پژوهشنامه حکمت و فلسفه اسلامی
سال ششم شماره 22 (تابستان 1386)

Raj’at is one the controversial issues among Islamic Religions about which there is no total agreement. From Shia point of view, Raj’at is indubitably a big fact which is highly creditable and also approved by Ahle-e-Beit(a). Raj’at refers to an event wherein a group of true believers and also a group of ill-natured unbelievers –after their death-, at the time of the reappearance of Imam Mahdi (aj), will be made alive and will be returned to live in the world by The Almighty; so that the true belivers will find the opportunity of making thavab (getting heavenly reward) in accompanying and helping Imam Mahdi (aj) in establishing justice on the earth and and also will enjoy seeing the glorious and magnificent position of Islam; And the unbelievers will be punished for their shameful and flagrant deeds.Due to some differences in essence between Ahl-e-Sunnah and Shiites, Ahl-e-sunnah have fully denied the existence of Raj’at and know it baseless, claiming that such beliefs are extracted from the beliefs of the exagerrators and they are forged by the Jewish Abdollah –Abn – Saba. The present survey studies Raj’at from Friqayn’s point of view.

Believing in the end of times and also expecting a savior (futurism) is accepted by the divine religions such as Hebrew, Zoroaster, Christianity generally, and by the holy religion of Islam specifically, as a definite and indisputable principle. In the turbulent waves of these religions’ history, the anxiety and great zeal for expecting the savior (Messiah) is observable.Jews, Christinas and Zoroasterians have endured all sorts of contempts and tortures through out their painful history, only for the sake of a promising future in which the savior (the Messiah or the Soshiant) appears. This essay aims at studying the route of belief and faith in the savior’s reappearance in each of the abovementioned religions, and also aims at referring to the shared ideas, so that we can take a little step in approximity of religions, that is, making them closer together.

The first issue about Friday prayer is its legitimacy at the time of the Greater Occultation. Although at the time of Imam mahdi’s reappearance, Friday prayer is an obligatory duty, that is, incumbent on every individual believer, and all Muslim sects have consensus of idea in this regard, at the time of the Greater Occultation all ahl-e Sunnah know it absolutely obligatory and among Imamiyyah there exist differences of opinion. Generally, some Shia scholars know Friday prayer wajib-e ta’eeni (absolutely obligatory), some believe that it is wajib-e takh’eeri (obligatory with choice), and some other scholars (faqihs) believe it is haram (unlawful). The origin of disagreement in the issue of Friday prayer is the existence of the Infallible Imam (a), and his order and permission to perform the Friday prayer.

Expecting a savior in religions is not merely an emotional issue, but it is also related to cognition and knowladge, ethics, society and individuals. Expecting a savior is not only effective on an individual behaviorally and psychologically, but also it is effective on society, in that it can be an incentive to justice-seeking, oppression-fighting, and also tendency- creating towards a desirable socio political life. Therefore, expecting a savior is like a prismenjoying various manifestations with the unity, sympathy, peace, coalition and the union of religions on the top.

The verse “Wa’d” is one of the verses that there exist serious disputes and criticques among Fariqayn about it’s comment, in a way that most of Ahl-e Sunnah (Sunnis) believe that the content of this verse is the pledge which happened about the Holy Prophet’s companions and The Caliphs (Abu-Bakr and Omar, or Abu-Bakr, Omar, Ali(a) and Othman). However, Shias believe that the content of this verse refers to the pledge that will be fulfilled about Imam Mahdi(aj) and his companions, at the end of times. The Fariqayn’s basic reason for proving their claim is the narratins existing in their narrative references. The present research, besides surveying the verse’s sentences, which are of high importance in clarifying and defining the concept of the verse, will study and argue the related narrations as well.

The faith in Mahdavism is one of the certainities of the Islamic sects. The existing differences of opinion is only in the lack of evidence given. Ahl-e Sunnah (Sunni Followers) have different views concerning the narrations of Kholafa-e Ethna-ashar (the twelve caliphs); however, by studying Fariqayn’s narrations we come to the fact that Kholafa’-e Ethna-ashar are the very twelve Imams of Shia followers.In some narrations from Ahl-e Sunnah, it is mentioned that the name of hadhrat Mahdi’s father is the very name of The Holy Prophet’s name; however, by surveying Fariqayn’s narrations we come to the fact that hadhrat Mahdi’s name is the very name of The Holy Prophet’s, and his father is Imam Hassan Askari (a), and he is the offspring of hadhrat Fatimah (a) and Imam Hossein (a).

The two terms wahy and khatamiyyat enjoy a special position in Islam, being considered as one of the most important religious subjects and discussions. At the time being, the discussion of these two terms has taken a new and different form. Applying a distinct approach, different form the traditional one, and through posing some questions originated from modernism, the religious intellectuals have come to a special analysis and interpretation of wahy, nabowvat and khatamiyyat. This kind of approach to the mentioned discussion was expanded by the lectures of Eqbal Lahouri in Pakistan and evolved by the critiques of the professor Mutahhari in Iran.In the present article which aims at surveying and clarifying the viewpoints of the professor Mutahhari and Eqbal Lahouri about wahy and khatamiyyat, in the first place we discuss and study wahy and its requirements from the viewpoints of Expricism, and in the second place, the Eqbal’s viewpoints about khatamiyyat along with the critique of professor Mutahhari is explained and discussed.