سورة المائدة

Ali ibn Ibrahim (may Allah have mercy on him): The meaning of the words of Allah: the Prophet is a witness over the family of Muhammad (peace be upon him and his family). (Hajj 78) وَ تَکُونُوا شُهَداءَ عَلَی النَّاسِ [and you may be witnesses over the people] means that after the Prophet (peace be upon him and his family), the family of Muhammad (peace be upon him and his family) are witnesses over the people. The Qur'an says, quoting Isa (peace be upon him): "وَ کُنْتُ عَلَیْهِمْ شَهیداً ما دُمْتُ فیهِمْ فَلَمَّا تَوَفَّیْتَنی کُنْتَ أَنْتَ الرَّقیبَ عَلَیْهِم [And I was a witness over them so long as I was among them, but when You took me to Yourself, You were the Watcher over them]"; "al-Raqib" means You were a witness over them. وَ أَنْتَ عَلی کُلِّ شَیْءٍ شَهید [And You are a Witness over all things]. And Allah, after the Prophet (peace be upon him and his family), has Himself appointed witnesses from his family over this Ummah, and this continues so long as one of them is upon the earth. Whenever they pass away, all the inhabitants of the earth will perish." The Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him and his family) said: "Allah has made the stars a source of safety for the inhabitants of the heavens, and has made my Ahl al-Bayt a source of safety and tranquillity for the inhabitants of the earth."

Imam Sadiq (peace be upon him): Allah the Exalted appointed witnesses over the Ummah. He said: وَ کُنْتُ عَلَیْهِمْ شَهِیداً ما دُمْتُ فِیهِمْ [And I was a witness over them so long as I was among them]. And concerning the Prophet (peace be upon him and his family) He said: "So that the Messenger may be a witness over you. (Hajj 78)", and concerning Ali (peace be upon him) [He said]: and there follows him a witness. (Hud 17). And concerning the Imams [He said]: and that you may be witnesses. (Hajj 78) [Meaning] that the family of Muhammad (peace be upon them) be witnesses over the people after the Prophet (peace be upon him and his family).

The Prophet (peace be upon him and his family): Ibn Abbas (may Allah have mercy on him) said: The Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him and his family) said: "You will be raised barefoot, naked and uncircumcised," and then he recited this verse: "کَما بَدَأْنا أَوَّلَ خَلْقٍ نُعِیدُهُ وَعْداً عَلَیْنا إِنَّا کُنَّا فاعِلِین [As We began the first creation, We shall repeat it — a promise binding on Us; indeed We shall do it]", and he said: "The first one to be clothed is Ibrahim (peace be upon him). Be aware that a group of my companions will be taken to the left, and I shall say: my companions, my companions! And it will be said: from the time you left them, these people kept turning back on their heels to their predecessors. Then I too shall say what the righteous servant, Isa (peace be upon him), said: وَ کُنْتُ عَلَیْهِمْ شَهِیداً ما دُمْتُ فِیهِمْ ... الْعَزِیزُ الْحَکِیمُ [And I was a witness over them so long as I was among them ... the Mighty, the Wise]."

Imam al-Rida (peace be upon him): Allah relates the saying of Isa (peace be upon him) on the Day of Resurrection, that he says: "وَ کُنْتُ عَلَیْهِمْ شَهِیداً ما دُمْتُ فِیهِمْ فَلَمَّا تَوَفَّیْتَنِی کُنْتَ أَنْتَ الرَّقِیبَ عَلَیْهِمْ وَ أَنْتَ عَلی کُلِّ شَیْءٍ شَهِیدٌ [And I was a witness over them so long as I was among them; but when You took me, You were the Watcher over them, and You are Witness over all things]. The extremists in the matter of the Imams (peace be upon them) [those who exaggerate concerning the Imams] say: 'If it is permissible that the matter of Isa (peace be upon him) was made to appear confused to the people, why should not the matter of the Imams (peace be upon them) likewise be made confused to them?'" It must be said to them: Isa (peace be upon him) was born without a father, so it should also be allowed that the Imams too were born without fathers. These people do not have the courage to declare their doctrine openly — may Allah curse them. And since it is allowed that all the prophets of Allah, and the Imams, and His proofs were born of fathers and mothers, and only Isa (peace be upon him) among them was born without a father, it is allowed that only the matter of his killing was made to appear confused, and not the matter of the other prophets and Imams — just as he alone was born without a father and not the others. Allah willed to make him in this matter a sign of His own power, so that by this means it might be known that Allah, the Mighty and Majestic, is Powerful over all things.

