How Ayat al-Salawat proves Imamah
- Anonymous
- Dec 17
- 10 min read
بسم الله الرحمن الرحيم
إِنَّ ٱللَّهَ وَمَلَٰٓئِكَتَهُۥ يُصَلُّونَ عَلَى ٱلنَّبِىِّ يَٰٓأَيُّهَا ٱلَّذِينَ ءَامَنُواْ صَلُّواْ عَلَيۡهِ وَسَلِّمُواْ تَسۡلِيمًا
Indeed, Allāh confers blessing upon the Prophet, and His angels [ask Him to do so].
O you who have believed, ask [Allāh to confer] blessing upon him and ask [Allāh to grant him] peace.
This verse is one of the most important verses in the Qur’an, for it commands the believers to send their salutations upon the Holy Prophet (SAW). In this article, we will examine the significance of this verse and how it establishes or at the very least implies that divine leadership is from the Ahl al-Bayt (AS).
Revelation of this verse
It is recorded that Ka’ab b. Ujra alongside other companions came to the Prophet (SAW) asking him how to send salutations upon him, to which this verse came down. This was recorded in Asbab al-Nuzul, pg. 361 by al-Wahidi:
...Sufyan narrated from Zubayr ibn ‘Adi from ‘Abd al-Rahman ibn Abi Layla from Ka‘b ibn ‘Ujrah, who said:
“It was said to the Prophet, peace be upon him: ‘We have greeted you with peace; how then should we send salutations upon you?’ Then this verse was revealed: {Indeed, Allah and His angels send blessings upon the Prophet. O you who have believed, ask [Allah to confer] blessing upon him and peace}.”
The Prophet (SAW) then explains the meaning of this verse, by clarifying that salutations upon him must be formalised in a specific way that mentions his family, which we shall mention momentarily.
It is important to note that the companions were asking ‘how’ in the sense of formulation, for they knew what salutations of the Prophet (SAW) meant, but wanted to inquire about the formula by which it is recited.
This was mentioned by Ibn Hajar al-’Asqalani in his Fatih al-Bari, Vol. 19, pg. 334 - 335:
Al-Bājī held that their question was about the form rather than the nature of the prayer, and this, he said, is the clearer view because the word “how” indicates a question of description, while the word “what” would indicate a question of kind or essence.
Al-Qurṭubī agreed, saying: “This is the question of those who already understood the essence of the matter but were unsure of its proper manner.” Thus, they knew what “sending blessings” meant in general, but asked about the specific form suitable to apply it.
They reason they asked about the form of salutations was because they were already aware of a formula stipulated for the Salam, which is:
السَّلَامُ عَلَيْكَ أَيُّهَا النَّبِيُّ وَرَحْمَتُ اللَّهِ وَبَرَكَاتُهُ
“Peace be upon you, Oh [Holy] Prophet, and may the mercy [of God] and blessings be upon you.”
It would follow that the salutations would also exhibit a formula of its own, but they decided to refrain from Qiyas (analogy) by claiming that it would be the same formula as the Salam, in which they were correct.
Inclusion of the Family
What is intriguing about this verse is that the Holy Prophet (SAW) elaborated that the formulation by which someone sends salutation upon him, requires salutations to be sent upon the family of the Prophet (SAW) as well.
This was recorded in Sahih al-Bukhari 6357 and Sahih Muslim 406:
“Kaʿb b. ʿUjrah met me and said, ‘Shall I not present you with a gift? The Prophet (saw) came out to us, and we said, “O Messenger of Allah, we know how to send peace upon you, but how should we send blessings upon you?” He said:
Say: O Allah, send Your blessings upon Muhammad and upon the family of Muhammad, as You sent blessings upon the family of Abraham; indeed, You are Praiseworthy, Glorious. O Allah, bless Muhammad and the family of Muhammad, as You blessed the family of Abraham; indeed, You are Praiseworthy, Glorious.”
Another companion, Talha b. Ubaydullah, is also attributed to narrate this tradition in Sunan al-Nasa’i 1291:
A man came to the Prophet of Allah (SAW) and said: “O Prophet of Allah, how should we send prayers upon you?”
