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Ma Minna Illa Maqtulun Shahid

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Mā minnā illā maqtūlun shahīd
Other namesMa minna illa masmumun aw maqtul • Ma minna illa maqtul • Ma minna illa maqtulun aw masmum • Ma min nabi wa-la wasi illa shahid
SubjectProving the martyrdom of all Imams (a) or the Ahl al-Bayt (a)
Issued byProphet Muhammad (s) and Imam al-Rida (a)
Validity of the chain of transmissionAuthentic Hadith
Shi'a sources'Uyun akhbar al-Rida • Man la yahduruh al-faqih • al-Amali • Kifayat al-athar and Basa'ir al-darajat


Mā minnā illā maqtūlun shahīd (Arabic: ما منّا إلّا مقتولٌ شهيد; "There is none among us, but he is killed and a martyr") is a hadith widely cited as evidence for the martyrdom of all Imams (a) and the Ahl al-Bayt (a). This hadith has also been used to prove the martyrdom of Imams for whom there is no reliable historical evidence of their martyrdom. The substance of this tradition has been transmitted in five distinct variations and through five separate chains of transmission from Prophet Muhammad (s) and Imam al-Rida (a).

Scholars identify the earliest hadith sources containing the tradition "Ma minna illa maqtulun shahid" as specific works of al-Shaykh al-Saduq. Among the five extant variations reporting the text with differing wordings and chains, only the narration from Imam al-Rida (a) found in Man la yahduruh al-faqih and al-Amali is classified as a authentic hadith. The version recorded in Basa'ir al-darajat by al-Saffar al-Qummi is regarded as hasan (good), while the remaining narrations are considered da'if (weak).

Prominent scholars such as al-Shaykh al-Mufid and al-Tabrisi have questioned the general applicability of the narration "Ma minna illa maqtulun shahid" regarding the martyrdom of every Imam (a). Some researchers argue that the attempt to prove the martyrdom of all Infallibles (a) based on this tradition stems from conflating a theological premise with historical fact. In their view, if the martyrdom of the Imams (a) is treated as a historical issue, even verifying the authenticity of this narration cannot definitively confirm the martyrdom of each individual; historical matters require historical documentation, and theological evidence is not dispositive in this domain.

Status and Characteristics

"Ma minna illa maqtulun shahid" (There is none among us but he is killed and a martyr) constitutes the central theme of several hadiths upon which the martyrdom of all Imams (a) and the Ahl al-Bayt (a) has been predicated,[1] including those for whom no reliable historical evidence of martyrdom exists.[2] Relying on this and similar traditions, al-Shaykh al-Saduq deduced the martyrdom of all Infallibles (a), incorporating this tenet into Shia creed and asserting that anyone rejecting it is an infidel outside the fold of Islam.[3]

Various hagiographers of the Imams (a), such as al-Tabrisi,[4] Ibn Shahrashub,[5] and al-Irbili,[6] have noted that a significant number of Shia scholars adopted the belief in the martyrdom of all Imams (a) based on this tradition.[7] Al-Majlisi devoted a specific chapter in Bihar al-anwar to the proposition that the Ahl al-Bayt (a) depart from this world solely through martyrdom,[8] concluding that the abundance of these traditions makes them irrefutable.[9] These narrations have also served as the basis for the theory concerning the martyrdom of Imam al-Mahdi (a) following his reappearance.[10] al-Qazwini, a scholar of the lives of the Ahl al-Bayt (a), argues that although there is no specific evidence for the killing or poisoning of Imam al-Mahdi (a), these traditions necessitate that he will not die a natural death.[11] Nonetheless, the reliance on these traditions has been challenged by other scholars and authors.[12]

Text of the Hadiths

The content of this tradition has been transmitted in five distinct forms through five separate chains of transmission from Prophet Muhammad (s) and Imam al-Rida (a).[13] Imam al-Hasan (a) and Imam al-Sadiq (a) have narrated this tradition from the Prophet (s) via three chains.[14]

The five variations of this narration are reported as follows:[15]

