Al-Huda
Foundation, NJ U. S. A
the Message Continues ... 3/99
Newsletter for November 2009
Article 1 - Article 2 - Article 3 - Article 4 - Article 5 - Article 6 - Article 7 - Article 8 - Article 9 - Article 10 - Article 11 - Article 12
A Discussion Concerning Imam Mahdi (a)
by the late Sayyid Muhammad Baqir al-Sadr
(Translated from the Arabic by Mujahid Husayn)
The original in
Arabic is entitled Bahth hawl al-Mahdi. Written by Shahid Sadr
in 1397 H., it has been published separately (Beirut: Dar al
Ta'aruf lil-Matbu'at, 3rd impression 1401 H. /1981) as well as
within his collected works, al-Majjmu`ah al-kamilah li
mu'allafat al-Sayyid Muhammad Bagir al-Sadr, vol. 11 (Beirut:
Dar al Ta'aruflil-Matbu'at, 1410 H. /1990).
The concept of the Mahdi is not just the embodiment of an
Islamic doctrine possessing a religious character but rather
signifies a universal aspiration of mankind with the variety of
its religions and creeds. It represents an innate aspiration
through which people, despite the variety of their beliefs and
their means of recourse to the Unseen (ghayb), perceive that
there is, for all mankind on the earth, a promised day wherein
the divine messages with their momentous significance will be
fulfilled and their ultimate objective will be realized,
bringing the long and arduous human journey through history to
its ultimate destination. In fact, the consciousness of this
unseen day and the awaited future is not limited to the
religious believers in the Unseen (ghayb), but includes others
as well, being reflected even in ideologies and creeds most
vehement in their rejection of the Unseen and everything that
relates to it, such as dialectical materialism. Dialectical
materialism, which interprets history in terms of
contradictions, believes in a promised day in which all the
contradictions would be resolved and peace and harmony will
prevail. Similarly, we find that the psychological experience
pertaining to this perception of mankind through the course of
history, is one of the most widespread of experiences and the
most common among individuals.
When religion affirms this general perception and asserts that
the world will eventually be filled with justice and equity
after rampant injustice and oppression, it gives an objective
value to this perception by transforming it into faith in the
future of humanity. This faith is not merely a source of comfort
and solace, it is rather a source of strength and
resourcefulness, because the faith in the Mahdi is faith in the
removal of injustice and tyranny even if it darkens the entire
world and is an inexhaustible source of strength and resistance,
as it is a ray of hope which removes despair from the human
spirit by keeping the flame of hope lit in gloomy times when
injustice assumes monstrous dimensions. This is because the
promise of such a day affirms the possibility of justice defying
a world filled with injustice and oppression, by pulling down
the foundations of injustice to rebuild a new structure in its
place. It implies that when injustice becomes monstrous and
worldwide and spread its tentacles over human destiny, that is
an unnatural condition which is bound to terminate. This great
and inevitable defeat of injustice, at a time when it is at its
zenith, gives a great hope to every victim of injustice and
reassurance to every oppressed nation of the ability to tilt the
scales and build a new order.
As the concept of the Mahdi precedes Islam and is of a wider
occurrence, the detailed teachings furnished by Islam, being
more fertile and more powerful in arousing the sentiments of the
oppressed and the tormented throughout the course of history,
give a greater vitality to all the aspirations which led to the
emergence of this concept at the dawn of religious history. That
is so because Islam has shifted this concept from the plane of
transcendence to that of concrete reality, from the future to
the present, and from the expectations of a savior to be born in
a distant and unknown future into a faith in an actual savior
who awaits along with others the promised day when all the
conditions allowing him to carry out his great role are
fulfilled.
Hence the Mahdi is not a saviour whose birth is awaited or a
prophecy whose fulfillment is sought; rather he is a present
reality whose active involvement is awaited and a particular
individual living with his flesh and blood in our midst, whom we
see and who sees us. With us he lives through our hopes and
sufferings and participates in our joys and sorrows. He
witnesses everything going on in the world stage, the sufferings
of the tormented, the misery of the miserable, and the tyranny
of the tyrants, and, from far and near; feels them all
intensely, and, with his grief, await for the moment when he may
extend his hand towards every victim of oppression, deprivation
and distress, and crush the tyrants.
It has been decreed that this awaited leader shall not make
himself known publicly nor disclose his life to others although
he lives in their midst awaiting the promised moment. It is also
obvious that these Islamic teachings close the gulf of
transcendence between the oppressed and their awaited saviour,
building a bridge, in their inner consciousness, between them
and him, regardless of the length of the period of waiting.
When we are called upon to have faith in the Mahdi as a
particular individual, alive, who lives like we do and waits as
we wait, the purpose is to instill in us the notion that the
absolute rejection of all oppression and tyranny, whose
embodiment is the Mahdi, is personified, in the very present in
a waiting leader who rejects all injustice and who will appear
in a state when he is free from any impediment arising from oath
of allegiance to any tyrant, as reported in the traditions.
Faith in him stands for faith in this living embodiment of
unflagging rejection of injustice and standing by his side.
There is, in the traditions, a continuous exhortation to await
`the day of relief' (intizar al faraj) and a demand upon the
believers in the Mahdi to await him. In this manner a conscious
link is established between them and the leader and all the
values which he represents including the negation of injustice .
This link and connection cannot possibly be established unless
the Mahdi existed as a contemporary living person.
Similarly, we see that this embodiment gives a new impetus to
the notion and transforms it, at a higher degree, into a source
of resourcefulness and strength. Further, it also gives every
individual taking an stand against injustice comfort and
consolation and lightens the pain of injustice and privation as
he realizes that his Imam and leader also shares and feels these
pains as a contemporary human being, as he is not merely a
notion relating to the future.
Some objections about the Mahdi ('a):
However, at the same time, the existence of this contemporary
person has led to negative attitudes towards the notion of the
Mahdi itself among a group of people on account of the
difficulty to conceive such a personification.
Hence they ask: If the Mahdi is a living person who has been
contemporaneous with successive generations for more than ten
centuries and will continue to be such for the coming
generations until he appears on the world stage, how is it
possible for him to live for a such a long time and remain
immune to the natural laws which cause old age and senility in a
much lesser time, leading ultimately to death. Is this not
practically impossible?
They also ask: Why should God, the Glorious and the Exalted, be
so keen in respect of this particular person to suspend the
natural laws for his sake and carry out that which is impossible
to prolong his life and save him for the promised day? Has
mankind become barren and incapable of producing capable
leaders? Why should not the promised day be left for a leader to
be born at the dawn of that era, someone who would grow up like
other people and carry out his role gradually until the world is
filled with justice and equity after having been filled with
injustice and oppression?
