By: Seyyed Ali Shahbaz

“Muhammad is but a Prophet; [other] prophets have passed before him. If he dies or is slain, will you turn back on your heels? Anyone who turns back on his heels will not harm Allah in the least, and soon Allah will reward the grateful.” (Holy Qur’an 3:144)
The Almighty Creator revealed the above Ayah during the crucial Battle of Ohad in 3 AH when most of the Muslims on the assumption that the Prophet had been martyred in the ambush led by the pagan commander Khaled bin Waleed, fled the battlefield including some senior companions who would later style themselves as ‘caliphs’ – although neither God had revealed any Ayah in their favour nor did the Seal of Messengers appoint them to such a post.
The Person whom the Lord Most High entrusted with the universal message of Islam to bring mankind out of darkness and bequeath to all mankind the lasting legacy of monotheism and virtue, was destined to live for over seven more years before wrapping up his 23-year mission with clear instructions on completion of faith and perfection of the shari’ah (code of laws), in accordance with the letter and spirit of the Holy Qur’an – the Final Heavenly Scripture.
We are on the threshold of that doleful day (Safar 28) when the Messenger of Mercy bade adieu to the mortal world at the age of 63, as his health deteriorated (said to be poisoning), leaving in grief his sincere followers, especially his immediate family, the Ahl al-Bayt, whose pristine purity God Almighty Himself has vouchsafed in the Holy Qur’an (33:33).
These were none other than his Immaculate Daughter, Hazrat Fatema Zahra (SA) – the Noblest lady of all times – her husband, the Leader of the Pious Imam Ali (AS) – the Prophet’s dear cousin and ward – and her four young children, two daughters and two sons, that is, Imam Hasan (AS) and Imam Husain (AS), whom the grandfather on Divine orders had called “Leaders of the Youths of Paradise”.
Of course, there were was paternal uncle Abbas, cousins, and children of Ja’far his martyred cousin, as well as the several spouses that he had taken in Medina in his middle age out of social necessity to break the taboos of the days of Jahiliyya, following the passing away in Mecca of his virtuous wife of 25-long happy marital years, Hazrat Khadija (SA), the Mother of all True Believers (Omm al-Momineen).
The Last and the Greatest Prophet had led a simple but exemplary life, and in addition to saving from the brink of hell the pagan Arabs, had enlightened Jews and Christians with the dynamic teachings of Islam by pointing to prophecies in their respective scriptures about his mission, as foretold by the Israelite prophets, especially Moses and Jesus (peace upon them).
He had also transformed Rouzbeh the Persian from a Zoroastrian family of Iran into a staunch Muslim, now famous as “Salman” whose higher degrees of faith which no Arab could match, prompted the Prophet to express the famous phrase found in the books of hadith and history of all Muslim denominations: “Salman minna Ahl al-Bayt” (Salman is from us the People of the House).
There were black-skinned Africans such as Bilal the Abyssinian (his Muezzin or Caller to Prayer), while from among the white Europeans there was Suhayb the Roman who impressed by the Prophet’s peerless personality embraced Islam.
There are also reports of the deliverance from idolatry of some Hindus who in quest of truth had made the journey to Hijaz to meet Prophet Muhammad (SAWA).
The day was about to dawn for the departure from the transient world of the “Mercy unto the whole creation” who was fully satisfied for having fulfilled whatever God had commanded him, as was evident at every turn, especially during the past few months during his Farewell Hajj Pilgrimage, when in his famous sermon from atop Mount Mercy (Jabal ar-Rahma) on the Day of Arafah (Zilhijja 9) on the Plain of the same name, he had explicitly spelled out the formula of faith and unity by proclaiming the Hadith Thaqalayn:
“The Almighty has informed that I am about to depart. I am leaving behind among you the Two Weighty Things (Thaqalayn), the Book of God (Holy Qur’an) and my progeny the Ahl al-Bayt. Hold fast to them and you will never go astray, for you will be questioned about your behaviour towards them after me. The two never part with each other, even when they return to me at the Fountain (on the Day of Judgment).”
