Imamate in Twelver doctrine

Template:Short description Template:Twelvers Template:Shia Islam Imāmah (Template:Langx) means "leadership" and is a concept in Twelver theology. The Twelve Imams are the spiritual and political successors to Muhammad, the Prophet of Islam, in the Twelver branch of Shia Islam.Template:Sfn According to Twelver theology, the successors to Muhammad are infallible human beings, who rule justly over the community and maintain and interpret sharia and undertake the esoteric interpretation of the Quran. The words and deeds of Muhammad and the Imams guide the community. For this, the Imams must be free from error and sin and chosen by divine decree—nass—through the Prophet.Template:SfnTemplate:Sfn

Shi'a believe that divine wisdom—'Aql—is the source of the souls of the Prophets and Imams and gives them esoteric knowledge—hikmah—and that their suffering is a means by which their devotees may acquire divine grace. The Imam is not the recipient of divine revelation, but has a close relationship with God, who guides him, allowing the Imam in turn to guide others. The Imamat, or belief in the divine guide, is a fundamental belief in Shia Islam and is based on the concept that God would not leave humanity without access to divine guidance.Template:Sfn

According to the Twelvers, an Imam of the Age is always the divinely appointed authority on all matters of faith and law. Ali was the first Imam in this line and in the view of Twelvers the rightful successor to Muhammad, followed by the male descendants of Muhammad through his daughter Fatimah. Each Imam was the son of the previous Imam, with the exception of Husayn ibn Ali, who was the brother of Hasan ibn Ali.Template:Sfn The twelfth and final Imam is Muhammad al-Mahdi, who is believed by the Twelvers to be alive and in hiding.Template:Sfn

Function of imam

The office of imamate is bestowed upon the figure of imam (Template:Lit),Template:Sfnm whose function in Sunni Islam is to implement the divine law and manage the community affairs.Template:Sfnm In this sense, imam is synonymous to caliph in Sunni Islam as the highest temporal authority,Template:Sfnm but this authority is limited and mundane.Template:Sfnm

In Shia Islam, the figure of imam dominates the belief system.Template:Sfnm Necessarily a descendant of the Islamic prophet Muhammad,Template:Sfn imam is the supreme leader that combines both temporal and religious authorities,Template:Sfnm for the two were combined in Muhammad.Template:Sfnm Various Shia sects disagreed over the identity of these imams.Template:Sfn

In Twelver Shi’ism, Muhammad is believed to have been succeeded by a line of twelve imams from his descent,Template:Sfn who also inherited his divine knowledge of religion.Template:Sfnm Even though these twelve imams are thought to have been entitled, through a divine mandate, to the temporal authority to manage Muslim affairs,Template:Sfnm their status in Twelver Shi’ism does not depend upon it,Template:Sfnm as they instead owe their status to their divinely-sanctioned designation by their predecessors (Template:Transliteration).Template:Sfnm Temporal leadership only materialized for the first of the twelve imams, Ali ibn Abi Talib, who reigned from 661 CE until his assassination in 665.Template:Sfnm

Exoteric function

Whereas Muhammad brought divine revelation and taught divine law to his followers, the twelve imams interpreted the revelation and safeguarded the religion against innovations in their capacity as law-givers and guardians of religion.Template:Sfnm At this exoteric level, many teachings of these imams are general enough to be accepted by Sunnis, who regard many of the imams as outstanding religious scholars.Template:Sfnm

Esoteric function

In addition to their exoteric function,Template:Sfnm the twelve imams, by virtue of their divine knowledge, are regarded as the sole authoritative guides toward salvation,Template:Sfnm as they initiated a small group of their followers into esoteric aspects of the religion.Template:Sfn This function of imams, as spiritual guides after Muhammad, is known as Template:Transliteration or Template:Transliteration, which is described as the esoteric aspect of prophecy.Template:Sfnm In his capacity as an imam, Muhammad was also a spiritual guide.Template:Sfnm Template:Transliteration also denotes the exclusive religio-political authority of imams.Template:Sfnm

