بسم الله الرحمن الرحیم

In the Name of Allah, the All- beneficent, the All- merciful

قال اللهُ تعالی:

إِنّما یُرِیدُ اللّهُ لِیُذْهِب عنْکُمُ الرِّجْس أهْل الْبیْتِ ویُطهِّرکُمْ تطْهِیرًا

Indeed Allah desires to repel all impurity from you, O People of the Household, and purify you with a thorough purification.

(Surat al- Ahzab 33:33).

Prophetic traditions mentioned in both in Sunni and Shi'ah authoritative reference books of hadith and tafsir (exegesis of the Qur'an) have confirmed that this holy verse was revealed to exclusively refer to the People of the Cloak [ahl al- kisa'], viz. Muhammad, 'Ali, Faṭimah, al- Ḥasan, and al- Ḥusayn ('a) as the Ahl al- Bayt (People of the Household). For instance, refer to the following references: Sunni: Ahmad ibn Ḥanbal (d. 241 AH), al- Musnad, 1:231; 4:107; 6:292, 304; Sahih Muslim (d. 261 AH), 7:130; Al- Tirmidhi (d. 279 AH), Sunan, 5:361 et al.; Al- Dulabi (d. 310 AH), Al- Dhuriyyah al- Ṭahirah al- Nabawiyyah, p. 108; Al- Nasa'i (d. 303 AH), Al- Sunan al- Kubra', 5:108; 113; Al- Ḥakim al- Nayshaburi (d. 405 AH), Al- Mustadrak 'ala' s- Sahihayn, 2:416, 3:133, 146- 147; Al- Zarkashi (d. 794 AH), Al- Burhan, p. 197; Ibn Hajar al- Asqalani (d. 852 AH), Fath al- Bari Sharh Sahih al- Bukhari, 7:104.

Shi'ah: Al- Kulayni (d. 328 AH), Usul al- Kafi, 1:287; Ibn Babawayh (d. 329 AH), Al- Imamah wa' t- Tabsirah, p. 47, hadith 29; Al- Maghribi (d. 363 AH), Da'a'im al- Islam, pp. 35, 37; Al- Saduq (d. 381 AH), Al- Khisal, pp. 403, 550; Al- Ṭusi (d. 460 AH), Al- Amali, hadith 438, 482, 783.

For more details, refer to the exegesis of the holy verse recorded in the following books of tafsir: Al- Jassas (d. 370 AH), Ahkam al- Qur'an; Al- Wahidi (d. 468 AH), Asbab al- Nuzul; Ibn al- Jawzi (d. 597 AH), Zad al- Masir; Al- Qurṭubi (d. 671 AH), Al- Jami' Li- Ahkam al- Qur'an; Ibn Kathir (d. 774 AH), Tafsir; Al- Tha'labi (d. 825 AH), Tafsir; Al- Ṭabari (d. 875 AH), Tafsir; Al- Suyuṭi (d. 911 AH), Al- Durr al- Manthur; Al- Shawkani (d. 1250 AH), Fath al- Qadir; Al- 'Ayyashi (d. 320 AH), Tafsir; Al- Qummi (d. 329 AH), Tafsir; Furt al- Kufi (d. 352 AH), Tafsir at the margin of the exegesis of Surat al- Nisa' verse 59; Al- Ṭabarsi (d. 560 AH), Majma' al- Bayan, as well as many other sources.

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