Al Jafr Book Imam Ali Pdf 43
Kathryn Garivay
Taking an overall view, there is no formal or jurisprudential requirement within Islam that esoteric learning be conducted through a teacher. (Some specific groups, like some Sufi groups, may have their own view, but I am speaking from an overall perspective.)
That said, it is generally easier to learn any subject through a teacher, and there is a virtue to the tradition of person to person transmission of religious sciences, including esoteric sciences. Virtually every religion and group worldwide passes on these things on a person to person basis, rather than in a depersonalized manner. There may be other advantages to having a teacher as well, just as, in mundane life, there are other advantages to having a teacher (for instance, in mundane life, the teacher may help with networking or write letters of recommendation).
When dealing with esoteric or spiritual matters, it is also helpful to have someone who can offer oversight or guidance because, due to the nature of the subject, some people might fall into psychological or other problems, such as delusions, and so it is helpful to have someone offer a reality check.
However, sometimes one doesn't find a compatible teacher. When discussing esoteric or spiritual matters, given the nature of the subject and the close relationship that occurs, there is also the challenge that it is difficult to determine the reliability of teachers and sometimes there is some fraud or abuse. Teachers are also not infallible and may go towards an unhealthy direction over time.
When people seek greater learning or insight of a spiritual or esoteric nature, there is also a certain spiritual machinery that operates in our world that also might facilitate certain types of learning. For instance, at the least, one might attain some blessings or guidance from the Prophet (S) or awliya (A). However, again, it is good to be careful about falling into delusions. (For instance, someone who is imagining they are having daily conversations with Imam Mahdi, is probably imagining that they are having daily conversations with Imam Mahdi, or conversing with something other than Imam Mahdi.)
Regarding types of esoteric learning historically associated with Islam, and, in particular, the Imams of the Shi'a, one could look at the writings of M. A. Amir-Moezzi. The Encylopaedia Iranica has a few entries on this as well, if you search it.
Sometimes "jafr" is used for other things, or other books are circulated which are said to be the book of Jafr, but these are not the same as the Jafr described in hadith as in the hands of the Imams (A). If they are attributed to the Imams, it is a false attribution.
One has to assume that if the possessors of these books chose not to share them, then it is not necessary for us to know the contents. Mushaf Fatimah and al-Jafr, according to hadith, contain more than fiqh and shari'ah; for instance, according to hadith, they contain detailed future prophecies, and perhaps this information would not be beneficial for us. According to hadith, Mushaf Fatimah was narrated to her as a form of consolation due to her grief for her father, so from that angle, there may have been a personal purpose.
There is no indication that the Imams required these materials to learn, but that does not mean that there is any problem in their having them or consulting them. Perhaps it was reassuring to some people around them, who did not believe in the imamate, that they were referring to texts received from their forebears.
We live in an era where the value of things is measured very materially, especially in the era of the Internet, when it is assumed that anything worthwhile should be shared publicly. However, this brings up the question of, do things have value if people do not see them? (For instance, a tree in a forest.) Is it possible for something to have purpose if it is seen by only one or a handful of people? It is reasonable to argue that there is a spiritual value to the existence of these items; however, for them to have an existential value, it is not necessary that they be available to the majority of people.
Mystical book compiled, according to Shii belief, by Ali ibn Abi Talib. Contained secret teachings for his descendants. The first mention of the book is associated with the sixth imam, Jafar al-Sadiq. In Sunni lore, the book is named Kitab al-mughaybat (The book of hidden things).
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Musa ibn Jafar, also known as Al-Qazim (the one who controls his anger) was the seventh Shia Imam, after his father Jafar ibn Muhammad. He is also highly respected among Sunnis, who consider him as a renowned scholar.[1][2] There occurred division in Shias on the question of Imamate. Ismailis said that Ismail ibn Jafar, the eldest son of Jafar ibn Muhammad should be the next imam while the larger group Jafari (or Twelvers) considered Musa ibn Jafar to be the next imam.[3]
[The Imam Muhammad] Al-Bāqir, as noted, categorically maintained that that, contrary to the belief of some groups, the Imām had to be divinely appointed and that his appointment had to be clear and precise, i.e. by naṣṣ al-jalī (explicit designation).
