Misconceptions about the Mahdi, The Cave Podcast, Part 2

7 المشاهدات· 26/03/01

Sayed Mahdi Modarresi
مشتركين

في محاضرات

What are some common misconceptions about Imam Mahdi? How do we prepare for his return? Can we contribute to hastening (or delaying) the reappearance of the Savior?

أظهر المزيد

Transcript

[0:09]My dear brothers and sisters, viewers from around the world.

[0:18]Uh I have once again uh the esteemed scholar and theologian [snorts]

[0:24]uh my younger brother his eban Mustafa Mudi.

[0:29]So SA welcome to the podcast.

[0:31]>> Thank you so much and um pleasure to be back.

[0:34]>> Pleasure to have you.

[0:39]Uh so in the last episode we talked about the concept of

[0:43]uh uh for lack of a better term uh messianism or meism

[0:49]and how it represents one of the pillars of our faith.

[0:56]Uh it is without a doubt one of the most important discussions

[1:03]in uh Islamic uh uh theology and esquetology.

[1:05]Uh all Muslims subscribe to uh the belief that God uh will

[1:15]at some point intervene directly and seeing that humanity has failed miserably

[1:20]in getting its act together in solving its uh endemic problems and

[1:27]the fact that these problems uh keep increasing uh they uh get

[1:34]from bad to worse.

[1:33]Uh and so uh God has chosen to intervene.

[1:38]And this was something that was prophesied uh a long long time

[1:43]ago.

[1:41]Every prophet, every messenger uh gave glad tidings that uh this individual

[1:48]will be sent in order to do God's work and to fill

[1:53]the earth with justice and equity after it's been uh completely uh

[1:57]overtaken and swamped with uh inequity, injustice, and oppression.

[2:03]And we talked a little bit about uh the uh central role

[2:08]that this uh uh doctrine has uh as well as uh looking

[2:13]at why the imam is in occultation uh as we believe uh

[2:19]that the imam was born he is alive uh but that he

[2:24]happens to be uh in concealment.

[2:25]So we talked a little bit about that but that brings us

[2:27]to another set of critical questions.

[2:31]Uh one of which is um the uh the the the current

[2:41]global crisis uh the things that are what we're witnessing uh uh

[2:45]you know that we referred to earlier uh are these signs of

[2:50]the reappearance?

[2:52]Have we reached the point of no return?

[2:55]Uh and the point uh at which the earth has been completely

[2:59]filled with injustice and oppression.

[3:03]Uh that's a a question that a lot of people uh seem

[3:06]to be uh asking.

[3:08]And so uh what's your take on that?

[3:10]Uh one thing that we know for a fact is that the

[3:14]uh situation will get worse before uh it will with the intervention

[3:20]of uh of of Allah subhana wa ta'ala uh will suddenly uh

[3:28]be transformed uh into creating a bright future.

[3:32]Uh but um but the uh the numerous uh narrations talk about

[3:38]how the world will be filled with injustice and humanity will try

[3:45]every form of government and every avenue to resolve their problems and

[3:51]to solve their u the the issues that they're dealing with.

[3:57]Uh but nothing will help them.

[3:59]And in fact the the narrations say that uh uh God will

[4:04]allow every ideology every political group that claims to be able to

[4:10]solve the problems to govern.

[4:11]>> Everyone will get a chance >> get will get get a

[4:16]chance so that when the imam reappears and uh the world will

[4:19]be filled with you know prosperity and he will restore justice and

[4:24]and fix every single problem that we're facing today.

[4:26]uh no one will be able to claim that if I was

[4:31]given the chance because everyone is given the chance every ideology every

[4:37]group had says every uh perhaps every tribe like every community >>

[4:44]u and I think that one of the reasons why uh we've

[4:49]uh the hadith talk a lot about the signs even though we

[4:55]can't uh give a specific time uh is so that we remain

[4:58]vigilant and wary and watch out and uh and apply what we

[5:06]are taught to say in the dua.

[5:09]Could this be the sign that we're waiting for?

[5:12]Um but I think uh the general >> so what you're saying

[5:17]sorry to cut you off but what you're saying is that perhaps

[5:20]one of the reasons we have uh a lot of uh signs

[5:25]of the latter days uh that have been uh uh that have

[5:30]been given to us by uh the prophet and the imams themselves

[5:33]uh isn't necessarily to stipulate exactly when the imam is going to

[5:39]re reappear but rather to keep us on our toes and to

[5:45]uh to give hope and to make sure that we are vigilant

[5:49]that we are ready when the moment comes.

[5:50]>> Absolutely.

[5:52]Especially that um maybe certain events will uh will make people lose

[5:58]hope in everything.

[6:00]Uh especially the hadith that talk about a major turmoil in the

[6:04]region in the Middle East.

[6:05]Uh for example, the narrations that talk about Iraq uh specifically and

[6:11]say that the the Nasabites, the uh staunch enemies of the uh

[6:20]will assume power and they will hunt down not just every single

[6:27]Shia but everyone who who has a Shim uh will be caught,

[6:31]will be killed.

[6:33]Uh so uh >> so going back to the to the time

[6:38]of the likes of >> yeah it's it's a bit difficult to

[6:44]absorb this especially now that the Shia uh Shiam is flourishing in

[6:48]Iraq people go can go to Zah yes we witnessed the era

[6:50]of Saddam uh but Saddam uh he wasn't religious himself even even

[6:58]though he was anti-Sh but imagine someone uh coming and you know,

[7:03]be so anti-Shia to kill every single Shia.

[7:07]It's something >> someone who's driven by a hate and ideological perhaps

[7:12]>> vial towards the imams as well as their followers.

