Hadeeth Explanation: “Whoever died without an Imam he dies--

Given modern distractions, the need to understand Islam better has never been more urgent. Through this forum we can share ideas and hopefully promote the true spirit of Islam which calls for peace, justice, tolerance, inclusiveness and diversity.
Muslim First
Posts: 6893
Joined: Tue Jun 19, 2001 4:01 am

Hadeeth Explanation: “Whoever died without an Imam he dies--

#1

Unread post by Muslim First » Thu May 08, 2014 4:21 pm

Hadeeth Explanation: “Whoever died without an Imam he dies a death of jahilyyah”

From: http://youpuncturedtheark.wordpress.com ... jahilyyah/

Correct Meaning and Interpretation of the hadeeth.

In The Name of Allah, The Beneficent, The Merciful.

Below is the narration usually misinterpreted by Shias:

حدثنا عبد الله حدثنى أبى ثنا أسود بن عامر انا أبو بكر عن عاصم عن أبى صالح عن معاوية قال قال رسول الله صلى الله عليه وسلم من مات بغير امام مات ميتة جاهلية
Prophet(saw) said: Whoever died without an Imam he dies a death of jahilyyah(pre-islamic times). (MusnadAhmed volume 4 page 96).

This hadeeth is usually misunderstood and misinterpreted by Shias, they cherry-pick the hadeeth and interpret it as per their desires, and ignore the other related authentic ahadeeth which provides the correct understanding of this hadeeth.

Insha Allah! In this article we will explain this narration with the help of authentic narrations which are related to this hadeeth, because the best explanation could only be derived from the Prophetic narrations, as they would further explain and clarify the actual meaning of the narration misinterpreted by Shias.Here are few narrations which provide the correct understanding of the narration misinterpreted by Shias:

Prophet (peace be upon him) said – as related by `Abd Allah b. `Umar – “Whoever dies without being bound by the oath of allegiance (bay`ah), dies the death of the time of jahiliyya(pre-islamic times).” [Sahîh Muslim (1851)]

The Messenger of Allah [SAW] said: ‘Whoever parts from obedience, and splits away from the Jama’ah and dies, then he has died a death of Jahiliyyah. Whoever rebels against my Ummah, killing good and evil people alike, and does not try to avoid killing the believers, and does not pay attention to those who are under a covenant, then he is not of me. Whoever fights for a cause that is not clear, advocating tribalism, getting angry for the sake of tribalism, and he is killed, then he has died a death of Jahiliyyah. [Sunan an-Nasa'i Vol. 5, Book 37, Hadith 4119 ]

It has been narrated on the authority of Ibn ‘Abbas that the messenger of Allah (may peace be upon him) said: One who found in his Amir something which he disliked should hold his patience, for one who separated from the main body of the Muslims even to the extent of a hand span and then he died would die the death of one belonging to the days of Jahiliyya(pre-islamic times).[Sahi Muslim Bk 20, Number 4559]

It has been narrated on the authority of Abu Huraira that the Messenger of Allah (may peace be upon him) said: One who defected from obedience (to the Ruler)and separated from the main body of the Muslims−if he died in that state−would die the death of one belonging to the days of Jahiliyya(pre-islamic times).[Sahi muslim Bk 20, Number 4555]

إن عبد الله بن عمر أتى ابن مطيع فقال : اطرحوا لأبي عبد الرحمن وسادة فقال : ما جئت لأجلس عندك ولكن جئت أخبرك ما سمعت من رسول الله صلى الله عليه وسلم سمعته يقول : من نزع يدا من طاعة أو فارق الجماعة مات ميتة الجاهلية
الراوي: زيد بن أسلم المحدث: أحمد شاكر – المصدر: مسند أحمد – الصفحة أو الرقم: 9/23
خلاصة الدرجة: إسناده صحيح

Abdallah Ibn Omar came to Ibn Mutee’and said: “Ask Abi Abdul-Rahman for a cushion.” He said: “I didn’t come to sit with you, rather I came to inform you what I’ve heard from the Messenger of Allah sallallahu ‘alayhi wa sallam, I heard him saying: “Whoever removes his hands from the obedience (i.e. disobeys the legal authorities of the Muslim rulers) or creates differences in the Jama’ah dies the death of the Jaahiliyyah.”[Musnad Ahmad vol 9, page 23, Isnad Sahih)

Thus in the light of these authentic reports which are related to the hadeeth in question, we found that, Prophet(saw) actually meant “whoever dies without giving allegiance and removing himself from obedience to the Imam will die the death of jahiliiya”. This hadeeth is regarding allegiance(bay’ah) and obedience to the Ruler. When there is a legitimate head of state for the Muslims (Imam), then it is not permissible for a Muslim to refrain from accepting him by not giving an oath of allegiance(bay’ah) to that Head of state, this is what the hadeeth means.