To sum, in Twelver Shi'ism, the twelve imams hold the ultimate religious authority, both in matters of law and spiritual guidance, as an extension of Muhammad's authority.Template:Sfnm Their duty is essentially threefold: first, rule the community as Muhammad's rightful successors,Template:Sfnm second, teach hidden aspects of the revelation and authoritatively interpret ambiguous verses of the Quran,Template:Sfnm and third, guide men in their spiritual life.Template:Sfnm

At an even more esoteric level, imams are often regarded as intermediaries between God and mankind.Template:Sfnm In this world, they are thought to be the cause for the creation, and the source of sustenance and divine blessings for creatures, thus maintaining all life on Earth. In the hereafter, they intercede for many, especially for their followers.Template:Sfnm By contrast, the prerogative of intercession is limited to the Islamic prophet in Sunni Islam.Template:Sfnm However, some Shia scholars reject such supernatural functions.Template:Sfnm

Existence of imam

In Twelver Shi'ism, existence of imam is regarded as a continuous and rational necessity.Template:Sfnm For instance, one rational argument in favor of imamate contends that mankind has a permanent need for a divinely-guided (infallible) leader and an authoritative teacher in religion,Template:Sfnm one that would expound the divine law and correctly interpret the revelation.Template:Sfnm As the high custodian of religion, this leader would also execute the divine law and judge among men.Template:Sfnm Existence of such a leader, it is argued, is necessary for the welfare and salvation of the community.Template:Sfnm

Providing this figure, called imam, is therefore incumbent upon God at any moment, as an obligatory grace (Template:Transliteration), for He acts in the best interest of His creation.Template:Sfnm Conversely, absence of such an imam would imply that God is both uncaring, for He has neglected His creation, and unjust, for He would punish men without providing them with right guidance.Template:Sfnm Just as it is incumbent upon God to send prophets who would teach mankind divine knowledge, it is incumbent upon Him to preserve and expound this knowledge through imams.Template:Sfnm That is, imamate in Twelver Shi'ism is regarded as the continuation of prophecy.Template:Sfn

It is thus argued that imamate is a continuous necessity, that is, Earth has never been devoid of imams.Template:Sfnm There could only be one such imam at any time. As long as he lived, his successor would be a silent (Template:Transliteration) imam.Template:Sfnm

Qualifications of imam

Divine designation and divine knowledge, both of which the imam inherits through his successor from Muhammad, are the key markers of imamate in Twelver Shi'ism.Template:Sfnm

Divinely-sanctioned designation (Template:Transliteration)

In Twelver doctrine, imamate is confined to certain descendants of the Islamic prophet Muhammad, from the marriage of his daughter Fatima to his cousin Ali ibn Abi Talib.Template:Sfn Every imam is believed to have been designated by his predecessor through a divine mandate, going back successively to the announcement of Muhammad about Ali ibn Abi Talib at the Ghadir Khumm, shortly before the former died in 630.Template:Sfnm According to Twelvers, the imamate was inherited after Ali by his eldest son Hasan, then by his other son Husayn, and then successively inherited by nine of Husayn's descendants.Template:Sfn That is, these twelve imams owe their legitimacy to “apostolic succession,” rather than political leadership.Template:Sfnm

Except the first three of them, these imams were effectively apolitical.Template:Sfnm More specifically, they all had claims to political leadership,Template:Sfnm but did not come forward for they would have been persecuted.Template:Sfnm The alternative theory is that many of them did not have any political claims at all.Template:Sfnm At any rate, this hereditary nature of imamate obviously closed the field to outside claimants.Template:Sfnm Divinely-sanctioned designation (Template:Transliteration) is often accompanied in Shia sources by inheritance of secret religious scrolls and prophet's weapons.Template:Sfnm The latter paralleled the Ark of the Covenant for the Israelites.Template:Sfn

Template:Transliteration is regraded as a logical necessity in the Twelver doctrine, in which imams are thought to have been infallible, that is, immune from sin and error.Template:Sfn Only an infallible imam can correctly identify his infallible successor. The appointment of imam must also be sanctioned by God, for infallibility is a hidden virtue known to God.Template:Sfnm In particular, the fallible community has no voice in appointing infallible imams,Template:Sfnm or prophets for that matter.Template:Sfnm

Divinely-inspired knowledge (Template:Transliteration)

