17. WILĀYAH TAKWĪNIYYAH
Definition
and Scope
The term wilāyah (وِلاَيَة) is derived from the verb waliya
(وَلِيَ) yalī (يَليْ) , “to be near
(someone or something)”, “to adjoin (something)”; (وَلَاء walā’, وَلَايَة walāyah); “to be a friends
(of someone)”, “to be friends”; وَلَايَة) walāyah, wilāyah), “to be in charge, to run, to administer, to
govern, to rule, to have power." Therefore, the term wilāyah means
“authority, power.” According to Shia (Shī‘ah) theology, it is the authority
invested in the Prophet (ﷺ) and the ahlu
’l-bayt (the Prophet’s family) as representatives of Allah the Almighty on
this earth.
The Iranian cleric, philosopher, lecturer and politician Morteza
Motahhari مُرْتَضى مُطَهَّرِي) , 1919–979)[1]
mentioned four dimensions of wilāyah in:
(a) Wilāyah Mahabbah, namely, the right of love of the Prophet and
his family; (b) Wilāyah Imāmah, namely, their authority in spiritual
guidance, in guiding their followers in spiritual matters; (c) Wilāyah Zi‘āmah,
namely, their authority in socio-political guidance, in the sense that they
have to lead the Muslims in socio-political aspects of life; (d) Wilāyah Taṣarruf,
namely, universal power over the entire universe. This is also called Wilāyah
Takwīniyyah.
The term takwīniyyah (تَكْوِيْنِيَّة) is derived from kawwana
yukawwinu takwīn (كَوَّنَ
يُكَوِّنُ تَكِوِيْن) meaning “to make, to create, to produce, to form, to bring into
being, to shape, to fashion.” Therefore, in Shiite theology, wilāyah takwīniyyah
is “the universal authority given to Prophet Muhammad (ﷺ) and his family (Ahlu’-Bayt) that makes it possible for
them to exercise their power over everything that exists.” In Ayatollah Khomeini’s
words, "It is a vicegerency pertaining to the whole of creation, by
virtue of which all the atoms in the universe humble themselves before the
holder of authority."[2]
Khomeini elaborated the spiritual power of the imāms,
as follows:
It is one of the essential beliefs of our Shia
school that
no one
can attain the spiritual status of the Imams, even
the
cherubim or the prophets. In fact, according to the traditions that have been handed
down to us, the Most
Noble
Messenger and the Imams existed before the creation
of the world in the form of lights situated beneath the
divine
throne; they were superior to other men even
in
the
sperm from which they grew and in their physical composition. Their exalted
station is limited only by the
divine
will, as indicated by the saying of Jibra'il recorded
in the traditions on the mi'raj: 'Were I to draw closer by
as much
as the breadth of a finger, surely I
would burn.'"[3]
The Persian Shiite ḥadīth
collector al-Kulaynī (d. 329/941) in his Uṣūl al-Kāfī (1/279)
narrated the following:
From
Muhammad ibn Sinan who has said the following:
“Once I
was in the presence of Abu Ja‘far (alaihis salam),
and I mentioned the differences among the Shia.
The Imam said, ‘O Muhammad, Allah, the Most Holy, the Most High, is One and
eternal. He created Muhammad, Ali and Fatimah, recipients of divine supreme
covenant. They were there for a thousand Dahr (courses of time). Then He
created all other things. He made them witness the creation of all other things. He made obedience to them obligatory
and gave
them control of the affairs of the creation.
They can, thus, make lawful whatever they wish and unlawful whatever they wish and they never wish anything unless Allah, theMost
Holy, the Most High, wishes.’ He then said, ‘O Muhammad, this is a religion
that, if exaggerated, will
lead to
disproportionate belief and ignoring it will cause
degradation.
Those holding to it properly will have
proper
contact. Keep it with you, O Muhammad.’
It is
also mentioned in Al-Kulaynī in his Uṣūl al-Kāfī that the meaning of the
verseوَرَحْمَتِي وَسِعَتْ كُلَّ شَيْءٍ
(الأعراف:156) “My Mercy embraces all
things” is that “the knowledge of the imām embraces all things.”
The
following verse is about the Doomsday:
وَأَشْرَقَتِ الْأَرْضُ بِنُورِرَبِّهَا وَوُضِعَ
الْكِتَابُ وَجِيءَ بِالنَّبِيِّينَ وَالشُّهَدَاءِ (الزمر:69)
And the earth will shine with the light of its Lord
(Allah,
when He will
come to judge among men), and the Book
will be
placed (open), and the Prophets and the
witnesses will be brought forward,…(Q. 39:69)
According to the Twelver Shia scholar Fayḍ Kāshānī (1007-1091/1598-1680)[4] in his al-Tafsīr
al-Ṣāfī, “the light of its Lord” in the above verse is the
expected al-Mahdī as the Lord of the earth, when he came out from the
subterranean vault, so that people would no longer need sunshine and moonlight.
Based on these reports
the imāms are in control of the universe and are permitted to play with
the Sharī‘ah (Islamic law) as they wish. They can make ḥalāl what
is ḥarām, and vice versa if they want it. It is in contradiction with
the Qur’ān which states that Islam has been perfected in the times of the Prophet.
