legislative...

legislative, judicial and executive; and how are the Representatives of Allah split up amongst the prophet and Imams? A. Holy Prophet of Islam (s.a.w.) combined all the three aspects in his personality. The legislation prescribed by Allah was promulgated by the Holy Prophet (s.a.w); he was the final judicial authority; and the supreme Head of the Islamic Community. .

The Imams inherited all these functions from him except that they had no authority to change any law brought by the Holy Prophet (saw.); rather their function was to elaborate and interpret that law. So far as judicial and executive aspects are concerned, there was no difference between the Holy Prophet (saw.) and his 12 successors. Q17. WHY 'ALI DID NOT FIGHT FOR THE KHILAFAT?

I now understand that you acknowledge Imam 'Ali(a.s) as the first khalifa/imam.To be frank (and I don't care what the others say), I feel that historically, and by many traditions, your claim is justified. Then why the leadership was not given to the man whom the prophet of Allah had nominated? And why 'Ali(a.s) tolerated and waited patiently instead of revolting? (Asked by a Sunni correspondent) A. The answer cannot be given in a short letter.

If you read the biography of Imam 'Ali (a.s.) you will easily understand why he did not feel like taking any action against his adversaries except to protest openly at every appropriate time. The situation at that time was such that a civil war in Madina would have meant the extinction of Islam in the whole of Arabia.

For example, if your child was abducted by someone who wanted to bring him up as his own son and you were sure that if you took any action against him he would kill the child, would you not wait for a suitable time for the return of the child instead of rushing headlong to that person and thus causing his death? And can anyone say that because the circumstances compelled you to keep quit at that time, you lost the right of the custody of your child and the abductor became its true father?

There is a story in the Old Testament, which says that two women came to the Prophet Sulaiman (a,s,) "And the one woman said, O my Lord I and this woman dwell in one house; and I was delivered of a child with her in the house. And it came to pass the third day after that I was delivered, that this woman was delivered also: and we were together; there was no stranger with us in the house, save we two in the house And this woman's child died in the night; because she overlaid it.