The Verse of Wilaya
The Verse of Wilaya is a verse of the Quran which the majority of interpreters concur was revealed concerning Imam Ali. It reads:
“Your guardian (Wali) is only Allah (SWT), God’s Messenger, and the faithful who maintain the prayer and give the Zakat while bowing. Whoever takes for his guardians Allah (SWT), God’s Messenger and the faithful (should know that) the confederates of Allah (SWT) are indeed the victorious” (Q5:55-6).
Imam Ali (AS), Ibn Abbas, Ammar, Jabir, Abu Rafiʿ, Anas ibn Malik and Abd-Allah ibn Salam relate the same story about the context of verse 5:55 (Hindi, tradition no. 6137; al-Fakhr al-Razi 12/26 and Nisaburi, Tafsir, 6/154): Namely that on one occasion a beggar came to the mosque and asked for people’s help, but nobody gave him anything. It was at this moment that Imam Ali (AS), who was bowing in prayer, signaled for the beggar to take the ring from his finger. The man took the ring and went away. When the Prophet (PBUH) heard about this, he asked God:
“Appoint an assistant for me from my Family, just as you did for Moses!”
Gabriel came to reveal the above verse (5:55) to the Prophet (PBUH) as a response to his request. The renowned poet of the Prophet’s (PBUH) day, Hassan ibn Thabit, has composed the following lines in praise of Imam Ali (AS):
‘Who gave his ring in charity while bowing / and whose soul is filled with secrets?
Who slept in Muhammad’s (PBUH) bed while he traveled by night on the Day of the Cave?
Who has been named faithful in nine frequently recited verses?’ (Ibn al-Jawzī, 18)
The word ‘Wali’ in the verse denotes ‘guardian’ or ‘someone with authority rather than ‘friend’ because describing Imam Ali (AS) as a friend of the Muslims would not single him out for mention. The Quran calls all Muslims friends of one another:
“The believers, men and women, are friends (Awliyaʾ) of one another” (Q9:71).
Thus, the only reasonable meaning of ‘Wali’ in this context would be ‘guardian,’ ‘leader’ or ‘authority.’ The term ‘Wali’ in Arabic denotes ‘guardian’ as in the Prophet’s (PBUH) Hadith:
“If a woman marries without the consent of her guardian (Wali), her marriage would be invalid” (Ibn Hanbal, 6/66).
This is also the meaning intended by the verse, which mentions three guardians for the Muslims: Allah (SWT), God’s Messenger, and the faithful.’ The latter term has been further specified as ‘who maintain the prayer and give the Zakat while bowing ‘(Q5:55). As we can see, the third guardian is none other than Imam Ali (AS), who gave Zakat while bowing in prayer. Furthermore, if the word ‘Wali’ meant ‘friend’ or another similar word, it would have been meaningless to restrict its meaning by talking about maintaining prayers and paying Zakat because Muslims are all friends with each other. As we can see, the above verse adds the condition of paying Zakat while bowing in prayer to the condition of belief in God and offering prayers. By doing so, it restricts the possible referents of the verse to the point that, as far as history can show, there will be only one guardian that could be considered as the referent of the verse; Imam Ali (AS).
A question answered
One might ask why the verse says: ‘the faithful’ (plural) not ‘the faithful man’ (singular) if it only refers to Ali (AS). The simple answer is that in Arabic sometimes the plural is used instead of singular to pay special respect to someone or something, as when God says:
“We have indeed sent it down in the Night of Power” (Q97:1).
Zamakhshari argues in his Kashshaf that the plural is used here in order to encourage people to act in a similar way, namely, to know the value of such good deeds and to be so generous as to pay Zakat to the poor even before their prayers are finished (1/468).
Source: Shīa Islam: History and Doctrines, Ayatullāh Jaʿfar Subḥānī, Chapter 4
Imam AliThe Chosen Successor of the Greatest Prophet (S.A.W)
