Marefat of Imam and Imamat

With the passing of month of Shabaan we heard many times the word Marefat of Imam. Specially the famous tradition of Holy Prophet (s.a.w.s.)

 من مات ولم يعرف امام زمانه مات ميتة جاهلية 

This tradition is such repetitively narrated in our books that just Allama Majlisi (r.a.) in his book Behaar al Anwaar has brought it from 40 different sources and it is narrated in more than 80 different sources in the books of Ahle Sunnat. Thus, there remains not an iota of doubt for someone to object to this tradition. As for someone who is away from Imam e Zamana (a.t.f.s.), it is necessary to recognize him and become close to him as this is the aim of our lives for which Allah has created us, without his recognition our death will be that of disbelief, hypocrisy and deviation.

Let us today in this small article try and delve deeper on the meaning of the word معرفة. It is very clear to us that معرفة does not imply just knowing the name and lineage and place of birth and martyrdom of the Imams. Let us ask the Holy infallibles (a.s), what is معرفة?

In a tradition from Muawiya bin wahab from Imam Sadiq (a.s) it is narrated that

وأدنى معرفة الامام أنه عدل النبي إلا درجة النبوة، ووارثه، وأن طاعته طاعة الله وطاعة رسول الله، والتسليم له في كل أمر، والرد إليه، والاخذ بقوله، ويعلم أن الامام بعد رسول الله صلى الله عليه وآله علي ابن أبي طالب، وبعده الحسن، ثم الحسين، ثم علي بن الحسين، ثم محمد بن علي، ثم أنا، ثم بعدي موسى ابني، وبعده علي ابنه، وبعد علي محمد ابنه، وبعد محمد علي ابنه وبعد علي الحسن ابنه، والحجة من ولد الحسن 

"...and the minimum Marefat of Imam is that he is equal to Prophet (s.a.w.s.) except that he does not have the position of Prophethood, and that his obedience is the obedience of Allah and the obedience of the messenger of Allah and it is necessary to submit in front of him in all the affairs and to turn towards him and to take his words and to know that Imam after Holy Prophet (s.a.w.a.) is Ali ibne Abi Talib, and after him Hassan then Hussain then Ali ibne Hussain then Muhammad ibne Ali then I then after me Musa my son, and after him his son Ali and after Ali his son Muhammad and after Muhammad, Ali his son and after Ali, hassan his son, and The Hujjat from the son of Hassan…(peace be on all of them)"

From the above tradition we can conclude that to qualify with minimum معرفة of Imam e Zaman (a.t.f.s.) we should have the following attributes:

1.   Believe that he is equal to the Holy Prophet (s.a.w.a.) in status (Hujjat of Allah)

2.   Consider his obedience as the obedience of Allah & His messenger (whatever he says is Haq)

3.   Submit to his orders (without any excuse)

4.   To turn towards him (a slave has no place to turn except to of his master)

5.   To take (life instructions) from his words (traditions)

6.   And to know all the 12 Imams (a.s) who are from the progeny of Holy Prophet (s.a.w.s.)

 In yet another tradition Hazrat Amir (a.s) indicates to the believers the right of their معرفة thus:

عن أمير المؤمنين (عليه السلام) في حديث معرفته بالنورانية ، مخاطباً سلمان وأبا ذرّ عليهما الرحمة ، فقال (عليه السلام) : إعلم يا أبا ذرّ أنا عبد اللّه عزّ وجلّ وخليفته على عباده ، لا تجعلونا أرباباً ، وقولوا في فضلنا ما شئتم ، فإنّكم لا تبلغوا كنه ما فينا ولا نهايته ، فإنّ اللّه عزّ وجلّ قد أعطانا أكبر وأعظم ممّا يصفه واصفكم أو يخطر على قلب أحدكم ، فإذا عرفتمونا هكذا فأنتم المؤمنون.

"Know oh Aba Zar! I am the servant of Allah and His Caliph upon His servants, do not appoint for us Divinity and then say in our praise whatever you wish, then for surely you shall not reach the essence of our reality and neither shall you reach to its peak. For surely Allah has certainly bestowed us with much greater and higher position than what you characterize us with or even think concerning us, If you recognize us in this manner, you would be considered as true believer."

