contradicted the Qur’an and Sunnahmassively in their verdicts. We agree with him, as there exists solid evidence from both Sunni and Shi’i sources confirming that. It is a wonder then how our dear Shaykh manages to believe that ‘Umar was perfectly fit for prophethood despite this embarrassing fact! What else would he have been other than a prophet who would have opposed the Qur’an and the Sunnah on “lots” of occasions?! This reality reveals that the purely one-sided, sectarianhadith s could not have genuinely originated from the Messenger of Allah. Henever uttered anything that falls out of line with simple logic.

But then, did Imam al-Shafi’i and al-Maruzi really compiled books detailingAmir al-Muminin Ali’s “contradictions” to the Qur’an and Sunnah? Well, there is no evidence of any such books in our times! Besides, our dear Shaykh seems confused on the exact authorship of those “books”. First, he claims that both al-Shafi’i and al-Maruzi wrote separate books. However, this is a contrary submission he also makes:

وقد جمع الشافعي ومحمد بن نصر المروزي كتابا كبيرا فيما لم يأخذ به المسلمون من قول علي لكون قول غيره من الصحابة أتبع للكتاب والسنة

Al-Shafi’i AND Muhammad b. Nasr al-Maruzi compiled a huge book about what the Muslims rejected from the statement of ‘Ali, because the statement of others from the Sahabah were more in compliance with the Qur’an and Sunnah.146

So, it was after all a joint authorship! What exactly do we believe now? Moreover, where exactly is this book? Has anyone in history ever quoted it? Has anyone in history ever referenced it? The reality is that no such book ever existed! Imam al-Subki (d. 773 H) reveals the truth about the book of al-Maruzi:

وقال أبو ذر محمد بن محمد بن يوسف القاضى كان الصدر الأول من مشايخنا يقولون رجال خراسان أربعة ابن المبارك ويحيى بن يحيى وإسحاق بن راهويه ومحمد بن نصر المروزى وقال أبو بكر الصيرفى لو لم يصنف المروزى إلا كتاب القسامة لكان من أفقه الناس فكيف وقد صنف كتبا سواها وقال الشيخ أبو إسحاق الشيرازى صنف محمد هذا كتبا ضمنها الآثار والفقه وكان من أعلم الناس باختلاف الصحابة ومن بعدهم فى الأحكام وصنف كتابا فيما خالف فيه أبو حنيفة عليا وعبد الله رضى الله عنهما

Abu Dharr Muhammad b. Muhammad b. Yusuf al-Qadhi said, “The pioneers among our Shaykhs used to say that the scholars of Khurasan (in Iran) were four: Ibn al-Mubarak, Yahya b. Yahya, Ishaq b. Rahwayh andMuhammad b. Nasr al-Maruzi .” Abu Bakr al-Sayarfi said, “If al-Maruzi had never authored any book except Kitab al-Qasamah alone, he would nonetheless have been among the most knowledgeable of mankind.

Meanwhile, he wrote many books other than it.” Shaykh Abu Ishaq al-Shirazi said, “Muhammad (b. Nasr al-Maruzi) wrote books which contained reports and Islamic jurisprudence, and was one of the most knowledgeable of mankind concerning the differences of the Sahabah and those after them on al-ahkam (jurisprudence).He wrote a book concerning the contradictions of Abu Hanifah to ‘Ali and ‘Abd Allah (b. Mas’ud), may Allah be pleased with them both.147

So, the book – in reality - was only about Abu Hanifah’s contradictions to ‘Ali and Ibn Mas’ud! We leave the judgment to the esteemed reader.

