A Historical Examination and Analysis of the Indications of the “Wafidat” Regarding the Hadith and Message of Ghadir

Transmitting the message and culture of a historical event through various forms and methods contributes to reviving that event; and if the event in question marks a historical turning point, this revival becomes even more significant. Ghadir is one of the decisive moments in Islamic history, and referencing it serves as clear evidence for the legitimacy of Shi‘ism.
The Wafidat—women who, due to their defense of Imam Ali (a) in the Battle of Siffin and their encouragement of the army with their poetry and heroic words, were summoned before Mu‘awiya after he came to power—were among those who helped revive the message of Ghadir. The research question of this study is to present a picture of how some of these women referred to or cited the Hadith of Ghadir, along with an analysis of the historical data related to these encounters. The significance and necessity of explaining these explicit and implicit references become even greater when considering the efforts of the first three caliphs—and even more so of Mu‘awiya—to erase the image of Ghadir from the historical memory of Muslims, both in oral and written history. According to the findings of the study, of the sixteen women compiled in the book Akhbar al-Wafidat, attributed to ‘Abbas ibn Bakkar al-Dabbi (d. 222 AH)—and in fact, the narration of Abu al-Qasim al-Tanukhi from al-Duri al-Warraq in 371 AH—seven women made reference to the Hadith of Ghadir. Umm Sinan and Darimiyya Hajuniyya explicitly referred to the Hadith of Ghadir and its message by using key expressions such as “awla,” “awla bi-l-amr,” “awṣā al-nabī,” and “‘aqada lahu rasūl Allāh min al-wilāya.” The others, through expressions such as “akhadhta ghayra ḥaqqik,” “hayhāta dhāk [al-khilāfa],” “naḥnu aḥaqqu bi-hādhā al-amr minkum,” and similar phrases, implicitly alluded to the event and Hadith of Ghadir while emphasizing the illegitimacy of Mu‘awiya’s rule.