QUESTION:
Has it been reported anything of our Noble Messenger (may Allah’s blessings be upon him and his family), or the Commander of the Believers, or the pure Lady al-Zahra, or the Imams of Ahlul-Bayt (may Allah’s peace be upon them), which says that they used to mention the third testimony (Ashhadu anna Aliyan Waliyyullah – I testify that Ali is the Ally of Allah) before their prayers, such as in the call to prayer – even with a low voice?
ANSWER:
In the Name of Allah, the All-Beneficent, the All-Merciful.
May Allah bless Muhammad and his Family and damn their enemies.
Yes indeed! Allah (Exalted is He) declared the call to prayer by including the third testimony since the beginning of the creation! Our Master, Abu-Abdullah al-Sadiq (may Allah’s blessings be upon him) said:
We are the first household whom Allah glorified their names. When He created the Heavens and the Earths, he ordered a caller to cry out: ‘I testify that there is no god but Allah’ thrice, ‘I testify that Mohammad is the Messenger of Allah’ thrice, ‘I testify that Ali truly is the Commander of the Believers’ thrice.
Al-Amali, by Sheikh al-Sadouq, page 701
Our Great Messenger (may Allah’s blessings be upon him and his family) instructed us to do this as well. He said:
Whoever wishes to hold on to the firm tie (of the truth) in this world and the Hereafter, let him say: ‘There is no god but Allah, Mohammad is the Messenger of Allah, Ali is the Ally of Allah.
Al-Fadha’il, by Ibn Shadhan, page 154
Additionally, our Imam al-Sadiq (may Allah’s blessings be upon him) instructed us to mention it on all occasions and to join it with the two testimonies. He (may peace be upon him) said: “If any of you says:
There is no god but Allah, Mohammad is the Messenger of Allah’, let him say: ‘Ali is the Commander of the Faithful.’
Al-Ihtijaj, by Al-Tabarsi, volume 1, page 230
One of the things that have been reported by the ‘Sunnis’ is that some Muslims heard Salman al-Farsi (may Allah’s satisfaction be upon him) mention the third testimony when he was making the call to prayer, and then brought this news to the Messenger of Allah (may Allah’s blessings be upon him and his family). He replied:
You have heard something good.
It has also been reported that they heard Aba-Dharr (may Allah’s satisfaction be upon him) making the call to prayer in the same manner. Thereupon the Messenger of Allah (may Allah’s blessings be upon him and his family) said:
Have you forgotten my word at Ghadeer Khumm: ‘Whoever I am his master, Ali is his master’?
Risalat-ul-Hidaya, by Sheikh Mohammad Hussain Aal-Tahir, page 45, narrated on behalf of the book Al-Salafa fi Amr al-Khilafa, by Sheikh Abdullah al-Maraghi al-Masri, who is one of their scholars
On this basis, we may certainly know that the Infallibles (may Allah’s blessings be upon them) used to make the call to prayer by mentioning the third testimony, which is a part of the call to prayer and the Iqama that can not be separated and neglected because they (may peace be upon them) do not instruct us to do something unless they were the forerunners in performing.
The Office of Sheikh al-Habib
