Ma`rifat Kalami

One of the Shiite arguments for the Imamate of Amir al-Mu’minin Ali ibn Abi Talib and his immediate succession to the Prophet is the reference to verse 33 of Surah Al-Ahzab (the verse of purification). Analyzing this verse, Shiite scholars believe that the Prophet’s family, including Amir al-Mu’minin, Hazrat Fatima, Imam Hassan, and Imam Hussein, are all infallible, and logically an Imam must be infallible; therefore, Amir al-Mu’minin is the successor to the Prophet. Faisal Noor is a contemporary scholar who has questioned this argument in his book ““Al-Imāmah wa al-Naṣṣ”. He critiques the meaning of Ahlul Bayt, infallibility, creative will, the inclusion of other Imams in the verse, the Imamate of Hazrat Zahra, etc. Using Shia and Sunni sources, the descriptive-analytical method and the critical approach, this library research attempts to refute Faisal Noor’s objections to the Shīʿa interpretation of the Verse of Purification and reaffirm the doctrinal coherence of Shīʿa arguments.