عَنْ مَعْرُوفِ بْنِ خَرَّبُوذَ قَالَ سَمِعْتُ اَبَا جَعْفَرٍؑ يَقُولُ قَالَ رَسُولُ اللهِ ﷺ اِنَّمَا مَثَلُ اَهْلِ بَيْتِي فِي هَذِهِ الْأُمَّةِ كَمَثَلِ نُجُومِ السَّمَاءِ كُلَّمَا غَابَ نَجْمٌ طَلَعَ نَجْم
Ma’roof Ibn Kharrabooz reports, “I heard Imam Abu Jafar (al-Baqer a.s.) say that the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him and his holy progeny) said, ‘The likeness of my Ahle Bait (peace be upon them) in this nation is like the stars of the sky. Wheneever a star disappears, another rises’.”
Note:
In this tradition, the Ahle Bait (peace be upon them) are likened to the stars in the sky. In some other traditions, the “scholars” are likened to the stars. Thus, we see that the real and actual implication of “scholars” are the Ahle Bait (peace be upon them). All others are their students, provided they submit completely to the Ahle Bait (peace be upon them).
References:
1. Behaar al-Anwaar, vol. 23, p. 44, Chapter 1, H. 90
2. Kamaal al-Deen, vol. 1, p. 281, Chapter 24, H. 31