Al-Hasan and al-Husayn are Masters of the Youths of Paradise Dwellers

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Al-Hasan and al-Husayn are Masters of the Youths of Paradise Dwellers
Inscription of the hadith in Shrine of Imam al-Husayn (a)
Inscription of the hadith in Shrine of Imam al-Husayn (a)
SubjectThe superiority of al-Hasanayn (a)
Issued byProphet Muhammad (s)
NarratorsCompanions, including Imam Ali (a), Abu Bakr, and Umar b. al-Khattab
Validity of the chain of transmissionMutawatir
Shi'a sourcesQurb al-isnad • Man la yahduruh al-faqih • Al-Amali (by al-Mufid) • Al-Amali (by al-Tusi)
Sunni sourcesSunan al-Tirmidhi • Sunan Ibn Maja • Musnad Ahmad • Musannaf Ibn Abi Shayba


Al-Hasan and al-Husayn are masters of the youths of paradise dwellers (Arabic: اَلْحَسَنُ و اَلْحُسَینُ سَیِّدَا شَبَابِ أَهْلِ الْجَنَّة) is a hadith transmitted from the Prophet (s) regarding the superiority of Imam al-Hasan (a) and Imam al-Husayn (a) over all denizens of paradise. Some Shi'a scholars have inferred from this hadith that the two Imams (a) are superior over others in this world as well and hence they must be obeyed. Some Sunni scholars believe that, given the hadiths describing all inhabitants of paradise as youths, this hadith implies that al-Hasan (a) and al-Husayn (a) are masters of all inhabitants of paradise. However, some of its inhabitants are excluded from this, such as the Prophet (s) himself and Imam Ali (a).

The hadith is cited in sources such as al-Amali, Man la yahduruhu al-faqih, and Sunan al-Tirmidhi. Moreover, twenty five Companions of the Prophet (s), including Imam Ali (a), Abu Bakr, and Umar b. al-Khattab, have transmitted this hadith, and some Sunni and Shi'a scholars consider it a mutawatir hadith. There is a hadith in certain Sunni sources stating that Abu Bakr and Umar are masters of the elderly of paradise dwellers, but some Sunni scholars of rijal believe that this hadith is unreliable and indeed fabricated.

Introduction and Place

The hadith of "masters of the youths of paradise dwellers" is a well-known narration transmitted from the Prophet (s).[1] It is cited to establish the superiority of Imam al-Hasan (a) and Imam al-Husayn (a) over other inhabitants of paradise.[2] The book Bihar al-Anwar reports that during the event of Karbala, Imam al-Husayn (a) appealed to this hadith against his enemies to establish his rightful position.[3]

Text of the Hadith

Here is the text of the hadith in Shia[4] and Sunni[5] sources:

The hadith is cited in Shi'a and Sunni sources with slight variations as well, such as "al-Hasan wa-l-Husayn sayyida shabab-i ahl al-janna wa-abuhuma khayr minhuma" (al-Hasan and al-Husayn are masters of the youths of paradise dwellers and their father is better than them)[6] or "al-Hasan wa-l-Husayn sayyida shabab-i ahl al-janna wa anna Fatima sayyida nisa' ahl al-jannah" (al-Hasan and al-Husayn are masters of the youths of paradise dwellers and Fatima is the mistress of the women of paradise).[7]

Al-Hasanayn's (a) Superiority over All Denizens of Paradise

Some hadiths assert that indeed all inhabitants of paradise are young.[8] Citing these hadiths, some Sunni scholars argue that the genitive construction "shabab ahl al-janna" (youths of paradise dwellers) is meant to yield an expository effect, implying that "youths" explains a characteristic of "paradise dwellers."[9] This suggests that al-Hasan (a) and al-Husayn (a) are masters of all paradise dwellers.[10] Of course, the Prophet (s) and Imam Ali (a) are excluded from this.[11] In another hadith, Prophet Muhammad (s) excludes Prophet Jesus (a) and John (a) from the inclusion of this hadith as well.[12] However, Muhammad Hasan al-Muzaffar, a Shia scholar, speculates that this hadith is distorted and rejects this exclusion. This is because prophets such as Abraham (a) and Moses (a), who are considered greater than John (a), have not been excluded in this hadith.[13]

Evidence for al-Hasanayn's Imamate

Ali al-Bahrani (d. 1340/1921-2), a Shia scholar, cites a hadith where the masters of the Day of Resurrection are considered masters of the people in this world[14] to argue that the hadith "al-Hasan and al-Husayn are masters of paradise dwellers" implies that they are masters in this world as well, thereby suggesting that they must be obeyed.[15] For this reason, this hadith is deemed evidence for the imamate of al-Hasan (a) and al-Husayn (a).[16]

The term "sayyid" refers to a person with leadership, eminence, and nobility.[17] Moreover, it denotes a person who surpasses others in possessing good character traits.[18]

Hadith's Frequent Transmission (Tawatur)

Al-'Allama al-Majlisi, a Shia scholar of hadith, believes that the hadith of "masters of the youths of paradise dwellers" is mutawatir according to both Shia and Sunni scholars.[19] Some Sunni scholars such as al-Suyuti and Nasir al-Din al-Albani have explicitly affirmed the frequent transmission of this hadith.[20] Abu Nu'aym al-Isfahani, a Sunni scholar of hadith, quotes a metaphorical statement about the strength of the chain of transmission of this hadith from Ahmad b. al-Hanbal, saying that if its chain of transmission is recited for an insane individual, his insanity will dissipate.[21]

