An Imam has various characteristics\n(1), among which the most important of them is the guidance of people. In addition to the apparent guidance the Imam\nhas for the people, he has a specific kind of guidance and spiritual pull, and\nwith it the Imam has an impact on the hearts of those qualified, which will\nguide them towards the highest degree of guidance. This is called the innate guidance.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Through innate guidance the Imam, with\nhis ability of having knowledge of the unseen, can cleanse and ignite the\nhearts and move the souls towards Allah. \nWith the permission of Allah, the Imam has power over the hearts and\nsouls of the people. He helps worthy\nhearts that need guidance towards the road to completion. He is like a doctor who cares for and is\nworried for his patient\u2019s health.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
History has recorded many incidents\nregarding the spiritual and innate guidance of people by the Ahlul Bayt\n(PBUT). The following is a similar\nexample from Imam Reza (PBUH).<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Ahmad ibn Abi Nasr Bezanti (2), a\ncompanion of Imam Reza (PBUH) narrates, \u201cImam Reza (PBUH) sent his ride for me\nso I can visit him in the village of Serria.(3) Once I had arrived, I entered\nupon the Imam and stayed there till after dark. \nWhen the Imam wanted to stand up, he said, \u2018I don\u2019t think you can return\nto Medina at this time of night.\u2019<\/p>\n\n\n\n
I said, \u2018Yes, may my life be\nsacrificed for you; that is true.\u2019<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Imam said, \u2018You can stay with us\ntonight, and return to Medina tomorrow with the help of Allah.\u2019<\/p>\n\n\n\n
I said, \u2018I am obedient to your order.\u2019<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The Imam then asked his servant to\nplace the Imam\u2019s own personal bed, blanket, and pillow for me. I wondered to\nmyself if anyone had spent the night in this manner. And that maybe Allah had given me a special\nstatus to bless me with such honor, more than perhaps other companions. As I was pondering over these thoughts I\nlooked into how the Imam had sent his personal ride for me to bring me to his\nplace, placed his personal rugs, and allowed me to sleep in his blanket and\nplace my head on the pillow that belonged to him. I thought perhaps no one of his companions\nhad been blessed as such.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
I was sitting and pondering over my\nthoughts when the Imam who was sitting beside me suddenly says, \u2018When Sa\u2019sa\u2019eh\nibn Sohan (4) who was among the companions of my grandfather Amiral-Mu\u2019minin\n(PBUH) became ill, Amiral-Mu\u2019minin (PBUH) went to visit him. He sat by his bed and showed affection. When he wanted to leave, he said, \u201cSa\u2019Sa\u2019eh,\ndo not use my visit to you as a form of pride over your friends, do not use me\nas an excuse to glorify yourself amongst people, (thinking) that I am the\nperson whom Amiral-Mu\u2019minin came to visit me when I was ill. I had a religious responsibility, which I\ncompleted. Do not place this as your\n(merit), rather look at your own actions and see how they are. My coming, beside your bed and visiting you\nis not an act of saving for you. Attend\nto your actions, for they will look unto your actions on the Day of Judgment.\u2019<\/p>\n\n\n\n
With that Imam Reza (PBUH) completed\nthe story, stood up, said goodbye, and left.5\u201d <\/p>\n\n\n\n
Indeed this is how the Imam (PBUH)\nwith support from his spiritual power became aware of the inner thoughts of\nBezanti, and helped him realize the danger present in self-centeredness and\nseeing oneself as greater than others.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
(The above is a\nsection taken from Imam Reza (PBUH), the resemblance of Allah\u2019s kindness by\nAyatollah Zia\u2019 Abadi \u2013 with minor changes)<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The Roshd Website congratulates all\nMuslims, especially you dear friend, upon 11th of Dhul Qa\u2019dah, the birthday\nanniversary of the guiding Imam and the leading Master, the eighth Imam of the Shiites, Imam Ali ibn Musa\nal-Reza (PBUH).<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Footnotes:<\/p>\n\n\n\n
1.The Universe\nand the life of mankind is managed under two systems: Takvin and Tashri\u2019i.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Takvin System means the laws which\nencompass the universe in which mankind has no control over it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Tashri\u2019i System means the laws which\nare within the reach and control of mankind.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Imam has certain statuses in both of\nthese systems. In the Takvin world, by\nthe will of Allah (SWT), the Imam possesses the ability to create and control\nanything and anywhere in the universe. This is known as the Wilayah Takvini.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
In the Tashri\u2019i world also Imam holds\ncertain significances such as:<\/p>\n\n\n\n
a-Rule: Execution of divine justice,\nconfronting the tyrants that step on the divine religion and keeping Allah\u2019s\nvalues alive.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
b-Reference: Explanation and\ninterpretation of the teachings of the Holy Quran and all the divine\ncommandments.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
c-Innate guidance: Most important\namong these guidance, is Imam\u2019s leadership of followers at their practical\ndeeds and to direct their souls towards getting closer to Allah (SWT).\n(Reference: Imam Reza (PBUH), the resemblance of Allah\u2019s kindness by Ayatollah\nZia\u2019 Abadi, pg. 32) <\/p>\n\n\n\n
2.Ahmad Ibn Abi\nNasar Bazanti whose full name is \u201cAbuJa\u2019far Ahmad Ibn Muhammad Ibn Abi Nasr\u201d\nwas among the Imamiah scholars of Kufah; he was one of the companions of Imam\nKadhim, Imam Reza and Imam Jawad (PBUT). Bazanti is amongst the most authentic\nnarrators of his era and also an eminent scholar of jurisprudence. He passed\naway in the year 221 AH. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
3. Serria is the\nname of a village near the city of Medina which was constructed by Imam Kadhim\n(PBUH) (Manaqib Ibn Shahr Ashub, vol. 4, pg. 382)<\/p>\n\n\n\n
4. Sa\u2019sa\u2019eh ibn\nSohan was among the remarkable companions of Amiral-Mu\u2019minin (PBUH). Because of\nhis efforts in defending the usurped right of Amiral-Mu\u2019minin (PBUH) and his\nresistance on diverging the traditions of the great Prophet (PBUH&HP),\nduring the caliphate of Uthman, he was exiled from Kufah to Demascus; and later\nexiled again by Muawiyah to Bahrain. Sa\u2019sa\u2019eh was a true companion to\nAmiral-Mu\u2019minin (PBUH) and always supported him in battles and difficult\nsituations. He was amongst the few who attended the funeral of Amiral-Mu\u2019minin\n(PBUH) in the middle of the night that was performed in secret.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
5.Qurb al-Asnad,\npg. 377; \u2018Uyoon Akhbar al-Reza(PBUH), vol. 2, pg. 213; Rejal al-Kashi, vol. 2,\npg. 853 (with minor changes)<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
An Imam has various characteristics (1), among which the most important of them is the guidance of people. In addition to the apparent guidance the Imam has for the people, he has a specific kind of guidance and spiritual pull, and with it the Imam has an impact on the hearts of those qualified, which […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[28248],"tags":[22303,17778,21728,18656,22163,18480,17964,18418,17955,21208,22302],"class_list":["post-4527","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-occasional-letters","tag-2014-09-06","tag-allah","tag-guidance","tag-heart","tag-imam-reza","tag-important","tag-knowledge","tag-occasion-letters","tag-people","tag-specific","tag-the-kind-helper"],"yoast_head":"\n