Allah said:
الْيَوْمَ أَكْمَلْتُ لَكُمْ دِينَكُمْ وَأَتْمَمْتُ
عَلَيْكُمْ نِعْمَتِي
وَرَضِيتُ
لَكُمُ الْإِسْلَامَ دِينًا (المائدة:3)
This day, I have perfected your religion for
you,
completed My Favor
upon you, and have chosen
for you Islam as your religion (Q. 5:3)
One of the most influential Iranian Twelver Shia marja' (religious reference),[5]
Ayatullah Abū’l-Qāsim al-Khū’ī or Khoei (November 19, 1899 – August 8, 1992)[6]
said on the wilāyah takwīniyyah of the Prophet and the Ahlul Bayt as follows:
As for
the first type of wilayat [takviniya, universal], obviously there is no doubt in their
authority over the entire creation as is clear from the ahadíth because they
are the link in creation, through them [continues] the existence, and they are
reason
for creation [of the universe]; if it had not been for them,
Allah would not have created the people
altogether, the
people have been created for them, through
them the
people exist, and they are the means of the
pouring forth
[of the
Divine grace]. "Actually, they have the universal authority just below
that of the Creator Himself; this
authority
[of theirs] is like the authority of Almighty
Allah
on the creation, however, it is weaker compared
to the authority of Almighty Allah on the creation.”
The Persian Shia scholar
Abū Ja‘far Ibn Bābawayh al-Qummī (“the native of Qom”), also referred to as al-Shaykh
al-Ṣadūq (“the Truthful Scholar”) (ca. 923-991)[7]
in his al-Amālī (which was a collection of his lectures,
pp.252-253) mentioned the statement of ‘Alī ibn al-Ḥusayn (‘alayhim al-salām)
regarding the wilāyah takwīniyyah of the imāms as follows:
We are
the imāms of the Muslims, Allah’s ḥujaj (proofs, competent authorities) over
the ‘ālamīn (human beings,
the world, the universe), the masters of the believers,
the guides of the inexperienced needy, the
protectors
(mawālī) of the believers; we are the amān
(the shelter, security, protection) of the inhabitants of the earth, as are
the
stars amān (the shelter, security, protection) of the inhabitants of the heaven;
it is for our sake that Allah
keeps the heavens from falling into the earth except
by
His
leave; it is for our sake that the earth keeps itself from
shaking its inhabitants violently; it is for
us the rain falls;
it is
for us compassion spreads, and it is for us the earth
brings forth its blessings; were we not on this earth it
would have
sunk its inhabitants. Since Allah’s creation
of Adam
the earth would not be absent from a ḥujjah
for Allah, either well-known or hidden unknown;
the
earth would not be absent from a ḥujjah for
Allah till the Doomsday, without which Allah
would not have been worshiped.
Another example is the
Iranian marja‘ Grand Ayatollah Khalil Mobasher Kashani (خليل مبشر كاشاني) (b. 1951) said that al-walī al-faqīh can control
the course of events in the universe, such as the fall of rain. He said that
Ayatollah Khomeini himself can order the clouds to rain.
Having wilāyah
takwīniyyah does the imām know or is it necessary for him to know
everything including the divine secret (al-ghayb)? Some scholars among
the Shia do not accept it, such as al-Shaykh al-Ṭūsī who said:
“Their
view that it is necessary for the imām to know
everything and al-ghayb (the divine secret),
there is no
doubt
of its fallacy, as it is known that all that have nothing
to do
with religion, and the imām has no control of any of
them.
Therefore, how could it be incumbent for him to
have
authority to something beyond his control?”
The Twelver Shia theologian and jurist
al-Shaykh al-Mufīd (c. 336/8- 413/948–1022)[8],
has the same view. He said:
It is
neither a condition for prophets to have com-
prehensive
knowledge of everything, nor that he
should seek information about the inmost of every
external sense. Our Prophet Muhammad (ﷺ) was
the best among the prophet and the most knowledgeable
among messengers, and yet he had no comprehensive
knowledge on astronomy, and did
not turn his attention
to it; the expression of poet did not come
from him, and
being a poet was not proper for him. He was
illiterate as
expressed in the divine texts. And he did not occupy
himself with learning any skill, and when he
wanted to
go to Madinah he hired a guide to show him the
way,
and he used to ask the news which were unknown
to
him as long as no reliable person brought them to
him.
This view of al-Mufīd was supported by the later scholar al-Sayyid
Muḥsin al-Amīn who said that his statement that the imām did not know
everything except the laws was very true. Similarly, it is not proper that the Prophet
(ﷺ) or the imām did not know anything
about the laws where people were in need of it, and it was not necessary for
the Prophet Muhammad (ﷺ) to know all laws before they were needed.
Rejection of Wilāyah
Takwīniyyah
The issue of wilāyah
takwīniyyah was the object of controversy among scholars, even among the
Shia scholars themselves, some support it, and others object it. Among its
exponents was al-Shaykh ‘Abd al-Ḥamīd al-Muhājir (1950-now)[9]
who says that there are five foundations of Islam: al-ṣalāh (prayer), al-zakāt,
al-ḥajj (pilgrimage to Makkah), al-ṣiyām (fasting), and al-wilāyah.[10]
Al-wilāyah is the basic condition of accepting good deeds. He says, “If a
person worshipped Allah for one thousand years between the Rukn (the
corner of the Ka‘bah) and the Maqām (namely, Maqām Ibrāhīm or Station of Ibrahim, a
small building near the Ka‘bah in Makkah, housing a stone with Prophet
Ibrāhīm’s footprints) until his neck fell apart
from bowing and prostrating in prayer, but he did not meet Allah with his belief
in the wilāyah of Ahl-Bayt, Allah would throw him down to
Hellfire with his nostrils. Allah does not want your prayers only, but also the
wilāyah.”
