In this chapter, the honourable author has discussed the numerical strength of the Prophets, the eminence of Prophet Muhammad (S) and A’imma Huda over rest of the creation, proof of the Imamate of Aali Muhammad and that of Imam Al-Mahdi (‘a).

We shall discuss these issues in the following pages in accordance with the requirements of time, but initially want to devote few moments to evaluate conditions associated with the Prophesy to understand the station of Nubuwwah.

Facts About The Prophethood

What was the nature of Prophethood (Nubuwwah) and what were the conditions and requirements of this office? What was the standard for judging someone’s claim of Prophethood? We shall discuss these issues briefly in this chapter.

Nubuwwah was an award and a gift from God that could not be obtained by meditation, studentship or by contemplation and research. God knew better as to who this office would be awarded (Surah Al-Anaam). Or, this was a blessing of God, which He awarded it to anyone whom He wished to. He was the owner of great approvals.

Conditions And Attributes For Prophethood

It was essential for the person to whom this office was awarded to be associated with respectable lineage, intellect and knowledge, ideal habits and conduct, free of jealousy, cowardice, despair and greed and also other human demerits. He should also possess an illustrious personality among the people. In other words, two attributes were essential for him. These were - purity of character (‘Ismah) and recipient of a Miracle.

These deductions were based on the fact that the Prophet’s Essence was Heavenly, which made him superior to mankind, due to his advanced intellect and purity. These attributes were awarded to him from God, and as a result he could not indulge into sins. On the other hand, he educated people about lofty morals and true practices to distil their personalities.

Just as human actions may sound a little strange to animals, similarly, some of the prophetic actions appeared miraculous to ordinary folks. Although a prophet shared body contents with ordinary people, but his intellect and understanding, purity of essence, amazing persona, and being an addressee of Heavenly revelations, made him different from other persons. It was declared in the Qur’an for Prophet Muhammad (S):

قُلْ إِنَّمَا أَنَا بَشَرٌ مِّثْلُكُمْ يُوحَىٰ إِلَيَّ

“Say, I am a man like you but I receive revelations” (18:110).

It was also important for the station of Prophethood that the person should possess amicable demeanour and balanced temperament.

Human Aspects Of Prophets

Like many other issues, before the arrival of Prophet Muhammad (S), the reality of this concept was also tangled with extreme ideas. Similar to Jews, many other contemporary religions regarded Prophets no more than future tellers and treated them reprobates like ordinary people.

This was an example of a mortifying view while on the other end of this spectrum, Christians considered their saviour a genus above man or God, or a part of God, reflecting his material and divine existence. Also, Hindus named their guides as gods or god incarnate and treated them at the level of divinity. This was an extreme view.

Islam proposed a middle of the road solution that was free of any kind of twirls and twists of perverseness. On one hand Islam considered Prophets and Messengers as humans, who were humble and destitute in front of God, but on the other hand treated them as best of God’s creation in terms of intellectual maturity, embodiment of purity and felicity and of miraculous bearings.

Ordinary Arabs, reminiscent of Hindus, Christians and Greeks had considered that celestial beings were required to guide men. They thought that such a species could only be the Angels. The Qur’an had repeatedly rejected this proposal and said that if the earth was populated with Angels, only then Angels could be sent as guides for them. This suggested that because earth was inhabited with humans, therefore, it was essential that humans should be sent as guides for humanity.

Two Aspects Of Prophets

If we deeply examined this situation, we would then find that Prophets had two sides to their personality. On one hand, they had all the ingredients of humanity i.e. they ate, slept, married, remained in good or bad health and then died like ordinary people, but they were different in characteristics of Prophethood, spiritualism, purity of thoughts and actions, providing guidance to people and dignity of disposition.

Like Jews, who only saw their material aspect considered them ordinary humans, and those similar to Christians, who saw them in their spiritual form, assigned divinity to them. In fact, both of these concepts were far removed from the reality and the truth lay in between these two views. Maulana Sayyid Muhammad Sibtain said, “There is no doubt that a Prophet belongs to human race, but if we are a simple soil then they are elixir. We are hard rocks they are philosopher’s stone. We are speck of clay, they are radiating Sun. We are ignorant, they are erudite. We are flawed; they are perfect. We are instruments of survival, and they are the mode of life. They are humans but an embodiment of soul. They are a body, which is impregnated with spirit.”

Both Sides Of The Picture

Infidels, as a policy, denied the Prophets by calling them only humans, therefore, unfit for teaching. Prophets, on the other hand accepted their humanity but invited them to their other aspect, which was dignified with revelation from the Lord. The Qur’an said in Surah Ibrahim:

قَالَتْ لَهُمْ رُسُلُهُمْ إِنْ نَحْنُ إِلَّا بَشَرٌ مِثْلُكُمْ وَلَٰكِنَّ اللَّهَ يَمُنُّ عَلَىٰ مَنْ يَشَاءُ مِنْ عِبَادِهِ وَمَا كَانَ لَنَا أَنْ نَأْتِيَكُمْ بِسُلْطَانٍ إِلَّا بِإِذْنِ اللَّهِ وَعَلَى اللَّهِ فَلْيَتَوَكَّلِ الْمُؤْمِنُونَ

“Their messengers said to them: "True, we are human like yourselves, but Allah doth grant His grace to such of his servants as He pleases. It is not for us to bring you an authority except as Allah permits. And on Allah let all men of faith put their trust” (14:11).

