Karram Allah Wajhah

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A work of calligraphy in which the phrase "Karam Allah wajhah" is used after the name of Imam Ali (a).

Karram Allāh wajhah (Arabic: كَرَّمَ اللهُ وَجْهَه, literally: May God honor his face) is an honorific phrase used by Sunni Muslims after Imam Ali's (a) name, whereas they use "radi Allah 'anhu" (may God be pleased with him) for other companions of the Prophet (s). Shi'as use the phrase "'Alayhi al-Salam" (peace be upon him) for Imam Ali (a), instead of "karram Allah wajhah."

Sunni scholars exclusively use the sentence "karram Allah wajhah" for Imam Ali (a) because he never prostrated for an idol. However, 'Abd al-'Aziz bin Baz, the Wahhabi mufti, believes that such an exclusive use was a Shi'a heresy.

Hafiz Rajab Bursi believes that the exclusive use of "karram Allah wajhah" for Imam Ali (a) by Sunnis is a reason for his superiority over the other three caliphs. Some Shia researchers cite the reason why this phrase was exclusive to Imam Ali (a) as well as Quranic verses such as "My pledge does not extend to the unjust" and "yet some of them are those who wrong themselves" to argue that the first three caliphs were not competent for the position of imamate, since on these verses those who commit sins have wronged themselves and are unjust, and so God's pledge, i.e. imamate, does not extend to them.

The Notion

"Karram Allah wajhah" (literally: "may God honor his face"[1] (if it is read as a prayer), or "God has honored his face" (if it is read as a past declarative sentence)[2] is an honorific phrase used by many Sunni Muslims after mentioning Imam Ali (a).[3] Ibn Hajar al-Haytami and Mu'min Shablanji, two Sunni scholars, have interpreted the phrase as saying that "God has protected him from worshiping anything but God."[4] In some Sunni works, the phrase "karram Allah wajhah fi-l-janna" (may God honor his face in the heaven/God has honored his face in the heaven) is also used for Imam Ali (a).[5]

Ahmad b. Hanbal, one of the four major Sunni jurists, has cited the Hadith of Flag according to which when the Prophet (s) handed over the flag to Imam Ali (a) in the Battle of Khaybar, he described the Imam as "wa-lladhi karram wajh Muhammad" (and who has honored Muhammad's (s) face).[6]

Exclusiveness to Imam Ali (a)

The interior of the dome of Mosque of Muhamamd Ali Pasha in Cairo, in which the phrase "radi Allah ta'ala 'anhu" (May God the Exalted be pleased with him) is used for the three caliphs and "karram Allah ta'ala wajhah" is used for Imam Ali (a).

According to Ibn Kathir and Ibn Hajar al-Haytami, two Sunni scholars, the honorific phrase "karram Allah wajhah" is exclusively used for Imam Ali (a) by many Sunni scholars. For caliphs other than Imam Ali (a) and for other companions of the Prophet (s), they often use the phrase "radi Allah 'anhu" (may God be pleased with him), but they use "karram Allah wajhah" only for Imam Ali (a), and not for the early three caliphs or other Companions.[7] Ahmad b. Muhammad Khafaji and Muhammad b. Ahmad Safarini, two Hanafi scholar, has also said that the phrase was common among Sunni Muslims.[8] In books written in the twentieth century, too, the phrase "karram Allah wajhah" is also exclusively used for Imam Ali (a).[9]

Reason for the Exclusive Use

Sunni scholars have given the following reasons for the exclusive use of "karram Allah wajhah" for Imam Ali (a):

  • Having never prostrated for idols: Ibn Hajar al-Haytami and Mu'min Shiblanji have said that the reason why the phrase "karram Allah wajhah" is exclusively used for Imam Ali (a) was that he never prostrated for an idol.[10] Ibn Hajar said that Abu Bakr also never prostrated for idols, although in 'Ali's (a) case this is agreed by all and is not a matter of disagreement.[11] Moreover, in response to those who say that there were other Sahaba such as 'Abd Allah b. 'Abbas and 'Abd Allah b. 'Umar who never prostrated for idols, al-Haytami says that they were born after the destruction of polytheism. So, they are not like those who were born in the period of idolatry but never worshiped idols.[12]
  • Ali's (a) Respect for the Prophet (s) before his birth: According to Jalal al-Din Dawwani, a Muslim theologian and philosopher, when Fatima bt. Asad was pregnant with Imam Ali (a), whenever she saw Muhammad (s) she involuntarily stood up as respect for him. The reason was that the baby in her womb moved in such a way that forced her to stand up. Dawwani says that this story was the reason why Sunni scholars exclusively used "karram Allah wajhah" for Imam Ali (a).[13]

Wahhabi Prohibition of its Exclusive Use for Imam Ali (a)

According to Mahdi Farmanian, a researcher of Islamic denominations, Wahhabis have prohibited the use of "karram Allah wajhah" after the name of Imam Ali (a).[14] According to Qasimuf, a scholar of Wahhabism, Ibn Taymiyya has refused to use "karram Allah wajhah" for Imam Ali (a) in many of his books.[15]

'Abd al-'Aziz bin Baz, a Wahhabi mufti, believes that the exclusive use of "karram Allah wajhah" for Imam Ali (a) was a Shia conspiracy and heresy.[16] Muhammad Salih al-Munajjid, a student of 'Abd al-'Aziz bin Baz, also believes that the phrase was first used by Shi'as who were then followed by ignorant scribes.[17] They have not adduced evidence for their claims.[18]

According to Adib Darrasufi, a Shia scholar of the thirteenth/nineteenth century, Shi'as often use the following honorific phrases for Imam Ali (a): "'alayh al-salam" (peace be upon him), "salam Allah 'alayh" (God's peace be upon him) or "salawat Allah 'alayh" (God's greetings be upon him).[19] Muhammad Asif Muhsini, an Afghan Shia scholar, believes that the phrase "karram Allah wajhah" is only used by Sunni scholars for Imam Ali (a).