The well-known version of this hadith appears in al-Shaykh al-Tusi's al-Amali[22] and al-Shaykh al-Saduq's Man la yahduruhu al-faqih.[23] Al-Tirmidhi and Ibn Abi Shayba, two Sunni scholars, also cited this hadith in their works.[24] Some researchers assert that the hadith of "masters of the youths of paradise dwellers" with its various versions has been transmitted by twenty five Companions of the Prophet (s), including Imam Ali (a), Abu Bakr, and Umar b. al-Khattab.[25]

Fabrication of a Similar Hadith for Abu Bakr and Umar

In some Sunni sources, a report similar to the hadith of "masters of paradise dwellers" appears regarding Abu Bakr and Umar, stating that they are the masters of the elderly of paradise dwellers.[26] Al-Haythami and Ibn al-Jawzi, two Sunni scholars, believe that this hadith is unreliable and indeed fabricated.[27]

In his book al-Ihtijaj, al-Tabrisi recounts a dialogue between Yahya b. Aktham and Imam al-Jawad (a), where Yahya asks the Imam (a) about his opinion regarding the hadith "Abu Bakr and Umar are masters of the elderly of paradise dwellers." Imam al-Jawad (a) asserted that such a statement could not have been made by the Prophet (s), adding that it was fabricated by Banu Umayya against the hadith "al-Hasan and al-Husayn are masters of the youths of paradise dwellers."[28]

Notes

  1. ↑ Fatḥī, Ḥadīth sayyidā shabāb ahl al-janna wa masʾala-yi afḍalīyyat-i imam, p. 61.
  2. ↑ Fatḥī, Ḥadīth sayyidā shabāb ahl al-janna wa masʾala-yi afḍalīyyat-i imam, p. 82.
  3. ↑ Majlisī, Biḥār al-anwār, vol. 45, p. 6.
  4. ↑ Ṭūsī, al-Amālī, p. 312; Ṣadūq, Man lā yaḥḍuruh al-faqīh, vol. 4, p. 179.
  5. ↑ Tirmidhī, Sunan al-Tirmidhī, vol. 5, p. 656; Kūfī, al-Muṣannaf, vol. 6, p. 378.
  6. ↑ Ḥimyarī, Qurb al-isnād, p. 111; Ibn Māja, Sunan Ibn Māja, vol. 1, p. 44.
  7. ↑ Mufīd, al-Amālī, p. 23; Aḥmad b. Ḥanbal, Musnad al-Imām Aḥmad, vol. 38, p. 353, Hadith 2329.
  8. ↑ Mufīd, al-Ikhtiṣāṣ, p. 358; Tirmidhī, Sunan al-Tirmidhī, vol. 4, p. 679; Majlisī, Biḥār al-anwār, vol. 43, p. 292.
  9. ↑ Munāwī, Fayḍ al-qadīr, vol. 6, p. 151.
  10. ↑ Sindī, Ḥāshiyat al-Sindī ʿalā Sunan Ibn Māja, vol. 1, p. 57.
  11. ↑ Muẓaffar, Dalāʾil al-ṣidq, vol. 6, p. 463; Fatḥī, Ḥadīth sayyidā shabāb ahl al-janna wa masʾala-yi afḍalīyyat-i imam, p. 59.
  12. ↑ Majlisī, Biḥār al-anwār, vol. 43, p. 316.
  13. ↑ Muẓaffar, Dalāʾil al-ṣidq, vol. 6, p. 461-462.
  14. ↑ Ibn Abī l-Ḥadīd, Sharḥ Nahj al-balāgha, vol. 7, p. 64.
  15. ↑ Baḥrānī, Manār al-hudā, p. 582.
  16. ↑ Bāzwand, Bāzkhwānī-yi sanadī wa dilālī-yi ḥādīth-i sayyidā shabāb ahl al-janna.
  17. ↑ Baḥrānī, Manār al-hudā, p. 582.
  18. ↑ Samʿānī, Tafsīr al-Qurʾān, vol. 1, p. 316; Baghdādī, Lubāb al-taʾwīl, vol. 2, p. 242.
  19. ↑ Majlisī, Ḥaqq al-yaqīn, p. 287.
  20. ↑ Munāwī, al-Taysīr, vol. 1, p. 507; Albānī, Silsilat al-aḥādīth al-ṣaḥīḥa, vol. 2, p. 431.
  21. ↑ Iṣfahānī, Tārīkh Iṣfahān, p. 73.
  22. ↑ Ṭūsī, al-Amālī, p. 312.
  23. ↑ Ṣadūq, Man lā yaḥḍuruh al-faqīh, vol. 4, p. 179.
  24. ↑ Tirmidhī, Sunan al-Tirmidhī, vol. 5, p. 656; Kūfī, al-Muṣannaf, vol. 6, p. 378, Hadith 32176.
  25. ↑ Fatḥī, Ḥadīth sayyidā shabāb ahl al-janna wa masʾala-yi afḍalīyyat-i imam, p. 62.
  26. ↑ Tirmidhī, Sunan al-Tirmidhī, vol. 5, p. 611; Aḥmad b. Ḥanbal, Musnad al-Imām Aḥmad, vol. 2, p. 40, Hadith 602.
  27. ↑ Haythamī, Majmaʿ al-zawāʾid, vol. 9, p. 53; Ibn al-Jawzī, al-Mawḍūʿāt, vol. 1, p. 398.
  28. ↑ Ṭabrisī, al-Iḥtijāj, vol. 2, p. 447.

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