Ghadir Khumm Was Not a Friendship Reminder: A Critical Refutation of TwelverShia.net
https://www.twelvershia.net/2013/11/28/802/
TwelverShia.net claims that Hadith al-Ghadir was merely a response to complaints against Imam Ali a.s after the Yemen expedition. According to the article, the Prophet ﷺ only meant:
“Whoever is my friend should also be Ali’s friend.”
It then attempts to weaken the evidence by attacking Hassan ibn Thabit’s poem, the report of Umar’s congratulations, the meaning of mawla, Shia narrations about secrecy, Imam Ali’s later conduct and the initial allegiance to Abu Bakr.
But once the complete narrations, Arabic context and narrator criticism are examined, the article’s conclusion collapses.
An honest examination produces a more balanced result:
The commonly cited chain of Hassan ibn Thabit’s poem is weak.
The long Abu Hurayrah report combining fasting, Qur’an 5:3 and Umar’s congratulations is disputed and should not be the foundation of the argument.
However, the authentic core of Ghadir remains firmly established. Its strongest Sunni wording connects the Prophet’s approaching death, the Qur’an, his Ahl al-Bayt, his own authority over every believer and Imam Ali’s corresponding wilayah in one continuous sermon.
1. The strongest authentic Ghadir narration is not about ordinary friendship
Zayd ibn Arqam reported:
لَمَّا رَجَعَ رَسُولُ اللَّهِ صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ عَنْ حَجَّةِ الْوَدَاعِ، وَنَزَلَ غَدِيرَ خُمٍّ، أَمَرَ بِدَوْحَاتٍ فَقُمِمْنَ، ثُمَّ قَالَ:
كَأَنِّي قَدْ دُعِيتُ فَأَجَبْتُ، إِنِّي قَدْ تَرَكْتُ فِيكُمُ الثَّقَلَيْنِ، أَحَدُهُمَا أَكْبَرُ مِنَ الْآخَرِ: كِتَابَ اللَّهِ عَزَّ وَجَلَّ، وَعِتْرَتِي أَهْلَ بَيْتِي، فَانْظُرُوا كَيْفَ تَخْلُفُونِي فِيهِمَا، فَإِنَّهُمَا لَنْ يَتَفَرَّقَا حَتَّى يَرِدَا عَلَيَّ الْحَوْضَ.
ثُمَّ قَالَ:
إِنَّ اللَّهَ عَزَّ وَجَلَّ مَوْلَايَ، وَأَنَا وَلِيُّ كُلِّ مُؤْمِنٍ.
ثُمَّ أَخَذَ بِيَدِ عَلِيٍّ فَقَالَ:
مَنْ كُنْتُ وَلِيَّهُ فَهَذَا وَلِيُّهُ، اللَّهُمَّ وَالِ مَنْ وَالَاهُ، وَعَادِ مَنْ عَادَاهُ.
“When the Messenger of Allah ﷺ returned from the Farewell Pilgrimage and stopped at Ghadir Khumm, he ordered the area beneath the trees to be cleared. He then said:
‘It appears that I am about to be summoned and I shall answer. I have left among you the Two Weighty Things, one greater than the other: the Book of Allah and my progeny, my Ahl al-Bayt. Consider carefully how you treat them after me, for they will never separate until they return to me at the Pool.’
He then said:
‘Allah is my Mawla, and I am the wali of every believer.’
He then took Ali’s hand and said:
‘Whoever has me as his wali, this man is his wali. O Allah, support whoever supports him and oppose whoever opposes him.’”
Reference: al-Tahawi, Sharh Mushkil al-Athar, hadith 1765; also transmitted through al-Nasa’i’s works on the virtues of Imam Ali.
Al-Tahawi declared:
فَهَذَا الْحَدِيثُ صَحِيحُ الْإِسْنَادِ، لَا طَعْنَ لِأَحَدٍ فِي أَحَدٍ مِنْ رُوَاتِهِ
“This hadith has an authentic chain. No criticism can be directed against any of its narrators.”
