سورة النساء

Imam Sadiq (peace be upon him): Safwan al-Jammal narrates: Imam Sadiq (peace be upon him) said regarding this word of Allah the Mighty and Majestic: "Everything is perishing except His Essence" (Al-Qasas/88): "Whoever goes toward Allah in accordance with the divine command, which is obedience to Muhammad (peace be upon him and his family), is [the instance of] that very Face which does not perish; as He says: مَنْ یُطِعِ الرَّسُولَ فَقَدْ أَطاعَ اللهَ [Whoever obeys the Messenger has indeed obeyed Allah]."

Imam Baqir (peace be upon him): Zurarah narrates: Imam Baqir (peace be upon him) said: The religion of Islam has been built upon five things, namely prayer, zakat, hajj, fasting, and wilayah ... The nobility and eminence, the key to every matter, the door of every matter, and the pleasure of the Most Merciful is obedience to the Imam (peace be upon him) after recognising him. Allah says: مَّنْ یُطِع الرَّسُولَ فَقَدْ أَطَاع اللهَ وَ مَنْ تَوَلَّی فَما أَرْسَلْناکَ عَلَیْهِمْ حَفیظاً [Whoever obeys the Messenger has indeed obeyed Allah, and whoever turns away — We have not sent you as a keeper over them]. If a person spends his night in vigil and fasts during the day and gives all his wealth in charity and performs hajj throughout his entire life, while he has not recognised the wali of Allah so as to be able to support him and so that all his deeds are performed under his wilayah, he has no right to reward and recompense before Allah the Mighty and Majestic, and he is not among the people of faith. The righteous ones of this group Allah enters into Paradise by His grace and mercy.

Imam Sadiq (peace be upon him): Abu Maryam said: I asked Imam Sadiq (peace be upon him) about this verse: أَطِیعُوا اللهَ وَ أَطِیعُوا الرَّسُولَ وَ أُولِی الْأَمْرِ مِنْکُمْ [Obey Allah and obey the Messenger and those in authority among you]. He said: "Obedience to Ali (peace be upon him) is obligatory." I said: "According to the verse: مَنْ یُطِعِ الرَّسُولَ فَقَدْ أَطاعَ اللهَ [Whoever obeys the Messenger has indeed obeyed Allah], only obedience to the Noble Prophet (peace be upon him and his family) was obligatory." He said: "Obedience to Ali ibn Abi Talib (peace be upon him) is obedience to the Noble Prophet (peace be upon him and his family)."

Imam Rida (peace be upon him): Allah, Blessed and Exalted, gave His Prophet (peace be upon him and his family) preference over all the prophets and angels, and in this world and the hereafter appointed obedience to him as obedience to Himself, following him as following Himself, and visiting him as visiting Himself. He said: مَنْ یُطِعِ الرَّسُولَ فَقَدْ أَطاعَ اللهَ [Whoever obeys the Messenger has indeed obeyed Allah], and He said: "Those who pledge allegiance to you, in fact pledge allegiance to Allah. The hand of Allah is above their hands." (al-Fath/10). And the Prophet (peace be upon him and his family) also said: "Whoever visits me in my lifetime or after my death [visits my grave] has visited Allah. The rank of the Prophet (peace be upon him and his family) in paradise is the highest rank; whoever visits him at his rank in paradise has visited Allah."

Imam Sadiq (peace be upon him): Abu Ishaq al-Nahwi said: I came to Imam Sadiq (peace be upon him) and heard him say: "Allah, the Mighty and Majestic, trained His Prophet (peace be upon him and his family) upon His love and said: And indeed you possess a great and outstanding character. (al-Qalam/4). Then He entrusted the matter to him and said: Whatever the Messenger gives you, take it, and whatever he forbids you from, refrain from it. (al-Hashr/7). And He said: مَنْ یُطِعِ الرَّسُولَ فَقَدْ أَطاعَ اللهَ [Whoever obeys the Messenger has indeed obeyed Allah]. And the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him and his family) entrusted the matter to Ali (peace be upon him) and made him his trustee, and you accepted; but the people denied it. By Allah, if you speak with our speech and remain silent with our silence, we surely love you, and we are the intermediary between you and Allah, and Allah has not placed any good for anyone in opposing our command, for our command is the command of Allah."

