The Prophet's knowledge-keepers of
his companions have known too well that I opposed Allah in
nothing that He ordained nor did I oppose His Messenger even for
an hour at all and I used to console him in situations wherein
heroes were reluctant to proceed in obeying his order and their
feet failed to step forward for rescue-at this juncture, Allah
honored me by crowning my effort with success and the Messenger
of Allah had passed away while his head was resting on my breast
and his soul had melted on my hand-palm and let it go over my
face before being raised up to its Creator, then I undertook the
act of washing him with the help of the angels who filled the
area of the house and its corners with hubbub of their presence,
some descending and some ascending with my ears engaged with
hearing their prayers around him until we finished his burial
proceeding.
So, who has more right than me
whether he be alive or dead. Refer to your consciences and deepen
your insight into the matter and purify your intentions in
fighting against your enemy. So, by Allah in Whom I have faith I
swear that I am on the right path and that they are on the track
of falsehood. I say what you hear and I request Allah to forgive
me and you."
The source and the spring of
prophet-hood and Imamate is not the only element of participation
between them but we also find the spiritual relationship between
the Messenger and Imam Ali (P.B.U.H.) as the most prominent
factor in that participation for it surpassed the outward frame
in a way suggestive of belonging to the Quranic description which
envisaged that relationship as self-to self- relationship as in
the following Quranic verse:"Then whoever disputes with you
concerning him (Jesus) after (all this) knowledge that has come
to you (Jesus being a slave of Allah, and having no share in
Divinity), say: O Muhammad! "Come, let us call our sons and your
sons, our women and your women, ourselves and yourselves, then we
pray and invoke (sincerely) the Curse of Allah upon those who
lie." (Aal Umran:61)
This relationship is but
complementary relationship without the slightest doubt and this
indeed what we understand from the previous Quranic exposition
for it is the guide and the proof of the mutual marriage of
thoughts and the spiritual and intellectual harmonization as a
prelude for completeness between prophet-hood and the
Imamate.
There may be–in what Imam Ali has
mentioned-(P.B.U.H.) a wonderful approach to this understanding
for he described the nature of the relationship with the
Messenger (P.B.U.H.) in what he said: "And I am with respect to
Allah's Messenger an equal to equal and an arm to humerus and the
"twin" i.e. the two date-palms whose origin is one, and this
'nearness' to each other expresses the complementary twin-like
relationship which is based on a number of
things.
We can sum them up in what is
following below:
The First Image:
Unity of Origin and then comes the
Unity of Program with gradual difference between them and
according to the complementary development between prophet-hood
and Imamate and rather similarity between the arm and the humerus
is but an indication that there is no separation between the
Messenger and the Imam (P.B.U.T.) in other words between
prophet-hood and Imamate. This state of being can also be applied
to the image of the 'twin' date-palms which both stem from but
one origin.
The Second Image:
The relationship which Imam Ali
has meant (P.B.U.H.) is not restricted to Imamate in its
independent meaning only which complements prophet-hood but to
the role the Imam can play in backing up the Prophet and
prophet-hood; therefore, the sense of completion here starts with
the starting-points of the Prophetic introductions to its
missionary career.
This, indeed, will interpret to us
the style Imam Ali (P.B.U.H.) employs when he said: "And I
am from Allah's Messenger…" that is to say: His actual position
during the existence of the Prophet himself and after holding the
post of the Imamate, too."
The Third Image
It is a speech which reflects the
nature of the urgent need of educating the people axioms and they
are those which deal with the nature of the relationship between
the Messenger and Imam Ali (P.B.U.T.) and its kind which denotes
the brutal attack against the program of right which is
represented by the Prophet's pure progeny
(P.B.U.T.)
Imam Ali (P.B.U.H.) turns to
another image of twin-like similarity and spiritual marriage with
the Messenger (P.B.U. H.) which is an image of moralistic
materialistic nearness at the last moments of life and which
contains a thought outside kinship and comradeship frame and
enters into another frame-embodying the completeness which is now
under study.
This nearness or intimacy at that
crucial moment is a function and a condition and has nothing to
do with formalities and from this very point we discern the
strictness of Imam Ali's speech. (P.B.U.H.) and has got several
shades of meaning for he said: "And the soul of Allah's Messenger
has been taken with his head on my breast and his 'self' melted
on my hand-palm and passed it through my face."
We can roughly gather these
meanings in the following points.
Firstly:
It is an indication to the
materialistic nearness which necessitates confrontation and
direct attention whether in recommendations or other
things.
For this reason, the materialistic
nearness is among the most important introductions of moralistic
nearness we mean to demonstrate.
Secondly:
The terms used by Imam Ali
(P.B.U.H.) suggests and indicates dual sense of completion
between prophet-hood and Imamate as we have already mentioned.
There is no other moralistic interpretation to his speech."
(PB.U.H.) and his 'self' had melted over my hand – palm and I
passed it over my face" which indicates nothing but spiritual
continuation and completion together with the ongoing missionary
deed.