In this way, the Prophets showed the other angle of their personality and made them to ponder. Just like other Prophets, the last of the Prophets also declared under God’s command on several occasions that he was a man like them who received revelations. At another moment, he declared: “Glory is to the God, I am but a human Prophet”.

This statement though negated the erroneous ideology of one group, which claimed divinity for Prophets, but it also denied the wrong concept of others who considered Prophets like ordinary humans. In these Qur’anic Verses, wherever human nature of a Prophets was expressed it was accompanied by the words Wahy and Prophethood. This automatically included various other attributes that were necessary for the recipient of Wahy or revelation.

Those who considered Prophets as another genus were under this illusion that by accepting them as humans, they would then be equated with all those discrepancies and failing that were commonly linked with mortal men. This thought was nothing but the fabrication of short- sightedness and inner gloom of their personality, otherwise, all visionary and thinkers knew that every species had a big gap of features between them, and each community of living objects had superior and inferior individuals within it. Can anyone say that Plato and Aristotle, were anything other than humans or Baqal Ibn Hainqa, who was a proverbial dupe and idiot was not a human being?

It is true that Plato and Aristotle, though shared human components, but they were unique in their sphere of influence and well above humans of their times. Similarly, Prophets, despite some commonalities with people were way above in their status due to communication with God and its relevant requirements.

If we dug deeper into prophetic features, we would find that there were several distinct qualities that were not found in ordinary human beings e.g. sleep could not affect the awareness of Prophets. They were fully aware of their surroundings despite in a state of slumber or sleep. Prophet Muhammad (S) used to say to his companions: Keep your lines straight behind me in the prayers as I can see equally well behind my back as I can see ahead of me.

When Prophet’s wives could become distinctly different from other woman in their conduct, after marriage to the Prophet, as indicated by the Qur’an “O, the Wives of the Prophet; you are not like other women, if you fear God.” If this was true then how could the Messenger of God be similar to ordinary human beings?

In other words, the difference between a Prophet and an ordinary man was the reception of Wahy that implemented all other features relevant to the prophethood in the person of a Prophet, therefore after accepting an individual to be a Prophet, then its relevant attributes must be accepted along with his human frame.

Reasons And Needs For The Emergence Of Prophets

There were several reasons for the need to send Prophets. We have discussed a few in this section.

God provided every human being with two types of forces. One of those forces was spiritual and the other one was material in nature. As in order to correct problems arising in the physical state of human body, doctors and hakims were provided, it was also essential to address the spiritual aspects of human need for its healthy development or in case any malfunctions appeared. For this purpose, those physicians were needed, who were human in nature but better than Angels in their spiritual development. These kinds of people were called Prophets and Messengers in religious terminology. God had said in Surah Yunus:

يَا أَيُّهَا النَّاسُ قَدْ جَاءَتْكُم مَّوْعِظَةٌ مِّن رَّبِّكُمْ وَشِفَاءٌ لِّمَا فِي الصُّدُورِ وَهُدًى وَرَحْمَةٌ لِّلْمُؤْمِنِينَ

“O, mankind! there has come to you indeed an admonition from your Lord and a healing for what is in the breasts and a guidance and a mercy for the believers” (10:57).

An intelligent man could discover with logical reasoning that someone had created him and then he addressed himself to unearth the reasons of his creation. At this juncture, he could not reach the presence of God to ask Him the grounds of his design, nor God, due to His grandeur and splendour would come to his company to tell him the basis of his conception, educate him about those acts that could bring him nearer to Him, or throw him out of His presence.

To understand these things a middle man, who had two facets of his personality, was required. One of his aspects should manifest the beauty and perfection of God to acquire commands and instructions from Him. The other facet should be that he was one of the people whom he had to deliver that message, and his life pattern could become role model for the populace.

This view was not an understatement that man was a social animal, who could not alone fulfil his needs, since he was locked with the society at large. This was also evident that such a society was prone to excesses. Therefore, there was always a need for an upright law, and a just ruler who could implement such a legal system. Evidently, man-made laws and half-baked rulers could not accomplish such a demand. Hence, there was a need for an ideal person who could implement this rule of law, without fear of society’s backlash. Such a system was called (Deen) i.e. the constitution of a religion and its administrator was called the Prophet.

Standard For The Identification Of A Prophet

There were some requirements that were needed to judge a person for his claim of Prophethood. A person, who made such a claim, should be free from all kinds of sins. His beliefs should be straight and honourable, his morals must be reverent, his temperament should be pleasant, and he must possess some kind of a miracle, which might be logically possible but extremely difficult to achieve. He ought to be against the routine that could not be copied by the best minds of his time. This will prove beyond doubt that he was a messenger of the Almighty God.

One could see a light of abstinence and love of God on the foreheads of true Prophets. Their body parts were living examples of guidance and edification. They ignored people of wealth and power. They derided the appeal of mundane things. God fearing individuals were automatically drawn to them.

