Third Testimony: Difference between revisions

'''Al-Shahāda al-Thālitha''' (Arabic: {{ia|الشَهادَة الثالِثة}}) or the '''Third Testimony''' is to testify or witness the [[wilaya]] of [['Ali (a)]]. It is recited after testifying the oneness of God and the prophethood of [[the Prophet Muhammad (s)]] as follows: "I bear witness that 'Ali is the wali of [[Allah]]" ({{ia| أشهَدُ أَنّ عَلیاً ولی‌ُّالله}}) or "I bear witness that 'Ali is the proof of Allah" ({{ia|أشهَدُ أَنّ عَلیاً حُجَّةُ الله}}).

According to some [[hadiths]], whenever one bears witness to [[monotheism]] and the [[prophethood]] of Muhammad (s), one should bear witness to the wilaya of 'Ali b. Abi Talib (a) as well. The main issue about the Third Testimony concerns [[adhan]] and [[iqama]]. In Shiite sources of [[fiqh]] and hadith, the Third Testimony is not considered as part of adhan or iqama. According to the majority of Shiite [[fuqaha]], this phrase is not part of adhan or iqama, but it is [[mustahab]] or permissible to recite it with the intention  

{{Font color|#46CB18|I bear witness 'Ali is the wali of Allah}}<br>

Al-Shahada al-Thalitha, or the Third Testimony, follows the [[Shahadatayn]] (testification of monotheism and the prophethood of [[Muhammad (s)]]) and consists in a testification of the [[wilaya]] of [['Ali b. Abi Talib (a)]]. It is usually expressed with the following phrases: "I bear witness that 'Ali is the wali of Allah", "I bear witness that 'Ali is the proof of Allah", and "I bear witness that 'Ali is rightly the Ruler of the Believers" ({{ia|أشهَدُ أَنّ عَلیاً اَمیرالمؤمنین حقاً}}).<ref>Ḥakīm Ilāhī, "Shahādat-i thālitha az bidʿat tā wujūb", p. 145.</ref>

In some hadiths, it is recommended to bear witness to the wilaya of 'Ali b. Ai Talib (a) right after bearing witness to monotheism and the prophethood of Muhammad (s).<ref>Ṭabrisī, ''al-Iḥtijāj'', vol. 1, p. 158; Majlisī, ''Biḥār al-anwār'', vol. 27, p. 1; Najafī, ''Jawāhir al-kalām'', vol. 9, p. 87.</ref> The Third Testimony is mainly discussed within the issues of adhan and iqama. It is also discussed within the issues of [[tashahhud]] in [[prayers]].<ref>See: Ḥakīm Ilāhī, "Shahādat-i thālitha az bidʿat tā wujūb", p. 149.</ref>

It is famously held that the Third Testimony entered the Shiite adhan since the [[Safavid]] era. However, there is evidence that it was recited in adhans prior to this era in different regions. For example, Ibn Batuta in 8th/14th century talked about the recitation of "I bear witness that 'Ali is the [[wali]] of [[Allah]]" in adhans of the Shi'as in [[Qatif]].<ref>Ibn Baṭūṭa, ''Riḥlat Ibn Baṭūṭa'', vol. 1, p. 308.</ref> Also, [[al-Shaykh al-Saduq]]’s position about [[hadiths]] concerning the permissibility of the Third Testimony<ref>Ṣadūq, ''Man lā yaḥḍuruh al-faqīh'', vol. 1, p. 290.</ref> shows that there were people in his time who recited the Third Testimony in their adhans.

'Abd al-Muhsin al-Sarawi dates the recitation of "I bear witness that 'Ali is the wali of Allah" back to the [[Umayyad]] era, taking it to be a reaction by the Shi'as to those who cursed 'Ali (a) on [[minbars]] and [[ma'dhanas]].<ref>Sarāwī, ''al-Qaṭūf al-dānīyya'', vol. 1, p. 55.</ref>