[7:15]>> Yes.

[7:16]And I think this is why the >> because I think it's

[7:20]difficult for a lot of a lot of people who know Saddam

[7:23]or who have been victimized by Saddam or their family members, it's

[7:27]very difficult for them to imagine something worse than Saddam.

[7:31]M >> uh and so what what what you're suggesting is that

[7:35]it could very well happen that that that someone will come along

[7:39]that uh perhaps make Saddam look not as not as evil as

[7:44]you know whoever they happen to be.

[7:45]>> Yeah.

[7:47]And yeah, so maybe the what's what's described in the hadith perhaps

[7:52]the era of Saddam will be like a walk in the park

[7:55]compared to what will happen during the Sufyani's time.

[7:58]And I think this is why when four [clears throat] of im

[8:04]companions they came to visit him in a long hadith uh the

[8:09]Imam was was crying uh in a way that uh they >>

[8:13]I think the hadith says like a mother who had just lost

[8:18]her infant >> wailing over her child and uh so they were

[8:20]they they became very worried uh because they've they've never seen the

[8:25]imam cry this way and then He said, I was, you know,

[8:30]reading into the uh the uh the events that will happen in

[8:36]the future and uh what will happen to the Shia and this

[8:38]is what made the imam cry so much.

[8:41]>> Uh so just to to imagine that uh something like that

[8:47]will happen perhaps in the near future.

[8:49]This is very worrisome.

[8:50]>> Let me push back on that a little bit.

[8:56]I I know that we have a lot of narrations attributed to

[8:58]the imams of the that speak of the uh incredibly abysmal uh

[9:05]uh catastrophic and even apocalyptic events that uh uh that could very

[9:12]well transpire before the uh advent of the Imam.

[9:14]Uh at the same time, don't we have a hadith that talk

[9:18]about uh how it is possible that God would change his decree

[9:23]and that all these things could disappear and that the imam would

[9:30]would reappear uh without having to go through this entire process.

[9:33]Um for instance the hadith that's mentioned by by both Sunnis as

[9:38]well as Shia which says by the way the Sunnis misinterpret this

[9:44]hadith and they say which means that God will prepare his affair

[9:51]overnight.

[9:52]They say that what what this could mean is that he doesn't

[9:56]know he's the imam.

[9:58]He doesn't know he's the awaited savior.

[10:00]In fact, he might not be the most religious person and that

[10:03]he will then be restored to being a saintly figure.

[10:07]Whereas we the Shia believe that no, the hadith literally says that

[10:12]his affair meaning the process of return could be resolved uh within

[10:18]o overnight.

[10:19]>> Right.

[10:20]So so isn't that something that uh that we also believe is

[10:25]is potentially uh what's what could happen?

[10:25]>> Yeah.

[10:26]So we have and uh we have a warning that is being

[10:32]given to us about future events and we have promises or glad

[10:35]tidings.

[10:36]With respect to the warnings, Allah can uh can uh uh basically

[10:43]uh >> abolish them >> abolish them and cancel them.

[10:49]With respect to the glad tidings, no once he he gives he

[10:52]he will never he will fulfill us.

[10:54]Yeah.

[10:54]uh so these things can change but I I I also think

[10:58]that just to give a little bit of hope the reason why

[11:00]the hadith talk about these events so that we wouldn't lose hope

[11:06]because if we didn't know about >> would or wouldn't >> wouldn't

[11:09]lose hope for example the hadith says that the Sufani will come

[11:12]he's one of the certain signs that will transpire however his uh

[11:19]arrival will coincide with the arrival of the Yamani and Sufyani and

[11:24]eventually iman >> within 8 months of >> 8 months they were

[11:28]all they will all appear during one year.

[11:30]So even if something like that was to happen then this will

[11:34]give us immense hope that we're very close to the >> imminent.

[11:39]Yes.

[11:38]>> Um and also I think one of the one of the

[11:41]other reasons is that uh given that God can change his decree.

[11:48]Uh the question we should be asking is well what can we

[11:52]do in order to facilitate that in order for for God to

[11:56]change his decree?

[11:55]And I think the answer to that is very simple.

[11:58]Just as it is, there's the potential that I could walk out

[12:04]of my house and be hit by a by a car and

[12:05]die.

[12:05]One way to avert that uh even if it's been decreed by

[12:11]God is through prayer.

[12:11]It is through supplication.

[12:14]It is through charity.

[12:15]It is through, you know, uh maintaining a close relationship with my

[12:19]parents and my kin and so on.

[12:22]And so what that means is that we can and should play

[12:27]a role in averting those disasters and going straight to the to

[12:31]the to the signs that you mentioned which are absolutely fundamental and

[12:36]certain right like the rise of the Sophyani and Ymani.

[12:42]I think through our behavior we can both delay and hasten uh

[12:46]in the uh reappearance of the imam.

[12:49]We have indications that the Imam himself doesn't know when he will

[12:52]appear.

[12:54]Perhaps it's because Allahh can change that.

[12:58]Um in the story of Imam Jaffar, the Imam was supposed to

[13:04]rise.

[13:03]Uh and we have multiple narrations about how the seventh imam will

[13:10]rise.

[13:11]But then >> not in the global justice sense.

[13:15]Yeah.

[13:13]It was going to be a time as as great perhaps as

[13:17]the time of the holy prophet or in his early days.

[13:20]>> Yeah.

[13:21]The imam was supposed to topple the uh the government of his

[13:24]time and assume power and >> make a correction to >> make

[13:27]a correction to the course of history >> history.

[13:30]But uh but because of what the Shia did uh and how

[13:37]they behaved uh Allahh decided to uh basically wave this turning point

[13:42]in in history.

