However...

However, there are others who find obstacles while traveling on the road - things such as barbed wire, deep valleys, rough rocks and other such things which make it difficult for them to travel the road of sins and actually prevent them from moving on this path. The state of Wara’ are the obstacles which prevent a person from committing sins.

“Surely mankind is witness over his own self even if he puts up excuses.”[^1] If in the face of being able and needing to lie, backbite, earn wealth from forbidden sources, etc… a person sees that there is a force which is preventing him from these things, then he should know that this hidden force is nothing other than Wara’ and Taqwa.

However if he is free in his actions and if his eyes, ears, tongue and all other parts of his body are without limits and restraints, then it is clear that he has no Wara’ and Taqwa! Without doubt, the person who does not possess Taqwa will not see fruition in any of his endeavours. Although it is possible that such a person may temporarily be successful in some of his endeavors, however in the end, he will fall flat on his face in shame!

Thus, in addition to having knowledge, we must also seek to acquire Taqwa and this is the first responsibility which all of us have. In his work, Mustamsik al-’Urwatul Wuthqa, the late Ayatullah al-hakim stated that, “The level of Taqwa which a Marja’ Taqlid must possess is different than the Taqwa which the 'common people' must have.

The ‘Adalah which he (the Marja’) possesses must be at a very high level and if not, then he will fall prey to sins, since the more the knowledge and status a person acquires within the society, the more the danger of him committing sins.