Hadith
Anas ibn Malik reported: The Messenger of Allah ﷺ said, “The most merciful of my nation to my nation is Abu Bakr. The strictest of them in the commands of Allah is Umar. The most sincerely conscientious of them is Uthman. The best reciter of the Book of Allah among them is Ubay ibn Ka’b. The most knowledgeable of them in the rules of inheritance is Zayd ibn Thabit. The most knowledgeable of them in the lawful and the unlawful is Mu’adh ibn Jabal. No doubt, every nation has a trustee, and the trustee of this nation is Abu ‘Ubayda ibn al-Jarrah.”
عَنْ أَنَسِ بْنِ مَالِكٍ قَالَ قَالَ رَسُولُ اللهِ صَلَّى اللهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ أَرْحَمُ أُمَّتِي بِأُمَّتِي أَبُو بَكْرٍ وَأَشَدُّهُمْ فِي أَمْرِ اللهِ عُمَرُ وَأَصْدَقُهُمْ حَيَاءً عُثْمَانُ وَأَقْرَؤُهُمْ لِكِتَابِ اللهِ أُبَيُّ بْنُ كَعْبٍ وَأَفْرَضُهُمْ زَيْدُ بْنُ ثَابِتٍ وَأَعْلَمُهُمْ بِالْحَلَالِ وَالْحَرَامِ مُعَاذُ بْنُ جَبَلٍ أَلَا وَإِنَّ لِكُلِّ أُمَّةٍ أَمِينًا وَإِنَّ أَمِينَ هَذِهِ الْأُمَّةِ أَبُو عُبَيْدَةَ بْنُ الْجَرَّاحِ
Ponder This Hadith
The Prophet ﷺ highlights different Companions for distinct virtues, explicitly identifying some as superior to all others in mercy, knowledge, recitation, legal understanding, and trustworthiness.
If the doctrine of Imamat were true, how could the Prophet ﷺ single out other Companions as surpassing Hazrat Ali in the areas of religious knowledge and practice? Would a divinely appointed leader not, by necessity, possess unrivaled authority in these two main areas?