Another
Shia scholar but with the opposite view is al-Shaykh Muḥammad Jawād
Mughanniyyah (1322-1400/1904-1979).[11]
In his book al-Falsafāt al-Islāmiyyah he insists that wilāyah
takwīniyyah is not one of the necessities of the Shia school, as there is
no evidence for it. Everything could
happen with Allah’s leave, but the consideration is whether it really happens,
not whether it could happen. Therefore, the necessity of believing in wilāyah
takwīniyyah is not one of the necessities, neither of the religion nor of
the school.
Another
Lebanese Shi’ī marja‘ al-Sayyid Muḥammad Ḥusayn Faḍlullāh (1354-1432/1935-2010)[12]
confirms that it is not an essential part of Islam, not one of the principal
beliefs, and there is no harm for a person’s faith in Islam in not believing in
it. He says further that wilāyah takwīniyyah as an authority over the
universe at someone’s disposal or setting it in motion has not occurred
to anyone among human beings, even prophets and imāms as it is not
needed for their duty in conveying their messages. Stating that it exists is
contradictory to the Qur’ān, and is inconsistent with pure tawḥīd (Oneness
of Allah). He cites the following verses to indicate the Prophet’s humanness:
قُلْ لَا أَقُولُ لَكُمْ عِنْدِي خَزَائِنُ اللَّهِ
وَلَا أَعْلَمُ الْغَيْبَ وَلَا
أَقُولُ
لَكُمْ إِنِّي مَلَكٌ (الأنعام:50)
Say (O Muhammad):
“I don’t tell you that with me
are the
treasures of Allah, nor (that) I know the Unseen;
nor do I tell you that I am an angel.” (Q. 6:50)
قُلْ لَا أَمْلِكُ لِنَفْسِي
نَفْعًا وَلَا ضَرًّا إِلَّا مَا شَاءَ اللَّهُ وَلَوْ كُنْتُ
أَعْلَمُ الْغَيْبَ لَاسْتَكْثَرْتُ
مِنَ الْخَيْرِ وَمَا مَسَّنِيَ السُّوءُ إِنْ أَنَا
إِلَّا نَذِيرٌ وَبَشِيرٌ
لِقَوْمٍ يُؤْمِنُونَ (الأعراف:188)
Say (O Muhammad): “I possess no power over
benefit or harm
to myself except as Allah wills. If I had
the knowledge of the Ghayb (Unseen),
I should have
secured for myself an abundance of wealth, and no evil
should
have touched me. I am but a warner, and a bringer
of glad
tidings to a people who believe.” (Q. 7:188)
قُلْ مَا كُنْتُ بِدْعًا
مِنَ الرُّسُلِ وَمَا أَدْرِي مَا يُفْعَلُ بِي وَلَا بِكُمْ إِنْ أَتَّبِعُ
إِلَّا مَا يُوحَى إِلَيَّ وَمَا أَنَا إِلَّا نَذِيرٌ
مُبِينٌ (الأحقاف:9)
Say (O Muhammad): “I am not a new thingamong the
Messengers
(of Allah, i.e. I am not the first Messenger)
nor do I know what will be done
with me
or with you. I only follow that which is
revealed to
me, and I am but a plain warner.” (Q. 46:9)
وَقَالُوا لَنْ نُؤْمِنَ
لَكَ حَتَّى تَفْجُرَ لَنَا مِنَ الْأَرْضِ يَنْبُوعًا . أَوْ تَكُونَ لَكَ
جَنَّةٌ مِنْ نَخِيلٍ وَعِنَبٍ
فَتُفَجِّرَ الْأَنْهَارَ خِلَالَهَا تَفْجِيرًا. أَوْ تُسْقِطَ السَّمَاءَ
كَمَا زَعَمْتَ عَلَيْنَا كِسَفًا أَوْ تَأْتِيَ
بِاللَّهِ وَالْمَلَائِكَةِ قَبِيلًا. أَوْ يَكُونَ لَكَ بَيْتٌ
مِنْ زُخْرُفٍ أَوْ تَرْقَى فِي السَّمَاءِ وَلَنْ
نُؤْمِنَ لِرُقِيِّكَ حَتَّى تُنَزِّلَ عَلَيْنَا كِتَابًا
نَقْرَؤُهُ قُلْ سُبْحَانَ
رَبِّي هَلْ كُنْتُ إِلَّا بَشَرًا رَسُولًا (الإسراء:90-93)
And they say: “We shall not believe in you (O
Muhammad),
until you cause a spring to gush forth from
the earth for us;
Or you have a garden of date palms and grapes,
and cause
rivers to gush forth in its midst abundantly; Or you cause the
heaven
to fall upon us in pieces, as you have pretended, or
you bring Allah and the angels before (us) face to face; Or
you have a house of Zukhruf (like silver and pure gold), or
you ascend up into the sky and even then we will put no
faith in your ascension until you bring down for us a Book
that we would read.” Say (O Muhammad)”
“Glorified (and
Exalted) is my Lord (Allah) above all that evil they
(polytheists) associate with Him! Am I anything but
a man, sent as a Messenger?” (Q. 17:90-93)
Based on these
verses al-Sayyid Faḍlullāh says that any power possessed by the Prophet
Muhammad (ﷺ) is only
from Allah given to him in accordance with its necessity in conveying his
message. There is no indication that Allah has given wilāyah takwīniyyah to
prophets and imams, but Allah gives the prophets mu‘jizāt (miracles)
in facing the challenge of infidelity in case of necessity.
