The 7th and 8th century Ahle Tasannun scholar and traditionalist Ibrahim Hamveeni in his book Faraaed al-Simtain, vol. 2, p. 321 has brought a chapter which is about the tradition of Ameerul Momineen Imam Ali Ibn Abi Talib (a.s.) which has a mention of the 12 Imams of whom, Imam Mahdi (a.t.f.s.) will be the 12th Imam. In Hadith 572 of this chapter, he narrates from Maqtal al-Khwaarizmi that Imam Ali (peace be upon him) narrates from the Holy Prophet (peace be upon him and his holy progeny) who prophesied:
“I will meet all of you at the Pond of Kausar where
- you, O Ali, will be the quencher at Kausar.
- Hasan will lead.
- Husain will command.
- Ali Ibn Husain will grant abundance.
- Muhammad Ibn Ali will distribute.
- Jafar Ibn Muhammad will send people forward.
- Moosa Ibn Jafar will enumerate the friends and enemies and destroy the hypocrites.
- Ali Ibn Moosa will be the helper of the believers.
- Muhammad Ibn Ali will allocate positions to people in heaven.
- Ali Ibn Muhammad will pair people with their respective Hoories and get them married.
- Hasan Ibn Ali will be the lamp of the people of paradise through whom people will derive light.
- And it will be Mahdi who will intercede on behalf of the people on the Day of Judgement at such a place where no one will be allowed to intercede except the one whom Allah loves and is pleased with.”
The last portion of this tradition points out to Surah Najm (53): Verse 26, in which Allah says,
وَ كَمْ مِنْ مَلَكٍ فِي السَّماواتِ لا تُغْني شَفاعَتُهُمْ شَيْئاً إِلاَّ مِنْ بَعْدِ أَنْ يَأْذَنَ اللهُ لِمَنْ يَشاءُ وَ يَرْضى“And how many angels are there in the heavens whose intercession does not avail at all except after Allah has given permission to whom He pleases and chooses.”
Intercession is a Quranic belief and the one who rejects this belief has rejected the apparent of the Quran.
If angels can intercede, then the Progeny of Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon them) is definitely superior to angels.
It means that only the one who believes in the 12 Imams (peace be upon them) will be eligible for receiving intercession. Therefore, whoever desires intercession, must believe in the Imamate of the 12 Imams, and especially in today’s day and age, one must accept the Imamate and Mastership of Imam Mahdi (a.t.f.s.).
May Allah hasten the reappearance of Imam Mahdi (a.t.f.s.) and keep us attached to his Imamate and Mastership till the end of our lives and bless us with his intercession in the hereafter.
Aameen, O Lord of the worlds!