CHAPTER 19 THE SHIAH CONFUSION OVER THE AHLUL BAYT
I would like to address this short chapter to the Shiahs. The ulema have fooled all the people – the Shiahs as well as the Ahlul Sunnah. Among the Shiah groups the Ahlul Bayt is quite something to talk about. By Ahlul Bayt they mean members of the Prophet’s household. The Shia ulema claim that the Ahlul Bayt are specially protected. This is in direct contradiction with the Quran which mentions the Ahlul Bayt around the Prophet as people NEEDING purification from uncleanness and ignorance, and not as people who are pure at all.
The Shiah go to extreme lengths to quote things to promote the status of the Ahlul Bayt. They say that Ahlul Bayt refers to the Prophet's daughter someone allegedly by the name of Fatima who was married to someone by the name of Ali.
There is much argument about this person called Ali, someone else called Muawiya and someone else called Uthman who is believed to be murdered by people who were friendly towards Ali.
It is however surprising that Uthman was also supposed to be married to another of the Prophet's alleged daughters called Umm Kalthum - yet the family of Uthman and Umm Kalthum are not included among the so called Ahlul Bayt or members of the Prophet’s household !
Why are only Ali and his wife Fatima and their children and grandchildren included among the so called Ahlul Bayt but not the family of Uthman and Umm Kalthum and their children etc ? This is a double standard.
Anyway there appears to be some misunderstanding about this Ahlul Bayt.
Firstly Bayt in the Quran does NOT mean a house. Bayt means a system. The word for house in the Quran (believe it or not - is buyut - singular). Contrary to orthodox intrepretation buyut is NOT plural of bayt.
But for the sake of this discussion, those who say bayt means house, can still use that definition. It is not correct but it still fits into the logic of the point I am raising here. The word Ahlul Bayt appears elsewhere in the Quran too. Here is a reference to Ahlul Bayt and the family of Abraham.
[Surah 11.71] And his (Abrahams') wife was standing (by), so she laughed, then We gave her the good news of Ishaq and after Ishaq of Yaqoub.
[Surah 11.72] She said: O wonder! shall I bear a son when I am an extremely old woman and this my husband an extremely old man? Most surely this is a wonderful thing.
[Surah 11.73] They said: Do you wonder at Allah's bidding? The mercy of Allah and His blessings are on you, O ahlul bayt, surely He is Praised, Glorious
So here we have Allah calling Abraham's family ahlul bayt or 'people of the system'. Abraham and his family were part of the earliest system that God established for mankind (see surah 3:96).
For those who say ahlul bayt in this verse means 'people of the house' its alright - but only for the sake of argument and so as not to disrupt your train of thought.
Now we come to the famous reference in verse 33 of Surah al Ahzab which is quoted often by the Shiah school as evidence of the so called elevated status of the Ahlul Bayt.
Here is a correct rendering of the verse and it is quite shocking.
Please read slowly and carefully. We have to see the context from the preceding verses. We start from Surah 33:32.
[Surah 33.32] O wives of the Prophet! you are not like any other of the women; If you will be on your guard, then be not soft in (your) speech, lest he in whose heart is a disease yearn; and speak a good word
Here is the Arabic transliteration :
Surah 33:32. Ya nisaa alnnabiyyi lastunna kaahadin mina alnnisa-i ini ittaqaytunna fala takhdaAAna bialqawli fayatmaAAa allathee fee qalbihi maradun waqulna qawlan maAAroofan
Here the verse 33:32 tells the wives of the Prophet that they are different from other women. They must maintain a certain decorum.
Here is the next verse :
[Surah 33.33] And stay in your houses and do not display your finery like the displaying of the earlier ignorance (jahiliyah al oola) ; and uphold your obligations, and purify yourself, and obey Allah and His Apostle. surely Allah only desires to keep you away from the uncleanness of the people of the system! and to purify you a (thorough) purifying.
Here is the Arabic transliteration :
Surah 33: 33 “Waqarna fee buyootikunna wala tabarrajna tabarruja aljahiliyyati al-oola waaqimna alssalata waateena alzzakata waatiAAna Allaha warasoolahu innama yureedu Allahu liyuthhiba AAankumu alrrijsa ahla albayti wayutahhirakum tatheeran”
Please pay close attention to the Arabic and the structure of the sentence in heavy bold above :
innama = surely
yureedu Allahu = desires Allah
liyuthhiba = to keep away / move
AAankumu = you all
alrrijsa = the uncleanness of
ahla albayti = the people of the system
wayutahhirakum = and to purify you
tatheeran = thoroughly purifying
In Surah 33:33 Allah tells the Prophet's wives that they must give up their earlier ways of jahiliyah behaviour (jahiliyah al oola). They cannot display their beauty like they used to during their earlier days of jahiliyah. Now Allah has moved them to a new system by giving them a new decorum and conduct in their daily lives.
And unmistakably Allah tells the prophet's wives that He "desires to move them away from the uncleanness of the 'ahlul bayt'" (li yuthiba ankumu al rijaasa ahlul bayt) and to purify them.
The Prophet's wives were previously of the ahlul bayt or the system of the jahiliyah. Now God wants to purify them and get them OUT of that ahlul bayt. The Arabic is unmistakable.
For the sake of argument, even if you insist that bayt means 'house' thats fine. Allah is saying He wants to move the Prophet's wives AWAY from the uncleanness of the Ahlul Bayt. Not move them INTO the uncleanness of the Ahlul Bayt !!
The Ahlul Bayt in this verse are DIRTY and UNCLEAN. Allah therefore wants to purify them FROM this unclean Ahlul Bayt.
But most ironically and also comically the ulema of shiah quote this same verse to put Fatimah, Ali and their children (but strangely not Umm Kalthum, Uthman and their children) INTO the ahlul bayt.
Here is a typically mistaken rendering of this verse even by Abdullah Yusuf Ali.
Surah 33 : 33 And stay quietly in your houses, and make not a dazzling display, like that of the former Times of Ignorance; and establish regular Prayer, and give regular Charity; and obey Allah and His Messenger. And Allah only wishes to remove all abomination from you, ye members of the Family, and to make you pure and spotless (Abdullah Yususf Ali).
According to Abdullah Yusuf Ali, " yureedullaahu li yuthiba ankumu al rijaasa ahlul bayt" means 'Allah only wishes to remove all abomination from you, ye members of the Family'. This is wrong.
The correct rendering by Yusuf Ali should be 'Allah only wishes to remove you from the abomination of the people of the system'.
Allah is telling the Prophet's wives He wants to purify them from the abomination of their earlier jahiliyah. What this means is that the whole concept of 'ahlul bayt' that has been made into huge mountains and that has caused so much confusion and anger between shiahs and sunnis for generations is actually a simple misreading and misunderstanding of some very simple arabic