Sometimes, certain questions occupy our minds to the extent that we cannot find peace until we find their answers. Questions like: Why do Shi’as give so much importance to the concept of Imamate and present it as a central issue? Is belief in the Imam, especially the hidden Imam, really that important? Is Imamate an essential principle among the other theological concepts, or is it secondary?
Finding answers to these questions requires some contemplation and is rooted in a deep and correct understanding of the knowledge of God. When someone knows God, meaning they realize that they have a Lord, they should logically surrender to Him and accept His Lordship. A true believer is someone who has reached this level of acceptance and surrender, acknowledging God as their Lord.
Such a person must also submit to the intermediary through whom they reach God’s commands and knowledge—this is the Prophet (peace be upon him) and the Imams (peace be upon them). They must believe in them with the same respect and authority that God has granted them in order for their belief in monotheism to be accepted. In other words, accepting the Lordship of God requires the acceptance of the Prophethood of the Prophet (peace be upon him) and the Imamate of the Imams (peace be upon them). The acceptance of the Wilayah (authority) of the Ahlul Bayt (peace be upon them) is considered a condition of the true belief in God, as it is mentioned in a Hadith: “Only someone who knows God and acknowledges the Imam from our family, the Ahlul Bayt, truly knows and worships God; and by God, anyone who does not know God or the Imam from our family has recognized and worshiped someone other than God and is misguided in doing so.” [1]
From these and similar narrations, it is clear that a true monotheist in Shi’a thought is someone who believes in God, the Prophet, and the Imams and follows their leadership. The knowledge of the Imam is the fruit of the tree of the knowledge of God. Just as each tree is recognized by its fruit, the knowledge of God is recognized through belief in the Imam. The tree of monotheism remains a tree of monotheism only when its fruit is belief in the Imam. If this fruit does not grow on the tree, it can no longer be considered a tree of the knowledge of God.
Thus, the knowledge of the Imam of the time for each individual is not only a condition but also the unique sign of knowing God. With this sign, and only with this sign, one can understand who knows God and who does not. If any other sign for knowing God has been mentioned in the Hadiths of the Ahlul Bayt, it is secondary to this principle. The fundamental principle of religion is the Wilayah of the fourteen pure lights (the Ahlul Bayt). This principle holds true even in matters of monotheism and the knowledge of God, to the extent that when someone asked Imam Hussein (peace be upon him) about the meaning of the knowledge of God, Imam Hussein (peace be upon him) explained: “[The knowledge of God is:] Knowing the Imam of each time, whose obedience is obligatory for them.” [2]
In fact, since the knowledge of God is not complete unless it is through the knowledge of the Imam of the time, Imam Hussein (peace be upon him) interpreted the knowledge of God as knowledge of the Imam of the time. Therefore, the knowledge of the Imam, meaning belief in him, is an inseparable part of the knowledge of God. If someone’s knowledge of God does not lead to the knowledge of the Imam, they cannot be considered a true monotheist.
Both Shi’a and Sunni narrate from the Prophet (peace be upon him) that “Whoever dies without knowing their Imam dies a death of ignorance.” [3] The Prophet (peace be upon him) clearly states that anyone who does not know their Imam has not left the state of ignorance and polytheism.
Thus, the knowledge of God, if it does not culminate in the knowledge of Imam al-Zamana (peace be upon him), does not make a person religious. In reality, by not recognizing the Imam and failing to submit to him, a person loses everything, whereas all the blessings and good deeds are rendered meaningful only when one has the knowledge of the Imam.
Adapted from the book “Sunshine in Exile,” by Dr. Seyyed Mohammad Bani Hashemi
Footnotes:
[1] (Al-Kafi, vol. 1, p. 181)
[2] (Alil al-Sharayi’, vol. 1, p. 9)
[3] (Al-Kafi, vol. 1, p. 377)