This spirit of continuity
originally springs from the Messenger's self (P.B.U.H.) as well
as -- all other Imams (P.B.U.H.).
Thirdly:
Imam Ali's following saying: "And
the Messenger's soul was taken away (P.B.U.H.) with his head
resting on my breast." seems to be bearing an indication or
you can say an allusion to the allegation which says that this
matter took place with Aesha, the Messenger's wife especially
after we had already cited the matter to you… that the image of
bidding farewell to the dead one or having the last meeting with
him goes out of its normal way to enter into the domain of equal
to equal accounts between the Prophet and the Imam (P.B.U.T.);
otherwise, the existence of Lady Zahra (P.B.U.H.) instead of the
Imam, would have been a necessity in such
situations.
But Lady Zahra (P.B.U.H.) realizes
the meaning, concept and necessity of that meeting and its
intellectual inspirations on the whole and with what can ensure
the continuity of the heavenly mission.
The other stage of proving --this
equal to equal trait -- between the Prophet and the Imam which is
exclusively owned by Imam Ali (P.B.U.H.) with regard to his
relationship with the Prophet is the stage of washing, dressing
him the shroud and the special right he owns in dealing with the
angels and this is the result or one of the effects of that sense
of spiritual completion and a prelude for undertaking the task of
the heavenly mission via holding the post of
the-Imamate.
He (P.B.U.H.) said: "It was I who
undertook the duty of washing him - with the angels as my
helpers: the house with the corridor and the courtyard were all
filled with the hubbub of the angels who were seen descending and
ascending and thus I left none without having heard his voice and
all were in a state of praying for him until we had him buried
and covered with earth in his holy tomb so who has got more right
than me in him whether dead or alive?!
So deepen your insight into the
matter and be true to your intensions in your holy fight against
your enemy for I swear to you by the One who has no deity beside
him that I am really on the right path and that they are on the
slippery way of falsehood. I say to you what you now hear of me
and I request Allah to forgive me and forgive you."
But some may find the act of Imam
Ali's washing the body of the Prophet as normal and customary in
the view of the family of the dead one for they consider Imam Ali
as the closest relative of the Prophet and this is, on the whole,
as they see it, a materialistic approach to this subject-matter
but this just justification stands against the truth if we put
into our consideration the following two points:
The First Point:
This social rule cannot be applied
on the infallible but only on the rest of the people. The
infallible must not be washed and prayed for except an infallible
one like him and that washing and that prayer both stand as
practical assertion of his successive Imamate and the
infallibility of the washer and prayer performer.
The Second Point:
Imam Ali (P.B.U.H.) himself didn't
mention the matter of the washing to others except for sake of
affirming the proof by stating to them his full right to hold the
post of legal guardianship of the people within his Imamate
because the recognition of doing this deed will suffice to
recognize that morale inheritance, as this has come through his
saying: (P.B.U.H.) " Who among you, alive or dead has more right
than me of his affairs, indicating (the act of "washing" him) to
confirm his full right.
The proposal of Imam Ali
(P.B.U.H.) gives us this angelic atmosphere which nobody can
discern its essence or one can imagine it save Imam Ali, himself
as though it is a formal appointment and an official announcement
denoting the starting point of the Imams' mission to take effect
and put into practice especially when we got to know that the
angels were cooperative in the process of washing the Messenger's
body for this is obvious when he said:
"And I undertook the task of
washing him with the help of the angels who rather availed
themselves the opportunity of renewing the pledge of their
allegiance to him and to his trustful successor after him. The
words of the Imam (P.B.U.H.) bore special allusions
signifying the spiritual complementation with Allah's Messenger
(P.B.U.H.)
We can sum up in the theme in the
following aspects below:
The side with whom the matter is
concerned is the
"The House of Prophet-hood" which
is renowned as a house glowing with heavenly knowledge and
brilliant lights and this in fact what the Imam has meant to
assert about the angels who some were ascending and some
descending; therefore, this is a message to the parasitic
intruders against this honorable character.
The Imam wanted to turn the
people's attention to his distinguished intimacy and nearness to
the Messenger of Allah and his moralistic inheritance of him -
well manifested when he said in the presence of the angels in
front of him:
"And never slipped my ear any of
part of their invocations and prayers which they performed during
their presence until we completed his burial process and this is
a matter which no claimers, whatsoever, can deny or claim the
opposite.
The Imam (P.B.U.H.) spared no
effort in distinguishing the front of the truth from the front of
falsehood on the whole. To be acquainted with the qualities and
characters of each front will lead to know both the followers of
truth and the followers of falsehood.
This is what we clearly feel in
his conclusive speech (P.B.U.H.) with the people i.e. the result
which he wanted them to know by submitting the subject of
"washing" Allah's Messenger (P.B.U.H.).
"By Allah with Whom no deity is
there, I swear I am on the path of truth while they are on the
slippery way of falsehood. I say and you hear what I say and mean
and I request Allah to forgive me and forgive you" and his
swearing in, here, is to make it stand as proof on them before
Allah, to Whom be ascribed all glory and perfection.
Sun -
22 Jamadilawal 1446H -
