فصلنامه مشرق موعود
پیاپی 27 (پاییز 1392)

This article is a contemplation and thinking deeply about the methods and ways of stating the doctrines of Mahdaviyyat from Infallible (Shia) Imams – since the era of Imam Ali until the era of Imam Sajjad. Representing and showing the theologies of Mahdaviyyat from both holy Quran and the Imams have been formed by paying attention to the general aims of inviting to the religion, the needs of audience in the early era of Islam and the needs of people in the later eras. The emphasized elements and the main points in relation to the needs of each era can address two issues. On the one hand, a grand issue that is followed in the education and training, and on the other hand the needs of Shiite in recent centuries the moral and ethical effect of each of the Mahdaviyyat doctrines clearer. Considering that have been emphasized in these remarks and contemplating about the relationship of them with the general aims and the needs of each era can show a significant and magnificent plan that has been followed in this form of education and Upbringing, and on the other hand they make. This research is based on analyzing the meanings of the Hadith which have been issued by the first four Imams of Shiites and tries to reveal the effects of Mahdavi doctrines to the Shiites, considering the conditions of era of its issuance. Hence, this research tries to discover the philosophy and the reason of stating each of the doctrines by determining the main points in the words of each of the innocent Imams with giving examples from them and contemplating about the relationship between these remarks and the conditions of addressees (audience). Earlier, in an essay, we talked about the defaults and the methods of this (kind of) research. The current paper clarifies this statement that educating the Mahdavi doctrines in this special time of the history concurrent with Imams, pays attention to the important points in the upbringing the addressees. This is further to its presentation of the Mahdavi theologies and apocalyptic theologies, which is a kind of preparation for preventing from the problems in the Mahdaviyyat discussion and also follows and analyzes the deviations related to the era of early Imams.

In the following paper, the main scenarios about the future of the world are explained at the beginning, then the scenario of 'the world like a castle' will be determined and analyzed as the most likely destiny of the human beings by considering the persistence of the current status quo in all levels of the world. After that, the role of the United States in keeping and protecting the hegemony of 'disastrous capitalism' will be discussed and we will see that the persistency of the current situation can be a factor to a fall and failure on the threshold of barbarity. Finally by analyzing the best seller and controversial movies such as: 2012, Armageddon and the Independence Day, we evaluate the show of this depiction of the final day and revise the theory of 'the world like a castle' as a bitter but awakening image of the future of the world, provided that there will be no challenge to the hegemony that we mentioned earlier.

The aim of this paper is examining some of the reasons based on the Hadith that one of the people who made claims to be the successor for lifesaviour, named Ahmad – bin Ismail Basari. This person introduced himself as the one of the grandsons of Imam Asr (Contemporary Imam Mahdi) and he claimed that he is the person who makes the world suitable for the arrival of Imam Mahdi and he will receive the government and Caliphate after Imam Mahdi. He has tried to prove his claim by exploiting the traditions quoted from the innocent Imams. And also, his followers claim that all his remarks and his reasons are derived from the divine science and criticizing or questioning them is impossible. A thorough analysis of the reasons that have been explained by him, shows that this person had the intention to deceive his addressees by resorting to the unauthentic Hadith, and using unscientific resources, cutting the Hadith into pieces, distorting the meaning of and justification for them. Two thing made us to criticize some of his reasons based the Hadith, after introducing this person and his method of advertising. The first one is that this movement is new in Iran and the second one is that we felt the need to scientifically examine and analyze in such a way that has been derived from the valid resources. The method of this paper is descriptive and analytic and we have found the false claims of this man against the Imams and using the illiteracy of his followers in the field of traditions quoted from Imams. And also it has been tried to prove the invalidity of his claims by analyzing some of the reasons that have been claimed and by paying attention to this fact that the recommended (by prophet) and the successor of Imam Mahdi must have the knowledge and chastity.

