The 12th Imam

It finally happened. After declaring the flu season had started a few days ago, I was struck down myself over the weekend whilst visiting a friend in Burnley. Hazards of the job I suppose. Thankfully I have recovered and back to work today, which means back to the blogs. Apologies to all who have been waiting for my next post!

Over the past few days whilst publishing a variety of blogs from people which have proved to be very enjoyable, I've been working on a rather important blog for me, a blog about the 12th Imam. Many of the readers will know about the 12th Imam, he is arguably the most important figure alive for the Shia faith. However for many of us, he remains a distant figure in the background, currently in occultation, due to save the world at some point in the future. Personally, when I think of the 12th Imam, it's often based on that idea, he's in hiding and eventually when God decree's, he will reveal himself and restore order to the world and that's that. I never really focus on what to do in the meantime and I think the same applies for many of us.

Knowing very little besides the obvious about the 12th Imam, I felt it prudent to actually do some research and gain some knowledge about the most important figure for Shias. It's quite damning to think I know so little about someone so important. Having spent quite some time over the past few days doings some research, I thought it would be a good idea to type a blog about him, however, such is the vast amount of information I've uncovered, the blog is quite lengthy and will require some patience to get through. Before I continue though, I must apologise in advance if I make any errors or mistakes and hope you will be kind enough to point them out and correct them accordingly in the comments section.

Let's start with some basic history. The 12th Imam, Imam Muhammad Al-Mahdi (a.s.), is the direct descendant of the holy Prophet through his daughter Bibi Fatima (a.s.) and is a grandson of the 10th generation after the Prophet. Son to Imam Hasan Al-Askari (a.s.), he was born in the year 868 and his mother was Narjis, a Byzantine princess. During the time of his birth the Shias were under much oppression and in order to protect him, his birth was kept a secret until the assassination of his father on 27th January 874, and it was only during the funeral prayers of the 11th Imam did Imam Mahdi (a.s.) reveal himself as his successor, and at the age of 5 became the 12th and final Imam. Soon after the revelation of his existence he went into the first of his occultation’s - Ghaybat Al-Sughra - which lasted approximately 76yrs during which time he maintained contact with his followers through four appointed deputies, they represented him and acted as his agents between him and his followers. Shortly before the death of the 4th deputy, he announced that the minor occultation would end and he would move into the major occultation - Ghaybat Al-Kubra - which started on 10th Shawwal, 939, without any appointed deputies, and is continuing to this very day and if my calculations are correct he has lived for the last 1138 years.

Shia’s believe that the 12th Imam, direct descendent of the holy Prophet, is currently in hiding and will at some point in the future be revealed at the command of God to restore peace and justice to the entire world. A very simple statement, but with huge implications.

We believe that one man will restore order and spread the religion of Islam throughout the world. He will come with Prophet Isa (Jesus) by his side and together they will spread the religion of Islam leading up to the end of the world and the Day of Judgment. His existence confirms our belief in God; he is God’s living representative on Earth. He defines our purpose of living, without him the world could not exist because where would the literal proof of God be? This world cannot exist without proof of God and the 12th Imam is that proof.

If you have religious beliefs then it makes sense to believe in such a person. It doesn’t have to be the 12th Imam, but the idea that there is a hidden saviour who will come to save the world when it reaches its lowest point is an important belief in all religions. It is the Shias who are able to clearly define this person. No other school of thought, or in fact religion, is able to define this person with such clarity and often people struggle to understand not only his existence but also what it would mean if he did not exist.

He has gone into this major occultation at the command of God. He will remain in hiding until the time is right for him to reveal himself and establish peace and justice across the world. We believe that will only happen when the world reaches breaking point. There will come a point when all ideologies will fail, and when every leader or government will fail, making it clear that no one is capable of establishing justice in the world except for God's representative on this world; Imam Mahdi (a.s.). I personally think the world has already reached breaking point and often wonder that if it hasn't then how bad does it have to get?

Believing in the living Imam means a belief in the idea of absolute eradication of every kind of injustice and oppression by the Imam. It provides hope for us that there is a way out. The 12th Imam will appear owing no allegiance to anyone. He will eradicate all evils in a concrete form. Therefore, we are able to continue waiting for his reappearance and continue looking forward to the solace he will provide for the world. This link between us and the 12th Imam is only possible if he is alive and living, a contemporary personality.

Being a living person makes him much more identifiable as a concept. It has made the Imam a source of strength and consolation to every person suffering from deprivation and injustice, a person who shares our suffering and misery and is waiting to help the oppressed, waiting for God's command to save the world.

