سورة هود

Imam Baqir (peace be upon him): وَ أَنِ اسْتَغْفِرُواْ رَبَّکُمْ [And ask forgiveness of your Lord]; [meaning] O believers! Ask forgiveness from your Lord.

Imam Baqir (peace be upon him): The companions of Muhammad (peace be upon him and his family) said: 'O Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him and his family)! We fear hypocrisy in ourselves.' The Prophet (peace be upon him and his family) said: 'Why do you fear that?' They said: 'As long as we are in your presence and you remind us and encourage us toward the hereafter, we fear Allah and forget the world and become detached from it, to the point that it is as if we behold the hereafter, paradise, and hell with our own eyes. But when we leave your presence and enter our homes and smell our children and see our dependents and family, we are about to turn away from that state we were in with you, to the point that it is as if we have no belief or faith at all. Do you too fear that this change of state is hypocrisy on our part?' The Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him and his family) replied to them: 'Never! These [misgivings] are the tricks of Satan by which he entices you toward the world. By Allah! If you were to remain constantly upon the state you have described about yourselves, [you would attain a rank in which] the angels would shake hands with you and you would walk upon water. And were it not that you [by your own choice] commit sins and [then] seek forgiveness from Allah, Allah would create a creation to commit sins and then seek forgiveness from Allah, and Allah [likewise] would forgive them. The believer is subject to trial (test and examination) and much given to repentance. Have you not heard the word of Allah the Mighty and Majestic, who has said: Indeed Allah loves those who repent and loves those who purify themselves. (Baqarah/222) And He has said: اسْتَغْفِرُوا رَبَّکُمْ ثُمَّ تُوبُوا إِلَیْهِ [Ask forgiveness of your Lord; then turn to Him].'

The Prophet (peace be upon him and his family): Whoever prays ten rak'ahs on the last night of the month of Ramadan, ... does not raise his head from prostration unless Allah forgives him. And [the fast of] the month of Ramadan is accepted from him and from all who are in his city... I swear by the One who sent me with the truth, whoever prays this prayer and says this istighfar, Allah accepts his prayer, fasting and acts of worship, forgives him and answers his supplication. For Allah, Blessed and Exalted, says in His Book: Ask forgiveness of your Lord; indeed He is Most Forgiving. (Nuh/10) And He says: وَ أَنِ اسْتَغْفِرُوا رَبَّکُمْ ثُمَّ تُوبُوا إِلَیْهِ یُمَتِّعْکُمْ مَتاعاً حَسَناً إِلی أَجَلٍ مُسَمًّی وَ یُؤْتِ کُلَّ ذِی فَضْلٍ فَضْلَهُ [And ask forgiveness of your Lord; then turn to Him. He will provide you with a goodly provision until an appointed term, and will bestow His grace on every one possessed of merit].

The Prophet (peace be upon him and his family): The one meant [by the possessor of merit] is me and Ali ibn Abi Talib (peace be upon him) and my household who follow me.

Imam Baqir (peace be upon him): وَ یُؤْتِ کُلَّ ذِی فَضْلٍ فَضْلَهُ [And He grants every possessor of merit his merit]; the one meant [by the possessor of merit in] this verse is Ali ibn Abi Talib (peace be upon him).

Ibn Abbas (may Allah have mercy on him): وَ یُؤْتِ کُلَّ ذِی فَضْلٍ فَضْلَهُ [And He grants every possessor of merit his merit]; the one meant by the possessor of merit is Ali ibn Abi Talib (peace be upon him).