  • "Mā minnā illā maqtūlun shahīd" (There is none among us but he is killed and a martyr);[16]
  • "Mā minnā illā maqtūl" (There is none among us but he is killed);[17]
  • "Mā minnā illā masmūmun aw maqtūl" (There is none among us but he is poisoned or killed);[18]
  • "Mā minnā illā maqtūlun aw masmūm" (There is none among us but he is killed or poisoned);[19]
  • "Mā min nabiyyin wa-lā waṣī illā shahīd" (There is no prophet or vicegerent but he is a martyr).[20]

According to researchers, the narration reported by al-Saffar al-Qummi from Imam al-Sadiq (a), while textually distinct from the others, is semantically consistent with this family of traditions.[21]

Sources

Scholars identify the earliest hadith sources citing the tradition "Ma minna illa maqtulun shahid" as various works of Shaykh al-Saduq.[22] Al-Saduq recorded this tradition in 'Uyun akhbar al-Rida,[23] Man la yahduruh al-faqih,[24] and al-Amali.[25] Following Shaykh al-Saduq, his student al-Khazzaz al-Qummi narrated two traditions with the same theme through different chains[26] in his book Kifayat al-athar.[27] The primary sources for subsequent narrative and exegetical works such as Bihar al-anwar,[28] Wasa'il al-Shi'a,[29] Tafsir al-Safi,[30] and Tafsir Nur al-thaqalayn,[31] in which this tradition appears in various forms, are the compilations of al-Saduq and his student al-Khazzaz.[32]

Validation

Through rijal analysis of the chains of the narration "Ma minna illa maqtulun shahid," researchers have concluded that among the five extant variations, only the narration from Imam al-Rida (a) found in Shaykh al-Saduq's Man la yahduruh al-faqih and al-Amali—transmitted via Ibrahim b. Hashim al-Qummi from Abu l-Salt al-Harawi—is authentic.[33] The narration from Imam al-Sadiq (a) via Abu Basir in al-Saffar al-Qummi's Basa'ir al-darajat is classified as a hasan (good) narration.[34] The remaining chains of this tradition are regarded as da'if (weak).[35]

Other researchers have pointed to the chronological gap between the recording of these narrations and the time of their original issuance as a factor diminishing their reliability.[36] Furthermore, the presence of certain elements within these reports, such as Sahw al-Nabi (the inadvertence or forgetfulness of the Prophet), which conflicts with established Shia theological principles, is also considered a weakening factor.[37]

Implication

In the view of many Shia scholars, the narration "Ma minna illa maqtulun shahid" and its variants imply the martyrdom of all Imams (a)[38] or the entire Ahl al-Bayt (a).[39][40] According to 'Ali al-Kurani al-'Amili, a Lebanese researcher, this tradition functions as a rule proving the martyrdom of all Imams (a).[41] Al-Qazwini, the author of numerous works on the lives of the Shia Imams, posits that the martyrdom or poisoning of all Imams is proven from both hadith and historical perspectives, regarding any skepticism on this matter as tantamount to questioning established axioms.[42]

Conversely, objections have been raised regarding the implication that every Imam (a) or member of the Ahl al-Bayt (a) attained martyrdom.[43] For instance, al-Shaykh al-Mufid, unlike Shaykh al-Saduq, does not subscribe to the universality of these traditions, arguing that the martyrdom of certain Imams (a) has not been proven, nor is there a methodological path to do so.[44] Similarly, al-Tabrisi does not consider this tradition and its counterparts sufficiently definitive to establish the martyrdom of all Imams (a).[45]

'Allama al-Majlisi, in contrast to al-Shaykh al-Mufid and al-Tabrisi, maintains that this tradition, when taken alongside specific narrations regarding the martyrdom of individual Imams (a), yields a strong probability (zann-i qawi), if not absolute certainty.[46] He hypothesized that al-Shaykh al-Mufid intended only to reject the tawatur (consecutive reporting) of these hadiths, rather than the existence of the narrations themselves.[47] Additionally, al-Sayyid Ja'far Murtada al-'Amili suggested that al-Shaykh al-Mufid may have denied these reports as an act of religious dissimulation (taqiyya).[48] Khodamorad Salimiyan, a researcher in Mahdism, has hypothesized that the narration from Imam al-Rida (a) might refer exclusively to the Imams preceding him, rather than including those who followed.[49]

