What is Islam’s stance on imitation (taqlid)?
Question & Answer
A fundamental rule that every Muslim must know and pay attention to is that conjecture has no authority in Islam; because Allah Almighty has explicitly said in His Book: ﴿إِنَّ الظَّنَّ لَا يُغْنِي مِنَ الْحَقِّ شَيْئًا﴾[1]; “Indeed, conjecture is not sufficient for the truth,” and He has reproached some people for following conjecture and said: ﴿إِنْ يَتَّبِعُونَ إِلَّا الظَّنَّ وَإِنْ هُمْ إِلَّا يَخْرُصُونَ﴾[2]; “They follow nothing but conjecture and do nothing but guess.” This means that Muslims’ beliefs and deeds must always be based on knowledge; as Allah Almighty has explicitly said: ﴿وَلَا تَقْفُ مَا لَيْسَ لَكَ بِهِ عِلْمٌ﴾[3]; “Do not follow what you have no knowledge of.” Therefore, beliefs and deeds that are based on conjecture are incorrect and unacceptable to Allah, and it is clear that imitating a fallible person in matters of belief and deed, by following his words or actions without knowing his evidence, leads only to conjecture; because it is not known whether he has reached the truth or made an error, and accordingly, it “is not sufficient for the truth.”
As for the argument of those who permit imitation in deeds is that they differentiate between beliefs and deeds and say that conjecture is proof in deeds. However, this distinction is not established in Islam, and Allah’s statement in His Book is general and applies to both equally, and it is not permissible to limit His statement through analogy (qiyas) or narrations. Therefore, a Muslim must learn his Islamic beliefs and deeds from a young age, just as he learns reading, writing, and other necessities of life, and he must neither accept a belief nor practice a deed except with certain evidence. In Islam, certain evidence is a verse from the Quran, a widely transmitted Hadith from the Prophet 
, or hearing directly from Allah’s Caliph on Earth. This is the pure and perfect Islam explained by Allamah Mansoor Hashemi Khorasani 
in his book Return to Islam with clear pieces of evidence and sufficient proofs.
For more information on this, refer to Critique and Response 1.
*For more information, look at the appendices.
The website for the office of Mansoor Hashemi Khorasani
The section for answering questions
Appendices
Sub-Questions & Answers
What is your opinion on imitation? A few years ago, I used to be an imitator (muqallid), but I turned to Allah Almighty by disavowing all sources of imitation (maraji‘ al-taqlid) and those who claim to act as substitutes for Imam Mahdi 
in his absence. I also turned to Allah by disavowing the concept of guardianship of the Islamic Jurist (wilayat al-faqih) and those who believe in it. Was it the right decision? May Allah reward you well, bless you, and support Islam through you.
We have previously explained that imitating a fallible person is clearly forbidden, and it is obligatory for every Muslim to seek knowledge of the principles and practical rulings of religion; as stated in the well-known Hadith: «طَلَبُ الْعِلْمِ فَرِيضَةٌ عَلَى كُلِّ مُسْلِمٍ»[1]; “Seeking knowledge is an obligation upon every Muslim.” We have also explained that Allah has not granted guardianship—meaning absolute obligatory obedience—to any fallible person. Therefore, whoever attributes such guardianship to a fallible person has fabricated a lie against Allah, ﴿وَكَفَى بِهِ إِثْمًا مُبِينًا﴾[2]; “and it is sufficient as a manifest sin.” If Allah has guided you to this, then He has guided you to the straight path. However, this is merely correct belief, which constitutes half of faith, and the other half is righteous deed. One of the most important examples of righteous deed in our time—after preserving prayer, Zakat, and fasting in the month of Ramadan—is to prepare the ground for the advent of Imam Mahdi by drawing people’s attention to his existence and the necessity of his role and gathering a sufficient number of them to seek and support him. This is what Allamah Mansoor Hashemi Khorasani has undertaken excellently, and therefore, it is obligatory for every Muslim to help him with it to the best of his ability, in accordance with the words of Allah Almighty: ﴿وَتَعَاوَنُوا عَلَى الْبِرِّ وَالتَّقْوَى﴾[3]; “And help one another in goodness and piety.”
↑[1] . Sunan of ibn Majah, vol. 1, p. 81; al-Mahasin by al-Barqi, vol. 1, p. 225; Basa’ir al-Darajat by al-Saffar, p. 22; Musnad of al-Bazzar, vol. 14, p. 45; Musnad of Abi Ya‘la, vol. 5, p. 223; al-Kafi by al-Kulayni, vol. 1, p. 30; Mu‘jam of ibn al-A‘rabi, vol. 1, p. 180; al-Mu‘jam al-Awsat by al-Tabarani, vol. 2, p. 297, vol. 4, p. 245; al-Amali by al-Mufid, p. 29; Musnad of Abi Hanifa by Abu Nu‘aym al-Asbahani, p. 24; Musnad of al-Shihab by ibn Salama, vol. 1, p. 135; Shu‘ab al-Iman by al-Bayhaqi, vol. 2, p. 254; al-Amali by al-Tusi, p. 488
↑[2] . An-Nisa/ 50
↑[3] . Al-Ma’idah/ 2
The website for the office of Mansoor Hashemi Khorasani
The section for answering questions
You can also read this content in the following languages:
If you are fluent in another language, translate the content into it and send us your translation to publish on the website. [Translation Form]
×
Ask a Question