ما بدا لله بداء كما بداء له في إسماعيل إبني يقول ما ظهر لله أمر كما ظهر له في إسماعيل إبني إذ إخترمه قبلي ليعلم بذلك أنه ليس بإمام بعدي
ما بدا لله كما بدا له في إسماعيل إبني يقول ما ظهر لله أمر كما يظهر له في إسماعيل إبنى إذا اختمره قبلي ليعلم بذلك إنه ليس بإمام بعدي
My words are the words of my father, and the words of my father are the words of my grandfather, and the words of my grandfather are the words of my great grandfathers, Imam al-Hasan and Imam al-Husayn, and their words are the words of Imam Ali, and the words of Imam Ali are the words of Prophet Muhammad and the words of Prophet Muhammad are the words of God the Almighty, the Great.
The question of the successor to the Imam (Jafar al-Sadiq) having been made particularly difficult by the fact that the Abbasid caliph al-Mansur had decided to scourge to death whoever was to be chosen officially by the Imam as his successor thereby hoping to put an end to the Shiite movement.
قال الوليد بن صبيح : جاء ني رجل فقال لي: تعال حتى اريك أين الرجل قال: فذهبت معه قال: فجاء ني إلى قوم يشربون فيهم إسماعيل بن جعفر فخرجت مغموما فجئت إلى الحجر فاذا إسماعيل بن جعفر متعلق بالبيت يبكي قد بل أستار الكعبة بدموعه فرجعت أشتد فاذا إسماعيل جالس مع القوم فرجعت فاذا هو آخذ بأستار الكعبة قدبلها بدموعه قال: فذكرت ذلك لابي عبدالله فقال: لقد ابتلي ابني بشيطان يتمثل في صورته
إن شيطانا قد ولع بابني إسماعيل يتصور في صورته ليفتن به الناس وإنه لا يتصور في صورة نبي ولا وصي نبي فمن قال لك من الناس: إن إسماعيل ابني حي لم يمت فإنما ذلك الشيطان تمثل له في صورة إسماعيل مازلت ابتهل إلى الله في إسماعيل ابني أن يحييه لي ويكون القيم من بعدي فأبى ربي ذلك و إن هذا شيء ليس إلى الجرل منا يضعه حيث يشاء إنما ذلك عهد من الله عز و جل يعهده إلى من يشاء فشاء الله أن يكون إبني موسى أبي أن يكون إسماعيل.
Aaron possessed the position of the Caliphate during his life and was the most deserving of it after the death [of Moses]; he had the rank of precedence (manzila al-taqaddum) over the rest of the companions of Moses and he was the most excellent of them after him. This is the position that the Prophet intended to affirm for the Commander of the Faithful.
Moses bequeathed the succession (awsa) to Joshua b. Nun; Joshua bequeathed bequeathed the succession (awsa) to the sons of Aaron. He did not beqeath the succession to his own descendants or to the descendants of Moses.
Verily, Moses and Aaron were both Prophetic Messengers and Moses was more excellent than Aaron. But God appointed the Prophethood and the Caliphate in the descendants (wuld) of Aaron to the exclusion of the progeny of Moses; likewise, God appointed the Imamate in the descendants of al-Husayn to the exclusion of the descendants of al-Hasan.
ان منا بعد الرسول صم سبعة اوصياء ائمة مفترضة طاعتهم سابعهم القائم انشاء له ان الله عزيز حكيم يقدم ما يشاء ويؤخر ما يشاء وهو العزيز الحكيم ثم بعد القائم احد عشر مهديا من ولد الحسين فقلت من السابع جعلني الله فداك امرك قلت ثلث مراة قال ثم بعدي امامكم ثم قائمكم.
In the sense of mubīn, the Imam is manifest and speaking in two forms: corporeal and luminous. That is, he is manifest both in human form and in the luminous form. Similarly, he speaks in both the physical hudūd as well as in the spiritual hudūd.
If an Imam dies without leaving a son as his successor, it can only mean that not only he personally, but the whole line of his ancestors were not the true Imams. Thus the discontinuation of the line of the Twelvers proved that at least the last several of them were not genuine.
Interviewer: What makes the Ismailis different from the mainstream Shiite Islam?Aga Khan IV: Probably that there is a living Imam who traces his family back to Hazrat Ali. The majority of the Shia today are known as the Twelver Shia and they believe in the hidden Imam.
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