ABWA Official Website – On Tuesday, September 12, 2023, the seminar “Prophet (p.b.u.h) from the perspective of AhlulBayt (a.s.)” was held on the eve of the demise of the Holy Prophet (p.b.u.h) in the meeting hall of ABNA International News Agency.
In this seminar, referring to the role of the AhlulBayt (a.s.) in preserving the position of the Holy Prophet (p.b.u.h), Hojat al-Islam Dr. Hamid Montazeri Moghadam, faculty member of the History Department of the Imam Khomeini Education and Research Institute stated, “Unfortunately, Shiites are faced with many accusations about their beliefs regarding the character and position of the Prophet (p.b.u.h), including: “Shiites consider AhlulBayt (a.s.) higher than the Messenger of God!” that is a really unfair claim.”
The faculty member of Imam Khomeini Education and Research Institute continued, “The two main factors that threatened the pivotal position of the Prophet (p.b.u.h) after his demise were the “cultural threat” during the three caliphs and the “political threat” during the Umayyad and Abbasid caliphs.”
Describing the cultural threats during the time of the three caliphs, the history professor of the seminary said, “The slogan “حسبنا کتاب االله” (The Book of God is enough for us!) was born from the historical case of Dawat and Qalam, during which the request of the Prophet (p.b.u.h) was ignored near of his demise, and his will was not written. This slogan caused a lot of changes in the Muslim community, and it was placed against the phrase “انی تارک فیکم الثقلین” (I leave you, and I leave two weights among you).
“Cultural threats during the time of the three caliphs paved the way for political threats during the Umayyad and Abbasid caliphs. Assimilating the position of the Prophet (p.b.u.h) with the caliphs is considered the first political threat. When the Umayyad caliphs came as the caliphs of the Prophet (p.b.u.h), they could not maintain his position and were criticized by the people. Therefore, in order to whitewash their name, they distorted the character of the Prophet (p.b.u.h) and attributed their interests to the prophet (p.b.u.h), which resulted in the loss of the true status of the Holy Prophet (p.b.u.h),” Montazeri stated.
About the second political threat, a faculty member of Imam Khomeini Education and Research Institute said, “Disrespecting and degrading the position of the Prophet (p.b.u.h) was on the agenda of the Umayyad caliphs. They intended that only the name of the Prophet (p.b.u.h) should remain and that his position should not be central. It has been narrated in history that the Umayyad caliphs forbade people from pilgrimage to the grave of the Holy Prophet (p.b.u.h) and used to scold and ridicule the pilgrims!”
Referring to the open and hidden distortions after the demise of the Prophet (p.b.u.h), the seminary history professor said, “AhlulBayt (a.s.) always stood against deviations. Because they considered the Prophet (p.b.u.h) as a source of guidance. This original view is evident in the words of Imam Ali (a.s.), who said, “measure your behavior with the behavior of the Prophet (p.b.u.h)”.”
In the following, while pointing to one of the most important methods of AhlulBayt’s (a.s.) confrontation with the destruction of the position of the Prophet (p.b.u.h), he stated, “Raising people’s awareness about the Holy Prophet (p.b.u.h) through explaining the principles of knowledge has been one of the most important activities of the Infallible Imams (a.s.). AhlulBayt (a.s.) always stood against heresies and defended Islamic teachings in difficult situations. The connection of the knowledge front of the Prophet (p.b.u.h) with AhlulBayt (a.s.) is evident and clear in all the important events of the Islamic world.”
“The fruits of all the efforts of AhlulBayt (a.s.) are visible at the present time. So that, all Muslims respect the Holy Shrine of the Prophet (p.b.u.h), and every Muslim, whether Sunni or Shiite, refers to the Prophet (p.b.u.h) in order to make his deeds appear valid,” Montazeri said in the end.
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