| 1. Introduction
The universal wilãyat is in a way linked
to the knowledge that Almighty Allãh has bestowed
upon the person holding the wilãyat. The
universal wilãyat of Imam 'Ali, for example,
is described in the Qur'ãn by the words "the person
who has knowledge of the Book."
What is 'ilmu 'l-ghayb? Our means
of gaining knowledge are through the senses that
Allãh has created in us. "And Allãh brought you
forth from the wombs of your mothers while you did
not know anything; and He made for you the ears, the
eyes, and the hearts (i.e., minds) so that haply you
may be thankful." (16:78) We see things through
our eyes and listen to sounds by our ears, and then
we analyze the information in our minds and deduce
the conclusion.
There is another kind of knowledge that cannot be
acquired by human senses; it comes from God. That
knowledge is known as 'ilmu 'l-ghayb,
knowledge of the unseen. For example, knowledge
about the future events or the inner thoughts and
intentions of a person, etc.
"Ghayb" is the opposite of "shuhûd
- the present, the seen". Sometimes the ghayb
is absolute (e.g., the inner most intentions of a
person) and at other times it is relative (e.g.,
what a person has hidden inside his house, it is
'unseen' for outsiders). The term "ghayb-unseen,
hidden" is used from the perspective of the created
beings only. For Allãh there is no difference
between ghayb and shuhûd. The Qur'ãn
describes Allãh as: "...Knower of the unseen and
the seen..." ( 39:46 ; 62:8 )
2. The Qur'ãn & 'Ilmu 'l-Ghayb
According to the Qur'ãn, the only independent
source of 'ilmu 'l-ghayb is Allãh.
"And with Him are the keys of the ghayb, no one
knows it except Him..." (6:59)
"Say, 'Those who are in the heavens and the
earth do not know the ghayb except Allãh."
(27:65)
"And to Allãh belongs the ghayb of the heavens
and the earth." ( 7:49 ; 18:26 )
The import of these verses is that the knowledge
of ghayb belongs to Allãh, He knows the
ghayb by Himself.
Can anyone else have access to 'ilmu 'l-ghayb?
Almighty Allãh, out of His infinite grace and
wisdom, bestows the 'ilmu 'l-ghayb upon
whomsoever He chooses. The Qur'ãn says:
"(My Lord) knows the ghayb and He does not
expose His ghayb to anyone except to one
with whom He is pleased from the messenger..."
(72:26-27)
"...And Allãh is not about to inform you about
the ghayb, but Allãh chooses from His
messengers whomsoever He pleases [for the ghayb]."
(3:179)
"He knows what is before them and what is
behind them, and they cannot comprehend anything
of His knowledge except what He pleases."
(2:255)
The import of these verses is that Allãh bestows
'ilmu 'l-ghayb to some created beings.
When you put all the verses about the knowledge
of the unseen together, you get the overall
conclusion that (1) Allãh is the only original and
independent possesser of 'ilumu 'l-ghayb, and
that (2) whosoever from the angels, prophets,
messengers, Imams and other virtuous persons that
have 'ilmu 'l-ghayb is totally dependent on
Allãh's discretion and power.[128]
After commenting on the last verses of surah 72,
'Allãmah at-Tabãtabã'í reaches the following
conclusion:
"The exclusive possession of the 'ilmu 'l-ghayb
by Almighty Allãh is in the sense of originality
that we have explained, and so He, the Almighty,
knows the ghayb by Himself while the others
know the ghayb by Him informing them about
it. And so it becomes clear that what has been
mentioned in His words about others not having the
'ilmu 'l-ghayb actually means 'not having
it by themselves and independently,' it does not
deny what others know [of the ghayb] through
revelation..."[129]
3. 'Ilmu 'l-Ghayb of the Prophets
The Qur'ãn not only talks about the possibility
of others having access to the 'ilmu 'l-ghayb,
it actually gives various examples of those who had
been given the 'ilmu 'l-ghayb by Almighty
Allãh.
