Imitation is contrary to the natural principle, and therefore is indispensable for a reason, and its reason cannot be based on itself; so there is no choice but to practice ijtihad in imitation, while they are often imitators in their imitation; because they do not know any reason for it from the religion or the intellect, except for an illusion that has been created for some of them, which is that imitating scholars is from this aspect that the intellectuals refer to the expert, while this illusion is far from reality; because in the opinion of the intellectuals, the expert vary depending on subjects about which they are referred to, and in their opinion, an expert in the religion is one referring to whom brings about certainty for them, such as the Messenger of God, peace and blessings of God be upon him and his family, not one referring to whom just leads to conjecture, such as mujtahids. [Return to Islam, p. 59]
To be fair, absolute obedience to someone who may willingly or unwillingly command against the commandment of God and the Prophet is not rational nor can it be obligatory, and this is one the clear and essential issues in Islam; to the extent that it is not unlikely that one who believes in it is a stupid and considered as a minor like children; especially considering that absolute obedience to a non-infallible person and giving him the authorities of an infallible person are usually the sources of various fitnahs and great corruptions such as political tyranny, and this is sufficient to avoid them. [Return to Islam, p. 61]
Imitating scholars does not suffice in any way, and ijtihad is obligatory for all Muslims; of course, if ijtihad means certain cognition of the beliefs and rulings of Islam; because if it means conjectural cognition of them, even by relying on ahad narrations and illusions such as consensus, it is not much different from imitation and therefore does not suffice; because the reason that imitation does not suffice is that relying on uncertainties in the beliefs and rulings of the religion does not suffice, and this reason is common between imitation and ijtihad which is based on uncertainties, and consequently, ijtihad which is based on uncertainties does not suffice, even though it is better than imitation; rather, whatever is necessary for certain cognition of the beliefs and rulings of the religion is obligatory for all Muslims. [Return to Islam, p. 62]
Another common type of imitation is to follow what the majority of people say and do; because many Muslims think what the majority of people say and do is more correct than what the minority of them say and do, so they follow them as their role models; while the correctness of sayings and actions certainly does not depend on the number of their followers, but on their conformity to the intellect, which is considered the criterion of cognition. [Return to Islam, p. 62]
The fame of a saying does not mean that it is true, and the prevalence of an action does not prove that it is correct; as the lack of fame of a saying and the lack of prevalence of an action is not a reason for its incorrectness; considering that the incorrectness of what most people say and do is possible, rather it is prevalent. However, many Muslims have taken what most of them say and do as a model for their sayings and actions, and have been affected by them knowingly or unknowingly; rather, most of them have taken their beliefs and actions from the majority in their societies, and they have no reason for that other than imitating them. [Return to Islam, p. 64]
Indeed, your example in the life of the world has been like that of a child who has lost his mother in the crowd, so in the hope of finding her, he grasps the skirt of every woman and follows her for a while, until he sees unkindness from her and finds out that she is not the mother, then he leaves her while wailing and grasps the skirt of someone else, until the darkness of the night surrounds him and its cold kills him, while there is no helper for him! This has been your example in the life of the world that in the hope of achieving justice, you have set your hearts on every government and followed it for a while until you have seen oppression from it and realized that there is not justice in it, then you have overthrown it while shouting, and turned toward another government! Thus, in the search for justice, sometimes you have tended to the East and sometimes to the West; sometimes you have run to the left and sometimes to the right; sometimes you have turned toward Zayd and sometimes toward Amr; sometimes you have set your hearts on monarchy and sometimes on democracy! While justice has been neither in the East nor in the West; it has been neither in the left nor in the right; it has been neither in Zayd nor in Amr; it has been neither in monarchy nor in democracy! Justice is only in the government of God, who is aware of your measures and places, and none but He can find a way to it, even though one searches and strives hard, except for the one whom He has guided to it... [Letter fourteen]
Justice is only in the government of God, who is aware of your measures and places, and none but He can find a way to it, even though one searches and strives hard, except for the one whom He has guided to it, but you have despaired of His mercy and neglected His Mahdi, and therefore, you have entrusted the government which He has wanted for His Mahdi to those for whom He has not wanted a government! It seems the government is the inheritance of your fathers that you take it from whomever you want and give it to whomever you want, and it seems it does not belong to God who has said: ﴿قُلِ اللَّهُمَّ مَالِكَ الْمُلْكِ تُؤْتِي الْمُلْكَ مَنْ تَشَاءُ وَتَنْزِعُ الْمُلْكَ مِمَّنْ تَشَاءُ﴾; “Say: O God! You are the Owner of the government! You give the government to whomever You will and take the government from whomever You will”, and He has given it to Ibrahim and made a covenant with the just from among his descendants, and said: ﴿وَإِذِ ابْتَلَى إِبْرَاهِيمَ رَبُّهُ بِكَلِمَاتٍ فَأَتَمَّهُنَّ ۖ قَالَ إِنِّي جَاعِلُكَ لِلنَّاسِ إِمَامًا ۖ قَالَ وَمِنْ ذُرِّيَّتِي ۖ قَالَ لَا يَنَالُ عَهْدِي الظَّالِمِينَ﴾; “And when God tested Ibrahim with some words, then he fulfilled them, He said: I am going to appoint you as an Imam for people, he said: And also my descendants? He said: My covenant does not reach the oppressors”, and the just from among his descendants are those whom God has willed to remove all impurity from them and to purify them completely, and they are in the Book of God the Ahl al-Bayt of Muhammad, peace and blessings of God be upon him and his family[3], and it is hereby understood that Mahdi of God is from the household of Ibrahim, peace be upon him, and the Ahl al-Bayt of Muhammad, peace and blessings of God be upon him and his family, and whoever chooses a ruler other than him has gone far astray. [Letter fourteen]