The oath of allegiance(bay`ah) is directly incumbent upon the leaders of the Muslim community(ahl al-hall wa al-`aqd) and must be given on the authority of the Qur’ân and Sunnah according to the conditions set forth in Islamic Law. As far as the general public is concerned, most scholars agree that the pledge of allegiance given by their community leaders will suffice them, so it is not necessary for every single individual to do so. This is what Abû Ya`lâ says in his work al-Mu`tamad (p. 254) and in his al-Ahkâm al-Sultâniyyah (p. 27). It is also the opinion stated by al-Mâwardî in his book by the same name (p. 15). Even though the individual in this case does not give the oath of allegiance directly, he is bound by it. He is required to obey in all matters that do not entail disobedience to Allah.

This hadeeth isn’t applicable when the Muslim Ummah(community) is without an Imam.

From the authentic Prophetic narrations we presented above, it was clear that the phrase “whoever dies without an Imam dies the death of jahiliyya(pre-islamic times)” meant whoever died without removing himself from obedience to the Imam and without giving him allegiance, then he dies death of jahiliyya(pre-islamic times).
This is only possible when Imam or the Caliph is present, if there is no Imam present then this hadeeth won’t be applicable.

Often Shias misinterpret this hadeeth and try to argue that this narration proves that every human being must die with an Imam, otherwise his/her death is upon Jahilliya(pre-islamic times). Shias also claim that this narration is referring to their 12 Imams whom they picked, their belief is that the world will always have an infallible divinely appointed Imam in it, without Imam world cannot exist and that everyone must pledge allegiance to the Imam of their time; they claim that their hidden Imam Mahdi is the Imam of this era, who from more than 1000 years is holding this position. This is false, incorrect and unrealistic interpretation and belief of Shias.

The refutation to false Shia belief was given by Prophet(Saw), as one of his companions asked him about the days of the future and the Prophet(Saw) didn’t negate the idea that the Muslim Ummah could be WITHOUT an Imam, which nullifies the Shia misinterpretation.

In an authentic report from Sahi Muslim we read:

كان الناس يسألون رسول الله صلى الله عليه وسلم عن الخير ، وكنت أسأله عن الشر مخافة أن يدركني ، فقلت : يا رسول الله ، إنا كنا في الجاهلية وشر ، فجاءنا الله بهذا الخير ، فهل بعد هذا الخير من شر ؟ قال : ( نعم ) . قلت : وهل بعد ذلك الشر من خير ؟ قال : نعم ، وفيه دخن ) . قلت وما دخنه ؟ قال : ( قوم يهدون بغير هديي ، تعرف منهم وتنكر ) . قلت : فهل بعد ذلك الخير من شر ؟ قال : ( نعم ، دعاة إلى أبواب جهنم ، من أجابهم إليها قذفوه فيها ) . قلت : يا رسول الله ، صفهم لنا ؟ فقال : ( هم من جلدتنا ، ويتكلمون بألسنتنا ) . قلت : فما تأمرني إن أدركني ذلك ؟ قال : تلزم جماعة المسلمين وإمامهم ، قلت : فإن لم يكن لهم جماعة ولا إمام ؟ قال : ( فاعتزل تلك الفرق كلها ، ولو أن تعض بأصل شجرة ، حتى يدركك الموت وأنت على ذلك )

