PROPHET BEGINS CALL TO ISLAM



The Prophet, first of all, chose Ali (a.s.) to come to Islam(23). Ali was, at the time, a pure boy, unsullied by the practices of the pre-Islamic era. He was under the care of the Prophet (s.a.w.) who showed him with love and affection. Ali (a.s.) responded enthusiastically and his soul method in the new faith. The Prophet called his wife to Islam and she accepted it. This done, the first nucleus of the faithful community on earth took shape.

He proceeded with his call to Islam and his companions grew in number. They were 40 men, the majority of whom were young. These people were from different walks of society. Among them were the poor, the rich, the socially powerful and the downtrodden. In the beginning they learned the Qur'an and the principles of the new faith. In the defiles, far away from the eyes of Quraish, they   offere their prayers. The new convert, with the assistance of one of the old converts appointed by the Prophet (s.a.w.) continued studying and comprehending the teachings of Islam.



THE HOUSE OF AL-ARQAM

As they grew in number, the Muslims feared lest their affair might be disclosed. As a precautionary measure, they made the house of al-Arqam al-Makhzumi a school and a meeting-place where they gathered to know more about Islam. There, they sat together learning the Qur'an, offering their prayers, contemplating the ayas and signs of Allah, examining the creation, gathering patience and fortitude and sublimating their wills to Allah and His Messenger.



CALLING THE RELATIVES

Three years passed before Allah ordered His Prophet (s.a.w.) to take advantage of the prevailing tribal atmosphere and call his relatives to Islam.

"And warn your nearest relations, And be kind to him who follows you of the believers, But if they disobey you, then say: Surely I am clear of what you do.."

Holy Qur'an (26:214-216)

The Prophet (s.a.w.) invited his relatives, numbering 40, to a feast. Before the Prophet could broach the subject to them, his uncle Abdul-Uzzah bin Abdul-Muttalib, also Abu-Lahab warned the Prophet (s.a.w.) from going on with the task of spreading the new faith. The invitation was a failure and the guests hastened to leave, and so the chance slipped out of the Prophet's hands. Once again, after the passage of many days, the Prophet (s.a.w.) invited his relatives to a feast. His guests being satisfied, he addressed them:

"O sons of Abdul-Muttalib, Allah has sent me, as His Messenger, to all people and particularly to you. He ordered me: 'And warn your nearest relations'. I invite you to accept two short sentences. They are easy on the tongue, but in the balance of action they are heavy and difficult. By them you will be the masters of the Arabs and non-Arabs. Nations will yield to you. Enter paradise and be saved from hell. They are the testimony of: There is no god but Allah and that I am the Messenger of Allah. Whoever answers me and helps me in this affair and in carrying it on will be my brother, trustee helper, inheritor and the successor after me."

Murmuring rose from among the people. Abu-Lahab condemned and warned the Prophet (s.a.w.) from carrying out his mission. Abu Talib expressed his full support to the Prophet (s.a.w.) and said to him:

"Proceed with your task you are charged with. By Allah, I will protect you and prevent others from harming you."

Ali, the youngest of all, came to his feet and said in a resonant voice:

"O Messenger of Allah, I will help you in this affair."

But the Prophet (s.a.w.) ordered him to sit down. The Prophet (s.a.w.) repeated, once again, his proposal, and no one except Ali responded. The third time when Ali answered the Prophet (s.a.w.), he said to him:

"Sit down. You are my brother, trustee, helper, inheritor, and the successor after me."