It is surprising that people in every era have pledged allegiance to someone and made the covenant of guardianship with someone but have not known that no one can accomplish it and do it justice, except for the one whom God has guided and enabled to do so!... Do people not have eyes to see that their rulers are all oppressors and do not do justice?! Or do they not have ears to hear that their politicians are all liars and do not tell the truth?! Or do they not have intelligence to find out that their leaders all mislead and do not lead?! So how long will this pus-filled wound be opened, and how long will this madness continue?! Beware, O people! Tell me! How long should you, like dead drunks, stagger from the right to the left and from the left to the right until you finally understand that the right and the left are the same for you, and there is no justice in either of them?! Tell me! How many other governments should you test, and how much other obedience should you pay the price for until you finally find out that no government but the government of God will bring you to justice, and no obedience but the obedience to His Caliph will free you from oppression?! Is this thousands of years of experience not enough?! Are these heavy prices not enough?! Did you not hear Nimrods and Pharaohs? Did you not bear Khosrows and Caesars?! Did you not see caliphs and kings?! Did you not test republics and Islamics?! So have you not yet learned your lesson?! [Letter fourteen]
Beware, O cruel kings and emirs who shed the blood of the innocent to gain and maintain domination! Beware, O hypocritical jurists and mullahs who unrightfully consider yourselves to be appointed by God and guardians of Muslims of the world! Beware, O greedy politicians who vie to take over the government! Beware, O deceitful political parties who seek nothing but power! Beware, O criminal cults and groups who strive to achieve superiority on the earth! Leave these troubled people alone and go away from between them and their owner! Are thousands of years of oppression and corruption not enough?! Is a history of humiliation and poverty not enough?! Are you not tired of all these evil doings and giving rise to fitnahs?! Then when will you end this childish game?! Then when will you stop these repetitive methods?! [Letter fourteen]
O people! Is it not time for you to return to your origin?! Is it not time for you to remember the covenant of God with your father Adam?! Is it not time for you to give the trust back to its owner and return the government to the one who deserves it?! Do you still have hope in these colorful governments? Do you still think that if Amr comes to power instead of Zayd, things will go right?! How many Amrs came to power instead of Zayds, but things did not go right; because things will go right by something else, but you are unaware! Then how long will you sit in the hope of this and that and raise the flags of this and that high?! How long will you humiliate yourselves and kiss the hands of this and that?! How long will false promises deceive you and vain desires play you?! How long will you, like donkeys in a mill, spin around an axis and have the illusion of making progress?! [Letter fourteen]
Translation of the saying: One of our companions informed us, he said: I asked Mansoor about the words of God Almighty that says: “And those who disbelieved say: You are not a Prophet, say, God and whoever has knowledge of the Book are sufficient as witnesses among me and you”, so he said: The witness of God is His Book, and indeed there are two witnesses among the Prophet and his nation: the Book of God and the one who has knowledge of the Book, and he is the Caliph of God among them after the Prophet, and his nation will never be without those two until the Day of Judgment arrives. I said: May God make me a sacrifice for you; because you revealed to me something of the Book of God which they conceal! He said: They do not conceal it, but do not ponder on it, or there are locks on the hearts! At this time I cried, so he said: What is bothering you?! I said: I feel sorry for people; because they have not heard your words, while it is wisdom and decisive statement, and if they heard it, they would be guided, so he said: Do not feel sorry for them, “If God had found any good in them, He would have certainly made them hear, and if He were to make them hear, they would turn away in rejection”! [Passage 21 from Saying six]
Translation of the saying: A group of our companions informed us, they said: We were a group in the presence of Mansoor, then he looked at us and said: Indeed, for God there are two witnesses over people: the Book of God and the one who has knowledge of the Book, and neither of those two makes them not need the other, and this is the words of God that has said: “Say, God and whoever has knowledge of the Book are sufficient as witnesses among me and you”, then he looked at the sky and said: O God! Did I explain?! Then something from the fear of God came to us that God knows when he said this, then he looked at us again and said: Indeed, the earth is not empty of the Book of God and the one who has knowledge of the Book in order to be two witnesses among the Prophet and his nation until the Day of Judgment, and the one who has knowledge of the Book is a man from the Itrah and Ahl al-Bayt of the Prophet, and this is his words that has said: “Indeed, I leave among you two precious things: The Book of God and my Itrah, my Ahl al-Bayt, and those two will never be separated until they come to me by the Pond”, then he looked at the sky again and said: O God! Did I fulfill?! Then we started to flinch because of his dignity when he said this, as if he were not in this world! [Passage 22 from Saying six]