They also ask: If the Mahdi is the name of a particular person,
the son of the Eleventh Imam from among the Imams of the
Prophet's family (`a), who was born in 256/870 and whose father
died in 260/873-4, this implies that he was a small child, not
exceeding five years, at the time of his father's death, and
this age is not sufficient for covering the stages of
intellectual and spiritual perfection under his father's
tutelage. Therefore, how could he have acquired the preparedness
for fulfilling his great religious and intellectual role?
They also ask: If the leader is well prepared, then what is the
need for this long waiting extending over centuries? Hasn't the
world witness enough of social ordeals and calamities that might
call for his appearance on the world scene for the establishment
of justice?
They further ask: How can we possibly believe in the existence
of the Mahdi even if we were to presume its possibility? Is it
justifiable to believe in the truth of this kind of hypothesis
without scientific or religious evidence in its favor? Do a few
traditions narrated from the Prophet ('s), the degree of whose
authenticity is unknown, suffice for accepting the
above-mentioned hypothesis?
They have also questions concerning the role he is destined to
play on the promised day. Is it possible for an individual to
play such a great and decisive global role? A mere individual,
however great he may be, how can he create history by himself
and usher in a new era? For the seeds and roots of historical
movements grow and develop under certain objective conditions
and their contradictions; the greatness of the individual only
places him in a position to channel these objective
circumstances for bringing about practical changes to achieve
the sought solutions?
They also raise another question: How can one imagine that this
person will accomplish the task of bringing about such a
terrific change and achieve a decisive victory of justice and
its message over the entire systems of injustice, oppression and
tyranny, despite the fact that they enjoy authority and
influence and possess the means of mass destruction, along with
tremendous scientific capability as well as political, social
and military power?
These are questions which are raised regarding this issue and
they are posed in one form or another. But the real motives
behind these questions are not just intellectual. There is a
psychological reason behind them as well, consisting of the
feeling of awe about the reality dominating the global scene and
the slightness of any chance of altering it fundamentally. The
greater the awe produced by this reality dominating the world
through the course of history, the more are the doubts and the
questions that are raised. This is how defeatism and the feeling
of pettiness and weakness lead man psychologically into a state
of severe impotence at the mere idea of a great global change
that would liberate the world from all its contradictions and
injustices that have marked its history and give it a new
content based on justice and truth. It is this feeling of
impotence that gives rise to the doubts concerning this picture
and inspires the attempt to reject it for some reason or
another.
Here we will take up take up these questions, briefly examining
each of them to the extent permitted by the scope of these
pages.
The Mahdi's Long Life:
Is there a possibility that a human being may live for so many
centuries as is supposed in the case of this awaited leader who
would change the world, whose blessed life now exceeds eleven
hundred and forty years, or nearly fourteen times that of the
age of an ordinary human being who passes through all the usual
stages of life from infancy to old age?
`Possibility' here has one of three meanings: practical
possibility, scientific possibility, and logical or
philosophical possibility: By `practical possibility' I mean
that a thing should be possible for anyone to carry out. Thus
crossing an ocean, going into the depth of the sea, and
traveling to the moon are things which have now become
practically possible. Hence there are people who are presently
engaged in doing these one way or another.
By `scientific possibility' I mean things which may not be
practically possible for anyone at present with the aid of the
existing means, but from the viewpoint. of science there is
nothing to preclude their possibility provided proper conditions
and means become available. Hence the possibility of man
traveling to Venus is not precluded by science. In fact, the
present trends point to its possibility, though it may not be
possible for anyone at present, because the difference between
journey to the moon and journey to Venus is one of degree, and
traveling to Venus does not involve anything more than
overcoming the additional difficulties arising from greater
distance. Therefore, traveling to Venus is possible
scientifically although it has not yet become a practical
possibility. As against this, the idea of a space journey to the
sun is scientifically impossible, i.e. science does not consider
it possible because scientifically and experimentally the
possibility is inconceivable of making a shield against the heat
of the sun which is like a gigantic blazing furnace with
unimaginably high temperatures.
By logical or philosophical possibility I mean the absence, on
the basis of a priori rational laws (i.e. prior to empirical
experience) of any rational obstacle to the existence of
anything. Hence it is logically impossible to divide three
oranges into two equal parts without cutting one of them into
two halves. Because, prior to any experience, reason knows that
three is not an even but an odd number and it is not possible to
divide it into two equal whole numbers because that would imply
that it is both an odd as well as an even number at the same
time, and this is a contradiction, which is impossible. But it
is not logically impossible for man to enter fire without being
burnt or to make the journey to the sun without being burnt by
its heat, because no contradiction is involved in assuming that
heat may not travel from a body at a higher temperature to one
which is less hot, although it is contrary to our experience
which shows that heat travels from a body at higher to one at a
lower temperature until their temperatures are equal.
Thus we see that logical possibility has a wider scope than
scientific possibility, and the latter in its turn has a wider
scope than practical possibility.
There is no doubt that it is logically possible for a person to
have a life-span extending over thousands of years because this
is not something impossible from a purely rational point of
view, considering that it does not involve any contradiction,
for the concept of life undoubtedly does not in itself imply the
idea of speedy death.
Similarly, there is no doubt that such a long life is not a
practical possibility, like the possibility of reaching the sea
floor or making journey to the moon. That is because science
cannot, with the present means and experience, prolong human
life for hundreds of years. Hence we see that those who have the
greatest desire to live and also access to all scientific
resources, do not live longer than what is usual.
As for scientific possibility, there is nothing in today's
science that might negate the theoretical possibility of a very
long life-span. This actually relates to the physiological
significance of the phenomenon of old age and senility in man.
Does this phenomenon represents a natural law which makes
tissues and cells in the human body, after the peak of their
growth, to age gradually and become less capable of sustained
activity until they finally stop working at some moment,
irrespective of the influence of any external factor? Or is
aging and creeping infirmity of bodily tissues and cells in
performance of their physiological functions a result of their
battle against such external factors as microbes and toxicity
which enter the body as a result of consuming improper food or
some other factor?
This is a question raised by science today and it seeks to
answer it, whereas there continue to be several answers for it
on the scientific level. Therefore if we accept the scientific
view which inclines towards interpreting aging and the mounting
debility accompanying it as a consequence of the body's battle
and resistance against certain external factors, it means that
if the bodily tissues were insulated from these factors it is
theoretically possible to increase the life-span, to overcome
the phenomenon of aging and finally triumph over it.
But if we opt for the other viewpoint which favours the
hypothesis that aging is a natural law of cells and living
tissues, in the sense that they carry within themselves the
seeds of their inevitable destruction through aging, senility
and finally death, we may still say that this does not mean that
there is no flexibility in this natural law. Rather, if such a
law presumably exists it is a flexible law, because as we find
in our daily lives and the scientists in their experiments, old
age is a physiological and not a temporal phenomenon. At times
it sets in early and at times it is delayed until late in life.
