Has the 12 Imams been mentioned in the Quran has the Caliphs been mentioned

[Arad1013 7]

Salam! Has the 12 Imams been mentioned in the Quran has the Caliphs been mentioned. Can yall give me 3 reasons to be Shia cause there are a lot more sunnis. I also wonder why we shias hit our selves when its haram to harm people and yourself and its bad for you when the sunnis are calm. Thank you guy may Allah bless you all peace be upon you all.

 

[celestial 459]

1 hour ago, Arad1013 said:

Salam! Has the 12 Imams been mentioned in the Quran has the Caliphs been mentioned. Can yall give me 3 reasons to be Shia cause there are a lot more sunnis. I also wonder why we shias hit our selves when its haram to harm people and yourself and its bad for you when the sunnis are calm. Thank you guy may Allah bless you all peace be upon you all.

 

Why did you write Shia Islam in your religion if you ask us to give you reasons to be a Shia?

[Shaikh Hakim 286]

Salam 

- Imams are generally mentioned in the holy Quran (e. g. 33:33 and 4:59 through which the infallibility of Imams is evidenced)

- Being majority is not a sight of correctness and the holy Quran condemns this ideology.

for more info: 

http://www.shiachat.com/forum/topic/235036851-seeking-answers/#comment-2904791

 

Edited April 28, 2016 by John Algar

[dawudansari2 107]

 

  Why 12 Imam's names didn’t mention explicitly in the  holy Quran?

Two answer has given to this question, firstly Quran is a book   in which only general precepts and principles mentioned not  everything in detail , the same question asked from Al- Imam Al-Sadeq , peace be upon him, he replied:  as other Islamic law and regulation ,like  prayer , Zakat and Hajj,   talked about  in general not in detail in the holy Quran,(  for example, can you find in the holy Quran that morning prayer is two Rak’ah not more or less ?in addition, quality of performing prayer didn’t mention in the Quran) instead,  the holy prophet, peace be upon him, explained  and made clear to Islamic Aummah  how to perform prayer and so on, in the same way,  the holy prophet introduced  clearly his successor in different occasions to people , as a result, there is no need for mentioning names of Imams  in the Quran.     Secondly, in a matter like  succession  and Khelafah which is subject to possible objection explicit statement is not in favor of Islam, by contrast, this kind of matter must be mentioned implicitly, otherwise, objection to Imamah  will lead to opposition to the holy Quran  which is not acceptable , in other word, it’s possible that  if Welayah had mentioned in the holy Quran  explicitly those who didn’t believe in Welayah of Imam Ali would have eliminated that verse  form the holy Quran, consequently, the holy Quran talked about personality of Imam Ali, peace be upon him,  in general without mentioning his name specifically.    

[narsis 2,643]

4 hours ago, Arad1013 said:

Has the 12 Imams been mentioned in the Quran has the Caliphs been mentioned.

 Bismillah.

Salaam.

Why do Shias believe in the Imams and their Imamate?

How we can believe in someone as an Imam, and find out if he’s a true Imam?

Before that, we should examine the very concept of Imamate and the reason behind why we follow the Imams.

Importance of Imamate:

Imamate plays a crucial role in Islam. From the Holy Quran’s point of view, imamate is the final stage of human evolution, to which only Messengers of God have reached. The Holy Quran says about Prophet Abraham (a): ''Remember when Abraham's God examined him with different means, and he successfully passed all those tests, so that God told him that he was appointed as the people's Imam and leader, and Abraham (a) asked God to appoint his descendants as Imams as well, but God replied that imamate could not be handed over to tyrants, and only those of his offspring who were pure and sinless would deserve such a grace.''. [1]

This verse shows that imamate has a very high status and rank, since Prophet Abraham (a) was appointed as an Imam while he was already a Prophet. This happened only after he passed many difficult tests and trials.

The position of Imamate is sometimes combined with Prophethood, so that an eminent Prophet such as Abraham (a) becomes an Imam. Another evident reason is the combination of Prophethood and Imamate in the Prophet of Islam (s).

It also occurs that Imamate is separated from a Prophetic mission, such as what occurred in the case of the Shia Imams (a) who were only Imams, without being subject to direct divine revelation.

The Necessity of the Presence of Imams

Imams are necessary in the same way that Prophets (a) are.