It has been narrated on the authority of Hudhaifa b. al−Yaman who said: People used to ask the Messenger of Allah (may peace be upon him) about the good times, but I used to ask him about bad times fearing lest they overtake me. I said: Messenger of Allah, we were in the midst of ignorance and evil, and then God brought us this good (time through Islam). Is there any bad time after this good one? He said: Yes. I asked: Will there be a good time again after that bad time? He said: Yes, but therein will be a hidden evil. I asked: What will be the evil hidden therein? He said: (That time will witness the rise of) the people who will adopt ways other than mine and seek guidance other than mine. You will know good points as well as bad points. I asked: Will there be a bad time after this good one? He said: Yes. (A time will come) when there will be people standing and inviting at the gates of Hell. Whoso responds to their call they will throw them into the fire. I said: Messenger of Allah, describe them for us. He said: All right. They will be a people having the same complexion as ours and speaking our language. I said: Messenger of Allah, what do you suggest if I happen to live in that time? He said: You should stick to the main body of the Muslims and their Imam(leader). I said: If they have no (such thing as the) main body and have no Imam(leader)? He said: Separate yourself from all these factions, though you may have to eat the roots of trees (in a jungle) until death comes to you and you are in this state.(Sahi Muslim Bk 20, Number 4553)

Comment: This narrations shows that there could be a time when there will be no Imam(as this is happening in this era). Which shows that Prophet(Saw) destroyed the innovated beliefs of the Shias, that earth can’t survive without an Imam. Notice that He(saw) wasn’t surprised when questioner asked what should be done when there is no Imam. He(saw) didn’t reject the question of people saying how could earth survive with without an Imam. This is sufficient to understand the falsification of the home-made beliefs of Shias.

Moreover, Ibn Majah recorded that the Prophet’s(saw) last statement was, “Then if you die while you are biting on a stump of a tree, that is better for you than following one of them.” Al-Baydawi states that this expression means, “If there is no khalifah on earth, then you are obligated to be detached and endure the harshness of the time.” “Fiercely biting the roots of a tree” is allegorical for “suffering through and enduring difficulties.” This is similar to someone biting on a stone to cope with pain.

Here is a simple example to understand this in better way:

Suppose someone states: “Whoever dies without treating his wife in a good manner dies the death of jahiliyya”.

Now it would be stupidity to conclude from this statement that it proves each and every Man of this world should die treating his wife in a good way. However the fact is that, this statement is only directed towards married people, it doesn’t include bachelors in it.

Similarly, the narration in question explains us that, when there is a legitimate Ruler, then disassociating from his obedience and dying in that manner will mean the death of Jahiliyah. But this condition is not applicable to those people among whom there is no Ruler or Imam, like we explained in our example that the condition was not applicable to people who were bachelors(without a wife). Importantly Prophet(Saw) even affirmed that there could be a time when there would be no community and no Imam or Caliph, which leaves no space for Shia misinterpretations.


Authentic Prophetic hadeeth destroys the Shia claim from its roots:

Hudhaifah (radhiAllaahu anhu) narrated in a long hadeeth that the Messenger of Allaah (sallAllaahu 'alaihi wa sallam) said, "There will come Imams(leaders) who will not follow my guidance nor will they follow my Sunnah. There will be amongst them men who will have the hearts of devils in the bodies of humans." He (Hudhaifah) asked, "What should I do O Messenger of Allaah if I reach that?" He replied, "You should hear and obey the ruler. Even if he flogs your back and takes your wealth you should still hear and obey."( Sahih Muslim book 20,Hadith 4554)

Comment: This hadeeth cleanly refutes the Shia belief that earth will always have a divinely appointed Imam by the prophecy that there would be Imams who would be evil and deviant. If Shias believe that Imamah was only meant for their 12 Imams and no one else, then this prophesy would apply on them, which the Shias will never agree upon. This shows that Imamate(Rulership) was not restricted to certain infallibles, as the Shias claim.



The baseless and denounced version of this hadeeth.

