Alhassanain(p) Network for Heritage and Islamic Thought

Fifty Lessons on Principles of Belief for Youths

Author: Ayatullah Makarim Shirazi
Publisher: Ahlul Bayt World Assembly
Category:

• Preface
• Prelude
• Part 1: God and His Attributes
• Lesson 1:Why do we think about God and study ways of knowing the Creator of the universe?
• 1. The Love to be informed about and know the world is deep inside every one of us
• 2. A sense of thankfulness
• 3. The bond between things to our benefit and things to our harm with this example
• Think and Answer
• Lesson 2: The Signs of God in our Daily Life
• 1. Knowing God and the Progress of Science
• 2. Knowing God, Endeavoring and Hope
• 3. Knowing God and the Sense of Responsibility
• 4. Knowing God and Peacefulness
• Think and Answer
• Lesson 3: Two Clear Ways of Knowing God
• The Inward Way
• Think and Answer
• Lesson 4: An Answer to an Important Question
• Think and Answer
• Lesson 5: A True Story
• Think and Answer
• Lesson 6: The Second Way of coming to Know God
• The Outer Way
• The Relationship of Order and Intellect
• Think and Answer
• Lesson 7: Examples From Creation
• The center of administration of the country of your body
• One of the Most Wonderful Parts of the Brain
• Another Wonderful Part of the Brain is the Sense of Memory
• How can an Unconscious nature create a conscious one?
• Think and Answer
• Lesson 8: A World of Wonder in a Small Bird
• Think and Answer
• Lesson 9: Love for Insects and Flowers
• Think and Answer
• Lesson 10: In the World of Infinitely Small Things
• Atoms Give us a Lesson in Monotheism
• Think and Answer
• Appendix to Lesson Ten: How Splendid Are God’s Qualities
• His Qualities
• The Qualities of Majesty and Beauty
• The Most Well-Known Qualities of God
• The most well-known negation of Qualities of God
• Think and Answer
• Part 2: God’s Justice
• Lesson 11: What is Justice?
• 1. Why was Justice selected among all of God’s Qualities, considered to be a principle of religion?
• 2. What is Justice?
• Justice contains two varying meanings
• 3. The Difference between Justice and Equality
• Think and Answer
• Lesson 12: Proof or Reason for The Creator’s Justice
• 1. Goodness and Evil
• 2. Source of Oppression
• 3. The Holy Qur’an and the Justice of the Creator
• 4. Invitation to Justice and Equity
• Think and Answer
• Lesson 13: The Philosophy of Signs and Evil
• 1. Relative Judgment and Limited Knowledge
• 2. Undesirable Events and Warnings
• Think and Answer
• Lesson 14: The Philosophy of Undesirable Events in Life
• 3. A Human Being is nurtured through Facing Difficulties
• 4. Difficulties cause one to turn back to God
• Think and Answer
• Lesson 15: Once Again the Philosophy of Signs and Catastrophes
• 5. Difficulties and Ups and Downs give Spirit to Life
• One reason is the lack of uniformity
• 6. Difficulties one makes for one’s self
• Why in contagious diseases, these people most often suffer?
• Think and Answer
• Lesson 16: The Issue of Predestination and Free Will
• 1. The Roots of the Belief in Predestination
• 2. The Main Error of the Fatalists
• 3. The Social and Political Factors of the School of Fatalism
• a) Political Factors
• b) Psychological Factors: Lazyness and Indifference
• c) Social Factors
• Think and Answer
• Lesson 17: The Clearest Reason for Free Will
• 1. The General Conscience of Human Beings Denies Predestination
• 2. The Contradiction Between the Logic of Predestination and Free Will
• Think and Answer
• Lesson 18: A World of Wonder in a Small Bird: What is the “Middle Way”?
• 1. ‘Conferring’ as opposed to ‘Fatalism’
• 2. The School of the “Middle Way”
• 3. The Holy Qur’an and Fatalism and Free Will
• Think and Answer
• Lesson 19: Guidance and Error are in God’s Hands
• 1. The Parts of Guidance and Error
• 2. An Important Question
• 3. Knowledge of the Eternal is a cause to Arise
• Think and Answer
• Lesson 20: God’s Justice and the issue of Eternity
• Punishment on the Day of Judgment is like this
• Think and Answer
• Part 3: Prophethood
• Lesson 21: Our Need of Divine Leaders
• The Limitations of Our Knowledge
• 1. The Need of Teachings
• 2. The Need for Leadership in the Social and Moral Areas
• Think and Answer
• Lesson 22: The Need of having Prophets who Present The Law
• Who is the best lawgiver?
• The Relationship between Monotheism and Prophethood
• Think and Answer
• Lesson 23: Why are the Prophets Free of Sin and Error?
• How can the Station of Purity be a Honor?
• Think and Answer
• Lesson 24: The Best Way to come to Know the Prophets
• Several Clear Examples
• Miracles Should Not be Confused with Superstitions
• What is the Difference Between Miracles and Extraordinary Deeds?
