Means to Allah (PART II)

(The Imam (PBUH))

• After the Prophet’s death, does the means to Allah become dispensable?
• Who are the guides after Prophet Mohamad (PBUH)?
• How do we build the relation with the Holy Masters?


After the Prophet’s death, does the means to Allah become dispensable?

The Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him and his household) has achieved his duty and mission by conveying the message of Allah and he has been the guide of people to their Creator throughout his noble life. But the age of the Prophet (peace be upon him and his household) was relatively short and did not let him complete the details of what he had to convey, especially the people at the time were at the early beginnings. Doesn’t the message need someone to keep and maintain it? Don’t the rulings need someone to guard it and prevent manipulating it? What is the guarantee that Allah provides to secure and preserve the safety of the message and maintains the approach of Mohamad (peace be upon him and his household)? If not, wouldn’t the efforts of the Prophet (peace be upon him and his household) go in vain?

The Prophet (peace be upon him and his household) has conveyed what he could of rulings and taught what he could and raised as much souls as he could. At that time, he was the leader and the guide of humanity to Allah. Would Allah then leave this convoy without a leader or a guide? Is it wise to do that? Isn’t it a waste of time and effort of the Prophet’s work? This is why Allah says, ﴾O Messenger! proclaim the (message) which hath been sent to thee from thy Lord. If thou didst not, thou wouldst not have fulfilled and proclaimed His mission. And Allah will defend thee from men (who mean mischief).﴿¹

Therefore, by the Imam, the path towards Allah is maintained. By the Imam, the message achieves its goals. By the Imam, those who have fall behind from catching up with the convoy can reach the House of Honor and Glory. The Imam, as a consequence, completes the message of the Prophet and continues his role given to him by Allah.

If it weren’t for the Imam, Allah would not have any excuse to use on people since it is by him He reserves the right of the coming generations to benefit from the efforts of the Prophet (peace be upon him and his household).

People need a guide, a leader, a teacher, and an example. Sharia, as well, needs a person to clarify, to maintain and to apply these rulings. Allah’s alibi is not completed but with the Imam, for by it the religion is completed, "… This day I have perfected your religion for you, completed My favour upon you, and have chosen for you Islam as your religion…"²

So, who would punish those who reject, violate and improvise? Who would defend suspicion? Who would preserve the nation from going astray? It is the Imam who is selected and nominated by Allah Almighty to continue with the mission of calling for Allah which cannot be but under his permission and because the Imam is the proof of Allah, he has to be honest and infallible and has to be slated by Allah.

To ensure that the convoy is really heading towards Allah, man needs someone to take him by the hand to guide to the target and purpose, which are knowing Allah and approaching Allah and the House of Honor. The Imam is the right path that reaches all that, “Show us the straight way”.

As people in the time of the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him and his household) needed a guide, a leader and an idol, they also need a leader and an Imam in their journey to Allah after the Prophet. They need a leader to walk after so that they wouldn’t go astray and deviate from the right path. “And hold fast, all together, by the rope which Allah (stretches out for you), and be not divided among yourselves…”³

Should we decide to travel by sea or land, we cannot dispense with a guide or a captain that leads the ship who knows the way. The same happens in our journey to Allah. We need a guide who knows better the ways of heavens and earth and the ways to Allah so that we could guarantee reaching there because if we do reach, we shall have the complete happiness and everlasting grace. Should we go astray, we shall be thrown into valleys of misery. Moreover, Islam has rulings and Sharia and laws to build the political and social system to construct the earth, lead humans on the right way and to spread justice. Then, who heads this system, supervises application of the same and legislates its rulings? Who is the vicegerent of Allah and the successor of the Prophet on earth?


Who are the guides after Prophet Mohamad (peace be upon him and his household)?

We, ourselves and independently, cannot determine who the guide is and who is to follow and hold fast to his rope so that we could not drown. We are unable to do the same since these people are attributed to Allah who had endorsed them to him and gave them his vow. Allah knows them and selects them. He only has the right to reveal them via means He adopted such as a prophet or Qur’an.

The Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him and his household) has determined that by saying, “I am leaving the two heavy loads among you: the Book of Allah and my close descendants; they shall never be apart until they come to me at the basin.”⁴

Or, “If you hold fast to what I am leaving among you, you shall never go astray: the Book of Allah and my close descendants.”⁵

Those people as the prophet said are the rescue ship from temptation and aberrance and deviation. He says, “O my close descendants among ye are like Noah’s ship: whoever gets aboard shall survive and whoever fails to shall be drowned.”⁶

The Prophet (peace be upon him and his household) further determined their number and their origin, “My nation shall stay until twelve Caliphs, who are all from Quraish, elapse.”⁷

Moreover, he (peace be upon him and his household) determined their names. One account says that a Jewish named Noathol came to the Prophet (peace be upon him and his household) to ask him some questions. Among the inquiries he raised was about his successors after him and the Prophet said (peace be upon him and his household), “My regent is Ali Bin Abi Taleb, succeeded by my grandsons Al Hassan and Al Hussein and the latter shall be succeeded by nine Imams from his descendants. After Ali, his son, shall come Mohamad, succeeded by Jaafar, then Moussa, then Ali, then Mohamad, then Ali, then Hassan and lastly Mohamad Al Mahdi, the Awaited Imam. These are the twelve caliphs.”⁸

Allah Almighty has determined the first Imam in the Holy Qur’an when He said, “Your real friends (regents) are (no less than) Allah, His Messenger, and the (fellowship of) believers,- those who establish regular prayers and regular charity, and they bow down humbly (in worship).”⁹


How do we build the relation with the Holy Masters?

As previously proved, the Prophet and his Descendents (peace be upon them) are creatures and servants who are so close to Allah Almighty and being close to someone close to Allah is closeness to Allah. They are the gate that leads to Him. “Where is the Door of Allah that he is approached from?”¹⁰

Hence, whosoever wants to come to Allah shall have to come to Him from the door that leads to Him. So, the relationship with the Descendents of the Prophet (peace be upon them) is supposed to begin when one believes that they are the holy masters and Imams and they are to be obeyed. ﴾O ye who believe! Obey Allah, and obey the Messenger, and those charged with authority among you …﴿¹¹

Therefore, obeying them is obeying Allah and His Prophet (peace be upon them) and the benefit of such obedience shall return to the obedient and we are ordered to love them.

﴾… Say: “No reward do I ask of you for this except the love of those near of kin.”...﴿¹²

Therefore, if one loves someone who has a relative, one will love this relative. Loving the beloved of Allah is loving Allah and a way to love Allah. Then, how it would be if Allah had ordered us to love them?

Loving the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him and his household) is loving of Allah. Similarly, loving the Descendents of Prophet (peace be upon him and his household) is loving of the Messenger (peace be upon him and his household) and Allah. The marks of love shall appear on the beloved…

Loving them means to obey and visit them, and loving them means and implore by the. Loving them means believing in their positions, to take words from them, believe them and surrender to them because they are the honest and the reliable persons whom Allah has ordered us to be with.

Loving them means supporting and assisting them to play their roles and preparing earth for them.


Conclusion

O Dear! Endeavor to glorify the position of those people in your heart, imitate what they do, keep on visiting them, strive so that your heart be with them in order to be with them in life and the hereafter and to get Allah’s satisfaction and their love. Follow them because a lover would follow his beloved and one remains with whomever he loves.


* "Beginning of the Path", "Lesson 10". By: Islamic Cultural Knowledge Organization. Knowledge Center for Islamic Studies and Researches.

^{1- 005.067 (Al-Maeda [The Table, The Table Spread]).
2- 005.003 (Al-Maeda [The Table, The Table Spread]).
3- 003.103 (Aal-E-Imran [The Family of Imran]).
4- Bihar Al Anwar, V 5, P 21.
5- Al Irshad, V 1, P 176.
6- Manakeb Amir Al Mou’minin, V 2, P 146.
7- Bihar Al Anwar, V 36, P 231.
8- Yanabih Al Mawada Lizawi Al Korba, V 3, Al Kannouzi, P281.
9- Al-Qur'an, 005.055 (Al-Maeda [The Table, The Table Spread]).
10- Du’a Al Nodba, Bihar Al Anwar, V 99, P 107.
11- Al-Qur'an, 004.059 (An-Nisa [Women]).
12- Al-Qur'an, 042.023 (Ash-Shura [Council, Consultation]).}