On the other hand, pretenders who claimed this office, were quite the opposite to real claimants. They sang to the tune of rich and powerful, and continued to remain busy in the lures of the world. This difference of their behaviour was as vivid, as we found day to be in comparison to the night. Any false claimant for Prophethood could not conceal his identity permanently despite best of efforts, and his real face would be identified sooner or later.

An easy way of recognising a Prophet was that when he gave news of the past and the future events, then that information would be absolutely correct, without any mending. Foretelling of events correctly was the testimony of claimant’s authenticity, because his knowledge was not acquired from any mundane source. Rather, it was given by the divine source.

Another way of judging the truth of a claimant was to see if articles of his Shariah were congruent with logic and in agreement with the true nature. If his practices were in accordance with that standard then it would count as an argument in favour of his claim.

Again, if a recognised Prophet of the past declared the signs of an incoming Prophet, then this would also be a way to evaluate his assertion. In any case the best way of appraising a claimant was to find two essential ingredients namely - the purity of his being (infallibility) and possession of a miracle by him. If an activist was devoid of these two essential elements, then one must understand that he is a fake petitioner.

Definition Of Miracle

Literal meaning of the word - miracle was to make someone to submit or yield to its potency. In the vocabulary of theology, a miracle was defined to be an act from God that was beyond a normal approach. It usually came out of the hands of a Prophet, provided it was linked to someone’s claim of Prophethood or Imamate.

If such an act appeared at the hands of a person before his proposed claim, then it was called ‘Arhas’, and if it was shown by a reverent person, who was not claiming Prophethood then it was called ‘Karamat’ (supernatural). Otherwise, it was called Istedraj in the language of theology.

It was generally said that the things a Prophet achieved through his miracle could also be performed by a magician, trickster or a hypnotist. Therefore, how could a miracle become a proof of one’s legitimacy as a Prophet? It was therefore important that the difference between miracle and magic be clearly established.

Magic was a technique that could be acquired by learning, whereas Miracle could not be acquired through learning. Magic could be countered but Miracle could not be undone even by a greatest scholar.

Magic depended upon special requirements, hidden gadgets, specific times and terms and conditions of the pledge. Miracle was free of any such restrictions. A miracle was real, while most of magic was a deception. It was performed in a manner that eyes were tricked into believing and no permanent change took place.

The change that happened in a miracle was real. For example, if some Prophet changed a pebble into a grape, then all constituents and attributes of pebble will cease to exist and it would become a real fruit of whatever denomination that was desired by the Prophet. Magic could show a pebble to change into a grape but its nature would not alter. When you try to eat it, it will still be a stone as before. In contrast, when Moses produced water from a bone-dry ground, each and every person accompanying him drank from it to their full, or when the Prophet invited his relatives for the introduction of Islam, then a little food that was cooked at home was more than sufficient for the big bellied Arabs to satisfy their appetite.

Miracle was always shown by virtuous and just people, whereas magic was performed by crafty, lewd and evil people.

Difference Between A Prophet And Messenger

In literal sense, Prophet and a Messenger were the same but their implied meanings were different. In theological words, one could say that Prophet was a person who was appointed by God to bring people to guidance, even if he had no new laws to implement. He might be an elucidator and a propagator of the legislations of a previous Prophet.

On the other hand, the one who was appointed by God as a Messenger would need to have a fresh constitution and a book. This showed that every Messenger could be a Prophet, but every Prophet could not be a La nabiyya ba’di or a Messenger. It was learned through some Ahadith of the Messenger of God that a Prophet was the one who saw the angel in a dream and heard their voice.

Numerical Strength Of Prophets

Nothing could be said with absolute authority about the numerical strength of the Prophets. However, a figure of one hundred and twenty-four thousand was generally accepted by most of the Muslim sects, out of which one hundred and thirteen were Rasuls (Messengers) including the five who were Grand Messengers. The rest were Prophets.

In the Qur’an, twenty-six lofty people were mentioned by name, whose Prophethood had been confirmed, but for the rest Qur’an simply mentioned:

وَلَقَدْ أَرْسَلْنَا رُسُلًا مِّن قَبْلِكَ مِنْهُم مَّن قَصَصْنَا عَلَيْكَ وَمِنْهُم مَّن لَّمْ نَقْصُصْ عَلَيْكَ

“And certainly, We sent messengers before you: there are some of them that We have mentioned to you and there are others whom We have not mentioned to you” (40:78).

Also, it was cited that this chain of guidance was not linked to a specific nation or a country but all the nations (of the world) had benefited from this blessing. The Qur’an mentioned as follows:

وَلِكُلِّ أُمَّةٍ رَّسُولٌ

“There is a Messenger for every nation” (10:47).

وَلَقَدْ بَعَثْنَا فِي كُلِّ أُمَّةٍ رَّسُولًا

“We have sent a Messenger to every nation” (16:36).

وَإِن مِّنْ أُمَّةٍ إِلَّا خَلَا فِيهَا نَذِيرٌ

“There is no nation that has not received any warner” (35:24).

