Joining the Righteous

Prophet Abraham, who is counted among the righteous: “And We delivered him and Lot to the land which We had blessed for all people. And We granted him Isaac and Jacob in addition, and all [of them] We made righteous”(229). He appeals to God Almighty: “My Lord, grant me wisdom and join me with the righteous”(230). A similar prayer is reported from Prophet Joseph; at the end of his life, he called upon God Almighty in this way: “My Lord, You have given me [something] of sovereignty and taught me of the interpretation of dreams. Creator of the heavens and earth, You are my protector in this world and in the Hereafter. Cause me to die a Muslim and join me with the righteous”(231).

Human righteousness is one of the existential perfections, and the perfections of existence, like existence itself, have levels. Therefore, righteousness has degrees, and the righteous have different ranks. Some righteous individuals are at such a high level that prophets like Abraham and Joseph desire to join them. This is like the Noble Messenger (s.a.w.) who was under the special guardianship of God Almighty and said: “Indeed, my guardian is God who has sent down the Book, and He is the guardian of the righteous”(232). The essence of these individuals is righteous, and nothing but righteousness emanates or appears from them. Since righteous deeds originate from them, and every source is superior to what emanates from it, they give honor and dignity to that righteous deed, rather than deriving honor from it. As the Commander of the Faithful (a.s.) said: “The doer of good is better than the good deed itself” (fāʿil al-khayr khayrun minhu)(233). According to rational principles, it has also been stated and confirmed that every doer and influencer is stronger than their action and effect. This is because the doer is the source of that action, and the action is the effect of that doer. Of course, the intention is that, for example, those who pray and fast are superior to their prayer and fasting, not to the reality and secret of prayer and fasting, which may have a celestial existence superior to that of the ordinary person who prays and fasts.

Being righteous in essence is different from having righteous deeds, and having righteous deeds is more general than whether the essence of the doer is constituted by righteousness or not. Those in whom righteousness has not taken root in their souls to the extent that it has become their essential form, even if they have righteous deeds, may be at risk of error and slipping at any moment.

God Almighty responded positively to the prayer of Abraham (a.s.) and in answering that request said: He is among the righteous in the Hereafter: “We chose him in this world, and in the Hereafter he will be among the righteous,” “We gave him Isaac and Jacob and placed in his descendants prophethood and scripture. We gave him his reward in this world, and in the Hereafter he will be among the righteous,”(234) “We gave him good in this world, and in the Hereafter he will be among the righteous.”(235) In this noble verse, a distinction is made between good (ḥasana) and righteousness (ṣalāḥ), with the former considered Abraham’s worldly portion and the latter his portion in the Hereafter, while for some individuals, there is talk of enjoying good in both this world and the Hereafter: “Our Lord, give us good in this world and good in the Hereafter.”(236)

Since this world is also a place for the manifestation of righteousness, the secret of emphasizing Abraham’s joining the righteous in the Hereafter cannot be solely understood as that place being where his righteousness is manifested, because there the righteousness of all righteous people is manifested, and this manifestation is not exclusive to specific individuals.

The aforementioned difference and emphasis seems to suggest that a group of purely righteous and completely virtuous individuals have reached such a high status that these kinds of God’s friends, who are among the righteous, desire to join them, and God Almighty will join His friends to that special group of the righteous on the Day of Resurrection. Therefore, just as not all prophets are of the same rank: “Those messengers_—_some of them We caused to exceed others”(237), “We have made some of the prophets exceed others”(238), not all the truthful ones, martyrs, and righteous are the same.

God Almighty has described both the qualities and characteristics of the righteous, as well as some examples of those who practice righteousness, and has also introduced those who are among the righteous. For instance, in describing the gathering of those who obey God and the Messenger, or those who have truly been blessed, He said: “And whoever obeys God and the Messenger_—_those will be with the ones upon whom God has bestowed favor of the prophets, the steadfast affirmers of truth, the martyrs and the righteous. And excellent are those as companions.”(239) Based on the principle that “detailed explanation precludes partnership,” the separate mention of various aspects such as prophethood, being truthful, being a witness to deeds, and being righteous, is evidence of the difference and separation of these qualities and aspects from one another, although they all have a common aspect and the combination of all of them in the perfect human being, who is the comprehensive existence, is possible, even necessary.

In any case, whoever becomes one of the righteous, whether in this world or in the Hereafter, is included in the greetings of all those who pray throughout the world until the Day of Resurrection, for everyone says at the end of their prayer: “Peace be upon us and upon the righteous servants of God.”