1. While counting the miraclous powers that
he possessed, Prophet 'Isa (a.s.) says:
"I will inform you of what you are eating and
what you store in your houses..." (3:48)
2. In reference to Prophet Yûsuf, we have
the following verses:
"And thus does your Lord choose you and teaches
you the interpretation of words." ( 12:6 ,
12:21 )
"...And when they agreed to put him into the
bottom of the pit, We revealed to him that (a time
shall come when) you will inform them of this
affair of theirs..." (12:15)
"...I shall inform you two of its
interpretation before comes to you (the food):
this is from what my Lord has taught me..."
(12:37)
3. Prophet Sulaymãn were taught the
language of the birds:
"And Sulaymãn...he said, 'O men! We have been
taught the language of the birds." (27:16)
4. According to the Qur'ãn, Allãh had
bestowed 'ilmu 'l-ghayb upon the Prophet of
Islam as can be seen in the following verses:
Referring to the events of the past, Allãh
says, "These are the news of the ghayb that We
reveal unto you..." (11:49)
Refering to the story of Prophet Yûsuf, Allãh
says: "These are the news of the unseen (ghayb)
that We reveal unto you..." (12:102)
Allãh informed the Prophet about the on-going
war between the Eastern Roman Empire and the
Sasanid Persian Empire: "The Romans are
vanquished in a nearby land; and they, after being
vanquished, shall overcome (the Persians) within a
few years..." (30:1-4)
On the conquest of Mecca at the hand of the
Muslims, Allãh said, "Certainly Allãh had shown
to His Apostle the vision with truth: you shall
most certainly enter the Sacred Mosque (in Mecca),
if Allãh pleases, in security..." (48:27)
The Prophet is also informed about the inner
most thoughts of the hypocrites: "...And they
say in their own hearts, 'Why does not Allãh
punish us for what we say?'..." (58:8)
As you can see, these examples cover all aspects
of ghayb: history of the past, events of the
future, language of the birds, and also the
intentions of other people. The Prophet is described
as someone "who was not niggardly of the ghayb,"
(81:24) he used to share the information with
others.
Before we end this section, let me remind the
readers that the knowledge of ghayb of a
human being or an angel is not his own but is always
and constantly dependent upon the will of Allãh.
That is why the Messengers were instructed to say
that they do not possess 'ilmu 'l-ghayb. (
6:50 ; 11:3 ) It is for the same reason that Prophet
Mohammad (s.a.w.) was instructed to say:
"Had I knowledge of the ghayb, I would have
acquired much good, and evil would not have
touched me." (7:188)
This is not a denial of having 'ilmu 'l-ghayb;
it is affirmation of the belief that whatever
knowledge he has is according to the wish and
pleasure of Almighty Allãh.[130]
4. 'Ilmu 'l-Ghayb of the Imams
Imam 'Ali was also blessed with the 'ilmu 'l-ghayb
as attested by verse 13:43 discussed in the last
chapter on wilãyat. It was on the basis of
the "knowledge of the Book" that Imam 'Ali has the
universal wilãyat. Moreover, according to
Shí'a ahãdíth, Allãh had instructed the
Prophet to convey whatever knowledge was given to
him to 'Ali bin Abi Tãlib. After all, the Prophet "was
not niggardly of the ghayb." The other Imams, as
successors of 'Ali, also had access to 'ilmu 'l-ghayb.[131]
Shaykh al-Muzaffar explains the Shí'a position on
this issue as follows:
"We maintain that the powers of the Imams to
receive inspiration have reached the highest
degree of excellence, and we say that it is a
Divinely-given power. By this means the Imam is
able to understand information about anything,
anywhere, and at any time, and he understands by
means of this Divinely-given power at once,
without recourse to methodological reasoning or
guidance from a teacher. When he desires to know
about some matter, it is reflected in his pure
mind as if in a polished mirror. It is clear from
the histories of their lives that, like the
Prophet, the Imams were not trained or taught by
anyone at all, not even in reading and writing,
from their childhoods to the maturing of their
minds. No author or teacher was seen to instruct
one of them, but they were incomparable masters of
knowledge, so that they never asked about any
problem without being able to answer it
immediately, and they never said that they did not
know. They never required time to consider a
question before replying."[132]
Soon after the people accepted him as their
leader, Imam 'Ali (a.s.) came to the mosque dressed
in the turban and robe of the Prophet, and sat on
the pulpit. Then he said: "O People, ask me before
you lose me for this is the basket of knowledge,
this is the breath of the Messenger of Allãh (s.a.w.),
and this is what the Messenger of Allãh fed me.
