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AN OBJECTIVE PERSPECTIVE

Imaamah and the Quran

BY: ABU SALIH

chapter one
Looking Into Imaamah In Shiaism

During the time I was discussing with Shias before I began the present research, whenever the word “Imaams” was mentioned, it would usually mean the “Divine Leaders” after the Prophet’s (ﷺ) demise. According to the majority of Shias, the “12 Imaams” after the death of Prophet Muhammad (ﷺ) are 1:

  1. Ali bin Abu Talib
  2. Hassan bin Ali
  3. Hussain bin Ali
  4. Zainul Aabideen, Ali ibn Hussain
  5. Muhammad Al- Baqir
  6. Jafar As-Sadiq
  7. Musa Al-Kadhim
  8. Ali Al-Ridha
  9. Muhammad Al-Jawad
  10. Ali Al-Haadi
  11. Hassan Al-Askari
  12. Al-Mahdi, Muhammad ibn Hassan

The Shia writings often concentrate on “proving” the Imaamah of these personalities. However, I resolved to look beyond this level and see what the belief of Imaamah was in general as far as Shiaism was concerned. This is so because the general concepts should be put to the test first. Only if the overall notion is correct can the research move on to see who occupies these posts. Of course, there will be “universal principles” of Imaamah that can be deduced by looking at the supposed Imaamah of these 12 personalities, but the main things should be clear with respect to what direction has been taken in this respect.

As an analogy with other faiths, Christian propaganda concentrates on the belief that Jesus Christ died on the cross in order to redeem the sins of humanity. As I had noted previously, this is based on the doctrine of “substitutionary sacrifice”, the notion that a heroic figure must suffer in order for humankind to be rescued from its wretched condition. Now, if this underlying ideology can be shown to be faulty, there will be no need to discuss whether Jesus was the specific “superhero” who came to rescue humanity. There are saintly figures in the beliefs of other nations and religions that fit the description of the Christian Jesus very closely in terms of their absolute sacrifice and heroic selflessness. Thus, it is more apt to look into the essential mindset that gave rise to such beliefs rather than to split hairs over the persons themselves.

In the case of Islam, all Muslims know that Muhammad (ﷺ), Isa (Alayhi Salam), Musa (Alayhi Salam), etc. were Prophets sent by Allah to declare His Message, and no Muslim can reject this. However, the principle and belief in Prophethood is distinct and separate from these personalities. A Muslim is required to believe in Prophethood as a pillar of faith in addition to his faith in the specific persons who were sent by Allah as Prophets and Messengers. The Sunnis require this from their adherents when the belief in the Rasools of Allah is placed as a part of the “Arkan ul Iman” (Pillars of the Faith) in addition to the belief in Muhammad (ﷺ) as the Prophet of Allah. Similarly, Shias list Nubuwwah as a Usul-e-Din, and the belief in Muhammad (ﷺ) as a Messenger of Allah is also a necessity of the Shia faith.

The same is to be expected in the case for Imaamah. That is, the specific Imaams whom the Shias claim were appointed and sent by Allah are the rational product of the Imaamah doctrine. This is a little difficult for some people to understand. The reason for this is that Ali, Hasan, Husayn, etc. are immediately presented in Shia propaganda as “Imaams” and the discussion on the specifics of the Imaamah doctrine (or the fact that it is a doctrine in Shiaism) are discussed much later, once the mind of the reader is ready to accept that the “12 Imaams” are holy figures. In many works, the doctrinal nature of Imaamah in Shiaism is not even presented as such.

In spite of these obstacles, the researcher should do his/her utmost to separate the two and give due attention to each section. Realizing this crucial difference, I resolved to organize all the information I knew about Imaamah and look at the vital aspects driving this belief. What follows is an exposition of the crucial precepts of Imaamah as seen by Shia scholars and writers.

Usul-e-Deen and Imaamah

In Shiaism, the matters of religion are divided into Usul-e-Deen and Furoo-e-Deen. The Usool-e-Deen are the principles of belief in the religion, analogous to the Pillars of Faith in Sunnism. The Furoo-e-Deen relates to the practices in the religion, such as prayer, fasting, pilgrimage, and so on.

