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A Brief Look at Aqeedah Wilayah

The Foundation of the Shia Religion

Kashaful Wilayah

Author: Syed Baqir Nisar Zaidi

Translator: Syed Jazib Reza Kazmi

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Name Kashaful Wilayah

Author Syed Baqir Nisar Zaidi

Translator Syed Jazib Reza Kazmi

Publisher Syed Baqir Nisar Zaidi

Composer Syed Aftab Hussain Rizvi

Title Designing Syed Safdar Abbas Zaidi

Contact Mobile (+92-333-2120721) (+92-334-3596762)

This book is available on the following websites

www.alihaq.com

www.hubeali.com

www.wilayat-e-ali.org

Notice:

This version is published on behalf of www.alhassanain.org/english

The composing errors are not corrected.

Table of Contents

Oblivious Religion 7

Tauheed 8

Gaining the marifat of Allah 9

Purpose of Creation 10

Demand of Creator 11

Things which exclude one from the Religion 13

Marifat (recognition) 15

Marifat of Tauheed (recognition of Oneness) 16

More Clarification 18

Charismatic Revolution of Essence 19

By the Lord of the Kaaba, I am successful 21

Humbleness of Masoom (as) 23

Wasila (Intercession) 25

Stages of Wilayat 27

Wilayat e Fitri (natural wilayat) 28

Wilayat e Sharie 29

Wilayat e Zilli 30

Wilayat e Illahiya Sughra 31

Wilayat e Fitri (natural wilayat) 32

Wilayat e Illahiya Kubra 33

Wilayat e Illahiya Muttaliqa (Absolute Wilayat of Allah) 34

What is Religion? 35

Removal of Astonishment 37

Kalima and Testimony of Wilayat 39

Adhan, Iqama, and Testimony of Wilayat 40

Prayer and Testimony of Wilayat 41

Oblivious Religion

It is a universally accepted principle that a person either accepts or denies something based upon the amount of knowledge they have regarding that subject. If a person accepts or denies something without having full knowledge of what it is they are accepting or denying, then their acceptance or denial will be batil (false).

If you have no knowledge regarding a particular issue, then you can neither accept it nor can you deny it. For example, if you ask a child to look in their room to see if there is a laptop there or not, the child will come back and say yes there is. Then if you ask the child, do you know what a laptop is.

The child will reply "I don't know". So in this situation, what is the worth of the word of this child? In the same way, if you follow a religion which you have absolutely no knowledge about, then that religion is nothing more than ignorance.

If you claim to be a follower of the Shia religion, then it is compulsory that you have knowledge regarding the Shia religion. The foundation of this religion is completely based upon tauheed (Oneness). So first of all you must know what tauheed is. Then in order to gain proof for your religion you must also fully understand the other principles of that religion as well.

Otherwise no one in this whole world will accept a religion with absolutely no proof. Remember! All of your good deeds and acts of worship depend totally upon your aqeedah (beliefs). If your aqeedah is correct, then even your lesser good deeds will also be accepted. However if your aqeedah is incorrect, then no matter how many good deeds you have, they will all be worthless. Your aqeedah will lead you towards hell.

The so called scholars have made the aqeedah become worthless in the eyes of others. They have made people believe that it is not necessary that you understand what you believe, but it is enough that you simply say it. Because of this the whole Shia nation is now obliviously following a religion.

The Shia do not even realize their religion has become a source of amusement to others. Because of these so called scholars, shias now believe that simply performing acts of worship without fully knowing or understanding why they are doing them is enough. This is why Ameerul Momineen Ali (as) ibn Abi Talib (as) said, "No one can be deserving of any status until he becomes fully aware of all of the attributes of that status" (Najul Israr First Edition page no 41).

In this brief thesis, we cannot cover the entire Shia religion. Therefore we have chosen to discuss only upon the topic of wilayat because wilayat is that which the entire Shia religion revolves around. No Shia belief can be understood without wilayat. Now we shall begin from aqeedah tauheed (belief of oneness) because wilayat can only be understood through tauheed. Tauheed is the only source from which one can gain an understanding of wilayat.

Tauheed

The same rule applies regarding tauheed. Having belief in tauheed without fully knowing what tauheed is is of absolutely no value. According to Allah, the best form of belief is the recognition of Allah. Ameerul Momineen (as) says, "The beginning of the religion is gaining the marifat (recognition) of Allah".

It means you have no right to recite "La illaha illalah" (There is no god other than Allah) until you gain the marifat (recognition) of tauheed.

