Allah the Exalted said:
رياض الصالحينAbū Zakariyyā Muḥyī al-Dīn Yaḥyā ibn Sharaf al-Nawawī٤٣ - باب إكرام أهل بيت رسول الله - ﷺ - وبيان فضلهم
٤٣ - باب إكرام أهل بيت رسول الله - ﷺ - وبيان فضلهم
And abide in your houses and do not display yourselves as [was] the display of the former times of ignorance. And establish prayer and give zakāh and obey Allāh and His Messenger. Allāh intends only to remove from you the impurity [of sin], O people of the [Prophet's] household, and to purify you with [extensive] purification.
And He the Exalted said:
ذَٰلِكَ وَمَن يُعَظِّمْ شَعَـٰٓئِرَ ٱللَّهِ فَإِنَّهَا مِن تَقْوَى ٱلْقُلُوبِ
That [is so]. And whoever honors the symbols [i.e., rites] of Allāh - indeed, it is from the piety of hearts.
وعن يزيد بن حَيَّانَ، قَالَ: انْطَلَقْتُ أنَا وحُصَيْنُ بْنُ سَبْرَة، وَعَمْرُو ابن مُسْلِم إِلَى زَيْد بْنِ أرقَمَ - ﵃ - فَلَمَّا جَلَسْنَا إِلَيْهِ قَالَ لَهُ حُصَيْن: لَقَدْ لقِيتَ يَا زَيْدُ خَيْرًا كَثِيرًا، رَأيْتَ رَسُول الله - ﷺ - وسمعتَ حديثَهُ، وغَزوْتَ مَعَهُ، وَصَلَّيْتَ خَلْفَهُ: لَقَدْ لَقِيتَ يَا زَيْدُ خَيْرًا كَثيرًا، حَدِّثْنَا يَا زَيْدُ مَا سَمِعْتَ مِنْ رسولِ الله - ﷺ - قَالَ: يَا ابْنَ أخِي، وَاللهِ لقد كَبِرَتْ سِنِّي، وَقَدُمَ عَهدِي، وَنَسيتُ بَعْضَ الَّذِي كُنْتُ أَعِي مِنْ رسولِ الله - ﷺ - فما حَدَّثْتُكُمْ، فَاقْبَلُوا، ومَا لاَ فَلاَ تُكَلِّفُونيهِ. ثُمَّ قَالَ: قام رَسُول الله - ﷺ - يَومًا فينا خَطِيبًا بمَاءٍ يُدْعَى خُمًّا بَيْنَ مَكَّةَ وَالمَدِينَةِ، فَحَمِدَ الله، وَأثْنَى عَلَيهِ، وَوَعَظَ وَذَكَّرَ، ثُمَّ قَالَ: «أمَّا بَعدُ، ألاَ أَيُّهَا النَّاسُ، فَإنَّمَا أنَا بَشَرٌ يُوشِكَ أَنْ يَأتِي رسولُ ربِّي فَأُجِيبَ، وَأنَا تاركٌ فيكم ثَقَلَيْنِ: أوَّلُهُمَا كِتَابُ اللهِ، فِيهِ الهُدَى وَالنُّورُ، فَخُذُوا بِكتابِ الله، وَاسْتَمْسِكُوا بِهِ»، فَحَثَّ عَلَى كِتَابِ الله، وَرَغَّبَ فِيهِ، ثُمَّ قَالَ: «وَأَهْلُ بَيْتِي أُذكِّرُكُمُ اللهُ في أهلِ بَيْتي، أذكرُكُمُ الله في أهل بيتي» فَقَالَ لَهُ حُصَيْنٌ: وَمَنْ أهْلُ بَيتهِ يَا زَيْدُ، أَلَيْسَ نِسَاؤُهُ مِنْ أهْلِ بَيْتِهِ؟ قَالَ: نِسَاؤُهُ مِنْ أهْلِ بَيتهِ، وَلكِنْ أهْلُ بَيتِهِ مَنْ حُرِمَ الصَّدَقَةَ بَعدَهُ، قَالَ: وَمَنْ هُمْ؟ قَالَ: هُمْ آلُ عَلِيٍّ، وَآلُ عقيل، وَآلُ جَعفَرَ، وآلُ عَبَّاسٍ. قَالَ: كُلُّ هؤلاء حُرِمَ الصَّدَقَةَ؟ قَالَ: نَعَمْ. رواه مسلم. وفي رواية: «ألاَ وَإنّي تَارِكٌ فِيكُمْ ثَقَليْنِ: أحَدُهُما كِتَابُ الله وَهُوَ حَبْلُ الله، مَنِ اتَّبَعَهُ كَانَ عَلَى الهُدَى، وَمَنْ تَرَكَهُ كَانَ عَلَى ضَلاَلَة».
On the authority of Yazīd ibn Ḥayyān, who said: I set out, together with Ḥuṣayn ibn Sabra and ʿAmr ibn Muslim, to Zayd ibn Arqam (may Allah be pleased with him). When we had sat down with him, Ḥuṣayn said to him: “You have indeed attained much good, O Zayd! You saw the Messenger of Allah ﷺ, heard his speech, fought in battle alongside him, and prayed behind him. You have indeed attained much good, O Zayd! Narrate to us, O Zayd, what you heard from the Messenger of Allah ﷺ.” He said: “O my nephew, by Allah, I have grown old in years, my time is long past, and I have forgotten some of what I used to retain from the Messenger of Allah ﷺ. So whatever I narrate to you, accept it, and whatever I do not, do not burden me with it.” Then he said: The Messenger of Allah ﷺ stood up one day to address us at a watering place called Khumm, between Mecca and Medina. He praised Allah and extolled Him, gave admonition and reminder, then said: “To proceed: O people, I am but a human being. The messenger of my Lord is about to come to me, and I shall respond. I am leaving among you two weighty things: the first of them is the Book of Allah, in which is guidance and light, so take hold of the Book of Allah and hold fast to it.” He urged adherence to the Book of Allah and encouraged devotion to it. Then he said: “And the people of my household — I remind you of Allah concerning the people of my household; I remind you of Allah concerning the people of my household.” Ḥuṣayn said to him: “And who are the people of his household, O Zayd? Are his wives not among the people of his household?” He said: “His wives are among the people of his household, but the people of his household are those for whom charity is forbidden after him.” He said: “And who are they?” He said: “They are the family of ʿAlī, the family of ʿAqīl, the family of Jaʿfar, and the family of ʿAbbās.” He said: “Are all of these forbidden charity?” He said: “Yes.” Narrated by Muslim. In another narration: “Behold, I am leaving among you two weighty things: one of them is the Book of Allah, which is the rope of Allah. Whoever follows it is upon guidance, and whoever abandons it is upon misguidance.”
وعن ابن عمر ﵄، عن أَبي بكر الصديق - ﵁ - مَوقُوفًا عَلَيهِ - أنَّهُ قَالَ: ارْقَبُوا مُحَمدًا - ﷺ - في أهْلِ بَيْتِهِ. رواه البخاري. معنى «ارقبوه»: راعوه واحترموه وأكرموه، والله أعلم.
On the authority of Ibn ʿUmar (may Allah be pleased with them both), from Abū Bakr al-Ṣiddīq (may Allah be pleased with him) — as a statement attributed to him (mawqūf) — that he said: “Be mindful of Muḥammad ﷺ in respect of the people of his household.” Narrated by al-Bukhārī. The meaning of “irqubūhu” is: have regard for him, respect him, and honour him. And Allah knows best.