Rather than political power, the Twelver doctrine of imamate revolves around the esoteric knowledge (Template:Transliteration) of their quiescenct imams,Template:Sfnm who are thought to have successively inherited Muhammad's divine knowledge about God.Template:Sfnm Twelvers hold that their imams did not receive revelation as prophets did but were still divinely-inspired.Template:Sfnm Imams were spoken to by angels,Template:Sfnm but, unlike prophets, could not see the angels.Template:Sfnm Imams are also said to have inherited certain secret texts, such as Template:Transliteration, Template:Transliteration, Template:Transliteration, Template:Transliteration.Template:Sfnm For example, Template:Transliteration supposedly contains the knowledge of what is licit and illicit.Template:Sfnm

Imams thus perfectly knew exoteric aspects of the religion, such as tradition and jurisprudence, and its esoteric aspects, such as hidden and allegorical interpretations of the Quran,Template:Sfnm to the point that imam is also called the “speaking Quran.”Template:Sfn The near consensus among Twelver scholars is that imams did not have knowledge of the unseen (Template:Transliteration), but were granted glimpses of it as a divine favor.Template:Sfnm This was the opinion of al-Mufid (Template:Died in), Sharif al-Murtada (Template:Died in), al-Tusi (Template:Died in), three prominent Twelver scholars.Template:Sfn

Alternatively, some have argued that imams were omniscient or nearly so,Template:Sfnm including Ibn Babawayh (Template:Died in), another prominent Twelver scholar.Template:Sfn It is thus said that imams knew the greatest name of God (Template:Transliteration),Template:Sfnm the past, the present, and the future.Template:Sfnm At an even more esoteric level, imams are thought to have manifested the knowable God, that is, what can be known about God to His creation.Template:Sfnm

Other features of imam

Infallibility

As with the Islamic prophet Muhammad, the twelve imams are regarded as infallible in Twelver Shi'ism, that is, protected from sin and error through divine grace. The scope of this Template:Transliteration has been debated, but at least covers imams’ religious rulings and views.Template:Sfnm

Infallibility (Template:Transliteration) of imams, in their capacity as divinely-sanctioned leaders, is viewed as a logical necessity in Twelver Shi'ism lest the religion is corrupted,Template:Sfn or people are led astray.Template:Sfnm This infallibility, however, is not viewed as inability to sin.Template:Sfnm Rather, the esoteric knowledge of prophets and imams, for instance, their vivid understanding of God's punishment, produces a faculty that prevents them from disobedience of God.Template:Sfnm That is, their infallibility is a byproduct of their divine knowledge.Template:Sfnm Verse 2:124 is one of the Quranic verses cited to support the infallibility of imams, in which all wrongdoers are excluded from imamate.Template:Sfnm

Best of men

Each imam is the best of men (Template:Transliteration) in his time, that is, most excellent among them in religious qualities,Template:Sfnm for otherwise, it is argued, God would have appointed someone else as the imam.Template:Sfn Similarly, it is argued that imams must be foremost in observing the religious values that they preach.Template:Sfn Imamate is ranked even higher than prophethood in Twelver Shi'ism, citing the Quranic story in verse 2:124, where Abraham is promoted to imamate when he is already a prophet.Template:Sfnm

In particular, the twelve imams are thought to have been more excellent than all previous prophets, except Muhammad,Template:Sfnm for he inherited the total knowledge of all prophets, and the twelve imams in turn inherited Muhammad's superior knowledge.Template:Sfnm Yet the twelve imams are believed to have been equal in knowledge, although some of them, like Ali ibn Abi Talib, may have been superior to the rest in rank.Template:Sfnm This also implied that every new piece of divine knowledge was presented first to the imam's predecessors and then to him.Template:Sfn

At a mystical level, Muhammad, Fatima, and the twelve imams, collectively known as the fourteen infallibles, are said to have been created from a nobler substance than the clay from which prophets were made.Template:Sfnm More generally, prophecy and imamate may be joined in a person.Template:Sfnm That is, some prophets, including the Islamic prophet Muhammad, were also imams in that they too possessed the esoteric knowledge of religion. Yet not every imam was a prophet for some imams did not transmit a divine scripture.Template:Sfnm

