However...

However, this man-made classification of religious acts directly conflicts with the Ahadith of Masomeen -asws where their Faroo (Salat, Zakaat, Soam, Hajj) are considered to be the Principles of the Religion (Usool-e-Deen): أبوعلي الاشعري، عن الحسن بن علي الكو في، عن عباس بن عامر، عن أبان بن عثمان، عن فضيل بن يسار، عن أبي جعفر عليه السلام قال: بني الاسلام على خمس: على الصلاة والزكاة والصوم والحج والولاية ولم يناد بشئ كما نودي بالولاية، فأخذ الناس بأربع وتركواهذه يعني الولاية Abu Ali al-Ash’ari has narrated from al-Hassan ibn Ali al-Kufi from ‘Abbas ibn ‘Amir from Aban ibn ‘Uthman from Fudayl ibn Yasar from abu Ja’far, recipient of divine supreme covenant, who has said the following: ‘Abu Ja’far -asws , recipient of divine supreme covenant, has said: ‘ Islam is based on five principles .

They are: Salat, al-Zakaat, Fasting, Hajj and al-Wilayah. The call to none of the other principles has been as emphatic as it has been to al-Wilayah . People accepted the other four but they left aside this i.e. Al-Wilayah.

’ [47] From both Ahadith and Shia Ijtihad point of view, the concept of ‘Taqleed/taqleed’ which covers all our deeds, from acts of worships to the ‘Hallal’ and the ‘Harram’ [48] we face in our lives, are to be undertaken and fulfilled under strict code of religious instructions and one has no option to modify or challenge those commands. This leads to the obligatory ‘Submission’, which in other words is the ‘Bayt’, where one submits himself/herself to a Divinely appointed Authority -asws .

It is strange that a Muqallid has the option to dump his Mujtahid but cannot refute his fatwa, so the situation from Mujtahid point of view, becomes like, ‘take it or leave it. However, from Ahadith, Taqleed of an Infallible Imam -asws is compulsory and one has no option but to submit to the Divine Commands, as issued by an Imam -asws unless one is determined to follow the footsteps of nonbelievers, i.e., Abu Jahal!