The Qur`anic expression,...
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Mu' meneen Brothers and Sisters,
As Salaam Aleikum wa Rahmatullahi wa Barakatuh. (May Allah's Peace, Mercy and Blessings be upon all of you)
One of our brothers/sisters has asked this question:
The holy Qur`an says, "Say, I do not ask you for a return excepting the love for the relatives. The Qur`anic expression, 'the love for the relations` according to Shia`s means 'the love for 'Ali, Fatima, Hasan, Husain and their descendents.` (The Panj-Tan Paak). This is corroborated by the saying of Imam Jafar Sadiq which is as follows: "If a servant of God were to worship Him between the 'rukn` and the 'muqam` in the Ka`ba until his physical body begins to dissolve, his devotion will not be recognized by God if he does not approach Him through us." How far this is true?
(There may be some grammatical and spelling errors in the above statement. The forum does not change anything from questions, comments and statements received from our readers for circulation in confidentiality.)
Answer:
Prophet's (saws)Love for near relatives
In the name of Allah, We praise Him, seek His help and ask for His forgiveness. Whoever Allah guides none can misguide, and whoever He allows to fall astray, none can guide them aright. We bear witness that there is no one (no idol, no person, no grave, no prophet, no imam, no dai, nobody!) worthy of worship but Allah Alone, and we bear witness that Muhammad (saws) is His slave-servant and the seal of His Messengers.
Dear Brother, when quoting or relating an aayah from the Holy Quran, one must always read and understand the context in which the aayah was revealed; and at all times, one must quote the full aayah.
Allah says in the Holy Quran Chapter 42 Surah Shuraa verse 23:That (reward) is (the Bounty) whereof Allah gives glad tidings to His Servants, who believe and do righteous deeds. Say (O Prophet): "No reward do I ask of you for this, except the love of those near of kin." And if any one earns any good, We (Allah) shall give him an increase of good in respect thereof; for Allah is Oft-Forgiving, Most Ready to Appreciate (service).
The above verse is from the 42nd Chapter of the Holy Quran, Surah Shuraa; and it is unanimously accepted by all the scholars of Islam, that this Surah was revealed in the later part of the Makkan period. If one reads the aayah in context of the Surah and its period of Revelation, it would be clearly evident that Allah is commanding the Prophet (saws) to say this to the disbelievers amongst the Quraish of Makkah: "No reward do I ask of you for this, except the love of those near of kin."
What the Messenger of Allah is commanded to do is remind the disbelievers amongst the Quraish of Makkah, about the blood-relation that exists between the Prophet (saws) and the disbelievers of the Quraish! He (saws) is commanded by Allah to tell the disbelievers, that he (saws) is asking for no reward or appreciation in any way for the Message that he has brought, but it is only proper that the disbelievers amongst the Quraish, some of whom were closely related to the Prophet (saws), at least honor the ties of kin that exists between him and them; rather than become his worst opponents.
Some people have tried to interpret the above words of the Messenger of Allah (saws) and taken the one phrase 'except the love of those near of kin' out of context from the aayah and the Surah,; and applied it to mean that the Messenger of Allah (saws) is asking the addressees to love Hadrat Ali, Fatema, Hassan, and Hussain (may Allah be pleased with all of them and grant them the highest honor in Paradise.)
This interpretation cannot be accepted and is absolutely incorrect for one of several reasons:
The above Surah, and the specific verse, were revealed in Makkah, and in the context of the Surah, the addressees of this aayah are clearly the disbelievers amongst the Quraish. And it is illogical to assume that the disbelievers, who hated and opposed the Mission of the Prophet (saws) with everything in their power, were being told by the Prophet (saws) that it is fine if they do not accept the Divine Message, but they must love Ali, Fatema, Hassan, Hussain, and their descendants!
At the time of the revelation of this Surah and verse, Hadrat Imam Ali was not yet married to Hadrat Fatima bint Rasool Allah; thus it is impossible that the Messenger of Allah (saws) is telling the disbelievers to love their children, who were not yet born!
In view of the high position of
a Prophet, from which he (saws) starts his
Besides, the fact that some people say that the Messenger of Allah (saws) asked the disbelievers to love his descendants, is in itself, self-contradictory to the first phrase, where the Messenger of Allah (saws) clearly is commanded to tell the disbelievers: "No reward do I ask of you for this...." Asking them to love and respect his descendants, is in itself a reward, and that is self-contradictory to the statement made!
The people who claim that the Messenger of Allah (saws) asked the disbelievers to love his own descendants, just do not understand the noble and high position of the Messenger of Allah (saws)! It does not behove a Prophet of Allah, to seek favors for himself and his family, in return for rendering the Great Mission prescribed by Allah Subhanah!
The only logical interpretation of the verse, in context of the Surah and the Quran, is that the Messenger of Allah (saws) is commanded by the All Mighty, to ignite the sense of tribal honor of the Quraish, and tell them clearly that he (saws) does not seek any reward or worldly benefit from mankind, for the service he was doing in the Cause of Allah. He (saws) is commanded by Allah to simply make them recognize that the atrocities and injustice they were doing to the Prophet (saws) and the believers, was unbecoming of those who claimed to be the best of the Arabs! If they did not believe in the Message revealed to the Prophet (saws), they should at least respect and honor the ties of kinship he (saws) had with them; and allow him to propagate the Noble Mission, instead of fighting him tooth and nail in the Cause of Allah!