Sheikh Nasiruddin al-Albani(rah) says in his book 'Silsila ad-da’eefa':
" من مات ولم يعرف إمام زمانه مات ميتة جاهلية ".
لا أصل له بهذا اللفظ.
وقد قال الشيخ ابن تيمية: والله ما قاله رسول الله صلى الله عليه وسلم هكذا، وإنما المعروف ما روى مسلم أن ابن عمر قال: سمعت رسول الله صلى الله عليه وسلم يقول: " من خلع يدا من طاعة لقي الله يوم القيامة ولا حجة له، ومن مات وليس في عنقه بيعة مات ميتة جاهلية "، وأقره الذهبي في " مختصر منهاج السنة " (ص 2 وكفى بهما حجة، وهذا الحديث رأيته في بعض كتب الشيعة، ثم في بعض كتب القاديانية يستدلون به على وجوب الإيمان بدجالهم ميرزا غلام أحمد المتنبي، ولوصح هذا الحديث لما كان فيه أدنى إشارة إلى ما زعموا، وغاية ما فيه وجوب اتخاذ المسلمين إماما يبايعونه، وهذا حق كما دل عليه حديث مسلم وغيره.
ثم رأيت الحديث في كتاب " الأصول من الكافي " للكليني من علماء الشيعة رواه (1 / 377) عن محمد بن عبد الجبار عن صفوان عن الفضيل عن الحارث بن المغيرة عن أبي عبد الله مرفوعا، وأبو عبد الله هو الحسين بن علي رضي الله عنهما

“He who dies and does not know the Imam of his time dies the death of ignorance”.

The Hadith has no basis in this current form.

Ibn Taymiyyah said: By Allah the prophet (saw) never said it in this way, what is popular is what's in Muslim from ibn `Umar: I heard the prophet (saws) say: The one who removes his hand from obedience, will meet his Lord with no argument in his defense. And the one who dies not having given an oath of allegiance will die a death of ignorance. al-Dhahabi agreed with him in Mukhtasar Minhaj al-Sunnah pg2 and they are sufficient as proof, and I saw this narration in some of the books of the Shia, then in some Qadiyani books and they used it as proof for people to believe in their liar Mirza Ghulam Ahmad, even if this narration was authentic it has no proof for them, it simply says the Muslims must appoint a leader and pledge allegiance to him, and this is true as we read in Sahih Muslim.
Then I saw the narration in (Shia book)Usoul al-Kafi 1/377 from Muhammad ibn `Abdul-Jabbar, from Safwan from al-Fudayl, from al-Harith bin al-Mugheerah, from abu `Abdullah (as), Marfou`, and he is al-Husayn bin `Ali (ra). (Silsila ad-da'eefa 305).

Comment: Thus as per Sheikh Nasiruddin al-Albani(rah), this version of hadeeth, which is about “not knowing or not recognizing the Imam ” is baseless.



How did companions of Prophet Muhammad(Saw) understand the word 'Imam'?

We read in an authentic report from Sahi Bukhari:

دخل أبو بكر على امرأة من أحمس يقال لها زينب ، فرآها لا تكلم ، فقال : ما لها لا تكلم ؟ قالوا : حجت مصمتة ، قال لها : تكلمي ، فإن هذا لا يحل ، هذا من عمل الجاهلية ، فتكلمت ، فقالت : من أنت ؟ قال : امرؤ من المهاجرين ، قالت : أي المهاجرين ؟ قال : من قريش ، قالت : من أي قريش أنت ؟ قال : إنك لسؤول ، أنا أبو بكر ، قالت : ما بقاؤنا على هذا الأمر الصالح الذي جاء الله به بعد الجاهلية ؟ قال : بقاؤكم عليه ما استقامت بكم أئمتكم ، قالت : وما الأئمة ؟ قال : أما كان لقومك رؤوس وأشراف ، يأمرونهم فيطيعونهم ؟ قالت : بلى ، قال : فهم أولئك على الناس .

Narrated Qais bin Abi Hazim: Abu Bakr went to a lady from the Ahmas tribe called Zainab bint Al-Muhajir and found that she refused to speak. He asked, “Why does she not speak.” The people said, “She has intended to perform Hajj without speaking.” He said to her, “Speak, for it is illegal not to speak, as it is an action of the pre-islamic period of ignorance. So she spoke and said, “Who are you?” He said, “A man from the Emigrants.” She asked, “Which Emigrants?” He replied, “From Quraish.” She asked, “From what branch of Quraish are you?” He said, “You ask too many questions; I am Abu Bakr.” She said, “How long shall we enjoy this good order (i.e. Islamic religion) which Allah has brought after the period of ignorance?” He said, “You will enjoy it as long as your Imams keep on abiding by its rules and regulations.” She asked, “What are the Imams?” He said, “Were there not heads and chiefs of your nation who used to order the people and they used to obey them?” She said, “Yes.” He said, “So they (i.e. the Imams) are those whom I meant.”(Sahi Bukhari Vol. 5, Book 58, Hadith 175)

Comment: From this report we came to know that, as per the understanding of companions of Prophet Muhammad(saw), Imams were the fallible rulers and leaders who weren’t divinely appointed.

