Event and significance of Ghadeer Khumm

#Ghadeer_Khumm
#غدير_خم #غدیر_خم

Seventy days before his demise, when Prophet Muhammad (PEACE BE UPON HIM AND HIS PROGENY)[1] was returning to Medina after his last pilgrimage to Mecca, he reached the pond of Khum (Ghadir Khum) near Juhfa. It was the 18th of the month of Dhul-Hijja of the year 10 AH (March 15, 632 AD). By this time, the Prophet (PEACE BE UPON HIM AND HIS PROGENY) had conveyed all of the divine commandments to his nation except for the formal and explicit public announcement of his divinely appointed successors as the leaders, guardians, and guides for the believers for all days to come.

By the order of Allah, the Prophet (PEACE BE UPON HIM AND HIS PROGENY) stopped at the pond of Khum, gathered the crowd of pilgrims, and delivered his last universal speech. In this sermon, he presented his last religious instruction which finalized the last divine religion and made Islam the perfect religion in the sight of Allah. Imam Muhammad al-Baqir (PEACE BE UPON HIM ), the fifth Imam and successor of the Prophet (PEACE BE UPON HIM AND HIS PROGENY) said:

آخِرُ فَرِيضَةٍ أَنْزَلَهَا اللَّهُ تَعَالَى الْوَلَايَةُ ثُمَّ لَمْ يُنْزِلْ بَعْدَهَا فَرِيضَةً ثُمَّ نَزَّلَ الْيَوْمَ أَكْمَلْتُ لَكُمْ دِينَكُمْ…فَأَقَامَهَا رَسُولُ اللَّهِ بِالْجُحْفَةِ.

“The last obligatory duty that Allah sent down was al-Walaya (adherence to the guardian assigned by Allah). Then, He sent down the verse: ‘Today, I completed your religion…’[2] once the Messenger of Allah established it in Juhfa area.”[3]

This message was the most unique in the entire mission of the Prophet (PEACE BE UPON HIM AND HIS PROGENY) due to the revelation of Verse 67, Chapter 5 of the Holy Quran before his speech. In this revelation, Allah warned His Messenger that failing to deliver this last message would nullify his entire mission. This unprecedented warning proves that this last message contained the most important religious commandment of Allah for the Muslim nation.

Moreover, the contents of this last message were so crucial to the faith that the Prophet (PEACE BE UPON HIM AND HIS PROGENY) emphatically required all those who directly or indirectly heard the sermon of Ghadir Khum to convey it to people who were not aware of its details, and parents to convey it to their children for all generations to come. Hence, this sermon addresses all Muslim generations of the world until the Day of Judgement. This emphasis naturally implies that the content of this message has a vital role in the future of the Muslims, their spiritual health, and their felicity in the Hereafter.

The main issue that the Prophet (PEACE BE UPON HIM AND HIS PROGENY) addressed in his speech in Ghadir Khum was that Allah appointed Ali Ibn Abi Talib (PEACE BE UPON HIM ) as the guardian (Wali), the master (Mawla), the leader (Imam), and the commander (Amir) of all believing men and women, the deputy and the executor of his affairs (Wasi), and his successor (Khalifa). His sayings and commands should be preferred over the opinions of all others in every matter. Obeying him is obeying Allah, and disobeying him is disobeying Allah. Whoever follows him (and his sayings) is a believer under the guardianship of Allah, and whoever turns away from him (or his sayings) is a disbeliever under the guardianship of Satan.

Guardianship (al-Walaya) expresses a bilateral relation between the guardian and the people. Observing al-Walaya by people means adhering to the guardian and acknowledging his authority by heart, tongue, and action. On the other hand, the action of al-Walaya by the guardian means offering protection from evil, spiritual assistance, care, support, and guidance for his adherents. A divinely appointed guardian guards his adherents from misguidance, spiritual destruction, wrongdoing, and sin as much as they adhere to him and his commands. Establishing al-Walaya has been the ultimate goal of religion and the fruit of the entire efforts of Prophet Muhammad (PEACE BE UPON HIM AND HIS PROGENY) during his mission.