The Meaning of Imamate and the Characteristics of the Imams PBUT from the Viewpoint of 'Abd al-Jalil Razi

Asghar Gholami [1]

Imamate is a divine position and Imams are assigned to guide the people. The divine Imams should be characterized with appropriate characteristics to fulfill this important responsibility. This article studies the characteristics of the divine Imams from the viewpoint of 'Abd al-Jalil Razi. For each of the characteristics, after a brief review from the viewpoint of the reason, the Qur'an and the traditions of the Ahl al-Bayt PBUT, the ideas of the author of the Book of Naqd and his critiques on the material of the author of Faza'ih al-Rawafiz have been presented. The necessary characteristics of Imamate from the viewpoint of 'Abd al-Jalil are: 1. the text; 2. knowledge; 3. infallibility. Furthermore, he believes that an Imam must be obeyed and he also believes that the occurrence of miracles by the imams is possible and sometimes necessary. The present article, after a reference to the importance of the subject and the background of the discussion, has dealt with the following issues: the meaning and truth of Imamate, the way to identify the imams and the study of the idea of 'Abd al-Jalil Razi about the knowledge, infallibility, designation and possibility of the occurrence of miracles by the imams.

Key Words: Imamate, divine knowledge, infallibility, text, miracle, 'Abd al-Jalil Razi.

[1] Seminary School researcher in theology and philosophy.