Translation of the saying: One of our companions informed us, he said: I asked Mansoor about the words of God Almighty that says: “Is he the one who has clear proof from his Lord, followed by a witness”, so he said: The one who has clear proof from his Lord is Muhammad, peace and blessings of God be upon him and his family, and after him, in every century, a witness from his household follows him, that is, comes after him, do you not see the words of God Almighty that has said: “By the sun and its brightness, and the moon when follows it”, that is, comes after it?! So whoever wants to be free of fire and enter Heaven, he must believe in what God has sent down and follow Muhammad, peace and blessings of God be upon him and his family, and accompany the witness from his household, as the apostles said: “O Lord! We believed in what You sent down and followed the Prophet, so inscribe us along with the witnesses”. [Passage 23 from Saying six]
Translation of the saying: One of our companions informed us, he said: I asked Mansoor about the words of God Almighty that says: “Say, this is my way that I invite toward God with insight, I and whoever follows me”, so he said: The earth is not empty of one who follows the Prophet, peace and blessings of God be upon him and his family, in everything, and he is the one who invites toward God with insight after the Prophet, peace and blessings of God be upon him and his family. [Passage 24 from Saying six]
Translation of the saying: One of our companions informed us, he said: I asked Mansoor about the words of God Almighty that says: “O you who believed! Obey God and obey the Prophet and those in authority from among you”, so he said: There is always someone among those who believed that obedience to him is obligatory for them like obedience to God and the Prophet, whoever obeys him, obeys God and the Prophet, and whoever disobeys him, disobeys God and the Prophet, and he is the one whom God and the Prophet have appointed, and not the one whom people have appointed with their passions, I said: They say that anyone from among believers who takes control of their authority is the one in authority from among them, he said: They are right! I said: How can they be right, while you said what you said?! He replied: Whoever other than the one whom God and the Prophet have appointed takes control of their authority is not from among believers, but from among sinners, and God has commanded to obey those in authority from among believers, and has not commanded to obey those in authority from among sinners! “Is the one who is a believer equal to the one who is a sinner?! They are not equal”! Then he said: Shall I increase for you? I said: Yes, he said: Those in authority are its owners, and they are the ones whom God and the Prophet have appointed, and whoever other than them takes control of it is a usurper, and the usurper is not considered from among the owners, “If only they could understand”! I said: May God reward you well; because you gave me two perfect wisdom that I had never heard before! He said: “They are two proofs from your Lord”! [Passage 25 from Saying six]
Translation: Mansoor may God protect him, said: The Imam is called “the Caliph of God on earth” from this aspect that God has placed him on earth and he leads by the command of God, and this is a correct attribution, like the words of those who say: “The soul of God” and “the House of God” and “the earth of God”, and its application to Adam peace be upon him has been mentioned in the narration of Abu Sa’id al-Khudri and its application to Mahdi in the narration of “al-Rāyāt” is proved, But the ignorant people think that it is not a correct attribution and the ignorance of some of them has reached a point where they have considered the narration of al-Rāyāt to be correct except for the part that mentions “the Caliph of God Mahdi”, and the most ignorant of them have exaggerated so much in opposing this attribution that have considered the one who says it as a sinner; with this reasoning that only a person can have a caliph who disappears or dies, but God does not disappear and does not die, and (with this reasoning that) someone said to Abu Bakr: “O caliph of God” then Abu Bakr said: “I am not the caliph of God”, whereas this speech is a great ignorance; because attribution of Caliph to God is the attribution of ownership and respect; like the word of God who has said: “My soul” and “My House” and “My earth”, and whoever does not understand this is far from knowledge, like the distance of the west from the east, and Abu Bakr forbade its application to himself because he was not the Caliph of God; because God had not appointed him, but people had appointed him, ... and whoever has such a state should not be called “the Caliph of God”, ... as it has been narrated that a man called ‘Umar ibn Abd al-‘Aziz and said: “O caliph of God on earth”! So ‘Umar said to him: “Come on! ... when you entrusted me with the reins of your affairs, you called me Amir al-Mu’minin, so if you call me Amir al-Mu’minin, I will answer as well, but I am not the Caliph of God on earth, rather the Caliph of God on the earth is Prophet Dāwud peace be upon him and the likes of him”, ... and the Messenger of God peace and blessings of God be upon him and his family, has called Mahdi “the Caliph of God” because God has appointed him as a Caliph on earth, and he leads by the command of God like Dāwud peace be upon him... [Lesson one, p. 22]
Translation: Ali ibn Bābawayh [Died in 329 AH] has narrated in the book of “al-Imāmah wa al-Tabsirah”, from Sa’d ibn Abdullah, from Muhammad ibn Isā, from Safwān ibn Yahyā, from ibn Muskān, from Hasan ibn Ziyād, from Abu Abdullah — meaning Ja’far ibn Muhammad al-Sādiq — peace be upon him that said: People are not ordered and the earth does not get reformed except by the Imam.
