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and I set off (1), racing alongside the Messenger of Allah—may Allah bless him and grant him peace—until we disappeared among the houses, fearing that someone might encounter us.”
The answer (2) is that, if this hadith is authentic, it contains nothing exclusive to the Imams or to Alī. The Prophet—may Allah bless him and grant him peace—“used to pray while carrying Umāmah bint Abī al-Ās ibn al-Rabī (3) on his shoulder. When he stood, he carried her, and when he prostrated, he set her down.”
“Whenever he prostrated, al-Hasan would come and climb onto his back, and he would say, ‘My son has climbed onto my back.’” (4)
“He also used to kiss al-Hasan’s private part.” (5)
Since he carried both a little girl and a little boy, his carrying Alī does not entail that this was exclusive to him. [Rather, others shared this with him] (6). He carried him only because Alī was unable to
(1) (و): “and I set off.”
(2) (ح), (ب): “The answer.”
(3) “ibn al-Rabī” is an addition in (ن) and (م).
(4) The hadith is narrated from Abd Allāh ibn Shaddād, from his father, Shaddād ibn al-Hād—may Allah be pleased with him—in Sunan al-Nasā’ī, 2:182, Kitāb al-Tatbīq, chapter “May One Prostration Be Longer Than Another?” Its wording there is: “The Messenger of Allah—may Allah bless him and grant him peace—came out to us for one of the two evening prayers while carrying al-Hasan or al-Husayn. The Messenger of Allah—may Allah bless him and grant him peace—then came forward, set him down, pronounced the takbīr to begin the prayer, and prayed. During the prayer, he made a prostration that he prolonged. Ubayy said: ‘I raised my head and saw the boy on the back of the Messenger of Allah—may Allah bless him and grant him peace—while he was prostrating, so I returned to my prostration.’ When the Messenger of Allah—may Allah bless him and grant him peace—had completed the prayer, the people said: ‘O Messenger of Allah, during your prayer you made a prostration that you prolonged so much that we thought something had happened or that revelation was being sent to you.’ He replied: ‘Neither was the case. Rather, my son was riding on my back, and I did not wish to hurry him until he had finished.’” The hadith is also found in al-Musnad, al-Halabī ed., 3:493–494.
(5) (أ): “al-Hasan’s head.” I have not found this hadith.
(6) The words in square brackets appear only in (أ).
فَانْطَلَقْتُ
(١)
، أَنَا وَرَسُولُ اللَّهِ - صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ - نَسْتَبِقُ حَتَّى تَوَارَيْنَا فِي الْبُيُوتِ خَشْيَةَ أَنْ يَلْقَانَا أَحَدٌ مِنَ النَّاسِ» .
وَالْجَوَابُ
(٢)
أَنَّ هَذَا الْحَدِيثَ إِنْ صَحَّ فَلَيْسَ فِيهِ شَيْءٌ مِنْ خَصَائِصِ الْأَئِمَّةِ وَلَا خَصَائِصِ عَلِيٍّ ; فَإِنَّ النَّبِيَّ - صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ - «كَانَ يُصَلِّي وَهُوَ حَامِلٌ أُمَامَةَ بِنْتَ أَبِي الْعَاصِ بْنِ الرَّبِيعِ
(٣)
عَلَى مَنْكِبِهِ، إِذَا قَامَ حَمَلَهَا، وَإِذَا سَجَدَ وَضَعَهَا» .
«وَكَانَ إِذَا سَجَدَ جَاءَ الْحَسَنُ فَارْتَحَلَهُ،
وَيَقُولُ:
إِنَّ ابْنِي ارْتَحَلَنِي»
(٤)
«وَكَانَ يُقَبِّلُ زَبِيبَةَ الْحَسَنِ»
(٥)
. فَإِذَا كَانَ يَحْمِلُ الطِّفْلَةَ وَالطِّفْلَ لَمْ يَكُنْ فِي حَمْلِهِ لِعَلِيٍّ مَا يُوجِبُ أَنْ يَكُونَ ذَلِكَ مِنْ خَصَائِصِهِ،
[بَلْ قَدْ أَشْرَكَهُ فِيهِ غَيْرُهُ]
(٦)
، وَإِنَّمَا حَمَلَهُ لِعَجْزِ عَلِيٍّ عَنْ
(١) و: وَانْطَلَقْتُ.
(٢) ح، ب: الْجَوَابُ.
(٣) بْنِ الرَّبِيعِ، زِيَادَةٌ فِي (ن) (م) .
(٤) الْحَدِيثُ عَنْ عَبْدِ اللَّهِ بْنِ شَدَّادٍ عَنْ أَبِيهِ شَدَّادِ بْنِ الْهَادِ رَضِيَ اللَّهُ عَنْهُ فِي سُنَنِ النَّسَائِيِّ ٢/١٨٢ كِتَابُ التَّطْبِيقِ، بَابُ هَلْ يَجُوزُ أَنْ تَكُونَ سَجْدَةٌ أَطْوَلَ مِنْ سَجْدَةٍ، وَنَصُّهُ فِيهِ: خَرَجَ عَلَيْنَا رَسُولُ اللَّهِ صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ فِي إِحْدَى صَلَاتَيِ الْعِشَاءِ وَهُوَ حَامِلٌ حَسَنًا أَوْ حُسَيْنًا، فَتَقَدَّمَ رَسُولُ اللَّهِ صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ فَوَضَعَهُ ثُمَّ كَبَّرَ لِلصَّلَاةِ، فَصَلَّى، فَسَجَدَ بَيْنَ ظَهَرَانَيْ صَلَاتِهِ سَجْدَةً أَطَالَهَا، قَالَ أُبَيٌّ: فَرَفَعْتُ رَأْسِي، وَإِذَا الصَّبِيُّ عَلَى ظَهْرِ رَسُولِ اللَّهِ صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ وَهُوَ سَاجِدٌ فَرَجَعْتُ إِلَى سُجُودِي فَلَمَّا قَضَى رَسُولُ اللَّهِ صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ الصَّلَاةَ، قَالَ النَّاسُ: يَا رَسُولَ اللَّهِ، إِنَّكَ سَجَدْتَ بَيْنَ ظَهَرَانَيْ صَلَاتِكَ سَجْدَةً أَطَلْتَهَا حَتَّى ظَنَنَّا أَنَّهُ قَدْ حَدَثَ أَمْرٌ، أَوْ أَنَّهُ يُوحَى إِلَيْكَ. قَالَ: كُلُّ ذَلِكَ لَمْ يَكُنْ، وَلَكِنَّ ابْنِي ارْتَحَلَنِي فَكَرِهْتُ أَنْ أُعَجِّلَهُ حَتَّى يَقْضِيَ حَاجَتَهُ. وَالْحَدِيثُ فِي الْمُسْنَدِ ط. الْحَلَبِيِّ ٣/٤٩٣ - ٤٩٤.
(٥) أ: رَأْسَ الْحَسَنِ، وَلَمْ أَجِدْ هَذَا الْحَدِيثَ.
(٦) مَا بَيْنَ الْمَعْقُوفَتَيْنِ فِي (أ) فَقَطْ.