[13:44]Uh so this could happen to us if we're not prepared, if

[13:48]we're not ready.

[13:50]The the uh the hadith says yeah or something along those lines.

[14:00]Let nature takes its course.

[14:03]Basically, >> in other words, we have two timelines, right?

[14:04]Broadly speaking, one timeline is the one that contains all of these

[14:09]different signs as stipulated by the prophet and the imams.

[14:15]Uh, and the picture looks very bleak.

[14:18]It's dark.

[14:17]It's scary.

[14:19]It's terrifying.

[14:20]Then there is an alternate timeline uh in which we can uh

[14:25]intervene.

[14:26]We can make a difference through our behavior, our actions, our you

[14:30]know sense of uh hopelessness in natural means and you know keeping

[14:35]our hope uh exclusively within God's domain and uh by being good

[14:39]people we can in fact uh take the second timeline which is

[14:46]much more accelerated and much faster in reaching our goal.

[14:49]>> Right?

[14:50]So if our behavior doesn't change then we default back to the

[14:55]original timeline which is not a very pretty picture.

[14:57]Very well said like in the story of Mus Alisam uh he

[15:03]was supposed to u you know his his arrival had to uh

[15:05]had to be delayed but then when the Israel Israelites realized that

[15:13]uh that they can have a role in uh MS's coming uh

[15:16]Allah subhana wa ta'ala as in the hadith he hastened it and

[15:22]it was brought uh much closer >> that that hadith I think

[15:28]is important the one that you just referred to um and for

[15:30]people who aren't familiar with it I think uh uh that they

[15:35]could benefit immensely from from the details.

[15:37]So, I think the hadith says that because of a sin that

[15:39]was committed, which I don't want to get into, um, but it

[15:44]has to do with Sarah, uh, Ibraim's wife, um, a sin that

[15:47]was committed there, God decreed for the Israelites and the children of

[15:51]Israel to, [snorts] uh, be lost and suffer for 400 years.

[15:59]Then after about 270 years if I'm not mistaken uh so almost

[16:03]twothirds of the way there they uh they realize whether it's through

[16:08]uh the scriptures that they have or maybe they had a a

[16:12]prophet or someone advising and guiding them uh that they needed to

[16:16]plead with God and beseech him and change their behavior and so

[16:21]on.

[16:22]And so they decide to go out and I think the hadith

[16:23]mentions that they went into the desert for 40 days.

[16:27]All the women, all the men, all the children, everybody, even the

[16:31]cattle was taken along with them to the to the middle of

[16:35]the desert so that they would be, you know, cut off from

[16:36]every other distraction and focused entirely on their mission.

[16:42]And they prayed for 40 straight days.

[16:45]uh and it's on the 40th day that as they were pleading

[16:48]and crying and so on suddenly they see uh Musa and Harun

[16:55]approach which means that and the imam then says he says that

[16:57]because of what they did Allah took away 12 130 years from

[17:03]their sentence and uh they were able to receive their salvation um

[17:08]sooner because of because of their actions.

[17:12]Okay.

[17:13]So the next question I have is um uh how can we

[17:17]prepare for the imam?

[17:19]I think that's it just flows naturally if our actions and behavior

[17:23]can play a vital role in um in in making uh uh

[17:29]the the prevalence of injustice the prevalence of injustice uh that we

[17:34]find today truly a harbinger of the Imam's return.

[17:38]Um then what must we do?

[17:40]I think we should uh never underestimate the importance of uh preparing

[17:47]ourselves for the coming of the savior.

[17:50]Uh because when he comes uh the world will witness a seasmic

[17:59]change, a tectonic shift uh affecting every aspect of life.

[18:03]And if we're not ready, if we're not fully prepared, we won't

[18:10]be able to embrace the change.

[18:11]And this is why the hadith talk about uh fierce resistance from

[18:16]the people of uh of his time when he reappears.

[18:22]And I think primarily two types of people will uh will be

[18:27]uh very uh hostile towards the imam when he comes.

[18:32]the people who are benefiting from oppression um and the people that

[18:39]are ignorant of what the Imam will do.

[18:43]And a clear example uh that we can cite uh is the

[18:46]example of when he came even though his only mission in life

[18:55]was to make the lives of the people better.

[18:59]Uh and yet the Meccans and his own family members who were

[19:04]supposed to be the beneficiaries of uh of his uh of his

[19:12]movement, they decided to to go against him and to fight him.

[19:16]Uh and the hadith says in compare in comparing between and immedi

[19:22]hadith says that the immi will face much greater hostility and resistance

[19:31]from his people uh much more than what the the prophet faced.

[19:35]uh the prophets >> meaning so-called Muslims >> the Muslims specifically >>

[19:41]because the prophet faced enmity from the idol worshippers but the Muslims

[19:49]>> we'll be referencing the Quran and uh and uh objecting >>

[19:55]objecting to him so the imam will come and he will change

[20:02]every aspect of life and this will not be easy uh because

[20:07]he will change the norms, he will change the uh the standards,

[20:12]he will change uh uh everything because the life is is so

[20:17]mixed with oppression now that he will change he will he will

[20:23]need to change everything to be able to restore uh justice.

[20:26]So this is a mindset that we need to uh work on

[20:32]that when the imam comes uh after proving himself we need to

[20:36]embrace him and we need to give him full submission and this

[20:40]is not easy because he will you know uh he will transform

[20:44]uh everything in life.

[20:47]Uh if we're not ready for this we will not be able

[20:49]to embrace it.

[20:52]So submission uh on the individual level is a is a key

[20:55]component of readiness for the Imam's return.

