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A study of the tawatur, or the multiplicity of sources and narrators that verify the authenticity of Hadith al-Thaqalayn, when the Messenger of Allah (s) said: "Verily, I am leaving behind two precious things (thaqalayn) among you: the Book of God and my kindred (`itrah), my household (Ahl al-Bayt), for indeed, the two will never separate until they come back to me by the Pond (of al-­Kawthar on the Day of Judgment)."

Preface

قال رسول الله صلى الله عليه وآله وسلم: إني تارك فيكم الثقلين كتاب الله وعترتي أهل بيتي فإنهما لن يفترقا حتى يردا علي الحوض

The Messenger of Allah - may Allah bestow peace and benedictions upon him and his Progeny - said: "Verily, I am leaving behind two precious things (thaqalayn) among you: the Book of God and my kindred (‘itrah), my household (Ahlul Bayt), for indeed, the two will never separate until they come back to me by the Pond (of al-­Kawthar on the Judgment Day)."

Imam Khumayni - ridwan Allah ‘alayh - began his wasiyyah or will with the mention of this tradition of the Prophet (S), known as Hadith al­-Thaqalayn. In the prologue to his wasiyyah he pointed out that whatever tragedies and disasters befell the Muslim world during the last fourteen centuries have been mainly due to its estrangement from the Thaqalayn, the twofold legacy of the Prophet (S) in the form of the Qur'an and the Ahlul Bayt (A).

The extent of the estrangement of the Qur'an will be obvious to anyone who closely examines its teachings and contrasts them with the popular religion of the masses and the prevailing religious ethos, even among the scholars and the intelligentsia. There is certainly a wide gulf that lies between the message and spirit of the Glorious Qur'an and the way Islam has come to be practiced in Muslim society, a gulf which has never been as wide as it became in recent centuries under the influence of the West and the tyrannical regimes that have been ruling over Muslims.

The extent of the estrangement suffered by the Prophet's Household will be obvious to anyone who studies the history of the Imams of the Ahlul Bayt (A), who were isolated from the Muslim masses by despots and left without support in their struggle against the tyrannical regimes of Banu Umayyah and Banu ‘Abbas. The result was that the most authentic exponents and defenders of the Qur'an - whom the tides of time will never separate from the Qur'an until the Day of Judgment, as stated by the Noble Prophet (S) - were put under severe surveillance, exiled, imprisoned, poisoned and martyred, and the masses were deprived of their guidance and leadership.

Having removed the Ahlul Bayt (A) from their way, the road was opened by the self-seeking tyrants for making the Holy Qur'an itself an instrument for the justification of their anti­ Qur'anic rule. "They forced," as Imam Khumayni says, "the true exponents of the Qur'an... off the stage with various ploys and systematic plans. In this way, they in fact, eliminated the Qur'an itself, the Qur'an which was the greatest program for organizing man's material and spiritual life, and rejected its plan of government based on Divine justice, which was and remains one of the ideals of this sacred scripture. Thus they laid the foundations of deviation from the Din and the Book of God, bringing things ultimately to an indescribable extreme."

If today the custodians of American Islam with their petrodollars conspire against the aspirations of the Muslim masses inspired by the genuine Islam, so did once the Umayyad and ‘Abbasid tyrants stand in the way of Islam and seek to isolate and destroy its exponents, the Imams of the Ahlul Bayt (A), and promote a counterfeit version of Islam. But no matter how much they tried they could not extirpate the Prophet's exhortations regarding the Ahlul Bayt and conceal the unbreakable link between the Book of God and the Prophet's ‘Itrah, in the form of Hadith al­-­Thaqalayn and scores of other traditions similar to it.

This hadith has continued to be narrated by each generation of authentic Shi’i and Sunni traditionists and scholars throughout the last fourteen centuries. Reliable and trustworthy narrators of each generation, from the days of the Prophet's committed Companions - may God be pleased with them - to the present, including many or rather most of the greatest and leading figures in the history of Islamic scholarship have narrated this hadith. It is in view of this undeniable fact that Imam Khumayni declared in his wasiyyah:

It is essential to point out that Hadith al­-­Thaqalayn is a mutawatir tradition amongst all Muslims. It has been narrated in Sunni sources - including the Six Sihah as well as other books - from the Holy Prophet (S) in different wordings, and as having been spoken by him on repeated occasions. This tradition is a definite proof (hujjah) for all mankind, in particular for the Muslims, regardless of sect. And all Muslims are answerable (before God) concerning it. For it leaves no room for any excuse for any one. And should there be room for an excuse for the ignorant and the uninformed, there isn't any for the scholars of various schools.

