Occultation of Imam al-Mahdi (a)

The Occultation of Imam al-Mahdi refers to the belief that the last and twelve Shi'a Imam, who is the successor of the Noble Prophet (s), Imam Muhammad b. al-Hasan al-'Askari, also called, Imam al-Mahdi was disappeared. The occultation occurred with the permission and will of God and it is one of the basic and mandatory teachings of the Twelver Shi'a sect. As for the reason behind the occultation, the Hadiths have provided various reasons, testing the Shi'a is one of which.

According to Shi'a teachings, Imam al-Mahdi (aj) has had two occultations: The Minor Occultation, which took sixty nine years, and the Major Occultation, which continues to the present day. During the Minor Occultation, Imam al-Mahdi (aj) communicated with the Shi'a through four deputies, but during the Major Occultation this communication does not exits and the Shi'a must refer to the scholars for their religious needs.

In order to explain occultation, Shi'a researchers have written numerous books on the issue, the most famous of which are Nu'mani's book on Occultation (Ghaybat al-Nu'mani) and al-Shaykh al-Tusi's Book on Occultation (Ghaybat al-Tusi).

Defining the Topic

According to Shi'a belief, God never leaves the earth without his authority, the ultimatum, and infallible Imam. After the martyrdom of the eleventh Imam (a) in 260, the twelfth Imam, Mohammad ibn Hasan 'Askari, who was born in 255 inherited the position. By God's understanding and his will, the twelfth Imam disappeared from sight in 329, although he is still alive and shall reappear one day to free the world from the violence and injustice that fills it, in order to place justice and fairness instead.

Lexical Definition

The word غَيْبَة roots from the Arabic letters غ ـ ی ـ ب through the singular three-lettered infinitive. Its definition is opposite to presence and is used to convey disappearance from sight and camouflage.

The Minor Occultation

Minor Occultation is the period of time when Imam Mahdi (a) was in occultation after his father's martyrdom, in 260, to 329. The Imam (a) helped his followers spiritually, and guided them through his deputies, who are called the Four Deputies.

Major Occultation

The Major Occultation is the period when Imam al-Mahdi (a) went into the second phase of his occultation after the death of his fourth deputy. There is no interval between Minor Occultation and Major Occultation, and only difference is that contrary to the period of Minor Occultation, in this period Imam (a) has no specific deputy and Shi'a people should refer to the scholars for their religious affairs. The Occultation is devided into two period to show the lack of connection with Imam al-Mahdi (a) in the second period.

According to Shi'a belief, although the Imam is in occultation but the world and those in it all benefit from the blessing of his existence. In other words, the world needs an Imam who has been chosen by God in order to exist. This Imam does not just hold the legislative wilaya (al-wilaya al-tashri'iyya) of this world, but also has the creative wilaya (al-wilaya al-takwiniyya) as well. Therefore, some of the dominant Shi'a sources have a chapter on انَّ الْأَئِمَّةَ هُمْ أَرْكَانُ الْأَرْضِ which means, the Imams are the pillars of earth.

Representatives at the Age of Occultation

According to Shi'a teaching, it is obligatory that God positions an Imam. This belief results from two principles; Rational Good and Badness and the Principle of Grace. This is why the Imam, who has the duty to lead the worldly and religious lives of the human beings, must be chosen by God. At the era when the infallible and chosen Imam is not present in the community, the duty is put on the shoulders of the scholars whom have the conditions for this position to represent him. Leading the human race, according to the Shi'a, is a divine covenant and command, therefore, authority should be established from God, the Prophet, and the infallible successors who have been chosen by God.

Reasons and Philosophy of Occultation

Shia researchers believe that all the reasons and secrets for the occultation are not known, but the hadith emphasize on three things:

1. To Test the Faithful

Based on Islamic sources, testing the creation and choosing the righteous ones of them, is one of the constant traditions of God. Life is full of tests for the pious whom use it to nurture their faith, patience and obeying of God's commands and reach perfection by flourishing their talents and abilities. Imam Mahdi's occultation is a means to test; as the facade falls from the people with instable belief, their doubts and uncertainty shall take over, while those whose belief has rooted into their hearts, shall become more experienced and worthy in faith and reach higher levels of piousness and divine reward, as they bear through the troubles of time, awaiting the Imam. A narration from Imam Musa ibn Ja'far (a) clearly expresses that God tests his creation, by occultation. The troubles of this test are for two reasons:

First: When the period of occultation becomes lengthy, many people will face doubts and uncertainties. Some will doubt his birth, while others question whether he is still alive, but only the honest who have already passed their previous tests and have reached deep understanding will preserve their belief about the Imam. In a long hadith, the Noble Prophet (s) mentions this issue and says, “Mahdi shall disappear from the sight of the Shi'a and his followers, and no one shall stay stable on their belief, except those who God has put their hearts on the path of faith, and made it worthy.” Second: The troubles and pressures of the end of times will change the people to the extent that preserving faith and religion shall be a hard objective to achieve. The faith which the people hold will be seriously in danger.

2. To Save the Imam's Life

A loot into some narrations suggests that God saved the Imam from the danger of being killed, by occultation, for had he appeared from the very beginning of his life, he would have been killed. Based on the same logic, if he appears before the time is right, his life will be in danger and shall fail to fulfill his Godly objectives and the great reformations he was created to make.

3. Being Free from Accepting the Leadership of the Illegitimate Ruler

According to some narrations, the twelfth Imam shall not recognize any oppressive government, even as a dissimulation. He is not obliged to perform Taqiyya for any leader or king, and shall not live under the flag of any oppressor. He will perform God's rulings with no compromise, concern, or secrecy. In other words, he will be in occultation until he rises and thus be free from allegiance or loyalty to any leader or government.