Your Question: This is corroborated by the saying of Imam Jafar Sadiq which is as follows: "If a servant of God were to worship Him between the 'rukn` and the 'muqam` in the Ka`ba until his physical body begins to dissolve, his devotion will not be recognized by God if he does not approach Him through us." How far this is true?
It does not behove the noble and truthful Imam Jaafar us-Saadiq, to utter the above words which go directly against the guidance of the Holy Quran! Whoever claims that the Noble Imam Jaafar-us-Saadiq mentioned the above words... is nothing but a manifest liar!
What some unscrupulous people have done, in their own quest for power and a paltry worldly benefit, is attribute a lot of false things and statements to the noble and truthful Imam Jaafar-us-Saadiq after his death! It is absolutely inconceivable that a person and scholar of the stature of Imam Jaafar-us-Sadiq, would ever tell the people to approach Allah through them or anyone else and exhort them to commit 'shirk'!!!!
Allah Subhanah Himself, in several aayahs of the Glorious Quran refutes this practice of invoking Him through anyone.... So how could this noble member of the noble 'ahle-bayt' of the Prophet, command the believers to do anything even remotely connected with the heinous and unforgivable sin of 'shirk'?????
The above statement, cannot be that of the Noble Imam Jaafar-us-Saadiq; but it is rather a mischief invented and created by unscrupulous and power-hungry men, who sold their hereafter to earn this paltry world... and attributed these lies to the noble members of the chaste 'ahle-bayt' of the Messenger of Allah (saws)!!!!
Allah Subhanah clearly mentions all over the Holy Quran, that to approach Him through someone, is manifest Shirk!
Allah says in the Holy Quran Chapter 10 Surah Yunus verses 28-30:On the Day when We will muster them together, We shall say to those who committed 'shirk', "Stay where you are, you and those whom you set up as partners with Us." Then We shall remove the state of strangeness from among them, and the partners they had set up will say, "You did not worship us! Allah suffices as a witness between you and us, and (even if you worshipped us), we were utterly unaware of your worship!" At that time everyone will taste of what he did. All shall be brought back to Allah, their real Lord, and all the lies they had invented will vanish from them!
Allah says in the Holy Quran Chapter16 Surah Nahl verses 86-87:When the people who had committed shirk in this world will see those whom they had made associates with Allah, they will say, "Our Lord, here are those associate-deities whom we used to invoke besides You." At this their deities will retort, "You are liars!" At that time, all of them will proffer submission before Allah, and all that they used to forge in this world shall vanish from them.
Allah says in the Holy Quran Chapter 10 Surah Yunus verse 18:These people serve beside Allah those which can neither harm nor benefit them, and say, "These are our 'shofa'a' (intercessors) with Allah!" (O Mohammed), tell them, "Do you wish to inform Allah of that thing which He knows not in the heavens, or in the earth?" He is absolutely free from, and exalted above the shirk that they commit.
Allah says in the Holy Quran Chapter 39 Surah Zumur verse 2-3:So worship Allah Alone, making your religion His exclusively. Beware! Religion is the exclusive Right of Allah. As for those who have taken other 'auliyas' (guardians) with Allah (and justify their this conduct by saying): "We serve them only that they may bring us closer to Allah." Allah will surely judge between them concerning all that in which they differ. Allah does not show guidance to any liar and denier of the Truth.
Allah says in the Holy Quran Chapter 46 Surah Ahqaf verses 4-6: Prophet, say to them, "Have you ever seen them with open eyes those whom you invoke instead of Allah? Show me what they have created in the earth? Or have they any share in the creation and control of the heavens? Bring me a Book revealed before this, or produce some remnant of knowledge in support of your beliefs if you are truthful." And who could be further astray than the one who invokes, instead of Allah, those who cannot answer him till the Day of Resurrection. Nay, they are even UNAWARE THAT THEY ARE BEING INVOKED. And when all mankind shall be gathered together (on the Day of Qiyamah), they (the so called leaders and intercessors) will become enemies of those who invoked them and they will DISOWN THEIR WORSHIP!!!
Allah says in the Holy Quran Chapter 16 Surah Nahl verse 20-21:All the other beings, whom the people invoke with Allah, create nothing! Nay, they are themselves created. They are DEAD, not living, and they do not at all know themselves when they shall again be raised to life!
Allah says in the Holy Quran Chapter 10 Surah Yunus verse 66:Note it well that all the dwellers of the heavens and the earth belong to Allah. And those who invoke partners besides Allah, follow nothing but surmises and merely indulge in guess-works!
Whatever written of Truth and benefit is only due to Allah's Assistance and Guidance, and whatever of error is of me. Allah Alone Knows Best and He is the Only Source of Strength.
Your Brother in Islam,
