Qur’anic Verses on God Appointing Hereditary Imams to Guide Humankind Sections 2 & 3 of "Where is Imamat Found in the Qur’an

Sections 2 & 3 of "Where is Imamat Found in the Qur’an?": Key Qur’anic verses about God appointing hereditary Imams through prophetic history with Shi‘i Ismaili commentary and ta’wil.

---

---

The following material (Sections 2 and 3, along with the annotation) is excerpted from the Ismaili Gnosis article, “Where is Imamat Found in the Qur’an?” (comprising 15 sections). The article’s footnotes and links provide in-depth insights, both exoteric and esoteric, on Qur’anic verses and concepts related to Imamat. For a more comprehensive understanding, please refer to the original article via the link provided at the end of this piece.

---

2. Hazrat Ibrahim: Imam of Humankind (Qur’an 2:124)

With respect to the holders of this divinely-appointed leadership (Imamat), the holy Qur’an reveals that God appointed Abraham (Hazrat Ibrahim)⁽ᶜ⁾ — who, in verse 16:20, is enigmatically described as an ummah¹ (nation) in himself — to serve as an “Imam for humankind” (2:124):²

• “And when his Lord tried Ibrahim with Words which he completed, He [God] said: ‘Certainly, I am the one who is appointing you (ja‘iluka) an Imam (Leader) for humankind.’ He [Ibrahim] said: ‘And [make Imams] from my descendants (dhurriyyah) also.’ He [God] answered: ‘[Yes, as] My covenant (‘ahdi) is not within the reach of unjust wrongdoers (ẓalimin)’” (2:124).³

According to Imam Ja‘far al-Sadiq⁽ᶜ⁾, reported by Ismaili and Twelver sources, the meaning of Qur’an 2:124 is as follows:

God chose Ibrahim [initially] as a Prophet (nabī), then as a Friend (khalīl), then as a Messenger (rasūl) and finally said: “I am appointing you an Imam for all humanity.”

Imam Ja‘far al-Sadiq⁽ᶜ⁾, in Ahmad b. Ibrahim al-Naysaburi, Degrees of Excellence, 33; Twelver source: al-Kulayni, Usul min al-Kafi, Kitab al-Hujjah, Ch. 2.

The commentary of Imam Ja‘far al-Sadiq⁽ᶜ⁾ shows that the Imamat in the eyes of the Qur’an is a higher station than Prophethood and Messengership. This is why God only appointed Ibrahim⁽ᶜ⁾ as an Imam after already appointing him as a Prophet and a Messenger.⁴ The renowned Muslim scholar ‘Abd al-Karim al-Shahrastani (d. 1153), who is revered as a Sunni theologian and was also a secret Ismaili da‘i, explains this verse in his tafsir. Commenting on the verse — “And when his Lord tried Ibrahim with Words which he completed,⁵ He [God] said: ‘Certainly, I am appointing you an Imam for humankind’ (2:124) — al-Shahrastani argued that the recognition of God’s unity (tawhid) and Prophethood are only made complete with the Imamat:

When the Word of Prophethood is not connected to the Word of Tawḥīd, the Word of Tawḥīd is not complete; likewise, when the Word of Imamat is not connected to the Word of Prophethood, the Word of Prophethood is not complete. When Abraham completed the Word of Tawḥīḍ through the Word of Prophethood, He [God] said: ‘I am appointing you an Imam for humankind.’ Thus, the completion of the Word of Tawḥīd is through the Word of Prophethood and the completion of the Word of Prophethood is through the Word of Imamat. The pre-condition for the Imamat is that there does not exist any trace of sin and whoever is free from sin is trustworthy in his words, just in his conduct, and verifying in his thoughts.

‘Abd al-Karim al-Shahrastani, Mafatih al-Asrar wa-Masabih al-Abrar, Miras-i Maktub and Brill, 2008, Vol 2. 603; translated by Khalil Andani.

In the above blessed verse, God speaks of Himself as “the appointer” (jā‘il) of Hazrat Ibrahim⁽ᶜ⁾ as the Imam of humankind. The Arabic word jā‘il is an ‘active participle’ (ism fa‘il) of the verb “to appoint” (ja‘ala). This verbal form — literally meaning “the appointer” — indicates “a continuous action, a habitual state of being, or a permanent quality...as a verbal adjective for an on-going action” (Gadalla, 2017, 63). In other words, the Qur’anic verb usage indicates that God continually appoints Imams for humankind..