To introduce the reader to what constitutes the Usul-e-Deen in Shiaism, I will quote the following tract from Allamah 2 Muhammad Husayn Al kashifu'l Ghita's book “The Origin Of Shi’ite Islam and its Principles” (Asl ash-Shi'ah wa usuluha):

Those matters which concern knowledge or wisdom, are called "Usul ad-din" (fundamentals of religion) and they are five:

  1. tawhid (monotheism),
  2. nubuwah (Prophethood),
  3. the Imaamate (Vicegerency),
  4. 'adl (Justice) and
  5. ma'ad (the Day of Judgement).3

In similar fashion, the Shia scholar Muhammad Ridha Muzaffar states:

We believe that the Imamate is one of the fundamentals of Islam (usul ad-din), and that man's faith can never be complete without belief in it.4

It should be noted that Sunnis and Shias do share three tenets of belief, namely in the concepts of Tawhid, Nubuwah, and Ma’ad (stated as the belief in Qiyaamah in Sunni Aqeedah). While the concept of ‘Adl is not mentioned as such in Sunni beliefs as a cardinal point of belief, yet it can be compared to the Belief in Qadha and Qadr.

The real issue of contention is with respect to Imaamah. As Allamah Kashiful ghita mentions:

“It is the question of the Imamate which distinguishes the Shi'a sect from all other sects. Other differences are not fundamental; they are "furu'i"”. 5

The statement that Imaamah is one of the essential tenets and pillars of Islamic faith is of tremendous significance for the researcher. For if the importance of Imaamah were to be equated with that of Tawhid, Nubuwwah, or Qiyammah, then any subsequent search and analysis would be carried out with this relationship in mind.

Method of Imaam’s appointment

According to Shia ideology, only Allah has the right to decide who is the Imaam for a given people. For example, Allamah Musavi Lari writes in “Imaamate and Leadership”:

By contrast, the Imamate in the view of the Shi'ah is a form of divine governance, an office depending on appointment just like prophethood, something God bestows on exalted persons.6

He also states:

The Shi'ah are committed to the principle that the right to designate the Imaam belongs exclusively to God, and that the people have no role to play in this respect.7

Similarly, Allamah Alkashiful ghita says:

According to the Shi'a point of view, the Imamate, like Prophethood, is divine vicegerency. Just as it is God Almighty Who chose one from amongst His servants for the rank of Prophethood or Messengership … in the same way it is God Who chooses the Imaams. 8

Existence of an Imaam more Important for Humankind than Existence of a Prophet

It is also noteworthy to mention that in Imaami Shia ideology, the existence of an Imaam is of great importance, of such great relevance in fact that the world may remain without a Prophet, but Allah will not leave the world without an Imaam. Allamah Muhammad Hussayn Tabatabai writes in his book “Shia”:

… it is not necessary for a prophet (nabi) always to be present among mankind, but the existence of the Imam, who is the guardian of Divine religion, is on the contrary a continuous necessity for human society. Human society can never be without the figure whom Shi'ism calls the Imam whether or not he is recognized and known.

… the functions of prophecy and Imamate may be joined in one person who is then appointed to the functions of both prophet and Imam, or to both the reception of the Divine law and its preservation and explanation. And sometimes they can be separated, such as in periods during which there is no prophet living but when there is a true Imam living among men. It is obvious that the number of God's prophets is limited and the prophets have not been present in every period and age. 9

Similarly, Allamah Muzaffar writes:

… it is impossible for there to be a time without an Imam appointed by Allah, and that it makes no difference if human beings deny him or not, help him or not, obey him or not, or if he is absent from people's sight.10

The Imaams superiority in comparison to all Creation, the Shia view

A person doing research into Shiaism will find that many Shia scholars, writers, and propagandists have placed the position of the “12 Imaams” above that of all Prophets, with the exception of Prophet Muhammad (ﷺ). It can be said that some Shia scholars have taken a different view, as can be seen from the following quote:

Sheikh Mufid 11 –Rahimahu Allah – said in the book of Maqalat: A group of Imaamis affirmatively believe in the preference of the Imaams from Ale-Muhammad (A.S) over the rest of the preceding Messengers and Prophets except our Prophet Muhammad (ﷺ) , and a group of them obligated their preference over all prophets , save Ouli Al-Azm (i.e Noah, Ibrahim, Musa, Essa, Muhammad (ﷺ) . And a group of them rejected both opinions and affirmatively believed that all prophets are better than the Imaams (A.S).12

It can be seen that this is a matter of Ijtihad among the Shia scholars 13. Notwithstanding, the first view persists in the minds of many contemporary Shia scholars and writers, and by consequence is reflected in the Shia laity. I believe it is of importance for the reader to go through some of the Shia scholars and writers who have held the view that “The Imaams are higher than all Prophets except Muhammad (ﷺ) ”, because it will bring to the forefront just how highly placed the position of Imaamah is in the Shia faith.

Testimony from Ayatullah Lankarani’s office

This is an excerpt from a series of questions posed to the Office of Grand Ayatullah Mohammad Fazel Lankarani, one of the Head Ayatullahs in the Shia Seminary in Qum, and available on his official site:

Q. (72 ) Is it of the essentials of faith to believe that Imam Ali (Alayhi Salam) is superior to all prophets?

A. No, it is not of the essentials of faith.

Q. (73) What are the different degrees of prophethood? Imam Ali (Alayhi Salam) is not higher in rank than Prophet Muhammad (ﷺ), but he is higher than the other prophets. What is the basis of this claim?

A. Prophets can be divided into two categories: 1) The Arch-Prophets who were sent on a mission by Allah (swt). They are considered as the prophets of Law and religion. They include Noah (Alayhi Salam), Abraham (Alayhi Salam), Moses (Alayhi Salam), Jesus (Alayhi Salam) and Muhammad (ﷺ), whose religions were spread in a wide area at their times. The Last Prophet, Muhammad (ﷺ), is the last of the divine prophets who brought the universal religion, which will remain until the Last Day. There is no prophet after him. 2) The second category includes those prophets who propagated the religions of the Arch-Prophets. The extent of their prophethood and mission was not so great. Imam Ali (Alayhi Salam) is higher in rank than other prophets, because of his Imamate, but he is not higher in rank than the Prophet Muhammad (ﷺ), because Muhammad (ﷺ) was both Prophet and Imam. 14

As a response to the first question, the Ayatullah answers that it is not one of the essentials of the Shia faith to believe in the superiority of Ali (Radhia Allahu Anhu) over all Prophets. Yet, he expresses his own view when he says that Ali (Radhia Allahu Anhu) is higher than all Prophets except Muhammad (ﷺ) . It is of importance that the reason given for Ali’s (Radhia Allahu Anhu) superiority over all other Prophets is due to his Imaamah. In addition, the reason why Muhammad (ﷺ) is higher than Ali (Radhia Allahu Anhu) is that Muhammad (ﷺ) is also an Imaam in addition to being a Prophet. This is an important part of the response, since it shows once again the high status Imaamah enjoys in Shiaism. (The issue of Muhammad (ﷺ) as an “Imaam” will be discussed later in this work).

Ayatullah Khomeini’s comments

A very similar view on the superiority of Imaamah in comparison to Prophethood was given by Ayatullah Khomeini in one of his speeches, all of which collected in the book “Hukumat- i-Islami” (Islamic Government). In this particular discourse, Khomeini says:

The spiritual status of the Imam is the universal divine viceregency that is sometimes mentioned by the Imams (peace be upon them). It is a viceregency pertaining to the whole of creation, by virtue of which all the atoms in the universe humble themselves before the holder of authority. It is one of the essential beliefs of our Shi'i school that no one can attain the spiritual status of the Imaams, not 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.” 15