Imam Rida (peace be upon him)- Hasan ibn Jahm said: Ma'mun said, "I have heard that a group exaggerate about you and assign to you a station beyond your due." He said: "My father Musa ibn Ja'far (peace be upon him) narrated from his father Ja'far ibn Muhammad (peace be upon him), from his father Muhammad ibn Ali (peace be upon him), from his father Ali ibn al-Husayn (peace be upon him), from his father Husayn ibn Ali (peace be upon him), from his father Ali ibn Abi Talib (peace be upon him), who said that the Noble Prophet (peace be upon him and his family) said: 'Do not raise me above my rightful measure, for Allah the Blessed and Exalted, before honouring me with the station of prophethood, granted me the station of servitude to Him. In the Noble Qur'an He also says: ما کانَ لِبَشَرٍ أَنْ یُؤْتِیَهُ اللهُ الْکِتابَ وَ الْحُکْمَ وَ النُّبُوَّةَ ثُمَّ یَقُولَ لِلنَّاسِ کُونُوا عِباداً لِی مِنْ دُونِ اللهِ وَ لکِنْ کُونُوا رَبَّانِیِّینَ بِما کُنْتُمْ تُعَلِّمُونَ الْکِتابَ وَ بِما کُنْتُمْ تَدْرُسُونَ وَ لا یَأْمُرَکُمْ أَنْ تَتَّخِذُوا الْمَلائِکَةَ وَ النَّبِیِّینَ أَرْباباً أَ یَأْمُرُکُمْ بِالْکُفْرِ بَعْدَ إِذْ أَنْتُمْ مُسْلِمُونَ [It is not befitting for any human being that Allah should give him the Book, wisdom and prophethood, and then he should say to the people: "Be servants to me apart from Allah." Rather (he would say): "Be worshippers of the Lord, since you teach the Book and study it." Nor would he command you to take the angels and the prophets as lords. Would he command you to disbelief after you have submitted?] (Al Imran/79–80). Amir al-Mu'minin (peace be upon him) also said: "Two groups will perish concerning me while I bear no guilt: the first, a friend who exaggerates and goes to excess; and the second, one who is my extreme enemy. We disavow before Allah those who exaggerate about us and raise us above our rightful measure, just as Isa ibn Maryam (peace be upon him) disavowed the Christians. Allah says in the Qur'an: وَ إِذْ قالَ اللهُ یا عِیسَی ابْنَ مَرْیَمَ أَ أَنْتَ قُلْتَ لِلنَّاسِ اتَّخِذُونِی وَ أُمِّی إِلهَیْنِ مِنْ دُونِ اللهِ قالَ سُبْحانَکَ ما یَکُونُ لِی أَنْ أَقُولَ ما لَیْسَ لِی بِحَقٍّ إِنْ کُنْتُ قُلْتُهُ فَقَدْ عَلِمْتَهُ تَعْلَمُ ما فِی نَفْسِی وَ لا أَعْلَمُ ما فِی نَفْسِکَ إِنَّکَ أَنْتَ عَلَّامُ الْغُیُوبِ ما قُلْتُ لَهُمْ إِلَّا ما أَمَرْتَنِی بِهِ أَنِ اعْبُدُوا اللهَ رَبِّی وَ رَبَّکُمْ وَ کُنْتُ عَلَیْهِمْ شَهِیداً ما دُمْتُ فِیهِمْ فَلَمَّا تَوَفَّیْتَنِی کُنْتَ أَنْتَ الرَّقِیبَ عَلَیْهِمْ وَ أَنْتَ عَلی کُلِّ شَیْءٍ شَهِیدٌ [And when Allah said: "O Isa son of Maryam, did you say to the people: 'Take me and my mother as two gods apart from Allah'?" He said: "Glory be to You! It is not for me to say what I have no right to. Had I said it, You would have known it. You know what is in my soul and I do not know what is in Yours. Indeed You are the Knower of the unseen. I said to them nothing but what You commanded me: 'Worship Allah, my Lord and your Lord.' I was a witness over them so long as I was among them, and when You took me to Yourself You were the Watcher over them, and You are Witness over all things"]; and in this verse He says: لَنْ یَسْتَنْکِفَ الْمَسِیحُ أَنْ یَکُونَ عَبْداً لِلهِ وَ لَا الْمَلائِکَةُ الْمُقَرَّبُونَ [The Messiah would never disdain to be a servant of Allah, nor would the angels who are near to Him]—that is, Isa (peace be upon him) and the angels brought near have no aversion to servitude to Allah. And in another verse He says: مَا الْمَسِیحُ ابْنُ مَرْیَمَ إِلَّا رَسُولٌ قَدْ خَلَتْ مِنْ قَبْلِهِ الرُّسُلُ وَ أُمُّهُ صِدِّیقَةٌ کانا یَأْکُلانِ الطَّعام [The Messiah, son of Maryam, is only a messenger; messengers have passed away before him. His mother was a truthful woman. They both used to eat food]—Isa ibn Maryam (peace be upon him) is nothing but a messenger before whom other messengers had come; his mother is a pure-hearted woman and both of them used to eat food.'" He said: "The meaning of eating food is that they used to relieve themselves and had excrement. Whoever claims lordship for the prophets or for the Imams (peace be upon them), or claims prophethood for the Imams (peace be upon them), or claims the imamate for one who is not an Imam [for other than the Imams], we disavow him in this world and the next."