He said: “Say: O Allah, send Your blessings upon Muhammad and upon the family of Muhammad, as You sent blessings upon Ibrahim. Indeed, You are Praiseworthy, Glorious. And bless Muhammad and the family of Muhammad, as You blessed Ibrahim. Indeed, You are Praiseworthy, Glorious.”
The chain is reliable, and the presence of Sharik does not harm its reliability because another chain without him present was recorded in Musnad Ahmad, Vol. 3, pg. 16 - 17, Hadith # 1396 and Shu’ayb al-Arna’ut authenticates the report.
In a third tradition narrated by another companion, Abu Mas’ud al-Ansari, is in Sahih Muslim 405:
The Messenger of Allah (SAW) came to us while we were in the gathering of Sa‘d b. ‘Ubadah. Then Bashir b. Sa‘d said to him: “O Messenger of Allah, Allah Almighty has commanded us to send prayers upon you, but how should we send prayers upon you?”
The Messenger of Allah (SAW) remained silent until we wished he had not asked him. Then the Messenger of Allah said:
“Say: O Allah, send Your blessings upon Muhammad and upon the family of Muhammad as You sent blessings upon the family of Ibrahim, and bless Muhammad and the family of Muhammad as You blessed the family of Ibrahim among all nations. Indeed, You are Praiseworthy, Glorious. And as for peace (salām), that is as you already know.”
The reason for the Prophet’s silence was mentioned by Ibn Hajar in Fatih al-Bari, Vol. 19, pg. 334:
They wished that [they did not ask] out of fear that the Prophet might have disliked the question, since it was known among them that such questioning had been discouraged, as explained earlier in the commentary on Allah’s saying in Surat al-Mā’idah: “Do not ask about things which, if made clear to you, would trouble you.”
In another version reported by al-Ṭabarī, it is stated that the Prophet remained silent until revelation came to him, after which he said, “Say…”
This shows that the Prophet’s order to mention his family is not out of mere desire or love for his family, but rather a divine command from God to include them. This shows that the family of the Prophet are special and God has honoured them in a similar way by which he has honoured the Prophet. Why else did God want the family to be mentioned?
It is also apparent that the family of Ibrahim (AS) are mentioned in the salawat, and it is known that from the family of Ibrahim there were Imams and those with scripture as the Qur’an mentions in Al-Anbiya 21:72-73:
وَوَهَبۡنَا لَهُۥٓ إِسۡحَٰقَ وَيَعۡقُوبَ نَافِلَةًۖ وَكُلًّا جَعَلۡنَا صَٰلِحِينَ وَجَعَلۡنَٰهُمۡ أَئِمَّةً يَهۡدُونَ بِأَمۡرِنَا وَأَوۡحَيۡنَآ إِلَيۡهِمۡ فِعۡلَ ٱلۡخَيۡرَٰتِ وَإِقَامَ ٱلصَّلَوٰةِ وَإِيتَآءَ ٱلزَّكَوٰةِۖ وَكَانُواْ لَنَا عَٰبِدِينَ
We gave him (i.e. Abraham) Isaac and Jacob as an additional gift, and made each of them righteous. We made all of them leaders, guiding others by Our command, and We inspired them to do good works, to keep up the prayer, and to give alms: they were Our true worshippers.
It would not make sense for God to obligate us to send salutations upon the family of Muhammad, unless they had that same divine special status as do Ale Ibrahim, which he commanded us to send salutations upon as well. This, therefore, proves the presence of divinely appointed individuals to be from Ale Muhammad, and at the very least have the most entitlement to lead the Ummah.
