By: Seyyed Ali Shahbaz

 

“Hold fast to the Rope of Allah, altogether, and do not be divided...” (Holy Qur’an 3:103)

The words of the Almighty Creator are crystal clear. The addressees are ordered to knit together as the monolithic Ummah, without splintering into sects

The same Ayah then adds as a reminder:

“And remember Allah’s blessing upon you when you were enemies, then He brought your hearts together, so you became brothers with His blessing. And you were on the brink of a pit of Fire, whereat He saved you from it; thus does Allah clarify His signs for you so that you may be guided.”

The Holy Qur’an is never ambiguous, nor did Prophet Muhammad (SAWA) leave Muslims in the dark when on completion of his 23-mission as the Last and Greatest Messenger for all mankind, he departed from the mortal world.

The Seal of Messengers said without mincing words:

“I am leaving behind among you the Thaqalayn (Two Weighty Things), the Book of Allah (Holy Qur’an) and my progeny the Ahl al-Bayt. Hold fast to them and you will never go astray. You will be questioned on your behaviour towards these two, who never separate with each other, even when they return to me at the Fountain (of Kowthar on Resurrection Day).”

This famous saying of the Prophet – found in books of hadith and history of all Muslim denominations – removes any doubt about the definition, or more properly the components, of “Allah’s Rope”.

It is worth noting that a single strand is not called a rope, which according to lexicons of any language, including Arabic or English, requires at least two stout cords of strands twisted or braided together.

Thus, as exegetes of the Heavenly Scripture have pointed out on the basis of authentic narrations, the Rope of Allah is a vivid reflection of the Prophet’s Hadith Thaqalayn, which says that the Holy Qur’an and the Blessed Ahl al-Bayt are tightly intertwined together for salvation of mankind.

In other words, if someone were to claim that the Holy Qur’an is enough for guidance, without the need of the Ahl al-Bayt, he/she is in complete error and has definitely disobeyed God and the Prophet. The vice-versa also holds true.

To be more precise, adherence to the straight and unwavering path towards Paradise, in order to be safe from the pitfalls, requires following the footsteps of Practical Guides, who were Divinely-designated and were Infallible by nature.

It is here that the Ahl al-Bayt, as the “Qur’an an-Nateq” (Speaking Qur’an) come to our rescue, since after the passing away of the Prophet, Islam was saved from being emptied of its Divine contents and meeting the fate of the missions of the past Prophets, by the wisdom, knowledge, piety, patience, valour, eloquence, worship, forbearance, magnanimity, political acumen, administration, sense of justice, and self-sacrifice of the Imams of the Ahl al-Bayt, with Karbala being the prime example.

That is the reason, the Prophet emphasized on the Hadith Thaqalayn time and again, beginning with his sermon on Mount Mercy (Jabal ar-Rahma) on the plain of Arafat on the Day of Arafa (9th Zil-Hijjah) during his farewell Hajj pilgrimage and ending till his last moments of life, with the event of Ghadir-Khom on 18th Zil-Hijja 10 AH, being the crowning moment.

Thus, since we are marking Islamic Unity Week, the only place for assembling all denominations of Islam is the Platform of Thaqalayn – the Unbreakable Rope of Allah, made up of God’s Final Revealed Word to all mankind (the Holy Qur’an) and the Ahl al-Bayt of Prophet Muhammad (SAWA).   

The Islamic Unity Week spans the two dates of Rabi al-Awwal celebrated by Sunni and Shi’a Muslims respectively as the birthday of the Messenger of Mercy. 

Sunni Muslims, as per the reports of the Prophet’s companions who became acquainted with him in the last years of his life, claim that he was born on the 12th of Rabi al-Awwal, while Shi’a Muslims, on the basis of the accounts of the Prophet’s blessed household, the Ahl al-Bayt, consider family reports to be more reliable and mark the Prophet’s birthday on Rabi al-Awwal 17.

Nonetheless, all Muslims, whatever their school of jurisprudence, worship the One and Only Creator of the universe, and regard Prophet Muhammad (SAWA) as the Last and Greatest Messenger with the universal mission of Islam. Moreover, they consider the Holy Qur’an as the final heavenly revelation for the guidance of all mankind, and unlike the Christians, the Jews, and other creeds, do not have differing versions of the Holy Scripture.

For all Muslim denominations, the Qibla or the focal point of the 5-times a day ritual prayers is the holy Ka’ba in Mecca – the symbolic House of the Unseen but Omnipresent God. Furthermore, they perform the annual Hajj pilgrimage on the same dates of the month of Zi’l-Hijja, and observe the obligatory fasts every year in the same month of Ramadhan.

In view of these undeniable facts, unlike the various sects of Christianity, Judaism, and other religions, there are no major differences among Muslims, whether Sunni or Shi’a, who differ only in secondary issues, which if rationally dealt with, are no major impediments for Islamic unity and solidarity.

Therefore, the Father of the Islamic Revolution, Imam Khomeini (RA), in order to remove trivial differences, initiated the Islamic Unity Week in 1979, which has since gathered momentum and is spreading the message of solidarity around the world, despite the intricate plots of the enemies to splinter Muslim ranks by creating Takfiri and other terrorist outfits under the guise of religion, nationalism, and animal freedom.

Prophet Muhammad (SAWA) very well knew what will befall the Ummah and so stressed to his companions on several occasions, as confirmed by our Sunni brothers:

“The likeness of my Ahl al-Bayt is like that of the Ark of Noah. Those who boarded it were saved and those who lagged behind were drowned.”

“The stars are a security for the people of the earth against drowning (when at sea), and my Ahl al-Bayt are a security to the people of the earth against discord.”

“Let my Ahl al-Bayt be to you as the head to the body and the eyes are to the head, because the body would not be guided except by the head, and the head cannot be guided except by the eyes.”