Look at the sequence:
كَأَنِّي قَدْ دُعِيتُ فَأَجَبْتُ
“It appears that I am about to be summoned and shall answer.”
فَانْظُرُوا كَيْفَ تَخْلُفُونِي فِيهِمَا
“Consider how you treat them after me.”
وَأَنَا وَلِيُّ كُلِّ مُؤْمِنٍ
“I am the wali of every believer.”
مَنْ كُنْتُ وَلِيَّهُ فَهَذَا وَلِيُّهُ
“Whoever has me as his wali, this man is his wali.”
The Prophet ﷺ announces his approaching death, speaks about what he is leaving after him, joins the Qur’an with his Ahl al-Bayt, declares his wilayah over every believer and then publicly transfers the corresponding relational title to Imam Ali a.s.
How can this entire sequence be reduced to:
“Ali is also your friend”?
2. The Prophet first established his authority over the believers
Several Ghadir reports contain the question:
أَلَسْتُ أَوْلَى بِالْمُؤْمِنِينَ مِنْ أَنْفُسِهِمْ؟
“Am I not more entitled over the believers than they are over themselves?”
The people answered:
بَلَى يَا رَسُولَ اللَّهِ
“Certainly, O Messenger of Allah.”
The Prophet ﷺ then took Imam Ali’s hand and said:
فَمَنْ كُنْتُ مَوْلَاهُ فَعَلِيٌّ مَوْلَاهُ
“Therefore, whoever has me as his mawla, Ali is his mawla.”
Reference: Musnad Ahmad; al-Nasa’i, Khasa’is Ali; al-Tahawi, Sharh Mushkil al-Athar.
The Arabic letter فاء in فَمَنْ connects what follows to what came immediately before it. The Prophet ﷺ first established that he was awla, more entitled and authoritative over the believers than their own selves, and then said:
“Therefore, whoever has me as mawla, Ali is his mawla.”
The friendship translation breaks the sermon’s logical connection:
“Am I not more entitled over you than your own selves?”
“Yes.”
“Therefore, whoever is my friend should be Ali’s friend.”
Why introduce supreme Prophetic authority if the intended conclusion was only ordinary friendship?
The authoritative reading preserves the sequence:
“I possess authority and priority over the believers. Therefore, whoever accepts my wilayah must recognize Ali’s corresponding wilayah.”
3. Yemen complaints do not restrict the declaration to friendship
The Yemen incident is authentic. Some men objected to Imam Ali’s decisions, and the Prophet ﷺ became angry.
But even in reports connected to those complaints, the Prophet’s response was broader than friendship.
The Prophet ﷺ said:
إِنَّ عَلِيًّا مِنِّي وَأَنَا مِنْهُ، وَهُوَ وَلِيُّ كُلِّ مُؤْمِنٍ بَعْدِي
“Ali is from me and I am from him, and he is the wali of every believer after me.”
Reference: Jami‘ al-Tirmidhi, hadith 3712.
Al-Tirmidhi described it as:
حَدِيثٌ حَسَنٌ غَرِيبٌ
“A Hasan Gharib hadith.”
The decisive word is:
بَعْدِي
“After me.”
If the issue was only temporary anger resulting from Yemen, why did the Prophet ﷺ introduce Imam Ali’s relationship to the believers after his own departure?
The Yemen complaints may explain why hostility toward Imam Ali a.s needed to be confronted. They do not erase the general and post-Prophetic language used by the Prophet ﷺ.
A complaint can be the occasion for a declaration without limiting the declaration’s meaning.
4. Mawla is not restricted to slave-master or personal friend
TwelverShia.net argues that Arabs would have used words such as imam, amir, khalifah or sultan if leadership had been intended.
This is linguistically superficial.
The words wali, wilayah and mawla are polysemous. They can indicate proximity, support, guardianship, administration, authority, patronage and loyalty. Context determines the intended meaning.
The article itself quotes Murtada Mutahhari explaining that the root conveys nearness and that meanings such as friendship, love, patronage, guardianship and control are determined through contextual indications.
That does not prove friendship. It proves that the context must be examined.
