WHY THE NAMES OF THE IMAMS DO NOT APPEAR IN THE HOLY QURAN? First, this divine book is concise. It contains many general principles but few details, which have been left for the chief commentator, the Holy Prophet, to explain. Allah says: And whatever the Apostle gives you, accept it; and from whatever he forbids you, keep back. (59:7) Because the names and numbers of the twelve Imams are not mentioned in the Holy Quran, some people do not accept them. But on that basis they should reject their own caliphs since no verse of the Holy Quran makes any mention of their caliphs, except Ali Bin Abi Talib, or of the Umayyad or Abbasid caliphs, or of the authority vested in the Community to elect a caliph by consensus. Second, if it is necessary to reject anything which is not clearly stated in the Holy Quran, then you should reject many of the methods of our worship since there is no mention of their details in the Holy Quran. THERE IS NO MENTION OF UNITS (RAKATS) OF PRAYERS IN THE HOLY QURAN The ritual prayer is perhaps the central act of worship in a Muslims life. The Holy Prophet emphasized its performance. He said: The ritual prayer is the pillar and protector of religion. If the ritual prayer is accepted, all other religious performances will be accepted. If it is rejected, all other religious performances will also be rejected. Of course, there is no mention in the Holy Quran of the number of units (rakats) to be performed for each prayer or any of the other specific details regarding how the prayers are to be performed. Does this mean that we should abandon the prayers? The Holy Quran simply says: Establish salat (prayer). There are no details distinguishing required from optional acts. These were explained by the Holy Prophet. In the same way other commands have been stated in the Holy Quran in principle only. Their details, conditions and relevant instructions were explained by the Holy Prophet. Similarly, concerning the Imamate and caliphate, the Holy Quran says only: Obey Allah and obey the Prophet and those in authority among you. And we are bound to follow the Holy Prophets order in this regard in the same way we follow his instructions with regard to the details of the ritual prayers. Muslim commentators, whether Sunni or Shia, cannot make their own interpretations of the Holy Quran. The Holy Prophet said: If someone gives his own interpretation of the Holy Quran, his place is Hell. Accordingly, every sensible Muslim turns to the real interpreter of the Holy Quran, the Holy Prophet. For many years I have studied both Sunni and Shia Quranic commentary and hadith but have never come across a single hadith in which the Holy Prophet said that ulil-amr refers to political rulers. On the other hand, the books of both the Sunnis and Shias contain numerous reports that the Holy Prophet was asked to indicate the meaning of ulil-amr and he replied that ulil-amr referred to Ali and his eleven descendants. I will present only a few of these numerous hadith which have been narrated through sources accepted by Sunnis.
Posted on: Thu, 28 Aug 2014 07:40:16 +0000
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