Mullah Ali Qari in his book "Sharh Fiqh Akbar", Chapter "Masala Nusbul Imamah" (Issue of appointment of the Imam) states:
"It is the majority opinion that there is a duty to appoint an Imam. But there is a difference, as to whether this is Allah's duty or whether this is incumbent on the public. The belief in the eyes of Ahl'ul Sunnah and Muttazalites is that the duty to appoint an Imam is a duty of the public. In terms of hadith and logic this is a duty of the public."(Sharh Fiqh Akbar, by Mullah Ali Qari, p 175).



Ahlelbayt rejected and refuted the Shia belief.

In an authentic hadith we read that, Member from Ahlelbayt, the great grandson of Imam Ali(ra) rejects and refutes the Shia belief.

في (الطبقات الكبرى) لابن سعد: حدثنا محمد بن عاصم حدثنا شبابة بن سوار عن الفضيل بن مرزوق قال: سألت عمر بن علي وحسين بن علي عمي جعفر قلت: هل فيكم أهل البيت إنسان مفترضة طاعته تعرفون له ذلك ومن لم يعرف له ذلك فمات مات ميتة جاهلية؟ فقالا: لا والله ما هذا فينا. من قال هذا فينا فهو كذاب. قال فقلت لعمر بن علي: رحمك الله، إن هذه منزلة تزعمون أنها كانت لعلي إن النبي (صلى الله عليه وسلم) أوصى إليه. ثم كانت للحسن إن عليا أوصى إليه. ثم كانت للحسين إن الحسن أوصى إليه. ثم كانت لعلي بن الحسين إن الحسين أوصى إليه، ثم كانت لمحمد بن علي إن عليا أوصى إليه. فقال: والله لمات أبي فما أوصى بحرفين. قاتلهم الله! والله إن هؤلاء إلا متأكلون بنا، هذا خنيس الخرؤ ما خنيس الخرؤ؟ قال قلت: المعلى بن خنيس، قال: نعم المعلى بن خنيس، والله لفكرت على فراشي طويلا أتعجب من قوم لبس الله عقولهم حين أضلهم المعلى بن خنيس. (الطّبقات الكبرى: 05/324)

(ibn Sa’ad) said in “al-Tabaqat al-Kubra 5/324″: Muhammad ibn ‘Asim from Shubabah bin Siwar from al-Fudayl ibn Marzuq; he said: I asked ‘Umar bin ‘Ali and Husayn bin ‘Ali the Uncles of Ja’far; I said, “Is there among you, Ahl al-Bayt, a person whose obedience (ie obedience to him) is obligatory and that whoever doesn’t recognize him dies the death of Jahiliyya(pre-Islamic times)?”
Both of them said: “No, by Allah! This is not from us! Whoever says that about us is a liar.”

I said to ‘Umar bin ‘Ali: “May Allah have Mercy on you. [It is said] that you claim that the Prophet (pbuh) appointed Ali as his successor, and then Ali appointed al-Hasan to be his successor, then al-Hasan appointed al-Husayn to be his successor, then al-Husyan appointed Ali bin al-Husyan as his successor then Ali appointed Muhammad bin Ali as his successor.“ So he said, “By Allah, my father died without uttering two letters with regards to succession. May Allah destroy them! By Allah, surely these people are nothing but a burden on us. This is (from) Khunays al-Kharu’?, was it Khunays al-Kharu’?” I said, “He is al-Mu’alla ibn Khunays.” He said, “Yes, al-Mu’alla bin Khunays, by Allah, I thought long in my bed wondering about people whom God had given knowledge as they were being lead astray by this al-Mu’alla bin Khunays. [(al-Tabaqat al-Kubra 5/324 ; Shaykh abi Nasr Muhammad bin `Abdullah al-Imam in Book, Tu`oun Rafidhat al-Yaman on page 17 says " sanad Hasan"(chain is good).]