There are authentic Sunni reports which further expose the fallacy of the allegations of Shaykh Ibn Taymiyyah againstAmir al-Muminin . For instance, Imam Ahmad (d. 241 H) records:

حدثنا عبد الله حدثني أبي حدثني يحيى عن الأعمش عن عمرو بن مرة عن أبي البختري عن على رضي الله عنه قال: بعثني رسول الله صلى الله عليه و سلم إلى اليمن وأنا حديث السن قال قلت تبعثني إلى قوم يكون بينهم أحداث ولا علم لي بالقضاء قال ان الله سيهدى لسانك ويثبت قلبك قال فما شككت في قضاء بين أثنين بعد

‘Abd Allah (b. Ahmad) – my father (Ahmad b. Hanbal) – Yahya – al-A’mash – ‘Amr b. Marrah – Abu al-Bakhtari – ‘Ali, may Allah be pleased with him:

I was sent by the Messenger of Allah, peace be upon him, to Yemen, and I was young of age. I said, “You are sending me to a people among whom exist disputes, and I have no knowledge in justice dispensation.” He replied,“Verily, Allah will guide your tongue and make your heart firm.” I never have doubt while dispensing justice between any two people ever after .148

Shaykh al-Arnauṭ says:

صحيح رجاله ثقات رجال الشيخين

Sahih , its narrators are trustworthy, narrators of the two Shaykhs149

Imam al-Hakim (d. 403 H) also records:

حدثني علي بن حمشاد ثنا العباس بن الفضل الأسفاطي ثنا أحمد بن يونس ثنا أبو بكر بن عياش عن الأعمش عن عمرو بن مرة عن أبي البختري قال علي رضي الله عنه: بعثني رسول الله صلى الله عليه وسلم إلى اليمن قال : فقلت : يا رسول الله إني رجل شاب وأنه يرد علي من القضاء ما لا علم لي به قال : فوضع يده على صدري وقال اللهم ثبت لسانه واهد قلبه فما شككت في القضاء أو في قضاء بعد

‘Ali b. Hamshad – al-‘Abbas b. al-Fadhl al-Asfaṭi – Ahmad b. Yunus – Abu Bakr b. ‘Ayyash – al-A’mash – ‘Amr b. Marrah – Abu al-Bakhtari – ‘Ali, may Allah be pleased with him:

The Messenger of Allah, may Allah be pleased with him, sent me to Yemen. So, I said, “O Messenger of Allah, I am a young man, and disputes will be brought to me for judgment, of which I have no knowledge.” Therefore, he placed his hand on my chest, and said, “O Allah, make firm his

tongue and guide his heart.” I never have doubt while dispensing justice ever after .150

Al-Hakim comments:

هذا حديث صحيح على شرط الشيخين

Thishadith issahih upon the standard of the two Shaykhs151

Al-Dhahabi (d. 748 H) agrees:

على شرط البخاري ومسلم

(Sahih ) upon the standard of al-Bukhari and Muslim152

Imam Abu Dawud (d. 275 H) documents amutaba’ah for the report of Abu al-Bakhtari:

حدثنا عمرو بن عون قال أخبرنا شريك عن سماك عن حنش عن علي عليه السلام قال :بعثني رسول الله صلى الله عليه و سلم إلى اليمن قاضيا فقلت يارسول الله ترسلني وأنا حديث السن ولا علم لي بالقضاء ؟ فقال " إن الله سيهدي قلبك ويثبت لسانك فإذا جلس بين يديك الخصمان فلا تقضين حتى تسمع من الآخر كما سمعت من الأول فإنه أحرى أن يتبين لك القضاء " قال فما زلت قاضيا أو ما شككت في قضاء بعد .

‘Amr b. ‘Awn – Sharik – Simak – Hanash – ‘Ali, peace be upon him (‘alaihi salam):

The Messenger of Allah, peace be upon him, sent me to Yemen as a judge. So, I said, “O Messenger of Allah, you are sending me while I am young of age and have no knowledge of justice dispensation.” Therefore, he said, “Verily, Allah will guide your heart and will make firm your tongue . Whenever two disputants sit in front of you, do not give judgment until you have heard both parties. This will make clear to you the (correct) judgment.”I never cease to be a judge, or never have doubt while dispensing justice, ever since .153

‘Allamah al-Albani (d. 1420 H) says:

حسن

Hasan 154

Imam Ahmad also records this shahid:

حدثنا عبد الله حدثني أبي ثنا يحيى بن آدم ثنا إسرائيل عن أبي إسحاق عن حارثة بن مضرب عن على رضي الله عنه قال: بعثني رسول الله صلى الله عليه و سلم إلى اليمن فقلت إنك تبعثني إلى قوم وهم أسن مني لأقضي بينهم فقال اذهب فإن الله سيهدي قلبك ويثبت لسانك