In that sense, Hazrat Ibrahim⁽ᶜ⁾’s appointment as Imam is not a singular and isolated event; rather, it reflects God’s established way, or habit (sunnah) to continuously appoint Imams age after age. The Qur’an uses the same agentive verb jā‘il in verse 2:30⁶ when referring to God appointing Adam as His vicegerent or representative on earth: “When your Lord said to the angels: ‘I am appointing (jā‘ilun) a vicegerent (khalifah) in the earth.’” In other words, the Qur’anic worldview dictates that the appointment of the Imam or God’s Vicegerent is always executed by God, not by the community: “Your Lord creates and chooses whatever He wills — they have no choice in the matter. Glorified and Exalted is Allah above what they associate ˹with Him˺! (28:68).⁷

Hazrat Ibrahim⁽ᶜ⁾’s statement or request — ‘And [make Imams] from my descendants also’ — expresses his prayer for God to continue appointing Imams from his lineage, a request that God granted to him. God’s reply — ‘My covenant (ahdi) is not within the reach of the wrongdoers’ (2:124) — clarifies that the divine covenant (‘ahd) of Imamat is never bestowed upon sinners. Thus, the divinely-ordained Imamat of Ibrahim⁽ᶜ⁾ will only continue among his descendants who are pure of all sins. It is important to note that immediately after 2:124, God confirms that His covenant (‘ahd) is with Hazrat Ibrahim⁽ᶜ⁾ progeny, stating: ‘We covenanted (‘ahadna) with Ibrahim and Isma‘il to purify My House’ (2:125).

Therefore, Hazrat Ibrahim⁽ᶜ⁾’s request (in 2:124) is entirely consistent with God’s established way of providing guidance for humanity. As ‘Allamah Hunzai explains,

According to the custom of God, the Wise, we should note the principle that He always chooses for the task of guidance from the family of Prophethood, just as He chose Ḥazrat Ādam, Ḥazrat Nūh [Noah], the progeny of Ḥazrat Ibrāhīm and the progeny of Ḥazrat ‘Imrān above all the people of the world (3:33),⁸ as he granted the progeny of Ḥazrat Ibrāhīm the Book, wisdom and the great kingdom (4:54)⁹ and as, in accordance with this divine law, Ḥazrat Ibrāhīm prayed for this special mercy that the Imamat may remain in his progeny until the Resurrection (2:124).

‘Allāmah Naṣīr al-Dīn Naṣīr Hunzai, Mīwah-yi Bihisht, translated by Faquir Muhammad Hunzai and Rashida Noormohamed-Hunzai as Fruit of Paradise, 58.

The correct understanding of God’s reply to Hazrat Ibrahim⁽ᶜ⁾ in 2:124 is that the Imamat will remain with his righteous descendants (dhurriyah) and not with any wrongdoers (zalimin) who might unjustly attempt to usurp the Imamat or Khilafat (Caliphate). The editors of The Study Qur’an explain further:

The response to Abraham’s prayer [in 2:124] means that a wrongdoer or tyrant would not deserve a covenant [‘ahd] with God and could not rightly be an Imām; or it means that such a person could be an imām, but an imām who does wrong would not receive the promise of the Hereafter; or it can simply be read as meaning that not all of Abraham’s descendants would be virtuous, as in 37:113: And We blessed him [i.e. Abraham] and Isaac. And among their progeny are the virtuous and those who clearly wrong themselves. In Shiism, the fifth and sixth Imams have cited this verse to indicate that God does not set up or allow an unjust “imam”.

Seyyed Hossein Nasr, Caner Dagli, Maria Massi Dakake, Joseph Lumbard, Mohammed Rustom, The Study Qur’an: A New Translation and Commentary, 57 note 124.

Thus, we can be certain that in Qur’an 2:124, God promises to continue appointing Imams from among Hazrat Ibrahim⁽ᶜ⁾’s progeny — those who are free from wrongdoing, sin, and corruption. Ibn al-Haytham, a prominent North African Ismaili da‘i of the 10th century, explains that it was in response to this divine promise or condition concerning God’s covenant (‘ahd) regarding Imamat that Hazrat Ibrahim⁽ᶜ⁾ prayed to his Lord: “Preserve me and my children from worshipping idols” (14:35)¹⁰ and “My Lord give me a righteous son” (37:100)¹¹ (The Advent of the Fatimids, 80).