Most beautiful names of God

In Twelver doctrine, Muhammad and the twelve imams are regarded as the highest manifestations of the most beautiful names of God (Template:Transliteration), which are the qualities that describe the knowable God, that is, those descriptions of God which are manifested in his creation. For instance, God is indulgent (Template:Transliteration) and vengeful (Template:Transliteration), satisfied (Template:Transliteration) and angry (Template:Transliteration).Template:Sfnm Imams are thus the best representatives of God's attributes; they are His image and face;Template:Sfnm the perfect human beings (Template:Transliteration).Template:Sfnm

In particular, knowing imams is equivalent to knowing (the knowable) God, which is in turn the ultimate goal of the creation.Template:Sfnm It is in this sense that the imam is said to be the Proof of God (Template:Transliteration), the Vicar of God (Template:Transliteration), and the Threshold of God (Template:Transliteration).Template:Sfnm In particular, as the divinely-sanctioned guide, imam is the highest proof (Template:Transliteration) of God on Earth and His evidence on the judgement day against those who deny or disobey Him.Template:Sfnm

Light of God

The fourteen infallibles are said to have been a primordial light that became the cause and instrument for the rest of the creation.Template:Sfnm This so-called Muahammadan light was carried through the line of prophets, beginning with Adam,Template:Sfnm until it became embodied in the fourteen infallibles.Template:Sfnm Through this divine light the imams illuminate the hearts of believers, guiding them toward God.Template:Sfnm This divine light is also said to be responsible for the infallibility of imams.Template:Sfnm

Intercession

It is believed that the fourteen infallibles will intercede for the Muslim community in the hereafter,Template:Sfnm through which their sins will be overlooked or they will reach a higher spiritual status.Template:Sfnm It is the Shia community, however, that will especially benefit from this intercession (Template:Transliteration).Template:Sfnm Just as the imams, particularly Husayn,Template:Sfnm patiently endured suffering, privation, rejection and persecution on Earth, they will be exalted and vindicated by God in the hereafter, sharing in His sovereignty over the creation through intercession,Template:Sfnm a prerogative which they will share with their true followers, who had in turn suffered for imams’ sake.Template:Sfnm Yet this absolutist perspective has been curtailed by emphasizing that intercession is only accessible to the virtous and pious.Template:Sfnm

Template:Transliteration

The word Template:Transliteration and its cognate Template:Transliteration can mean 'Lord', 'master', 'trustee', 'guardian', 'helper', 'protecting friend', 'freed slave', and (spiritual or material) 'heir'.Template:Sfnm First, Template:Transliteration (Template:Lit) signifies the nearness of imam to God, who reveals to him His secrets,Template:Sfnm and grants him authority over His creation.Template:Sfnm Second, imam and Template:Transliteration is the supreme spiritual guide,Template:Sfnm and the exclusive religio-political authority after Muhammad.Template:Sfnm

Template:Transliteration to imams

In Twelver belief, Muslims have a religious duty to know their imam,Template:Sfnm and those who die without knowing their imam have died a death of ignorance (Jahilliya), a reference to a well-attested prophetic saying.Template:Sfnm At an esoteric level, knowing the imams is said to be equivalent to knowing what can be known about God, for imams embody the knowable God, that is, His revealed “face” for His creation.Template:Sfnm

As rightful successors to Muhammad and exclusive heirs to his divine knowledge,Template:Sfnm the twelve imams are owed the same level of loyalty in Twelver Shi'ism as Muhammad.Template:Sfnm Not only absolute obedience to them is obligatory,Template:Sfnm love for them is also mandated in the Quranic verse of the mawadda, according to Twelver (and some Sunni) exegetes.Template:Sfnm Through this love and obedience, it is argued, followers would benefit from imams’ exoteric and esoteric guidance.Template:Sfnm the above all-encompassing bond of spiritual loyalty that binds true followers to their imams is called Template:Transliteration, transcending politics and self-interest.Template:Sfnm

