Kashaful Salat

Tawheed (oneness)

You know very well every creation as a point of origin. If someone asks you, who conceived you? You will say your parents. If he as ks again, who conceived your parents? You will reply, their parents. This process of question and answer will not finish until it reaches back to the beginning of creation. You have to believe in such an essence who is the creator of the whole universe, but has no creator.

The whole universe is dependent upon Him, but He is not dependent upon anyone. He is unique in His oneness. He is completely unlike any of His creation. If a single attribute of creation is found in Him, then He will also become a creation in need of a creator which is impossible. He cannot be compared. He is creator of all. There is no creator other than Him. This belief is called tawheed (oneness).

Hz Ameerul Momineen (as) said, " The beginning of religion is to gain the marifat of Allah." It means before believing in tawheed, it is compulsory to gain the marifat of Allah. Unless and until we know who is that essence in which we believe and worship, our beliefs based upon ignorance are completely worthless. Believing in tawheed and worshiping blindly is like shooting an arrow in the dark. Concerning the marifat of Allah, ever y child is aware of the fact that every thing is recognized through its attributes. In the same way, Allah is recognized through His attributes. Every attribute of Allah is revealed through Masoomeen (as).

The only way of recognizing Allah is by recognizing Masoomeen (as). This is why Masoomeen (as) said, "Our marifat is the marifat of Allah." Anyone who is negligent in the marifat of Muhammad (saw) wa Aal e Muhammad (as) has not recognized Allah.

Such a person s tawheed, beliefs, iman, acts, etc will be false. It should also be clear that mentioning any attribute of Allah other than through Masoomeen (as) is real shirk. We call Him through different attributes. For example, Khaliq (creator), Raziq (Sustainer), Ghaffar ( All Forgiving),

Alam (All Knowing), Qadir (Subduer). These attributes are Masoomeen (as) which act as a wasila (source) between us and Allah. It is not possible to believe in Allah and worship Him without recognizing the wasila (source). As Allah Himself has ordered us in Quran,

"If you wish to consult with Allah, then you mu st find a specific wasila (source)." If we reach at this specific wasila, then we have reached Allah. This is the pure tawheed. W hen Masoomeen (as) were asked,

"W hat is the meaning of Allah being All Knowing and Subduer?" Masoomeen (as) replied," It means Allah created such essence who is All Knowing and Subduer." Without recognizing this essence, believing Allah is All Knowing and Subduer is absolutely worthless.

Shirk

Allah has promised in Quran that every sin can be forgiven except for shirk.

So now it is wajib (compulsory) upon every momin to know what is shirk. It is not possible to get away from shirk if you do not understand what it is. The meaning of shirk is to include another in the attributes of Allah.

  1. Believing Allah and His creation have the same attributes is called shirk fil safaat (shirk in attributes).
  2. Believing the acts of Allah are done with the help of another is shirk fil fail (shirk in acts).
  3. Believing there is another whom we should obey or believing ther e is another who has the same rights over us as Allah and believing their obedienc e is wajib (compulsory) upon us is shirk fil amr (shirk in obedience).

Now because:

  1. Every attribute of Allah is revealed through Muhammad (saw) wa Aal e Muhammad (as).
  2. Every act which we associate to Allah is fulfilled through Masoomeen (as).
  3. The orders of Allah and His obedience were revealed through Masoomeen (as). Therefore obedience to Them is the same as obedience to Allah.

The complete explanation of shirk is this:

"Believing Muhammad (saw) wa Aal e Muhammad (as) are human like us. The attributes, acts, and obedience of Allah can be revealed from other than Masoomeen (as)."

We have briefly explained the truth regarding shirk. As your knowledge and intellect grows, you will be able to look around yourself and inshaAllah will immediately recognize those who are practically committing shirk. I am sure in order to protect yourself from shirk you will keep yourself far from such people and places. InshaAllah.

Adl (justice)

Second basic belief of Shia religion is adl. The opposite of adl is zulm (oppression). The meaning of adl is to put everything in its correct place. For example, a cap can be worn on the head. So the cap will always be on one s head even if it is very ordinary. The same way the place for shoes are one s feet. It does not matter how expensive they are. They will always be on one s feet. If someone acts against it, then it is called zulm (oppression). The belief of Shia is that Allah is adil (one who does justice). He can never be an oppressor. No attribute of oppression can be associated with Him because He is free from every fault.

If you look around the whole universe, you will see every thing is dependent upon adl. Allah has given every particle a particular place.

If a single particle changes its place slightly, then the whole system of the universe will be destroyed. The foundation of beliefs and acts is also adl. If you lower the status of Muhammad (saw) wa Aal e Muhammad (as) and give others a higher status than Them, this is the true zulm (oppression). If someone claims to be Shia and still does these acts, then in reality he is destroying the Shia religion.