Imam Sadiq (peace be upon him): Fudayl ibn Yasar said: ... Imam Sadiq (peace be upon him) said to me: "O Fudayl! Allah trained His Prophet (peace be upon him and his family) and trained him well. When the Prophet (peace be upon him and his family) took charge of affairs, Allah likewise entrusted all affairs to him. Allah forbade wine, and the Prophet forbade every intoxicant, and Allah permitted this for him. Allah made the city of Makkah a sacred city [and sanctuary], and the Prophet (peace be upon him and his family) in addition to that declared Madinah too as sacred [and a sanctuary], and Allah permitted him all of this. Allah would state the general and root rulings, and the Prophet (peace be upon him and his family) would explain their particulars, and Allah had permitted him all of these things. O Fudayl! They distorted it, but it was not [truly] distorted: مَنْ یُطِعِ الرَّسُولَ فَقَدْ أَطاعَ اللهَ [Whoever obeys the Apostle, he indeed obeys Allah]."

Imam Baqir (peace be upon him): Allah, the Blessed and Exalted, trained Muhammad (peace be upon him and his family) in divine morals, and then entrusted the matter (ruling among the servants) to him and said: ما آتاکُمُ الرَّسُولُ فَخُذُوهُ وَ ما نَهاکُمْ عَنْهُ فَانْتَهُوا [Whatever the Messenger gives you, take it; and whatever he forbids you, refrain from it], and He said: مَنْ یُطِعِ الرَّسُولَ فَقَدْ أَطاعَ اللهَ [Whoever obeys the Apostle, he indeed obeys Allah]. So what was in the Quran was the primary rulings [and was like legislating for a whole class and in a general manner], and the rulings and obligations which the Prophet (peace be upon him and his family) stated were the particular ones [and were like legislating for the grandfather, of a specific nature]. Allah permitted the Prophet (peace be upon him and his family) in various matters to issue rulings; therefore whatever the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him and his family) declared forbidden had the status of that which Allah had declared forbidden.

Imam Rida (peace be upon him): Hamza ibn Bazi‘ narrates: Imam Sadiq (peace be upon him) said regarding the verse: فَلَمَّا آسَفُونا انْتَقَمْنا مِنْهُمْ [So when they angered Us, We took vengeance on them]: "Allah does not become angry as we do. Allah has created and chosen some human beings as His awliya (friends), who become angry or pleased, and they are creatures of Allah, nurtured by Allah. So Allah has made their pleasure His own pleasure and their anger His own anger; because Allah Himself has made them guides and callers to Himself, and therefore they have come to have such attributes. The truth is that these attributes (anger and pleasure) are not conceivable for Allah in the way they are conceivable for creatures, and this expression [that has been stated] is the meaning of the word of Allah where He has so said. Likewise where He says: whoever insults or offends one of My awliya has challenged Me to war — just as He said: مَنْ یُطِعِ الرَّسُولَ فَقَدْ أَطاعَ اللهَ [Whoever obeys the Apostle, he indeed obeys Allah], and He said: Those who pledge allegiance to you (O Prophet) have indeed pledged allegiance to Allah. The hand (power) of Allah is above their hands [and powers] (al-Fath/10). So know that all these matters and matters similar to these that I mentioned for you, and likewise the issue of Allah's pleasure and Allah's anger and so on, which are similar to this issue, their ruling is like this."

Imam Sadiq (peace be upon him): Bashir narrates: Imam Sadiq (peace be upon him) said: "None of you should be joyful [that he will attain salvation because of the faith he currently has] until his soul reaches here," and he pointed with his hand to his throat. [Meaning it is possible that a person in the final moments of his life may not end well.] Then he recited these verses: أَطِیعُوا اللهَ وَ أَطِیعُوا الرَّسُولَ وَ أُولِی الْأَمْرِ مِنْکُمْ [Obey Allah and obey the Messenger and those in authority among you]. And the verse: 'If you love Allah, follow me so that Allah will also love you.' (Al Imran/31). And the verse: 'The day We shall call every group of people by their leaders.' (Al Isra/71). The Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him and his family) is your imam [who is the best imam and guides to Paradise, otherwise the imams and leaders towards Hell are many, and] how often it will happen that on the Day of Resurrection, the imam of each group will curse his companions and followers, and they will curse him.