Comment: Thus from this authentic report we came to know that, as per member from Ahlelbayt (i.e) al-Ḥasan b. al-Ḥasan b. al-Ḥasan b. ‘Alī – the great grandson of Ali(ra), there was no person present amongst his family(during his time) whose obedience was obligatory nor anyone failing to recognize whom would be death of pre-islamic times.

Similarly Imam from Ahlelbayt rejected the view that, He was divinely appointed Imam.

In his “Siyar A’laam un-Nubulaa” at page 259 Dhahabi narrated:

كتب إلي عبد المنعم بن يحيى الزهري، وطائفة قالوا: أنبأنا داود بن أحمد، أنبأنا محمد بن عمر القاضي، أنبأنا عبد الصمد بن علي، أنبأنا أبو الحسن الدارقطني، حدثنا أحمد بن محمد بن إسماعيل الادمي، حدثنا محمد بن الحسين الحنيني، حدثنا مخلد بن أبي قريش الطحان، حدثنا عبد الجبار بن العباس الهمداني، أن جعفر بن محمد أتاهم وهم يريدون أن يرتحلوا من المدينة، فقال: ” إنكم إن شاء الله من صالحي أهل مصركم، فأبلغوهم عني: من زعم أني إمام معصوم مفترض الطاعة، فأنا منه برئ، ومن زعم أني أبرأ من أبي بكر وعمر، فأنا منه برئ “.

From Abdul Jabar ibn Al-Abbas al-Hamadani: ”Jafar as-Sadiq came to them when they were leaving Madinah and told them: You are inshallah from amongst the best of people from your country (or from your Egypt) So report to them from me: He who claims that I’m an infallible imam who must be obeyed, I disassociate myself from him and he who claims that I disassociate myself from Abu Bakr and Umar, I disassociate myself from him.”

Also, we read in Shia book:

Shaykh at-Tabrasi in his book “al-Ihtijaj” (1/371) reports:
عن سعيد بن سمان قال :كنت عند أبي عبد الله إذ دخل عليه رجلان من الزيدية .فقالا له : أفيكم إمام مفترض الطاعة ؟ فقال الصادق :لا !!
“From Saeed ibn Samaan: I was near Abu Abdullah, when two men from zaydiyah entered upon him, and said: “Amongst you is there Imam, obedience to whom obligatory?”. As-Sadiq said: No”. [Shia book, “al-Ihtijaj” (1/371)]



The hidden Imam of Shias doesn’t fit in the criteria of Imam mentioned in Shia Hadeeth.

The Shias argue that their hidden 12th Imam is the Imam of this era and anyone who dies without believing in him dies death of jahiliyyah. So let us verify from Shia hadeeth that, does the hidden 12th Imam of Shias fit into the criteria of the Imam, without whom one would die death of jahiliyya?

We read in Shia books:
أحمد بن محمد بن عيسى، عن أحمد بن محمد بن أبي نصر قال: كتبت إلى الرضا عليه السلام …… وقد قال رسول الله صلى الله عليه وآله: من مات وليس عليه إمام حي يعرفه مات ميتة جاهلية. وقال أبوجعفر عليه السلام: إن الحجة لا تقوم لله عزوجل على خلقه إلا بإمام حي يعرفونه.
Ahmed ibn mohammed ibn issa from Ahmed ibn mohamed ibn abi nasr he said : I wrote to Ridha(as) …..Ridha(as) answered : Abu jafar (as) said : Rasool allah(saw) said : whoever died without a living Imam that he knows then he dies a death of jahiliyah. Abu jafar(as) said: hujja cannot be used by Allah upon his creation without a living imam that they know.( Qurb al-Isnad).

Comment: This shows that Imam is living so that creation would know him. But Shias cannot prove from any factual evidence that their hidden Imam is living, and due to this lack of evidence, He can’t even be known by people.