[20:57]>> Uh if we're not if we find it difficult to submit

[21:02]now to the uh the teachings of our faith and our religion

[21:09]then surely um it won't be easy when the imam himself comes.

[21:12]Um and so it's a process.

[21:14]We have to train ourselves for submission um before the imam comes

[21:20]so that we're ready when he does.

[21:21]>> Yeah.

[21:22]So in in the hadith of about the Israelites, he says that

[21:28]they were waiting for the arrival of uh of of the prophet

[21:31]that will save them.

[21:35]And they even had uh uh the location of of of where

[21:38]he will reappear between two mountains in the Arabian Peninsula.

[21:45]and eight of of the main tribes they moved to the Arabian

[21:49]Peninsula.

[21:50]Uh because you know it's it's a bit it's a bit difficult

[21:54]to understand why they moved from >> from Palestine to to the

[22:01]Arab >> some barren desert in the Arabian Peninsula >> especially the

[22:04]ones that were in Medina >> because you might go to places

[22:07]>> Mecca was a trade town trading town.

[22:11]And it was a place that was inhabited by so many different

[22:13]tribes and so >> and they moved specifically to Medina and not

[22:16]to Mecca.

[22:17]Why?

[22:18]Because in in their scripture they had indications that he will migrate

[22:23]to Medina.

[22:22]>> So he will leave Mecca.

[22:24]Don't go to Mecca >> and go there to stay.

[22:26]>> Yes.

[22:27]But but when he came and they inspected him and they realized

[22:31]that he's not >> who they expected.

[22:32]>> Yeah.

[22:33]They thought he was he was going to be an Israelite but

[22:36]he he turned out to be an Arab.

[22:38]This is why they decided to reject him.

[22:41]Now imagine when the immedi when the imam comes and all the

[22:43]Muslims are waiting for him as per the hundreds of hadith mentioned

[22:48]in in their books suddenly they realize that he's a Shia.

[22:51]>> Of course they'll reject him.

[22:54]>> So uh >> imagine the surprise.

[22:56]>> So this is just one one example and I think that

[23:00]a lot of people will will go against him.

[23:02]But one thing that will save the Christians will be Jesus' role

[23:07]coming down.

[23:08]And this is mentioned in Sunni and books.

[23:10]>> Right?

[23:11]So uh I think I think that answer uh pretty much sums

[23:17]it up.

[23:18]But I will mention one hadith in which iman speaks about the

[23:24]occultation and uh the lengthy uh period of disappearance.

[23:31]Uh and then he says to his companion that uh almost everyone

[23:35]will abandon the imam.

[23:35]Uh and they will even those who used to believe in him

[23:41]will will sort of you know reject that faith.

[23:45]Um and we have plenty of traditions about that.

[23:48]Even those who believe in the imam will say he must have

[23:52]died a long time ago.

[23:52]um because they can't fathom the idea that someone could live so

[23:56]long or that someone wouldn't rise up in the face of the

[23:59]oppression that they feel should spark uh the the return of the

[24:06]imam.

[24:07]And so the imam then says he says that the only group

[24:12]that will hold on to that faith are people who have these

[24:15]two qualities.

[24:17]Number one, he says the ones who have been given blessings of

[24:23]Allah to believe in his divine leadership.

[24:26]And number two, the imam says, "And the ones that have uh

[24:36]trained themselves and and become sort of uh acquainted with the idea

[24:40]and and uh comfortable with the idea of praying constantly for his

[24:46]return.

[24:46]So these two points I think are uh incredibly important.

[24:50]number one to believe in him.

[24:52]And that means not just having some you know superficial uh abstract

[24:58]notion in our heads that oh yeah we believe in the awaited

[25:00]savior the 12th I imam will emerge at some point but to

[25:06]actually know the proof to have the evidence so that when you're

[25:09]challenged you can respond uh in a satisfactory manner and that you

[25:13]don't lose faith just because some random person online um threw a

[25:18]misconception your way.

[25:21]So to increase our knowledge and to have a firm conviction in

[25:25]the Imam is number one and number two to constantly pray for

[25:31]him.

[25:29]Uh which is which is another important duty that has been uh

[25:35]forgotten uh unfortunately uh in the lives of many individuals and even

[25:40]entire communities where praying for the imam is is almost like a

[25:43]you know a chore at the end of every majus you you

[25:47]recite dua.

[25:49]But to truly pray for him and to do so with with

[25:52]earnestness, with eagerness, with um you know, you you pray for him

[25:59]the way you would pray for yourself if you were in trouble.

[26:01]If you had a loved one who was in hospital and the

[26:05]doctors had given up hope on them, the way we pray there

[26:07]uh is unfortunately not something we find in our devotional texts and

[26:13]prayers for the imam's return.

[26:17]And I also think that uh and believing believing in him entails

[26:23]identifying him because if you don't identify him just like the majority

[26:27]of people today who is he is remains uh unknown to them

[26:33]and this is why when they find someone who you know makes

[26:36]a claim uh who uh when they when they're losing hope someone

[26:40]you know emerges they would apply these hadith to every Tom, Dick,

[26:46]and Harry.

[26:46]But you need to identify him.

[26:49]And there's a verse that supports this argument as explained by the

[26:58]verse that says when the Lord when your Lord comes, of course,

[27:03]we can't ascribe movement to Allahhana because he's not confined by space,

[27:07]but this is to give him >> when some of the signs

[27:12]of your Lord come.

[27:11]No, no.

[27:12]The the the the first part of the verse is about the

[27:14]the Lord himself.

[27:15]>> The Lord coming because he's he he the authority of God

[27:19]is vested in him.

[27:22]He has the authority of Allah subhana wa tala.

