Hawzah News Agency- According to classical sources, including Al-Amali by Shaykh Saduq, the conquest of Khaybar exposed the limitations of ordinary men before it became the eternal proof of Imam Ali's (AS) divinely-sanctioned authority.
A FLAG THAT BROKE COURAGE
The account, transmitted through Abdullah ibn Amr ibn al-As, describes how the Prophet Muhammad (PBUH) first entrusted the flag to other companions. One by one, they retreated in failure. Their ranks scattered. The companions who returned were met not with praise, but with the unspoken truth: they had been tested, and they had faltered.
The Prophet (PBUH) then declared:
"Tomorrow, I shall give the flag to a man who loves Allah and His Messenger, and is loved by Allah and His Messenger. He will not retreat, and through him, victory will come."
When morning arrived, the Prophet (PBUH) asked for Ali (AS). Those present noted that the Imam was suffering from an eye ailment. The Prophet (PBUH) called him nonetheless, applied his blessed saliva to the Imam's eyes, and prayed:
"O Allah, remove from him heat and cold."
The Imam's sight was instantly restored. The flag was handed over.
THE GATE THAT HUMBLED FORTY MEN
As Imam Ali (AS) advanced toward the fortress of Qamus, the Jewish defenders rained down arrows and stones. He did not flinch. He did not turn back. Reaching the gate of the fortress, he dismounted in a state of righteous fury.
What happened next defied physical explanation.
Imam Ali (AS) seized the massive iron gate, wrenched it from its foundations, and hurled it forty cubits behind him—using it as a shield.
Abdullah ibn Umar later remarked:
"We were not surprised that Allah granted the conquest through Ali. What astonished us was the gate itself—forty men together could not lift it, yet he threw it aside as if it were nothing."
THE IMAM'S OWN WORDS: 'NOT BY FOOD, BUT BY DIVINE POWER'
In a letter to Sahl ibn Hanif, Imam Ali (AS) himself clarified the source of this impossible strength. He wrote:
"I did not tear the gate of Khaybar and cast it forty cubits behind me through physical prowess or the strength of nourishment. Rather, I drew upon a celestial power—a soul nourished by God. I am a ray of light emanating from Ahmad (PBUH)."
He continued with a warning that echoes through history:
"By Allah, if all the Arabs were to unite against me, I would not flee. And if the opportunity arose, I would strike them all down. Whoever does not fear me will find death seizing him by the collar, while his heart remains firm in the face of calamities."
A LIVING MIRACLE, NOT A TALL TALE
The Prophet (PBUH) later informed his companions that forty angels had assisted Imam Ali (AS) in uprooting the gate—confirming that the conquest of Khaybar was not a mere military operation, but a theophany of divine will channeled through the purest of creation.
For Shi'a belief, the event remains more than history. It is a standing proof of the Imam's (AS) authority, his unique station as the "Lion of God," and the eternal truth that when falsehood fortifies itself behind iron walls, truth need only send one man—the right man—to bring them crashing down.
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