Mani ul Akhbar page no 443 hadith 49, Imam Jafar Sadiq (as) says " I have found the whole knowledge of humanity in four places; gaining the marifat of Lord, gaining the marifat regarding one's own creation, gaining the marifat of what your Lord wants from you, and gaining the marifat of that which can exclude you from the religion."

Gaining the marifat of Allah

The first responsibility a person has is recognizing his Lord and Creator because rubiyat (lordship) is the responsibility of the Creator. Every person must answer to his Creator regarding gaining the marifat (recognition) of his Lord. Allah has revealed all proofs upon humanity so that when the time comes and mankind is stood before Allah they will have no excuse. There are two kinds of proof; apparent and hidden.

Apparent proof is Imam (as) and hidden proof is intellect. Now you must completely understand there are so many places in this world where Allah did not send a prophet or sharia (law). Even today, there are nations in the jungles of Africa who have no idea about the concept of wearing clothes. Will such people not also have to answer to their Lord?

Will they be able to say "You did not send to us any prophet, sharia (law), or book. So how were we suppose to gain Your marifat (recognition)?" Absolutely never. They will not be able to use this excuse simply because an apparent hujjat (proof) didn't come to them because Allah gave them a hidden hujjat (proof) and that is intellect.

The purpose of intellect is to allow one to be able to recognize his Creator. Not only this but it is also the responsibility of intellect to recognize the attributes of his Creator. The first attribute which intellect guides one towards is knowledge. Without knowledge, even making a simple ordinary clay pot is impossible.

Then how is it possible this entire universe can be created without knowledge? The second attribute which intellect guides one towards is ability. If a person does not also possess ability, then their knowledge is of no benefit. For example, even though a person might have knowledge regarding how to make a clay pot, but if he is disabled, he will not possess the ability to do so.

The third attribute which intellect guides one towards is authority. For example, if a person is thirsty and knows where the water is and has a bucket which to remove the water from the well, but the owner of the well does not permit him to draw water from the well, so despite having knowledge and ability, he still will not be able to remove his thirst. Therefore there are three essential requirements in order for one to be able to create something; knowledge, ability, and authority. The combination of these three is called wilayat. Now it has been proven the purpose of intellect is to lead humanity towards wilayat.

Purpose of Creation

If a person has 1000 pots of biryani, he will only eat about 1-2 plates from it. So what will he do with the rest of the biryani? Only an insane person will simply leave it so that it goes to waste. Definitely a person with intellect will distribute it amongst the people. Now from this example we can understand that the one who is the owner of this whole universe and has no need of it, what will He do with it?

Certainly He will bestow His treasure upon His creation. This is an act of compassion. For this reason it is wajib (compulsory) that Allah must be compassionate. However He is also adl (just). Adl (justice) demands that before one can be blessed, he must first be deserving. Therefore Allah established a standard. Allah blesses those who meet the standard. Remember! Allah did not create any of His creation simply to punish them. He created them so that He could bless them. If a person is unfortunate and devoid of blessing, it is his own fault. The Creator cannot be accused.

Demand of Creator

The third thing which every person must have knowledge of is those acts which make him become deserving of the blessings of Allah. Mullahs have given you a very long list of acts which make you become deserving. The list is so lengthy that if a completely normal person ponders upon it they will become abnormal. There are only two things which Allah demands from us. If we fulfill these two demands of our Creator, then without any doubt, we will become deserving of His blessings.

1. Sura adh-Dhaariyay ayah 56: "And I have not created the jinn and the men except that they should worship Me"

In this ayah, the first thing which Allah demands is worship. Believe me when I say, regardless of what these mulvis have told you, only Masoomeen (as) have the right to interpret the words of Allah. Therefore we will ask Masoom (as) for the explanation of the word "worship". In the tafseer of this ayah, Imam Zainul Abideen (as) says,

"In this ayah, the meaning of worship is gaining the marifat (recognition) of Imam" (Tafseer e Furat). The first thing which Allah demands of you before you will become deserving of His blessings is that you gain the marifat (recognition) of the Imam of your time. This is why RasoolAllah (saw) said, "Anyone who dies without gaining the marifat of the Imam of his time has died the death of a jahil (ignorant), kufr (disbelief), and nafaq (hypocrisy)".

Now imagine a person who takes his shahadah (testimony of faith) and prays his whole life, fasts, performs numerous hajj, but does not gain the marifat of the Imam of his time. Now despite all of his acts of worship he will die as a kafir (disbeliever) and munafiq (hypocrite). All of his acts of worship became worthless because he did not fulfill the purpose of his life which is gaining the marifat of the Imam of his time. When he does not achieve his purpose, then all of his deeds become batil (false).

