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Shiavault - a Vault of Shia Islamic Books History of Shi'ism: From the Advent of Islam up to the End of Minor Occultation Lesson 6: The Role of the Quraysh in the Event of Saqifah In spite of the event in Ghadir Khumm and the efforts of the Prophet (S) for the succession of ‘Ali ( ‘a ), the gathering in Saqifah took place. The command of God was not executed and the family of the Prophet (S) was confined at home. In this event, the role of the Quraysh must be pointed out.

It is because the Quraysh were the people who wanted and succeeded in trampling upon the right of the Prophet’s (S) progeny.

On many occasions, the Commander of the Faithful ‘Ali ( ‘a ) emphasizes the acts of oppression and injustice of the Quraysh and their endeavors in gaining access to the caliphate.[^1] In one of his correspondence with Mu‘awiyah, Imam al-Hasan ( ‘a ) also described in detail the role of the Quraysh in the Saqifah event, saying: After the demise of the Prophet (S), the Quraysh considered themselves as the tribe and the most nearest to him, and with this proof, they sidetracked the other Arabs and took hold of the affair of caliphate.

When we, the of Muhammad (S), advanced the proposition to them, they did not behave justly with us and they deprived us of our right.[^2] Imam al-Baqir ( ‘a ) thus also says to one of his companions: What should we say about the oppression and injustice of the Quraysh against us, and our Shi‘ah and supporters?

The Messenger of Allah (S) passed away while the people were asked, “Who are the most preeminent of people?” Yet, the Quraysh turned away from us to such an extent that they changed the course of caliphate. They utilized our argument against the Ansar and assumed the caliphate one after the other.

When it was returned to us, they broke their oath of allegiance and waged war against us…[^3] Yes, the Quraysh had behaved this way since long time ago, so much so that the people knew they would take possession of the caliphate. For this reason, the Ansar rushed to the Saqifah so as to prevent the Quraysh from obtaining power because they were a monopolistic people.

The Reasons behind the Quraysh’s Enmity toward the Family of the Prophet (S) Now, this question is posed: Why did the Quraysh have enmity toward the family of the Prophet (S)? Did they not owe their religion and the worldly life to this family? Was it not through the blessings of this family that they had attained salvation from perdition?