Mansoor may God protect him, said: We believe in this and invite toward this, and he said: The situation of people will always get worse until they return toward the Imam whom God has commanded them to obey. [Lesson one, p. 32]
Translation: Ali ibn Bābawayh [Died in 329 AH] has narrated in the book of “al-Imāmah wa al-Tabsirah”, from Sa’d, from Muhammad ibn Isā ibn Ubayd, from Muhammad ibn Sinān and Safwān ibn Yahyā and Abdullah ibn Mughayrah and Ali ibn al-Nu’mān all of them, from Abdullah ibn Muskān, from Abu Baseer, from Abu Abdullah — meaning Ja’far ibn Muhammad al-Sādiq — peace be upon him that said: Indeed, God has not left the earth be unless there is a knowledgeable one therein who knows excess and defect, so that if the believers increased, he makes them return, and if they decreased, he completes for them, so he says: ‘Take it completely’, and if had not been like this, the affairs of the believers would have become doubtful for them, and the truth would have not been distinguished from falsehood.
Mansoor may God protect him, said: This is our speech that we say to people: Take the religion completely and purely, so that no defect be in it nor any excess with it, for its likeness is that of fire, if it increases it burns the food, and if it decreases it does not cook it. [Lesson one, p. 37]
Translation: Mansoor may God protect him, said: Indeed, God would not be worshipped on earth through a deceased Imam; because His worship on it is establishment of the limits and enforcement of the laws and management of the properties and performing Jihad against His enemies, and these works need a living Imam. So if he dies or get killed, God replaces him with someone like him or better than him, according to His tradition regarding abrogating and making forgotten; as He has said: “Any sign which We abrogate or make it to be forgotten, We bring a sign better than it or like it. Have you not known that God is Capable in doing everything?” and Ja’far ibn Muhammad peace be upon them, referred to this speech of mine, in that which has been narrated from him, when he said to Isā ibn Abdullah: Know that O Isā, you will not be faithful until you know the abrogator from the abrogated, he said: May I be your sacrifice, what is to know the abrogator from the abrogated? He said: Is it not that you are with the Imam while you have made yourself obey him with goodwill, then he passes away and another Imam comes, then you make yourself obey him with goodwill? He said: Yes, he said: This is to know the abrogator from the abrogated, and it has been narrated that Mu’allā ibn Khunays asked him about a narration which has been received from the past Imams, so he said: Take it as long as it comes to you through a living Imam, then if it came to you through a living Imam, take his speech. [Lesson one, p. 42]
Translation: Mansoor may God protect him, said: Indeed, God would not be worshipped on earth through an absent Imam; because he cannot establish the limits and collect the charities and enforce the laws and fight against the enemies in his absence, and if someone other than him carries them out, he will fail in many of them; because God would not guide him and would not bestow the success on him, and if he accomplishes something, it will not be accepted from him; because he has not accomplished it through the way God had commanded, whereas God has said: “Beneficence is not that you enter houses from behind them, but the benefactor is someone who acts upon piety, and enter houses through their doors, and fear God, may it be that you gain salvation”. [Lesson one, p. 42]
Allamah Mansoor Hashemi Khorasani is one of the Muslim scholars himself, and accordingly, he believes that they have the same role and duty that he has, and it is the preparation of the ground for the establishment of the pure and perfect Islam in the world through the establishment and maintenance of the government of God’s Caliph on the earth, as explained in the invaluable book Return to Islam. Therefore, in his opinion, Muslim scholars must invite toward the Caliph of God on the earth instead of inviting toward themselves, and establish and maintain his government instead of establishing and maintaining their own government; because this work is possible if Muslims provide its preconditions, and its preconditions are to a large extent the same as the preconditions necessary for the establishment and maintenance of other governments. Therefore, any Muslim scholar who orders Muslims to pledge allegiance to Mahdi and prohibits them from pledging allegiance to anyone other than him, performs his Islamic duty, and it is obligatory for Muslims to respond to his invitation and help him in this work, but Muslim scholars who do not order Muslims to pledge allegiance to Mahdi, nor do they prohibit them from pledging allegiance to anyone other than him, do not perform their Islamic duty, and it is obligatory for Muslims to stay away from them. [Question and Answer 7]
Imam Mahdi, according to the rule “I am only a human being like you”, is a human being like other people in terms of body, and therefore, he is affected by natural harms; as the Messenger of God, peace and blessings of God be upon him and his family, and the Prophets before him were affected by them, to the extent that the wife of Ibrahim, peace be upon him, said: “Woe to me! Shall I give birth to a child while I am an old woman and my husband is an old man?! This is surely a strange thing”, and the brothers of Yusuf, peace be upon him, said: “O noble chief, he has a very aged father”, and Zakariyya, peace be upon him, said: “O Lord! Indeed, my bones have weakened and my head has turned hoary with age”, and said: “O Lord! How can I have a son when my wife is barren and I have reached infirm old age?!”