Every religious action is
accompanied by some conditions in order for it to be accepted by Allah. These
conditions are related to the one who is performing that action. The word
‘Deen’ refers to these very actions and it implies the rightful religion that
is according to the satisfaction of Allah (viz. Islam). In the light of a
tradition of Ameerul Momineen (a.s), only good actions performed by a religious
person shall be accepted by Allah. In other words, good actions performed by
those who are not on the ‘true religion’ will not be accepted. He (a.s)
says ‘O people! Protect
your religion. Protect your religion. Be attached to it. And be careful that no
one should turn you away from it. Committing bad deeds while being on the right
religion is better than the performing good deeds while following a false
religion. Because the sins of the one who follows the true religion will be
forgiven, but the good deeds of the one who does not follow the rightful
religion shall not be accepted.
(Maanil Akhbaar, pg. 185,
186)
Thus, it is very important
for us to recognize the true and correct religion since it is a pre-requisite
for the acceptance of our actions. This matter can only be clear and evident
for a person if he refers to the sayings of Ahlul Bait (a.s). Once a person
approached Imam Baqir (a.s) while he had a letter in his hand. Before he could
say anything, Imam (a.s) informed him:
‘This letter (which you
are carrying) is from (our) adversary who wants to know about that religion
through which deeds shall be accepted.’
The man replied ‘May Allah have mercy on you. I have
come to ask you this
very question’. Imam (a.s.) replied ‘(Religion implies) To bear witness that there is no god except Allah, Who is One and Unique and He has no partner and that Muhammad (s.a.w.a.) is His servant and His messenger and to accept all that he (s.a.w.a.) has brought from the side of Allah and to accept our Wilayat (mastership) and to love us while at the same time to bear enmity with our enemies, to submit to our commands and to act with piety and modesty and to await the reappreance of our Qaim (a.t.f.s.). For certainly our government shall be established when He wishes.
very question’. Imam (a.s.) replied ‘(Religion implies) To bear witness that there is no god except Allah, Who is One and Unique and He has no partner and that Muhammad (s.a.w.a.) is His servant and His messenger and to accept all that he (s.a.w.a.) has brought from the side of Allah and to accept our Wilayat (mastership) and to love us while at the same time to bear enmity with our enemies, to submit to our commands and to act with piety and modesty and to await the reappreance of our Qaim (a.t.f.s.). For certainly our government shall be established when He wishes.
(Usul-e-Kafi – Kitabul
Imaan wal Kufr, Chapter of “Pillars of Islam”, tradition 13)
In the light of this
tradition, awaiting the reappearance of Imam Zamana (a.t.f.s.) is among the
pillars of faith and the reason for our religion being accepted by Allah.
(2) The Necessity of
Awaiting for Imam Zamana (a.t.f.s):
Numerous traditions of the
infallible guides (a.s.) have introduced Qaim-e-Aal-e-Muhammad – awaiting for
whom is included among the fundamentals of religion. For example, Imam Muhammad
Taqi (a.s.) says in a tradition
‘Certainly, our Qaim is
that (very) Mahdi whose awaiting is obligatory during his
occultation.’
(Kamaluddin,
vol. 2, pg. 377, chap.36 tradition)
The above tradition
contains the word ‘obligatory’ and it indicates the fact that during
occultation it is the duty of every Shia to familiarize himself with the
characteristics of awaiting the Imam. Any individual who wishes to worship
Allah will certainly not take this matter lightly.
So if someone desires to
inculcate the feeling of awaiting within himself, then it is necessary for him
to pay attention to the pre-requisites and essentials of awaiting. It should be
kept in mind that like all other conditions there are varying intensities and
levels in awaiting the Imam. Every level of awaiting has its own set of demands
and pre-requisites. The lowest level of awaiting is to believe in the
occurrence of the event, i.e. reappearance of Imam (a.t.f.s.). The intensity of
the awaiting depends upon this fact. The more certain one is of the event, the
stronger will be the awaiting. Some of the pre-requisites to cultivate and
develop the feeling of awaiting are as follows:
(a) Conviction:
A person should firmly
believe in the person that he is awaiting and should not have even an iota of
doubt or reservation concerning him in his mind. The stronger is his
conviction, the greater will be the feeling of awaiting in his heart.
(b) To consider it
near:
The awaiting one
(muntazir) should always feel that the reappearance is near and imminent. For,
if a person is certain about a matter but considers it to be a remote
possibility, then the intensity of his wait will be feeble. On the other hand,
if he is convinced and confident about the nearness of the event, then his
awaiting will be that much more intense.