The people stood up and, upon leaving they said to Abu Talib mockingly:

"Today, be happy at entering your nephew's religion. He made your son a commander over you!"(26)

---------------------------------------------

The similarity between the story of Moses and Aaron and that of the Holy  Prophet and Imam Ali

According to Sahih al-Bukhari, the
Messeenger of Allah has told Ali that the story of Moses and Aaron (Haroon)
is similar to that of the story of him and Ali. The tradition is as
follows:

"Your position to me is like the position of Aaron to Moses, except
that there shall be no Prophet after me"

Sunni References:
(1) Sahih al-Bukhari, Arabic-English version, Traditions 5.56 and 5.700
(2) Sahih Muslim, Arabic, section of virtues of Ali, v4, pp 1870-71
(3) Sunan Ibn Majah, p12
(4) Musnad Ahmad Ibn Hanbal, v1, p174
(5) al-Khas'is, by al-Nisa'i, pp 15-16
(6) Mushkil al-Athar, by al-Tahawi, v2, p309


Now, the position of Aaron (Haroon) to Moses is given by the verses of
Quran, among which are the following three:

(Moses said: "O' Allah) assign me a vizier from my family, (that is)
my brother Aaron (Haroon) ...," (Allah) said: "We granted your
requests, O' Moses." (Quran 20:29-36).

Allah, Exalted, also said:

"Surely We gave the book to Moses and assigned his brother Aaron as
his vizier." (Quran 25:35).

He, Exalted He is, also said:

"... And Moses said unto his brother Aaron: Take my place in my
comunity." (Quran 7:142).

:

Notice that "Ukhlufni" and "Khalifa" (Caliph) are exactly from the same
root. Now, to realize what was narrated in Sahih al-Bukhari, we need to
replace the word "Moses" with "Muhammad" and "Aaron" with "Ali", and we are
all set!! The sentence becomes "And Muhammad (PBUH&HF) said to his
'brother' Ali, take my place among my community." Of course, the tradition
in Sahih al-Bukhari excluded the Prophethood for Imam Ali, and what remains
for him is the leadership of the community.

Putting the above 3 verses of Quran beside what has been narrated by al-
Bukhari and Muslim, Ibn Majah and many others, we solve the mystery! Ali
is the "brother" and his deputy/successor. By the above authentic
tradition, the Prophet (PBUH&HF) meant that as Moses had left behind Aaron
to look after his people when he went to Miqaat (meeting Allah), in the
same way he was leaving Ali behind to look after the affairs of Islam after
he met Allah (i.e., his death).

Confirming what the above tradition implies, we find in the many reports
that Imam Ali (AS) received the title of the "brother" of Prophet when
Prophet established the "brothering" among his followers (see Sahih al-
Tirmidhi, v5, p363; Sirah Ibn Hisham, p504; Tahdhib al-Tahdhib, v4, p251).
Interestingly enough, the Prophet in that occasion made Abu Bakr and Umar
brother of each other (al-Tabaqat, by Ibn Sa'd, v3, part 1, p123). If Abu
Bakr had been really the closest to the Prophet, he would have chosen him
instead of Imam Ali.

In fact, if we look deeper to the situation of after the death of Prophet
Mohammad (PBUH), and the leaving of Moses to MIQAAT (appointment with
Allah), we will see more analogy to what Prophet (PBUH) said to Ali (AS).
Quran states that: Moses (AS) with the order of Allah, assigned Haroon (AS)
as his successor (Caliph) and left his people to him, and left for MIQAAT
(appointment with Allah) for a total of  forty days. After leaving of Moses,
most of his companions turned against Haroon, and were deceived by Sameri,
and became worshipers of a golden calf. (See Quran 7:142, 20:90-97, 20:83-
88).

The analogy that Prophet (PBUH) mentioned in the above tradition, seems to
be a reality after his demise. Most of companions (except Abu Dhar, Miqdad,
Salman al-Farsi, Ammar, and ...) became disloyal to Ali (AS) after the
death of Prophet (PBUH), turned against him, and preferred some other
people to him. The majority of people disobeyed Ali (AS), as their
forefathers disobeyed Haroon (AS). They did not take lessons from Quran
and the history, and thus the history repeated over and over again. The
repetition of the history of the Children of Israel for Muslims is
confirmed by Prophet (PBUH&HF):

Sahih al-Bukhari Hadith: 9.422
Narrated Abu Sa'id al-Khudri:

The Prophet said, "You will follow the ways of those nations who were
before you, span by span and cubit by cubit (i.e., inch by inch) so
much so that even if they entered a hole of a mastigure (lizard), you
would follow them." We said, "O Allah's Apostle! (Do you mean) the
Jews and the Christians?" He said, "Whom else?"