وَاسْأَلْ مَنْ أَرْسَلْنَا مِن قَبْلِكَ مِن رُّسُلِنَا

“And ask those of Our messengers whom We sent before you” (43:45).

وَلِكُلِّ قَوْمٍ هَادٍ

“There is a guide for every nation” (13:7).

These Qur’anic Verses clearly mentioned that other nations had also received Prophets and guides. On this basis, some scholars proposed that Krishna in India and Zoroaster in Iran were also among the chosen people. Although, this view could not be challenged, there was no way to ascertain this analysis.

Meaning Of The Phrase ‘Ul Al-Adhm

It was understood through the statements of Imams that the phrase - ‘Ul Al-Adhm stood for those Prophets who were associated with enduring Shariah, and they had terminated the Shariah of the previous Prophets, while they were steadfast in their duties and accepted with great dignity all the trials and tribulations that fell on them in the task of preaching. Their names were, Noah (‘a), Ibrahim (‘a), Moses (‘a), Jesus (‘a) and the last of the Prophets - Muhammad (S), whose legislation would last until the Day of Judgement.

Superiority Of Prophet Muhammad Over All The Prophets

There were several reasons to prove that Prophet Muhammad (S) had a precedence over all the Prophets. It had been proved without doubt that the person of Muhammad (S) and his holy progeny were the reason for the creation of the entire Universe, as stated by Shaykh As-Saduq in his Risala al-I’tiqadia. Allama Al-Majlisi also quoted the famous Hadith al-Qudsi, which stated, “There shouldn’t be any Heavens or Earth, had I not been created by God?”

It was also an established fact that qualities and the attributes that were awarded to the Prophet by God, extended beyond the cumulative approach of all the previous Prophets. It was also interesting to note that the miracles, which were given to previous Prophets, remained in existence only during the lifetime of those Prophets. However, our Prophet had a living miracle that still existed today in the form of the Holy Qur’an. It excelled every book in all departments of highly appraised literature.

Prophet Muhammad was marked as a Prophet for the Universe and not for a given tribe or a country. The chain of Prophethood was terminated after him. His Shariah dominated all other religious legislations since his advent and it would continue to do so until the Day of Judgement.

It was learnt through books of various Islamic sects that all other Prophets received the office of Prophethood after submitting to the Prophethood of Muhammad (Peace be upon him). It was acknowledged through various reports that several Prophets approached God through the intercession of Prophet Muhammad (S) to remove some of the pains and hurts that they underwent during their period of preaching.

Some Special Qualities Of Islamic Shariah

We have considered the some of the special aspects of Islamic Shariah:

1. This was a complete code of life and there was no department of human need, where there were no explicit solutions available for its problems, had escaped its attention. No other religions could claim this status.

2. Islam created a balance between the spiritual and material aspects of life and did not override it.

3. The Islamic laws were so flexible that it could cater for all times and for all people.

4. Islamic rules were simple and practicable. They were applicable to all people, irrespective of their material or physical status.

5. All of its rules were in harmony with nature.

Logical Evaluation Of Termination Of Prophethood

If we removed the specifications of prejudice and bigotry and devoted our attention to this problem in the light of logic and wisdom, we would conclude that no new prophet was required after Muhammad (S), because logically there were four conditions under which a new prophet was required:

1. a Prophet was sent to a nation that had not received a Prophet before or had not received any message from the Prophet of another nation.

2. teachings of a previous Prophet had been completely forgotten, corrupted or lost

3. message was still incomplete and further divine elaborations were required

4. another Prophet was needed to aide an existing Prophet.

If we deeply studied these conditions, we could easily reach the conclusion that after Prophet Muhammad (S) none of the above conditions were applicable. The Qur’an testified that he was sent to the Universe as a warner and guide. It was also proven historically that his message reached the entire civilised world in his life time and the process was still ongoing at present. Therefore, no new Prophet was required in present times.

It was also true that teachings of the Prophet were still preserved in the books of Ahadith and the Qur’an in its true and uncorrupted form. Therefore, there was no need for any new Prophet to come.

It was also established in the Qur’an that the Divine constitution (Deen) had been perfected and completed in the Prophet’s lifetime.

So far as the fourth condition was concerned, it would have happened, if required in the duration of the Prophet’s life. When all of these four conditions were not applicable today, then what was the fifth condition that permitted the need for a new Prophet to come?

Again, the arrival of a new Prophet today would be detrimental and not beneficial for the Ummah, because any new arrival would create a fracas of belief Verses infidelity, among the people. The ummah would be divided into two groups - those who believed in him and those who denied him. This division would not be an ordinary split but a split based upon principles. Who would then be responsible for this degradation of the society? Naturally the fingers would be pointed towards God and the Prophet that if any other person was to come after Muhammad (S) and faith in him was essential, then why God and His messenger remained tight-lipped during the time of revelations.

Such a premise was beyond God’s mature judgment and ideal poised that He should shove people in a fresh dilemma of faith and infidelity. Therefore, when God and His Prophet had not instructed about any incoming prophet, whilst the Prophet had indicated the ending of this Divine office at the same time. It was then an irrefutable argument that this office of Prophethood had ended for good. This point of view was accepted by all the thinkers and scholars of Muslim Ummah.

