24th Zilhajj, Eid al-Mubahila

The Historical Event
On the 24th of Zilhaj 10 A.H., the Holy Prophet (S.A.W.) came out for Mubahila. Early next morning the Holy Prophet ( S.A.W. ) sent Salman al Farsi to the open place, fixed outside the city for the historic event, to erect a small shelter for himself and those he intended to take along with him for the contest. On the opposite side appeared the Christian priests, while at the appointed hour the Christians witnessed the Holy Prophet (S.A.W. ) entering the field with Imam Hussain ( A.S.) in his lap, Imam Hasan ( A.S. ) holding his finger, and walking beside him, Lady Fatima ( A.S. ) and followed by Imam Ali al Murtaza ( A.S.). The Holy Prophet ( S.A.W. ) on reaching the appointed spot stationed himself with his daughter, her two sons and her husband, raising his hands towards the heaven said :
Lord these are the People of my House. The Holy Prophet (S.A.W.) said to them, “when I pray you should say Ameen.”
In obedience to the verse of Mubahila sent by Allah , the Holy Prophet (S.A.W.) had brought Imam Hasan (A.S.) and Imam Husain (A.S.) as his “sons”, Bibi Fatima (A.S.) as his “women” and Imam Ali (A.S.) as his “self”.
The Chief Pontiff on knowing that the baby in the lap of the Holy Prophet (S.A.W. ) was his young grandson, Imam Hussain ( A.S. ), the child walking holding the Prophet’s ( S.A.W. ) hand was his first grandson, Imam Hasan ( A.S. ), the Lady behind him was daughter, his only surviving issue was Fatima ( A.S. ) the mother of the two children and the one who followed the Lady was his son in law, the husband of Fatima ( A.S. ), addressed the huge crowd of the people who had gathered on the spot, and addressed them saying:
“By God, I see the faces which, if they pray to God for mountains to move from their places, the mountains will immediately move !
O believers in the Jesus of Nazareth, I will tell you the truth that should ye fail to enter into some agreement with Muhammad(S.A.W.) and if these souls whom Muhammad(S.A.W.) has brought with him, curse you, ye will be wiped out of existence to the last day of the life of the earth !
The people readily agreed to the advice counseled by their Leader. They beseeched the Holy Prophet ( S.A.W. ) to give up the idea of the agreed Mubahila and requested for themselves to be allowed to continue their faith, offering to pay ‘ Jizya ‘.
– Al Tabari, Commentary of the Quran, v 2 p 192 – 193
When the Holy Prophet (S.A.W.) heard these words he remarked, “By God, had the Christians of Najran contested with us, they would have been transformed into monkeys and swines. Fire would have rained over them.”
Christians Signs Treaty with the Holy Prophet (S.A.W.)
When the Christian Pontiffs backed away from Mubahila, the Holy Prophet (S.A.W.) gave them two choices; to either accept Islam or agree to come to terms.
The Christians would not agree to accept Islam and therefore a treaty was signed on the following terms:
1. Every year, the Christians of Najran would give to the Islamic Government two thousand pieces of clothing, the cost of which would be forty dirhams each.
2. They would also provide 30 horses, 30 camels, 30 battle armours and 30 spears, temporarily to the Muslim army, if the Holy Prophet (S.A.W.) needed these in any war.
The treaty was dictated by the Holy Prophet (S.A.W.), written by Imam Ali (A.S.) and had the signatures of four companions of the Holy Prophet (S.A.W.) as witnesses.
In addition to the above, the treaty also had the following words:
“….. The people of Najran will remain under the protection of Allah and His Prophet Muhammad (S.A.W.). Their lives, their religion, their lands and property, will all remain safe and it will be the responsibility of Allah and His Prophet (S.A.W.) to protect them. This treaty holds good for all people of Najran, whether they are present here or not, whether they are members of the tribe or dependent upon them, whether they are slaves or servants. No change will be made in their rights or privileges…..”
One of the important conditions agreed in this treaty was that the people of Najran would not deal in usury (interest taking) of any sort, otherwise the Holy Prophet (S.A.W.) would not remain bound by the treaty with them.
After the Christian returned home, a few respectable persons from Najran came to Madinah and willingly accepted Islam and became true Muslims.
Unique Triumph of Islam
The event of Mubahila is an extremely important part of history because it shows how close the Ahlul Bayt were to the Holy Prophet (S.A.W.) and Allah. Imam Ali (A.S.) used to be called the “Soul of the Prophet” after the event, because the Holy Prophet (S.A.W.) took him to the field of Mubahila as his soul.
