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the Muslims. Ali told Abu Sofyan :-
" You wanted to ruin Islam and the Muslims during the liftime of the Holy Prophet and now also you aim to do the same, but Ali will never allow you to succeed."

Miracles- Their Value arid Significance

IF PEOPLE, PARTICULARLY the enlightened minds of the educated ones among us, only know the meaning of a miracle, its actual value and its significance in the field of guidance to humanity towards the divine truth, far from demanding it, they would never think of it.
A miracle is called in arabic ' Mo'jiza' , i.e., an act or manifesta- tion which makes the world helpless against it, i.e., none in the world other than the men of God, can work it. A miracle has three definite aspects of its indication:-
1. The need of it relating to the mission of an apostle of God, means his helplessness to make men realise the truth or understand it through the appeal to the faculty of reasoning in the intellect of the people. Or the unreasonable adamance on the part of the people to believe in the bonafide of the man of God being in fact an apostle of God.
2. The demand of it on the part of the people, is an indication of the lack of the necessary strenath of the faculty of reasoning to realise, understand or recognise the truth by means of their own native endowment of the intellect, and their readiness to believe in a thing only when they are made help- less against it.
3. The use of a miracle in leading the people to the belief in a factor, is to somehow compel them to do it, forcing the belief on them, though they may like it or not.
The power to work miracles was given to every apostle of God, and to the Holy Prophet the last one of them and along with him, every one of the Imams or the divinely commissioned guides from his Holy House, was given the power in its totality. All the prophets, preceding the Holy Prophet, freely used the power and


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 worked out miracles for two reasons:-
1.The people in the initial or transitory stages of their intellect, failed to grasp the truth by their limited reasoning and needed something unusual and impossible to be enacted to convince them of the bonafide of the claim of the man of God to be the apostle from God.
2. Since man in those ages, with his yet to develop intellect, was on the wrong track, the divine mercy willed to stop his straying, even by the force of the manifestation of the supreme power of the miracles.
When the final message of guidance in its perfect consolidation was to be given to man with his intellect developed to the extent necessary to understand the right and the wrong without any difficulty, and when man had to be given the individual responsibility after receiving the final guidance, there was no necessity to force the conscience or the intellect in man to accept anything blindly, merely guided by the manifestations of miraculous events. When the heaven's decree of ' No compulsion in faith' ' None shall bear the burden of the other'-'Every atom of goodness shall have its return and every atom of evil shall be punished'- had to be announced, there was neither the necessity to show any miracles nor there was any meaning in forcing the truth on man when man had to be tried with the responsibility of the individual choice of the right course.

The Biggest Miracles of the Holy Prophets

THE EXPLANATION REGARDING the meaning of a miracle, and its significance given above, does not mean that the Holy Prophet or the Imams of His Holy House did not show any miracles to their people. The miracles shown by the previous prophets ended with them and remained only in the scriptures, but the miracles of the Holy Prophet had been of various kinds. Some of his miracles were timely as those of the previous apostles- viz.
1. The dead, dried and the rotten tree getting evergreen by his touch.
2. The coming of the date palm to him and its returning to its original position, by his command.


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3. His foretelling the fate of the Benedict against Abu Taleb, hung in the Ka'ba,
and the innumerable other similar events. Some were those which continued until his stay on earth viz.
1.The sweet fragrance of his body which every approacher to him felt.
2. His possessing a shadowless body.
3. His belt being taken out of his waiste, without being untied or loosened, passing through his body.
4. His seeming taller than the tallest one when walking besides him.
5. His prophecies, besides the revelations from the Lord.
6. His having no education under any mortal, and yet being the fountainhead of knowledge to be called the 'City of Knowledge.'
And the greatest and the ever- current or the everlasting miracle of his, is the Holy Qur'an with its ever- current challenge to the world as a whole, to bring a chapter, or a few verses of its kind, which humanity till now could not do, nor would it do until the end of the world.
Similarly, every Imam of his Holy House worked innumerable miracles in his own time.

The Succession to an Apostle of God

To KNOW AS to who is that, with whom rests the authority to appoint a successor to an apostle of God, God or man ? one should first know who actually is God's apostle. The first apostle Adam, is titled by God Himself as his 'Khalifa' or Vicegerent. Thus it becomes clear that an apostle of God is a  'Khalifatullah' i.e., the Vicegerent of God on earth.