Removal Of Some Doubts

First Objection And Its Reply

It was said that in the phrase ‘La’ for the negation of perfection such as – La salatul jaril masjade illa fil masjid.

The one who lived near the mosque his prayer could not become perfect unless it was performed in the mosque. Therefore, some of the antagonists claimed that the phrase – La nabiyya ba’di - meant that no perfect Prophet would come after Prophet Muhammad (S).

The correct reply to this suggestion was that the word ‘La’ was undoubtedly for the negation of the main subject, which was Prophethood, and if in a sentence, it was metaphorically used due to its internal or external requirement then it did not mean that such a symbolic representation had become a universal law to be applicable everywhere. If it was true then it would create fundamental problems for the opponents.

If an idol worshipper returned this argument to them by saying that the phrase – La ilaha illa Allah – meant that there was no perfect god other than Allah (this meant that there were lots of imperfect gods), then what would be their answer to such a claim?

Similarly, the one who denied the Qur’an said that in the phrase:

لَا رَيْبَ ۛ فِيهِ

“La raiba fihi, there is no doubt in it” (2:1).

The word ‘La’ was for the negation of perfection i.e. in the Qur’an there was some potential doubt that it may not be perfect, what would be their reply then? Whatever argument one would employ to answer the objection on – La ilaha illa Allah - was also applicable to La nabiyya ba’di.

Second Objection And Its Reply

The word Khatm meant the Stamp or Seal. It signified that if any other prophet comes, he would be under the stamp of Prophet Muhammad (S) or he will receive Prophethood by the authentication of Prophet Muhammad (S). The ignominy of this sentence was not subject to any word. When it was said that this was the stamp of a magistrate or a judge, then no right-minded person could assume that the use of this stamp would produce magistrates and judges.

Third Objection And Its Reply

When it was said about a person that he was Khatm ash-Shu’ara or Khatm al-Fuqaha’, then it did not mean that there was no poet or a legislator after him. It generally meant that pinnacle of his profession was perfectly placed with him. The answer to this doubt was that if at any place this word was used in its exaggerated form of perfection or excellence, then what was the compulsion to assume that its literal meaning had also completely changed and its real connotation had become obsolete?

Prominence Of Guided Imams Over The Prophets Other Than The Last Prophet

Here the prominence of guided imams over rest of the Prophets except Prophet Muhammad (S), had been discussed. There were three opinions on this subject from our earlier scholars:

1. they were superior to all the Prophets except Prophet Muhammad

2. Prophets had a precedence over Imams

3. only Grand Prophets had excellence over them.

However, if we considered the opinion of the later day scholars, it was almost agreed that the first option was more prevalent. There were several arguments to support this view.

First Argument

It was a proven fact that the guided Imams were true recipients of the legacy of the Prophet, in accordance with the Qur’anic Verse:

ثُمَّ أَوْرَثْنَا الْكِتَابَ الَّذِينَ اصْطَفَيْنَا مِنْ عِبَادِنَا

“Then We gave the Book for an inheritance to those whom We chose from among Our servants” (35:32).

It was mentioned in Yanabi’ al-Mawadda li-Dhawi ‘l-Qurba and Fraid us-Samtain that Prophet Muhammad’s (S) knowledge was far in excess of the other Prophets. Therefore, legatees of the Prophet would definitely excel those whom the Prophet had outshone.

Second Argument

It was reported that the Prophet had said, “If God had not created Ali, then there was no counterpart to my daughter Fatimah, even among the likes of Adam or the other Prophets.”

It was evident that the Prophet had made this statement irrespective of being the Prophet or the father of Fatimah. This shows that Amir Al-Mu’minin was way ahead of the previous Prophets. The same argument was true for the rest of Imams. Imam Ja’far As-Sadiq (‘a) had said: No one can find the essentials of faith, unless he accepts that whatever was true for our first is also true for our last”.

Third Argument

This argument was a branch of the second argument which showed that Imams Ahl al-Bayt’s knowledge was greater than rest of the prophets except that of Prophet Muhammad (S).

It was mentioned that Isme Aazam (Greatest name of God) had total of seventy-three letters. Adam (‘a) was granted an access to twenty-five of those letters, Noah (‘a) got fifteen, Moses (‘a) got five, Jesus (‘a) got two but Prophet Muhammad (S) had been given access to seventy-two letters and only one was kept by God in His treasure of knowledge.

Those names that were granted to the Prophet were also passed on to his progeny i.e. infallible Imams. That is why their knowledge and station was very high among the previous prophets.

Fourth Argument

This Hadith of the Prophet was very famous among Shi’as and Sunnis, wherein the Prophet had said, “The one who wants to comprehend the knowledge of Adam, gentleness of Noah, amity of Abraham, majesty of Moses and piety of Jesus, then he must see Ali Ibn Abi Talib.”

This was a clear-cut report, which established the attributes of Ali against the cumulative features of previous five Prophets.

Fifth Argument

It was mentioned in Basa’ir al-Darajt that rest of the prophets did not receive the office of Prophethood, until they took oath on the unity of God, the Prophethood of Muhammad and Wilayat of the infallible Imams.