Alammah Hilli, in his Commentary on Khajeh Nasiroddin Toosi's words, referred to these necessities and added:

1. Prophets are necessary because they strengthen the rational knowledge of human beings by their words, because even though humans can rationally understand the majority of realities about religious principles, there are still temptations and uncertainties in their hearts which can prevent them from carrying out such principles wholeheartedly. However, when these rational perceptions are strengthened by prophetic words then all of these types of doubts and distrusts are obliterated, and humans can approach their sacred goals.

2. There are some affairs whereby the common sense of human beings cannot identify their advantages and disadvantages. In cases such as these people should resort to religious leaders to help them distinguish the good from what is not.

3. Many things can be useful, and some others can be harmful. Before ascertaining which is which, human beings are not able to distinguish between the good and the bad purely by relying on their intellectual power. Consequently, they feel a need for someone who can clarify these qualities and this is something which is only within the power of religious leaders who are connected to the divine through revelation.

4. Humans are social creatures, and a society is only organized through rules and regulations that respect the rights of all its members, in order to lead them to the right path. However, formulation of such regulations and their subsequent implementation is only within the authority of wise and infallible leaders.

5. Humans are different in respect to their understanding and acquisition of knowledge, as some are able to find the right direction and some are not. Divine leaders, on the other hand, support the former group and assist the latter to eventually understand and acquire knowledge and the right direction.

6. Given the different levels of morality people have, only the infallibles can give each and every person the hand they need for enhancing their morality.

7. Divine leaders are completely aware of punishments and rewards which are received for obedience and sinfulness; therefore, they can motivate others in fulfilling their duties by informing them of such realities. [2]

Considering the fact that imamate is a continuation of the Prophetic mission, the majority of reasons for the necessity of prophets apply to infallible imams as well. In other words God, who has created human beings and has shown them the right path to perfection and felicity through the revelation to His prophets (a), will certainly appoint Imams upon the death of prophets to carry on the prophetic mission in helping human beings to find their way. Such a mission would doubtlessly fail without this provision due to a few reasons:

First: Human common sense cannot distinguish all the means to perfection, sometimes not even one tenth of it.

Second: The words and practices of Prophets (a) might be distorted for various reasons. In order to avoid such distortions, there must be infallible divine guardians who can safeguard those words and practices. God truly says about the Holy Quran, «انا نحن نزلنا...» which means, "We sent the Quran down, and we shall be its guardian and protector." [3] Such protection can only be carried out through certain means, which has been shown to be the Infallible Imams (a).

This is exactly what Imam Sadiq (a) has said: "Among us, the members of the household of the Prophet (a), there are just people in every generation who nullify the distortion of exaggerators, and cut the hands of heretics and innovators of religion short, and prevent the wrong interpretations of ignorant people." [4]

Elsewhere, Imam Ali (a) says, "There would always be someone who arises for the good, whether overtly or covertly out of fear, to maintain the divine signs forever." [5]

Third: The establishment of divine rule and justice through an Islamic state, in order to help humans approach the goals they have been created for is not possible unless through the help of the Infallible Imams. This is mainly because throughout history, governments have always been in favor of the material interests of exact individuals or groups. As we have repeatedly examined, titles like democracy, human rights and the such are only used to justify the devilish acts of tyrants, through which they impose their wills on people in a cunning manner.

In the form of an example, Imam Ali (a) describes the essence of imamate this way, "The position of an Imam who is handling the affairs of the Muslims is similar to the position of a string in a rosary that holds the beads together. If the string is cut, the beads will scatter around, and may not be set into order again." [6]

Fourth: Permanent obedience of religious commands in a society demands the presence of wise Imams (a) who are aware of all the necessary details, so as to avoid any doubt and confusion in society.

The above explanations clearly indicate the necessity of the presence of Infallible Imams (a).

These are the reasons behind our faith in the Imams and imamate. If we believe in Islam as the last religion, we should also believe in the concept of imamate as well.

Some people believe that there is no necessity for appointing Imams, and it is people themselves who are to decide about their leadership and form of government after the passing of The Holy Prophet (s). To answer this objection, the following example will be sufficient. Suppose someone sets up a factory to produce expensive and intricate jewelry, and the factory is supposed to continue working in his absence or even after his death. If the factory is full of sophisticated machinery and devices which can only be operated by the owner, is it rational to think that the factory will continue to run by itself? This would never work in reality.

Are Quranic sciences and verses, divine commands, tradition and the such, which are required to manage human life, less sophisticated than the instruments of such a factory? This also is an impossibility.