The Meaning of Tawatur

As we know, the tradition or ahadith of the Holy Prophet (S) recorded in the books of Muslim traditionists begin with chains of transmitters on whose authority the traditionist reports the Prophet's acts or statements. Experts of hadith amongst Muslims have developed certain criteria for assessing the reliability of different chains of transmission and ascertaining the authenticity of the contents of traditions. They have developed a terminology with terms denoting various classifications of hadith depending on the character, strength or weakness of narrators and other factors, such as mutawatir, ahad, sahih, hasan, qawi, da’if, etc.

By tawatur is meant the multiplicity of the sources of a certain report that leads to certitude in the listener that the report is indeed true. One's knowledge of the existence of distant countries and towns and such historical figures as Cyrus or Napoleon may be said to be based on the tawatur of reports that one hears about them. So also is one's knowledge of the contemporary events not witnessed by him.

A mutawatir hadith is one which has been reported by so many different chains of transmission and such a number of narrators in every generation as normally could not agree to fabricate a tradition without the fact of its fabrication becoming known. Although some jurisprudents have specified a particular minimum for the number of narrators, such as five, seven, ten or even hundred, it is generally held that no particular number can be specified and the number capable of producing certitude depends on the experience of the listener.

Islamic jurisprudents have set forth certain conditions for a tradition to be mutawatir. Al­-­Ghazali in al­-­Mustasfa min ‘ilm al-usul1 mentions the following conditions.

(1) That the transmitters should report on the basis of knowledge (‘ilm) and not conjecture (zann).

(2) Their knowledge should have been acquired through the senses.

(3) That the number of narrators should be sufficient to produce certitude.

(4) That all the links in the chains of transmission of a report should fulfill the first two conditions and their number in every stage of transmission must fulfill the third condition.

Al­-­Shaykh al­-­Hasan ibn Zayn al­-­Din, the Shi’i author of Ma’alim al-usul, mentions similar conditions for a report to be mutawatir. As can be seen, the legal condition of ‘adalah (justice) is not required for the narrators nor are they required to be thiqah when the conditions of tawatur are fulfilled. Rather, al­-­Ghazali states explicitly that in such cases knowledge is attained even if the narrators should be fasiq. The author of Ma’alim states two conditions in order for a mutawatir report to produce knowledge in the listener:

(1) The listener should not have previous knowledge of the matter, for it is not possible to know something that one already knows.

(2) The listener should not be inhibited by doubt or imitation (taqlid) in his belief, for then the report will fail to make any impression upon him.

Note

1. Al-­Ghazali, al-­Mustasfa min `ilm al-usul, Dar Sadir, al-­Matba`at al-'Amiriyyah, Bulaq, Egypt, 1322 H.

Some Sahih Versions of the Hadith

Hadith al­-­Thaqalayn is a mutawatir tradition which has been narrated - as we will presently see in our introductory study of ‘Abaqat al-anwar, a book written to establish the fact of its tawatur - through scores of different chains of transmission (turuq) only in the Sunni hadith corpus. If we add to these the Shi’i turuq of the tradition, the total number of its narrators becomes considerable.

Apart from being mutawatir, the hadith has been transmitted through several sahih turuq, that is, through chains in which all the transmitters are regarded as thiqah or as of confirmed trustworthiness and reliability. Following are four of these sahih narrations of the tradition as recorded by Muslim and al-­Hakim al-­Nayshaburi in their compilations:

حدثني زهير بن حرب وشجاع بن مخلد جميعا عن ابن علية قال زهير حدثنا اسماعيل بن ابراهيم حدثني أبو حيان حدثني يزيد بن حيان قال: انطلقت أنا وحصين بن سبرة وعمر بن مسلم إلى زيد بن أرقم فلما جلسنا إليه قال له حصين لقد لقيت يا زيد خيرا كثيرا, حدثنا يا زيد ما سمعت من رسول الله صلى الله عليه وسلم قال: يا ابن أخي والله لقد كبرت سني وقدم عهدي ونسيت بعض الذي كنت أعي من رسول الله صلى الله عليه وسلم فما حدثتكم فاقبلوه وما لا فلا تكلفونيه ثم قال: قام رسول الله صلى الله عليه وسلم يوما خطيبا فينا بماء يدعى خما بين مكة والمدينة فحمد الله تعالى وأثنى عليه ووعظ وذكر ثم قال: أما بعد ألا أيها الناس فإنما أنا بشر يوشك أن يأتيني رسول ربي عز وجل فأجيب وأنا تارك فيكم ثقلين أولهما كتاب الله عز وجل فيه الهدى والنور فخذوا بكتاب الله تعالى واستمسكوا به فحث على كتاب الله ورغب ثم فيه قال وأهل بيتي أذكركم الله في أهل بيتي أذكركم الله في أهل بيتي أذكركم الله في أهل بيتي