Moreover, according to a Hadith attributed to Imam Ali (AS), the following is said in Mu’jam al-Kabir Vol. 1, pg. 220:
حَدَّثَنَا أَحْمَدُ قَالَ: نا عَامِرُ بْنُ سَيَّارٍ قَالَ: نا عَبْدُ الْكَرِيمِ الْخَرَّازُ، عَنْ أَبِي إِسْحَاقَ الْهَمْدَانِيِّ، عَنِ الْحَارِثِ، وَعَاصِمِ بْنِ ضَمْرَةَ، عَنْ عَلِيٍّ قَالَ:
«كُلُّ دُعَاءٍ مَحْجُوبٌ حَتَّى يُصَلِّيَ عَلَى مُحَمَّدٍ وَآلِ مُحَمَّدٍ صَلَّى اللهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ»
Ahmad narrated to us, saying: ‘Amir ibn Sayyar narrated to us, saying: ‘Abd al-Karim al-Kharraz narrated from Abu Ishaq al-Hamdani, from al-Harith and ‘Asim ibn Damrah, from Ali who said:
“Every supplication is veiled until one sends blessings upon Muhammad and the family of Muhammad.”
It was authenticated by Al-Albani in Sahih al-Taghrib Vol. 2, pg. 297 - 298.
Why would this be the case unless that Ale Muhammad has a holy divinely appointed status? These all serve as corroborating proofs for the Shi’i belief of Imamate- its necessity from the family of the Prophet, because otherwise these points made above wouldn’t make any sense.
As a side note, it is also transmitted in Shi’a books, such as the following Sahih tradition from Al-Kafi by al-Kulayni, Vol. 15, pg. 413 - 414, Hadith # 15009:
Ali ibn Ibrahim, from his father, from Ibn Mahbub, from Muhammad ibn al-Nuʿman or another, from Abu Abdillah, that he mentioned this sermon of the Commander of the Faithful on the day of Jumuah:
I seek refuge in God from the accursed Satan. In the name of God, the Most Merciful, the Most Compassionate.
Indeed, God and His angels send blessings upon the Prophet. O you who believe, send blessings upon him and greet him with peace.
O God, send your blessings upon Muhammad and the family of Muhammad, bless Muhammad and the family of Muhammad, show mercy to Muhammad and the family of Muhammad, and grant peace to Muhammad and the family of Muhammad, as the best You have ever sent blessings, bestowed blessing, shown mercy, shown tenderness, and granted peace upon Abraham and the family of Abraham. Truly, You are Praiseworthy, Glorious.
Another reliable report in Uyun Akhbar al-Ridha by al-Sheikh al-Saduq, Vol. 1, pg. 23, 492 - 493, Hadith # 182 also states:
Ali ibn al-Husayn ibn Shadhawayh al-Mu’addib and Ja‘far ibn Muhammad ibn Masrur, may God be pleased with them both, narrated to us. They said: Muhammad ibn Abdullah ibn Ja‘far al-Himyari narrated to us, from his father, from al-Rayyan ibn al-Salt. He said:
As for the seventh verse, it is the saying of God, Mighty and Majestic: Indeed, God and His angels send blessings upon the Prophet. O you who believe, send blessings upon him and greet him with peace. They said, “O Messenger of God, we know how to send peace upon you, but how do we send blessings upon you?”
He said, “You say: O God, send blessings upon Muhammad and the family of Muhammad, just as You sent blessings upon Abraham and the family of Abraham. Truly, You are Praiseworthy, Glorious.”
Then he said, “Is there any disagreement among you, O people, regarding this?” They replied, “No.”
Who are the family?
An objection that is often made is identifying who the family of Muhammad is, with some scholars even claiming that it refers to the Ummah of Muhammad as a whole.
However, this claim is very weak and contradictory to the Qur’an, for it says in Surat al-Nisa 4:54:
فَقَدْ آتَيْنَا آلَ إِبْرَاهِيمَ الْكِتَابَ وَالْحِكْمَةَ وَآتَيْنَاهُم مُّلْكًا عَظِيمًا
But we had already given the family of Abraham the Scripture and wisdom and conferred upon them a great kingdom.
Here, the Qur’an uses Ale Ibrahim to refer to the Prophets of God, such as Sulayman (AS), Yusuf (AS) etc. We also read in Aal-e-Imran 3:33:
إِنَّ ٱللَّهَ ٱصۡطَفَىٰٓ ءَادَمَ وَنُوحًا وَءَالَ إِبۡرَٰهِيمَ وَءَالَ عِمۡرَٰنَ عَلَى ٱلۡعَٰلَمِينَ
God chose Adam, Noah, Abraham’s family, and the family of Imran, over all other people.