2. Sura Mulk ayah 2: "Who hath created life and death that He may try you which of you is best in deed; and He is the Mighty, the Forgiving"

In this ayah the singular form has been used for the word "amal" (deed). It means there is only one deed. So it becomes wajib (compulsory) upon every person who seeks forgiveness and mercy from his Lord that he must obtain knowledge regarding that deed which is the only way he can obtain salvation.

3. Sura Naml ayah 89-90: "Whoso bringeth a good d eed will have better than its worth; and such are safe from fear that Day. And whoso bringeth an evil deed, such will be flung down on their faces in the Fire. Are ye rewarded aught save what ye did?"

This ayah tells us that our Lord does not want numerous good deeds. He only demands one good deed from us. That good deed is a combination of all good deeds and without this good deed every act which one does becomes evil. Now we will see what that good deed which Allah demands from us is. We will answer this question using both Shia and Sunni sources.

1. Tafseer e Safi page no 35, it is narrated from Imam Jafar Sadiq (as) that Imam Muhammad Baqir (as) says, "Ameerul Momineen (as) said in the tafseer of this ayah "That good deed is marifat (recognition) of the wilayat of Us Ahlul Bayt (as) and Our love. That evil deed is denying the wilayat of Us Ahlul Bayt (as) and hatred and envy towards Us. Then Ameerul Momineen (as) recited this ayah."

2. This narration can also be found in Tafseer e Qummi as well.

3. Yanabil Muwaddah page no 161, Ameerul Momineen (as) said, "I will inform you regarding a good deed. If one does this, Allah will enter him into jannah. I will inform you regarding an evil deed. If one does this, Allah will throw him into the fires of hell and no good deed will be accepted if one performs this evil deed." Then Moula (as) said, "That good deed is Our love. That evil deed is being envious of Us."

4. Yanabil Muwaddah page no 435, Imam Hussain (as) said, "That good deed is loving Us Ahlul Bayt (as)."

Now it has been made absolutely clear that our Lord wants nothing more from us except that we love Ahlul Bayt (as) and hate Their enemies. If we fulfill His demand, then we become deserving of His blessings.

Things which exclude one from the Religion

It has been proven from the sayings of Imam Jafar Sadiq (as) that it is compulsory for man to know those things which will exclude him from the religion. Here we shall point out a few of those things:

1. It has been clarified from our above words that the purpose of religion is to love Ahlul Bayt (as). Then without doubt the first thing which will immediately exclude one from the religion is the hatred of Ahlul Bayt (as) or the love of Their enemies. Attention is that which keeps the love alive. Negligence is that which destroys the love. So being negligent in the love of Ahlul Bayt (as) is included in those things which will exclude you from the religion.

Quran has clearly ordered us to perform muwaddah. As Allah says "O'Prophet! Say! I do not ask you for any reward for My prophet hood except the love of My nearest kin."

Muwaddah of Ahlul Bayt (as) is wajib (compulsory) because this is the reward of prophet hood, and without paying prophet hood its reward no one can enter into the religion. Therefore being negligent in the muwaddah of Ahlul Bayt (as) will without doubt exclude one from the religion. You must be very careful and be very aware of this extremely important matter. Even having some minor negligence in the muwaddah of Ahlul Bayt (as) can destroy your whole iman (faith).

We have spoken in great detail on this topic in our book Kashaful Muwaddah. Here we wish to say something that is off topic but will be of great benefit to you. All shia and sunni translators translate the word "qarba" (near kin singular form) as "qurba" which is absolutely wrong.

I have no idea where they get this translation from because in Arabic the word "qurba" is used for relatives (more than one). Qurba is plural while qarba is singular. In Quran Allah uses the word "qarba" which is feminine. For example the word "kabeer", it means great. Its superlative is "Akbar" which means the greatest. However akbar is masculine.

Therefore when you see the term "akbar" it is referring to the greatest "man". Its feminine will be "kubra" which will mean the greatest "woman". Likewise there is a word "sagheer" which means young. Its superlative is "Asghar" which means the youngest. Asghar is masculine. So akbar means youngest "man". Its feminine is sughra which means youngest "woman".

The superlative of the word kareeb (near) is "Akrab" (nearest). Akrab is masculine. Its feminine will be karba which means the nearest "woman" which is Syeda Fatima Zahra (sa). This is why Allah ordered us to love those who are associated with Syeda (sa) (qaraba).

2. The second thing which will exclude one from the religion is to decrease or increase those who are considered as Aimmah Masoomeen (as). This is an extremely important issue. However people do not ever give any importance to this issue.