We can conclude from this tradition following points:

1.   It is incorrect to ascribe Ahle Bayt (a.s) to Divinity

2.   Whatever praise we do for Ahlebayt (a.s) is less than what their position is

3.   It is not possible even for our thoughts to reach the essence and peak of the معرفة of Ahle Bayt (a.s.)

4.   To be qualified as believers, we should recognize Ahle Bayt (a.s) thus.

Thus, if it is said that the whole universe which includes seven heavens, whose first heaven comprises of more than 100 billion galaxies, each of which have more than 100 billion solar systems in it, is like a walnut in the hands of our master, one should not doubt in it.

أنّ الدنيا ممثّلة للإمام كفلقة الجوزة 

"...certainly this world for Imam is like one half of the walnut…"

 For surely their affairs are difficult to understand and they themselves have affirmed it thus:

ان أمرنا صعب مستصعب لا يحمله إلا عبد مؤمن امتحن الله قلبه للايمان

Surely our affairs (recongnition & marefat) are extremely difficult. None can understand it except a believing servant whose heart Allah has examined for faith…

At times even for the likes of Qambar it became difficult to comprehend the lofty status of Ahle Bait (a.s.), as marefat has different levels. Let us conclude our discussion on معرفة with this final incident of Janabe Qambar (a.r.) and Janabe Fizza (a.r.):

In a tradition from Marhoom Qazi Saeed Qummi in the book Share Arbaeen, narrates from Sayyed Murtaza that once Qambar who was the slave of Hazrat Amir (a.s) came to the house of Hazrat Ameerul Momineen (a.s.) and did not find Ameerul Momineen (a.s.) in the house, he enquired from Janabe Fizza (s.a.) about Ameerul Momineen (a.s.), she replied to Qambar that

 إن المولى عرَجَ إلى السماء ذات البروج لتقْسيم أرْزاق العباد 

Surely my master has gone to the heavens for distributing sustenance…

Janabe Qambar got astonished on hearing this and thought that Janabe Fizza was joking or had made a mistake, and he departed towards the palm groves. He saw Ameerul Momineen (a.s.) there and with a sigh of relief complained to him about the statement of Janabe Fizza (s.a.), upon which Imam replied:

                                                                           

مَهْ يا قَنْبرُ. ولعلّك لمْ تُؤْمِن بولايتنا حقَّ الإيمان 

"Keep quite oh Qambar as if you have not believed in our Wilayat as it aught to be believed"

Ameerul Momineen (a.s.) then passed his hand over the eyes of Janabe Qambar and asked, what do you see O Qambar?

He said:

رأيت السماوات والأرض كجوزة في يد المولى 

I see the heavens and the earth like a walnut in the hand of my master

(Sharhe Arbaeen page 566, narrated from Hablul Mateen of Ayatullah Ziyabadi volume 2 page 176)

We conclude from this incident that the marefat of Janabe Fizza (s.a.) was greater than the marefat of Janabe Qambar, and why would it not be as Janabe Fizza (s.a.) was the internal khadema of Ahle Bayt (inside the house) and Qambar was an external Khadim (outside the house), and thus Janabe Fizza (s.a.) benefitted from two sources of noor while Qambar was limited to just one. As Hazrat Amir (a.s.) made Qambar see the position of wilayat of the proof of Allah we request Allah that He also by His infinite Lutf make us see the position of wilayat of Hazrat Hujjat ibne Hassan (a.s) and enumerate us amongst his true servants.

Summary of Traditions regarding Meraj of Holy Prophet (s.a.w.a.)

Allah, the Almighty, has said in His Noble book : 

سُبْحَانَ الَّذِي أَسْرَىٰ بِعَبْدِهِ لَيْلًا مِنَ الْمَسْجِدِ الْحَرَامِ إِلَى الْمَسْجِدِ الْأَقْصَى الَّذِي بَارَكْنَا حَوْلَهُ لِنُرِيَهُ مِنْ آيَاتِنَا ۚ إِنَّهُ هُوَ السَّمِيعُ الْبَصِيرُ

"Glorified be He who carried His servant from Masjid al‑Haram to Masjid al‑Aqsa, the precincts of which We have blessed, so that We may show him of Our Signs. Verily He is the All‑Hearing, the All‑Seeing. " [1]

One of the most amazing events that took place during the lifetime of our beloved Holy Prophet (s.a.w.a.) was the event of Me’raj.

This event is considered as one of the indisputable events of history and is a part of our religious beliefs. Every Muslim, in accordance with the clear verses of the Holy Qu’ran, in addition to the reliable chain of narrators, believe in Me’raj. 

