Examination of the Concept of Asking for God’s Pardon in Sahifat al-Sajjadiyya

علوم قرآن و حدیث

Article 2, Volume 43, Issue 1 - Serial Number 86, June 2011   

Document Type: Research Article

DOI: 10.22067/naqhs.v43i1.11832

Authors

Sayyid Murtaza Husayni Shahrudi^* ; Fahimeh Shari’ati

Abstract

One of most frequently stated phrases of Sahifat al-Sajjadiyya is related to repentance and asking for God’s pardon for the sins that
are not only incompatible with the infallibility of Imam al-Sajjad (A.S.) but are inconsistent with ordinary human beings as well. This article intends to bring up and study some of the solutions for the above-mentioned enigma. On this basis, in explanation of the conflict erupted between the infallibility of the Imam and confession to sins in supplications, the phrases related to the discussion are divided into two categories: The first consists of some phrases that because of their content are not to be attributed to the Infallible Imam (A.S.); it seems that the supplication of the Infallible (ma’sum) and his confession to sins in these cases is related to other human beings as the existential rank of the Infallible Imam (A.S.) and not to the specific presence of his holiness. The second, includes the supplications in which the kind of confession to sins is not in conflict with the Infallibility of the chosen friends of Allah since the sin in the conventional sense of the word is not implied from it; because the slightest distance from God and preoccupation with other than Allah, and as such not the kind of distance and preoccupation that are more or less common among other human beings, is regarded insolent and as an unforgivable sin towards the Glory of the Lord, and eventually making any proclamation is regarded as if standing up against Allah, the Almighty, for which the Imam asks for His pardon.
Keywords: Sahifat al-Sajjadiyya, the Infallible Imam (A.S.), asking for God’s pardon, Perfect Human Being, existential ranks, Glory of the Lord.