This tradition is also narrated by Muslim in his Sahih , v8, p57. It is
also narrated in Musnad Ahmad Ibn Hanbal, v3, pp 84, 94.

Think for a while... Why would the Prophet (PBUH&HF) compare his companions
to the Jews and the Christians, knowing full well that the Jews and the
Christians have mutilated and perverted the religion of Allah (SWT)?
Because Allah (SWT) had told him (PBUH&HF) that your companions will turn
back, except the few selected.

Imam Ali (AS) was still a divinely-appointed Imam during the time of the
first three rulers, and what these rulers could take from him was the
rulership (which is one of the rights of Imam) and not the position of
Imamat. As for Imam Ali pledging Abu Bakr, Umar and Uthman, he was
compelled to that since he had no choice and he was compled to do so. We,
however, never accuse the Imams of being cowards. What Imam Ali did was his
duty which is similar to what Haroon did as his duty.

Quran states that when Moses (PBUH) came back from MIQAAT he was very angry
since Allah informed him that his community had gone astray during his
absence. Moses came and started questioning his brother Haroon, why he
did not take action to prevent this corruption. Quran states that Haroon
(Aaron) replied:

"(O' Moses) people did oppress me and they were about to kill me."
(Quran 7:150).



The above verse gives another striking similarity between Ali and Haroon.
Since Muslims all believe that Haroon was a true prophet of God, they do
not allow themselves to call him coward. In fact Taqiyya (dissimulation) is
mentioned in Quran in several verses. This requires another article by its
own, to explain the importance of Taqiyya according to Quran and the
numerous traditions of Prophet (PBUH&HF) reported in the authentic Sunni
collections.

Nevertheless Ali did his duty after the death of the Messenger of Allah, as
Haroon (Aaron) did:

"Before this, Aaron had already said to them: 'O my people! you are
being tested in this, for verily your Lord is (Allah) Most Gracious;
so follow me and obey my order.'" (Quran 20:90).

Sahih al-Bukhari confirms that Imam Ali refused to give his allegiance to
Abu Bakr for six months. He gave his allegiance to Abu Bakr only after the
martyrdom of his wife Fatimah al-Zahra, the daughter of the Holy Prophet, six
month after the departure of Prophet. (see Sahih al-Bukhari, Arabic-English
version, Tradition 5.546).

After the death of Prophet (PBUH&HF), for forty days, Ali (AS) was
contacting the well-known people at night, reminding them the instructions
of prophet about his right to Caliphate, asking them to join him to get the
power. But non responded except Abu Dhar, Miqdad, and Salman al-Farsi and
a few more. The Prophet had already instructed Ali that if the number of his
followers at that upheaval exceeds 40 men, he could take the action
otherwise he had to keep silence since the only remaining pious people would
be killed without being able to help Islam. Ali (AS) was not afraid of
being killed, and he kept silence only to keep the faded lawn of Islam
alive. After he was sure that there would be no success in his revolting, he
kept silence. During his silence, he indeed started cooperating with the
first 2 Caliphs as consultant and did his best to decrease the damage as
much as possible. If he had not done so, Islam would have been destroyed
completely. Imam Ali said: "I tolerated those periods as if there was a
thorn in my eye and a sharp bone stuck in my throat." (Nahjul Balagha,
the sayings of Imam Ali).

Islam was very young at that time (only 23 years old!) and division among
Muslims could have totally removed Islam from the surface of the earth. So
he kept silence, as Haroon (Aaron) did to prevent division:

(Moses) said: "O' Aaron! what kept you back when you saw them going
wrong?"... (Aaron said:) "...Truly I feared you would say 'You caused
a division among the Children of Israel and you did not respect my
word!'" (Quran 20:92-94).