Is the outcome of religions, which is the perfection of human beings (through knowing God and worshiping Him), a replacement of the passion of chastity and anger with bravery, as well as establishment of a utopia on the basis of divine guidance, less important than the products of that jewel factory? This is an impossibility.

Then how can we believe that a religion which takes all the aspects of human life into consideration, till the end of time, has failed to appoint leaders to serve after the prophet and bring to a conclusion the prophetic mission?

Reasoning for the Imamate of the Infallible Imams

Since the Imams are appointed by God, there is a need of rational reasoning to recognize the individuals who are actually imam. For instance, human logic can distinguish between an Imam and other people by witnessing characteristics such as knowledge, justice, courage, sinlessness and so forth in the Imam, and a lack of such characteristics in others. In addition, Quranic verses and authentic traditions also prove the imamate of an individual.

The following are some verses and their interpretations which are about the issue of imamate:

1-                                                           [7] انما انت منذر و لکل قوم هاد

3-                    Which means, "Your duty is to advise people, and there is a leader for eve group."

Shia interpreters and some Sunni ones, including Imam Fakhr Razi, says, "Here the term advisor refers to the Holy Prophet (s) and the leader to Imam Ali (a), since Ibn Abbas said that the Holy Prophet (s) put his hands on his chest and said that he was the advisor, and then pointed to Ali (a) and added «و انت الهادی یا علی...» that means Ali (a) was the leader and shall continue to lead people after the Prophet (s)." [8]

In Al-Durrul-Manthur, one of the famous Sunni commentaries, several interpretations of the above verse are introduced, in which it is written that upon the revelation of this verse, the Holy Prophet (s) put his hand on his chest and said that he was the advisor, and then pointed to Ali (a) and added that Ali was the leader. [9]

traditions and their evidences, see the book Ihghagh Olhagh, Vol. 3, pp 88-92. Other similar traditions from other theologians can be found in various other sources such as from Hakem Neyshabouri in "Mostadrak", Dhahabi in "Talkhis", Fakhr Razi and Ibn Kathir in their commentaries and Ibn Sabagh Maleki in "Alfusulul-Muhimmah" and Ganji Shafei in "Kifayatul-Taleb", and Tabari in his commentary, and Ibn Hayan Andolosi in "Al-Bahrul-Muhit" and Neyshabouri in his commentary and Hamvini in "Faraed Olsamtin" and as well as many others. To become familiar with the sources of such

                                      با ایها الذین آمنوا اتقوا الله و کونوا مع الصادقین  [10]

Which reads, "O, believers, avoid antagonism (toward God's commands) and be with the loyal people."

Imam Fakhr Razi interpreted the phrase 'loyal people' as meaning infallibles. He also added, "By infallible the verse refers to the whole nation in its entirety." [11] This is while no Arab speaker, at the date of revelation of this verse, was using this phrase to refer to the nation; therefore, such an interpretation does not seem to be valid.

We should accept that in every era, there are loyal people who do not make any mistakes in their deeds and speeches, whom we should follow.

Moreover, many Sunni interpreters have quoted Ibn Abbas as saying that the above-mentioned verse is referring to Imam Ali (a). Allamah Tha'alabi in his book of commentary, Ganji in "Kifayatul-Taleb", Allamah Sibt Jowzi in "Tadhkirah", all interpret this verse as referring to Imam Ali (a) and his household. Ibn Abbas added, "Ali (a) is the most loyal man." [12]

Many other traditions quoted from the members of the prophetic household confirm this same interpretation. [13]

4-                                                           اطیعواالله و اطیعوا الرسول و اولی الامر منکم[14] 

6-                     Says: "Obey God and obey the Messenger of God and the Holders of Authority."

Shia interpreters unanimously believe that by the ‘Holders of Authority’, the verse is referring to the Infallible Imams (a).

In addition, the Hanafi Sheikh Soleiman Qanduzi in his book "Yanabi’ul-Mawaddah" quoted the book "Mujahid" as saying that the verse refers to Ali (a) when the Holy Prophet (s) appointed him as his substitute in Madinah when he himself was involved in the Tabuk war.

It is also quoted from Imam Ali (a) as referring to this verse in a debate with the Mohajerin and Ansar, so that they admitted to the legitimacy of his rule. [15]

In “Shawahidul-Tanzil” of Hakem Haskani, a Sunni scholar, the interpretation of the same verse includes a quotation from Imam Ali (a) as saying that he once asked the Holy Prophet (s) about the meaning of “ruler”, to which the Holy Prophet (s) replied, "You are the first of them."

