Ahl al-Kisa

Ahl al-Kisa (Arabic: أَهْل ٱلْكِسَاء, romanized: ʾAhl al-Kisāʾ, lit.'people of the cloak' ), also known as the Al al-Aba (Arabic: آل ٱلْعَبَاء, romanized: ʾĀl al-ʿabāʾ, lit.'family of the cloak' ), are the Islamic prophet Muhammad, his daughter Fatima, his cousin and son-in-law Ali, and his two grandsons Hasan and Husayn. The name has its origins in the hadith of the cloak and the Event of the mubahala, both widely reported by Sunni and Shia authorities.

In Shia Islam, Ali, Hasan, and Husayn are the first three Imams and the rightful political and spiritual successors of Muhammad. Most Shia Muslims regard the Ahl al-Kisa as infallible and believe in the redemptive power of their pain and martyrdom.

Sunni Muslims generally honor them as Muhammad's closest family (Ahl al-Bayt) and hold them in very high esteem. However, Sunnis generally focus on their virtue, closeness to the Prophet, and moral excellence rather than seeing the event as establishing a doctrine of religious leadership (Imamate).