Nabuwiat (prophet hood)

Allah wants to send ever lasting blessings upon His creation, but adl demands only those who prove to be deserving of such blessings will receive them. One who does not deserve cannot receive such blessings because it goes against adl. When one becomes deserving of the blessings of Allah, only then will he fulfill his purpose of creation.

That is the love and marifat (recognition) of Ahlul Bayt (as). It is compulsory to consistently inform the whole of humanity what is their purpose of creation. In this way, they will not have any excuse. Allah Himself cannot come to the creation. Therefore He created representatives. As His representatives, They convey His message to His creation. This process is called nabuwiat (prophet hood), and the representatives are called prophets. We are the nation of Hz Muhammad Mustafa (saw) bin Abdullah (as) bin Hz Abdul Muttalib (as).

Description of Nabuwiat (prophet hood)

Naba is an Arabic word meaning "news . The word "nabi is derived from naba.

A prophet is one who receives messages from Allah and then conveys those messages to the creation. Unless you understand naba, you cannot understand nabuwiat.

What is naba?

The explanation of this word can be found in Quran, Sura Naba ayah 1-3: Of what do they ask one another? About the great news, about which they differ?"

  1. In Usool e Kafi, Imam Jafar Sadiq (as) said, "That great news is wilayat of Ameerul Momineen (as)."

  2. Imam Muhammad Baqir (as) said, " This ayah was revealed for Ameerul Momineen (as). Ameerul Momineen (as) use to say,"No ayah of Allah is greater than Me. No news is greater than Me."

In or der to explain this in clearer terms, we will mention a few hadiths . From these hadiths, you will be able to see the purpose of establishing the process of prophet hood was only for the introduction of Ahlul Bayt (as).

  1. Imam Jafar Sadiq (as) said, "Every prophet introduced Our marifat (recognition) and proved Our greatness over others."

  2. Imam Jafar Sadiq (as) said, "Our wilayat is the wilayat of Allah. Allah sent every prophet with the condition of Our wilayat."

  3. Ameerul Momineen (as) said, "I am the one whom all the nations were ordered to obey."

  4. Imam Musa Kazim (as) said, " Allah has written in all the books of prophets regarding the wilayat e Ali (as)."

Our greatest proof is Sura Maida ayah 67. This ayah was revealed in Ghadir Khum. RasoolAllah (saw) fulfilled the orders of Allah by announcing the wilayat of Moula Ali (as) in the gathering of 124.000 companions. RasoolAllah (saw) raised the hands of Moula Ali (as) and said, " Mun kunto Moula o fahaza Aliyun Moula ". Whomsoever I am Moula (master) to Ali (as) is also Moula (master) to.

Quran says,"O Messenger! Deliver what has been revealed to you from your Lord; and if you do it not, then you have not delivered any of His message".

You should remember the prophet hood of all prophets is dependent upon the prophet hood of our Prophet (saw). Our Prophet (saw) s prophet hood is dependent upon the wilayat of Moula Ali (as). Even though RasoolAllah (saw) had conveyed the whole religion to the people, if He had not announced the wilayat of Moula Ali (as), His prophet hood was in danger.

This ayah alone is enough proof that the only purpose of prophet hood was to introduce the wilayat of Moula Ali (as).

Imamate

The most important principle of Shia religion is the belief in imamate. Because of this belief, Shia religion is recognized separately from other religions. Imamate is the greatest designation/title from all other designations. The wilayat of Allah is revealed from imamate.

The difference between nabi and imam

A prophet is one who shows the right path. Imam is one who takes you to the right path. This is the reason on the day of judgment all of humanity will be called with their Imams and not prophets. Allah has mentioned this in Sura Bani Israel ayah 71: "Remember that day when all of humanity will be called with their Imams."

It is very important people recognize that Imam which is from Allah. If he chooses a false imam, then he will remain in jahannum for all of eternity. This is why RasoolAllah (saw) said, " One who dies without recognizing his Imam (who is from Allah) dies the death of jahil (ignorant), kafir (disbeliever), and nifaq (hypocrite)."

The number of Imams (as) has been twelve from the beginning until the end. In Arabic twelve is called ithna ashari. This is why we call ourselves Ithna Ashari (believers of twelve Imams as). No one can increase or decrease from the number of twelve. Anyone who does this is out of the Shia religion.

Here are the sacred names of the twelve Imams (as). You must always remember Them.

First imam: Ameerul Momineen Ali (as) ibn Abi Talib (as) Second imam: Imam Hasan (as) bin Ali (as) T hird imam: Imam Hussain (as) bin Ali (as) Fourth imam: Imam Ali (as) bin Hussain ( as) (Zainul Abideen) Fifth imam: Imam Muhammad (as) bin Ali (as) (Baqir) Sixth imam: Imam Jafar (as) bin Muhammad (as) (Sadiq) Seventh imam: Imam Musa (as) bin Jafar (as) (Kazim) Eighth imam: Imam Ali (as) bin Musa (as) (Reza) Ninth imam: Imam Muhammad (as) bin Ali (as) (Taqi) Tenth imam: Imam Ali (as) bin Muhammad (as) (Naqi) Eleventh imam: Imam Hasan (as) bin Ali (as) ( Askari)

Twelfth Imam (ajf)

This is the imam where the number twelve becomes complete, and the promise of Allah is fulfilled by this Imam (ajf). As Allah says in Quran, " Allah will complete His noor even though the kufr (disbelievers) dislike it." This is that noor in whose waiting we are alive. He is our Imam Zamana (ajf). His marifat is wajib (compulsory) upon us, and on the day of judgment it is He whom we will be called with.

