On the meaning of Ghadir

 

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The true meaning of the Day of Ghadīr is to be found in the 9th verse of the Surāh al-Najm (the Star): 53. But before I explain this, allow me to say that after nearly 20 years of being on Facebook, I have tired of religious identities and the celebrations that reinforce such identities because they are as far away from the meaning of these Events as one can possibly get since it is pure and simple tribalism, which is a veil. Add to that the truly cringey phenomenon of Western "reverts" jumping on an identity bandwagon and becoming more Catholic than the pope, getting hot and then cold and back again, and you can probably see my point. All of these are manifestations of forms of idolatry, especially when they become either rote or are merely motivated by reinforcement of tribal identities and nothing else. Tribal identity - i.e.  Ꜥasabīyah - is an Idol on the same order as those idols that Muḥammad (ص) and ꜤAlī (ع) pulled down and smashed in the KaꜤba once Mecca was conquered by the Muslims.

 

Now, during His nocturnal Ascension the Prophet (ص) beheld God "at two bow's length or nearer" (فَكَانَ قَابَ قَوْسَيْنِ أَوْ أَدْنَىٰ) (Najm: 9). The "two bow's length" (قَابَ قَوْسَيْنِ), which signifies an arc of ascent and descent, represents the reality of the Revelation (tanzīl) itself. The "nearer" (أَدْنَىٰ) represents the Ascension itself which is the Tawīl of the arc. The "two bow's length" (قَابَ قَوْسَيْنِ) are the two cycles of the theophanies (tajjalīyyāt) while the "nearer" (أَدْنَىٰ) is the Source of these theophanies. Thus "two bow's length" (قَابَ قَوْسَيْنِ) represents Muhammad (ص) and corresponds to "whosoever takes Me as Master" (مَن كنتُ مولاه) whilst "nearer" (أَدْنَىٰ) is ꜤAlī (ع) and is "ꜤAlī is his master" (فهذا علي مولاه). The verse itself holds precisely 5 words in the original Arabic, five being the Theophanic Persons of the Companions of the Cloak (ع) and the number of letters to the words of Affirmation (إلّا هو).

 

Thus what the Prophet (ص) beheld in symbols on His nocturnal journey "at two bows length or nearer" as the Pure, Singular Manifestation of God to Him was His own Family (ع) just as what ꜤAlī (ع) beheld throughout His life in the horizons (afāq) and in His soul (nafs) as the Truth (al-ḥaqq) was Muhammad (ص), Fāṭima, Ḥasan and Ḥusayn (ع), since the Pre-Eternal Essence cannot be seen directly by anyone - including the Infallibles (ع) - but its inhabitation can very well be recognized as the Hidden Treasure seeks to be known in the horizons and in the souls. So, given this, on the Night of the Ascension the Prophet (ص) witnessed two things "at two bows length or nearer" (فَكَانَ قَابَ قَوْسَيْنِ أَوْ أَدْنَىٰ): He beheld the events of the mubāhila with Himself and His Family (ع) - i.e. (قَابَ قَوْسَيْنِ) - and He beheld the Day of Ghadīr - i.e. (أَوْ أَدْنَىٰ) - both of which were the Manifestation of the theophanies of God to Him from Its Source, the Essence of the All-High, so understand!

 

I don't believe anyone has ever interpreted this verse of Sūrah al-Najm in such fashion or connected it to the days of the mubāhila and Ghadīr, but here we are.

 

And God guides unto the Straight Path of Truth, for the Heart has not lied regarding what it has seen!