Question:
Assalamualikum!
My first question is that, does Allah have more than one khalifah?
And my second question is that as khalifah of Allah what are our roles and duty? Thank you! And may you pray for my family to be with Imam Mahdi (a) and for us to be in his army.
Jazakallah khayr!
Answer:
There are three senses for khalifa: (i) Prophetic inheritor in the sense of the major wilaya, (ii) political leader, and (iii) truthful believer.
In the first sense those who receive khilafa are the Prophetic inheritors referred to in Surat al-Nur verse 55 in the plural and their attributes and conditions are described there:
الصَّالِحَاتِ لَيَسْتَخْلِفَنَّهُم فِي الْأَرْضِ كَمَا اسْتَخْلَفَ
الَّذِينَ مِن قَبْلِهِمْ وَلَيُمَكِّنَنَّ لَهُمْ دِينَهُمُ الَّذِي ارْتَضَى لَهُمْ
وَلَيُبَدِّلَنَّهُم مِّن بَعْدِ خَوْفِهِمْ أَمْنًا يَعْبُدُونَنِي لَا يُشْرِكُونَ بِي
شَيْئًا وَمَن كَفَرَ بَعْدَ ذَلِكَ فَأُوْلَئِكَ هُمُ الْفَاسِقُونَ
“… Then there will be those who call to misguidance. If Allah at that time has a vicegerent on earth that lashes you on the back and seizes your property stay with him; or else die biting hard on the trunk of a tree.” Hudhayfa said: “Then what happens?” He replied: “Dajjal will come out after that…” Narrated by Ahmad and Abu Dawud with a sound chain.
ثُمَّ تَنْشَأُ دُعَاةُ الضَّلَالَةِ فَإِنْ كَانَ لِلهِ يَوْمَئِذٍ فِي الْأَرْضِ خَلِيفَةٌ جَلَدَ ظَهْرَكَ وَأَخَذَ مَالَكَ فَالْزَمْهُ، وَإِلَّا فَمُتْ وَأَنْتَ عَاضٌّ عَلَى جِذْلِ شَجَرَةٍ. قَالَ: قُلْتُ: ثُمَّ مَاذَا؟ قَالَ: يَخْرُجُ الدَّجَّالُ بَعْدَ ذَلِكَ… الحديث. رواه وأبو داود وأحمد بإسناد صحيح،
وعند الأخير: فَإِنْ رَأَيْتَ يَوْمَئِذٍ خَلِيفَةَ اللهِ فِي الْأَرْضِ فَالْزَمْهُ وَإِنْ نَهَكَ جِسْمَكَ وَأَخَذَ مَالَكَ فَإِنْ لَمْ تَرَهُ فَاهْرَبْ فِي الْأَرْضِ وَلَوْ أَنْ تَمُوتَ وَأَنْتَ عَاضٌّ بِجِذْلِ شَجَرَةٍ. قَالَ: قُلْتُ: ثُمَّ مَاذَا؟ قَالَ: ثُمَّ يَخْرُجُ الدَّجَّالُ
In the third sense al-Hasan al-Basri related that the Prophet (upon him blessings and peace) said: “Whoever commands good and forbids wrongdoing is the vicegerent of Allah on His earth and the vicegerent of His Messenger and the vicegerent of His Book.” Al-Qurtubi mentions it in his Tafsir; and Imam Ahmad narrated in his Kitab al-Zuhd that Ahmad al-Sulami said: “I read in one of the books of wisdom: ‘Listen quietly to the needy until he is finished then answer him with mercy, treat the orphan like a merciful father, and defend the oppressed: perhaps you will be the vicegerent of Allah on His earth.'”
Hajj Gibril Haddad
