May hamd be to Allahu ta'ala, who is the Rabb of everything, that is, who creates and raises all beings! May goodness and salvation be upon our beloved Prophet, Muhammad 'alaihis-salam', who has guided us to the right way. May benedictions be over his close relatives and over his Ashab, who had the honor of believing in him and seeing his beautiful and luminous face!

Of all the seventy-two different miscreant groups who have deviated from the right way in this world, which is a place of examination for mankind and an open space of ground whereon the good are distinguished from the bad, haters of the Ashab al-kiram are the most staunch followers of the devil and the most miserable victims of the deceitful human nafs, so much so that they have already surpassed the devil in this respect. These people make a show of excessive love for the close relatives and the children of our Prophet 'sall-allahu alaihi wa sallam', and say that loving them is the greatest worship. They claim to be adherent to the ayat al-karima that purports, "I do not demand any return for having brought you the Islamic religion. All I want from you is to love my Ahl al-bayt, who are close to me." Yet the evil cult they actually adhere to is based on vituperating, cursing Rasulullah's 'sall-allahu alaihi wa sallam' Ashab 'radi-allahu anhum ajmain', who are Islam's greatest teachers. Some of them go even further, so that they censure our master the Messenger of Allah 'sall-allahu alaihi wa sallam' and even Jabrail 'alaihissalam', the trustworthy Archangel who carried the Wahy from Allahu ta'ala. They consider this wicked behavior of theirs as a worship.

Leaders of these heretics strive day and night to mislead others, boasting of their "endeavors to save humanity". The very clever ones disguise themselves as hodjas or shaikhs and travel incognito through villages, where they disseminate their obnoxious, poisonous assertions. The rich ones spend all their property and money for this goal. In fact, hadrat field marshal Muhammad Namik Pasha [1219-1310], who was aide-de-camp to Sultan Abd-ul-Hamid Khan II, Muslims' Khalifa and the great Padishah of the Ottoman Turks, [1258 (1842)-1336 (1918), in the graveyard of Sultan Mahmud], related to this faqir, ('Uthman Effendi means himself): "During my governorship of Baghdad I saw these eccentric miscreants disseminate a hundred thousand books in a clandestine way in the villages of Iraq. I had the books collected and thrown into a river. I prevented them from writing and disseminating such mischievous books." Despite so many efforts to prevent them, it has not been quite possible to stop these base- natured people causing turmoil and misdirecting people. So far, they have not hesitated to sacrifice their property and lives for this purpose.

[One of the harmful books, and probably the worst, which these heretics have written with all sorts of lies and are trying to disseminate far and near, is a pamphlet titled Husniyya. Originally written in the Persian language, the book has been translated into Turkish and disseminated in a surreptitious way in Istanbul and almost all over Anatolia. When a lithographic copy of the book was obtained and scanned, it was seen that it did not contain any true writings. It was understood that it was a spurious, mendacious pamphlet fabricated with preposterous, impracticable illusory ideas. It is observed with consternation that this writing, circulating among the Hurufi fathers in Iran, was printed in Istanbul in 1958 and has been being sold freely and contaminating, misleading some wretched people happening to read it. We have seen with gratitude on the other hand that our noble and pure people avoid buying this pamphlet, so that it does not sell much.

It is an obvious fact that those pure Muslims belonging to the group of Ahl as-sunnat wal-jamaat and people with average mental capacity and a smattering of general knowledge will not believe such writings; yet falsifications disguised in good, true statements and covered under ornamented, falsely-adorned writings may confuse the readers. The introductory section of the so-called book has been decked deceitfully].

According to the Ahl as-sunnat, it is necessary to love very much the Ahl al-bayt-i- Nabawi, that is, hadrat Ali and his children 'radi-allahu anhum ajmain'. Loving them will cause one to die in iman (to die as a believer). Books written by the savants of Ahl as- sunnat teem with writings commending their love. The Iranian Jew named Murtada, the author of the so-called book Husniyya, must have known this fact very well; it was shrewd of him to write in the beginning about his exuberant love for the Ahl al-bayt so that the ignorant people reading these falsely adorned statements should consider Islam to consist of loving the Ahl al-bayt, which is certainly something beautiful in itself, and thus take the whole book for granted and, consequently, deviate from the right way, believing that the book is rightful in its criticism of the Ashab al-kiram 'radi-allahu ta'ala anhum ajmain' and the scholars of Ahl as-sunnat.

The book Tuhfa-i-isna Ashariyya, written in the Persian language and printed in India in order to refute mentally and scientifically the writings in the so-called book and in other similarly poisonous books, has been translated into Turkish and printed in order to protect Muslims from falling into such a grave, bottomless, abysmal disaster with the command of hadrat Sultan Abd-ul-Hamid Khan II, our master and Padishah 'rahmatullahi ta'ala alaih', a protector of the Islamic religion and a rescuer of Muslims, and this Turkish version is already being disseminated. Yet we have considered it appropriate to write another refutation to the book Husniyya, and named this refutation of ours Tazkiya-i-Ahl al-bayt.

[The book Tuhfa-i-isna ashariyya, in Persian, was printed in India in 1266 [C.E. 1850]. A copy of the book exists in the library of Istanbul University. It was written by Ghulam Halim Shah Abd-ul-'Aziz Dahlawi, who passed away in India in 1239 [C.E. 1823]. The book, which tells about Shiis, was printed again in 1309. Abd-ul-'Aziz Dahlawi is the son on Waliyy-ullah Ahmad bin Abd-ur-Rahim Dahlawi (1114-1180), the celebrated (Islamic) scholar].

A closer look at the book Husniyya betrays the fact that its translator was not a Persian but he must have been an Ottoman clerk in Istanbul who, though being of the Sunni ancestral origin, had wandered away from the right way. In order to rescue both this person and those young people who might have had the unlucky chance of reading this book from meeting endless disaster, we are beginning to write this refutation of ours, trusting ourselves to Allahu ta'ala. This refutation of Tazkiya-i-Ahl al-bayt was printed in Istanbul in 1295 (C.E. 1878). It has been discovered that the refutation was written by 'Uthman (Osman) bin Nasir Effendi, the Shaikh of Yenikapi Mevlevihane in Istanbul. It is written in Qamus-ul-alam that his father, Nasir Effendi, passed away in 1236 (C.E. 1821)].

1- It is related as follows at the beginning of the book Husniyya: "A merchant, who was a devoted friend of Imam-i-Jafar Sadiq's [83-148, in Medina] 'radi-allahu anh', had a very pretty jariya (Woman slave captured in a Holy War. Muslims treat their slaves and jariyas as they treat their brothers and sisters.) named Husniyya. This jariya stayed with the Imam until she reached the age of twenty, learning in the meantime all the branches of knowledge. After the Imam's death the merchant went bankrupt and wanted to sell the jariya to Harun-ur-Rashid, the Khalifa. [Harun-ur-Rashid is the fifth Abbasi (Abbasid) Khalifa. He was born in 148, and passed away in 193 in Tus city. He became the Khalifa in 170]. Petrified by the beauty of the girl, the Khalifa asked the price. Fifty thousand golds, was the answer. When the Khalifa asked what skills the jariya had to be worth that much, the merchant told him all about the knowledge and the virtues she had. She was given an examination in the presence of scholars. She proved to be superior to the scholars. She rebutted all of them. The scholars and mujtahids present for the occasion, among whom were Imam-i-Abu Yusuf Yaqub bin Ibrahim [113-182, in Baghdad] and Imam-i-Muhammad bin Idris Shafi'i [150-204, in Egypt], could not answer her. They knew a scholar who they believed was superior to them all. This scholar, Ibrahim Khalid by name, lived in Basra and was the author of numerous books. They sent for him, yet he, too, proved short of coping with her and became completely baffled."

According to some Madhhabs, it is not permissible for this jariya to stay with another man while being in the possession of the merchant. There are some scholars who say that it is not permissible in Hanafi Madhhab, either. It is written in the two hundred and thirty-fifth page of the fifth volume of Ibni Abidin. To say that such a pious personage as Imam-i-Jafar-i-Sadiq 'radi- allahu anh', who is well-known for his wara'(Wara' means to abstain from acts, behaviors, words, foods, drinks, and all things that are dubious, that is, anything about which one cannot be sure whether it is forbidden or permitted.) and taqwa (Taqwa means to abstain from all sorts of forbidden acts, behaviors, thoughts, words. (Ibni Abidin).), continuously committed a forbidden or (at least) dubious deed by keeping another man's young and pretty jariya in his service and teaching her for years, means to calumniate that great Imam. It might be thought that the Imam, being a mujtahid himself, might have had the ijtihad that such an act would be permissible; but how could we presume that this great Imam would have been so indifferent as to acquiesce in a jariya's being deprived of freedom for many years and being put up for sale at the end of all these years in his service and after attaining such a perfect level in knowledge and integrity owing to his tutorship? Learning all the branches of knowledge so much as to beat and rebut all the other religious scholars and mujtahids is an indication of a profound mental and intellectual capacity and skill. Therefore, to write that hadrat Imam could not realize the value of such a dexterous jariya and did not put an end to her slavery but acquiesced to her being sold from one person to another, would mean to accuse that exalted Imam of atrocity. And this, in its turn, would signify animosity, let alone love, towards the Ahl al- bayt. This allegation in the book Husniyya is a stupid method no less ludicrous than the humorous anecdote of a man who "kills his friend inadvertently while trying to kill the fly on his forehead with a big stone," which is related in the Masnawi of Jalaladdin Rumi 'qaddas-allahu sirrah-ul-'aziz'. Furthermore, it is haram for women to raise their voice so high as to let men hear them. According to some scholars, they are permitted to (talk to men) in case of strong necessity, but even in this case they must be careful not to exceed the prescribed limits, i.e. they must talk in a low and rough tone, and stop it as soon as the necessity is over. This fact is explained in full detail in the book Durr-ul-mukhtar, and also in the two hundred and seventy-second page of its explanatory commentary. In light of this fact, a woman's sitting on a raised platform in front of hundreds of men and talking to them for hours, while it was possible for them to carry on this debate in a written form, would raise doubts as to her concept of chastity and decency. Not only that; this situation would also put hundreds of religious scholars and mujtahids into a position of sinfullness. No Muslim would believe such nonsense.

2- "Husniyya quoted ayats from Qur'an al-karim and explained them by means of hadith ash-Sharifs with such competence that the scholars in her presence were unable to answer her and had to remain silent. This state exasperated Harun-ur-Rashid. Husniyya's silencing the scholars of Baghdad caused far-reaching repercussions in the city for many days." While making this allegation, the book does not say what the so-called questions that could not be answered were, so that we might see for ourselves whether they were really so profound and difficult that the so-called mujtahids were unable to answer. On the other hand, the innumerable books that still exist today reveal the fact as apparently as the sun that not only the scholars of Ahl-i-sunnat themselves 'rahmatullahi ta'ala alaihim ajmain' but also every one of the thousands of pupils educated by them gave various answers to all the slanderous allegations of the many miscreants, thus inflicting a humiliating defeat on them. Everybody sees this fact. Obviously these profound scholars, who had educated such superior disciples and proved their powerful competence by establishing essential methods and principles for belief and worships and laying the religious problems on firm, unshakable foundations, could not be expected to have fallen into such a shameful position by falling short of answering a jariya's questions; a person with common sense could not believe this derogatory allegation. Another fact known by all groups of Muslims is that there has not been a scholar superior to mujtahids so far. Nor does any (Islamic) book make mention of a superior scholar named Ibrahim Khalid of Basra. The Jewish author of the book Husniyya should have heard of Abu Sawr Ibrahim bin Khalid and fabricated his story over his name. Yet Abu Sawr was born in Baghdad, lived in Baghdad, and passed away in Baghdad in 240 (H.). He, let alone having taught five hundred scholars in Basra, took lessons formerly from Imam-i-azam's disciples and later from Imam-i-Shafi'i in Baghdad.

3- The book quotes the jariya as having said, "The Ashab al-kiram became disbelievers because they made Abu Bakr their Khalifa after Rasulullah's death. Therefore the Ashab deserves being cursed. Rasulullah 'sall-allahu alaihi wa sallam' stated: After me my Ashab will quote many hadiths. Most of these hadiths will be false. Do not believe in the statements of my Ashab unless they are one of my Ahl al-bayt!" Modifying the hadith ash- Sharif, "After me my Ummat (Muslims) will part into seventy-three groups. One of them will attain salvation. The remaining seventy-two groups will go to Hell. This one group is those who follow me and my Ashab," he (the author) transforms (the last clause) into "those who follow me and my Ahl al-bayt." Then the jariya is made to lapse into the heretical theory called Mutazila with the following assertion:

"The jariya, in order to prove that Qur'an al-karim is a creature and is not eternal, asked various questions, which could not be answered by the mujtahids. Upon this, thousands of people who attended the debates as auditors, Sunnite as they were, spat in the mujtahid's faces, all the people of Baghdad applauded the jariya by clapping their hands. As the Khalifa (Harun-ur-Rashid) was listening to the debate, she said that only the twelve imams of the Ahl al-bayt, and no one else, were rightful to caliphate and that the Sunni Muslims would make anyone their Khalifa sinful and evil as the person might be, and she cursed the thousands of Sunni Muslims who were present. When she said in front of all those people that hadrat Ali and six other Sahaba had been opposed to hadrat Abu Bakr's caliphate, that this disagreement had led to wars, that the number of Ali's supporters had reached twenty two, that all the Ashab, with the exception of these twenty-two people, and those who loved them and all the mujtahids and scholars who followed them and all the Sunni Muslims were disbelievers and even worse than disbelievers, and that it would be the most valuable worship to curse them, the Khalifa, Harun-ur-Rashid, became so jubilant and admired her so much that from time to time he scattered golds on her." These fake events are related in a sordid, derisive, extravagant language in the book.