Therefore, ask me for I have the knowledge of the
first ones and the last ones.
"By Allãh, if a cushion is set up for me so that
I may sit on it, I shall give verdicts to the people
of Tawrãt according to their Tawrãt until it will
say, ''Ali is true; he has not lied. He has given
you the verdict according to what Allãh has revealed
in me.' And I shall give verdicts to the people of
the Injíl according to their Injíl until it will
say, ''Ali is true; he has not lied. He has given
you the verdict according to what Allãh has revealed
in me.' And I shall give verdicts to the people of
the Qur'ãn according to their Qur'ãn until it will
say, ''Ali is true, he has not lied. He has given
you the verdict according to what Allãh has revealed
in me.'
"You read the Book (i.e., the Qur'ãn) at night as
well as day; so is there anyone among you who knows
what was revealed in it? If it had not been for a
verse in the Book of Allãh, I would have informed
you of what has happened (in the past), what will
happen, and what shall happen until the Day of
Resurrection. And that is the verse: 'Allãh
erases and confirms what He wishes, and with Him is
the Mother of the Book.' [Ra'd 39]..."[133]
This last passage is significant; in it, Imam 'Ali
claims to have the access to 'ilmu 'l-ghayb
but also acknowledges that it is totally dependent
upon the will of Almighty Allãh.
Here we shall just quote one or two examples from
the life of Imam 'Ali (a.s.). Jundab bin 'Abdullãh
al-Azdi narrates the following: I took part with
'Ali in the battles of Jamal and Siffín. I never had
any doubts about fighting against those who fought
him until I took part in the battle of Naharwãn
(against the Kharijites). Then doubts came to me
about fighting against these people. I said, "It is
our reciters of the Qur'ãn and our choice men whom
we are killing. This matter is dreadful."
In the morning I went for a walk (taking) a
vessel of water with me, until I left the lines (of
the army). Then I fixed my spear in the ground,
fitted my shield on it and shaded myself from the
sun. While I was sitting, Amíru 'l-Mu'minín 'Ali (a.s.)
came along. He said to me, "O' Brother from (the
tribe of) al-Azd, do you have water for ritual
purification with you?"
"Yes," I answered and I gave him the vessel.
He went aside so that I could not see him. Then
he came back after he had purified himself. He sat
down in the shade of the spear. Suddenly a horseman
appeared asking for him. I said, "O' Amiru 'l-Mu'minin,
there is a horseman who wants you."
"Make a sign to him (to come here)," he told me.
I made a sign and he came. He said, "O' Amiru 'l-Mu'minin,
the people (i.e., the Kharijites) have crossed the
river."
"No," he retorted, "they have not crossed."
"Yes, by God, they have crossed." the man
insisted.
"No," he retorted, "they have not crossed."
Then another man came. He said, "O' Amiru 'l-Mu'minin,
the people have crossed."
"No," he replied, "they have not crossed."
"By God," the man said, "I did not come to you
until I saw the standards and the baggage on that
side."
"By God," he declared, "they have not done so.
(What you want) is to kill them and shed their
blood."
Then he rose and I rose with him. I said to
myself, "Praise be to God, who has given me insight
into this man and enabled me to recognize his
affair. He is one of the two men: he is either a
bold liar or he has an evidence (for his authority)
from his Lord and a covenant from his Prophet. O
God, I give You a solemn undertaking which You can
ask me about on the Day of Resurrection. If I find
that the people have crossed, I will be the first to
fight against him, the first to thrust my spear into
his eye. If the people have not crossed, then I will
go forth with him and fight alongside him."
We returned to the lines (of the army) and we
found that the standards and baggages were as they
had been (before).
Then 'Ali took me by the scruff of the neck and
pushed me. Then he said, "O' Brother of (the tribe
of) al-Azd, has the matter become clear to you?"
"Yes, Amiru 'l-Mu'minin." I replied.
"Your business is with your enemy," he said.
