Validation of Attributing the (Defamation Punishment) Hadith to ʿAlī ibn Abī Ṭālib (AS): Tendency, Context, and Dating

A hadith attributed to Ali ibn Abi Talib (AS) states that he warned during his reign: “Whoever considers me superior to Abu Bakr and Umar, I will punish slander on him.” Another tahrir (version) of this warning threatens to punish those who condemn the first two caliphs and not those who exalt Ali (as). This paper attempts to validate the attribution of the hadith to Ali (AS) outside the theological framework, with a historical approach, explaining its origin discourse and within the current temporal and spatial context.The results showed that the tahrir concerning the “Tafdhil” (superiority) of this hadith was most likely developed in the 90s of the first century AH in Kufa. Then another tahrir concerning the condemnation of the first two caliphs, at most evolved during the first half of the second century. Religious debates on the Caliphs legitimacy and ranking were also the historical context for the emergence and evolution of this hadith.