Defence from prophet`s Ahle beyt: The muslim artist duty

O! My ummah I don’t afraid for you concerning what you don’t know , but look how you are acting regarding what you know

Prophet Mohammad  Peace Be upon him

In October Sami Yusuf and other Muslim singers will sing in the name of Peace in Wembley, London to help victims of the Darfur conflict.

The most prominent and the most famous Islamic singers will carry on program to show their support for peace and the right to live in tranquility.

Singing for the victims of Boslan School in Chechnya, Darfur’s people, Palestinian children and women wearing Islamic veil in Europe Sami Yusuf has shown himself not just as a singer, but also as a Muslim who feel responsible towards Islamic and social ideals. He is an aware Muslim who reacts to the events happening around him as he condemned the bomb explosions in London’s subway, criticized the publishing of the insulting caricature of the holy prophet and asked Muslims to keep away from violent and unlawful behaviors and act according to the basic learnings of the prophets. When the defenseless Lebanese were being bombarded by the Israeli planes, he supported his fellow brothers in the Lebanon resistance and in his numerous interviews with the most famous western media has told that oppression is coming to its end and Islam will eventually prevail.

These have not been the only events that have hurt the heart of all the Muslims and believers in the recent year. It’s now been a while that a mysterious movement has begun its activities with the aim of insulting the family of the holy prophet and the prophet himself and emitting all the signs and memories of the prophet and his family in the Islamic countries.

Some months ago, some of the heads of the Vahhabi sect gave a Fatwa to demolish the prophet’s family and followers’ holy shrines under the pretext of fighting polytheism and they called this act Jihad. In this fatwa they have ordered the Muslims to demolish the holy shrines of Hussein bin Ali and his brother-Abalfazl-, Zeinab (the prophet’s grandchild) and the shrine of Seyyed Badavi in Egypt. Clergies of different Islamic sects and Muslims who love prophet’s family reacted to this fatwa and condemned it.

This is not the first time that the prophet’s family has been subject to disrespect. The Saudi government has destroyed Bani Hashim alley where prophet’s family’s house was located under the pretext of reconstructing “masjed al-haram” and interdicted Baghie cemetery where the tomb of prophet’s grandchildren, wives and followers is located. Since then this movement has begun.

The prophet’s family is an essence which is referred by the prophet as a means of guidance and the way towards salvation in addition to Quran. The prophet has been quoted as saying: My family is not separate from Quran in this world and they will join me beside Kosar pool. The holy prophet has told us about his family: “oh people, I have left three things among you: Quran, my children and my family. If you follow them you will never go astray. I’m waiting to see how your behavior towards them is! ” Then he adds: “Soon the messenger of God will come and I will accept the god’s invitation and will leave two valuable things among you. First is Quran which is guidance and light. Second is my family. I want you in the name of God, not to forget my family” (صحيح مسلم باب فضائل علي. جلد 5 ص 122، صحيح ترمذي جلد 5 ص 328، مستدرك حاكم جلد 3 ص 148، مسند امام احمد بن حنبل جلد 3 ص 17)

Instead of being respected, be a refuge for Muslims and be a source of information about Islam for them, the Prophet’s family is insulted by the people who claim to be Muslims and pretend to serve Islam.

This insult which has begun from inside the world of Islam has targeted the soul of Islam and damages the Muslims’ unity. Any insult to the prophet’s family is insult to the prophet himself as the prophet says about his family: “whoever wants to live as I did, to die as I will and to inhibit in the sublime heaven as I will, must accept Ali’s Imamate, love his lovers and join and follow my family after I’m not in this world anymore since they are my children, are created from the clay I’ve been created from and my understanding and knowledge has been infused to them. So those who ignore my family’s excellence and cut their connections with them must beware of their own fate. God will not let them benefit from my intercession!”

 (مستدرك حاكم- ج3 ص 28، طبراني در جامع كبير، اصابه ابن حجر عسقلاني ، كنز العمال- ج 6 ص 155، مناقب خوارزمي ص 34، ينابيع الموده ص 149، حليه الاوليا ج 1 ص 86، تاريخ ابن عساكر ج 2 ص 95)

 Today if we keep silent about this movement, the existence of Islam will be in danger. Now that they have given such sentences in the name of religion, the path will be open for them to inflict further similar damages to Islam and continue their future actions. The great evils of the time have secretly prepared the same long-term and wicked plots with the help of their information agencies and spies. This movement is aimed to weaken Islam and obliterate the name of the prophet and the signs indicating the love for his holy being and his pure family throughout Islamic countries. Oh my muslin fellows remember that in the 17^th centaury a representatives of one the colonizing governments held Quran in his hand and called loud that as long as this book governs over the Muslims there’s nothing left for us to do. As a result they planned to make Muslims forget Quran, damaged the unity amongst Muslim countries and made them their own colonies. Today we must not talk of religious differences because the family of the holy prophet are loved and should be loved by all Muslims around the world. The family members of prophet are those that Tat hir(purification) has been descended from heaven to describe their high status: and allah only wishes to remove all abomination from you, ye members of the family, and to make you pure and spotless.

“Imam Moslem  ” has quoted Ayesha as saying:

On a morning the prophet (Peace Be upon Him) left his house wearing a cloak made of black wool. When Hassan bin Ali reached the prophet, he took him under his cloak. Then Hussein arrived and went under the prophet’s cloak too. After a while Fatimah came and again he took her under his cloak. Then Ali came and the prophet took Ali under his cloak too. And he said: “Certainly God would like to cleanse you of any possible evil and make you clean of all impurity.” This narration is undoubtedly the prophet’s prayer for Fatimah, Ali, Hassan and Hussein. By this prayer the holy prophet wanted to remove all the impurities from them and make them all clean and pure.