Leading on from this, a few issues are often raised when discussing the 12th Imam because of the very unique nature of his existence and principles. The main question is how someone can still be alive after so many years? For the 12th Imam to be alive, he must be over 1000yrs old, so how can this be possible. For those with belief in God it’s simple, the 12th Imam is not the first person to live that long in the history of mankind, the Quran states that “We (once) sent Noah to his people, and he tarried among them a thousand years less fifty: but the Deluge overwhelmed them while they (persisted in) sin” (Surah 29, Verse 14), Prophet Nuh lived to the age of 950yrs which enabled him to rebuild after the flood which wiped out the infidels. Allah also tells the story of the people of the cave: “So they stayed in their Cave three hundred years, and (some) add nine (more). Say: "Allah knows best how long they stayed: with Him is (the knowledge of) the secrets of the heavens and the earth.” (Surah 18, Verses 25-26) God has showed it is possible for man to live for long periods and there is no doubt therefore to the existence of the 12th Imam despite him being over 1000yrs old.

However, the longevity of the 12th Imam seems rather far-fetched for those who don’t believe in God and his Prophets. If we go back to the reason behind his major occultation it becomes possible to realise why the 12th Imam has to be so old. He will return to save the world (not just one town or city or country) from injustice and destruction. For such an event to take place and for the individual to succeed, he must have immense understanding of the situations of the world and that can only come about with experience of having lived through it. Only then can he put into action what he has learned throughout the course of history to establish peace. That experience will take time and the only way to have it is by actually living through the course of history.

As the revolution to be brought about by the 12th Imam is to be ideological and based on the message of Islam, the very nature of his mission requires him to be close to the early Islamic sources and to have a personality built independently of and detached from the influences of the culture he is destined to fight. Therefore, his personality must be fully-developed at the cultural stage, able to understand each and every culture that he will change and that can only be through having experienced each and every culture, again, through the course of history.

The existence of the 12th Imam and his role for mankind was mentioned during the time of the Prophet and is reported in both Sunni and Shia hadith. The Prophet has stated that the 12th Imam will belong to the Prophet's house, will be descended from his daughter, Bibi Fatima (a.s.) in the 10th generation. His arrival was mentioned by the 11 Imams that preceded him and therefore cannot be doubted as to its authenticity. It is only an expression of divine truth and the prophecy of 12 leaders from the family of the Prophet was subsequently fulfilled.

His actual existence and interactions with the public is proved by the accounts of his 4 deputies during the minor occultation. The 4 deputies although learned men, were providing answers and solutions far beyond their accepted capabilities, thus proving they were in contact with the Imam. Ghaybat Al-Sughra was the first stage of his Imamate, enacted to prepare his followers for the major occultation. During this time people communicated with him via his deputies and got used to the idea of an Imam in hiding, ready for the major occultation.

A further argument to ponder is with regard to how the Imam is going to achieve his objectives. It’s all good and well stating that he will reveal himself when the world is in its greatest need for a saviour and he will spread the religion of Islam, destroying the injustice and oppression throughout the world, but practically speaking, how will this be achieved?

Although information is scarce for the actual practical applications of the Imam’s mission, there is a precedent already set; the Holy Prophet, who brought about and spread the religion of Islam in a mere 19yrs of Prophethood. He spread a monotheistic religion in a region that was rife with idol worship with disgusting acts and morals. The Imam’s mission is similar, he will have to spread Islam across the world and no doubt it will be extremely resistant to such a change, but since his appearance has been forecast by the Prophet and taking into account what the Prophet managed to achieve, it explains why it will be possible for the Imam to succeed in his mission.

The Imam will reappear at a precise moment, the moment when the stage is set for his reappearance, when oppression and tyranny will be rampant and when mankind will have fallen into crime and immorality (more so than it has at present!) When this stage is reached, mankind will be psychologically ready, look forward to a saviour for its liberation. This will only happen when wickedness will reach its climax. The 12th Imam will liberate mankind from its misery and the stage will be set to bring about justice, peace and righteousness, and thus the Imam will be able to complete his mission.

Imam Mahdi (a.s.) will represent the last in the series of fights between good and evil. He will provide the final act, final victory and after his success, the Day of Judgment will draw near. He will represent all the Prophets who have come before him with similar missions and establish Islam throughout the world.

All this has a very philosophical tone. To some it remains an extremely far-fetched concept and one that is understandably difficult to accept. However, if you have faith in God, regardless of what religion you may follow, the idea of a final saviour to rescue mankind before the end of the world makes sense.

For Shias, it is clear this saviour is the 12th Imam, no-one else. Only the direct descendant of the Prophet has the power to rescue the world, and we can only pray that God hastens his revelation to the world. However, in the meantime, it is no enough to accept his existence and continue our lives as normal. We must prepare for his arrival. Imagine his arrival and being invited to be involved in his revolution, imagine the privilege. We can’t simply state we accept the 12th Imam and then expect to be included in his revolution, only the true muslims of the world will be included and we have to make sure we are one of them.

