have continually believed that certain individuals might be the best—or among the best—people of their age, yet they never applied to them these titles for which Allah has sent down no proof. Indeed, some who appropriate such names even claim that the first of the qutbs was al-Hasan ibn ʿAlī ibn Abī Ṭālib (may Allah be pleased with them both), after which the rank slipped down to others until it reached a few late-coming shaykhs. This contention is unsound, whether according to the doctrine of Ahl al-Sunnah or even that of the Rāfiḍīs. Where, then, do Abu Bakr, ʿUmar, ʿUthmān, ʿAlī, and the earliest vanguard of the Emigrants and Helpers stand in all of this? At the time of the Prophet’s death—peace and blessings be upon him and his household—al-Hasan was only on the verge of discernment and puberty.

It has likewise been reported from certain prominent shaykhs who espouse this view that “the qutb, the solitary, the all-encompassing ghawth” possesses knowledge that matches Allah’s knowledge and power.