(Muslim says:) Zuhayr ibn Harb and Shuja’ ibn Makhlad narrated to me from ‘Ulayyah that he said: Zuhayr said: narrated to us Isma’il ibn Ibrahim, from Abu Hayyan, from Yazid ibn Hayyan, who said: "I, Husayn ibn Sabrah and ‘Umar ibn Muslim went to see Zayd ibn Arqam. When we sat down with him, Husayn said to him, 'O Zayd, you have been greatly fortunate. You have seen the Messenger of Allah, upon whom be Allah's peace and benedictions, heard his speech, fought with him in battles and have prayed behind him. Indeed, O Zayd, you have been enormously fortunate. Narrate to us what you have heard from the Messenger of Allah, may Allah's peace and benedictions be upon him.'

"Zayd said: 'O brother, by God, I have become aged and old and I have forgotten some of what I used to remember from the Messenger of Allah, upon whom be Allah's peace and benedictions. So accept what I narrate to you and as to what I don't, trouble me not regarding it.' Then he said: 'One day the Messenger of Allah, upon whom be Allah's peace and benedictions, addressed us near a pond called Khumm between Makkah and Madinah. He praised God and extolled Him and preached and reminded (us). Then he said, "Lo, O people, I am only a human being and I am about to respond to the messenger of my Lord [i.e. the call of death]. I am leaving behind two precious things (thaqalayn) among you. The first of the two is the Book of Allah. In it is guidance and light. So get hold of the Book of Allah and adhere to it." Then he urged and motivated (us) regarding the Book of Allah. Then he said, "And my Ahlul Bayt (family). I urge you to remember God regarding my Ahlul Bayt. I urge you to remember God regarding my Ahlul Bayt. I urge you to remember God regarding my Ahlul Bayt"'" ....

(Sahih Muslim, part 7, Kitab fada'il al-­Sahabah [Maktabat wa Matba’at Muhammad ‘Ali Subayh wa Awladuhu: Cairo] pp. 122-123.)

حدثنا أبو الحسين محمد بن أحمد بن تميم الحنظلي ببغداد ثنا أبو قلابة عبد الملك بن محمد الرقاشي ثنا يحيى بن حماد (و حدثني) أبو بكر محمد بن بالويه و أبو بكر أحمد بن جعفر البزار قالا : ثنا عبد الله بن أحمد بن حنبل حدثني أبي ثنا يحيى بن حماد (وثنا) أبو نصر أحمد بن سهل ا لفقيه ببخارى ثنا صالح بن محمد الحافظ البغدادي ثنا خلف بن سالم المخرمي ثنا يحيى بن حماد ثنا أبو عوانة عن سليمان الأعمش قال : ثنا حبيب بن أبي ثابت عن أبي الطفيل عن زيد بن أرقم رضي الله عنه قال : لما رجع رسول الله صلى الله عليه و سلم من حجة الوداع و نزل غدير خم أمر بدوحات فقمن فقال : كأني قد دعيت فأجبت إني قد تركت فيكم الثقلين أحدهما أكبر من الآخر كتاب الله تعالى و عترتي فانظروا كيف تخلفوني فيهما فإنهما لن يتفرقا حتى يردا علي الحوض ثم قال : إن الله عز و جل مولاي و أنا مولى كل مؤمن ثم أخذ بيد علي رضي الله عنه فقال : من كنت مولاه فهذا وليه اللهم وال من والاه و عاد من عاداه و ذكر الحديث بطوله. هذا حديث صحيح على شرط الشيخين و لم يخرجاه بطوله

(Al-Hakim says:) Narrated to us Abu al-­Husayn Muhammad ibn Ahmad ibn Tamim al-­Hanzali in Baghdad, from Abu Qallabah ‘Abd al-­Malik ibn Muhammad al-­Raqqashi, from Yahya ibn Hammad; also narrated to me Abu Bakr Muhammad ibn Balawayh and Abu Bakr Ahmad ibn Ja’far al-­Bazzaz, both of them from ‘Abd Allah ibn Ahmad ibn Hanbal, from his father, from Yahya ibn Hammad; and also narrated to us Abu Nasr Ahmad ibn Suhayl, the faqih of Bukhara, from Salih ibn Muhammad, the hafiz of Baghdad, from Khalaf ibn Salim al-­Makhrami, from Yahya ibn Hammad; and Yahya ibn Hammad narrated from Abu ‘Uwwanah from Sulayman al-A’mash, from Habib ibn Abi Thabit, from Abu al-­Tufayl, from Zayd ibn Arqam, may God be pleased with him, who said: "The Messenger of Allah , may God's peace and benedictions be upon him and his progeny, while returning from his last hajj (hijjat al-­wada') came down at Ghadir Khumm and ordered (us) towards the big trees, and (the ground) underneath them was swept.