We must be very careful and not shrug our responsibility regarding this very sensitive issue. Imam is that sacred term which countless shia have sacrificed themselves in order to protect the honor and dignity of. Shia have never ever used this term for a non Masoom. However nowadays simpleton shia have begun allowing any non Masoom to use this title for themselves in the name of "unity" with other muslims.

Non shia have intentionally used this term in order to destroy the importance of the title of "Imam" because imamate is not included in their usool e deen. However even though shia know the importance of the title of Imam, suddenly out of ignorance and without any fear of Allah, they have begun using this word for any non Masoom the same way as non shia. We shall tell you what an "Imam" is and what is the importance of "Imam" to Allah.

Sura Tawba ayah 36: "Lo! the number of the months with Allah is twelve months by Allah's ordinance in the day that He created the heavens and the earth. Four of them are sacred: that is the right religion"

In this ayah Allah is telling us that the 12 months are the true religion. In Umda tul Matalib First Edition page no 239, Imam Jafar Sadiq (as) said, "These 12 months are the 12 Imams (as)." You must ponder upon this point that Allah did not declare His tauheed as the true religion nor did He declare the prophet hood of RasoolAllah (saw) as the true religion.

He declared the number of 12 Imams (as) as the true religion. Now you must realize that how greatly Allah wishes to protect the number of 12. Including another or excluding one of those whom Allah has included in the 12 is the same as if you have destroyed the whole religion. Therefore anyone who excludes even just one of those 12 or includes even just one other with Them, then most certainly he becomes excluded from the religion because the 12 Imams (as) are the true religion.

3. The third thing which can exclude one from the religion is personality worshipping. It means following and accepting the word of another so blindly without any regard as to whether or not what he is saying is actually a part of the true religion or not.

Allah has extreme dislike for the one who follows others so blindly and never tries to gain the marifat (recognition) of the religion himself. It is wajib (compulsory) upon everyone to continuously keep trying to gain as much knowledge as one possibly can regarding the religion.

Without knowledge neither will your belief nor your good deeds be of any benefit to you. As Masoom (as) says, "Be knowledgeable or try to gain knowledge, but do not follow others blindly" (Mazan ul Hikmat 8th Volume page no 431). One who does not recognize his religion and simply follows others blindly, then that person will certainly be excluded from the true religion. Ghaybat e Nomania page no 22 and Mazan ul Hikmat 8t h Volume page no 476:

Imam Jafar Sadiq (as) says, "Anyone who will enter into the religion through others, he will be taken out of the religion by those same who entered him into the religion. Anyone who will enter into the religion through Book and Sunnah, the mountains will move before he will be removed from the religion."

These are a few of the points which we had briefly wanted to mention. When you will begin to study, you will slowly begin to understand everything. InshaAllah.

Marifat (recognition)

The meaning of marifat is to recognize one by those attributes which only he possesses and no other has. For example, when we wish to gain the marifat of RasoolAllah (saw), we do this through His attribute "The Seal of all Prophets" because RasoolAllah (saw) is the only one who was given the attribute of "Seal of all Prophets" and it has never been given by Allah to any other person. Likewise, regarding the marifat of all Masoomeen (as) you must recognize each by those attributes which are associated with only that individual Masoom (as). Tauheed will also be recognized in the same way.

Marifat of Tauheed (recognition of Oneness)

It is quite clear that we will gain the marifat of Allah through His attributes because it is impossible to gain His marifat through His zaat (essence). You cannot even recognize an ant by his zaat. We will also recognize it through its attributes. So it is absolutely impossible to recognize Allah through His essence. We will recognize Allah through those attributes which are apparent (zahir). No one can be recognized through his hidden (batin) attributes.

This is why the attributes of Allah must be apparent (zahir). When they are apparent, then anyone who claims to find fault in these attributes in reality is claiming that Allah Himself has some fault. Now that we have brought you to this point you must begin to understand that the very first attribute which was made apparent and through which Allah could be recognized was the attribute of wilayat.

All of His other attributes are under wilayat. So the one who will be the apparent manifestation of His "Ism al Wali" must therefore possess all of His other attributes as well. Then we must believe the Mahzer of Allah is also a Khaliq (Creator), Rizzaq (Sustainer), Mohi (One who gives Life), Mumit (One who brings Death to the Living), Ghafar (All Forgiving),

and Sattar (One who covers sins). Anyone who will deny the Mahzer of Allah possesses these attributes has in reality denied Allah. We cannot associate any attribute or action with Allah because action means to change from one state into another, and change of state can never be associated with Allah.

