Verses of Wilayah in the Researches of the Two Sects: Specious arguments and Answers

Throughout history, Shi'ah has been relying on the Quran, Prophetic tradition and reason in adhering to the school of Ahlul-Bay (AS) and in following and proving their righteousness. The verses of wilayah (guardianship) are among the verses Shi'ah has used to substantiate the immediate leadership of the Commander of the Faithful, Ali (AS) after the Holy Prophet of Islam (S). However, some Sunnis who are bent on following the Amawid and Abbasid policies concerning the Ahlul-Bayt (AS) have raised spurious arguments which have been dealt with and answered firmly by scholars who research in jurisprudence, theology and exegesis. According to Imamiyah researchers, the following two verses i.e. "Only Allah is your Vali and His Messenger and those who believe, those who keep up prayers and pay the poor-rate while they bow, And whoever takes Allah and His messenger and those who believe for a guardian, then surely the party of Allah are they that shall be triumphant" are clear proof of Ali's immediate leadership because these verses are so clear in their signification of the imamate intended by Imamiyah that no room is left for any doubt. But Sunnis trying to politicize the issue have been misinterpreting the verse saying that the verse signifies wajib-e kifaee (i.e., it is obligatory on every Muslim but as soon as it is performed correctly by one of them, it does not remain obligatory on others). They are casting doubt against the explicit meaning of the verses of wilayah sometimes questioning their significations and at times distorting the meanings of the words. They also sometimes present other justifications about the contexts of the verses and at times they say that the Commander of the Faithful and the Infallible Imams (AS) did not make recourse to these verses to prove their leadership. The most important proof of our claim is that the Commander of the Faithful, Ali (AS) and other Infallible Imams (AS) constantly made reference to these verses while addressing their opponents and objecting to them.
The present study benefits from research works, hadith books, theological, exegetical and biographical sources of both sects about the verses of wilayah to prove the immediate leadership of the Commander of the Faithful, Ali (AS). It has made mention of the Imam's argument by making recourse to these verses, thus rejecting and criticizing the spurious arguments of the opponents using descriptive –analytical method and relying on authentic sources.