This leads nicely to my next point, what are we meant to do whilst we wait for the revelation of the 12th Imam. Granted it may not happen in our lifetime, but even so, we have to be ready. This means following the principles of Islam, the rules and guidelines set by Allah in our day to day lives. This means becoming better Muslims, constantly striving to improve ourselves, as I have discussed in the past. It means attempting to establish Islamic practices and proving the excellence of Islam to the public, attracting their attention to true Islam.

I’ve often argued to myself that if the Imam will arrive when the world is in dire straights, then what’s the point in me doing anything, it’s going to happen anyway? However, that’s missing the point entirely. Yes the Imam will arrive when the world is in its greatest need but we have to do all we can to try and prevent such a situation because only then can we claim to be a true follower and God can recognise that despite our best efforts, the world is still in need of help.

It’s depressing to know that the Imam will only arrive at the point when the world has reached its lowest ebb and to many that point has already been reached. Muslims are being oppressed and killed across the globe and perhaps the arrival of the Imam is imminent (inshallah). Only Allah, in his infinite wisdom, knows the time of his arrival. We have to make sure we do all we can for ourselves and for Muslims across the globe, within our capabilities, to ensure that we are part of the revolution "So vie with one another in good works. Wheresoever ye may be, Allah will bring you all together." (Surah 2, Verse 148) The Quran also states "And if help comes (to thee) from thy Lord... they are sure to say "We have (always) been (Muslims) with you!" Does not Allah know best all that is in the hearts of all Creation?" (Surah 29, Verse 10), therefore, clearly any disbelievers will be appropriately dealt with regardless of their claims. If the Imam does not arrive during our lifetime, then on the Day of Judgment, inshallah we will be recognised as Muslims who made the effort and are rewarded accordingly.

If anything, the concept and principles of the 12th Imam is just another method of reminding us of our duties and responsibilities, another method to ensure we behave appropriately, act within the principles and guidelines of Islam and another means to get closer to Allah. People often accuse Shias of blind belief, how can a hidden Imam benefit us? Although it does seem difficult to believe that we can receive help from a hidden Imam, how come we can be so affected by Shaitain? He too is hidden and yet his influence on us is immense, the hidden Imam is the opposite and can be used as a constant source of inspiration.

Unfortunately, there is no direct mention of the 12th Imam in the Quran, being a book of principles means that specific people do not get mentioned, although the Prophet has made it clear in numerous hadith about the importance of the 12th Imam. What the Quran does refer to is the idea of a final victory and the hidden saviour:

• "It is He who has sent His messenger with the guidance and the religion of truth to make it prevail over every other religion. However much the disbelievers may dislike it" (Surah 9, Verse 33)
• "And verily We have written in the Psalms, after the Reminder: My righteous slaves will inherit the earth" (Surah 21, Verse 105)
• "...The earth belongs to Him and He has made it the heritage of whichever of His servants He chooses. The Final Victory is for the pious." (Surah 7, Verse 128)
• "It is He who has sent His Apostle with Guidance and the Religion of Truth that he may proclaim it over all religions..." (Surah 61, Verse 9)
• "If (such) were Our Will, We could send down to them from the sky a Sign to which they would bend their necks in humility." (Surah 26, Verse 4)
• "Is not He (best) who answered the wronged one when he cried unto Him and removed the evil, and hath made you viceroys (inheritors) of the earth?" (Surah 27, Verse 62)
• "Their intention is to put out the light of Allah with their mouths, but Allah will perfect His light however much the disbelievers are averse." (Surah 61, Verse 8)
• "Know ye (all) that Allah giveth life to the earth after its death!" (Surah 57, Verse 17)
• "Say (O Muhammad, unto mankind): No reward do I ask of you for this (Quran) nor am I a pretender. This is no less than a Message to (all) the Worlds. And ye shall certainly know the truth of it (all) after a while." (Surah 38, Verses 86-88)
• "Soon We shall show them Our Signs on the horizons and within themselves until it will be manifest unto them that it is the Truth..." (Surah 41, Verse 53)

So there you have it, an attempt to explain the 12th Imam. I think I’ve got bogged down with quite a bit of information, but hopefully some of it makes sense and you’ll be able to take something away from it. For non-muslims, hopefully the concept is more understandable and for Muslims, (Shias and Sunnis) the explanation provides a better understanding as to who the 12th Imam is and what he represents. For Shias who already acknowledge the 12th Imam, perhaps this blog will increase our awareness about him and hence lead us to become better Muslims as we continue to improve our faith.

Thanks for getting through this blog and I look forward to your comments.
Take care all,
Thoughts just flow, when do they have to make sense?