I killed one man from the Kharijites and then I
killed another. I and another of them were
exchanging blows. I struck him and he struck me. We
both fell together. My comrades carried me back. By
the time I recovered consciousness, there were none
of the Kharijites left.
After quoting this incident, Shaykh al-Mufid
makes the following comment: "In it, 'Ali provides
information about the unseen, gives clear evidence
of his knowledge of the inner conscience (of man)
and his knowledge of what is in men's souls. The
evidence in it is outstanding which could not be
equalled by evidence of a similar nature in terms of
the greatness of the miracle and its clear proof."
[134]
Now I would like to quote another example from
the forthcoming book of my father where he has also
discussed the issue of prophetic foresight. He
writes:
"There are numerous, well-documented prophecies
of the Prophet and 'Ali which were fulfilled
later...An important historical event is referred to
in Sermon 128 in Nahju 'l-Balagha. Sayyid
Razi gives this sermon the caption 'From the Sermon
describing the attributes of the Turks.' He quotes
portions describing fierce invaders, their features,
their clothes, the invincibility and their killing
of multitudes. Now Sayyid Razi died in 406/1016, two
hundred and forty-two years before the fall of
Baghdad in 1258. Ibn Abil Hadid, who wrote the
Sharh (commentary of Nahju 'l-Balagha)
died seventeen years before the fall, he identifies
the invaders with the Mongol hordes who had in his
days already conquered Khorasan, Iran and Syria. He
describes the havoc they created in the neighbouring
countries up to 643/1245. He says:
"'And know that this prophecy of the unseen by
'Ali (a.s.), we have seen it by our own eyes and
it has happened in our time. And the people, since
the early days of Islam, were waiting for its
fulfillment, until the firm decree (of Allãh) made
it appear in our day.'
"There are no clear details in his version of the
sermon of who the conquered were. But this same
sermon in its full form was in the hands of the
learned Shí'a and had been since 'Ali's day.
"'Allama al-Hilli was born eight years before the
fall of Baghdad to Hulagu Khan. His father, Sadídu
'd-Din Yusuf al-Hilli was the most learned man of
his time in fiqh, principle of jurisprudence
and theology. Referring to the prophecies of future
events by 'Ali, 'Allama writes:
And among them is his prophecy of the
foundation of Baghdad and the Kingdom of the
'Abbasids and their circumstance in which the
Mongols shall take away the kingdom from them. My
father has narrated it, and that [prophecy] was
the reason for the citizens of Kufa, Hilla and the
two sacred cities [Karbala and Najaf] being saved
from the massacre.
When Hulagu reached Baghdad, and before he
conquered it, the majority of the people of Hilla
fled away to the deserts, except a few of them.
Among those who remained was my father (may Allãh
have mercy on him), Sayyid Majdu 'd-Din bin Tãwus,
and the faqih, Ibn Abi 'l-'Izz. They decided to
write to the sultan [Hulagu] that they accepted
his rule and were under the Il Khanid authority.
They sent the letter with a Persian man. Hulagu
sent a firman (order) with two person, Nikalah and
'Ala'uddin, saying, 'If your hearts are as your
letter shows, then come to us.' The two officers
came [and conveyed Hulagu's message]. However, the
others [who had signed the letter] were afraid to
go as they did not know what the result would be.
Therefore, my father (may Allãh have mercy on him)
asked the officers, 'Would it be enough if I alone
come there?' They said, 'Yes.' Therefore, he went
with them.
When my father came before the Sultan (and it
was before Baghdad was conquered and the caliph
killed), he asked my father, 'How is it that you
ventured upon writing to me and coming to my court
even before you knew how the matter between me and
your king would be decided? How can you be sure;
perhaps he would make peace with me and I would go
away?'
My father (may Allãh have mercy upon him) said,
'We took that step because we have been told of
the prophecy of Amiru 'l-Mu'minín 'Ali ibn Abi
Tãlib (a.s.) that he said in his Sermon of Zawrã':
'...And what would make you know what Zawrã'
is? A land of deep-rooted splendour. Strong
buildings will be built in it and its
inhabitants will increase in number; and there
shall be therein servants and treasurers.
