The best of people are those of my era, then those after, then those after them

I used to firmly believe that the fall of the Religious Authority ruling over the Shia was fixed and the countries of the region would shortly find relief from its nightmare. However, I now believe, and so will it remain, that the freedom of the Shia from this hardship and subsequently the freedom of the countries of the region from the ill effects of the Religious Authority, is entirely dependent on changing the mindset of the naïve masses of the Shia Imamiyyah and them treading the path of reformation, which I outlined in my book al Shia wa al Tashih [1] and the book ‘Aqidat al Shia al Imamiyyah fi ‘Asr al A’immah wa Ba’dahum. The reason being that the Religious Authority ruling over the Shia has exploited these innovations and rituals for their personal benefit, becoming a source of strengthening their authority, all carried out by the simple-minded Shia public. As long as these innovations remain in the Shia belief structure, it will allow any person who takes over the Religious Authority in the future to exploit them. Examples of the Religious Authority’s exploitation of these innovations can be found throughout Shia history. Sometimes the ruling parties collapse and just parties take its place, but it does not last for very long. Suddenly, there is a religious party that comes into power and takes advantage of the prevalent innovations all over again and, in this way, it continues. This proves that the foundation of the movement is not the Religious Authority but rather the innovations and those who believe in them. Undoubtedly, the primary outcome of this reformation will be putting an end to these conflicts and anything that taints the purity of the Muslim Ummah. It will include uniting the Muslims upon such a cause that would fly in the face of the colonial Superpowers politics of divide and rule. There is nothing worse and more destructive to the aspirations of those who seek to destroy Islam and benefit from religious differences than unity in Islamic ranks and unity of the Muslim Ummah. No doubt, Reformation will secure this unity. We have established previously that the western and eastern colonial powers have benefited from the differences which the Religious Authority has introduced in the area; from Muslims killing Muslims, the threats they unleash day and night on the neighbouring countries since they took power, and reviving sectarian differences which are the salient features of the Ruling Authority that preserves the interests of the colonial entities. These countries are not and will never be pleased with Muslim unity, which the Reformation Movement seeks to spread in the corners of the world. It is for this very reason that some countries in the region—which assisted and continue to assist the Shia Religious Authority—despite desiring unity and rightfully seeing it as a necessity for the countries of the region and for the Muslim Ummah, are unwilling to open the door for reformation and close all others behind it. At this juncture, I would like to state clearly, so that Islamic history will bear testimony, that had I written in place of my book on Shia and Reformation—which emphasises the need for Muslim unity, elevating their status, and would relieve the Shia and the other Islamic schools from the bitter struggle that has plagued them for 1200 years—a book on disunity which would fan the flames of sectarianism and spread disunity amongst the believers—pitting the Shia against the Ahlus Sunnah and the Ahlus Sunnah against the Shia—then, by Allah, it would have been published in the millions and it would have reached the hands of everyone in the region. The media would have spoken about it in such a manner that would increase the sand in moisture and the fire in flames. The mighty colonial Superpowers would have applauded this book, encouraged its circulation, and promoted its distribution. Nonetheless, I do not blame the other countries of the region because the Shia uniting with the Ahlus Sunnah and establishing Islamic unity is a far cry from differences and sectarian calls, but is rather a call to live under the banner of Islam in the same manner as the Muslims lived in the era of the Messenger of Allah salla Llahu ‘alayhi wa sallam, the pious predecessors, and the Imams. This opposes the interests of the powers who reign over the interests of the people and the Islamic world. I do not wish to add more than what has been said, as I do not wish to delve into the political conflict in any way. The intelligent person will be able to sufficiently understand from an indication alone. [1] An English translation of this book can be downloaded from https://archive.org/details/shiahacriticalrevision/mode/2up

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