Abdu 'l-Ghaffar bin al-Qasim
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Muhammad bin Ishaq
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Salma bin al-Fadhl
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Muhammed ibn Humayd
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Salayman al-Amash
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Salma bin Salim al-Ju'fi
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Muhammed al-Jurura'i
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Muhammed al-Baghandi
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Abu 'l-Mufadhdhal
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a group
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At-Tusi |
This clearly shows that what has come to be recognized as the earliest and the most authentic historical account is not free from bias in ignoring certain events and in narrating others.
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1. Abu Ja'far at-Tusi, Kitabu 'l-Amali, vol.2 (Najaf: Maktabatu 'l-haydari, 1964) p.194-196.
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Ibn Ishaq himself has been accused of having Shi'te leanings. If true, this could be one of he considerations that prompted Ibn Hisham to omit the iterms tha he thought supported the Shi'ite cause. However, al-Khatib al-Baghdadi in Ta'rikh Baghdad and Ibn Sayyidi 'n-Nas in Uyumu 'l-Athar, both Sunni historians, have defended Ibn Ishaq against all kinds of accusations including that of having Shi'ite learning.1
4. Self-Censorship by At-Tabari
The case of Muhammed bin Jarir at-Tabari (d. 310 AH) is even more interesting. The event of Da'wat dhi 'l-Ashira given above is based on the version of at-Tabari's monumental work in history; Ta'rikhu 'l-Umam wa 'l-Muluk. At-Tabari has also authored a famous commentary of the Qur'an: Jami'u 'l-Bayan 'an Ta'will Ayai 'l-Qur'an. It is interesting to compare the history of at-Tabari with his Qur'anic commentary in relation to the present topic.
أدعوكم إليه فأيكم يوازرني على هذا الأمر على أن يكون أخي ووصيي وخليفتي فيكم قل فاحجم القوم عنها جميعا وقلت واني لاحدثم سنا وارمصهم عينا واعظمهم بطنا واحمشهم ساقا انا يا نبي الله أكون زيرك عليه فاخذ برقفبتي ثم قال أن هذا اخي ووصيي وخليفتي فيكم فاسمعوا له واطيعوا قال فقام القوم يضحكون
Tabari's Ta'rikh, vol.3 (1879 edition) p.1173.
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1. See the introduction to as-Sirah an-Nabawiyya, vol.1. P, 15=17; also see Guillaume, The life of Muhammed, p.xxxiv-xxxviii.
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In his Ta'rikh, at-Tabari has quoted the words used by the Prophet for 'Ali in the Feast in its entirely :
اخي و وصي و خليفتي
"akhhi wa wasiyyi wa khalifati
my brother, my successor, my caliph."1
But in his at-Ta'will (vol.19, p.74), while discussing the relevant verse in which jthe Prophet was ordered to call his relations to Islam, at-Tabari exercises self-censorship and has concealed the clear and the explicit impact of the Prophet's words by recording it as a follows :
اخي وكذا وكذا
akhhi wa kadha wa kadha
my brother, and so and so and so".
Ibn Kathir another famous Damascene author of al-Bidayah wa an-Nihaya (vol.3, p.40), has used the Ta'rikh of at-Tabari as his main reference. However, When he comes to the event of the Feast, he abandons the the Ta'rikh of at-Tabari and uses the altered version of Jami'u l-Bayan of at-Tabari. This is not suprising since it is known that Ibn Kathir had anti-Shi'a sentiments.
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1. See the 1879 edition of E.J Brill, Leiden (vol.3, p.1173), the 1908 edition of Daru 'l-Qamusi 'l-Hadith, Cairo (vol.1 & 2 p.217), also the 1961 edition of Daru 'l-Ma'arif, Cairo, edited by Muhammed Abu 'l-fadl Ibrahim (vol 2. p.321) in which the original words are intact Even at-Tabari's 1988 English translation published by State University of New York. vol.6 (translatior: WM Watt and MV Mc Donald) p.90-91 has maintained original words of the Prophet without any omission.
