Question:

I am a revert, and I am afraid of committing shirk (associating partners with Allah). I want to know, isn’t it wrong to believe that Imam Mahdi sees and knows everything we do wrong, on every Friday? Because Allah is the All-Hearing, All-Knowing?

And isn’t it wrong to believe that Ahlul Bayt are aware of everything we do, and to believe in miracles from Ahlul Bayt when Allah is the only one we should be praying to and who has the power over everything?

Answer:

As followers of the Ahlul Bayt, we believe that Allah (SWT) is Unique in all His attributes, including being All-Hearing, All-Knowing, and All-Aware. However, Allah (SWT) often grants his special servants – like Prophets and Imams – a limited version of His Divine Attributes.

For example, Allah (SWT) is the One and Only Creator and Giver of Life. However, He granted Prophet Isa (Jesus) the ability to give life and to create. This is very clearly mentioned in the Holy Qur’an.

Also consider this example, God is the Only Eternal and Ever-Living. However, all Muslims believe that those who go to Paradise will be there forever, which means the inhabitants of paradise are also eternal. Is this a form of shirk? Obviously not.

These abilities are given by God to some of His servants, and as long as they believe that they have these abilities because God granted it to them and in a dependent way, then there is no shirk involved.

Therefore, believing that the Ahlul Bayt have a limited version of some of the Attributes of Allah (SWT) is not shirk in any way. It is simply believing in what the Qur’an has clearly stated.

As for the specific issue of the Ahlul Bayt knowing what we do, the Holy Qur’an clearly mentions that God, the Prophet and the Believers will see our actions, and the Ahlul Bayt are the best example of the believers.

“And say “Do deeds! Allah will see your deeds, and (so will) His Messenger and the believers. And you will be brought backto the All-Knower of the unseen and the seen. Then He will inform you of what you used to do.” (9:105).

Answered by: Dr Ali Alsamail
Certified by: Sheikh Mansour Leghaei