Sermon

The Sermon of Ghadir Khumm

Name: The Sermon of Ghadir Khumm
Start: 632
Location: Ghadir Khumm

~Shortly after 13 Dhu al-Hijjah, 10 AH · 10 AH

The Final Year·chapter 8 of 15

Ghadir Khumm

Scholars read this differently

The Sunni and Shia traditions differ sharply on the significance of this sermon: Sunni scholarship reads it as a defense of Ali RA against an unfair complaint, with no bearing on the succession; Shia tradition reads it as designating Ali RA as the Prophet ﷺ's successor.

What happened

As the caravan returned from the Farewell Hajj, Ali RA (who had come from Yemen with the zakat and sadaqa wealth of its people, plus the 100 consecrated camels for the Prophet ﷺ) had rushed ahead to meet the Prophet ﷺ in Makkah, leaving someone else in charge of his entourage. That person distributed new clothes to the entourage out of the Yemeni sadaqa funds, which was not permissible; when Ali RA found out, he had the clothes returned, angering the entourage. They complained to the Prophet ﷺ about Ali RA once the pilgrimage was over, and the Prophet ﷺ stopped at Ghadir Khumm, outside Makkah, and addressed the people in Ali RA's defense.

Significance

For the Sunni tradition this is a simple, almost incidental episode, Ibn Hisham and others mention it in passing, in which the Prophet ﷺ rebukes those who complained about Ali RA and praises him highly, then reminds the people to hold to the Book of Allah and to fear Allah regarding his own family. For the Shia tradition, by contrast, this sermon is read as the Prophet ﷺ's designation of Ali RA as his successor. Notably, when the Prophet ﷺ passed away four months later and the sahaba gathered, none of them (including Ali RA's own supporters) invoked this sermon as bearing on who should lead the ummah.

The Final Year·Chapter 8 of 15Ghadir Khumm

See the whole story

Previously← The Farewell Pilgrimage: Correction of the Months~10 AH (c. 632 CE) · 10 AH Continue readingThe Prophet ﷺ's Letter to Amr ibn Hazm al-Ansari RA →~About one month before the Prophet ﷺ's death, 11 AH · 11 AH

Connected events

Grew out of

Institution~10 AH · 10 AH
Hajjat al-Wada' (the Farewell Hajj)
Delivered on the road back to Madinah.

Around this time

Other events recorded in 10 AH. Their order within the year is not established; use the storyline above for the sequence.

DeathDeath of Ibrahim ibn Muhammad ﷺ RA~First quarter of the 10th year of the Hijrah (c. 631 CE) · 10 AH ConversionKhalid ibn al-Walid RA's Mission to Najran and Its Mass Conversion~Beginning of 10 AH · 10 AH SermonSolar Eclipse on the Day Ibrahim ibn Muhammad ﷺ Died~First quarter of the 10th year of the Hijrah (c. 631 CE) · 10 AH SermonThe Farewell Pilgrimage: Correction of the Months~10 AH (c. 632 CE) · 10 AH SermonThe Sermon of Arafah (Khutbat al-Wada')~9 Dhu al-Hijjah, 10 AH (Friday) · 10 AH InstitutionHajjat al-Wada' (the Farewell Hajj)~10 AH · 10 AH DelegationThe Prophet ﷺ Sends Mu'adh ibn Jabal to Yemen~A few months after the Hajj of Abu Bakr RA, 9 AH [see episode 99] · 10 AH

Sayings & Actions1

Muhammad ﷺ

Sermon · Shortly after 13 Dhu al-Hijjah, 10 AH

Whoever is the mawla of Ali, I am the mawla of Ali. And Ali is to me like Harun was to Musa. Stop complaining to me about Ali. I leave behind two things among you: as for the first of them, hold onto it; it is the Book of Allah. And as for the second, fear Allah with regard to my family; fear Allah with regard to my family.

withAli ibn Abi Talib RA

Ali RA's deputy had wrongly handed out sadaqa garments to the entourage from Yemen, and Ali RA made them return the clothes; once they had the chance, after the Hajj, they complained about him to the Prophet ﷺ.

People involved2

M
Muhammad ﷺ
Ali ibn Abi Talib RA
pilgrim — Whose distribution of clothes by his entourage from Yemeni sadaqa funds -- and his own reversal of it -- prompted the complaint that led to this sermon.

The Sermon of Ghadir Khumm

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What happened

Significance

Connected events

Grew out of

Around this time

Sayings & Actions1

Original text & sources

People involved2

The Sermon of Ghadir Khumm

Original text & sources

Report an inaccuracy

What happened

Significance

Connected events

Grew out of

Around this time

Sayings & Actions1

Original text & sources

People involved2