The hundredth ayat of Tawba sura purports, "Allahu ta'ala loves them. And they love Him." Here, He (Allahu ta'ala) declares that He likes and loves all the Ashab al-kiram, all the Muhajirs and Ansars alike. The sixth ayat of Ahzab sura purports, "His wives are Muslims' mothers." Here, He (Allahu ta'ala) praises and lauds Rasulullah's 'sall-allahu alaihi wa sallam' blessed wives 'radi-allahu ta'ala alaihima ajmain'. It is not something a person with adequate wisdom would do, to resist these ayat al-karimas, to call these religious superiors disbelievers, and to say that the hadiths reported by these people are not dependable. Statements such as these could be made only by the insidious enemies striving to denigrate and demolish the Islamic religion.

The questions, which were actually copied from the Mutazila group and which are alleged to have been asked in order to prove that Qur'an al-karim is a creature and that men's actions are not creatures, have been answered in a most pulchritudinous and indubitable way by every one of the disciples educated by mujtahids, thousands of valuable books have been written to this end, and most of them have been translated into various languages, winning the admiration of the world's scientists. Therefore, only idiots can be deceived by alleging in a falsely adorned, circumlocutory language that the mujtahids could not answer the questions asked by the jariya. A person with common sense will see at once that these writings are lies and vilifications which the enemies of Islam use as weapons in their behind-the-scenes attacks in order to demolish Islam.

While writing the questions that the Mutazila group posed to the Ahl as-sunnat in order to prove that Qur'an al-karim is a creature and that men's bad deeds are not created by Allahu ta'ala but men create all their wishes themselves, he withholds, conceals the express and confuting answers which the scholars of Ahl as-sunnat 'rahmatullahi alaihim' gave them. However, these answers of the Ahl as-sunnat are written in detail in our books of Kalam.

Harun-ur-Rashid was the most learned, the most courageous, and the most equitable of the Abbasi Khalifas. In the presence of such a Khalifa and in front of scholars and statesmen a jariya disparages the Khalifa by saying to his face that he is not the rightful Khalifa and then turning to the thousands of distinguished people being there and saying to them that they have made an atrocious sinner their Khalifa; this is not something the human mind could accept. And his allegation that these words (of the jariya's) made the Khalifa laugh and he was so pleased that he scattered golds on the jariya's head, is as ludicrous and as farcical as to arouse one's puerile feelings of mockery. His writing that "with these statements of hers the jariya silenced the scholars and no one was able to answer her; people being there and all the Sunnite Muslims of Baghdad were pleased and they manhandled the mujtahids", shows that the mujtahids, the Khalifa, and all the people being there accepted the Mutazila sect and hated the Madhhab of Ahl as-sunnat. On the other hand, all books and historical records unanimously state that Harun-ur-Rashid was in the Madhhab of Ahl as-sunnat throughout his life, that he had very deep respect for the scholars of Ahl as-sunnat, that he would commune with them before going into any action. There is no written record, not even a sign, to show that the people of Baghdad swerved into the Mutazila way during his time. Yes, it is recorded that one or two of the Khalifas after Harun meant to urge the people to join the Mutazila group; yet it is a plain fact that such efforts proved futile and that all the Iraqis and Iranians maintained their Sunnite guidelines up until the time of Shah Ismail. The reappearing of the Shi'ah sect, which was actually brewed by Shah Ismail Safawi [born in 892, dead in 930 (C.E. 1524)] as a stratagem to break Muslims into sects and thus to hold his ground against the Ottoman Empire, was hundreds of years after Harun-ur-Rashid. As it is seen, Harun and the people's applauding the jariya is a downright lie deliberately fabricated for sheer vilification.

4- The jariya is made to say, "Formerly, the mut'a nikah was a common practice. Later it was forbidden by hadrat 'Umar." However, Rasulullah 'sall-allahu alaihi wa sallam' prohibited the mut'a nikah on the day when he conquered Mecca. The mut'a nikah means an agreement made by a man and a woman to cohabit for a certain period of time. As any fallen woman, let alone a highly virtuous one, could not be so shameless as to talk about this matter amidst thousands of men, it is an abominable slander to allege that a mature, chaste, young and very pretty woman educated by hadrat Imam Jafar Sadiq talked about it so frankly. [There is detailed information on the prohibition of the Mut'a Nikah in the (Turkish) book Ashab-i Kiram, and also in the fifth part of this book].

5- The jariya is supposed to say, "Rasulullah 'sall-allahu alaihi wa sallam' ordered his Ashab on the night of his migration to Medina from Mecca that no one should leave his home. Disobeying this order of Rasulullah's, Abu Bakr as-Siddiq went out his home and followed the Messenger of Allah. Rasulullah did not want him to follow, and was thinking of telling him to go back, when Jabrail 'alaihis-salam' (the Archangel Gabriel) came and warned Rasulullah, saying that Abu Bakr meant mischief and might betray him (Rasulullah) to the disbelievers of Quraish should he be made to go back. The fortieth ayat of Tawba sura, which purports, 'Don't be afraid! Allah is with us," shows that Abu Bakr was a disbeliever." [May Allahu ta'ala protect us against saying so!]

On the contrary, according to the unanimous report of history books, day by day the unbelievers of Quraish augmented their animosity against our master, Rasulullah 'sall- allahu alaihi wa sallam', and the Ashab al-kiram 'alaihim-ur-ridwan', and eventually laid siege to them. During this three years' siege some Sahabis migrated to Medina-i- munawwara and some to Abyssinia. For example, as 'Uthman 'radi-allahu anh' [martyred in Medina in 35 (H.), when he was eighty-two years old], who was the compiler of Qur'an al-karim, and his blessed wife hadrat Ruqayya [passed way in Medina in the second year of Hijrat] were leaving for Abyssinia, Rasulullah 'sall-allahu alaihi wa sallam' saw them and said to them, "Of Prophets 'alaihimu-s-salam', Lut 'alaihis-salam' was first to migrate together with his wife. And among my Ashab you are the first to migrate with your wife. Allahu ta'ala shall make you a companion to Lut 'alaihis-salam' in Jennet (Paradise)." Ruqayya 'radi-allahu anha' was Rasulullah's 'sall-allahu alaihi wa sallam' second daughter. Thus there was no one left in Mecca al-mukarrama' with the exception of hadrat Abu Bakr and hadrat Ali 'radi-allahu anhuma'. Abu Bakr 'radi-allahu anh' asked several times for permission to migrate. Yet he was not given the permission (by the Messenger of Allah, who said), "You will migrate with me." So he began to wait for Allahu ta'ala's permission to migrate. Meanwhile, upon the suggestion advanced by Abu Jahl, the chief of Quraish and the notorious enemy of Islam, they decided to kill the Messenger of Allah. [The real name of Abu Jahl is Amr bin Hisham bin Mughira. He belongs to the Bani Mahzum tribe of Quraish. He is a descendant of Mahzum bin Yaqnata bin Murra. Quraish is the name of Fihr, Rasulullah's eleventh father. Murra is Rasulullah's seventh father. Abu Jahl was killed in the Holy War of Badr in the second year of Hijrat]. Lest the murderer should be identified, they selected twelve vagrants, one from each tribe, and besieged Rasulullah's home on the night between Wednesday and Thursday. They were about to attack, for killing Rasulullah, when Allahu ta'ala ordered him to migrate. He made hadrat Ali 'radi- allahu anh' to lie in his blessed bed and left home before sunrise, reciting the eighth ayat al- karima of Yasin sura and walking by the unbelievers, who did not see Rasulullah 'sall- allahu alaihi wa sallam' leave his house and walk by. Staying at some so far undiscovered place till noon, he went to Abu Bakr as-Siddiq's place at noontime. He ordered Abu Bakr's son Abdullah [joined many Holy Wars; passed away in the eleventh year] to walk amongst the unbelievers every day and take the information he would find and also some food and drink to a certain cave every night. That night he and Abu Bakr Siddiq left the latter's house and went to a cave in the mountain called Sawr. In the mountain Rasulullah 'sall- allahu alaihi wa sallam' put his blessed head on Abu Bakr's knee and fell asleep. Lest a poisonous animal come out of one of the holes in the cave and hurt the Messenger of Allah, Abu Bakr as-Siddiq doffed the shirt he was wearing, tore it to pieces, and packed each piece into a whole. There being one piece too few, one of the holes was left unplugged. A snake appeared in this hole, holding its head out. To prevent the snake from going out and hurting Rasulullah, Abu Bakr Siddiq put his blessed foot on the hole. The snake bit his blessed foot, yet he would not draw his foot back. However, the pain caused by the biting brought tears into his blessed eyes and when they fell on Rasulullah's 'sall- allahu alaihi wa sallam' blessed luminous face, the best of mankind woke up. Seeing what had happened, he put his blessed spittle on the bitten place. It stopped the pain at once. After spending three nights in the cave, they left there on the first Monday of the month of Rabi'ul-awwal, setting out for Medina on camels and using the coastal route, which was shorter. When they reached the place called Qudayd, they came across a tent, wherein lived a woman. They asked the woman if she had something (to eat) for them to buy. She said she had nothing to eat but a skinny, milkless ewe. The Messenger of Allah asked for her permission to milk it. He rubbed his blessed hand gently on the sheep's back, said the Besmele (The word 'Bi-s-m-illah-ir-rahman-ir-rahim,' which means, briefly, 'In the name of Allah, (who is very) merciful, compassionate.' Every Muslim should utter this word before doing anything unless it is something sinful), and began to milk it. Very much milk came out, so that all the people being there drank plenty of it and they filled all the containers she had. When the woman's husband came and was told about this miracle, he and his wife became Muslims.

All books give this same account about the Hijrat (Hegira). Since there was no one left in Mecca city except Abu Bakr and Ali 'radi-allahu anhuma', the allegation that "Rasulullah ordered his Ashab not to leave their homes" proves to be an open falsification. Abu Bakr-i- Siddiq 'radi-allahu anh' was two years younger than Rasulullah 'sall-allahu alaihi wa sallam'. When they were young they were very close, loving friends. This mutual love between them lasted increasingly as long as they lived. They were always together, day and night. When Rasulullah 'sall-allahu alaihi wa sallam' traveled to Damascus and honored the place with his blessed presence twice, he accompanied him. To disignore all this love, attachment and self sacrifice and assert that Rasulullah did not trust him, is a very evident lie, an abominable slander. He says that Rasulullah did not tell Abu Bakr that he was going to migrate. The unbelievers who had besieged the house did not perceive Rasulullah's leaving the house. If Abu Bakr sensed this and followed the Messenger of Allah, this must be a sign of kashf (seeing, understanding, perceiving, sensing through one's heart) and karamat (miracle happening on Awliya, i.e. people loved very much by Allahu ta'ala). Accordingly, would it be logical to state that a person with kashf and keramet would betray Rasulullah? Supposing he would betray him, then did not he have the opportunity to betray him to the unbelievers when they came to the mouth of the cave (wherein Rasulullah and hadrat Abu Bakr were hiding) on Friday and saw the spider's web completely covering the mouth of the cave and gave up entering the cave saying, "It seems as if no man has entered here since the creation of the earth"? Would he miss this chance?

To distort the meaning of the ayat al-karima that purports, "Don't worry! Allahu ta'ala is with us," and to attempt very sordidly to use it as a ground for condemning Abu Bakr Siddiq 'radi-allahu ta'ala anh', is the most disgusting way of ignorance and enmity towards Islam. It is not worth answering at all.

6- "Husniyya talked with Ibrahim Khalid for a long time. She asked him questions on subtle matters. Like the other mujtahids, he could not answer any of her questions. Placed in a quandary, he asked Husniyya who was rightful to the caliphate. When Husniyya replied that the caliphate rightfully belonged to the earliest Muslim, he asked who was the earliest Muslim, to which Husniyya answered, 'Hadrat Ali was.' When he objected to this answer, saying, 'Hadrat Ali was a child when he became a Muslim. Since a child's becoming a Muslim is not important in this sense, the earliest Muslim was Abu Bakr Siddiq,' Husniyya recited the ayat al-karimas telling about Hadrat Isa (Jesus) and Musa (Moses) and Ibrahim (Abraham), said that those (Prophets) had become Muslims in their childhood, and vituperated Ibrahim Khalid and the scholars of Ahl as-sunnat. Hadrat Imam-i-Shafi'i, who was present there, asked the Khalifa to punish the jariya. The Khalifa just shelved the notion, ordering that she must be beaten through knowledge."

On the contrary, the hadith ash-Sharif, "Every child comes to the world in a nature well fitted for becoming a Muslim. Later their parents turn them into Jews or Christians or atheists," is widely known among the Sunnite Muslims, so that everyone has heard it. While there is this hadith ash-Sharif, to believe the assertion that Ibrahim Khalid or any other man of religion said, "Hadrat Ali 'radi-allahu ta'ala anh' was a child when he became a Muslim. So his being a Muslim cannot be taken into consideration," and that hundreds of scholars who heard this eccentric statement accepted it and remained mum, would be as droll as believing a person who calls white 'black', which would even make children laugh. The assertion betrays the fact that it has been written by an Iranian Jew.

7- The jariya is alleged to have confuted the scholars by saying, "Though it was hadrat Ali's right to become the Khalifa, the three Khalifas divested him of his right by using force. Selman Farisi and five to six other Sahabis remained with hadrat Ali and would not vote for the three Khalifas. They struggled against those cruel people for twenty-five years. For this reason, the three Khalifas and the ten people [who had been given the good news that they would enter Paradise] and thousands of Sahabis who voted for them became disbelievers [may Allahu ta'ala protect us from saying so]." Then she, so to speak, uttered ugly, rude terms about the superior men of Islam.

