ভূমিকা

Shiavault - a Vault of Shia Islamic Books Tawassul Tawassul in the View of Prominent Imami 'Ulama' According to such prominent Imami 'ulama' as Shaikh al-Ta'ifah Tusi, Shaikh Amin al-Islam Tabrisi, 'Allamah Sayyid Muhammad Hussein Tabataba`i, Imam Sayyid Ruhullah Khomeini and others, wasilah means faith, love and reverence for the Prophet (S.A.W.A.) and obedience to him.

'Allamah Tabataba`i writes in his monumental exegesis on the Holy Qur'an that the word al-wasilah or 'approach' as used in the Ayah "and seek an approach unto Him" (5:35) confirms the reality of worship and means turning submissively and supplicating to God, with knowledge and practice serving as the requisite instrument for this connection.[^14] Furthermore, elaborating on the narration found in the Tafsir of 'Ali bin Ibrahim Qummi that the Ayah "and seek an approach unto Him" means seeking ALLAH (SWT)'s proximity through the Infallible Imam (A.S.), 'Allamah Tabataba`i, says that this refers to obedience or adhering to the path of the Imam (A.S.) in order to reach ALLAH (SWT).[^15] It is evident that the Prophet (S.A.W.A.) and the Infallible Imams (A.S.), who are considered the practical models of divine law and the finest exemplars of morals and etiquette, are the wasilah , since it is through obedience to them and adherence to their path that one can attain proximity to God.

Likewise, as stated by prominent Imami or Shi’a jurists, the laws of the Shari'ah are the wasilah , on the basis of adherence to which, proximity of Almighty ALLAH (SWT) is attained. Accordingly, some prominent Imami jurisprudents like Shaikh Hurr al-'Amili, Ayatollah Abu al-Hasan Isfahani and Imam Khomeini have used the title wasilah for their jurisprudential treatises such as Wasa'il al-Shi’a, Wasilah al-Najat and Tahrir al- Wasilah , respectively.

Wasilah al-Najat or the 'Means of Salvation' is the title of over 40 scientific treatises written by Shi’a 'ulama'.[^16] Thus, as ascertained by Imami scholars, the Prophet (S.A.W.A.) is the wasilah towards God for Muslims since he is the best exemplar and is in fact the 'Practical Qur'an'.

So also is the Prophet's (S.A.W.A.) infallible progeny (A.S.), who along with the Book of ALLAH (SWT) (Holy Qur'an), is the immortal legacy of the Prophet and continuation of his path as borne out by the Hadith al-Thaqalayn, which is unanimously, confirmed by both Shi’a and Sunni 'ulama'.