Creation, distributing rizq, merciful, and lordship are actions which cannot be associated with Allah. The Wali ul Muttaliq (absolute wali) of Allah performs all of these acts. Whatever action is done by the Wali ul Muttaliq is called as "the action of Allah". We believe that Allah is our Creator, gives us rizq (sustenance), is merciful, is our Lord because all of these acts have been revealed through His "Ism al Wali".

Allah cannot be recognized or believed in without wilayat. The reality of tauheed is wilayat. Gaining the marifat of wilayat is gaining the marifat of tauheed. You must remember that wilayat of Allah is associated with the wilayat of Moula Ali (as).

Allama Dastghayab writes in his book "Wilayat", "Wilayat of Moula Ali (as) and the wilayat of Allah are one and the same". This sentence of Allama Dastghayab is a translation of a saying by Imam Jafar Sadiq (as) which can be found in Usool e Kafi in which Imam (as) says "Our wilayat is the wilayat of Allah". In this regard we shall present more proofs for you.

1. Sura Kahf ayah 44: "There, the (only) wilayah comes from Allah, the True One" In the tafseer of this ayah Imam Jafar Sadiq (as) says "This is the wilayat of Ameerul Momineen (as)" (Usool e Kafi).

2. Haqooqul Yaqeen Second Volume page no 75, Allama Majalisi narrates a hadith of RasoolAllah (saw); "People asked RasoolAllah (saw), "O'RasoolAllah, who is the wali?" RasoolAllah (saw) replied, "Ali (as) is your wali in this time. After Him, His successor (11 Imams as)."

3. Haqooqul Yaqeen Second Volume page no 218, Imam Jafar Sadiq (as) said, "Allah has declared Ali (as) as His sign between Him and His creation. Other than this there is no sign."

4. Umdatul Mattalib First Edition page no 433, RasoolAllah (saw) said, "Allah has associated Me with prophet hood and My Ahlul Bayt (as) with wilayat".

Now you must know that absolute wilayat is associated with Moula Ali (as) and the Offspring of Moula Ali (as). People have always been confused regarding what is wilayat because all of the attributes and actions of Allah are revealed through wilayat. If you have a look at the miracles of RasoolAllah (saw), they are around 10,000 in numbers.

If you compare this with the miracles of Ameerul Momineen (as), then you will see the number of miracles associated with Moula Ali (as) are very few. However even though the miracles of RasoolAllah (saw) are greater in numbers, there still is not one single person who has claimed that RasoolAllah (saw) is Allah while in every era there are great numbers of people who claim Moula Ali (as) is Allah.

We must reflect upon this point that there is something inside of Moula Ali (as) which causes the people to consider Him to be Allah. We have already told you what is that thing which causes the people do this. All of the attributes and actions of Allah are revealed through His Wali e Muttaliq so the people who believe in apparent actions only begin to believe Moula Ali (as) is Allah because Allah has been apparently manifested through His Wali e Muttaliq, Moula Ali (as).

However in reality, Moula Ali (as) is not Allah. He is the Hujjat ul Allah (proof of Allah).

More Clarification

From the moment man was placed upon this earth until now, man has always worshipped something because worshipping is a part of his nature. Sometimes he worships trees, rivers, stars, rocks, or mountains, but regardless of what he worships, he has imagined some power in that which he is worshipping and has submitted himself to that power. As time passed, man kept gathering his imaginary thoughts regarding that which he worshiped until the time for Islam drew near. Then he found all of his imaginings contained in one person, and He contained enough power and attributes in His actions that the people became convinced He was actually their Lord.

When the people saw all of these attributes in Moula Ali (as), they immediately said, "This is our Lord". In this situation, if Moula Ali (as) had not performed sajdah, then all of humanity would have considered Moula Ali (as) to be Allah.

However Moula Ali (as) bestowed upon tauheed its true honor and dignity because whenever this world called Him as "Allah", He immediately put His head into sajdah so that this world could know that Ali (as) also has a Lord, and Ali (as) also worships someone. This sajdah of Moula Ali (as) is the only proof of tauheed. This is the only way to absolutely prove tauheed. All other arguments are simply baseless and without merit.

The pinnacle of intellect is making someone be able to recognize his Creator. However humans are unable to determine who their Creator is. This is why no one has been able to comprehensively prove the myth of tauheed until today.

Tauheed can only be proven through the sajdah of Moula Ali (as). It is absolutely impossible that anyone can prove tauheed without Moula Ali (as) even if they try from now until the day of judgment it can never be proven without Moula Ali (as). He will simply continue to worship his own imaginary god. He believes he is a follower of tauheed, but in reality, he is an absolute mushrik (polytheist).

