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Our Responsibilities During the Occultation 1 - Al-Shia The Scientific and Cultural Website of Shia belief Our Responsibilities During the Occultation 1 2023-03-11 669 Views Imam Al-Mahdi , Minor Occultation , Occultation , Major Occultation In Shia Islam, occultation refers to the belief that the twelve Imam (Imam Mahdi) who has already been born and subsequently hidden but will reemerge to establish justice and peace on earth at the end of time.

According to this doctrine, his absence continues until initial conditions are met for his reappearance, including humankind’s readiness for the message of the Hidden Imam. In this part of the article, we shall discuss the reality and the importance of knowing the Imam from the hadith’s point of view and the reason why the knowledge of the Imam is necessary.

Contents 1) The Knowledge of the Present Imam The Reality of Knowing the Imam The Knowledge of The Imam From Hadith’s Point of View 1) The Knowledge of the Present Imam After submitting ourselves to Allah and believing in the messengership of Muhammad (upon whom be peace), our first duty is to know the Imam of our time. This matter can be studied from three aspects: a) The reality of knowing the Imam. b) The importance of knowing the Imam from the hadith’s point of view.

c) Why knowledge of the Imam is necessary? The Reality of Knowing the Imam Knowledge (ma‘rifah) means to be acquainted with someone or something. For example, the “knowledge” of the Prophet means studying his biography, understanding his claim of prophethood, his aims, and his teachings, etc. To know the history of a person, his ideas and teachings mean to have “knowledge” of him. The first duty of the Shi‘ahs, according to the ahadith of the Imams, is to know the Imam of their time.

What does this mean? Does it mean only to know that; Our Imam was born on the 15th of Sha‘ban, 255 A.H.; there were four representatives of the Imam during the lesser occultation (al-ghaybahaṣ-Ṣughrah)?

These four representatives were: ‘Uthman ibn Sa‘id al-‘Amri, from 260/875-6 to 265/879; Muhammad ibn ‘Uthman al-‘Amri, from his father’s death until his own in 305/917; al-Husayn ibn Rawh an-Nawbakhti, from then until 326/937-8; and finally ‘Ali bin Muhammad as-Samari, until his death in 329/940-1; the greater occultation (al-ghaybah al-kubra) began in 329 A.H./940 A.D.? Does our duty about knowing the Imam of our time end with this historical information?