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On Whom Is the Imitation Dutiful?

Imitation is dutiful on whom the following two kinds of conditions are available.

The First Condition: A Constitutional Condition

This condition is in fact the assignment with which The Most High God honoured and favoured the human being because it indicates the capacity of the human being, on the contrary of the other creatures of the earth, to carry the divine responsibility. This is manifested in the Saying of the Most High God:

إِنَّا عَرَضْنَا الْأَمَانَةَ عَلَى السَّمَاوَاتِ وَالْأَرْضِ وَالْجِبَالِ فَأَبَيْنَ أَنْ يَحْمِلْنَهَا وَأَشْفَقْنَ مِنْهَا وَحَمَلَهَا الْإِنْسَانُ ۖ إِنَّهُ كَانَ ظَلُومًا جَهُولًا

Truly We did offer Al-Amana (the trust or moral responsibility or honesty and all the duties which Allah has ordained) to the heavens and the earth, and the mountains, but they declined to bear it (i.e. afraid of Allah’s torment). But man bore it (Surah Al-Ahzab, 33:72).

Accordingly, if the human being carries out what God imposed on him, he will be deserving of a great reward. On the other hand, if he disobeys the divine orders, he will be deserving of punishment and torture because he has been unjust with his own self and because he has betrayed the trust.

The Conditions Of The Religious Responsibility

There are certain conditions which must be available in the human being; otherwise, he will not be religiously responsible.

1- The Puberty: The person who has not reached puberty is not religiously responsible. He will not be punished in the hereafter for the bad deeds which he performed in this life. Still, the Grace of The Most High God may be bestowed upon his good deeds, so that he will attain their rewards in the hereafter.

For sure, the fact that no bad deeds will be recorded on the person who has not reached puberty does not mean that he is freed from the responsibility in this life. If he causes to the others any harm such as the spoil of their money, the stealing of their money, or the like, then he will have, once he reaches the stage of puberty, to carry the responsibility for what he did.

The Signs Of Puberty

There are certain signs of puberty. And the human being reaches puberty when any of these signs is fulfilled.

A- Reaching a certain age which differs between the male and the female

With respect to the male, he is considered to have reached the stage of puberty at the age of fifteen lunar years i.e. at about fourteen years and seven months of A.D. With respect to the female, she is considered to have reached the stage of puberty at the age of nine lunar years i.e. at about eight years and nine months of A.D.

B- The ejection of the sperm

C- The growth of the tough hair on the sexual organ i.e. on the area which is located between the private part and the end of the belly

2- The Sanity: The insane person is not considered to be religiously responsible. His bad deeds will not be recorded till he is no more insane.

3 - The Ability: He who is not able to carry out the religious responsibility is then not asked to because the Most High God

لَا يُكَلِّفُ اللَّهُ نَفْسًا إِلَّا وُسْعَهَا

Allah burdens not a person beyond his scope (Surah Al-Baqara, 2:286).

The Second Condition: A Cognitive Condition

This condition implies the state of not having reached the level of jurisprudence. The jurisprudent, who is able to deduce the religious rule from the evidences, can by himself determine for himself his religious responsibility on the basis of his comprehension of the divine doctrine because he is a scholar. And the imitation is the reference of the one who does not know to the one who knows. On the other hand, the scholar refers to himself not to anybody else.

In addition, the one who can work on the basis of taking cautiousness in a way by which he is able to determine for himself his religious responsibility and he is sure that his conscience is cleared as regards the unknown situation, then it is not dutiful on such a person to imitate; he may work on the basis of taking cautiousness. However, working on the basis of taking cautiousness is not that easy issue because one "must take into consideration all the jurisprudential possibilities of the case which taking them into consideration may be dutiful."1

When Imam Al-Khamene’i (May God lengthen his presence among us) was asked about the proportionality between imitation and working on the basis of taking cautiousness, he answered, as in The Answers to the Consultations, "Since working on the basis of taking cautiousness is conditional upon one’s knowledge of its cases and upon one’s knowledge of how to work on the basis of taking cautiousness, which only few know, in addition to that working on the basis of taking cautiousness usually requires spending the more time, it is better to imitate the jurisprudent who gathers in himself the required conditions." 2

Summary

The ways of reaching the religious rule are:

1- Jurisprudence.

2- Working on the basis of taking cautiousness.

3- Imitation.

  • 1. Ajweebat Al-Istiftaat, Part One, Page 6.
  • 2. The Previous Source, Part One, Page 5.