Abu Sufyan was one of those who wanted to destroy the young Islam by
encouraging Ali to revolt when he was sure that Ali would have no success
due to small number of his followers. But the revolt of Ali would at least
cause the civil war and the destruction of Islam. al-Tabari reported:

When people gathered to give their oath of allegiance to Abu Bakr, Abu
Sufyan came while saying, "By God, I see a cloud of smoke which
nothing but blood will clear. O family of Abd Manaf! Who is Abu Bakr
that he should be the master of your affairs? Where are Ali and al-
Abbas, the two oppressed ones?" He then said (to Ali): "O Abul Hasan!
stretch your hand so that I give you the oath of allegiance."... Ali
rebuked him, saying: "By God, you do not intend anything but (to stir
up) Fitnah (dissension). For long you have desired evil for Islam. We
do not need your advice."

Sunni reference: History of al-Tabari, English version, v9, p199

As we quoted the tradition of al-Bukhari earlier, the Prophet confirmed
that the history of the Children of Israel will be repeated for Muslims. In
fact Quran has mentioned the stories of the Children of Israel to give us a
way to understand the true history of Islam itself. There are many other
striking similarities in this regard written in Quran. Please see the
artcle of "The Twelve Imams (Part II)" for the Quranic verses in this
regard.

Here are some verses of Quran concerning the event:

And the community of Moses, after (he had left them), chose a calf
(for worship), (made) out of their ornaments, of saffron hue, which
gave a lowing sound. Saw they not that it spake not unto them nor
guided them to any way? They chose it, and became wrong doers.(7:148)

And when Moses returned unto his people, angry and grieved, he said:
Evil is that (course) which ye took after I had left you. Would ye
hasten on the judgment of your Lord? And he cast down the tablets,
and he seized his brother by the head, dragging him toward him.
(Aaron) said: "Son of my mother! Lo! People did oppress me and they
were about to kill me. Make not the enemies rejoice over my
misfortune nor count thou me amongst the sinful people."(7:150)

Before this, Aaron had already said to them: "O my people! you are
being tested in this, for verily your Lord is (Allah) Most Gracious;
so follow me and obey my order."(20:90)

They had said: "We will not abandon this cult but we will devote
ourselves to it until Moses returns to us."(20:91)

So the last verse disproves the claim that the true followers killed the
wrong doers before Moses (AS) came back. Yes, after Prophet Moses came
back, he punished the influential individuals among those who led people
astray. But he did not kill them:

(Moses) said (to Sameri): "Go! Your (punishment) in this life will be
that you will say 'Touch me not'; and moreover (for a future
penalty) thou hast a promise that will not fail: now look at thy god
of whom thou hast become a devoted worshipper: we will certainly
(melt) it in a blazing fire and scatter it broadcast in the sea.(20:97)

---------------------------------------------------

On the Khilafa of Ali ibn Abi Talib (AS):

Abdullah Ibn Masud narrated:

The messenger of Allah (PBUH&HF) ordered me to follow him, on the
night of the Jinn. I went with him until we reached the hight of
Macca... (the prophet) said: "I was promised that the Jinn and human
will believe in me. As to the human they believed in me, as to the
Jinn you have seen"; he continued: "I feel that my end is drawing
near." I said: O Messenger of Allah, won't you make Abu Bakr as your
Caliph? He turned away from me, so I realized that he disagreed; I
said: O Messenger of Allah, won't you make Umar as your Caliph? He
turned away from me, so I realized that he disagreed; I said: O
Messenger of Allah, won't you make Ali as your Caliph? He said:
"(That's) him. By the One whom there is no God beside Him, if you
chose him and obeyed him He (Allah) entered you into Paradise all
together."