The children of 'Abbãs will make it their
dwelling place and a showplace for their
vanities; it shall be their house of amusement
and sport; there shall be in it overpowering
oppression, frightful fear, debauched leaders,
sinful rulers, and embezzling ministers; these
shall be served by the natives of Fars and Rum.
They shall not perform any good even after
knowing it and shall not leave any evil even
after knowng it. Their males shall satisfy their
lust with males, and the females with females.
Then there shall be the overwhelming grief,
long weeping and destruction, and crying for the
inhabitants of Zawrã' from the assault of the
Turks. And they are a people of small eyes,
their faces like hammered shields, their clothes
are iron, they are hairless, beardless. There
will lead them a king who will come from whence
their (the 'Abbasids') kingdom had begun. He
will be of a very loud voice, powerful authority
and high courage; he will not pass by a town but
that he will conquer it, and no standard will be
raised against him but that he will put it down.
Woe unto him who would become his enemy, he
shall remain like it until he is victorous.'
After quoting the sermon, my father said, 'As
these qualities had long been described to us and
we found the very qualities in you, we put our
hope in you and came towards you.'
Thereupon the Sultan was satisfied and he wrote
for them (i.e., the citizens of the four towns) a
firman, in the name of my father (may Allãh have
mercy upon him) giving tranquility to the hearts
of the people of Hilla and the nearby towns.
"Clearly the leading Shi'a had the Sermon in a
form which gave details of who the vanquished
were-the 'Abbasids. It is inconceivable that 'Ali
would give such detail of the victor without any
reference to the vanquished. They believed so
completely in its authenticity that they took such
an irreversible step as to correspond with and go in
person to the court of Hulagu. As for Sayyid Razi,
one can understand his omission of details about the
conquered. He did not omit them because of lack of
high literary merit but because he lived in Baghdad
under the very nose of those who were to be so
signally vanquished, the 'Abbasid Caliphs."[135]
Jundab's personal example during the lifetime of
Imam 'Ali and al-Hilli's example of the seventh
Islamic century, clearly prove that the Imams had
access to 'ilmu 'l-ghayb by the blessing of
Almighty Allãh, and that this belief is not "certain
extravagant claims made for them by their fanatical
associates."[136] In
the words of Shaykh al-Mufid, "(The evidence for)
this kind (of miracle) by Amíru 'l-Mu'minín ['Ali]
is such that it can only be denied through
stupidity, ignorance, slander and obstinacy."[137]
5. 'Ilmu 'l-Ghayb & Personal Life
So why did not the Prophet or the Imams use the
'ilmu 'l-ghayb to avert tragedies in their
personal lives? This is a very commonly asked
question in regard to the 'ilmu 'l-ghayb. I
always use an example I had seen in my childhood in
East Africa. I remember seeing vehicles assigned to
government officials with the sign "For Official Use
Only" clearly visible on them. The 'ilmu 'l-ghayb
given to the prophets and Imams is just like that:
"For Official Use Only," it is not for use in their
personal lives.
Recently, in response to a question from a
Philippinese Shí'a, my father wrote: "Allah (s.w.t.)
had given fore-knowledge of many future events to
the Prophet and the Imams. But at the same time they
were strictly ordered not to use that knowledge in
their dealings with the people. In other words, they
were to deal with the people as if they did not know
what was going to happen in the future. They had to
live with the people on the level of the common
people. They were not to use their super-natural
knowledge or power for their own benefit or for
averting any harm from themselves. (In fact, it was
a very tough test for them to know that a certain
man or woman would harm them or their children and
then behave with him/her in the normal way.) That is
why 'Ali (a.s.) did not punish or imprison Ibn
Muljim, although he knew that the latter would
assassinate him."[138]
Shaykh Mohammad Ridha al-Ja'fari explains, "The
Prophets and the Imams, it should be well observed,
share with the rest of humanity the means for
obtaining knowledge which Allãh has given: the
senses, the intellect, etc. They also possess a
special power or means which other people do not
have.
