[4] Imam Hassan Al-Askari -asws says...

[4] Imam Hassan Al-Askari -asws says: ‘The one who rejects the preference of Amir Al-Momineen -asws over the entirety of the ones after the Prophet -saww , so he has belied the Torah, and the Evangel, and the Psalms, and the Parchments of Ibrahim -as and the rest of the Revealed Books of Allah -azwj , for it is so that nothing from these is Revealed except the most important of what is therein – after the Command with the Tawheed of Allah -azwj the Exalted and the acknowledgment with the Prophet-hood, is the acknowledgment with the Wilayah of Ali -asws and the goodly ones from his -asws Progeny -asws ’.

And a man had said to Ali -asws Bin Al-Husayn -asws , ‘What are you -asws saying regarding a man who believes in what Allah -azwj Revealed unto Muhammad -saww , and whatever He -azwj Revealed from before him -saww , and believes in the Hereafter, and he prays Salat and (gives) Zakat , and he helps the relatives, and he does the righteous deeds, but along with (all of) that, he is saying, ‘I don’t know the right is for Ali -asws or is it for so and so’?’ Ali -asws Bin Al-Husayn -asws said to him: ‘What are you saying regarding a man who does these good things, all of them, except that he is saying, ‘I don’t know whether the Prophet is Muhammad -saww or Musaylama (the false claimant of Prophet-hood).

Would he benefit with anything from these deeds?’ He said, ‘No’. He -asws said: ‘Similar to that is this companion of yours.

So how can he happen to be a believer in these Books, the one who does not know whether Muhammad -saww is the Prophet or Musaylama, and similar to that, how can he happen to be a believer in these Book and in the Hereafter, or benefit by anything from his deeds, the one who doesn’t know whether Ali -asws is more rightful or so and so?’ The Words of the Mighty and Majestic: They are on a Guidance from their Lord, and they shall be successful [2:5] .

The Imam -asws said: ‘Then Allah -azwj Informs about the majesty of the ones with these honourable attributes and Says: They are [2:5] , that is the ones with these attributes, on a Guidance from their Lord [2:5] . They obey and act upon the Words of the Lord -azwj and know what they have been Commanded to do, and they shall be successful [2:5] – the saved from what they had been dreading, the successful with what they had been believing in’.