Charismatic Revolution of Essence

If something is beyond the understanding of human intellect, then regardless of how much anyone tries they will never be able to explain or introduce something which is incomprehensible to mankind. For example, a person has never eaten a mango.

Regardless of how much you try you will never be able to make him understand what a mango tastes like until he tastes it for himself. Now here the issue is introducing the essence of Allah which is beyond the examination and understanding of humans. As Ameerul Momineen (as) said, "The essence of Allah is unknown to humans".

It means that no one knows or understands the essence of Allah nor will they ever be able to do so. In a situation such as this, then how is it possible the essence of Allah will be introduced? That essence which is beyond examination and understanding cannot be explained or introduced by such an essence which is within the examination and understanding of humans.

The essence of Allah can neither be seen nor can it be divided into parts. Only that which has a physical body can be seen, and in order to have a physical essence one must possess three dimensions; height, width, and depth. Therefore the essence of Allah cannot be introduced or explained by any essence which possesses any one or all of these three dimensions.

Now take a look throughout this whole universe, and use everything which is at your disposal and try to find one thing which has not one single dimension. No one can deny that such a thing exists because if it did not, then Allah would not have been introduced while the purpose of Masoomeen (as) was to introduce the essence of Allah. After searching throughout the whole universe, we found that thing which has not one single dimension, not height, nor width, nor depth. When it has no such dimensions, then it does not have a physical body.

Therefore if it has no physical body, it cannot be seen. Despite of all of this, no one can deny its existence. This thing introduced the essence of Allah, and that thing is "nuqta" (Dot). According to physics, that thing which has no height, width, or depth is called a "nuqta" (Dot). Neither does it have a physical body nor can it be divided into parts nor can it be seen. When we draw a circle using a compass,

in the center we make a small dot. This dot is only temporary, but in reality this dot is also a small circle. Because dot does not have a physical body, it is impossible to recognize it or examine it. Despite of this, you will not find one single person who will deny the existence of the essence of the dot. Allah has created this whole world in the shape of a circle. Whether its earth, sun, moon, or other planets,

Every circle is a proof that there is a center because if its center was not there it would not be able to survive. The survival of the universe is a proof that there is also some center to it. That center is called nuqta (Dot). The same dot is a proof of the essence of Allah. As Ameerul Momineen (as) says in Najul Israr First Edition page no 34, "Everything is based upon the dot.

The dot is a proof of the essence of Allah." Now it becomes very clear the only way Allah can be introduced or explained is by the dot, and from the beginning of the creation of this universe until the day of judgment there has been only one personality which has claimed to be a Dot, and that is my owner, my Moula (as),

Ameerul Momineen Ali (as) ibn Abi Talib (as). Now it has been proven that the introduction of tauheed is impossible without the wilayat of Ameerul Momineen (as), and anyone who believes tauheed without Moula Ali (as) is nothing more than an idol worshipper.

By the Lord of the Kaaba, I am successful

This is the sentence which my Moula (as) said when abdur rahman ibne muljoom maloon (la) struck his sword on the sacred head of Moula Ali (as). In this one sentence Moula (as) explains the reality of the whole universe, His wilayat, and the truth of tauheed. One who understands this one sentence will never be deceived by the explanation of tauheed.

Throughout the whole history of mankind, Moula Ali (as) is the first and only personality who uttered these words at the time of His death. We must reflect upon these words of Moula Ali (as). When Moula (as) said, "By the Lord of the Kaaba, I am successful", what is that thing which made Him be successful? Maaz'Allah was Moula (as) not successful before this time? I don't care what non shia say regarding this matter, but I am so hurt when I see "shia" scholars lowering the status of One who is the greatness of all greats.

They say that even though Moula (as) had all of the attributes, but He (maaz'Allah) was devoid of the honor of martyrdom. So when He obtained martyrdom, He announced His success. I don't think there is any more insulting and degrading statement than this. First of all why didn't the people who were martyred before Moula (as) such as Hz Hamza (as), Hz Jaffar Tayyar (as),

Hz Ammar Yassir (ra), Hz Owais Karni (ra), etc say these words? Was the shahadat (martyrdom) worthless in their eyes? Why was Moula (as) so proud of that moment in which one loses all of his senses? The second point is martyrdom is that thing which is the sadqah of Moula (as)'s shoes. Even if a person dies in his own bed but he has the love of Moula Ali (as) at the time of his death, he also is given the status of shaheed (martyr). As RasoolAllah (saw) said, "Anyone who dies on the love of Aal e Muhammad (as) dies the death of a shaheed (martyr)".

