Just few days ago, we celebrated the occasion of Eid al-Ghadir. this thread is not going to touch on the topic of Ghadir Khumm itself as there exists another thread on that. this thread will deal on the reaction of many, who do not believe in the event of Ghadir Khumm or they hold doubt towards it, because of a particular notion they hold regarding those sahaba who are reported to have witnessed the event of Ghadir Khumm and later disregarded it.

during Ghadir Khumm,the Prophet (sa) declared Imam Ali (as) as the "mawla" (master) of every muslim just as he (i.e. the Prophet) is/was.in other words the Prophet (sa) was delegating a status/power found in himself to another individual (i.e. Imam Ali).in numerous other hadiths, we read about occasions whereby the Prophet (sa) declared that Imam Ali (as) is the "caliph" (successor) "after him". there is emphasis on the phrase "after him". that should be noted.

the subject in this thread is not whether or not the event of Ghadir Khumm took place, what are its interpretations and who is right or who is wrong. the subject in this thread is: could a number of sahaba (companions of the Prophet) who rose to prominence after the Prophet's (sa) death have disregarded the words of the Prophet (sa) on Imam Ali (as)? can they do such a thing after the Prophet's (sa) demise? why would they do such a thing? had they heard the Prophet (sa) make such declaration, whereby he (sa) appointed his successor and the leader of the ummah and implanted the foundations of Imamate/Wilayah of Imam Ali (as) for muslims to hold on to, why was Abu Bakr and later Umar and usthman given preference to the caliphate to lead the muslim ummah and hold power? why did a group of sahaba barely a day after the death of the Prophet (sa) gather at Saqifa Banu Saeeda to install Abu Bakr as "leader" of the ummah while been aware that position was chosen by the Prophet (sa)-and therefore by Allah (swt)-to be exclusively that of Imam Ali (as)? was Imam Ali (as) hated by these particular bunch of sahaba who gathered at Saqifa Banu Saeda and are honored to these day by Sunnis as "righteous companions"? or are the Shia right in disliking these particular companions for "usurping" the right of Imam Ali (as) and disregarding the orders of the Prophet (sa) in Ghadir Khumm and elsewhere? did they hate Imam Ali (as) this much to disregard the order of the Prophet (sa) and therefore fall into the act of apostasy?

here is an authentic hadith which forms the core of this thread that we want to examine to get the answer:

"the Prophet (sa) cried and said to Imam Ali (as) : there is grudge in the hearts of folks who will not show it to you until after my death".

this hadith has been narrated in Majma al-Zawa'id (9/118) by Abi Ya'la and al-Bazzar,and was graded as "sahih" (authentic) by al-Dhahabi, al-Hakem and Ibn Habban. this hadith is also recorded in al-Mustadrak (3/13).

who were those "folks who had grudge" for Imam Ali (as) in the days of the Prophet (sa),who will only show that grudge to Imam Ali (as) "after" the demise of the Prophet (sa).anyone is welcome to answer.

"of hard luck it was that Abu Jahl was killed in the battle of Badr, and he gained an everlasting curse. if good fortune had helped him the way it helped others, and he (Abu Jahl) had remained till the Day of Fath (conquest of Makkah by the Prophet), and he (Abu Jahl) would have "submitted", he could have been (counted) among the "great companions" as well".

-Dr. Ali al-Wardi

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