According to Ismaili Imamology, God appointed Imams from both branches of Hazrat Ibrahim⁽ᶜ⁾’s offspring — consisting of Hazrat Isma‘il⁽ᶜ⁾ and Hazrat Ishaq (Isaac)⁽ᶜ⁾. God appointed Isma‘il⁽ᶜ⁾ and his descendants to the rank of Permanent Imam (imam mustaqarr) whose Imamat continues uninterrupted in a linear hereditary lineage until present day to Mawlana Hazar Imam⁽ᶜ⁾. God also appointed Ishaq⁽ᶜ⁾ and his descendants to the rank of Trustee Imam (imam mustawda), a temporary holder of the Imamat who represents the Permanent Imam and exercises divine authority on his behalf. The late scholar of Islamic thought Henry Corbin thus explains:

"Here again the whole body of Ismaili Gnosis may be taken as a guide. By this Gnosis, Ishmael is regarded as the Spiritual Heir, the Imam who holds the secret of the Gnosis, while Isaac is a Veil: the veil or screen of the Letter which is placed before the Imam. The relationship between them corresponds to the fundamental distinction between the appointed and permanent Imam (mustaqarr), and an Imam who is merely a depository or curator (mustawda), established as a kind of protection during periods of danger and apparently performing the functions of the true Imam, while the latter remains hidden… Whereas Moses established a new Law (shari‘at), a new positive religion, the descendants of Ishmael continued and transmitted the esoteric message of Gnosis.”

Henry Corbin, Temple and Contemplation, 167.

This concept of a ‘double Imamat’, comprising a ‘double light’ (al-nurayn) inherited by Hazrat Isma‘il⁽ᶜ⁾ and Hazrat Ishaq⁽ᶜ⁾, is explained by the early Shi‘i Imams, by al-Shahrastani in his Majlis-i Maktub, and by the illustrious Ismaili philosopher and da‘i Nasir al-Din Tusi in his Rawda-yi Taslim (Paradise of Submission):

Two lights remained as the legacy of Ibrahim. One apparent light (nur-i zahir) and one concealed light (nur-i mastur): ‘O Our Lord, truly You know what we conceal and what we reveal’ (14:38). ‘What we conceal’ refers to the state of Isma‘il and ‘what we reveal’ refers to state of Ishaq. In the apparent light (nur-i zahir), a perfection for Ya‘qub (Jacob) and Yusuf (Joseph). And a perfection for Musa (Moses) and Harun (Aaron). A perfection for Da’ud (David) and Sulayman (Solomon). And a perfection for Yahya (John) and ‘Isa (Jesus). In the concealed light [of Isma‘il], one perfection was the sum of all perfections.

‘Abd al-Karim al-Shahrastani, Majlis-i maktub, translated by Daryoush Mohammad Poor as Command and Creation: A Shi‘i Cosmological Treatise, 73.

“It is said that after Abraham, the Kingship and Prophethood and the Religion and Imamate continued in two lineages: one was the exoteric lineage through the progeny of Isaac and the other was the esoteric lineage through the progeny of Ishmael. While the signs of Kingship and Prophethood continued to be passed down in the lineage of Isaac, the lights of Religion and Imamate continued in the lineage of our lord Ishmael. Jesus represented the last of those signs which had been passed down the lineage of Isaac and he also attained to the commencement of the divine illuminations which had graced the progeny of our lord Ishmael.”

Naṣīr al-Dīn Ṭūsī (with Ḥasan-i Maḥmūd), Rawḍa-yi Taslīm, translated by S.J. Badakhchani as Paradise of Submission: A Medieval Treatise on Ismaili Thought (London: Institute of Ismaili Studies, 2005), 137.

