The Meaning of “Disciples” (Ḥawāriyyūn)

Effective leadership is not possible without developing cadres. When Jesus (a.s.) observed signs of disbelief among the masses of the Children of Israel, considering the responsibility of divine mission on one hand, the evident disbelief of many people in his domain of prophethood on the other hand, his confidence in the righteousness of some members of society on the third hand, the necessity of distinguishing the corrupt from the pure on the fourth hand, and fulfilling the right of those deserving education and training on the fifth hand, he announced that he was ready to accept specially gifted individuals. This was firstly to influence them, secondly to affect society through them, and thirdly to defend the foundation of his religion through this means. These matters and similar ones necessitated that Jesus devote himself to nurturing the disciples and effectively outline the Christian community, in which he succeeded to his capacity.

Regarding the meaning of “disciple” (ḥawārī), numerous interpretations have been mentioned, most of which are either from Israelite sources or deductions without Qur’anic evidence or support. Among these is a possibility that Fakhr Rāzī mentions with the expression “it is said” (qīla) that the disciples (ḥawāriyyūn) were washermen who would whiten clothes.(484)

Zamakhsharī also previously reported this and explains it by saying that what is meant by washing is the common literary expression when it is said: “So-and-so is pure,” meaning they are free from impurity, otherwise the Qur’an does not address people’s occupations, because what is important is the purity of spirit and the chastity of individuals, and this is what the Qur’an indicates. As mentioned in the discussion of vocabulary, the meaning of “disciple” (ḥawārī) based on language and transmission is pure and clean, and “disciples” (ḥawāriyyūn) means pure and sincere people.(485)