This verse states that God chose Ale Ibrahim over the worlds, and we find in another verse that Ibrahim (AS) explicitly attributes this chosenness to his sons in al-Baqara 2:132:
وَوَصَّىٰ بِهَا إِبْرَاهِيمُ بَنِيهِ وَيَعْقُوبُ يَا بَنِيَّ إِنَّ اللَّهَ اصْطَفَىٰ لَكُمُ الدِّينَ فَلَا تَمُوتُنَّ إِلَّا وَأَنتُم مُّسْلِمُونَ
And Abraham instructed his sons [to do the same] and [so did] Jacob, [saying], "O my sons, indeed Allah has chosen for you this religion, so do not die except while you are Muslims."
Therefore, if Ale Ibrahim refers to the family of Ibrahim, then likewise must Ale Muhammad refer to the family of Muhammad (SAW).
Even from the family of the Prophet (SAW), however, it cannot mean everyone, as there are many deviant individuals from the Prophet’s family. The individuals at question are highlighted by this verse in Surat al-Hadid 57:26:
وَلَقَدْ أَرْسَلْنَا نُوحًا وَإِبْرَاهِيمَ وَجَعَلْنَا فِي ذُرِّيَّتِهِمَا النُّبُوَّةَ وَالْكِتَابَ ۖ فَمِنْهُم مُّهْتَدٍ ۖ وَكَثِيرٌ مِّنْهُمْ فَاسِقُونَ
And We have already sent Noah and Abraham and placed in their descendants prophethood and scripture; and among them is he who is guided, but many of them are defiantly disobedient.
God says that prophethood and scripture was revealed in the descendants of Noah and Abraham, amongst them were the righteously guided, and amongst them were the defiant. Hence, God excluded the son of Noah from his family once he deviated, and this is in a figurative sense and not literal. This is because who is considered part of the Ale of a Prophet, must be one who is upon righteous guidance. Thus, Ale Muhammad refers to the bloodline of Muhammad, from those who are rightly guided.
Are wives included?
Now there is a contradictionary solitary report transmitted by Imam Malik solely in his Muwatta Hadith. # 400:
“O Messenger of Allah, how should we send blessings upon you?” He replied: “Say: O Allah, send blessings upon Muhammad and his wives and his descendants, as You sent blessings upon the family of Ibrahim; and bless Muhammad and his wives and his descendants, as You blessed the family of Ibrahim. Indeed, You are Praiseworthy, Glorious.”
It was also transmitted in Sahih al-Bukhari 6360 and Sahih Muslim 407. However, it is the same chain through Malik b. Anas to Abu Humayd al-Ansari.
The discrepancy is clear and obvious fabrication:
This report is solitary and transmitted only via this chain from Malik to Abu Humayd al-Sa’idi. In contrast, the other reports are of multiple chains that all state ‘Ale Muhammad’. This discrepancy existing only in this chain shows it has mistransmitted the report.
The wording in itself does not make sense, for why say ‘Ale Ibrahim’ instead of ‘and the wives and descendants of Ibrahim’? It would fit the phrase more meaningfully, just as ‘Ale Muhammad’ would with ‘Ale Ibrahim’, but to separate them is unfit.
The report contradicts clear Hadiths excluding the wives from Ale Muhammad (SAW). This was recorded in Sahih Muslim 2408d:
"We said: Who are amongst the members of the household? Aren't the wives (of the Holy Prophet) included amongst the members of his household?
Thereupon he said: No, by Allah, a woman lives with a man (as his wife) for a certain period; he then divorces her and she goes back to her parents and to her people; the members of his household include his ownself and his kith and kin (who are related to him by blood) and for him the acceptance of Zakat is prohibited."
It is known that Sadaqa is prohibited to be taken for the family of the Prophet (SAW), which clearly distinguishes them from the rest of the Ummah of Muhammad (SAW). This proves that it cannot be the whole Ummah, and certainly not the wives. The wives too lack the ruling about the prohibition of Sadaqa, this is unique for the blood progeny of Muhammad (SAW).
beautiful article