Reasons for the Superiority of Imam Ali (a)

Hafiz Rajab Bursi believes that the exclusive use of "karram Allah wajhah" for Imam Ali (a) by Sunnis is a reason for his superiority over the other three caliphs.[20] Muhammad Thaqafi Tihrani believes that the exclusive use of the phrase for Imam Ali (a) was because, from among the early caliphs, only 'Ali (a) did not worship idols. From this, he infers that of these caliphs only Imam Ali (a) was qualified for the position of imamate, since one who has worshiped idols is not competent for this position.[21]

Sayyid Muhammad Jawad Husayni Jalali, a Shia researcher, cites the reason why this phrase was exclusive to Imam Ali (a) as well as Quranic verses such as "My pledge does not extend to the unjust"[22] and "yet some of them are those who wrong themselves"[23] to argue that the first three caliphs were not competent for the position of imamate, since on these verses those who commit sins have wronged themselves and are unjust, and so God's pledge, i.e. imamate, does not extend to them.[24]

See also

Notes

  1. ↑ Bustānī, Farhang-i abjadī, p. 726.; See: Zabīdī, Tāj al-ʿarūs, vol. 17, p. 607.
  2. ↑ Zawāwī, Shamāʾil al-Rasūl (s), vol. 1, p. 429.
  3. ↑ See: Mālik b. Anas, al Muwaṭṭāʾ, p. 283; Shaybānī, al-Ḥujjat ʿalā ʾahl al-Madīna, vol. 1, p. 28; ʿAskarī, Taṣḥīfāt al-muḥaddīthīn, vol. 2, p. 126, 518; Ibn Ḥajar al-Haytamī, al-fatāwā l-ḥadīthiyya, p. 18; Ālūsī, al-Ajwaba l-Irāqīyya ʿalā l-asʾila l-Lāhūrīyya, vol. 1, p. 62; Ḥalabī, al-Sīra al-ḥalabiyya, vol. 2, p. 427; Khalaf, Madkhal ilā al-tafsīr wa ʿulūm al-Qurʾān, p. 93.
  4. ↑ Ibn Ḥajar al-Haytamī, al-fatāwā l-ḥadīthiyya, vol. 1, p. 41; Shablanjī, Nūr al-abṣār, p. 156.
  5. ↑ See: Ṭabarānī, al-Muʿjam al-ṣaghīr, vol. 1, p. 228 and 260; Ibn Qayyim, Aʿlām al-muwaqqiʿīn, vol. 3, p. 256 and vol. 4, p. 475; Ibn Nūr al-Dīn, Taysīr al-bayān vol. 3, p. 133.
  6. ↑ Ibn Ḥanbal, Musnad al-Imām Aḥmad b. Ḥanbal, vol. 17, p. 197.
  7. ↑ Ibn Kathīr, Tafsīr al-Qurʾān al-ʿaẓīm, vol. 3, p. 524; Ibn Ḥajar al-Haytamī, al-fatāwā l-ḥadīthiyya, vol. 1, p. 41.
  8. ↑ Khafājī, Ḥāshiyat al-Shahāb, vol. 6, p. 479; Safārīnī, Ghidhāʾ al-albāb, vol. 1, p. 33.
  9. ↑ See: Hararī, Tafsīr ḥadāʾiq al-rūḥ wa al-rayḥān, vol. 11, p. 131, 214.
  10. ↑ Shablanjī, Nūr al-abṣār, p. 156.
  11. ↑ Ibn Ḥajar al-Haytamī, al-fatāwā l-ḥadīthiyya, vol. 1, p. 41.
  12. ↑ Ibn Ḥajar al-Haytamī, al-fatāwā l-ḥadīthiyya, vol. 1, p. 41.
  13. ↑ Dawānī, Nūr al-hidāya, p. 53.
  14. ↑ Farmāniyān, al-Wahhābiya al-mutaṭarrifa, vol. 4, p. 378.
  15. ↑ Qāsīm-Uf, Ibn Taymīyya, Imām-i salafī-ha, p. 199; See: Ibn Taymīyya, Bughyat al-mrtād, p. 231.
  16. ↑ Ibn Bāz, Masāʾil al-Imām Ibn Bāz, p. 33.
  17. ↑ Munajjid, Mawqiʿ al-Islām suʾāl wa jawāb, vol. 9, p. 101.
  18. ↑ See: Ibn Bāz, Masāʾil al-Imām Ibn Bāz, p. 33; Munajjid, Mawqiʿ al-Islām suʾāl wa jawāb, vol. 9, p. 101.
  19. ↑ Nizām Aʿraj, Sharh al-nazzām, p. 25.
  20. ↑ Ḥāfiz Būrsī, Mashāriq anwār al-yaqīn, p. 323.
  21. ↑ Thaqafī, Tafsīr-i rawān-i jāwīd, vol. 1, p. 169.
  22. ↑ Qur'an 2: 124.
  23. ↑ Qur'an 35:32.
  24. ↑ Naṣīr al-Dīn Ṭūsī, Tajrīd al-iʿtiqād, p. 239 and 241.

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