"In the carrying out of the commands of Allãh's
sharí'ah in which all have a responsibility,
and likewise in ordinary behaviour, the Prophets and
the Imams only make use of the first way of knowing,
the commonly available means: the second means is
only made use of by them in duties and works which
are connected with their positions of prophethood
and Imamate. Thus in matters like knowing the
beginning of the month, passing judgement, finding
out if something is unclean or pure, etc., they make
use of the means, such as the sighting of the moon,
and so forth, which everyone else employs.
"Also the knowledge that Prophets or Imams have
concerning, for example, the time of their death,
cannot be the basis for action for them. What they
volitionally do must be determined by the means
available to everyone. Such knowledge thus has a
spiritual aspect to it related to the Encounter with
Allãh, and the reason for it must be sought on this
level, but it is not for the purpose of influencing
and controlling events on the level of ordinary
understanding."[139]
The same applies to the universal wilãyat:
the Prophet or the Imams do not use it for their
personal interest, it is only used for proving the
truth of the faith.
6. The Concept of "al-Qur'ãn an-Nãtiq"
"Al-Qur'ãn an-nãtiq" means the "speaking
Qur'ãn." This is a famous title given to the Shí'a
Imams to describe their proximity to the Qur'ãn;
they are the custodians of the Qur'ãnic message and
its interpretation; they are the embodiment of the
Qur'ãnic values and its ideals. This concept is
based on the various sayings of the Prophet in which
the Qur'ãn and the Ahlul Bayt are shown to never
separate from one another.
The famous hadíth of thaqalayn says:
"I am leaving two precious things behind among
you: the Book of Allãh and my Ahlul Bayt. The two
shall not separate from one another until they
come to me at the fountain of Kawthar (on the Day
of Resurrection)."[140]
In another hadíth, Umm Salama, the wife of the
Prophet, quotes him as follows:
"'Ali is with the Qur'ãn and the Qur'ãn is with
'Ali; they shall never separate from one another
until they reach to me at the Fountain (on the day
of Resurrection)."[141]
Abu Sa'íd al-Khudari reports that one day we were
sitting waiting for the Prophet Mohammad (s.a.w.) to
come out. He came to us while we saw that the strap
of his shoe was broken; he gave it to 'Ali to
repair. Then he said,
"One of you will wage war for the
interpretation (ta'wíl) of the Qur'ãn just
as I waged war for its revelation (tanzíl)."
Abu Bakr said, "Am I the one?" The Prophet said,
"No." Then 'Umar said, "Am I the one?" The Prophet
said, "No, but the one who is repairing the shoe."[142]
Imam 'Ali himself said, "Ask me before you lose
me, for by the One who split the grain and created
the soul, if you ask me as to which verse was
revealed at night time or at day time, whether it is
of Meccan or Medinite [era], during journey (of the
Prophet) or while in Medina, whether it is abrogator
or abrogated, whether it is clear or allegorical,
and whether you need its interpretation or context
of its revelation-I shall inform you about it."[143]
It is based on these facts supported by the Sunni
sources that the Shí'as use the title "al-Qur'ãnu
'n-Nãtiq" for their Imams. As we saw above, Imam
'Ali himself claims to have the true and inner
meanings of the Qur'ãnic verses. This claim and
belief has been there from the earliest days of
Shí'ism. So it is incorrect to place the beginning
of this concept in the latter period by saying that
"the belief that the Imams were the 'speaking (al-natiq)
Qur'ãn,' who knew the esoteric interpretation of the
Book, most probably began during al-Bãqir's time."[144]
* * *
[128] For an
excellent discussion on the Qur'ãnic verses on 'ilmu
'l-ghayb and their relevant ahãdíth, see Ahmad
Mutahhari and Ghulãm Razã Kardãn, 'Ilm-e Payãmbar wa
Imãm dar Qur'ãn, Qum: Dar Rah-e Haq, 1366 (solar)
A.H.
[129] At-Tabãtabã'í,
al-Mizãn, vol. 20, p. 131-132.
[130] For a
precise and clear picture on the knowledge of God
(which is absolute and unchanging, and is described
as "al-lawh al-mahfûz - the protected tablet")
vis-à-vis the knowledge of chosen human beings and
angels (which is not necessarily absolute, and is
described as "lawhu 'l-mahw wa 'l-ithbãt -the tablet
that can be erased and re-written"), see S. Saeed
Akhtar Rizvi, The Justice of God, p. 21-26. The book
clearly explains that badã' (change) does not occur
in the knowledge of God, it can only occur in the
knowledge of humans and angels.