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5. Self-Censorship in Modern Times
A modern writer of Egypt, Dr, Muhammed Husayn Haykal, wrote a famous book in the Prophet's biography known as Hayat Muhammed. Haykal had first Published the Prophet's biography in his weekly paper as-Siyasa. The event of the Feast was pulished in the supplement of issue # 2751 (12 Dhu 'l-Qa'dah 1350) p.5, column 2. One of his critics wrote a letter to the paper accusing Haykal of using Shi'ite sources for that statement about Imam 'Ali. Haykal responds to this occusation in the supplement of issue # 2758, p.6, column 4, by denying that he used a Shi'ite source "since all traditions do speak of this behaviour or 'Ali" and quotes the hadith from Sahih of Muslim, Musnad of Ahamed and others.1
Haykal resisted the presure to omit the Prophet's statement about Ali when the biography was finally printed in a book form. In the first edition of Hayat Muhameead, Haykal narrtes the event of the feast at follows:
... When they had finished eating, he {the Prophet} said th them, I do not knw any person among the Arabs who has come to his people with something better than what I have come to you; I have come
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1. Antonie Wessels, A Morden Arabic Biography of Muhammad (Leiden; EJ Brill, 1972) p.223, 245; also see Abdu l-Hassayn ar-Razi (Beirut; n.p.1982) p.189.
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to you with the best of this world and the hereafter. My Lord has ordered me to call you unto him.
"So who among you will help me in this matter, so that he may be my brother, my successor, and my caliph among you?"
"All of the turned away from his and wanted to leave him but 'Ali stood up although he was still a child who had not reached maturity and said, 'O Messenger of Allah, I shall be your helper I will help you against whomsoever you fight. The Banu Hashim smiled, some of the laughed, and their eyes moved from Abu Talib to his son; and then they left in the state of ridicule."1
القوم ليقوموا . ودعاهم محمد في الغداة كرة أخرى ؛ فلما طعموا قال لهم : ما أعلم إنساناً في العرب جاء قومه بأفضل بما جئتكم به ، قد جئتكم بخير الدنيا والآخرة . وقد أمرنى ربى أن أدعوكم إليه . فأيكم يؤازرنى على هذا الأمر وأن يكون أخى ووصّي وخليفتي فيكم ؟ فأعرضوا عنه وهموّا يتركه . لكن عليّا نهض وما يزال صبيّا دون الحلم وقال : « أنا يا رسول الله عونك ، أنا حرب على من حاربت » . فابتسم بنو هاشم وقهقه بعضهم . وجعل نظرهم ينتقل من أبى طالب إلى ابنه ، ثم انصرفوا مستهزئين .
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1. Haykal, Hayat Muhammed (Cairo: 1st edition ) p.104.
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In the second edition, Haykal seems to have given into the pressure of the bigots and even deleted tha crucial words of the Prophet and just wrote: "... he said to them, '... So who among you will help me in this matter? All of them turned from him..."1
حياة محمد
ليقوموا . ودعاهم محمد في الغداة كّرةً أخرى . فلما طعموا قال لهم : ما أعلم إنسان في العرب جاء قومه بأفضل مما جئتكم به ؟ قد جئتكم بخير الدنيا والآخرة . وقد أمرنى ربى أن أدعوكم اليه . فأيّكم يؤازرنى على هذا الأمر ؟ فأعرضوا عنه وهمّوا بتركه . لكن عليّا نهض ، وهو ما يزال صبيا دون الحلم ، وقال : " أنا يا رسول الله عونك ، أنا حربٌ على من حاربت " . فابتسم بنو هاشم وقهقه بعضهم ، وجعل نظرهم يتنقّل من أبى طالب الى ابنه ، ثم انصرفوا مستهزئين .
This clearly show that he doesn't doubt the actual "Summoning of the Family" event but he lacked the intellectual courage to stand by the logical conclusion of his initial findings in the study of history.
6. The Isnad of "Summoning the Family"
The opponents of the Shi'a view naturally have tried to question the credibility of some of the narrators of this famous event.
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1. Haykal, Hayat Muhammed (Cairo 2nd edition, 1354) p.139-140.