So the same basic Shia opinion is noted here: Imaams have a position higher than that of Prophets. Some people who have read Khomeini’s work may object to this, given the translator Hamid Algar’s comment:

The statement here that no one can attain the spiritual status of the Imams, not even the cherubim or the prophets thus carries the strict sense that the Imams are superior to those prophets whose mission lacked the dimension of governmental leadership. 16

However, what the translator is in fact saying is that the “12 Imaams” of the Ithna Ashariyah sect are lower than those Prophets who were also Imaams. The “12 Imaams” are still higher than those Prophets who did not have the “dimension of governmental leadership” (i.e. they were not Imaams). In essence, whether Ayatullah Khomeini’s statement I taken in itself or the translator’s footnote is included as scholarly evidence, it is still the case that the office of Imaamah is higher than the office of Prophethood.

The statement from Allamah Majlisi

The classical encyclopedic work of Bihar Al-Anwar written by Allamah Baqir Al-Majlisi echoes this same line of thinking. In it, Majlisi dedicated a completed chapter for the belief of the Imaams’ superiority entitled: "Their preference (A.S) over the prophets and all the people etc" [Bihar Al-Anwar Vol 26, Chapter 6]. Parts of his arguments in favor of this position are as follows, where Mullah Majlisi quotes the Shia Shaykh Al-Sadooq:

"It should be believed that Allah –tala- did not create a creation better than Muhammad (ﷺ) and after him the Imams (A.S) and that they are the most beloved creation to Allah and honorable to him, and the first to believe in him when Allah –tala- took the covenant from the prophets in the atom (stage). And that Allah –tala- gave to every prophet based on his knowledge of our Prophet (ﷺ) and his early confirming of it. And it should be believed that Allah –tala- created all of creations for him and his Ahlul Bayt (A.S) , and if it was not for them, he would not have created the Heavens and the Earth, Paradise or Hell, Adam or Eve, Angels or anything else he created, May Allah's blessings be upon all of them "

After quoting Al-Sadooq, Al-Majlisi said:

" You should know that what he, Rahimahu Allah, mentioned of the preference of our Prophet and Imams (A.S) over all creation and that our Imams are higher better than the rest of prophets is a matter that is no doubted by one who examined their traditions (A.S) on they way of submitting and truly believing, and the traditions to this effect are so numerous to count, we have only reported in this chapter a few and it is spread in chapters, especially chapter about the description of the prophets and their types (A.S), chapter that they (A.S) are the word of Allah, and chapter on the appearance of their lights and chapter that they are more knowledgeable than the prophets and chapters about the merits of Ameer-ul-Momineen and Fatimah (A.S), and this is the main opinions of the Imaamis (Shia), and is only rejected by one who is ignorant about the traditions. 17

Shia Encyclopedia’s statement

It is also important to consider the views of the Shia sources that try to explain Shiaism to the general public and validate the Shia beliefs with an eye on gaining converts. Prime among these sources is the online “Shia Encyclopedia” 18. The following paragraph is taken from its “Imaamat vs. Prophethood (Part I)” article, where it is declared:

The Shia believe that the rank of Imamat (the position of a divinely-appointed leader) is higher than that of prophethood and messengership. Note that here we are comparing the rank of positions and not the rank of persons. As such, two divinely appointed Imams which both have the highest possible position from Allah, may have different ranks. For instance, out of the twelve Imaams of Ahlul-Bayt, Imaam Ali (Alayhi Salam) is the most virtuous. Also Prophet Muhammad (PBUH&HF) is more virtuous than Imaam Ali (Alayhi Salam) thought they were both appointed by Allah as leaders.

In other words, Prophet Muhammad (PBUH&HF)… has the highest rank among mankind, and is the most virtuous creature of God and the most honored before Allah. The above belief does not undermine his position since Prophet Muhammad was an Imam during his time as well!