Sunni references:
- Majma' al-Zawa'id, by al-Haythami, v8, p314
- Also mentioned by al-Tabarani

-------------------------------------------

The Reward of Loving Ahlul-Bayt

The following astonishing traditions have been found in one of the most famous Tafsir book of the Sunni brothers, that is, "Tafsir al-Kabir", by Fakhr al-Razi who is a leading Sunni scholar with multiple specialties in Tafsir, Fiqh, and theology. (The full address of the document is given at the end). This tradition can also be found in other Sunni commentary books of Quran, "Tafsir al-Kashshaf," written by al-Zamakhshari, as well as "Tafsir al-Tha'labi."

Before going over the text of the tradition it is important to point out that a true love is always accompanied by obedience. A person who is crazy about somebody, does everything to satisfy the lover, and does not allow himself to disobey the one who loves. That is why the "true love" is necessary and sufficient. A true love affects every single action of human being and directs it to a special direction in harmony with the one who loves. Thus anyone who claims to love the Prophet and his Ahlul-Bayt (peace be upon them all) but he insists in disobeying them, is simply a liar.

After giving the text of the tradition we shall quote the related verse of Quran under whose commentary this tradition was mentioned. we will also present some other traditions transmitted by the Sunnis which clearly specify the individuals whose love is obligatory.


--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

The Messenger of Allah said:

He who dies with the love of the family of Muhammad is a Martyr.

And behold! He who dies with the love of the family of Muhammad is forgiven.

And more! The one who dies with the love of the family of Muhammad is dead repented.

Lo! He who dies with the love of the family of Muhammad is dead as a believer with a COMPLETE belief.

And no doubt! The one who dies with love of the family of Muhammad, the angel of death gives him the glad tiding of Paradise, and so do the two angels who question him (Munkar & Nakeer).

And verily he who dies with the love of the family of Muhammad, will be led toward the Paradise as the bride is led to the house of her husband.

Behold! And he who dies with the love of the family of Muhammad, for him there will open two gates in his grave toward the Paradise.

Lo! And the one who dies with the love of the family of Muhammad, Allah will make his grave a sacred place of visit for the angels of mercy.

And verily he who dies with the love of the family of Muhammad, has died on Sunnah.

And no doubt! The one who dies with the HATE of the family of Muhammad, will arrive in the day of judgment printed on his forehead he is desperate from the Mercy of Allah.

Behold! He who dies with the HATE of the family of Muhammad, has died unbeliever.

And verily he who dies with the HATE of the family of Muhammad, will never feel the smell of Paradise.

Sunni references:

Tafsir al-Kabir, by Fakhr al-Din Muhammad Ibn Umar al-Razi, Pub. in Egypt (1357/1938), under commentary of verse 42:23, Part 27, pp. 165-166.
Tafsir al-Kashshaf, by al-Zamakhshari
Tafsir al-Kabir, by al-Tha'labi

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Fakhr al-Razi and others mentioned the above tradition under the commentary of the following verse of Quran, in which Allah tells his Messenger:

"(O Prophet) tell (people) I don't ask you any wage (in return for my prophethood) except to love my near kin. And if anyone earns any good We shall give Him an increase of good (in return for it)" (Quran 42:23).

It has been widely reported by the Sunni commentators of the Holy Quran that:

Ibn Abbas narrated: When the above verse (42:23) was revealed, the companions asked: "O' the Messenger of Allah! Who are those near kin whose love Allah has made obligatory for us?" Upon that the Prophet (PBUH&HF) said: "Ali, Fatimah, and their two sons." He (PBUH&HF) repeated this sentence thrice.

