ভূমিকা

But of them are some who wrong themselves, and of them are some who follow the middle course, and of them are some who outstrip (others) through good deeds, by Allah’s leave. That is the great (Divine) favour!” Commentary: To inherit from the Holy Qur’a-n is a great favour of Allah. The election of Allah is wisely. Those are the inheritors of the science of the Qur’a-n who are foremost in good works.

In this holy verse the Qur’a-n has referred to an important subject, viz., the bearers of this great heavenly Book, the same ones who, after the revelation of the Qur’a-n upon the pure heart of the Prophet (p.b.u.h.), protected and preserved this luminous torch at that time and during later centuries. It says: “Then We gave the Book (Qur’a-n) as inheritance unto those whom We elected of Our servants.

…” It is clear that the objective meaning of ‘The Book’ here is the same thing that has been mentioned in the previous verses, (the Holy Qur’a-n), and the Arabic signs ‘’Alif’ and ‘La-m’ are, so to speak, of the kind of ‘Ahd. The application of ‘inheritance’ here, and in some other instances similar to it in the Qur’a-n, is for the reason that this word is used for something which is gained without bargain and labour or trouble, and Allah gave this very great Book to Muslims in such a way.

There is a great deal of traditions narrated from Ahl-ul-Bayt (a.s.) in all of which the Qur’a-nic phrase: ‘the elected servants of Allah’ has been rendered into the immaculate Imams.

[^1] As we have repeatedly said, these narrations are the statement of the clear and first grade expansions of the case and they do not hinder that the scholars, and learned ones of the Ummat, and those martyrs and righteous ones who tried hard in the way of protecting this heavenly Book and continuation of the performance of its instructions, are counted under the title of “those whom We elected of Our servants”. Then the Qur’a-n divides them into an important division in this regard.