God has also repeatedly mentioned the high status of the prophet’s family in Quran:

1- The sublime god says:

 “قُلْ لا أَسْئَلُكُمْ عَلَيْهِ أَجْراً إِلاَّ الْمَوَدَّةَ فِي الْقُرْبى”

“say: i do not ask of you any reward for it but love for my near relatives”(صحيح مسلم و صحيح بخاري و مسند احمد بن حنبل و تفسير ثعلبي)

have all quoted that when this verse was descended from the heaven the Muslims asked the prophet: “ who are your relatives?” The prophet answered: “They are Ali, Fatimah and their two children (Hassan and Hussein).”

2- In 61^th verse of Al-e-emran surah god says:

“فَمَنْ حَاجَّكَ فِيهِ مِنْ بَعْدِ ما جاءَكَ مِنَ الْعِلْمِ فَقُلْ تَعالَوْا نَدْعُ أَبْناءَنا وَ أَبْناءَكُمْ وَ نِسائَنا وَ نِساءَكُمْ وَ أَنْفُسَنا وَ أَنْفُسَكُمْ…»

“if any one disputes in this matter with thee, now after (full) knowledge hath come to thee, say: “come! let us gather together,- our sons and your sons, our women and your women, ourselves and yourselves: then let us earnestly pray, and invoke the curse of allah on those who lie.”

All the Shia and Sunni interpreters agree that the word “our sons” refers to Hassan and Hussein and the word “our women” and “ourselves” respectively refer to Fatimah and Ali. Regarding the virtues of Ali, Muslim and “Tarmazi”have quoted Saeed bin Vaqas as saying: “When this verse was descended from the heaven the holy prophet called Ali, Fatimah, Hassan and Hussein and then said: Oh god, they are my family.”

3- Quran narrates the story of the repentance of Adam as follows:

فتلقيّ آدم من ربّهِ كلماتٍ فتاب عليه انه هو التراب الرحيم

“then learnt adam from his lord words of inspiration, and his lord turned towards him; for he is oft-returning, most merciful.”

Under the very same verse, Jalaleddin Sobouti has quoted Bin Abbas as saying: “I asked the prophet of the words Adam received from Allah and which led to his repentance being accepted. The holy prophet answered: Adam asked for repentance from god by mentioning Mohammad, Ali, Fatimah, Hassan and Hussein so god accepted his repentance and forgave him.”

There are numerous verses on the high status of the prophet’s family and Ali in special. Some are as follows:

Al-tawba:1-19/ Al-tahrim:4/ Al-baqara:269-274/ Hud:17/ Al-hadid:19-28/ Ash-shura:214/ Al-rahman:19-22/ Al-mujadila:12/ Al-waqia:10-11/ Maryam:96/ Al-maeda:54-55/ Al-e-imran:7-103/ Al-rad:13/ An-nahl:43

Sami Yusuf is going to sing in the name of peace. This artist sings for Islam and the grand teacher of all human beings and has named his third album in order to invite all Muslims to be united. Now that he has become the example of a Muslim artist in the new age and has been given the title , he can sing against violence as he has criticized any kind of extremism in the name of Allah and Islam in the past. Furthermore he can sing in support of the dignity and high status of the Prophet’s relatives and remind us that prophet’s family is part of the blessed existence of the holly prophet.

By singing about the prophet’s family Sami Yusuf can act beyond religious conflicts and differences and obtain a position higher than an ordinary Muslim singer as he has always showed such an attitude.

, the third album among Sami’s work will be published the in the middle of the next year. So we have almost 6 months till its publication. According to the news this album is a social and critical mark work in which Sami Yusuf has sang from the Lebanon resistance and the insulting Danish newspaper caricature to the negative effects of globalization; events which have happened between his second and third albums.

A song to praise the prophet’s family and their sublime status in Islam will complete Sami’s third album and make him a social reformer in the world of Islam.

After his second album we expect Sami Yusuf to react in response to the events occurring in the world of Islam and criticize the improper behaviors of the Muslims.

Sami Yusuf has not only used music as an instrument to introduce Islam but also has shown that an artist is not someone isolated from the society. In fact he/she is an informed person and he himself has had these very same characteristics since now.

His concerts are good evidence to prove this claim: in every country and every time Sami has performed according to the conditions of the time.

In album he tells about differences and schisms and invites all the muslins to return to Islamic teachings.

Today insulting the prophet’s family and ignoring their status is a big problem in the world of Islam. Singing about this event will complete Sami Yusuf’s mission. Today he is in such a position that has made his art more affective than the work of any other Muslim artist and writer. His works will be reflected in all Islamic countries. Many writers and scientists haven’t got this opportunity because of political and religious problems. In such a situation his songs draw the attention of the public opinion of the world of Islam to themselves.

Perhaps some are not informed of this fatwa, its meaning and effects. Such negligence will allow the continuance of such movements and will slowly damage the soul of religion.

Now that Sami Yusuf is noticed by different and famous media around the world, he can continue his mission better than he did in the past and serve Islam. By singing in praise of the prophet’s family and their position near prophet, Sami will show his support for them and will react against such actions. Furthermore he will once again remind Muslims of their duties as the followers of the holy prophet.

With this work Sami will obtain a position beyond a singer. He will help the implementation of reforms in the Islamic world and will put behind a lasting effect.

Sami Yusuf with his songs has made many hearts acquainted with the holy prophet and has created pure feelings of being a Muslim and loving the prophet.

Now besides making the prophet of god happy he can once again acquaint Muslims with the prophet’s family and remind them of their duties as a Muslim by singing in praise of his family.

Sami can present a new narrative of Saghalein narration and remind us that the prophet’s family is not separate from Quran and both of them are a trust from the holy prophet among us, the ummah of Mohammad.