Imamology I

Philipp Mainländer, the German pessimistic philosopher and poet, proposed that the divine intention of creation was God’s attempt to end His own existence. The consequence was matter, formed from the “corpse of God”, within which all of creation abides participating in the “death of God” and His “will to die” and the attainment of nothingness. How literal was Mainländer’s understanding of his own metaphysics is difficult to determine, nonetheless the philosopher’s metaphysics provide us with a potent insight into the existential crisis of Europe in the nineteenth century. The allegedly pious have decried particular themes of the philosophies that would arise during this period for their cynical perception of life and their cutting analysis of traditional theology. Though a fair criticism it is possible that the perspectives of philosophers such as Mainländer offer a study of an individual soul in the process of comprehending the inherent suffering of life and decay of the body, the inevitably of death and the consequences of ignoring its certainty.

God consecrated creation with suffering, and embodied this principle of suffering within the lives of the Prophet Muhammad (s) and his Ahlul Bayt (as). For those devoted to their way the tragedies that would befall the Prophet and each Imam in succession, as well as their immediate family and companions, provide a powerful comprehension of life’s inherent quality as the vehicle of the principle of suffering. Their lives are a critique of ambition and avarice, and a severe reminder of our impermanence. Our existence is suffering, and creation is sustained through the suffering of the Ahlul Bayt (as). This is a theology of hope, not despair, because it offers us the understanding of the inherent nature of life and directs us toward its purpose. Existence is contained within “the body of the Imam”. Often we forget that our world is not merely created, but designed, with each overt and covert principle acting with a specific purpose to facilitate the process of Islam. The role of the living Imam is as the safeguard of our existence, that we may attain the purpose with which our souls descended into this world of testing following our oaths to God at our inception. The Imam, both in physical form and as the principle of the eternal Imam, are the process through which God sustains existence. So long as a living Imam remains within our world, existence will endure, and Islam remains attainable. The Qaim, may Allah hasten his return, chose occultation to fulfill this purpose. If existence is the body of the Imam, it is the body of the eternal Imam, the current of infallibility that imbues the physical form of each Imam. To exist is to die, there is no greater certainty. Within the body of the Imam and through devotion to the way, which is their way, we become immersed within the essence of that body. The tragedies and sufferings of the Ahlul Bayt (as) become integral parts of our own essence, and life’s purpose becomes clear.