This idea of Imams Ahl al-Bayt to be more distinguished than the previous Prophets was subjected to some criticism by suggesting that no one could equal Prophets in their virtuosity (Thawab), therefore, non-prophets could not be compared to the Prophets in respect to their status. This criticism was unacceptable due to certain reasons.

It was not established that elevation in status depended solely on the abundance of Thawab (return of good deeds), because Qur’an sets a different standard. It stated:

إِنَّ اللَّهَ اصْطَفَاهُ عَلَيْكُمْ وَزَادَهُ بَسْطَةً فِي الْعِلْمِ وَالْجِسْمِ

“Surely Allah has chosen him in preference to you, and He has increased him abundantly in knowledge and physique” (2:247).

This thesis that a non-prophet’s Thawab could not equal the virtuosity of a Prophet was against the arguments put forward by the own school of the critic. It was mentioned in Ahya al-Uloom of Imam Ghazali: The one who sought knowledge with a view to please God by narrating Ahadith to the people, then God would grant him approvals (blessings) equal to the receipts of seventy Prophets.

Shaykh Abdul Qadir Jilani wrote in his book Ghunyat at-Talibeen, “Anyone who seeks one chapter of knowledge to spread it among the people then God will grant him the returns of seventy prophets and candid people.” If on account of this Sunni belief an ordinary scholar could gain Thawab equal to seventy Prophets, then there should not be any hesitation in accepting our thesis.

If we accepted that credits of a non-prophet could not equal to that of the prophets, then this decree was only for the ummah of that Prophet. This meant that a person who was a prophet for certain people, he then definitely would appear superior to them in his status. Since Imams of Ahl al-Bayt were not the subjects of the previous Prophets, therefore, their status could not be compared to the earlier Prophets.

Proof Of Imamah And Caliphate Of The Imams Of Ahl Al-Bayt

There were so many confirmations of the Caliphate and Imamate of Ahl al-Bayt that it required a treatise to present the entire information. We have already published two books to prove this proposal therefore, we have relied on two Qur’anic Verses and two narrations for the moment, and those who want to seek further information could refer to our website.

أَطِيعُوا اللَّهَ وَأَطِيعُوا الرَّسُولَ وَأُولِي الْأَمْرِ مِنكُمْ

“Submit to Allah, His Prophet and the People of Amr [Authority] among you” (4:59).

It has been proven that a directive clause was factual in its application, unless some contradictory article or its connexion was available. Although no such clash was offered to dislodge this directive, we therefore, had to agree to it being a command. On the other hand, in this Verse, a clear ruling was available as obedience to God and the Prophet was obligatory and obedience to the people of authority was associated with it, therefore, it was also enforced.

Furthermore, it was evident from the Verse that obedience to God and His Prophet was not attached to a time or space frame. Consequently, same would be true for the People of Authority. As a corollary to this conclusion, we could safely assume that such People of Authority should also be flawless and perfect. This proposition had been accepted by a foremost cynic like Fakhruddin Razi, who wrote in Tafsir al-Kabir.

In this Verse God had made the obedience to the People of Authority, an obligation. To conform with it was announced to be mandatory and these must be infallible people. This fact was clear as daylight that none other than Muhammad wa Aali Muhammad (‘a) were infallible among the entire Muslim ummah. This statement was elucidated by Allah in Aayat al-Tatheer. Ibn Abbas said that he had heard the Prophet of God say that He, Ali, Hasan, Husayn and nine sons from his progeny were all infallible1.

We had to consider a few things in order to prove the Imamate of Ahl al-Bayt (‘a), in accordance with this Verse:

يَا أَيُّهَا الَّذِينَ آمَنُوا اتَّقُوا اللَّهَ وَكُونُوا مَعَ الصَّادِقِينَ

“O those who believe, fear God and stand by the side of truthful” (9:119).

As it had been proven earlier that a directive clause was factual in its application, therefore, the support of the candid (Sadiqeen) people, was compulsory in the same way that fear of God (Taqwa) was compulsory.

The Islamic Shariah was not confined to a certain country, race or time. Therefore, its prohibitions and allowances were sufficient for all the people, until the Day of Judgement. Intellect was compelled to concur with this reality that those people who were commanded to be with the candid were different, and those who were to be aided were different. Otherwise, followers and those who were to be followed would become the same, which was logically wrong.

Logic also made it clear that this association with the truthful was not spatial so that people from all corners of world were required to migrate from their lands to live with them. Rather, this association meant to arise with them in actions and words. This also proved that one of these people (Sadiqeen) must be present all the time in this world, so that believers could be salvaged in both worlds by siding with them, as mentioned in a famous Hadith of the Prophet:

“Mummata wa lum yarifu imama zamanahi mata matatal jahiliya”. A person who failed to recognise the Imam of his time has suffered a death of ignorance.

When this association was the fellowship in actions and deeds, then we had to believe that Sadiqeen must be free of all kinds of sins - minor or major. Wording of the Verse proved that true Sadiqeen were those who were infallible, because only that person could command truthfulness, who were free of deviations from childhood to the end of his life. There was no one in the Ummah of Prophet Muhammad (S), other than Imams of Ahl al-Bayt who was capable of this station. Moreover, no one else claimed this position among the nation of Islam.