Imamate in Hadiths:

The issue of imamate has been put forth in several traditions from the Holy Prophet (s), hereafter we will refer to some:

1. The Hadith of Thaqalain: This account of the Holy Prophet (s) has been widely repeated in various famous Shia and Sunni books (which are first hand references). These leave no room for doubt about the authenticity of the hadith. The whole of these hadiths show that that prophet has repeated this hadiths on several occasions, which indicates its importance. In Sahih Muslim, one of the six main Sunni books of reference, Zaid Ibn Argham is quoted as saying that: "The Holy Prophet (s) stood up and started delivering a speech in a place where a water well was located called Khom (Ghadir Khom) between Medina and Mecca. He first praised God and then added that he was a human being and his time to leave the world was arriving. He then added that he was going to leave two precious things among his people, first the book of God in which they could find light and guidance, and further encouraged them to take up the book and use it as a guide, and then added that the second thing was the members of his household (the ahlul bait), and commanded that his people should follow them and repeated it three times, [16] indicating that they had to fulfill their duties toward the members of the prophetic household."

Bringing the names of the members of the prophetic household along with the Holy Quran as two precious things, and putting emphasis on it three times, all indicate the close relationship between these two and the fate of the Muslim nation, their guidance and the protection of Islamic principles. Otherwise they wouldn't have been used alongside each other.

The Hadith of Thaqalain has been repeated in many Sunni reference books as well, including Sunan Tirmidhi, [17] Sunan Darami, [18] Musnad of Imam Ahmad [19]  (one of Four Sunni leaders), as well as Sunan Nisaei, [20] Mustadrakul-Sahihain, [21] Al-Sawa’iqul-Muhriqah, [22] also in Asadul-Ghabah fi Ma’rifatil-Sahabah [23] written by Ibn Athir, and in Ihya’ul-Mayyit [24]  of Jalaluddin Suyuti, as well as Sunan Beihaqi, [25] and Almu’jamul-Kabir [26] compiled by Hafiz Tabarani.

Late Mir Hamed Hussein Hendi, in his book Kholasatu Abaqatil-Anwar, lists one hundred and twenty six books containing the same Hadith, with precise reference to the volume and page numbers. [27]

This proves the authenticity and validity of the Hadith of Thaqalain. Moreover, its content and meaning can be detailed as below:

1. The Holy Quran and the members of the Prophetic Household (a) are inseparable, therefore, those who seek the truth shall resort to them in order to achieve happiness.

2. As it is mandatory for all Muslims to unconditionally follow the instructions of the Holy Quran, it is unconditionally necessary for them to obey the commands of the members of the Prophetic Household as well.

3. The inseparable relationship between the Holy Quran and the members of the Prophetic Household (a), and the necessity for their unconditional obedience are all evident reasons for their infallibility and amazing characteristics.

4. The Holy Prophet (s) said, "These two (The Holy Quran and my family) always come together, and someday will join me in paradise." This proves that all throughout the rule of Islam, there has been and will be an individual from the Prophetic Household who acts as an infallible leader. Just like the Holy Book which is the guiding light, they play the same role in directing people, therefore, it's upon us to seek them and to find and follow them in our age.

5. This Hadith suggests that falling away from the members of the Prophetic Household (a) results in one going astray.

6. They are the most honorable, knowledgeable and prominent of all people.

Interestingly, "Samhoudi Shafei", a Sunni scholar of 15^th century, put a comment on the Hadith of Thaqalain in his book, Jawahirul-Aqdain, and said, "The Hadith indicates that all throughout the history until the end of time, there would be someone who is worthy of being followed and obeyed, as is the Holy Quran itself." [28]

2. The Hadith of Safinah:

This is a famous tradition on the members of the Household of the Prophet and the Infallible Imams which is frequently used in the main Sunni and Shia reference books.

The Hadith has been approved by at least 8 of the Holy Prophet's companions (Abudhar, Abousaeid Khudri, Ibn Abbas, Anas, Abdullah Ibn Zobair, Amer Bin Wathilah, Salmat Ibn Al-Akwa’ and Ali (a)).

The above tradition has also been reflected in tens of famous Sunni books.

