The Glorious Qur'an itself explicitly says that God Himself...

The Glorious Qur'an itself explicitly says that God Himself preserves the Qur'an from any alteration and mutilation: Surely We have revealed the Reminder and We will most surely be its preserver. (15:9) [^2] Regarding this verse, `Allamah Tabataba'i in his renowned Al-Mizan fi Tafsir al-Qur’an, one of the greatest commentaries of the Qur’an, states: …the Qur’an is a living and eternal Reminder which will never die and fall into oblivion. It is immune from any addition and loss.

It is immune from and secure against any alterations in form and style which could affect its character and role, that is, as, "the Reminder of Allah which expresses divine truth and knowledge". For this reason, the aforesaid verse indicates that the Divine Book has always been and will continue to be guarded against any mutilation and alteration.

The Sunnah After the Glorious Qur’an, the most important source for understanding Islam and therefore Shi’i thought is the Sunnah of the , including his sayings and his deeds. The Qur’an itself clearly gives such a high position to the Prophet, as he is referred to as the one who is responsible for explaining the Qur’an (16:44) and teaching the Qur’an and wisdom (62:2). The Prophet is a perfect example for the believers (33:21). He never speaks out of his own wishes (53:3).

Muslims are asked to hold on to whatever he gives them and refrain from whatever he prohibits (59:7). Knowing the above verses and many other verses on the status of the Prophet and taking into account the significance of acting as a divine messenger chosen directly by God and spoken to by Him, the Shi’a, along with other Muslims, cultivated a state of sincere love for and devotion to the .

The household of the Prophet There seems to be no disagreement among Muslims about the validity of following the teachings of the household of the Prophet in understanding Islam, especially according to the Sunni view which considers even all the companions of the Prophet as reliable sources of understanding Islam.[^3] There is no doubt, then, that the household of the Prophet are reliable and trustworthy in presenting Islam.

This fact becomes even clearer when we refer to the traditions from the Prophet about his household, and examine sayings of Sunni scholars about the knowledge of Ali and members of the household of the Prophet. For example, Imam Malik says: “No eyes have seen, no ears have heard, and nothing has come to the heart of any human being better than Ja’far b.