نشریه امامت پژوهی
پیاپی 8 (زمستان 1391)

One of the most important and thematic issues that has a key and fundamental impact on the culture of Twelver Shiism is the knowledge of the place of Prophet’s Household as the basic element in the recognition of religion’s truth. In fact, the understanding of religion with all its branches and subsets is contingent upon resorting to Qur’an and Prophet’s Household that eternal bliss and Muslims’ cohesion are among its results and consequences. What the author pursues in this essay is the recognition of place of Imamate under the light of E‘tesam (Hanging on) Verse that has not been addressed enough in scientific community. This verse’s examination based on the semantics of Hablullah is the focus of this article; but to understand this word and its realization as the key element of the verse we have to examine other terms too. Having analyzed the term Hablullah under the light of Qur’an and Prophetic traditions, the author has dealt with the semantics of e‘tesam and tafarq and explained the role of Prophet’s Household as the preserver of Qur’an. Then in the final part of the essay he has studies public opinions of the verse.

This essay is a study and analysis of the motives and goals of triple caliphs in their wars and battles based on two works by Ahmad Ibn Yahya Belazari – i.e. Futuh ul-Buldan and Ansabul al-Ashraf. This article shows that the undelying motive of these wars and battles were not invitation to Islam, but in the first place, they fought their wars to earn alms from those who had revolted against their dominion and in the second place they sought to expand the borders of Muslim administration and receive more ransom and tax.

The inception of Imamate of Imam Kazem (AS) was simultaneous with the pervasion of challenge of vicegerency in the minds of Imam Sadeq’s Shiites. The study of prophetic traditions shows that the Household of Prophet has been so designed that in the time of challenge and trouble the principles of knowing the Imam are at people’s disposal. The text, knowledge and the claim of Imamate are among the means of removal of wonder. The public belief is in the self-introduction of Imam while the teachings of Prophet’s Household and disciples are the key players on the ground. This essay is a pathology of this challenge.

In the first part of the essay, the authors have relocated Imams’ place by Shiite as the only true interpreters of Qur’an and then briefed on Twelvers’ views of Qur’an and introduced Twelvers’ interpretations. In discussing of the principles of interpretation by Twelvers the authors have addressed the issue of Qur’an’s distortion, and without more elaboration on the matter, mentioned the views of Sheikh Tusi, Mullah Muhsen Feydh Kashani and Ayatollah Khoei (RA) and considered the impossibility of Qur’an’s distortion as Shiite stance on this issue. Finally, Mahmoud Ayyub has examined, for example Chapter 5: 67 that narrates the story of Ghadiri Khum, from Shiite interpreters’ points of views.

Which evidences and signs do exist in Prophetic Traditions that demonstrate the Imamate of Shiite Imams? To answer this question, this essay seeks to collect and introduce the ways of demonstration of Imamate of Archetypes of Imams (AS) from Shiite tradition books. These ways in a general classification can be expressed in four parts of Text, Knowledge of the Absent, Miracle and Signs. The demonstration of Imamate of Imam Ali (AS) is beyond the settled limits of this essay. Since the Prophetic Tradition of him besides the aforementioned ways are focused on Qur’anic interpretations. Text has its own subdivisions including general or particular, hidden or expressive and bailed or unbailed texts. Some cases of the ways of miracle and signs will be reported to the extent that the essay’s scope allows that appear in the form of evidence and not reason.

Based on evidentialism and by annexing three evidences together a new reason has been developed in this essay for the Imamate of Shiite Twelve Imams (AS). Having explained the methodology of evidentialism in epistemology, the author mentioned triple evidences. The first evidence is Torah’s good news about the birth of twelve overlords from Samuel’s descent; the second evidence is the Prophet Muhammad (SAW)’s good news about the advent of twelve successors after him among his people that have even been indicated in the most authentic Sunnite sources; the third evidence is a wonderful reality in the history of human life that has not been underlined yet, i.e. the appearance of twelve great men in a continuous generation the opponents of whom have confessed to their majesty in knowledge, ethics and devotion. The existence of the third evidence causes the real and unique extension of the two former evidences to be uncovered.

This essay is an assessment of a part of School in the Process of Evolution within which a historical analysis has been conducted of “Shiites’ belief about the necessity of armed rebellion of Imams (AS)” and some aspects of the “belief in Mahdawyat [Messianism]”. In this part of the book the aforementioned issues are finally considered (or suggested to the reader to be) influential in the evolution of “Shiites’ Imamology”. In this critique the inconsistency of the book’s claims shall be demonstrated by showing the incompatibility of reason and claim and rereading the indicated documents in a part of footnotes (the part regarding the Imamate period of Imam Sadeq (AS), pp. 35- 37) while some methodological errors in the compilation of book are mentioned.

This essay is a review of the proceedings of Imam’s Knowledge. Imam’s Knowledge is one of the most noticeable characteristics of Imamate that has always been considered by Islamic thinkers and scholars in Imamological studies. Thus, Shiite scholars have written numerous essays and books on this subject. This collection hosts 19 essays and articles by Shiites scholars with different approaches on Imam’s Knowledge.