Imam Sadiq (peace be upon him): It is narrated from Abu Amr al-Zubayri: I said to Imam Sadiq (peace be upon him), "Does iman (faith) have degrees and ranks, in which the believers surpass one another before Allah?" He said, "Yes!" I said, "May Allah have mercy on you! Explain it to me so that I may understand." He said, "Allah has set up a race among the believers, just as horses are raced against each other on the day of racing, and He has given them merit according to their rank in racing towards Allah. He placed the affairs of each of the believers according to the degree of his precedence, and did not diminish his right from that degree. None of those who fell behind him [in this race] can outstrip him, and no one of lesser merit can precede one of greater merit. It is by this that the earlier and later ones of this ummah surpass one another." I said, "Tell me of a word by whose content Allah the Mighty and Majestic has encouraged the believers to race in faith." He said, "The word of Allah the Mighty and Majestic: 'Race with one another to attain forgiveness from your Lord and a Paradise the breadth of which is like the breadth of the heavens and the earth. It has been prepared for those who believe in Allah and His messengers.' (al-Hadid/21)." Then he recalled the verse in which Allah the Mighty and Majestic gave His friends merit over one another, and said: We gave some of those messengers merit over others; among them was one to whom Allah spoke, and some He raised in degrees, and We gave Isa son of Maryam clear signs and supported him with the Holy Spirit [but the merit and rank of those prophets did not prevent the disputes of the ummahs]. And if Allah had willed, those who came after them would not have fought after all the clear signs that came to them [but Allah did not compel people and left them free to tread the path of felicity], but these ummahs disputed among themselves — some believed and some disbelieved [and war and bloodshed broke out. And again], if Allah had willed, they would not have fought each other, but Allah does whatever He wills [in accordance with wisdom, and compels no one to accept anything]. (al-Baqarah/253) وَ یُؤْتِ کُلَّ ذِی فَضْلٍ فَضْلَهُ وَ إِنْ تَوَلَّوْا فَإِنِّی أَخافُ عَلَیْکُمْ عَذابَ یَوْمٍ کَبیر [And He grants every possessor of merit his merit, and if you turn away, indeed I fear for you the punishment of a great day].

Imam Ali (peace be upon him): If faith were a single, uniform reality with no increase or decrease in it, no one would have any merit or superiority over another, and all people would be equal. It is through complete faith that the believers enter Paradise and attain its degrees. And it is on account of the loss of faith or its deficiency that the other group enters the Fire. The contest in faith is in this manner; Allah the Exalted has said in His Quran: "وَ السَّابِقُونَ السَّابِقُونَ أُولئِکَ الْمُقَرَّبُونَ [And (the third group) the foremost are the foremost; they are the ones brought near.]" (Waqi'ah/10-11) And He has said: "وَ السَّابِقُونَ الْأَوَّلُونَ مِنَ الْمُهاجِرِینَ وَ الْأَنْصارِ [And the first forerunners from the Muhajirin and the Ansar.]" (Tawbah/100) And then in the third stage, those who followed them possess merit. In another verse He has said: "انْظُرْ کَیْفَ فَضَّلْنا بَعْضَهُمْ عَلی بَعْضٍ وَ لَلْآخِرَةُ أَکْبَرُ دَرَجاتٍ وَ أَکْبَرُ تَفْضِیلًا [See how We have made some of them excel others (in this world on account of their striving); and the Hereafter is greater in degrees and greater in excellence.]" (Isra/21) And He has said: "هُمْ دَرَجاتٌ عِنْدَ اللهِ وَ اللهُ بَصِیرٌ بِما یَعْمَلُونَ [Each of them has a rank and station before Allah, and Allah is All-Seeing of what they do.]" (Al Imran/163) And He has said: "وَ یُؤْتِ کُلَّ ذِی فَضْلٍ فَضْلَهُ [And He grants every possessor of merit the measure of his merit.]" These are the degrees and ranks of faith with Allah the Exalted.

Imam Baqir (peace be upon him): The meaning of وَ إِن تَوَلَّوْاْ فَإِنِّیَ أَخَافُ عَلَیْکُمْ عَذَابَ یَوْمٍ کَبِیرٍ [And if you turn away, indeed I fear for you the punishment of a great day] is the smoke and the cry [on the Day of Resurrection].