Abudhar explains the Hadith this way, "I heard the Holy Prophet (s) to say that the members of his household were similar to Noah’s ark. Whoever boards it shall be saved, and whoever does not shall perish." [29] In Abaqatul-Anwar, the same Hadith has been quoted from 92 books compiled by 92 famous Sunni scholars (with full details). [30]

This authentic hadith contains many important points; some of them are detailed below:

1. After the Holy Prophet (s), a flood of ignorance and depravity swept across the Islamic nation, and eventually destroyed the faith of many people.

2. In order to escape such risks, there is only one hope. This is the ark of salvation which is composed of the members of the Prophetic Household, and separating from them will surely lead to misery.

3. What saves us is not just their love, as some Islamic scholars believe, it is rather that the way to salvation passes through obedience to them, which is contrary to separating from them.

4. The ark of the members of the Prophetic Household will be necessary until the end of time, because the floods of ignorance and depravity will keep threatening us till the end of time.

5. Unconditional adherence to the members of the Prophetic Household is by itself a reliable proof that in every era there is an Infallible Imam, whom we have to obey in order to achieve salvation.

 

 

 

 

3. The Ithna Ashar (twelve) Imams Hadith:

The hadith of the Twelve Imams is also another important hadith, which is present in most Sunni books of reference.

In Sahih Muslim, Jaber Bin Samarah is quoted as saying that, "I heard the Holy Prophet of God (s) say that Islam would continuously be honorable and glorious until twelve caliphs ruled over the Muslim nation. Then he added something that I didn't hear, so I asked my father about the meaning and he informed me that the prophet said all of them would be from the tribe of the Quraish. " [31]

The same Hadith has been narrated in Sahih Bukhari, [32]  as well as Sahih Tirmidhi, [33] and Sahih Abi Dawud, [34] and also in the Musnad of Ahmad Ibn Hanbal, [35] etc…

However, as for the content and phrasing of the hadith, there are different narration. Some narrations have the phrase “twelve caliphs (successors)”, others have “twelve amirs” while a third group speak of the guardianship and rule of twelve individuals. However, it is evident that all of them refer to rule and guardianship.

 

At the same time, in the majority of these traditions that have been passed to us through various ways, the phrase 'all of them would be from the tribe of Quraish’ is present, while in other traditions that 'all of them would be from Bani Hashim' has been mentioned.

[36]

Most of these traditions say that the Holy Prophet (s) whispered the last part of his words in a confidential manner, which shows there had been people present who were against the idea that all the Prophet's successors (a) would be from tribe of the Quraish or from the Bani Hashim.

Anyway, the interpretation of this tradition, which is present in reference books and approved by all legitimate Muslim scholars, is totally clear for the followers of the Ahlul-Bayt, that being the the twelve imams. However, followers of other faiths have not been successful in finding a clear interpretation for this tradition, because the first caliphs were four, the Caliphs of Banu Ummayah were 14, and the Bani Abbas Caliphs were thirty seven, none of which corresponds with the twelve mentioned leaders. No cut and paste job or mathematical operation will make these numbers correspond.

 

Moreover, there are traditions from both Sunni and Shia scholars which contain the name of twelve Imams as believed by the Shias. Some other traditions refer to the name of the first as "Imam Ali" (a) and the last as "Imam Mahdi" (a), while some others refer to the third "Imam Hussain" (a), stating that the Holy Prophet (s) pointed to Imam Hussain (a) and said, "This grandson of mine is an Imam, the offspring of an Imam, the brother of an Imam, and the father of nine other Imams". [37]

Although there are plenty of authentic traditions concerning imamate, this much will suffice for our purpose here. [38]

 

http://www.islamquest.net/en/archive/question/fa2707

If you want to know How do Shias prove that all must obey the Imams through the Quran? Also, how do they know that they were all appointed by Allah, please read this article:

 

http://www.islamquest.net/en/archive/question/fa4729

And if you want to understand the verses from Quran which prove the Imamate of Imam Ali (as), please read this one:

 

http://www.islamquest.net/en/archive/question/fa1817

---

[1] Surah Baqarah, Verse 124

[2] This reply is adopted from the Interpretation of the Quran's Message, Vol. 9 (Imamate and Leadership in the Holy Quran)

