Imam Ali ΄s Studies

Abstract Justice is one of the most important building blocks of the Islamic government, which falls into the domain of Islamic management. Every government needs to serve justice in order to establish its credibility and legitimacy. This is the reason why justice is a central idea in Imam Ali’s thought, and this is clearly reflected in Nahj al-Balaghah. However, the kind of justice which forms the foundations of Imam Ali’s views is different from what lexicologists and thinkers of other schools would intend by the words, and it is interrelated with certain ideas and concepts. This paper intends to look at these differences and then explore the place of justice and its sense and implication within the political, social and religious worldview of Imam Ali.
 

Abstract The occasion of Ghadir Khom should be viewed as the fruit of Prophet Mohammad’s message which indicates the direction all Muslims need to head until the Day of Judgement, and not as an isolated historical event although some people intend to bend the truth of Ghadir by asking misleading questions trying to undermine or distort it in a certain way which pleases them. This study aims to provide a critique of the ideas of Uthman Khamis on Ghadir presented in his book A Period of History (Translated into Persian under the title “A new attitude towards the history of early Islam”) and offer answers to a number of important issues raised about Ghadir, including the geographical lacation of Ghadir Khumm, the verse of Wilayah (Guardianship of Imam Ali and his sons) and the implications of the word Mowla (Guardian), the claim that Imam Ali was not present in Mecca and in Ghadir Khumm, referring to the verse of Shura (consultation) in determining the successor of the Prophet, the correct version of hadith of Thaqalayn, and the circumstance and place of revelation of verse of Ikmal (completion). The study draws on rational arguments as well as hadith and historical accounts to provide a body of documents used by Shia to confront claims that the Ocassion of Ghadir Khum was a made up story.
 
 
 

Abstract Intertextuality is an important aspect of today’s analyses of literary texts. Words of Imam Ali form a body of literary text which has been a source of inspiration during the past 14 centuries. His words are in fact an encyclopedia, a beautiful representation of the relationship between a human being and God, encompassing various aspects of this relationship, including theology, spiritual journey, worship, prayer, supplication, rejecting attachment to the world, heroism, morality, piety and purity of the soul, and social norms and principles. Thus, any person with any capacity will be able to draw on this valuable source; however, the more knowledge, capacity and intelligence a person has, the richer he will be able to reflect Imam Ali’s words in his works.
Arab and Persian poets and writers have particularly been inspired by Imam’s words. Mutannabi was an Arab poet whose magical words have always attracted literary scholars. One of the fine qualities of his poems is their wisdom theme, which is why he was called “the wise poet”. In his wisdom poetry, as well as in other themes he used, he extensively drew on Imam Ali’s words and sayings. This paper aims to illustrate how Mutannabi’s poetry reflects themes from Imam Ali’s words, and then to analyze and discuss the findings.
 

Abstract Professional ethics is a branch of ethics which has recently come into focus in Iran and it needs to be examined more extensively from epistemological perspective. Teachings of Islam are a rich source for studying professional ethics. The study, however, will not be reasonable without an analysis of teachings of Nahj al-Balaghah. The present study therefore adopts a documentary research methodology to explore principles of professional ethics in Nahj al-Balaghah. The findings show that Imam Ali emphasized ethics and principles of ethics, and that he has in many instances advised his agents and companions as well as all humans living then and after him to be ethical and observes ethical principles. The principles which are highlighted in Nahj al-Balaghah include respect, freedom, fairness, keeping one’s word, trust, honesty, being responsible, being both critical and open to critique, tolerance and patience, balance, and keeping secrets of others.
 
 
 

Abstract The occasion of Ghadir Khumm has been the most chanllenging issue between Shia and Sunni schools since 10 AH/632 AD. The circumstances of revelation of the Qur’anic verses which were revealed on the day of Ghadir has eversince been the focus of many studies within the two schools. Examining qualities of prophets of Allah, this study evaluates Imamah (guardianship of Imam Ali and eleven of his sons) as equivalent and counterpart of Risalah (prophethood) as used in the Qur’an. It then discusses the fundamental role of circumstances of revelation in interpreting the Qur’anic verses and reviews the disagreement over the circumstances of revelation of the last chapter and verse of the Qur’an. Based on these, the study aims to prepare a proper setting for interpreting the verses by presenting a systematic analysis and critique of the circumstances of revelation of Ghadir verses as accounted in interpretation, history and hadith sources of Shia and Sunni.
 
 

Abstract Allameh Amini is one of the prominent intellectuals and outstanding reformists in the Islamic world, who studied Islamic history, culture, and civilization for a long time and who authored the valuable book titled Al-Ghadir in advocacy of Wilayah (guardianship of Imam Ali and the eleven Imams after him). The comprehensive design, innovative style and scholarly features of this noteworthy work singled it out among similar works and compelled admiration and appreciation from great figures in research, thought and literature. The present paper starts with a discussion on Wilayah and its glorious historical origin, then goes on with evaluating the book Al-Ghadir and exploring its scholarly significances, and finishes with a number of conclusions and valuable lessons, most importantly including the necessity for disseminating Imam Ali’s wilayah, out speaking the truth of Shia, and working towards unity between different sects of the religion, which is also highlighted by a number of scholars of different Islamic schools who appreciated Al-Ghadir in their works.