Confusion between Kalam and History in Understanding the Narration

Some researchers characterize the effort by certain Shia scholars to prove the martyrdom of all Infallibles (a) via the narration "Ma minna illa maqtulun shahid" as a conflation of a theological topic with historical inquiry.[50] In their view, if the martyrdom of all Imams (a) is treated as a theological issue, then a theological narration such as this may be cited to establish a strong probability, as suggested by Allama al-Majlisi.[51] However, if the issue is regarded as historical, even verifying the authenticity of the narration cannot definitively establish the martyrdom of all Infallibles (a); historical matters demand historical evidence, and theological documentation is not conclusive in this realm.[52]

Notes

  1. ↑ 'Amilī, al-Ṣaḥīḥ min sīrat al-Nabī al-A'ẓam, vol. 33, p. 182.
  2. ↑ Amīnī and Ashkānī Āqbulāgh, Riwāyat-i mā minnā illā maqtūlun aw masmūm dar tarāzū-yi naqd, p. 203; Muḥsinī, Sīrat al-ḥaqq, vol. 3, p. 307.
  3. ↑ Ṣadūq, al-I'tiqādāt, p. 99.
  4. ↑ Ṭabrisī, I'lām al-warā, p. 367.
  5. ↑ Ibn Shahrāshūb, Manāqib Āl Abī Ṭālib (a), vol. 5, p. 165.
  6. ↑ Irbilī, Kashf al-ghumma, vol. 2, p. 430.
  7. ↑ 'Amilī, al-Ṣaḥīḥ min sīrat al-Nabī al-A'ẓam, vol. 33, p. 184.
  8. ↑ al-Majlisī, Biḥār al-anwār, vol. 27, p. 207.
  9. ↑ Majlisī, Biḥār al-anwār, vol. 27, p. 216.
  10. ↑ Salīmiyān, Taḥlīl-i naẓarīya-yi shahādat-i Imām Mahdī (a) az nigāh-i riwāyāt, p. 52.
  11. ↑ Qazwīnī, al-Imām al-Mahdī min al-mahd ilā al-ẓuhūr, pp. 638–639.
  12. ↑ Amīnī and Ashkānī Āqbulāgh, Riwāyat-i mā minnā illā maqtūlun aw masmūm dar tarāzū-yi naqd, p. 214; Salīmiyān, "Taḥlīl-i naẓarīya-yi shahādat-i Imām Mahdī (a) az nigāh-i riwāyāt.
  13. ↑ Amīnī and Ashkānī Āqbulāgh, Riwāyat-i mā minnā illā maqtūlun aw masmūm dar tarāzū-yi naqd, p. 207.
  14. ↑ Amīnī and Ashkānī Āqbulāgh, Riwāyat-i mā minnā illā maqtūlun aw masmūm dar tarāzū-yi naqd, p. 207.
  15. ↑ Amīnī and Ashkānī Āqbulāgh, Riwāyat-i mā minnā illā maqtūlun aw masmūm dar tarāzū-yi naqd, pp. 206–207.
  16. ↑ Ṣadūq, Man lā yaḥḍuruh al-faqīh, vol. 2, p. 585; Fattāl al-Nayshābūrī, Rawḍat al-wā'iẓīn, vol. 1, p. 233.
  17. ↑ Ṣadūq, ʿUyūn akhbār al-Riḍā (a), vol. 2, p. 203.
  18. ↑ Khazzāz al-Rāzī, Kifāyat al-athar, p. 227.
  19. ↑ Khazzāz al-Rāzī, Kifāyat al-athar, p. 162.
  20. ↑ Ṣaffār, Baṣā'ir al-darajāt, p. 503.
  21. ↑ Amīnī and Ashkānī Āqbulāgh, Riwāyat-i mā minnā illā maqtūlun aw masmūm dar tarāzū-yi naqd, p. 206.
  22. ↑ Amīnī and Ashkānī Āqbulāgh, Riwāyat-i mā minnā illā maqtūlun aw masmūm dar tarāzū-yi naqd, p. 204.