(c) To love it:
If we are certain that a
particular thing is bound to occur and we are also conscious that it’s
occurrence is very near, yet if we are not inclined towards it nor do we have
any special affection towards it, then obviously we would never want that event
or thing to draw near. On the other hand, when we hear about the arrival of a
very dear and beloved friend, then the feeling of awaiting becomes more intense
and powerful.
(d) Preparedness:
The more prepared we are
for a particular event the more acute is our anticipation for its advent. For
instance, if a student has studied hard and has put in lot of effort, then
certainly he will look forward to his exams and will also be restless for the
results; for he is sure that he will be successful.
The aforementioned four
conditions and pre-requisites are essential while awaiting the reappearance of
Imam Zamana (a.t.f.s.).
1. To have a firm belief
in his (a.s.) reappearance:
The more an individual
inculcates the knowledge and certainty concerning the reappearance of Imam
Zamana (a.t.f.s.) within himself, the more intensely will he await the
reappearance of Imam (a.t.f.s.). But if – God forbid – any doubt arises in his
mind concerning the reappearance of Imam (a.t.f.s.), then not only will this
weaken his belief, but even the intensity of his awaiting will diminish and
fade away. It is also possible that excessive doubts concerning Imam Zamana
(a.t.f.s.) may lead him into the sphere of disbelief. Both Shia and Sunni
scholars have narrated a tradition from Holy Prophet (s.a.w.a) pointing towards
this fact wherein he (s.a.w.a) declares ‘The
one who denies the reappearance of Mahdi, then he has indeed
disbelieved’
2. To consider the
reappearance of Imam (a.s.) to be near:
It is possible that one
may not deny the reappearance of Imam Zamana (a.t.f.s.), but he may consider it
to be a distant event and does not believe that it can occur in the near
future. Such a thought will make his belief weak and lethargic. On the other
hand, if he considers the reappearance of Imam (a.t.f.s.) to be imminent then
his awaiting will be intense and firm.
3. To look forward to his
(a.t.f.s.) reappearance:
A true Awaiter is the one
who is fervently looking forward to the advent of Imam (a.t.f.s.). He is
willing to sacrifice all his personal treasures and worldly bounties to meet
his long lost friend. ‘O
Master! When will the time come when your benevolent glance will fall on us –
unfortunate servants? And when will we be granted the privilege of seeing you?’
This is the slogan of
every true Awaiter.
4. Vigilance:
The more we prepare
ourselves for the reappearance of Imam (a.t.f.s.), the stronger will be our
desire of awaiting for him. Without being prepared for his reappearance, the
feeling of awaiting will be a farce and have little meaning.
As Marhoom Sibte Jafar
writes: ‘We keep saying
‘al – ajal’ (hasten), but what will we do if he were to really come?
How prepared are we? And
what will we offer him?
…..Our shrewdness and our
arrogance and our cunning treachery?
What is the value of our
fasts and our prayers?
How much sincerity is
there in them and how much pretension?
What preparations have we
made for the sake of Imam (a.t.f.s.)?
What face shall we show
him when he reappears?
When these four conditions
combine, then the feeling of awaiting inevitably develops in a person. The
intensity of awaiting is proportionate to the degree of these four
‘pre-requisites’. The stronger they are within a person, the more intense will
be his awaiting. Thus if we are desirous of fulfilling our responsibility of awaiting,
then it is imperative that we strengthen its four pre-conditions. The directive
of awaiting for Imam Zamana (a.t.f.s.) is in reality an order for developing
and inculcating these four pre-conditions. For strengthening the first and
second pre-requisites, it is necessary for us to frequently refer to the Holy
Quran and traditions of infallibles (a.s.), believe in the glad tidings and
prophecies concerning Imam Zamana (a.t.f.s.) that are mentioned in them and
give them the highest level of importance. And an individual can do all this
voluntarily. In order to fulfill the third pre-requisite, we should acquire the
recognition (Maarefat) of Imam (a.t.f.s.) so that the flames of his love are
ignited in our hearts and keep on burning till the last breath of our lives.
Only then will our awaiting be fervent and passionate – just like that of a
mother who is anxiously searching her lost son.
Come let us end this short
treatise by presenting ourselves in the holy presence of Imam Zamana (a.t.f.s.)
and addressing him (a.t.f.s.) with tears in our eyes
‘Peace be upon you – O my
Master and my Chief! I am your servant and I seek proximity to Allah through
you and through your progeny. I
am awaiting the reappearance of your (esteemed) self and also of the truth through your hands. I pray to Allah to bestow His blessings on Muhammad (s.a.w.a) and his progeny (a.s.) and he should include me among those who await your reappearance. Aameen!’
am awaiting the reappearance of your (esteemed) self and also of the truth through your hands. I pray to Allah to bestow His blessings on Muhammad (s.a.w.a) and his progeny (a.s.) and he should include me among those who await your reappearance. Aameen!’
