Whose lights are these ?

Whose lights are these ? The reply was - These lights are of Imams from your progeny. Then I (Ali (a.s.)) asked: 0 Messenger of Allah, will you not tell me their names?' The Holy Prophet replied, 'Yes, certainly. You are Imam and Caliph after me, you will repay my debts and fulfill my promises. After you will be your two sons, Hasan (a.s.) and Husain (a.s.), and after Husain (a.s.) will be his son Ali - Zainul Abedeen (a.s.), after All (a.s.) will be his son Muhammad (a.s.) whose title is Baqir.

After Muhammad (a.s.) will follow his son Jafar (a.s.) whose title is Sadiq. After Jafar (a.s.), will be his son Moosa (a.s.) whose title is Kazim. After Moosa (a.s.), will be his son Ali (a.s.) whose title is Reza. After Ali, his son Muhammad (a.s.) will succeed him and his title is Zaki. After Muhammad (a.s.) will follow his son Ali (a.s.) whose title is Naqi. After Ali (a.s.) will come his son Hasan (a.s.) whose title is Ameen and Askari.

After him will be the son of Hasan (a.s.), Qaim (a.t.f.s.), whose name will be my name and who will bear maximum similarity with me. He will fill the earth with justice and equity as it would have been filled with oppression and injustice.' There isn't just one tradition like this. We find several traditions on these lines and the number goes up to 20.

For instance, Hazrat Ali (a.s.) recounts from the Holy Prophet (s.a.w.a.) who has categorically stated that from the time of his (s.a.w.a.) death till the Day of Qiyamat there will only be twelve Imams, and then each has been mentioned by his name. The entire arrangement was made so that people would know that Allah and His Prophet (s.a.w.a.) had already selected the Imams. It was not that anyone could be an Imam according to the wishes of the Islamic nation.

It was not that an Imam who was supposed to follow his father in the chain of Imamat, died in his father's lifetime, leaving the chain of Imamat suspended until the people appointed the deceased's son as the Imam in his place. All the above traditions, were narrated when Janabe Ismail b. Jafar Sadiq was not even bom. The list of Imams (a.s.) narrated by the Holy Prophet (s.a.w.a.) and Hazrat Ali (a.s.) does not show Janabe Ismail's name.

Therefore, if he was never destined to be an Imam then where does the question of usurping his Imamat arise?