In an effort to make a show of excessive love for hadrat Ali, the Hurufis mix caliphate into the matter. Thus in this matter also they go beyond the Islamic limits and sink into heretical thoughts. When due attention is paid, it will be seen that they think of caliphate, which is in fact a commandment of Islam, as a means for worldly pomp. Having read about the historical stratagems and intrigues carried on and the murders perpetrated by fathers and sons against one another in their endeavors for sovereignty and presidency, they compare Rasulullah's 'sall-allahu alaihi wa sallam' four Khalifas to them. Histories give a detailed account of how the four Khalifas served humanity. And this is the real import of caliphate.

One day during the caliphate of our master Abu Bakr Siddiq 'radi-allahu anh', hadrat 'Umar saw him carrying a sack of flour on his back, and asked him why he was doing so. His answer was: "Ya 'Umar! Don't I have to earn for my household?" Hadrat 'Umar, admire as he did this answer of the Khalifa's, was surprised at the same time. He proposed that Rasulullah's Khalifa should be paid a salary from the Bayt-ul-mal, that is, from the State budget, so that he could carry out his duty of serving all people in due manner. This proposal was accepted by all the Ashab al-kiram, and it was decided that the Khalifa would be allotted the necessary share from the Bayt-ul-mal. Hadrat Abu Bakr would take from this share only so much as to lead a life equal to that of any average person, returning any extra amount, if there was any. So was the case with the second Khalifa, 'Umar 'radi- allahu anh'. When the Islamic armies conquered the blessed city of Jerusalem and its vicinity, the European States sent forth a very knowledgeable and experienced ambassador to Jerusalem. After an audience with the Khalifa, he went back home with the following report, though his requests had been refused: "He is such a Padishah (king) that, with all his high knowledge and awe-inspiring appearance, he does not have a palace or ornamented attirements. I paid attention to his clothes. There were eighteen patches on them. It is impossible to stand against such an unadorned hero who is always ready for war." This fact is recorded in the unbiased ones of the records of European histories. The book Masnawi, which is composed of more than forty-seven thousand distichs, by Jalaladdin Rumi [born in Balh city in the Hijri year 604 and passed away in Konya in 672 (C.E. 1273)], has been translated into all the world's popular languages. The book gives the following information: The ambassador sent forth by the Byzantine Emperor arrives in Medina and asks where the Khalifa's palace is. Shown a cottage, he makes for it, enters the yard, and there he sees the Khalifa, lying on dry land using a piece of stone as a cushion. Hadrat 'Umar Faruq 'radi-allahu ta'ala anh' wakes up and looks at the ambassador, who begins to shudder at the feeling of dread and the verve inspired by this first look. Then he recovers, talks with the Khalifa, and leaves. As he leaves, the Khalifa's blessed wife gives the ambassador a present, which she has prepared by borrowing eighteen dirhams of silver coins from an acquaintance and which she asks him to take to the emperor's wife. In return, the emperor's wife sends her a very valuable gift ornamented with precious jewels. The Khalifa, who has never done injustice in anything he has done, gives his wife only an eighteen dirham worth silver piece, sending the remainder to the Bayt-ul-mal.

'Umar 'radi-allahu anh' would eat all his meals from an earthenware bowl. One day the Ashab al-kiram 'alaihim-ur-ridwan' begged the Khalifa's daughter hadrat Hafsa and sent her to the Khalifa with he request, "O my father, the Amir of believers! Hadrat Abu Bakr, the first Khalifa, struggled with the munafiqs until his death, so much so that he did not even have time for relief. Now you have conquered innumerous lands in the east and west. Ambassadors from the world's universal emperors come to you and are fed in your generous kitchen. Mightn't you as well give up those earthenware bowls and use sets of copper or other metal in the presence of these visitors?" This, of course, was the Sahaba's suggestion. Hadrat Khalifa's answer to this was, "O my daughter Hafsa 'radi- allahu anha'! I would chide anyone else for this statement. As I have heard from you, our master Rasulullah 'sall-allahu alaihi wa sallam' had a mattress stuffed with grasses. Seeing that his blessed body was not comfortable on this bed, one night you laid out a soft bed and made Rasulullah lie and sleep on it, thus depriving him of getting up and praying that night (because the new bed was too comfortable for him to wake up for his regular midnight prayers). He expressed his regrets to you, remonstrating, 'Do not do so again!' The second ayat of Fat-h sura purports, 'In order to cover your past and future faults... .' This being the style of life led by a Prophet who has been given the good news that he shall be pardoned and forgiven, can a poor 'Umar, who is not sure about his future, leave the way of life led by Rasulullah and lead a luxurious life by eating from copper plates?"

In daytime 'Umar Faruq 'radi-allahu anh' was busy in Medina conducting his armies in Asia and supplying and dispatching their needs, and he would spend the whole night patrolling the city for protecting the Muslims' property, lives, and chastity. As he was out on his patrol one night, he heard a voice crying. He went there and asked why. A poor woman said, "I have no one to subsist me. It has been two days since I came here. My children have been crying of hunger for two days. I made a fire, so that I have been making them sleep by putting only water in the pot and telling them that I am making them food!" The Khalifa felt so sorry that he began to weep. Saying, " 'Umar has been ruined! 'Umar has perished," he condemned himself, and left. He had some meat with him when he came back. As he was blowing the fire to make it burn faster, his blessed beard caught fire. These events are not tales. They are true events recorded in history books. Today, some people watch the fabricated films produced by film makers and call the Islamic histories mythologies, myths, and stories.

So was the case with hadrat Ali 'radi-allahu anh', the fourth Islamic Khalifa. As he was passing away, the worldly property he had was no more than the mule named Duldul, which was a keepsake from the Messenger of Allah, his sword called Zulfikar, and his blessed shirt. And these things had been pawned to a Jew. Likewise, Muhammad 'alaihis- salam', who was the final Prophet and the master of worlds, left behind a bedstead made of teak timber, a shirt, and a set of clothing. He would give the milk he obtained from twenty camels, one hundred sheep and seven goats to the poor ones of the Ashab al-kiram. He did not even have a house of his own. All the four Khalifas lived like Rasulullah 'sall-allahu alaihi wa sallam'. They never deviated from the way led by him. All four of them accepted the caliphate as it was Islam's commandment, in a fashion like shouldering a burden, and because the Ummat (Muslims) wished them to be their Khalifa and elected them on a unanimous vote. For it was declared as follows in the hadith ash-Sharifs of our master Rasulullah's 'sall-allahu alaihi wa sallam': "The votes of my Umma will not come together on aberration." "Whatever believers find beautiful is beautiful to Allahu ta'ala." To assert that the four Khalifas seized the office of caliphate by using force, when it is a fact that they were elected by the Ummat, is a very grave oddity and a detestable defamation. The following event shows plainly that hadrat Abu Bakr Siddiq was not at all eager for caliphate: Rasulullah 'sall-allahu alaihi wa sallam' would give some disbelievers worldly goods from the Bayt-ul-mal in order to appease them and to conciliate them with Muslims. Those disbelievers who were given such goods were called 'Muellefa-i-qulub'. When Abu Bakr Siddiq 'radi-allahu anh' became the Khalifa, he gave one of the muellefa-i-qulub a piece of land from the Bayt-ul-mal. This person, sensing the vast popularity 'Umar had been enjoying among the Ashab al-kiram and expecting him to be the next Khalifa, took the title deed he had been given to 'Umar and asked him to undersign it. Upon seeing the title deed, hadrat 'Umar took it and went with it to the Khalifa to ask him how come the person had been given land from the Bayt-ul-mal. When the Khalifa explained that the muellefa-i-qulub had been given land from the Bayt-ul-mal in Rasulullah's time, too, hadrat 'Umar stated, "It was because Muslims were not powerful enough yet. Now we are not weak, and therefore that necessity does not exist any longer. Even if it were still necessary, the decision to execute it could be made only after communing with six or seven of the Ashab al-kiram." The Khalifa found this statement well put and said, "Ya 'Umar! When I was elected the Khalifa, I said I was not fit for the office and suggested that you would be a better choice. But the Ashab al-kiram would not listen to me. It has been seen once again on this occasion that you are superior to me. I want to resign from caliphate. And I request that you accept this service." 'Umar 'radi-allahu anh' replied in due respect that he was not superior at all, that he did not think of becoming the Khalifa, and that his purpose was to remind (the Khalifa) of what he ('Umar) thought would be right. Thereupon hadrat Khalifa commanded that from then on nothing should be put into practice without a foregoing consultation in matters pertaining to the Bayt-ul-mal.

During the caliphate of 'Umar 'radi-allahu anh', several Sahabis came to him with the request that he make a will to advise that after him Abdullah bin 'Umar should be made the Khalifa on the grounds that he was, they thought, the second most deeply learned scholar among the Ashab al-kiram, and that "Rasulullah 'sall-allahu alaihi wa sallam' loved him very much." 'Umar's 'radi-allahu anh' answer to them was: "Being a Khalifa is a heavy burden. I cannot put my son under it." 'Umar 'radi-allahu anh' was martyred with a sword by a disbeliever named Abu Lu'lu, who was the slave of the Sahabi Mugira, in the twenty- third year of the Hegira. When he received the fatal wound, he was asked to appoint a Khalifa (to take his place). He nominated six Sahabis as candidates because these six people, he said, "gained Rasulullah's love more than anyone else did." The six Sahabis he named were 'Uthman (Osman), Ali, Talha, Zubair, Abd-ur-rahman bin Awf, and Sad ibni Abi Waqqas 'ridwan-ullahi alaihim ajmain'. Among themselves, these people elected 'Uthman 'radi-allahu anh' the Khalifa. Thus 'Uthman bin Affan was the third Khalifa. In his time insurrections and seditions provoked by munafiqs broke out here and there. When a group of ignorant and ignoble people advanced towards the city and finally reached Medina, some Sahabis advised the Khalifa to resign. Replying that "Rasulullah 'sall-allahu alaihi wa sallam' informed me that I shall attain martyrdom while reading Qur'an al- karim," he proved to have the merits of compliance with the fate (foreordained by Allahu ta'ala) and patience in times of disasters. In the thirty-fifth year of the Hijrat, some wicked people attacked the Khalifa's house. When Imam-i-Ali 'radi-allahu anh' heard the news of this assault, he sent his two sons, Hasan and Husain, like two lions to the Khalifa's house to help and protect the Khalifa. These two youngsters drew their swords and stood by the front door, so that not even a bird would fly in unseen. Yet five or six of the abject bandits entered the house through a back window by means of a ladder; and the Khalifa was martyred as had been divined by the Messenger of Allah. When Ali 'radi-allahu anh' heard about this deplorable news, he was so mad at his two sons for failing to protect the Khalifa that he scolded them harshly and even nearly hit them with his blessed hand. However, he forgave them afterwards when it was found out they had done their duty of protection perfectly and could not be blamed because the bandits had entered the house from the back.

Upon this tragedy, the Ashab al-kiram assembled and unanimously elected hadrat Ali 'radi- allahu anh' the Khalifa. Most of the Ashab al-kiram, including such notables as Talha and Zubair, asked the (new) Khalifa to arrest the murderers and punish them as prescribed by Islam. Hadrat Ali answered them that the situation was so chaotic that it would be impossible to find the murderers, that another mutiny might occur in case he tried to investigate, and that he could perform this commandment of Islam after the re- establishment of public order. They protested this answer, saying that a Khalifa who would not execute Islam's commandment was not to be obeyed. Imam-i-Ali's ijtihad was correct. On the other hand, the opposing party had to act upon their own ijtihad. And the Khalifa, in his turn, had to use force to subjugate the people disobeying him. Eventually the Jemel event, i.e. the war called 'Camel' took place, which cost a great deal of Muslim bloodshed. In the meantime, hadrat Muawiya 'radi-allahu anhum' was off in Damascus, where he had been appointed as governor. He therefore did not join the event of Jemel. Nor would he let any Damascene blood to be shed on account of this event. When hadrat Ali, the victor (of the battle of Camel), asked the Damascene people also to obey him, hadrat Muawiya followed his own ijtihad and asked him to arrest and punish the murderers; and this in its turn led to another war, i.e. the combat called Siffin.

As it is seen, none of the four Khalifas, and in fact none of the Ashab al-kiram 'radi-allahu anhum' thought of worldly advantages in the caliphate elections; they all endeavored to execute the commandment of Allahu ta'ala. The four Khalifas never thought of their own comfort, struggling day and night for serving Islam and Muslims and accepting the duty as a sine qua non which someone would have to undertake for Allah's sake.

Hurufis compare the caliphate institution to a kingdom, to sovereignty. And because they think so, they say that hadrat Ali was opposed to the caliphate of the other three Khalifas and therefore fought against them incessantly for twenty-five years. They presume that he vied for presidency for years and nursed a grudge and hostility against the Ashab al-kiram because they were against his caliphate. They allege that "therefore the three Khalifas and thousands of Sahabis who voted for them are to be cursed till the end of the world." In an effort to prove themselves to be right, they fabricate preternatural stories which are neither Islamic, nor logical, nor worthy of hadrat Ali's honorable renown.

8- The jariya is made to say, "When Abu Bakr Siddiq 'radi-allahu anh' became the Khalifa, he confiscated the date orchard belonging to hadrat Fatimat-uz-Zahra by force, and therefore hadrat Fatima, offended, harbored a grudge against Abu Bakr till her death. In fact, before her death she made a will that she should be interred at night lest Abu Bakr and 'Umar should attend her funeral."