. Yes, it is imperative that Imam Mahdi be strong in carrying out the affairs of leadership when he appears; as there are Hadiths from the Ahl al-Bayt indicating that he appears in the form of a young man despite his old age; as it has been narrated from Hasan ibn Ali that said: “God will prolong his life in his absence; then He will have him appear as a young man under forty years old by His power”... but these Hadiths, if authentic, do not conflict with the fact that he is a human being like other people; because an old human also looks young if he has a good character, a moderate temperament, a strong body and pure sustenance. Moreover, this may be a dignity for him and a sign from God; as it has been narrated that Amr ibn Ḥamiq al-Khuza‘i gave water to the Prophet, peace and blessings of God be upon him and his family, the he said: “O God! Bless him with his youth”, then eighty years passed from his life, without a single strand of his hair turned white. Anyway, there is no doubt that Imam Mahdi will be strong to carry out the affairs of leadership when he appears, whether he is in the form of a young man or in the form of an old man, “And God has power over all things”. [Question and Answer 25]
Imam Mahdi, peace be upon him, is the Imam of all Muslims and does not belong to a particular madhhab, but some Islamic madhhabs may have more knowledge about him. In fact, his relationship to Muslims is like that of Amir al-Mu’minin Ali ibn Abi Talib, peace be upon him, to them; all of them accept him as a Caliph, but some of them consider him as the fourth Caliph and some of them as the first Caliph. But there are less disagreements among them about Imam Mahdi, peace be upon him; because they all consider him to be the twelfth Caliph and appointed by God and His Prophet. They only disagree about the name of his father and the time of his birth, and this disagreement does not harm the necessity of preparing the ground for his advent; because the necessity of preparing the ground for his advent does not stem from the name of his father or the time of his birth, but from the necessity of his advent as the Caliph of God and His Prophet, whether the name of his father is Abdullah or Hasan, and whether he was born before or will be born later. [Question and Answer 26]
The manner of Imam Mahdi for introducing Islam to people of the world is the manner of his ancestor, the Messenger of God, peace and blessings of God be upon him and his family, which is to invite them to one of the three:
1. Converting to true Islam and abandoning false religions
2. Submitting to rulings of the true Islam while remaining true to their religions
3. Fighting
Of course, it is clear that because of his perfect knowledge about what God has sent down by virtue of him being God’s Caliph on the earth, and his complete purity from all impurity by virtue of him being a member of the Ahl al-Bayt, he will invite with wisdom and good advice as long as he is an inviter, rule justly as long as he is a ruler, and observe all rulings of God regarding fighting, peace, the promise of security, prisoners and spoils as long as he fights, and will not oppress anyone in any of these three. [Question and Answer 67]
It is not intellectually or religiously impossible for Imam Mahdi, peace be upon him, to have a successor or messenger or child, based on the statement that he exists at the present time; because Imam Mahdi, peace be upon him, based on the statement that he exists at the present time, is a human being like other people, and consequently, like any of them, he can delegate some of his works to someone else, or send a messenger, or take a wife to have a child with, however, considering that being a successor or messenger or child of someone is against the principle, the claimant must prove it with a valid religious reason, but it is clear that dreams or ahad narrations are not valid religious reasons; because there is nothing in the Quran and the Sunnah that indicates the permissibility of acting on a dream in order to accept the claims of people when they have no proof or the proof is against them, and it is not acceptable from a judge to adjudicate without a proof or against it, with the excuse that he has dreamed about it. Therefore, one cannot believe or act on something for which there is no proof from the intellect and the religion, with the reasoning that he saw something in a dream that indicates it, and this is explicitly stated in the Hadiths from the Ahl al-Bayt, peace be upon them; as they have said: “Indeed, the religion of God is more firm than to be seen in dreams”. The only exception to that is what an infallible person sees; like what Ibrahim, peace be upon him, saw... and also what a fallible person sees but an infallible person interprets; like what Pharaoh saw, and Yusuf, peace be upon him, interpreted... Therefore, other dreams that people see or interpret have no validity and cause conjecture at most; as the issuance of ahad narrations is conjectural, so it is not permissible to act on them in what is related to the religion; because of the explicit of the words of God Almighty that has said: “Indeed, conjecture is not sufficient for (proving) the truth”. Therefore, the claimants who now, by relying on dreams and interpreting some ahad narrations, consider themselves to be children, successors and messengers of Imam Mahdi, peace be upon him, claim something that cannot be religiously acknowledged. [Question and Answer 4]