According to the Shiite [[fiqh]] (jurisprudence), the phrase, "I bear witness that 'Ali is the wali of Allah", was not originally legislated as part of the adhan. Thus, the Shiite jurisprudents have not mentioned it as part of adhan or iqama.<ref>Ṣadūq, ''Man lā yaḥḍuruh al-faqīh'', vol. 1, p. 290; Ṭūsī, ''al-Khilāf'', vol. 1, p. 278; Yazdī, ''al-ʿUrwa al-wuthqā'', vol. 1, p. 602.</ref> However, they disagree over the jurisprudential ruling of the recitation of the Third Testimony in adhan or iqama. Here are the jurisprudential views in this regard:

* It is permissible or [[mustahab]] (recommended) to recite the Third Testimony in adhan or iqama without believing that they are parts of adhan of iqama<ref>Majlisī, ''Biḥār al-anwār'', vol. 81, p. 111; Najafī, ''Jawāhir al-kalām'', vol. 9, p. 87; Khomeini, ''al-Ādāb al-maʿnawīyya'', p. 265.</ref> thereof: 'Abd al-Halim al-Ghizzi has gathered [[fatwas]] of over 100 Shiite scholars in this regard in his book, ''al-Shahada al-thalitha al-muqaddasa'', most of whom take the recitation of the Third Testimony in adhan or iqama to be mustahab on the condition that one does not take it to be part of adhan or iqama.<ref>Ghizzī, ''al-Shahāda al-thālitha'', p. 361-385.</ref> They appeal to general hadiths (that is, not specifically regarding adhan and iqama) according to which one should bear witness to the [[wilaya]] of [['Ali b. Abi Talib (a)]] whenever he or she bears witness to [[monotheism]] and [[prophethood]] of the Prophet Muhammad (s).<ref>Ṭabrisī, ''al-Iḥtijāj'', vol. 1, p. 158; Majlisī, ''Biḥār al-anwār'', vol. 27, p. 1; Najafī, ''Jawāhir al-kalām'', vol. 9, p. 87.</ref> They take the positions of al-Shaykh al-Saduq and al-Shaykh al-Tusi to be concerned with cases in which one takes the Third Testimony as part of adhan.

* The Third Testimony is part of adhan or iqama: a number of Shiite jurisprudents claim that the Third Testimony is part of adhan and iqama.<ref>Ghizzī, ''al-Shahāda al-thālitha'', p. 361-385.</ref> They appeal to the very hadiths rejected by al-Shaykh al-Saduq and al-Shaykh al-Tusi. Some of them appeal to hadiths said to be cited by al-Maraghi al-Misri according to which Salman and Abu Dhar recited the Third Testimony in adhan or iqama. However, some scholars have doubted the existence of a book by al-Maraghi appealing to the author being totally unknown, unavailability of the book in libraries, and the absence of such a hadith in Shiite books of hadiths. Some Shiite jurisprudents believe that it is mustahab to recite the Third Testimony in adhan or iqama, although they do not take it to be part thereof. However, they maintain that it might be mustahab even if one intends it as part of adhan or iqama.<ref>Majlisī, ''Biḥār al-anwār'', vol. 81, p. 111; Ghizzī, ''al-Shahāda al-thālitha'', p. 361-385.</ref> According to [[Sahib al-Jawahir]],

The issue of reciting the Third Testimony in the [[tashahhud]] of the [[prayer]] does not appear in jurisprudential books and [[Essays of Fatwas]]. However, it appears in some [[istifta's]] from [[Marja'|Shiite authorities]]. Almost all Shiite authorities believe that it is not permissible to recite the Third Testimony in tashahhud after [[Shahadatayn]].<ref>Khomeini, ''Istiftāʾāt'', vol. 1, p. 167.</ref> However, some authors appeal to general hadiths according to which one should bear witness to the wilaya of 'Ali b. Abi Talib (a) whenever one bears witness to monotheism and prophethood, and thus take it permissible to recite the Third Testimony in tashahhud.<ref>Ḥakīm Ilāhī, "Shahādat-i thālitha az bidʿat tā wujūb", p. 145.</ref>

According to Muslims, in order to convert to Islam, it is sufficient to recite Shahadatayn. According to Shiite jurisprudents, it is required for the conversion to Islam to recite the Third Testimony. However, the Shi'as recite the Third Testimony too in order to express their belief in Islam.