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The first and only creature to have ever made claims and offered challenges similar to those inHadith Saluni was the Messenger of Allah, sallallahu ‘alaihi wa wa alihi. Imam Muslim (d. 261 H) records:

وحدثني حرملة بن يحيى بن عبدالله بن حرملة بن عمران التجيبي أخبرنا ابن وهب أخبرني يونس عن ابن شهاب أخبرني أنس بن مالك أن رسول الله صلى الله عليه و سلم خرج حين زاغت الشمس فصلى لهم صلاة الظهر فلما سلم قام على المنبر فذكر الساعة وذكر أن قبلها أمورا عظاما ثم قال من أحب أن يسألني عن شيء فليسألني عنه فوالله لا تسألوني عن شيء إلا أخبرتكم به ما دمت في مقامي هذا

قال أنس بن مالك فأكثر الناس البكاء حين سمعوا ذلك من رسول الله صلى الله عليه و سلم وأكثر رسول الله صلى الله عليه و سلم أن يقول سلوني فقام عبدالله بن حذافة فقال من أبي ؟ يا رسول الله قال أبوك حذافة فلما أكثر رسول الله صلى الله عليه و سلم من أن يقول سلوني برك عمر فقال رضينا بالله ربا وبالإسلام دينا وبمحمد رسولا قال فسكت رسول الله صلى الله عليه و سلم حين قال عمر ذلك ثم قال رسول الله صلى الله عليه و سلم أولى والذي نفس محمد بيده لقد عرضت علي الجنة والنار آنفا في عرض هذا الحائط فلم أر كاليوم في الخير والشر

Harmala b. Yahya b. ‘Abd Allah b. Harmala b. ‘Imran al-Tajibi – Ibn Wahb – Yunus – Ibn Shihab – Anas b. Malik:

The Messenger of Allah, peace be upon him, came out when the sun had passed the meridian, and led them inSalat al-Ẓuhr. When he said the salam, he stood upon the pulpit, and mentioned the Hour, and mentioned great affairs that would occur before it. Then he said,“Whosoever wishes to ask me about ANYTHING, let him ask me. I swear by Allah, you will not ask me about ANYTHING except that I will inform you of it as long as I remain in this position of mine.” So, the people wept a lot when they heard that from the Messenger of Allah, peace be upon him.Then the Messenger of Allah, peace be upon him, repeatedly said “Ask me!” several times . So, ‘Abd Allah b. Hudhafah stood up and said, “Who is my father, O Messenger of Allah?” He (the Prophet) replied, “Your father is Hudhafah.” When the Messenger of Allah, peace be upon him, continuously repeated “Ask me!” several times, ‘Umar knelt down and said, “We are well-pleased with Allah as Lord, and with Islam as religion, and with Muhammad as Messenger.” So, the Messenger of Allah, peace be upon him, kept quiet so long as ‘Umar was saying that. Then the Messenger of Allah, peace be upon him, said, “It is near. I swear by the One in Whose Hand the life of Muhammad is, there was presented to me the Paradise and the Hellfire in the nook of this enclosure, and I did not see as much good and evil as I have seen today.”215

Imam Ahmad (d. 241 H) also records:

حدثنا عبد الله حدثني أبي ثنا بن أبي عدي عن حميد عن أنس قال قال رسول الله صلى الله عليه و سلم لا تسألوني عن شيء إلى يوم القيامة الا حدثتكم قال فقال عبد الله بن حذافة يا رسول الله من أبي قال أبوك حذافة

‘Abd Allah (b. Ahmad) – my father (Ahmad b. Hanbal) – Ibn Abi ‘Adi – Hamid – Anas:

The Messenger of Allah, peace be upon him, said, “You will not ask me about ANYTHING (that will occur) up till the Day of Resurrection except that I will tell you.” So, ‘Abd Allah b. Hudhafah said, “O Messenger of Allah, who is my father?” He replied, “Your father is Hudhafah”.216

Shaykh al-Arnauṭ comments:

إسناده صحيح على شرط الشيخين

Its chain issahih upon the standard of the two Shaykhs.217

These were momentous words. He offered them a challenge that was clearly beyond human capability. The Sahabah were awed. They never fathomed the existence of a man who could answer any question aboutanything – any verse in any revealed scripture, any Sunnah of any prophet, any private secrets of anyone, science, medicine, technology, astronomy, and so on.Anything ! Nothing whatsoever was excluded. They were challenged to ask anything about anything! ‘Abd Allah b. Hudhafah exploited the opportunity to verify his paternity – which, of course, was part of “anything”. The other Sahabah were too overwhelmed with awe to ask any question. The Prophet kept challenging them. But, all that they could do was weep. If anyone makes a similar challenge today, he would be humiliated immediately with very simple questions. The only creature that was capable of making the same challenge as the Messenger of Allah had done was none other thanAmir al-Muminin ,‘alaihi al-salam .

