Allah's blessings be on them all.

Allah's blessings be on them all.”[^1] The speech of the Imam, peace be on him, is full of the words concerning the need for the Imamate, for it leads the world to righteousness and reforms the deviation from religion. The Imam praised the pure Imams from the members of the House (ahl al-Bayt), peace be on them.

He underlined that they were safety for the people of the earth, and that through them the tribulation is driven away, rain comes down from the sky, and the blessings of the earth come forth.

To know the Imam is obligatory The traditions reported on the authority of the Prophet, may Allah bless him and his family, and on the authority of the custodians of the sciences of the pure Imams have agreed that to know the Imam of the time is obligatory, and that whoever dies and does not him is like those who died before Islam, as the Prophetic tradition stated. In this respect, many traditions were reported on the authority of Imam Abu Ja‘far (al-Baqir), peace be on him.

The following are some of them: Jabir b. Yazïd al-Ju‘fi reported. He said: [I heard Abu Ja‘far (al-Baqir), peace be on him, say:] “Surely, he who knows Allah, the Great and Almighty, and worships Him is the person who knows Allah and recognizes His Imam from among us, ahl al-Bayt, and he who does not know Allah, the Great and Almighty, and does not recognize the Imam from us, ahl al-Bayt, knows and worships other than Allah.”[^2] Mohammed b. Moslem reported.

He said: [ I heard Abu Ja‘far (al-Baqir), peace be on him, say:] “Everyone who is obedient to Allah, the Great and Almighty, in worship in which he exerts effort, but does not have an Imam (appointed) by Allah, his deeds are unacceptable, and he is astray and bewildered. Allah detests his deeds. Such a person is like a sheep which has strayed away from its flock and its shepherd, and which runs in this and that direction the whole day.

When the night descends on it, it sees some flock of sheep with a shepherd. It goes towards it and is deceived. It passes that night with that flock in their resting-place. When the shepherd herds the flock, that sheep refuses to recognize the flock and the shepherd. It runs in bewilderment seeking its shepherd and its flock. Then it sees another flock of sheep with its shepherd. Again the sheep turns towards it and is deceived by the second flock.

The shepherd shouts: ‘Join your shepherd and your flock.