The Narrative of “Speculation of the Prophetic Prohibition of the Alavi Caliphate” in a Critical Assessment

In the old narrative texts of the Sunni, a narrative has been reported based on which, in the last days of the Prophet’s life, Abbas Ibn Abdulmutallab asked Imam Ali (as) to go to the Prophet (saw) to ask about his successor; however, Imam Ali refused and stated that if we asked him, the Prophet himself would forbid us and the people would not grant us the caliphate either. Given the multiple quoting of this narration in the Sunni narrative sources and also its incompatibility with the imamate position of Imam Ali, the validation of this narrative seems necessary. The motivation to legitimize the Abbasid government, the alleged Prophet’s displeasure with Alavi caliphate, legitimizing the story of Saqifa and confirming the consensus, distorted quoting of the original narrative in the Sunni narrative sources according to Imami sources, and also its contradiction with the Quranic verses, along with numerous other pieces of evidence, are among the reasons that show this narrative must be fake.