This view of al-Sayyid Faḍlullāh as well his rejection
and prohibition of cursing some of the Prophet’s companions, such as Abū Bakr,
‘Umar and ‘Ā’ishah, are contradictory to that of the majority of the Shia. The
Iranian scholar Jawād al-Tibrīzī criticized him and called him الضَالُّ الْمُضِلُّ (“the misled and misleading”), and prohibited people from
following him, reading his books and spreading his views. Another Iranian
scholar Ḥusayn Waḥīd al-Khurasānī who criticized him said that his belief was اِضْلالٌ عَنْ سَبِيْلِ اللَّه وَ اِفْسَادٌ فِي الْعَقَائِدِ
الْحَقَّة (“misguiding from the
path of Allah and undermining the true beliefs”). Eventually, al-Sayyid
al-Khāminī (Khamenei) issued a fatwā prohibiting criticism against him
and stating that “he was one of the authorities of the school with his purity,
faith and jihad.”
The contemporary
Shiite marja‘ Kamāl ibn Bāqir ibn Ḥasan al-Ḥaydarī (1956-now),[13]
admits that there is no solid evidence in the Qur’ān stating that imāmah (including
wilāyah) is one of the fundamentals of faith.
The Sunnī View of the Wilāyah Takwīniyyah
Shaykh Khālid al-Wuṣābī in an
interview on the wilāyah takwīniyyah in Qanāt Ṣafā (Ṣafā Channel) with Muḥammad Ṣābir
he talked about its possibility or impossibility to occur. He said that suppose
a group of people in Asia, Africa, Europe and Australia ask ‘Alī, “O ‘Ali!” can
he hear them all at the same time and answer their request also at the same
time? If the Shia say that it is possible, then is it also possible to take
place with Abū Bakr, as the wilāyah takwīniyyah is not exclusively for
the twelve īmams. If they say “no”, then they would become infidel by
denying Allah’s power and claiming Him to be weak. If they say “yes”, then
there will be no privilege for the imāms over ordinary people.
Shaykh Khālid al-Wuṣābī
says further that there is no clear evidence in the Qur’ān and the Ḥadīth
indicating that Allah has given wilāyah takwīniyyah to any of the human
beings. What they are trying to find is evidence to support the existence of wilāyah
takwīniyyah by using analogy comparing the miracles given to prophets like wilāyah
takwīniyyah given to imams. But miracles of prophets are different,
as they have no full knowledge and full control on them, as they are gifts from
Allah for certain occasions. Some examples are as follows:
Prophet Moses a.s. did
not know that his staff would turn into a serpent, otherwise he would not have
been scared and run away. Allah said:
وَأَلْقِ عَصَاكَ فَلَمَّا رَآهَا تَهْتَزُّ كَأَنَّهَا
جَانٌّ وَلَّى مُدْبِرًا وَلَمْ يُعَقِّبْ
يَا مُوسَى لَا تَخَفْ إِنِّي لَا
يَخَافُ لَدَيَّ الْمُرْسَلُونَ (النمل:10)
“And throw down your stick!”
But when he saw it moving
as if it were a snake, he turned in flight,
and did not look
back. (It was said: “O Mūsā (Moses)! Fear not:
verily,
the
Messengers fear not in front of Me.”(Q.
27:10)
Similarly, Moses had not known beforehand that Pharaoh
and his army who were chasing him and his followers would be drowned. Allah
ordered him to strike the sea with his staff to rescue him and his followers.
He said:
فَأَوْحَيْنَا
إِلَى مُوسَى أَنِ اضْرِبْ بِعَصَاكَ الْبَحْرَ فَانْفَلَقَ فَكَانَ كُلُّ
فِرْقٍ كَالطَّوْدِ الْعَظِيمِ
. وَأَزْلَفْنَا ثَمَّ الْآخَرِينَ. وَأَنْجَيْنَا مُوسَى وَمَنْ
مَعَهُ أَجْمَعِينَ. ثُمَّ أَغْرَقْنَا
الْآخَرِينَ (الشعراء:63-66)
Then We revealed to Mūsā
(Moses) (saying): “Strike the
sea with your stick.” And it parted, and each
separate part
(of the sea water) became like huge mountain.
Then We brought near the others [Fir‘awn’s (Pharaoh’s) party] to
the place. And We saved Mūsā (Moses) and all
those
with
him. Then We drowned the others. (Q.