[27:26]And then the verse says or when some of his signs appear

[27:36]if if you don't have faith in him then you won't be

[27:40]able to join him.

[27:43]That's it.

[27:42]Because you'll have to take sides and you will be on the

[27:46]wrong side of history when he comes.

[27:47]>> Exactly.

[27:50]Um do you think that belief in the mahi affects ethics and

[27:54]our behavior?

[27:55]>> Does that make a difference?

[27:56]>> Absolutely.

[27:58]How so?

[27:58]>> When you see people who have a close relationship with Imi,

[28:02]you see that these people stand out?

[28:05]And I think the reason is because religion in religion you're not

[28:11]dealing with abstract uh notions.

[28:12]It's not just a set of rules halal and you're dealing with

[28:18]an individual here.

[28:18]So you're dealing with emotions.

[28:19]When you're dealing with the imam of your time who personifies religion

[28:24]in fact in we say until we say the one who is

[28:38]who has the religious authority.

[28:39]So every uh religious injunction that we uh that we practice is

[28:47]linked to it's a two-way road.

[28:52]This relationship you build a relationship with him.

[28:56]You know if you do good this will make him happy and

[28:58]uh that's all that matters.

[29:02]If he's happy with you as we mentioned in the previous episode

[29:05]then that's what you need.

[29:07]He he reflects the satisfaction and the pleasure of Allah subhana t.

[29:11]If he's angry with you, if he's uh dissatisfied with you, if

[29:17]he's so this is this is why whatever you want to do,

[29:21]if you take into account that the imam is observant, the imam

[29:24]is there, he will include you in his prayers.

[29:30]uh imam writes a letter to the grandfather of mentioned who has

[29:37]a story with the Imam.

[29:36]He says to him we are uh we are uh mindful of

[29:43]everything that you do during the night during the day all your

[29:45]services to us we know what you're doing and we we very

[29:52]much appreciate what you do and we pray for you.

[29:55]Uh and then the M makes a prayer that will give or

[30:02]gave protection from all the miseries of this life and the afterlife

[30:07]or imaff says in a hadith that in I was in and

[30:15]I only prayed for one person and that person is >> it's

[30:19]uh it is incredible biggest honor.

[30:21]I remember thinking the way I im Jawad spoke to Ali uh

[30:28]or uh the letters that he sent to him or the way

[30:35]I immediat prayed for um Ali as well as other members of

[30:38]the with their companions.

[30:38]Imagine if we conducted ourselves in a manner uh whereby the imam

[30:45]of our time would speak to us or pray for us in

[30:54]the same way.

[30:50]Uh, could the Imam be as upset at my dying, for instance,

[30:58]the way the imams would would cry for their closest companions?

[31:02]>> Or would my passing from this world just be another person

[31:08]dying, another uh statistic, another number on the charts?

[31:11]Uh and so you're absolutely right in that uh the Imam's presence

[31:19]and belief in him uh does play a very big role in

[31:21]shaping our behavior.

[31:23]uh and uh uh I remember thinking once well what if somebody

[31:27]says well God is there right shouldn't you and your behavior be

[31:31]affected by God observing you constantly and seeing what you do and

[31:38]so on and I thought well yes it should but the reality

[31:41]is that as human beings we are materialistic materialistically minded right [snorts]

[31:47]um it's almost like saying uh the law should be upheld regardless

[31:52]but then if you don't have a father figure in the family,

[31:54]it's very difficult to get the child to observe the law, to

[32:00]abide by the law.

[32:00]Um, having a father makes a difference.

[32:02]Having the prophets make makes a difference, right?

[32:07]That's why God sends prophets and vice and and so on.

[32:09]And so believing that not only is God watching me, but my

[32:15]imam is also observing me on God's behalf and that he prays

[32:18]for me.

[32:19]Um or he might, God forbid, be upset by my behavior.

[32:25]As we say in dua, oh Allah, bless us and give us

[32:34]the give us his pleasure.

[32:40]Grant us and gift gift us with his satisfaction, >> his mercy.

[32:44]It's it's something we should pray for and we ask God to

[32:49]make that happen because his pleasure almost exactly like right God is

[32:55]there but the but Allah subhana wa ta'ala sends his prophet and

[32:58]the prophet appoints his daughter and says um uh because reflects God's

[33:09]anger and God's satisfaction and pleasure and so on and that's part

[33:13]of The test Allahhana wa tala just just like the way he

[33:18]tested the angels with prostrating or bowing down uh prostrating rather before

[33:24]Adam Allah also sent his vice jar to be that test for

[33:26]us and Imam is zaman uh is part of that uh uh

[33:31]that process.

[33:31]>> Can you would you allow me to just mention two small

[33:36]stories?

[33:36]The first story of uh this the first story is the story

[33:39]of Siani, the grandfather of the supreme.

[33:43]So he was trying to see the imam.

[33:47]It's a long story.

[33:46]Uh but eventually uh he had the honor to to meet the

[33:51]Imam uh one night as the imam entered inside the house.

[33:54]So when the imam uh sees him, he says to him that

[33:58]you don't need to uh engage in uh >> these rituals, >>

[34:02]these rituals to be able to see me.

[34:06]uh this lady that I came to visit.

[34:09]I'm here to visit a lady who during Sha's time just to

[34:12]observe her hijab.

[34:12]>> This is Razak Razakhani who was the former king of Iran

[34:17]who banned >> brutal dictator, >> right?

[34:19]He banned he banned gatherings for Im Hussein.

[34:21]>> He he he outlawed studying religious uh studies.

[34:27]the uh the the turban was uh outlawed wearing a turban >>

[34:32]all religious attire essentially including the hijab.

[34:34]>> Yeah.