Some old people possess young-looking organs and tissue despite
being advanced in age, as reported by physicians, and they show
no signs of old age. In fact, scientists have been practically
able to benefit from the flexibility of this supposed natural
law and have extended the age of some animals by hundreds of
times of their natural age. They have achieved this by creating
such conditions and factors which delay the operation of the law
of aging.
This proves that slowing down of this law is scientifically
possible by creating specific conditions and factors, although
science has not yet acquired the ability to bring it about in
relation to a complicated being such as man. However, this is
only due to the relatively greater difficulty involved in
achieving this in relation to man, in contrast to other living
beings. This means that from a theoretical point of view
science, to the extent indicated by its moving trends, does not
have any basis for rejecting the possibility of extending the
human life-span, irrespective of whether we interpret aging as a
consequence of the combat and resistance against external
factors, or as consequence of a natural law of the living cell
itself which compels it towards destruction.
What has been mentioned can be summarized as follows: To be
sure, the extension of a man's life for several centuries is
something possible logically and scientifically, although it
continues to remain practically impossible. But science is
moving on the path, albeit a long one, of realizing this
possibility.
In the light of what has been said, we may approach the issue of
the Mahdi's life-span and the questions and incredulity that
surround it. We may note that such a long span of life is
logically-and scientifically possible, and science is gradually
moving towards changing this theoretical possibility into a
practical one. Hence there remain no grounds for wonder and
incredulity except that the Mahdi should have outstripped
science itself by changing the theoretical possibility into a
practical one in his own person before science could reached the
level of competence to bring it about. But this is something
similar to a person outdistancing science by discovering a cure
for meningitis or cancer.
If the problem is as to how Islam, which has determined the age
of this awaited leader, has outstripped science in bringing
about this change, the reply is that this is not the only area
in which Islam has outstripped science. Has not the Islamic
Shari'ah in general outstripped science and the natural
development of human thought by several centuries? Did it not
lay down prescriptions setting forth a program for
implementation, whereas it took man several centuries to acquire
the maturity to arrive at them independently? Did it not bring
the divine laws which represent ultimate wisdom and whose
secrets and judiciousness could not be comprehended until recent
times? Didn't its heavenly message disclose cosmic secrets which
had never occurred to man's mind and which were proved and
confirmed by science only later on? Thus if we believe in all
this, why should we regard it with incredulity if the Author of
this message, the Glorious and the Exalted, has presaged and
outdistanced human science in determining the age of the Mahdi?
Here I am not speaking about anything except cases of such
presaging which we are able to perceive directly, and it is
possible to add to these other instances of presaging mentioned
in the heavenly message itself. An example of this is in the
Qur'an where it inform us about the nocturnal ascension of the
Prophet (s), a journey in which he was taken from the Holy
Mosque in Makkah to the Masjid al-Aqsa. If we want to understand
this nightly journey within the framework of natural laws, it
may be considered as a use of natural laws which science did not
discover except hundreds of years later. Therefore, the same
divine knowledge which made it possible for the Prophet (s) to
travel at that speed before science could understand it, has
granted the last of his God-designated vicegerents a long life
before science could accomplish anything of the kind.
Indeed this long life bestowed upon the awaited saviour by God,
the Exalted, seems strange from the viewpoint of what is
regarded as usual and familiar until today and in the light of
what has been presently achieved by scientific experiments. But
isn't the saviour's very role of bringing about a tremendous
change, for which he has been prepared, something strange,
unusual and unprecedented in history? Is he not entrusted with
the task of changing the world and rebuilding a new civilization
on the basis of truth and justice.? Such being the case, why
should we consider it strange if the preparation for this great
role is marked with certain strange and unusual phenomena such
as his long life-span? However strange and unusual these
phenomena may appear, they are not more strange than the great
role which he is to play on the promised day So when we accept
his unique historical role despite its being without a precedent
in the history of mankind, then why should we not accept his
long life span which has no precedent in ordinary life?
I do not know whether it is a matter of accident that only two
individuals are entrusted with the mission to purge human
civilization and build it anew, and both have long life-spans,
several times the normal? One of them who performed such a role
in the past was Noah, about whom the Noble Qur'an explicitly
says that he remained among his people for a period of
nine-hundred and fifty years and it became possible for him to
create a new world after the flood. The other, who will perform
his role in future, is the Mahdi who continues to be among his
people for more than a thousand years, and who will be enabled
to create a new world on the promised day in the future. If we
accept the case of Noah who lived for at least a thousand years,
why should we not accept the case of the Mahdi?
Miracle and Long Life:
Until this point we have observed that a long life-span is
scientifically possible. But if it is supposed that it is not
practically possible and the law of aging is an inflexible law,
which mankind has not been able to overcome until today and to
alter its conditions, what does that imply? It implies that
prolonging the human life-span for several centuries, such as in
the case of Noah and the Mahdi, is against natural laws as
proved by the modem scientific methods of experimentation and
induction. As a consequence this becomes a miracle wherein a
natural law is suspended in a specific situation for preserving
the life of a person entrusted with safeguarding the celestial
message. This miracle is neither the only one of its kind nor is
it incredible from the viewpoint of Muslim belief based upon
explicit Quranic verses and the Prophet's traditions. That is
because the law of aging is not more inflexible than the law of
heat transfer, according to which heat flows from a hotter body
to one at a lower temperature until the two are at an equal
temperature. This law was suspended for the sake Abraham ('a)
when the only way to save him was to suspend this law. Hence
when Abraham was thrown into fire, it was told:
"[We said:] O fire, be coolness and safety for Abraham".
(Al-Quran, 21:69)
Thereat he came out from it unhurt and untouched by fire.
Similarly other natural laws were suspended for the sake of
support to other figures from among the prophets and testaments
of God upon the earth, such as the parting of the sea for Moses,
the illusion of the Romans that they had arrested Jesus while in
fact they had not arrested him, and the Prophet Muhammad's (s)
going out unseen from his house which had been besieged by the
Quraysh who lay in wait for hours to attack him and God
concealed him from their eyes when he walked out through their
midst. All these cases represent suspension of natural laws for
the support of an individual whose preservation is desired by
providence. The law of aging might be one of those laws.
From this we may derive a general notion that whenever the
preservation of the life of a human testament (hujjah) of God on
earth-which is necessary for the fulfillment of the mission for
which he has been prepared-depends upon suspending a natural
law, divine providence intervenes to suspend that law for the
sake of the fulfillment of that mission. Conversely, if the
mission for which the individual has been prepared is completed,
he dies naturally or is martyred in accordance with the workings
of natural laws.
Concerning this general notion we are usually faced with the
following question: How is it possible for the laws of nature to
be suspended, severing the necessary relationship between
natural phenomena? Is this anything except negation of science
which has discovered natural laws and determined the necessary
relationship on the basis of the principles of experimentation
and induction?
