Question:

What did the scholar Ibn Tawus say about the lie that the 55th verse of the 24th chapter “An-Nur” had been revealed for Abu Bakr, Umar and Uthman?

Answer:

Radi-ud-Din Ibn Tawus writes: “As for the interpretation of the verse: “God promised those of you who believe and do good deeds that He would appoint them as followers on earth, as He appointed those who lived before them as followers, so that He might strengthen their religion with which He was satisfied for them, and so that He might give them security after their fear. They serve Me and do not associate with Me, and those who subsequently disbelieved are the wrong-doers.” (55:24) Thus said Al-Jaba’i: “This wording and verse are also proof of the rightful leadership of Abu Bakr, Umar, Uthman, and Ali (a.), for God promised the Believers that He would appoint them as successors on earth and appoint them as their kings, and grant them their use until they become successors in it,but according to the Prophet Muhammad (s.) He appointed none of the faithful who were living at the time of the revelation of this verse to succeed except these four Imams, so it is right that God is He who appointed them as successors on earth and made them successors at His command, and if it were not so that God appointed them as successors, as He said, then the person addressed by this promise and this report informing about it would not have arrived, and this is not permissible in His reports.Therefore it is correct that the succession of these four took place at the command of the messenger (s.) and that God appointed them as successors and granted them use of the earth.” The answer to this, God grant their success, is that Al-Jaba’i is replied to as follows: “What do you want to say to the followers of the Imams (a.) when they speak to you, that if this verse, according to you and the opposing groups, contains the succession, we seek your judgment from the righteousness of your mind and say that this verse proves the illegality of the succession of those who preceded our master, Ali Ibn Abi Talib (a.)? The explanation of this consists in the fact that God established a condition for the one of this community whom He appointed as successor, as well as for the one whom He appointed before as successor.By its wording “as” there is an actual comparison and both we and they agree on the reports of those who preceded us from the Children of Israel and others besides them with whom the comparison is possible. Never did we find in them that they appointed the prophets, nor the representatives, nor the successors of the prophets, by a choice of the one they chose from the community, and neither did we find any of them leaving their prophet alone on his deathbed and going out before he was washed, praying for him, and burying him, not including his family in counseling, not including their presence, and taking an oath of allegiance among themselves. We neither noticed as Sunnah that they were called into their leadership as it happened at the consultation, nor did we know anything similar according to the description that preceded it. We found with them nothing but that, in accordance with the election of God and His appointment, they proceeded from the one who succeeded them and represented them as prophets, or in some other way as was never the case with your Imams as to their leadership. We noticed among the Children of Israel that when they spoke to their prophet: “Set us a king to fight in the way of God!” Whereupon Talut was appointed for them, they rejected it when there was the possibility that he would become king over them without the election of God, and they did not accept his king (2:247), whereby there was no general succession, until He made it clear to them with the desending of the Ark of the Covenant which the angels carried, and this is what we believe in regarding succession and leadership: It is equally of God and His Messenger without any addition and removal. So be honest with yourselves, for through what is believed according to what you have interpreted, it is a manifest testimony to us that the succession from this noble Qur’an is understood, and we challenge you with your word in this world and in the hereafter and on the day of accounting, so fear God and let go of the transgression and judge with righteousness and the use of reason, for the true point of view and the right thing has already been made clear to you.” [Sa’d-us-Su’ud, page 166 – 167]

قال رضي الدين ابن طاووس: منها من تفسير قول الله تعالى وعد الله الذين آمنوا منكم وعملوا الصالحات ليستخلفنهم في الأرض كما استخلف الذين من قبلهم وليمكنن لهم دينهم الذي ارتضى لهم وليبدلنهم من بعده خوفهم أمنا يعبدونني لا يشركون بي شيئا ومن كفر بعد ذلك فأولئك هم الفاسقون فقال الجبائي ما هذا لفظه وهذه الآية هي أيضا دلالة على صحة امامة أبي بكر وعمر وعثمان وعلي عليه السلام لان الله قد وعد المؤمنين ان يستخلفهم في الأرض وان يملكهم إياها ويمكنهم منها حتى يصيروا خلفا فيها ولم يستخلف فيها بعد رسول الله من هؤلاء الذين كانوا مؤمنين في زمن نزول هذه الآية الا هؤلاء الأئمة الأربعة فصح ان الله تعالى هو الذي استخلفهم في الأرض وبامره صاروا خلفاء والا لما كان الله تعالى مستخلفا لهم كما قال ولكان هذا يوجب ان يكون لم يوجد مخبر هذا الوعد وهذا الخبر على ما أخبر به وهذا لا يجوز على اخباره فصح ان خلافة هؤلاء الأربعة كانت بأمر رسول الله وان الله تعالى كان استخلفهم ومكنهم في الأرض الجواب وبالله التوفيق يقال للجبائي ما تقول للإمامية ان قالت لك إذا كان هذه الآية الخلافة عندك وعند الفرق المخالفة فنحن نحاكمكم إلى عقولكم عند انصافها ونقول هذه الآية تدل على بطلان خلافة الذين تقدموا على مولانا علي بن أبي طالبعليهما السلام وبيان ذلك أن الله تعالى قال فيها شرط ان يكون فيها… لمن يستخلفه من هذه الأمة كما كان استخلافه لمن مضى قبلها بلفظه كما {التي} هي حقيقة للتشبيه وقد وقفنا نحن وأنتم على اخبار من تقدمنا من بني إسرائيل وغيرهم الذين يحتمل التشبيه بهم فلم نجدهم يحملون الأنبياء ولا الأوصياء ولا خلفاء الأنبياء باختيار من يختارهم من الأمة وما وجدنا أحد منهم تركوا نبيهم على فراش الموت وتوصلوا قبل الاشتغال بغسله والصلاة عليه ودفنه بغير مشاورة لأهله ولا حضورهم وبايعوا بعضهم بعضا ولا وجدناهم عينوا في ولايتهم ستة كما جرى في الشورى وما عرفنا ان مثل هذا على صفة جرى لمن تقدم وما وجدناهم عاملين الا على اختيار الله تعالى ونصه على من يقوم بخلافتهم ونيابتهم بنبوتهم أو على غير ما جرت على حال أئمتكم من ولايتهم ووجدنا بني إسرائيل لما قالوا لنبي لهم ابعث لنا ملكا نقاتل في سبيل الله وعين هم على طالوت فحين جوزها أن يكون تملكه عليهم باختيار غير الله أنكروا ذلك ولم يقبلوا ملكه وهو دون الخلافة العامة حتى أوضح ذلك بنزول التابوت تحمله الملائكة وهذا الذي نعتقد في الخلافة والإمامة انها من الله ورسوله على السواء من غير زيادة ولا نقصان فانصفونا من أنفسكم فهذه شهادة صريحة لنا بما تعتقد على ما فسرتموه ان الخلافة مفهومة من هذا القرآن العظيم الشأن ونحن نحاجكم بقولكم في الدنيا والآخرة ويوم الحساب فاتقوا الله ودعوا العصبية واحكموا بالأنصاف ومقتضى الألباب فقد وضح لكم وجه الحق والصواب