---

3. Divinely-Appointed Imams Guiding by God’s Command (Qur’an 21:73, 32:24, 13:7)

That Hazrat Ibrahim⁽ᶜ⁾’s prayers—for himself and his progeny’s unwavering devotion to tawhid (monotheism), their purification from idolatry (14:35), and for a righteous lineage to uphold the line of Imamat (37:100, 2:124) — were accepted has already been indicated above through the mention of 3:33 and 4:54, two significant verses we will revisit later. Moreover, the Qur’an also explicitly confirms that God appointed Hazrat Ibrahim⁽ᶜ⁾’s son and grandson — the Prophets Isaac (Hazrat Ishaq)⁽ᶜ⁾ and Jacob (Hazrat Ya‘qub)⁽ᶜ⁾ — as righteous divinely-inspired Imams who guide by God’s Command and serve Him by establishing acts of worship:

• “And We bestowed (wahabna) upon him Ishaq, and Ya‘qub in addition, and We made all of them righteous. And We appointed (ja‘alnā) them Imams guiding (yahdūna) by Our Command (amr) and We inspired (awḥaynā) them to do good deeds and to establish (iqama) prayers (salat) and giving of alms (zakat); and they served Us” (21:72-73).¹²

Similarly, the Qur’an affirms:

• “We appointed (ja‘alnā) from among them [i.e., among the children of Israel] Imams guiding (yahdūna) by our Our Command (amr) when they were patient and had certainty about Our signs” (32:24).

‘Allamah Hunzai observes: “This verse [32:24] also shows that the true Imām guides the people according to God’s command. This means that whatever guidance the Imām gives to the people is, in reality, from God and thus God’s command continues in this world. Indeed, only that guidance which is according to God’s command is the right guidance” (Recognition of Imam, 31).¹³

‘Abd al-Karim al-Shahrastani explains in his tafsir that the above Qur’anic verses about God appointing “Imams guiding by Our Command” (21:73, 32:24) and God’s selection of the descendants of the Prophets (3:33-34) refer to a continuous succession of Imams since Prophet Adam⁽ᶜ⁾. Thus, in the following section of his Mafatih al-Asrar wa-Masabih al-Abrar (translated here for the first time), Sayyidna al-Shahrastani proclaims:

“Verily the Caliphate of God, the Exalted, began with Adam and was not cut off and will never be cut off until the Day of Resurrection. God did not create any misguidance except that He established a guide corresponding to it. He did not decree a devil except that he raised up a guiding authority corresponding to it…. Likewise, between every Prophet and [the next] Prophet and each time to the next time there are Imams guiding to goodness; Imams guiding by the Command of God. Likewise, between the Prophet of mercy, the Seal of the Prophets, and between the Hour [of Resurrection], there are Imams ‘guiding to the truth and establishing justice therein’ (7:181). His period (zaman) is never vacant of Imams guiding to goodness, commanding the right, and forbidding evil; of Imams guiding by God’s command and of verifiers commanding us to exist with them, to listen to them, to obey them, and to refer to them.

‘Abd al-Karim al-Shahrastani, Mafatih al-Asrar wa-Masabih al-Abrar, Miras-i Maktub and Brill, 2008, Vol 1. 256; translated by Khalil Andani.

In various Twelver sources, the early Imams reportedly interpreted Qur’an 21:73 as a reference to divinely-appointed Imams who served as guides for believers in the past and continue to do so through the progeny of Prophet Muhammad⁽ˢ⁾.

The Qur’an itself affirms that at no time — prior to or after the Prophet — will humanity be left without the presence of a divinely-appointed guide:

• “You are indeed a warner, and for every people (li-kulli qawm) there is a guide (hadi)” (13:7).

Asked about this verse, Imam al-Baqir⁽ᶜ⁾ replied:

The warner is the Messenger of God, and in every age there is an Imam from among us to guide the community towards the message brought by him. Thus the first of the guides after him (the Prophet) is ‘Alī b. Abi Talib, then the vicegerents (awṣiyā) [i.e., Imams], one following the other after him, the best of salutations be upon them all.

Imam Muḥammad al-Bāqir⁽ᶜ⁾, in al-Qāḍī al-Nu‘mān, Da‘ā’im al-Islam, translated by Asaf A.A. Fyzee and completely revised and annotated by Ismail Kurban Husein Poonawala as The Pillars of Islam: Da‘ā’im al-Islam of al-Qāḍī al-Nu‘mān, Volume 1, 30. See also Twelver source: Usul min al-Kafi, Kitab al-Hujjah, Ch. 10.