All the Muslims commemorate 27^th of Rajab as the day of Meraj of the Holy Prophet (s.a.w.a.)

The event of Meraj has its root in the Holy Quran and traditions. The importance of the belief in Meraj in Shia’ism in particular can be gauged from the below tradition of Imam Ali Reza (a.s.)

من أنكر ثلاثة أشياء فليس من شيعتنا – المعراج – المسئلة في القبر والشفاعة.

"One who denies (any of these) three things is not among our Shi`a (followers): the Meraj, the questioning in the grave and ash­ Shafa`ah (intercession).”

)Behar al Anwaar, Vol. 6, Pg 223)

Holy Prophet of Islam (s.a.w.a.) travelled with his physical body through the worlds of ascension. Further, by the greatness of the Hidden Power, he was able to complete this journey in a very short span of time.

Below are few traditions from Ahle Bait (as) on Meraj and the events which occurred in Meraj.

Tradition 1: Popularity of Hazrat Ameerul Momineen (as) in the skies.

It is narrated from Holy Prophet (s.a.w.a.) that he said, on the night of Meraj, every time I passed by a group of angels, they asked me about Ali ibn Abi Talib (as) so often that I started to believe that Ali (as) was more famous in the skies than I was.

When I reached the fourth sky, I saw the angel of death.

The angel of death asked me, “O Mohammed (s.a.w.a.), how is Ali (a.s.)?

I said, “O my friend, how do you know Ali (a.s.)?

He said, “O Mohammed (s.a.w.a.), I am responsible for taking the life of everyone that Allah created except for two beings, that is, your life and Ali’s life, because Allah Himself will take your lives.”

Then I reached the Arsh (the throne) and when I looked up I saw Ali ibn Abi Talib (a.s.) standing under the Throne of my Lord.

I said, “O Ali! Did you race me here?”

Then Jibrael (a.s.) asked me, “O Mohammed (s.a.w.a.) to whom are you speaking”?

I replied, “I am talking to my brother, Ali ibn Abi Talib (a.s.).”

Jibraeel (a.s.) replied, “O Mohammed (s.a.w.a.), this is not Ali (a.s.). This is an angel that Allah has created in the shape of Ali ibn Abi Talib (a.s.). When we angels miss Ali ibn Abi Talib (a.s.) we go and look at this angel and seek forgiveness from Allah for Ali’s (a.s.) Shia.[2]

Tradition 2: People who Lie

While describing the scenes of Meraj, the Holy Prophet (s.a.w.a.) told Janabe Fatema Zahra (s.a.):

“On the night of Meraj I saw a woman whose head resembled a pig and her body was like that of a donkey. It was due to the fact that she spread discord and told lies.”  [3]

Tradition 3 : Those who disrespect the purified Ahle Bait (as).

On the night of Meraj the Holy Prophet (s.a.w.a.) saw the following inscriptions on the door of Hell:

“Allah degrades the one who insults Islam, the one who insults the purified Ahle Bait (a.s.) and the one who helps an oppressor in oppression.” [4]

Tradition 4: Those who Usurp the Properties of Orphans

 The Holy Prophet (s.a.w.a.) says:

 “On the night of ascension (Meraj) when I was taken to the skies I decried a group of people whose bellies were being stuffed with fire. And the fire was spilling from their anal openings. I asked Jibraeel, who they are? Jibraeel replied, ‘They are those who used to usurp the property of the orphans unjustly’.” [5]

Tradition 5: Those who take Usury

The Holy Prophet (s.a.w.s.) has also stated:

“On the night of ascension (Meraj) I saw some people trying to stand up but did not succeed because of their huge bellies, I asked, O Jibraeel, who are these people?”

Jibraeel replied, “They are those who have taken usury. Now they can only stand up like those who have been possessed by the Devils.”

Tradition 6 : Those who have Love of this World in their Hearts.

The Holy Prophet (s.a.w.a.) said, “The Lord Almighty told me on the night of Meraj, ‘O Ahmad, if any of My slaves may offer prayers and fasts equal to that done by all in the sky and the earth, may refrain from food like angels, may wear the dress of constant worshippers and then I see that in his heart was even an iota of love or desire for worldly fame, position, material desire etc. I will not admit him to Paradise. I will remove My love from his heart. I will make his heart dark, so that he may forget Me and I will not allow him to taste the sweetness of My love.”

Tradition 7: The Voice of  Imam Ali (as) During the Meraj.