"Then he said, 'I am about to answer the call (of death). Verily, I have left behind two precious things amongst you, one of which is greater than the other. The Book of Allah, the Exalted, and my ‘itrah (kindred). So watch out how you treat these two after me, for verily they will not separate from each other until they come back to me by the side of the Pond.' Then he said 'Verily, Allah, the Almighty and the Glorious, is my master (mawla) and I am the master of every believer (mu'min).' Then he took ‘Ali, may God be pleased with him, by the hand and said, 'This (‘Ali) is the master of whomever I am his master. O God, love whoever loves him and be the enemy of his enemy.'"

(Al-Hakim adds:) "This hadith is sahih in accordance with the conditions of sihhah laid down by the Shaykhayn (al-­Bukhari and Muslim), although they have not recorded it in its full length."

شاهده حديث سلمة بن كهيل عن أبي الطفيل أيضا صحيح على شرطهما (حدثنا) أبو بكر بن اسحاق أبو بكر بن إسحاق و دعلج بن أحمد السجزي قالا : أنبأ محمد بن أيوب ثنا الأزرق بن علي ثنا حسان بن إبراهيم الكرماني ثنا محمد بن سلمة بن كهيل عن أبيه عن أبي الطفيل عن ابن واثلة أنه سمع زيد بن أرقم رضي الله عنه يقول: نزل رسول الله صلى الله عليه و سلم بين مكة و المدينة عند شجرات خمس دوحات عظام فكنس الناس ما تحت الشجرات ثم راح رسول الله صلى الله عليه و سلم عشية فصلى ثم قام خطيبا فحمد الله و أثنى عليه و ذكر و وعظ فقال ما شاء الله أن يقول ثم قال : يا أيها الناس إني تارك فيكم أمرين لن تضلوا إن اتبعتموهما وهما كتاب الله و أهل بيتي عترتي ثم قال : أتعلمون إني أولى بالمؤمنين من أنفسهم ثلاث مرات قالوا : نعم فقال رسول الله صلى الله عليه و سلم : من كنت مولاه فعلي مولاه

(Al-Hakim says:) The first tradition (mentioned above) is supported by this one narrated by Salamah ibn Kuhayl, from Abu al-­Tufayl, which is also sahih according to the requirements of al­Bukhari and Muslim. Narrated to us Abu Bakr ibn Ishaq and Da’laj ibn Ahmad al-­Sijzi, both of them from Muhammad ibn Ayyub, from al-Azraq ibn ‘Ali, from Hassan ibn Ibrahim al-­Kirmani, from Muhammad ibn Salamah ibn Kuhayl, from his father, from Abu al-Tufayl, from Ibn Wathilah that he heard Zayd ibn Arqam, may God be pleased with him, say: "The Messenger of Allah , may Allah's peace and benedictions be upon him and his progeny, came down at a place between Makkah and Madinah near the trees with five big shades and the people swept the ground under the trees.

Then the Messenger of Allah, may God's peace and benediction be upon him and his progeny, began to perform the evening prayer. After the prayer he began to address the people. He praised God and extolled Him, preaching and reminding (us), and said what God wanted him to say. Then he said, 'O people! Verily, I am leaving behind two matters (amrayn) among you­ if you follow them (the two) you will never go astray. These two are: the Book of God and my Ahlul Bayt, my ‘itrah.' Then he said thrice: 'Do you know that I have more right over the believers (Inni awla bi al­mu'minin) than they over themselves?' The people said, 'Yes.' Then the Messenger of Allah , may Allah's peace and benedictions be upon him and his progeny said, 'Of whomever I am his master (mawla) ‘Ali also is his master.'"

(al-Imam al-Hafiz Abu ‘Abd Allah al-­Hakim al-­Naysaburi, al-­Mustadrak ‘ala al-Sahihayn [Dar al-Ma’rifah li al-­Tiba’ah wa al-­Nashr: Beirut), vol. iii, pp. 109-110).

