ভূমিকা

(13:43) This verse speaks of one of the great virtues of Imam Ali, the Commander of the Faithful, peace be on upon him; a virtue that the hadith of Ihtijaj [^1] has called Imam Ali’s (as) greatest virtue. The verse is, therefore, worth further deliberation. At the outset, the verse refers to the pagans who rejected the prophet hood of the Prophet (saws) and names two witnesses who confirmed his prophecy: the Most Exalted God, and the one who has knowledge about the Book.

In order to clarify what the Qur’anic verse wants to demonstrate, we need to follow up the discussion by considering the following two points: How is God’s testimony given? Who is meant by “the one who has knowledge of the Book”? The Testimony of the Most Exalted God The Qur’anic verse mentions God, the Most Exalted, as the first witness to the prophet hood of the Prophet (saws).

This testimony may be either of these two: The testimony may be an oral one represented in words and discourse, and the Qur’anic verses that clearly point to the prophecy of Mohammad (saws) confirm this view, as shown in this verse, “I swear by the Qur’an full of wisdom; most surely you are one of the apostles **”** (36:2-3) The testimony may be an actual one, in the form of miracles which God, the Most Exalted, made manifest through the Prophet (saws).

These miracles, particularly the Glorious Qur’an, which is Mohammad’s ever–enduring miracle are irrefutable documents, lucid proofs and eloquent arguments for the truthfulness of his claim of being messenger of God. These miracles which are made by God in some way attest to the prophecy of the Prophet (saws). Who Is Meant by “the One Who Has Knowledge about the Book?” Here, the discussion focuses on what is meant by “the Book”, and by “the one who has knowledge about the book”.

Some ideas are proposed in this regard, and they are as follows: First: By “ The Book ” means the divine Scriptures before the Qur’an, and “ the one who has knowledge about the Book ” means the Jewish and the Christian scholars.