(See also Imam Ja‘far al-Ṣādiq, in al-Qāḍī al-Nu‘mān, Ikhtilāf Uṣūl al-Madhāhib, translated by Devin Stewart as Disagreements of the Jurists: A Manual of Islamic Legal Theory, 83.

In the next section we will deepen our understanding and conviction in the wisdom of Qur’an 13:7, which, as we just read, promises that there is always — “for every people”— a guide (hadi). Just like the “warner” (i.e., the Prophet) mentioned in the same verse, the “guide” must also exist in a living, human form as the Imam of the time, who guides by the Command of God (21:73, 32:24).

KEEP SCROLLING DOWN
FOR THE FOOTNOTES WITH ISMAILI TAFSIR AND TA’WIL

CLICK THE LINK TO READ THE FULL ARTICLE

Where is Imamat found in the Quran?

Ismaili Gnosis Needs Your Support to Continue Publishing:

Additional Material: Ismaili Tafsir and Ta’wil for Deeper and Esoteric Understanding

1. ‘Allamah Hunzai: Question 586: In Sūrah-yi Naḥl verses (16:120-121) it is said: "Verily Ibrāhīm was a community (ummat), devoutly obedient (qānitan) to Allāh, upright, and he was not of the polytheists. He was grateful for Allāh's bounties. Allāh chose him and guided him to the right path." Please explain how Ḥazrat Ibrāhīm⁽ᶜ⁾ was a complete community [ummat] in his own person? And his other attributes?
Answer 586:

• This example relates to every Prophet and every Imām in whom all people merge through the resurrection, and [as a result] he becomes the Single Soul, that is, a complete community [ummat].

• Real obedience (qunūt) means that the Single Soul makes people merge in God.

• Upright means that in the state of annihilation, he is overpowered by Divine love.

• He was not of the polytheists means that the ‘ārif [gnostic] is merged in Allāh and is a monotheist.

• Gratitude for Allāh's bounties means that the Prophet and the Imām enrich people with the spiritual bounties of Allāh.

• Allah chose Ḥazrat Ibrāhīm⁽ᶜ⁾ for Imāmat and made him the guide on the straight path.

‘Allāmah Naṣīr al-Dīn Naṣīr Hunzai, Ṣanādīq-i Jawāhir, translated as Caskets of Pearls (Volume 2), 34-5.

2. ‘Allamah Hunzai: Every Prophet and Perfect walī is the nafs-i wāḥidah [Single Soul] in his own time, for the spirit or light of God and the world of particles have to be there forever. A clear proof of how all human beings are in the Perfect Man can be found from the blessed personality of Ḥazrat-i Ibrāhīm⁽ᶜ⁾. He was not only a believer in one God and a great Messenger, but also a community obeying and recognising God (16:120). The community which has been praised by God Himself was the spiritual community of the Prophets and ṣiddīqīn [Truthful Ones; i.e., Imams], in whose representation, Ḥazrat-i Ibrāhīm⁽ᶜ⁾ became the Imam of mankind [Imām al-Nās] in the past, the present and the future (2:124). Further, in this wisdom-filled successive representation, the holy Prophet is not only the Imam of the people, of the first and the last, but also the Imam of all Prophets and awliyā’ [Friends of God], as he has been sent by God as a mercy for all worlds (21:107). It is obvious that this mercy is for every age. Thus, it is true to say that this universal mercy has continued to be spread through the chain of the Prophets and awliyā’.

‘Allāmah Naṣīr al-Dīn Naṣīr Hunzai, Kitāb-i ‘Ilāj, translated by Faquir Muhammad Hunzai and Rashida Noormohamed-Hunzai as Book of Healing [Revised Edition], 120.

3. ‘Allamah Hunzai: The word Imam had been used as a special religious technical term before the revelation of the Qur’ān, in the time of Ḥaḍrat Ādam and prominently in the time of Ḥaḍrat Ibrāhīm and then in the community of the children of Ismā‘īl and the children of Israel. The word Imām has always been used literally for a worldly leader and technically for a religious leader, whose rank apparently is next to a great Prophet. In the lifetime of every great Prophet, he has remained as his miraculous wazīr (minister) and after him, his heir, legatee (waṣī) and successor. In order to make this most exalted meaning of Imam understandable, a wisdom-filled Qur’ānic verse is presented, which is:

“When his Lord tried Ibrāhīm with [perfect] Words, and he fulfilled them (as the luminous dhikr). (Then) He said: I make you an Imam for humankind. He pleaded: And (make Imams) from my descendants also! He answered: (Do not worry) My covenant (which has the characteristic of justice) is not within the reach of wrongdoers” (2:124).