حدثنا أبو بكر محمد بن الحسين بن مصلح الفقيه بالري ثنا محمد بن أيوب يحيى بن المغيرة السعدي ، ثنا : جرير بن عبد الحميد عن الحسن بن عبد الله النخعي عن مسلم بن صبيح عن زيد بن أرقم رضي الله عنه قال : قال رسول الله صلى الله عليه وآله وسلم: إني تارك فيكم الثقلين كتاب الله وأهل بيتي وإنهما لن يتفرقا حتى يردا علي الحوض. هذا حديث صحيح الإسناد على شرط الشيخين ولم يخرجاه

(Al-Hakim says:) Narrated to us Abu Bakr Muhammad ibn al-­Husayn ibn Muslim, the faqih of Ray, from Muhammad ibn Ayyub, from Yahya ibn al-Mughirah al-­Sa’di, from Jarir ibn ‘Abd al-­Hamid, from al-­Hasan ibn ‘Abd Allah al-­Nakha’i, from Muslim ibn Subayh, from Zayd ibn Arqam, may God be pleased with him, who said: "The Messenger of Allah , may Allah's peace and benedictions be upon him and his progeny, said, 'Verily, I leave behind two precious things amongst you: the Book of Allah and my Ahlul Bayt. Verily, the two will never separate until they come back to me by the side of the Pond.'"

(Al-Hakim says:) This hadith is sahih al-isnad according to the conditions laid down by the Shaykhayn (al-­Bukhari and Muslim), though they did not record it. (al-­Hakim, op. cit., vol. iii, p. 148)

These are four versions of the tradition narrated on the authority of Zayd ibn Arqam. Their sihhah (authenticity) is confirmed by two of the great Sunni Imams of hadith. In addition, as we will see in our study of ‘Abaqatal-anwar, the tradition has been narrated by more than thirty Companions of the Prophet (S) and a host of narrators and leading traditionists of every generation up to the contemporary era.

The Various Occasions Related to Hadith al Thaqalayn

The various narrations of Hadith al-­Thaqalayn also indicate the occasion on which the Prophet (S) proclaimed it publicly. ‘Allamah ‘Abd al-Aziz Tabataba'i, who has studied the various narrations of Hadith al-Thaqalayn as recorded by various traditionists mentions four occasions on which the Prophet (S) proclaimed it publicly. First of these is the occasion when the Prophet (S) proclaimed it during his last hajj at ‘Arafat.

On this occasion, the Prophet (S) was accompanied by more than a hundred thousand Muslims. The second occasion relates to his proclamation at Ghadir Khumm, during the course of his return journey to Madinah. The third occasion relates to his proclamation in the Mosque of Madinah. The fourth one relates to his pronouncement of Hadith al-­Thaqalayn in his chamber during his last illness. All these occasions lie within a period of ninety days and pertain to the Prophet's last days.

There are, however, many narrations of the hadith - in fact, most of them - which do not contain any clue about the time and place of its pronouncement. In the following are given instances of the narrations of Hadith al-­Thaqalayn relating to each of these occasions, accompanied by the sources which record them.1

1. At ‘Arafat

Al-­Tirmidhi in his Sunan (v, 662, no. 3786) records the following tradition

عن جابر بن عبدالله قال: رأيت رسول الله صلى الله عليه وسلم في حجته يوم عرفة وهو على ناقته القصواء فسمعته يقول: ((يا أيها الناس, إني تارك فيكم ما إن أخذتم به لن تضلوا: كتاب الله وعترتي أهل بيتي

....Jabir ibn ‘Abd Allah said: "I saw the Messenger of Allah - upon whom be God's peace and benedictions - in the course of his hajj pilgrimage on the day of ‘Arafah. The Prophet (S) was seated on his camel, al-­Qaswa', and was delivering a sermon. I heard him say: 'O people, I am leaving among you that which if you hold on to you shall never go astray: the Book of Allah and my kindred, my household."

Al-­Tirmidhi states that the same tradition has been narrated by Abu Dharr, Abu Sa’id, Zayd ibn Arqam and Hudhayfah ibn Usayd.

