The tenth year of Hijrah (migration) witnessed an important and ferventevent in the Islamic history. During this year, the holy Prophet(s.a.w.a.) asked the Muslims to prepare themselves for the Haj rites.Considering that the Prophet was participating in these rites for thelast time, a larqe number of Muslims proceeded to the holy city ofMecca for seeing the Prophet and his performance of Haj.

This ceremony that become famous as the Farewell Haj, ended withextreme splendor and the pilgrims set for their respective homes. Theroute was common for all till the territory of Juhfa and the road forMedina, Egypt and Iraq separated from this very point. Allah, theA1I-­Wise, commanded His prophet to deliver the important message tothe Muslims at this very place and not to make any negligence in thistask. The command was as such: "0 Apostle! Deliver what has been sentdown to you from your Lord; and if you don't do it, you have notdelivered His message (at all); and Allah will protect you from thepeople; surely Allah will not guide the unbelieving people."

On the Prophet's command, the Muslims gathered at Ghadir Khum. TheProphet (s.a.w.a.) climbed on the pulpit that had been made from cameltooling and delivered a lengthy sermon before one hundred and twentythousand people. He said, "Know that Gabriel came down to me thricebringing an order from Allah that I should halt at this place andannounce to the black and white that Verily, Ali­ ibn Abi Talib is mybrother, my legatee (wasi), and my successor, and the leader (Imam)after me.

On each occasion, I requested Gabriel to exempt me from delivering thismessage because I'm aware that the pious are but few and the hypocritesin great numbers. However, my Lord was not satisfied but that I shoulddeliver that which has been revealed to me as the right of Ali.

"O People, Verily he is your Imam, appointed by Allah and Allah does not accept the repentance of the one who denies him."

While delivering his sermon, the Prophet (s.a.w.a.) held up the hand of Ali and said:

"Know that after I finish my sermon, you are invited to swear allegiance to me and him and you acknowledge him."

"O People, you are so great in number that you cannot at the same time,swear allegiance. Allah, exalted be He I has commanded me to takeverbal confession from you concerning whatsoever I have said about AliAmir-ul-Muminin and the Imams that would follow him from his and myprogeny.

So, let everyone say: "Verily, we have heard the message; we shallobey; we are pleased and we have faith in whatever our Lord hasrevealed about our leader Ali and the Imams that would come from hisprogeny.”   

Thus, Amir-ul-Muminin (a.s.) was appointed as the leader of the Muslimsafter the Prophet (s.a.w.a.). Allah, Glory be to Him, declared Hissatisfaction with this event by revealing the verse of perfection:"This day have I perfected your religion for you and completed Myfavour unto you and have chosen for you Islam, as your religion.”

A thought over the event of Ghadir reveals that the holy Prophet(s.a.w.a.) was pursuing some special objectives, which until then hadnot materialized externally.

The successorship of Amir-ul-Muminin (a.s.) was discussed at the veryoutset of the official invitation and the holy Prophet (s.a.w.a.)pointed out this reality in various manners. Imam in such society wasgrand and did not hold a fully official status. The day of Ghadir wasan appropriate opportunity for declaring the Wilayat of Ali.Considering the Muslim congregation in the Haj ceremony from near andfar and the absence of our present day communication medias, Ghadir wasextremely a good opportunity for announcing the Wilayat of Ali. And theholy Prophet (s.a.w.a.) made use of this golden and unparallelopportunity.

As the holy Prophet (s.a.w.a.) had no more than seventy days to livefrom the day of Ghadir, the matter of Muslim leadership after thedeparture of the Prophet needed to be clarified so that the peoplewould know whom to follow and they could continue practicing theirbeliefs by following this leader. It is beyond the Prophet's dignityand status to leave the religion and religious people without aguardian and set them to wander. As per logic, every social, economic…... congregation necessarily requires a successor for the sake ofprotection and safeguarding. Thus, in the case of the Prophet(s.a.w.a.), it was very obvious for him to think about the futureIslamic State and its leader during the last days of his life. AllamaAmini says:

"I fail to understand why, in spite everyone has consensus over suchrational reasonings, have taken so lightly the great Prophet of Islamand the matter of his successorship and rather accused him ofneglecting this matter. I fail to understand!  

It was possible that some of the Muslims would recourse others and thusgo astray, under this pretext that they were unaware and were having noknowledge about the Prophet (s.a.w.a.) appointed a leader. By takingwise steps, the Prophet finalized the argument and took allegiance forthe Wilayat of Amir-ul-Muminin (a, s -) from very rnen and womenwithout the least force or compulsion. The Muslims approached Ali (a.s.) in groups for swearinq allegiance and congratulatinq him. Amongstthem, Omar-ibn­ Khattab came forward and said: "Compliments to you, oAli-ibn-Abi Talib! You are my Maula (master) and the Maula of everybeliever!

Like Ghadir, the event of felicitation too gained fame and 60 Sunnischolars have narrated about Abu  Bakr’s compliments and Omar’s compliments to Amir-ul-Mumimnin (a.s.).

According to Imam Sadiq (a.s.) the event of Ghadir took place on 18thDhul-Hajjah and considering that this event is the fountainhead ofleadership (Imamate), its worthy to declare that day as Eid just as thesame custom was followed by the past prophets. Imam Sadiq (a.s.) said:"The prophets from Bani-Israil wished to make strong the successorshipand executorship for their legatees and successors, and when theysucceeded in doing so, they would declare that day as Eid.