This relevantathar is documented inFadhail al-Sahabah of Imam Ahmad:

حدثنا عبد الله نا عثمان بن أبي شيبة نا سفيان عن يحيى بن سعيد قال أراه عن سعيد : قال لم يكن أحد من أصحاب النبي صلى الله عليه و سلم يقول سلوني الا علي بن أبي طالب

‘Abd Allah (b. Ahmad b. Hanbal) – ‘Uthman b. Abi Shaybah – Sufyan – Yahya b. Sa’id – Sa’id: “There was never anyone among the Sahabah of the Prophet, peace be upon him, who used to say “Ask me!” except ‘Ali b. Abi Talib.218

Dr. ‘Abbas comments:

إسناده صحيح

Its chain issahih 219

As for Abu Bakr and ‘Umar, both of them did not even have sufficient knowledge of either the Qur’an or Sunnah – much less anything else! For instance, ‘Umar did not know the basic Islamic ruling ontayammum . Imam Muslim records:

حدثني عبدالله بن هاشم العبدي حدثنا يحيى (يعني ابن سعيد القطان) عن شعبة قال حدثني الحكم عن ذر عن سعيد بن عبدالرحمن بن أبزي عن أبيه أن رجلا أتى عمر فقال :إني أجنبت فلم أجد ماء فقال لا تصل

‘Abd Allah b. Hisham al-‘Abdi – Yahya b. Sa’id al-Qaṭṭan – Shu’bah – al-Hakam – Dharr – Sa’id b. ‘Abd al-Rahman b. Abza – his father:

A man came to 'Umar and said: “I have seminal discharges and I cannot find water (to do the ghusl)”.He (‘Umar) said, “Do not perform Salat .”220

Meanwhile, this is the answer to that question in the Qur’an:

وإن كنتم مرضى أو على سفر أو جاء أحد منكم من الغائط أو لامستم النساء فلم تجدوا ماء فتيمموا صعيدا طيبا فامسحوا بوجوهكم وأيديكم

And if you are ill, or on a journey, or one of you comes after answering the call of nature, oryou have had sexual intercourse with women and you cannot find water, perform tayammum with clean soil and rub therewith your faces and hands.221

‘Umar apparently did not know the verses, or even the explicit Prophetic traditions which also explain the matter. As such, it was naturally impossible for him to have issued any challenge to any people to ask him anything! He completely lacked the capability, and would have been instantly humiliated with such beginner’s topics astayammum . Moreover, as Imam al-Bukhari (d. 256 H) records below, ‘Umar also lacked knowledge of some other topics in Islamic jurisprudence:

حدثنا أحمد بن أبي رجاء حدثنا يحيى عن أبي حيان التيمي عن الشعبي عن ابن عمر رضي الله عنهما قال :خطب عمر على منبر رسول الله صلى الله عليه و سلم فقال إنه قد نزل تحريم الخمر وهي من خمسة أشياء العنب والتمر والحنطة والشعير والعسل والخمر ما خامر العقل وثلاث وددت أن رسول الله صلى الله عليه و سلم لم يفارقنا حتى يعهد إلينا عهدا الجد والكلالة وأبواب من أبواب الربا

Ahmad b. Abi Rajah – Yahya – Abu Hayyan al-Tamimi – Shu’bi – Ibn ‘Umar, may Allah be pleased with them both:

‘Umar delivered a sermon on the pulpit of the Messenger of Allah, peace be upon him, saying, “Verily, there was revealed an order making alcohol haram, and it is made from five things: grape, date, wheat, barley and honey. Alcohol is whatsoever clouds the mind.I wish the Messenger of Allah, peace be upon him, had not left us before he could explain three matters to us: the inheritance of the grandfather, kalalah and various types of riba (usury).” 222

