and Abraham, Allah’s close friend, is the forefather of the Messenger of Allah—may Allah bless him and grant him peace—and your father is Abraham; thus your name matches his name, and your father’s name matches his father’s name.”
Nevertheless, despite their ignorance and errors, these people were better than the awaited imam of the Rāfidah. They bring benefits (1) that the awaited imam of the Rāfidah does not bring, and they have not caused as much harm as he has. Indeed, the harm caused by the awaited imam of the Rāfidah is greater than theirs (2).
[Section: The second argument—his statement that every age must have an infallible imam and that none but these are infallible—and its refutation]
Section
The Rāfidī said (3):
“Second: We (4) have already shown that there must be an infallible imam in every age, and that, by consensus, none but these are infallible” (5).
The response has several aspects:
First: We reject (6) the first premise, as explained earlier.
Second: Various groups reject their second premise (7).
(1) N, M, S: bihi (“through him”), which is incorrect.
(2) N: wa-lam yahsul bihim mina al-darar illā mā hasala bi-muntazar al-Rāfidah aktharu minhu (“No harm resulted from them except that which was exceeded by the harm resulting from the awaited imam of the Rāfidah”). M: lam yahsul lahum mina al-darar illā mā hasala bi-muntazar al-Rāfidah aktharu minhu (“They suffered no harm except that which was exceeded by the harm resulting from the awaited imam of the Rāfidah”). S: wa-lam yahsul bihim mina al-darar illā mā hasala bi-muntazar al-Rāfidah, bal mā hasala bi-muntazar al-Rāfidah mina al-darar aktharu minhu (“No harm resulted from them except that which resulted from the awaited imam of the Rāfidah; rather, the harm resulting from the awaited imam of the Rāfidah was greater”). The correct reading is the one I have adopted from B.
(3) In K, p. 193 (M).
(4) K: annahu (“that he/it”).
(5) K: hāʾulāʾ—ʿalayhimu al-salām—ijmāʿan (“these—peace be upon them—by consensus”).
(6) N, S: namnaʿu (“we reject”); B: namnaʿu (“we reject”).
(7) The meaning here is that some Shia groups reject the Twelvers’ position and maintain that there are infallible imams other than the twelve imams.