If one was still not satisfied with this concept then we could offer few statements from authentic Sunni books. It was mentioned in Tafsir Durr al-Manthur on the authority of Ibn Abbas, who said about the elucidation of the Qur’anic Verse:

كُونُوا مَعَ الصَّادِقِينَ

“kunu ma’ as-sadiqeen, be with those who are truthful” (9:119).

Meant to be with Ali Ibn Abi Talib (‘a). It was written in Yanabi’ al-Mawadda li-Dhawi ‘l-Qurba that truthful were Muhammad (S) and his holy progeny. Manuscript of Hamvaini stated that - “kunu ma’ as-sadiqeen”, meant to be with Muhammad (S) and Aal al-Muhammad (‘a).

Narrations

1) Hadith Ath-Thaqalayn: The Prophet had told his companions on several occasions, “I am leaving behind two heavy weights for your guidance and those are the Book of God and my Ahl al-Bayt. If you remain in touch with both of them; you will not go off course. These two will not part from each other till they meet me at the spring of Kawthar.”

To provide complete commentary of this Hadith, we would require volumes of written work. The essence of this Hadith could be summarized by saying that for successfully governing a country, a good constitution and some capable people to implement and elucidate it, were required. Likewise, the Prophet of God had also left two things to stabilise the state of Islam - Qur’an and his Ahl al-Bayt to implement and protect its constitution. These people were the true successors of the Prophet.

2) It was reported on the authority of Jabber Ibn Abdullah Ansari, in Yanebeul Mowadda and Kifayat ul-‘Asr, that at the time of revelation of the Qur’anic Verse,

أَطِيعُوا اللَّهَ وَأَطِيعُوا الرَّسُولَ وَأُولِي الْأَمْرِ مِنكُمْ

“Submit to Allah, His Prophet and the People of Amr or Authority among you.” (4:59)

that he asked the Prophet (S), “We have recognised God and his Messenger, but who are these People of Authority that are joined with God and the Prophet in compliance?” The Prophet replied that they were Ali (‘a), Hasan (‘a), Husayn (‘a), Ali Ibn Husayn (‘a), Muhammad Ibn Ali (‘a), who is the East and the West to surrender on his hands.

Unanimity Of The Concept Of Al-Mahdi

So far as the history of world religions was concerned, it was learned that Jews, Christians, Hindus or Buddhists all had a concept of a saviour, and Muslims in particular had a belief in the coming of the Mahdi (‘a) with minor differences in his features. Sound reasoning also guided us to the conclusion that a religion whose foundation rested on the Justice and potency of God, in the world that was full of injustice, malice and aficionados of vainness, must have a day in its calendar when ignominy and malice would disappear like an erroneous letter, and it would be replaced by fairness and equity. This could only become effective when Imam Al-Mahdi (‘a) returned to the world.

The Prophet of God had said, “If only one day of the existence of this world is left, then God will stretch it so that a man from my Ahl al-Bayt may come, who is my namesake and he will fill the world with justice and equity as it was originally filled with spite and brutality.” The Prophet had known that many pretenders will arise and come forth.

Therefore, it was his duty to leave no stone unturned to propagate his attributes so much so that the responsibility of those who were caught in their web of lies would not be shifted to the Prophet. That is why he explained all aspects of his attributes, including facial characteristics in great detail, so that any deficit may not remain obvious in completing the argument.

Mahdi Is From The Ahl Al-Bayt Of The Prophet

The Prophet (S) had said that Mahdi (‘a) was from the descendants of Fatimah (‘a) (Abu Daoud, Sunan Ibn Maaja). In Al-Sawa’iq al-Muhriqah Prophet was quoted to say that Imam Al-Mahdi was from his Ahl al-Bayt (‘a)

Salman al-Farsi narrated that the Prophet had told him in the presence of his grandchildren Imam Al-Hasan (‘a) and Imam Al-Husayn (‘a) that Mahdi (‘a) would be from my Ahl al-Bayt. Salman said that he asked the Prophet again, pointing towards Imam Al-Hasan (‘a) and Imam Al-Husayn (‘a) to know from whose lineage he would be? The Prophet replied by putting his hands on the shoulders of Imam Al-Husayn (‘a), “From the issue of this son of mine.” (Yanabi’ al-Mawadda li-Dhawi ‘l-Qurba).

This Hadith also annulled the claims of Qadiani pretender, who used his lineage with Salman to claim himself as Mahdi, while his own blood relationship with Salman al-Farsi was without any substantial proof, and Salman himself had quoted the above-mentioned Hadith from the Prophet (S).

Imam Mahdi’s Personal Features

The Prophet said that Imam Al-Mahdi was from my progeny. His facial colour was Arabic and the body features resembled the Israelites. He had a mole on the right cheek that shone like bright stars. He would fill the earth with justice and equity when it was clouded with abhorrence and brutality. During his period of reign creatures of the earth, heavens and space will all be satisfied and blissful.