عن عمر بن يزيد، عن أبي الحسن الاول (عليه السلام)، قال: سمعته يقول: ” من مات بغير إمام، مات ميتة جاهلية، امام حي يعرفه ” قلت: لم أسمع اباك يذكر هذا، يعني إماما حيا، فقال: ” قد والله قال ذلك رسول الله (صلى الله عليه وآله)، قال: وقال رسول الله (صلى الله عليه وآله): من مات وليس له امام يسمع له ويطيع، مات ميتة جاهلية ».

( بحارالانوار ج23 ص92 و الاختصاص شیخ مفید صص 268-269 و

Abi al-Hassan (as) said: One who dies without a living and known Imam, dies the death of ignorance. The narrator said: I never heard this from your father, I mean the living Imam? He replied: By Allah the Messenger of Allah said this, and said: One who dies without an Imam, who can be heard and obeyed, dies the death of ignorance.
– Mufid in al-ekhtisas p268-289
– Bihar al-Anwar v23 p92.

Comment: Can the hidden Imam of Shias be heard and obeyed? Surely not!

ال أبو عبد الله عليه السلام: من مات وليس عليه إمام حي ظاهر مات ميتة جاهلية»
(بحارالانوار مجلسی ج23 ص 93 _ بیروت و مفید در الاختصاص ص269 _ بیروت)
Abu Abdilllah (as) said: One who dies without the living and Zahir (visible . i.e which can be seen) Imam, dies the death of ignorance.
– al-Mufid in Al-ekhtisas p269 Beirut
– Bihar al-Anwar v23 p93 Beirut.

«عن أبي الجارود قال: سمعت أبا عبدالله عليه السلام يقول: من مات وليس عليه إمام حي ظاهر مات ميتة جاهلية، قال: قلت: إمام حي جعلت فداك ؟ قال: إمام حي، إمام حي»
(بحارالانوار ج23 ص93 و مفید در الاختصاص ص269 و مستدرک وسائل و..)

Abu Abdillah (as) said: One who dies without having a living and Zahir (visible, i.e which can be seen) Imam dies the death of ignorance. The narrator asked: May I be sacrificed for you, the living Imam? He replied: the living Imam, the living Imam.
– al-Mufid in al-ekhtisas p269
– Bihar al-Anwar v23 p93
– Mustadrak Wasail

Comment: Is the hidden Imam of Shias, visible(Zahir)? Not at all!

From these Shia ahadeeth we came to know that, the Imam is the one who can be Heard, who is visible(Zahir), and who is living. But unfortunately the current hidden Imam of Shias, can neither be heard nor seen, and there is no factual proof which proves that he is living due to which we cannot know him. Thus the non-existing twelfth Imam of Shias in no way considered as the Imam without whom one would die death of jahiliyyah.



Death of jahiliyya(pre-islamic death) does not mean dying as a Kafir(disbeliever).

Shias have a serious misconception that, the hadeeth in question means that whoever died without an Imam, would die as Kafir. This is completely wrong definition of hadeeth. The death of Jahiliyyah here implies the death of the pre-islamic times, meaning if a person refuses to integrate himself into Islamic society and follow the Muslims and their leader, but he rather decides to cause division and set a bad example, these are from the habits of pre-Islamic times, or the times of ignorance as we call them, one who does this risks Allah’s wrath on the day of judgment. This is a sin, but this doesn’t take one out of the fold of Islam nor does it make him Kafir.

Inshah Allah! we will try to clear this confusion using other authentic narrations and also by presenting some historical reports.

We read in Sunan an-Nasa’i:

The Messenger of Allah [SAW] said: ‘Whoever parts from obedience, and splits away from the Jama’ah and dies, then he has died a death of Jahiliyyah. Whoever rebels against my Ummah, killing good and evil people alike, and does not try to avoid killing the believers, and does not pay attention to those who are under a covenant, then he is not of me. Whoever fights for a cause that is not clear, advocating tribalism, getting angry for the sake of tribalism, and he is killed, then he has died a death of Jahiliyyah. [Sunan an-Nasa'i Vol. 5, Book 37, Hadith 4119 ]

In this report we found that, the one who is killed fighting for the sake of tribalism, would die a death of jahiliyyah(pre-islamic death). Here death without obedience to Imam and death for the sake of tribalism BOTH have been considered as death of Jahiliyyah. Now it would be illogical to believe that a person who fought and was killed for the sake of tribalism died as a Kafir(disbeliever), how could this effect the faith of a Muslim?