The so-called orchard contained only a few trees. Supposing it were as vast and as lush as a jungle; what an ill-favored slander and how sound a sleep of nescience it is to assert that Fatimat-uz-Zahra 'radi-allahu anha', Rasulullah's daughter, the most honorable of all women, the Betul, called so because she would not even turn to look at worldly property, would bear hostility to the three Khalifas, who had been given the good news by her father that they would enter Paradise, and would even curse them and advise other Muslims to do so, on account of something worldly. [May Allahu ta'ala protect us from saying or believing so!] This slander, which would bring discredit on hadrat Ali and hadrat Fatima's universal high distinction, is perhaps a sign of hostility, let alone love, towards them.

The huge book Qisas-i-Anbiya (A History of Prophets), written by Ahmad Jawdat Pasha of Lofja 'rahmatullahi alaih', who was born in 1238, and passed away in Istanbul in 1312 [c.e. 1894] and was buried in the graveyard to the south of the blessed mosque of Fatih, was printed in Istanbul in 1331. The following information is given in its three hundred and sixty-ninth (369) page: "Rasulullah 'sall-allahu alaihi wa sallam' devoted his date orchard named Fedek in Hayber to the pious foundation and dictated how it was to be utilized. He advised in his will that income from the orchard should be given to foreign ambassadors, to visitors, guests and travelers. Abu Bakr 'radi-allahu anh' implemented this will during his caliphate. When Fatima 'radi-allahu anha' asked for it as (she thought it was) a share for her from the inheritance (her father had left behind), he said: I heard the Messenger of Allah say, 'No one can inherit (property) from us [Prophets]. Whatever we leave behind us is alms.' I can never change something established by Rasulullah. Otherwise, I fear I may deviate into an erroneous way. When hadrat Fatima wanted to know who his (hadrat Abu Bakr's) inheritors were, he replied: My wife and children are. Then she asked: Why am I not my father's inheritor, then? The Khalifa's answer was: I heard your father, the Messenger of Allah say, 'No one can be our inheritors.' Therefore you cannot be his inheritor. However, I am his Khalifa. Whoever he used to give when he was alive, I shall give. It is my duty to give you whatever you need, provide aid in your matters, and serve you. Upon this hadrat Fatima was quiet and never talked about inheritance again." This is the end of the passage from Qisas-i-Anbiya.

The number of the Sunni Muslims living on the earth has always been many times that of those people without a Madhhab in every century. Hurufis curse the Ahl as-sunnat, who are much more numerous than themselves, and call them disbelievers. If the Ahl as-sunnat Muslims respond to their bold and unfair inculpation in kind and say that they are heretics, the party whose number is overwhelmingly in the ascendant is more likely to be right.

Furthermore, it is thoroughly contradictory to Qur'an al-karim to say that hadrat Ali was inimical towards the three Khalifas 'radi-allahu anhum ajmain' or that hadrat Fatima cursed the Ashab al-kiram on account of an orchard. The second ayat al-karima of Maida sura purports, "Allahu ta'ala calls His born servants to help one another in birr and taqwa and to get on well with one another. Do not help in sinning or enmity." If the Ashab al-kiram did not love one another, if Muslims cursed one another and called one another disbelievers, this would be a sinful state, which is quite contrary to birr and taqwa. And this in turn would mean to say that hadrat Ali and hadrat Fatima 'radi-allahu anhuma' disobeyed the ayat al-karima. Saying, on the other hand, that these people "did not know that by opposing to hadrat Abu Bakr's caliphate and bearing hostility towards the Ashab al-kiram they would cause Muslims coming after them to call one another disbelievers, which in turn would lead to a convention quite counter to the ayat al-karima. If they had known, they would have given up this behavior," would mean to deny their superiority and their ability in kashf and karamat.

Sayyid Abd-ul-qadir Geilani [born in 471, and passed away in Baghdad in 561 (C.E. 1166)], who was one of the descendants of hadrat Ali 'radi-allahu anh' and at the same time one of the greatest Awliya, gives the following information in his book Gunyat-ut-talibin: "According to the Shiites, caliphate is the exclusive right of the twelve imams. These people are impeccable. They never commit sins. Kashf and keramet can be seen only on them. They know about everything that has happened and everything that will happen." On the other hand, it would be contradictory with this belief to say that hadrat Ali, who (they allege) knew everything down to the number of sand grains, did not know that his not voting for hadrat Abu Bakr would cause millions of Muslims to deviate from the right way.

We have already explained in our brief account of hadrat 'Umar's 'radi- allahu anh' caliphate that caliphate is a heavy burden. Now, which would be wiser for a Muslim to do; to feel sorry because the other Muslims did not elect him and to bear hostility against them for this reason, or to be happy because he was not given a heavy burden? In addition, if he knows that his hostility will cause mischief and instigation among Muslims till the end of the world, he will necessarily support the Khalifa by voting for him willingly.

The hundred and eighty-fifth ayat of Al-i-'Imran sura and the twentieth ayat of Hadid sura purport, "Worldly life consists of only such things as will delude the human beings." The thirty-second ayat of En'am sura purports, "Worldly life comprises amusement and trifling. For those who fear Allah, life in the Hereafter is more beneficial. Why don't you realize that this is so?" The twenty-eighth ayat of Enfal sura and the fifteenth ayat of Teghabun sura purport, "Be it known that you have been given property and children only to assay you. Allahu ta'ala shall give you very grand reward in return for your goodness." The thirty-eighth ayat of Tawba sura purports, "Do you like life in this world better than the Hereafter? Profits gained in this worldly life are much fewer than those in the Hereafter." The forty-sixth ayat of Kehf sura purports, "Property and offspring are the ornaments of worldly life. The thawabs (that are given) for the good deeds and which are eternal are better in the opinion of thine Rabb (Allah)." Some sixty-six other similar ayat al-karimas dissuade from setting the heart on worldly property and worldly position. Innumerous hadith ash-Sharifs have been expressed to emphasize this importation. For instance, it is declared in a hadith-i-qudsi, "O you the son of Adam! You have spent your life storing worldly goods. You have never desired Paradise." Certainly, hadrat Ali, who was the entrance to the town of knowledge, and Fatimat uz-Zahra, who was the highest of women, 'radi-allahu anhuma', knew these ayat al-karimas better than anyone else did. Could we ever expect these people to have been sorry about worldly positions or to quarrel over worldly property such as a date orchard?

Question: Their sorrows or quarrels did not originate from their fondness for the world. Seeing that hadrat Abu Bakr and 'Umar had committed a sin by seizing caliphate by force, they tried to rescue them from this sinful position.

Answer: The hundred and sixty-fourth ayat of En'am sura and the fifteenth ayat of Isra sura purport, "No sinner will also have the responsibility for someone else's sin." Supposing, [though impossible], hadrat Abu Bakr and hadrat 'Umar 'radi-allahu ta'ala anhuma' and most of Rasulullah's 'alaihis-salam' Sahaba somehow committed a sin, this sin would not have any effect on hadrat Ali according to this ayat al-karima, and it would still not be necessary for him to fight on account of it. Then, would it ever be possible for him to commence a fight that would cause hundreds of millions of people to be burned eternally in Hell?

This faqir, [that is, 'Uthman Effendi 'rahima-hullahu ta'ala], asked one of the Shii scholars, "Hadrat Fatima's 'radi-allahu anh' being offended with the Ashab al-kiram for not giving her the date orchard would mean fondness for the world, which in turn would be something impermissible." He replied,"Her being offended did not originate from fondness for the world. It was because she did not like a wicked deed." With this evasive answer he blemished Rasulullah's 'sall-allahu alaihi wa sallam' daughter, who was as clean as pure water. For something done in a manner compatible with Islam would sound wicked only to the nafs-i-ammara. I remembered this fact and made the following explanation. He was so stupefied that he could say nothing. My explanation was: Everyone reading history knows this event: In a Holy War Imam-i-Ali 'radi-allahu anh' threw an unbeliever down to the ground and was about to deal him the fatal blow, when his desperate opponent spat all the foul contents in his mouth out into his face. His face dirtied all over, the imam gave up killing the unbeliever. The unbeliever, who was already out of his mind, was bewildered all the more. "Why did you give up," he asked. "Are you afraid?" Hadrat Ali 'radi-allahu anh' let the unbeliever go, saying, "I was going to kill you with the commandment of Allahu ta'ala because you would not become a Muslim. But now my nafs is your enemy because of the foul act you have done. If I kill you now, I will have done so to do the wish of my nafs. Thus my killing you will earn me sinfulness instead of thawab." Upon hearing these statements, the unbeliever admired the superiority of the Islamic religion on which Imam-i-Ali's conscience was based and uttered the word kalima-i-shahadat with all his heart, thus becoming a Muslim willingly. The two people, who were mortal enemies a few minutes earlier, were now brothers hugging each other.

Ibrahim bin Ad-ham 'rahima hullahu ta'ala', one of the greatest Awliya, was born in Balh in 96, and passed away in Damascus in 162 [C.E. 779]. Formerly he was the Padishah (emperor) of Balh. He left his throne and came to Mecca al-mukarrama. He made a living carrying firewood on his back. He fought against his nafs till his death.

Fatih Sultan Muhammad Khan (Mehmed the Conqueror) 'rahmatullahi ta'ala alaih', the seventh Ottoman Padishah, was born in the hijri year 833. He conquered Istanbul from the Byzantines in 857 [C.E. 1453], thus ushering in a new era. He passed away in 886. His father, Sultan Murad Khan II, the sixth Ottoman Padishah, was born in 806, and passed away in 855 [C.E. 1451]. He was buried in Bursa. He became the Padishah in 824. In 847 he left the throne of his own accord to his son and retired to Maghnisa, where he spent the rest of his life worshipping in seclusion.

Since it is a fact as manifest as daylight that hadrad Ali and Fatimat uz-Zahra were no lower than the emperors mentioned above in realizing the fruitlessness of the world and struggling against the nafs, it would be virtually impossible for a Muslim to say that these people mourned, let alone harbor a grudge, on account of worldly property or rank. There is no doubt as to that these calumniations were produced by a hypocritical Jew named Abdullah bin Saba'. In the time of hadrat 'Uthman 'radi-allahu ta'ala anh' this Jew left the Yaman for Egypt, and thence to Medina, where he settled under the pretense of a new Muslim and did Islam such irreparable harm as others have not been able to do so far.

The hundred and thirty-third ayat of Al-i-'Imran sura purports, "Run for asking for forgiveness from thine Rab (Allah) and for entering Paradise. Work for this end! Paradise is as large as heavens and earth. Paradise has been prepared for those who fear Allahu ta'ala. These people will give their property in the way shown by Allah, regardless of whether they have little or much. They will not let others sense their anger. They will forgive everyone. Allahu ta'ala loves those who are kind and generous." The tenth ayat of Hujurat sura purports, "believers are brothers to one another. Make peace among your brothers!" In about thirty other similar ayat al-karimas believers are commanded not to become angry with one another, to be kind and generous to one another, and to forgive one another. It is declared in a hadith ash-Sharif, "Allahu ta'ala will have mercy on those who have mercy on one another. He is merciful. Be merciful on those that are on the earth so that angels in heaven be merciful on you." Some fifty other similar hadith ash-Sharifs command overcoming one's wrath and being kind and generous and teach our duties as human beings.

Consequently, if hadrat Ali and Fatimat uz-Zahra 'radi- allahu anhuma' had been indignant about a worldly rank or a few date trees and had borne hostility against the Ashab al-kiram 'radi-allahu ta'ala anhum ajmain' throughout their lives instead of forgiving them, they would have disobeyed these ayat al-karimas and hadith ash-Sharifs. Could this be at all possible? Such allegations would blemish their high honor.

In order to protect these two beloved ones of Rasulullah's 'sall-allahu alaihi wa sallam' against any probable disfigurement, the 'Ulama of Ahl as-sunnat 'rahmatullahi ta'ala alaihim ajmain' have avoided making such absurd statements about them and specially advised to love them by stating that "Loving these superior people will cause one to die in iman (as a believer)." Whose love for these superior people is true; that which is claimed by the Shiis or the one recommended by the Ahl as-sunnat? Anyone with reason and logic will easily see the distinction.

It is a universally known fact that hadrat Muhammad's 'alaihis-salam' Ummat are brothers and love one another very much. For instance, one day Abdullah ibni 'Umar 'radi-allahu anhuma' entered Rasulullah's 'sall-allahu alaihi wa sallam' blessed presence. The Messenger of Allah praised and lauded him highly by uttering this hadith ash-Sharif: "On the Judgement Day every person will be given his berat, i.e. warrant for his salvation, after all his deeds have been measured. Abdullah has already been given his berat (when he is) in the world yet." When he was asked the reason for this, he (Rasulullah) said, "He not only has wara' and taqwa, but also expresses the following supplication whenever he prays: 'Ya Rabbi! Make my body so big on the Judgement Day that I will suffice to fill up Hell. Thus the promise You have made to fill up Hell with human beings will be fulfilled and none of hadrat Muhammad's 'alaihis-salam' Ummat will burn in Hell.' He has shown by this invocation that he loves his brothers in Islam more than himself." It is written in the book Menaqib-i-jihar yar-i-ghuzin that Abu Bakr as-Siddiq also would make an identical invocation in his prayers. It is beyond doubt that hadrat Ali's love for Muslims was several times stronger than that which was fostered by Abdullah Ibni 'Umar 'radi-allahu ta'ala anhum'. It would be impossible for him to have shown a dislike which would have caused eternal Hell fire to millions of Muslims only because he had not been made Khalifa.