The same article also declares:

The Shia further believe that the twelve Imams of the House of Prophet Muhammad have the rank higher than that of ALL the messengers (be Imaam or not) except Prophet Muhammad (PBUH&HF). In other words, the Status of the successors of the Seal of the Prophets is higher than that of the successors of all the previous prophets. (Note that the successors of the previous Prophets were themselves prophets). 19

The statement from Peshawar Nights

Another Shia work distributed with the intention of gaining Sunni converts to the fold of Shiaism is Peshawar Nights, a series of discourses that supposedly took place in 1927 between learned Sunnis and the Shia scholar Sultanu'l-Wa'izin Shirazi in Peshawar, Pakistan. In the Seventh Session (Heading “Since the holy prophet was superior to all other prophets Ali was also superior to them”) of the book, the Shia scholar Shirazi elucidates the Shia idea that Ali (Radhia Allahu Anhu) is held in much higher standing than even the Ul-il-Azm from among the Messengers. Shirazi says:

On the 20th of Ramadhan, when Ali was on his death bed following the attack by Abdu'r-Rahman Ibn Muljim Muradi, he asked Imam Hasan to call in the Shia who had gathered at the door of his house. When they entered, they surrounded his bed and wept silently. Ali said: You may ask any question you like before I leave you, but your questions should be brief." One of those present was Sa'sa'a Bin Suwhan…

Sa'sa'a said to Ali:

"Let me know who is superior, you or Adam." The Holy Imam said: "It is not proper for a man to praise himself, but according to the maxim: 'Declare the blessings that Allah has given you,' I tell you that I am superior to Adam." When asked why this was so, Ali explained that Adam had every means of mercy, comfort, and blessings for him in paradise. He was asked simply to abstain from the forbidden food. But he could not restrain himself, and he ate from the tree. As a result, he was expelled from paradise. Allah did not forbid him, Ali, from eating wheat (which, according to Muslim belief was the forbidden 'tree'). But since he had no inclination towards this temporal world, he voluntarily refrained from eating wheat. (The point of Ali's remark was that excellence of a man before Allah lies in piety and devotion, and that the height of piety lies in abstaining even from what is permissible.)

Sa'sa'a asked:

"Who is superior, you or Noah?" Ali replied: "I am superior. Noah called his men to worship Allah, but they did not obey. Their shameful mistreatment was torture to him. He cursed them and invoked Allah: 'O my Lord! Leave not on the earth a single person of the unjust ones.' After the death of the Prophet, even though the people caused me extreme difficulty, I never cursed them. I suffered their torment with patience."

Sa'sa'a asked:

"Who is superior, you or Abraham?" Ali replied: "I am superior, for Abraham said: 'My Lord! Show me how Thou Givest life to the dead.' He said: 'What! do you not believe?' He said: 'Yes, but that my heart may be at ease.' (2:260) My faith was such that I said: 'If the veil over the unseen were lifted, my faith would not increase."

Sa'as'a asked:

"Who is superior, you or Moses?" The Holy Imam replied: "I am superior, for when Almighty Allah ordered Moses to go to Egypt to invite Pharaoh to the truth, Moses said: 'My Lord! Surely I killed one of them, so I am afraid that they will slay me. And my brother Aaron, he is more eloquent of tongue than I. Therefore send him with me as an aide, to help me. Surely I fear that they will reject me." (28:33-34) The Holy Prophet ordered me, by the command of Allah, to go to Mecca and to recite the verses of the Chapter 'Al-Bara'a' from the top of the Ka'ba to the Quraish infidels. I was not afraid, even though there were few people there who had not lost a near relative by my sword. Obeying his order, I performed my duty alone. I recited the verses of 'Al-Bara'a' and returned."