The answer is that science itself has answered this question by
relinquishing the concept of necessity in relation to natural
laws. To explain, science discovers natural laws on the basis of
experiment and systematic observation. That is, when a
particular natural phenomenon follows another phenomenon,
science infers from this succession a natural law that whenever
the first phenomenon occurs the second follows it. But in this
law science does not presume the existence of a necessary
relationship between the two phenomena arising from their
essences, because necessity is an unobservable condition which
cannot be proved by experimentation and instruments of
scientific induction. It is for this reason that the logic of
modem science emphasizes that natural laws, as known to science,
do not speak of a necessary relationship but of association
between two phenomena. Hence if a miracle occurs and one of the
two phenomena involved in a natural law is excluded, it does not
involve breaking of a necessary relationship between two
phenomena.
In fact, in the light of the logic of modem science miracle, in
its religious sense, has become more comprehensible than it was
in the light of the classical view relating to causal
relationships. The earlier viewpoint conceived two phenomena
which were constantly associated with one another as bound by a
necessary relationship, and this necessity implied the
impossibility of their separation. But this relationship has
changed in modem science into the law of persistent association
and succession between two phenomena which does not presume
unobservable necessity.
On this basis, a miracle becomes an exception to the state of
persistent association and succession without conflicting with
necessity or leading to impossibility.
In the light of the principles of inductive logic, we concur
with the modem scientific viewpoint that induction does not
prove the existence of a necessary relationship between two
phenomena. But we think that it does indicate the presence of a
common interpretation for persisting association and succession
between two phenomena. In the same way that this common
interpretation may be justified on the basis of the assumption
of essential necessity, similarly it is possible to justify it
on the basis of Divine wisdom which prompts the orderer of the
universe' to persistently link certain phenomena with others and
it is this wisdom itself which at times demands an exception
leading to the occurrence of a miracle.
God's Concern in Extending His Life:
We will now take up the second question which is, why should
God, the Glorious and the Exalted, show such special concern for
this particular individual and suspend natural laws for the sake
of prolonging his age? Moreover, why not leave the leadership of
the promised day for someone to be born in the future, to be
summoned by the signs of the promised day, to appear on the
stage and carry out his awaited role? In other words, what is
the benefit of this long occultation and what is its
justification?
This question is asked by many people and they do not want a
reply based on occult explanations, considering that we believe
that the Twelve Imams ( 'a) form a unique chain of which not a
single link can be altered. But those who raise this question
demand a social interpretation of this stance based upon
tangible realities of the process of change as such and
understandable needs of the promised day.
On this basis we will temporarily shift our attention from the,
characteristics which we believe these infallible Imams to
possess and raise the following question: Taking into account
the process of awaited change on the promised day, to the extent
it is understandable in the light of human life and experience,
is it possible to consider the longevity of the leader reserved
for that day as one of the factors greatly conducive to its
success and its leadership?
Our reply to this question is in the affirmative for a number of
reasons among which are the following:
The process of a great change requires that the leader who
brings it about should possess a unique spirit which is full of
consciousness and preeminence and awareness of the
insignificance of the dominant arrogant systems for whose
annihilation he has been prepared and to replace them with a new
civilization and a new world order. And the more the
revolutionary leader is conscious of the pettiness of the
civilization which he combats and the more dearly he perceives
that it is only a point on the long line of human civilization,
the higher will be his morale in confronting it and continuing
his campaign against it until victory.
It is obvious that the required measure of this awareness would
be proportional to the extent of the change itself and the
extent and hold of the civilization and regime to be
annihilated. Therefore, confrontation with a mightier system and
a more deeply-rooted civilization requires an awareness
possessing greater force and vigour.
Considering that the mission of the promised day is to bring
about a comprehensive change in a world filled with injustice
and oppression by transforming all its cultural values and
diverse systems, it is natural that such a mission should
require someone whose awareness is greater than that of the
world in its entirety, someone who is not an offspring of that
world grown up in the shadow of the civilization which he seeks
to demolish and transform into a civilization based upon justice
and truth. That is because someone who grows up in the shadow of
a deep-rooted civilization and spend his life under the spell of
its authority, values and ideas, dwells under a feeling of awe
for it because it was already there when he was only an infant,
a mighty adult when he still grew up as a child, and when he had
opened his eyes on the world he did not see anything except its
myriad faces.
As against this there is someone who has delved deeply in
history and lived in the world before this age of enlightenment,
and has seen great civilizations ruling over the world one after
another and then decline and fall with his own eyes and not
through books of history, seeing also the present civilization
which constitutes the latest chapter in human history prior to
the promised day. He saw it while it was still a small seed
hardly visible. He then saw these seeds establish themselves in
the body of society waiting for an opportunity to sprout and
grow. He has witnessed its growth and march, its ups and downs,
and observed it blossom and grow into a giant and gradually
control the destiny of the entire world.
Surely such a person who has lived through all these stages with
complete awareness and insight will mark this giant, which he
intends to confront, through the long history he has personally
observed, not as something read in books of history. He will
neither view it as inevitable fate, nor as Jean Jacques Rousseau
viewed France without a monarch, for it is said that he was
terrified by the mere idea of France without a king, despite his
being, intellectually and philosophically, one of the leading
advocates of political change during that era. That was so
because he had grown up in the shadow of monarchy and had
breathed in its atmosphere throughout his life. But someone who
has accompanied history itself carries within him the awe and
force of history and profound awareness of the fact that the
order and civilization that surrounds him is the offspring of a
day from among the days of history that came into being due to
certain conducive factors and which will perish when other
factors appear, and in near or distant future nothing will
remain of it in the same manner as nothing of it lasted in the
past; that life-spans of civilizations and regimes, however long
they may be, are not more than numbered days in the long course
of history.
You may have read the Surat al-Kahf. It mentions the story of
the youths who professed faith in their Lord: God had increased
them in guidance at a time when they were confronted with a
dominant idolatrous regime which, without pity and hesitation,
ripped the buds of tawhid and stifled any effort to rise above
polytheism. They were under great stress; despair had
overwhelmed them and they had lost hope. Unable to find any
solution, it appeared to them that falsehood would continue to
rule and oppress for ever and to prevail over the truth, forcing
into submission everyone whose heart leaned towards truth. They
sought refuge in a cave seeking from God relief from their
predicament. Do you know what God did? He caused them to fall
asleep for 309 years in the cave. Then he raised them from sleep
and sent them forth on the stage of life after the regime that
had overwhelmed them with its power and oppression had
disintegrated and collapsed to become an inert and harmless part
of history. All this was done so that those youths might witness
the fall of untruth whose prevalence, power, and persistence
seemed overwhelming to them, land that they might see its end
with their own eyes and witness the triviality and
insignificance of falsehood. If this clear vision -- with all
its spiritual force and sublimity -- was realized by the Men of
the Cave through this unique incident which extended their
life-span by 300 years, a similar thing applies to the Awaited
Leader in the course of his long life-span, which enabled him to
witness the giant of a civilization when it was still a dwarf,
the ancient tree when it was still a seed, and the epochs when
they were taking their first breaths of life.