Then nine days later on the 18th of Zilhijja, addressing a huge 120,000 strong assembly of Muslims at the Ghadeer (pond) of Khom, on the express orders of God Almighty, Prophet Muhammad (SAWA) had proclaimed Imam Ali (AS) as his Vicegerent, with the words:
“Man kunto Mowla fa haza Aliyun Mowla” (for whomsoever I am Master, this Ali is his Master).
As the 28th of Safar approached, he, however, felt that to bolster the historic proclamation of Ghadeer-Khom, he ought to leave a Will in writing for his Divinely-Designated Heir, so that Muslims will never splinter into sects after him.
He called for paper and a quill to leave behind a documented proof of guidance for the coming generations, since he knew that many of the Arabs of his time did not believe in Islam from the depth of their hearts and had become Muslims in quest of material gains and political positions (otherwise God would not have revealed Surah Munafeqoun [Hypocrites].
He knew that like the Israelites, who had ignored Prophet Moses’ (AS) order to follow Aaron (AS) while he was on Mount Sinai, his own companions would forget the pledge of allegiance they had made to Imam Ali (AS) as Vicegerent.
Moreover, wasn’t Judas Iscariot, who tried to betray Prophet Jesus (AS) to the Romans, a disciple of the Messiah – whose monotheistic message was distorted beyond recognition by another contemporary, Paul, the Hellenized Jew?
Alas, Prophet Muhammad (SAWA) was prevented from having a paper and quill

by one of his senior companions, who not just uttered the illogical statement “hasbuna Kitab-Allah” (the Book of God is sufficient for us)”, but also committed sacrilege by calling the Prophet “delirious” in violation of God’s words in the Qur’an that the Prophet neither errs nor goes astray and whatever he says is revelation revealed – as is evident by Ayahs three to five of Surah Najm.
The Prophet ordered him and his accomplices to get out of his presence, but his order to leave Medina by joining the expeditionary force under commandment of Osama bin Zayd, was disobeyed by this rebellious group.
Finally, on Safar 28 in his daughter Fatema’s (SA) house, he lay down with his head resting on the lap of his son-in-law Imam Ali (AS), and embracing his two grandsons, Imam Hasan (AS) and Imam Husain (AS), he gave his grieving family guidelines on patience, steadfastness, and forbearance, as well as tidings of their martyrdom in defence of Islam, before his soul flew to the ethereal heavens.
The universal mission of Islam needs Divinely-designated leaders, after the Last and Greatest of God’s Messengers to guide people towards paradise, thus the need for Imam Ali (AS), and his sons Imam Hasan (AS) and Imam Husain (AS).
It was therefore Divine Providence that on the 39th anniversary of the Prophet’s passing away, his elder grandson should leave the world, a martyr, on being fatally poisoned on the orders of Mu’awiyyah – Heir of the coup leaders of Saqifa.
Imam Hasan (AS) by handing over political rule to the Omayyad rebel who soon violated all the terms of the Treaty unmasked hypocrisy that had confounded the beliefs of Muslims after the Prophet as a result of their negligence of the event of Ghadeer and the Hadith of Thaqalayn,.
On 28 Safar 50 AH, when arrows riddled the coffin and corpse of the Prophet’s elder grandson in Medina on the instigation of a seditious woman, it became clear to Muslims that the holy Qur’an and the Ahl al-Bayt are indeed inseparable, while it is their enemies who are against the letter and spirit of the Book of God, which they shamelessly hoist on spear points and distort its contents even while claiming to be its reciters and memorizers – just as the ever-rebellious Israelites.
Thus, in ever age and place the Immaculate Ahl al-Bayt salvaged the legacy of Prophet Muhammad (SAWA) by standing firm and courting martyrdom, as is evident by the fatal poisoning of Imam Reza (AS) in Khorasan on 30th Safar 203 AH by Mamoun, the self-styled caliph of the usurper Abbasid regime.