Sheikh Abu Muhammad Mahmud ibn Ahmad explains that a pre-Islamic(jahiliyya) death is not one in which a Muslim dies as a kafir, but one in which one dies in a state of disobedience. Therefore, a pre-Islamic killing does not mean a killing in a state of kufr. Rather, it means a killing in a state of disobedience. (See Umdah al-Qari, Kitab al-Fitn, Bab 2 Qawl an-Nabi(S) : Satarawna Ba’di Umuran).

Thus the correct understanding of hadeeth is that, death of jahiliyyah means death in a state of disobedience towards the Caliph or Imam.

Moreover, we find in Shia book Jami Ahadith al Shia, there is a whole chapter as:
باب ما ورد في أن الوصية حق على كل مسلم ، وأن من مات بغير وصية مات ميتة جاهلية
Chapter on what has been narrated regarding that will(wasiyyah) is haqq on all the Muslims , and who died without making will dies upon the death of jahiliyyah.

Here is one hadeeth from the above chapter of Shia book:
المقنعة 101 – قال صلى الله عليه وآله من مات بغير وصية فقد مات ميتة جاهلية.
(9) al-Muqni`ah 101- He Peace be upon him and his family said: He who dies without a Will then he died a death of Jahiliyyah.[/colo]

Now if we go by the faulty Shia interpretations then, any Shia who died without making a will would die as a Kafir. Will the Shias agree with this interpretation? We believe, they won’t, because this would be an illogical conclusion, similarly even in regards to the hadeeth in question, they should stop applying the illogical and incorrect interpretations to it, because death of jahiliyyah doesn’t mean dying as Kafir even in the case of dying without an Imam.

Even Ahlelbayt understood this hadeeth the same way as Ahlesunnah does, that is why these were their view regarding those who fought fourth Caliph of Muslims Ali(ra) as found in Shia books.

Jafar Sadiq narrates from his father (Baqir) that Ali never accused the ones with whom he fought of Shirk (i.e polytheism) or hypocrisy, rather he would say , they are our brothers who rebelled against us. [(shia books) Wasail Shia, 15/83 , also Qurbul Asnad p. 45, Majleese reported in “Biharal anwar” 32/324]

فلقد كنا مع رسول الله صلى
الله عليه وآله وإن القتل ليدور على الآباء والابناء والاخوان والقرابات ،
فما نزداد على كل مصيبة وشدة إلا إيمانا ، ومضيا على الحق ، وتسليما
للامر ، وصبرا على مضض الجراح . ولكنا إنما أصبحنا نقاتل إخواننا
في الاسلام على ما دخل فيه من الزيغ والاعوجاج والشبهة والتأويل

Hz Ali addressing his companions and his opponents said: We were with prophet(saw) , that time our fathers and sons were killed , our near one and brothers were killed ,but after every problem and calamity our Eman used to get increase. We used to standstill on truth, We used to obey the commands, at times of difficulties we used to do sabr(patience). But now we are fighting our own Muslim brothers.(nahjul balagha tahqeeq subhi saleh, page 179)

Shia scholars Majlisi in “Bihar” (32/324); Burjardi in “Jamiu ahadeth ash-shia” (13/93) transmitted:
٢٩٧ – قرب الإسناد: ابن طريف عن ابن علوان عن جعفر عن أبيه أن عليا (عليه السلام) كان يقول لأهل حربه: إنا لم نقاتلهم على التكفير لهم ولم نقاتلهم على التكفير لنا ولكنا رأينا أنا على حق ورأوا أنهم على حق

Furat by his chain: ibn Tareef – Ibn Alwan – Jafar – Father – Ali (alaihi salam) who said about those who fought against him: We don’t fight with them due to their takfir, and don’t fight with them due to their takfir of us. But we see that we are upon truth, and they see that they are upon truth.

bohrabai
Posts: 30
Joined: Wed May 07, 2014 1:15 am

Re: Hadeeth Explanation: “Whoever died without an Imam he di

#2

Unread post by bohrabai » Fri May 09, 2014 12:52 am

"This is only possible when Imam or the Caliph is present, if there is no Imam present then this hadeeth won’t be applicable.
"
???