In addition, this experience of accompanying successive
civilizations and direct contact with their movement and
development, have a great role in intellectually preparing and
deepening the leadership skills for the promised day, as they
expose the reserved individual to the various efforts made by
others along with their points of weakness and strength and all
kinds of error and correct judgment, giving him the utmost
ability to evaluate social phenomena with a complete awareness
of their causes and historical conditions.
Further, the change that the Awaited Leader is destined to bring
about is based upon a specific message, the message of Islam. It
is but natural that it should require a leader who in nearer to
the sources of pristine Islam, with a personality built in an
entirely independent manner separately from the cultural
influences he is destined to combat on the promised day. This is
opposed to the case of a person who is born and brought up in
that culture and whose thoughts and sensibilities take shape
within its environs, because such a person is usually not free
from the influences and tendencies of this culture even if he is
leading a change against it. Therefore, for ensuring that the
reserved leader is not influenced by the civilization for whose
change he has been prepared, it is necessary that his
personality be entirely built in an earlier civilization stage
closest in its general spirit and origin to the civilization
which he seeks to realize on the promised day under his
leadership.
How did His Personality Develop?
We now come to the third question: How did the Awaited Leader's
personality develop despite his having lived with his father,
Imam Askari ('a), for just about five year, and that too during
infancy, which is insufficient for his personality to mature? So
what were the circumstances that were instrumental in the
development of his personality?
The answer is that the Mahdi ( `a) succeeded to his father's
office of the Imamah of the Muslim community, and this implies
that he was an Imam possessing all the intellectual and
spiritual qualities associated with Imamah from a very early
stage of his noble life. The possession of the Imamah at an
early age is .a phenomenon which has precedents in a number of
his forefathers (`a). Thus Imam Muhammad ibn Ali al-Jawad ( `a)
assumed the Imamah when he was 8 years old and Imam Ali ibn
Muhammad al-Hadi (`a) when he was 9 years. Imam Abu Muhammad al-Hasan
al-Askari, the father of the Awaited Imam, assumed the Imamah'
when he was 28 years. Hence the phenomenon of assuming the
Imamah at an early age reached its climax in Imam Mahdi ( `a)
and Imam Jawad ( `a), and we call it a `phenomenon' as it
manifested itself as a tangible and practical reality in
relation to some of the Mahdi's ancestors, which for the Muslims
was a kind of living experience of the Imam. It is not possible
for us to find any evidence that may be clearer and stronger
than the experience of the Muslim community. We mention the
following points to elucidate this matter:
1) The Imamah of the Imams of the Ahl al-Bayt was not an office
associated with worldly power and influence which passes from
father to son on the basis of heredity and is supported by state
power, as in the case of the imamate of the Fatimid caliphs and
the caliphate of the Abbasids. Rather, it acquired its wide
popular base through spiritual power and the intellectual
conviction it generated among the masses concerning the
worthiness of this Imamah for the leadership of Islam in
accordance with spiritual and intellectual principles.
2) The foundations of this popular base were laid during the
early days of Islam and it blossomed and spread during the
period of Imam Baqir (`a) and Imam Sadiq (`a). The school over
which these two Imams presided generated a widespread
intellectual current among the masses in the Islamic world,
attracting hundreds of jurists, theologians, exegetes and
scholars of various Islamic disciplines and other sciences known
at the time. Speaking in this regard, al-Hasan ibn Ali al-Washsha'
says: "On entering the Mosque of Kufah I saw 900 shaykhs all of
whom would say, "haddathna Jafar ibn Muhammad' " ("Ja'far ibn
Muhammad narrated to us").
3) The conditions for determining the Imam and ascertaining his
capacity for Imamah, to which this school and the people who
formed its popular base in Islamic society subscribed and which
they abided by, were very stringent, because they did not
consider anyone an Imam unless he was the most teamed scholar of
his time.
4) The school and the people constituting its popular base gave
great sacrifices for their sustained faith in the Imamah as,
from the viewpoint of the ruling caliphs, they formed a hostile
front, at least in respect of its doctrinal approach. This led
the authorities to launch almost continuous assaults to
liquidate or torture them. As a result many were killed and many
more were imprisoned, and hundreds died in the dark of prison
cells. This means that they had to pay dearly for their faith in
the Imamah of the Imams of the Ahl at-Bayt, and it carried with
it no attraction except a believer's appeal or his commitment
for the sake of nearness to God, the Exalted.
5) The Imams in whose Imamah these masses had faith did not live
secluded lives in ivory towers, as was the wont of kings vis-a-vis
their people. They lived in constant contact with the people so
long as they were not imprisoned or exiled by the rulers. This
is known from the large number of narrators and traditionists
who have narrated traditions on the authority of each of the
eleven Imams as well as from the correspondence which each Imam
held with his contemporaries. The journeys undertook by each of
the Imams, on the one hand, and the representatives which they
appointed for the various regions of the Islamic world on the
other, along with the practice of the Shi'`ah from every region
to pay regular visits to the Imams and meet them in Madinah
during their journeys to the holy land for ha" pilgrimage-all
this implies a continuous and clear interaction between the Imam
and his followers who were spread all over the Islamic world and
included both scholars and laymen.
6) The contemporary caliphate viewed the Imams ('a) and their
spiritual leadership as a great threat to its existence and
authority Consequently it made every effort to weaken this
leadership and endured many negative consequences arising from
such measures. Occasionally, when their policies required, they
manifested themselves in the form of ruthless tyranny, and the
Imams themselves were repeatedly imprisoned and kept under
continuous surveillance despite the shock and revulsion which it
generated among the generality of Muslims and their followers in
varying degrees.
If we reflect over these six points, which are all indubitable
historical facts, it is possible to arrive at the conclusion
that the phenomenon of assumption of Imamah at a young age was a
reality and not a fantasy Because the Imam who at a young age
appears before the people and proclaims himself as the spiritual
and intellectual leader of Muslims and whose Imamah and
leadership are believed in by such a large and widespread body
of people, must have possessed, quite clearly and remarkably,
vast knowledge and wisdom, an extensive learning and expertise
in law, exegesis and doctrine. Because, in its absence, he would
have been unable to convince the various classes of people of
his Imamah, especially in view of what we have mentioned
concerning the continuous interaction between the Imams and
their followers and the limelight that focused on their lives
and different angles of their personality.
Therefore, is it likely that a child should invite people to his
own Imamah as the standard of Islam, making himself the focus of
the various segments of people, who believe in him and sacrifice
for his sake their precious security and life without taking the
trouble to inquire about him and without being jolted by the
phenomenon of a child's Imamah into making an inquiry into the
authenticity of the claims of the young Imam and an evaluation
of his person? Assuming that the people did not make any
immediate effort to discover the facts, is it possible for such
a matter to continue for days and months, or even years, without
the reality being disclosed despite normally continuous
intercourse between the young Imam and the people? Is it
reasonable to suppose that he could be truly childish in his
thinking and knowledge without its coming to light during such a
long period of interaction?