Sa'sa'a asked:

"Who is superior, you or Jesus?" Ali said: "I am superior, for when Mary became pregnant by the Grace of Allah, and the time of her delivery approached, a revelation was granted to her: 'Leave this holy House for this is a House for prayers, not a place for the delivery of children.' Accordingly, she left the holy House and went to the wilderness where she gave birth to Jesus. But when my mother, Fatima Bint-e- Asad, felt labor pains within the precincts of the holy Ka'ba, she clung to the wall and prayed to Allah in the name of that House and the builder of that House, to lessen her pain. Soon a fissure appeared in the wall, and my mother heard a mysterious voice telling her, "O Fatima! Enter the House of the Ka'ba.' She went in, and I was born inside of the holy Ka'ba." 20

The same ideology can be deducted from the following statements:

In spite of his (Ibrahim) holding the office of the prophethood he was tested and tried by Allah before He made him an Imaam. It means that a prophet is not necessarily an Imaam and Imaamat is an office of a decidedly higher order… 21

Imam 'Ali and the other Imaams of Ahlul Bayt are believed by the Shي'as to be higher in rank than all prophets and messengers except the Prophet of Islam (s.a.w.). 22

Denying Imaamah and its consequences

It is also important to note the statement given by many Shia scholars with respect to the one who denies Imaamah. For example, the Shia scholar, Sheikh al-Sadooq writes:

And our belief concerning him, who denies the Imaamat to the Prince of Believers 'Ali b. Abi Talib, on whom be peace, and the Imaams after him, is that he is the like of him who denies the apostleship of all the prophets, on whom be peace. And our belief concerning him, who believes in (the Imaamat of) the Prince of Believers and denies a single one of the Imaams after him, is that he is in the same position as one who accepts all the prophets but denies the apostleship of our Prophet Muhammad. And Imaam Ja'far as-Sadiq said: He who denies the least among us is like him who denies (the claims of) the first among us.

And the Prophet said: The Imaams after me are twelve, the first of them is the Prince of Believers `Ali b. Abi Talib, and the last of them is the Mahdi (rightly guided), the Qd'im (the upholder of the true religion); obedience to them is obedience to me and disobedience to them is disobedience to me; and he who denies one of them has verily denied me. And Imaam Ja'far as-Sadiq said: He who doubts in the infidelity (kufr) of our enemies who have wronged us is himself an infidel (kafir). 23

Sheikh Mufid (a student of Al-Sadooq) comments:

There is consensus amongst the Imaamiyyah that whoever denies the Imaamah of anyone of the Imaams, and denies the duty of obedience to them that Allah has decreed, that such a person is a kafir, misguided, and that he deserves everlasting torment in Hell. 24

These and similar declarations are the rational outcome of the Shia insistence on Imaamah being a fundamental of belief and that a person’s faith is incomplete without it. Even though these declarations may seem to be very strong for the average Sunni, yet they form the nucleus of Shia thinking with respect to Imaamah, and should be properly examined by the objective researcher.

What we can conclude about Imaamah in Shiaism

Given the above citations, any person can see that the belief of Imaamah is the heart of Shiaism. It can be correctly said that without it the Shia sect would cease to exist as a separate sect, and the differences between Shias and Sunnis would be merely in matters of fiqh and Islamic legislation.

Allamah Tabatabai listed the necessary qualifications and qualities of an Imaam and the office of Imaamah while discussing Ayah 2:124 of the Holy Quran in his Tafseer Al-Mizan. I will present below as a brief synopsis of what Imaamah entails:

  • First: Imaamah is a Divinely-made status.
  • Second: The Imaam must be ma'sum, by Divine 'ismah; in other words, he must be protected by Allah from sins and errors.
  • Third: The earth cannot remain without a rightful Imaam, as long as there is a man on it.
  • Fourth: It is essential for an Imaam to be supported by the Divine help.
  • Fifth: The deeds of the people are not hidden from the Imaam.
  • Sixth: The Imaam must have knowledge of all that is needed by the people for their good in this world and the next.
  • Seventh: It is impossible for any other person to surpass the Imaam in any virtue. 25

In addition to these qualities, the following points may be added:

  • The Imaam is the tool for obeying Allah, any acts of obedience without accepting the real Imaam is useless, and will not be According to a considerable number of Shia scholars, Imaams (and the office of Imaamah) have a rank higher than that of the prophets (and the office of Prophethood).

