Section 4: The Nobility of the Ahl al-Bayt and What Is Obligatory Toward Them, Free from Antipathy and Extremism

The Ahl al-Bayt are the members of his household upon whom Sadaqah (charity) has been made unlawful. They are the family of'All, the family of Ja'far, the family of ‘Aqll, the family of al-'Abbas, Banu harith bin 'Abdul-Mutallib, the wives of the Prophet Hi and his children, because of the statement of Allah - the “...A llah wishes only to remove Ar-Rijs (evil deeds and sin, etc.) from you, O members of the family /o f the Prophet ], and to purify you with a thorough purification. ” (Qur’an 33: 33) Imam Ibn Kathir said: ‘That wherein there is no doubt upon contemplating the Qur ’an is that, the wives o f the Prophet Hi are included in the statement o f Allah - the Most..Allah wishes only to remove Ar-Rijs (evil deeds and sin, etc.) from you, O members of the family [of the Prophet Hi], and to purify you with a thorough purification. ” (Qur’an 33:33) This is because the context o f the discussion is about them. This is why He said thereafter: “And remember [O you members (wives) of the Prophet’s family, the Graces of your Lord], that which is recited in your houses of the Verses of Allah and Al-Hikmah (i.e. Prophet’s Sunnah)... ” (Qur’an 33: 34) m That is, act by that which Allah, Blessed and Exalted, revealed upon His Messenger in your houses (houses of the wives of the Prophet,) of the Qur ’ an and the Sunnah. Qatadah and others have mentioned this Remember (O wives of the Prophet) this grace, which you have been selectively favored amongst mankind, by the revelation descending in your houses and not that of other people. 'A’ishah

4. the truthful, daughter of the truthful (Abu Bakr), is the foremost of them in this grace, for revelation never came to the Messenger of Allah in a bed other than hers has he SI has mentioned. Some scholars have said: “This is because he did not marry a virgin besides her, and no man ever slept with her in her bed other than him Ik [i.e. she never married anyone other than him]. Thus it was appropriate that she be selectively favored with this distinction, and be peerless in this most lofty station. However, since his wives are members of his household, his kinfolk were more deserving of this appellation (i.e. Ahl The Ahl as-Sunnah wal Jama‘ah love the members of the household of the Messenger of Allah and take them as allies. They preserve regarding them, the legacy of the Messenger of Allah 5 whence he said on the day of GhadJr Khum flit. Khum’s Brook)20 So, the Ahl as-Sunnah love them and honor them because that itself is loving and honoring the Prophet This is with the condition that they follow the Sunnah and are steadfast upon the path (of Islam), as their predecessors such as al-Abbas and his clan, and 'All and his clan. As for he who contravenes the Sunnah and is not steadfast upon the religion, it is not permissible to take him as an ally, even if he be of the Ahl al-Bayt. ‘Tafslr Ibn Kathir ’ 20 It is the eighteenth day of Dhul-Hijjah. This stream was named after a man known as Khum. It is on the road between Makkah and Madinah, near Juhfah. The Messenger halted there on his way from the Farewell pilgrimage and addressed the people there. He said: "I remind you of Allah concerning the members of my household" thrice. That is, remember Allah; remember to fear Him and His punishment if you fail to keep their rights, and remember His mercy and reward if you maintain their 21 Reported by Muslim 7 admonish you regarding my family.'2' The position of the Ahl as-Sunnah wal Jama ‘ah regarding the A hi al-Bayt is one of moderation and fairness; they take as allies the people of Din (religion) and steadfastness amongst them and dissociate from anyone of them who contravenes the Sunnah and deviates from the religion, even though he be one of the Ahl al- Bayt. His being of the Ahl al-Bayt and closeness to the Messenger will benefit him naught, till he is steadfast upon the religion of Allah. Abu Hurayrah narrated ‘When the following verse was revealed to the Messenger of Allah (k: “And warn your tribes [O Muhammad IkJ of near kindred. ” (Qur’an He stood up and said: 'O Quraysh - or something similar - purchase your souls (by believing in Islamic Monotheism and doing good deeds), I will not avail you aught before Allah. O 'Abbas bin 'Abdul Mutallib! I will not avail you aught before Allah, O Safiyyah, paternal aunt of the Messenger of Allah Ik! I will not avail you aught before Allah. O Fdtimah, daughter o f Muhammad! Request from me (now) of my wealth whatever you please, I will not avail you aught before Allah.’22 And the hadith: ‘Whoever is sluggish with his deeds, his lineage will not benefit him.’23 22 Reported by al-Bukhan 23 Reported by Muslim Ahl-us-Sunnah wal Jama'ah dissociate from the way of the Rafidah (Shiite sect), who go to extremes regarding the Ahl al-Bayt and claim infallibility for them. The Ahl-us-Sunnah wal Jama'ah also dissociate from the way of the Nawasib who display enmity towards the steadfast amongst the Ahl al-Bayt and blemish their characters. The Ahl as-Sunnah wal Jama'ah also dissociate from the way of the innovators and superstitious people who make Tawassul with the Ahl al-Bayt and take them as lords besides Allah. In regards to this matter and others, the Ahl-us-Sunnah wal Jama ah are upon the methodology of moderation and the straight path, which is devoid of excessiveness, laxity, stupidity and of extremism regarding the rights of Ahl al- Bayt and others besides them. The steadfast ones amongst the Ahl al-Bayt, disapprove of extremism about their persons and dissociate themselves from such extremists. The Leader of the bin AbT Talib 4® burnt those who went to extremism regarding him in a fire and Ibn 'Abbas

4. supported him in killing them, but viewed that they should have been killed with the sword, rather than being burnt. Also, 'AIT sought after 'Abdullah bin Saba’, the leader of these extremists in order to kill him, but he fled and went into hiding.