The following event is written in the book Kimya-yi-saadat, by Imam-i-Ghazali, as well as in other books: During the Holy War of Tabuk a group of Sahabis were seriously wounded and were craving for water. Another Muslim came with a glass of water and offered it to one of them. The thirsty Sahabi would not take it and suggested to give it to one of his Muslim brothers whom he had heard asking for water. The water was thus passed from one Sahabi to another and they all attained martyrdom before having time to drink it. Such was the extent of love Rasulullah's 'sall-allahu alaihi wa sallam' Sahaba 'ridwan-ullahi alaihim ajmain' had for one another. Could it ever be supposed that Imam-i- Ali (who risked his own life in all the Holy Wars, and Fatimat uz-Zahra 'radi-allahu anhuma', the beloved daughter of the Messenger of Allah, disliked the three Khalifas and most of the Ashab al-kiram? Such an allegation would be an accusation of a wicked and atrocious act prohibited by ayat al-karimas and hadith ash-Sharifs, rather than an expression of admiration and praise. As these people were extremely pure and free from such atrocious and wicked deeds, it is quite obvious that assertions of this sort are lies and slanders fabricated by the enemies of Islam. For those who would like more detailed information, we recommend that they read part five, which is titled O My Brother; If You Wish To Die in Iman, You Should Love the Ahl al-bayt and the Ashab.

9- The jariya is alleged to say, "At the death of our master, Rasulullah 'sall-allahu alaihi wa sallam', as hadrat Ali 'karram-allahu wajhah' was busy with funeral preparations, Abu Bakr as-Siddiq and 'Umar Faruq 'radi-allahu anhuma' and five to six of the Ansar gathered under the bower belonging to the sons of Sakeefa and began to share the caliphate among themselves. At the end hadrat 'Umar held hadrat Abu Bakr's hand and said, 'You shall be the Khalifa. The other people being there agreed. Then hadrat 'Umar, with his sword drawn, roamed around the streets of Medina for three days, forcing anyone he came across to agree to Abu Bakr's caliphate. The second day hadrat Ali came to the place of meeting and said, 'Among you, I am the most knowledgeable, the most superior, and the bravest. How can you have the right to deprive me of caliphate?' Making other statements such as these, he insisted on his right, persuading twenty people to follow him. Later he agreed to Abu Bakr's caliphate, though unwillingly."

The truth, however, is this: When the Messenger of Allah 'sall-allahu alaihi wa sallam' passed away, all the Sahaba were so deeply grieved that they were at a loss as to what to do. The disastrous affliction descended so heavily, so painfully on them that some of them became tongue-tied while some others felt so weak that they could not even stand up to go out. The fire of bereavement burned hadrat Ali, too, so he did not know what to do. Hadrat 'Umar was so confused that he took his sword and walked about in the streets, saying, "I shall behead anyone who says that the Messenger of Allah is dead." Malevolent munafiqs, on the other hand, attempted to exploit this perturbation. Seeing this tumult, Abu Bakr as-Siddiq entered the mosque, mounted the minbar, and made the following speech: "O the Sahaba of the Messenger of Allah! We worship Allahu ta'ala. He is always alive. He will never die. He will never cease to exist. The thirtieth ayat of Zumer sura purports, 'O my beloved Prophet! One day you shall certainly die. And certainly they, too, shall die.' As is declared by Allahu ta'ala, our master, Rasulullah 'sall-allahu alaihi wa sallam', has passed away." Making effective statements of this sort, he advised them. This speech eliminated the confused state among the Ashab al-kiram and made them to come to themselves. In fact, hadrat 'Umar, who was among the audience, said upon hearing the above-mentioned ayat al-karima from Abu Bakr as-Siddiq, "I had thoroughly forgotten this ayat al-karima, so much so that I thought it was a new revelation." Hadrat Abu Bakr as-Siddiq 'radi-allahu ta'ala anh' was wise to the hypocrites' plan to stir up a tumult and thus to elect the Khalifa from among themselves and, leaving the job of making preparations for the funeral, he made for the place where the Ashab al-kiram were discussing the problem of caliphate election. At the end of the discussion all the people present voted for hadrat Abu Bakr's caliphate. On the second Tuesday after Rasulullah's passing away hadrat Ali went to the mosque and paid homage to hadrat Abu Bakr. Thus hadrat Abu Bakr was made Khalifa by a unanimous vote.

Allahu ta'ala disapproves and prohibits vanity and arrogance in all the heavenly books He has sent to His born servants. For instance, the twenty-third ayat of Nahl sura of Qur'an al-karim purports, "Allahu ta'ala will absolutely not like the conceited!" According to a Biblical verse, on the other hand, the Apostles asked Isa 'alaihis-salam': O the Prophet of Allah! Who among us is the greatest and who is the smallest? In response to this question of theirs Isa 'alaihis-salam' stated, "The greatest one among you is the smallest; and the smallest one is the greatest." By this he meant, "He who thinks too much of himself is a mean person, and a modest person is a noble one." In addition, Muhammad 'alaihis-salam', the final and the highest Prophet, criticizes presumptuous people and praises modest ones in quite a number of his hadith ash-Sharifs. For instance, he states in a hadith ash-Sharif, "If a person condescends for Allah's sake, that is, if he does not consider himself superior to Muslims, Allahu ta'ala will heighten him." Scholars of Ahl as-sunnat state that Allahu ta'ala has endowed His born servants with a particle from each of His Attributes such as knowledge and power. Yet three of His attributes are peculiar to Him alone. He has not given any share from these three Attributes of His to any of His creatures. These three Attributes are Kibriya, being Ghani, and Creating. Kibriya means greatness, superiority. Being Ghani means not to need others and to be needed by all others. On the contrary, He has given His born servants three lowly, mean attributes. These are zul and inkisar, that is, being low and humiliated, being needy, and being fani, that is, ceasing to exist. Consequently, to be arrogant means to infringe on the Attribute (of Greatness) which belongs to Allahu ta'ala by rights. Arrogance does not become born servants. It is the gravest sin. It is declared in a hadith-i-qudsi, "Azamat (Pride) and Kibriya (Greatness) belong to me. I shall very bitterly torment those who wish to share these two Attributes with Me." It is for this reason that Islamic scholars and outstanding men of Tasawwuf have always advised Muslims to be modest. Muslims will not be selfish. Allahu ta'ala dislikes selfish people. Hadrat Abd-ul-Qadir-i-Geilani 'quddisa sirruh', one of the greatest Awliya and an outstanding leader of Tasawwuf, was born in the Gheylan city of Iran in 471, and passed away in Baghdad in 561 [C.E. 1166]. One day he, Sayyid Ahmad Rifai and a number of his disciples were sitting by the Tigris River. As they talked he displayed such karamats (miracles) as bewildered the audience. When one of them, entirely dazed with admiration, inadvertently let slip a laudatory remark, hadrat Abd-ul-Qadir-i-Geilani humiliated his self and woke the others from oblivion with the following modest reply: "I do not presume there could be a Muslim on earth lower than I am." Hadrat Ahmad Rifai was born in a village named (Umm-i-Ubaida), somewhere between Basra and Wasit, in 512, and passed away there in 578 [1183]. As is seen, arrogance, conceitedness is a wicked quality. Modesty, on the other hand, is good and beautiful. All Prophets were modest in everything they did. And certainly so were all the Ashab al-kiram. Their commending one another in the caliphate election and offering the office to one another shows that they were extremely modest. This being the case, it would have been vanity and arrogance for hadrat Ali to have challenged the Muslims by saying, "Is there anyone better learned, nobler and braver than I am?" to the Ashab al- kiram. It would have been a behavior reminiscent of the Iblis (Devil), who boasted and claimed to be better than He. As such statements would not have been compatible with that great and noble person, hadrat Ali, it is quite obvious that they are lies, aspersions fabricated and cast against Allah's Lion. Another absurdity is the statement alleging that hadrat 'Umar, in order to make sure that Abu Bakr become Khalifa, drew his sword and intimidated, forced the Ashab al-kiram. For the tribes called Bani Hashim and Bani Umayya, to which hadrat Ali was related, were the most powerful tribes among the Ashab al-kiram. Abu Bakr as-Siddiq and 'Umar ul-Faruq had few relations. It would have been impossible for hadrat 'Umar to draw his sword and compel these two tribes to make a choice agreeable to him. Furthermore, hadrat Ali was the Lion of Allah. It runs counter to logic to suppose that the Ashab al-kiram chose Abu Bakr instead of him merely because a single person, i.e. 'Umar, forced them to do so.

I heard the following story from one of the scholars of Kirkuk: I somehow went to the Iranian territory. I entered one of their mosques. A scholar was preaching there. During the preach he said, " One day hadrat Ali visited hadrat Abbas in his home. He saw him weeping and asked him why. He said, 'I nailed a few pieces of board above my front door for protection against the sun. 'Umar the Khalifa had them pulled down on the pretext that they might harm passers by. I cannot stand this insult.' Exasperated, hadrat Ali unsheathed his sword called Zulfikar and ran out, looking for 'Umar the Khalifa for revenge. However 'Umar was informed with the danger just in time to save his life." At this point one of his disciples asked for permission and said, "If hadrat Ali was the person to draw his sword against the Khalifa for a wooden curtain and frighten him into running away, why didn't he draw his sword as Abu Bakr was elected Khalifa and frighten away those who voted for him? If he had drawn his sword and walked over them, the Ummat-i-Muhammad (Muslims) would not have been broken into groups because of this and so many Muslims would not have deviated from the right way." Confused, the preacher vacillated for a while as to how to answer this. Then he began to shout, "This man's become an unbeliever. Beat him, kill him!" The helpless man was lucky enough to be merely thrown out of the mosque. So, these people are not only audacious enough to tell the open lie that hadrat 'Umar drew his sword and forced the Ashab al-kiram to vote for hadrat Abu Bakr's caliphate, but they also have the face to allege that hadrat Ali drew a sword against hadrat 'Umar.

The events that took place among the Ashab al-kiram on the day when our master Rasulullah 'sall-allahu alaihi wa sallam' honored the Hereafter with his presence are related in a mixture of very base and abhorrent slanders by some people. We therefore considered it appropriate to borrow from the book Qisas-i-Anbiya the following passage which narrates our master Rasulullah's 'sall-allahu alaihi wa sallam' passing away and the events that the Ashab al-kiram experienced in the aftermath:

It was the twenty-seventh day of the (Arabic) month Safer in the eleventh year of the Hegira when our master Rasulullah 'sall-allahu alaihi wa sallam' began to suffer a headache. He honored the room of his blessed wife hadrat Aisha 'radi-allahu anha' with his presence. He sent for Abd-ur-rahman bin Abi Bakr, told him he was going to dictate a written will recommending Abu Bakr as-Siddiq for the office of caliphate after him, and commanded him to bring an ink-well and a pen. As Abd-ur-rahman was to leave for the performance of the commandment, he (the blessed Prophet) said, "You will do it later. Let it wait now!" Then he honored the Masjid ash-Sharif with his blessed presence. The Ashab al-kiram 'alaihim-ur-ridwan' heard the news and gathered together in the Masjid. Fakhr-i- 'alam 'sall-allahu alaihi wa sallam' mounted the minber, gave advice to his Sahaba, and asked them to forgive him if he had ever hurt them inadvertently. Then he commended Abu Bakr as-Siddiq for his superiority and high value among the Ashab and said that he liked him very much. A few days later his illness became more severe. The Ansar-i-kiram, i.e. the native people of Medina, were extremely grieved. They began to walk around the Masjid ash-Sharif like the wings of a propeller. Fadl the son of hadrat Abbas and hadrat Ali the son of Abu Talib informed Rasulullah about this state. The compassionate Prophet took the pains of walking to the Masjid ash-Sharif with the help of these two people, each of them supporting him under one arm. The Ashab al-kiram gathered together in the Masjid. The blessed Last Prophet mounted the minber. After making hamd-u-thena (thank, praise and laud) of Allahu ta'ala, he turned to the Ansar and declared; "O my Ashab! I have heard that you are worried about my death. Did any Prophet remain with his ummat eternally, so that you expect me to remain with you till eternity? Be it known that I am going to attain my Rabb (Allah). I advise you to respect the notables of Muhajirs." Then he stated, "O Muhajirs! My advice to you is this: Do good to the Ansar! They were good to you. They granted you asylum in their homes. Although they had difficulty in making their living, they held you prior to themselves. They shared their property with you. If any one of you takes command over them, let him take care of them and forgive them their faults." Then he gave them some beautiful, effective advice and stated, "Allahu ta'ala has granted a born servant of His the choice between staying in this world and attaining his Rabb (Allah). The born servant has preferred to attain his Rabb." This statement of his showed that he was going to pass away soon. Abu Bakr as-Siddiq 'radi-allahu anh' knew what this statement meant and began to weep, saying, "May our lives be sacrificed for your sake, o the Messenger of Allah!" Rasul-i-akram 'sall-allahu alaihi wa sallam' ordered him that he must be patient and enduring. Tears were falling from his blessed eyes. He declared, "O my Ashab! I am pleased with Abu Bakr, who sacrificed his property faithfully and with ikhlas for the sake of Din-i-Islam. Were it possible to acquire a friend on one's way to the next world, I would choose him." Then he ordered that those Sahabis whose doors opened into the Masjid ash-Sharif should close their doors, with the exception of Abu Bakr 'radi- allahu anh'. Then, out of kindness he made the following speech:

"O Muhajirs and o Ansar! When the time for something is known, it would be of no use hurrying for it. Allahu ta'ala does not hurry about any of His born servants. If a person attempts to change the qadha and qadar of Allahu ta'ala and overpower His Will, He will subdue him with His Wrath and ruin him. If a person tries to trick and deceive Allahu ta'ala, he will deceive himself and lose control of his own matters. Be it known that I am clement and merciful towards you. You will attain the blessing of meeting me again. The place you will meet me is by the pond (called) Kawthar. He who wishes to enter Paradise and attain the blessing of being with me there, should not talk idly. O Muslims! Disbelief and wrongdoing will cause change in the blessings and decrease in one's subsistence. If people obey the commandments of Allahu ta'ala, their presidents, commanders, governors will be merciful and benign towards them. If they are wicked, indecent, inordinate and sinful, they will not attain merciful presidents. As my life has been useful to you, so my death will bring you good and compassion. If I beat or insulted any one of you unjustly, I am ready for him to revenge by treating me in kind; or if I seized anyone's property unjustly, let him come forward and take it back; I am ready to pay back. For worldly punishment is far less vehement than that which will be inflicted in the Hereafter. It is easier to endure." He dismounted the minber. After performing the namaz he mounted the minber again, made his will, and gave some more advice. Finally he stated, "I entrust you to Allahu ta'ala," and honored his room with his blessed presence. During his illness, whenever the Adhan (Azan) was called he went out to the Masjid and performed the namaz in jamaat, he himself being the imam. Three days before his passing away his illness became more serious. He could no longer go out to the Masjid. So he ordered, "Tell Abu Bakr to (take my place as the imam and) conduct the namaz of my Ashab!" Throughout Rasulullah's lifetime Abu Bakr as-Siddiq assumed the duty of imam and conducted the namaz seventeen times. He ordered hadrat Ali to carry on the funeral services. He had received a few golds before his illness. He gave some of them to the poor, and the remaining few to hadrat Aisha 'radi-allahu anha'. On the tenth day, Saturday, of Rabi'ul-awwal, Allahu ta'ala sent him Jabrail (Gabriel) 'alaihis-salam' to ask him how he was. The following day, Sunday, the angel visited him again, asked him how he was and gave him the good news that Aswad-i-Anasi the liar, who had been claiming to be a Prophet in the Yaman, had been killed. And Rasul-i-akram, in his turn, gave the good news to his Ashab. On Sunday Rasulullah's illness became heavier. Hadrat Usama, who had been appointed Army Commander by the Messenger of Allah, arrived. Rasulullah was lying in his bed, subconscious. He did not say anything to Usama. However, he raised his blessed arms and rubbed them gently on him. This meant that he asked a blessing on him. On Monday the Ashab al-kiram were performing the morning prayer in lines behind hadrat Abu Bakr as-Siddiq in the Masjid ash-Sharif, when hadrat Fakhr-i-'alam came to the Masjid ash-Sharif. He saw his Ummat (Muslims) worshipping in lines. He was pleased and smiled. He, too, adapted himself to hadrat Abu Bakr and performed the namaz behind him. When the Ashab al-kiram saw Rasulullah in the Masjid they thought he had recovered from his illness and rejoiced. Rasul-i-akram 'sall-allahu alaihi wa sallam' honored hadrat Aisha's room with his presence and went to bed. "I want to enter the presence of Allahu ta'ala without leaving any worldly property behind myself. Give the golds you have to the poor, all of them!" Then his fever increased. After a while he opened his eyes again and asked hadrat Aisha 'radi-allahu ta'ala wa an Abiha' if she had dispensed the golds. She said she would. He ordered her again and again to distribute them immediately. When they were all dealt out immediately he stated, "I am relieved now."

Usama 'radi-allahu anh' came back. The Messenger of Allah said, "May Allahu ta'ala help you! Go out for war." So Usama went out to his army and immediately gave the order to move.

At that hour the illness became worse. He sent for his blessed and very much beloved daughter Fatima-tuz-Zahra. He said something into her ear. Hadrat Fatima wept. He said something again. This time she smiled. It was found out afterwards that the first thing he had said was: "I am going to die." This had made her cry. Then, when he had said, "Of my Ahl al-bayt, you will be the first one to join me (in the Hereafter)," she had rejoiced at the good news and smiled.

In the afternoon the same day Jabrail 'alaihis-salam' and Azrail 'alaihis-salam' (Angel of Death) came to the door together. Jabrail 'alaihis- salam' entered. He said that Azrail 'alaihis-salam' was at the door awaiting permission to enter. Rasulullah 'sall-allahu alaihi wa sallam' gave permission. Azrail 'alaihis-salam' entered, greeted, and informed with the command of Allahu ta'ala. Rasul-i-akram 'sall- allahu alaihi wa sallam' looked at Jabrail's 'alaihis-salam' face. The Archangel said, "O the Messenger of Allah! The Mala-i ala is awaiting you." Upon this Fakhr-i-'alam 'sall-allahu alaihi wa sallam' stated, "O Azrail! Come and perform your duty!" So the Angel took Muhammad's 'alaihis-salam' blessed soul and transported it to the Ala-yi illiyyin.

When signs of death were seen on Rasul-i-akram, hadrat Umm-i-Eymen 'radi-allahu anha' sent a message to his son Usama. Upon receiving this sad news, Usama and 'Umar Faruq and Abu Ubaida left the army and came back to the Masjid an-Nabi. When Aisha-i- Siddiqa and the other women began to weep, the Sahabis in the Masjid ash-Sharif were astonished, confounded, and paralyzed. Hadrat Ali was motionless as if he were dead. Hadrat 'Uthman was left speechless. Hadrat Abu Bakr was in his home at that moment. When he arrived at the place, running, he entered the Hujra-i-saadat. Opened the face of Fakhr-i-'alam, and saw that the Prophet had passed away. The blessed face and all the limbs of the Messenger of Allah were elegant, clean, and luminous like a halo. He kissed him, saying, "O the Messenger of Allah! You are so beautiful, dead or living!" He wept bitterly. He put the cover back on the Prophet's blessed face. He consoled the people in the house. He went to the Masjid ash-Sharif. He advised the dumbfounded Sahaba and restored everything back to normal. Thus all of them believed that Rasulallah was dead. In the meantime, the army under Usama's command entered the city. Hadrat Burayda-t-ibni Hasib set up the flag he was holding in his hand. Pain and sorrow, like a poisonous dagger, pierced the hearts of the Sahaba. Their eyes were weeping, their tears were cascading, and their hearts were grieved with the woe of separation.

Hadrat Abbas, his son Fadl, hadrat Ali 'radi-allahu ta'ala anhum', and the people in the house began in tears to make preparations for the funeral. Hadrat Abu Bakr stood by the door, weeping, lamenting, and helping with the services. Lamenting and moaning, however, would not serve the purpose; a president, a Khalifa was requisite for the management of Muslims' affairs and the performance of Islam's commandments. At that time Abu Bakr as-Siddiq was the most suitable person for this task.

Hadrat Abbas and Ali 'radi-allahu anhuma' were closer to Rasulullah. Yet Fakhr-i-'alam 'sall-allahu alaihi wa sallam' had held Abu Bakr, his companion in the cave, higher than all the other Sahaba. During his illness, on the day he had made his farewell speech to his Sahaba, he had said that Abu Bakr had been the person he had been pleased with most. He had closed all the doors opening into the Masjid ash-Sharif and permitted only Abu Bakr's door to be left open. Three days before his passing away he had appointed him Imam for his Ashab, thus granting him a position ahead of all the others in the performance of namaz, which is Islam's basic pillar. All these facts denoted that Abu Bakr was to be made Khalifa. What remained to be done was for the Ashab al-kiram to come together and elect him.

On the other hand, some of the Ansar attempted to elect a Khalifa from among themselves. They gathered under Bani Saida's brushwood shelter. Sad bin Ubada 'radi-allahu anh', the leader of Hazraj tribe, was there, unwell as he was. He said to the Ansar:

"O Ansar! No other tribe has the superior qualities you possess. Muhammad 'alaihis-salam' called his tribe to Islam for thirteen years in Mecca. Very few of them believed him. And the few who believed him were not numerous enough to make Jihad. When Allahu ta'ala conferred on you the honor of becoming Muslims, he blessed you with the fortune of protecting His Messenger and his Ashab and consolidating and promulgating the Islamic religion by making Jihad. You were the people who subdued the enemies. It was the fear of your swords that convinced the peasants of Arabia to become Muslims. Rasul-i-akram was pleased with you when he passed away. It is your right to preside now. Do not give this right to someone else." Most of the Ansar being there said, "You are right. May Allah help you. We elect you Khalifa."

The Aws (Evs) tribe of the Ansar did not like this. They gathered around Usayyad bin Hudayr, their chief.

The Muhajirs, on the other hand, would not have elected the Khalifa from among either of the two tribes of the Ansar. For the Quraish tribe was the highest and the most honorable of all the tribes of Arabia. A great controversy was imminent among the Muslims.

It was at this very critical and dangerous time that Abu Bakr and 'Umar and Abu Ubaida arrived at the place like the miraculous life saver, hadrat Hidir. At that moment one of the Ansar had stood up and was saying, "We helped Rasulullah. We gave asylum to the Muhajirs. The Khalifa must be one of us."

On the contrary, Rasul-i-akram 'sall-allahu alaihi wa sallam' would have Abu Bakr on his right hand side and 'Umar on his left everywhere. And he would say about Abu Ubaida, "He is the trustworthy one of this Ummat." 'radi-allahu ta'ala anhum.' When all three of them suddenly appeared on the scene, it was as if Rasul-i-akram resurrected and came to the place. Everyone was silent, waiting eagerly to hear what they were about to say. Hadrat Abu Bakr said:

"This Ummat used to worship idols formerly. Allahu ta'ala sent them a Messenger so that they should worship Him. Unbelievers found it difficult to abandon the religion of their forefathers. Allahu ta'ala blessed the Muhajirs with the honor of becoming believers. They became Rasulullah's companions and fellow-sufferers. They patiently shared with him the persecutions inflicted by the enemies of religion. They are the earth's first worshippers of Haqq (Allah) and believers of His Messenger. For this reason, the Khalifa will have to be from among them. No one can be their partner in this respect. It would only take cruelty to try to deprive them of this right. O Ansar! Your services to Islam could not be denied, either. Allahu ta'ala chose you as helpers to His religion and Prophet. He sent His Rasul (Messenger) to you. After the people who had the honor of being the first Muhajirs, no one is more valuable than you are. You embraced the Messenger of Allah. The honor of boasting about having helped him belongs to you. No one would dispute this. Yet all the people of Arabia wish that the Khalifa be from among the Quraish. They do not want to see someone else as the Khalifa. For everyone knows that the Quraish are the highest of the Arabs with respect to genealogy and virtue. And their land is in the middle of Arabia. Let us be the commanders, and you will be our viziers, counsellors. Nothing will be done without taking your counsel."

Then hadrat 'Umar 'radi-allahu ta'ala anh' said, "O Ansar! Rasulullah entrusted you to us during his illness. He would have entrusted us to you if you were to occupy the commanding position."

Being at a loss as to what to say, the Ansar-i-kiram began to think deeply. One of them, namely Hubab bin Munzir, stood up and suggested, "Let us have one Amir from among us and one from you." Hadrat 'Umar's answer was: "There cannot be two Emirs at the same time. The Arabs will not accept or obey the Khalifa unless he belongs to the same tribe as Rasulullah 'sall-allahu alaihi wa sallam' did." Hubab protested, "O Ansar! The Arabs accepted this religion through your swords. Do not let anyone seize your right!"

Ubaida-tabnil-Jerrah 'radi-allahu anh' warned, "O Ansar! You are the people who served this religion in the beginning. Be careful lest you should be its first spoilers, too." Upon these statements, one of the Ansar, namely Bashir bin Sad bin Numan bin Ka'b bin Hazraj 'radi-allahu anh' of the Hazraj tribe stood up and said:

"O Muslims! Muhammad 'alaihis- salam' belongs to the Quraish tribe. It would be more appropriate for the Khalifa to be from among them, too. It would be correct. Yes, we were earlier to become Muslims. We had the honor of serving Islam with our property and lives. Yet we did all these because we love Allah and His Messenger 'sall-allahu alaihi wa sallam'. We do not expect any worldly recompense for this service of ours." Hubab questioned, "O Bashir! Are you jealous of your paternal first cousin?"

Bashir 'radi-allahu ta'ala anh' replied, "I swear by the name of Allah that I am not. I only do not want anyone to infringe on the rights of the Quraish."

At that moment hadrat Abu Bakr 'radi-allahu anh' said, "I nominate these two people for you. choose one of them," pointing to 'Umar and Ubaida. Both of them drew back and said, "Who could stand before a person whom hadrat Prophet placed before others?" Voices were raised. Everyone began to talk his way.

Hadrat 'Umar 'radi-allahu anh' began to talk. Turning towards hadrat Abu Bakr, he said, "Rasul-i-akram made you his Khalifa in the namaz which is Islam's archstone. He placed you before all of us. Hold out your hand! I have chosen you Khalifa." Ubaida was about to hold out his hand to choose Abu Bakr, too, when Bashir sprang forward, held Abu Bakr's hand, and paid homage to him before the others did. "You are our new Khalifa," he said. 'Umar and Abu Ubaida paid homage, too. All the members of the Aws tribe, headed by their chief Usayyad bin Hudayr, came and paid homage. Upon seeing them, the Hazraj tribe paid homage, too.

If Abu Bakr, 'Umar and Abu Ubaida 'radi-allahu anhum' had not arrived on time, Sad bin Ubada would have been paid homage, which in turn would have given way to hostilities between the two tribes Aws and Hazraj. The Quraish tribe, on the other hand, would have been thoroughly against this and the Muslims would have been broken to factions. Abu Bakr as-Siddiq prevented this great danger. Owing to his being elected Khalifa, Islam weathered a crisis which would have let to its fracturing.

Hadrat Bashir bin Sad, who had a major role in this service, joined the Holy Wars of Aqaba II, Badr, Uhud and all the others and fought heroically. He attained martyrdom in the Yemama Holy War in the twelfth year of the Hijrat.

