2. The verse of m u b a a l a h (Qur'an 3: 61)

The verse of mub&alah, which was revealed concerning the Christian delegation of Najrk, is regarded by the Twelver Shia as another proof for their claims of imamate. Io this verse, Allah says: @hen whoever disputes with you concerning him ['Eesa (Jesus)] after [all this] knowledge that has come to you [i.e. 'Eesa (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.'B (Quran 3: 61) The way they interpret this verse to prove the imamate of 'Ali ibn Abi T%b, according to a;-Toosi and other Shiite scholars, is by saying that the verse refers to the superiority of 'Ali in two ways: (i) The aim of the mubadah is to distinguish who is following truth from who is following falsehood, and no one should issue such a challenge except one who is sincere, whose belief is definitely sound and who is the best of people before Allah (g). (ii) The Prophet (g) made 'Ali the same as himself, based on the words 'ourselves and yourseIves', because what is meant by the words 'our sons' is al-Hasan and al-Husayn, what is meant by 'our women' is Fiyimah, and what is meant by 'ourselves' is himself and 'Ali (>@k). Because he made him like himself, then no one else should come anywhere near his superiority and virtue.493 The verse of mubihalah is so called because everyone who follows the truth would wish that Allah (s) would destroy the follower of falsehood who is debating with him, especially if there is proof (in this challenge) that he is following the truth and manifesting it.

The challenge was that the wrongdoers were to die, and life was 'Ali ibn Abi Tdlib very dear to them because of what they h e w of their bad fate after death. There is no support in the verse of mub&alah for what the Twelver Shia claim about imamate, for a number of reasons: Despite the many meanings and synonyms of the Arabic word for 'self, which the Imamis quoted as evidence that the text refers to the caliphate of 'Ali ibn Abi Tilib (&), there is no meaning of this word, either literal or metaphorical, that indicates the meaning of caliphate. What the Sunnis understand from this verse is that it refers to the Prophet (a) praying, alone or in the presence of his brothers in Islam or through blood and ties, and this is something that is in accordance with Arabic usage and with religious terminology. AzZubaydi said: "Ibn Kh2lawayh said: 'The [Arabic for the] word 'self may mean brother."' Ibn Baniy said: 'The evidence for that is the verse in which AUah says: 4Bnt when you enter the houses, greet one another [lit. greet yourselves]~ (Quran 24: 61)." Ibu 'Arafah interpreted the words 4Why then, did not the believers, men and women, when you heard it [the slander], think good of their own people [lit. think good of themselves] and say: 'This [charge] is an obvious Lie?') (Quran 24: 12) as referring to people of faith or people of their own religion.494 Ad-Dahlawi said, concerning the verse of mub&alah: "What is meant by 'let us call' is 'let us bring ourselves'. Moreover, even if we agree that the ruler, Imam 'Ali, was appointed by the Prophet (g) on the basis of the word 'ourselves', then who is referred to as ruler of the disbelievers in the word 'yourselves', even though they are all included in the word for 'let us call'?

There is no point in the Prophet (g) calling himself and his children after the r ,2495 word 'come . The words 'ourselves' and 'yourselves' are like the usage in the verse in which Allah (&) says, 4Why then, did not the believers, men and women, when you heard it [the slander], think good of their 'Ali's attitude towards the Kharijites and Shia own people [lit. think good of themselves] and say: 'This [charge] is an obvious lie?') (Quran 24. 12), which was revealed about the Mother of the Believers 'i'ishah (r&d) and the slander incident. One person could be meant by the Arabic word for 'selves' here. Similarly, in the verse (iSo turn in repentance to your Creator and kill yourselves [the innocent kill the wrongdoers among you]) (Quran 2: 54), what is meant is some killing others. In the verse: #And [remember] when We took your covenant [saying]: Shed not the blood of your [people], nor tnm out your own people [lit. do not turn out yourselves] from their dwellings,) (Quran 2: 84) what is meant is 'do not expel one another'.

So the Arabic word that is translated as 'selves' may refer to brothers, either by blood or by faith.496 Allah (&) says concerning His Messenger (s): 4Verily, there has come unto you a Messenger [Muhammad] from amongst yourselves. It grieves him that you should receive any injury or difficulty. He [Muhammad] is anxious over you; for the believers @e is] full of pity, kind, and merciful) (Quran 9: 128). This verse contains clear proof against the argument that the word 'selves' (in the verse of mubadah) refers to individuals that are identical, because here it is speaking of the Messenger of Allah (g) and the disbelievers of Makkah, yet it says 'from amongst yourselves'. Who could say that the 'self of the Messenger of Allah (g) is the same as the 'selves' of the disbelievers of Makkah?