Even if we suppose that the supporters of the Imamah of the Ahl
al-Bayt did not have the opportunity to unearth the reality, why
did the caliphate of the period remain silent on the matter and
did not make any effort to expose the facts when it was in its
interest to do so? How easy it would have been for the
authorities to do that had the young Imam possessed childish
ideas and manners, as is usual for children. It would have been
the most successful way of exposing the reality of the claims of
this child to his followers and others, and of demonstrating his
incapacity for spiritual and intellectual Imamate and
leadership. If it is somewhat difficult to prove the incapacity
of a person in his forties or fifties for the office of the
Imamah, considering that by that time he could become largely
acquainted with the cultural heritage of his era, there is no
difficulty in proving the incapacity of an ordinary child,
however intelligent and clever, for assuming the office of the
Imamah as understood by Imami Shi`is. That would have been the
easiest and most convenient measure as compared to the
complicated and hazardous methods of repression adopted by the
authorities at that time.
The only explanation for the reticence of the caliphate and its
reluctance to play this card was that it had learnt that the
assumption of the Imamah at a young age was a real phenomenon,
not a pretension. In fact it had learned this practically after
it tried to play this card and failed. History tells us about
the efforts of this kind and their failure, while it does not
mention a single instance wherein the Imamah assumed by an Imam
at an early age might have been shaken, or wherein the young
Imam faced a critical situation which exceeded his ability or
which led the people's faith in him to be shaken.
This is what we meant when we said that the Imamah assumed at an
early age was a real phenomenon in the lives of the Ahl al-Bayt
and not simply a presumption. Further, this real phenomenon has
its precedents in the Divine tradition which-covers prophetic
missions and divine leadership. The life of John ( `a), to
mention one instance from the Divine tradition, suffices as a
precedent for the phenomenon of assumption of Inrainah at an
early age by the Ahl al-Bayt ( `a) . God, the Glorious and the
Exalted, says:
"'O John, hold on to the Book firmly, 'and We gave him judgment
while still a child." (Al-Quran, 19:12)
When it is established that the phenomenon of assumption of
Imamah at an early age is a reality and something actual in the
lives of the Ahl al-Bayt ('a), there remains no doubt in this
regard in the case of Imam Mahdi ('a) and his succeeding to his
father's office as a child.
Belief in the Existence of the Mahdi:
We now come to the fourth question: Assuming the possibility of
the hypothesis of the Awaited Leader with all its implications
pertaining to his long life-span, the Imamah at an early age,
and the period of silent occultation, this possibility is not
sufficient to convince one that he presently exists. Therefore,
how can one presently believe in the existence of the Mahdi?
Notwithstanding the strangeness of such a hypothesis and its
being contrary to the ordinary course of nature, are a few
traditions from the Prophet ('s) narrated in books of hadith
sufficient for totally convincing us about the Twelfth Imam? How
is it possible to prove the historical existence of the Mahdi,
and how do we know that it is not a mere assumption created by
psychological circumstances to establish it in the minds of a
large number of people?
The answer is that the concept of the Mahdi as an awaited leader
who would change the world for the better occurs in the
traditions of the Prophet ('s) in general and the narrations of
the Imams of the Ahl al-Bayt in particular. It is emphasized
to-such a degree in a large number of explicit traditions that
it is not possible to doubt it. Four hundred traditions of the
Prophet (s) transmitted only through chains of authorities
belonging to our Sunni brothers have been identified, while the
total number of traditions about Imam Mahdi, including those
transmitted by Sunni and Shi`i chains, is more than six
thousand. This is a very large number and one cannot find a
similar number of traditions on any of the many Islamic matters
which are considered as evident and which no Muslim usually
doubts.
As to the Twelfth Imam ( `a) being the embodiment of this
concept, there is sufficient and clear justification and
evidence for this claim. This can be summarized iii the form of
two proofs, one of which is Islamic and the second scientific.
We prove the existence of the Awaited Leader with the means of
the Islamic proof, and by employing the scientific proof we
establish that the Mahdi is not a myth and conjecture, but a
reality whose existence has been affirmed by concrete experience
through history.
As to the Islamic proof, it is in the form of hundreds of
traditions transmitted from the Prophet (s) and the Imams of the
Ahl al-Bayt (`a), and which identify the Mahdi as belonging to
the All al-Bayt, stating that he is a descendent of Fatimah in
the lineage of Husayn and his ninth descendant. They also state
that the Prophet's successors (khulafa) are twelve in number.
These traditions define the general notion and identify its
embodiment in the person of the twelfth Imam from among the
Imams of the Ahl al-Bayt. These traditions have been narrated in
a great number and have been widely known despite the caution
observed by the Imams ( `a) in raising this issue in public for
the sake of protecting their worthy descendent (the Mahdi) from
being assassinated or put to death immediately.
The number of these traditions is not the sole criterion for
their acceptance. There are in addition other indications which
prove their validity.
Thus the Prophetic tradition mentioning the Imams, khulafa or
umara' succeeding him and their number, that there shall be
twelve Imams, khulafa-' or umara', in accordance with the
varying texts of the tradition as transmitted by different
chains, occurs in the form of narrations collected by some
compilers which form more than 270 narrations taken from the
most famous Shi'i and Sunni compilations of hadith, including
the works of Bukhari, Muslim, Tirmidhi, Abu Dawud, Ahmad ibn
Hanbal in his Musnad, and al-Hakim in his Mustadrak `ala al-Sahihayn.
It should be noted here that Bukhari, who transmits this hadith,
was a contemporary of Imam Jawad as well as the Imams al-Hadi
and al-Askari, and this is of great significance because it
proves that this hadith was recorded from the Prophet (s) before
its subject had materialized and before the concept of Twelve
Imams had been practically completed. This implies that there
exists no ground for the doubt that the transmission of this
hadith might lave been influenced by the actual situation of the
Twelver (Ithnn Ashari) Imamis or was a reflection of it, because
forged traditions attributed to the Prophet (s) that are either
reflections or justifications of a later event do not go back,
in their origin or recording in books of hadith, to a date
earlier than that event. Now that we possess concrete proof that
the above-mentioned tradition historically precedes the Twelve
Imams and that it had been recorded in books of hadith before
the completion of the Twelver Imami reality, it is possible for
us to assert that this hadith is not a reflection of some event,
but an expression of a Divine reality by someone who did not
speak out of selfish motives. Hence he (s) said:
"Indeed there will be twelve khulafa' after me."
And this Ithna
Ashari Imami historical reality which begins with Imam Ali ( `a)
and terminates in the Mahdi ( `a) is the sole rational
interpretation of this noble Prophetic tradition.