After being elected Khalifa on Monday, hadrat Abu Bakr 'radi-allahu anh' went to the Masjid ash-Sharif on Tuesday and convened the Sahaba there. He mounted the minber, made hamd-u-thena (thanking, praising and lauding Allahu ta'ala), and made this speech: "O Muslims! I have become your governor and president. Yet I am not the best among you. If I do good, help me. If I do something wrong, show me the right way! Rectitude is trustworthiness. Lying is treachery. Someone who is weak among you is very valuable for me. I will save his right. And someone who depends on his power is weak to me. For I shall take others' rights back from him. Insha-allahu ta'ala, let none of you neglect Jihad. Those who cease from Jihad will become despicable. Obey me as long as I obey Allah and His Messenger. If I disobey Allah and His Messenger and deviate from the right way, you will no longer have to obey me. Get up, let us perform namaz! May Allahu ta'ala bless you all with goodness!"

Then they completed their duty pertaining to Rasulullah's 'sall-allahu alaihi wa sallam' funeral. Until evening they entered the room in groups and all of them, men, women, children and slaves alike, performed the namaz (prescribed for the funeral) without forming jamaats, (that is, each of them performed the namaz individually). It was in the darkness of Wednesday night that they buried the blessed Prophet in the same room.

The following account is given in the four hundred and tenth page of Qisas-i Anbiya: As long as Rasulullah lived, the Wahy was revealed to him and thus the Ummat (Muslims) were informed (with the commandments of Allahu ta'ala). Revelation of the Wahy was out of the question after him. Yet most of the Sahaba had committed Qur'an al-karim to their memories. And the matters that are not explained openly in Qur'an al-karim were being observed in accordance with the Sunnat-i-seniyya, that is, the records containing Rasulullah's utterances and actions as well as actions which he did not prohibit though he saw others do them. However, the Sunnat-i-seniyya and hadith ash-Sharifs were not in the memories of all the Sahaba. For some of them were busy with buying and selling at market places, some worked looking after their date orchards, and others were peasants working on farms. They therefore had not had time to attend all the Sohbats (of the Messenger of Allah). Those who had attended a Sohbat would tell what they had heard to the ones who had missed it. Thus a person would learn the hadith ash-Sharifs he had not heard by asking those who had heard them. In fact, it took them a lot of thinking to decide where to bury the Messenger of Allah. Following a hadith ash-Sharif narrated by Abu Bakr as-Siddiq, they buried him at the place where he had passed away. Likewise, they had to make painstaking inquiries about how they should deal out the property he had left among his inheritors. It was Abu Bakr as-Siddiq, again, who quoted the hadith ash-Sharif, "Prophets do not leave an inheritance behind them." So they acted accordingly.

Aisha-i-Siddiqa 'radi-allahu anha', the mother of Muslims, stated: "When Rasul-i-akram 'sall-allahu alaihi wa sallam' passed away, the hypocrites rose in rebellion. The Arabs became renegades, that is, they abandoned Islam. The Ansar held themselves aloof. The disasters that befell my father would have crushed mountains had they befallen them. The case as this was, wherever there was a disagreement, my father would be there to solve it and reconcile the people concerned."

When the Ashab al-kiram 'radi-allahu ta'ala anhum ajmain' were confronted with something they did not know how to do, (they would look the matter up in the Sunnat-i-seniyya,) and if they did not find a solution in the Sunnat-i-seniyya, either, they would (decide how to) do it through a method called re'y (finding) and qiyas (comparison), that is, by comparing it with other matters they knew how to do. This paved the way to ijtihad. If the ijtihads of the Ashab al-kiram or other mujtahids agree on a matter, there will be no doubt left pertaining to that matter. This concurrence of ijtihads was called Ijma-i-ummat. Making ijtihad requires having profound knowledge. Scholars who possess this deep knowledge (and are therefore capable of making ijtihad) are called Mujtahid. If the ijtihads made by mujtahids do not agree with one another, it becomes wajib for each mujtahid to act upon his own ijtihad.

The caliphate election was a matter of ijtihad, too. There were hadith ash- Sharifs denoting that Abu Bakr, 'Umar, 'Uthman and Ali 'radi-allahu anhum' would become Khalifa. Yet the time for any of them was not stated clearly. Rasulullah 'sall-allahu alaihi wa sallam' did not say, "Appoint so and so Khalifa after me." He left this job over to the Ashab al-kiram to decide on. The ijtihads made by the Ashab al-kiram pertaining to caliphate election did not agree with one another. There were three different ijtihads:

The first one was the Ansar's re'y [finding]; They said that the person "who has served Islam most must be Khalifa. The Arabs became Muslims in the shade of our swords. Therefore one of us must be Khalifa."

The second ijtihad was the re'y of most of the Ashab al-kiram 'radi-allahu ta'ala alaihim ajmain'; they said that the Khalifa "must be powerful enough to enforce the regulations among the Ummat. The most honorable and the most powerful tribe among the Arabs is the Quraish. The Khalifa will have to be one from among the Quraish."

The third ijtihad was the re'y of the Hashimis, who said that one of Rasulullah's relations must be Khalifa.

The correct one of these three ijtihads was the second one. Yes, the Ansar were of great help to Islam. And the relations of Rasul-i-akram, on the other hand, were very honorable. Yet caliphate was not a chair for rest granted as a reward for past services. Nor was it an inheritable property to be handed over to relations. The second ijtihad entailed that caliphate was to be given to the Quraish tribe not because Rasulullah 'sall-allahu alaihi wa sallam' was from this tribe, but because the Quraish was a tribe renowned throughout Arabia for its honor, power, influence and dignity. For caliphate was an office to provide unity, loyalty and social order among Muslims. And doing this, in its turn, would necessitate being authoritative. The Khalifa's duty is to prevent mischief and instigation, to secure peace and freedom, to administer Jihad, and to maintain order so that Muslims carry on their affairs and businesses easily and smoothly. Doing all these things requires power.

What the Ashab al-kiram 'alaihim-ur-ridwan' took into consideration in the caliphate election was to unite the Muslim tribes so as to establish a powerful state. Giving the office of caliphate to the Hashimis, who were only one out of the ten Quraishi tribes, would hardly provide this unity. The higher the number of the people establishing a government, the more powerful the government. For this reason, it would be necessary to elect one of the notables of the Quraish. And the person to be elected would have to be a superior one, not only in tribal identification and genealogy, but also from the Islamic point of view. The highest Quraishi tribe at that time was (Bani Umayya). And the most outstanding personage in that tribe was Abu Sufyan bin Harb. Yet the harms he had inflicted on the Muslims during the Uhud war had not yet been totally forgotten. He had already become a true and staunch Muslim. Yet the other Muslims could not fully trust him yet. Consequently, no one could be placed before Rasulullah's faithful companion in the cave, who had become a Muslim earliest and caused others to become Muslims, too, and who had been appointed (by Rasulullah) as the imam (to conduct public prayers). It was certain that everyone would vote for him. In addition, since the normal procedure was for all the Sahaba to come together and elect the Khalifa, the Ansar's attempt for an election among themselves could cause a commotion. Thus, by running to the place, hadrat Abu Bakr 'radi-allahu ta'ala anh' forestalled this danger and saved Muslims from a grave tumult.

During these events hadrat Ali was at his wife hadrat Fatima's home 'radi-allahu anhuma'. Zubair, who was Abu Bakr as-Siddiq's son-in-law, and Mikdad and Selman and Abu Zer and Ammar bin Yaser 'radi-allahu anhum' were there, too. Their ijtihad concurred with that of the third group. So Abbas came to hadrat Ali and held out his hand in homage to him. Yet the latter had heard that hadrat Abu Bakr had become Khalifa; he therefore refused the offer. Abu Sufyan said, "Hold out your hand and I shall pay homage to you. I shall fill everywhere with cavalrymen and infantrymen if you want me to." Hadrat Ali 'radi-allahu ta'ala' refused the notion, saying, "O Aba Sufyan! Do you want to cause faction among the Islamic nation?"

As it is seen, both Abu Bakr as-Siddiq and Ali 'radi-allahu anhuma' were sensitive about a probable instigation or controversy among the Muslims. At first hadrat Ali was somewhat sorry because he had not been called to the election held under Sakeefa's brushwood shelter. As is explained in the book Musamarat, by Muhyiddin-i- Arabi, and in the book Daw 'us-sabah, by Hamid bin Ali Imadi (1175 [A.D. 1757]), Abu Ubaida came to the house where hadrat Ali was. He told him all the statements he had heard from hadrat Abu Bakr and 'Umar. [These statements, very long and effective, are quoted in Qisas-i-Anbiya]. Hadrat Ali 'radi-allahu ta'ala anh' listened. The statements were so impressive that he felt as if he had been penetrated to the marrow. He said, "O Aba Ubaida! My sitting in the nook in a house is not intended to become Khalifa or to protest against the Amr-i-maruf or to castigate a Muslim. Separation from the Messenger of Allah has shocked me out of my senses and driven me mad." The following morning he went to the Masjid ash-Sharif. Walking past all the others, he went near hadrat Abu Bakr, paid homage, and sat down. The Khalifa said to him, "You are blessed and honored to us. When you are angry, you fear Allah. And when you are happy you thank Him. How lucky for the person who will not demand any more than a position bestowed on him by Allah. I did not want to be Khalifa. I had to accept it lest there should arise a fitna (instigation, mischief). There is no resting for me in this duty. A heavy burden has been imposed on me. I do not have the strength to carry it. May Allah give me strength! Allahu ta'ala has taken this burden off from your back. We need you. We are aware of your superior qualities."

Hadrat Ali and Zubair said that Abu Bakr was more suitable than anyone else for the caliphate. They said they had been sorry for not having been informed about the election beforehand, and they apologized for this. The Khalifa accepted their apology. [The statements which hadrat Ali made in praise of Abu Bakr as-Siddiq that day are written with documents in the (Turkish) book Se'adet-i Ebediyya, in the twenty-third chapter of the second volume; that chapter is the translation of the ninety-sixth letter]. Then hadrat Ali asked for permission and stood up. Hadrat 'Umar very kindly saw him off. As hadrat Ali left, he said, "My being so late to come here was not intended to oppose (Abu Bakr as) the Khalifa. And my coming here now is not out of fear." All the Hashimis followed hadrat Ali's example and paid homage. Thus a unanimity was realized.

Both hadrat Abu Bakr and hadrat Ali 'radi-allahu ta'ala anhuma' managed very vigilant and wise performances throughout the caliphate election. Hadrat Ali's not being called to the meeting under Sakeefa's brushwood shelter was a fortunate event. Had he been there that day, the discussions between the Ansar and the Muhajirs would have been doubled with the joining of the Hashimis, which in turn would have made things all the more complicated.

Differences of ijtihads pertaining to the caliphate election are not for us to discuss or to comment on. They are the best Muslims. Each and every one of them is a star guiding to salvation. It is from them that the meaning of Qur'an al-karim was acquired. It is through them that hundreds of thousands of hadith ash-Sharifs were heard. And it is via them that the commandments and prohibitions of Allahu ta'ala were learned.

It would not be worthy of us to attempt to use the teachings we obtained from them as criteria for assessing their behaviors.

Yes, erring is a human attribute. Mujtahids will err, too. Yet a mujtahid will be rewarded with thawab anyway; ten times for not erring, and one reward if he errs.

Each and every one of the Ashab al-kiram is a pillar of Islam. Differences among them were based on ijtihad. They knew one another's value even when they criticized one another. If hadrat Zubair had preferred his personal considerations to his religious conceptions, he would not have disagreed with hadrat Abu Bakr, his father-in-law. Hadrat 'Umar was the most eager supporter of hadrat Abu Bakr in the caliphate election. On the other hand, he, again, was the person who cherished and praised hadrat Ali most. One day hadrat 'Umar asked hadrat Ali a question. The latter answered the question. Upon this he said, "I entrust myself to Allah's protection from confronting a difficult question in hadrat Ali's absence." Hadrat Ali used to say, "After Rasul-i-akram, the most useful people in this Ummat are Abu Bakr and 'Umar." 'radi-allahu ta'ala alaihim ajmain.'

A month later hadrat Abu Bakr 'radi-allahu anh' mounted the minber and said, "I want to resign from the office of caliphate. If you expect to see me following precisely the same way taken by the Messenger, this is impossible. For the devil could not approach him. In addition, he would be revealed the Wahy from heaven." Could the hearts of such noble persons harbor any ambitions for rank, positions? Could any tongue speak ill of them?

Actually, Fatima-t-uz-Zahra 'radi-allahu anha' was so deeply distressed with the bereavement of her father's death that she could not go out. Hadrat Ali also mostly stayed at home to keep her company in her bereavement; therefore he could not frequently attend the Khalifa's sohbat. However, after hadrat Fatima's passing away he paid homage again. He would often enter the Khalifa's presence, help him and make suggestions. 'radi-allahu anhum ajmain'.

As will be concluded from the abovementioned information which we have derived from Qisas-i Anbiya, the Shiite allegation that hadrat Ali and six other Sahabis did not pay homage to hadrat Abu Bakr, is ungrounded. To stand against the unanimity of the Ashab al-kiram by not accepting hadrat Abu Bakr (as the Khalifa) and to make immoderate statements in this subject would not only have been incompatible with Islam, but it would also have meant to disobey Rasulullah's command to his Sahaba: "be in unity and avoid controversies." To say that hadrat Ali and six other Sahabis and Fatima-t-uz- Zahra the highest of women did not carry out this command and disobeyed Islam would mean, let alone loving them, to controvert and belittle those great religious leaders. The controversy imputed to them is so grave that it has inflicted a fatal wound in Islam and caused millions of Muslims to deviate from the right way till the end of the world. The harms done to Islam and the bloodbath of millions of Muslims perpetrated by those who dissented from the Ahl as-sunnat by reading the lies and slanders fabricated by Hurufis, are the causes of Islam's status quo. The harms which groups named Ahmadi and Qadiyani inflicted on Muslims are in the open. Could a wise and reasonable person with a light of Islam and a love of iman in his heart say that hadrat Ali was the cause of this great malice?

