Code of Conduct - Majlis 1: Devotion to the Imam

Majlis 1 - Devotion to the Imam
A firm faith in the “Wilayat” of the Imams, submission to the Imamat and devotion to the imams are the basic principles which deserve our foremost attention.

Those who are well acquainted with the true position (spiritual status) of the Imams and have a firm faith in their Imamat look upon the duties they owe to them and obedience to their commander as the duties enjoyed on them by God. (“He who obeys the apostle obeys God,” - 4:80)

God has laid down in His Holy Book that is our duty to obey them. He has associated the devotion to the Imams with devotion of His and devotion to the Prophet by saying “Obey Allah, the Prophet and those vested with Authority from among you (spiritual Leader)” (4:59)

The above makes it obligatory for those who, by the grace of God, belong to the various categories of the followers of the Imams, to have full faith in their Imamat and feel in their hearts of heart that the pleasure of the Imams is the pleasure of God and that their displeasure is the displeasure of God. They should earn ‘jannat’ (heaven) as a reword for seeking the pleasure of the Imams which is pleasure of God and should shun the hell fire which is the inevitable consequence of the wrath of the Imams which is wrath of God.

The mu’mins should concentrate on things which can bring them nearer to the Imams, and should train themselves in such a way as to act always to the satisfaction of the Imams. Their love and hatred, their pleasure and displeasure, should be regulated by the will of the Imams.

They (the mu’mins) should submit to the Imams in all their affairs, and the motive behind their submission should be obedience and no other consideration. They must bear in mind that if they fail to do this or makes the slightest omission in this direction, these cease to be ‘mu’mins’. God says: “Certainly by the Lord they will not be considered as ‘mu’mins’ unless they refer their disputes to you and are not discontented with your decision and submit to you entirely”. (4:65)

This is the duty enjoined on the mu’mins by God. Who as associated with the devotion to Himself the devotion to the Prophet and the devotion to the Imams, and who has made the Imams His vice-regents on earth after the Prophet.

The Imam-of-the-Time has as much claim on the followers of his time as the Prophet had on the followers of his time.

In short, no devotion of a devotee will be taken into account unless it is made to the Imams and none will be included among the mu’mins unless he submits to the Imams.

Selections from Qadi al-Numan’s Kitaab al-himma fi adab atba‘ al-a’imma

English translation by: Professor Jawad Muscati (Ustad Fil-Uloom il-Arabiya) & Khan Bahadur Professor A.M. Moulvi (MA)

Narrated by Khadim Philip Tyrer

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