26:63-66)[14]
Prophet
Aaron (Hārūn) was powerless to make people listen to him, and was unable to stop
them from worshiping idols, as mentioned in the following verse:
وَلَقَدْ قَالَ لَهُمْ هَارُونُ مِنْ قَبْلُ يَا
قَوْمِ إِنَّمَا فُتِنْتُمْ بِهِ وَإِنَّ
رَبَّكُمُ
الرَّحْمَنُ فَاتَّبِعُونِي وَأَطِيعُوا أَمْرِي. قَالُوا لَنْ نَبْرَحَ عَلَيْهِ
عَاكِفِينَ حَتَّى يَرْجِعَ إِلَيْنَا مُوسَى (طه:90-91)
And
Hārūn (Aaron) indeed had said to them beforehand:
“O my people! You are being tried in this, and
verily, your
Lord is (Allah) the Most Gracious, so follow
me and obey
my order.” They said: “We will not stop
worshipping it (i.e.
the calf), until Mūsā (Moses) returns to us.” (Q. 20:90-91)
Prophet Ya‘qub (Jacob) a.s. had not known the whereabouts
of Yūsuf (Joseph) when he asked his children to keep looking for him without
losing hope. He said:
يَا بَنِيَّ اذْهَبُوا فَتَحَسَّسُوا مِنْ يُوسُفَ
وَأَخِيهِ وَلَا تَيْأَسُوا مِنْ رَوْحِ
اللَّهِ إِنَّهُ لَا يَيْأَسُ مِنْ رَوْحِ اللَّهِ
إِلَّا الْقَوْمُ الْكَافِرُونَ (يوسف:87)
“O
my sons! Go and enquire about Yūsuf (Joseph) and
his brother, and never give up hope of Allah’s
Mercy.
Certainly no
one despairs of Allah’s Mercy, except
the people
who disbelieve.” (Q. 12:87)
Prophet
Yūsuf (Joseph) a.s. because of women’s trick would prefer prison as
mentioned in the following verse:
قَالَ رَبِّ السِّجْنُ أَحَبُّ إِلَيَّ مِمَّا يَدْعُونَنِي
إِلَيْهِ وَإِلَّا تَصْرِفْ عَنِّي
كَيْدَهُنَّ أَصْبُ إِلَيْهِنَّ
وَأَكُنْ مِنَ الْجَاهِلِينَ (يوسف:33)
He
said: “O my Lord! Prison is dearer to me than that
to which they invite me. Unless You turn away
their plot
from
me, I will feel inclined towards them and be one (of
those who commit sin and deserve blame or
those
who do deeds) of the ignorant.” (Q. 12:33)
Prophet Ibrāhīm (Abraham)
a.s. had not known beforehand that he would be saved when he was thrown
into fire. He later learned that Allah had made the fire cool and harmless to him, as
in the following verse:
قُلْنَا يَا نَارُ كُونِي بَرْدًا وَسَلَامًا عَلَى
إِبْرَاهِيمَ (الأنبياء:69)
We (Allah) said: “O fire! Be you coolness and
safety
for Ibrāhīm (Abraham).” (Q. 21:69)
Allah gave miracles to Prophet
Jesus (‘Īsā) a.s. as mentioned in the Qur’ān, as follows:
وَرَسُولًا إِلَى بَنِي إِسْرَائِيلَ أَنِّي قَدْ
جِئْتُكُمْ بِآيَةٍ مِنْ رَبِّكُمْ أَنِّي أَخْلُقُ لَكُمْ
مِنَ الطِّينِ كَهَيْئَةِ الطَّيْرِ فَأَنْفُخُ
فِيهِ فَيَكُونُ طَيْرًا بِإِذْنِ اللَّهِ وَأُبْرِئُ الْأَكْمَهَ
وَالْأَبْرَصَ وَأُحْيِ الْمَوْتَى بِإِذْنِ اللَّهِ
وَأُنَبِّئُكُمْ بِمَا تَأْكُلُونَ وَمَا تَدَّخِرُونَ
فِي بُيُوتِكُمْ... (آل عمران:49)
And will make him [‘Īsā (Jesus)] a Messenger to
the
Children of Israel
(saying): “I have come to you with
a sign from your Lord, That I design for you
out of clay,
a figure like that of a bird, and breathe into
it, and it
becomes a bird by Allah’s Leave; and I heal
him who
was born blind, and
the leper, and I bring the dead to
life by Allah’s Leave. And I inform you of
what you eat,
and what you store in your houses…” (Q. 3:49)
Allah
gave miracles to Prophet Sulaymān (Solomon) mentioned
in the Qur’ān as follows:
وَلِسُلَيْمَانَ الرِّيحَ
غُدُوُّهَا شَهْرٌ وَرَوَاحُهَا شَهْرٌ وَأَسَلْنَا لَهُ عَيْنَ الْقِطْرِ
وَمِنَ الْجِنِّ مَنْ يَعْمَلُ
بَيْنَ يَدَيْهِ بِإِذْنِ رَبِّهِ وَمَنْ يَزِغْ مِنْهُمْ عَنْ أَمْرِنَا
نُذِقْهُ مِنْ عَذَابِ السَّعِيرِ. يَعْمَلُونَ لَهُ مَا يَشَاءُ
مِنْ مَحَارِيبَ وَتَمَاثِيلَ
وَجِفَانٍ كَالْجَوَابِ وَقُدُورٍ رَاسِيَاتٍ ...
