Some Disciplines of Testifying to the (Prophet's) Messengership Implying Testifying to the Guardianship

Be aware that this spiritual journey and faithful ascension cannot be made with this broken leg, ruptured reins, blind eyes and lightless heart: "And whomever Allah has not given light, for him there is no light".¹ Therefore, in setting off upon this spiritual road and ascending to this Gnostic mi'raj, it is a must to adhere to the spiritual state of the guides along the ways of knowledge [ma'rifat] and the lights [anwar] of the road of guidance, who are the devotees and the attainers to Allah. If anybody tries, depending on his selfishness and without clinging to their guardianship, to tread upon this road, his journey will be to Satan and to the pit (of hell) [hawiyah]. Scientifically speaking, to connect between the novel [hadith] and the Eternal [qadim], the changing and the Unchanging, there should be an intermediate, a connector, with the characteristic of being unchanging and changing, eternal and novel. Without such an intermediate, the Emanation of the Eternal and the Unchanging would not pass to the changing and the novel in the divine law, and the universal and existential connection would not take place. As regards the connector between these two, the scientific opinions of the experts in the evidential knowledge ['ulum-i burhani] are diverse, as the Gnostic taste is different, to give the details of which is out of the scope of these papers. In the Gnostic taste, the connector is the Sacred Emanation [faid-i muqaddas], the Expansive Existence [wujud-i munbasit], which has the position [maqam] of the big isthmus [barzakhiyat-i kubra] and the great intermediate [wasatiyat-i 'uzma], and it is the very position of the spirituality and the guardianship of the Seal of the Prophets, which is united with the position the Ali's General Guardianship [wilayat-I mutlaqa-I alawiyah]. The relevant details are stated in the Misbahul Hidayah by the writer.² Similarly, in the ascending spiritual connection - which is the opposite of the descending existential connection, or in other words, it is "the contraction of existence" [qabd-i wujud] and returning to the Beginning there is need for an intermediate, without which it does not take place, and the connection of the imperfect and the chained hearts, and of the limited descending spirits, with the Complete, Super Complete and the Absolute from all aspects, is not implemented without the spiritual intermediates and the invisible connectors.

If somebody thinks that Allah, the Exalted, is self-subsisting [qayyum] with each being and encompassing each of the entities [akwan] without the intermediation of the intermediates, as is referred to in the noble ayah: ﴾There is no living creature but He holds it by the forelock﴿³, he is mixing between the states [maqamat] and is making a mistake in the status [i'tibarat], mingling the state of the multiplicity of the stages of existence with the vanishing [fana'] of the individuations [ta'ayyunat]. This discussion, however, is not so much connected to this paper, and, actually, what has already been said was caused by the overflowing of the pen.

In short, adhering to the masters of graces [auliya '-i ni'am] -who have themselves found the way of ascension to ma'arij and completed their journey to Allah is a must for the travelers to Allah, as is frequently mentioned in the noble hadiths, such that in Wasil'il (Wasil'ilush-Shi'ah) there is a chapter concerning the invalidity of worship without adhering to the guardianship of the Imams (the 12 Imams) and believing in their Imamate. In Wasil'il it is quoted from the noble al-Kafi, on the authority of its writer quoting Muhammad ibn Muslim who said: "I was told by Imam Baqirul 'Ulum (the fifth Imam) (AS) who said: 'Know, O Muhammad, that the leaders of despotism and their followers are isolated from Allah's religion. They are misleading and misled. So, their deeds are like the ashes at which a violent wind blows on a windy day and it disperses them."⁴

In another narrative from Imam al-Baqir, he said: "...If a man spent his nights performing the Salat, spent his days fasting, gave out all his wealth in charity, and went to hajj every year of his life, yet he did not know the guardianship of Allah's friend to follow him and return to him in all his deeds, he would have no right to ask Allah, the Glorious and Almighty, for any reward, nor would he be of the people of faith."⁵

Shaykh al-Saduq, quoting Abu Hamza ath Thamali, says that he said: "Imam Ali ibn al-Hussein (AS) asked us: 'Which spot is most preferred?' We said Allah, His Messenger and the son of His Messenger know better.' He said: 'The best of spots for us is that which is situated between the rukn and the maqam (two places in the Ka'bah). If some one lives as long as the life of Nuh who lived among his people for a thousand years less fifty and spends it in fasting in daytime and in worshipping at nights in that spot, and then goes to meet Allah without accepting our guardianship, he will not be benefited by it whatsoever."⁶

The narratives on this topic are too many to be contained in this summary.