Mansoor Hashemi Khorasani is just a Muslim scholar who has risen up with the purpose of making Mahdi, peace be upon him, appear and bringing him to power, and invites Muslims to pledge allegiance to him instead of pledging allegiance to others, and in this way, he prepares the ground for the establishment of the pure and perfect Islam in this world, and for this reason, it is obligatory for every Muslim to support him. However, if it has been made clear to you and to some other Muslims, for whatever reason, that in addition to this objective and evident character, he is also a promised person, supporting him is a fortiori obligatory for you; as supporting him is also obligatory for Muslims to whom this matter has not been made clear; because this Muslim scholar invites toward Mahdi, peace be upon him, and prepares the ground for his advent in a perceptible and evident manner, and this is sufficient for every Muslim to support him; as God Almighty has said: “And help one another in goodness and piety”. [Critique and Response 15]
Although some Muslims from among people of knowledge consider him the promised person who will prepare the ground for the advent of Mahdi, peace be upon him, and believe that it is obvious in view of his intellectual, practical and outward characteristics, and there is no need for doubt and dispute in this regard, but he does not direct his concern to such a claim, and only strives to prepare the ground for the advent of Mahdi, peace be upon him, in a practical and realistic manner, and believes that the intellectual and religious necessity to accompany him in this regard is dependent on this practical and realistic preparation, not on his claim that he is the promised person; because there are many who claim that they are promised people, but there is not a single person who prepares the ground for his advent in a practical and realistic manner! Considering that claimants have no concern but to prove their claim, and do nothing but dispute about who they are and what their status and virtue are, while clearly, the stature of Mansoor Hashemi Khorasani is beyond such selfish acts, and he is busy with more important works than them, which is teaching the pure and perfect Islam to Muslims of the world and training a sufficient number of them in order to help Mahdi, peace be upon him; the works that if accomplished by him, the advent of Mahdi, peace be upon him, will be realized, even though no one considers him the promised person who will prepare the ground for it. [Critique and Response 10]
It is clear that whoever believes in the oneness of God in creation, legislation and sovereignty, and believes in His last Prophet, Muhammad, peace and blessings of God be upon him and his family, and does not deny any of the pillars of His religion such as the Book, the Angels, the Day of Judgment, the Qiblah, prayer, Zakat, fasting, Hajj and jihad, is a Muslim, even though he does not think like you about the rest of his beliefs and has a different interpretation. This is a well-known fact from the Book of God and the mutawatir Sunnah of His Prophet, peace and blessings of God be upon him and his family, and the righteous predecessors were in agreement with it, to the extent that it may be considered one of the obvious facts of Islam, and its denier can be accused of ignorance and misguidance. Therefore, it is clear that “all Shias” are not considered disbelievers and polytheists; because most of them believe in the oneness of God, His last Prophet, and the pillars of His religion; so considering all of them as disbelievers and polytheists, even though due to some of their deviations and mistakes, is pure imperiousness and unfairness. [Critique and Response 11]
Interpreting the verse of purification as Ali, Fatima, Hasan and Husain, and not interpreting it as the mothers of believers, is the interpretation of the Messenger of God, peace and blessings of God be upon him and his family, which has been narrated from him by many of his companions, such as Abdullah ibn Abbas, Abu Sa‘id al-Khudri, Sa‘d ibn Abi Waqqas, Anas ibn Malik, Wathila ibn al-Asqa‘, Ja‘far ibn Abi Talib, Zayd ibn Arqam, Bara’ ibn Azib, Jabir ibn Abdullah, Abu Huraira, Abu Hamra, Abu Barza, Umm Salamah, Aisha, Safiyya, and others, and it has been narrated that the Messenger of God, peace and blessings of God be upon him and his family, said explicitly: “This verse was revealed concerning five persons: I, Ali, Fatima, Hasan and Husain: ‘Indeed, God wants to remove any impurity from you, O Ahl al-Bayt, and make you completely pure’”, and that one of the wives of the Messenger of God, peace and blessings of God be upon him and his family, said: “I said: O Messenger of God, am I not one of the Ahl al-Bayt? He said: You are upon good, you are one of the wives of the Messenger of God”, and in another narration: “I said: O Messenger of God, what about me? Then I swear to God, he did not say yes, and said: You are upon good”, and in another narration: “I said: O Messenger of God, am I not one of the Ahl al-Bayt? He said: You are one of the wives of the Messenger of God, and did not say: You are one of the Ahl al-Bayt”. Therefore, he made it clear that his wives are not from the members of his Ahl al-Bayt intended in the verse of purification. [Critique and Response 11]
Zayd ibn Arqam, Ja‘far ibn Abi Talib, Wathila, Umm Salamah and Safiyya have narrated that the part ﴿إِنَّمَا يُرِيدُ اللَّهُ لِيُذْهِبَ عَنْكُمُ الرِّجْسَ أَهْلَ الْبَيْتِ وَيُطَهِّرَكُمْ تَطْهِيرًا﴾; “Indeed, God wants to remove any impurity from you, O Ahl al-Bayt, and make you completely pure” was revealed separately in the house of Umm Salamah as an actuality-proposition, and was not revealed with the part ﴿وَقَرْنَ فِي بُيُوتِكُنَّ وَلَا تَبَرَّجْنَ تَبَرُّجَ الْجَاهِلِيَّةِ الْأُولَى ۖ وَأَقِمْنَ الصَّلَاةَ وَآتِينَ الزَّكَاةَ وَأَطِعْنَ اللَّهَ وَرَسُولَهُ﴾, which means: “And stay in your houses, do not flaunt your charms as in the former times of ignorance, perform prayer, pay zakat, and obey God and His Messenger”, and this indicates that they are two separate verses that were brought together in writing; considering that the order of writing the verses does not correlate with the order of their revelation. What strengthens this fact is the difference in pronouns in the two parts; because the pronoun in the part ﴿وَقَرْنَ فِي بُيُوتِكُنَّ...