Grand Ayatollah Shirazi remarks on ‘Bearing witness to Wilayah of Ali’ in Azan and Iqamah

The daily scholarly meeting of Grand Ayatollah Seyyed Sadegh al-Hosseini al-Shirazi was held on Thursday, the 6th of Rajab. In this session, like the previous meetings, the Marja answered the questions of the attendee about various jurisprudence issues.

Grand Ayatollah Shirazi discussed the ruling of ‘Bearing witness to Wilayah of Ali’ in Azan and Iqamah, and said: As a narrative from Ma’soom, there is a hadith that the Holy Prophet, peace be upon him and his family, on the day of Ghadir, when he proclaimed the Divine appointment of the Commander of the Faithful, peace be upon him, as his successor. The hadith says, on that day, the call to prayer (Azan) included the testimony to the Wilayah of Ali, (أشهدُ أنَّ عليَّاً وليُّ الله). This narration has been registered by both Shia and non-Shia scholars, and I have mentioned the source of this narration in the pamphlet of “Ali in the Qur’an.”

Regarding the view of Sheikh Saduq in this context, his Eminence said: The late Sheikh Saduq, may God bless his soul, has stated two things in this regard. First, he has emphasized that أشهدُ أنَّ عليَّاً وليُّ الله=I bear witness that Ali is the appointed Guardian by Allah, has been mentioned in Azan. Second, he says that those who have introduced this phrase in Azan are adherents of Tafweez.

He further said: The second comment of Saduq is not valid for us, because it represents his inference and ijtihad, only valid for his followers during his lifetime. But his first comment that stresses the narrative existed is valid, and we can rely on his authority that أشهدُ أنَّ عليَّاً وليُّ الله has actually been mentioned in the Azan and Iqamah.

Grand Ayatollah Shirazi also elaborated on the Istihbab status of the phrase in the Azan and Iqamah: The fact that أشهدُ أنَّ عليَّاً وليُّ الله is recited as “Specific Mustahab” in the Azan and Iqamah is a point of disagreement, and some fuqaha, including the late scholar Naraghi and Ayatollah Seyyed Muhammad Shirazi have said that there is no problem in saying أشهدُ أنَّ عليَّاً وليُّ الله as a “Specific Mustahab”, and I also subscribe to this opinion, but a group of jurists have said that the phrase should be said as a “General Mustahab.”