[131] Al-Majlisi,
Bihãru 'l-Anwãr, vol. 26, chapters 1, 3, and 5 as
quoted in Rizvi, The Justice of God, p. 21-26.
[132] Al-Muzaffar,
M.R., The Faith of Shí'a Islam, p. 33-34.
[133] Al-Mufid,
al-Ikhtisãs, p. 235; a shorter version of this
narration may also be seen in al-Irshãd, p. 34 (in
English, p. 21). For other references on this claim
of Imam 'Ali that "Ask me before you lose me," see
al-Amini, al-Ghadír, vol. 6, p. 193-194; vol. 7, p.
107-108.
[134] Al-Mufid,
al-Irshãd, p. 317-319; in its English translation,
see p. 239-240. This narration can also be seen in
the following Sunni sources: Muttaqi al-Hindi, Kanzu
'l-'Ummãl, vol. 11, p. 289 quoted from at-Tabarãni's
al-Wasít; Ibn Abi 'l-Hadíd, Sharh Nahji 'l-Balãgha,
vol. 2, p. 271.
[135] The
forthcoming book of 'Allama Sayyid Saeed Akhtar
Rizvi on Shi'a faith and history. He cites al-Hilli's
Kashfu 'l-Yaqín, p. 28 as the source for the
narration.
[136] Abdulaziz
Sachedina writes about the evolution of Imamate as
follows: "The Imams were now believed to possess
divine knowledge which enabled them to predict
future events...The highly speculative aspects of
the doctrine of the Imamate should be attributed to
the circumstances in which the Imams manifested
political quietism but did not object to certain
extravagant claims made for them by their fanatical
associates. These claims included the possession of
esoteric knowledge inherited through designation by
the Imam." (Islamic Messianism, p. 18-19)
[137] Al-Mufid,
al-Irshãd, p. 314; in English, see p. 236.
[138] In the
forthcoming Your Questions Answered, vol. 8.
[139] See the
explanatory note of Shaykh Mohammad Ridha al-Ja'fari
in al-Kulayni, al-Kãfi (Arabic with English
translation), vol. 1, Part Two, Book 4 (iii) p. 259.
Sayyid Mohammad Ridha al-Jalãli has extensively
dealth with this question and its responses by the
Imams (a.s.) themselves and the Shí'a 'ulamã' of the
last ten centuries. See "'Ilmu 'l-Aimma bi 'l-Ghayb
wa 'l-I'tirãdh 'alayhi bi 'l-Ilqãi ila 't-tuhlika wa
'l-ijãbãt 'anhu 'ibaru 't-ta'ríkh," Turãthunã, no.
37 (Shawwãl, 1414) p. 7-107.
[140] At-Tirmidhi,
Sahíh, vol. 5 (Beirut: Dar al-Fikr, n.d.) p.
328-329, hadíth # 3874, 3876; as-Suyûti, ad-Durru
'l-Manthûr, vol. 6, p. 7, 306; Ibnu 'l-Maghãzili
ash-Shãfi'í, Manãqib 'Ali bin Abi Tãlib, p. 234,
hadíth # 281.
[141] Al-Hãkim,
al-Mustakrak 'ala 's-Sahíhayn, vol. 3 (Beirut: Dar
al-Ma'rifa, n.d.) p. 124; al-Khuwarazmi, al-Manãqib,
p. 110; Majma'u 'z-Zawã'id, vol. 9, p. 134 as-Suyûti,
Ta'ríkhu 'l-Khulafã', p. 173.
[142] An-Nasã'í,
Khasã'isu Amíri 'l-Mu'minín 'Ali bin Abi Tãlib, p.
134; Muhibbu 'd-Dín at-Tabari, Dhakhã'iru 'l-'Uqba,
p. 139.
[143] Al-Mufid,
al-Ikhtisãs, p. 236.
[144] Abdulaziz
Sachedina, Islamic Messianism, p. 15. |