Until now you have read how Ashraaf Ulema and intellectuals have tried to promote racism and casteism through Quranic interpretations and Hadiths even as the life of Prophet Muhammad clearly depicts that he was against birth-based discrimination. In the third article on the series, I will discuss the Ashra-e-Mubashira and the principle of giving preference to a particular race/caste in the selection of the Caliph.
Ashra-e-Mubashira
Ashra means number ‘ten’. Mubashira means one who has been informed about Basharat (joy or happiness). In Islamic history, ten such people, who have been given a parwana (guarantee) by Prophet Muhammad that they will enjoy heaven hereafter, are called Ashra-e-Mubashira. All of them also belong only to the Quraysh (Syed, Sheikh) tribe. There is no place for people of any other tribe, not even Owais and Khazraj, whom Prophet Muhammad had designated as ‘Ansar’ (helper).
Before going any further, it’s important to recall a historical fact about the first battle of Islam, called ‘Badar’. People from three Quraysh tribes of Mecca challenged the Muslims. Responding to this, three people of Ansar tribe (Owais, Khazraj) also came forward to accept this challenge. But the Quraysh refused to fight with them saying the Ansars are not kufu (equal). After this, Prophet Muhammad sent three other people of the Quraysh tribe to spar with the Quraysh of Mecca who had come to fight with the Prophet.
This was the first battle of Islam, but it is not discussed in the same way as the battle of Muharram/Karbala. Perhaps because in the battle of Badr, the majority of those opposing Islam were Quraysh, while a large number of Ansars fought in favour and achieved martyrdom. Discussing this battle would tarnish the image of the Quraysh and the Ansars’ contribution will be glorified. On the other hand, the battle of Karbala only talks about the superiority of the Sayyid caste.
Also read: Quran has no space for casteism but Ashraaf Muslims interpret it differently
Quraysh’s ‘superiority’
In Bukhari Hadith, it is written ‘Al a-im-mat ul men-Al Quraysh’ i.e. leader (Leader, Amir, Caliph) is from the Quraysh tribe (Sayyid, Sheikh). This hadith came to light when two Ansari Sahabi (Muhammad’s companions) competed for the post of Caliph after his departure. One of them, Saad ibn Ubada, was almost elected Caliph. When this information reached Abu Bakr, he arrived with Umar Farooq and Abu Ubaida of the other two Quraysh tribes and, quoting the aforementioned Hadith, asked how an Ansari could be elected Caliph. “It is the birth right of the Quraysh only and you should choose either Umar or Abu Ubaidah as your new Caliph.”
Responding to this, Umar promptly came forward and said, “O Abu Bakr, how can I be a Caliph. I choose you as my Caliph.” In this way, Abu Bakr becomes the first Caliph of Islam, while the other two Ansari Sahabis did not concede and left the assembly.
Apart from this, the reasoning behind a group of Muslims (from the Shia sect) who consider Ali to be the first Caliph also has a racial undertone. They say that Ali is closest to the lineage (Hashmi) of Prophet Muhammad in the Quraysh tribe, so the Caliphate is a right that belongs to them only and therefore an injustice has been done to them.
Strangely, in this entire debate about the Caliphate, the perspective of Ansari Sahabi, Saad ibn Ubada, has been completely overlooked.
In relation to this Hadith, Ashraf Ali Thanvi says: “The caliphate is for the Quraysh only. A non-Quraysh badshah (king) will be called Sultan, but itaat (obedience) will also be wajib (obligatory) for them.
The argument that a non-Quraysh can also be a Caliph is against the nass (Qur’an/Hadith), because it was accepted by Hazrat Ansar. As such, this became an Ijma (an opinion which is accepted as the law of Islam) of the Sahabis (Muhammad’s companions). And so, if people who possess Sultanates do not make an able Quraysh the Caliph, then they will be treated as offenders of the law.
(Page No. 52, Malfuzat Hakimul Ummat Part-26, Mufti Mohd Hasan Amritsari, Idara Taleefat-e-Ashrafia, Salamat Iqbal Press, Chowk Fountain, Multan, Pakistan)
There is another Hadith in which Ibn Umar (Umar’s son) narrates that “the leadership will remain in the Quraysh caste as long as there are two men left among them.” (Sahih Muslim, Kitabul Imarat p. 109)
Also read: How Ashraaf Ulema use confusion about Prophet’s last speech to push casteism in Islam
Only Quraysh can be Caliphs
All the early Caliphs come from the Quraysh tribe. People of the Owais and Khazraj tribes sacrificed for Islam much more than the Quraysh (which prompted Prophet Muhammad to call them Ansar, meaning helper). The first four Caliphs were followed by the Umayyas (Banu Umayya, sub-caste of the Quraysh) and the Abbasi (Banu-Abbas, another sub-caste of the Quraysh) who are closer in lineage to Muhammad, making their claim to the Caliphate stronger than the others.
After that, the Usmanis, who were known as Sultan, claimed the Caliphate by acquiring its three symbols—the ring, the stick, and the cloak, and were now called as Usmani Caliphs.
Far from being a Quraysh, this new Caliph from the Turkic tribe was not even an Arab. That’s why the natives of Arabia did not consider the Turks as their Caliph by heart. And as soon as they got a chance, they got rid of the Turkish Caliphate by supporting the British and Americans. Even today, the government and people of Arab countries do not like Turkey much.
Even the determination of the salary/reward of the Caliph was based on caste and region. This was because the people of the Quraysh tribe had left their homeland in Mecca and settled in Yathrib (Medina, Medina-tun-nabi=city of prophet) and Islam spread to other parts of the world from here. However, while determining the compensation of a Caliph an amount equal to the expenses and maintenance required by the chieftain of the Quraysh tribe of Mecca was fixed. This means that both the region and the race were taken into account. (Page No. 0198, Volume-3, Tabaqat Ibn Saeed, Page No. 9 Nihayatul Arib fi Gaytoon Nasab, Mufti Shafi Usmani, Jamiatul Muslemeen Saharanpur.)
Thus a cursory look at the Islamic history reveals that since the departure of Prophet Muhammad, the superiority of the Quraysh tribe was made a part of Islamic faith on the basis of law.
Faiyaz Ahmad Fyzie @FayazAhmadFyzie is an author and social activist, and a doctor by profession. Views are personal.
This is the third of a four-part series in ThePrint—Islam Divided.
(Translated by Ram Lal Khanna from the original in Hindi and edited by Prashant)