Chapter 1
Admonition to Kinsmen and Nomination of Imam ‘Ali (‘a)
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Ahmad bin Hanbal says:
Aswad bin ‘Amir has related to us from SharÄ«k from A‘mash from Minhal from ‘AbdullÄh bin Asadi, that (Imam) ‘AlÄ« (‘a) said:
When the Äyah “And warn your relatives of nearest kin” (26:214) was revealed, the Prophet gathered his family around him and treated 30 of them to a meal and then said:
“Who is willing to guarantee my debts and commitments so that he should be with me in paradise and should be my successor from among my family.”
A person whom Shurayk did not name, answered:
O Messenger of Allah you are like a sea,[26] who can take charge of this responsibility.
The Prophet repeated his statement to his relatives, and (Imam) ‘AlÄ« [(‘a)] replied:
“I will undertake this responsibility.”[27]
Ahmad Muhammad ShÄkir the annotator of the Musnad has enumerated the isnÄd of this hadÄ«th as hasan or fair. The same event has been narrated in greater detail in the words of Imam ‘AlÄ« (‘a) in hadÄ«th no. 1371 of the Musnad (vol. 2, pp. 352-353) and the annotator has termed its isnÄd as sahÄ«h (authoritative).
Notes:
[26] Reference to the great generosity and munificence of the Prophet, Ahmad ShÄkir’s explanation on the margins of this hadith.
[27] Ahmad bin Hanbal, al-Musnad, annotated by Ahmad Muhammad ShÄkir in 15 volumes, DÄr al-Ma‘Ärif, Cairo, 1949-1958, hadith no. 883.