Imam Ali (peace be upon him): The virtue which Allah mentioned in the Quran and of which everyone, whether learned or ignorant, is aware, is this statement of Allah where He said: مَنْ یُطِعِ الرَّسُولَ فَقَدْ أَطاعَ اللهَ [Whoever obeys the Messenger has indeed obeyed Allah], and where He said: 'Indeed Allah and His angels send blessings upon the Prophet. O you who have believed, send blessings upon him and greet him with a worthy greeting.' (Al Ahzab/56).

Imam Ali (peace be upon him): Allah, Blessed and Exalted, just as He has described Himself as unique, is an eternal and pre-existent light — there is nothing like Him. He does not undergo change, and whatever He wills and chooses He carries out, and no one is able to reject His decree and judgement. His creation does not increase His dominion and might, nor does not creating them entail any deficiency for Him. He willed creation only to manifest His power, display His sovereignty, and make apparent the proofs of His wisdom. So He created whatever was in His will in whatever manner He wished, and He caused the execution of some matters to be carried out at the hands of His chosen trusted ones, and their action is the very action of the Truth (Allah), just as it is in the Quran: مَنْ یُطِعِ الرَّسُولَ فَقَدْ أَطاعَ اللهَ [Whoever obeys the Messenger has indeed obeyed Allah].

Imam Ali (peace be upon him): No one believes in Allah unless he believes in the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him and his family) and his proofs (hujjas) on earth. Allah says: مَنْ یُطِعِ الرَّسُولَ فَقَدْ أَطاعَ اللهَ [Whoever obeys the Messenger has indeed obeyed Allah]. It is not the case that Allah, who has placed among the limbs and organs of human beings a leader and imam who removes doubt and uncertainty from them and establishes certainty for them — and that imam is the heart of the human being — would fall short in [sending] proofs (hujjas) [for the community of humankind].

Imam Ali (peace be upon him): Jabir ibn Yazid said: I came to Imam Baqir (peace be upon him)... He said: 'Amir al-Mu'minin (peace be upon him), after seven days had passed since the passing of the Prophet (peace be upon him and his family), delivered a sermon to the people in Madinah... No calamity was greater and no disaster more grievous than the calamity of losing the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him and his family), for with his passing Allah brought to an end the warning and the establishing of proof for the people, and through him He cut off any argument or excuse between Himself and His creation, and made him the means and the guardian between Himself and His servants, so that He accepts no deed except through him, and drawing near to His presence is not possible except through obedience to him. And Allah the Exalted said in the firm verse of His Qur'an: مَنْ یُطِعِ الرَّسُولَ فَقَدْ أَطاعَ اللهَ وَ مَنْ تَوَلَّی فَما أَرْسَلْناکَ عَلَیْهِمْ حَفِیظا [Whoever obeys the Apostle, he indeed obeys Allah, and whoever turns back, so We have not sent you as a keeper over them]. With this statement He joined obedience to Himself with obedience to him, and disobedience to Himself with disobedience to him. So this (verse) is a proof of what has been entrusted to him, and a testimony for him against whoever follows him or disobeys him, and He has explained this matter in several places of His mighty Qur'an.'

