Salih al-Mu'minin: Difference between revisions

Many Shiite exegetes argue that "the righteous among the faithful" refers specifically to Imam 'Ali. According to al-'Allama al-Majlisi, all Shiite scholars, and according to al-'Allama al-Hilli, all Quranic exegetes agree that "salih al-mu'minin" refers to Imam 'Ali. They cite hadiths found in both Shiite and Sunni sources, which identify Imam 'Ali as the sole referent of this phrase. The rationale behind this view is that "the righteous among the faithful" must represent the best of believers and be infallible, given its mention alongside Gabriel and other angels. 'Allama Tabataba'i also holds that Imam 'Ali is the only instance of "salih al-mu'minin." In contrast, some other Sunni and Shiite exegetes maintain that the phrase includes all righteous, pious, and fully faithful believers. Accordingly, Shiite Quranic exegetes Nasser Makarem Shirazi and Abdollah Javadi Amoli consider Imam 'Ali to be the most exemplary instance of the righteous among the faithful.

Al-Alusi (d. 1270 AH), a Sunni exegete, believes that Abu Bakr and 'Umar are also examples of "the righteous among the faithful," but he clarifies that they are not the sole referents of the phrase. He attributes this view to Ibn al-'Asakir, a sixth-century AH Sunni exegete. Al-Alusi's rationale is that Abu Bakr and 'Umar had prohibited their daughters, 'A'isha and Hafsa, who were wives of the Prophet, from troubling him. However, al-Shushtari argues that this interpretation is not widely accepted by Quranic exegetes and contends that "salih al-mu'minin" means as referring to the most righteous among the faithful, and hence it contradicts the rules of literary expression to interpret the phrase as referring to more than one individual. Additionally, some hadiths in Sunni sources suggest that Abu Bakr and 'Umar, or only 'Umar, were introduced as examples of this phrase; however, the chains of transmission for these hadiths are considered unreliable.

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