Among others who have recorded this tradition are:

1. al-­Hafiz Ibn Abi Shaybah, as in Kanz al-­‘ummal (1st ed.), i, 48;

2. al-­‘Uqayli in al-­Du’afa' al-­Kabir, ii, 250;

3. al-­Hakim al-­Tirmidhi, Nawadir al-usul, 68, 50th asl;

4. al-­Tabarani, al-­Mu’jam al-­kabir, iii, 63, no. 2679;

5. al-­Khatib, al-­Muttafiq wa al-­muftariq, cf. Kanz al-­‘ummal, i, 48 and Majma' al-­zawa'id, v, 195; ix, 163, x, 363, 268;

6. al-­Baghawi, al-Masabih, ii, 206;

7. Ibn al-Athir, Jami’ al-usul, i, 277, no. 65;

8. al-Rafi’i, al-­Tadwin, ii, 264 (in the biographical account of Ahmad ibn Mihran al-­Qattan; this hadith has been deleted in the Indian print, but is present in the manuscripts of the book ! );

9. al-­Mizzi, Tahdhib al-­kamal, x, 51, and Tuhfat al-ashraf, ii, 278, no. 2615;

10. al-­Qadi al-­Baydawi, Tuhfat al-ashraf;

11. al-­Khwarazmi, Maqtal al-­Husayn (A), i, 144;

12. al-­Khatib al-­Tabrizi, Mishkat al-­masabih, iii, 258;

13. Ibn Kathir, Tafsir (Bulaq edition, on the margin of Fath al-­bayan), ix, 115;

14. al-Zarandi, Nazm al-­durar al-­simtayn, 232;

15. al-­Maqrizi, Ma’rifat ma yajib li Al al-­Bayt al-­Nabawi, 38.

2. At Ghadir Khumm

Al-­Nasa'i in his al-­Sunan al-­kubra, 96, No. 79, records the following tradition in the chapter "Khasa'is ‘Ali":

أخبرنا محمد بن المنثى, قال: حدثنا يحيي بن حماد, قال: حدثنا أبو عوانة, عن سليمان, قال: حدثنا حبيب بن أبي ثابت, عن أبي الطفيل, عن زيد بن أرقام, قال: لما رجع رسول الله صلى الله عليه وسلم عن حجة الوداع ونزل غدير خم أمر بدوحات فقممن, فقال : كأني دعيت فأجبت، وإني قد تركت فيكم الثقلين, أحدهما أكبر من الآخر: كتاب الله وعترتي أهل بيتي, فانظروا كيف تخلفوني فيهما؟ فإنهما لن يفترقا حتى يردا علي االحوض، ثم قال: إن الله مولاي وأنا ولي كل مؤمن، ثم أخذ بيد علي فقال: من كنت وليه فهذا وليه، اللهم وال من والاه وعاد من عاداه. فقلت لزيد: سمعته من رسول الله صلى الله عليه وسلم؟! فقال: ما كان في الدوحات أحد إلا راه بعينيه وسمعته بأذنيه

Al-­Nasa'i narrates from Muhammad ibn al-­Muthanna, he from Yahya ibn Hammad, from Abu 'Uwwanah, from Sulayman, from Habib ibn Abi Thabit, from Abu al-­Tufayl, from Zayd ibn Arqam, who said, "When the Messenger of Allah (S) returned from the last hajj and came down at Ghadir Khumm....

"Then he declared: 'I am about to answer the call (of death). Verily, I have left two precious things (thaqalayn) among you, one of which is greater than the other: the Book of God and my ‘Itrah, my Ahlul Bayt. So watch out how you treat them after me. For, indeed, they will never separate until they return to me by the side of the Pond.' Then he said, 'Verily, God is my master (mawlaya) and I am the wali of every believer.' Then he took ‘Ali's hand and declared, 'To whomever I am his wali, this one is also his wali. My God, befriend whoever befriends him and be hostile to whoever is hostile to him.'" Abu al-­Tufayl says: "I said to Zayd, 'Did you hear it from the Prophet(S)?' He replied, 'There was no one in the caravan who did not see it with his eyes and hear it with his ears,'"

Khasa'is ‘Ali is part of al-­Nasa'i's al-­Sunan al-­kubra as shown by the 3rd volume of the MS in the king's collection in Morocco, written in 759/1358 folios 81-117. See also in this regard the introduction of al-­Khasa'is (Kuwait: Maktabat al-Mu’alla, 1406), ed. by Ahmad Mirayn Balushi. The editor states that this tradition is sahih and its transmitters are thiqah.

