The Commander of the faithful Imam Ali (a.s.) was born in
the house of Hazrat Au Talib (a.s.) and the Noble Messenger (s.a.w.a.s.) was
raised in the house of Hazrat Abu Talib (a.s.). A pure spirit existed in his
house. Imam Ali (a.s.) was born in the Sacred Ka’ba and opened his eyes in the
lap of the last Messenger of Allah. He was born with the perfect faith of the
Noble Messenger (s.a.w.a.s.). Imam Ali (a.s.) was very young when the Noble
Messenger (s.a.w.a.s.) attached him (Ali) with himself and called him his
brother. The Glorious Qur’an certified that he was the “Soul” of the Noble
Messenger (s.a.w.a.s.) in Surah Al-Imran Ayah 61 during the historic “Mubahelah”
In his sermon number 192 of Nahjul Balagha, Imam Ali (a.s.)
mentions the attention paid to him by the Noble Messenger (s.a.w.a.s.): “Do you know, that due to my relationship and because my worth and merit,
what were my relations with the (Noble) Prophet (s.a.w.a.s.). From the very
beginning of my life, he loved me, and I loved him. He took me in his lap when
I was a baby and thence I was always with him, he often kept me embrace to his
heart, he used to make me sleep next to him; we used to be so close to each
other that I felt the warmth of his body and smelt the fragrance of his breath.
When I was a baby, he fed me with his hands often chewing hard bits for me. He
never found me lying nor weak and wavering. From the time of his (s.a.w.a.s.)
babyhood, God appointed the Holy Ghost to be always with him and this archangel
was leading him towards exemplary qualities and high moral values and I
followed the (Noble) Prophet step by step as a baby camel follows its mother.
Daily he used to place before me a fresh standard of efficiency and used to order
me to follow it. Every year he used to stay in a grotto of Hira Mountains for
some time, and nobody used to be with him but I. None could see or hear him or
be near him but I. During those days, Islam was the religion of only the (Noble)
Prophet and his wife Khadija, and I was the third of the trio. No body else in
this world had accepted Islam I even then used to see the divine light of
revelation and Prophethood and smell the fragrance of Prophethood. When the
(Noble)Prophet received the first revelation, Shaitan lamented loudly. I asked the (Noble)
Prophet, “Who is lamenting and why?” He replied, “It is Shaitan who had given
up hopes of acquiring complete sway over human mind. In this disappointment, he
is lamenting over the chance lost. Verily, Ali, you also hear whatever is
revealed to me and you also see whatever is being shown to me. With this
difference that you are not entrusted with Prophethood, but you will be my
successor, helper, and vizier, and you will always uphold truth and justice.”
George Jordac had thoroughly investigated the complete
personality of the Commander of the Faithful Imam Ali (a.s.) in the spectrum of
his various facets in his famous book, titled, “The Voice of Human Justice”. In
summary, he had compared Imam Ali (a.s.) with other companions in the following
words, “Ali lived in a pure atmosphere
by the side of his cousin and was loved very much by him. Ali was born and
brought up in the lap of Prophethood, his faith was natural and innate, and he
emerged from the body of his mother with this faith in his heart. None of the
companions and followers of the (Noble) Prophet (s.a.w.a.s.) could develop such
a close relationship with him. Ali opened his eyes on the path which had been
opened for him by his cousin. In the early days of the prophetic mission of the
Prophet, some elders amongst Quraysh, had worshipped the idols in their
previous days, joined him. The slaves and helpless persons came around him in
expectation of justice and freedom. And after he was successful and victorious,
a third group also joined him, because these people had no alternative left.
They wanted to benefit from the new situation and most of the Bani Umayyad
belonged to this group. All these companions resembled one another in the
matter of obedience to the Prophet the degrees of their faith differed.”
Sources:
Nahjul Balagha and The Voice of Human Justice by George Jordac, Lebanon
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