ভূমিকা

Shiavault - a Vault of Shia Islamic Books An Overview of The Mahdi’s (‘atfs) Government The Revival of the Muhammadan (S) Sunnah There are many hadith s concerning the new laws and judgments of Hadrat al-Mahdi ( ‘a ) and the reforms he will pursue, laws that are at first glance inconsistent with existing jurisprudential texts and sometimes with the apparent purport of the hadith s and Prophetic tradition ( Sunnah ).

Among these new laws are laws of inheritance based on brotherhood in the “world of souls” ( ‘alam adh-dharr ),[^1] the killing of winebibbers, the killing of non-praying persons, the execution of liars, prohibitions on taking interest from Muslims in transactions, the elimination of minarets from mosques, and the removal of the roofs of mosques. The approaches adopted by the Imam ( ‘a ) in the actions and affairs indicated in the previous chapter are also related to these.

In the hadith s these changes have been mentioned in such terms as new judgment, new tradition ( sunnah ), new invocation, and new book, which we regard as nothing else but the revival of the Muhammadan (S) Sunnah .

However, the magnitude of the transformations would be so far-reaching that when people are confronted with them they will say, “He has brought a new religion!” Granting that the hadith s are indeed transmitted from the Infallibles ( ‘a ), it is necessary to pay attention to the following pertinent points: The conditions for the announcement and implementation of some divine laws will exist during the time of the advent of Hadrat al-Mahdi ( ‘atfs ), notwithstanding their being established by God, and it is he who will announce and implement those laws.

With the passage of time, changes and distortions in the divine laws have been made by tyrants and corruptors, and after his advent Hadrat al-Qa’im ( ‘atfs ) will rectify and regulate them.

In the book, Al-Qawl al-Mukhtasar , it is thus stated: “No innovation will be left unless he removes it and no tradition unless he revives it.”[^2] Since the jurists ( fuqaha ) apply rules ( qawa’id ) and principles ( usul ) in deducing religious rulings, sometimes a ruling they deduce might not be consistent with the true ruling although the product of such a deduction or inference ( istinbat ) is a religious proof for the mujtahid [^3] and his followers ( muqallidin ).[^4] In the government of the Imam of the Time ( ‘atfs ), however, he will proclaim the true laws.