67. Sariji Awali1
Died: Around 750 A.H.
1. In Ghadeer, when the Holy Prophet (s.a.w.a.) exposed his merits so
that the ridiculing enemies may be degraded. 2. when he said: Of
whomsoever I am the master, then you are (also) his master as Almighty
Allah guides every bewildered one through you. 3. You are in relation to me
as Harun was to Moosa, except that there is no Prophet after me. 4. He is
one, whose birth place is in the sanctuary of Beneficent and He has kept him
secure from every kind of fear, harm and enmity.
Explanation of the couplets
In the last verse, the poet has hinted at the birth of Imam Ali (a.s.) in the
Holy Kaaba: that the wall of the Kaaba split for his mother, Fatima binte Asad
and she entered and the wall again closed. She remained inside the Kaaba till Ali
(a.s.) was born. A child, who was the cause of honor for the Kaaba. He consumed
fruits of Paradise and the shell of the Kaaba did not separate from its pearl,
except that it filled the world with effulgence of his face and spread his fragrance
in the atmosphere.
It is a reality, on which Shia and Sunni have consensus and an exceeding
number of traditions prove this point and books are teeming with this fact. From
this aspect, after the clarification of some important Shia and Sunni upon the
excessive narration of tradition of this excellence, also I don’t accord any
importance to statements of those, for whom there is no difference, whether what
they say is right or wrong.
Hakeem says in Mustadrak:2
“Widely narrated traditional reports exist that Fatima binte Asad gave birth
to Ameerul Momineen, Ali Ibne Abi Talib Karramallahu Wajhu inside the Holy
Kaaba.”
Hafiz Ganji Shafei says in Kifayatut Talib3 upon the authority of Ibne Najjar
from Hakeem Nishapuri:
“Ameerul Momineen Ali Ibne Abi Talib (a.s.) was born in Kaaba on
Thursday, 13th Rajab in the 30th year of the elephant (Amul feel) and other than
him, no one else is born in Kaaba and it is a singular excellence for him.”
Shahabuddin Sayyid Mahmud Alusi, author of the great Tafseer, says in the
book of Sarahul Kharida al-Ghaibah,4 which is exegesis of Qasida of Abdul
Baqi Afandi Umri, under the verse:
ببطن مكه عند البيت اذ وضعاً
انت العلى الذي فوق العلى رفعاً
“You have such a lofty rank that you are raised to the highest rank;
when you came into the world in the Kaaba in Mecca.”
He writes: “The birth of the Amir – Karramallahu Wajhu – in Kaaba, is well
known and it is mentioned in books: Shia and Sunni and no one else other than
him was born in that manner. On no one else is there consensus that he was born
in Kaaba. How worthy is the Imam of the Imams that his birth place should be
the prayer direction (Qibla) of believers. Glory be to Allah, who placed the things
in their proper places and He is the best of the judges.
Mulla Sayyid Reza Hindi as hinted at this through the following lines:5
“When Almighty Allah invited you from the antiquity to take birth in the
Kaaba, you harkened to His call. You thanked him among the Quraish by
purifying the House of Allah from idols.”
The reader would find consensus on this excellence of Ameerul Momineen
(a.s.) in numerous Ahle Sunnat books.6 As for the Shia; a large number of them
have mentioned this incident7 and numerous Shia scholars and poets have
versified this event.
Introduction to the poet
His name was Sayyid Abdul Aziz bin Muhammad bin Hasan bin Abi Nasr
Husaini Sariji Awali. Allamah Samawi has mentioned his biography in At-Taliya
min Shuaraush Shia and remarked:
“He was an accomplished person, a littérateur and composed excellent and
eloquent verses. He passed away in Basra in 750 A.H.”