The context of Ghadir includes:
The Prophet’s approaching death.
The Qur’an and Ahl al-Bayt being left after him.
The Prophet’s authority over believers beyond their authority over themselves.
The Prophet declaring himself wali of every believer.
The public taking of Imam Ali’s hand.
The connecting word “therefore.”
The declaration of Imam Ali’s corresponding wilayah.
The prayer for those who support him and against those who oppose him.
This context is far closer to authority, guardianship and obligatory loyalty than to casual friendship.
5. Ordinary friendship was already obligatory before Ghadir
The Qur’an had already declared believers to be brothers:
إِنَّمَا الْمُؤْمِنُونَ إِخْوَةٌ
“The believers are but brothers.”
Qur’an 49:10.
The Qur’an also commanded love, mutual support and loyalty among believers long before Ghadir.
Was Imam Ali a.s not already a believer?
Was he not already the Prophet’s cousin, son-in-law, supporter and Companion?
Was love for believers not already obligatory?
Why would the Prophet ﷺ stop a large travelling group, clear the area beneath the trees, speak about his approaching death, ask whether he possessed greater authority over them than their own selves, raise Imam Ali’s hand and then merely announce a rule that had already applied to every Muslim for years?
The friendship-only interpretation makes the event unnecessarily dramatic and its wording unnecessarily complicated.
6. “Support whoever supports him” does not reduce wilayah to friendship
The Prophet ﷺ prayed:
اللَّهُمَّ وَالِ مَنْ وَالَاهُ، وَعَادِ مَنْ عَادَاهُ
“O Allah, support whoever supports him and oppose whoever opposes him.”
Other versions add:
وَانْصُرْ مَنْ نَصَرَهُ، وَاخْذُلْ مَنْ خَذَلَهُ
“Support whoever supports him and abandon whoever abandons him.”
An authority has supporters and opponents.
A leader has loyal followers and hostile adversaries.
A divinely designated guardian can be supported, abandoned, obeyed or opposed.
The article simply translates وَالِ as “befriend,” then uses its own translation as proof that mawla must mean friend. That is circular reasoning.
The supplication explains the practical consequence of Imam Ali’s wilayah: believers must support him, remain loyal to him and not join those who oppose or abandon him.
7. Umar’s congratulations are not limited to the weak Abu Hurayrah report
The article attacks a long report through Abu Hurayrah containing:
The fast of 18 Dhu al-Hijjah.
The reward of sixty months.
The revelation of Qur’an 5:3.
Umar’s congratulations.
That complete package is disputed and should not be the main proof.
However, the congratulations wording also appears through al-Bara’ ibn ‘Azib:
فَلَقِيَهُ عُمَرُ بَعْدَ ذَلِكَ فَقَالَ لَهُ:
هَنِيئًا يَا ابْنَ أَبِي طَالِبٍ، أَصْبَحْتَ وَأَمْسَيْتَ مَوْلَى كُلِّ مُؤْمِنٍ وَمُؤْمِنَةٍ
“Umar met him afterwards and said:
‘Congratulations, O son of Abu Talib! You have become, morning and evening, the mawla of every believing man and woman.’”
Reference: Musnad Ahmad, hadith 18479.
Shu‘ayb al-Arna’ut graded the complete report:
صَحِيحٌ لِغَيْرِهِ
“Sahih due to corroborating evidence.”
Other critics disputed the strength of this particular addition. Therefore the honest conclusion is not that every scholar considered it Sahih, but neither can the article honestly claim that the only route is the Abu Hurayrah report through Shahr ibn Hawshab.
The report is disputed, not nonexistent.
More importantly, the case for Ghadir does not depend on Umar’s congratulations. The authenticated Ghadir sermon remains even if every congratulation report is set aside.
8. Hassan ibn Thabit’s poem should not be the primary proof
The famous poem attributed to Hassan ibn Thabit includes:
فَقَالَ لَهُ قُمْ يَا عَلِيُّ فَإِنَّنِي
رَضِيتُكَ مِنْ بَعْدِي إِمَامًا وَهَادِيًا
“He said to him: Rise, O Ali, for I am pleased with you after me as Imam and guide.”
