FROM BIDA TO SUNNA: THE WILAYA OF ALI IN THE SHII ADHAN.

• Author: TAKIM, LIYAKAT A.

Although the wilaya of [[blank].sup.[subset]]Ali b. AN Talib--the attestation of his spiritual and temporal authority-- has always been professed by the [Shi.sup.[subset] a and has appeared in their ritual and other practices (such as coinage) in various forms, its inclusion in the adhan (call to prayer) was once generally rejected by Shii scholars. It is now, however, a distinctive feature of the adhan in use among the Twelver Shia This paper traces and explains how this change came about and how it was eventually justified by the leading scholarly authorities of the community, especially from the Safavid era and later.

A DISTINCTIVE FEATURE OF THE adhan (call to prayer) as recited by Twelver [Shi.sup.[subset]] is is the inclusion of the wilaya (spiritual and temporal authority) of [[blank].sup.subset]]Ali b. Abi Talib. Thus, after reciting the shahada (bearing witness to the unity of one God and the prophecy of Muhammad) the [mu.sup.[contains]] adhdhin (caller to prayer) will normally state "Ashhadu anna [[blank].sup.[subset]]Aliyyan [waliyu.sup.[contains]]llah" (I bear witness that Ali is the friend of God). In the minds of many Twelver [Shi.sup.[subset]]is this popular practice has become an important component of the adhan. However, the wilaya was not recited in the adhan at the time of the Prophet or during the lives of any of the [Shi.sup.[subset]]i imam. [1] In this paper, I trace its provenance and evolution. Initially, I examine the pronouncements of early [Shi.sup.[subset]]i jurists on this issue and compare and contrast their views with the verdicts of later authors. The judgment of the later jurists, moreover, contrasts starkly with the rulings of their predecessors. A need to assert and propagate the Shi i identity in terms of a nascent polit ical state led eventually to the inclusion of the wilaya in the adhan. At that point the [Shi.sup.[subset]]i jurists resorted to various forms of hermeneutics to vindicate such a practice.

The earliest [Shi.sub.[subset]i juridical work extant is al-Kulayni's (d. 329/941) [Furu.sup.[subset]] al-kafi. Although in this work alKulayni examines various segments of the adhan, he does not discuss or even mention the wilaya of [[blank].sup.[subset]]Ali as a part of it at all. [2] The first scholar to take up the wilaya in the adhan was al-Saduq (d. 381/991). After reviewing the different parts of the adhan in his Man la yahduruhu alfaqih, he states:

This is the correct adhan: nothing is to be added or subtracted from it. The Mufawwida, [3] may God curse them, have fabricated traditions and have added to the adhan "Muhammad and the family of Muhammad are the best of mankind," [reciting it] twice. In some of their traditions, after uttering "I bear witness that Muhammad is the Prophet of Allah," [they add] "I bear witness that Ali is the wail (friend) of God" twice. Among them there are others who narrate instead of this "I bear witness that Ali is the true Commander of the Faithful" twice. There is no doubt that Ali is the friend of God and that he is the true Commander of the Faithful and that Muhammad and his family, peace be upon them, are the best of [God's] creatures. However, that is not [part] of the original adhan. I have mentioned this so that those who have been accused of concocting [the doctrine of] tafwid and have insinuated themselves in our ranks should become known. [4]

It is clear that al-Saduq regards those reciting the wilaya a as belonging to the Mufawwida, which is, for him, an extremist group, as he unequivocally curses and condemns them for their actions. For al-Saduq, the recitation of the wilaya in the adhan is one of the distinguishing marks of the Mufawwida. Thus the Mufawwida are to be differentiated from the mainstream Twelver Shi is by this practice.

Many tenth- and eleventh-century jurists did not consider it important to discuss the issue of the wilaya in the adhan. Thus, where and when the adhan is discussed in some detail, there is no mention of the wilaya, as, for example, in al-Mufid's (d. 413/1022) [Muqni.sup.[subset]] a, [5] or in the Intisar of Sharif al-Murtada (d. 436/1044). [6] In his Tahdhib, Tusi (d. 460/1067) refers to various hadiths reporting different juridical rulings, but in spite of this, he cites not a single hadith indicating the wilaya of [[blank].sup.[subset]]Ali in the adhan. This is surprising in view of the fact that, in his other works (to be discussed presently), Tusi admits that odd and isolated (shadhdh) reports concerning the wilaya of [[blank].sup.[subset]Ali in the adhan have been related. [7] But, in all probability, the traditions about the wilaya were not available to him. [8] Alternatively, because these reports were rare, Tusi did not deem them veracious and worthy of consideration. [9] In his Nihaya, Tusi even sta tes that one who utters the wilaya is in error ([mukhti.sup.[contains]]). [10] However, in his Mabsut, he says simply:

As for uttering " [[blank].sup.[subset]]Ali is the Commander of the Faithful and the family of Muhammad is the best of mankind" in accord with what has been narrated in isolated reports, this is not to be acted upon [fa-laysa bi [ma.sup.[subset]] mul [blank].sup.[subset]]alayhi] in the adhan. But, if a person recites it, he does not commit a sin for that reason (lam [ya.sup.[contains]] tham bihi). However, it is not amongst the fadila (recommended parts) of the adhan nor does it [the wilaya] make it [the adhan] more complete. [11]

The foregoing evidence reveals fairly clearly that scholars such as al-Saduq and Tusi prohibited including the Wilaya in the adhdn. It is to be remembered also that these scholars were living under the aegis of Buyid rulers (334-447/945-1055) who were favorably disposed towards the Shi is. Thus, although they were neither politically oppressed nor constrained in their writings, [Shi.sup.[subset]]i jurists of the tenth and eleventh centuries either prohibited outright or strongly discouraged the utterance of the wilaya in the adhan. There is no evidence to suggest, moreover, that their ruling on this issue was based on taqiyya (dissimulation).

THE ILKHANID EPOCH IN [SHI.sup.[subset]]I JURISPRUDENCE

After the destruction of Baghdad by the Mongols in 656/1258, the center of [Shi.sup.[subset]]i studies moved from Baghdad to Hilla. Due mainly to the presence of the [Shi.sup.[subset]i philosopher and theologian Nasir al-Din Tusi (d. 672/1274), an influential counselor to the Mongol king Hulegu, Hilla was spared Mongol destruction. Therefore, during the Ilkahid era (656-754/1258-1353), the [Shi.sub.[subset]]i [[blank].sup.[subset]][ulama.sup.[contains]] continued to enjoy good relations with the ruler. As an example, Hilli (d. 726/1325) and his son were often invited to the court of Oljeitu (d. 712/1316). [12] Reportedly, he was a witness to the Sultan's conversion to Twelver Shi ism. [13] But, again, despite the period of relative peace between [Shi.sup.[subset]]i and Sunni communities, there was no change in the stance of [Shi.sup.[subset]]i scholars on the question of the wilaya in the adhan.

Although the juridical works of scholars in that period, such as Abu Mansur Muhammad b. Idris (d. 598/1201), contain detailed discussions of the adhan and iqdma, [14] the question of the wilaya in the adhan is never even alluded to. It is to be further noted that although Ibn Idris appends a separate section on the recommended parts ([fada.sup.[contains]il) of the adhan, contrary to the practice of later scholars, he does not mention the wilaya in this section either. [15]

Other scholars of Hilla were more explicit in their rejection of the wilaya in the adhan. After enumerating segments of the adhan in his [Mu.sup.[subset]]tabar, Muhaqqiq al-Hilli (d. 676/1277) declares: "Anything added to this is [bid.sup.[subset]]a." [16] His contemporary al-Hadhali (d. 690/1291) states in his al-[Jamic.sup.[subset]] li'l-[shara.sup.[contains]] [i.sup.[subset]] that, although the wilaya has been narrated in rare traditions, it is not to be practiced as a part of the adhan. [17]

Although they were living under favorable political conditions, thirteenth- and fourteenth-century jurists concurred with their predecessors on the issue. Thus the aforementioned [[blank].sup.[subset]]Allama] al-Hilli explicitly forbids the recitation of the wilaya in his Nihayat al-ahkam, stating that it is not permissible to recite it since there was no ruling for it in the [shari.sup.[subset]]a ([li-.sub.[subset]]adamj [mashru.sup.[subset]]iyyatihi). [18]

Fourteenth-century [Shi.sub.[subset]]i scholars based in Jabal [[blank].sub.[subset]]Amil followed the example of their predecessors in prohibiting the utterance of the wildya in the adhan. In his al-[Lum.sup.[subset]]a al-dimashqiyya, Muhammad b. Jamal al-Din (d. 786/1384), also called Shahid al-Awwal (Shahid I), definitively forbids the utterance of the wilaya, even though, he admits, it is in fact a reality (wa in kana al-[wagi.sub.[subset]] kadhalik). [19] In his al-Durus, Shahid I further adds that the wilaya is a credal issue, and is not a part of the adhan. [20] He repeats al-Saduq's proscription, saying that the wilaya in the adhan is a concoction of the Mufawwida. As a matter of fact, Shahid I is consistent in prohibiting the recitation of the wilaya in the adhan in all four of his major juridical works (al-[Lum.sup.[subset]]a, al-Dhikra, al-Bayan, and al-Durus).

The trend amongst the early jurists of either prohibiting or discouraging the pronunciation of the wilaya is confirmed by another scholar of Jabal [[blank].sup.[subset]]Amil, Zayn al-Din b. [[blank].sup.[subset]]Ali b. Ahmad al-Shami (Shahid II) (d. 966/1558). In his Rawda al-jinan he unequivocally affirms that the insertion of the wilaya or anything of that nature in the adhan is [bid.sup.[subset]]a (innovation) and that the reports about it have been fabricated. The issue at stake, Shahid II reminds us, is not whether they (the family of the Prophet) are the...