These principles are among the most fundamental of Imaamah according to Shiaism. They will be of importance when they are compared with the text and message of the Quran. Other scholarly Shia statements with respect to Imaamah will also be brought up in the appropriate chapters. Notwithstanding, it is crucial for both the Sunni and Shia readers to realize that Imaamah carries a very special meaning in the psyche of the Shia, and that no stone has been left unturned by Shia scholars and writers in their attempts to glorify and sanctify such a position.

FootNote:

1 These are the names of the Imaams according to the largest branch of Shiaism, the Imaamiyah/ Ithna Ashariyah. Other smaller sects of Shiaism emerged in the past that broke from this chain at different eras of Islamic history, and whose list of “Imaams” is different from the one presented above. However, in this work, I will concentrate on the beliefs of the majority of Shias. After all, the bulk of Shias are Imaamis in belief, and the liveliest Shia propaganda stems from the Imaami Shia religious institutions. In addition, some of the general aspects of Imaamah are shared by all the denominations who term themselves as “Shia”.

2 “Allamah” is a generic term signifying a scholar, be he a Sunni or Shia. For the purposes of this work, it will be used to refer to Shia scholars. Other titles such as Hujjatul Islam and Ayatullah will also be used to refer to these scholars, depending on the titles they are associated with.

3 “The Origin of Shiite Islam and its Principles, Part II: Fundamentals of the Religion”, Part II: The Fundmentals of the Religion, Section The Fundamental Beliefs. In the Arabic edition of the book, the first sentence occurs on page 218 of the work “Asl-ul-Shia wa Usuluha”. Then Allamah Al Ghita goes on to speak about the five principles without first listing them. In both cases, it is clear that the Shia fundamentals of religion are these five tenets.

4 Aqaed Al Imaamiyah, p.65

5 Asl-ul-Shia wa Usuluha, p.221

6 Imaamate and Leadership, Chapter “The Place of Leadership in Islam”

7 Imaamate and Leadership, Chapter “The Method of Choosing the Imaam or Leader ”

8 Asl-ul-Shia wa Usuluha, pp. 211-212

9 Shia, p. 185-186

10 Aqaed Al Imaamiyah, p.66

11 Some classical Shia scholars of high status such as Mufid and Sadooq are called “Shaykh” by the latter- day Shias, and I will follow that convention in these instances. In such cases it is hoped that there is no confusion with the Sunni usage of the title “Shaykh” for Sunni scholars.

12 Awail Muqalat p.41-42 (as mentioned in Bihar Al Anwar, Volume 26, p. 298)

13 A view being a matter of “Ijtihad” means that the individual scholar may have a specific position with respect to the issue at hand. However, he acknowledges that this position is not the only valid one, and that the textual evidences for contrary views exist and cannot be easily discarded.

14 http://www.lankarani.org/English/faq/110q.html

15 Islamic Government:Hukumat-i-Islami, p.22

16 Islamic Government:Hukumat-i-Islami, p.52 (footnote 63)

17 Bihar Al Anwar, Volume 26, p.297

18 Some of the Shia readers may take objection to my use of sources such as “Shia Encyclopedia” and “Peshawar Nights” as references. I am aware that they are not of the same calibre as the writings of classical Shia scholars. However, they are used by the Shia masses in order to preach the Shia faith to the Sunnis. Also, I am not aware of any Shia Marja (religious authority) condemning the writings or asking his followers to abstain from reading them. Instead, the official sites of some Marjas (such as Ayatullah Muhammad Sadeq Shirazi on his website www.shirazi.org.uk) exhort the Shias to present such books and sites as preaching material to the Sunnis.

19 “Imaamat vs. Prophethood (Part I)”, Shia Encyclopedia

20 http://www.al-islam.org/peshawar/7.1.html

21 S.V. Mir Ali/ Ayatullah Mahdi Puya Commentary of Verse 2:124

22 Shiism:Imaamate and Wilayah, p.96

23 A Shiite Creed, p. 94-95

24 Awail Maqalaat, p.44

25 Tafseer Al Mizan, Volume 1, p.274-275