Who appoints a 'Khalifatullah'

To KNOW AS to who appoints a Khalifatullah' , i.e., the Vicegerent of God ? God Himself or man ? or to know as to how the appoint- ment is effected, by God's independent decree or by any election among men by themselves, or by the nomination of a man by another


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man, we need not refer to any authority of any priest or consult any philosopher, for the Holy Qur'an is too plain and too aloud about the matter. In the very second chapter of the Holy Book, is there, that God did not consult even the sinless and the faithful specie of the angels, but only informed them of His decided will, to appoint Adam as His Vicegerent on earth:-
"When said thy Lord unto the angels, Verily, I am appoint- ing a 'Khalifa' (a Vicegerent) in the earth. 2:30
Hearing the announcement of the will of the Lord, the angels submitted their knowledge about the character and the conduct of the people who then inhabited the earth, saying:-
"What! wilt Thou appoint the one who maketh mischief in it and slteddeth blood? and we celebrate Thy praise and extol Thy holiness." 2:30
The absolute independence of the Lord did not tolerate even the enquiry on the part of the angels who submitted only a truth, and immediately the Lord remarked:-
"Verily I know what ye know not." 2:30
The above one verse of the Holy Qur'an gives out many impor- tant factors about the Vicegerency of the Lord, the mode of the appointment of a Vicegerent, his duties, and his position among the creation as a whole. The verse gives out:-
1. The ' Khalifatullah' or the Vicegerent of God on earth, is appointed by God Himself.
2. The personal qualities of the 'Khalifatullah' are in- conceivable by, or unknown even to the angels.
3. The personal excellence of the 'Khalifatullah' is known only to God, and God does not deem even the angels as fit to bear the knowledge of it, hence He did not give it out to them. The angels were only told what God knoweth about His ' Khalifa', even they knew not.
4. The term ' Khalifa' suggests that the one appointed is to rule the kingdom of God on behalf of God, i.e., as God wills.
5. A ' Khalifa' is he who is vested with all the powers and


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the authority of him whom he represents. Thus the  'Khalfatullah' will be endowed with all the powers and the authority over the Kingdom of God. All creation of the Lord will be under the 'Khalifatullah' and the ' Khalifatullah' being under the absolute submission to the Lord.
6. The Holy Qur'an gives out another factor for our guidance that a ' Khalifa' or the vicegerent of God, is given the store of knowledge necessary for the office, by God Himself. Adam was given knowledge by God Himself and then the angels were asked to give out what was taught to Adam, which they failed to do.
"And He (God) taught Adam all the Names, then presented them to the Angels; He(God) said (unto the Angels), 'Tell Me ye the names of those if ye be truthful'." 2:31
The Angels said that they knew nothing more than what they were taught. 2:32
It means that what was taught to Adam was not taught to the Angels.
7. As the vicegerency will proceed further, according to the evolutionary progress of the human intellect with which the Vicegerent of the age and of the place Will have to deal, so will the Lord, naturally gift His Vicegerent with higher intellect and an increased store of knowledge.
8. When it is the will of the Lord to send to mankind His Last or the Chief Vicegerent, 33 :40, the Vicegererit now sent, will naturally and necessarily be endowed with knowledge in its fullness- and such a Vicegerent alone will have the right and courage to say :'I am the City of Know1edge' And only such a Vicegerent will naturally be the nearest one to the Lord 53 :9 and His dearest one. Being the nearest one, he would not speak or act but. what the Lord reveals to him and only about such a Deputy of His, the Lord declared:-
" Nor doth he (The Holy Prophet Muhammad) speaketh