Imam (ajf) s sacred name is "Meem Ha Meem Dal". Because it is not allowed to call His name during His ghayabat (occultation), this is why we call Him with the names of Qaim Aal e Muhammad (ajf), Baqiyatullah (ajf), Hz Hujjat (ajf), and Hz Sahib ul Zaman (ajf). Imam (ajf) s father is Imam Hasan Askari (as). Imam (ajf) s mother is Narjis Khatoon (as). Imam (ajf) s noor came into this world on the 15th of Shabaan 254 Hijra. There are some narrations which say 255 and some which say it was 256. Because the government of that time were the worst enemies of Ahlul Bayt ( as),

they wanted to assassinate Imam Zamana (ajf). This is why His zahoor (revealment) was kept hidden from the people. Only a few select momin were able to see Imam Zamana (ajf). After the martyrdom of the 11th Imam (as), Imam Zamana (ajf) went into ghayabat (occultation), but He was in contact with some specific momineen. This period was 69 years long.

This is called Ghayabat e Sughra (lesser occultation). In 329 Hijra, Imam (ajf) went into His full ghayabat (occultation). Imam (ajf) is not in contact with anyone. In the last letter written by Imam (ajf), He has pointed out those people who claim to be in contact with Him during His ghayabat ( occultation). "Anyone who claims to see Me before the cry from the heavens and appearance of the dajjal is the most debased liar and accuser against Us."

This time is called the time of complete ghayabat (occultation). No one knows when Imam Zamana (ajf) will reappear. Imam (ajf) will reappear by the or der of Allah. He will fill this world with adl (justice) as it was previously filled by evil and tyranny.

Rajat (return)

Believing in rajat (return) is one of the basic beliefs of the Shia religion. According to the sayings of Masoom (as), one who does not believe in the rajat (return) has nothing to do with the Shia religion. The description of rajat is after the completion of the imamate of Imam Zamana (ajf),

the period between the time of the prophet hood of RasoolAllah (saw) and the appearance of Imam Zamana (ajf) will be finished. After this the time of the day of judgment will begin. This time will be extremely long. All of the Imams (as) one by one will return back to this earth and rule throughout the world. W hen our Imam Zamana (ajf) will reappear, that will be the time of His imamate, but during the time of rajat, He will again return to rule throughout the world for an extensive period of time.

Belief of Infallibility

This is a basic belief of Shia religion. Infallibility means no prophet or imam can commit any sin or mistake. If prophets or imams had not been infallible, then the whole religion of Allah would be suspicious. In that case,

there would be no authenticity in the words of the prophets. He is an example for humanity. If a prophet commits a sin, then this will become a sunnah for their followers. It will become compulsory upon their ummah (nation) to commit sins. Then the religion of Allah will become a joke. It should be remembered there are two types of infallibility. One is jabr i (forced). The other is iktiari (optional). Infallibility of the angels is jabri (forced). They do not have the free will to decide whether or not to obey or disobey the orders of Allah.

The infallibility of Masoomeen (as) is not jabri (forced). It is iktiari (optional). They do not commit any sins even though They have free will and the option to do so. This is the reason Their status is the highest from all of the creation of Allah. Infallibility is a compulsory aspect of nabuwiat (prophet hood) and imamate. Without infallibility, nabuwiat and imamate become worthless.

Special characteristics of prophets and imams

  1. Nabuwiat and imamate is from Allah. It is impossible to be a prophet or imam simply by doing hard work.

  2. A prophet and imam are prophets and imams from the beginning of their creation. It is not as if they are prophet or imam for a short time or after they reach a certain age they then become a prophet or imam.

  3. The forefathers of the prophets and aimmah until Hz Adam (as) can never be kafir (disbeliever), mushrik (polytheist), or sinful.

  4. Prophets and imams do not have any apparent or hidden faults. Neither can they possess such characteristics which the people find offensive like blindness, deafness, mute, etc.

  5. They are free from all sins, faults, and mistakes.

  6. Prophets and imams can perform miracles. This is their personal act which Allah has blessed them with. The meaning of moajiza is when the nature of a thing is changed. For example, the nature of stones is to be silent. If a prophet or imam order s them to speak, then they will begin to speak. This is a moajiza.

Day of Judgment

The word qiyamat is used on two occasions. One is the time of qiyamat which is rajat (return). The other is the day of qiyamat when jannah and jahannum will be distributed.