In the Name of Allah, the Most Compassionate, the Most Merciful This is the first sermon of Friday, delivered on 2 October 2015.
Ghadir and Wilāyah are not about contesting the issue of succession; rather, they are about following the Imam.
The books of history and biography record that when the Messenger of Allah ﷺ returned from what became known as the Farewell Pilgrimage, in the final year before Allah, the Exalted, called him back to Himself, there occurred the well-known event of Ghadir.
There, the Prophet halted the caravan, took the hand of the Commander of the Faithful, Imam ʿAli, and declared:
“O Allah, whoever takes me as his master, then ʿAli is his master. O Allah, befriend whoever befriends him, oppose whoever opposes him, support whoever supports him, and forsake whoever forsakes him.”
The exact wording varies slightly according to different narrations.
From that day onwards, people differed regarding the meaning of these words. In particular, they differed over the meaning of the Prophet’s supplication, “Befriend whoever befriends him.”
Some understood walāyah here to mean love, loyalty, obedience, and reverence. Others understood it to mean authority and succession — namely, that Imam ʿAli was to assume the position of leadership after the Messenger of Allah ﷺ.
Both interpretations share a common foundation. Whether one speaks of walāyah in the sense of love, loyalty, obedience, and support, or wilāyah in the sense of governance and authority — as when a ruler appoints someone over a city or a province — the discussion remains centred on the relationship between leadership and allegiance.
As for political authority and worldly governance, which exist to organise society, establish justice, and secure the rights of those unable to obtain them for themselves, history books contain extensive disagreement and conflict regarding this matter if that is the intended meaning of wilāyah.
What remains beyond all such disputes is the original and primary meaning of walāyah: love, obedience, support, and cooperation.
Countless authors have filled volumes, and generations of Muslims have spent their lives debating the issue of succession — who was entitled to it and who was not. Upon this debate were built legal rulings, responses, counter-responses, and polemics that, in turn, produced much resentment, hostility, and division.
Yet if one were to examine the words of the Commander of the Faithful, Imam ʿAli ibn Abi Talib himself, it would become clear that he did not contend with others over this matter, nor did he call upon people to fight or wage war on his behalf.
He said:
“You know well that I have a greater claim to it than anyone else. Yet, by Allah, I shall continue to cooperate so long as the affairs of the Muslims remain sound.”
In these words, Imam ʿAli placed the welfare of the Muslim community above his own personal interest: “I shall continue to cooperate so long as the affairs of the Muslims remain sound.”
Some people, however, seeking to stir emotions and inflame sentiments, employ language that deeply affects people's hearts. They speak of the injustices suffered by Imam ʿAli and his family and use these events as a banner of perpetual grievance, attempting to mobilise people under the slogan of victimhood in pursuit of restoring a supposedly lost right.
But if the very person who possessed that right willingly set it aside for the sake of preserving the unity and wellbeing of the Muslim community, then such claims deserve careful reflection.
He further states:
“You know well that I have a greater claim to it than anyone else. Yet, by Allah, I shall continue to cooperate so long as the affairs of the Muslims remain sound, and no injustice falls upon anyone but myself, seeking thereby the reward and virtue of Allah, and turning away from the glitter and adornments over which you compete.”
If the hardship concerned him personally, how then can it be claimed that the entire age was one of universal oppression?
The Imam also says:
“Nations have come to fear the injustice of their rulers, while I have come to fear injustice from my own people.”
If a person considers himself among the Imam’s followers and subjects, then he should pause before these words. The usual expectation is that people fear the injustice of those who govern them, yet Imam ʿAli reverses the picture and says: “I have come to fear the injustice of my subjects.”
How then can anyone use this matter as a pretext to provoke hostility, sow discord, and kindle enmity among Muslims over an issue which the one most entitled to it himself chose not to pursue for the sake of the greater good?
This day — the Day of Ghadir — holds a distinguished place in history. Poets have written about it extensively, authors have devoted volumes to it, and historians have recorded its details in abundance. Were all that has been written on the subject gathered together, it would fill entire libraries.
The question before us today is this: how should we understand Ghadir?
Should it be a return to conflict and division, at a time when our enemies would welcome nothing more than to see Muslims occupied by such disputes?
Does the walāyah of the Commander of the Faithful, Imam ʿAli ibn Abi Talib, require anything other than following his example and obeying his guidance?
It means being effective amongst your people; speaking truthfully and acting accordingly. When a person's deeds reflect his words, he becomes among those who have truly befriended and followed Imam ʿAli.