As to the scientific proof, it comprises of the experience of a
religious community extending for a period of nearly seventy
years which is known as the period of the Lesser Occultation
(al-ghaybat al-sughra). As a prelude to the explanation of this
matter we shall give a short description of the period of Lesser
Occultation.
The Lesser Occultation (of Imam Mahdi) is the first stage in the
Imamah of the Awaited Leader, may Peace and God's blessings be
upon him.
From the time of assumption of tile office of the Imamah it was
decreed for this Imam to conceal himself from the public view
and to keep himself apparently at a distance from events while
remaining at close with his heart and mind. It has been observed
that if his occultation (ghaybah) had occurred suddenly, it
would have delivered a great blow to the community of adherents
of the Imamah within the Islamic ummah because they were used to
close contact with the Imam during every age and to interaction
with him, referring to him various problems for solution. If the
Imam were to disappear suddenly from the view of his followers
and were they to realize that they had been cut off from their
spiritual and intellectual leader, it would have given birth to
a feeling of a great and catastrophic void which could shake the
entire system and shatter its unity Therefore, it was necessary
that there be a preparatory period for this occultation so that
the community might gradually get used to it and adapt itself.
This preparatory period was that of the Lesser Occultation in
which Imam Mahdi remained hidden from the public, although he
was in constant contact with them through his deputies,
representatives and trustworthy companions, who acted as a link
between him and the community of the believers in his Imamah.
During this period, the task of representing the Imam was
carried out by four persons whose piety, God-fearing and honesty
were endorsed by the community within which they lived. They
were: 1) Uthman ibn Said al-Amri, 2) Muhammad ibn Uthman ibn
Said al-Amri, 3) Abu al-Qasim al-Husayn ibn Ruh, 4) Abu al-Hasan
Ali ibn Muhammad al-Samarri.
These four deputies (nuwwab), in succession, in the order
mentioned above, performed the task of representing the Imam and
when one of theirs died he was succeeded by the next one
appointed by Imam Mahdi ('a). The deputy who was in contact with
the Shi'i community, would communicate their questions and their
problems to the Imam and bring back to them his replies, which
were at times verbal and often written. The community which had
been deprived of the sight of their Imam found comfort through
these letters and indirect communications. It is noteworthy that
these letters and messages issued by Imam Mahdi ('a) were in a
single handwriting and style throughout the period lasting for
nearly seventy years when these four persons acted as his
deputies. Later, al-Samarri who was the last of the Imam's
deputies, announced the end of phase of Lesser Occultation,
which is marked by the presence of specifically appointed agents
of the Imam, and the beginning of the Greater Occultation (al-ghaybat
al-kubra) in which no specific persons were appointed as
intermediaries between the Imam and his followers. This
transition from the Lesser to the Greater Occultation signifies
the fulfillment of the goals of the former and the conclusion of
its role, because through this gradual process it protected the
Shi'`ah from a shock and confronting a great void arising from
the occultation of the Imam. It was able to make the Shi`ah
acclimatized to the era of Occultation, preparing them gradually
for acceptance of the notion of general representation (al-niyabat
al `ammah) of the Imam. Thus from that of directly appointed
deputies during the Lesser Occultation, the mode of
representation of the Imam changed during the Greater
Occultation to a general one by mujtahids of integrity (al-mujtahid
al-`adil) possessing insight into temporal and religious
matters.
In the light of what has been said one can evaluate the
situation so as to clearly perceive that the Mahdi is a reality
experienced by a community of people through the mediation of
representatives and deputies for a period of seventy years in
the course of their interaction with others. During this period
not a single person ever accused them of prevarication,
fraudulent conduct, or inconsistency in their role as
messengers. Hence is it conceivable that a fraud should remain
undetected for seventy years while four individuals practice it
consecutively and consistently and continue to deal with the
community on its basis as if it were a part of their lives and
something they saw with their own eyes without doing anything to
cause doubt and without their being any special relationship
among them that might enable them to 'conspire in some manner,
thus acquiring through their genuine conduct the confidence of
everyone and confirming their faith in the truth of something
that they claimed to experience and live with?!
An ancient saying states that falsehood is short-lived, and the
logic of life also proves that in accordance with the law of
probability it is scientifically impossible for a lie of this
proportion and extending over such a period to acquire the
confidence of everyone around it throughout such continuous
contacts and dealings.
Thus we learn that the phenomenon of the Lesser Occultation can
be considered a scientifically justifiable experience for
proving its objectiveness and for acknowledging Imam Mahdi, the
fact of his birth, life, occultation and general proclamation
concerning the Greater Occultation as a result of which he kept
himself offstage and did not revealed himself to anyone.
The Reasons for His not Appearing Publicly:
Why didn't the Leader appear during this period? If he has
prepared himself for a social mission, what stopped him from
appearing on the stage during the period of Lesser Occultation
or at a later time, instead of changing it into a greater
occultation, as the conditions for social activism and change
were simpler and easier at that time? Further, his links with
the people through the set-up of the Lesser Occultation provided
him with the opportunity to gather his forces and launch his
movement with a powerful initiative. The ruling forces around
him too had not yet acquired the terrible power and strength
which mankind acquired afterwards as a result of scientific and
industrial progress.
The answer is that the success of any activity involving social
change depends upon certain concrete conditions and
circumstances and its objective cannot possibly be achieved
unless these conditions and circumstances are realized. The
missions of a celestial origin for initiating social change in
the world are distinct in their absence of dependence on
existing circumstances when their apostolic dimension is taken
into consideration. Because the message upon which this process
of change is based is divine and a celestial product, not the
outcome of prevailing circumstances. However, from the viewpoint
of its execution, it depends on presence of certain objective
conditions for its being successful and timely. It is for this
reason that the Heavens had to wait for five centuries of
Jahilliyah to pass before sending its final message through the
Prophet Muhammad (s) because the dependence of its execution on
objective conditions necessitated its delay despite the world's
long-standing need.
Among objective conditions which affect the executive aspect of
the process of change are those which form a conducive
atmosphere and general climate for the intended change, as well
as some details which are essential for the process of change in
its detailed course. Taking into consideration, for example, the
process of successful change led by Lenin in Russia, we see that
it was linked to such factors as the outbreak of the World War I
and the decline of Czarist rule, and this facilitated the
creation of a suitable atmosphere for revolutionary change. It
also depended on certain other specific and limited factors such
as Lenin's surviving his journey while infiltrating into Russia
to lead the Revolution. For any incident impeding him could
result in the Revolution losing its impetus in arising swiftly
on the political stage.
In the process of divine change it is an unchanging wont of God
Almighty that is limited in its executive aspect by objective
conditions which create a conducive climate and general
atmosphere for successful accomplishment of change.
Consequently, the advent of Islam did not occur except after a
long period of suspension in the coming of prophets, a long gap
continuing for centuries.