In such circumstances, what type of honor could shahadat (martyrdom) bring to Moula Ali (as)? Allah gave two tasks to Moula Ali (as) which were completely opposite to each other. It is considered impossible to perform two totally opposite tasks at the same time. However Moula Ali (as) proved it to be possible even though according to intellect it is absolutely impossible that one can be able to perform both these completely and totally opposite tasks at the same time.

Moula (as)'s first responsibility was to prove the essence of Allah and to practically prove the tauheed of Allah in order for the people to believe in the Oneness of Allah and to worship Allah. This task was not possible until people were able to see the attributes of Allah with their own eyes. It only becomes possible when all of the attributes of Allah were revealed through Moula Ali (as) so that the people could witness them by their own eyes and testify to what they had seen themselves.

However in this situation, no one would ever have believed there was any other Allah except Moula Ali (as) because whatever imaginings they had about Allah in their minds and whatever attributes they had associated with Allah, they were seeing even greater than that being revealed through Moula Ali (as).

The purpose of Moula Ali (as) seemed to be unsuccessful. Now Moula Ali (as) had to prove His servitude. Servitude cannot be proven until you express your humility. Power and humility are complete opposites of each other. If you prove you are powerful, then you cannot prove you are humble.

If you prove you are humble, then you lose power. In this circumstance, Moula (as)'s purpose could not be fulfilled. On the 19t h of Ramadan in Masjid e Kufa a horrible incident occurred. This incident has been preserved in the history for all of mankind until the day of judgment. When Moula Ali (as) was struck upon the head, He was performing sajdah to someone and no one is able to deny this. This was that success which turned the impossible into possible.

Humbleness of Masoom (as)

At this point it is compulsory to understand that humility which Masoomeen (as) use to reveal in order to protect tauheed. Otherwise the people of lesser intellect will start to believe that sometimes Masoomeen (as) are powerful and sometimes They are humble. You must remember Masoomeen (as) are Mazher e Tauheed (manifestation of Oneness).

Their purpose was to prove tauheed. Therefore it is wajib (compulsory) that They possess all of the attributes of tauheed because at the time of the revelation of tauheed if that which is going to prove tauheed possesses even a fraction of a fault, then that which it is attempting to prove (tauheed) will also be incomplete.

So it is wajib (compulsory) to believe Masoomeen (as) have absolute commandment. Their commandment is not temporary. Their commandment has always been in existence and is a part of Their essence. It is absolutely impossible that even for a single moment that Their commandment can become separated from Them.

They expressed Their humility according to Their will not because of some helplessness. For example, if an ant is walking on your body, you just flick it off. You do not kill it. Sometimes it will bite you and you will have a red swollen spot and will feel itching. However if in this situation you do not kill it, it is not due to your humility. It is due to your mercy.

Likewise, if Masoom (as) allow someone to overcome Them it is not due to Their humility. It is due to Their hikmat (wisdom) because Masoomeen (as) are the Caliphs of Allah, and the hikmat (wisdom) of Allah is revealed through Them. Firoun (la) claimed to be Allah for 1000 years and Allah remained silent. For centuries 360 idols were kept inside of that house which Allah calls as "His House" while Allah remained silent. It was not due to the humility of Allah. It was His hikmat (wisdom).

That same hikmat (wisdom) which is revealed through Masoomeen (as). There are numerous examples throughout history. The victor of Badr o Hunain o Uhud o Khayber, Ameerul Momineen (as) who was more powerful than whole armies, then how is it possible for a few people to place a rope around His neck and drag Him through the streets?

However history is a witness that such an event did occur. Another example was during the time the people were busy appointing their so called calipha and forgetting the demise of their Prophet. Once they had finished with their appointments they found that their Prophet (saw) had already been buried.

Upon hearing this they became extremely angry and wanted to dig up the grave of RasoolAllah (saw) in order to take His body out and recite the funeral prayer again. At that moment, there was a huge gathering of people and according to narrations, all of the people were carrying weapons. On the other hand, Ameerul Momineen (as) was all alone.

Ameerul Momineen (as) stood beside the grave of RasoolAllah (saw), drew a line upon the ground with His sword and said, " Anyone who steps over this line will not be able to survive the blow of My sword". Was it difficult for the entire army to make an united attack against Moula Ali (as)? However they were not as stupid as the mulvis of today and that is why they returned back quietly.

The question is at that moment where did that power which Moula Ali (as) revealed come from? After the incident occurred, where did that power go? This contradiction in the actions of Masoom (as) is itself a proof that the humility of Masoom (as) is related to hikmat (wisdom) not absolute humility. This was that humility which Moula (as) used to express in order to keep the people from becoming deceived.

