AHL AL-BAYT

(Arabic: People of the House,) designation in Islam for the holy family of the Prophet Muhammad, particularly his daughter Fatimah, her husband 'Ali (who was also Muhammad's cousin), and their descendants. Shi'ites closely identify this family with the imams, whom they regard as the legitimate holders of authority in the Muslim community, the infallible bearers of sacred knowledge, and the source of messianic deliverance in the end time. Since the 12th and 13th centuries most Sufi orders have included members of the Prophet's family in their elaborate spiritual lineages (silsilas), which they trace back to the Prophet through 'Ali. Aside from Mecca, shrines containing the remains of members of the Prophet's family and their heirs are the most popular Muslim pilgrimage centres. These include the shrines of 'Ali in an-Najaf, Iraq; Husayn in Karbala', Iraq, and Cairo, Egypt; 'Ali ar-Ria in Meshed, Iran; and Khwajah Mu'in-ud-Din Chishti in Ajmer (western India). In many Muslim societies people known as sharifs and sayyids hold privileged status by descent from the holy family. Among those claiming such status in the 20th century were King Hassan II of Morocco, King Hussein of Jordan, Saddam Hussein of Iraq, and Abu'l-'ala' Mawdudi of India/Pakistan.