The commonly cited chain includes Abu Harun al-‘Abdi, who was severely criticized by Sunni hadith scholars.
Therefore, the commonly circulated chain of this poem is weak according to Sunni hadith standards.
This should be conceded honestly.
However, Hassan praising Abu Bakr in another poem does not prove that he could never have praised Imam Ali. A poet can praise more than one person. The real issue is the chain, not whether Hassan later praised or supported someone else.
The weakness of one poem does not weaken the independently authentic Ghadir sermon.
A website cannot refute an authentic hadith by attacking a secondary poem.
9. Imam Ali publicly invoked Ghadir
The article claims that Imam Ali a.s never used Ghadir or asked people to testify about it.
This is factually false.
Imam Ali gathered the people at al-Rahbah and said:
أَنْشُدُ بِاللَّهِ كُلَّ امْرِئٍ سَمِعَ رَسُولَ اللَّهِ صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ يَقُولُ يَوْمَ غَدِيرِ خُمٍّ مَا سَمِعَ
“I adjure by Allah every person who heard what the Messenger of Allah ﷺ said on the Day of Ghadir Khumm to testify to what he heard.”
A group of witnesses stood and testified that the Prophet ﷺ said:
أَلَسْتُمْ تَعْلَمُونَ أَنِّي أَوْلَى بِالْمُؤْمِنِينَ مِنْ أَنْفُسِهِمْ؟
“Do you not know that I am more entitled over the believers than they are over themselves?”
Then he took Imam Ali’s hand and said:
مَنْ كُنْتُ مَوْلَاهُ فَعَلِيٌّ مَوْلَاهُ
“Whoever has me as his mawla, Ali is his mawla.”
References include al-Nasa’i’s Khasa’is Ali, Musnad Ahmad and al-Tahawi’s Sharh Mushkil al-Athar through several routes.
This alone destroys the factual statement:
“Ali never invoked Ghadir.”
Whether every version explicitly adds the sentence “therefore I was the immediate political caliph” is a separate interpretive question. But Imam Ali undeniably revived Ghadir publicly and demanded testimony about it during his own caliphate.
Why would he publicly summon witnesses to an old friendship reminder?
10. The Abu Ayyub report supports the continuing significance of Ghadir
A group of Ansar came to Imam Ali a.s and said:
السَّلَامُ عَلَيْكَ يَا مَوْلَانَا
“Peace be upon you, our Mawla.”
Imam Ali asked:
كَيْفَ أَكُونُ مَوْلَاكُمْ وَأَنْتُمْ قَوْمٌ عَرَبٌ؟
“How can I be your mawla while you are free Arab men?”
They replied:
سَمِعْنَا رَسُولَ اللَّهِ صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ يَوْمَ غَدِيرِ خُمٍّ يَقُولُ:
مَنْ كُنْتُ مَوْلَاهُ فَإِنَّ هَذَا مَوْلَاهُ
“We heard the Messenger of Allah ﷺ say on the Day of Ghadir Khumm:
‘Whoever has me as his mawla, this man is his mawla.’”
Among them was Abu Ayyub al-Ansari.
Reference: Musnad Ahmad.
The article claims that Imam Ali had forgotten Ghadir and thought they meant slavery.
But the narration never says:
Imam Ali forgot Ghadir.
Imam Ali rejected Ghadir.
Imam Ali remained confused after their explanation.
Imam Ali denied being their Prophetic mawla.
The ordinary social meaning of mawla could indicate a patron-client or manumission relationship. Imam Ali naturally asked how that meaning could apply to free Arab men.
They clarified that they were not referring to slavery or tribal clientage. They called him Mawla because the Prophet ﷺ had publicly called him Mawla at Ghadir.
Imam Ali did not reject their explanation.
The report therefore proves:
Mawla has multiple meanings.
Context determines the intended meaning.
The Ansar remembered Ghadir decades later.
Abu Ayyub personally applied the title to Imam Ali.
Imam Ali accepted the Prophetic basis after they explained it.