Among others who have recorded it in their books are:

1. Al-Bukhari, al-­Ta'rikh al-­kabir, iii, 96;

2. Muslim, Sahih, bab fada'il ‘Ali, no. 2408;

3. Ahmad, Musnad, iii, 17, iv, 366;

4. ‘Abd ibn Humayd, Musnad, no. 265;

5. Ibn Sa’d, and

6. Abu Ya’la from Abu Sa’id, as mentioned in Jam’ al-­jawami’ and Kanz al-­‘ummal;

7. Ishaq ibn Rahwayh, in his Sahih., as mentioned by Ibn Hajar in al-­Matalib al-Aliyah, iv, 65, no. 1873, where he states that its isnad is sahih, and also by al-Busayri in Ithaf al-­sadah (MS in Topcopi Library, vol. 3, F.55b) who, too, considers the isnad as sahih;

8. Ibn Khuzaymah, Sahih, MS in Topcopi Library, F.240;

9. al-­Darimi, Sunan, ii, 310, no. 2319;

10. Abu Dawud, Sunan, as mentioned in Sibt ibn al-­Jawzi, Tadhkirat khawass al-ummah, 322;

11. Abu 'Uwwanah, Musnad, as mentioned in al-­Shaykhani, al-­Sirat al-­sawi;

12. al-­Bazzaz, from Umm Hani, as mentioned in Wasilat al-­ma'al;

13. Ibn Abi 'Asim, Kitab al-­Sunnah, 629, no. 1551, 630, no. 1555, 629, no. 1551;

14. al-­Ya’qubi, Ta'rikh, ii, 112;

15. al-­Baladhuri, Ansab al-ashraf, 110, no. 48, the biographical account of ‘Ali (A);

16. al-­Hafiz al-­Hasan ibn Sufyan al-­Nasawi, the author of Musnad, from Hudhayfah ibn Usayd, as mentioned by Abu Nu’aym, al-­Hilyah, i, 355,

17. al-­Fasawi, al-­Ma’rifah wa al-­ta'rikh, i, 536;

18. Ibn Jarir al-­Tabari, from Hudhayfah ibn Usayd, Zayd ibn Arqam (with al-­Nasa'i's wording as well as with the wording of Muslim), Abu Sa’id al-­Khudri, as cited in Jam’ al-­jawami’, ii, 357, 395, Kanz al-’ummal, 12911, xiii, 36441, 36340, 37620, 37621, 36341, Jami’ al-ahadith, vii, 14523, 15112, 15122, 15113, iv, 7773, 8072, 8073;

19. al-­Dulabi, al-­Dhurriyyat al-­tahirah, no. 228;

20. al-­Hafiz al-­Tahawi, Mushkil al- 'athar, ii, 307, iv, 368;

21. al-­Hakim al-­Tirmidhi, Nawadir al-usul, from Hudhayfah ibn Usayd;

22. al-­Tabarani, al-­Mu’jam al-­kabir, iii, 2679, 2681, 2683, 3052, v, 4969, 4970, 4971, 4986, 5026, 5028;

23. al-­Hakim, al-­Mustadrak ‘ala al-­Sahihayn, iii, 109, 110 where he expressly states, as mentioned above, that the tradition is sahih in accordance with the criteria of al-­Bukhari and Muslim; al-­Dhahabi has confirmed his judgment;

24. Abu Nu’aym, Hilyat al-awliya', i, 355, ix, 64;

25. al-­Bayhaqi, al-­Sunan al-­kubra, ii, 148, vii, 30, x, 114;

26. al-­Khatib, Ta'rikh Baghdad, viii, 442;

27. Ibn al-­Maghazili, Manaqib Amir al-­Mu'minin (A), 23;

28. Ibn ‘Asakir, Ta'rikh Dimashq, ii, 45, no. 547, the biographical account of ‘Ali (A), and v, 436 of Badran's edition in the biographical account of Zayd ibn Arqam;

29. al-­Baghawi, Masabih al-­Sunnah, ii, 205 and Sharh al-­Sunnah (MS in Topcopi Library, vol. 2, F. 718), bab Manaqib Ahlul Bayt;

30. Ibn al-Athir, Usd al-­ghabah, iii, 92 in the biographical account of 'Amir ibn Layla, no. 2727;

31. Ibn Hajar, al-Isabah in the biographical account of 'Amir;

32. al-Mizzi, Tuhafat al-ashraf, iii, 203, no. 3688 from Muslim and al-­Nasa'i;

33. al-­Diya' al-­Muqaddisi, al-­Mukhtarah, as cited by al-­Samhudi and al-­Sakhawi;

34. Ibn Taymiyyah, Minhaj al-­Sunnah, iv, 85;

35. al-Dhahabi, Talkhis al-­Mustadrak, iii, 109;

36. Ibn Kathir, al-­Bidayah wa al-­nihayah, v, 209, vi, 199, from al-­Nasa'i, where he quotes al-Nasa'i's statement that this narration is sahih;

37. al-­Khazin, Tafsir under verses 42:23 and 3:103;

38. al-­Mulla, Wasilat al-­muta’abbidin, v, 199;

39. al-Haythami, Majma’ al-­zawa'id, ix, 163 from Zayd, 164 from Hudhayfah.

