The Blessed Declaration at Khumm-e-Ghadeer

At the blessed pond of Khumm, in the burning noon of the 18th of Zil-Hijjah, 10 A.H., a lofty pulpit was raised from the saddles of the mounts. The Holy Prophet Muhammad (Sallallaho Alaihi Wa Aalihi Wasallam) ascended it and, in the presence of over one hundred thousand blessed companions, delivered a heart-melting sermon. He reminded the Ummah of the nearness of his own departure from this world, of the two heavy trusts he was leaving behind — the Holy Quran and his Ahl-e-Bait (ASWS) — and then, raising the blessed hand of Hadrat Ali-ul-Murtaza (Alaihis Salato Was Salam) so high that the whiteness of their blessed arms was seen by all, he made the immortal proclamation of blessed love and honour for his Ahl-e-Bait, upon which the hearts of every believer testified in silent reverence. Thereafter the sacred caravan resumed its journey and reached the blessed city of Madina.

The Final Days and the Blessed Illness

After the return from Hajjat-ul-Wida, the Holy Prophet Muhammad (SAWAW) spent his remaining blessed days in constant remembrance of Almighty Allah, in visiting the graves of the martyrs of Uhud, in seeking forgiveness for the believers, and in giving his final blessed counsels to his Ahle Bait Athaar (ASWS) and his companions. Towards the end of Safar, 11 A.H., signs of blessed illness appeared upon his sacred body. Yet even in that state of fever, he would rise, come to Masjid-e-Nabawi, and lead the prayer of the believers, urging them to hold fast to prayer, to kindness towards women and servants, and above all to love and honour his Ahle Bait Athaar (ASWS).

As the illness grew heavier, the blessed head of the Beloved of Almighty Allah rested upon the blessed lap of his beloved daughter Hadrat Syeda Fatima-tu-Zahrah (Salam Allah-Ho Alaiha), while Hadrat Ali-ul-Murtaza (Alaihis Salato Was Salam), Imam Hasan (ASWS) and Imam Husain (ASWS) stood in tearful attendance. The whole of blessed Madina fell into an anxious silence — the streets wept, the palm trees seemed to bow low, and the very air felt heavy with the approach of an unbearable separation.

The Blessed Demise at the Age of Sixty-Three

On the blessed morning of the 28th of Safar, 11 A.H. — in the sixty-third year of his sacred blessed age — the soul of the Holy Prophet Muhammad (Sallallaho Alaihi Wa Aalihi Wasallam), the Mercy for all the Universes, the Seal of the Prophets, the Beloved of Almighty Allah, returned to the exalted presence of his Almighty Lord with the blessed words of remembrance upon his sacred lips. As the news spread from house to house, a wave of grief the like of which the world had never known passed through Madina. Companions wept until their eyes swelled; the little children cried with their mothers; the very stones of Madina seemed to mourn; and men of great stature stood speechless as if the sun itself had set upon the earth.

The Ahle Bait Athaar (ASWS) — foremost among them Hadrat Syeda Fatima-tu-Zahrah (SA), whose blessed heart bore a grief no tongue can describe — took upon themselves the sacred rites of Ghusl and Kafan under the blessed supervision of Hadrat Ali-ul-Murtaza (Alaihis Salato Was Salam). His sacred body was laid to rest in the blessed chamber of the Holy Prophet Muhammad (SAWAW) that he had purchased for his wife Hadrat Ayesha Binte Abu Bakar (RA) within the blessed Masjid-e-Nabawi, honoured as the Roza-e-Rasool, the spiritual heart of the Muslim world, upon which peace and blessings descend without pause till the Day of Judgement.

The Dignity and Sanctity of the Holy Ahle Bait Athaar (ASWS)

The Holy Ahle Bait Athaar (Alaihimus Salato Was Salam) are the blessed household of the Holy Prophet Muhammad (SAWAW) — those whom Almighty Allah Himself has purified with a perfect purification, as declared in the Holy Quran in the blessed Ayah of Tatheer. Their dignity is beyond the reach of any tongue and their sanctity is beyond the grasp of any pen. At the head of this sacred household stand the five blessed personalities of the Cloak (Ashab-e-Kisa) — the Holy Prophet Muhammad (SAWAW), Hadrat Ali-ul-Murtaza (Alaihis Salato Was Salam), Hadrat Syeda Fatima-tu-Zahrah (Salam Allah-Ho Alaiha), Hadrat Imam Hasan-ul-Mujtaba (Alaihis Salato Was Salam) and Hadrat Imam Husain-e-Shaheed (Alaihis Salato Was Salam).

To love them is to love the Holy Prophet (SAWAW); to honour them is to honour him; to send blessings upon them is a part of the very Salat that every Muslim recites in every prayer. The Holy Prophet (SAWAW) himself declared them, in his Farewell Sermon and again at Khumm-e-Ghadeer, to be one of the two heavy trusts left with the Ummah — inseparable from the Holy Quran until they meet him at the blessed pond of Kausar. Whoever holds fast to both shall never go astray.