Sunni references:
Tafsir al-Kabir, by Fakhr al-Din al-Razi, Part 27, pp 165-166
Tafsir al-Tha'labi, under the commentary of verse 42:23 of Quran
Tafsir al-Tabari, by Ibn Jarir al-Tabari, under verse 42:23
Tafsir al-Qurtubi, under commentary of verse 42:23 of Quran
Tafsir al-Kashshaf, by al-Zamakhshari, under commentary of verse 42:23
Tafsir al-Baidhawi, under the commentary of verse 42:23 of Quran
Tafsir al-Kalbi, under commentary of verse 42:23 of Quran
al-Madarik, in connection with verse 42:23
Dhakha'ir al-Uqba, by Muhibbuddin al-Tabari, p25
Musnad Ahmad Ibn Hanbal,
al-Sawa'iq al-Muhriqah, by Ibn Hajar Haythami, Ch. 11, section 1, p259
Shawahid al-Tanzeel, Hakim Hasakani, al-Hanafi, v2, p132
Many others such as Ibn Abi Hatam, al-Tabarani, etc.
Then the Prophet (PBUH&HF) continued:

"Verily Allah has dedicated my wage (of prophethood) to love of my Ahlul-Bayt, and I shall question you about it on the day of judgment."

Sunni references:
Dhakha'ir al-Uqba, by Muhibbuddin al-Tabari, p26
al-Sirah, by al-Mala

In another tradition, we read:
The Messenger of Allah (PBUH&HF) said: "I advice you to be kind to my Ahlul-Bayt for verily I will dispute you about them on the day of Judgment, and whoever I dispute shall enter the Fire." He (PBUH&HF) also said: "One who regards me by regarding my Ahlul-Bayt, he has taken a promise from Allah (to enter the Paradise)."

Sunni references:
al-Tabaqat, by Ibn Sa'd
al-Sirah, by al-Mala
al-Sawa'iq al-Muhriqah, by Ibn Hajar al-Haythami, Ch. 11, section 1, p231
Furthermore, al-Kateeb and Ibn Hajar narrated on the authority of Anas Ibn Malik saying:

The Prophet (PBUH&HF) said: "The title of the Book (Saheefah) of believer is love of Ali Ibn Abi Talib."

Sunni references:
Tarikh, by al-Khateeb al-Baghdadi
al-Sawa'iq al-Muhriqah, by Ibn Hajar al-Haythami, Ch. 9, section 2, p193
The above tradition, "The Book of believer" refers to the way a believer conducts the affairs, i.e., his daily life, and his diary.

On the commentary of the Quranic verse: "Lo! those who believe and do good, the Beneficent will appoint for them love (Quran 19:96)," al-Hafidh al-Salafi wrote: Muhammad Ibn Hanafiyyah said: "There will not be a believer unless in whose heart the love of Ali and his family exists." In this connection, al-Bayhaqi, Abu al-Shaikh, and al-Daylami reported that the Messenger of Allah said: "A servant (of God) will not be a (true) believer unless he loves me more than his own soul, and loves my progeny more than his own soul and his own family." See al-Sawa'iq al-Muhriqah, by Ibn Hajar al-Haythami, Ch. 11, section 1, pp 261-262 quoted from al-Hafidh al-Salafi, al-Bayhaqi, Abu al-Shaikh, and al-Daylami).

al-Tirmidhi and Ahmad narrated:
The Messenger of Allah said: "He who loves me and loves these two: al-Hasan and al-Husain, and loves their father and mother, he will be with me in Paradise."

Sunni reference:
Sahih al-Tirmidhi, v5, p641
Musnad Ahmad Ibn Hanbal, on the authority of Imam Ali (AS)
Fadha'il al-Sahaba, by Ahmad Ibn Hanbal, v2, p693, Tradition #1185
al-Sawa'iq al-Muhriqah, by Ibn Hajar al-Haythami, Ch. 11, section 1, p264
It is also narrated that:

The Messenger of Allah said: "Verily the prosperous and the only prosperous and the true prosperous is he who loves Ali in his lifetime and in his hereafter."