But, it was not only ‘Umar. Abu Bakr too, as thekhalifah – and therefore the chief religious authority of the Muslims, was asked a beginner’s question by one of his subjects. It however turned out that thekhalifah actually had no clue! Allah states:

فلينظر الإنسان إلى طعامه أنا صببنا الماء صبا ثم شققنا الأرض شقا فأنبتنا فيها حبا وعنبا وقضبا وزيتونا ونخلا وحدائق غلبا وفاكهة وأبا متاعا لكم ولأنعامكم

That We pour forth water in abundance, and We split the earth in clefts, and We cause therein the grain to grow, and grapes and clover plants, and olives and date-palms, and gardens, dense with many trees, and fruits andherbage , a benefit for you and your cattle.223

The above verse is in plain Arabic. Allah reveals about His Book:

هذا لسان عربي مبين

This (Qur’an) is a clear Arabic tongue.224

إنا أنزلناه قرآنا عربيا لعلكم تعقلون

We have sent it down asan Arabic Qur’an in order that you may understand .225

إنا جعلناه قرآنا عربيا لعلكم تعقلون

Verily, We have made it a Qur’an inArabic that you may be able to understand .226

Therefore, anyone with a proficient knowledge of the Arabic language will always understand the verses of the Qur’an – at least in their literal senses – perfectly. During thekhilafah of Abu Bakr, a man came to him about the word “herbage” in the above passage. He did not understand what it meant. Perhaps, the man was a Persian, Roman or African. It is also possible that he was an Arab, but one without a sound knowledge of his native language. So, how did thekhalifah explain to him?

Al-Hafiz Ibn Hajar al-‘Asqalani (d. 852 H) records:

ومن وجه آخر عن إبراهيم النخعي قال قرأ أبو بكر الصديق وفاكهة وأبا فقيل ما الأب فقيل كذا وكذا فقال أبو بكر ان هذا له التكلف أي أرض تقلني أو أي سماء تظلني إذا قلت في كتاب الله بما لا أعلم وهذا منقطع بين النخعي والصديق وأخرج أيضا من طريق إبراهيم التيمي ان أبا بكر سئل عن الأب ما هو فقال أي سماء تظلني فذكر مثله وهو منقطع أيضا لكن أحدهما يقوي الآخر

And it is narrated from another chain on the authority of Ibrahim al-Nakha’i:

Abu Bakr al-Siddiq recited “and fruits and herbage”. So, someone asked, “What is herbage?” Another person answered, “It is so-and-so”. Therefore, Abu Bakr said,“This one (i.e. this question) is overburdensome. Which earth will carry me and which sky will shield me if I say concerning the Book of Allah THAT WHICH I HAVE NO KNOWLEDGE OF.”

This ismunqati ’ (disconnected) between al-Nakha’i and al-Siddiq. It is also recorded through the route of Ibrahim al-Tamimi that AbuBakr was asked about herbage, what it was , and he replied, “Which sky would shield me....” and he mentioned the like of it (i.e. what Ibrahim al-Nakha’i narrated). This one too ismunqati ’.However, each one of the two (reports) STRENGTHENS the other .227

So, Abu Bakr, despite being from Quraysh – who spoke the purest Arabic dialect – did not know what “herbage” meant in the Qur’an! Apparently, though an Arab, the first Sunnikhalifah had deficient knowledge of his own native language. Considering that the Book of Allah was revealed in “clear” Arabic, that fact alone naturally made him an incompetent interpreter of the divine Scripture.

‘Umar too had a similar condition. Imam al-Hakim (d. 403 H) records:

حدثنا أبو عبد الله بن يعقوب ثنا إبراهيم بن عبد التميمي أنبأ يزيد بن هارون أنبأ حميد عن أنس وحدثنا أبو عبد الله حدثني أبي ثنا إسحاق أنبأ يعقوب بن إبراهيم بن سعد ثنا أبي عن صالح عن ابن شهاب أن أنس بن مالك رضي الله عنه أخبره أنه سمع عمر بن الخطاب رضي الله عنه يقول ـ { فأنبتنا فيها حبا * وعنبا وقضبا * وزيتونا ونخلا * وحدائق غلبا * وفاكهة وأبا } قال : فكل هذا قد عرفناه فما الأب ثم نقض عصا كانت في يده ؟ فقال : هذا لعمر الله التكلف اتبعوا ما تبين لكم من هذا الكتاب