That is, the rank of Imāmat will continue in your progeny, until the Resurrection and will not be given to others.

‘Allāmah Naṣīr al-Dīn Naṣīr Hunzai, Dū‘ā: Essence of ‘Ibādat, translated from Urdu into English by Faquir Muhammad Hunzai and Rashida Noormohamed-Hunzai, 43.

4. ‘Allamah Hunzai: It should be known that God had first conferred the great office of Prophethood and Messengership on Ḥazrat-i ‘Ibrāhīm and then he was exalted to the sublime office of Imāmat. Since the Imāmat has several ranks, some of them precede and some follow Prophethood, so that the Imām may appear in one of them and may remain present in this world according to the expedience of time.

‘Allāmah Naṣīr al-Dīn Naṣīr Hunzai, Imām Shināsī, translated as Recognition of Imam, 9.

5. ‘Allamah Hunzai: It should be known that the Words with which Ḥazrat-i Ibrāhīm⁽ᶜ⁾ was tried were the Supreme Names of God in the form of physical and spiritual ḥudūd ([ranks of the] religious hierarchy). For instance, the first [Supreme] Name contained the spirituality of Ḥazrat-i Ādam⁽ᶜ⁾, the second [Supreme Name] contained the spiritual examples of Ḥazrat-i Nūh [Noah]⁽ᶜ⁾, in the third [Supreme Name,] light was shed on his [i.e., Ḥazrat-i Ibrāhīm’s⁽ᶜ⁾] own [conditions] of the past and future, in the fourth [Supreme Name] all the spiritual events and miracles of Ḥazrat-i Mūsā [Moses]⁽ᶜ⁾ were shown, in the fifth [Supreme Name] was recorded the spiritual life of Ḥazrat-i ‘Īsā [Jesus]⁽ᶜ⁾, in the sixth [Supreme Name] the spiritual feats of the holy Prophet Muḥammad⁽ˢ⁾ were shown and in the seventh [Supreme] Name or Word were hidden the spiritual miracles of Ḥazrat-i Qā’imu'l-Qiyāmat⁽ᶜ⁾. With each of these [Supreme] Names there were also the spiritual examples of the realities of how miraculously the Universal Intellect, the Universal Soul, Jadd [i.e., angel Isrāfīl], Fatḥ [i.e., angel Mika’īl] and Khayāl [i.e., angel Jibrā’īl] convey ta’yīd (spiritual help) to the Prophets and Imams.

‘Allāmah Naṣīr al-Dīn Naṣīr Hunzai, Imām Shināsī, translated as Recognition of Imām, 8-9.

6. ‘Allamah Hunzai: The wisdom-filled story of Ḥazrat Adam, the vicegerent of God, peace be on him, invites the intellect and wisdom to read it again and again, because the masses, as yet, do not duly understand it. For instance, in verse 2:30: “Verily, I am going to appoint a vicegerent in the earth”, by the earth is meant the world of humanity and the permanent presence of God’s vicegerent in it is His sunnat (law, habit), and this continues constantly and consistently (40:85) without any change or alteration (35:43).

Study the subject of the Divine sunnat in the wise Qur’ān with great care, so that it may be understood clearly that Ḥazrat Adam’s vicegerency was according to it. It therefore continues in the world of humanity forever and ever.

‘Allāmah Naṣīr al-Dīn Naṣīr Hunzai, The Wise Qur’ān and the World of Humanity (Volume 1), translated from Urdu into English by Faquir Muhammad Hunzai and Rashida Noormohamed-Hunzai, 6.

7. Sayyidna al-Kirmani: In proof that the Imamate is validated by the designation of God and the choice of the Messenger.

The first demonstration: The prophecy of the prophets who are, in regard to the execution of judgments among His servants, the representatives of God on His earth, is not valid without a designation by God and by His choosing them to take His place in governing, commanding and prohibiting, and prophecy is the foundation of the Imamate. The Imamate, which is a subsidiary of prophecy and which is a representative of the Messenger and occupies his place, is even more certainly not valid unless based on the choice of God and the choice of His Messenger. Therefore, the Imamate is valid only by designation and appointment.