Template:Transliteration is the condition for the acceptance of all good deeds and salvation,Template:Sfnm It is regraded as a pillar of the faith (Template:Transliteration),Template:Sfnm and what elevates (true) Shias over the rest of Muslims, who have merley submitted to the exoteric Islam.Template:Sfnm As for the absence of Template:Transliteration, enemies of imams are disbelievers (Template:Singular Template:Transliteration),Template:Sfnm who are not entitled to Muslim rights.Template:Sfnm Yet there is a gray area in between,Template:Sfn for a Muslim who does not harbor enmity towards imams and their followers is neither a (true) believer Template:Transliteration nor disbeliever.Template:Sfn That is, such non-Shias are considered Muslims, with their due legal rights, but not (true) believers.Template:Sfnm

Imamate and revelation (Wahy)

As Muhammad was the last person to receive revelation, the Imams receive divine inspiration (elham) and, as such, are in contact with the holy source of knowledge.Template:Sfn A hadith narrates that "Imam hears the voice of the Angel, but does not have his vision, either in sleep or in waking".Template:Sfn Imams get Revelation but not like the prophets. They are called Muhaddatht and are spoken to by angels via sounds through their ears and are supported by the Holy Spirit. They receive additional information on the Night of Power Laylat al-Qadr. They make Spiritual Ascension to the Divine Throne on Friday to add their knowledge.Template:Sfn

Arguments

Shia view of Quran

Shias claim the verse of Light (24:35) is attributed to The Fourteen Infallible.Template:Sfn According to Shia sources on the nature and basis of Imamate, H al-Baqir emphasizes that verse 5:55 refers to Ali.Template:Sfn According to al-Baqir's interpretation of verse 35:32, Imams are "Then we caused to inherit the Book those We have chosen of Our servants".Template:Sfn Shias mind verse 4:59, which signifies a perfect love and obedience to divine guides.Template:Sfn

Other Shia sources claim that Imams are expressed in Quran as: "the Supreme Sign" (al-Ayat al-Kobra) (79:20), "the August Symbol" (al-Mathal al-a'la) (16:60), "the Most Solid Handle" (al-Urwat al-Wuthqa) (2:256), (31:22).Template:Sfn According to al-Baqir Imams are the Light of Allah (64:8, 57:28).Template:Sfn These verses (28:68, 2:30, 38:26, 2:124, 21:73) state that Imamate is a divine appointment and a fallible person can not be an Imam.Template:Sfn

Wilferd Madelung, regarding the blood ties which is found in Quran, states the superiority of Ali for his succession.Template:Sfn Regarding verse 2:124, Tabataba'i states that Imamah is a divine status, Imam must be Ma'sum (infallible), the earth can not be without an Imam, Imam have the complete knowledge which is related to this world and the next of the people, Imam excels all people in all virtues.Template:Sfn However it is argued by many scholars that the 12 Shia Imams have not been mentioned in the Quran.

By reason

Al-Baqir states that while people need a guide for their journey to a strange place, their journey to heaven is stranger and more in need of a guide.Template:Sfn Al-Mufid states that an Imam is necessary for defining the exact laws that are obligatory upon the Muslims.Template:Sfn Many verses in Quran are ambiguous, revelation of Quran without further explanation is unlikely from Allah.Template:Sfn While Imamate brings the people nearer to obedience and away from disobedience, it is Grace (Lutf) that is incumbent of Allah.Template:Sfn

Regarding rejecting the Imamah-doctrine, Template:PresentScholar, writes: "Imamah is a universal grace (lutf ‘amm) while Nubuwwah (prophethood) is a special grace (lutf khass), it is possible that a specific period in time can be void of a living Nabi while the same is not true for the Imam. To reject universal grace is worse than to reject any special grace. The prophet founded an eternal Shari'ah for all the times and this eternal religion could not continue without a leader.Template:Sfn

History

File:Kerbela Hussein Moschee.jpg

The Imam Husayn Shrine in Karbala, Iraq, where the Battle of Karbala took place.