The sentence “Ali forgot Ghadir” exists only in the article writer’s imagination, not in the narration.
11. Asking the Prophet again does not disprove Ghadir
The article quotes Shia reports in which Abdullah ibn Mas‘ud asked who would wash the Prophet’s body, and Ibn Abbas asked whom the people should turn to after the Prophet ﷺ.
This argument fails for several reasons.
The question:
مَنْ يُغَسِّلُكَ إِذَا مِتَّ؟
“Who will wash you when you die?”
is specifically about the funeral washing of the Prophet, not merely political government.
The Prophet’s answer identifies Imam Ali as his wasi, but the question itself concerns a specific post-death duty.
The report attributed to Ibn Abbas actually answers in favour of the Shia position:
فَأَشَارَ إِلَى عَلِيٍّ فَقَالَ:
إِلَى هَذَا، فَإِنَّهُ مَعَ الْحَقِّ وَالْحَقُّ مَعَهُ، ثُمَّ يَكُونُ مِنْ بَعْدِهِ أَحَدَ عَشَرَ إِمَامًا
“He pointed toward Ali and said:
‘To this man, for he is with the truth and the truth is with him. Then after him will be eleven Imams.’”
Reference: I‘lam al-Wara; Bihar al-Anwar.
How does a report explicitly identifying Imam Ali and eleven Imams after him refute Shia Imamate?
People frequently ask questions to:
Obtain confirmation.
Learn additional details.
Make others hear the answer.
Clarify a specific duty.
Record a public statement.
Companions repeatedly asked the Prophet about prayer, Hajj, faith and matters that had already been taught. Repeating a question does not prove that the earlier teaching never occurred.
12. Basā’ir al-Darajāt does not say Ghadir was secret
The article quotes:
إِنَّ أَمْرَنَا سِرٌّ فِي سِرٍّ، وَسِرٌّ مُسْتَسِرٌّ
“Our affair is a secret within a secret and a concealed secret.”
But the chapter heading in Basā’ir al-Darajāt concerns:
عِلْمُ آلِ مُحَمَّدٍ عَلَيْهِمُ السَّلَامُ سِرٌّ مُسْتَسِرٌّ
“The knowledge of the family of Muhammad is a concealed secret.”
Reference: Basā’ir al-Darajāt, p. 48 in common editions.
The subject is the difficult and concealed knowledge of Ahl al-Bayt, not a statement that Imam Ali’s public appointment never happened.
Their “affair” can include:
Esoteric religious knowledge.
Knowledge of future events.
Reports ordinary people could not understand.
Sensitive political information.
Details that would endanger the Imam under Umayyad or Abbasid rule.
A public foundation and confidential details can exist at the same time.
Islam publicly teaches the existence of Allah, while not every divine mystery is known to every person. Public belief and concealed knowledge are not contradictions.
13. The complete al-Kafi narration concerns danger to the Imam’s life
The article quotes a Sahih report from al-Kafi:
وِلَايَةُ اللَّهِ أَسَرَّهَا إِلَى جَبْرَئِيلَ، وَأَسَرَّهَا جَبْرَئِيلُ إِلَى مُحَمَّدٍ، وَأَسَرَّهَا مُحَمَّدٌ إِلَى عَلِيٍّ...
“The wilayah of Allah was conveyed secretly to Jibril, Jibril conveyed it secretly to Muhammad, and Muhammad conveyed it secretly to Ali…”
But it removes the surrounding context.
The narration begins:
لَوْ أَعْطَيْنَاكُمْ كُلَّمَا تُرِيدُونَ كَانَ شَرًّا لَكُمْ، وَأُخِذَ بِرَقَبَةِ صَاحِبِ هَذَا الْأَمْرِ
“If we gave you everything you requested, it would be harmful to you, and the neck of the Master of this Affair would be seized.”
It ends:
فَاتَّقُوا اللَّهَ وَلَا تُذِيعُوا حَدِيثَنَا
“Fear Allah and do not publicly broadcast our reports.”
Reference: al-Kafi, vol. 2, chapter concerning concealment and not indiscriminately broadcasting reports.