The discipline of testifying to the Messengership is to convey to the heart the testimony of the Messenger's being sent by Allah, as well as the greatness of the state of the Messengership, especially that of the Last Messenger, since the whole circle of existence, the invisible and visible worlds, are creationally, legislationally, existentially and from guidance point of view living on the crumbs of his table. That great man is the means of Allah's Emanation and the connection between Allah and the creatures. Had it not been for his spiritual status [maqam] and absolute guardianship, no existing being could have been worthy of being benefited by the state of the Invisible Oneness [ghaib-i ahadi], and Allah's grace would not have passed over to any being, and the light of guidance would not have shone onto anyone of the internal and external worlds. He is the light mentioned in the ayah of Nur (Light): ﴾Allah is the light of the heavens and the earth﴿.⁷

When the greatness of the legislator of the religion and of the Messenger of the Lord of the worlds enters a man's heart, the importance of his precepts and rules enter the heart, too. Then, when the heart has comprehended that greatness, the other visible and invisible powers would submit to it, and the sacred Shari'ah would be observed in all the human kingdom. The sign of the truthfulness of the testimony is that its effects will appear in all the invisible and visible powers, and they will keep adherent to it, as has already been stated.

From what has so far been stated, the reason of testifying to the Messengership in the adhan, the iqamah and the salat has become clear, for the traveler on this spiritual road is in need of adhering to that sacred being, so that he may accompany him and have his helping guidance in performing this spiritual ascension.

Another aspect of this testimony is the announcement to the mundane and heavenly powers that the salat, which is the reality of the ascension [mi'raj] of the believers and the source of the knowledge of the people of gnosticism and of faith, is the result of the complete revelation [kashf] of Muhammad (SA), who, with his spiritual journey, divine attractions and the embers of the Beneficent, attained to a position "at the distance of two bows or closer still",⁸ revealing its truth, following the Essential, Nominal and Attributive manifestations and intimate inspirations in the Invisible Oneness. In fact, this is a souvenir, a gift, that he brought from his moral and spiritual journey for his ummah, which is the best of the ummahs, and by that he favoured them and overwhelmed them with blessings. When this belief sets inside the heart and is fixed by repetition, the salik will, as a matter of course, understand the greatness of the state and the place, and will proceed, with fear and hope, to cover this stage, and it is hoped, insha 'allah (Allah willing), if he does his best to perform it, that master will assist him and lead him to the state of "the Proximity of the One" [qurb-i ahadi], which is the original innate objective. In the divine sciences it has been proved that the return of all beings is implemented by means of the Perfect Man: "As He brought you forth in the beginning, so shall you also return."⁹ "With you Allah started and with you He will end, and the return of the creatures is up to you."¹⁰

A Gnostic Note

In the honourable hadith in 'Ilalush-Shara'i', which gives details about the salat of the mi'raj and describes it, it is said that when the Messenger of Allah (SA) mounted on the mount of light, which had been sent down by the Lord of Might, and ascended accompanied by Gabriel, and reached the third heaven, the angels ran away, bowed and glorified Allah. Gabriel said: "I testify that Muhammad is the Messenger of Allah. I testify that Muhammad is the Messenger of Allah." The angels gathered and greeted the Messenger of Allah, and asked him about Amirul Mu'minin (Ali). The doors of the heavens opened and the Messenger ascended to the fourth heaven. There, the angels of Allah said nothing. Then the doors of the heaven opened, and the angels gathered, and Gabriel finished reciting the 'iqamah ..." etc.

Al-Ayyashi, in his exegesis of the Qur'an, relates almost the same context.

From this hadith one may gather that the angels of each of the heavens were incapable of enduring to see the Ahmadan Beauty, and they fell bowing at seeing his sacred light, and dispersed, thinking it was the light of Allah. Then, as they heard the chapters of the adhan and the iqamah they came back to his intimacy, the doors of the heavens opened and the veils were lifted.

Hence, the salik is to come out from these veils by means of the said testimonies -by testifying to the Messengership he is to completely come out from the veil of the creational individuality [ta'ayyun-i khalqi], because the position of Messengership which He assigned to the most honourable of the creatures, is the position of absolute annihilation [fana'] and complete dependence, since the final absolute Messengership is the big divine isthmus khilafat (vicegerency, succession). It is a vicegerency [khilafat] in respect of appearance, manifestation, genesis and legislation. The vicegerent [khalifah] is not to be independent nor to have individuality in any way, as otherwise, the vicegerency becomes the principalship itself, which is not possible for any of the beings.

So, the salik is to convey the great state of the Ahmadan khilafat to the innermost of his heart and soul, by means of which he is to remove the veil and penetrate the barriers, and to completely come out of the veils of the creational individuation. Then, the doors of all the heavens will open to him and he will attain, unveiled, to his objective.

