Authored by: Hafiz Muhammad Anwar Zahid (ḥafiẓahullāh)
It is narrated from Ibn Abbas (رضي الله عنه) that the Prophet Muhammad ﷺ said:
“Allah created a staff of light forty thousand years before the creation of the world. From one half of it, He created me, and from the other half, He created Ali (رضي الله عنه).”
[Mīzān al-Iʿtidāl, Vol. 7, p. 360, Ḥadīth No. 10176 | Also cited by Ḥāfiẓ in al-Lisān]
This tale is narrated by Abū Dhakwān, who is completely unknown (majhūl).
✔ Imām al-Dhahabī explicitly stated: This narration is false.
The chain of narration includes the following dubious and unknown individuals:
① Abū Dhakwān narrates it from Aḥmad ibn ʿAmr, whose identity is unclear.
② This Aḥmad ibn ʿAmr allegedly narrates from another Aḥmad ibn ʿAbdullāh—of whom there are hundreds with the same name, making identification impossible.
③ Aḥmad ibn ʿAbdullāh supposedly received it from ʿAbdullāh ibn ʿAmr—yet no such reliable person is known by this chain.
④ Then comes ʿUbaydullāh ibn ʿAmr, a non-existent figure, essentially a fictional character in this narrative.
⑤ This ʿUbaydullāh is said to have narrated from ʿAbd al-Karīm al-Jazarī, who is known for reporting munkar (rejected) narrations.
⑥ ʿAbd al-Karīm attributes it to ʿIkrimah, the freed slave of Ibn ʿAbbās (رضي الله عنهما), who was a well-known Kharijite.
Even if ʿIkrimah did narrate such a report, its authenticity would remain deeply questionable.
This fabricated tale raises the question:
❖ When and from what was Hazrat Ali (رضي الله عنه) actually created?
➤ Sometimes he is said to be created from earthly clay,
➤ Sometimes from the soil of Paradise,
➤ At other times from a tree, and now from light.
➤ Sometimes the Prophet ﷺ is claimed to be created alongside him.
➤ Occasionally, even his wife, children, and followers are said to have shared in this mystical creation.
✖ It remains entirely unclear and contradictory what exactly these claims are trying to establish.
Whoever can clarify the truth of these contradictory claims—let them guide us.
❖ The Narration Attributed to Ibn Abbas (رضي الله عنه)
It is narrated from Ibn Abbas (رضي الله عنه) that the Prophet Muhammad ﷺ said:
“Allah created a staff of light forty thousand years before the creation of the world. From one half of it, He created me, and from the other half, He created Ali (رضي الله عنه).”
[Mīzān al-Iʿtidāl, Vol. 7, p. 360, Ḥadīth No. 10176 | Also cited by Ḥāfiẓ in al-Lisān]
❖ Analysis of the Chain of Narration
This tale is narrated by Abū Dhakwān, who is completely unknown (majhūl).
✔ Imām al-Dhahabī explicitly stated: This narration is false.
The chain of narration includes the following dubious and unknown individuals:
① Abū Dhakwān narrates it from Aḥmad ibn ʿAmr, whose identity is unclear.
② This Aḥmad ibn ʿAmr allegedly narrates from another Aḥmad ibn ʿAbdullāh—of whom there are hundreds with the same name, making identification impossible.
③ Aḥmad ibn ʿAbdullāh supposedly received it from ʿAbdullāh ibn ʿAmr—yet no such reliable person is known by this chain.
④ Then comes ʿUbaydullāh ibn ʿAmr, a non-existent figure, essentially a fictional character in this narrative.
⑤ This ʿUbaydullāh is said to have narrated from ʿAbd al-Karīm al-Jazarī, who is known for reporting munkar (rejected) narrations.
⑥ ʿAbd al-Karīm attributes it to ʿIkrimah, the freed slave of Ibn ʿAbbās (رضي الله عنهما), who was a well-known Kharijite.
Even if ʿIkrimah did narrate such a report, its authenticity would remain deeply questionable.
❖ A Point of Reflection
This fabricated tale raises the question:
❖ When and from what was Hazrat Ali (رضي الله عنه) actually created?
➤ Sometimes he is said to be created from earthly clay,
➤ Sometimes from the soil of Paradise,
➤ At other times from a tree, and now from light.
➤ Sometimes the Prophet ﷺ is claimed to be created alongside him.
➤ Occasionally, even his wife, children, and followers are said to have shared in this mystical creation.
✖ It remains entirely unclear and contradictory what exactly these claims are trying to establish.
Whoever can clarify the truth of these contradictory claims—let them guide us.