Imam Husayn (peace be upon him): One day the companions of the Prophet (peace be upon him and his family) were sitting in the mosque of the Prophet recalling the excellence of the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him and his family), when a man from the scholars of the Jewish rabbis entered upon us... Amir al-Mu'minin (peace be upon him) said: ... By Allah, Allah the Mighty and Majestic did not grant any prophet or messenger any rank or excellence except that He gathered all of them, and even more, for Muhammad (peace be upon him and his family). It was the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him and his family) who, whenever he mentioned an excellence of his own, would say, 'there is no boasting on my part.' And I today remind you of his excellences without any disrespect to any of the prophets (peace be upon them), and I speak of that by which Allah has brightened the eyes of the believers. Praise be to Allah for what He has bestowed upon Muhammad (peace be upon him and his family) and given him more than the prophets. Know, O brother of the Jews, [an example] of the excellence of the Prophet (peace be upon him and his family) before his Lord is that whoever lowers his voice in his presence [as a mark of respect] is deserving of forgiveness. Allah said: 'Those who lower their voices in the presence of the Messenger of Allah, they are the ones whose hearts Allah has tested for piety. For them is forgiveness and a great reward.' (Al-Hujurat/3). Then Allah placed obedience to His Messenger (peace be upon him and his family) alongside obedience to Himself, so He said: مَنْ یُطِعِ الرَّسُولَ فَقَدْ أَطاعَ اللهَ [Whoever obeys the Apostle, he indeed obeys Allah]. Then He brought him near to the hearts of the believers and placed love of him in their hearts, and so the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him and his family) used to say: 'My love has mingled with the blood of my Ummah, for they prefer me over their fathers and mothers and their own selves.' The Prophet (peace be upon him and his family) was the most compassionate of people.

Imam Sadiq (peace be upon him) — Muhammad al-Halabi said: Imam Sadiq (peace be upon him) said to me: "Whoever takes his religion from the Book of Allah is more firmly rooted than the sturdy mountains, and whoever enters into a matter in ignorance leaves it in ignorance." I said: "In which verse of the Quran is this?" He said: "This verse: Whatever the Messenger gives you, take it, and whatever he forbids you from, abstain from it. (al-Hashr/7); and the verse: مَنْ یُطِعِ الرَّسُولَ فَقَدْ أَطاعَ اللهَ [Whoever obeys the Messenger has indeed obeyed Allah]; and this verse: یا أَیُّهَا الَّذِینَ آمَنُوا أَطِیعُوا اللهَ وَ أَطِیعُوا الرَّسُولَ وَ أُولِی الْأَمْرِ مِنْکُمْ [O you who believe, obey Allah and obey the Messenger and those in authority among you]; and the verse: and they give charity while they are in ruku. (al-Ma'idah/55); and this verse: No, by your Lord, they will not believe until they make you the judge in the disputes between them, and then find within themselves no discomfort with what you have decreed, and submit in full submission. (al-Nisa/65); and this verse: O Messenger, deliver to the people what has been sent down to you from your Lord. If you do not, you will not have conveyed His message. Allah will protect you from the people. (al-Ma'idah/67). Among them is this saying of the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him and his family) concerning Ali (peace be upon him): Whoever's master and commander I am, Ali (peace be upon him) is his commander. O Allah, befriend the friend of Ali (peace be upon him) and be the enemy of the enemy of Ali (peace be upon him)! Help whoever helps Ali (peace be upon him) and abase whoever abases Ali (peace be upon him); love whoever loves him and be wrathful with whoever is wrathful with Ali (peace be upon him)."