﴾ is a second-person pronoun for the plural feminine, but the pronoun in the part ﴿إِنَّمَا يُرِيدُ اللَّهُ لِيُذْهِبَ عَنْكُمُ الرِّجْسَ أَهْلَ الْبَيْتِ وَيُطَهِّرَكُمْ تَطْهِيرًا﴾ is a second-person pronoun for the plural masculine; as al-Tahawi (d. 321 AH) has also pointed this out in Sharh Mushkil al-Athar, when he said after mentioning the narrations: “What we narrated from the Messenger of God, peace and blessings of God be upon him, (that said) to Umm Salamah, indicates that the verse intends the Messenger of God, peace and blessings of God be upon him, Ali, Fatima, Hasan and Husain, peace be upon them, not other than them. So if one says: The Book of God indicates that the wives of the Prophet, peace and blessings of God be upon him, are the ones whom are intended in this verse; because before that in the same chapter He said: ‘O Prophet! say to your wives: If you’ to His words ‘as in the former times of ignorance’ then He said: ‘Indeed, God wants to remove any impurity from you’, our answer to him is: What has been stated in it up to before His words: ‘Indeed, God wants to’, addresses his wives, then God continued His words by addressing his Ahl (al-Bayt): ‘Indeed, God wants to remove’, and it addresses men, because He said in it: ‘to remove any impurity from you, O Ahl al-Bayt, and make you pure’, and this is how men are addressed, while what comes before that, uses the letter ‘N («ن»)’, and this is how women are addressed. So we understand that ‘Indeed, God wants to remove’ is an address to men whom He has willed to make them aware of His honor for them and His elevation in their dignity, if He made their women what He has described, for what has been stated in the verses before the one addressing them”, and it is not just al-Tahawi that has said so, but rather ibn Atiyyah (d. 542 AH) has attributed it to the majority, and said after pointing out the narrations: “One of the proofs of the majority is God’s words: «عَنْكُمُ وَيُطَهِّرَكُمْ» with the letter ‘M («م»)’, while if it had been exclusive to women, it would have been «عَنْكُنَّ»”. [Critique and Response 11]
Some people also look at the book with their preconceptions. They have not yet seen and read it, they deny it and consider it invalid and label it a lot. They are those who have already taken their decisions and if they read the book, they read it not for understanding and guidance and promotion, but for defamation, denegation, making excuses and mockery, and they are not seeking wisdom and guidance. This group, only on that day of regret in which the eyes will be out of the pupils, will understand that how fast they made decision and were deceived by the devil and lost the field... A group of people are also so prejudiced such that as soon as they confront the slightest difference in the book with things and people whom they believe in, lose their control with no hesitance and cast aspersion, use invective language, insult and practice accusation. This group also will only understand the truth in the day that will be entered into the hellfire with their beloveds and idols. A fire that has been ignited by their blind prejudice and ignorant disgrace. That day is the day of a great regret, and from that day we must seek refuge toward God... Some people are also so much of imitators that they do not even drink water without the permission of their imitative authority and forerunner, let alone reading, understanding and obligation to a valuable book such as “Return to Islam”! They also close their eyes as soon as they encounter the book, and do whatever their imitative authority and forerunner states. They will also face a great regret in a hard day when their imitative authority and forerunner will not help them. [Article 4]
Some people also read this honorable book and find out its hierology, but in the turmoil of sedition, chaos, marginalization, demagogy and poisonous propagandas of the enemies of God are being deceived and pessimistic, and their hearts become darkened, and instead of the context they consider the margin, and ultimately get far away from the truth. Of course, there is no doubt that those sedition-makers who prevent from the path of God, first of all are in charge of that great sin and a painful torment awaits them. These demagogue, despite the openness of the gate of scholarly and logical critique, since they have no proof and logic, try to poison the environment. But anyway, the audience of this honorable book must know that the truthful movement of all Prophets and Guardians of God throughout history has been accompanied by poisoning, insulting, accusing, sedition-making of authoritarians, tyrants and dictators, and the enemies of God have always poisoned the environment in the worst manner, and prevented people from the path of God. Hence, this is not something new that has happened and the audience of this honorable book must consider its proofs and reasons freely and fairly, and regardless of the temporary emotions and false excitements, should find the truth and act in accordance with its requirements, Insha’Allah. [Article 4]
