The Need for the Imam — Page 2
2 time, dies the death of ignorance. This Hadith is enough to make the heart of a righteous man seek after the Imam of the age, for to die in ignorance is such a great misfortune that no evil or ill-luck lies outside its scope. Therefore, in keeping with this testament of the Holy Prophet sa , it becomes incumbent upon every seeker after truth to persist in his quest for the true Imam. It is wrong to suppose that anyone who experiences a true dream, or for whom the door of Divine revelation opens, can be called an Imam. On the contrary, to be an Imam requires a comprehensive condition and a perfect and absolute [spiritual] state because of which he is des- ignated Imam in heaven. Obviously no one can be called Imam merely on account of righteousness and piety. God Almighty says: 4 If every righteous person was to be considered an Imam, all the believers who are righteous would automatically become Imams, and this would be in direct conflict with the purport of this verse. Simi- larly, according to the clear textual authority of the Holy Quran, not every recipient of revelation or any- one who experiences true dreams can be considered 4 … and make each of us a leader of the righteous. — Al- Furq a n , 25: 75 [Publishers]