The prophet (nabiyy) sometimes hears the words spoken by...

The prophet (nabiyy) sometimes hears the words spoken by Jibril and at other times sees him without hearing anything from him. The Imam hears the words that Jibril utters without seeing him." ( 3 ) The seventh Imam Musa b. Ja'far peace be upon him said: "Our knowledge is of three kinds: relating to the past; relating to the future; and relating to newly emergent situations.

Knowledge relating to the past is interpreted for us; knowledge relating to the future is written down for us; and knowledge relating to newly emergent situations is infused in our hearts and our ears. This last category is the most noble part of our knowledge.

However no prophet will come after the Most Noble Messenger peace and blessings be upon him and his family." ( 4 ) God's effusions of grace thus continue throughout time by means of the Inerrant Imam in such a way that the link between man and the Creator is not severed with the passing of the Prophet.

As for the inexhaustible source that the Qur'an ( 195 ) represented for the Immaculate Imams let us hear what they themselves have to say on the subject: Imam al-Baqir peace be upon him says: "One of the forms of knowledge we possess pertains to the interpretation of the Qur'an and its ordinances while another form relates to the developments and occurrences that take place in time. Whenever God desires a certain group of men to attain virtue and purity He bestows on them the capacity to hear.

However one whose ear is incapable of hearing will encounter God's word in a way that suggests he has no awareness of it." He then fell silent for a moment before continuing: "If we were to find anyone with the requisite spiritual capacity we would transmit our knowledge to him.

God is our protector and refuge." ( 5 ) Imam Ja'far al-Sadiq peace be upon him says: "The Noble Qur'an contains knowledge of the past and the future as well as the precepts for judging; we have all of that knowledge." ( 6 ) The Commander of the Faithful 'Ali peace be upon him says: "Try to make the Qur'an speak; it will not speak to you.

I declare to you that the Qur'an contains knowledge of the past and the future as well as all the ordinances of which you stand in need and the interpretation of matters concerning which you disagree among yourselves. If you but ask me I will instruct you in all of this. " ( 7 ) One of the companions of Imam Musa b.