A Brief Introduction to the Twelve Blessed Imams (ASWS)

From the blessed progeny of Hadrat Ali-ul-Murtaza (Alaihis Salato Was Salam) and Hadrat Syeda Fatima-tu-Zahrah (Salam Allah-Ho Alaiha) come the twelve blessed Imams of the Holy Ahle Bait Athaar — each of them a lamp of blessed guidance, an ocean of blessed knowledge, and an unshakeable pillar of piety, patience and love for Almighty Allah. Their lives are entire libraries of blessed virtue; here only the briefest of introductions is offered for the honour of remembrance.

1. Hadrat Imam Ali-ul-Murtaza (Alaihis Salato Was Salam) — Cousin and beloved son-in-law of the Holy Prophet (SAWAW), husband of Hadrat Syeda Fatima-tu-Zahrah (SA), the first Imam of the Holy Ahle Bait, gate of the city of knowledge, and the lion of Almighty Allah.
2. Hadrat Imam Hasan-ul-Mujtaba (Alaihis Salato Was Salam) — Elder blessed grandson of the Holy Prophet (SAWAW), chief of the youth of Paradise, second Imam of the Holy Ahle Bait, and a personality of unmatched forbearance, generosity and dignity.
3. Hadrat Imam Husain-e-Shaheed-e-Karbala (Alaihis Salato Was Salam) — Second blessed grandson of the Holy Prophet (SAWAW), chief of the youth of Paradise, third Imam of the Holy Ahle Bait, and the immortal symbol of truth, sacrifice and steadfastness upon the sacred plain of Karbala.
4. Hadrat Imam Ali Zain-ul-Abideen (Alaihis Salato Was Salam) — Blessed son of Imam Husain (ASWS), fourth Imam of the Holy Ahle Bait, ornament of the worshippers, and author of the sublime supplications of Sahifa-e-Sajjadiyah known throughout the world for their spiritual depth.
5. Hadrat Imam Muhammad Baqir (Alaihis Salato Was Salam) — Blessed son of Imam Zain-ul-Abideen (ASWS), fifth Imam of the Holy Ahle Bait, the splitter of knowledge, from whose blessed gatherings countless scholars of the Ummah drew light and guidance.
6. Hadrat Imam Ja'far-us-Sadiq (Alaihis Salato Was Salam) — Blessed son of Imam Muhammad Baqir (ASWS), sixth Imam of the Holy Ahle Bait, the truthful, the head of a great school of blessed knowledge attended by thousands of students from across the Muslim world.
7. Hadrat Imam Musa Kazim (Alaihis Salato Was Salam) — Blessed son of Imam Ja'far-us-Sadiq (ASWS), seventh Imam of the Holy Ahle Bait, renowned for his patience, forbearance and long nights spent in the worship of Almighty Allah.
8. Hadrat Imam Ali Ibn Musa Al-Rida (Alaihis Salato Was Salam) — Blessed son of Imam Musa Kazim (ASWS), eighth Imam of the Holy Ahle Bait, whose blessed shrine at Mashhad is visited by the seekers of blessings from every corner of the Muslim world.
9. Hadrat Imam Muhammad Taqi-ul-Jawad (Alaihis Salato Was Salam) — Blessed son of Imam Ali Al-Rida (ASWS), ninth Imam of the Holy Ahle Bait, who displayed extraordinary knowledge and wisdom from his tender years and adorned the traditions of his blessed forefathers.
10. Hadrat Imam Ali Naqi-ul-Hadi (Alaihis Salato Was Salam) — Blessed son of Imam Muhammad Taqi (ASWS), tenth Imam of the Holy Ahle Bait, a guide of the seekers of truth and a beacon of piety, humility and blessed knowledge.
11. Hadrat Imam Hasan-ul-Askari (Alaihis Salato Was Salam) — Blessed son of Imam Ali Naqi (ASWS), eleventh Imam of the Holy Ahle Bait, whose blessed life at Samarra was a lamp of guidance for the believers of his blessed time.
12. Hadrat Imam Muhammad Al-Mahdi (Alaihis Salato Was Salam) — Blessed son of Imam Hasan-ul-Askari (ASWS), the twelfth and awaited Imam of the Holy Ahle Bait — the promised Mahdi through whose blessed appearance Almighty Allah shall fill the earth with justice and light.

May Almighty Allah shower His countless blessings upon the Holy Prophet Muhammad (Sallallaho Alaihi Wa Aalihi Wasallam), upon his Holy Ahle Bait Athaar (Alaihimus Salato Was Salam), and upon every soul that loves and honours them till the Day of Judgement. Aameen.