Allah forbid! This discussion illustrates how they follow whims and desires in explaining the verse of mnbZbalah. The Shiite scholars ignore all of these texts, then they come to this verse and exaggerate its meaning to the extent that they say that 'Ali (&) is the same as Muhammad (g) except in prophethood. Some Shiite reports even indicate that using the word for 'ourselves' to refer to a brother or relative or people of the same group is something that was known among the Arabs. It was narrated that Ahu Abdullah (&) said: 'Ali ibn Abi Ttlib "Amir d-Mu'mineen ['Ali] (4) sent Abdullah ibn al-'Ahbk to Ibn d-Kawa' and his companions, and he was wearing a thin chemise and a suit.

When they looked at him, they said: '0 Ibn 'Abbh, you are the best among ourselves, yet you are wearing such [fine] clothes.' He said: 'I am the first to dispute with you concerning that. AUah (s) says: (Say [ 0 Muhammad]: 'Who has forbidden the adornment with clothes given by AUah, which He has produced for His slaves, and At-Tayyibif [all kinds of Halil (lawful) things] of food?), (Quran 7: 32) and (0 Children of Adam! Take your adomment @y wearing your clean clothes] while praying [and going round (the Tawaf of) the Ka'bahIB (Quran 7: 31)."' After all this Qur'anic evidence and this Shiite report, is there any room for the extremists to speakP9' 2.b. One of the prominent Shiite scholars, ash-Shareef ar-Radiy, admitted that the verse in which Allah (&) mentions 'ourselves' does not mean that 'Ali (&) is the same as the Messenger of Allah (g), as the Shia say. He said: "The Arabs, in their language, may refer to a cousin who is close or a relative as being 'the self of his cousin, or a close friend as being 'the self' of his close friend.

The evidence for that is the verse in which Allah (&) says: (Nor defame one another [lit. yourselves], nor insult one another by nicknamesb (Quran 49: 11). What Allah (s) means is: 'Do not criticise your believing brothers,' so He refers to the brotherhood of faith as being like the brotherhood of blood. If the word for 'self may be applied to a distant relative, it is more appropriate to be applied to a close relative. The poet said: 'On the day of Qura, we were killing ourselves,' meaning that it was as if we were killing ourselves by killing our brothers, and he regarded the 'self of his kinsmen as being the same as his own 'self. With regard to the verse in Soorat an-Noor in which Allah (&) says, BBU~ when you enter the houses, 'Ali's attitude towards the Kharijites and Shia greet one another [lit. greet yourselveslB (Quran 24: 611, it may be interpreted in a similar manner, because in the commentq it says that it means to greet one another.

It is not possible for a person to greet himself, and it is inappropriate to interpret it in this way. The 'selves' of the believers are like one 'self since they are following one religion, and this is a religious instruction. So if one of them greets his brother, it is like greeting himself, because the differences are lifted and the 'selves' have become one."498 Thus it becomes clear that the Shia have no argument to support their claim that this verse indicates that the Messenger of Allah (gJ and 'Ali (4) are equal and the same. The Arabic word that is translated as 'self may apply to one who is a distant relative, so applying it to one who is a close relative is more appropriate than that, but this does not refer to imamate in any way whatsoever.499 2.c. The aim of mubihalah is for the one who is calling for it to prove his sincerity and truthfulness by assembling himself and his family - whom he naturally loves more than he loves others who are more distant from him - and calling for destruction if he is not sincere.500 The fact that the Prophet (g) called the most closelyrelated of people to him is clear evidence that he was a m e Prophet.

When the Christians of Najrh saw that, they feared for themselves and gave up the idea of muhadah. As for the Rififidi innovators, they did not understand the meaning of these verses of the noble Quran because they rejected the truth and did not want to submit to it?'' 2.d. The contention of the h a m i Shia, that the verse is indicative of equality between 'Ali (&) and the Prophet (B) except in prophetbood, is something that is not to be accepted at all. No one, whether it is 'Ali (&) or anyone else, is equal to the Prophet in matters of religion. what comparison can there be between the 'Ali ibn Abi Ttlib Messenger of Allah (g), and the level of human perfection he reached, and any other person? Amir al-Mu'mineen 'Ali (&) himself would nor accept what the Imami Shia say about him, and any wise and fair-minded person would understand this issue clearly?02 The position of prophethood is one that was held in great esteem by Amir al-Mu'mineen, and we have discussed that in this book. 2.e.