Imam Sadiq (peace be upon him): Mufaddal narrates: A letter was written to Imam Sadiq (peace be upon him), and this is his reply: "Allah has appointed the lawful and the unlawful as lawful and unlawful until the Day of Judgement, and recognition of the messengers, acceptance of their wilayah (guardianship), and obedience to them is among the lawful [and obligatory] things. The lawful is what they deem permissible, and the unlawful is what they deem forbidden; they are the fundamental roots, and from them the branch of the lawful comes into being. This is their endeavour, and one of their duties is that they command their followers and the people of their wilayah to lawful deeds… The enemies of the Prophet are the very unlawful things, and their followers, until the Day of Judgement, are the indecencies and the reprehensible deeds, both hidden and manifest, and wine, gambling, fornication, usury, blood, carrion, and the flesh of swine. They are the real unlawful and the root of every unlawful thing… Take note that if I said that prayer, zakat, the fast of the month of Ramadan, Hajj, Umrah, the Masjid al-Haram, the House of Allah, the Mash'ar al-Haram, purification, the ritual bath from janabah, and every obligation is the Prophet (peace be upon him and his family) who brought these commands from Allah, I would have spoken the truth; because all these commands are known through the Prophet (peace be upon him and his family). If it were not for the recognition of the Prophet, faith in him, and submission to his command, these commands would not be known. This is a bounty from Allah upon those who possess such a blessing. So all of these, in root and branch, are the Prophet (peace be upon him and his family). He called me to this religion, guided me, made me recognise it, commanded me with these instructions, and made obedience obligatory upon me, so that recognising him became necessary for me. How is it possible that I do not recognise the one who is the intermediary between me and Allah? How can I say that religion is other than the Prophet (peace be upon him and his family), when he brought religion for me from Allah? And how is this not the recognition of the person himself, when that very person brought the religion from Allah? The one who denies religion is the one who denies the Prophet (peace be upon him and his family). They said: 'Has Allah sent a human being as messenger?' (Isra/94). Allah wishes to be recognised through [certain] men, and that through following them His obedience be carried out, and He has made the path of those men His own path. He accepts nothing else from anyone; He cannot be called to account, but people are called to account. Allah in this verse [expresses] His love for the following of the prophets: مَنْ یُطِعِ الرَّسُولَ فَقَدْ أَطاعَ اللهَ وَ مَنْ تَوَلَّی فَما أَرْسَلْناکَ عَلَیْهِمْ حَفِیظاً [Whoever obeys the Apostle, he indeed obeys Allah, and whoever turns back, so We have not sent you as a keeper over them]. One who believes that all these obligations are [in essence] a person, and understands what is meant by this statement, has spoken the truth. But one who says this without following the commands, clinging to the root while abandoning the branches, has erred and gains no benefit — just as bearing witness to لَا إِلَهَ إِلَّا اللهُ [there is no god but Allah] alone, without bearing witness to the messengership of Muhammad al-Mustafa (peace be upon him and his family), is not sufficient. Allah [sent] every prophet commanded with good deeds, justice, praiseworthy character, virtuous actions, and forbidding indecencies both hidden and manifest. The hidden indecencies are the acceptance of the wilayah of the oppressive leaders, and the manifest indecencies are the branches of that wilayah and following it."

Imam Sadiq (peace be upon him): Allah sends down from the heavens to every Imam his covenant and what he is to act upon, sealed with a seal. The Imam (peace be upon him) then breaks the seal and acts according to what is in it. O company of the Shia, this is a warning for people who worship Allah and a clear exposition for the believers. Whoever Allah the Exalted wills good for, He places him among those who affirm and submit to the guiding Imams — those to whom Allah the Exalted has granted from His honour, whom He has singled out with His special favour from among His chosen ones, and to whom alone, and to none other of His creation, He has given the divine successorship over all creatures — for He has made obedience to them obedience to Himself, saying: أَطِیعُوا اللهَ وَ أَطِیعُوا الرَّسُولَ وَ أُولِی الْأَمْرِ مِنْکُمْ [Obey Allah and obey the Messenger and those in authority among you]; and He said: مَنْ یُطِعِ الرَّسُولَ فَقَدْ أَطاعَ اللهَ [Whoever obeys the Messenger has indeed obeyed Allah]. The Messenger of Allah likewise called the people to the Imams from his own progeny — the Imams whom Allah had commanded to be obeyed and to whom He directed and guided the creation — and the Messenger of Allah's (peace be upon him and his family) call was where he said: 'I am leaving among you two weighty things: the Book of Allah and my kindred, my Ahl al-Bayt. They are a rope stretched between you and Allah the Exalted; so long as you hold fast to this rope, you will never go astray.'

Imam Sadiq (peace be upon him): Abdullah ibn Abi Ya'fur said: Imam Sadiq (peace be upon him) said to me: O son of Abi Ya'fur, indeed Allah the Blessed and Exalted is One, unique in His oneness, alone in His command. He created a creation and set them apart for this leadership — and we, O son of Abi Ya'fur, are those very ones. So we are the proofs of Allah among His servants, His witnesses among His creation, His trustees and treasurers of His knowledge, the callers to His path and those who uphold it. Whoever obeys us has indeed obeyed Allah.

The Prophet (peace be upon him and his family): The Prophet (peace be upon him and his family) said at the beginning of his testament to Ali (peace be upon him): 'O Ali (peace be upon him), whoever from among my wives and my companions opposes and shows enmity to you has disobeyed my command, and whoever disobeys my command has disobeyed Allah.'