A Brief Outline of the Event at Ghadīr Khum
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The background of this event was that the Messenger of Allah ﷺ dispatched ʿAlī to Yemen to collect and distribute the spoils of war from an expedition in that vicinity.
[Ṣaḥīḥ al-Bukhārī]
[Ṣaḥīḥ al-Bukhārī]
Generally speaking, in Islam, the spoils are distributed in the following manner: 1/5 of the spoils are to be sent back to the Prophet ﷺ, and it is to be spent in the cause of Allah. The remaining four-fifths are to be distributed among the army.
Within that 1/5 that is to be sent back to the Prophet ﷺ, there is a portion of it dedicated to the Prophet's household and kin. This share is intended to suffice the financial needs of Ahlulbayt so that they do not consume charity from others.
Ibn Taymiyya explains:
Ibn Taymiyya explains:
In the spoils was a beautiful woman whose beauty was noted by some men in the army. ʿAlī, being the officer-in-charge, he placed that woman within the 1/5 that is to be sent back to the Prophet, and he then further placed her within Ahlulbayt's share of the Khumus.
Being from the Prophet's family, ʿAlī then preemptively took ownership of her.
While still in Yemen, he had already engaged in relations with her, and men from the army furiously took notice.
While still in Yemen, he had already engaged in relations with her, and men from the army furiously took notice.
It is important to note that while no transgression or sin had taken place on ʿAlī's part, it is understandable how combatants began to resent him. Here they were splitting the spoils after battle, only for an envoy who had not fought to take the most prized spoil for himself.
In other words, nothing was technically wrong, but it was not a good optic. This is something an adept politician would take into consideration before indulging himself.
This resentment was not only reported by Burayda per the aforementioned report from Musnad Aḥmed.
This resentment was not only reported by Burayda per the aforementioned report from Musnad Aḥmed.
It is also reported from other companions of the Prophet, such as ʿAmr ibn Shās, that they began resenting ʿAlī.
His tradition was authenticated by Ibn Ḥibbān and al-Ḥākim, but its isnād has some obscurity. Allah knows best.
His tradition was authenticated by Ibn Ḥibbān and al-Ḥākim, but its isnād has some obscurity. Allah knows best.
There are other traditions which present later events in this expedition that would serve to further compound the army's resentment of ʿAlī, some of which were not his direct fault per se.
Gossip spread within the army and eventually between the pilgrims returning from Mecca. The Prophet ﷺ thus addressed the issue in a sermon, defending ʿAlī and highlighting his merits to dispel this resentment harbored by many.
[al-Bidāya wa-l-Nihāya]
[al-Bidāya wa-l-Nihāya]
ʿAlī may as well have been in a quite precarious state, especially given that the Prophet's ﷺ demise was forthcoming.
As an example, Burayda's account quotes him saying, "I resented ʿAlī in a manner that I had never resented anyone before that..."
As an example, Burayda's account quotes him saying, "I resented ʿAlī in a manner that I had never resented anyone before that..."
The Messenger of Allah ﷺ cleared ʿAlī of suspicion and sought to ensure that the Muslims harbored no resentment towards him. Thus the Prophet's statement, "Whoever I am his ally/friend, then ʿAlī is to be his ally/friend."
It was far from a designation of ʿAlī as his successor or some divinely appointed ruler. All traditions that reference such notions are later Shi'ite accretions and forgeries/misquotations.
If anything, the highlight of this event from the Sīra ironically should that ʿAlī ibn Abī Ṭālib (Allah be pleased with him) was a trusted and loved officer of the Prophet ﷺ; however, he was not a politician.
This reality can be further observed in later events in his life.
This reality can be further observed in later events in his life.
This distinction is not intended as a disparagement of ʿAlī: different companions had different strengths and weaknesses. Some were known for their generosity, others for their courage, others for their knowledge and others for their diplomacy, others for their military genius...
So it is somewhat ironic that this very event actually should be evidence that other companions were arguably more adept politicians than ʿAlī (Allah be pleased with him). Beyond that, there is no reason to give this day the colossal significance it is given in Shi'ite culture.
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