[3] Surah Hijr, Verse 9

[4] Usul Kafi, Volume 1 Page 32

[5] Nahjul Balagha word 134

[6] Nahjul Balagha Sermon 46

[7] Surah Ra’ad, Verse 7

[8] Tafsir Kabir, Fakhr Razi, Volume 19, Page 14

[9] Al-Durrul-Manthur, Jalaladdin Suyuti, Volume. 4 Page 45

[10] Surah Bara’at, Verse 119

[11] Commentary of Fakhre Razi, volume 16, Page 221

[12] Ihqaqul-Haqq Volume. 3 Page 297

[13] Commentary of Noor Al Thaqalain Volume 2 Page 280,

[14] Yanabi’ul-Mawaddah, Page 114 – 115 – 116

[15] Shawahidul-Tanzil, Volume 1, Page 148

[16] Sahih Muslim Vol. 4 page 1873

[17] Sunanun Tirmidhi Vol. 5 Page 662

[18] Sunanun Darmi Vol. 2 Page 432 Tabe Dai Al Fekr, Beirut

[19] Musnad Ahmad Vol. 182 Chap Dar Al Sadr, Beirut

[20] Khasayis Nasaei Page 2

[21] Mustadrakul-Sahihain Vol. 3 Page 109

[22] Al-Sawa’iqul-Muhriqah, Page 226 , Tabe Abd Al Latif, Egypt

[23] Asadul-Ghabah fi Ma’rifatil-Sahabah, Vol 3 Page 47

[24] Ihya’ul-Mayyit, which is published in the border of Al Etehaaf page 116

[25] Sunan Beihaghi Vol. 10 Page 114

[26] Al Mojam Al Kabir Page 137

[27] Abaqatul-Anwar summary Vol. 2 page 105

[28] Abaqatul-Anwar summary Vol. 2 page 285

[29] Al Mojam Alkabir and Al mojam Al saghir Page 78, Delhi publication Oyoon Al akhbar Dinvari Vol. 1 page 212 (Egyptian publication) Mostadrak, Neishabouri ruler Vol. 3 page 150, Mizan Al etedal Zahbi Volume. 1 page 224 Tarikh Al kholafa Siouti page 573

[30] Abaqat summary vol. 2 page 195 – 126

[31] Sahih Muslim, Volume. 3, page 1453, Tabe Beirut dar Al ehya Al taras Al arabi

[32] Sahih Bukhari vol. 3 ninth part, page 101

[33] Sahih Tirmidhi, vol. 4 page 501 Tabe Dar Al ehya Al Taras Alarabi, Beirut

[34] Sahih Abi Dawud, vol. 4

[35] Refer to Montakhabul-Athar, page 12 and Ihqaqul-Haqq, vol. 13

[36] Yanabi’ul-Mawaddah, page 445 chapter 77

[37] Kashful-Murad, page 314 (Qom Mostafavi publication)

[38] This answer has been prepared according to the interpretation of the Quran’s message, Vol. 9 (Imamate, Leadership, in the Holy Quran).

With Duas.

Narsis.

 

 

 

 

 

[narsis 2,643]

4 hours ago, Arad1013 said:

Can yall give me 3 reasons to be Shia cause there are a lot more sunnis.

 

Bismillah.

 

Salaam.

 

The superiority of the Shia religion over other religions is because of its being the "true" religion. There is only one true religion in all epochs. The true religion of God, the Exalted, is one in all times and eras; any religion other than the One True Religion is either false or abrogated or defunct.

The multiplicity of divine religions that have so far been revealed upon the humanity is longitudinal not latitudinal which means that the new religion is abrogative of and supplementary to the former one. Thus, with the coming of the new religion, the previous religion becomes defunct and is no longer considered valid. It would be necessary on all people to follow and have faith in the new religion as it replaces the old one. That is why, the holy scripts and religious texts use the term "Kafir" (infidel) to describe those who do not have faith in the new religion.

 

Islam is the last and the most complete of the revealed religions. God shall not accept any religion other than Islam. "ان الدین عندالله الاسلام" (Verily, the only religion acceptable to Allah is Islam. [1]) "و من یبتغ غیر الاسلام دینا فلن یقبل منه" (And whoever seeks a religion other than Islam, it will never be accepted of him. [2]).