Abdullah ibn `Umar that: "I heard someone ask the Prophet of Allah (s.a.w.a.) - `with what voice did Allah, the Glorified and High, speak to you on the night of the Meraj ?" The Holy Prophet (s.a.w.a.) replied, "My Lord spoke to me with the voice of 'Ali ibn Abi Talib (a.s.) and said, `O' Ahmad (s.a.w.a.)! I am an Entity that is not like anything else. I cannot be compared to anything else and I know all the secrets of your heart. With the exception of 'Ali ibn Abi Talib (a.s.), you have no other close friend. Thus, I speak to you with the voice of 'Ali ibn Abi Talib (a.s.) so that your heart will be at ease."[6]

Excerpts from the Book - Irshad al-Qulub on the event of Meraj.

a.     Renouncing the world.

The Holy Prophet (s.a.w.a.) said,

"Lord! How do I renounce life and seek the Hereafter?”

The Almighty said, "Take from this life light food and drink as well as clothing; do not hoard for tomorrow, and keep remembering Me.”

b.     Seeking nearness to Allah, the Almighty

The Holy Prophet (s.a.w.a.) said,"Lord! Lead me to a deed whereby I seek nearness to You.”

The Almighty said,"Make your night a day and your day a night.” The Prophet (S) said, "How so, Lord?”

The Almighty said,"Turn your sleep into prayer and your food into hunger.

c.      Seeking proximity to Allah, the Almighty

O Ahmad (s.a.w.a.)! Do you know during what time a servant becomes close to Allah?”

The Prophet (S) said, "No, Lord, I do not.” The Almighty said, "He does so when he is either hungry or prostrating.

d.     Loving the Poor

O Ahmad (s.a.w.a.)!  Love for My sake is love for the poor; so, get close to the poor and let them get close to you, and keep away from the rich and keep them away from you, for the poor are the ones that I love.

e.     Characteristics of  seekers of Duniya & Aakherat.

The Holy Prophet (s.a.w.a.) asked :"Lord ! Who are the seekers of life and who seek the Hereafter?”

The Almighty said,"One who seeks this world eats a lot, laughs a lot, and sleeps a lot, and his anger is a lot, too. He is pleased only a little. He does not apologize to those to whom he misbehaves, nor does he accept the excuse of those who apologize to him. He is lazy when being obedient [to Me] and courageous when disobedient. His hopes are high and destination is near. He does not hold himself accountable; he is of little benefit while being talkative. His fear is little and he is quite happy when it is time to eat. The seekers of this life do not express thanks at the time of ease, nor are they patient at the time of affliction.”

O Ahmad (s.a.w.a.)! The countenance of the seekers of goodness and of the Hereafter is kind; their modesty is a lot and foolishness is little; their plotting is little. People are at ease on their account while their own souls are wearisome. Their speech is balanced. They hold themselves to account, wearing them out; their eyes sleep but not their hearts. Their eyes are tearful and hearts are in remembrance. When people are recorded as oblivious, they are written among those who remember. At the beginning of a bliss they praise [their Lord] and at its end they thank [Him]. Their supplication is raised with Allah, the Almighty, their speech is heard. The angels are happy on their account. Their supplication runs under the veils. The Lord loves to hear their speech just as a mother loves her child. Nothing distracts them from Allah for a twinkling of an eye, nor do they want plenty of food, or plenty of talk, or plenty of clothing. In their regard, people are dead while Allah is Living, Subsisting, Great.

If the soul of one of them departs from his body, I shall not send the angel of death unto him, and none shall seize his soul except Me.

May Allah protect us from being among his deviated servants. May Allah give us taufeeq to obey His Messenger and His message.

---

[1] Holy Quran surah (Al ISRA) 17 : 1

[2] Behar al Anwaar, Vol. 18, page 300

[3] Oyoon Akhbare-Reza

[4] Mustadrakul Wasael

[5] Wasaelush Shia

[6] Kashf al-Ghummah, Vol. 1, p. 106

Ayat e Wilayat and Fakhre Raazi

Allah (swt) created this world so that the humans and jinns worship him. And to support them in this cause He (swt) sent his best of the creations i.e. Holy Prophet (s.a.w.a.) and his Ahlul Bait (a.s.). The Ahlul Bait (a) taught us the way of worshipping Allah. Moreover, mentioning their virtues and sufferings was made a great worship in itself. However, the enemies of Ahlil Bait (a) have always tried to belittle their innumerous virtues. Let us discuss one of the most famous verses from the Holy Quran revealed in the praise of Ahlul Bait (a.s.). Allah (swt) says:

إِنَّما وَلِيُّكُمُ اللَّهُ وَ رَسُولُهُ وَ الَّذينَ آمَنُوا الَّذينَ يُقيمُونَ الصَّلاةَ وَ يُؤْتُونَ الزَّكاةَ وَ هُمْ راكِعُونَ

Only Allah is your Vali and His Messenger and those who believe, those who keep up prayers and pay the poor-rate while they bow

(Surah Maidah – 5: 55)

Looking at the brevity of the article we would not go into the details of the incident as it is popular among the Shias. However, after the incident Allah boasts to the angels and says: O Angels! Did you see this servant of mine whose body is in my worship, his heart is attached to me and he spent his wealth as charity for my satisfaction. I make you as witness that I am satisfied with him and I am satisfied with his caliphs i.e. his progeny.

Then J. Jibraeel revealed the above verse.

However, there were some people who tried to steal this virtue for themselves:

In the Amaali of Shaikh Sadooq it is mentioned that Umar Khattab (l.a.) said: I gave forty rings in the state of Rukoo so that a verse may be revealed in my praise but it do not happen.

When this did not happen they tried to demean the status of Ameerul Momineen (a): It has come in Al-Kafi that Imam Mohammad Baqir (a) said: When the Ayat e Wilayat was

revealed a few companions of the Holy Prophet (s) gathered in the mosque and some of them said to others ‘What is your view regarding this verse’. Some of them replied: If we reject this verse then it is as we have rejected other verses as well. And if we accept this verse then it is a disgrace and shame for us and Ali ibn Abi Talib will get an upper hand over us. A few of them said: We know that whatever Mohammad (s) has said is truth and we accept his mastership but we will not obey him if appoints Ali (a.s.) as Wali e Amr. At that time this verse was revealed “They recognize the bounty of Allah then deny it” means – they accept the mastership of Mohammad while most of them deny the mastership of Imam Ali (a.s.)

Objections of Fakhre Raazi

Fakhre Raazi in his Tafseer has attempted a lot not to conclude this verse on the Wilayat and Imamat of Ameerul Momineen (a) and other Imams (a) however he has failed considerably in his attempt.  How is it possible to hide the sun behind a particle?

He says:

1.    He says that words used in the verse are plural while Imam Ali (a) was the only person who gave charity so how is this contradiction

Answer: Here the Plural tense has not come in the meaning of numbers but has come for totality. Such instances are present in Quran

Those to whom the people said: Surely men have gathered against you, therefore fear them, but this increased their faith, and they said: Allah is sufficient for us and most excellent is the Protector (S. Aale Imran – 173). Here people refers to Naeem bin Masood Asjaee

Then hasten on from the Place from which the people hasten on (S. Baqarah - 199). Here people refers to Holy Prophet (s)

2. He says that Ameerul Momineen (a) knows Quran better than these RAAFEZIs however during the discussion of Shura he brought up the incident of Ghadeer
   
   and Mubahela and other virtues but did not discuss verse. It is because it does not imply to him

Answer: Ameerul Momineen (a) did mention this verse in the Shura. He said: Who amongst you is the person who gave zakat while in Ruku and for whom is the verse of Wilayat revealed except me? Everyone agreed to it.

(Ref: Gaayatul Maraam pg 239)

Not only in Shura but Ameerul Momineen (a) argued with Abu Bakr (l.a.) on the basis of this verse when he (l.a.) snatched away his caliphate. He (a) said: Swear by Allah, With the Wilayat of the Holy Prophet (s) was the verse of Wilayat revealed for me or for you. Abu Bakr (l.a.) said: it was for you.

3. He says that Shias will agree that this verse does not indicate towards the Imamat of Ameerul Momineen (a) because it was revealed in the life time of Holy Prophet (s) when Imam Ali (a) was not the Imam. And even if we accept it we will accept him as the fourth Imam as the time is not mentioned in the verse

Answer: This verse indicates the actual/complete Wilayat of Ameeril Momineen (a) while Imamat and giving orders and Amr bil Maaroof and Nahi an Al Munkar are its necessities and after the death of the Holy Prophet (s) all the above fall under the domain of Wilayat

The above article is a small extract from the book Imam Shanasi by Hazrat Allamah Ayatollah Haaj Syed Mohammed Husain Husaini Tehrani Vol 5 – Discussion on Ayat e Wilayat