6. Abū Ṭālib in the view of the Ahl al-Bayt (‘a)
All the Imāms from the Ahl al-Bayt (‘a) have emphasized Abū Ṭālib’s firm faith, and on various occasions, they defended this self-sacrificing helper of the Holy Prophet (ṣ). We shall mentoin only two examples in this regard:
a. Imām al-Bāqir (‘a) says:
الخلق هذا إيمان و ميزان كفّة في طالب أبي ايمان وضع لو”
“.إيمانه لرجّح الأخرىٰ الكفّة في
“If the faith of Abū Ṭālib is placed in one pan of a scale and the faith of this creation in the other pan, his faith will tip the scale in his favor.”[1]
b. Imām aṣ-Ṣādiq (‘a) narrates from the Messenger of Allah (ṣ):
أجرهم الله فآتاهم الكفر أظهروا و الإيمان أسرّوا الكهف أصحابَ إنّ”
“.مرّتين أجره الله فآتاه الشّرك أظهر و الإيمٰن أسرّ أباطالب إنّ و مرّتين،
Verily, the Companions of the Cave [Aṣḥāb al-Kahf] hid their faith (on account of some expediency) and pretended to be infidels; so, Allah gave them double reward. Abū Ṭālib also concealed his faith and (due to certain expediency) feigned polytheism; so, Allah granted him double reward.[2]
From the set of the stated proofs, we realize that Abū Ṭālib enjoys the following praiseworthy qualities:
1. Staunch faith in God and the Holy Prophet (ṣ);
2. Devotion to help and protect the Messenger of Allah (ṣ) and self-sacrifice in the path of Islam;
3. The Holy Prophet’s (ṣ) unique love for him; and
4. The privilege of intercession with God.
This establishes the idea that the repulsive accusations made against him is groundless.
From this discussion, two facts have been brought to light:
1. The faith of Abū Ṭālib is acknowledged by the Messenger of Allah (ṣ), the Companions of the Prophet (ṣ), the Commander of the Faithful (‘a), and the Imāms from the Ahl al-Bayt (‘a).
2. The unfair accusations made against Abū Ṭālib are unfounded and baseless, and they were incited for political reasons by a number of Umayyad and ‘Abbāsid caliphs, who always showed enmity toward the Ahl al-Bayt and the offspring of Abū Ṭālib.
Now, it is appropriate to examine the most apparent fabrication intended to besmirch the personality of that persistent helper of the Prophet (ṣ), and by considering the tradition known as the Ḥadīth aḍ-Ḍuḥḍāḥ, the noble verses of the Qur’an, the indisputable Sunnah of the Prophet (ṣ), and sound perception, we will prove the groundlessness of these accusations.