The second demonstration: There is a rule in what God revealed and in the legal practice of His Messenger with regard to relationships among people that appointing someone to the position of another is not valid unless it is by the choice of that other person and by his designation of the one who replaces him. Because the Imamate takes the place of the Messenger, God’s rule and the rule of His Messenger require that it not be valid unless it is by the choice of the Messenger and by his designation. Hence, the Imamate is valid only through designation and appointment.

The third demonstration: God has said: ‘Your Lord creates whatever He wants and He chooses; they have no choice in the matter’ [28:68]. Accordingly, that statement makes it necessary for the choice to be God’s, and if the choice is God’s, the choice of someone who, for the sustaining of his own position is in need of having his secret thoughts, which no one can know except God, kept unsullied, is even more certainly God’s choice. Therefore, the Imamate is valid only by the choice of God and the designation of the Messenger.

Ḥamīd al-Dīn al-Kirmānī, al-Maṣābīḥ fī Ithbāt al-Imāma (Lights to Illuminate the Proof of the Imamate), translated by Paul E. Walker as Master of the Age: An Islamic Treatise on the Necessity of the Imamate, 84-5.

8. Qur’an 3:33: "Verily Allāh chose Ādam and Nūh and the descendants of Ibrāhīm and the descendants of ‘Imrān above (all His) creatures. Direct descendants, one from the other."

9. ‘Allamah Hunzai: God says in verse 4:54: "Indeed, We gave to Ibrāhīm’s progeny the Book and wisdom and We gave them a great kingdom." The inheritance of the heavenly Book, the ta’wīlī [esoteric] wisdom and spiritual kingdom continue in this cycle in the holy chain of the Imāms of the progeny of Muḥammad (s.a.s.).

‘Allāmah Naṣīr al-Dīn Naṣīr Hunzai, Ḥazār Ḥikmat, translated by Faquir Muhammad Hunzai and Rashida Noomohamed-Hunzai as A Thousand Wisdoms: An Encyclopaedia of Ta’wīl, wisdom 5 page 21.

10. ‘Allamah Hunzai: It is mentioned in sūrah-yi Ibrāhīm (14:35) that Ḥazrat Ibrāhīm⁽ᶜ⁾ prayed to Almighty God to protect him and his progeny (i.e., present and future children) from idolatry because not only is it deviation (14:36) but impurity (22:30) as well. This prayer mentions both external and internal idolatry. In short, in this prayer of Ḥazrat Ibrāhīm⁽ᶜ⁾ he supplicates to remain pure and innocent by refraining from all types of sins. The holy Prophet⁽ˢ⁾ said: “I am the fruit of the prayer of my forefather Ibrāhīm⁽ᶜ⁾”. Thus it is evident that all the Prophets and Imams from the progeny of Ibrāhīm⁽ᶜ⁾ are pure and infallible by birth.

‘Allāmah Naṣīr al-Dīn Naṣīr Hunzai, ‘Ilmī Khazāna, translated by Azeem Ali Lakhani as Treasure of Knowledge (Part 2), 26.

11. Sayyidna Ibn al-Haytham: Abraham desired the Islam [submission to God] of his sons and to acquaint them with faith prior to their reaching maturity and before they would know and worship the idols. That was confirmed in the mind of Abraham by the word of God and His making it clear in the statement of Him who has no partner, “And Abraham was tried by his Lord with certain edicts which he carried out; He [i.e. God] then said, “I will make you the leader [Imām] of the people;” He [i.e. Abraham] asked, “And also from my offspring?” He [i.e. God] said, “My assurance does not apply to the evildoers” [2:124]. At that Abraham desired more and he said, “Preserve me and my children from worshipping idols” [14:35], and he said, “My Lord give me a righteous son” [37:100]. God, the Mighty and Glorious, thus informed Abraham that the Imamate will not be inherited by someone who embraces polytheism nor one who reaches maturity as a polytheist, even if he then accepts faith and Islam. None will inherit the Imamate who is not pure from the beginning.