[34:36]So so so this this lady she uh decided to stay at

[34:42]home for eight whole years and not leave her house because leaving

[34:46]the house meant that she had to take off her hijab.

[34:50]Uh so the imam himself would come and visit her because she

[34:53]observed her hijab because the question was about uh you know being

[34:56]more religious uh if if you know by believing in the imam

[35:01]this would make us more religious.

[35:03]Absolutely.

[35:04]Imagine now a woman who who is in a challenging atmosphere and

[35:08]to observe her hijab means that she has to uh you know

[35:14]uh it would be difficult for her.

[35:15]>> She couldn't leave the house essentially.

[35:16]>> No no I'm I'm talking about uh woman.

[35:19]Yes.

[35:20]In in in certain u uh certain places uh when it's challenging

[35:26]if if you bear in mind that the imam is watching and

[35:29]he and he wants to see how you react towards these uh

[35:35]you know hardships and difficulties.

[35:37]Uh the other uh incident was uh an incident that happened to

[35:42]a girl.

[35:43]Uh a scholar mentions this story.

[35:45]uh he says that uh this lady she sent him a a

[35:49]message on Instagram saying that I was very religious.

[35:51]I used to read duh every every morning.

[35:56]I used to do read every Friday until I uh a a

[36:02]guy uh on social media he messaged me and uh we had

[36:08]a like a relationship together.

[36:09]So he wanted me to send me to send him a picture

[36:12]and in the beginning I resisted uh a religious lady would never

[36:20]do this but he insisted I gave into desire and I sent

[36:24]him sent him a picture.

[36:24]When I sent him a picture I slept at night I saw

[36:29]Imam Zam in my dream.

[36:30]So I was so uh excited to see him.

[36:35]I approached him.

[36:35]I saidamulaykum.

[36:38]He turned away from me.

[36:41]I am devastated now.

[36:42]What should I do?

[36:44]Why did I do this?

[36:44]Why did this happen to me?

[36:47]Uh so I think that the belief in the imam, not just

[36:50]believing in his uh in the fact that we have an imam,

[36:57]but believing in all uh all aspects of his of his presence

[37:00]and his authority.

[37:03]This would definitely impact how we live and how we behave.

[37:05]>> Exactly.

[37:06]Like a father figure.

[37:08]And I think it's Imm refers to the Imam and his role

[37:16]in our personal lives as a father, right?

[37:21]Abu Shafi, the loving, compassionate father.

[37:22]He looks out for you.

[37:24]He takes care of you.

[37:25]He gives you that nudge every once in a while.

[37:29]He prays for you.

[37:32]He just takes very good care of you if you uh indeed

[37:34]try to sort of maintain that relationship with him.

[37:39]Um so my next next question is um what misconceptions exist about

[37:45]uh mahiism as seen in the Shia faith?

[37:49]Now, um before uh I get your views on that, um I

[37:56]want to play a little clip.

[37:57]And the clip is by an individual um whose name I don't

[38:04]even know.

[38:03]I couldn't care less.

[38:06]uh but uh she does seem to present herself as some kind

[38:10]of an expert on uh Imam al- Mahi and the the Shia

[38:16]doctrine uh regarding the Imam and the awaited savior.

[38:20]So, I want to play that clip uh very quickly and then

[38:23]I've got a little thing or two to say about that and

[38:27]then you know we'll get your uh response on misconceptions that exist

[38:32]about Imam Mahi Ali.

[38:34]>> So, the reason it's called 12 AI Islam is because they

[38:38]believe that the descendants of the original prophet Muhammad is not the

[38:43]correct lineage of the prophets.

[38:44]of his um son-in-law and cousin.

[38:46]The 12th Imam which was prophet Mai.

[38:50]So this there's this theory called Maiism.

[38:51]This prophet Mai was said to have gone into oculation.

[38:58]So he went into um hiding around 937 CE.

[39:00]So he's gone into hiding.

[39:03]He's gone into oculation.

[39:03]And the theory is that the final prophet emerges once there is

[39:10]once justice and equality has been achieved in the world.

[39:13]And the thing that achieves this justice is that the last drop

[39:17]of blood of Israel falls.

[39:20]So the end of Israel brings back the final prophet.

[39:22]>> So here's my take on this and then we'll we'll see

[39:26]what you have to say.

[39:29]Um first off, dragging Shia theology into your political shenanigans is as

[39:34]stupid as it gets.

[39:34]Not least because you clearly know nothing about the subject matter.

[39:40]you're a model turned Tik Tok activist and that's fine, whatever.

[39:43]But leave issues that require expertise to to the experts.

[39:46]Talking about anything outside that, especially without doing the homework, is like

[39:53]critiquing quantum physics after skimming a tweet.

[39:55]Confidence isn't a substitute for accuracy.

[39:58]Now, you'll notice that this individual's ignorance and stupidity is startling.

[40:03]Forget the whole interview.

[40:05]In just less than a minute, she makes six major blunders that

[40:11]reveal how uninformed she is.

[40:12]So, let's break them down.

[40:14]First off, 12 Islam isn't about some rival lineage of prophets.

[40:20]All Muslims believe the prophet Muhammad sallallahu alaihi continues through his daughter

[40:28]Fatima and Imam Ali, his cousin.

[40:30]Shia Muslims believe in 12 imams who descend from this single lineage.

[40:34]There is no other lineage.

[40:36]Second, the Mai isn't a prophet.

[40:38]He's an imam.

[40:40]That's not a minor slip.

[40:42]That's like confusing a prime minister with the king.

[40:46]Entirely different roles.

[40:47]Then there is her repeated use of some madeup word that she

[40:51]refers to as oculation.

[40:54]Now, maybe she was thinking of ovulation.

[40:57]I don't know.

[40:56]But the word you're looking for is occultation, which means concealment.

[41:01]and the dates.

[41:03]She's got that one wrong as well.

[41:05]Minor occultation begins in 874 CE.

[41:08]Major occultation in 941 CE.

[41:13]Pulling 937 out of nowhere makes it sound less like research and

[41:16]more like dartboard history.

[41:17]The theology itself gets flipped too.

[41:20]The belief isn't that justice already fills the world before the Mai

[41:25]comes.

[41:26]It's that he comes precisely because the world is drowning in injustice.

[41:30]That's kind of the whole point.

[41:32]And the claim about Israel somehow triggering his return, that's not Shia

[41:37]belief.

[41:38]And the claim is not found anywhere in scripture or mainstream scholarship.

[41:42]This one minute video, actually less than a minute, about 51 seconds,

[41:47]sounds more like a viral comment section theory on Reddit than actual

[41:52]theology or esquetology.

[41:55]So in about a minute we get doctrinal confusion, terminology mishaps, historical

[42:01]inaccuracies, and geopolitical speculation all blended together.

[42:05]That's not to mention the wardrobe choices, which I don't want to

[42:08]get into.

[42:10]All in all, impressive efficiency, just not the way intended.

[42:14]Honestly, if the goal is political critique, stick to politics.

[42:20]Theology isn't decorative background scenery.

[42:23]if you don't understand it, it shows.

[42:25]And when it shows this clearly, the critique loses credibility before it

[42:31]even lands.

[42:29]And so this is, I think, a a a textbook example of

[42:36]the misconceptions, although I think in this case, um, she clearly has

[42:40]an agenda.

[42:41]Um, and had she put in the effort to read half a

[42:46]Wikipedia article even 10 minutes before the interview, we probably wouldn't have

[42:50]all these mistakes piling up on top of one another.

[42:52][snorts] >> U, but there are lots of misconceptions about the Imam.

[42:56]And uh, care to uh, talk about any of them or respond?

[43:01]First of all, I think this is part of an aggressive campaign

[43:06]to uh to tarnish uh the Shia beliefs and to tarnish uh

[43:12]the Mahi himself.

[43:15]Uh even though she's an ignorant woman, but we have uh people

[43:18]from uh you know different faith groups who uh are constantly attacking

[43:27]the MAI.

[43:26]One of the misconceptions is uh trying to invalidate uh his his

[43:35]birth and to claim that uh he was never born.

[43:40]And uh I have two responses to all their misconceptions.

[43:45]The first response is that uh the people that uh testify uh

[43:56]that the imam was born uh like the narrations that we have

[44:01]about those who met him or saw him as a child before

[44:04]he went into >> Yes.

[44:05]So we have 40 sources 40 individuals that uh report that he

[44:14]was born.

[44:16]uh now uh an incident that is reported by 40 people.

[44:19]Yes, we might not be able to uh to substantiate every claim,

[44:28]but there is the concept of if you're standing on the side

[44:34]of the road and you see a child, a 12-year-old child telling

[44:37]you about an accident, but you don't take him serious and then

[44:42]you see an old woman that Yes.

[44:43]And then you see a woman, you're you're still not sure.

[44:46]And then you see an old man.

[44:48]And then you see a guy that you haven't met before.

[44:50]And then you see another guy who you've seen, you know, on

[44:53]and off.

[44:54]Then you meet a relative who tells you that I just saw

[44:59]an accident happening.

[44:58]When you have 40 different individuals from different backgrounds, all reporting the

[45:06]same incident, this will give you the confidence confidence >> that he

[45:11]was born.

[45:12]Yes.

[45:11]>> Okay.

[45:12]So, uh, we've only got a few more minutes left, so we'll

[45:16]try and and respond to a couple more questions.

[45:20]Uh, the first one is, um, uh, how should the youth relate

[45:27]to the imam emotionally?

[45:28]What, uh, what advice would you give to someone who wants to

[45:32]connect with the imam uh, but is uh, confused about that or

[45:36]unsure?

[45:36]I think it's exactly like uh your relationship with Allah subhana wa

[45:42]ta'ala.

[45:44]In fact uh a friend of ours, he was in uh in

[45:49]Medina visiting the prophet and he was talking to the prophet in

[45:54]the we talked to the prophet.

[45:55]So the guy, the soldier who was standing in front of the

[45:57]grave, he said to him that the prophet is dead and he

[46:02]can't hear you and he is he can't respond to you and

[46:09]I'll I'll demonstrate.

[46:08]Uh then he he took out a pen and he said uh

[46:14]yahool Allah come and take this pen from me from me.

[46:19]Uh and then he repeated it again uh just to make a

[46:22]mockery of of the of our belief.

[46:24]>> Uh so this friend of ours who is a sheh >>

[46:28]uh he said to him okay let me you know redo this

[46:32]uh act of yours he took the pen and he said God

[46:36]if you can hear me if you can see me then take

[46:40]this pen from me.

[46:40]God can you hear me?

[46:43]He repeated it a few times uh to show him that this

[46:46]is not not how Allah operates.

[46:48]But the different between the difference between a a true believer and

[46:55]a non-believer is that a believer who can see uh and feel

[47:01]God's presence.

[47:01]You mentioned the in which he said I can't worship a God

[47:10]that I can't see.

[47:10]And then he says the hearts can see him.

[47:13]Uh so the same thing applies to Imam Zam.

[47:16]>> And I my advice to all the uh the youth listening

[47:21]to this podcast is to uh is to be mindful of him

[47:30]and act accordingly, behave accordingly.

[47:32]He can see you.

[47:35]He can hear you as referenced in the in the verse in

[47:37]the Quran.

[47:39]And I think all the Muslims when they pray when they say

[47:43]uh they're they're being taught that the prophet can can hear you

[47:49]in every prayer says four have been given the ability to hear

[47:57]uh all the creations.

[47:59]Uh one of them is this is why you say salam to

[48:04]him when you pray.

[48:07]So the same thing applies to Imam Zaman.

[48:10]And once you build this relationship, his presence will be overwhelming.

[48:14]>> And this is why we have, you know, uh instructions about

[48:18]sending the imam a letter, writing a letter to the imam because

[48:22]he he will respond to you in his own way and you

[48:26]will feel it.

[48:27]You will sense it.

[48:28]>> Uh especially for those uh going through affliction and uh uh

[48:33]problems in their lives.

[48:35]uh there's there's no prescription better or stronger than to appeal to

[48:40]the imam on a personal level and actually write a letter to

[48:45]him which I always think that when you're writing to the imam

[48:48]uh he is no longer just some abstract uh you know mental

[48:58]construct when you write to him the imam feels real as he

[49:01]should and so that's why maybe That's why uh the Imam responds.

[49:07]Maybe that's why the Imam prays for you and your affliction is

[49:10]diverted because you you were able to connect with him at the

[49:13]moment of writing the letter to him >> and you're putting your

[49:17]heart because it's a it's something that has affected you and >>

[49:19]it's a very emotional appeal.

[49:23]Final question is what would surprise people most about imi?

[49:27]>> So the hadith says that the biggest uh uh issue that

[49:36]they will face is that they will think that he's an old

[49:41]man and I think this applies to non Shia perhaps uh >>

[49:43]or maybe even the Shia I think if if somebody wanted to

[49:47]draw a mental image of the Imam he wouldn't look like a

[49:50]30-year-old right >> because he's been around for for a thousand years

[49:54]>> and so yeah you're absolutely right the hadith does mention that

[49:59]a lot of people will reject him at first because they expected

[50:02]someone who's old and you know he's got a long gray beard

[50:08]and whatnot but the imam comes as a very young man.

[50:10]>> Um the other thing I thought of was that when the

[50:14]imam comes uh what would surprise a lot of people is that

[50:20]he won't return to take all role but rather to lead us

[50:23]toward victory.

[50:24]meaning that most people assume that when the Imam returns, uh, he

[50:27]is, uh, he's going to rid the world of oppression and injustice

[50:30]and we'll just have to sit back and watch as all of

[50:35]this unfolds before us and then we can just come and and

[50:37]live our blissful lives under his glorious shadow when in fact traditions

[50:42]do tell us that we will have to uh uh play a

[50:46]very big role and it's going to be extremely difficult.

[50:49]Just like the companions of Imam and Hussein Alisam, the Imam didn't

[50:53]take their role uh didn't shoulder their responsibility.

[50:58]Um they had to do their bit uh for them to be

[51:00]saved by Imam Hussein and reach the highest stations where even the

[51:07]imams let alone every believer uh addresses them and says may my

[51:12]parents be ransomed for you.

[51:16]Um, and the third one is that the IM will test us

[51:18]multiple times and those tests will be difficult.

[51:21]Now, we don't have time to get into those, but we do

[51:25]have traditions that the Imam will in fact test his companions at

[51:29]various stages in order to filter out the ones who aren't, you

[51:33]know, quite ready, who don't really believe in his mission.

[51:37]And so, I think that's going to be another surprise.

[51:42]And many of the stories of the Quran u they're not mentioned

[51:45]just for us to entertain these stories uh but to uh to

[51:49]>> take lessons >> to take lessons like in the story of

[51:56]uh and jalut uh so uh the the verse says that they

[52:01]reached a river and uh so he he tells them even though

[52:03]they were you know in the desert traversing you know vastu uh

[52:09]uh huge you know distances uh they reach a river even though

[52:17]they were very thirsty he he tells them only those that abstain

[52:22]from drinking are u part of my mission.

[52:24]So most of them drink from the water and the imam says

[52:27]that this will happen to the companions of Imam Mahi as well

[52:32]because we have the 313 these are the uh the closest uh

[52:36]companions of the im top lieutenants >> the top lieutenants but then

[52:42]but after that when the imam gains strength uh you know thousands

[52:44]of people will join him >> some narrations say that he has

[52:48]like 60 70,000 companions >> and most of those won't be the

[52:52]best of the best you know the >> the people that will

[52:55]join later.

[52:56]Yes.

[52:55]>> So they'll have to be purified.

[52:57]>> Yeah.

[52:57]So the im the man comes to the IM.

[52:58]He says to him that when when will will the reappear?

[53:02]The im says you know be be careful what you say.

[53:07]>> Be careful what you wish for.

[53:08]>> What you wish for.

[53:14]They will be traveling non-stop and it will be very difficult.

[53:17]>> They'll be fasting in the daytime.

[53:19]They'll be traveling in the evening.

[53:20]There'll be fighting.

[53:22]There will be all kinds of things.

[53:25]Absolutely.

[53:25]May Allah hasten his reappearance.

[53:28]May Allah make us ready for his return.

[53:32]May Allah please the heart of our imam toward us.

[53:34]Uh inshallah with that we will conclude this session and hopefully we'll

[53:41]have more sessions to come uh as we progress through this series.

[53:46]Uh let's end with dua.

[53:46]Uh care to recite it please.

[53:50]forch.

[54:28]I sent him

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Misconceptions about the Mahdi, The Cave Podcast, Part 2

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Misconceptions about the Mahdi, The Cave Podcast, Part 2

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