Abd-ul-qadir-i-Geilani 'quddisa sirruh', one of the greatest Awliya, gives the following account in his book Gunya: "Of the seventy-two groups of bidat (aberration), nine are the most prominent. Shiites are one of these nine groups. They have parted into twenty sub- groups, all of which dislike one another. The group of Abdullah ibni Saba' are like Jewry. For instance, Jews say that the right to become an imam belongs to a certain class of people. Likewise, these people allege that caliphate is a right which belongs to Imam-i- Ali's descendants, and that it is not permissible for other people to preside over Muslims. According to Jews, Jihad [War] is not permissible until the emerging of Dajjal. And according to the Saba' group, Jihad is not permissible until the emerging of Mahdi. The twelfth imam, i.e. Muhammad Mahdi, who was the tenth grandson of hadrat Ali, was the son of Hasan Askari. He was born in 259. When he was seventeen years old he entered a cave and never came back out. The Saba' group think that he was the promised Mahdi who according Islam's teachings will appear in the latest time. Jews do not break their fast before stars appear in the sky. This is the case with the Saba' group, too. Jews make masah on their socks (in ritual ablution). The Saba' group do the same. It is permissible for a Jew to kill a Muslim. And it is permissible for the Saba' group to kill the Sunnite Muslims. A woman divorced by a Jew can marry (another man) without having to wait for the time of iddat (according to Islam, length of time during which a divorced woman cannot marry another man). The Saba' group also do not wait for the time of iddat. According to Jews, having divorced a woman three times will not prevent from marrying her again. The Saba' group also will marry a woman whom they have divorced three times. Jews changed the Torah. There is not a single copy of the Bible that has remained intact on the earth today; nor is there a true copy of the Torah. Likewise, the Saba' group wrote the defiled forms of some ayats of Qur'an al-karim in their heretical books. This they did because they thought there were deductions and additions in Qur'an al-karim."

This faqir, ['Uthman Effendi means himself], the author of the book Tazkiya-i-Ahl al-bayt, was attending the Ministry of Education, when a pile of drafts of tafsir (explanation of Qur'an al-karim) written by the Saba' group arrived in a couple of chests. Permission was not given for their printing. They asked the reason: "Is there anything incompatible with Islam in it?" "Yes," I replied. "You write that hadrat Ali was a disbeliever." He was exasperated. "Don't be angry," I pacified. "Listen! According to the allegation written in the introduction, hadrat Talha asked hadrat Ali, 'It has been rumored that hadrat 'Uthman deducted seventy ayats from Qur'an al-karim and that hadrat 'Umar deleted eighty ayats. Is this rumor true?' When hadrat Ali affirmed Talha queried again, 'It is said that you possess the unchanged copy of the Qur'an. Do you?' Hadrat Ali's answer was: 'Certainly. And the copy I have is twice as copious as the existing ones.' When he was asked why he did not reveal it to Muslims, he complained, 'I would have given it to them if they had elected me Khalifa instead of Abu Bakr. Because they did not elect me, I am not going to give it to them. I shall advise in my will that it should be kept in secrecy by my offspring till the end of the world.' These things are written in your tafsir. Now I ask you for Allah's sake: Because Jewry concealed the twenty Pentateuchal verses informing about Muhammad 'alaihis-salam', Allahu ta'ala declares in Qur'an al-karim that they are disbelievers: 'Could there be anyone more cruel, more heretical then one who conceals my ayats?' According to your allegation, hadrat Ali 'radi- allahu anh' concealed a copy twice as extensive as Qur'an al-karim, thus retaining more than three thousand ayats. Doesn't this allegation of yours impute worse cruelty and heresy to the Lion of Allah? For Allah's sake, answer this properly." Astounded, he could not find any answer. He said, "I am neither Shiite nor Sunnite. I am a freemason."

Jews feel hostility to Jabrail 'alaihis-salam'. Likewise, asserting that by mistake Jabrail brought the Wahy to Muhammad 'alaihis-salam' instead of revealing it to hadrat Ali, the Saba' group have become hostile to Jabrail 'alaihis-salam'.

These facts show plainly that the fabricator of these lies could not be Shiite or Sunnite. Actually, he is a Jew named Abdullah bin Saba'.

One day I asked Mirza Rida, a Persian scholar who had traveled in Muslim countries for thirty to forty years: "You know all the Shiite groups. What is your impression about those people called Mulhid who live around Syria and Antioch?" "They are unbelievers because they worship Imam-i-Ali." When I asked him about the group called kizilbas (Kisilbash) who lived in Iraq, he informed, "They, too, are disbelievers because they deny most of the ayats of Allahu ta'ala." Then I inquired about Hurufis, who covered themselves with the innocent name, Baktashis. His answer was: "These people camouflage their credal system, it is not known well what their cult is really like. However, they deny the fard (commandments of Allahu ta'ala stated clearly in Qur'an al-karim). They say 'halal' about harams. For this reason, Hurufis are unbelievers, too." [Hadrat Haji Baktash-i Vali (Haji Baktash Wali), a Sunni Islamic scholar and a Wali, was born in Nishapur, Iran. He was a descendant of Imam-i-Musa Kazim. He came to Anatolia, where he began to promulgate the teachings of Ahl as-Sunnat. The then Ottoman Padishah, namely Sultan Orhan Gazi [b. 680; d. 761 (A.D. 1359)] visited him and was blessed with his benediction. This great scholar asked a blessing on the Janissaries, too. He passed away in 773 [A.D. 1371], during reign of the third (Ottoman) Padishah Sultan Murad Hudavendigar [b. 726; martyred in 791 (A.D. 1389)]. His mausoleum is at a site called Haji Baktash in Kirsehir. His disciples and people who followed the true way guided by that great Wali were called Baktashi. The Baktashis in our country (Turkey) follow the way taken by those true Muslims. When Shah Ismail was routed in the Caldiran war and fled, the Kizilbas, or Hurufi, soldiers in his army spread in Anatolia. In order to survive they took asylum in Baktashi convents. In the course of time they infested these convents with their heretical Hurufi beliefs. As of today there is next to none of these indecent drunkards left in our country]. Upon this I said, "Now there is only one Shiite group left: the Imamiyya group. There are five to ten million of these people. Today the number of the Sunnite Muslims is well over three hundred and fifty thousand million. There is no controversy among them to cause faction among Muslims. They all obey Qur'an al-karim and hadith ash-Sharifs. They all have the same heart, the same iman. How could one's tongue and conscience condone imputing to hadrat Ali a controversy that would lead to a tumult so grave as to break Muslims into groups opposing towards one another?" He answered, "The Sunnites are right in every respect. The Shiites are wrong. Only," he added, "one mistake the Sunnis have been making is their fanatical advocacy of Muawiya." This faqir (I) said, "We, too, hate Yazid and those who tormented and cursed the Ahl al-bayt and say that they were wicked people. As for hadrat Muawiya; we acknowledge that he erred in his ijtihad and that hadrat Ali's ijtihad was correct. Hadrat Muawiya's disagreeing with hadrat Ali and fighting him was based on ijtihad 'radi-allahu ta'ala anhuma'. Yet he never criticized or vituperated hadrat Imam (Ali). Even as he fought against him he respected him, acknowledged his superiority, praised and lauded that noble Imam. The person whom you suppose to be hadrat Muawiya's enemy is actually very munificent. And his Rabb (Allah) is very compassionate, too. We therefore do not comment on the wars that took place among them. Quoting the ayat al-karima at the end of Fat-h sura, we say that they were very merciful towards one another."

[The book Barakat, which is also named Maqamat-i- Serhendiyya or Zubda-t-ul-maqamat, was written in the Persian language by Muhammad Hashim-i-Kishmi in India in 1037 [A.D. 1627]. A copy of the book exists at number 1317 in the (Murad Molla) library, located in the district called Yavuz Sultan Salim in Istanbul. It was reproduced by offset process in Istanbul in 1977].

Karamats (miracles that occur through the Awliya or other pious Muslims) of Imam-i- Rabbani Ahmad Faruqi are written in the eighth chapter of the second section of the book Barakat. Muhammad Hashim narrates the seventh of these karamats as follows: I had a young Sayyid class-mate in madrasa. One day he came panting. He gasped out a wonderful event he had experienced. He had witnessed a great wonder through hadrat Imam-i-Rabbani. He said:

I used to dislike those people who had fought against hadrat Ali; of them, hadrat Muawiya was the one I hated most. One night I was reading the book Maktubat (Letters) written by your master, [i.e. Imam-i-Rabbani]. It read, "Imam-i-Anas bin Malik said that hating or censuring hadrat Muawiya is like hating or censuring hadrat Abu Bakr and hadrat 'Umar. If a person curses him, he must be punished as if he cursed these two great Sahabis." When I read this I felt rather annoyed and said to myself, "How come he wrote this nonsense here!" I dropped Maktubat on the floor, lay in my bed, and soon fell asleep. I had a dream: That exalted shaikh of yours came towards me, indignant. With his both blessed hands he pulled me by the ears and said, "You ignorant child! You don't like what we have written and dump our book unto the floor. You were consternate when you read my writing; and you don't believe it. Now I will take you to a noble person so that you see for yourself! Let him tell you how wrong you are hating his friends, who are the Ashab of the Messenger of Allah 'sall-allahu alaihi wa sallam'." He pulled me along till we reached a garden. Leaving me in the garden, he proceeded alone. He entered a large room seen in the distance. A luminous faced great person was seated in the room. Bashful and respectful, he greeted that great person, who in his turn acknowledged the greeting, smiling. Observing the rules of manner due at such places, he kneeled before him. He was telling him something and pointing to me at the same time. I could see him looking at me from the distance and I knew he was telling him about me. After a while, that noble shaikh of yours stood up and beckoned to me. "That exalted person sitting in there is hadrat Ali 'radi-allahu anh'. Listen well and see what he says," he warned. We entered. I greeted. The luminous faced person said, "Never, never harbor any resentment in your heart against Rasulullah's 'sall-allahu alaihi wa sallam' Ashab! Never speak ill of any one of those great people! We and those brothers of ours know what our intentions were in those deeds of ours which look like wars in their outward appearances." Then, mentioning the honorable name of that elevated shaikh of yours, he added, "And never be opposed to his writings!" After listening to his advice, I searched my heart and found that the discord, the hostility I had felt against those who had made the so-called wars was still there. He knew how I was and became angry. look at your noble shaikh, he said, "His heart needs better cleaning. Give him a slap in the face!" Hadrat Shaikh dealt me a good slap in the face, which made me think to myself, "It was my love for this person that made me hate those people. And now he was so badly offended with my grudge against them. He wants me to cease from this mood. So I must forget about this animosity!" When I searched my heart once again, I found it perfectly purified of the hostility it had had. At that moment I woke up. My heart is quite free of that hatred now. The spiritual flavor I received from the dream and words has actuated drastic transformations in me. Now my heart does not contain any sort of love except that of Allah and I have much more belief in your exalted shaikh and the marifats in his writings.

No one will be blamed in the Hereafter for not having cursed others or for having held one's tongue in the world.

We have not been commanded to curse or swear at anyone, be it those unbelievers who inflicted very bitter torments and persecutions on our master the Fakhr-i-kainat 'alaihis- salawatu wattaslimat' and the Sahaba for thirteen years, nor even the five or six ferociously cruel people who were their chiefs. Even the names of these exorbitant brutes have long been forgotten, with the exception of Abu Jahl. It is not an Islamic commandment to curse or vituperate any people belonging to any religion on the earth. If a person performs the commands of Allahu ta'ala and avoids His prohibitions, the harams, he will not be called to account for not having cursed the devil even once in his lifetime. Nor will he be accused of having been friendly with the devil. On the other hand, if a person neglects the commandments and curses the devil hundreds of times daily, he will be called to account in the Hereafter and his having cursed the devil will not save him from torment. This person will be considered not as an enemy of the devil, but as one of his friends. Consequently, cursing this person or that in order to prove one's love for the Ahl al-bayt would be both preposterous from the mental point of view and futile, and even peculiar, according to Islam. Nadir Shah, the Iranian Emperor, ascended to the throne in 1148. He captured Delhi in India in 1152 [A.D. 1739]. He tried to capture Baghdad, too. He was killed during a mutiny that broke out in 1160. When his Nadir Shah raised the siege of Baghdad, he convened an assembly of Sunnite and Shiite scholars and appointed Abdullah bin Husain Suwaydi [b. 1104; d. 1174 (A.D. 1760)] 'rahmatullahi ta'ala alaih' to preside over the assembly ( See the first part, Documents of The Right Word.). This assembly took a unanimous decision to eliminate the beliefs that caused differences between the Sunnite and Shiite Muslims, and the decision was undersigned by all the scholars who took part in the debates. Upon Nadir Shah's death this useful attempt had to remain on paper. At this point I should like to relate an episode which this subject reminds me of:

Nadir Shah asked the Shii scholars, "Will Jews, Christians and magians (unbelievers without a heavenly book, e.g. communists and freemasons) go to Paradise or Hell?" The unanimous answer was that these disbelievers would go to Hell. And when he asked where the Sunnite Muslims would go, "They will go to Hell," they said. This made the Shah angry. He said, "Did Janab-i-Haqq (Allah) create the eight worlds of Paradise for only a group of Iranian people?"

This faqir (I) went on Hajj in 1282