Ulu l-'Azm: Difference between revisions

'''Ulu l-'Azm''' (Arabic: {{ia|أولو العَزم}}, literally: the determined or steadfast) refers to a group of [[prophets]]. The term has occurred once in the [[Qur'an]], [[Sura al-Ahqaf]], verse 35. Different views have been proposed about the instances of “Ulu l-'Azm” prophets and whether they have a global mission or a more local one. It is widely held that the term refers to the five prophets who had their own [[sharia]]: [[Noah (a)]], [[Abraham (a)]], [[Moses (a)]], [[Jesus (a)]], and [[Muhammad (a)]].

“Ulu” means possessors or owners, and “'Azm” means steadfastness or strong will. In his ''[[al-Mufradat]]'', [[al-Raghib al-Isfahani]] says: “'Azm” means the determination to do something. three views have been proposed as to the meaning of “Ulu l-'Azm” and the prophets to whom the term refers:

* Patient: some people take “'Azm” to mean patience (or steadfastness), and thus, they believe that “Ulu l-'Azm” prophets are called so because they were patient in the face of difficulties and troubles on their way to propagate divine rulings. The view might be supported by the Verse of Ulu l-'Azm because in this verse, patience is referred to as a prominent characteristic of these prophets.

* Holders of a Pledge: some people appeal to the verse and some [[hadiths]] to take “'Azm” to mean pledge or promise. They have also appealed to some other Quranic verses, such as [[Sura al-Ahzab]], verse 7, which points to a pledge taken from great prophets such as Noah, Abraham, Moses, Jesus, and Muhammad, peace be upon them. Some [[exegetes]] of the Qur'an hold that the pledge in this verse is a particular pledge tied to the [[prophethood]] of these prophets, but the five prophets are singled out because of their being “Ulu l-'Azm” and owners of a new sharia. If “'Azm” is taken to mean pledge, then “Ulu l-'Azm” prophets will be those from whom God has taken the pledge of absolute obedience or the pledge for the [[wilaya]] of the Prophet (s) and his [[Ahl al-Bayt (a)]].

* Owners of Sharia: some other exegetes have appealed to some Quranic verses and hadiths to interpret “Ulu l-'Azm” as referring to prophets who had their own Books and sharia. A significant such Quranic verse is the verse 13 of [[Sura Shura]] in which God has referred to these prophets as prophets with sharia. [['Allama Tabataba'i]] writes in his interpretation of this verse in which the five prophets are mentioned: “divine sharias and religions based on [[revelation]] are limited to the ones mentioned in this verse, that is, the sharia of Noah, Abraham, Moses, Jesus, and Muhammad, God’s peace be upon them, because if there was another sharia, it should have been mentioned in the context of showing that Islam is the most comprehensive sharia”. The idea is also supported by some hadiths. For example, [[Imam al-Rida (a)]] was asked why some prophets were Ulu l-'Azm, and he replied: “because Noah was sent by God with a book and a sharia, and everyone after him acted upon his book, his sharia, and his practice, until Abraham appeared with a new book and [[Suhuf]], and so every prophet after him acted upon his sharia. And then Moses came and brought [[Torah]] which was a new book, and then the [[Christ]] came with his [[Gospel]] as a new sharia. Until the period of the Prophet of Islam, everyone acted upon the sharia of Jesus. The Prophet of Islam came with the Qur'an and a new sharia whose [[halal]] and [[haram (fiqh)|haram]] will remain in force until the [[Resurrection]]. Some divine prophets did have divine books, but their books did not constitute new independent rulings and sharias, such as [[Adam]], [[Seth]], [[Idris]], and [[David]]. Thus, they were not Ulu l-'Azm.”

* Some prophets: the majority of exegetes maintain that only a specific number of prophets count as Ulu l-'Azm. Some of them take Ulu l-'Azm to refer to the 18 prophets mentioned in verse 82-90 of [[Sura al-An'am]]. After mentioning them, God says: “therefore follow their guidance”. Other exegetes appeal to some [[hadiths]] to restrict the number of Ulu l-'Azm prophets to 9, and others to 6 or 7. [['Allama Tabataba'i]] and other exegetes take Ulu l-'Azm prophets to be the five prophets who brought new sharias, that is, Noah, Abraham, Moses, Jesus, and Muhammad. They believe that there are [[mustafid]] hadiths supporting this view. However, others believe that the number of these hadiths is not such that they count as [[mutawatir]], and thus, they are not decisive, and Quranic verses do not decisively imply that prophets with new sharias were restricted to these five.

* The global mission of some: the mission of some Ulu l-'Azm prophets was not global. For example, Moses (a) and Jesus (a) were commissioned to guide only the [[Israelites]]. Some Quranic verses seem to support this view, such as “a messenger to the Children of Israel” ([[Sura Al 'Imran]]: 49) as well as other verses: [[Sura al-Saff]]: 6, [[Sura al-Isra']]: 101, [[Sura al-Shu'ara']]: 17, and [[Sura al-Ghafir]]: 53. Therefore, there is no correlation between a prophet being one of the Ulu l-'Azm (owner of a sharia) and his mission being global.