Sunni reference:
Fadha'il al-Sahaba, by Ahmad Ibn Hanbal, v2, p658, Tradition #1121
al-Riyadh al-Nadhirah, by Muhibbuddin al-Tabari, v3, p176
Majma' al-Zawa'id, by al-Haythami, v9, p132
Sharh Ibn Abil Hadid, v2, p429
Sunni scholars also narrated that Imam al-Hasan Ibn Ali (AS) said the following in a discourse which he delivered on the martyrdom of Imam Ali:

"... I am among Ahlul-Bayt whom Allah has made their love obligatory for any Muslim when He revealed to His Prophet (PBUH&HF): "Say: I don't ask you any wage except to love my near kin. And if anyone earns any good We shall give Him an increase of good (Quran 42:23)." Thus earn the good deed through loving us Ahlul-Bayt."

Sunni references:
al-Mustadrak, by al-Hakim, "Chapter of understanding the virtues of companions," v3, p172
al-Sawa'iq al-Muhriqah, by Ibn Hajar al-Haythami, Ch. 11, section 1, p259
Many others such as al-Bazzar, al-Tabarani, etc.
Furthermore, it is narrated from Ibn Abbas:

Ibn Abbas said: "The good deed in the verse: 'And if anyone earns any good We shall give Him an increase of good (Quran 42:23)' is the love of family (Aal) of the Muhammad (PBUH&HF)."

Sunni references:
Musnad Ahmad Ibn Hanbal, as mentioned in:
al-Sawa'iq al-Muhriqah, by Ibn Hajar al-Haythami, Ch. 11, section 1, p259

Sunni traditionists also narrated that:
After the murder of al-Husain when his family were taken prisoners and were moved to Damascus, a man in the city (who among others was looking at the passing of prisoners in the city) said to Zain al-Abideen (Imam Ali Ibn al-Husain) that "Praise be to Allah who destroyed you and made you helpless and cut the root of sedition." On that, Zain al-Abideen said: "Didn't you read 'Say I don't ask you any wage except to love my near kin'?" The man answered: "Are you one of those?" He (Zain al-Abideen) said: "Yes."

Sunni references:
Tafsir Ibn Kathir (complete version), v4, p112, under commentary of verse 42:23 of Quran
al-Tabarani, as mentioned in:
al-Sawa'iq al-Muhriqah, by Ibn Hajar al-Haythami, Ch. 11, section 1, p259

Discussion on diffrent ideas

In contrary to all above traditions, Yusuf Ali has a very strange commentary for the verse 42:23. He wrote:

Yusuf Ali> No sort of tangible reward does the Prophet of Allah ask for
                   proclaiming the Glad Tidings of Allah. But at least he has the
                   right to ask that his kith and kin should not persecute him and
                   put all sorts of obstacles in his way, as did the Quraish
                   against the holy Prophet. (Yusuf Ali's commentary of 42:23)

What Yusuf Ali implied was that, by the above verse, the Prophet was asking his kin not to prosecute him and they should love his kin, i.e., the Prophet. The fact is that the above mentioned traditions of the Prophet regarding the revelation of verse 42:23, contradict what Yusuf Ali commented. I wonder if we Should take the opinion of the Prophet or the opinion of Yusuf Ali?! It is noteworthy that the above mentioned traditions were narrated by the prominent Sunni traditionists through various transmitters. Yusuf Ali was not a traditionist nor do Sunnis consider his commentary an authoritative one.

Besides, we can prove logically that Yusuf Ali's commentary is incorrect. "Those of near kin" are the kin of the Prophet himself. Because Prophet Muhammad is only one person. If Allah wanted to say "Love the Prophet because he is your kin", He could say so, and He would not use "Those of near kin". Moreover, from the verse it is clear that Allah was not addressing non-Muslims, because the verse is about his wage in return for his prophethood. Thus those unbelievers (among his kin or else) who do not recognized him as a prophet, were not being addressed. What kind of wage could the Prophet expect from an unbeliever (among his kin or else) who do not recognize him as a prophet?!

