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Shiavault - a Vault of Shia Islamic Books Imam Al Mahdi, The Twelfth Khalifah In The Sahih Sunni Ahadith He Is The Khalifah Of Allah ============================== Imam Ibn al-‘Athir (d. 606 H), an ace Sunni lexicographer, opens this chapter: الخليفة من يقوم مقام الذاهب ويسد مسده The khalifah is whoever stands in the position of the one who is physically absent and substitutes for him.[^1] The absence may be due to a variety of reasons – such as travel, seclusion, death and others.
As such, when Prophet Musa, ‘alaihi al-salam , was leaving his Ummah temporarily for some days, he appointed a khalifah : وقال موسى لأخيه هارون اخلفني في قومي Musa said to his brother, Harun: “Be my khalifah over my people.”[^2] Shaykh Ibn Taymiyyah (d.
728 H) also informs us: فمن المعلوم انه كان لا يخرج من المدينة حتى يستخلف It is well-known that he (the Prophet) never left Madinah without appointing a khalifah over it.[^3] Meanwhile, Allah is our King: قل أعوذ برب الناس ملك الناس إله الناس Say: I seek refuge with the Lord of mankind, the King of mankind , the God of mankind.[^4] No doubt, His is the kingdom of all the heavens and the earth: ولله ملك السماوات والأرض والله على كل شيء قدير And to Allah belongs the kingdom of the heavens and the earth, and Allah has power over all things.[^5] However, He does not physically rule the kingdom on the earth.
He instead appoints certain people to act for Him: والله يؤتي ملكه من يشاء And Allah gives His kingdom to whoever He wishes.[^6] Whoever He appoints to run His kingdom on His earth is called His khalifah . Prophet Adam, ‘alaihi al-salam , was the first of such people: وإذ قال ربك للملائكة إني جاعل في الأرض خليفة And when your Lord said to the angels, “I will appoint in the earth a khalifah .”[^7] Imam al-Mawardi (d.
450 H) states under this verse: والثالث : أنه أراد : جاعل في الأرض خليفةً يخلفني في الحكم بين خلقي ، وهو آدم ، ومن قام مقامه من ولده ، وهذا قول ابن مسعود. The third opinion: is that He intended “ I will appoint in the earth a khalifah WHO WILL SUBSTITUTE FOR ME in giving judgments among My creatures, and he is Adam and whoever stands in his position among his offspring ”. This was the opinion of Ibn Mas’ud.[^8] Imam al-Baydhawi (d.