Despite other arguments that were available to annul the dubious claims of pretenders, such as Mirza Muhammad Ali Bab, Bahaullah and Ghulam Ahmad Qadiani, this single Hadith that was quoted above was sufficient to shatter their false claims, because their features had no resemblance with that of the Prophet, and nor did justice and equity prevail in the world during their life time.

Birth Of Imam Al-Mahdi (‘A)

We have already mentioned that although Muslims were united in the concept of Mahdi, yet some minor differences still existed, including about the timing of his birth i.e. whether he was already born or whether he would take birth near the time of his appearance?

Almost all Shi’as and some Sunni thinkers were of the opinion that he had already born on 15th Shaban, 255 Hijra in Samarra. A majority of Sunni scholars believed that he would be born towards the end of time. We have quoted the name of some Sunni Scholars, and the books in which their opinion was recorded as Imam being born in 255 Hijra. These were:

1. Ibn Abi Hadid, Commentary on Nahj al-Balagha Vol. 1 p. 93, Vol. 2 p. 490;

2. Asaafur Ragebeen p. 104 – 116;

3. Shawahadun Nubuwwah by Jami p. 213;

4. Fasoole Mohimma of Ibn Sabag;

5. Yanabi’ al-Mawadda li-Dhawi ‘l-Qurba;

6. Kitab at-Tabeyan by Allama Hafiz Muhammad Kunji;

7. Kashf Al-Makhfi fi Manaqib’e Mahdi;

8. Al Tawzeeh fi Tawatar Ma Jaa fil Muntazer Al-Mahdi by Shokafi;

9. Al Orful Wardi fi Akhbar’e Mahdi by Hafiz Jalaluddin Suyuti;

As Imam Hasan Al-’Askari (‘a) was martyred in 260 Hijra, therefore, this pride of Jesus and Yahya took the office of Imamate at a tender age of five.

Presence Of The Sign Of God Was Essential In Every Interval Of Time

God had created a system where every constituent was dependent on different causes and effects. This mechanism was also contained in life and death, health and illness and poverty and affluence where everything appeared under right conditions and then disappeared in the void of non-existence under a set of conditions.

If things happened in opposition to this nature, then it was called Miracle, which was another name for happenings against nature. It was another thing that this pattern of life might be entirely matter-oriented or some of its links might be of divine nature. Anyhow, God had bound this system with the presence of His Sign (Prophet or Imam), therefore, if from this planet the sign of God disappeared for a short time then this system could not survive.

This point of view was supported by many authentic traditions. The Prophet of God had said, “My progeny is the reason for the survival of the inhabitants of this earth, just as stars are a balancing force for the populace of space.” Imam Ja’far As-Sadiq (‘a) said that if by chance only two people were left in the world then one of them must be the Sign of God, because no one could survive without that.

It was mentioned in Bihar al-Anwar, that presence of the sign of God was essential before with and after the end of mortal life. If currently he (Imam Mahdi) was in occultation then there was no reason that one should deny his existence, especially when God - the Almighty had declared the attributes of believers saying that they believed in the unseen, such as Paradise, Hell, Barzakh, the Day of Judgement and the Angels.

Reply Of Some Doubts About The Presence Of Imam Mahdi

The first and foremost doubt was about the length of Imam’s life, which was well over a thousand years. Critics said that such a long life was not possible. We would say that such an objection could only be made by a person who did not believe in the Power and Majesty of God, otherwise, it was an established fact that some Prophets like Khizr, Ilyas and Jesus were kept alive by God and their life was much longer than that of Imam Al-Mahdi (‘a). What was then any impediment for God in granting Imam Al-Mahdi (‘a) a longer span of life? Shaykh Muhammad Yusuf Al-Kunji used the same argument in his book on Imam Al-Mahdi (‘a).

It was mentioned in various books of Islamic history that many people had existed before Imam Al-Mahdi whose life span was not much different from his. Prophet Adam’s life span was nine Hundred and thirty years, his grandson Shees lived for nine hundred and ten years, while Noah according to the Qur’anic testimony preached for more than nine hundred and fifty years, while his overall period of stay in this world was around fifteen hundred years. In the light of these examples the objection on Imam’s longevity was a baseless criticism.

The second criticism questioned Imam Mahdi’s occultation and the usefulness of his presence if we could not see or meet him to seek the solution of some legal issues? It could be answered here that to restrict the Imam just for offering solutions to some legal issues was a grave mistake, when the people of intellect and erudition knew that the benefit of Imam’s life was not confined to the explanation of some religious legal matters alone.

We have already explained that the continuation of life in this environment was coupled with the life of Imam, which was a great benefit for humanity. Muhaqqiq al-Tusi wrote in Tajrid that Imam’s existence was a blessing from God and his apparent manifestation was a second approval but its non-implementation was due to our own acts.

Moreover, people of scholarship knew that guidance or diversion did not require a physical presence of the guide before our eyes. God was veiled from our vision, yet He guided. Satan influenced us from a void of space and time. Therefore, why could our Imam not fulfil his duties without appearing before us? This question was asked from the Imam and he replied – “Just as the Sun continued to benefit the Universe even when it was covered by the clouds”.

• 1. Fraidis Samtain and Yanabi’ al-Mawadda li-Dhawi ‘l-Qurba.