‘Abd Allah (b. Ahmad) – my father (Ahmad b. Hanbal) – Yahya b. Adam – Israil – Abu Ishaq – Harithah b. Mudhrab – ‘Ali, may Allah be pleased with him:

The Messenger of Allah, peace be upon him, sent me to Yemen. So, I said, “You are sending me to a people who are older than me that I should judge between them.” He replied, “Go, for Allah will guide your heart and make firm your tongue.” 155

Shaykh al-Arna’uṭ states:

إسناده صحيح

Its chain issahih 146

WheneverAmir al-Muminin set out to judge on any matter, Allah would always guide both his heart and his tongue, and would also make them firm. This removes the possibility of error or misguidance in whatsoever judgments he ever gave:

ومن يهد الله فما له من مضل

And whomsoever Allah guides,for him there can be NO misleader .157

With this in mind, it is apparent that whosoever attributes errors to the judgments and verdicts of ‘Ali is actually attributing them to Allah as well! So, we ask Shaykh Ibn Taymiyyah and his followers: was it Allah Who was “guiding” his heart and his tongue to those “contradictions” to the Qur’an and Sunnah? We seek His refuge from such blasphemy. No truth – whether in narrations or mere submissions – can be inanything that denigrates the Almighty Lord.

12. Hadith Al-Tafdhil, Investigating Its Authenticity

Shaykh Ibn Taymiyyah (d. 728 H) states:

لا نسلم أن عليا أفضل أهل زمانه بل خير هذه الأمة بعد نبيها أبو بكر ثم عمر كما ثبت ذلك عن علي وغيره

We do not agree that ‘Ali was the overall best of his time. Rather, the best of thisUmmah after its Prophet are Abu Bakr, then ‘Umar, as is authentically narrated from ‘Ali and others.158

It is true that our Sunni brothers consider Abu Bakr to be the best of ourUmmah , followed only by ‘Umar. However, during the lifetime of the Messenger of Allah,sallallahu ‘alaihi wa alihi , it was a different story entirely. There is irrefutable evidence in the Sunni books establishing that the Sahabah used to considerAmir al-Muminin ,‘alaihi al-salam , to be their best during the lifetime of the Messenger. Imam Ahmad (d. 241 H) presents one of such proofs:

حدثنا عبد الله قال حدثني أبي قثنا محمد بن جعفر نا شعبة عن أبي إسحاق عن عبد الرحمن بن يزيد عن علقمة عن عبد الله قال : كنا نتحدث ان أفضل أهل المدينة علي بن أبي طالب

‘Abd Allah (b. Ahmad b. Hanbal) – my father (Ahmad b. Hanbal) – Muhammad b. Ja’far – Shu’bah – Abu Ishaq – ‘Abd al-Rahman b. Yazid – ‘Alqamah – ‘Abd Allah (b. Mas’ud):

“We used to saythat the overall best of the people of Madinah was ‘Ali b. Abi Talib.”159

“We” (in thehadith )160 apparently refers to the Sahabah generally, and more specifically to the most senior of them living in Madinah. Ibn Mas’ud was obviously making a reference to a past which was then different from the present. This was why he said “we USED TO”. In other words, at that point in time when he was making his statement, things had become different. People were now giving ‘Ali’s place to another person. Ibn Mas’ud was, no doubt, speaking about the time of the Prophet. All the most senior Sahabah and their neighbours were living in Madinah with the Messenger of Allah. The phrase “people of Madinah” originally referred to them (excluding only the Prophet, of course).161 These, needless to say, included Abu Bakr, ‘Umar and ‘Uthman.