Thus they are Muslims who are being addressed by the verse. Now, if Yusuf Ali meant that the verse was addressing those Muslims who were his kin, then I would like to ask: Who among the near kin of the Prophet who was Muslims but tried to prosecute the Prophet? The answer is Non. If you think otherwise, please present your evidence from the history of the life of the Prophet (PBUH&HF).

Therefore, the Yusuf Ali's commentary is neither in harmony with the above-mentioned Sunni traditions in this regard, nor in harmony with logic.

I do not intend to discuss all the mistakes which exist in the Yusuf Ali's works. I myself have found some trivial mistakes in his translation of Quran, and there is even a book named "Discussion on the errors of Yusuf Ali", (Paperback, $12.00 in the United States) which discusses some of his errors. Although I do not intend to fully discredit his works, it would be beneficial to mention his translation of a verse of Quran in connection with the current topic, and then compare it to other translations. This verse is very similar to the above-mentioned verse of Quran (42:23). Allah, to whom belong might and majesty, similarly said:

"(O Prophet) tell (people) whatever I asked you as wage (in return for my prophethood) is in the benefit of you (people)" (Quran 34:47).
Here is the Pickthall's translation:

Pickthall> "Say: Whatever reward I might have asked of you is yours"
                   (34:47).

Now, let us look at the Yusuf Ali's translation:

Yusuf Ali> "Say: No reward do I ask of you; it is (all) in your interest"
                    (34:47).

One can see that the translation of Yusuf Ali provides meaning quite contradictory to the others. In the translation of the above verse, Yusuf Ali states that the Prophet did not ask any wage. By that, Yusuf Ali contradicted his own translation of the other mentioned verse (42:23) where he states the Prophet did, in fact, ask for the wage:

Yusuf Ali> "Say: No reward do I ask  you for this except the love of
                     those near of kin." (42:23)

There is no doubt that the reward of the Prophet is with Allah. However, with the above order of Allah, the Prophet did ask People to love his family as his wage. Such request is, in fact, for the benefit of people as verse 34:47 testifies. The verses of Holy Quran explain one another. More Surprisingly, there is a third verse with another wording which implies that the benefit that people get by fulfilling the Prophet's request (i.e., affection and devotion to Ahlul-Bayt) is that they will be led to the path (Sabeel) of Allah:

"Say: I ask of you no reward for it except that one who wishes, may adopt a Path (Sabeel) toward his Lord." (Quran 25:57)
Pickthall's translation:

Pickthall> "Say: I ask  you no reward for this save that whoso will, may
                   choose a Way unto his Lord." (25:57)

Putting verse 25:57 beside 42:23 and 34:47 gives evidence to the fact that each member of Ahlul-Bayt is the Right Path (Sabeel) toward Allah, and the way toward His satisfaction. The Right Path of Allah is no more than one even though it manifested in a sequence of divinely appointed leaders. As such, each of these leaders were the unique Path (Sabeel) of Allah in their own time, and through whom people can attain protection against disagreement in religious matters. In fact, the Messenger of Allah confirmed the above conclusion from the latter verse. Ibn Sa'd and Ibn Hajar recorded that:

The Messenger of Allah said: "My Ahlul-Bayt and I are a tree in Paradise whose branches has come to this world (Dunyaa). Thus whoso will, may choose a Path unto his Lord (by taking a branch and reaching to the stem in Paradise)."

Sunni references:
al-Tabaqat, by Ibn Sa'd
Sharaf al-Nubuwwah, by Muhibbuddin al-Tabari, on the authority of Abu Sa'id
al-Sawa'iq al-Muhriqah, by Ibn Hajar al-Haythami, Ch. 11, section 1, p231
The above underlined part of the Hadith of the Prophet (PBUH&HF) is the Quranic verse mentioned above (25:57). The true love for Ahlul-Bayt will, in fact, oblige us to follow their Right Path which guarantees the human prosperity in this world and in the Paradise in the world after as well.