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of his own inclination."
It is naught but a revelation revealed. 53:3
It is a natural and a simple inference that when the first of God's apostles, sent into the world in its primitive state, is called His ' Khalifa' or the Vicegerent, the Last one of His apostles sent to humanity with the maturity of intellect to bear the truth in its fullness, must naturally and necessarily be the 'Khlifa' or the Vicegerent of God in the Highest Order or Grade. The Holy Qur'an gives out the fact that among the apostles of God, there are grades of superiority of one over the other:-
"These apostles, We have exalted some of them over the others. Of them are some unto whom God hath spoken 20:11 and some He bath raised in degrees." 2:253
9. If the first ' Khalifa' or the Vicegerent of God, was superior to the angels in his personal excellence as to entitle him to the 'Sijdah' or the prostration of the angels 20:116 the Last or the Chief of the Apostles will naturally be of a superior- most excel- lence. His purity physical and spiritual, will be matchlessly divine among the creation as a whole. Naturally such a super-fine personality can never be succeeded but by those of the same purity. Referring to the purity of the Last Apostle and the people of his Holy House, the Ahlul-Bait, God has declared :-
" God only willeth that He keepeth away uncleanliness from you, 0' Ahlul-Bait, and purify you a thorough purifi- cation." 33:33
God could have purified only the Holy Prophet, if the divine guidance to mankind had to end with him. The equal purification of his 'Ahlul-Bait' along with him, can never be purposeless for God is the All-Wise Lord. The act of the All-Wise can never be purpose- less or vain. Thus the equal purification of the 'Ahlul- Bait' along with the Holy Prophet, clearly indicates that the 'Ahlul Bait' have also to serve one and the same identical purpose along with the Holy Prophet and after him, not as apostles but as the 'Imams' or the vicegerents of the Lord on earth. It is only a matter of simple


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common sense to know that the place of the pure can be taken only by the pure and no impurity or pollution can ever fit in, in the place of purity, perfect and supreme.
10. Every apostle of God was a ' Khalifatullah' or the vicegerent of God, some were for themselves, some for a particular people and some for a particular place and age with particular assignment and jurisdiction: Noah was sent to a particular people 23:23, Moses to the people of Pharaoh 20:24, Saleh to Thamud 7:7.3, Lot to his people 7:80 and similarly the others.
11. The Last Apostle or the Chief Vicegerent of God, was sent not to any one people or time, but to mankind as a whole i.e., as long as mankind is there on earth 7:158, 4:79, 34:28. And he was declared not only a ' Nazeer' or a Warner or a ' Rasool' i.e., a Messenger but as ' Sirajun Muneer' an Ever- Lighted Lamp 33 :46 and more than any other status or position, he has been given an exclusive distinction as the 'Mercy unto the Worlds' 21 :107.
12. The position of the Last Apostle of God is clearly stated to be over and above all the other apostles as a witness over them on the Day of Judgment which declaration also clearly hints that in the realm of spirit or in the order of existence , the Last one of the apostles, must necessarily have existed even prior to Adam as the Holy Prophet said  'Awwalo' ma Khalaqallah Noori' i.e., What God first created is my 'Noor' , Light. It is evident that he was ever vigilant over the ministries of all the apostles of God, preceding him in the apostolic service on earth. Otherwise he could not be a witness on all his predecessors: "
"And on that Day We shall raise up in every people a witness on them from among themselves, and bring thee (0' Our Apostle Muhammad) as a witness on them (all). 16:89
It is a well-known fact that a doctor alone can take the place of a doctor or an Engineer only can take the place of an Engineer.


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It is quite natural that a successor to a ' Khalifatullah' can never be but a ' Khalifatullah and he could be none else other than of those purified by God Himself 33:33 of the same calibre and of the same excellence and purity. It is referring to this fact identifying the personal excellence of his successors the Holy Imams (the Khalifatullahs), that the Holy Prophet, has said:-
" I and Ali are of one and the same Light."
And about the Twelve Imams who will succeed him, the Holy Prophet declared:-
Awwalona Muhammad -    The First one of us is Muhammad
Ausatona Muhammad        The Middle one of us is Muham- mad
Aakirona Muhammad-       The Last one of us is Muhammad
Kollona Muhammad Every one of us is Muhammad
i.e.,Like the Holy Prophet Muhammad, all the Imams succeeding him, though not as apostles of God, are identical in their being the vicegerents of the Lord, on the earth with the same purity and the excellence, physical and spiritual, gifted to them by their Lord Himself.
It is necessary for the readers to know that 'Khilafat' means here 'Imamat' and 'Imamat' actually means  'Vilayat' or the divine guardianship or mastery.
The Holy Prophet Muhammad was an 'Imam' as well as a ' Rasool' (Apostle) or ' Nabi' (the Prophet of God)- The 'Imamat' , or the ' Vilayat' of the Holy Prophet is superior or higher to his ' Risalat', i.e., apostleship, or his ' Nubowwat', i.e., prophethood, and his ' Risalat' and his ' Nubowwat' end ' with the conveyance of the message or the conclusion of his ministry as a Prophet but his 'Imamat', i.e., Leadership or Guidance, or his ' Vilayat', i.e., his Guardianship or Mastery remains with him and his successors 'Imams' or the ' Valies', for ever, until the end of the world.
It is in the light of these guiding factors given out by the Holy Qur'an, the Final Word of God, that one has to view the position of the Holy Prophet Muhammad or the Holy Imams, particularly of Husain, connected with the subject of this brief work.


