When the term “ Wilayat ” is attributed to the Imams...

When the term “ Wilayat ” is attributed to the Imams, it carries the implications of “mastership”, “sovereignty” and“lordship”. This is to indicate the authority of the Imam over the believers, who are subject to his guardianship. Imami theologians refer to the Qur’an (especially Chapter 5, Verse 55) and prophetic traditions to support the exclusive authority ( Wilayat ) of the Imams.

The absolute authority and guardianship of Allah ( Wilayat al-mutlaqih) forms a central pillar of Imami political thought, which maintains that whoever wishes to exercise this authority must be appointed by Him.

It is this idea that distinguishes Imamism from all other political theories and even other sects of Shi’ism ; because although all schools of Shi’a thought agree that the Imam is subject to divine appointment through the Prophet, only Imamism tries to sustain this approach under circumstances when the infallible Imam is absent. In this doctrine,…