Unfortunately, Muslims like the people and adherents of the previous religions are divided into different religions. Surely, all of them cannot be true at the same time. The holy Prophet of Islam said:

 

"ان امّتی ستفرق بعدی علی ثلاث و سبعین فرقة، فرقة منها ناجیة، و اثنتان و سبعون فی النار"

 

My Ummah will be divided into seventy-three sects, one of which will be in Paradise and seventy-two will be in the Fire. [3]”

The holy Prophet of Islam (pbuh) also said:

 

"ایها الناس انی ترکت فیکم ما ان اخذتم به لن تضلوا، کتاب الله و عترتی اهل بیتی"

 

"O People, I leave you two weighty things, if you stick to both you will never go astray after me: the Book of Allah and my progeny – the Ahlalbayt. [4]"

 

Abuzar Ghaffari, one of the trusted and honorable companions of the holy Prophet (pbuh) narrates:

 

"سمعت النبی (ص) انه قال: الا ان مثل اهل بیتی فیکم مثل سفینة نوح فی قومه، من رکبها نجی و من تخلف عنها غرق"

 

"The similitude of my Ahlalbayt amongst you is the same as that of Noah's Ark amongst his tribe. Whoever boards it will be saved and he who avoided it will drown. [5]"

 

The pillars and principles of the Shia religion are belief in divine unity (tawhid), divine justice (adl), prophecy (nubuwwah), Imamat and resurrection (ma'ad). Shia believes in the leadership of the twelve infallible Imams (a.s.) as the successors of the Prophet of Islam (pbuh) the first of them being Ali (a.s.) and the last one Mahdi (may Allah hasten his reappearance).

 

In the traditions narrated from the Holy Prophet of Islam the number and names of the twelve Infallible Imams (a.s.) have been mentioned.

 

One day Abdullah bin Mas’ud was sitting in a gathering of people when a nomad Arab came over and asked: “Which one of you is Abdullah bin Mas’ud?”

 

Abdullah answered: “I am.”

Arab nomad: “Did your Prophet inform you about the number of his successor?”

 

Abdullah bin Mas’ud: “Yes, he did, they are twelve caliphs, (like) the number of the Chiefs of Bani Israel.” [6]

 

(successorship) of our Imams. Some of them are the following:wilayatOur arguments for the righteousness of the Shia religion are the Quran and Sunnah. Almighty Allah commanded us to obey God, the Messenger and Ulul Amr (those vested with authority) who, according to the Holy Prophet’s saying, are the Shia Imams. There are many a number of Quranic verses referring to leadership and

 

"وانذر عشیرتک الاقربین" — "یَاأَیُّهَا الرَّسُولُ بَلِّغْ مَا أُنزِلَ إِلَیْکَ مِنْ رَبِّکَ وَإِنْ لَمْ تَفْعَلْ فَمَا بَلَّغْتَ رِسَالَتَهُ"— "الیوم اکملت لکم دینکم و اتممت علیکم نعمتی و رضیت لکم الاسلام دینا" —"انما یرید الله لیذهب عنکم الرجس اهل البیت و یطهرکم تطهیرا"

 

" (and warn your closer relatives) was revealed, the Prophet (pbuh) addressed his relatives as such: Almighty God has commanded me to invite you to Him. Whoever helps me in this matter will be my brother, my trustee (wasi) and my successor after me.وانذر عشیرتک الاقربینIt has been mentioned in history books and in the narrations that the Prophet (pbuh) always called the Commander of the Faithful, Ali (a.s.), his trustee and successor. Tabrasi narrates in his history book that when the verse "

 

Then the Commander of the faithful, Ali (a.s.) stood up before him and said:

 

“O Apostle of God, I will help you.”

 

There and then the Prophet (pbuh) said, “Verily, this (Ali) is my brother, my trustee, my helper, my successor after me among you. Follow him and be obedient to him. Some of the Prophet’s relatives laughed at this and declared to Abu Talib mockingly that he must bow down to his own son, as Ali was now his Emir. [7]

In the last year of his life and as he was returning from his last pilgrimagetradition. (mass-transmitted)mutawatir , the Holy Prophet (pbuh) formally nominated Ali bin Abi Talib (a.s.) as the Muslims’ leader and ruler. He ordered all the pilgrims in a gathering at Ghadir Khum to vow allegiance to Ali as the Commander of the Faithful. This famous saying “of whomsoever I am a mawla (master and ruler), this Ali would be his master” is the Holy Prophet (pbuh)’s saying on this day. This is a well-known and

 

This is a brief explanation of the evidences of the superiority and righteousness of Shi’ism over other religions on the basis of Quranic verses and narrations. Definitely, we can also deal with this issue by drawing a comparison between the teachings of the Shia religion and those of non-Shia religions through which we could prove Shia’s superiority over other religions but we would rather leave this discussion for some other time.