The Judgment day is considered the common chapter among all the religions, and an era named Judgment day or the Last day has been mentioned in the training of all great religions. One of the most important features of this era is the arrival and appearance of the life saviour of the Judgment day. The doctrine of the arrival of the life saviour of the Judgment day has a very special position particularly in both religions of Islam and Christianity. The importance of this issue for the followers of these religions and eagerness and eternal wait of them to understand the phenomenon of appearance has made the situation suitable for a group of people to misuse their feelings. These people have misused this public tendency and they made different groups and branches (sectarian groups) under the name of life saviour all the time throughout the history. So during the last two centuries in both religions Islam and Christianity, depending on different factors and of course with accepting this belief in the arrival of the life saviour, different groups and branches have been formed. The interesting point about this issue is that common factors in both religions have been misused by the leaders of these groups and branches and this issue can put these branches under a common factor. In this paper, we aim to analyze the factors that cause the creation of numerous sectarian branches in both religions of Islam and Christianity. The factors such as: claim made to be appointed (by God), claim made as the successor for The Saviour, the perception of deadline and historicity for appearance of The Saviour and the role of social conditions in appearance of the Claimants. As a result, and because of these reasons, we searched and analyzed different sects, groups and branches in Islam like: Sheikhieh, Babieh, Bahaiism, Ghadyanieh and the movement of Mehdi Sudani and three branches in Christianity like: Odontism, Mormonism, Jehovah's witnesses.

This paper begins with expression of an introduction and conceptualization of key words such as tradition, Mahdaviyyat and Caliphate. Explanation of features of God’s tradition like sureness, eternity and infrangibility are mentioned in the next part of the paper. Classification of God’s traditions to absolute, and bound, main and subsidiary, individual and social traditions forms the 3rd part of this article. In the 4th part, appointing a successor and its relation with Mahdaviyyat has been clarified. In the section that follows this, explanatory reasons of relationship between the concept of appointing someone a successor with Mahdaviyyat are discussed that is the most important discussion of this research. The evidence that has been noted in this paper of this relation is explained from 3 views of Ayat, Hadiths and The Wisdom. That is, further to the explanation of descriptive reasons of relation of appointing a successor with Mahdaviyyat, and numerous Ayats, and Hadiths, also the wisdom, mentioned in religious resources, wisdom and intellectual reasons were entered in this subject as well in proving (the necessity of) appointing a successor and its relation with Mahdaviyyat, which has been explained from theology view.

Undoubtedly Social customs especially in religious cultures form based on some doctrines. If these doctrines originate from the holy verses of holy Quran or from the traditions quoted from innocent Imams or from the wisdom of humanity, they will be valid and precious, otherwise they won’t be so important. The Hadith which have been quoted from prophet (pbuh) and the innocent Imams are the most expressive and the vastest document in details of theologies of Mahdaviyyat. Thus, researching and focusing on the meaning of them will increase the understanding of the available doctrines in them and prove Mahdavi beliefs. In this short paper, it was tried to analyze one of the common behaviors of Shiite society which is related to Imam Mahdi, i.e. standing up at the time of hearing the Ghaem title, (a behavior) which is based on the Hadith. Hence, we can acquire some facts by tracking the history and the procedures of Hadith from the time of issuance up to now which has passed a lot of ups and downs.

In the middle of the 3rd and 4th centuries of Hejira, the Shiites faced with two essential issues. The first, those Shiites who believed in Imams, were deprived from seeing their Imam and absence procedure occur for their Imam. On the political field, they also faced the modern appearance of governments which came in to existence in the world of Islam that had a very significant tendency toward the Shiite Society and the majority of these governments depended on this hypothesis that the beliefs of Shiites must be dominant on the social field. Even some of them openly had the claim that they were the Imam Asr (contemporary Imam). Because of this reason, the expectation was being raised that the Imam of the Shiites will arrive and appears soon and will get the power and capability of managing the government, considering the transformation that had been occurred. This theory is important since it has been mentioned that one of the conditions needed for the arrival and appearance of Imam Mahdi is preparation of governments and nations: The thing that seemingly had been prepared at that time, but Imam Mahdi refused to appear and arrive and to be the leader of the Shiite. Thus, this paper aims to analyze the absence of Imam Mahdi in the era that the appearance phenomenon of Shiite in powerful governments and their geographical and mental dispersion throughout the Islamic world have been occurred and to clarify this issue that why Imam Mahdi didn’t accept to appear and to take the leadership of the Shiite, although apparently all the conditions were in favor of the Shiites at that time. Hence, because of this reason, at the beginning it is mandatory that we explain the political atmosphere of that era and discuss the reasons of appearance & decline of Shiite governments. Then political and social relationships of Shiite governments with each other will be analyzed and we will mention the motives of the leaders of these governments to understand how they become able to assume the power. And also we will discuss about this important subject that in addition to the diffusion of ideas in these governments toward the Mahdaviyyat phenomenon, the motivation of these governments primarily had been towards something more than just religion and the belief of them in the phenomenon of Saviour had been very little and trivial.