Therefore, despite that God Almighty possesses the power to
surmount all obstacles in the path of a divine mission and to
create miraculously a conducive climate for it, He does not
choose these methods because the trials, tribulation and ordeals
through which roan attains perfection require that the activity
of divine change be natural and objective in this regard. This
does not stop God, the Glorious and the Exalted, from
intervening at times in certain details which by themselves do
not create the conducive climate but are catalysts which speed
up the process within the prevailing conducive climate. To this
class belong the providential favours and help which God grants
to His friends (awliya') in times of difficulty, thereby
supporting His mission. Thus the fire lit by Nimrud is changed
into coolness and safety for Abraham, the hand of a treacherous
Jew is paralyzed when he raises his sword over the Prophet's
head, and a powerful windstorm blows away the tents of the
infidels and idolaters who besieged Madinah during the Battle of
the Ditch, striking terror into their hearts. But all these are
only details and instances of providing help in decisive moments
following the presence of a conducive atmosphere and climate for
a general change that advances in a natural way under the
influence of objective conditions.
In the light of this, we can study the position of Imam Mahdi (
`a) and see that, like any other social change, the change for
which he has been prepared depends, from the standpoint of
execution, on concrete factors conducive to the emergence of a
suitable climate. Consequently, it is natural that this change
should be timed accordingly. Obviously, the Mahdi has neither
prepared himself for a social change of limited dimensions nor
is it limited to some part of the world. The mission for which
he has been preserved by God, the Glorious and the Exalted, is
of global dimensions and involves the emancipation of all
mankind from the darkness of tyranny into the light of justice.
A change of such great proportions cannot be undertaken solely
on the presence of a message and a worthy leader; otherwise
these conditions were fulfilled during the time of the Prophet
himself. It requires a suitable global climate and a general
conducive atmosphere that may be bring about the needed concrete
conditions for the process of world-wide change.
From the human aspect, the feeling of the civilized human being
of having reached a dead-end is an essential factor for creation
of that suitable climate so that he may accept the new message
of justice. This feeling of exhaustion is produced and deepened
by a variety of cultural experiences from which the civilized
man emerges burdened with the wrongs of his own making, to
become conscious of the need for help, turning by his innate
nature towards the transcendental and the unknown.
From a material aspect, the material conditions of modem life
may be more helpful for carrying out a global mission than the
past conditions of an earlier era such as the period of Lesser
Occultation. This is due to the shortening of distances, the
great possibility of interaction among different nations of the
world, and the presence of the means communication required by a
central body for enlightening the nations and educating them on
the basis of the new message.
As to the point raised in the question concerning the
advancements in military power and equipment which the Awaited
Leader will have to encounter on the promised day the more his
advent is delayed, that is correct. But what benefit could
increase in material power bring to men who possess such power
and equipment with a defeatist mentality and a shattered morale?
How many times in history have the lofty edifices of
civilizations collapsed at the first military stroke because of
their having broken down earlier by loss of self-confidence and
faith in their existence and dissatisfaction with their own
reality.
Is That Possible for an Individual?
We now come to the last in the series of aforementioned
questions. Can an individual, however great, possess the
capacity to play such a great role? Is the great man anyone
except someone chosen by circumstances to spearhead their
momentum?
The idea expressed in this question is based upon a certain
notion of history which interprets history on the hypothesis
that human beings are a secondary factor, while the real forces
surrounding him are the principal factor. On this basis, the
individual, in the best of conditions, is nothing except an
intelligent expression of the course determined by the principal
factor.
We have explained elsewhere in our published works that history
consists of two axes: one of them is man, and the other the
material forces surrounding him. In the same way that the
material forces and conditions relating to production and nature
influence man, likewise man, too, influences the forces and
conditions around him. There is no more ground for supposing
that movement begins in matter and culminates in man than for
supposing the converse. Therefore man and matter interact
continually all along, and it is possible for an individual
within this framework to perform a greater role than a spectator
watching the march of history, especially when we take into
account the factor of his links with the heavens. In that case
this link becomes a force that spearheads the movement of
history. This is exactly what happened in the history of
prophetic missions, especially during the final prophetic
mission wherein the Prophet Muhammad (s), by virtue of his
prophetic links with the Divine, took the reins of historical
movement in his own hands and generated a civilizational wave
which could never have been produced by the surrounding
conditions, as explained by us in the second introduction of al-Fatawa
al-wadilah.
That which took place at the hands of the Prophet (;) can again
occur at the hands of the Awaited Leader belonging to his Ahl
ul-Bayt, the good news of whose coming and the great role he
would play has been proclaimed by him.
The Method of Change on the Promised Day:
We come finally to one point raised in the questions posed
above. It relates to the conceivable method by which decisive
victory for justice will be achieved at the hands of the Mahdi
and tyrannical regimes opposing him will be abolished.
The answer to this question depends upon the knowledge of the
time and stage at which Imam Mahd3 ('a) will be ordained to
appear on the scene and the possibility of defiling the
distinctive features and conditions of that phase so that i1i
its light we can determine the form and course the process of
change would take. And as long as we are ignorant of that stage
and know nothing about its environment and conditions, it is not
possible to predict what will happen on the promised day, though
it is be possible to form a subjective, if not an objective,
conception of that which might take place.
There is one basic probability which can possibly be accepted in
the light of relevant traditions and experience of great changes
in history. This assumption is that the advent of Imam Mahdi (
`a) will be subsequent to a great void resulting from a setback
and a choking civilizational crisis. This void would open the
way for the spread of the new message and the setback would
prepare the psychological atmosphere for its acceptance. This
setback will not be an accident in the history of human
civilization, but a natural consequence of the contradictions of
a history that has severed its links with God Almighty, and for
which there are no definitive solutions. This will eventually
set ablaze a fire which will not leave anything unconsumed, and
at this time the light will appear to extinguish the flames and
establish heavenly justice on earth.
I will confine myself to this brief summary, leaving an
extensive study of this subject and its related details to the
valuable book which is before me, the august encyclopedia of
Imam Mahdi (`a) compiled by one of my sons and students, the
learned researcher Sayyid Muhammad Sadr, may God Almighty
preserve him. This encyclopedia is unparalleled in the history
of Shi'i writings on Imam Mahdi (`a) from the viewpoint of the
comprehensiveness with which it deals with the issue of the
Awaited Imam. Its scope is vast and underlying it is an
unflagging scholarly spirit and a masterful grasp of a variety
of striking points which show the diligent efforts made by the
compiler in preparing this unique work. I feel elated by the
scholarship, perceptiveness and brilliance that it reflects and
the significant gap that it has filled. I beseech the Lord, the
Glorious and the Exalted, to delight me through him and make him
an outstanding scholar of religion. All praise is for God, and
may Peace and benediction be upon Muhammad and his immaculate
Ahl al-Bayt.
(The writing of these pages was begun on 13 Jumadi al Thani 1397
H. and finished on the afternoon of 17th day of the same month
at Najf al-ashraf).
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