(سبآ:12-13)
And to |Sulaymān
(Solomon) (We subjected) the wind,
its morning (stride
from sunrise till midnoon) was a month’s
(journey, and its afternoon (stride from the midday decline
of the sun to sunset was a month’s (journey, i.e. in one day
he could travel two
months’ journey). And We caused a fount of (molten) brass to flow for him, and there were jinn that worked in front of him, by the Leave
of his Lord. And whoso-ever of them turned
aside from Our Command, We
shall cause him to taste of the torment of the
blazing Fire. They worked for him as he
desired, (making) high rooms, images, basins as large as reservoirs, and
(cooking) cauldrons fixed (in their places) … (Q.
34:12-13)[15]
Then could we say that Prophet
‘Īsā (Jesus) had wilāyah takwīniyyah? He did not control the jinn and
the wind as Prophet Solomon a.s. did, but Prophet Solomon could not
revive the dead as Prophet Jesus did. Prophet Muhammad (ﷺ) had neither control the jinn and the
wind, nor revive the dead. Therefore, prophets had limited miracles given by
Allah, and they could not control the universe.
Through
improper analogy they say that since prophets had miracles, then the imāms
also possess miracles, even more, namely, wilāyah takwīniyyah , to
control the universe. Miracles are limited, whereas wilāyah takwīniyyah is
an extended power to control the universe.
According to the Shia the imāms are greater
than prophets. Even if prophets had wilāyah takwīniyyah the imāms
with wilāyah takwīniyyah had high position, as Khomeini put it, “has not
been reached by a sent prophet or an angel.”
Allah
said that He had spoken to Prophet Mūsā (Moses)
وَكَلَّمَ اللَّهُ مُوسَى
تَكْلِيمًا (النساء:164)
-
And to Mūsā (Moses) Allah spoke directly (Q. 4:164)
قَالَ يَا مُوسَى إِنِّي
اصْطَفَيْتُكَ عَلَى النَّاسِ بِرِسَالَاتِي وَبِكَلَامِي
فَخُذْ مَا آتَيْتُكَ
وَكُنْ مِنَ الشَّاكِرِينَ (الأعراف:144)
(Allah) said: “O Mūsā (Moses)
I have chosen you above
men by My Messenger,
and by My speaking (to you).
So hold that which I
have given you and be of
the grateful.” (Q. 7:144)
Did it happen that Allah had talked to ‘Ali? If He did, then he was
himself a prophet, but He did not, and therefore he was not a prophet. Allah
says in the Qur’ān:
هَذَا خَلْقُ اللَّهِ فَأَرُونِي مَاذَا خَلَقَ
الَّذِينَ مِنْ دُونِهِ (لقمان:11)
This is the creation of Allah. So, show Me that which
those (whom you worship) besides Him have created… (Q.
31:11)
Wilāyah
takwīniyyah means creation, followed by possession and authority, then
arrangement and management. According to Sunni’s view as well as that of some
Shia scholars Allah has not given such authority to anybody, but He kept it for
Himself. The Sunni debater Shaykh ‘Adnān al-Ar‘ūr (عَدْنَان الْعَرْعُور) of the Wiṣāl Channel (قَنَاةُ
الْوِصَال) asked: “When ‘Ali pledged allegiance to
Abū Bakr, then to ‘Umar and ‘Uthmān as caliphs, did he do it because (1) he had
inspiration from Allah to do so, (2) he was weak, (3) he was afraid and was practicing
taqiyyah (dissimulation or under duress), (4) he was making ijtihād (individual
judgment), (5) he had abdicated the wilāyah, or (6) he had disobeyed
Allah?” His other question was: “Why did Imām Ḥusayn let himself and his
followers suffer from thirst when he did not use his power wilāyah takwīniyyah
to create water?” Prophet Īsā (Jesus) a.s. had created before a bird out
of clay with Allah’s leave, why then none of the imāms had ever
exercised this special favor to create something as evidence? Having millions
of dollars in the bank without ability to withdraw it is like not having it:
rich in theory, but poor in reality, and it is reality that counts. “A book
remains shut is but a block,” says the proverb.
. (Turner, 4 October, 2017)
Bibliography:
http://thenewkhalij.org
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Marja%27
https://ar.wikipedia.org/wiki/مرتضى_مطهرى
https://ar.wikipedia.org/wiki/محمد_محسن_فضل_الله
https://ar.wikipedia.org/wiki/محمد_جواد_مغنية
http://albadri.info/ مرجعية-آية-الله-الحكيم
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ibn_Babawayh
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Al-Shaykh_Al-Mufid
https://sonsofsunnah.com/2013/11/15/mostafa-husseini-tabatabai-shiite-reformist-friend-of-al-borqei/
خالد الوصابي, الباحث
في الفرق المعاصرة .
