Hawzah News Agency - The purpose of creation is the servitude of Allah The Almighty, as mentioned in chapter Al-Dhariyaat:56 “And I did not create the Jinn and the humans except that they may serve Me by worshiping and obeying Me” , and the foundation and basis of servitude is knowing Him, regarding the hadith which says “The first act of worshiping Allah is knowing Him.”(Tawhid Al-Saduq, p.34). The highest manifestation of this knowledge is knowing the Prophet (pbuh and his family) and his successors. Undoubtedly, one of the important duties of the Believers regarding the Lord is the recognition of that sacred being. This knowledge reaches perfection when they have properly recognized the Holy Prophets — especially the holy Prophet of Islam (pbuh and his family). This important matter is also not achieved except through the recognition of the Imams as his successors, particularly the last and contemporary Imam.
A person asked Imam Husayn (pbuh):
یَا اِبْنَ رَسُولِ اَللَّهِ بِأَبِی أَنْتَ وَ أُمِّی فَمَا مَعْرِفَةُ اَللَّهِ؟
قَالَ مَعْرِفَةُ أَهْلِ کُلِّ زَمَانٍ إِمَامَهُمُ اَلَّذِی یَجِبُ عَلَیْهِمْ طَاعَتُهُ.
“O son of the Messenger of Allah! May my father and mother be your sacrifice, what is the meaning of knowing Allah?”
[Imam Husayn (pbuh) in response] said: “The knowledge of Allah consists of the people of every era knowing their Imam whose obedience is obligatory upon them.”
(Ilal al-Shara’i’, Vol.1, p.9)
Therefore, knowing the Imam is not separate from knowing Allah; rather, it is one of its dimensions. In a supplication taught from Imam Sadiq(pbuh), it is stated:
اللَّهُمَّ عَرِّفْنِی نَفْسَکَ فَإِنَّکَ إِنْ لَمْ تُعَرِّفْنِی نَفْسَکَ لَمْ أَعْرِفْ نَبِیکَ اللَّهُمَّ عَرِّفْنِی رَسُولَکَ فَإِنَّکَ إِنْ لَمْ تُعَرِّفْنِی رَسُولَکَ لَمْ أَعْرِفْ حجّتکَ اللَّهُمَّ عَرِّفْنِی حجّتکَ فَإِنَّکَ إِنْ لَمْ تُعَرِّفْنِی حجَّتَکَ ضَلَلْتُ عَنْ دِینِی.
“O Allah! Grant me knowledge of You, for if You do not make me know Yourself, I will not know Your Prophet. O Allah! Grant me knowledge of Your Messenger, for if You do not make me know Your Messenger, I will not know Your Proof (Imam). O Allah! Grant me knowledge of Your Proof, for if You do not make me know Your Proof, I will stray from my religion.”
(Al-Kafi, Vol.1, p.342)
There are three main ways that can be used for the recognition of the Imam:
1. Explicit Designation
Meaning the designation and explicit declaration by the Prophet (pbuh and his family), the content of which is informing of divine appointment or the appointment of the Imam by divine command. In the first type, the appointment is done without an intermediary and is a divine act, and the declaration of the Prophet (pbuh and his family) is like reporting it. In the second type, the divine act is through the intermediary of the Prophet (pbuh), which is done by the command of Allah, and its attribution to Him is like the attribution of the acts of angels to Allah.
2. Miraculous Acts
Miraculous Acts by someone claiming Imamate is a proof of the truth of his claim, and according to the statement of some prominent figures, it is a proof of his appointment by Allah. There are two perspectives on this issue: one is that the miraculous act is independently a proof of Imamate, and the other is that the main proof is the appointment and declaration of the Prophet (pbuh and his family) or the previous Imam, and miraculous act is a proof of the appointment. If the declaration’s narration is missing and there is a miraculous act, the miraculous act indicates that there was a narration upon the possessor of the miraculous act and it has not reached us.
3. Practical Conduct
Morals and behavior, lifestyle, and knowledge are among the ways of knowing the Imam for those who have the competence to discern and can recognize the possessor of this position from his morals, conduct, speech, and various interactions.
(Lotfollah Safi Golpaygani, Piramon-e Ma’refat-e Imam (pbuh), p.77-78)
Today, considering the multitude of authentic narrations, the path to the recognition of the Imam of the Time (pbuh) is open. The eighth Imam, Imam Ali bin Musa al-Ridha (pbuh) says:
… الاِمَامُ أَمِینُ اللَّهِ فی خَلْقِهِ وَ حُجَّتُهُ عَلَی عِبَادِهِ وَ خَلِیفَتُهُ فِی بِلادِهِ وَ الدَّاعِی إِلَی اللَّهِ وَ الذَّابُّ عَنْ حُرَمِ اللَّهِ الاِمَامُ الْمُطَهَّرُ مِنَ الذُّنُوبِ وَ الْمُبَرَّأُ عَنِ الْعُیُوبِ الْمَخْصُوصُ بِالْعِلْمِ الْمَوْسُومُ بِالْحِلْمِ نِظَامُ الدِّینِ وَ عِزُّ الْمُسْلِمِینَ وَ غَیْظُ الْمُنَافِقِینَ وَ بَوَارُ الْکَافِرِینَ الاِمَامُ وَاحِدُ دَهْرِهِ لایُدَانِیهِ أَحَدٌ وَ لایُعَادِلُهُ عَالِمٌ وَ لا یُوجَدُ مِنْهُ بَدَلٌ وَ لا لَهُ مِثْلٌ وَ لا نَظِیرٌ مَخْصُوصٌ بِالْفَضْلِ کُلِّهِ مِنْ غَیْرِ طَلَبٍ مِنْهُ لَهُ وَ لا اکْتِسَابٍ بَلِ اخْتِصَاصٌ مِنَ الْمُفْضِلِ الْوَهَّابِ …
The Imam is the trustee of Allah among His creation, His proof over His servants, His caliph in His lands, the caller to Allah, and the defender of His obligatory rights over the servants. The Imam is pure from sins and free from defects. Knowledge is exclusive to him, and he is known for his forbearance. The Imam is the organizer of religion, the honor of Muslims, the cause of wrath of the hypocrites, and the annihilation of the disbelievers. The Imam is the unique one of his time. No one in status comes close to his position, no scholar equals him, no substitute can be found for him, and he has no similar or peer. All virtues are specific to him, without him having sought them. This is an exclusive distinction from The Most Gracious, Highly Bestowing Bestower, for the Imam.
(Al-Kafi, Vol.1, p.201)
Indeed, by merely knowing these few characteristics, a long step is taken in the path of recognition of the Imam, and then comes the turn for obedience.
This discussion continues…
Adapted from “Mahdism Textbook” by Khodamorad Salimian with slight modifications.
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