Since the advent of Islam, the subject of Al-Imamah (leadership) has been one of the most disputed topics among all Muslim factions. Each school of thought claims that its version of successorship to the Prophet, peace be upon him and his family, is the only original and valid version.
Shia schools, Twelvers, Zaydis, and Ismailis, are not an exception from other groups of Islam.
In this article, we argue for the Twelver Shia version of Imamah (leadership) against the Zaydi school from one of the oldest texts that is agreed upon between Twelver Shia and Zaydis and that is the book Sahifa Al-Sajjadiyya, the scriptures of Imam Al-Sajjad.
The book is a collection of supplications that Imam Alee ibn Al-Hussain (a.s), also known as Al-Sajjad and Zayn Al-Abideen, the fourth holy Imam of the Twelver Shias, taught to his children (a.s).
Sahifa Al-Sajjadiyya has reached us both through Imam Al-Sajjad's son Muhammad Al-Baqir (a.s), the fifth Imam of the Twelver Shias, and also through his younger son Zayd ibn Alee (a.s), who is considered to be the founder of the Zaydi school, whom the Zaydis attribute themselves to.
We will highlight the Imamah which the Twelver Shia believe in, through this book. It also sheds light on the differences between the stance of the Imams of the Twelver Shia and of the Zaydi Imams.
This article quotes two sections of the book, Sahifa Al-Sajjadiyya. The first section is from the introduction of the book where the main narrator of the book Al-Mutawakkil ibn Haroon meets Yahya son of Zayd, (who is also considered to be an Imam in the Zaydi school), and speaks with him. The second section is parts of one of the supplications in the book in which Imam Al-Sajjad, peace be upon him, talks about Imamah and its characteristics.
Later we shall analyse Zaydi objections about the introduction of Sahifa Al-Sajjadiyya and other matters and will provide supplementary sources in support of our arguments.
He said: The felicitous shaykh, Aboo 'Abd Allah Muhammad ibn Ahmad ibn Shahriyar, the treasurer of the treasure-house of our master, the Commander of the Faithful, 'Alee ibn Abi Talib (upon him be peace) told us in the month of Rabi' I in the year 516 [May-June 1122 CE] while [the Sahifa] was being read before him and I was listening. He said: I heard it [being read] before the truthful shaykh Aboo Mansur Muhammad ibn Ahmad ibn 'Abd al-'Aziz al-'Ukbari the Just (God have mercy upon him) by Ab00 l-Mufaddal Muhammad ibn 'Abd Allah ibn al-Muttalib al-Shaybani. He said: Al-Sharif Aboo 'Abd Allah Ja'far ibn Muhammad ibn Ja'far ibn al-Hassan ibn Ja'far ibn al-Hassan ibn al-Hassan ibn Amir al-Mu'minin 'Alee ibn Abi Talib (upon them be peace) related to us. He said: 'Abd Allah ibn 'Umar ibn Khattab al-Zayyat related to us in the year 265 [878-9]. He said: My maternal uncle 'Alee ibn al-Nu'man al-A'lam related to me. He said: 'Umayr ibn Mutawakkil al-Thaqafi al-Balkhi related to us from his father Mutawakkil ibn Haroon.
7- In al-Mutahhari's version, the chapter headings are mentioned. They are:
1) Praise of God
2) Blessing upon Muhammad and his Household
3) Blessing upon the Bearers of the Throne
4) Blessing upon the Attesters to the Messengers
5) His Supplication for himself and the People under his Guardianship
6) His Supplication in the Morning and Evening
7) His Supplication in Worrisome Tasks
8) His Supplication in Seeking Refuge
9) His Supplication in Yearning
10) His Supplication in Seeking Asylum with God
11) His Supplication for Good Outcomes
12) His Supplication in Confession
13) His Supplication in Seeking Needs
14) His Supplication in Acts of Wrongdoing
15) His Supplication When Sick
16) His Supplication in Asking for Release from Sins
17) His Supplication Against Satan
18) His Supplication in Perils
19) His Supplication in Asking for Rain during a Drought
20) His Supplication on Noble Moral Traits
21) His Supplication when Something made him Sorrowful
22) His Supplication in Hardship
23) His Supplication for Well-Being
24) His Supplication for his Parents
25) His Supplication for his Children
26) His Supplication for his Neighbours and Friends
27) His Supplication for the People of the Frontiers
28) His Supplication in Fleeing
29) His Supplication when his Provision was Stinted
30) His Supplication for Help in Repaying Debt
31) His Supplication in Repentance
32) His Supplication in the Night Prayer
33) His Supplication in Asking for the Best
34) His Supplication when Afflicted
35) His Supplication in Satisfaction with the Decree of God
36) His Supplication upon Hearing Thunder
37) His Supplication in Giving Thanks
38) His Supplication in Asking for Pardon
39) His Supplication in Seeking Pardon
40) His Supplication when Death was Mentioned
41) His Supplication in Asking for Covering and Protection
42) His Supplication upon completing a Reading of the Qur'an
43) His Supplication when he looked at the New Crescent Moon
44) His Supplication for the Coming of the Month of Ramadan
45) His Supplication in Bidding Farewell to the Month of Ramadan
46) His Supplication for the Day of Fast-Breaking and Friday
47) His Supplication on Day of 'Arafa
48) His Supplication on the Day of Sacrifice and Friday
49) His Supplication in Repelling the Trickery of Enemies
50) His Supplication in Fear
51) His Supplication in Pleading and Abasement
52) His Supplication in Imploring
53) His Supplication in Abasing himself
54) His Supplication for the Removal of Worries
The remaining chapter headings are in the words of Aboo 'Abd Allah al-Hassani (God have mercy upon him). Aboo 'Abd Allah Ja'far ibn Muhammad al-Hassani related to us. He said: 'Abd Allah ibn 'Umar ibn Khattab al-Zayyat related to us. He said: Khali ibn al-Nu'man al-A'lam related to us. He said: 'Umayr ibn Mutawakkil al-Thaqafi al-Balkhi related to us from his father Mutawakkil ibn Haroon. He said: My truthful master, Aboo 'Abd Allah Ja'far ibn Muhammad dictated to me. He said: My grandfather 'Alee ibn al-Hussain dictated to my father Muhammad ibn 'Alee (upon them all be peace) while I was witness: ...[].
Commentary Of The Introduction:
In passage 2, Yahya son of Zayd particularly asks Al-Mutawakkil about what his cousin Imam Al-Sadiq, peace be upon him, said about him, indicating that he believed that Imam Al-Sadiq, peace be upon him, had a special kind of knowledge. He also mentions that Imam Al-Baqir, peace be upon him, told his father Zayd to not revolt, because it would not end well for him, so he is curious to know whether Imam Al-Sadiq, peace be upon him, said anything similar about him too. Then after hearing that Imam Al-Sadiq, peace be upon him, said that his fate will be the same as his father in getting killed and crucified, he immediately knew that his fate is certain and handed over the book to Al-Mutawakkil to hand it over to his cousins, admitting that Imam Al-Baqir and Al-Sadiq, peace be upon them both, had this special knowledge that they had inherited from their forefathers from the Prophet, peace and blessings upon him and his family, as their conversation at passage 3 indicates.
In addition, Imam Al-Sadiq, peace be upon him, says to Muhammad ibn Abdullah known as Nafs Al-Zakiyya, and his brother Ibraheem, both considered Imams according to Zaydis, that they will also revolt and will be killed too which is another indication of Twelver Shia Imams’ very specific knowledge about events before they happen which they have inherited from their forefathers, peace be upon them.
In fact, even some non-Twelver sources confirm that the Twelver Imams had inherited certain books from their forefathers from the Messenger of Allah, peace be upon him and his family, which is another indication of their Imamate, as they exclusively received some very special books, and these books were not inherited by the rest of the progeny of the Messenger of Allah, peace be upon him and his family:
Abil Faraj Al-Isfahani (Died 356 A.H.):
Narrated to me Alee ibn Al-Abbas Al-Maqanei saying: narrated to us Bakkaar ibn Ahmad saying: narrated to us Al-Hassan ibn Al-Hussain from Anbasa ibn Najjaad Al-Abid, saying: Ja'far ibn Muhammad whenever he used to see Muhammad ibn Abdullah ibn Al-Hassan his eyes would get teary and he would say: "May I be his ransom, people say that he is the Mahdi, but he will be killed, he is not among the Khulafa of this nation in the book of his father Alee."
Source: Maqatil Al-Talibiyeen. Pg. # 142.
The above narration indicates the existence of a book in the possession of Imam Al-Sadiq, peace be upon him, which contains very detailed information about future events, known as the Mushaf of Faatimah in Twelver sources.
Al-Masoudi (Died 346 A.H.):
And narrated to me Muhammad ibn Al-Faraj, in the city of Jorjan in the area known as the well of Aboo Annaan, saying: narrated to me Aboo Da'aamah saying: I went to Alee ibn Muhammad ibn Alee ibn Musa visiting him in his illness due to which he passed away in that year when I wanted to leave he said to me: "O Aboo Da'aamah, paying you back became obligatory, shouldn't I narrate a narration to you to make you happy?", he said: I said: I will appreciate it very much O son of the Messenger of Allah. He said: "narrated to me my father Muhammad ibn Alee saying: narrated to me my father Alee ibn Musa saying: narrated to me my father Musa ibn Ja'far saying: narrated to me my father Ja'far ibn Muhammad saying: narrated to me my father Muhammad ibn Alee saying: narrated to me my father Alee ibn Al-Hussain saying: narrated to me my father Al-Hussain ibn Alee saying: narrated to me my father Alee ibn Abi Talib, may Allah be pleased with them, saying: the Messenger of Allah, peace be upon him and his family, said: 'write down O Alee!', he said: I said: 'what should I write?', he said: 'write down, In the Name of Allah the Beneficent the Merciful, the faith is that which the hearts accept, and the deeds manifest and Islam is that which the tongues speak, and through which marriage becomes lawful.'", Aboo Da'aamah said: I said: "O son of the Messenger of Allah, I don't know which one is more beautiful, the narration or the chain.", he said: "it is indeed a manuscript with the handwriting of Alee ibn Abi Talib dictated by the Messenger of Allah, peace be upon him and his family, we inherit it, the youngsters from the elders."
Source: Muruj Al-Dhahab. Vol. 4 Pg. # 137-138.
The above narration indicates the existence of another book in the possession of the Twelver Imams which was dictated by the Messenger of Allah, peace be upon him and his family, and written down by Amirul-Mu’minin Alee ibn Abi Talib, peace be upon him, this book is known as Al-Jami’a in the Twelver sources.
In passage 2, Yahya admits to another very important fact which is a confirmation of the above points, Yahya admits that Imam Al-Baqir and Al-Sadiq, peace be upon them both, are more knowledgeable than him and his father, because they knew everything that Yahya and Zayd and their likes from among the progeny of the prophet, peace and blessings upon him and his family, knew, whereas Yahya and Zayd and so on did not know everything that Imam Al-Baqir and Al-Sadiq, peace be upon them both, knew, i.e. Imam Al-Baqir and Al-Sadiq, peace be upon them both, were definitely more knowledgeable than Zayd and his son Yahya.
This is a very crucial point that indicates the Imamah belongs to Imam Al-Baqir and Al-Sadiq, peace be upon them both, and not to Yahya and his father Zayd contrary to what Zaydis claim.
Allah, the Most Exalted emphasizes on this assertion in His book :
قُلْ هَلْ يَسْتَوِي الَّذِينَ يَعْلَمُونَ وَالَّذِينَ لَا يَعْلَمُونَ إِنَّمَا يَتَذَكَّرُ أُولُو الْأَلْبَابِ
Say: Are those who know equal with those who know not? But only men of understanding will pay heed.
(39:9)
Holy Qur'aan
أَفَمَنْ يَهْدِي إِلَى الْحَقِّ أَحَقُّ أَنْ يُتَّبَعَ أَمَّنْ لَا يَهِدِّي إِلَّا أَنْ يُهْدَى فَمَا لَكُمْ كَيْفَ تَحْكُمُونَ
Is He then Who guides to the truth more worthy to be followed, or he who himself does not go aright unless he is guided? What then is the matter with you; how do you judge?
(10:35)
Holy Qur'aan
Hamid ibn Ahmad Al-Mahalli (Died 652):
And we have narrated through a chain of narrators from Al-Qasim ibn Al-Mufaddal saying: Yusuf ibn Mazin Al-Raasi who said: a man stood in front of Al-Hassan ibn Alee, peace be upon them both, he said: “you embarrassed the believers, and you did so and so, and you joined Mua'wiyah.”, he, peace be upon him, said: “do not bother me, may Allah bless you, because the Messenger of Allah, peace be upon him and his family, saw Bani Umayyah in a dream that they were climbing his pulpit one man after the other, which made him sad, so Allah Almighty sent down the verse: “Surely We sent it down on the Night of Decree. And what will teach thee what is the Night of Decree? The Night of Decree is better than a thousand months.”[97:1-3], in which Bani Umayyah will rule.”
Al-Qasim said: we counted that and it was a thousand months, without any increase or decrease.
Source: Al-Hadahiq Al-Wardiyya Fi Manaqib Al-Aimmah Al-Zaydiyya. Vol. 1 Pg. # 181.
As we see Imam Al-Hassan, peace be upon him, similar to Imam Al-Sadiq, peace be upon him, gives this fact as his excuse for entering into a peace treaty with Muawiyah. This is in direct contradiction with the most important principle that the Zaydi doctrine defines for an Imam, and that is enjoining good and prohibiting evil. If Zaydis say that the peace treaty was the right thing to do, and the Imam decides what is the right thing to do and what is wrong, then they have to abandon their version of Imamah, because that is exactly what the Twelvers believe. In other words, if this does not invalidate the Imamate of Imam Al-Hassan, peace be upon him, it does not invalidate the Imamate of Imam Al-Sajjad, Imam Al-Baqir, and Imam Al-Sadiq, peace be upon them, if they did not go into armed Jihad against Bani Umayyah, they remain Imams irrespective of whether they did Jihad against the tyrants or not.
9- My Lord, bless Muhammad and his Household with a blessing which makes plentiful Thy gifts and generosity, perfects for them Thy bestowals and awards, and fills out their share of Thy kindly acts and benefits! My Lord, bless him and his Household with a blessing whose first has no term, whose term has no limit, and whose last has no utmost end! My Lord, bless them to the weight of Thy Throne and all below it, the amount that fills the heavens and all above them, the number of Thy earths and all below and between them, a blessing that will bring them near to Thee in proximity, please Thee and them, and be joined to its likes forever!
In passage 8, Imam Alee ibn Al-Hussain, Zayn Al-Abideen, peace be upon him, asserts that Allah has chosen "the best of his Household" "أطايب أهل بيته" as the Bearers of His Command, referring to them being chosen by Allah (swt) as Imams. This complies with the qualities that the Twelver Shia believe in for the Imams, whereas the Zaydi belief is that the Imam is any noble individual from among the Household who takes lead and claims to be an Imam and starts a military uprising.
وَرَبُّكَ يَخْلُقُ مَا يَشَاءُ وَيَخْتَارُ ۗ مَا كَانَ لَهُمُ الْخِيَرَةُ ۚ سُبْحَانَ اللَّهِ وَتَعَالَىٰ عَمَّا يُشْرِكُونَ
And your Lord creates and chooses whom He pleases; to choose is not theirs; glory be to Allah, and exalted be He above what they associate (with Him).
(28:68)
Holy Qur'aan
Describing the Imams as the "treasurers of God's knowledge", in Arabic "خزنة علمك", is proof that their knowledge is not learned from other people, because learned knowledge could be a mixture of truth and falsehood, but divinely inspired knowledge and being treasurers of it leaves no room for ignorance of any knowledge needed for Imam's leadership position. This also puts into perspective what was mentioned in the introduction of the book in this regard about Imams' knowledge about past and future events.
The same cannot be said about Zaydi Imams' knowledge and they themselves do not claim to have this kind of knowledge as Yahya son of Zayd himself admits. Furthermore, many Zaydi Imams have been reported to have gained knowledge from scholars of other sects and were affected by their teachings, examples of which will be presented. However, these teachings are definitely a mixture of truth and falsehood, therefore, those so-called 'Imams' who have been affected by them cannot be called "treasurers of God's knowledge".
Allah Exalted clearly states that guidance of people is with those who are divinely guided, those who possess divinely inspired knowledge, not those who learn from other people:
قُلْ هَلْ يَسْتَوِي الَّذِينَ يَعْلَمُونَ وَالَّذِينَ لَا يَعْلَمُونَ إِنَّمَا يَتَذَكَّرُ أُولُو
الْأَلْبَابِ
Say: Are those who know equal with those who know not? But only men of understanding will pay heed.
(39:9)
Holy Qur'aan
أَفَمَنْ يَهْدِي إِلَى الْحَقِّ أَحَقُّ أَنْ يُتَّبَعَ أَمَّنْ لَا يَهِدِّي إِلَّا أَنْ يُهْدَى فَمَا لَكُمْ كَيْفَ تَحْكُمُونَ
Is He then Who guides to the truth more worthy to be followed, or he who himself does not go aright unless he is guided? What then is the matter with you; how do you judge?
(10:35)
Holy Qur'aan
In other words, it is not possible that Allah (swt) orders us to follow individuals who themselves need guidance and do not possess error-free divine knowledge.
Describing the Imams as the "protectors of the Religion" "حفظة دينك" is a follow-up to their knowledge implying that Imams action is the correct position, whether they lead the community in peace or start a military uprising because their actions are based on knowledge and lead to protection of Religion.
Describing the Imams as the "God's successors/representatives" "خلفاءك في أرضك" puts an emphasis on the loftiness of the position of Imamah.
Describing the Imams as the "God's proofs over His servants" "وحججك على عبادك" puts a stamp on the previous descriptions and affirms our points.
Describing God's purification of Imams from all uncleanliness and filth by His Will is a reference to the verse (33:33) of Qur'aan which is an assertion of the belief of the Twelver Shia about "Ismah" infallibility of the Imams.
Describing the Imams as being the "chosen means/intercessors towards God" "جعلتهم الوسيلة إليك" is also in alignment with the Twelver Shia position regarding them.
In passage 10, Imam Al-Sajjad, peace be upon him, asserts that in every era there is an Imam with whom Allah helps His Religion and whose qualities were mentioned in the previous passages and he is an authority over God's servants "أقمته علما لعبادك" and a guide for people "منارا في بلادك". The question from Zaydis is who is this Imam at the time of Imam Al-Sajjad himself? Some Zaydis would say it is Al-Hassan ibn Al-Hassan, however, he cannot be compared with Imam Al-Sajjad, peace be upon him, by any measure, neither in knowledge nor in piety. We will come back to the case of Al-Hassan ibn Al-Hassan again to prove that even some Zaydi Imams do not consider him an Imam.
Stating that Allah has connected Imam's Bond to His "وصلت حبله بحبلك", is an allusion to the Bond of Allah mentioned in Qur'aan (3:103) where Allah encourages His servants to hold fast unto His Bond together and to not scatter.
The Imam has been made "الذريعة إلى رضوانك" a means of reaching Allah's satisfaction.
Imam's obedience is obligatory "افترضت طاعته", and this in itself proves that Imam has to be infallible, because a fallible Imam could command falsehood, thus, it is not possible that Allah has made obedience to falsehood obligatory.
In the fact that Allah has warned about the disobedience of the Imam "وحذرت معصيته" there is another stipulation on the necessity of infallibility of the Imam.
Imam Al-Sajjad asserts that Allah has made the obedience to the Imam unconditional, which again is an emphasis on the infallibility of the Imam leaving no room for the possibility of error. Furthermore,
The prohibition of proceeding ahead of the Imam and staying far behind the Imam "وألا يتقدمه متقدم ، ولا يتأخر عنه متأخر" is a reference to the statement of the Prophet, peace be upon him and his family, that has been narrated by all major Islamic schools which requires a bit more attention.
Imam Al-Sajjad, peace be upon him, continues elaborating why we should follow the Imam in each step by saying that this is because the Imam is “the preservation of the shelter-seekers, the cave of the faithful, the handhold of the adherents, and the radiance of the worlds”, all indications of a divinely protected and infallible leader.
Hadeeth of the Two Weighty Things and the Knowledge of the Imams
Divinely inspired knowledge has received tremendous emphasis in the prophetic narrations about the Imams. This can be found in almost every famous narration that has been narrated from the Prophet, peace and blessings be upon him and his Family, in this regard:
Majduddin Al-Muayidi (Died 1428):
The sermon of Ghadeer includes the hadeeth of Two Weighty Things:
The sermon of the Messenger of Allah, peace be upon him and his family, at the Day of Ghadeer includes the hadith about the Two Weighty Things (Al-Thaqalayn) and commanding the Ummah to the two successors, and this is from among the frequently narrated narrations and from among the brightly shining and mighty proofs which is decisive about the obligation of the obedience towards the Pure Progeny and the necessity of following them and clinging to their rope and putting them forward and following their guide and holding unto their Religion, over all Muslims in all aspects of the Religion.
And this hadeeth has been preached in several events and places, from among them: in this place in Ghadeer Khumm, also in Arafa, also after he returned from Tahif, and also in Medina during his last illness while the room was full of his companions.
And in a narration narrated by Al-Tabarani from Ibn Umar, he said: The last thing that the Prophet, peace be upon him and his family, spoke was: "Accept my succession in my Household."
The variants include: "I leave among you", and also "I leave behind among you", also "indeed I have left among you", with the variants "Two Weighty Things", also "Two Successors", also "Two Things", adding "if you hold unto them", also "if you cling to them", and also "if you take them you will never go astray.", and among them, there is the addition "do not proceed ahead of them for you will perish, and do not fall behind for you will be destroyed, and do not try to teach them, because they are more knowledgeable than you."
Source: Lawame' Al-Anwaar. Vol. 1, Pg. # 107-108.
This variation of the hadeeth of the Two Weighty Things is explicit about the destruction of everyone who proceeds ahead of the Imams or falls behind them and does not follow the Pure Progeny in every step, which leaves no room for people like Aboo Bakr and Umar who proceeded ahead of their Imam and usurped his rightful position of leadership, and that is against what the majority of Zaydis try to do in acquitting them of such.
It also affirms what we read in Sahifa about the Imams being the most knowledgeable of their time, a condition that the Zaydi Imams themselves do not agree upon; as some of them like Zayd himself believes that the Imam has to be the most knowledgeable from among the family of the Prophet, while others like their Imam Al-Natiq Bil Haqq Yahya ibn Al-Hussain Al-Harooni says the exact opposite.
Zaid ibn Alee:
And it is not befitting that the Caller (i.e. the Imam who invites people to himself) after him (i.e. the Prophet) has clear insight except someone who knows everything that he brought, and did anyone from among the people claimed that he knows the knowledge of the Messenger of Allah, peace be upon him and his family, except Alee, peace be upon him?
And He said: "O family of the House, Allah only wishes to distance fault from you, and to cleanse you, and to purify you abundantly" (33:33), He then obligated their love, saying: "Say: 'For this I ask of you no wage except the love of the (Prophet's) relatives."(42:23), he says: "show me love in my family.", He then obligated Khums in what Muslims take as booty that it is the share of Allah and His Messenger without shares for the believers, He said: "And know that one-fifth of whatever you take as spoils belong to Allah, the Messenger, kinsmen of the Messenger,"(8:41).
So we understood that the superiority and being the chosen ones is for this Household, a Household which Allah has made superior over all other houses because they combined the merit of being the frontrunners and being purified, so it is only befitting that the Messenger of Allah, peace be upon him and his family, only choose them, as he is the best of the people and the most superior in the Eyes of Allah, the same way they need to be leaders of people until the Day of Judgment because Allah Almighty says: "He guides to the truth. Who then is worthier to be followed He who guides to the truth or he who cannot guide unless he (himself) is guided? What is the matter with you, how then can you judge?"(10:35) and He said: "You are only a warner, and there is a guide for every nation."(13:7).
So it is not befitting for the guide to be anyone except their most knowledgeable, because Allah Almighty chose Muhammad, peace be upon him and his family, and purified him and taught him, and made him the teaching leader and after him Alee, peace be upon him, was upon his path, whom people needed and he did not need people, because Allah Almighty made them superior over people in guidance and obedience and announced to people their infallibility, so they never go astray from the right path and the proof for it is that which I said before in His statement: "Say: 'For this I ask of you no wage except the love of the (Prophet's) relatives." (42:23) and He said: "You shall find no nation believing in Allah and the Last Day loving anyone that opposes Allah and His Messenger, even though they be their fathers, their sons, their brothers, or their tribe.
Those, He has written upon their hearts faith and strengthened them with a spirit from Him. He will admit them to the Gardens underneath which rivers flow, where they shall live forever. Allah is pleased with them and they are pleased with Him. They are the Party of Allah, and the Party of Allah are the winners." (58:22), for if they were of those who oppose Allah and His Messenger, He would not have made their love obligatory.
And indeed the Messenger of Allah, peace be upon him and his family, said: "I leave among you something if you hold you it you will never go astray and will never be humiliated, it is the Book fo Allah and my progeny, my family, and verily they will never separate from one another until they enter upon me near the fountain lake."
Source: Tathbit Al-Wassiyya. Pg. # 201-206.
If we apply this rule to Zayd himself based on the fact that his own son Yahya admitted that Imam Al-Baqir and Al-Sadiq, peace be upon them both, were more knowledgeable than him and his father Zayd, the Zaydi doctrine completely falls apart at its foundation.
This kind of dilemma has led some other Zaydi Imams to erase this condition from among the qualities of an Imam. However, this also does not solve the problem for them as it clearly goes against what the Messenger of Allah, peace be upon him and his family, said about Imams, and also it goes against what we read above in Sahifa Al-Sajjadiyya about this condition for the Imams.
Yahya ibn Al-Hussain Al-Harooni (Died 424 A.H.):
As about the characteristics that are not necessary for him (i.e. the Imam): it is not necessary for him to be the most knowledgeable of the people about all things that need to be known in contrary to what the Imamiyya and some people from among the Zaydiyya believe. And it is not necessary for him to be reliable in hidden (i.e. infallible) like the Messenger, peace be upon him and his family.
As about the reason which indicates that it is not necessary for him to be the most knowledgeable of the people about all things that he needs to know: we mentioned before that the Imam is needed to execute particular rules of the Islamic law and things which are related to that, and execution of these rules does not require for the person who executes them to be the most knowledgeable from among the people about everything that needs to be known.
Source: Al-Da'aamah Fi Al-Imamah. Pg. # 126.
It is astonishing that the Zaydi Imam, Yahya ibn Al-Hussain Al-Harooni, in his other book, Taysir Al-Matalib, narrates a narration that is exactly the opposite of his above opinion:
Yahya ibn Al-Hussain Al-Harooni (Died 424 A.H.):
Narrated to us Hamd ibn Abdullah ibn Muhammad saying: narrated to us Abdul-Rahman ibn Abi Hatam saying: narrated to us Muhammad ibn Ismaeel Al-Ahmasi saying: narrated to us Abdul-Rahman ibn Muhammad Al-Muharibi from Ismaeel ibn Ayyash Al-Hamsi saying: narrated to us Hanash Al-Rahbi from Ikrema from Ibn Abbas who said: the Messenger of Allah, peace be upon him and his family, said: "whoever leverages falsehood to invalidate the truth with it, he indeed has outed himself from the protection of Allah and His Messenger, peace be upon him and his family, and whoever walks to the God's ruler on Earth to humiliate him, and God's ruler on Earth is God's Book and the Sunnah of His Messenger, Allah will humiliate him before the Day of Judgement in addition to what awaits him, and whoever makes someone leader while he knows that there is someone else who is more deserving and more knowledgeable in the Book of Allah and the Sunnah of His Messenger, peace be upon him and him family, he indeed has betrayed Allah and His Messenger and all the believers, and whoever neglects the needs of people, Allah will cease to look at his needs, until he fulfills their needs, and gives them their rights, and whoever eats even one Dirham in Riba, he indeed has done fornication thirty-three times, and whoever whose flesh grows out of unlawful money, he is well-deserved of Hellfire."
Source: Taysir Al-Matalib Fi Amali Abi Talib. Pg. # 413.
It is also worth it now to bring up some examples of early Zaydi Imams whose teachers were from outside the family of the Prophet, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him and his family. This is to expose the Zaydi doctrine in how they go against the narration of the Prophet, peace be upon him and his family, and also go against Imam Al-Sajjad's statements about the qualities of Imams in Sahifa Al-Sajjadiyya:
Abool Faraj Al-Isfahani (Died 356 A.H.):
Aboo Zayd said: and narrated to me Yaqub ibn Al-Qasim from Sufiyan ibn Uyaina saying: I saw Abdullah ibn Al-Hassan bringing Muhammad ibn Abdullah and Ibrahim, while they were still children, to Abdullah ibn Tawoos, saying: "narrate to them, maybe Allah benefits them."
Narrated to me Umar ibn Abdullah ibn Yahya ibn Alee and Ahmad ibn Abdul-Aziz saying: narrated to us Umar ibn Shabbah saying: narrated to us Muhammad ibn Ismaeel from Musa ibn Abdullah saying: Muhammad ibn Abdullah used to say: "I used to seek knowledge in the circles of Ansaar, until I would fall asleep and then one of them would pock me with his feet to wake me up, saying: 'your master went to perfom prayers, thinking I was his slave.'"
.....
Narrated to me Muhammad ibn Khalaf ibn Waki' saying: narrated to us Ismaeel ibn Muhammad from Waqidi saying: Abdullah ibn Al-Hassan used to command his son Muhammad to seek knowledge and religious jurisprudence and he used to bring him and his brother Ibrahim to Ibn Tawoos saying to him: "narrate to them, maybe Allah benefits them."
Al-Waqidi said: and Muhammad indeed has met Nafe' ibn Umar and has heard (hadith) from him and he has met Aba Zayd and has heard (hadith) from him and he has narrated from them both and from other than them as well, his narrations were a few, which have been narrated from him after his death and from among those who have narrated from him is Abdullah ibn Ja'far ibn Abdul-Rahman ibn Al-Miswar ibn Mikhrama and others.
Source: Maqatil Al-Talibiyeen, Pg. # 211/213.
Yahya ibn Al-Hussain Al-Harooni (Died 424):
Al-Imam Muhammad ibn Al-Hassan Al-Daee: he is Aboo Abdullah Muhammad ibn Al-Hassan ibn Al-Qasim ibn Al-Hassan ibn Alee ibn Abdul-Rahman ibn Al-Qasim ibn Al-Hassan ibn Zayd ibn Al-Hassan ibn Alee ibn Abi Talib...
he used to go to Abi Al-Hassan Al-Karkhi when he was alive and attend his classes and learn from him Fiqh of Abi Hanifa, so he reached a level in the memorization of "the Questions of Iraqis" which made him an example.
Footnote: Ubaydallah ibn Al-Hassan, Aboo Al-Hassan Al-Karkhi, he was the Shaykh of the Hanafites in Iraq, he was the chief of the Hanafites in Baghdad, he died in the year 340 A.H., he used to not enter a house where there was a copy of Qur'an without having Wudhu as a sign of respect, end of quote from Al-Tabaqaat.
Source: Al-Ifada Fi Tarikh Al-Aimmah Al-Saadah. Pg. # 118.
Abdullah ibn Hamza (Died 614):
Al-Imam Al-Mahdi Li Deenillah, Muhammad ibn Al-Imam Al-Daee Al-Hassan ibn Al-Qasim: the uprising of Al-Imam Al-Mahdi Li Deenillah, Muhammad ibn Al-Imam Al-Daee Ilallah Al-Hassan ibn Al-Qasim ibn Al-Hassan ibn Alee ibn Abdul-Rahman ibn Al-Qasim ibn Al-Hassan ibn Zayd ibn Al-Hassan ibn Alee ibn Abi Talib, peace be upon them, his mother was Jarjar bint Firooz Al-Daylami....
From among his teachers in Usool Al-Fiqh and Kalam were Aboo Al-Hassan Al-Karkhi and Aboo Abdullah Al-Basri.
Source: Al-Shaafi. Vol. 1, Pg. # 880-881.
The Messenger of Allah, peace be upon him and his family, literally says: “Do not teach my progeny, because they are more knowledgeable than you.”, but “the progeny” and the predecessors of the Zaydis and their Imams sought to and learn Fiqh and theology from other people! It would also reflect their soft spot for the likes of Aboo Hanifah who had been condemned by Imam Al Sadiq (a.s). Then they shamelessly call these individuals ‘Imams’ and call them things like “المهدي لدين الله” "The Guide towards the Religion of Allah"!!!
For this exact fact, we can witness the Zaydi Imams oppose each other in almost every field of knowledge, beginning from Tawheed up to the smallest common matters of Islamic practices in Furu’. This is because their knowledge is a mixture of truth with falsehood which they have gained through other than its divine source. Due to this fact, we cannot call them the heirs of the knowledge of the Prophet, peace be upon him and his family.
Al-Mansour Billah, Al-Qasim ibn Muhammad (1029 A.H.):
Chapter: What has been said regarding the attributes of the Almighty
According to the majority of our Imams and the Malahimiyya: the attributes of Allah are His Essence, in correlation to Abi Al-Hussain Al-Basri and Al-Razi and others regarding the Existential Attributes of Allah. And its meaning is that He is Powerful by His Almighty Essence and not by something else and so on.
According to some of our Imams and some of their followers and Abi Alee and Al-Bahmashiyya: they (i.e. the attributes of Allah) are additional things to His Essence.
Source: Al-Asas Li Aqaed Al-Akyaas' Pg. # 41-42.
To posit that the attributes are additional to the essence is not only against the clear sayings of the Ahlulbayt (a.s), may peace be upon them, that have reached us through certified reports and critical scholarship, but it is also against the dictates of reason as well.
God, for those of Gnosis, is an absolute simplicity that transcends any type of plurality and furthermore, he is absolutely necessary in all respects. If absolutely necessity is not predicated of God, then there would be at least one respect in which He would be contingent and it known through reason that anything which is contingent in any respect depends upon another for its existence.
Similarly, if one posits that the Essence and Attributes are separate and distinct such that they're not identical to each other absolutely, then there are multiple existents which hold a divine nature. Such a view would either lead to the acceptance of Polytheism, that Essence and Attributes are distinct from each other and still Divine or it would lead to Atheism - Divine Contingency - which is a contradiction in terms, by the admission of the fact that the Attributes are actually contingent in their own self.
Given that both Atheism and Polytheism are impossibilities, as established by dictates of reason, one has to posit that God is absolutely a complete simplicity which does not have any internal plurality. This must be posited because all that which contains internal plurality is a composite, and all that which is a composite is a contingent and all that which is a contingent requires a preponderance by another for its existence and all that which requires another for its existence lacks existence in itself and is necessarily dependent. God, though, in the pure view of Monotheism is not contingent and no dependent. Any view which teaches otherwise contradicts pure monotheism and any dogma which affirms such a belief is wrong and is to be rejected by all reasonable.
Due to this very reason, the particular Zaydi view against Divine Simplicity is to be rejected. Apart from this, their views about creation and cosmology have also been refuted by the Noble Texts and people of Wisdom.
As about Furu' (i.e. Islamic law and rulings) the Zaydi Imams oppose each other so often that it has created its own sub-sects among Zaydiyya. Here we present the statements of the Zaydi Imam, Yahya ibn Hamza, who is listing things that the Zaydis are famous for in Usool Al-Deen and Furu' Al-Deen:
Yahya ibn Hamza (Died 749 A.H.):
You asked: who are the Zaydiyya and why have they been called after this name? and what is their famous opinions in different countries? and how is their doctrine about Imamah from the time of the companions, may Allah be pleased with them? so that we may be upon conviction.
Answer: This consists of several discussions, the first of which is who are the Zaydiyya?
Be aware that the apparent reason of being called by this name is due to its attribution to the valorous Imam and the lion of the jungle, the Imam of the Imams, he who succeeded in martyrdom, he who was victorious by Allah with goodness and more, may Allah repeat over Muslims from his blessings, Zayd ibn Alee ibn Al-Hussain ibn Alee ibn Abi Talib, may Allah be pleased with them all, because this name did not start except from his time, and it was not famous before that, and it became famous rather after him until this day.
Therefore, whoever is upon his belief in the matters of religion and matters of divine, and the statement of wisdom and admitting to punishment and reward, and the exclusiveness of Imamah in the sect of Fatimiyya, and the designation of Imamah for the first three Imams, Alee and his two sons and that the path of Imamah is invitation for the other Imams, so whoever admits to these principles, he is then a Zaydi.
These are the beliefs of Zaydiyya which is a reflection of its name, except for the rulings relating to jurisprudence, which has no connection to this name, that is why they oppose Zayd in many matters of jurisprudential rulings and some other peripheral matters, despite that the name of Zaydiyya encompasses them. Furthermore, verily the Zaydi Imams differ in the matters of jurisprudent, even though the name of Zaydiyya encompasses them, and in this there is a proof that the name exclusively applies in the matters that we mentioned, in admitting to the matters pertaining to divine Attributes in Essence and Actions, and the wisdom of Actions, so because Zaydiyya believe in the Creator then they are not Neutrals and Naturalists, and because they believe in the Power of the Will for the Wise Creator then they are not philosophers and astrologists and physicists and atheists and worshippers of pagan gods, because the core belief of these is based on theories and their beliefs are stolen from philosophers, because they are the source of all deviancy and the root of all ignorance, to the extent that there is no deviancy in this world, unless that they are its source who have established it, and we have refuted them sufficiently in our books regarding intellect, and because they (i.e. Zaydiyya) believe that the Attributes are leaning on the Essence then they are not determinist Ash'aris and Al-Najjariyya and other sects of determinism, as they have said that the meanings (of attributes) are pre-eternal, and because they believe in Wisdom then they are not dwelling with the perversities of the Ash'aris in attributing obscene things to Allah Exalted, likewise what they say regarding the creation of Qur'an and the Will, and because they believe punishment in hereafter and the eternity of it then they are not from among the sects of Mur'ji'a, and because they believe in the designation of the (first) three Imams and the invitation and uprising among their children which is the way of Imamah then they are not Mu'tizila, so whoever is combining all these principles then he is Zaydi and whoever leaves these principles then he is not Zaydi.
...[until he writes]...
we say: Al-Zaydiyya have become several sects: Al-Jarudiyya, Al-Salihiyya, Al-Batriyya, Al-Uqbiyya and Al-Sabbahiyya, so these five sects are the five Zaydi sects and we do not say whoever does not belong to one of these five sects then he is not a Zaydi, because the heads of the Ahlulbayt and the Imams from among the progeny have schools which are different from these sects, despite that they are Zaydi, rather they are the best among them, and that is how it is about their followers, so the summary of what we said is that the main thing about the name (of Zaydiyya) and its true attribution to those who are called with it, is for those who are in agreement with Zayd regarding the matters of Religion and divine, as about jurisprudential matters then everyone is the commander over himself from among those who have taken the position of Ijtihad and are carrying a sword.
...[until he writes]...
[from among the opinions of Zaydis in the jurisprudential matters]:
the third kind: regarding the matters of jurisprudence, which contains heated opinions of jurisprudents, and it is a field of their struggles, and there is a long list of differences in this field, a field which is the battleground of opinions of people of opinion, and in this field, jurisprudents duel with each other, however, we point out here just the things that the Zaydiyya and their Imams are upon, then the two sects: Al-Qasimiyya and Al-Nasiriyya, and it happens that the two sects agree upon regarding certain issues and sometimes they oppose each other about certain other things, as about the things that they agree upon it we mention some of it here in a nutshell: ...[then he mentions seven things that they agree upon and he then says]...
As for rulings that the two sects Qasimiyya and Al-Nasiriyya oppose each other, then they are too many to record, and this is something that the books of jurisprudent are a witness for.
Source: Majmu' Al-Imam Al-Muayyid Bi Rabb Al-Izza Yahya ibn Hamza.Pg. # 470-471, 473, 476, 477.
In Furu’ the opposition of Zaydi Imams to each other was so vast that it forced the Zaydi Imam Al-Mahdi Li Dinallah to declare that every Muj’tahid is correct. Basically, if two Zaydi Imams say exactly the opposite of each other in a matter of jurisprudence, both are right.
Sarimuddin ibn Al-Wazir (Died 914 A.H.):
From the four jurisprudents, it has been reported both Tasweeb (correctness) and Takhti'a (accusing of error). And the statements and actions of our early Imams show correctness (of every Mujtahid), likewise the same can be understood from our later Imams, even though in the statements of some of them something might be found which shows accusation of error and that is the opinion of some of their followers, and that is why Al-Qasimiyya in Daylam and the Nasiriyya in Jeel used to accuse each other of being wrong until the time of Al-Mahdi Abi Abdillah Al-Daee, and he clarified it to them that every Mujtahid is correct, likewise, the majority of Yahyawiyya in Yemen used to accuse those who opposed Yahya of being wrong until the time of Al-Mutawakkil Ahmad ibn Sulayman.
Source: Al-Fusul Al-Lu'lu'iyya Fi Usul Al-Fiqh. Pg. # 379.
How can you call these individuals “Guides” when they oppose each other and they themselves need to be guided by others?!!
أَفَمَنْ يَهْدِي إِلَى الْحَقِّ أَحَقُّ أَنْ يُتَّبَعَ أَمَّنْ لَا يَهِدِّي إِلَّا أَنْ يُهْدَى فَمَا لَكُمْ كَيْفَ تَحْكُمُونَ
Is He then Who guides to the truth more worthy to be followed, or he who himself does not go aright unless he is guided? What then is the matter with you; how do you judge?
(10:35)
Holy Qur'aan
In contrast to the Zaydi Imams let's see what the Twelver Imams say about giving Fatwa based on their opinion:
Shaykh Al-Kulayni:
Narrated Alee from Muhammad ibn Isa from Yunus from Qutaybah who said: a man asked Aba Abdillah, peace be upon him, about something and he answered him, then the man said: what do you think if it was so-and-so, what is your opinion about it? He said to him: "Whenever I answer you about something then it is from the Messenger of Allah, peace be upon him and his family, we have nothing to do with 'what do you think (opinions).'"
Source: Usool Al-Kafi. Vol. 1, Pg. # 58. H. # 21.
It is important to note that Hadeeth of the Two Weighty Things does not mention the uprising and Jihad as a condition for the Imams at all, something that Zaydis beat the drum of, as one of their conditions for an Imam. In fact, it quite clearly puts the entire emphasis on obedience to the Imam regardless of what they do, whether they sit down or lead an armed uprising or in some cases fought each other. The Prophet, peace be upon him and his family, rather warns Muslims of proceeding ahead of them or falling behind, highlighting the divine protection of the Imams from error and from leading people to destruction.
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