Hundred Questions - Imam Isma`il (a.s)
Imam Isma`il (May peace be through him)
Q32 On such and such a page of such and such book the author has written that Imam Isma`il (May peace be through him) expired in the lifetime of his father Imam Ja`far al-Sadiq (May peace be through him), and thus Hazrat-i Musa al-Kazim succeeded Imam Ja`far al- Sadiq (May peace be through him). Can you prove that Imam Isma`il was alive after Imam Ja`far al- Sadiq's (May peace be through him) demise and he alone was the true heir to the Imamat after him?
A32 It is a great weakness to give undue importance to hostile literature, but it is necessary to ask such a question for the sake of knowledge. However, it should be understood that a law, whether religious or secular, is a sum or collection of general rules, which always remain the same and on the other hand, there is always room for particular events and exceptions, so that there should not be any hardship at the time of an exigency. Thus Pir Nasir-i Khusraw in his book Wajh-i din (chapter 11) says that Imam Isma`il's (May peace be through him) Imamat was transferred to his son Hazrat-i Muhammad (May peace be through him) during his father's lifetime. This means that Imam Ja`far al-Sadiq (May peace be through him) had long ago entrusted the Imamat to Imam Isma`il (May peace be through him) and similarly, Imam Isma`il (May peace be through him) entrusted his son Hazrat-i Muhammad (May peace be through him) with the Imamat during his illustrious father's lifetime. This brings [the importance of the historical aspect of] the question to an end about whether Imam Isma`il (May peace be through him) expired during the lifetime of his father or after him! In any case, the succession to Imamat continued through him and not through his brother. And since the Imamat has continued until today in Imam Isma`il (May peace be through him)'s progeny, we have to accept that he was the true heir to the Imamat.
It is true that Imamat is mostly transferred on the last day or at the last moments of the Imam's physical life. This is only a matter of the transference of authority (ikhtiyar); otherwise the succeeding Imam long before passes through the stages of spirituality and luminosity (nuraniyyat). For light is not like a material thing to be confined only within one person, rather it can be in several persons at the same time. Take for example the panj-tan-i pak (Five Holy Persons). Is it not true that they all possessed the light? But who had the authority? Only one person had it and that was the holy Prophet. This shows that the light of Imamat, in addition to being in the father, can also reach the son and grandson. For, as we have explained, the light cannot be transferred in one day; what is transferred instantly [at the last moment] is the authority of religious guidance.
It is mentioned in the Qur'an, that nobody can extinguish the light of God. But this never means that no Prophet or Imam can be martyred. Rather, this means that on such occasions [i.e. the physical danger to the Prophets and Imams] the way or plan by which God transfers His light to another person are secrets to which everyone does not have access. Thus in view of the dangers of the time, Imam Isma`il's (May peace be through him) Imamat was transferred miraculously to his son, Hazrat-i Muhammad bin Isma`il (May peace be through him).
Sayyidna Qazi Nu`man and Sayyidna Pir Nasir-i Khusraw, in Asasu't-ta'wil and Wajh-i din respectively, say that Hazrat-i Yacqub's (May peace be through him) Imamat had long ago been transferred to Hazrat-i Yusuf (May peace be through him). The reason for this transference was the enmity of Hazrat-i Yusuf's brothers, for they did not wish their father to select him above them.
Also, before the martyrdom of Imam `Ali (May peace be through him) both Hazrat-i Hasan (May peace be through him) and Hazrat-i Husayn (May peace be through him) had received the capacity of light (luminosity) and Imamat, as the Prophet had said: "Hasan and Husayn are Imams standing or sitting [whether in power or otherwise], and their father is superior to them both."
Similarly Imam Zaynu'l-`Abidin (May peace be through him) had already received the Imamat before the martyrdom of Imam Husayn (May peace be through him). For the divine power (qudrat) works according to the exigency of the time. Thus it becomes clear that Imam Isma`il's (May peace be through him) Imamat had already been transferred to his son Hazrat-i Muhammad (May peace be through him) in view of the exigency of the time, as mentioned above.
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