  23. ↑ Ṣadūq, ʿUyūn akhbār al-Riḍā (a), Jahān Publishing, vol. 2, p. 203.
  24. ↑ Ṣadūq, Man lā yaḥḍuruh al-faqīh, vol. 2, p. 585.
  25. ↑ Ṣadūq, al-Amālī, p. 63.
  26. ↑ Salīmiyān, Taḥlīl-i naẓarīya-yi shahādat-i Imām Mahdī (a) az nigāh-i riwāyāt, p. 54.
  27. ↑ Khazzāz al-Rāzī, Kifāyat al-athar, p. 162, 227.
  28. ↑ Majlisī, Biḥār al-anwār, vol. 99, p. 32.
  29. ↑ Ḥurr al-'Amilī, Wasā'il al-Shī'a, vol. 14, p. 568.
  30. ↑ Fayḍ al-Kāshānī, al-Tafsīr al-Ṣāfī, vol. 1, p. 513.
  31. ↑ 'Arūsī al-Huwayzī, Tafsīr Nūr al-thaqalayn, vol. 1, p. 565.
  32. ↑ Amīnī and Ashkānī Āqbulāgh, Riwāyat-i mā minnā illā maqtūlun aw masmūm dar tarāzū-yi naqd, pp. 204–205.
  33. ↑ Amīnī and Ashkānī Āqbulāgh, Riwāyat-i mā minnā illā maqtūlun aw masmūm dar tarāzū-yi naqd, pp. 207–209; 'Amilī, al-Ṣaḥīḥ min sīrat al-Nabī al-A'ẓam, vol. 33, p. 183.
  34. ↑ Amīnī and Ashkānī Āqbulāgh, Riwāyat-i mā minnā illā maqtūlun aw masmūm dar tarāzū-yi naqd, pp. 211–213.
  35. ↑ Amīnī and Ashkānī Āqbulāgh, Riwāyat-i mā minnā illā maqtūlun aw masmūm dar tarāzū-yi naqd, pp. 208–211; Salīmiyān, Farhang-nāma-yi Mahdawiyyat, p. 331.
  36. ↑ Salīmiyān, Taḥlīl-i naẓarīya-yi shahādat-i Imām Mahdī (a) az nigāh-i riwāyāt, p. 55.
  37. ↑ Salīmiyān, Taḥlīl-i naẓarīya-yi shahādat-i Imām Mahdī (a) az nigāh-i riwāyāt, pp. 56–59.
  38. ↑ Muḥsinī, Sīrat al-ḥaqq, vol. 3, p. 307.
  39. ↑ 'Amilī, al-Ṣaḥīḥ min sīrat al-Nabī al-A'ẓam, vol. 33, p. 182.
  40. ↑ Ṭabrisī, I'lām al-warā, Dār al-Kutub al-Islāmiyya, p. 367; Ibn Shahrāshūb, Manāqib Āl Abī Ṭālib (a), vol. 5, p. 165; al-Irbilī, Kashf al-ghumma, vol. 2, p. 430.
  41. ↑ Kūrānī, Jawāhir al-tārīkh, vol. 3, p. 218.
  42. ↑ Qazwīnī, al-Imām al-Mahdī min al-mahd ilā al-ẓuhūr, p. 638.
  43. ↑ Salīmiyān, Farhang-nāma-yi Mahdawiyyat, p. 331.
  44. ↑ Mufīd, Taṣḥīḥ i'tiqādāt al-Imāmiyya, pp. 131–132.
  45. ↑ Ṭabrisī, Tāj al-mawālīd, p. 106.
  46. ↑ Majlisī, Biḥār al-anwār, vol. 27, p. 216.
  47. ↑ Majlisī, Biḥār al-anwār, vol. 27, p. 216.
  48. ↑ 'Amilī, al-Ṣaḥīḥ min sīrat al-Nabī al-A'ẓam, vol. 33, pp. 187–191.
  49. ↑ Salīmiyān, Taḥlīl-i naẓarīya-yi shahādat-i Imām Mahdī (a) az nigāh-i riwāyāt, p. 59.
  50. ↑ Amīnī and Ashkānī Āqbulāgh, Riwāyat-i mā minnā illā maqtūlun aw masmūm dar tarāzū-yi naqd, p. 224.
  51. ↑ Amīnī and Ashkānī Āqbulāgh, Riwāyat-i mā minnā illā maqtūlun aw masmūm dar tarāzū-yi naqd, p. 224.
  52. ↑ Amīnī and Ashkānī Āqbulāgh, Riwāyat-i mā minnā illā maqtūlun aw masmūm dar tarāzū-yi naqd, p. 224.

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