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Ibn Taymiyya, well known for his anti-Shi'a sentiments, has adamantly declared it to be a fabricated hadth, He has attacked the credibility of 'Abd al-Ghaffar bin Qasim known as Abu Maryam al Kufi.1 Abu Maryam is the source of Ibn Ishaq in narrating the event of "Summoning the Family". However, the only basis for questioning the credibility of Abu Maryam is his Shi'a links; but, as any unbiased person knows, that is not a sufficient aground to reject his narration. Shi'a biographers of narrators have counted him among the reliable narrarots of hadith from the fouth, fifth, and sixth Shi'a Imams (as).2
Salma bin al-Fadhl (d. 191), the foremost disciple of Ibn Ishaq, is also recognised as credible in narrating the Prophet's biography from his master. He is quoted as saying, "I have heare the al-Maghazi from Ibn Ishaq two times," and he is well known among the scholars of hadith for historical narration from Ibn Ishaq. 3 According to Muta' at-Tarabishi, Salma bn al-Fadhl's narration of historical nature are accepted by all.4 Ibn Mu'in says, "Salma (bin al-Fadhl) al-Abrash ar-Razi was a Shi'i as already written and there is no defect in him ... Abu Zuhra says, "The People of Ray did not like
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1. Ibn Taymiyya, Minhaju 's-Sunnah, vol.4 (Cairo: al-Mathba'atu 'l-kubra al-Amiriyya, 1322) p.81.
2. Sayyid Abu 'l-Qasim al-khu'l, Mu'jam Rijali 'l-Hadith, vol.10 (Beirut; Madinatu l-Ilm, 1983) p.55-56.
3. Mut at-Tarabshi, Ruwat Muhammed bin Ishaq bin Yasar fi 'l-Maghazi wa s-Siyar wa Sa'iri 'l-Marwiyat (Damascus: Daru 'l-Fikr, 1994) p.149.
4. Ibid.
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him because of his undesrable [ i,e, Shi'a] beliefs."'1 Adh-Dhahabi writes the following about Salma: "He was steadfast in prayer and full of himility in his beliefs; he died in 191 A. D."'2
Shaykh Salim al-Bishri had raised the issue why al-Bukhari and Muslim fo not mention this tradition in their Sahihs. Sharafu 'd-Din al-Musawi responded as follows:
"The tradition conflict with the views of the two Shaykhs, Bukhari and Mulim, in respect of the Caliphate and that is why they have not recorded it in their Sahihs. They have also scrupulously avoided recording a number of other geniune tradtions which stipulated the Caliphate in favor of Amir al-Mu'minin lest the same serve as a weapon in the hands of the Shi'as, and so intentionally concealed the truth. Not noly Bukhari and Muslim but also many other Shaykhs (i. e, senior traditionists) among the Ahl al-Sunnah followed this practixde.. They used to conceal everything of this nature and are well known for thisr creed of concealment of facts (favouring Ali and the Ahl al-Bayt). Hafiz Ibn Hajar has related this from them in Fath al-Bari...
"Anyone who knows the behaviour of Bukhari towards Amir al-Mu'minin and other members of the Ahl al-Bayt also knows that his pen invariably omits
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1. S. Sharafu d-Din al-Musawi, al-Muraji'at, p.129; also its English translation by M. A. H. Khan. The Path (Blanco, Texas: Zahra Publication, 1986) p.85-86.
2. Adh-Dhahabi, Mizanu l-I tidal, vol.2 (Egypt, Dar Ihay'i l-Kutubi l-Arabiyya, n,d,) p.192.
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mentioning the clear traditions of the Holy Prophet in their favour, and that his ink dries up before relating their distinguished, execellent qualities and one will not be surprised at his skipping over this and other similar tradtions. There is neither might nor power but by Allah, the High and the Great."
7. Conclusion
This brief review on the self-censorship that was exercised by the early historians and compilers of hadith proves that absence of an event in the well known "early" books of Islamic history and hadith does not necessarily mean that that that event is a later invention by the Shi'as or is not considerred credible. One must go beyond the artificial limits of "early" and official histoy of the Muslim people and also study the other "non-orthodox" source to fully comprehend the real life drama that unfolded in the early days of the history of Islam.