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The Imamat, promised to Abraham

THE IMAMAT OR the Guidance or the Leadership first bestowed upon Abraham, and promised by the Lord to be continued in his seed, was fulfilled in the immediate succession to the Holy Prophet:
" And when his Lord tried Abraham with certain words, he fulfilled them. He said "Verily I make thee an Imam (Guide) for mankind." Said (Abraham):'And of my offspring? Said He (God) 'And My covenant reacheth not the ' Zalimeen" (i.e., the iniquitous) 2:24
The wording of the reply to Abraham in the above verse is clear that the Imamat conferred on him will reach the offsprings of Abraham who are not Zalims (iniquitous).
The above saying agrees with the declaration in the Old Testa- ment. When Abraham prayed for Ishmael, the Lord said:-
"And as for Ishmael, I have heard thee. Behold, I have blessed him, and will make him fruitful, and will multiply him exceedingly ; Twelve Princes shall he beget, and I will make him a great nation." OT., Gen. 88:20
The greatest 'Zulm' or iniquity according to the Holy Qur'an is ' Shirk' i.e., polytheism or idolatry:-
"-Verily ' Shirk' (ascribina partners to God) is the greatest 'Zulm'(iniquity)." 31:13
It is a hard fact of history that besides the Holy Prophet Muhammad, in the lineage of Abraham through Ishmael, there is only one and that is Ali ibne Abi Taleb whom the ' Zulm' the iniquity. of ' Shirk' polytheism (i.e., idolatry) never touched, who never bow- ed before any one besides God. It is for this fact the general muslim world mention the name of Ali with the suffix ' Karramallaho Wajhaho' (i.e., he whose face God has graced not to bow to any one besides Him). All the others of the companions of the Holy Prophet, had once been idolaters. The members of his House and his lineage including Abu-Taleb (the father of Ali, the first Holy Imam), all had been free from this most abhorrent abomin- able pollution.
About Abu-Taleb, suffice it to say that if Abu-Taleb had not adopted ' Taqiah so successfully as he did, he would not have been


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able to give the asylum of safety and security to the Holy Prophet and Islam, against the hostile pagan world in Mecca. The very wordings of his sermon on the occasion of the wedding of the Holy Prophet with Lady Khadija, his commanding his son Ali to abide by the Holy Prophet's faith, and his suffering the historic privation known as the Sheb-e-Abu Taleb for the sake of the Holy Prophet and his faith and the Holy Prophet declaring the year of Abu-Taleb's death as the 'Aamul- Huzn' i.e., the Year of Grief, is sufficient to indi- cate as to what Abu Taleb was, at heart. The similitude of Abu-Taleb is the similitude of ' Ezkeil' the Momine Aale Firaun' the Believer of the people of Pharaoh. Thus Abu Taleb was the  'Momine -Qoreish' the Believer among the Qoreish.

The Logical Identification of an Imam

THE ALL-MERCIFUL LoRD has not spared any point of guidance, neces- sary to lead man to the right path. The Gracious Lord has merci- fully promised guidance to every one who sincerely seeks it:-
"(What!) Is he then who leadeth to the Truth more worth to be followed, or he who findeth not the way unless he is guided (by some one else)? What is the matter with you? How do ye judge? 10:33 '(What!) Is then, he who goeth prone upon his face, better guided or he who walketh uprtght on the straight path?" 67:21
The above verses of the Holy Qur'an give the clearest indica- tion that only the Holy Prophet and his Ahlul-Bait, who never had any education from any mortal in the world and yet were the fountain- heads of learning and knowledge, are those who could be the 'Imams' or guides or the leaders for mankind.
Only about Ali, the Holy Prophet had said:-
"I am the City of Knowledge and Ali is its Gate." "I am the City of 'Hikmat' (Wisdom) and Ali is its Gate."  "The Truth is with Ali and Ali is with Truth."
It is needless to stress much upon the position of Ali in the divinely gifted knowledge, for the muslim world as a whole knows it that there is none to match Ali in this regard besides the Holy Prophet. There are innumerable sayings of the Hoy Prophet about Ali's unique position as the 'Imam' immediately succeeding him.