Ibn al-Haytham, Kitāb al-Munāẓarā [Book of Discussions], translated by Wilferd Madelung and Paul E. Walker as The Advent of the Fatimids: A Cotemporary Shi‘i Witness, 80.

12. ‘Allamah Hunzai: In verse 21:73 God says: “And We made them the Imāms [of the people] who guide by Our Command.”

The wisdom of this verse shows that the true Imāms are appointed by God Himself and they guide the people according to His will and command. Further this verse shows that in order to command and guide [the people], He always speaks to the Imām. Whether we call this Divine Speech the special favour (tawfīq-i khāṣṣ) or the luminous guidance (nūrānī hidāyat), it is received from God continually and afresh by the Imāms according to the requirements and needs of their time and place. Since the Divine command (amr-i bārī) is their prerogative, i.e., on the one hand they receive it and on the other they convey it to the people, then it is in this sense that they are called ulu'l-amr (those who possess the Divine command, 4:59).

Every wise person who believes in God’s existence can, on reflection, understand that in view of the law of the mercy of God, the Compassionate, the Merciful, it is absolutely impossible that He may remove His means of command and guidance (i.e., the Imām of the time) from among the world’s people at any time. Again, it is absolutely impossible that the people of the world may dispense with the source of His guidance at any time. Thus, it is necessary and indispensable that the Imām should always be alive and present among the people in human attire in every age, whether it is the cycle of Prophethood or the cycle of Imāmat.

It should be clear that the time which has elapsed from Ḥazrat-i Ādam⁽ᶜ⁾ to the Seal of the Prophets, i.e., the holy Prophet Muḥammad⁽ˢ⁾ is called the cycle of Prophethood and the time which continues from him till the Resurrection is called the cycle of Imāmat. The difference between these two cycles is that during the cycle of Prophethood, by God’s command some Imāms used to perform the duties of Prophethood in addition to the function of Imāmat, whereas in the cycle of Imāmat, since it is the cycle of Resurrection, the pure Imāms from the progeny of Prophet Muḥammad⁽ˢ⁾ perform only the duties related to the matters of Imāmat.

‘Allāmah Naṣīr al-Dīn Naṣīr Hunzai, Imām Shināsī, translated by Faquir Muhammad Hunzai and Rashida Noormohamed-Hunzai as Recognition of Imam, 22-23.

13. ‘Allamah Hunzai: In verse 32:24 God says: “And We made from among them Imāms who guide according to Our Command and they were patient and had certainty about Our signs (spiritual miracles).”

The explanation of this verse is that God made the Imāms from the [chosen] category (jins=genus) of the Prophets, who adopted patience in physical and spiritual trials. The external trials that the Prophets and Imāms undergo are known to all, but very few are aware of the internal trials with which they are tested.* It should be known that the internal trials are purely spiritual, and are full of knowledge, wisdom, rectitude and guidance. Through these trials, the son of the Imām ascends the ranks of the ḥudūd-i dīn one by one until he succeeds to the rank of Imāmat.

This verse also shows that the true Imām guides the people according to God’s command. This means that whatever guidance the Imām gives to the people is, in reality, from God and thus God’s command continues in this world. Indeed, only that guidance which is according to God’s command is the right guidance. It leads to the ultimate destination, gives the correct answer to every difficult question and the right solutions for the problems created by time and place.

With regard to the Imāms’ certainty it should be borne in mind that there is a great difference between believing in God’s signs and having certainty about them, because belief is both common and special, whereas certainty is special only. Thus, in the above verse the statement that the pure Imāms have certainty about God’s signs indicates that all the wisdoms and realities of the knowledge of certainty, the eye of certainty and the truth of certainty are manifest and evident to them and no sign of God is hidden from them.

All these matters are related to the Imām’s recognition, that is, they are useful only to those who believe in the doctrine of Imāmat and have reached one of the levels of the Imām’s recognition.

‘Allāmah Naṣīr al-Dīn Naṣīr Hunzai, Imām Shināsī, translated as Recognition of Imam, 31-32.

*Author’s Note: Regarding ‘Allamah Hunzai’s comment, “The external trials that the Prophets and Imāms undergo are known to all, but very few are aware of the internal trials with which they are tested”, compare with 2:124: “And when his Lord tried Ibrahim with Words and he fulfilled them. (Then) He said: I am making you an Imam for mankind.”