Abu ‘Abd Allah b. Ya’qub – Ibrahim al-Tamimi – Yazid b. Harun – Hamid – Anas:

And Abu ‘Abd Allah – my father – Ishaq – Ya’qub b. Ibrahim b. Sa’d – my father – Salih – Ibn Shihab – Anas b. Malik, may Allah be pleased with him:

I heard ‘Umar, may Allah be pleased with him, reciting {And We cause therein the grain to grow, and grapes and clover plants, and olives and date-palms, and gardens, dense with many trees, and fruits andherbage }. He said,“We have known all of this. But, what is “herbage” ? Then, he broke a stick which was in his hand. So, he said,“This, I swear by the Life of Allah, IS OVERBURDENSOME. Follow (only) what is clear to you from this Book.” 228

Al-Hakim says:

هذا حديث صحيح على شرط الشيخين

Thishadith issahih upon the standard of the two Shaykhs.229

Al-Dhahabi (d. 748 H) concurs:

على شرط البخاري ومسلم

(Sahih ) upon the standard of al-Bukhari and Muslim230

For Allah’s sake, was it possible for Abu Bakr or ‘Umar to issue a challenge like this:

لا تسألوني عن آية في كتاب الله ، ولا عن سنة عن رسول الله ، إلا أنبأتكم بذلك

You will not ask me aboutANY verse in the Book of Allah, or aboutANY Sunnah from the Messenger of Allah, except that I will inform you of that.

Shaykh Ibn Taymiyyah (d. 728 H) claims:

أما قول علي سلوني وأما الذين كان علي يخاطبهم فهم من جملة عوام الناس التابعين وكان كثير منهم من شرار التابعين

As for the statement of ‘Ali “Ask me” those whom ‘Ali was addressing,they were commoners among the Tabi’in , and a lot of them were the evil ones among the Tabi’in.231

He clarifies further:

فقول علي لمن عنده بالكوفة سلوني هو من هذا الباب لم يقل هذا لابن مسعود ومعاذ وأبي بن كعب وأبي الدرداء وسلمان وأمثالهم فلم يسأله قط لا معاذ ولا أبي ولا ابن مسعود ولا من هو دونهم من الصحابة

The statement of ‘Ali “Ask me” TO THOSE WITH HIM IN KUFAH was in this regard . He never said this to Ibn Mas’ud, Mu’adh, Ubayy b. Ka’b, Abu Darda, Salman or others like them....They never asked him (anything) – not Mu’adh, not Ubayy, not Ibn Mas’ud and NOT others from the Sahabah .232

The patent purpose of the above submissions is to downplay the importance ofAmir al-Muminin ’s,‘alaihi al-salam , challenge. However, what really mattered was thequality of the challenge, and not its audience. As we have demonstrated, neither Abu Bakr nor ‘Umar was ever capable of issuing the same challenge asAmir al-Muminin did, not even to school kids. Meanwhile, Shaykh Ibn Taymiyyah is actually wrong in his claims concerning the people of Kufah, and the Sahabah, with regards to the challenge of ‘Ali.

To get a clearer picture, let us present this narration of Imam Ahmad (d. 241 H) :

حدثنا عبد الله حدثني أبي ثنا حسين بن محمد وأبو نعيم المعنى قالا ثنا فطر عن أبي الطفيل قال: جمع علي رضي الله تعالى عنه الناس في الرحبة ثم قال لهم أنشد الله كل امرئ مسلم سمع رسول الله صلى الله عليه و سلم يقول يوم غدير خم ما سمع لما قام فقام ثلاثون من الناس وقال أبو نعيم فقام ناس كثير فشهدوا حين أخذه بيده فقال للناس أتعلمون انى أولى بالمؤمنين من أنفسهم قالوا نعم يا رسول الله قال من كنت مولاه فهذا مولاه اللهم وال من والاه وعاد من عاداه قال فخرجت وكأن في نفسي شيئا فلقيت زيد بن أرقم فقلت له انى سمعت عليا رضي الله تعالى عنه يقول كذا وكذا قال فما تنكر قد سمعت رسول الله صلى الله عليه و سلم يقول ذلك له