In fact, maybe by relying on the pure hierology “criterion and impediments to cognition” which his Excellency Allamah has explained in the honorable book “Return to Islam”, one can say that whenever someone adheres to the criterion of cognition and stays away from the impediments to cognition, will achieve the truth by the permission of God, and by the divine success, will be successful in performing its requirements. But the point here is that the book Return to Islam is the starting point. The book begins with epistemology and then teaches us the correct way of cognition, and then does not abandon us, but rather in the very same way that taught us that, shows us the truth of Islam and the true Islam. One may say that this honorable book provides a thorough and comprehensive knowledge for its reader that this knowledge (certainty) is an introduction for action. But it is important that this thorough and comprehensive knowledge has a brief knowledge in its introduction, and that is the knowledge of our ignorance. It means someone who presumes that he/she does not know something and it is possible that he/she is wrong, and also presumes that those whom he/she is in love with and respects and obeys, have been wrong, such a person finds the book and goes to a corner and with these mere possibilities and with fairness and without suspicion, reads it and will be guided by God’s will. We may bring an example to clarify this subject which is in fact an example from Quran. A doctor can treat and heal a patient by the permission of God, but cannot do the same for a dead person! His Excellency Allamah can guide those who are sick but alive with this honorable book by the permission of God. Someone whose heart is dead in the marsh of compound ignorance and the fear of non-God and ignorant prejudices and arrogance and blind imitation, cannot be brought to path of truth with any wisdom. As He has said: ﴿وَمَا أَنْتَ بِمُسْمِعٍ مَنْ فِي الْقُبُورِ﴾. Therefore, it is necessary for me and people to seek refuge to God from these defects that will kill the wisdom and sicken the heart, and we should ask Him for guidance and progression, May it be with His compassion, people’s heart soften, and they return to His Caliph on earth and establish pure and complete Islam and universal justice on earth, and this is the cognition which the great scholar Mansoor Hashemi Khorasani, may God protect him, has explained in his book and invites toward it . And praise be to God, the lord of the worlds. [Article 4]
There is no doubt that at the top of all the common desires and goals of the Islamic world, there is the establishment of global justice and the elimination of oppression and corruption on the earth through the formation of an independent and truthful Islamic government; a government that Islam has promised to Muslims since the early days, and undoubtedly, any other legitimate and correct desire will come true only in this way, and all Muslims of the world have such a desire, whether they know it or not. Meanwhile, what led many Muslims astray and caused them to deviate from the original path of Islam is this ominous and baseless illusion that they do not need the guidance of God to achieve this long-held and beautiful desire, and each group of them can follow whatever path they think is right and choose anyone they like to lead them toward this great goal! But we can clearly see the evil results of such an ominous illusion and naive imagination and the calamities it has brought upon Muslims of the world! Today, every group of Muslims have made someone dominant over themselves and pledged allegiance to a ruler they like. A group of them allies themselves with unbelievers, and made Muslim rulers who are in fact traitorous and malevolent hypocrites rule over them, and another group of them, with a strange willfulness and recklessness, pledge allegiance to their self-proclaimed rulers and caliphs and support them to have more power and authority. Therefore, ignorance, oppression, enmity, war and poverty have prevailed over them, and destruction and collapse have overshadowed them. [Article 5]
Muslims ignored God and did not take His will and desire about this matter into account and left behind the way He set for them to achieve this great goal. Muslims forgot that the permission of God and His command are the origin and foundation of creation and the cornerstone of the formation of the world, and all matters, equations and calculations take place only with His will and desire, and without them not even a pebble will move on the earth. Muslims forgot that God has determined a way and a method for fulfilling His promises, and has made it necessary to be commitment to this way and method in order to fulfill them. Muslims of the world neglected this great fact that God Almighty has considered exemplary and exemplary exclusively for Himself, and has forbidden them from associating partners with Him in them, and has considered associating partners with Him in them as an example of polytheism toward God. Indeed, how can they reach such a sacred goal by associating partners with Him and disobeying His commands?! Undoubtedly, God the Exalted is the true Ruler and the main Owner of this world, and the rule over it belongs to Him alone. Therefore, the realization of global justice is possible only through the way He has wants, and the ruler He has chosen for people is the only one who can establish justice, no one else. This is a fact that has been completely neglected and forgotten, despite its clarity and rightness, and of course this neglect is very strange; because all Muslims agree that the one who rises for the truth and establishes justice on the earth, and the only one whom God has announced his movement and uprising for the truth and justice and his final victory, according to mutawatir narrations, is Mahdi from the household of Muhammad; “the one who will fill the earth with justice and equity, as it has been filled with oppression and cruelty”, and there is no such agreement about anyone else. This means that he is the only legitimate ruler who is approved by God at this time, and at present the only one to whom pledging allegiance is permitted and even obligatory for Muslims of the world is Mahdi, and any allegiance to anyone other than him is disobedience to God’s command and thus following Satan, and, according to the statement of the Quran, it is considered as resorting to arbitration of Taghut, and this indicates the importance and centrality of pledging allegiance to Mahdi in Islamic teachings. [Article 5]