• Think and Answer
• Lesson 25: The Greatest Miracle of the Prophet of Islam
• The Story of Walid ibn Mughayrah
• Think and Answer
• Lesson 26: A Glance at the Miracle of the Qur’an
• What do the letters stand for at the beginning of some of the Surahs?
• 1. Eloquence
• Think and Answer
• Lesson 27: The World View of the Holy Qur’an
• Think and Answer
• Lesson 28: The Holy Qur’an and Modern Scientific Discoveries
• The Holy Qur’an and the Law of Attraction
• The Discovery of the Orbit of the Earth around the Sun
• Is this not a proof of the Truth of this Book?
• Think and Answer
• Lesson 29: Another Proof of the Rightfulness of the Prophet of Islam
• Think and Answer
• Lesson 30: The Prophet of Islam is the “Seal of Prophecy”
• A Clear Meaning of ‘Seal’
• The Reason for the “Seal of the Prophecy”
• Think and Answer
• Part 4: Imamate (Leadership)
• Lesson 31: When did Imamology Begin?
• 1. Will this Discussion cause Differences?
• 2. What is Imamate?
• Think and Answer
• Lesson 32: The Philosophy of the Existence of Imams (Guides)
• 1. Spiritual Perfection along with Divine Leadership
• 2. Guardian of the Heavenly Laws
• 3. The Political and Social Leadership of the Ummah
• 4. The Necessity of the Final Proof
• 5. The Imam is a Great Intermediate for Divine Grace
• Think and Answer
• Lesson 33: The Conditions and Special Qualities of the Imam
• 1. Infallibility or Being Free From Sin and Error
• 2. Overflowing with Knowledge
• 3. Courage
• 4. Austerity
• 5. Ethical or Moral Attractions
• Think and Answer
• Lesson 34: Who has to Select the Imam?
• 1. Can the Ummah select the successor to the Prophet?
• 2. Did the Prophet not select a Person to succeed him?
• 3. Consensus and Council
• 4. ‘Ali ibn Abu Talib was the most worthy of all
• Think and Answer
• Lesson 35: The Qur’an and Imamate
• 1. The Qur’an says that Imamate comes from God
• 2. The verse on Preaching the Mission
• 3. The Verse on Obedience to the Commanders
• 4. The Verse of Leadership (Wilayat)
• Think and Answer
• Lesson 36: Imamate in the Traditions of the Holy Prophet
• 1. The Tradition of Ghadir
• Think and Answer
• Lesson 37: The Tradition of Manzalah and the Tradition of Yawm Ad-Dar
• The Content of the Tradition of Manzalah
• The Tradition of Yawm Ad-Dar
• Think and Answer
• Lesson 38: The Tradition of Thaqalayn and Noah’s Ark
• The Documentation of the Tradition of Thaqalayn
• The Content of the Tradition of Thaqalayn
• The Tradition of Noah’s Ark
• Think and Answer
• Lesson 39: The Twelve Imams
• The Traditions on the Twelve Imams
• The Meaning of this Tradition
• Does it refer to the first four caliphs and then the Umayyid and Abbasid caliphs?
• The Imams by Name
• Think and Answer
• Lesson 40: The Twelfth Imam, The Great Leader and Peace-Maker of the World
• 1. The End of the Night of Darkness
• 2. The Primordiality and Manifestation of this Great Reviver
• 3. Intellectual Proof
• 4. The Qur’an and the Manifestation of the Mahdi
• 5. Imam al-Mahdi in the Traditions
• 6. But as to Shi’ite Traditions
• Think and Answer
• Part 5: Resurrection
• Lesson 41: One Crucial Question: Is Death considered as One’s End or Beginning?
• Why Do Most People Fear Death?
• 1. The Interpretation of Death as Annihilation
• 2. Black Files
• Two Different Points of View
• Think and Answer
• Lesson 42: Belief in The Resurrection Gives Meaning to Life
• Faith in the Resurrection is an Important Factor in Training
• Can a Person with such Faith be Deceived?
• Can one buy his conscience with bribery?
• Think and Answer
• Lesson 43: An Example of the Trial of the Day of Judgment is within You
• Think and Answer
• Lesson 44: Belief in Resurrection is Manifested in our Primordial Nature
• 1. Love of Survival
• 2. Resurrection Among the Tribes of the Past
• 3. The Existence of the Inner Trial
• Think and Answer
• Lesson 45: The Resurrection and the Scales of Justice
• Free will and Freedom in Decision-Making
• Think and Answer
• Lesson 46: We Have Seen the Resurrection Many Times in this World
• Think and Answer
• Lesson 47: The Resurrection ad The Philosophy of Creation
• Think and Answer
• Lesson 48: The Survival of the Spirit, a Sign of the Resurrection
• 1. A Great World Cannot be Placed Within a Small One
• 2. The External Particularity of the Spirit
• 3. Experienced Proof of the Originality and Independence of the Spirit
• Think and Answer
• Lesson 49: The Physical-Spiritual Resurrection
• Qur’anic Proof of the Physical Resurrection
• Intellectual Proof
• Questions Concerning the Physical Resurrection
• Think and Answer
• Lesson 50: Paradise and Hell are the Embodiment of our Deeds
• Embodiment of Deeds
• Think and Answer