Walāyah is not confined to disputing historical claims to political leadership, nor to endlessly revisiting controversies of the distant past.
Indeed, since the abolition of the Caliphate in 1924, the institution itself no longer exists. The title disappeared, and the political structure associated with it ceased to function.
Are we then to continue quarrelling over something that no longer has any practical existence in our age?
The reality of walāyah on the Day of Ghadir — and on every other day — does not depend solely upon the Prophet’s declaration.
If a person truly loves the Messenger of Allah ﷺ and the Pure Members of his Household, then some trace of that love must become visible in his conduct.
Love must manifest itself through obedience.
It must appear through following their example.
It must be reflected in one's character and behaviour.
Walāyah is not merely a word we invoke whenever we wish, nor a slogan by which we count ourselves among the followers of Ahl al-Bayt.
If our loyalty is not visible through obedience to them, through embodying the qualities they described in their followers — modesty, righteousness, honesty, trustworthiness, and noble character — then our claim remains incomplete.
True walāyah is found in such qualities.
True allegiance is found there.
As Imam al-Sadiq (peace be upon him) taught:
“Our followers are only those who are mindful of Allah and obey Him. They are recognised by their humility, good character, truthful speech, and faithful fulfilment of trusts.”
Through such qualities a person becomes one of the people of walāyah.
Without them, he merely makes a claim unsupported by proof and an assertion without evidence.
- Walāyah is not a phrase to be uttered whenever we please.
- Nor is it a banner to be raised in pursuit of whatever objectives we desire.
- Where are we in comparison to the asceticism of the Commander of the Faithful?
- Where are we in comparison to his manners?
- Where are we in comparison to his devotion and deeds?
People acknowledged that they could not attain his level, yet he still instructed them:
“Indeed, you cannot achieve what I have achieved, but assist me through piety and diligent striving.”
Walāyah is realised through obedience to Allah, the Exalted.
If, as many scholars have stated, it is among the conditions of salvation, then it is as expressed by the great scholar Shaykh Sulayman Ahmad (may Allah envelop him in His mercy and good pleasure):
The condition of salvation, according to the guidance that has been transmitted from the rightly guided ones,
Is the sincerity of allegiance to the one for whom Allah Himself has ordained allegiance.
Thus, the obligation of wilāyah is fulfilled through obedience, noble character, righteous action, and following the example of the one whom you claim to love and support.
It is not a phrase to be placed wherever one wishes.
Nor is it a banner to be raised whenever one chooses.
The true walī is the obedient servant.
Whoever loves the Messenger of Allah ﷺ and obeys him has been sincere in his allegiance.
As for the one who claims allegiance without demonstrating it through his conduct, then people naturally await from him some action that confirms the truthfulness of his claim.
As Shaykh Sulayman Ahmad said: “The sincerity of allegiance...”
And sincerity is only proven through deeds and actions.
When a person speaks and then acts in accordance with his words, his sincerity becomes evident.
But if he speaks without corresponding action, then the observer remains uncertain whether his claim should be accepted, questioned, or regarded as genuine.
The reality of walāyah is to be obedient.
Whether one chooses afterwards to study the historical question of succession or not is secondary.
What walāyah does not permit is attacking others without sound evidence — evidence that is rational, scholarly, and historically demonstrable.
This is the lesson of Ghadir, a day about which poets have spoken extensively and authors have written at great length.
This is the true meaning of walāyah.
As Imam al-Sadiq (peace be upon him) stated:
“There are only two kinds of wilāyah: the Wilāyah of Allah and the wilāyah of Satan.”
A person may be removed from the Walāyah of Allah through actions he considers insignificant or trivial.
Among these is the narration from the Imam:
“Whoever relates something about his brother intending thereby to disgrace him, destroy his dignity, and cause him to fall in the eyes of people, Allah removes him from His Wilāyah and places him under the wilāyah of Satan — and even Satan will not accept him.”
This alone is sufficient as a warning.
It teaches us how a person truly becomes a follower of the Commander of the Faithful and how he becomes a follower of the noble Household of the Messenger of Allah ﷺ.
We ask Allah, the Exalted, to make us and you among those who obey His commands, remember Him abundantly, and do not allow worldly concerns to distract them from His worship.
May He make us among those whose love of this world does not overcome their love of Allah.
May He protect us from allowing obedience to created beings to prevent us from obeying the Creator.
O Allah, send Your blessings upon Muhammad and the Family of Muhammad.
- 3209 views