The Prophet of Islam, the last of the prophets, declared the day ofGhadir as the biggest Eid and said: "The day of Eid-e-Ghadir is themost preferable of all Eids for my Ummah (nation) and it's a daywherein Allah,Exalted be He, appointed my brother, Ali-ibn-Abi Talib asleader (imam) of my nation so that after me, they are guided throughhim; and it is a day on which Allah made perfect the religion andcompleted His favors for my nation and chose for them Islam, as theirreligion.

So, with the intention of gaining proximity to Allah, lets celebratethe day of Ghadir and strive our utmost in observing the followingpoints:

We send our compliments to the Saheb (master) of Ghadir [i.e., Imam-Asr(a.s.)] and his Shiites with these words: "All praise and thanks toAllah for placing us among those who hold firm the Wilayat of Ali(a.s.) and the Aaimmas.”

We do well to our family and brethren. Amir-ul-Mominin (a. s.) said:"On this day, spend more time with your family and do good to yourbrethren. Good deeds on the day of Ghadir will prolong your life andincrease your wealth!"

We decorate our homes and cities with lights just as Imam Ridha (a.s.)said: "The day of Ghadir is the day of decoration and adornment."

We wear new and clean clothes. Imam Sadiq (a.s.) said: "Another duty onthe day of Ghadir is that a believer must wear his best and cleanestclothes."

• We shake hands when meeting each other. Amir-­ul-Muminin (a.s.) said:"On the day of Ghadir, when you meet each other, greet one another withSalaam and shake hands."

We treat one another with kindness. Amir-ul-Mominin(a.s.) said: "Treatone another compassionately on the day of Ghadir as it attracts DivineMercy and Grace."

• We express our joy. Amir-ul-Mominin (a.s.) said: "On the day ofGhadir, manifest your joy in yourself and express your happiness whilemeeting each other."

• We serve food to the believers. Imam Ridha (a.s.) said: "Anyone whogives food to a believer on the day of Ghadir, is like the one who hasserved food to all the prophets and just believers."

• We keep fast as a Mustahab act. Imam Sadiq (a.s.) said: "Fasting onthe day of Ghadir is equal to fasting till the end of this world. If aperson happens to live till the age of this world and keeps fast f orthe  same period, his reward would  be the same as fasting on the dayof Ghadir.

• We send salutations upon Muhammad and Aale-­Muhammad. Imam Ridha(a.s.) said: "The day of Ghadir is the day in which numeroussalutations should be sent upon Muhammad and Aale-Muhammad."

• we express disgust with enemies of Muhammad and his progeny. ImamSadiq (a.s.) said: "Amongst the worthy acts on the day of Ghadir is toexpress our disgust, before Allah, with the oppressors who oppressedMuhammad and the progeny of Muhammad.”

• We praise and thank Allah. The holy Prophet (s.a.w.a.) said: "amongthe customs on the day of Ghadir is that a believer says, a hundredtimes, “ Ali-ibn-Abi Talib.”

Ghadir was commencement of the Prophet's successorship that began withAmir-ul-Muminin's appointment. But, it did not come to an end and willcontinue till the Day of Judgment. After him, eleven more figures arethe Prophet's successors, who must hold the flag of guidance of theUmmah (nation), in succession . And the requisite of the Ummah's faithis to accept the guidance of these flag-bearers. On the day of Ghadir,the Prophet (s.a.w.a.) said: "o People, I am the very straight path ofAllah for which He has commanded you to follow. After me, Ali and mychildren from his progeny are the leaders of guidance who shallmanifest the true path and act by the truth.

Know that the last of the Imams from us would be the Mahdi. He shallprevail over all religions and will seek vengeance from the tyrants andwill conquer and destroy fortresses. He will triumph over everypolytheist tribe and will show them the true way… . Know that, truly,he is Allah's Vali (custodian) on the earth!

We now live in an era in which His Vali is the Mahdi (a.s.). He isAllah's plea and trust among the creatures. Belief in his Imamate(leadership) and Wilayat (authority) is the consequence of belief inGhadir Anyone denying his Imamate has indeed denied Amir-ul-Muminin(a.s.).

Imam Sadiq (a.s.) said: "Anyone, who accepts the Imamate of myimmaculate fathers and offspring but denies the Mahdi from myoffspring, is like the one who denies all the prophets as well asMuhammad (s.a.w.a.).

In general, a Shia accepts the holy Prophet (s.a.w.a.) and the twelveImams as an inseparable group. Its hierarchy is like a pure tree, itsroots firmly rooted in the ground and its branches rising high in theheavens. By Allah's Will, it bears fruits from time to time. Breaking abranch is tantamount to breaking the tree itself and for this veryreason, the Prophet (s.a.w.a.) said:

"Anyone who dies and does not recognize the Imam of his time, has died the death of Jaheliyat (ignorance)."

It was asked from Imam Sadiq (a. s.): 'Does this Jaheliyat (ignorance)refer to the ignorance during pre-Islamic era or it means ignoranceabout Imam'?'

Imam (a.s.) replied: "Jaheliyat (ignorance) refers to unbelief,hypocrisy and deviation i.e., non-acceptance of Imam-e-Zaman (a.s.) istantamount to non-acceptance of religion.

Thus, keeping in view the Prophet's expedition in appointing hissuccessor on day of Ghadir and considering the basis of Shia faith,hadith of Ghadir is alive and everlasting and belief in Wilayat willprolong till the Day of Judgment. It is upon us to swear allegiance toVali-Asr (a.s.) and serve him with all our life and wealth and pray toAllah for his well-being

 

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