A Juristic Branch and a Gnostic Principal

In some untrustworthy narratives it is stated that after testifying to the Messengership in the adhan one is to say: "I testify that Ali is waliyullah (Allah's friend)" twice. In other narratives, one is to say: "I testify that Ali is truly Amirul Mu'minin" twice. In some others, one is to say: "Muhammad and his progeny are the best of people". Ash-Shaykh al-Saduq (may Allah have mercy upon him) took these narratives to be invented and he denied them.¹¹ It is well known among the 'ulama' (may Allah be pleased with them) that these narratives are not reliable. Some narrators regard them among the commendables, due to "the negligence of the proofs of the laws." This opinion, however, is not far from being true, although if "absolute proximity" [qurbat-i mutlaqah] is intended, reciting it is better and more admired, because after testifying to the Messengership, it is desirable to testify to the guardianship and the leadership of the believers. In the hadith of ihtijaj (argumentation) it is said that Qasim ibn Mu'awiyah said: "I said to Imam al-Sadiq that the people of the Sunnah relate a hadith about the mi'raj, that when the Messenger of Allah was taken on the mi'raj, he saw upon the: Arsh: 'There is no god but Allah, Muhammad is the Messenger of Allah, and Abu Bakr al-Siddiq.' He said: 'Glorified be Allah! They changed everything even this'!' He said" 'Yes', Then he continued: 'When Allah, the Exalted, created the 'Arsh, He wrote upon it: 'There is no god but Allah, Muhammad is the Messenger of Allah, and Ali is the Commander (Leader) of the believers. He ordered these to be written on the water, on the Chair (Throne), on the Tablet, on Israfil's forehead, on the two wings of Gabriel, on the shoulders of the heavens and the earth, on the tops of the mountains, on the sun and on the moon.' Then the Imam added: 'When anyone of you says: 'There is no god but Allah, Muhammad is the Messenger of Allah', let him say: 'Ali is the Commander (Leader) of the believers.'¹²

In short, this noble remembrance, after testifying to the Messengership is generally recommendable. In the chapters of the adhan, especially, it is probably commendable. Nevertheless, as the notable 'ulama' have denied those narratives, one may pronounce it by way of precaution and with the general intention of proximity (to Allah), not as a feature of the adhan.

As to the Gnostic note concerning "writing these words on all the beings, as from the High: Arsh to the low earth", it is that the truth of the khilafah and wilayah (successorship and guardianship) is the manifestation of divinity, which is the origin of existence and its perfection. Every being which has a share of existence, also has a share of the truth of divinity and its manifestation, which is the truth of the khilafah and wilayah, and the divine grace is fixed on the foreheads of all beings all over the universe, as from the invisible worlds to the end of the visible world. The said divine grace is the truth of" The Expansive Existence" [wujud-i munbasit], "The Breath of the Beneficent" [nafasur-rahman] and "The Created-in Right" [haqq-I makhluqun bihi], which are the very inside of the Last Successorship and of the Ali's General Guardianship. On this, the Gnostic Shaykh Shahabadi (may his spirit be sanctified), used to say that the testimony to Messengership implies the testimony to Guardianship, because Guardianship is the inside of Messengership.

The writer says that these two testimonies are both implied in the testimony to His Divinity, and the testimony to Messengership implies the other two testimonies, as well as the testimony to Guardianship implies the other two testimonies. Praise be to Allah at the beginning and at the end.

* Book: Adabus Salat "The Disciplines of the Prayer". By: Imam Khomeini.

1- Surah Nur: 40.
2- Misbahul Hidayah is a book written in the Arabic language by Imam Khomeini (may Allah sanctity his honourable soul), explaining some truths and knowledge concerning the caliphate and guardianship. In the Preface to this honourable book he says: "I like to uncover for you, in this paper, by the help of Allah, the guardian of guidance in the beginning and in the end, and indication of the Muhammadan caliphate, and an exudation of the truth of the , Alawian guardianship (upon them be the greeting from the Beginning to eternity) and how they spread through the invisible and visible worlds ..., or rather it should be named: Misbahul Hidayah to Caliphate and Guardianship. I ask Allah success, as He is the best assistant and company, and I ask His pure guardians their patronage in this world and in the other world ..." The writer finished writing the book in the month of Shawwal, 1349 H.
3- Surah Hud: 56.
4- Wasai'lush Shi'ah, vol. 1, p. 90 chs. on "Preliminaries to Worship." ch. 29, hadith 1. Usulul Kafi, vol. 1, p. 259," Book of Proof " , ch. on "Knowing the Imam and Returning to Him", hadith 8.
5- Usulul Kafi, vol. 3, p. 30. "Book of Faith and Infidelity", ch. on "The Pillars of Islam", hadith 5.
6- Iqabul Amal, ch. on "He Who Ignores the Merits of Ahlul Bayt hadith 2. Wasa'ilush-Shi'ah, vol. 1, p. 93, chs. on "Preliminary to Worships", ch. 29, hadith 12.
7- Surah Nur: 35.
8- Surah an-Najm: 9.
9- Surah al-A'raf: 29.
10- 'Uyunu akhbarir Rida, vol. 2, p. 272 (Al-Jami'ah ai-Kabirah invocation).
11- Man la Yahduruhul Faqih, vol. 1, p. 188, "Book of the salat", ch. on "The Adhan, the Iqamah and the Reward of the Mu'adhdhins (Those who call for the sa'lat), comment on the narrative No. 35.
12- al Ihtijaj, vol. 1, p. 230.