 

When it comes to Wahabism, it would be enough to suffice with Sayed Mustafa Razvi’s writing in the book titled “Pakistan: Political and Religious Information” in which the writer says that Wahabism considers the followers of all other Muslim sects, Shia and Sunni, as pagans, infidels and idolaters. They declare seeking the intercession of the Prophet and Infallible Imams, visiting their graves, respecting and revering them as a form of innovation and idolatry. Thus, they forbid such acts on the ground that they are polytheistic acts. They do not permit greeting, respecting and revering the Prophet (pbuh) anywhere other than in the prayer and they believe that commemoration and reverence of the Prophet (pbuh) ended on the day he passed away from this world. They consider any kind of structures, monuments and tombs on the graves of the Imams and religious saints as bid’ah (innovation) and they believe that the Messenger of Allah (pbuh) was a human being who died and who no longer has the power to do anything because he has no information about us nor does he know anything about what is going on in this world. Therefore, it is forbidden to visit his grave. [8]

 

We let your common sense to judge as to whether these doctrines can be consistent with the Quran or human nature. Is this the love of the Ahlul Bayt which has been regarded as the wage of prophethood [9]? Did the Quran not tell that the martyrs are alive and sustained by their Lord? [10] And is the Prophet’s rank lower than that of the martyrs?!

http://www.islamquest.net/en/archive/question/fa2163

 

 

---

[1] - Aal-e Imran: 19

 

[2] - Aal-e Imran:85

 

[3] - Al-Ebanah al-Kubra, Ibn-e Vol. 1, p.3; Khesal, p.585

 

[4] - Kanzul Ummal, Vol.1, p.44, Babul E'tesam bil-Kitab Wassunnah.

 

[5] - Al-Mustadrak 'Ala al-Sahehain, Vol.3, p.151

 

[6] - Khesal, p.467

 

[7] - Tarikh Tabari, vol.2, p. 320, Egypt Publication: Kamil Ibn-e Athir, Vol.2, P.41, Beirut Publication

 

[8] - Sayed Mustafa Razavi, Political and Religious on Pakistan, p.63-64

 

[9] I do not ask you any wage (in return for my prophethood) except to love my near kin.

 

[10] - Aal-e Imran: 169

 

With Duas.

 

Narsis.

Edited April 28, 2016 by narsis

[Ibn Matta 6]

On 28/04/2016 at 11:30 AM, Arad1013 said:

Salam! Has the 12 Imams been mentioned in the Quran has the Caliphs been mentioned. Can yall give me 3 reasons to be Shia cause there are a lot more sunnis. I also wonder why we shias hit our selves when its haram to harm people and yourself and its bad for you when the sunnis are calm. Thank you guy may Allah bless you all peace be upon you all.

 

Salaamu 'Alaykum

Akhi if you ask a general question like that they will just refer to Ghadeer, Ayat at-Tatheer or Hadith ath-Thaqalayn. You will never find an Ayat talking about 12 Imams after the Prophet Muhammad but you will find plenty of verses about the Sahabah such as 9:100

[StrugglingForTheLight 1,633]

Salam

Imammate has been mentioned both directly about the successors of Mohammad and indirectly by the way of God in the past.

It's one of the main topics of Quran.

[Ibn Matta 6]

9 hours ago, StrugglingForTheLight said:

Salam

Imammate has been mentioned both directly about the successors of Mohammad and indirectly by the way of God in the past.

It's one of the main topics of Quran.

What utter rubbish. The word Imamah is not mentioned once in the Qur'an. To say it is a major theme is ludricous.

[Muslim2010 3,524]

On 4/28/2016 at 3:30 PM, Arad1013 said:

Salam! Has the 12 Imams been mentioned in the Quran has the Caliphs been mentioned. Can yall give me 3 reasons to be Shia cause there are a lot more sunnis. I also wonder why we shias hit our selves when its haram to harm people and yourself and its bad for you when the sunnis are calm. Thank you guy may Allah bless you all peace be upon you all.

The Quran mentions the Muslims to follow the religion of ibrahim AS.  he has been mentioned as SHIA / follower. if quran asks us to follow the SHIA we should look what is the religion of ibrahim who is decalred as Shia ,as described by the quran..

The obvious question tjhat is raised here that what are the characteristic of the religion of ibrahim who was a shia and why the quran ask the prophet and us to follow the religion of shia?

The details on the religion of ibrahim can be found at the link given below:

Edited May 7, 2016 by skamran110

[Muslim2010 3,524]

Similarly more detailed response to OP on the 12 leaders after the prophet can be seen at the given link: