A Guide to theTruth

Title: Excerpts from A Guide to the Truth
Author: Jafar Subhani
Project supervisor:Translation Unit, Cultural Affairs Department, the Ahl al-Bayt (a) World Assembly (ABWA)
Translator: Muhammad Abd al-Aziz
Editor: Sayyideh Iffat Shah
Proofreader: Sayyid Baqir Husayni
Publisher: ABWA Publishing and Printing Center
Edition:First printing, 2016

PREFACE - 13
Chapter One:
The History and Development of Shiism
1- The Origins of Shiism - 17
The Rational Way of Selecting a Leader - 18
1- Shi‘ah in the Words of Allah’s Prophet (s) - 21
2- The Imamate is a Counterpart of Prophethood - 23
3- Hadith Manzilah - 25
4- Hadith Ghadir - 27
The Emergence of Shiism under the Auspices of these Directives - 29
Shi‘ah during the Era of the Prophetic Mission - 30
2- Shi‘as are a Minority and the Sunnis are the Majority - 32
Chapter Two:
Shi‘ah Beliefs
1- Positions of Allah’s Saints and Supernatural Powers - 39
What does Perfection mean? - 40
The Effects of Devotion to Allah and Perfection of the Soul - 41
The Holy Qur’an and Miracles of the Saints - 42
1- Joseph’s Miraculous Cure of His Father’s
Blindness - 42
2- The Powers of Solomon’s Companions - 43
3- Other Powers of Solomon (‘a) - 45
4- The Powers of Jesus Christ (‘a) - 47
Esoteric Guardianship and the Issue of Exaggeration - 49
2- Imploring the Assistance of Allah’s Saints (‘a) - 51
1- Discharging Obligatory Duties - 52
2- Invoking Allah’s Names and Attributes - 52
3- Imploring Assistance through the Holy Qur’an - 53
4- Imploring Allah’s Help through the Supplication of a Pious Brother - 54
5- Imploring Help by means of the Noble Prophet’s Invocation during His Lifetime - 55
6- Imploring the Assistance of the Noble Prophet (s) after His Death - 58
Questions concerning Imploration - 60
1- Is entreating prayer (du’a) from a dead person not tantamount to worshiping him? - 61
2- Is entreating prayer (du‘a) from a dead person not worthless? - 62
3- Is there a barrier between us and people who have
died? - 63
3- Invoking the Assistance of Allah’s Saints (‘a) - 64
What does the intercession of Allah’s saints (‘a) really mean? - 65
1- The Hadith of Anas bin Malik (‘a) - 66
2- The Hadith of Sawad bin Qarib - 66
3- The Hadith of Abu Bakr - 67
4- The Hadith of ‘Ali bin Abi Talib (‘a) - 67
5- The Hadith of a Youth - 68
4- Entreating Allah in the Name of His Saints - 69
5- Vowing for other than Allah - 71
6- Celebrating Birthday and Death Anniversaries of Allah’s
Saints (‘a) - 74
Affection and Reverence for the Noble Prophet (s) is One of the Basic Tenets of Islam - 75
7- Making Pilgrimage to Holy Mausoleums - 79
Making Pilgrimage to the Noble Prophet’s (s) Holy Shrine - 81
8- Women and Making Pilgrimage to Holy Mausoleums, as well as Responses to Two Questions - 84
9- Building Mausoleums on top of Graves - 91
1- Preserving Graves of Prophets (‘a) is a Tradition practiced by all Pious Ancestors of Mankind - 91
2- Preserving Relics is tantamount to Safeguarding Ideals - 92
3- Elevating the Houses of Prophets (‘a) - 94
4- Preserving Graves is a Sign of Love and
Affection - 98
A Hadith from Imam Sadiq (‘a) in regard to Renovating Graves of Allah’s Saints (‘a) - 99
10- Praying besides Graves of Allah’s Saints (‘a) - 101
11- Mourning for Martyrs - 107
Chapter Three:
The Status of the Holy Qur’an in the Eyes of Shi‘ahs
1- The Status of the Holy Qur’an in the Eyes of Shi‘ahs - 113
2- Fatimah’s Qur’an - 119
The Inspired Relater in Islam - 122
Fatimah (‘a) is an Inspired Relater - 123
3- ‘Ali’s Sacred Book - 125
4- The Idea that Shiites attach more importance to Supplication (Du‘a) than Recitation of the Holy Qur’an - 129
Chapter Four:
The Shi‘ah View of Imamate
1- Imamate in the Holy Qur’an - 135
1- The Verse of Guardianship - 135
2- The Verse of ‘Those Vested with Authority’ - 138
3- The Verse of Perfection of Religion - 139
2- The names of the Imams (‘a) in the Holy Qur’an - 141
1- Introducing by Name - 142
2- Introduction by Number - 142
3- Introduction by Attribute - 142
Introduction by Name does not remove Differences - 144
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