Recognition of Imam Part III - Key 18 Everything in the Manifest Imam

Key 18 Everything in the Manifest Imam

In verse (36:12), the Lord of the world says: “And We have encompassed everything in (the luminosity of) the manifest Imām.”

Question: If this title of the “manifest Imām” is meant for the present Imām only, please explain to us how everything of the universe and the existents, i.e., all physical and spiritual things are encompassed in the person of the Imām?
Answer: Yes, the “manifest Imām” is the blessed title of the present Imām, because he has the status of the sacred light of God, the Holy, which has encompassed the expanses of the earth and the heavens.

There are several concepts of how the Imām of the time, as the absolute light of God, may He be exalted, comprehends all things of the universe. One of them is that there is a continuous intellectual and spiritual (i.e., conscious and living) reflection of the things of both the worlds in the inner (batin) mirror of the True Imām. In other words, the living picture and form of everything exists on the Guarded Tablet (lawh-i mahfuz) of the luminous heart of the holy Imām.

The second concept is that the True Imām is the soul and intellect of this great universe in the sense that the intellect of the Imām is the Universal Intellect and his soul is the Universal Soul. Thus, all intellects and all souls are encompassed in his intellect and his soul.

The third is that, since the True Imām is the Eye of God, therefore, the external and the internal states of all existents are confined and encompassed within his sight, as Mawlānā `Alī(`a) says: “I am God's Eye in the earth and His Speaking Tongue among His creatures. I am that light of God that cannot be extinguished. I am God's door through which one can reach Him and I am His hujjat (proof) for His servants.”

The fourth concept of everything being contained in the sacred person of the manifest Imām is that the Holy Spirit of the exalted Imām has the status of the Universal Soul, the Supreme Spirit, the Spirit of spirits and the spiritual world. Therefore, the manifest Imām is the sun of the souls of all creatures and all things. Now the example of those souls that have come into this world is like that of the rays of the sun that have reached the earth's surface; and the souls, which having come into the world, have merged in their Origin or that have not yet come into the world, resemble that substance of the light that exists in the sun's fountainhead. Thus, the souls that are still in the sacred light of the manifest Imām and also the ones which have come into the world, are all confined within the personality of the Imām of the time, just as the rays of the sun that have not yet emitted from the sun are definitely confined in its light, but even those that are emitted and spread in the six directions of the universe are also confined in it (the sun) due to their link with it.

In this connection, in addition to these concepts, there is also a Qur'ānic proof mentioned about the holy Prophet: “We did not send you except as a mercy for all the worlds (i.e., the whole universe)” (21:107). This verse shows that the holy Prophet, as the ever-reaching and all-embracing universal mercy, contained the entire universe and all existents within himself, as mentioned in the preceding pages that God, may He be exalted, has comprehended everything i.e., the universe, in His mercy and knowledge, as the Qur'ān says: “Our Lord! You have comprehended everything in mercy and knowledge” (40:7). Since the manifest Imām is the Vicegerent of God and the holy Prophet, therefore the Imām's spirituality is God's ever-reaching mercy and his light is God's all-encompassing knowledge. Thus, it is evident that the spirituality and luminosity of the manifest Imām surround the expanses of the earth and the heavens.

A few examples of how all the things of the universe are contained in the light of the manifest Imām are presented in the following:

The sun has immersed the entire solar system in its unbounded ocean of light even though it is a limited body within it.
It is a sure fact that the holy Qur'ān's entire exoteric and esoteric is contained in the dot under the ba' of bismi'llah.
The seed of a tree contains a kernel, within which is a tiny dot in which is hidden a huge tree.
An entire universe of souls of the people was hidden in the loins of Hazrat-i Ādam(`a).
There are many subtle worlds contained in the human heart and mind, such as the world of dream, the world of imagination, the world of thinking, the world of intellect and wisdom, the world of experiences, the world of love and affection, etc.
There is a dot of wisdom in the heart of a believing servant (bandah-yi mu'min) and within this dot is so much capacity that it can contain God, the Beneficent, and all His attributes of majesty and beauty.
The holy Spirits of all the Prophets, the heavenly Books, the Divine sciences and the faithful souls of all the communities (ummats) were gathered together in the blessed personality of the holy Prophet. Alluding to all these realities, he said: “I am the house of wisdom and `Alī is its door”. This means that the light of the holy Prophet, which contained everything, is also in the manifest Imām.
This great universe has come into being by the two letters (kaf and nun - Kun - Be) of the Divine Command and eventually it is going to merge in it.
Man has intellect and knowledge in his heart and mind, and that intellect and knowledge contain man. That is, man is confined within the circle of the things known (ma`lumat) to him.
On the Day of Judgement the entire earth will be in the Fist of God and the heavens will be rolled up in His right Hand (39:67).
Potentially all the sciences of the entire world are contained in an ink-pot, in the sense that every kind of writing and knowledge can be produced from it.

Thus, from the above arguments and examples, it has become clear that the exterior and interior of the universe and existents are confined in the circle of light of the manifest Imām. Praise be to God, this universal law stands as the key to that unique treasure in which the keys of all hidden treasures of the heaven and the earth are preserved, which were mentioned in Key 10.

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