The status of the imams of the Ithna 'Ashari Shi'ah
Q: What is the
position on the 12 Imams of the Shia, especiallt the later
ones?
A: Praise be to
Allaah.
Firstly:
The Raafidis, Imamis or Ithna 'Asharis ("Twelvers") are one of the
branches of Shi'ism. They are called Raafidis because they rejected
(rafada) most of the Sahaabah and they rejected the leadership of
the two Shaykhs Abu Bakr and 'Umar, or because they rejected the
imamate of Zayd ibn 'Ali, and deserted him. They called Imamis
because they are primarily focused on the issue of imamate, and
they made it a basic principle of their religion, or because they
claim that the Messenger (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon
him) stated that 'Ali and his descendents would be imams. They are
called Ithna 'Asharis ("Twelvers") because they believe in the
imamate of twelve men from the Prophet's family (ahl al-bayt), the
first of whom was 'Ali (may Allaah be pleased with him) and the
last of whom was Muhammad ibn al-Hasan al-'Askari, the supposed
hidden imam, who they say entered the tunnel of Samarra' in the
middle of the third century AH and he is still alive therein, and
they are waiting for him to come out!
They hold beliefs and principles which
are contrary to those of the people of Islam, such as the
following:
1- They
exaggerate about their imams, claiming that they are infallible,
and they devote many acts of worship to them such as supplication,
seeking help, offering sacrifices and tawaaf (circumambulating
their tombs). This is major shirk which Allaah tells us will not be
forgiven. These acts of shirk are committed by their scholars and
common folk alike, without anyone among them objecting to
that.
-2- They say
that the Holy Qur'aan has been distorted, and that things have been
added and taken away. They have books concerning that which are
known to their scholars and many of their common folk, and they
even say that believing that the Qur'aan has been distorted is an
essential tenet of their beliefs. See the answer to question no.
21500.
-3- They
regard most of the Sahaabah (may Allaah be pleased with them) as
kaafirs, and disavow them, and they seek to draw closer to Allaah
by cursing and reviling them. They claim that they apostatized
after the death of the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be
upon him) except very few (only seven). This is a rejection of the
Qur'aan which affirms their virtue, and says that Allaah was
pleased with them and chose them to accompany His Prophet (peace
and blessings of Allaah be upon him). It also implies a slur
against the Qur'aan itself, because it was transmitted via them; if
they were kuffaar then there is no guarantee that they did not
distort it or change it. This is what the Raafidis believe anyway,
as stated above.
Shaykh al-Islam Ibn Taymiyah (may
Allaah have mercy on him) said: "As for the one who goes
further and claims that they apostatized after the Messenger of
Allaah (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) died, apart from
a small number, no more than ten or so, or that they became
evildoers, there is no doubt that he is a kaafir, because he is
rejecting what it says in the Qur'aan in more than one place, that
Allaah was pleased with them and praised them. Indeed, the one who
doubts that such a person is a kaafir is to be labelled as a kaafir
himself, because what this view implies is that those who
transmitted the Qur'aan and Sunnah were kuffaar or rebellious
evildoers. The verse says "You (true believers in Islamic
Monotheism, and real followers of Prophet Muhammad -peace be upon
him- and his Sunnah) are the best of peoples ever raised up for
mankind" [Aal 'Imraan 3:110], {
كُنْتُمْ خَيْرَ أُمَّةٍ أُخْرِجَتْ لِلنَّاسِ},
Transliteration: Kuntum Khayra 'Ummatin 'Ukhrijat Lilnnāsi, and the
best of them were the first generation. But according to this view,
most of them were kaafirs and rebellious evildoers, and this ummah
is the worst of nations and the earliest generations of this ummah
were the most evil of them. The fact that this is kufr is something
that no Muslim has any excuse for not knowing". End quote from
al-Saarim al-Maslool 'ala Shaatim
al-Rasool (p. 590).
-4- They
attribute badaa' to Allaah, i.e., forming a new opinion that was
not held before. This implies attribution of ignorance to Allaah,
may He be exalted.
-5- They
believe in taqiyah (dissimulation) which means showing outwardly
something other than what one feels inside. In fact this is lying
and hypocrisy and skill in deceiving people. This is not something
that they do at times of fear; rather they regard use of taqiyah as
a religious duty for minor and major matters, at times of fear and
times of safety. Whatever of truth was narrated from one of their
imams, such as praise for the companions of the Prophet (peace and
blessings of Allaah be upon him), or agreeing with Ahl al-Sunnah,
even in matters of purification or food and drink, is rejected by
the Shi'ah who say that the Imam only said that by way of
taqiyah.
-6- Belief in
raja'ah, which is the belief that the Prophet (peace and blessings
of Allaah be upon him) and the members of his household (ahl
al-bayt), 'Ali, al-Hasan, al-Husayn and the other imams will
return. At the same time, Abu Bakr, 'Umar, 'Uthmaan, Mu'aawiyah,
Yazeed, Ibn Dhi'l-Jooshan and everyone who harmed Ahl al-bayt -
according to their claims - will also return.
All of these people will return - according to their beliefs - to
this world once more before the Day of Resurrection, when the Mahdi
reappears, as the enemy of Allaah Ibn Saba' told them; they will
return in order to be punished because they harmed Ahl al-Bayt and
transgressed against them and denied them their rights, so they
will be severely punished, then they will all die, then they will
be resurrected on the Day of Resurrection for the final recompense.
This is what they believe.