In the period of Minor Occultation, theologians like Ibn Qube Razi, Newbakhtis, al-Shaykh al-Mufid, Seyyed Morteza and al-Shaykh al-Tusi rebuild the theological school of Imamiyah.Template:Sfn In the second and third century of Hijra, a Ma'sum (infallible) and divinely chosen leader of the religion was more focused than the political role of the Imams by the theologians.Template:Sfn Although Imamiyah believed that most of the works on the early Islamic centuries argue that Shi'ism began as a political movement rather than a religious group.Template:Sfn However this does not mean that religious sentiments were absent in the first century.Template:Sfn Dakake believes that the doctrine of Imamate was established in the time of Ja'far al-Sadiq, while Kohlberg states that the Twelver Shi'ism dates back not much before the beginning of the "Major_Occultation".Template:Sfn

Muhammad is reported to have said that the Islamic leadership is in Quraysh (i.e., his tribe) and that 12 "Imams" shall succeed him. Sunni and Shiite sects differ as to whom Muhammad was referring. Muhammad stated (authenticated by Sunnis and Shiites), that "Whoever does not know the Imam of his Lifetime (Hadith of the Current Imam: i.e., recognizes same) has died the death of Ignorance".Template:SfnTemplate:Sfn The idea of a prophet appointing a successor is found in the Old Testament where Joshua son of Nun is declared Moses’ successor or manager of his affairs after his death.

• Before conception, the preceding the Imam is sent through a heavenly syrup which he drinks.
• The Imam is born pure and circumcised. (93:5)
• The Imam's mother experiences light and noises before the birth of the Imam.

Shias believe that just as Moses appointed Aaron as his successor on Bani-Israel, (Hadith of position), in accordance with God's order, Muhammad, the final prophet, appointed Ali ibn Abi Talib to be the leader of the believers.

The Shi'a Twelver denomination of Islam consider it to be the highest level of responsibility given by God to a human.

List of the Twelve Imams

Imams	Length of Imamate	Titles
Ali ibn Abi Talib	28 years (632–661)	Amir al-Mu'minin Wali Allah Bab-e-Madina tul Ilm Asadullah Abu Turab Al-Karrar Al-Murtadha As-Siddiq Al-Wasi Al-Faruq
Hasan ibn Ali	9 years (661–670)	Al-Mujtaba Al-Sibt Sayyid al-Shabab Ahl al-Jannah
Husayn ibn Ali	10 years (670-680)	At-Tayyib As-Sayyid Al-Sibt Al-Wafi Al-Mubarak
Ali ibn Husayn	22 years (680–712)	Al-Sajjad Zayn ul Abideen Sayyid al-Sajjadeen Dhu al-Thafenat
Muhammad ibn Ali	20 years (712–732)	Al-Baqir Al-baqara Al-Shakir
Jafar ibn Muhammad	33 years (732–765)	Al-Sadiq Al-Fadil At-Tahir
Musa ibn Muhammad	34 years(765–799)	Al-Kazim al-Abd al-Salih Bab al-Hawa'ij Nafs Zakiyyah Ziynul Mujahidin Az-Zahid
Ali ibn Musa	19 years(799–818)	Al-Rida As-Sabir Ar-Razi Al-Wafi
Muhammad ibn Ali ibn Musa	19 years(819 –835)	Al-Jawad Al-Taqi
Ali ibn Muhammad	33 years(835–868)	Al-Hadi Al-Naqi al-Mutawakkil
Hasan ibn Ali ibn Muhammad	6 years(868–874)	Al-Askari Al-Samet Al-Zaki Al-Rafiq Al-Taqiy
Muhammad ibn Hasan	1151 years(874 - ongoing)	Al-Mahdi Al-Qa'im Al-Montazar Saheb al-Zaman Al-Gha'ib Al-Hojja Sahib al-Amr Sahib al-Haqq Baqiyat-Ullah

See also

• Sayyid imam Muhammad al-Askari al-Baaj Saba' al-dujail
• Hadith of Mubahela
• Hadith of position
• Hadith of The Cloak - Hadith Al Kisa
• Hadith of the pond of Khumm
• Hadith of the Twelve Successors
• Islamic leadership
• Theology of Twelvers
• Signs of the reappearance of Muhammad al-Mahdi
• Reappearance of Muhammad al-Mahdi

References

• Template:No ISBN
• Template:No ISBN
• Revised in 2008

External links

• Shi'ite Doctorine by MOHAMMAD ALI AMIR-MOEZZI an article in Encyclopædia Iranica
• Hujjat by Maria Dakake an article in Encyclopædia Iranica