The narration discusses followers revealing sensitive material that could lead to the Imam being arrested or killed.
It does not say:
“No public declaration of Imam Ali’s general wilayah ever occurred.”
The article confuses two completely different claims:
The foundation of Imam Ali’s wilayah was publicly proclaimed at Ghadir.
Sensitive reports and political details were not to be indiscriminately publicized under oppressive governments.
There is no contradiction between them.
14. Sahih Muslim’s “nothing secret” report does not refute Ghadir
Imam Ali a.s said:
مَا أَسَرَّ إِلَيَّ شَيْئًا كَتَمَهُ النَّاسَ
“The Messenger of Allah did not tell me anything secretly that he concealed from the people.”
Reference: Sahih Muslim.
This would refute the claim:
“The Prophet secretly appointed Ali but never told the Muslim community.”
But that is not the Shia claim.
The Shia claim is exactly the opposite:
The Prophet publicly declared Imam Ali’s wilayah at Ghadir, and Imam Ali later publicly demanded that witnesses testify to it.
Therefore, Sahih Muslim’s report is perfectly consistent with Ghadir.
“No exclusive secret appointment” does not mean “no public appointment.”
The article refutes a position the Shia do not hold.
15. The report that “the Prophet appointed nobody” has a seriously disputed narrator
The article quotes Imam Ali allegedly saying:
مَا اسْتَخْلَفَ رَسُولُ اللَّهِ صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ فَأَسْتَخْلِفُ
“The Messenger of Allah did not appoint a successor, so I will not appoint one.”
The route passes through Shu‘ayb ibn Maymun.
Sunni rijal scholars said about him:
Al-Bukhari:
فِيهِ نَظَرٌ
“There is serious concern regarding him.”
Abu Hatim:
مَجْهُولٌ
“He is unknown.”
Al-Daraqutni:
لَيْسَ بِالْقَوِيِّ
“He is not strong.”
Ibn Hibban:
لَهُ مَنَاكِيرُ، لَا يُحْتَجُّ بِهِ إِذَا انْفَرَدَ
“He has objectionable reports and cannot be used as proof when narrating alone.”
Ibn Hajar records this exact succession narration among the objectionable reports associated with Shu‘ayb ibn Maymun.
Therefore, the article cannot present it as an uncontested Sahih declaration from Imam Ali.
Some scholars improved the route, but major Sunni rijal authorities explicitly criticized its central narrator. A solitary disputed narration cannot override the multiply transmitted Ghadir corpus.
16. Immediate universal allegiance to Abu Bakr is historically false
The article argues:
“All the people rendered allegiance to Abu Bakr without any use of force.”
Sahih al-Bukhari and Sahih Muslim record that Imam Ali had not pledged during the months that Bibi Fatima s.a remained alive:
وَلَمْ يَكُنْ بَايَعَ تِلْكَ الْأَشْهُرَ
“He had not pledged allegiance during those months.”
Imam Ali said to Abu Bakr:
وَلَكِنَّكَ اسْتَبْدَدْتَ عَلَيْنَا بِالْأَمْرِ، وَكُنَّا نَرَى لَنَا فِي هَذَا الْأَمْرِ نَصِيبًا
“But you acted independently of us regarding the affair, while we believed that we possessed a share or right in this matter.”
Reference: Sahih al-Bukhari; Sahih Muslim, report concerning the estate of the Prophet and the reconciliation after Bibi Fatima’s death.
Umar described the initial allegiance as:
إِنَّ بَيْعَةَ أَبِي بَكْرٍ كَانَتْ فَلْتَةً وَتَمَّتْ
“The allegiance to Abu Bakr was a sudden occurrence, and it was completed.”
He warned:
مَنْ بَايَعَ رَجُلًا مِنْ غَيْرِ مَشُورَةٍ مِنَ الْمُسْلِمِينَ فَلَا يُبَايَعُ هُوَ وَلَا الَّذِي بَايَعَهُ
“Whoever pledges allegiance to a man without consultation with the Muslims, neither he nor the person receiving the allegiance should be followed.”
Reference: Sahih al-Bukhari, Umar’s report concerning Saqifah.
These reports do not automatically prove every later story about physical coercion. But they decisively refute:
Immediate universal consensus.
Participation of all major Muslims in the initial selection.
Absence of political disagreement.
Immediate allegiance from Imam Ali and Banu Hashim.
Historical political success cannot be used to determine what a Prophetic statement meant.
If people later disagreed with or neglected a Prophetic declaration, that does not change the declaration’s original meaning.
17. “Why not announce it at Arafat?” is not a conclusive argument
The article says that Arafat had more pilgrims and therefore any appointment should have been announced there rather than at Ghadir.
But Sunni hadith itself reports a declaration concerning the Qur’an and Ahl al-Bayt at Arafat.
Jabir ibn Abdullah reported:
يَا أَيُّهَا النَّاسُ، إِنِّي تَرَكْتُ فِيكُمْ مَا إِنْ أَخَذْتُمْ بِهِ لَنْ تَضِلُّوا:
كِتَابَ اللَّهِ، وَعِتْرَتِي أَهْلَ بَيْتِي
“O people, I have left among you that which, if you hold firmly to it, you will never go astray: the Book of Allah and my progeny, my Ahl al-Bayt.”
Reference: Jami‘ al-Tirmidhi, hadith 3786.
Al-Tirmidhi called it Hasan Gharib through that route, while its overall strength has been debated and supported through other narrations.
Therefore, the broader message about the Qur’an and Ahl al-Bayt was not limited to Ghadir.
At Ghadir, the declaration became specifically focused upon Imam Ali:
“Am I not more entitled over the believers than their own selves?”
“Whoever has me as mawla, Ali is his mawla.”
Important teachings may be repeated:
At different locations.
Before different audiences.
With increasing specificity.
During the Prophet’s final journey.
When circumstances require a public clarification.
The article provides no Islamic principle saying that a Prophetic declaration becomes invalid unless it is spoken only once at the single largest gathering.
18. Later disobedience does not prove that no command was given
The article’s reasoning is:
“If Ghadir appointed Ali, why did the community later pledge Abu Bakr?”
This is not a valid method of interpreting revelation or hadith.
People’s later behaviour does not determine what Allah or the Prophet originally commanded.
The Qur’an records nations disobeying clear commands, prophets and divine covenants.
The Children of Israel witnessed signs and still disobeyed.
Some Muslims fled from battles despite explicit commands not to flee.
Some opposed prophets despite witnessing miracles.
Therefore:
“People did something else afterwards”
does not prove:
“The Prophet never said it.”
The meaning of Ghadir must be determined from its words and context, not from the political result at Saqifah.
19. Majlisi explicitly denied that the Imams were prophets
The article quotes Allamah al-Majlisi:
وَلَا نَعْرِفُ جِهَةً لِعَدَمِ اتِّصَافِهِمْ بِالنُّبُوَّةِ إِلَّا رِعَايَةَ جَلَالَةِ خَاتَمِ الْأَنْبِيَاءِ، وَلَا يَصِلُ عُقُولُنَا إِلَى فَرْقٍ بَيْنَ النُّبُوَّةِ وَالْإِمَامَةِ
It translates this as though Majlisi simply declared that Imams were prophets in everything but name.
His language is undeniably bold and can be criticized.
But immediately before it he explicitly wrote:
وَبِالْجُمْلَةِ لَا بُدَّ لَنَا مِنَ الْإِذْعَانِ بِعَدَمِ كَوْنِهِمْ أَنْبِيَاءَ
“In conclusion, we must affirm and submit that they are not prophets.”
He also proposed the distinction:
الْأَئِمَّةُ نُوَّابٌ لِلرَّسُولِ، لَا يُبَلِّغُونَ إِلَّا بِالنِّيَابَةِ، وَأَمَّا الْأَنْبِيَاءُ فَهُمْ مَبْعُوثُونَ بِالْأَصَالَةِ
“The Imams are deputies of the Messenger and convey only through representation, whereas prophets are independently commissioned.”
Reference: Bihar al-Anwar, vol. 26, p. 82.
Therefore:
Majlisi explicitly denied that the Imams are prophets.
He distinguished delegated Imamic authority from independent Prophetic commissioning.
The Imams do not bring a new Sharia.
They do not receive independent Prophethood after Prophet Muhammad ﷺ.
One scholar’s speculative discussion about spiritual rank cannot be transformed into the false claim that Twelver Shias believe the Imams are prophets.
20. What the article actually succeeds in proving
The article proves only a few limited points:
The commonly cited chain of Hassan ibn Thabit’s poem is weak.
The complete Abu Hurayrah report about fasting, Qur’an 5:3 and Umar’s congratulations is disputed.
The word mawla has multiple meanings and must be interpreted contextually.
Hadith al-Ghadir by itself does not verbally list the names of all Twelve Imams or explain every detail of occultation and infallibility.
These concessions do not destroy the Shia argument.
Twelver Imamate is a cumulative case involving:
Hadith al-Ghadir.
Hadith al-Thaqalayn.
Hadith al-Manzilah.
“Ali is the wali of every believer after me.”
The Qur’an and Ahl al-Bayt as inseparable guides.
Reports concerning twelve successors.
The purification and authority of Ahl al-Bayt.
Other narrations naming and structuring the Twelve Imams.
No single hadith is required to state every detail of an entire theological doctrine.
21. What the article fails to prove
It fails to prove:
That Ghadir meant only friendship.
That the Yemen complaints exhaust the purpose of Ghadir.
That mawla cannot indicate guardianship or authority.
That “support whoever supports him” excludes leadership.
That Umar’s congratulations exist only through Abu Hurayrah.
That Imam Ali never invoked Ghadir.
That Imam Ali forgot the meaning of Ghadir.
That the Ansar understood mawla only as slavery.
That asking for later confirmation disproves an earlier declaration.
That Shia narrations about secrecy deny a public announcement.
That Sahih Muslim refutes a public Ghadir declaration.
That Imam Ali authentically said the Prophet appointed nobody.
That everyone immediately and unanimously pledged Abu Bakr.
That nothing regarding Ahl al-Bayt was announced at Arafat.
That Majlisi believed the Imams were prophets.
Final conclusion
The authentic core of Ghadir is not weak.
The strongest Sunni narration combines:
The Prophet’s approaching death.
The Qur’an.
His progeny and Ahl al-Bayt.
Their inseparability.
Responsibility toward them after him.
The Prophet’s own wilayah over every believer.
The public raising of Imam Ali’s hand.
Imam Ali’s corresponding wilayah.
The prayer for those who support him and against those who oppose him.
Therefore, reducing the sermon to:
“Whoever is my friend should also be Ali’s friend”
does not explain the complete authenticated context.
At the same time, careful Shia research should not depend entirely on Hassan ibn Thabit’s weakly transmitted poem or the disputed Abu Hurayrah fasting report.
The case should begin with:
أَلَسْتُ أَوْلَى بِالْمُؤْمِنِينَ مِنْ أَنْفُسِهِمْ؟
“Am I not more entitled over the believers than their own selves?”
وَأَنَا وَلِيُّ كُلِّ مُؤْمِنٍ
“I am the wali of every believer.”
فَمَنْ كُنْتُ مَوْلَاهُ فَعَلِيٌّ مَوْلَاهُ
“Therefore, whoever has me as his mawla, Ali is his mawla.”
وَهُوَ وَلِيُّ كُلِّ مُؤْمِنٍ بَعْدِي
“And he is the wali of every believer after me.”
These words establish far more than friendship.
Ghadir may not, by itself, state every later detail of Twelver theology. But it provides powerful Sunni-source evidence for Imam Ali a.s’s unique, authoritative and post-Prophetic wilayah.
The real weakness is not in Ghadir.
The real weakness is in removing its context, mistranslating its central terms, attacking secondary evidence and pretending that the remaining authentic sermon says nothing more than:
“Please be friends with Ali.”
Was Ghadir Khumm Only About Friendship?
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