Major issues of belief and basic fundamentals of religion must be proven by clear Qur'anic verses with definitive meanings. For example, the verse, (None has the right to be worshipped but He, the Ever Living, the One Who sustains and protects all that exists) (Quran 2: 255) is about tawhid; tiMuhammad is the Messenger of Allah) (Quran 48: 29) is about the prophethood of Muhammad (&); and (And perfonn As-Salrit [lqrimat-as-Salrit] (Quran 24: 56), is about the obligatory nature of prayer.503 3. "Say (0 Muhammad): 'No reward do I ask of you for this except to be kind to me for my kinship with you."' (Quran 42: 23) In their commentary on this verse, the Imarni Shia narrate a hadith, which they attribute to the Prophet (g), in which he defined kinship (in this verse) as referring to 'Ali, Fztimah and their sons. The Imami Shia say that this supports the belief in their superiority and the duty to love them, and hence the duty to obey them and take them as Imams or leaders to the exclusion of others.5M The response to the above is as follows: This verse appears in Soorat ashShoora, which was revealed in Makkah before the migration to Madinah, according to the consensus of Ah1 as-~unnah?~~ It is well known that 'Ali did not 'Ali's attitude towards the Khanj'ites and Shia many F i ~ a h until after the battle of Badr, which was in 2 AH, alHasan was born in 3 AH and al-Husayn in 4 AH. This verse was revealed many years before the existence of d-Hasan and al-Husayn, so how could the Prophet (@J interpret it as referring to the obligation to honour relatives who were not yet known or born? 506 3.b.

The commentary on this verse that appears in a$-sahih is contrary to that. Bukhari narrated, with his chain of narration going back to Ihn 'AbbL (&), that he was asked about the verse (except to be kind to me for my kinship with you) (Quran 42: 23). Sa'eed ibn Juhayr said: "It refers to the relatives of Muhammad (e)." Ibn 'Abbis said: "You are being too hasty. There was no clan of Quraysh to whom the Prophet (g) was not related through blood ties, so he said: 'All I ask of you is to uphold the ties of kinship between you and me.,,,507 Ibn Taymiyah said: "Here is Ibn 'Abb&, the interpreter of the Quran and the most knowledgeable of Ah1 d-Bayt after 'Ali, saying: 'This does not mean being kind to my relatives. Rather it means: I do not ask you, 0 Arabs and 0 Quraysh, for any reward; instead, I ask you to uphold the ties of kinship between me and you.' So he asked the people to whom he was sent first of all to uphold these ties of kinship with him and not to transgress against him, so that he could convey the message of his ~ o r d .

" ~ ' ~ 3.c. The hadith that they regard as explaining the verse is false and fabricated, according to the consensus of the scholars of hadith who decide such issues; this was stated by Ibn ~ a ~ m i ~ a h . ~ ' ~ Ibn Katheer also compiled all the hadiths that were narrated concerning the interpretation of this verse and determined that the hadiths stating that the kinship mentioned here refers to F&nah and her sons have weak chains of narration. He narrated a report from b n Abi Hitim that says: "A man whom he named told us, Husayn d-Ashqar told us, 'Ali ibn Abi Tilib from Qays, from al-A'mash, from Sa'eed ihn Jnhayr, from Ibn 'Ahhis (&), who said: 'When the verse dSay [0 Muhammad]: 'No reward do I ask of you for this except to be kind to me for my kinship with yon') (Quran 42: 23) was revealed, they said: "0 Messenger of Allah, who are these whom Allah has enjoined us to be kind to?" He said: "Fitimah and her two sons, may Allah be pleased with them.""' But the chain of narration of this report includes someone who is dubious and is not known; he narrated from a fanatic Shiite shaykh, namely Husayn al-Ashqar, whose reports cannot he accepted in this context. Stating that this verse was revealed in Madinah is farfetched, because it is Makkan, andat that time Ficimah (&) did not ~~ have any children at all, since she did not get married to 'Ali (&) until after the battle of Badr in 2 AH. The correct interpretation of this verse is the one given by the scholar of the Ummah and the interpreter of the Quran, Abdullah ibn 'Abbh (&). Ibn Hajar also discussed the weakness of the reports mentioned and the fact that they are contrary to the sound hadith~.~" Their evidence from the Sunnah