حوار عن الولاية التكوينية في قناة صفا الفضائية. كلمة سواء. شبكة الطريق إلى الله. فيدو يوطوب
عدنان العرعور. قناة
الوصال. حوار بين السنة و الشيعة. فيدو يوطوب
[1] Mortaza Mutahhari was an Iranian Shiite (Shī‘ī, (شيعي religious
scholar, a philosopher, a thinker and a prolific writer. He was one the
prominent student of the Islamic philosopher Muḥammad Ḥusayn al-Ṭabāṭabā’ī and
Rūḥ Allāh al-Khumaynī (Khomeini). He was born in the province of Khorasan in 31
of January, 1919 from a family originated from Herat, Afghanistan. He attended
the religious centre in Qom from 1944 till 1952. As a politician he was
arrested three times: in 1963 for joining demonstration against the arrest of
Khomeini; 1969 for his participation in collecting donations for Palestinian
people; and in 1972 for his activity in al-Jawād mosque. In 1979 he went to
Paris where he was assigned by Khomeini to form the Council of the Islamic
Revolution and became its chairman, and in 1979 he was assigned by Khomeini to
be responsible for a committee for his reception. In 1 May 1979 less than three
months after the victory of the Islamic Revolution, Mutahhari was assassinated
by a member of fighters of a group of dissidents. He was a prolific writer in
various subjects, such as: نقد الماركسية (Critiques on
Marxism), العدل الإلهي (The Divine Justice), فلسفة التاريخ
(Philosophy of History), الإنسان
الكامل (The Perfect Man), هدف الحياة الإنسانية (The
Purpose of Human Life), and شمس الدين لن تغيب (The
Sun of the Religion—of Islam—will never Set).
[2] According to scientists the sphere appears almost 28
billion light-years in diameter, but it is far larger. It is because the
universe is expanding. They say that while they “might see a spot that lay 13.8
billion light-years from Earth at the time of the Big Bang, the universe has
continued to expand over its lifetime. If inflation occurred at a constant rate
through the life of the universe, that same spot is 46 billion light-years away
today, making the diameter of the observable universe a sphere around 92
billion light-years.” Other scientists say that its diameter is about 93
billion light years. They say further
that the whole Universe is roughly 250 times as large as the observable
Universe. If we consider the speed of light in kilo meters per second (kps), it
is 299,794.58 (almost 300,000 kps), or 186,282.39705122 miles per second (mps),
traveling from one corner of the observable Universe to the other with the
speed of light will take between 92 and 93 billion years. This indicates the
huge unimaginable authority given to the imāms according to the Shiis.
[3] This quotation was taken from Khomeini, Islam and
Revolution, tr. Hamid Algar (Berkeley: Mizan Press, 1981), pp. 64-65.
[4]Muhsin Fayd (Fayz, or Feyz) Kashani was born in
Kashan, Iran. He was a poet, philosopher and muḥaddith (narrator of ḥadīths).
At the age of twenty he travelled to Isfahan to study, and a year later he
moved to Shiraz to study ḥadīth and fiqh. He studied from Molla
Sadra ascetic exercises and other disciplines for eight years. A prolific
writer in Persian and Arabic, he wrote 122 works, such as: Abwāb al-Jinān
(“The Doors of Paradise”), Mohjat al-Beyza which was al-Ghazālī’s Iḥyā
Ulūm al-Dīn (Revival of Religious Sciences) rewritten from the Shiite point of view. He was one of those who said
that Islamic prayer does not have to be in Arabic. He passed away in Kashan in
1680.
[5]Marja‘ (pl. marāji‘)
is a title given to highest level of Shia
authority on religious laws after the Qur’ān, the prophets and imāms.
It accords with Ajatollah Uzma (آية الله العظمى) . Previously the titles ‘Allāmah and Imām have
also been used. His role as the representative of al-Mahdi during his
occultation is to understand and explain religious jurisprudence. In 2014 there
were 64 living marāji‘, mostly living in Najaf and Qom. Among them is Ali Khamenei, the Supreme
Leader of Iran in Tehran.
[6]Al-Khū’ī was the spiritual leader of the Shia world
until his death in 1992. He was born in
the Iranian city of Khoy, West Azerbaijan province in 1899, and grew up in
Iran. Around the age of 13, he moved to Najaf (Negev) in Iraq where he began
studying Shia theology until he eventually attained the rank of Ayatollah and
was made a marja‘. Khoei would
continue to live in Najaf, becoming a teacher for the remainder of his life,
and overseeing the studies of scholars who would be qualified to issue fatawa
based on Shia theology. In 1971 he was made the most prominent Grand Ayatollah
after the death of the marja‘ Muḥsin al-Ḥakīm (d. 1390/1970) -- who had
prohibited people from fighting the Kurds, and who had interfered with Gamal
Abdel Nasser’s decision to execute
Sayyid Quṭub in Egypt. Al-Khū’ī was prominent in various
branches of Islamic studies, such as the principles of jurisprudence and
Islamic law, and one of the leading exponents of 'kalām'-scholastic
theology- and 'rijāl'- study of the biographies of transmitters of aḥādīth,
the prophetic traditions, 'fiqh'- jurisprudence- and 'tafsīr'- exegesis
of the Qur'an. He was also interested in astronomy, mathematics, and
philosophy. As a prolific writer he wrote 37 books and treatises, most of which
have been published, including: Lectures in the Principles of Jurisprudence,
10 volumes; Biographies of
Narrators of Tradition, 24 volumes; Islamic
Law, 18 volumes; and Al-Bayan fī Tafsīr al-Qur’ān (The
Elucidation of the Exegesis of The Qur'ān and sometimes entitled The
Prolegomena to the Qur’ān).
