Al-Tathir Verse: Difference between revisions

“Indeed Allah desires to repel all impurity from you, O People of the Household, and purify you with a thorough purification.” (33:33)

It is reported in some narrations that the above verse was revealed in the house of Umm Salama, wife of the Prophet (s) and Ali (a), Fatimah (s), Hasan (a) and Husayn (a) were there at the time of revelation of the verse. That time, the Prophet (s) covered them with a piece of cloth (Kisa’) on which he was sitting and then stretched his hands towards skies and said, “O God! These are my ahl al-Bayt (a); clease them from any impurities!” Umm Salama asked the Prophet (s) if she was including in the Ahl al-Bayt (a) and the Prophet (s) answered her, “you are among the Prophet’s (s) wives and you are on a good path.”

The verse begins with “Innama” which is mostly used for exclusion according to language experts. Also, the “al” at the beginning of “al-rijs” implies any rijs, i.e. impurities.

Commentators have different opinions regarding the meaning of rijs, such as “sin”, “mischief”, “polytheism”, “doubt”, “low desires”, etc. Shia commentators have regarded “cleansing of Ahl al-Bayt (a) from impurities” to mean “infallibility from sins and having the opportunity of obedience.”

Commentators have different opinions regarding the members of the Ahl al-Bayt (a). Many of the companions of the Prophet (s) such as Anas b. Malik, Abu Sa’id Khudri, Umm Salama, Ayesha, Sa’d b. Abi Waqqas, Abd Allah b. Ja’far and Abd Allah b. Abbas have considered Ali (a) , Fatimah (s), Hasan (a) and Husayn (a) the only members of the Ahl al-Bayt (a). There are narrations from other Shia Imams (a) confirming this opinion.

Another opinion is that the Ahl al-Bayt (a) referred to wives of the Prophet (s) since the verse is generally about them. ‘Ikrima Mawlay b. Abbas and Maqatil b. Sulayman have narrated hadiths with such implications.

A third opinion offered by Sayyid b. Arqam, the companion of the Prophet (s), suggests that the Ahl al-Bayt (a) are those whom are prohibited by God to receive Zakat and they are relatives of the Prophet (s) including Al Ali, Al ‘Aqil and Al Ja’far and by Tathir in the verse under discussion, clearing them from reception of sadaqa [charity] and zakat is meant.

There are different traditions in the Musnad of Ahmad b. Hanbal, all of which refer to the fact that the Prophet (s) had mentioned Fatimah (s), her husband (a), Hasan (a) and Husayn (a) as the reference for the verse of Tathir. Ahmad b. Hanbal also narrates that for six months, when the Prophet (s) was passing by the house of Fatimah (s) while going to the mosque for Fajr prayer, he (s) used to call them saying, “O the Ahl al-Bayt (a), Prayer! Praye! O Ahl al-Bayt (a)! Surely God wants to repel any impurities from you and cleanse you.”

== The True Opinion ==

The appearance of the verse is in agreement with the first opinion above saying that Ali (a), Fatimah (s), Hasan (a) and Husayn (a) are the Ahl al-Bayt (a), because if the Ahl al-Bayt (a) were the wives of the Prophet (s), then the pronouns in the verse had to be “‘ankunna” and “yutahhirakunna” instead of “‘ankum” and “Yutahhirakum”.

There would be a question why there is something said among the duties of the wives of the Prophet (s) which does not relate to them, and answer given to it is that such style of speaking has been known to scholars of Arabic literature and we find many cases in the Qur’an where some sequential verses talk about different issues and it can also be learned from Imams’ (a) hadiths that such verses had been revealed in different times, but have been put beside each other at the time of  compiling the Qur’an.

In his commentary on the verse of Tathir, Ibn Kathir, the Sunni scholar, mentions a narration from Imam Hasan (a) who has been saying on the pulpit, “we are the Ahl al-Bayt (a) about whom God has revealed this verse [of Tathir].” He also narrates that Imam Sajjad (a) answered a man from al-Sham, “We are meant by the Ahl al-Bayt (a) [in this verse].”