And there are other corrupt beliefs
which one can find more details about in the following books, which
explain how false they are:
- al-Khutoot al-'Areedah by Muhibb al-Deen al-Khateeb (available in
English, translated by Abu Bilal Mustafa al-Kanadi)
- Usool Madhhab al-Shi'ah al-Imamiyyah by Dr. Naasir
al-Qafaari
- Firaq Mu'aasirah tantasib ila al-Islam by Dr. Ghaalib ibn 'Ali
'Awaaji (1/127-269)
- Al-Mawsoo'ah al-Muyassarah fi'l-Adyaan wa'l-Madhaahib wa'l-Ahzaab
al-Mu'aasirah (1/51-57).
See also the answer to question no. 1148 and 10272.
The scholars of the Standing Committee for Issuing Fatwas were
asked: Is the Imam Shi'ah way part of Islam? Who made it up?
Because they, i.e., the Shi'ah, attribute their madhhab to
Sayyiduna 'Ali (may Allaah ennoble his face).
Answer: "The Imami Shi'ah
madhhab is a fabricated madhhab that has been introduced into
Islam. We advise you to read the book al-Khutoot al-'Areedah and
Mukhtasar al-Tuhfah al-Ithna 'Ashariyyah and Minhaaj al-Sunnah by
Shaykh al-Islam [Ibn Taymiyah], which will explain a lot of their
innovations. Abd al-'Azeez ibn
'Abd-Allaah ibn Baaz, 'Abd al-Razzaaq 'Afeefi, 'Abd-Allaah ibn
Ghadyaan. End quote.
Fataawa al-Lajnah al-Daa'imah
(2/377).
Secondly:
From the above it is clear that this madhahb is false and that it
goes against the beliefs of Ahl al-Sunnah wa'l-Jamaa'ah, and that
its beliefs will not be acceptable from anyone, either from their
scholars or their common folk.
As for the imams to whom they claim to belong, they are innocent of
this lie and falsehood.
There follow the names of these
imams:
1- 'Ali ibn Abi Taalib (may Allaah be pleased with him) who was
martyred in 40 AH.
2- Al-Hasan ibn 'Ali (may Allaah be pleased with him) (3-50
AH)
3- Al-Husayn ibn 'Ali (may Allaah be pleased with him) (4-61
AH)
4- 'Ali Zayn al-'Aabideen ibn al-Husayn (38-95 AH), whom they call
al-Sajjaad
5- Muhammad ibn 'Ali Zayn al-'Aabideen (57-114 AH) whom they call
al-Baaqir
6- Ja'far ibn Muhammad al-Baaqir (83-148 AH) whom they call
al-Saadiq
7- Moosa ibn Ja'far al-Saadiq (128-148 AH) whom they call
al-Kaadim
8- 'Ali ibn Moosa al-Kaadim (148-203 AH) whom they call al-Rida
(Reza)
9- Muhammad al-Jawaad ibn 'Ali al-Rida' (195-220 AH) whom they call
al-Taqiy
10- 'Ali al-Haadi ibn Muhammad al-Jawaad (212-254 AH) whom they
call al-Naqiy
11- al-Hasan al-'Askari ibn 'Ali al-Haadi (232-260) whom they call
al-Zakiy
12- Muhammad al-Mahdi ibn al-Hasan al-'Askari, whom they call
al-Hujjah al-Qaa'im al-Muntazar. They claim that he entered a
tunnel in Samarra', but most researchers are of the view that he
did not exist at all, and that he is a Shi'i myth.
See: al-Mawsoo'ah al-Muyassarah
(1/51).
Ibn Katheer said in al-Bidaayah wa'l-Nihaayah (1/177):
"As for what they believe about the tunnel of Samarra', that is a
myth which has no basis in reality and no proof or sound reports".
End quote.
Ibn Taymiyah (may Allaah have mercy on
him) divided the Imams of the Ithna 'Ashari Shi'ah into four
categories:
1 - 'Ali ibn
Abi Taalib, al-Hasan and al-Husayn (may Allaah be pleased with
them). They are noble Sahaabah and no one doubts their virtue and
leadership, but many others shared with them the virtue of being
companions of the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon
him) and among the Sahaabah there are others who were more virtuous
than them, based on saheeh evidence from the Prophet (peace and
blessings of Allaah be upon him).
2 - 'Ali ibn
al-Husayn, Muhammad ibn 'Ali al-Baaqir, Ja'far ibn Muhammad
al-Saadiq and Moosa ibn Ja'far. They are among the trustworthy and
reliable scholars. Manhaaj al-Sunnah
(2/243, 244).
3 - 'Ali ibn
Moosa al-Rida, Muhammad ibn 'Ali ibn Moosa al-Jawaad, 'Ali ibn
Muhammad ibn 'Ali al-'Askari, and al-Hasan ibn 'Ali ibn Muhammad
al-'Askari. Concerning them, Shaykh
al-Islam (Ibn Taymiyah) said: "They did not show a great
deal of knowledge such that the ummah might benefit from them, nor
did they have any authority by means of which they could help the
ummah. Rather they were like any other Haashimis, they occupy a
respected position, and they have sufficient knowledge of what
which is needed by them and expected of people like them; it is a
type is knowledge that is widely available to ordinary Muslims. But
the type of knowledge that is exclusive to the scholars was not
present in their case. Therefore seeks of knowledge did not receive
from them what they received from the other three. Had they had
that which was useful to seekers of knowledge, they would have
sought it from them, as seekers of knowledge are well aware of
where to go for knowledge". Minhaaj
al-Sunnah (6/387).
4 - Muhammad
ibn al-Hasan al-'Askari al-Muntazar (the awaited one). He did not
exist at all, as stated above.
And Allaah knows best.
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