He did this so that those people who had been worshipping idols for thousands of years and had idol worshipping in their blood would not abandon worshipping their idols and simply begin to worship Masoomeen (as) instead. In order to gain this purpose these Sacred Essences had to suffer unimaginable sufferings. They bore unimaginable atrocities, were assassinated, this is Their greatness to Allah and the whole Quran is full of Their greatness.

Wasila (Intercession)

In order to make a connection between two things which cannot be directly connected to each other, we must have some third thing to connect those first two. That third thing is called wasila. For example, water and fire cannot connect to each other. In order to heat the water by fire we must have a third thing which is a pot which is connected to the fire on one side and the water on the other. It takes heat from the fire and gives to the water. Any connection between Creator and creation is absolutely impossible. Therefore without any doubt there is an absolute need for a wasila.

All the blessings of Allah can only reach to the creation through that wasila. There are two kinds of blessings which come from the Creator to the creation; faiz e tashrie and faiz e taqwini. The orders which come from Allah to His creation is called faiz e tashrie. Whatever benefits come from the Creator to His creation is called faiz e taqwini. For example, life, health, rizq, children etc. This is why there are prophets and messengers because the creation is unable to receive orders directly from Allah so they must be some form of wasila to give these orders to the creation. Likewise the creation cannot also receive these faiz e taqwini directly from Allah. There must also be a wasila. That wasila must be different from whatever two things it connects. As in the above example, the pot which is the wasila is different from the two things it is connecting, fire and water. So that wasila which is between Allah and His creation will not be like Allah nor will He be like creation.

Two words are used for wasila; hijab (Veil) and barzakh. There are uncountable processes which could be found throughout the universe which occur spontaneously on different occasions which are absolute vital to the survival of the universe.

Likewise there are uncountable veils or wasilas between Creator and creation, and every veil is dependent upon the one before it until this process reaches to the last veil where there is no third thing between this veil and Allah. This veil is not dependent upon any other thing except Allah. Allah has ordered us in regards to this Hijab , "In order to turn towards Allah search for a specific wasila". So the purpose of our life is to search for this last Veil. When we find it

then we must attach ourselves to this wasila. We will ask the Prophet of Allah to tell us who that last Veil is for whom there is nothing between Him and Allah and is directly related to Allah. RasoolAllah (saw) said, "There is no veil between Allah and Ali (as) and Ali (as) is a veil between Allah and His creation".

It has been clearly proven from this hadith beyond any doubt that Moula Ali (as) is that last Veil and there is no veil between Moula Ali (as) and Allah. Whatever Ali (as) gets, He does so directly from Allah, and everyone else obtains it through Moula Ali (as) regardless if it's life, health, rizq, children, prophet hood, imamate, or wilayat. Moula Ali (as) is the absolute and only one who blesses everyone (Kitab Sulaim bin Qais page no 275).

Usool e Kafi Kitab e Iman o Kufr chapter 293 hadith 2, Imam Muhammad Baqir (as) said, "Allah made Ali (as) as a sign betw een Him and His creation. One who gains His marifat is a momin. One who denies is a kafir. One who remains ignorant (one who does not gain marifat) has gone astray. One who includes something with Him is a mushrik (polytheist)".

Through this hadith, every person can examine for himself and know what his status is. We also learn from this hadith that the real shirk is when someone includes another in the wilayat of Ameerul Momineen (as). If you see someone claiming to have the same wilayat as Moula Ali (as), then you should be able to know what is this person's status very easily.

Stages of Wilayat

That last veil which we just introduced is the wilayat of Allah who is the Creator, Sustainer, Lord of the whole Universe and Heavens, and holds the whole universe in His palm. You cannot deny any of the attributes which are related to Allah because every attribute of Allah is revealed through Him. Because people are unaware of the truth regarding wilayat, they have mixed together different kinds of wilayat and have become doubtful regarding the wilayat of Allah.

They are always afraid of committing "shirk". Even though if they ponder they will know that finding faults in the wilayat of Allah and not believing in the powers of wilayat is the real shirk. In reality there are different kinds and stages of wilayat. So you must be aware of these differences and must be able to separate the wilayat of Allah from these other wilayats and then reflect deeply upon this.

We shall explain the different kinds of wilayat, but before doing so, you must understand the fact that these wilayats are not found in books. Their foundation is based purely upon examination. These names are the result of examining these wilayats.

Wilayat e Fitri (natural wilayat)

Every human possesses this wilayat. The minimum wilayat which man possesses is that he has authority over his body and its parts. However when a part of the body becomes disabled, this wilayat is removed. For example, if hands or feet become disabled or one loses his eyesight or ears become deaf, then the person loses his authority over his body parts.