Al-Huda
Foundation, NJ U. S. A
the Message Continues ... 9/183
Newsletter for February 2017
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Piety And Imamate
One of the other instances in which the word Taqwa has been used
is when we obey Allah and obey
the apostle and those in
authority from among us, for
there is a perpetual life in
obedience and perpetual
punishment in disobedience.
Beyond doubt, if God has
punished a nation with
thunderbolt, heavenly and
earthly afflictions, and if they
have been afflicted with famine,
it has been due to disobedience
of divine calls and challenges
to the Messenger of Allah (SAW).
Hence, we notice that in most cases when prophets have invited
people to monotheism, to God and
to the adherence to the
prophets, the word Taqwa has
been used. In the Quranic
Chapter, the Poets (ash-Shu’ara
26), we read about the states of
prophets Moses, Noah, Salih,
Hud, Lot and Shu’aib (AS). When
they say to their tribes: “Surely
I am a faithful apostle to you” immediately,
they says: “Therefore guard against (the punishment of) Allah and obey me.”
Sometimes, the Lord of the universe advises His messenger to
practice Taqwa: “O
prophet! Be careful of (your
duty to) Allah and do not comply
with (the wishes of) the
unbelievers and the hypocrites,
surely Allah is Knowing, Wise.
And follow what is revealed to
you from your Lord: surely Allah
is Aware of what you do.”
In certain verses, the following has been added: “And do not obey the bidding of the extravagant.”
In certain Qur'anic chapters, God says: “O you who believe! Answer (the call of) Allah and His apostle
when he calls you to that which
gives you life; and know that
Allah intervenes between man and
his heart, and that to Him you
shall be gathered. And fear an
affliction which may not smite
those of you in particular who
are unjust; and know that Allah
is severe in requiting (evil).”
The Holy Prophet (SAW) has been quoted by Abu Ayyoob al-Ansari as
saying: “O Ammar! Soon after me,
there will be big mischief so
much so that swords will be
drawn, some will kill each other
and some will hate each other.
In that case, it is incumbent
upon you to resort to this
bald-headed man, sitting on the
right side of me (meaning Ali
ibn Abi Talib). If all people
follow one line and Ali follows
another line, you should follow
his line and leave others. O
Ammar! Surely Ali will not
misguide you and will not direct
you to destruction. O Ammar! To
obey Ali is to obey me and to
obey me is to obey Allah.”
Imam Sadiq (AS) has been reported by al-Mufaddhal ibn Umar as
saying: “God Almighty has chosen
Ali as an emblem and standard
between Him and His creatures.
No one has such a position.
Therefore, whoever obeys him is
a believer and whoever denies
him is an unbeliever. Whoever
denies him will enter fire.”
The Imam (AS) has also been reported as saying that when Gabriel
appeared to the Messenger of
Allah (SAW), he said: “O
Mohammad! Allah sends you
greetings and says: I have
created the seven heavens and
what is there in them…and I have
not created any place higher
than the Rokn (the corner of the
Kaaba) and the Maqam (the place
where Prophet Abraham (a.s.)
used to offer prayer). If any
one of my servants call Me and
meets Me (dies) while he denies
the Imamate of Ali, I will throw
him into the fire on his face.”
Imam Ali (AS) has been reported as saying: “There is no heresy
unless a Sunnah (prophetic norm)
is abandoned (by it). Therefore,
keep away from heresy. Walk on a
sound way, for long-cherished
orders (orders of God and the
Messenger) are the best. What
heresy has produced will be the
worst.”
After warning the people of Basra about what was to occur, Imam
Ali (AS) says: “Whoever can, at
this time, keep himself clinging
to Allah should do so. If you
follow me, I shall certainly
carry you, if Allah so wills, on
the path of paradise, even
though it may be full of severe
hardship and of bitter
taste….You should adhere to the
Book of Allah because it is the
Strong Rope, a clear light, a
benefiting cure, a quenching for
thirst, protection for the
adherent, and deliverance for
the attached. It has no any
curving to be straightened, and
does not deviate from the truth.
Whatever it is repeated and
whatever it knocks the hearings,
it does not become old. Whoever
speaks according to it, speaks
of the truth and whoever acts
according to it shall advance
(to success).”
A man stood up and said: ‘O Ameerol Mo'minin! Tells us about the
disturbance and whether you
enquired it from the Holy
Prophet (SAW)’. Thereupon
Ameerol Mo'minin said: “When
Allah, the Glorified sent down
the verse: ‘Do men think that they will be left alone on saying, we believe,
and not be tried?’8 I came to know that the disturbance would not befall us so long
as the Prophet is among us.