So, is the above report authentic? Al-Hafiz (d. 852 H) says about the first narrator:

عبد الله بن أحمد بن محمد بن حنبل الشيباني أبو عبد الرحمن ولد الإمام ثقة

‘Abd Allah b. Ahmad b. Muhammad b. Hanbal al-Shaybani, Abu ‘Abd al-Rahman: son of the Imam,thiqah (trustworthy) .162

What about his father? Al-Hafiz answers:

أحمد بن محمد بن حنبل بن هلال بن أسد الشيباني المروزي نزيل بغداد أبو عبد الله أحد الأئمة ثقة حافظ فقيه حجة

Ahmad b. Muhammad b. Hanbal b. Hilal b. Asad al-Shaybani al-Maruzi, a Baghdad resident, Abu ‘Abd Allah: One of the Imams,thiqah (trustworthy) ,hafiz , jurist,hujjah (an authority).163

Al-Hafiz also has these comments about the third narrator:

محمد بن جعفر الهذلي البصري المعروف بغندر ثقة صحيح الكتاب إلا أن فيه غفلة

Muhammad b. Ja’far al-Hazali al-Basri, better known as Ghandar:Thiqah (trustworthy) ,sahih al-kitab (i.e.ahadith from his books aresahih ) except that there was some negligence in him.164

Whatever negligence he had does not affect hisahadith from Shu’bah at all. He used to accurately record the latter’s reports. So, he narrated them from his books with perfect precision. Al-Hafiz provides further information in this respect:

وقال ابن مهدي كنا نستفيد من كتب غندر في شعبة وكان وكيع يسميه الصحيح الكتاب .وقال أبو حاتم عن محمد بن ابان البلخي قال ابن مهدي غندر أثبت في شعبة مني وقال ابن المبارك إذا اختلف الناس في حديث شعبة فكتاب غندر حكم بينهم وقال ابن أبي حاتم سألت أبي عن غندر فقال كان صدوقا وكان مؤدبا وفي حديث شعبة ثقة

Ibn Mahdi said: “We used to benefit from the books of Ghandar on Shu’bah. Waki’ named himsahih al-kitab .” Abu Hatim narrated from Muhammad b. Aban al-Balakhi that Ibn Mahdi said: “Ghandar is more accurate than me as far as Shu’bah is concerned.” Ibn al-Mubarak said,“When the people disagree about the hadith of Shu’bah, the book of Ghandar used to judge between them.” Ibn Abi Hatim said: “I asked my father about Ghandar and he replied, ‘He was saduq (very truthful), and was a teacher andin the hadith of Shu’bah, he is thiqah (trustworthy) .’”165

The fourth narrator, Shu’bah, is a pillar of Sunniahadith . Al-Hafiz gives the catch-phrases about him:

شعبة بن الحجاج بن الورد العتكي مولاهم أبو بسطام الواسطي ثم البصري ثقة حافظ متقن كان الثوري يقول هو أمير المؤمنين في الحديث

Shu’bah b. al-Hajjaj b. al-Ward al-‘Atki, their freed slave, Abu Busṭam al-Wasiṭi, al-Basri:Thiqah (trustworthy) ,hafiz ,extremely precise . Al-Thawri used to say:“He was the amir al-muminin (the supreme leader) in al-Hadith.” 166

Abu Ishaq al-Sabi’i is the fifth narrator, and al-Hafiz has this to say about him:

عمرو بن عبد الله بن عبيد …. أبو إسحاق السبيعي بفتح المهملة وكسر الموحدة ثقة مكثر عابد من الثالثة اختلط بأخرة

‘Amr b. ‘Abd Allah b. ‘Ubayd Abu Ishaq al-Sabi’i:Thiqah (trustworthy) ; narrated a lot (ofahadith ), a great worshipper (of Allah), from the third (ṭabaqat ). He became confused (in his narrations) during the end part of his lifetime.167

Of course, Shu’bah heard from him before the memory loss. ‘Allamah al-Albani (d. 1420 H) explains:

وتابعهم سفيان الثوري وشعبة عن أبي إسحاق، ولكنهما لم يذكرا النزول،

وروايتهما أصح، لأنهما سمعا منه قبل الاختلاط

Sufyan al-Thawriand Shu’bah also narrated from Abu Ishaq, although both did not mention the Descent. The reports of both of them (from Abu Ishaq) are more authentic, because they both heard from him BEFORE he became confused .168

Another relevant point is that Abu Ishaq is a mudalis and has, on the surface, narrated the report of Ibn Mas’ud above is an‘an-‘an form from ‘Abd al-Rahman b. Yazid. However, thetadlis does NOT, in reality, affect the‘an-‘an reports of Abu Ishaq – among others - as long as it is Shu’bah narrating from him. Allamah al-Albani states further:

قال الترمذي: " حديث حسن صحيح، رواه الثوري وشعبة عن أبي إسحاق ".