On the basis of the “mubahalah verse”, Sunni interpreters such as Zamakhshari, Baydawi, Imam Fakhr Razi and others regard `Ali, Fatimah, Hasan and Husayn (A.S.) superior to all other people and argue that Hassan and Husayn are the sons of the Messenger (S.A.W.) of Allah.
The term “anfusina” in the “mubahalah verse” proves the unity of the heart and soul of Prophet Muhammad and `Ali. The Holy Prophet (S.A.W.) stated: “`Ali is of me and I am of `Ali.” (“Fadail al-Khamsah” 343/1).
The “mubahalah tradition” has been recounted in different books of “sirah” and history with various wordings. These include those of Tirmidhi (“Sahih” 166/2) which quotes S`ad ibn Abi Waqqas as follows: “When the mubahalah verse was recited, the Holy Prophet (S.A.W.) summoned `Ali, Fatimah, Hasan, and Husayn and said: `O Allah, these are the Members of my Household.” This tradition has been narrated by Hakim Nishaburi in “Al-Mustadrak” 150/3 and Bayhaqi in “Sunan” 63/7. Hakim regards this tradition as authentic.
The Verse of Malediction (mubahilah): “But whoever disputes with you in this matter after what has come to you of knowledge, then, say, ‘Come, let us call our sons and your sons, and our women and your women, and ourselves and yourselves, and let us beseech Allah and invoke His curse upon the liars’.” This milestone event in Islamic history has been narrated by all the historians, narrators, and commentators of the Qur’an and is an event which reveals the exalted status of the Family of the Holy Prophet (S.A.W.).
Although other women were present in the family the Prophet (S.A.W.) at that time, all the commentators, narrators, and historians agree that, in this Qur’anic verse, “our women” refers only to Lady Fatima al-Zahra’ (A.S.), “our children” refers only to Hasan and Husayn (A.S.), and “ourselves” refers only to the Holy Prophet (S.A.W.) and Imam ‘Ali (A.S.).
Zamakhshari, in his Tafsir al-Kashshaf, narrates the event in this way: “When this verse was revealed, the Holy Prophet (S.A.W.) asked the Christians to the malediction to invoke the curse of Allah upon the liars. The Christians held a discourse among themselves that night in which their leader, ‘Abd al-Masih, states his views as follows. He said: “O Christians, know that Muhammad (S.A.W.) is a God-sent prophet who has brought you the final message from your Lord. By God, no nation ever dared to challenge a prophet with malediction but that woe befell them. Not only would they perish, but their children would also be afflicted with the curse.” Saying this – that it is better to reach a compromise with the Holy Prophet (S.A.W.) rather than challenge his truth and perish -‘Abd al-Masih advised his party to stop hostilities and retain their religion by submitting to the Prophet’s terms. “So if you persist (for a confrontation) we will all perish. But if you, to keep your faith, refuse (to have a showdown) and remain as you are, then make peace with the man (the Holy Prophet) and return to your land.”
The next day, the Holy Prophet (S.A.W.), carrying Husayn in his arms, leading Hasan by the hand, followed by his daughter Lady Fatima, behind whom came ‘Ali, entered the appointed place and was heard saying to his family: “When I invoke Allah, second this invocation.” The Christian Pontiff of Najran, upon seeing the Holy Prophet (S.A.W.) and his family, addressed the Christians: “O Christians! I am beholding such faces that if God wishes, for their sake, He would move mountains for them. Do not accept their challenge for malediction, for if you do, you would all perish, and there would remain no Christians on the face of the earth till the Day of Resurrection.” Heeding his advice, the Christians said to the Holy Prophet (S.A.W.):
“O Abul-Qasim, we have decided not to hold malediction with you. You keep your religion, and we will keep ours.” The Holy Prophet (S.A.W. told them: “If you refuse to hold malediction, then submit to Allah, and you will receive what the Muslims receive and contribute what the Muslims contribute.” The Christians delegates, saying that they had no desire to fight the Muslims, proposed a treaty asking for peace. The Prophet of Islam (S.A.W.) accepted.
This historic event of a unique triumph of Islam is taken by the Shias as a religious thanksgiving festival of the triumph against falsehood. Some of the significance of this event are as follows:
– This event un-questionably establishes the truth about the spiritual purity of the Ahl al Bayt (A.S.).
– It proves beyond any doubt as to who are the members of the house of the Holy Prophet (S.A.W.).
– The seriousness and the solemnity of the occasion demands absolute purity, spiritual as well as physical in the individuals to serve in the fateful occasion for the Holy Prophet (S.A.W.) to present them to God as the best one of His creation to be heard in the prayers of Truth!