‘Abd Allah (b. Ahmad) – my father (Ahmad b. Hanbal) – Husayn b. Muhammad and Abu Na’im al-Ma’ani – Faṭr – Abu al-Tufayl:

‘Ali, may Allah the Most High be pleased with him, gathered people at Rahbah (an area in Kufah), and said to them, “I implore with Allah to testify

every single Muslim who heard what the Messenger of Allah, peace be upon him, said while standing on the Day of Ghadir Khumm.So, thirty people stood up - Abu Na’im said: lots of people stood up – and testified that while holding his (i.e. ‘Ali’s) hand, he (the Prophet) said to the people, “Do you know that I am more entitled to the believers than themselves?” They replied, “Yes, O Messenger of Allah.” He (the Prophet) said, “Whosoever I am hismawla , this too is hismawla . O Allah, be the friend of whosoever is his friend, and be the enemy of whosoever is his enemy.”233

Shaykh al-Arnauṭ states:

إسناده صحيح

Its chain issahih 234

All those thirty – or actually, lots of - people who stood up to testify were Sahabah, and they were among the people of Kufah! The challenge ofAmir al-Muminin ‘Ali was directed towards them too, along with the other residents of the city. This reality cuts off the first leg of Shaykh Ibn Taymiyyah’s apparently fallacious submission.

At this point, it becomes imperative to ask. Did the Sahabah ever consultAmir al-Muminin to gain knowledge in their religion? Our dear Shaykh claims that they never did. But, is that the case? ‘Allamah al-Albani (d. 1420 H) replies:

أخرجه ابن أبى شيبة فى " المصنف " (11/44/2) من طريق سعيد بن المسيب: " أن رجلا من أهل الشام يقال له (ابن حبرى) وجد مع امرأته رجلا فقتلها , أو قتلهما , فرفع إلى معاوية فأشكل عليه القضاء فى ذلك , فكتب إلى أبى موسى أن سل عليا عن ذلك , فسأل أبو موسى عليا

Ibn Abi Shaybah recorded it inal-Musnaf (2/44/11) from the route of Sa’id b. Jubayr:

A Syrian man called Ibn Habri caught a man with his wife, and therefore killed him or killed both of them. So, his case was brought to Mu’awiyah. However, he had problem on how to do justice in that.As such, he wrote to Abu Musa to ask ‘Ali concerning that. Therefore, Abu Musa asked ‘Ali .235

The ‘Allamah comments:

قلت: ورجاله ثقات , لكن سعيد بن المسيب مختلف فى سماعه من على.

I say: Its narrators are trustworthy. However, there is disagreement over whether Sa’id b. Musayyab heard from ‘Ali or not.236

Of course, the correct opinion is that he heard from ‘Ali, as declared by al-Hafiz:

سعيد بن المسيب بن حزن بن أبي وهب بن عمرو بن عائذ بن عمران ابن مخزوم القرشي المخزومي. روى عن أبي بكر مرسلا وعن عمر وعثمان وعلي وسعد بن أبي وقاص….

Sa’id b. al-Musayyab b. Huzn b. Abi Wahb b. ‘Amr b. ‘Aiz b. ‘Imran b. Makhzum al-Qurshi al-Makhzumi. He narrated from Abu Bakr in a mursal form, and from ‘Umar, ‘Uthman,‘Ali , Sa’d b. Abi Waqqas....237

It was only from Abu Bakr that he did not hear directly. As for ‘Umar, ‘Uthman, ‘Ali and all the other people from whom Sa’id b. al-Musayyab heard, they are grouped together in the same unbroken, long list of names. Moreover, Imam al-Tirmidhi (d. 279 H) records this chain:

حدثنا أحمد بن منيع حدثنا إسماعيل بن إبراهيم حدثنا علي بن زيد عن سعيد بن المسيب عن علي بن أبي طالب

Ahmad b. Muni’ – Isma’il b. Ibrahim – ‘Ali b. Yazid –Sa’id b. al-Musayyab – ‘Ali b. Abi Talib .238

Al-Tirmidhi notably comments:

حديث علي حسن صحيح

Thehadith of ‘Ali ishasan sahih .239

‘Allamah al-Albani backs him:

صحيح

Sahih 340

Simply put, theathar fromal-Musnaf of Ibn Abi Shaybah has asahih chain. It is a very interesting narration, indeed. Mu’awiyah – a Sahabi - was the rebel leader who was waging war againstAmir al-Muminin ‘Ali, thekhalifah . Yet, despite his bloody insurgency, he turned to ‘Ali for solution to his judicial problem. That was an extreme step, which revealed Mu’awiyah’s unconditional acknowledgement that ‘Ali’s knowledge was unmatched and unique. Moreover, Abu Musa, whom Mu’awiyah sent, was another Sahabi who could have offered a solution if he had any! This incident effectively buries the remains of Shaykh Ibn Taymiyyah’s claims.

But, there is more! The second rebel leader who also waged a bloody campaign against ‘Ali was Umm al-Muminin ‘Aishah. Imam Ahmad records another interesting narration:

حدثنا عبد الله حدثني أبي ثنا عبد الرزاق أخبرنا سفيان عن عمرو بن قيس عن الحكم عن القاسم بن مخيمرة عن شريح بن هانئ قال: أتيت عائشة رضي الله عنها أسألها عن الخفين فقالت عليك بابن أبي طالب فاسأله فإنه كان يسافر مع رسول الله صلى الله عليه و سلم فأتيته فسألته

‘Abd Allah (b. Ahmad) – my father (Ahmad b. Hanbal) – ‘Abd al-Razzaq – Sufyan – ‘Amr b. Qays – al-Hakam – al-Qasim b. Makhirah – Shurayh b. Hani:

I went to ‘Aishah, may Allah be pleased with her, and asked her about the two khuffs. So, she said,“You MUST go to Ibn Abi Talib and ask him , because he used to go on journeys with the Messenger of Allah, peace be upon him.”So, I went to him and asked him .241

Al-Arnauṭ says:

إسناده صحيح على شرط مسلم

Its chain issahih upon the standard of (Imam) Muslim.242

Imam Abu Ya’la (d. 307 H) further documents:

حدثنا أبو خيثمة حدثنا أبو معاوية حدثنا الأعمش عن الحكم عن القاسم بن مخيمرة عن شريح بن هانئ قال: سألت عائشة عن المسح على الخفين فقالت : ائت عليا فسله فإنه كان أعلم بذلك مني فأتيت عليا فسألته عن المسح

Abu Khaythamah – Abu Mu’awiyah – Al-A’mash – al-Hakam – al-Qasim b. Makhirah – Shurayh b. Hani:

I asked ‘Aishah concerning wiping over the two khuffs. So, she said, “Go to ‘Ali and ask him , because he is more knowledgeable of that than me.”So, I went to ‘Ali and asked him about the wiping .243

Shaykh Dr. Asad comments:

إسناده صحيح

Its chain issahih 244

One crucial point here is that Shurayh b. Hani was a Sahabi too. Al-Hafiz (d. 852 H) states:

شريح بن هانئ بن يزيد بن نهيك ويقال شريح بن هانئ بن يزيد بن الحارث بن كعب الحارثي أبو المقدام أدرك النبي صلى الله عليه وسلم

Shurayh b. Hani b. Yazid b. Nuhayk, and he is called Shurayh b. Hani b. Yazid b. al-Harith b. Ka’b al-Harithi, Abu al-Miqdam:He met the Prophet , peace be upon him.245

Do we really have to make any further comments at this point? Perhaps, we should just close things with these words of Imam Ibn al-Athir (d. 630 H):

وروى يزيد بن هارون عن قطر عن أبي الطفيل قال قال بعض أصحاب النبي لقد كان لعلي من السوابق ما لو أن سابقة منها بين الخلائق لوسعتهم خيرا وله في هذا أخبار كثيرة نقتصر على هذا منها ولو ذكرنا ما سأله الصحابة مثل عمر وغيره رضي الله عنهم لأطلنا

Yazid b. Harun narrated from Faṭr from Abu al-Tufayl who said, “Some of the Sahabah of the Prophet said: ‘There are certain unmatched qualities and ranks of ‘Ali that if any of them had been distributed among all creation, it would bring good to all of them’. There are LOTS of reports in this regard in his favour. We are only mentioning a few.If we had mentioned what the Sahabah, such as ‘Umar and others, may Allah be pleased with them, had asked him, we would have cited a lot! 246