There he mounted a high mound so that he could be seen by...

There he mounted a high mound so that he could be seen by everyone whose number amounted to nearly one hundred thousand and at the command of God announced the succession of Imam ‘Ali to that crowd. He held ‘Ali’s hand and raised it so that everyone could observe, and then said, “O folks!

Just as I am your leader and decision-maker and have control over your life and property, ‘Ali is also your leader and commander.” Thus, again it was made clear to everyone that ‘Ali is the immediate successor of the great Prophet and on the same day people offered congratulations to ‘Ali and even ‘Umar told ‘Ali, “Great, you’re my and every Muslim’s leader.”[^4] Indeed, the Prophet of Islam announced Imam ‘Ali’s right to succession again and again so that everyone should know who is the ruler of Muslims after the demise of that revered figure.

Hadith al-Thaqalayn Besides these, in the final days of his life, the great Prophet told people, “O folks! I leave you with two priceless things, that is, Qur’an and my household, so long as you seek these two and follow my legacy, you won’t go astray.”[^5] The Hadith of Jabir Jabir ibn ‘Abdullah Ansari recounts that when the verse, “Obey God and the Prophet and those who are in authority among you!” was revealed I told the divine Prophet, “O the Messenger of God!

We know God and His Prophet and it is important that we know those who are in authority with whom this verse obliges us to comply, could you explain the meaning of the phrase?” The great Prophet said, “they are my successors and the Imams after me and they begin with ‘Ali ibn Abi Talib and then respectively, Hasan ibn ‘Ali, Husayn ibn ‘Ali, ‘Ali ibn Husayn, Muhammad ibn ‘Ali who is known as Baqir in the Bible and you will spend your old age in his leadership and remember me to him when you see him.

After Muhammad ibn ‘Ali, the rest are as follows respectively, Ja’far ibn Muhammad, Musa ibn Ja’far, ‘Ali ibn Musa, Muhammad ibn ‘Ali, ‘Ali ibn Muhammad, Hasan ibn ‘Ali, and after him his son who is my namesake and who will dominate the whole world and who will be hidden from the sight of people and whose absence will be protracted that only those who remain steadfast and firm will persist in their belief in his leadership.”[^6] Of course, the accounts pertaining to the successors of the great Prophet are innumerable and we raised these just to exemplify some.