So I said: O Messenger of Allah, what is this disturbance of
which Allah, the Sublime, has
informed you? And he replied: ‘O
Ali, my nation shall be tried
after me.’ I said: ‘O Messenger
of Allah, on the day of Uhud,
when Muslims had fallen martyrs
and I was not among them, and
this had been very annoying to
me, did you not say to me:
‘Cheer up, for you shall be
killed (martyred) later on!’
The Messenger of Allah (SAW) said: ‘Yes, it is so, but what about
your endurance at receiving
martyrdom?’ I said: ‘O Messenger
of Allah, this is not a matter
of endurance, but it is a matter
of delight and gratefulness.’
Then he said: ‘O Ali, Muslims
shall soon fall into sedition
because of their properties
their wealth, put Allah under
obligation that they have faith,
expect Allah’s mercy, and wish
to be safe from His wrath, and
because of false doubts and
desires, they take His unlawful
things as lawful. So, they will
then consider wine as just a
juice of grapes and dates, bribe
as gift, and usury as selling
and buying, and thus consider
them lawful.’
I said: ‘O Messenger of Allah, how should I deal with them at the
time? Shall I consider them as
apostates and disbelievers or
ones involved in sedition?’ He
said: ‘Sedition and trial.’”
What mischief is worse than this! After the Messenger of Allah
(SAW) the Ummah was divided into
seventy-three sects as the Holy
Prophet (SAW) had said: “The
Jews will become seventy-one
sects, the Christians
seventy-two and my Ummah will be
divided into seventy-three sects
(after me).”
Ibn al-Maghazeli has reported: “The Holy Prophet(SAW) said to Ali
ibn Abi Talib: ‘The Ummah after
me will soon hatch plots against
you.’”
Imam Ali (AS) has been reported by many narrators as having said:
The Messenger of Allah (SAW)
said to me: ‘Surely God has made
Jihad against mischief-makers
incumbent upon you as He made
Jihad against the atheists
incumbent upon me.’ I asked: ‘O
Messenger of Allah! What is this
mischief that has made Jihad
incumbent?’ The Holy Prophet
(SAW) said: ‘There are some who
bear witness to the Oneness of
God and my mission but they
challenge the Sunnah.’ I asked
the Holy Prophet: ‘What should I
fight them for while they bear
witness to what I testify?’
The Holy Prophet (SAW) said: ‘For the heresy in religion and
challenging Imamate.’ I said:
‘You promised that I would be
martyred. So I beg God to bring
about my martyrdom soon before
you.’ The Messenger of Allah
said: ‘Who will fight the
Naketheen (the breakers of
covenant who fought against Imam
Ali (a.s.) in the battle of
al-Jamal), the Qassiteen (the
oppressors (Mo’awiya and his
followers) who fought against
Imam Ali (a.s.) in Siffeen), and
the Mariqeen (the renegades or
the Kharijites who fought
against Imam Ali (a.s.) in an-Nahrawan)
then?”
Therefore, it is incumbent upon every human to exercise piety in
obedience. He should be obedient
to those whom God has ordered.
Jabir al-Ansari has been
reported by Jabir al-Ju’fi as
saying: “I asked the meaning of
the following verse from the
Holy Prophet: “O
you who believe! Obey Allah and
obey the Apostle and those in
authority from among you.”
The Holy Prophet (SAW) said: ‘They are my successors and the
Imams of Muslims after me. The
first of them is Ali ibn Abi
Talib, then al-Hasan and
al-Hossain, then Ali ibn
al-Hossain, then Mohammad ibn
Ali known as Baqir in the Torah.
O Jabir, you will live long
enough to see him. Whenever you
meet him, give my regards to
him. The next will be as-Sadiq,
Ja’far ibn Mohammad, then Musa
ibn Ja’far, then Ali ibn Musa,
then Mohammad Ibn Ali, then Ali
ibn Mohammad, then Hassan ibn
Ali and then a person of my
name, the poof of Allah on the
earth, Baqiyyatullah, the son of
al-Hassan ibn Ali, one at whose
hands Allah will conquers the
east and the west of the earth.
He will be in occultation away
from his followers and
companions that no one shall
keep on believing in his imamate
except those whom Allah has
tried their hearts with faith.” |
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