Grand Ayatollah Shirazi explains reason for not using name of Imam al-Hujjah, peace be upon him
The daily scholarly meeting of Grand Ayatollah Seyyed Sadegh al-Hosseini al-Shirazi was held on Tuesday, the 10th of Rabi al-Awwal. In this session, like the previous meetings, the Marja answered the questions of the attendees about various jurisprudential issues.
Grand Ayatollah Shirazi said: “Some hadiths have clearly advised that the name of Imam al-Hujjah should not be mentioned explicitly during the minor occultation, because the enemies thought that Imam Hasan al-Askari, peace be upon him, passed away and left no children. So, if the name is mentioned, Imam al-Hujjah would be recognized by his enemies.”
His Eminence pointed out a hadith instructing that the name of the 12th Imam should not be mentioned explicitly during the minor occultation, and said: “The reason for this advice has been stated in the hadith as follows: “Wa illa lawaqa’a al-talab,” i.e. “otherwise he will be persecuted”, as the enemies were looking for the heir of Imam Hasan al-Askari (peace be upon him) to find and kill him.
He also went on to say: Mentioning the name of Imam al-Hujjah, peace be upon him, during the minor occultation, would cause the Shiites to be persecuted during the pursuit and search for him. So, the hadith says you should not mention his name, because enemies were looking for him. Therefore, titles such as Sahib Al-Dar have been used for Imam al-Mahdi, peace be upon him, and the reason for not using his name during the period of the minor occultation was to protect his existence from the evil of enemies and save the lives of Shiites.