3. In the Mosque of Madinah

Ibn ‘Atiyyah in the introduction of his tafsir, al-­Muharrar al-­wajiz, i, 34 records the following narration:

وروي عنه عليه السلام أنه قال في آخر خطبة خطبها وهو مريض: أيها الناس, إني تارك فيكم الثقلين, إنه لن تعمى أبصركم ولن تضل قلوبكم ولن تزل اقدامكم ولن تقصر أيديكم: كتاب الله سبب بينكم وبينه, طرفه بيده وطرفه بأيديكم, فاعلموا بمحكمه وآمنوا بمتشابهه وأحلوا حلاله وحرموا حرامه, ألا وعترتي وأهل بيتي هو الثقل الآخر, فلا تسبقوهم فتهلكوا

...It is narrated that he (i.e. the Prophet) - upon whom be peace - said in the last sermon that he delivered during his illness: "O people, I leave behind two precious things (thaqalayn) amongst you...: the Book of God - which is a rope between Him and you, whose one end is in His hand and whose other end is in your hands ­ so act according to its muhkamat and believe in its mutashabihat; consider as lawful that which it regards as lawful and consider as forbidden that which it regards as unlawful - and my ‘Itrah and my Ahlul Bayt, who are the second thaql. So don't outstrip them (fa la tasbiquhum), for then you shall perish."

Unfortunately in the printed versions of it fa la tasbiquhum has been altered as fa la tasbi’uhum (a meaningless expression). This tradition has also been narrated by:

1. Abu Hayyan in his tafsir, al-­Bahr al-­muhit, i, 12 (with identical wording, except that in a published version of it there is fa la tasubbuhum, i.e. so don't curse them, instead of fa la tasbiquhum);

2. Ibn Hajar, al-­Sawa’iq al-­muhriqah, 75, 136;

3. Yahya ibn al-­Hasan, Akhbar al-­Madinah with his isnad from Jabir, as cited in Yanabi’ al-mawaddah, 40.

4. In the Prophet's Chamber During His Last Illness

Ibn Abi Shaybah, as cited by Al-­‘Isami in Simt al-­nujum al-awali, ii, 502, no. 136, has narrated the following tradition:

أخرج الحافظ ابن أبي شيبة أن النبي صلى الله عليه وسلم قال في مرض موته, أيها الناس, يوشك أن أقبض قبضا سريعا فينطلق بي، وقد قدّمت إليكم القول معذرةً إليكم، ألا إني مخلّف فيكم الثقلين: كتاب الله عزّ وجل وعترتي. ثم أخذ بيد علي فرفعها فقال: هذا علي مع القرآن والقرآن مع علي، لا يفترقان حتى يردا عليَّ الحوض فأسألهما ما خلفت فيهما

The Messenger of Allah (S) said during his last illness: "Soon I am going to pass away and I have extended to you my plea of excuse. Lo, verily I leave behind amongst you two precious things: the Book of Allah, the Almighty and the Glorious, and my kindred (‘Itrah)." Then he took ‘Ali's hand and raised it, saying, "This ‘Ali is with the Qur'an and the Qur'an is with ‘Ali. The two will not separate until they return to me by the Pond. Then I will ask the two as to how they were treated after me."

Among the narrators of this tradition are:

1. al-­Bazzaz, Musnad, as mentioned in Kashf al-astar, iii, 221, no. 2612;

2. Muhammad ibn Ja’far al-­Razzaz, from Umm Salamah (where she is explicit that the Prophet [S] made this pronouncement in his chamber which was filled by the Companions), as cited in Wasilat al-­ma'al;

3. Al-Azhari, Tahdhib al-­lughah, ix, 78;

4. al-­Khatib al-­Khwarazmi, Maqtal al-­Husayn (A), i, 164, from Ibn ‘Abbas;

5. Ibn Hajar, al-­Sawa’iq al-­muhriqah, 89, from Umm Salamah.

Note

1. See al-Sayyid `Abd al-Aziz al-­Tabataba'i "Ahlul Bayt (A) fi al-­maktabat al-Arabiyyah," Turathuna, No. 15 (4th year, 2nd issue), pp. 84 - 93.