قلت: وهو كما قال، وهما قد رويا عنه قبل اختلاطه، وشعبة لا يروي عنه إلا ما صرح فيه بالتحديث كما هو مذكور في ترجمته، فبروايته عنه أمنا شبهة تدليسه.

Al-Tirmidhi said: “Ahasan sahih hadith , al-Thawri and Shu’bah narrated it from (‘an) Abu Ishaq.”

I say: It is (trulyhasan sahih ) as he (al-Tirmidhi) has stated, and both of them (i.e. al-Thawri and Shu’bah) narrated from him (i.e. Abu Ishaq) before his confusion.As for Shu’bah, he never narrated anything from him (i.e. Abu Ishaq) except what he (Abu Ishaq) explicitly stated to have directly heard from the person he is narrating from (i.e. tahdith) , as stated in his tarjamah (biography).Due to his (Shu’bah’s) narration from him (i.e. Abu Ishaq), the problem of his tadlis is removed .169

In a clearer word, whenever Shu’bah narrates from Abu Ishaq (as in this case of Ibn Mas’ud’shadith ), all the problems associated with the latter’s reports are removed. The former narrated from him before his confusion in hisahadith , and never transmitted anytadlis -infested reports from him. So, whenever Shu’bah narrates an‘an-‘an report from Abu Ishaq, there actually is tahdith by the latter from his Shaykh. The‘an-‘an form is only Shu’bah’s convenience style. No wonder, Imam al-Bukhari (d. 256 H) includes thissanad in hisSahih :

حدثنا سليمان بن حرب حدثنا شعبة عن أبي إسحاق عن عبد الرحمن بن يزيد

Sulayman b. Harb –Shu’bah – Abu Ishaq – ‘Abd al-Rahman b. Yazid .170

This is an‘an-‘an report by Abu Ishaq from ‘Abd al-Rahman b. Yazid (the same Shaykh as in theathar of Ibn Mas’ud). Nevertheless, Imam al-Bukhari considers the chain to besahih .

Imam Ahmad b. Hanbal has also documented a similar‘an-‘an chain:

حدثنا عبد الله حدثني أبي قال حدثنا يزيد قال أنا شعبة عن أبي إسحاق عن أبي ميسرة

‘Abd Allah (b. Ahmad b. Hanbal) – my father (Ahmad b. Hanbal) – Yazid –Shu’bah – Abu Ishaq – Abu Maysarah.171

Al-Arnauṭ comments:

إسناده صحيح على شرط الشيخين

Its chain is sahih upon the standard of the two Shaykhs.172

‘Allamah al-Albani too authenticates yet another‘an-‘an chain of Abu Ishaq:

إسناده: حدثنا حفص بن عمر: ثنا شعبة عن أبي إسحاق عن الأسود عن عبد الله.

قلت: وهذا إسناد صحيح على شرط البخاري

Its chain: Hafs b. ‘Umar –Shu’bah – Abu Ishaq – al-Aswad – ‘Abd Allah.

I say:This chain is sahih upon the standard of al-Bukhari.173

Imam Abu Ya’la (d. 307 H) also documents an‘an-‘an chain by Abu Ishaq, from ‘Abd al-Rahman b. Yazid, like al-Bukhari:

حدثنا إسحاق حدثنا عبد الصمد حدثنا شعبة عن أبي إسحاق عن عبد الرحمن بن يزيد عن الأسود

Ishaq – ‘Abd al-Samad – Shu’bah – Abu Ishaq – ‘Abd al-Rahman b. Yazid – al-Aswad174

Shaykh Dr. Asad gives this verdict:

إسناده صحيح

Its chain issahih 175

Let us now move to the sixth narrator in thesanad of Ibn Mas’ud’sathar : ‘Abd al-Rahman b. Yazid. The status of ‘Abd al-Rahman as athiqah (trustworthy) narrator ofSahih al-Bukhari is already well-known. Nonetheless, we are pleased to present this further confirmation by al-Hafiz:

عبد الرحمن بن يزيد بن قيس النخعي أبو بكر الكوفي ثقة

‘Abd al-Rahman b. Yazid b. Qays al-Nakha’i, Abu Bakr al-Kufi:Thiqah (trustworthy) .176

Finally, concerning the seventh and last narrator (‘Alqamah), al-Hafiz al-‘Asqalani proclaims with full strength:

علقمة بن قيس بن عبد الله النخعي الكوفي ثقة ثبت فقيه عابد

‘Alqamah b. Qays b. ‘Abd Allah al-Nakha’i al-Kufi:Thiqah (trustworthy) , thabt (accurate), faqih (a jurist), ‘abidun (a great worshipper of Allah).177

With this, it is absolutely clear and undeniable that Ibn Mas’ud’s report that the Sahabah used to consider ‘Ali as the overall best among them has an impeccablysahih chain. All the narrators arethiqah , and the chain is fully and perfectly connected.

Even then, the sameathar has been recorded with a secondsahih chain in that sameFadhail al-Sahabah :

حدثنا عبد الله قال حدثني جدي قثنا أبو قطن قثنا شعبة عن أبي إسحاق عن عبد الله بن يزيد عن علقمة عن عبد الله وهو بن مسعود قال : كنا نتحدث ان أفضل أهل المدينة علي بن أبي طالب

‘Abd Allah (b. Muhammad b. ‘Abd al-‘Aziz al-Baghwi) –my grandfather (Ahmad b. Muni’ al-Baghwi) – Abu Qaṭan – Shu’bah – Abu Ishaq –‘Abd Allah b. Yazid – ‘Alqamah – ‘Abd Allah b. Mas’ud:

“We used to say thatthe overall best of the people of Madinah was ‘Ali b. Abi Talib.”178

We already know the status of Shu’bah, Abu Ishaq and Alqamah. So, let’s find out about these new names.

This is al-Hafiz’s verdict on the first narrator of this newsanad :

عبد الله بن محمد بن عبد العزيز أبو القاسم البغوي الحافظ الصدوق مسند عصره ….قلت وقد وثقه الدارقطني والخطيب وغيرهما قال الخطيب كان ثقة ثبتا مكثرا فهما عارفا …. قلت الرجل ثقة مطلقا

‘Abd Allah b. Muhammad b. ‘Abd al-‘Aziz, Abu al-Qasim al-Baghwi:Al-hafiz ,al-saduq (the extremely truthful) , the top scholar of his time....I (al-‘Asqalani) say: He has been declared thiqah (trustworthy) by al-Daraqutni, al-Khatib and others. Al-Khatib said, “He wasthiqah (trustworthy), accurate, and narrated a lot (ofahadith )”....I (al-‘Asqalani) say: The man is absolutely thiqah (trustworthy) .179

Concerning his grandfather, al-Hafiz further submits:

أحمد بن منيع بن عبد الرحمن أبو جعفر البغوي ….ثقة حافظ

Ahmad b. Muni’ b. ‘Abd al-Rahman, Abu Ja’far al-Baghwi....:Thiqah (trustworthy) ,hafiz .180

Abu Qaṭan too isthiqah (trustworthy), as confirmed by al-Hafiz:

عمرو بن الهيثم بن قطن … أبو قطن البصري ثقة

‘Amr b. al-Haytham b. Qaṭan Abu Qaṭan al-Basri:Thiqah (trustworthy) .181

Of course, ‘Abd Allah b. Yazid was a junior Sahabi, and therefore needed no investigation. He is automaticallythiqah (trustworthy). Al-Hafiz states:

عبد الله بن يزيد بن زيد بن حصين الأنصاري الخطمي بفتح المعجمة وسكون المهملة صحابي صغير ولي الكوفة لابن الزبير.

‘Abd Allah b. Yazid b. Zayd b. Husayn al-Ansari al-Khaṭmi:a junior Sahabi . He was the wali (ruler) of Kufah for Ibn al-Zubayr.182

So, we have a second impeccablesanad for thehadith .