We believe that a true and comprehensive
understanding of Islam would not be possible without careful recognition of the
Prophetic Tradition and the Prophet's Household. And Allah is the Source of Strength.
Be With The True Ones - Mubahila
" With so many perspectives and benchmarks in this world, it is very difficult to identify the truth and differentiate truth from falsehood.
Is truth identified because of the people standing with it, or are people identified because of them standing with truth (or falsehood). In other words, am I a truthful person because I always say the truth, or whatever i say is the truth because i am a truthful person? The former would have been true if truth was recognizable on its own. The latter would have been true if truth requires the support of people for its recognition.
And this is a chicken-egg (which came first) conundrum if you think about it. If truth requires support of the people to establish it as truth, then it does not remain absolute, and if truth does not require the support of people to establish it as truth, then one will never truly realize what truth is.
To start the argument, 50 to 100 years ago, slavery was a social norm, black racism was a social norm, gender discrimination was a social norm. Civil society did not perceive them as wrong, sin or false. Today there are societies that do not perceive homosexuality as a sin and are lobbying for its broader acceptability. It is clear that truth of one time, was not the truth of another time. What was good 100 years ago is bad today. What is good today might be bad tomorrow as social integration and evolution continues. This indicates that truth must be independent from people for if it was not, it would loose its absoluteness and become only relative, an illusion.
However, you will realize that truth although absolute, cannot establish itself without the truthful people. If people are not recognized as truthful, one will never realize what the truth really is.
If we knew who the truthful people were, and we understood their stance on the social norms 50-100 years ago, we would realize that despite social opinion changing over time, truth did not change because the stance of the truthful people did not change. Truth is only identified by the stance of the truthful people. If homosexuality is a sin 50 years ago, it will remain a sin today as well because that is what the truthful people (prophets) stood with.
The challenge is really to identify who the truthful people are.
Allah states in the Quran that He speaks the truth and has revealed the same in the Quran. When it comes to the revelation of Allah, not even a prophet has any authority to escape it or change it. Adam (AS) descended from the gardens to the earth when He (AS) disobeyed Allah. Yunus (AS) was swallowed by a fish. Even about Muhammad (SAW), the person whose inclusion in the Kalimah completes the testimony of Tauheed of Allah, the Quran states in Surah 69 Ayah 44 onwards that had Prophet (SAW) fabricated anyhting out of his (SAW) own will or desire, he (SAW) would have been seized with his aorta cut off and none could have saved him.
Similarly, the Prophet (SAW) and his command is above everything else and any companion of the Prophet (SAW) who would have lied on his (SAW) name or innovated his shariah will not be safe just like the Prophet (SAW) himself wasn't if he (SAW) altered the message of Allah. That is why there are numerous hadith in the Sahihs about companions of prophet (SAW) who the prophet (SAW) will personally recognize (meaning they spent in person time with the Prophet (SAW) during their life) but they will be taken away from him (SAW) and from the pond of Kauther because of their innovations in religion after the demise of the Prophet (SAW).
The truthful Prophet (SAW) said Ali (AS) is with the truth and the truth is with Ali, the truth shall turn wherever Ali (AS) shall turn. In both Shia and Sunni narrations, the Prophet (SAW) gathered himself (SAW), Ali (AS) (as Selves), Hassan (AS) and Hussain (AS) (as sons) and Fatima (AS) (as women) when the Quran ordered (Surah 3 Ayah 61) the Prophet (SAW) to do Mubahila with the Christians and curse the liars. It is interpreted by theologians that only the truthful people could curse the liars hence the lot the Prophet (SAW) selected was truthful and elite in this regard.
The Quran does not say be with the truth, for truth in itself is not recognizable, Quran says in Surah 9 Ayah 119, to be with the true ones, for once you recognize them only then you can recognize the truth.
Salat on its own does not establish truth. It is not true to pray salat in the camp of Umer Bin Saad (Captain of Yazids army who shot the first arrow at the camp of Imam Hussain (AS)). It is true to pray salat in the camp of Imam Hussain (AS). Praying salat is an isolated act of truth which changes its intrinsic value if it is attached with non truthful people.
You will only identify the truth once you can identify who the truthful people are. "
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