[7] Abū Ja‘far Muḥammad Ibn ‘Alī Ibn Bābawayh (Bābūyah in
Persian)) was born and raised in Qom, a town about 125 kilometres (78 miles)
southwest of modern day Tehran, in Iran. His father ‘Alī was one of Islamic
scholars in that town which was the centre of study of Shiite traditions. In
966 he left Qom for Baghdad. He compiled traditions and wrote al-I‘tiqādāt (Creed)
of Shiite Islam, later revised with some critiques as Taṣḥīḥ al-I‘tiqād (“the
Correction of Creed”) by his student al-Shaykh al-Mufīd. His main work was Man
lā Yaḥḍuruhu ‘l-Faqīh (lit. “for him who is not in the presence of a
jurisprudent”) translated as “Every Man his own Lawyer” dealing with
jurisprudence. It is one of the “Four Books” (the basic authorities of the
doctrine of the Twelver Shia). Among his other important works are: ‘Ilal
al-Sharā’ī‘ (“the Causes of Situations”), namely, the philosophy behind
Islamic ordinances, and I‘tiqādāt al-Imāmiyyah (“the Shiite Creed”). In 991 he died at Rayy.
[8] Al-Shaykh al-Mufīd was born in ‘Ukbarā
(عكبرا) a small town on the left bank
of the Tigris between Samarra and Baghdad. He later migrated with his father to
Baghdad in the time of the Shia Buwayhids’ ruling where he studied with Ibn
Babawayh. Among his students were Sharif al-Murtaza and al-Shaykh al-Ṭūsi. He tended to believe that the Imāms are
superior to all the prophets and messengers, with the exception of Muhammad and
can "take the place of the prophets in enforcing judgments, seeing to the
execution of the legal penalties, safeguarding the Law, and educating
mankind", so that they are not only "the head of the community in
administrative, judicial, and military matters", but also an
"authoritative teacher of mankind". He also believes that the imām is immune
from sin or error, and it is necessary to have an imām in all the times.
He is said to have written 200 works, but a few more than ten have survived, such as
al-Amālī, also known as "al-Majālis", traditions recorded
by his students during the sessions where he gave the chain of narration ending
up with himself; Taṣḥīḥ al-I‘tiqādāt, a correction of al-Ṣadūq's Risālat
al-I ‘tiqādāt.
[9] ‘Abd al-Ḥamīd al-Muhājir was a Shiite Iraqi preacher
and public speaker, writer of several books on Islam and history, and founder
of كُلِّيَّةُ الإمَام الْحُسَيْنِ لِلْخِطَابة (Al-Imām al-Ḥusayn
Academy for Oratory) in Karbala. Besides his mother-tongue Arabic he was
fluent in English and Persian. He gave many speeches in Syrian, Lebanese and
Iranian televisions; he gave lectures at the University of Kuwait, and Arabic
University of Beirut. He also gave lectures in the American television as well
as lectures in the University of Albany, N.Y. His speeches can be heard in the
Shiite channels, such as al-Anwār, al-Zahrā’, al-Mahdī and
Fadak. Among his writings are: اِعْلَمُوا أَنِّيْ قَاطِمَةُ (Be aware that I am Fāṭimah), in 7
vols., الْمِنْبَرُ الْحُرُّ
(the Free Pulpit) in 4 vols., عَلِيٌّ وَ فَاطِمَةُ بَحْرَانِ يَلْتَقِيَان (‘Ali and Fāṭimah
two Oceans Merging), and أَهْلُ الْبِيْتِ أَسْمَاءٌ لاَ تُنْسَى
(Ahl al-Bayt, the Unforgettable Names).
[10] For the Sunnis, there are also five foundations of
Islam, but instead of wilāyah, it is the shahādah, the
declaration that there is nothing worthy of worship except Allah and
Muhammad is the Messenger of Allah. It is the key to Paradise, as whoever
believes in it will eventually enter Paradise, even after long suffering in
Hell.
[11] Al-Shaykh Mughanniyyah
was one of the Lebanese leading scholars and a prolific writer. He wrote over sixty books, among which
were: النُّبُوَّةُ وَالْعَقْل (Prophethood and Reason),الآخِرَةُ وَ الْعَقْل (The Last Day and Reason), الْمَهْدِي الْمُنْتَطَرُ وَ الِعَقْل (the
Expected Mahdī and Reason), عَلِيٌّ وَ الْقُرْآن (‘Alī and the Qur’ān), and الْحُسَيْنُ
وَ الْقُرْآن (al-Ḥusayn and the Qur’ān).
[12] Al-Sayyid Muḥammad Ḥusayn Faḍlullāh was a Lebanese
Shiite marja‘. He was born in Najaf (Negev) in Iraq in 1354/1935 and
died in Lebanon in 1432/2010. While in Najaf he was interested in studying in
the religious centre as well as cultural activity. When he moved to Lebanon in
1966 he started preaching in the mosque, establishing charitable organizations,
orphanages and charitable hospitals which made him popular. He received many
criticism for his views, but al-Sayyid ‘Ali al-Khāminī (Khamenei) issued a fatwa
defending him stating that he was one of the prominent figures in the Shia
school for his purity, faith, and jihād.
[13]Kamāl Ḥaydarī who is living now in Qom in Iran was one
of the authorities in Reformation of Islamic Legacy Movement and was well-known
with his debates on beliefs with other schools and groups on television. He was
born in Karbala in Iraq, and then he moved to Najaf (Negev) in Central Iraq in
1974 where he obtained his B.A. degree in Islamic studies with honours in 1978.
Then he emigrated to Kuwait in 1980 because of the government’s legal
persecution, then to Damascus where he stayed for almost four months, then to Iran
through Turkey where he settled in Qom.
[14] For a similar verse see also Q. 2:50)
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